Knowledge,Practices and Use of Contact Lenses Among University Students in Turkey

AimThis study was conducted to determine the prevalence of contact lens (CL) use among university students, their awareness on CL, and CL users'' practices for the cleaning and care of CLs.MethodsThe data of this cross-sectional study were collected between April 2019 and July 2019. The sample consisted of university students who volunteered to participate in the study. The data obtained from the study were evaluated by Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) 22.0 package program in computer environment.Results929 students participated in the study and the average age of them was 21.99±1.85 years (Min. 18 – Max. 24), and it was determined that 36.6% (n=340) of the participants were male, 10.2% (n=95) of the total were using CL, 91.6% (n=87) of them used CL due to visual impairment. When students'' levels of knowledge about the hygiene and care in CL use were examined 85.4% (n=82) washed their hands before wearing/removing CL, 85.3% (n=81) cleaned the lens container and filled it with new solution when the solution in the container was reduced, 18.5% (n=17) continued wearing CL while sleeping, 6.5% (n=6) washed CL with tap water, and 28.3% (n=26) of them stated that they swam in the sea with CL. It was determined that the prevalence of CL use was higher (p= .045) among smoking students.ConclusionHealth professionals are important in the trainings to be given to increase the students'' knowledge of hygiene and care regarding the use of CL. More studies are needed on the effect of smoking status on CL use.     

Investigation of inflammation related gene polymorphism of the mannose-binding lectin 2 in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder

Objectives:To investigate the association between mannose-binding lectin 2 (MBL2) codon 54 polymorphism and clinical features of patients diagnosed with schizophrenia (SCZ) or bipolar disorder (BD).Methods:One hundred and eighteen patients with SCZ, 100 patients with BD, and 100 healthy volunteers were included in the case-control study. The patients consecutively admitted to the outpatient clinic in December 2017-May 2018 and were evaluated with some scales for clinical parameters. Polymerase chain reaction and RFLP were used to determine MBL2 polymorphism in DNA material.Results:The MBL2 gene polymorphism distributions in SCZ or BD patients were significantly different from the control group. The heterozygous genotype percentages were significantly higher in the control group than in the SCZ or BD patients (OR: 0.450; 95% Cl: 0.243-0.830; p=0.010; OR: 0.532; 95%Cl: 0.284-0.995; p=0.047, respectively), and there were statistically significant differences in the MBL2 polymorphism distributions between treatment-responsive SCZ or BD patients and treatment-resistant patients diagnosed with SCZ or BD. The heterozygous genotype percentages were also significantly higher in the treatment-responsive group than in the treatment-resistant group in SCZ or BD patients (OR: 7.857; 95% Cl: 1.006-61.363; p=0.023; OR: 8.782; 95% Cl: 1.114-69.197; p=0.016, respectively).Conclusion:The presence of a heterozygous MBL2 genotype seems to be favorable both in terms of the absence of SCZ and BD in the healthy population and treatment response for Turkish patients.

Schizophrenia (SCZ) and bipolar disorder (BD) are chronic psychiatric disorders that cause substantial disruptions in psychosocial capacity and occur in approximately 1% of the world population.¹ Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of Psychiatric Genomics Consortium for SCZ recognized more than a hundred common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with minor individual effects presenting susceptibility to the SCZ.² A similar mega-analysis for BD, although including a more moderate sample, identified common risk variants specific to BD.³ The long-lasting alterations in gene expression patterns after environmental exposures imply that epigenetic mechanisms might also play a critical role in chronic psychiatric disorders.⁴ Again, previous researches have constantly reported shared genetic etiology between SCZ and BD. Researches showing the genetic overlap between SCZ and BD have improved from studying family and twin inheritance to determine genetic correlation and performing polygenic risk score analysis from GWAS data in large case-control samples.⁵ Despite these researches with large sample size, the cause of both disorders is still relatively unknown; recent studies have shown that uncontrolled activity of microglia and excessive inflammatory responses caused by pro-inflammatory cytokines are among the factors that play a role in the development of SCZ and BD based on genetic susceptibility.^1,6 A relationship between SCZ and many autoimmune diseases and an increase in the prevalence of an autoimmune disease occurrence by about 45% have been found. Moreover, infections of embryonic and early childhood periods lead to delays in fetal brain development and excessive synaptic pruning during adolescence, are among the possible risk factors of psychosis.^7,8 Systemic inflammation and central inflammation are thought to be associated with episodes, remission, and prognosis of BD. Neuroendocrine irregularities, neurotransmitter abnormalities, and glial cell dysfunctions cause plastic alterations in the mood-regulating brain areas. The high rate of comorbid autoimmune diseases also supports this claim.⁹Mannose-binding lectin (MBL) has a vital function in the innate immune system by stimulating the complement system’s lectin pathway. Therefore, it is the only collectin that binds to microorganisms, serves as an opsonin, promotes phagocytosis, and stimulates macrophages. MBL2 gene, which consists of 4 exons in the q11.2-q21 region of the long arm of chromosome 10, encoded MBL. Mutation at codon 54 follows in a replacement of glycine to aspartic acid (allele B), and the normal MBL2 allele is defined by allele A.^10-12 In heterozygous mutants, serum MBL decreases almost 10-fold, whereas, in homozygous mutants, the level decreases to an undetectable level. MBL deficiency is the most common immune defect in humans, affecting approximately 5-7% of individuals.¹³ A decrease in serum MBL level can cause recurrent spontaneous miscarriage,¹⁴ premature birth,¹⁵ and exacerbation of chronic diseases such as ischemic heart disease,¹⁶ and severe infections such as sepsis and systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS).¹⁷ Besides, previous studies suggested that MBL plays an essential role in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases.^12,18 We believe that this is the first case-control study comparing MBL2 genotype distributions in patients with SCZ or BD according to treatment resistance, clinical characteristics, and scale scores in detail.Aims of the studyWe aimed to examine whether MBL2 codon 54 polymorphism was involved in the etiopathogenesis and treatment response of SCZ and BD compared with healthy controls.     

Internalized Stigma in Pediatric Psoriasis: A Comparative Multicenter Study

BackgroundInternalized stigma, adoption of negative attitudes and stereotypes of the society regarding persons'' illness, has not been studied previously in pediatric psoriasis patients.ObjectiveWe aimed to investigate the internalized stigma in pediatric psoriasis patients and to determine differences according to factors affecting internalized stigma compared to adult psoriasis patients.MethodsThis multicenter, cross-sectional, comparative study included 125 pediatric (55 female, 70 male; mean age±standard deviation [SD], 14.59±2.87 years) and 1,235 adult psoriasis patients (577 female, 658 male; mean age±SD, 43.3±13.7 years). Psoriasis Internalized Stigma Scale (PISS), Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI), Perceived Health Status (PHS), and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ)-12 were the scales used in the study.ResultsThe mean PISS was 58.48±14.9 in pediatric group. When PISS subscales of groups were compared, the pediatric group had significantly higher stigma resistance (p=0.01) whereas adult group had higher scores of alienation (p=0.01) and stereotype endorsement (p=0.04). There was a strong correlation between mean values of PISS and DLQI (r=0.423, p=0.001). High internalized stigma scores had no relation to either the severity or localization of disease in pediatric group. However, poor PHS (p=0.007) and low-income levels (p=0.03) in both groups, and body mass index (r=0.181, p=0.04) in the pediatric group were related to high PISS scores.ConclusionInternalized stigma in pediatric patients is as high as adults and is related to poor quality of life, general health, and psychological illnesses. Unlike adults, internalized stigma was mainly determined by psoriasis per se, rather than disease severity or involvement of visible body parts, genitalia or folds.     

Direct Measurement of ATP7B Peptides Is Highly Effective in the Diagnosis of Wilson Disease

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Anatomical and histological morphometry of the sural nerve in human fetuses

Introduction

In our study, the aim was to anatomically and histologically investigate the morphometric structures of the branches involved in the sural nerve and sural nerve formation.