Diagnostic Performance Comparison of Liquid-Based Preparation Methods in Thyroid FNAs.

Introduction: Fine needle aspiration (FNA) is recognized worldwide as the primary diagnostic method for evaluating thyroid nodules. Samples collected by FNA can be spread directly onto slides, prepared for cell blocks, or processed as liquid-based cytology. Advocates of the traditional smear technique emphasize that background material such as colloid, cell sequencing characteristics in cell clusters, and cellularity is important in cytological diagnosis. They state that these properties are not observed in liquid-based liquids. Liquid-based cytology techniques aim to provide standardized slides of homogeneous cellular smears with well-preserved cell morphology, producing more precise visualization, shorter interpretation time, and more reproducible results. This study aimed to investigate and compare the diagnostic performance of liquid-based thyroid FNA samples prepared with SurePath and Cytospin over the last 6 years. Methods: Patients who underwent ultrasound-guided FNA between January 2015 and December 2021 were included in the study. Cytology reports, pathology reports, and demographic information of the patients were collected from the Hospital Information Management System. The programs "SPSS for Windows 21" and "MedCalc Diagnostic Test Evaluation Calculator" were used for data analysis. Chi-square tests were used in crosstab analysis. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov two-sample test, two proportions test, and the confidence interval tests were used to analyze the variables of the methods. P < .05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The study population comprised 4,855 patients, 83.8% female and 16.2% male. There were no statistical differences in age and gender distribution in the population of both methods. Nondiagnostic outcome rates were 11.2% for SurePath and 12.8% for Cytospin. Sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy values for SurePath and Cytospin methods were determined as 58.57%, 98.28%, and 91.12% and 79.07%, 96.88%, and 94.03%, respectively. Conclusion: In our study, although the qualitative analytical results were slightly in favor of the cytospin method, we think both ways can be used safely, especially in hospitals where the clinics performing sampling activities are variable and many, as well as in pathology laboratories where the workload is intense.

A Statistical Approach for the Integration of Multi-Temporal InSAR and GNSS-PPP Ground Deformation Measurements.

Determining and monitoring ground deformations is critical for hazard management studies, especially in megacities, and these studies might help prevent future disaster conditions and save many lives. In recent years, the Golden Horn, located in the southeast of the European part of Istanbul within a UNESCO-protected region, has experienced significant changes and regional deformations linked to rapid population growth, infrastructure work, and tramway construction. In this study, we used Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) techniques to investigate the ground deformations along the Golden Horn coastlines. The investigated periods are between 2015 and 2020 and 2017 and 2020 for InSAR and GNSS, respectively. For the InSAR analyses, we used sequences of multi-temporal synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images collected by the Sentinel-1 and ALOS-2 satellites. The ground displacement products (i.e., time series and velocity maps) were then cross-compared with those achievable using the Precise Point Positioning (PPP) technique for the GNSS solutions, which can provide precise positions with a single receiver. In the proposed analysis, we compared the ground displacement velocities obtained by both methods by computing the standard deviations of the difference between the relevant observations considering a weighted least square estimation procedure. Additionally, we identified five circle buffers with different radii ranging between 50 m and 250 m for selecting the most appropriate coherent points to conduct the cross-comparison analysis. Moreover, a vertical displacement rate map was produced. The comparison of the vertical ground velocities derived from PPP and InSAR demonstrates that the PPP technique is valuable. For the coherent stations, the vertical displacement rates vary between -4.86 mm/yr and -23.58 mm/yr and -9.50 and -27.77 mm/yr for InSAR and GNSS, respectively.

Accuracy assessment of UAV-post-processing kinematic (PPK) and UAV-traditional (with ground control points) georeferencing methods.

The use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) in photogrammetric mapping/surveying facilities has increased recently due to the developments on photogrammetric instruments and algorithms that enhance high-quality final products (orthoimages, digital surface model-DSM, etc.) in fast, accurate, and economical way. The aim of this study was to assess the accuracy of a UAV-based post-processing kinematic (PPK) solution. To do that, two methods were implemented with PPK solution and georeferencing with ground control points (GCPs). According to the statistical results, root mean square error (RMSE) values obtained from the GCPs and PPK solutions in the horizontal component are 6.5 cm and 5.4 cm, respectively. The RMSE values in the vertical component (ellipsoidal heights) were obtained as 4.8 cm (GCPs) and 5.2 cm (PPK), respectively. The results show that UAV-PPK method can also be used to produce photogrammetric products where high accuracy (≤ 10 cm) is required without GCPs. In addition, the results obtained regarding the use of this method clearly show that it can be applied in many different fields such as agriculture, forestry, natural disasters, and geomatics.

Vitamin D deficiency negatively affects both the intestinal epithelial integrity and bone metabolism in children with Celiac disease.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: We aim to evaluate serum vitamin D levels, vitamin D receptor (VDR) expression in the intestinal epithelium, and their relation with epithelial barrier proteins and bone metabolism in children with Celiac disease (CD). METHODS: Immunostaining for VDR, Claudin-2 and E-cadherin was performed in duodenal samples of the patients with CD and controls. H-score [∑Pi(I+1)] where I is the intensity score and Pi is the corresponding percentage of stained cells was calculated for each samples. The clinic, laboratory and histopathological findings were compared between patients and controls. RESULTS: Thirty-six patients with CD and age and sex matched 36 controls were enrolled. 25-OH vitamin D levels were significantly lower in the patient group compared to the control group. The mean bone mineral density (BMD) value was significantly lower in patients with vitamin D deficiency compared to patients with normal vitamin D level. H-scores for both VDR and Claudin-2 were significantly lower in patient group when compared to the control group. H-scores for VDR, Claudin-2 and E-cadherin were significantly lower in patients with vitamin D deficiency compared to patients with normal vitamin D level. There were positive correlations between 25-OH vitamin D level and H-scores for VDR, E-cadherin and Claudin-2 in patient group. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings showed that vitamin D deficiency is common among children with CD. Expression of VDR and epithelial barrier proteins Claudin-2 and E-cadherin which have important roles in paracellular pathway, was decreased in children with CD in correlation with histological findings of disease severity. Furthermore, deficiency of vitamin D was related to decreased expression of VDR and epithelial barrier proteins E-cadherin and Claudin-2. These findings indicate that paracellular pathway structures responsible for calcium absorption are disturbed in CD which is aggravated by vitamin D deficiency.

Can hyperuricemia predict glycogen storage disease (McArdle's disease) in rheumatology practice? (Myogenic hyperuricemia).

Gout disease is an inflammatory arthritis that arises due to the accumulation of monosodium urate crystals (MSU) around the joints and in tissues. Clinical manifestation of metabolic diseases leading to secondary hyperuricemia most predominantly occurs in the form of gouty arthritis. Hyperuricemia and gout may develop during the course of glycogen storage diseases (GSD), particularly in GSD type I, which involves the liver. On the other hand, during the course of GSD type V (GSDV, McArdle's disease), which merely affects the muscle tissue due to the deficiency of the enzyme myophosphorylase, hyperuricemia and/or gout is rarely an expected symptom. These patients may mistakenly be diagnosed as having idiopathic hyperuricemia and associated gout, leading to the underlying secondary causes be overlooked and thus, diagnostic delays may occur. In this case report, we present a premenopausal female patient who experienced flare-ups of chronic arthritis while on disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs and intraarticular steroids due to a diagnosis of undifferentiated arthritis. The patient was initially suspected of having gouty arthritis because elevated concentrations of uric acid were incidentally detected, but then, a diagnosis of asymptomatic GSDV was made owing to elevated concentrations of muscle enzymes during colchicine use. Our aims were to remind rheumatologists of the phenomenon of "myogenic hyperuricemia" and to discuss the potential causes of hyperuricemia that develop during GSD along with the available literature.

Investigation of the expression of irisin and some cachectic factors in mice with experimentally induced gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to determine whether irisin is secreted by gastric tumor cells experimentally induced in mice, and also if it has any effect on cancer cachexia. DESIGN AND METHODS: 12 out of 60 BALB/c mice were used as a control group, while N-nitroso-N-methylurea (MNU) was administered orally to the remaining 48. After 150 days, the surviving mice were sacrificed by decapitation, blood and stomach, skeletal muscle, brown and white adipose tissue specimens were collected. Following histopathological evaluation of the stomach tissues, it was decided to create four groups, one control group and three consisting of mice administered MNU, no cancer, pre-cancer and cancer. Gene expression analyses of fibronectin type III domain containing protein 5 (FNDC5) and some cachexia-related proteins were performed in tissue samples, while levels of irisin, and various inflammatory and tumor markers together with cachectic factors were determined in serum samples. RESULTS: The levels of inflammatory, tumor markers and cachectic factors in serum samples were significantly higher in the cancer group compared with the control group. No expression of FNDC5 or zinc-α-2 glycoprotein, a cachectic factor, was observed in gastric tissues from the control and MNU groups, whereas significantly increased FNDC5 expression was determined in the both white and brown adipose tissues from the cancer group. CONCLUSION: Increased FNDC5 expression in white and brown adipose tissues may have a cachectic effect in mice with induced cancer. However, it is not possible to explain the mechanism of the relationship between irisin and gastric cancer development on the basis of the results of this study.

The effects of sodium phosphate and polyethylene glycol-electrolyte bowel preparation solutions on 2,4,6-trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid-induced colitis in the rat.

The aim of the present study is to evaluate the effects of sodium phosphate (NaP) and polyethylene glycol-electrolyte (PEG-EL) colon cleansing solutions on histopathology of 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS) and ethanol (E)-induced colitis in the rat and normal rat colon. The presence of hyperemia, inflammation and ulcer was evaluated to score of macroscopic morphologic damage. The microscopic criteria including ulceration, mucus cell depletion, crypt abscesses, inflammatory cysts, mucosal atrophy, edema, inflammatory cell infiltration, and vascular dilatation were evaluated to determine the extent of inflammatory reaction. Colitis findings were determined on the rats which were administered TNBS-E. Aphthoid lesions were seen 30% and 20 % of rats, respectively, by NaP and PEG-EL solutions in healthy group. Microscopic examination of aphthoid lesions revealed edema within the lamina propria and lymphoid hyperplasia in the mucosa and submucosa without erosion, ulceration and inflammatory cell infiltration. No significant difference was statistically found either macroscopically or microscopically in terms of the effects of saline, NaP and PEG-EL solutions in healthy rats and rats with colitis (p > .05). Under the present conditions, we concluded administration of NaP and PEG-EL solutions did not cause evident morphological changes on the rectal mucosa macroscopically and microscopically, although in a proportion of rats aphthoid lesions seem as a marker of mucosal damage macroscopically.