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Background/aim: It was aimed to evaluate the positive effects of health behaviors (general hygiene, wearing face masks, physical distancing, and travel restrictions) acquired during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on the prevention of other infectious diseases in Ankara Province, Türkiye. Materials and methods: This study was designed retrospectively. Among the notifiable group A infectious diseases, acute intestinal infections (AIIs) with International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision diagnosis codes A09 (diarrhea and gastroenteritis presumed to be of infectious origin), R11 (nausea and vomiting), and K52 (other noninfectious gastroenteritis and colitis), as well as influenza, tuberculosis, measles, varicella, malaria, and meningococcal meningitis were included in the scope of this study.The data of the selected infectious diseases in Ankara Province for the last 2 years before the pandemic (January 2018-December 2019) and for the 2-year period of the pandemic (January 2020-December 2021) were analyzed after checking the data. The number of cases were presented as frequencies, the 1-sample chi-squared test was used in the statistical analysis and the statistical significance level (α) was taken as 0.05. Results: The findings for each disease/disease group were discussed under separate headings. Comparing the prepandemic period (2018-2019) with the pandemic period (2020-2021), the decreases in the number of cases of selected infectious diseases, except influenza, were statistically significant. Conclusion: Undoubtedly, the experience gained from the pandemic struggle will guide us in shaping our future lives. From this point forward, we should be aware that living in crowded environments and as a highly mobile population, that unhygienic habits are unfavorable for the spread of all infectious diseases, and we should take care to continuously apply the precautions for healthy living in our new lifestyle.
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COVID-19 , Conductas Relacionadas con la Salud , Humanos , COVID-19/prevención & control , COVID-19/epidemiología , Estudios Retrospectivos , Turquía/epidemiología , Enfermedades Transmisibles/epidemiología , SARS-CoV-2 , Higiene , Máscaras/estadística & datos numéricos , Distanciamiento Físico , Pandemias/prevención & control , Control de Enfermedades Transmisibles/métodos , Viaje/estadística & datos numéricosRESUMEN
Background/aim: Pregnant women and infants are at risk of severe lower respiratory tract infections induced by influenza or pertussis. The uptake of both vaccines is poor in spite of proven benefits and safety. We aimed to determine the knowledge and attitude of pregnant women and their primary healthcare providers towards immunization during pregnancy. Materials and methods: This cross-sectional and interventional study was conducted in northern Turkey in 2016. It had 3 different groups including 786 pregnant women, 146 primary healthcare staff, and 97 family practitioners. Different questionnaires were filled by each group. The intervention phase of the study consisted of education of the expectant mothers about immunizations during pregnancy. Results: 786 pregnant women aged between 1744 years were enrolled to the study. Most of the participants had favourable attitude about vaccination, but only 1.1% had influenza immunization, none had Tdap immunization. None of the participants joining the intervention stage were immunized. The healthcare staff and family physicians had knowledge about vaccinations, but had abstention for administration. Postexposure prophylaxis was also provided by referral centres. Conclusions: Most of the participants either pregnant women or healthcare workers were not vaccinated against pertussis and influenza. Dissemination of maternal immunization must be supported by the team work of healthcare professionals, authorities, universities, professional associations, stake holders, media and patients with current, evidence based knowledge.
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Conocimientos, Actitudes y Práctica en Salud , Personal de Salud , Inmunización , Mujeres Embarazadas/psicología , Adolescente , Adulto , Anciano , Estudios Transversales , Femenino , Personal de Salud/psicología , Personal de Salud/estadística & datos numéricos , Humanos , Inmunización/psicología , Inmunización/estadística & datos numéricos , Vacunas contra la Influenza , Persona de Mediana Edad , Vacuna contra la Tos Ferina , Embarazo , Atención Prenatal/psicología , Turquía/epidemiología , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
Background/aim: This study aimed to identify children who have chest wall deformity, the prevalence of deformity, and the factors affecting the psychological and physical disorders caused by the deformity. Materials and methods: The study was conducted among 14,108 girls and boys aged 1114 years, who were 5th8th grade secondary school students in Ankara Province between October 2014 and March 2015. Results: Of the 14,108 students in our study, the mean age of the children was 12.53 ± 1.11 years (median 12.54, 1114 years) and chest wall deformity was detected in 199 (1.41%) students. Male/female and pectus carinatum/pectus excavatum ratios were 2.16 and 1.59, respectively. According to multivariate logistic regression analysis, physical disturbance was found to be statistically significantly higher among children in age group 11 [adjusted OR (95% CI) =16.01 (1.89135.61), P < 0.011] and in children who were aware of the deformity [adjusted OR (95% CI) = 0.31 (0.130.71), P < 0.006], and psychological disturbance was found to be statistically significantly higher in girls [adjusted OR (95% CI) = 15.44 (1.68141.59), P < 0.015] and in those with a presence of family history [adjusted OR (95% CI) = 18.66 (1.92181.60), P < 0.012]. Conclusion: In this study conducted in a large population, chest wall deformities were found to be more prevalent in boys (0.96%) and pectus carinatum was found as the most common deformity type in our country, contrary to the literature.
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BACKGROUND: Fever is one of the leading causes of hospital admissions in children. Although there are many ways to measure body temperature, the optimal method and the anatomic site are still controversial. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the performance of new methods of measuring body temperature and to compare the accuracy, sensitivity and specificity of these methods. METHODS: The body temperatures of the patients who were hospitalized as inpatients or who presented to the emergency room as outpatients between November 2014- March 2015 were measured and recorded. Mercury and digital axillary measurements, tympanic, temporal artery and non-contact skin temperatures were measured. Measurements were compared with each other. RESULTS: According to our results temperature tends to increase over time for up to 8 minutes after placement when using axillary thermometers. Non-contact skin thermometers should be used only for follow-up of patients with fever, because of their low sensitivity and low negative predictivity. At the first examination, tympanic thermometers and axillary thermometers may be preferable for the diagnosis of fever. CONCLUSIONS: According to our results, using non-contact thermometers seems feasible and logical during the follow-up ofpatients with fever, but not in cases whose exact body temperature should be known. For the first examination of the patient to diagnose fever, tympanic thermometers and axillary thermometers may be preferable. Future studies are warranted to expose the optimum way of measuring body temperature in children.
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Temperatura Corporal , Termómetros , Axila , Niño , Fiebre/diagnóstico , Humanos , Sensibilidad y Especificidad , Membrana TimpánicaRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: In Turkey, pneumococcal conjugated vaccine (PCV) was introduced to the national immunization program as PCV7 in 2008, and was replaced with PCV13 in 2011. The aims of this study were to investigate the effects of PCV13 on nasopharyngeal pneumococcal carriage (NPC) by determining the serotype distribution, and to identify risk factors for carriage, in healthy Turkish children. METHODS: This prospective study was conducted on 500 healthy children aged 0-13 years between April and November 2014. Nasopharyngeal swab samples were taken, and molecular method for capsular serotyping was performed by multiplex PCR. RESULTS: Of 500 children, 43.4% were unvaccinated with a PCV (7- or 13-valent), 56.6% were vaccinated and The NPC rate was found to be 9.8%. Of 49 positive Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates, 26 (53%) were PCV13 vaccine strains (VSs), and 17 (34.7%) were non-VS. Six isolates (12.2%) were not typeable by the method applied. The most common serotypes detected were serotype 3 (18.3%), serotype 19F (14.2%), serotype 6A/B (8.1%), serotype 11A (8.1%), and serotype 15B (8.1%). The total coverage rate of the PCV13 serotypes was 60.4%. CONCLUSION: A significant decrease in carriage rate was detected within three years after the introduction of PCV13 in Turkey. However, the nasopharyngeal carriage of PCV13 strains was found to be interestingly high.
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Portador Sano/epidemiología , Nasofaringe/microbiología , Infecciones Neumocócicas/epidemiología , Vacunas Neumococicas/administración & dosificación , Streptococcus pneumoniae/aislamiento & purificación , Adolescente , Portador Sano/microbiología , Niño , Preescolar , Femenino , Humanos , Programas de Inmunización , Lactante , Recién Nacido , Masculino , Reacción en Cadena de la Polimerasa Multiplex , Infecciones Neumocócicas/prevención & control , Estudios Prospectivos , Factores de Riesgo , Serotipificación , Streptococcus pneumoniae/clasificación , Turquía/epidemiología , Vacunas Conjugadas/administración & dosificaciónRESUMEN
Objectives: To describe cystoid macular degeneration (CMD), which has no clear definition in diabetic macular edema (DME), and examine its features in optical coherence tomography (OCT) and fundus fluorescein angiography (FFA). Materials and Methods: This study was conducted using OCT images of patients who were followed in Gazi University between November 2011 and March 2015. A total of 259 eyes (187 patients) found to have cystic changes on OCT were included. Macular ischemia, peripheral ischemia, and type of edema were identified on FFA. Vitreomacular interface abnormalities, foveal contour integrity, internal reflectivity of the cysts, and outer retinal layer defects were analyzed from OCT images. The horizontal and vertical diameters of the largest cyst within 1000 µm of the foveal center were measured for the definition of CMD. Cut-offs for these values were determined by receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. Cystoid macular edema (CME) and CMD groups were created and their characteristics were analyzed. Results: The horizontal and vertical diameters of the largest cyst were moderately positively correlated with visual acuity (rs=0.349, r=0.419, respectively). Eyes with horizontal diameter of the largest cyst ≥450 µm were classified as CMD; in this group, sensitivity in the prediction of visual acuity ≤20/60 was 58%. Eyes with horizontal diameter of the largest cyst <450 µm were classified as CME; in this group, specificity in the prediction of visual acuity >20/60 was 73%. For the threshold of 300 µm determined for vertical diameter of the largest cyst, sensitivity was 62% and specificity was 69%. The CME and CMD groups were formed according to these cut-off values. Compared to the CME group, the CMD group had greater central subfield thickness and higher prevalence of outer retinal damage, severe disruption of foveal contour, macular ischemia, and diffuse/mixed type edema. Conclusion: In eyes with DME, CMD can be defined as the largest cyst within 1000 µm of the foveal center having a horizontal diameter of ≥450 µm and vertical diameter ≥300 µm, especially if associated with macular ischemia, outer retinal damage, loss of foveal contour, and diffuse/mixed type edema.
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Retinopatía Diabética/diagnóstico por imagen , Edema Macular/diagnóstico por imagen , Tomografía de Coherencia Óptica , Estudios Transversales , Retinopatía Diabética/patología , Femenino , Angiografía con Fluoresceína , Estudios de Seguimiento , Humanos , Edema Macular/patología , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Curva ROC , Estudios Retrospectivos , Agudeza Visual/fisiologíaRESUMEN
BACKGROUND/AIM: Investigation of the association between obesity and the distinction of radiographic patterns in knee osteoarthritis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seven hundred and thirty-four women underwent weight-bearing antero-posterior knee radiography. Osteophytes and joint space narrowing (JSN) were graded according to the OARSI atlas. Each subject was assigned to one of the following groups with respect to the maximum score: osteophyte-dominant, indeterminate, JSN-dominant, and radiographically normal. RESULTS: Obese patients had a significantly more frequent osteophyte-dominant pattern compared to nonobese subjects (74.5% and 38%, respectively, P < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis demonstrated that obesity had a stronger association with an osteophyte-dominant pattern compared to a JSN-dominant pattern (OR and 95% CI = 7.16 (3.15-16.26) and 1.63 (0.96-2.78), respectively). Age had a very weak effect on the distinction to an osteophyte-dominant pattern and no effect on JSN dominance (OR and 95% CI = 1.1 (1.06-1.15) and 1.02 (0.99-1.05), respectively). CONCLUSION: There might be an association between obesity and the radiographic phenotype in patients with knee osteoarthritis. The findings suggest that the association between obesity and the osteophyte formation is stronger than that of JSN.