Investigation of carotid intima-media thickness in patients with schizophrenia.

BACKGROUND: Patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) have a higher risk of cardiovascular diseases than the average population. Early diagnosis of SCZ patients with subclinical atherosclerosis is great importance in reducing cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to investigate some clinical risk factors for atherosclerosis in patients with SCZ. METHODS: Fifty-one SCZ patients (20 females, 31 males) and 55 healthy controls (HCs) (25 females, 30 males) were included in the study. Electrocardiography (ECG), lipid parameters, hemogram, and biochemistry values of the participants were taken. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), fasting triglycerides, and total cholesterol were measured. The arrhythmogenic index of plasma (AIP) was analyzed. The recorded right and left carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) measurements by carotid ultrasonography were scanned. RESULTS: QT interval (p = 0.035), CIMT-left (p = 0.008), CIMT-right (p = 0.002), fasting triglyceride (p = 0.005), AIP (p = 0.005) in the SCZ group compared to HCs (< 0.001) was statistically higher, while HDL (p = 0.003) was statistically lower. Smoking rates, QT interval (p = 0.035), CIMT-left (p = 0.008), and CIMT-right (p = 0.002) were significantly higher in the the SCZ group than in the HCs. According to odds ratios, individuals with SCZ have a 6.3-fold higher smoking rate. According to Pearson correlation analysis, CIMT-left was positively correlated with age and QT interval (r = 0.568, p < 0.001 and r = 0.589, p < 0.001, respectively). CIMT-right value was also positively correlated with age and QT interval (r = 0.533, p < 0.001 and r = 0.555, p < 0.001, respectively). QT interval positively and significantly predicted CIMT-left and CIMT-right (p < 0.001, ß = 0.549 and p = 0.001 and ß = 0.506 accordingly). CONCLUSION: In this study, a close relationship was found between the QT interval and CIMT in SCZ patients. This finding could be valuable for using an easy-to-calculate data such as QT in place of a laborious test such as CIMT.

Comparison of accidental findings of brain magnetic resonance imaging of patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and healthy controls.

BACKGROUND: Abnormalities in brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have been reported in drug-naive and chronic patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The Fazekas scale is a method used to categorize and grade the severity of white matter hyperintensities (WMH) in brain MRI. These lesions can be indicative of various neurological conditions, particularly small vessel disease or cerebrovascular pathology. METHODS: Brain MRIs of patients followed up with the diagnosis of OCD were retrospectively analyzed. 58 OCD (36 females, 22 males) and 58 healthy controls (HC) (30 females, 28 males) were included in the study. Age, gender, and brain MRI findings of the participants were recorded. RESULTS: The mean ages of the OCD and HC groups were 33.4 ± 10.6 and 35.9 ± 9.3. There was no difference between the groups in terms of mean ages and gender distribution (p = 0.180 and p = 0.260, accordingly). Generalized cerebral atrophy was more common in patients with OCD than in HC (p = 0.008). Fazekas grade 1 was detected in 17.2% of the patients with OCD and 1.7% of HC. Accordingly, it was significantly more common in Fazekas grade 1 OCD patients (p = 0.002). Fazekas grade 2 was detected in only 2 patient with OCD. CVI was present in 20.7% of the patients with OCD and 1.7% of HC. There was a significant difference between the groups regarding CVI (p = 0.001). Ethmoidal thickening was more common in patients with OCD than in HC (p = 0.004). The YBOCS scores and ages of OCD patients with Fazekas grade 1 and 2 were significantly higher than those of patients with Fazekas grade 0. Likewise, the YBOCS scores and ages of OCD patients with generalized cerebral atrophy were significantly higher than those of patients without atrophy. CONCLUSION: It is understood from the present study's findings that CVI, a neurodevelopmental malformation, is more common in patients with OCD. Due to the potential relationship of this anomaly with neuronal migration, it would be appropriate to pay attention to OCD symptoms in individuals with CVI and to perform white matter examination on brain imaging. In future studies, Fazekas grade can be evaluated in drug-naive OCD patients, and data on the pre-disease period can be obtained.

Comparison of frontal QRS-T angle of patients with nasal septal deviation with healthy controls.

BACKGROUND: This study compares frontal QRS-T angle (fQRS-T) in electrocardiogram (ECG) examinations of people with nasal septal deviation (NSD) with healthy controls (HC). METHODS: Eighty-two patients whom a radiologist with paranasal computed tomography definitively diagnosed with NSD were included in the study. 101 individuals without NSD were selected as HC. RESULTS: Compared to the HC group, the fQRS-T in was considerably wider in patients with NSD (p < .001). According to Spearman correlation analysis, fQRS-T and NSD angle, and platelet lymphocyte ratio (PLR) were significantly correlated (p = .021, p < .001, and p = .003, respectively). In linear regression analysis where the fQRS-T was taken as a dependent variable, NSD angle and PLR predicted the fQRS-T significantly and positively (F(5.76) = 8.451, R2 = 0.357, Adjusted R2 = 0.315 and p < .001). CONCLUSION: In this study, fQRS-T was significantly higher in patients with NSD. In future studies, fQRS-T can be compared before and after septoplasty in NSD patients.

Reduced olfactory bulb volume and olfactory sulcus depth in obsessive compulsive disorder.

Many studies have shown that limbic system abnormalities are seen in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), but the neurobiological changes in OCD are still unclear. Moreover, olfactory bulb volume (OBV) and its association with symptom severity have not been yet investigated in patients with OCD. This is the first study on OBV and olfactory sulcus depth (OSD) values in OCD patients, to the best of our knowledge. Between January 2018 and March 2022, 25 patients with OCD and 26 healthy controls with brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were included. Detailed disease history of OCD patients was taken, and Yale-Brown obsessive-compulsive scale (YBOCS) was applied. The mean age of the patient group was 33.40±9.58, the mean age of the control group was 32.84±8.01. LOBV, ROBV, TOBV, and LOSD in the patient group were significantly lower than in the control group (p=.013, p=.005, p=.001, p=.015, respectively). ROBV and TOBV were negatively correlated with YBOCS total and subscale scores. A negative correlation was found between ROBV and TOBV and disease duration (r=-0.749 and r=-0.640, respectively). The negative correlation of ROBV and TOBV values with disease duration and disease severity can be used to monitor the neurodegenerative process of OCD disease.

Evaluation of frontal QRS-T angle values in electrocardiography in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis.

BACKGROUND: Chronic Rhinosinusitis (CRS) refers to inflammation of the paranasal sinuses and nasal mucosa. Electrocardiographic indicators of ventricular repolarization have been shown to correlate with systemic inflammation parameters. Recently, the frontal QRS-T (fQRS-T) angle has been accepted as a new indicator of ventricular depolarization and repolarization heterogeneity. The (fQRS-T) angle is recommended in predicting the risk of malignant ventricular arrhythmia. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the ventricular arrhythmia potential in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis by examining the relationship between fQRS-T angle on ECG and inflammation markers. METHODS: Inflammatory markers as well as electrocardiographc (ECG) f(QRS-T) angle, QRS duration, QT interval and corrected QT interval were examined in 54 patients with CRS versus 56 healthy control subjects. RESULTS: The f(QRS-T) angle was significantly higher in CRS patients than in healthy controls (p < .001). The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) were significantly higher in CRS patients compared to healthy controls (p < .001, for all). Based on correlation analysis, NLR and f(QRS-T) angles were highly correlated (r = .845, p < .001), and according to the results of linear regression analysis, NLR was independently associated with the f(QRS-T) angle (t = 5.149, Beta = 0.595, p = < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Both f(QRS-T) angle and NLR are significantly increased in CRS patients compared to healthy controls, with increases in NLR also independently associating with increases in f(QRS-T) angle. While the increases in f(QRS-T) angle did not result in clinically alarming absolute values for f(QRS-T), CRS patients might nonetheless be at relatively higher risk for malignant cardiac arrhythmias.