Retrospective Evaluation of Hepatitis C Awareness in Turkey Through Two Decades.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Chronic hepatitis C (CHC) is the only viral infection that can be treated with oral antiviral agents. However, CHC awareness is a major barrier to the World Health Organization's target of eliminating hepatitis C virus (HCV) by 2030. Here, CHC awareness trends were analyzed in Hacettepe University Hospital, Turkey, between January 2000 and December 2017. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Central laboratory data were retrospectively analyzed for HCV test results (anti-HCV, HCV RNA, HCV genotype). After combining 548,141 anti-HCV test results, 395,103 cases were analyzed. The following two parameters were defined for CHC awareness: (1) the presence of HCV RNA results for anti-HCV positives and (2) the presence of a genotype result for HCV RNA positives. RESULTS: Anti-HCV positives were older than negatives (mean age-years ± SD, 59.4 ± 19.0 vs. 44.0 ± 18.9), and the positivity rate was higher in women than in men (1.4% vs. 1.0%). Anti-HCV positivity decreased from 3.1% to 0.6% from 2000 to 2015 and subsequently stabilized. The overall percentage of RNA testing among anti-HCV positives was 53.1% (range, 20%-70%), which stabilized at approximately 50% after 2010. The genotyping rate for RNA positives varied between 40% and 70%. The main genotype identified was genotype 1 (85.7%). CONCLUSION: In an ideal CHC awareness state, all anti-HCV positives should undergo RNA testing, and genotyping should be performed when RNA tests are positive. However, even in our referral center, the combined rate of RNA and genotype testing was only approximately 50% during the last 10 years.

Topical application of ankaferd hemostat in a patient with gastroduodenal amyloidosis complicated with gastrointestinal bleeding.

Amyloidosis rarely manifests itself as gastrointestinal hemorrhage, especially in the absence of systemic involvement. Despite urgent endoscopic and/or pharmacological therapy, bleeding due to gastric amyloidosis usually recurs after a short period and has considerable morbidity and mortality rates, even in patients undergoing gastrointestinal surgery. For this reason, there is a need for a therapeutic armamentarium for such cases that is effective, easily applicable and has minimal side effects. In this respect, ankaferd blood stopper (ABS) offers a well tolerated and effective alternative approach for these patients. Herein we would like to report a 77-year-old man who had massive bleeding from a gastric ulcer complicating primary gastroduodenal amyloidosis, in whom topical ABS was successfully applied.

A new candidate as a hemostatic agent for difficult situations during variceal bleeding: Ankaferd blood stopper.

Variceal bleeding is the most challenging emergent situation among the causes of upper gastrointestinal bleeding. Despite substantial improvement, a need remains for therapeutic armamentarium of such cases, which is easy, effective and without side-effect. Ankaferd blood stopper (ABS) is a standardized herbal extract acting as a hemostatic agent on the bleeding or injured areas. In this observational study, a total of four patients with variceal bleeding were treated with endoscopic ABS application. The lesions were bleeding gastric varices (n:3) and bleeding duodenal varix (n:1). ABS was selected as a bridge to definitive therapies due to unavailability or inappropriateness of bleeding lesions to conventional measures. ABS was instilled or flushed onto the bleeding areas by sclerotherotherapy needle or heater probe catheter. Periprocedural control of the bleeding was achieved in all instances. Thereafter, on an elective basis, two patients with gastric varices underwent cyanoacrylate injection, while third underwent Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt and embolization. The patient with duodenal varix refused further therapy, after a few hours after admission and was discharged. He again presented the same day with rebleeding, but died before any attempt could be made to control his bleeding. ABS seems to be effective in cases of variceal bleeding as a bridge to therapy. Its major advantages are the ease of use and lack of side-effects.

Upper gastrointestinal bleeding in a patient with defective hemostasis successfully treated with ankaferd blood stopper.

Acute gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding is one of the most frequent causes for hospitalization and responsible for a major cause of morbidity and mortality among patients. Ankaferd Blood Stopper (ABS) is a herbal extract attained from five different plants Thymus vulgaris, Glycyrrhiza glabra, Vitis vinifera, Alpinia officinarum and Urtica dioica. Here we report a challenging upper GI bleeding case with a low platelet count and defective hemostasis treated endoscopically with ABS as an adjunctive drug.

Bleeding due to slippage of elastic band during variceal ligation: successful use of Ankaferd blood stopper.

Ankaferd blood stopper (ABS) is a hemostatic agent that induces clot formation by a special protein network which mainly causes powerful erythrocyte aggregation. The use of topical ABS as a hemostatic agent has been approved in Turkey for the management of dermal, external post-surgical and post-dental surgery bleeding. ABS has been successfully used in Dieulafoy lesion and bleeding from gastrointestinal neoplasms. We present a patient with alcoholic cirrhosis who developed severe bleeding during an elective endoscopic variceal ligation (EVL) session due to immediate band slippage, in whom endoscopic topical application of ABS was associated with cessation of bleeding. The major advantages of ABS appear to be ease of use and lack of side effect.