The prognostic significance of serum TGF-?1 levels in patients with Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever

PubMed: 27467498Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) may exhibit a mild clinical course or a severe profile like mortal bleeding. The pathogenesis of the illness and reason of bleeding are unclear. However, endothelial injury is a key factor in the pathogenesis of the illness. Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-?) is one of the materials involved in repairing injured endothelium. This is a significant polypeptide released in pretty much all cells and important for the regulation of cellular events, epithelium formation, inflammation, blood coagulation, and collagen synthesis. This study aimed to determine the prognostic significance of serum TGF-?1 levels in CCHF patients. We examined 120 patients hospitalized with CCHF diagnosis and their serum TGF-?1 was investigated, retrospectively. Patients were put into two groups according to the existence of hemorrhage. Forty-four (36.7%) patients had hemorrhage. TGF-?1 levels in patients with bleeding were 5.2 ± 1.8, and 7.1 ± 2.2 for non-bleeding (P < 0.0001). When ROC analysis was performed in patients with CCHF alone in order to identify patients with bleeding, at a TGF-?1 cut-off point of 4.9, AUC was 0.762 (0.675–0.835), sensitivity 59.1%, specificity 85.5%, PPV 70.3%, and NPV 78.3%. We summarize that TGF-?1 level and endothelial dysfunction can be related. A decreased TGF-?1 level is a likely prognostic and diagnostic factor for bleeding in CCHF patients. Therefore, this marker should be considered in the treatment strategy for these patients. J. Med. Virol. 89:413–416, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc

A snapshot of geriatric infections in Turkey: ratio of geriatric inpatients in hospitals and evaluation of their infectious diseases: A multicenter point prevalence study

Introduction: The human population is aging at an astonishing rate. The aim of this study is to capture a situation snapshot revealing the proportion of individuals aged 65 years and over among inpatients in healthcare institutions in Turkey and the prevalence and type of infections in this patient group in order to draw a road map. Materials and Methods: Hospitalized patients over 65 years at any of the 62 hospitals in 29 cities across Turkey on February 9, 2017 were included in the study. Web-based SurveyMonkey was used for data recording and evaluation system. Results: Of 17,351 patients 5871 (33.8%) were ≥65 years old. The mean age was 75.1 ± 7.2 years; 3075 (52.4%) patients were male. Infection was reason for admission for 1556 (26.5%) patients. Pneumonia was the most common infection. The median length of hospital stay was 5 days (IQR: 2–11 days). The Antibiotic therapy was initiated for 2917 (49.7%) patients at the time of admission, and 23% of the antibiotics prescribed were inappropriate. Healthcare-associated infections developed in 1059 (18%) patients. Urinary catheters were placed in 2388 (40.7%) patients with 7.5% invalid indication. Conclusion: This study used real data to reveal the proportion of elderly patients in hospital admissions. The interventions done, infections developed during hospitalization, length of hospital stay, and excessive drug load emphasize the significant impact on health costs and illustrate the importance of preventive medicine in this group of patients. © 2020 The Author