Evaluation of urinary haptoglobin level as a biomarker of diabetic nephropathy in children with type 1 diabetes.

BACKGROUND: Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is a common endocrine disease in children. Early recognition of complications of T1DM is important for preventing long-term morbidity and mortality. We aimed to investigate whether urinary haptoglobin level is a biomarker of diabetic nephropathy in children with T1DM. METHODS: Ninety T1DM patients, aged between 2-18 years, and 60 healthy age-matched children were included in the study. Glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), spot urine creatinine, microalbumin, protein and haptoglobin levels of all cases were measured and compared. Correlations between HbA1c level, duration of diabetes, spot urine microalbumin/creatinine (uACR), protein/creatinine (uPCR), and haptoglobin/creatinine (uHCR) ratios in the T1DM group were evaluated. RESULTS: T1DM and control groups were homogeneous in terms of age, sex, and anthropometric measurements. uACR was higher in the T1DM group than in the control group (14 mg/g vs. 6 mg/g) while uHCR was not elevated in T1DM patients. Nevertheless, uHCR was higher in the microalbuminuria group when compared to the normoalbuminuria group. In the T1DM group, moderate positive correlations between uPCR with uACR and uHCR, and weak correlation between uACR and uHCR were found (r = 0.60, p < 0.001; r = 0.55, p < 0.001; r = 0.24, p = 0.03, respectively). No significant relationship was found between diabetes duration, HbA1c levels and uACR, uPCR, and uHCR. CONCLUSIONS: Although uHCR in the T1DM group was similar to the control group, uHCR was higher in the microalbuminuria group than in the normoalbuminuria group. These results show that the uHg level could be a biomarker of diabetic nephropathy, but not earlier than albuminuria in the disease course. A higher resolution version of the Graphical abstract is available as Supplementary information.

Evaluation of Perinatal and Neonatal Outcomes of Syrian Refugees Compared to Turkish Population: A Snapshot During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

BACKGROUND: The perinatal and neonatal outcomes of Syrian refugees during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic are unknown. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to evaluate these outcomes. METHODS: Turkish (n = 303) and Syrian refugees (n = 303) who delivered in our hospital between June 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020 were included in the study. Demographic, perinatal, and neonatal data were obtained by retrospectively evaluating hospital records. RESULTS: Adolescent pregnancy was more common in Syrian refugees (p < 0.001). The rates of antenatal visits, performed combined test, triple test, quadruple test, fetal anatomy ultrasound, and glucose tolerance test were lower in all refugees (p < 0.01). Furthermore, there was no difference in the mode of delivery, Hb after delivery, gestational age, birth weight, Apgar score, stillbirth, and fetal anomaly (p > 0.05 for all). CONCLUSION: Despite poorer antenatal care during the COVID-19 pandemic, Syrian refugee pregnant women had similar perinatal and neonatal outcomes compared with the Turkish pregnant population.

Serum copeptin as a biomarker of hypertension in children with obesity.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension (HT) in obesity has been reported frequently in children in recent years. The role of copeptin and uric acid here are not well known. We aimed to investigate the relationship between HT and serum copeptin and uric acid levels in children with obesity. METHODS: We included 80 children with obesity who were admitted to our hospital between April 2018 and September 2018. The patients were separated into two groups: hypertensive and non-hypertensive. Serum copeptin levels were measured using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. RESULTS: Copeptin levels were significantly higher in patients with HT than in those without (p = 0.0001). In addition, serum uric acid levels in patients with HT were significantly higher, while the serum potassium levels were significantly lower (p = 0.01) than in those without HT (p = 0.001). In correlation analyses, a positive correlation was detected between blood sodium and copeptin levels (p = 0.037). CONCLUSIONS: Hypertensive children with obesity had higher serum copeptin and uric acid and lower blood potassium levels. Moreover, copeptin levels were positively correlated with blood sodium levels. Thus, in addition to copeptin, serum uric acid, potassium, and sodium levels may be important in the diagnosis and follow-up of children with HT.

Preoperative and postoperative complete blood cell counts and prediction of surgical site infection after cesarean delivery: a retrospective case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Cesarean delivery (CD) is the most frequently performed surgery. Surgical site infection (SSI) is a common complication after CD. PURPOSE: To evaluate the role of complete blood count parameters in predicting the development of SSI after CD. METHODS: Patients who were hospitalized because of SSI after CD were included in the SSI group (n = 48). A control group (n = 45) was formed with healthy postpartum women who had also undergone CD. Preoperative and postoperative hemoglobin (Hb), white blood cell count (WBC), neutrophil count, lymphocyte count, platelet count (PLT), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), mean platelet volume (MPV), and platelet-large cell ratio (P-LCR) were recorded. RESULTS: WBC, neutrophil count, and NLR levels increased while Hb, PLT, and lymphocyte count levels decreased after CD in both the SSI and control groups. PLR increased after CD in the SSI group but remained stable in the control group. However, the difference in PLR could not predict SSI after CD. CONCLUSION: Complete blood count parameters were not useful to predict SSI after CD. Larger prospective studies are needed.

What are the advantages of clock position method to determine fetal heart axis for inexperienced resident physicians? A comparative study

Objective: Residency training programs are challenging for young physicians with heavy workloads. Although ultrasonography (USG) is an imaging method that is frequently used in obstetrics practice, some basic USG skills can be acquired late in this intensive learning process. Likewise determining the fetal heart axis is an elementary evaluation but can turn into a challenging and time-consuming process, especially for inexperienced clinicians. Material and Methods: Pregnant women between 20 and 37 weeks of gestation were recruited. Two observers assessed the axis of fetal heart by standard, Bronshtein and clock position methods. Fetal heart axis evaluation times were compared. Inter-observer and intra-observer agreements of the three methods were measured. One factor learning rates were calculated. Results: A total of 31 pregnant patients between the ages of 18 and 40 years were included in the study. Fetal heart axis evaluation time by the clock position method was shorter than the Bronshtein and standard method in both observers. Furthermore diagnostic accuracy for both observers was 100% with the clock position method, while this fell to 100% in observer-1 and 96.8% in observer-2 using the Bronshtein method. The clock position method was learned faster than either of the other methods. Conclusion: Clock position method is an easy and feasible method for inexperienced resident physicians in terms of learning and application to determine the fetal heart axis. The advantages of this method increase when patient numbers are higher.

The role of laboratory parameters in predicting severity of COVID-19 disease in pregnant patients.

We aimed to examine the relationship between laboratory markers and the severity of the disease in pregnant women diagnosed with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Clinical records were retrospectively reviewed for 112 pregnant women. Patients diagnosed with COVID-19 were divided into two groups as mild/moderate and severe. The relationship between predicting the severity of the disease and laboratory parameters was investigated. Neutrophil lymphocyte ratio, C-reactive protein (CRP), ferritin and aspartate aminotransferase levels were significantly higher in severe COVID-19 cases than mild/moderate cases (p = .048, p = .003, p = .015 and p = .035, respectively). CRP was found to be the most useful marker in terms of diagnostic performance with a cut off value of 10.8 (sensitivity 80%, specificity 56.1%, NPV 88.5% and PPV 40.0%). The best diagnostic performance was obtained using CRP and ferritin combined with cut-offs of 10.8 mg/L for CRP and 26.5 µg/L for ferritin. Combined CRP and ferritin showed sensitivity, specificity, negative predictive value and positive predictive value of 94.7%, 52.8%, 96.6% and 41.9%, respectively, in predicting severe COVID-19. The combination of CRP and ferritin parameters may be useful in estimating the severity of the disease in pregnant patients who were initially diagnosed with COVID-19. Impact StatementWhat is already known about this subject? Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) can rapidly develop into acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and result in serious complications in some pregnant patients. Therefore, timely diagnosis of patients is crucial. Most previous reports of COVID-19 laboratory results are based on data from the general population and limited information is available regarding pregnancy status. Although laboratory medicine makes an important contribution to clinical decision making in many infectious diseases, including COVID-19, studies to predict the severity of the disease with laboratory markers are limited and the results are contradictory.What do the results of this study add? Our study shows that C-reactive protein (CRP), neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR), ferritin and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) are associated with severe disease in pregnant women diagnosed with COVID-19. In addition, the use of combined CRP and ferritin appears to have higher sensitivity and negative predictive value than using other tests alone. Furthermore, this study shows that coagulation markers are not useful in predicting disease severity in pregnancy.What are the implications of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? Predicting the severity of COVID-19 disease in pregnancy can prevent unnecessary hospitalisations and allow the implementation of the necessary clinical approach. Further studies can focus on the clinical usefulness of these parameters in predicting severe COVID-19 in pregnancy.

Serum clusterin levels are not associated with chronic spontaneous urticaria regardless of serum lipids.

BACKGROUND: Clusterin is related to immunity and inflammation via regulation of complement activation and bidirectional regulation, and by major proinflammatory cytokines. Clusterin levels have been the subject of a few research both in patients with hyperlipidemia and those with chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) separately. The aims of this study were to evaluate the levels of clusterin levels and serum lipids and the relationships between them in patients with CSU. METHODS: Fifty patients with CSU and 30 healthy controls were enrolled into the study. The activity of urticaria of the patients was determined by urticaria activity score (UAS7). Serum clusterin, total cholesterol, HDL, LDL and triglyceride levels of the participants were measured and compared. The relationships between UAS, lipids and clusterin were examined. RESULTS: There was no difference in clusterin levels between CSU patients and controls. Clusterin level was not related to activity of urticaria. Clusterin levels were not correlated with any of lipid parameters neither in CSU patients nor in controls. CONCLUSIONS: Findings of this study show that clusterin levels do not change due to CSU. Serum clusterin levels cannot be used as a diagnostic or a disease activity marker in CSU patients, regardless of the lipid profile.

Comparison of Morphological Similarities and Differences between Liquid-Based Cytology and Conventional Techniques of Serous Effusion Cytology Specimens.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study is to discover a fast and efficient method for the diagnosis of serous effusion cytology specimens by comparing the cytomorphological features of SurePath (SP) smears and smears prepared by cytospin. After the macroscopic features of the incoming material were recorded, it was divided into 2 for conventional technique (CT) and liquid-based technique. Cytospin was used for CT and SurePath for liquid-based technique in this study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 243 serous effusions (33 thoracentesis and 92 paracentesis fluids, 118 peritoneal lavage fluids) were investigated. After shaking the effusion gently, it was centrifuged for 5 min at 1,250 rpm for cytospin smear. SP smear was prepared according to the "BD PrepStain slide processor". Two smears were prepared with these 2 methods and then stained with Papanicolaou. The smears were examined under a light microscope in terms of fixation, background, cellularity, nucleus, and structural features. All statistical analysis of the data was performed using the SPSS 17.0 software. For each microscopic feature, the χ2 test was used to assess the significance of the relationship between cytospin and SP, and level of agreement in between the methods was assessed using the kappa statistic. RESULTS: A statistically significant difference was observed between the 2 methods in background (p < 0.001), cellularity (p < 0.001), nucleus features (p < 0.001), and structural features (p < 0.05). There was no significant difference in fixation. Low level of agreement was observed with the kappa statistic in fixation, background, and cellularity. Moderate level of agreement was observed in the nucleus and structural feature groups with the kappa statistic. DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION: Although there are advantages of liquid-based technique such as standardized fixation and cleaner background, since the cellular and background components required for morphological analysis and diagnosis are better preserved in cytospin, it is considered to be better to use liquid-based technique not alone but together with CT.

In Chronic Spontaneous Urticaria, Comorbid Depression Linked to Higher Disease Activity, and Substance P Levels.

Background: Patients with chronic spontaneous urticaria often exhibit psychiatric comorbidities including depression that contribute to the impairment of their quality of life. How CSU and depression are linked isn't well-understood. Substance P has been shown to be increased in patients with CSU and is held to contribute to the pathogenesis of depression. Methods: We measured disease activity in 30 CSU patients without depression and 30 CSU patients with depression by using the urticaria activity score. The severity of depression was assessed with the Beck Depression Inventory. We measured SP levels in these patients as well as in 30 healthy control subjects. In patients with comorbid depression, we correlated SP levels with CSU disease activity and the severity of depression. Results: In CSU patients, disease activity and the severity of depression were positively linked. UAS7 values were higher in CSU patients with comorbid depression as compared to those without (p < 0.05). SP levels were higher in CSU patients with depression than in those without (p < 0.001), but was similar in all CSU patients compared to healthy controls. SP levels weren't correlated with UAS7 values in CSU patients with depression, whereas they were weakly but significantly correlated with BDI scores (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Our results suggest that, in CSU patients with comorbid depression, CSU disease activity affects the severity of depression. CSU patients with high disease activity should be explored for comorbid depression.

[Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) gene -173 G>C polymorphism and its relationship to coronary artery disease and type 2 diabetes]. / Makrofaj migrasyon inhibitör faktör (MIF) geni -173 G>C polimorfizminin koroner arter hastaligi ve tip 2 diyabet ile iliskisi.

OBJECTIVE: Recent studies indicate that macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is a potent proinflammatory cytokine which mediates the inflammatory process during atherosclerosis. The purpose of the study was to investigate an association between MIF gene polymorphism and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and coronary artery disease (CAD) in the Turkish population. METHODS: A total of 139 unselected Turkish patients with significant CAD (coronary lesion with 50-100% stenosis) and 120 control participants (coronary lesion with <30% stenosis) were genotyped for MIF rs755622 polymorphisms using hybridization probes in a Roche LightCycler 480 Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction 480 device. Blood samples were drawn before coronary angiography. Gensini and SYNTAX scores were used to determine the angiographic extent and severity of CAD. RESULTS: When the groups were stratified according to T2DM, polymorphism of MIF was not associated with T2DM in CAD patients (p>0.05). In the same subgroups, carriers of the MIF common allele in the control group demonstrated a protection against developing T2DM compared with noncarriers (p<0.05). In addition, MIF C allele carriage was associated with higher glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) in the T2DM group (p=0.038). CONCLUSION: The MIF rs755622 polymorphism was associated with HbA1c. This result suggests that the MIF gene variant may contribute to CAD risk through diabetes in the Turkish population.

Association between selected cholesterol-related gene polymorphisms and Alzheimer's disease in a Turkish cohort.

Numerous genetic evidence has pointed out that variations in cholesterol-related genes may be associated with an Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk. We aimed to investigate the association between polymorphisms in several cholesterol-related genes [APOA5 (rs662799), APOC1 (rs11568822), APOD (rs1568565), CH25H (rs13500), LDLR (rs5930), SORL1 (rs2282649)] and AD in a cohort of Turkish patients. The study group consisted of 257 AD patients (mean age: 75.9 years ± 10.4) and 414 controls (mean age: 62.2 years ± 13.1). Genotyping was performed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction using hydrolysis probes. Our results showed that the 'TT' genotype of CH25H rs13500 polymorphism was significantly more frequent in the AD group (p < 0.001) and individuals carrying the CH25H 'T' allele had an increased risk for AD (OR 3.07, 95% CI 2.13-4.44, p = 2.20e-09) independently from age, gender and APOE ε4 allele. Moreover, this risk was excessively increased (OR 14.04, 95% CI 6.99-28.23, p = 9.78e-14) in the presence of APOE ε4 allele. The 'ins/ins' genotype of APOC1 rs11568822 was significantly more frequent in the AD group compared to controls (p = 1.95e-08). However, this increased AD risk in 'ins/ins' carriers was found to be dependent on their APOE ε4 carrier status. No significant associations were found in allele and genotype distributions of APOA5, APOD, LDLR and SORL1 gene polymorphisms. Our results suggest that the association between APOC1 'ins/ins' genotype and AD risk can be explained by linkage disequilibrium with the APOE locus. CH25H rs13500 polymorphism is associated with an AD risk in the Turkish population and CH25H might have a role in the pathogenesis of AD together with, and independently from APOE.