Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia for Heart Turkish Version Study: cross-cultural adaptation, exploratory factor analysis, and reliability

PURPOSE: Individuals with cardiac problems avoid physical activity and exercise because they expect to feel shortness of breath, dizziness, or chest pain. Assessing kinesiophobia related to heart problems is important in terms of cardiac rehabilitation. The Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia Swedish Version for the Heart (TSK-SV Heart) is reliable and has been validated for cardiac diseases in the Swedish population. The aim of this study was to investigate the reliability, parallel-form validity, and exploratory factor analysis of the TSK for the Heart Turkish Version (TSK Heart Turkish Version) for evaluating kinesiophobia in patients with heart failure and pulmonary arterial hypertension. METHODS: This cross-sectional study involved translation, back translation, and cross-cultural adaptation (localization). Forty-three pulmonary arterial hypertension and 32 heart failure patients were evaluated using the TSK Heart Turkish Version. The 17-item scale, originally composed for the Swedish population, has four factors: perceived danger for heart problem, avoidance of exercise, fear of injury, and dysfunctional self. Cronbach’s alpha (internal consistency) and exploratory factor analysis were used to assess the questionnaire’s reliability. Results of the patients in the 6-minute walk test, International Physical Activity Questionnaire, and Nottingham Health Profile were analyzed by Pearson’s correlation analysis with the TSK Heart Turkish Version to indicate the convergent validity. RESULTS: Cronbach’s alpha for the TSK Heart Turkish Version was 0.75, indicating acceptable internal consistency. Although exploratory factor analysis showed a different subgroup distribution than the original questionnaire, the model was acceptable for the four-factor model hypothesis. Therefore, the questionnaire was rated as reliable. CONCLUSION: These results supported the reliability of the TSK Heart Turkish Version. Since the acceptable four-factor model fits the subgroups and measures of reliability are sufficiently high, the questionnaire seems reliable for pulmonary arterial hypertension and heart failure patients

Small-molecule targeting of translation initiation for cancer therapy

Translation initiation plays a critical role in the regulation of cell growth and tumorigenesis. We report here that inhibiting translation initiation through induction of eIF2α phosphorylation by small-molecular-weight compounds restricts the availability of the eIF2·GTP·Met-tRNAi ternary complex and abrogates the proliferation of cancer cells in vitro and tumor growth in vivo. Restricting the availability of the ternary complex preferentially down-regulates the expression of growth-promoting proteins and up-regulates the expression of ER stress response genes in cancer cells as well as in tumors excised from either animal models of human cancer or cancer patients. These findings provide the first direct evidence for translational control of gene-specific expression by small molecules in vivo and indicate that translation initiation factors are bona fide targets for development of mechanism-specific anti-cancer agents

Determinants of respiratory muscle strength in adult bronchiectasis

AbstractBackground:&nbsp;Respiratory muscle strength is widely used as an outcome measure in pulmonary rehabilitation programs. It is known that bronchiectasis affects respiratory muscle strength which has a crucial role in the growth of symptoms and functional limitation. Therefore, it is important to identify the determinants of respiratory muscle strength in patients with non-cystic fibrosis (non-CF) bronchiectasis.Aim:&nbsp;To identify the determinants of respiratory muscle strength in patients with non-CF bronchiectasis.Methods:&nbsp;Forty-one patients with non-CF bronchiectasis were recruited in this cross-sectional study. Demographic and spirometric values were recorded. Maximal inspiratory pressure [MIP] and maximal expiratory pressure [MIP] were evaluated using an electronic mouth pressure device. Fat-free mass, exercise capacity, quadriceps strength, and physical activity were assessed.Results:&nbsp;The mean age of patients was 58.8 y. MIP and MEP were correlated with fat-free mass (MIP: r=0.507, p=0.001; MEP: r=0.669, p&lt;0.001), ISWT distance (MIP: r=0.374, p=0.01; MEP: r=0.396, p=0.01), quadriceps strength (MIP: r =0.511, p=0.001; MEP: r =0.508, p=0.001) and total energy expenditure (MIP: r=0.392, p=0.01; MEP: r=0.476, p=0.002). The multiple regression analysis revealed that fat-free mass and quadriceps strength were independent predictors of MIP, accounted for 32% of the variance. Fat-free mass was independent predictors of MEP, accounted for 45.9% of the variance.Conclusions:&nbsp;Fat-free mass and quadriceps strength were found as determinants of respiratory muscle strength in patients. Respiratory muscle strength may be increased by improving fat-free mass and quadriceps strength in adult non-CF bronchiectasis.</p

Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and renal functions in term small-for-gestational age children

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between birth weight and blood pressure (BP) by means of ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM) and renal functions in non-obese children who were born small-for-gestational age (SGA) at term. The study group consisted of 39 (19 female, 20 male; mean age 8.8 +/- 2.6 years) children born SGA. Their data were compared to those of 27 (13 female, 14 male; mean age 8.2 +/- 2.9 years) children born appropriate-for-gestational age (AGA). No difference between SGA and AGA children was observed based on office BP measurements and daytime, nighttime and 24-h ABPM. Seventeen SGA (48.6%) and nine AGA (37.5%) children had a 24-h systolic BP (SBP) load over 25%, and seven of these (5 SGA, 2 AGA) were hypertensive according to mean SBP values. The prevalence of the non-dipping phenomenon in SGA and AGA children was similar. Renal functions were normal and similar in both groups. Three children (2 SGA, 1 AGA) with normal glomerular filtration rate had higher microalbumin excretion and one SGA child had systolic hypertension according to the office BP. Our findings demonstrate that the influence of intrauterine growth restriction on BP is not manifested during the childhood period, and they do not support the existence of a negative relationship between birth weight and BP in children

Quality of life in children with chronic kidney disease (with child and parent assessments)

WOS: 000278951200013PubMed ID: 20383649Herein the results of a multicenter study from the Turkish Pediatric Kidney Transplantation Study Group are reported. The aims of this study were to compare the quality of life (QoL) scores of Turkish children who are dialysis patients (DP), renal transplant recipients (TR), and age-matched healthy controls and to compare child-self and parent-proxy scores. The Turkish versions of the Kinder Lebensqualitat Fragebogen (KINDLA (R)) questionnaires were used as a QoL measure. The study group consisted of 211 children and adolescents with chronic kidney disease (CKD) (139 TR and 72 DP aged between 4-18 years; 13.7 A +/- 3.5 years) from 11 university hospitals, 129 parents of these patients, 232 age-matched healthy children and adolescents (aged between 4-18 years; 13.1 +/- 3.5 years) and 156 of their parents. Patients with CKD had lower scores in all subscales except for physical well-being than those in the control group. TR had higher scores in physical well-being, self-esteem, friends' subscales, and total scores than DP. Child-self scores were lower than parent-proxy scores, especially in CKD, DP, and control groups. Concordance between parent-proxy and child-self reports in the TR, DP, CKD, and control groups was only moderate for the majority of subscales (r = 0.41-0.61). It was concluded that parent-proxy scores on the QoL were not equivalent to child-self scores and that evaluating both children's and parents' perspectives were important. Additionally, psychosocial counseling is crucial not only for patients with CKD but also for their parents

Embryonic Lethal Abnormal Vision-like HuR-dependent mRNA Stability Regulates Post-transcriptional Expression of Cyclin-dependent Kinase Inhibitor p27Kip1

The cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p27Kip1 plays a critical role in regulating entry into and exit from the cell cycle. Post-transcriptional regulation of p27Kip1 expression is of significant interest. The embryonic lethal abnormal vision (ELAV)-like RNA-binding protein HuR is thought be important for the translation of p27Kip1, however, different reports attributed diametrically opposite roles to HuR. We report here an alternative mechanism wherein HuR regulates stability of the p27Kip1 mRNA. Specifically, human and mouse p27Kip1 mRNAs interact with HuR protein through multiple U-rich elements in both 5′ and 3′ untranslated regions (UTR). These interactions, which occur in vitro and in vivo, stabilize p27Kip1 mRNA and play a critical role in its accumulation. Deleting HuR binding sites or knocking down HuR expression destabilizes p27Kip1 mRNA and reduces its accumulation. We also identified a CT repeat in the 5′ UTR of full-length p27Kip1 mRNA isoforms that interact with a ∼41-kDa protein and represses p27Kip1 expression. This CT-rich element and diffuse elements in the 3′ UTR regulate post-transcriptional expression of p27Kip1 at the level of translation. This is the first demonstration that HuR-dependent mRNA stability and HuR-independent mRNA translation plays a critical role in the regulation of post-transcriptional p27Kip1 expression

The frequency of and factors affecting functional gastrointestinal disorders in infants that presented to tertiary care hospitals

This study aimed to determine the prevalence of infantile functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) based on Rome IV diagnostic criteria, and to determine the associated patient demographic and nutritional characteristics. A total of 2383 infants aged 1-12 months which were evaluated by 28 general pediatricians and pediatric gastroenterologists on the same day at nine tertiary care hospitals around Istanbul, Turkey, between November 2017 and March 2018, were included in the study. Patients included consulted the pediatric outpatient clinics because of any complaints, but not for vaccines and/or routine well child follow-ups as this is not part of the activities in the tertiary care hospitals. The patients were diagnosed with FGIDs based on Rome IV diagnostic criteria. The patients were divided into a FGID group and non-FGID group, and anthropometric measurements, physical examination findings, nutritional status, risk factors, and symptoms related to FGIDs were evaluated using questionnaires. Among the 2383 infants included, 837 (35.1%) had >= 1 FGIDs, of which 260 (31%) had already presented to hospital with symptoms of FGIDs and 577 (69%) presented to hospital with other symptoms, but were diagnosed with FGIDs by a pediatrician. Infant colic (19.2%), infant regurgitation (13.4%), and infant dyschezia (9.8%) were the most common FGIDs. One FGID was present in 76%, and >= 2 FGIDs were diagnosed in 24%. The frequency of early supplementary feeding was higher in the infants in the FGID group aged <= 6 months than in the non-FGID group (P = 0.039)

Major and minor salivary gland cancers: A multicenter retrospective study

Background: Most of the studies on salivary gland cancers are limited for various reasons such as being single-center, small number of patients, including only major or minor SGCs, or only including epidemiological data. Methods: A total of 37 medical oncology clinics from different regions of Turkey participated in this retrospective-multicenter study. The analyzed data included clinical and demographical features, primary treatment, metastasis localizations, and treatments and includes certain pathologic features. Results: The study included data from a total of 443 SGCs. 56.7% was in major salivary glands and 43.3% was in minor salivary glands. Distant metastasis in the major SGCs was statistically significantly more common than in the minor SGCs, locoregional recurrence was statistically significantly more common in the minor SGCs than in the major SGCs (p = 0.003). Conclusions: Epidemiological information, metastasis and recurrence patterns, treatment modalities, and survival analysis of the patients over 20 years of follow-up are presented