Laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication with mesh-hiatoplasty: Single center experience and early-term results.

PURPOSE: In this study we report early-term results of laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication with mesh hiatoplasty that we perform to treat gastroesophageal reflux disease. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 68 patients who underwent laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication with mesh hiatoplasty at our clinic. Thirty-six (53%) patients were male and 32 (47%) were female. The mean age of the study population was 46.1 (25-72) years. All patients underwent endoscopy, esophagus pH metry and manometry before the operation. All operations were performed under general anesthesia using five ports. In addition to Nissen fundoplication, all patients also underwent polypropylene mesh placement. RESULTS: Preoperatively, all patients reported a burning sensation in the chest and regurgitation of the stomach contents up into the mouth. The mean time from symptom onset to operation was 28 (6-84) months. All patients were diagnosed with  esophagitis in the preoperative endoscopic examination. The mean operative time was 80 (40-125) minutes, the median duration of hospital stay was 1.2 (1-4) days and the median follow-up time was 12 (2-30) months. Functional outcome was excellent in 65% of patients, good in 24.5%, moderately good in 7% and poor in 3.5%. CONCLUSION: Fundoplication with mesh hiatoplasty is a surgical procedure performed for the traetment of gastroesophageal reflux disease and hiatal hernia. Surgery can be safely carried out with low morbidity and mortality rates and constitutes an alternative to long-term drug therapy. We believe that this operation is beneficial since it reduces the rate of recurrences to a significant degree.

Long-term efficacy and safety of lamivudine, entecavir, and tenofovir for treatment of hepatitis B virus-related cirrhosis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Data are limited on the efficacy and safety of tenofovir and entecavir when given for more than 1 year to patients with hepatitis B-related cirrhosis. We investigated the long-term safety and efficacy of these antiviral drugs in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, with compensated or decompensated cirrhosis, and compared results with those from lamivudine. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of data from 227 adult patients with chronic HBV infection who were diagnosed with cirrhosis, beginning in 2005, at 18 centers throughout Turkey. There were 104 patients who had decompensated cirrhosis, and 197 patients were treatment naive before. Seventy-two patients received tenofovir (followed up for 21.4 ± 9.7 mo), 77 patients received entecavir (followed up for 24.0 ± 13.3 mo), and 74 patients received lamivudine (followed up for 36.5 ± 24.1 mo). We collected data on patient demographics and baseline characteristics. Laboratory test results, clinical outcomes, and drug-related adverse events were compared among groups. RESULTS: Levels of HBV DNA less than 400 copies/mL were achieved in 91.5%, 92.5%, and 77% of patients receiving tenofovir, entecavir, or lamivudine, respectively. Levels of alanine aminotransferase normalized in 86.8%, 92.1%, and 71.8% of patients who received tenofovir, entecavir, and lamivudine, respectively. Child-Turcotte-Pugh scores increased among 8.5% of patients who received tenofovir, 15.6% who received entecavir, and 27.4% who received lamivudine. Frequencies of complications from cirrhosis, including hepatic encephalopathy, variceal bleeding, hepatocellular carcinoma, and mortality, were similar among groups. Lamivudine had to be changed to another drug for 32.4% of the patients. CONCLUSIONS: Tenofovir and entecavir are effective and safe for long-term use in patients with compensated or decompensated cirrhosis from HBV infection.

Comparison of two different treatment protocols in Helicobacter pylori eradication.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of Helicobacter pylori (H pylori) in Turkey is high and eradication rates are low. As a result, alternative treatment strategies are required. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the status of H pylori eradication in Turkey by comparing the results of this study to other studies reported in the literature. METHODS: Two hundred and eighty-two patients diagnosed with H pylori were included in this study. Patients were randomized into two groups. The first group consisted of 138 patients receiving 30 mg lansoprazole bid, amoxicillin 1 g bid, and clarithromycin 500 mg bid for 14 days. The second group consisted of 144 patients who received lansoprazole 30 mg bid and amoxicillin 1 g bid for seven days, followed by metronidazole 500 mg bid, tetracycline 500 mg qid, and lansoprazole 30 mg bid for an additional seven days. RESULTS: H pylori eradication rates in the first group were 53.6% according to intention-to-treat analysis, and 52.5% according to per protocol analysis. In the second group, eradication rates were 72.2% per intention-to-treat analysis and 77.6% as per protocol analysis. H pylori eradication rates in the second group were significantly higher than the first group (P=0.001, P<0.05), whereas the incidence of adverse events in the second group was significantly lower (P=0.048, P<0.05). CONCLUSION: This study found a significant difference in eradication rates between the traditional triple therapy and modified sequential therapy groups. As a result, modified sequential therapy shows promise as an alternative treatment.

Incidental intestinal malrotation in an adult: Midgut volvulus.

Intestinal malrotation is a developmental anomaly characterized by a midgut fixation disorder and failure to complete its normal fetal rotation around the superior mesenteric artery inside the peritoneal cavity. Malrotation is a rare cause of mechanical intestinal obstruction in adults. It may manifest as an emergency condition or with chronic abdominal symptoms. Although its diagnosis remains difficult, early diagnosis and treatment usually yield favorable outcomes. Intestinal malrotation rarely has an asymptomatic course, in which the diagnosis is usually made incidentally. Multislice computed tomography is quite helpful for making a correct diagnosis. In this study, we reported a 56-year-old patient incidentally who was detected to have intestinal malrotation and was managed symptomatically after presenting at our clinic with signs and symptoms of intestinal obstruction; we also provided a discussion of the relevant literature.

Nonsurgically Treated Sigmoid Volvulus in a Young Patient 3 Days After Renal Transplant.

Sigmoid volvulus is a rare clinical condition in young individuals. It should be accurately diagnosed and treated in a rapid manner. Surgical and nonsurgical conservative methods are used for the treatment of sigmoid volvulus. Patients having no signs of perforation or peritonitis should be primarily treated by colonoscopic detorsion. A delay in the diagnosis and treatment of this condition may cause significant morbidity and mortality in an immunosuppressed patient with newly performed renal transplant and diffuse abdominal pain. This paper reports a young patient who was diagnosed with sigmoid volvulus during admission with sudden-onset abdominal pain and distension after having undergone renal transplant from a living donor 3 days previously. The patient avoided the burden of a second surgical intervention by a bedside endoscopic detorsion procedure.

The prevalence of diabetes and impaired glucose tolerance in Sivas, Central Anatolia, Turkey.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine type 2 diabetes, impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), and impaired fasting glucose (IFG) prevalence in Sivas, Turkey. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted in the city center of Sivas. The study population of 771 subjects was selected by the cluster sampling method from 115,998 individuals aged > or =30 years. Participants with fasting venous plasma glucose concentrations <100 mg/dl were classified as "normal." Diabetes was diagnosed in participants if they had fasting blood glucose levels > or =126 mg/dl. An oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was performed in subjects with fasting blood glucose levels > or =100 mg/dl and <126 mg/dl. RESULTS: According to the fasting blood glucose levels of the 771 subjects, 44 (5.7%) had diabetes. OGTTs were performed in 80 (10.4%) subjects. According to OGTT results, there were 5 subjects with diabetes, 20 subjects with IGT (2.6%), and 55 subjects with IFG (7.1%). The combined prevalence of IFG and IGT was 9.7%. After OGTT, the total number of diabetic subjects was determined to be 49 (6.4%). Twenty-four (3.1%) of the subjects had a previous diagnosis of diabetes. Multivariate analyses showed that age, sex, hypertension, cigarette smoking, obesity, and family history of diabetes were risk factors for type 2 diabetes (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Diabetes incidence increases with changes in dietary habits and lifestyle. Education is particularly important for public health, as the community may then have required knowledge about the disease and its risk factors.

The relationship between anticardiolipin antibodies and vascular access occlusion in patients on hemodialysis.

Vascular access occlusion is frequently seen in some patients on hemodialysis. There are different opinions about pathogenesis of recurrent access thrombosis. Anticardiolipin (aCL) antibodies have been suggested to be involved in thrombosis and can be found in a high proportion of patients with chronic renal failure. We investigated the relationship between vascular access occlusion and the level of aCL antibodies in hemodialysis patients. We measured serum IgG and IgM aCL antibodies and protein C levels in 50 patients on hemodialysis having no fistule thrombosis (group 1), in 33 patients on hemodialysis with fistule thrombosis (group 2), and 20 nondialyzed patients with chronic renal failure (group 3). There were no differences in age and duration on hemodialysis (p > 0.05). No significant correlation was found between protein C and platelet counts in all groups (p > 0.05). In group 1, aCL IgG and IgM were 2%. In group 2, aCL IgG and IgM were 6.06% and 0%, respectively. In group 3, aCL IgG and IgM were negative. We did not find any significant difference between aCL IgG and IgM in all groups (p > 0.05). No association was found between aCL antibodies and vascular access thrombosis in our patients on hemodialysis.

Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) Could Be Better Predictor than C-reactive Protein (CRP) for Liver Fibrosis in Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis(NASH).

BACKGROUND-AIM: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a major cause of chronic liver disease worldwide. The aims of this study were to assess Neutrophil-Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) and C-reactive protein (CRP), and their association with liver histology in patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), chronic hepatitis B (HBV), and hepatitis C (HCV). MATERIAL-METHODS: We studied 38 consecutive patients with biopsy-proven NASH, 19 patients with HCV, 45 patients with HBV, and 35 healthy controls who were similar for age and gender. The stage of fibrosis was measured using a 6-point scale. RESULTS: NLR was significantly higher in NASH patients compared to controls, HBV, and HCV patients (p<0.001, p<0.001, and p<0.001, respectively). NLR was positively associated with NAFLD activity scores (r=0.861, p<0.001). NLR was associated with hepatocyte ballooning degeneration (r=0.426, p=0.024), lobular inflammation(r=0.694, p<0.001), steatosis(r=0.498, p=0.007), and fibrosis stage(r=0.892, p<0.001) in NASH patients. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed that NLR was significantly associated with liver fibrosis and NAS (ß=0.631, p<0.001 for liver fibrosis; ß=0.753, p<0.001 for NAS in the multivariate model); however, CRP had no association with liver fibrosis and NAS CONCLUSION: NLR is a promising and inexpensive inflammation marker that correlates with histological grade and fibrosis stage in NASH patients.