The importance of carotid artery stiffness and increased intima-media thickness in obese children

Background. Atherosclerosis that starts in childhood invariably advances during adulthood. Aim. We aimed to study the effect of obesity on main carotid artery intima-media thickness and arterial stiffness. Material and methods. A total of 78 children were studied from October 2010 to February 2011. They were divided into obese (42 – group 1) and normal (36 – group 2). All the children were subjected to physical examination, routine biochemical and haematological analysis, carotid ultrasonography and echocardiographic measurements. A detailed medical history was obtained. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated by dividing participants’ weight in kilograms by the square of their height in metres. Stiffness index β was calculated using blood pressure and diameter of the systolic and diastolic artery. Intima-media thickness was also measured. Results. The mean age of the obese and normal (control) groups were 10.12±2.12 years and 9.78±1.78 years respectively. Weight, BMI, and systolic and and diastolic blood pressure values were significantly higher in the obese group (all

DNA Repair Gene Polymorphism and the Risk of Mitral Chordae Tendineae Rupture

Polymorphisms in Lys939Gln XPC gene may diminish DNA repair capacity, eventually increasing the risk of carcinogenesis. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the significance of polymorphism Lys939Gln in XPC gene in patients with mitral chordae tendinea rupture (MCTR). Twenty-one patients with MCTR and thirty-seven age and sex matched controls were enrolled in the study. Genotyping of XPC gene Lys939Gln polymorphism was carried out using polymerase chain reaction-(PCR-) restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP). The frequencies of the heterozygote genotype (Lys/Gln-AC) and homozygote genotype (Gln/Gln-CC) were significantly different in MCTR as compared to control group, respectively (52.4% versus 43.2%, = 0.049; 38.15% versus 16.2%, = 0.018). Homozygote variant (Gln/Gln) genotype was significantly associated with increased risk of MCTR (OR = 2.059; 95% CI: 1.097-3.863; = 0.018). Heterozygote variant (Lys/Gln) genotype was also highly significantly associated with increased risk of MCTR (OR = 1.489; 95% CI: 1.041-2.129; = 0.049). The variant allele C was found to be significantly associated with MCTR (OR = 1.481; 95% CI: 1.101-1.992; = 0.011). This study has demonstrated the association of XPC gene Lys939Gln polymorphism with MCTR, which is significantly associated with increased risk of MCTR

Smoking Determinants in Turkish University Students

The aim was to explore the prevalence and the correlates of smoking in a group of Turkish university students. A sample of 1,870 students (21.2 ± 2.0 years old) completed the Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Hopelessness Scale, Anxiety Sensitivity Index, 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale. Smoking was highly prevalent (35.9%) in this sample. Male gender (OR = 2.72, CI 2.15–3.44), and parental smoking (OR = 1.41, CI 1.13–1.78) were factors associated with increased likelihood of smoking. Higher depressive symptoms and hopelessness levels were significantly related to smoking behavior. Smoking behavior might initiate as a mild and transient habit and unfortunately could become more serious and lead to an actual dependence. The results of this study show that it is necessary to pay attention to levels of depression and hopelessness, as well as parental influence

Corneal topographic changes in premenopausal and postmenopausal women

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To asses the effect of menopause on the corneal curvature changes using corneal computerized videokeratography (CVK) in premenopausal and postmenopausal healthy women.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Thirty-six postmenopausal women with mean ages of 49.2 (range 39 to 57) were enrolled in this randomized, prospective study, comparing with 26 healthy controls with mean ages of 38.5 +/- 4.9 (range 32 to 49). Subjects were determined to be postmenopausal, by the Gynecology and Obstetrics Department, based on blood Follicular Stimulating Hormone (FSH), Luteinizing Hormone (LH), Estradiol, Progesterone levels and clinical complaints. Complete ophthalmic examination and CVK using Haag-Streit System was performed in both premenopausal and postmenopausal women.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Mean horizontal curvature and vertical curvature of central corneal power in premenopausal women were 43.5 +/- 1.25 Diopter (D), and 44.1 +/- 1.53 D. Mean horizontal curvature and vertical curvature of central corneal power in postmenopausal women were 43.9 +/- 1.4 D, and 44.6 +/- 1.3 D. The mean keratometric astigmatisms of premenopausal and postmenopausal women were 0.81 +/- 0.57 D (4–179 degrees), 0.74 degrees +/- 0.5 D (1–180 degrees) respectively. No significant corneal curvature changes were detected between premenopausal and postmenopausal groups (P > 0.05). On the other hand, we only found negative but significant correlation between horizontal corneal curvature and estrogen level of postmenopausal women (r = -0.346, p = 0.038).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Menopause is physiologic process and may also affect corneal topographic changes. In postmenopausal women, corneal steeping was observed minimally compared to premenopausal women. The results suggest that changes in estrogen level of women with menopause are associated with slightly alteration of horizontal curvature of cornea.</p

Balance performance in three forms of multiple sclerosis

Objectives: To compare and document balance performance between patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and healthy control subjects and balance performance among patients with different MS forms using a set of clinical balance tests

Evaluation of efficacy of oral honey use in adult tonsillectomy patients

Post-tonsillectomy throat pain is one of the most common complication, which leading to delayed recovery and later hospital discharge. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of oral honey use on eating, condition and reducing pain with patients have applied tonsillectomy. The study included 72 patients (37 males, 35 females; mean age 26±4.16 years; range 18 to 36 years) who were applied tonsillectomy. Patients were randomized into two groups. The treatment group received postoperatively followed by oral consumption of honey three times daily for five days Patients pain, eating and condition situation was assessed with visual analog scale(VAS), and analgesic intake was recorded during five follow-up periods. There was no statistically different between two groups about postoperative pain at first three days. But the postoperative pain was statically significant less at honey group than the control group. There was also a significant decrease in the number of analgesics taken over the last three control periods in terms of the honey group. The eating situation was statically significant better in the honey group than the control group at all days. The patients condition was also better in the honey group at all days. The result of study, the early postoperative pain was relieved slightly faster in the honey + antibiotic group, which may be attributed to the soothing effect of honey. This situation improves the oral intake of the patients and shortens the recovery process in the postoperative period. [Med-Science 2019; 8(2.000): 360-4

Determinants of psychiatric disorders in children refugees in Turkey's Yazidi refugee camp

Objective: To examine the mental health states of a sample of Yazidi refugee children and adolescents who migrated from war-torn Iraq's Sinjar region and to determine the risk and protective factors for psychiatric disorders among the refugee children and adolescents. Method: The participants of this research were children and adolescents between ages 6 and 17 who live in a refugee camp in Turkey. Their parents/guardians provided written informed consents for the research. The research was approved by the Ethics Council of Sakarya University. Participants with intellectual disabilities and autism spectrum disorders were excluded from the study. Two child and adolescent psychiatrists speaking their native language interviewed and evaluated each of the participants. Collected data included socio-demographic information about previous and current living situations, Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children-Present and Lifetime - Turkish Version (K-SADS-PL). Results: One hundred and thirty-six children and adolescents (76 boys, 63 girls; mean age=11.05 +/- 3.11(SD)). At the time of the assessment, 43.4% had posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (n=59), 27.9% depression (n=38), 10.3% nocturnal enuresis (n=14), 9.6% behavioural problems (n=7), and 5.1% anxiety disorders (n=13). Conclusions: Many of the refugee children and adolescents had developed psychiatric disorders, or are at risk for PTSD and depression. Also, the ongoing ambiguity regarding their living conditions, interruption of their education, a lack of hope for the future and anxiety regarding the ones they left behind are considered to be risk factors for the development of psychiatric and social problems in the future. Living with family members and not having losses from the immediate family are protective factors

Socioeconomic indicators are strong predictors of hepatitis A seroprevalence rates in the Middle East and North Africa

The goal of this analysis was to examine the association between age-specific hepatitis A virus (HAV) seroprevalence rates and various socioeconomic indicators within the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. We conducted a systematic review of all recently published studies on HAV conducted in the MENA region and identified the highest quality studies for inclusion in our analysis. We calculated the age at midpoint of population immunity (AMPI) for each study and estimated seroprevalence rates at the ages of 5, 10, and 15 years. Next, we identified the correlations between these metrics and several socioeconomic variables. HAV data collected in or after 2000 were available for 14 of the 19 countries in the MENA region. Four of the 14 included countries had intermediate HAV endemicity (Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and UAE), five had high endemicity (Iran, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, and Tunisia), and five had very high endemicity (Egypt, Iraq, Palestine, Syria, and Yemen). Water and sanitation were not significant predictors of AMPI or seroprevalence, most likely because most countries in this region have high rates of access to these utilities. However, gross domestic product (GDP), gross national income (GNI), and the human development index (HDI) were all highly associated with AMPI and prevalence. The observed correlations suggest that of the MENA countries without recent HAV data, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar most likely have low endemicity, Oman likely has intermediate endemicity, and Libya likely has high endemicity. While it is unlikely that a single correlation model would be suitable for use in all world regions, the approach utilized in this analysis might provide a simple but accurate method for using economic data to impute the endemicity profiles of countries without recent data in regions where at least several neighboring countries have conducted recent serostudies. Keywords: Drinking water, Hepatitis A, Middle East and North Africa, Seroprevalence, Socioeconomic statu

Positional changes in voiding dynamics of children with non-neurogenic bladder dysfunction

OBJECTIVES To investigate the effect of certain positions on voiding dynamics in children with non-neurogenic bladder dysfunction

Comparative evaluation of the Brucella Coombs gel test in laboratory diagnosis of human brucellosis

Brucellosis is widespread among humans and animals. Diagnosis of brucellosis mostly depends on serological methods. Serological tests are preferred over time-consuming and hazardous bacterial cultures in routine laboratory practice. However, these tests are somehow challenging due to ‘incomplete/blocking antibodies’ that prevent agglutination. Brucella Coombs gel test (BCGT) is newly developed test that contains Coombs antibodies (anti-human IgG) in gel microtubes and depends on gel centrifugation methods for the serological diagnosis of brucellosis. Here, performance of the BCGT is compared with standard serum tube agglutination (STA), standard serum tube agglutination with Coombs (C-STA) and immune capture agglutination (Brucellacapt). In total, 78 positive samples for study group and 16 samples for the control group were enrolled in the study. The samples were tested at dilutions of 1:40–1:5120. Titres at 1:160 and above were considered positive for brucellosis, whereas those lower than 1:160 were considered negative. Excellent agreement levels were determined between BCGT test and C-STA (κ, 0.894; p < 0.001), and BCGT and Brucellacapt (κ, 0.802; p < 0.001), when the diagnostic titre was accepted as 1:160. BCGT is easy to apply and interpret and provides reliable titre results in less than 2 h. It is also advantageous for screening