Human papilloma virus persistence and neopterin,folate and homocysteine levels in cervical dysplasias

Objective  

To investigate the relationship between human papilloma virus (HPV) infection persistence and serum folate, vitamin B12, homocysteine, neopterin levels in cervical dysplasia.     

The association between inherited thrombophilias and pregnancy-related hypertension recurrence

Purpose  

The aim of this study was to determine the association between inherited thrombophilias and pregnancy-related hypertension recurrence.     

Early stage epithelial ovarian cancers: A study of morphologic prognostic factors

We intended to reevaluate the morphologic prognostic factors for early-stage ovarian carcinomas. We reviewed 111 patients diagnosed with early-stage ovarian cancer who had undergone primary surgery at Hacettepe Hospital between 1984 and 2001, using diagnostic criteria from the WHO-2003 classification. We applied the Universal grading system suggested by Shimizu/Silverberg and noted FIGO-stage, histotype, tumor size, bilaterality, and endometriosis. These features were compared with each other and survival. The survival analysis was carried out by Kaplan–Meier curves. Of the cases, 52 were reclassified as ‘borderline tumor’ or ‘cystadenoma with borderline foci’ and 59 as ‘invasive carcinoma’. FIGO-stage and mitotic count were significant for survivals of 59 patients with cancer. Mitotic index was also significant for the probability of metastasis. The patients with stage-II cancer had 5.65 times more risk of recurrence than stage-I cancer. The 5-year overall and disease-free survivals rates were 90.6% and 87.5% for stage-I, 54.7% and 39.3% for stage-II, respectively. Universal grade did not reach statistical significance for survivals but it was related to FIGO-stage significantly. In conclusion, FIGO-stage is the most reliable prognosticator. Although prognostic value of universal grade is not significant, mitotic count may provide important prognostic information for early-stage ovarian carcinomas.     

Depression and anxiety levels of the mothers of children and adolescents with left ventricular assist devices

Ozbaran B, Kose S, Yagdi T, Engin C, Erermis S, Yazici KU, Noyan A, Ozbaran M. Depression and anxiety levels of the mothers of children and adolescents with left ventricular assist devices. Abstract: VADs have been used to provide treatment for end‐stage heart failure. Parents may feel overwhelmed with the VAD regimes responsibility and be affected from this process beside children. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the depressive and anxiety symptoms of mothers of the first eight children equipped with a VAD in Turkey. The mothers of eight pediatric patients living with VADs were filled BDI and STAI at first month of VAD implantation (E.I) and secondly six months after their first evaluation (E.II). In E.I, the BDI mean score of mothers was 20.87, in E.II 14.37. STAI‐S mean score was 53.37 in E.I and 43.62 in E.II. The Wilcoxon nonparametric‐paired t‐test revealed significant difference between baseline and end‐point STAI‐S scores (Z: ?2.035; p: 0.042), and for BDI scores (Z, ?1.965; p, 0.049). Prolonged usage of VAD may increase distress in parents. Psychiatric evaluation and support of the primary caregiver is important for the well‐being of the pediatric patients.     

Melatonin attenuates renal ischemia-reperfusion injury in nitric oxide synthase inhibited rats

Recent studies show that melatonin reduces the blood pressure (BP) and ischemia/reperfusion (I/R)-induced damage. This study was designed to investigate the effects of melatonin on the renal I/R injury in rats given the nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibitor, N(omega)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME). After right nephrectomy, I/R was induced by occlusion of the left renal vessels for 60 min, followed by 24h reperfusion. The administration of melatonin significantly attenuated BP in NOS-inhibited hypertensive rats. Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels, a stable metabolite of the free-radical-mediated lipid peroxidation cascade, were found to be significantly higher in the I/R group (3.48+/-0.2mg/l serum) than in the control group (2.69+/-0.2mg/l serum). L-NAME (40 mgkg(-1) for 15 days)+I/R significantly increased the MDA levels compared to I/R alone. Melatonin administration to L-NAME rats significantly reduced the MDA values resulting from I/R. We also demonstrated that I/R, and especially L-NAME+I/R, lead to structural changes in the kidney and that melatonin attenuates these changes. These results suggest that melatonin reduces BP and I/R injury in NOS inhibited rats by L-NAME.     

Prenatal diagnosis of 20p13 microdeletion syndrome

ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to report the first case of prenatal diagnosis of the fetal 20p13 microdeletion syndrome in the literature.Case reportThe mother was 31 years old and had a first trimester serum screening that indicated the fetus was at low risk. The prenatal ultrasound at 23 weeks of gestation showed mild ventriculomegaly (10.2 mm) and absent septum pellucidum. She underwent amniocentesis because of the abnormal imaging results. Karyotype analysis revealed normal results. Chromosome microarray analysis (CMA) was then performed to provide genetic analysis of the fetus and parents. CMA detected 317.902 kb deletion of 20p13 in fetus. Finally, pregnancy was terminated at 32 weeks of gestation.ConclusionThis study is the first to report the prenatal diagnosis of a 20p13 microdeletion syndrome. Our results further confirmed that genes in this region, including SOX12, NRSN2 are essential for normal fetal growth and TBC1D20 for normal brain development.     

Structure and evolution of neuronal wiring receptors and ligands

One of the fundamental properties of a neuronal circuit is the map of its connections. The cellular and developmental processes that allow for the growth of axons and dendrites, selection of synaptic targets, and formation of functional synapses use neuronal surface receptors and their interactions with other surface receptors, secreted ligands, and matrix molecules. Spatiotemporal regulation of the expression of these receptors and cues allows for specificity in the developmental pathways that wire stereotyped circuits. The families of molecules controlling axon guidance and synapse formation are generally conserved across animals, with some important exceptions, which have consequences for neuronal connectivity. Here, we summarize the distribution of such molecules across multiple taxa, with a focus on model organisms, evolutionary processes that led to the multitude of such molecules, and functional consequences for the diversification or loss of these receptors.     

Axis I and Axis II diagnoses in patients with chronic idiopathic urticaria

OBJECTIVE: This study presents the current prevalence of Axis I and Axis II psychiatric diagnoses and factors associated with the existence of Axis I psychiatric disorders in patients with chronic idiopathic urticaria (CIU). METHOD: The study sample was composed of 89 patients with CIU and 64 control subjects. Axis I and Axis II psychiatric disorders were ascertained by means of the Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM, Revised Third Edition Personality Disorders, respectively. RESULTS: Of patients with CIU, 44 (49.4%) had at least one Axis I diagnosis, and 40 (44.9%) had at least one personality disorder. The most common Axis I disorder was obsessive-compulsive disorder (25.8%), and the most common Axis II disorder was obsessive-compulsive (30.3%) personality disorder in patients with CIU. Obsessive-compulsive disorder, major depression, obsessive-compulsive and avoidant personality disorders were more prevalent in patient group compared to control group. Obsessive-compulsive and avoidant personality disorders were related to the existence of Axis I disorders in patients with CIU. CONCLUSION: Psychiatric morbidity seems to be a frequent healthy problem in patients with CIU.     

Evaluation of application of multiple needle pricks on the pathergy reaction

Background The pathergy reaction (PR) to a needle prick is a well‐known feature of Behçet's disease (BD). Although PR is accepted as a major criterion in this disease, there is a lack of a standardized method to measure PR. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect on the positive rate of PR of the application of numerous (one to six) needle pricks. Methods Six needle pricks were performed on 105 patients with BD. The results of the test were noted from the proximal to the distal region for each area of each patient. The positive rates of all combinations (one, two, three, four, five, and six needle pricks) were calculated as percentages by a computer‐based program (SPSS version 13 for Windows), and the mean percentage rates were obtained. Results There was an increase in the percentage of positive PR rates in each combination relative to the former combination. When one needle prick was performed, the mean percentage positive PR rate was 13%. The positive PR rates were 19%, 24%, 28%, 30%, and 33% for two, three, four, five and six needle pricks, respectively. The greatest increase in the mean percentage of positive PR rates was detected for the application of the two needle prick combination. Conclusion There is no consensus about the number of needle pricks required to detect PR, and multiple needle pricks have been used in many studies. We suggest that two needle pricks are suitable for the PR skin test as a useful adjunct to the diagnosis of BD.