Post COVID-19 irritable bowel syndrome

Objectives: The long-term consequences of COVID-19 infection on the gastrointestinal tract remain unclear. Here, we aimed to evaluate the prevalence of gastrointestinal symptoms and post-COVID-19 disorders of gut-brain interaction after hospitalisation for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Design: GI-COVID-19 is a prospective, multicentre, controlled study. Patients with and without COVID-19 diagnosis were evaluated on hospital admission and after 1, 6 and 12 months post hospitalisation. Gastrointestinal symptoms, anxiety and depression were assessed using validated questionnaires. Results: The study included 2183 hospitalised patients. The primary analysis included a total of 883 patients (614 patients with COVID-19 and 269 controls) due to the exclusion of patients with pre-existing gastrointestinal symptoms and/or surgery. At enrolment, gastrointestinal symptoms were more frequent among patients with COVID-19 than in the control group (59.3% vs 39.7%, p<0.001). At the 12-month follow-up, constipation and hard stools were significantly more prevalent in controls than in patients with COVID-19 (16% vs 9.6%, p=0.019 and 17.7% vs 10.9%, p=0.011, respectively). Compared with controls, patients with COVID-19 reported higher rates of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) according to Rome IV criteria: 0.5% versus 3.2%, p=0.045. Factors significantly associated with IBS diagnosis included history of allergies, chronic intake of proton pump inhibitors and presence of dyspnoea. At the 6-month follow-up, the rate of patients with COVID-19 fulfilling the criteria for depression was higher than among controls. Conclusion: Compared with controls, hospitalised patients with COVID-19 had fewer problems of constipation and hard stools at 12 months after acute infection. Patients with COVID-19 had significantly higher rates of IBS than controls. Trial registration number: NCT04691895

Determination of radiological hazard parameters in sea snails (Rapana venosa) in the East Black Sea Coast of Turkey

DALGIC, GOKTUG/0000-0001-8619-6160; Sirin, Murat/0000-0001-6864-752XWOS: 000448094200048PubMed: 30301056The aim of this study was to determine the activity concentrations and radiological hazard parameters of Cs-137 and K-40 in soft tissue samples of sea snails (Rapana venosa) collected from 12 different stations in the East Black Sea coastal area of Turkey. the values in soft tissues of sea snail samples with three different sizes were between 0.31 and 1.79 Bq kg(-1) for Cs-137 and 163.9 and 269.4 Bq kg(-1) for K-40. the mean activity concentrations of Cs-137 and K-40 in tissues of small-sized sea snails were determined to be higher than those of Cs-137 and K-40 in soft tissues of the other sizes. the determined activity concentration values were lower than the concentrations reported in similar studies. Radiological hazard parameters such as the daily intake (Dint) of Cs-137 and K-40, annual committed effective dose (E-eff), and lifetime cancer risk (LCR) were calculated and compared with the international recommended values.Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK)Turkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Arastirma Kurumu (TUBITAK) [113Y148, 117Y210]This work was supported by the Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) (CAYDAG, Project No.: 113Y148 and 117Y210) in 2013 and 2017

An overview of the ecological half-life of the Cs-137 radioisotope and a determination of radioactivity levels in sediment samples after Chernobyl in the Eastern Black Sea, Turkey

DALGIC, GOKTUG/0000-0001-8619-6160; Sirin, Murat/0000-0001-6864-752XWOS: 000414819800003A study which determined the activity concentration of Cs-137 in sediments contaminated by effluents from the Chernobyl accident which had collected along the coast of the Eastern Black Sea region in Turkey was carried out in 1993. Marine sediment samples were collected in 2015 from the same fifteen sampling points, and the activity concentrations of Ra-226, Th-232, K-40 and Cs-137 were determined for the sediment samples. the activity concentrations ranged from 10.94-25.95, 12.14-33.05, 265.74-459.89 and 2.08-37.45 Bq kg(-1) for Ra-226., Th-232, K-40 and Cs-137 respectively. the results showed that there was a steep decline in Cs-137 within the sediment at most of the sampling sites from the Eastern Black Sea region during the 22-year period, except for two sites at which the measured levels were much higher. This may be the result of the combined effects of radioactive contaminant entry into this area from rivers, environmental changes and nuclear testing between 1993 and 2015. Furthermore, the ecological half-life (EHL) of the Cs-137 radionuclide was estimated for the sediment samples, and radiological hazard parameters such as the absorbed dose rate in air (D), the annual effective dose equivalent (AEDE) and the excess lifetime cancer risk (ELCR) were calculated and compared with the international recommended values. It was shown that these sediments do not present any significant health risk for humans in this area.Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) (CAYDAG)Turkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Arastirma Kurumu (TUBITAK) [114Y652]This work was supported by the Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) (CAYDAG, Project No: 114Y652) in 2014

Assessment of metal concentrations (Cu, Zn, and Pb) in seawater, sediment and biota samples in the coastal area of Eastern Black Sea, Turkey

DALGIC, GOKTUG/0000-0001-8619-6160; Sirin, Murat/0000-0001-6864-752XWOS: 000408076900067PubMed: 28662979This study investigated the contents of Cu, Zn and Pb in seawater, sediment, different shell sizes of mussel (Mytilus galloprovinciaIis) and sea snail (Rapana venosa) samples collected from four different provinces of the Eastern Black Sea Region. With the exception of Zn, all the metal concentration values measured in the sea snail were observed to be higher than those of mussels in all stations. While the correlation between mussels and sea snail according to metal concentrations was found to be positive (p 0.05). Although the mean concentration values of Cu, Zn, and Pb for mussel and sea snail are significantly above the tolerable levels, the estimated daily intake values for mussel were below the daily intake recommended.Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) (CAYDAG)Turkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Arastirma Kurumu (TUBITAK) [113Y148]We are grateful to Professor Raif Kandemir for providing the graphical abstract. This work was supported by the Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) (CAYDAG, Project No: 113Y148)

Long-term results of Gamma Knife radiosurgery for facial nerve schwannomas

Objective Long-term outcomes of eleven cases of facial nerve schwannoma were evaluated and the related literature was reviewed to determine the efficacy of Gamma Knife radiosurgery for treating patients with facial nerve schwannoma. Methods Eleven patients with facial nerve schwannoma (7 women and 4 men; mean age, 44.2 years; range, 19-73 years) underwent Gamma Knife radiosurgery. The most common symptoms were facial palsy (n = 10) and hearing loss (n = 7). Five patients presented with headache. Two patients had undergone prior resection. The patients' clinical and radiographic data were evaluated retrospectively. Results For the 11 cases of facial nerve schwannoma, mean tumor volume was 3.1 cm(3) (range, 0.4-7.4 cm(3)) and the mean marginal dose applied was 11.9 Gy (range, 11-13 Gy). The mean follow-up period was 84.3 months (range, 66-117 months). Tumor control was achieved in all patients. At the time of writing, four patients experienced tumor volume regression and the other seven were in stable condition. During follow-up, nine patients experienced no change in their facial function, two experienced deteriorated facial function, and none developed new facial palsy. Ten patients who had serviceable hearing prior to Gamma Knife radiosurgery retained their hearing. Conclusions Gamma Knife radiosurgery achieves excellent results with respect to tumor control for 7 years on average. In addition, Gamma Knife radiosurgery provides good results in facial nerve and hearing function at long term. Our series demonstrates that Gamma Knife radiosurgery is an effective and safe treatment for patients with either primary or residual facial nerve schwannoma

Endoscopic submucosal dissection for premalignant lesions and noninvasive early gastrointestinal cancers

AIM: To investigate the indication, feasibility, safety, and clinical utility of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) in the management of various gastrointestinal pathologies

The efficacy and tolerability of glecaprevir/pibrentasvir treatment in a real-world chronic hepatitis C patients cohort

Background and Aim: The aims of the present study were to evaluate the real-life efficacy and tolerability of glecaprevir (GLE)/pibrentasvir (PIB) in the treatment of patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC). Materials and Methods: Between May 2019 and May 2022, 686 patients with CHC, treated with GLE/PIB combination from 21 participating centers in Turkiye, were enrolled in the study. Results: All patients were Caucasian, and their median age was 56 years. At the start of GLE/PIB treatment, the median serum Hepatitis C virus RNA and serum alanine amino transaminase (ALT) levels were 6.74 log10 IU/mL and 47 U/L, respectively. Fifty-three percent of the patients were infected with genotype 1b, followed by genotype 3 (17%). Diabetes was the more common concomitant disease. The sustained virological response (SVR12) was 91.4% with intent-to-treat analysis and 98.5% with per protocol analysis. The SVR12 rates were statistically significant differences between the patients who were i.v. drug users and non-user (88.0% vs. 98.8%, p=0.025). From the baseline to SVR12, the serum ALT levels and Model for End-Stage Liver Disease score were significantly improved (p<0.001 and p=0.014, respectively). No severe adverse effect was observed. Conclusion: GLE/PIB is an effective and tolerable treatment in patients with CHC

Prevalence of Gastrointestinal Symptoms in Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection: Results of the Prospective Controlled Multinational GI-COVID-19 Study

INTRODUCTION: Gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms in coronavirus-19 disease (COVID-19) have been reported with great variability and without standardization. In hospitalized patients, we aimed to evaluate the prevalence of GI symptoms, factors associated with their occurrence, and variation at 1 month. METHODS: TheGI-COVID-19 is a prospective,multicenter, controlled study. Patientswith and without COVID-19 diagnosis were recruited at hospital admission and asked for GI symptoms at admission and after 1 month, using the validated Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale questionnaire. RESULTS: The study included 2036 hospitalized patients. A total of 871 patients (575 COVID1and 296 COVID2) were included for the primary analysis. GI symptoms occurred more frequently in patients with COVID-19 (59.7%; 343/575 patients) than in the control group (43.2%; 128/296 patients) (P &lt; 0.001). Patients with COVID-19 complained of higher presence or intensity of nausea, diarrhea, loose stools, and urgency as compared with controls. At a 1-month follow-up, a reduction in the presence or intensity of GI symptoms was found in COVID-19 patients with GI symptoms at hospital admission. Nausea remained increased over controls. Factors significantly associated with nausea persistence in COVID-19 were female sex, high body mass index, the presence of dyspnea, and increased C-reactive protein levels. DISCUSSION: The prevalence of GI symptoms in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 is higher than previously reported. Systemic and respiratory symptoms are often associated with GI complaints. Nausea may persist after the resolution of COVID-19 infection