Effect of COVID-19 Pandemic on Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Activity: Experience of a JACIE-Accredited Center.

OBJECTIVES: The adoption of international quality and accreditation standards is important for the success of transplant centers. Guidelines from the Joint Accreditation Committee ISCT-Europe and EBMT (JACIE) have enabled quality management of the operations of clinical units of cellular therapy centers, including cell collection and processing, thus minimizing errors and adverse events. COVID-19 has had significant implications for immunocompromised patients, particularly hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients, as well as their donors and caregivers. Here, we retrospectively examined measures, taken in our transplant center in Turkey during the pandemic period between March 2020 and October 2021, to investigate how JACIE accreditation has affected patient, donor, product, and employee safety. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analyzed data on transplant activity, as well as donor, patient, product, and employee safety, during the pandemic in 3 separate 6- month periods. The measures were analyzed starting from March 2020, when the first COVID-19 case was seen in Turkey. RESULTS: Since the beginning of the pandemic, 140 patients have undergone stem cell transplant in our center. Stem cell transplant was delayed in 22 patients because of the pandemic. Transplant was also postponed due to COVID-19 positivity in 6 patients, and 2 patients died due to COVID-19 infection during the transplant process. Unrelated donor activity continued to be performed safely throughout this period. COVID- 19 infection developed in 12 of the 52 personnel working in the bone marrow transplant unit, one of whom needed intensive care due to severe pneumonia. In terms of quality management activities, the impact of the pandemic was greatest during the first month. CONCLUSIONS: Results from our retrospective study examining the impact of JACIE accreditation in a stem cell transplant center during the COVID-19 pandemic showed that, when national and international guidelines are followed, JACIE accreditation can facilitate adaptation to changing conditions in transplant centers.

Anxiety and depression levels of healthcare workers during Covid-19 pandemic.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (covid-19), which causes a pandemic in the world, has started to appear in turkey since march 2020. Healthcare workers are at the top of the groups most at risk for covid-19 infection, which can have a negative impact on psychological state. Objectives: It was aimed to evaluate anxiety and depression levels among healthcare workers. Methods: this cross-sectional study performed via an online survey in april 2020. Participants answered questions about sociodemographic features, personal views and experiences about covid-19 and the hospital anxiety and depression scale (hads). Results: A total of 300 healthcare workers,193 men and 107 women, participated in the survey. According to hads, 44.6% of participants scored above anxiety and 68.2% scored above depression cut-off points. Being younger than 50 and taking care of covid-19 patients in hospitals were independently associated with anxiety risk. Female gender, young age (less than 50) and having comorbidity were independent risk factors for depression. Conclusion: Healthcare workers were at high risk of anxiety and depression during covid-19 outbreak. For this reason, psychological support should be given, especially to the group with high risk.

Characteristics of our hypoxemic COVID-19 pneumonia patients receiving corticosteroids and mortality-associated factors.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 is a disease associated with diffuse lung injury that has no proven effective treatment yet. It is thought that glucocorticoids may reduce inflammation-mediated lung injury, disease progression, and mortality. We aimed to evaluate our patient's characteristics and treatment outcomes who received corticosteroids for COVID-19 pneumonia. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter retrospective study and reviewed 517 patients admitted due to COVID-19 pneumonia who were hypoxemic and administered steroids regarding demographic, laboratory, and radiological characteristics, treatment response, and mortality-associated factors. RESULTS: Of our 517 patients with COVID-19 pneumonia who were hypoxemic and received corticosteroids, the mortality rate was 24.4% (n = 126). The evaluation of mortality-associated factors revealed that age, comorbidities, a CURB-65 score of ≥ 2, higher SOFA scores, presence of MAS, high doses of steroids, type of steroids, COVID-19 treatment, stay in the intensive care unit, high levels of d-dimer, CRP, ferritin, and troponin, and renal dysfunction were associated with mortality. CONCLUSION: Due to high starting and average steroid doses are more associated with mortality, high-dose steroid administration should be avoided. We believe that knowing the factors associated with mortality in these cases is essential for close follow-up. The use of CURB-65 and SOFA scores can predict prognosis in COVID-19 pneumonia.

Characteristics of hospitalised COVID-19 patients and parameters associated with severe pneumonia.

BACKGROUND: After the first case of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was reported in China in December 2019, it caused a global pandemic, including Turkey. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to analyse the characteristics of hospitalised COVID-19 patients and assess the parameters related to severe pneumonia. METHODS: Included in the study were hospitalised COVID-19 patients with positive naso-oropharyngeal swabs. Patients' demographics, admission symptoms, laboratory and radiological findings were recorded retrospectively. RESULTS: Of 1013 patients, 583 were males (57.6%) and 430 were females (42.4%), with a mean age of 53.7 ± 17.9. More than half of the patients had at least one comorbidities, the most common of which were hypertension and diabetes mellitus. Cough (59.8%), fatigue (49.5%) and fever (41.2%) were the most common presenting symptoms. Of the hospitalised COVID-19 patients, 84.9% had pneumonia and 83.5% had typical radiological COVID-19 appearances (94.5%: ground-glass areas). The most common laboratory findings were high C-reactive protein (CRP) (73.6%) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) (46.2%) levels, as well as lymphopenia (30.1%). Severe pneumonia was present in 28.1% of COVID-19 patients. Multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated that advanced age, hypotension, anaemia and elevated CRP and LDH serum levels were independent risk factors for the severity of COVID-19 pneumonia (P = .011, .006, .017, .003 and .001, respectively). CONCLUSION: This study, as one of the first multicentre studies about characteristics of COVID-19 in Turkey, may guide about disease-related parameters and severity of pneumonia. Age, blood pressure, complete blood count and routine biochemical tests (including CRP and LDH) would appear to be important parameters for the evaluation of the severity of COVID-19 pneumonia.

The Relationship between COVID-19 Severity and Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG)/ Mycobacterium tuberculosis exposure history in healthcare workers: a multi-center study.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought countries' health services into sharp focus. It was drawn to our group's attention that healthcare workers (HCWs) had a lower mortality rate against higher COVID-19 incidence compared to the general population in Turkey. Since risk of exposure to tuberculosis bacillus among healthcare workers are higher than the population, we aimed to investigate if there is a relationship between BCG and Mycobacterium tuberculosis exposure history with COVID-19 severity in infected HCWs. This study was conducted with 465 infected HCWs from thirty-three hospitals to assess the relationship between COVID-19 severity (according to their hospitalization status and the presence of radiological pneumonia) and BCG and Mycobacterium tuberculosis exposure history. HCWs who required hospital admission had significantly higher rates of chronic diseases, radiological pneumonia, and longer working hours in the clinics. Higher rates of history of contact and care to tuberculosis patients, history of tuberculosis, and BCG vaccine were observed in hospitalized HCWs. HCWs who had radiological pneumonia had a significantly increased ratio of history of care to tuberculosis patients and a higher family history of tuberculosis. The findings from our study suggest that the lower mortality rate despite the more severe disease course seen in infected HCWs might be due to frequent exposure to tuberculosis bacillus and the mortality-reducing effects of the BCG vaccine.

Comparison of the clinical course of COVID-19 infection in sickle cell disease patients with healthcare professionals.

It is highly expected that COVID-19 infection will have devastating consequences in sickle cell disease (SCD) patients due to endothelial activation and decreased tissue and organ reserve as a result of microvascular ischemia and continuous inflammation. In this study, we aimed to compare the clinical course of COVID-19 in adult SCD patients under the organ injury mitigation and clinical care improvement program (BASCARE) with healthcare professionals without significant comorbid conditions. The study was planned as a retrospective, multicenter and cross-sectional study. Thirty-nine SCD patients, ages 18 to 64 years, and 121 healthcare professionals, ages 21 to 53, were included in the study. The data were collected from the Electronic Health Recording System of PRANA, where SCD patients under the BASCARE program had been registered. The data of other patients were collected from the Electronic Hospital Data Recording System and patient files. In the SCD group, the crude incidence of COVID-19 was 9%, while in healthcare professionals at the same period was 23%. Among the symptoms, besides fever, loss of smell and taste were more prominent in the SCD group than in healthcare professionals. There was a significant difference between the two groups in terms of development of pneumonia, hospitalization, and need for intubation (43 vs 5%, P < 0.00001; 26 vs 7%, P = 0.002; and 10 vs 1%, P = 0.002, respectively). Prophylactic low molecular weight heparin and salicylate were used more in the SCD group than in healthcare professionals group (41 vs 9% and 28 vs 1%; P < 0.0001 for both). The 3-month mortality rate was demonstrated as 5% in the SCD group, while 0 in the healthcare professionals group. One patient in the SCD group became continously dependent on respiratory support. The cause of death was acute chest syndrome in the first case, hepatic necrosis and multi-organ failure in the second case. In conclusion, these observations supported the expectation that the course of COVID-19 in SCD patients will get worse. The BASCARE program applied in SCD patients could not change the poor outcome.

Evaluation of Subclinical Atherosclerosis with Carotid Intima-Media and Epicardial Fat Thickness in Patients with Sarcoidosis.

OBJECTIVES: Since many similar mechanisms may play a role in the pathophysiology of sarcoidosis and atherosclerosis, the risk of subclinical atherosclerosis may be increased in patients with sarcoidosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate known markers of subclinical atherosclerosis, namely epicardial fat thickness (EFT) and carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) in patients with sarcoidosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study included a total of 183 subjects, including 94 patients with sarcoidosis (patient group) and a control group of 89 healthy individuals. Measurements of EFT and CIMT were taken from all subjects and recorded. The groups were compared, and differences were analyzed statistically. RESULTS: EFT was higher in patients than in control subjects (6.42±1.12 mm vs 7.13±1.41 mm, p<0.001). CIMT was higher in patients than in control subjects (0.51±0.02 mm vs 0.52±0.02 mm, p=0.003). CONCLUSION: EFT and CIMT were found to be higher in patients with sarcoidosis than in healthy people. These results indicate that the risk of subclinical atherosclerosis might be increased in these patients.

A Novel Simplified Combination of Monoclonal Antibodies for Flow Cytometric Analysis of Bronchoalveolar Lavage Samples.

BACKGROUND: The profile of leukocytes in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid provides important information for diagnosing various lung diseases. A differential cell count of BAL is conventionally performed by evaluating centrifuged samples under a light microscope and enumerating the stained cells. Another rarely used method to identify BAL leukocytes is flow cytometry (FCM). However, there are no guidelines for standardizing this method and related literature is limited. This study aimed to evaluate the accuracy of FCM for identifying BAL leukocytes. METHODS: The BAL samples accepted to the hematology laboratory between 2014 - 2018 were retrospectively evaluated via light microscopy (LM) by a hematologist; while flow cytometric analyses with a monoclonal antibody panel composed of CD45/CD14/CD16 were noted by another doctor. The percentages of macrophages, lymphocytes, neutrophils and eosinophils determined by both methods were recorded for analysis. Correlations between the results from LM and FCM were investigated. In addition, compatibility between LM and FCM for denoting pathological values for each cell type was checked. RESULTS: Among 140 reviewed BAL samples, 76 were included for further analysis. Comparisons revealed strong correlations between FCM and LM for identifying macrophages, lymphocytes, neutrophils, and eosinophils. In addition, regarding the normal cutoff values for each leukocyte type, FCM and LM were similar in the identification of pathological changes of all cell types except eosinophils. CONCLUSIONS: Flow cytometry was found to be feasible for use instead of LM and might become a more widely used technique to analyze BAL fluid in the future.

Acute Respiratory Failure in Renal Transplant Recipients: A Single Center Experience.

OBJECTIVES: We evaluated the frequency and cause of acute respiratory failure in renal transplant recipients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Our single-center retrospective observational study included consecutive renal transplant recipients who were admitted to an intensive care unit for acute respiratory failure between 2011 and 2017. Acute respiratory failure was defined as oxygen saturation < 92% or partial pressure of oxygen in arterial blood < 60 mm Hg on room air and/or requirement of noninvasive or invasive mechanical ventilation. RESULTS: Of 187 renal transplant recipients, 35 (18.71%) required intensive care unit admission; 11 of these patients (31.4%) were admitted to the intensive care unit with acute respiratory failure. Six of these patients (54.5%) had pneumonia and had shown infiltrates on chest radiography, which were shown in a minimum of 3 zones of the lung (2 with Klebsiella pneumonia, 1 with Acinetobacter species, 1 with Proteus mirabilis, 2 with no microorganisms). The other reasons for acute respiratory failure were cardiogenic pulmonary edema (2 patients), acute respiratory distress syndrome (2 patients, due to acute pancreatitis and acute cerebrovascular thromboembolism), and exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (1 patient). Six patients (54.5%) needed invasive mechanical ventilation because of pneumonia (3 patients), cardiogenic pulmonary edema (2 patients), and cerebrovascular thromboembolism (1 patient). Hemodialysis was administered in 5 patients (45%). Six of 11 patients died due to pneumonia (3 p atients), cardiogenic pulmonary edema (2 patients), and cerebrovascular thromboembolism (1 patient). Among the 5 survivors, 3 (60%) had recovered previous graft function. CONCLUSIONS: Acute respiratory failure is associated with high mortality and morbidity in renal transplant recipients. Main causes of acute respiratory failure were bacterial pneumonia and cardiogenic pulmonary edema in our study population. Extended chemoprophylaxis for bacterial and fungal infection and early intensive care unit admission of patients with acute respiratory failure may improve outcomes.

Investigation of the Relationship between Asthma and Visceral Obesity by Epicardial Fat Thickness Measurement.

OBJECTIVES: Obesity is a risk factor defined in recent years for asthma. It is associated not only with asthma but also with many cardiovascular diseases. Visceral obesity is a more significant risk factor than general obesity in cardiovascular diseases. Although the association of visceral obesity with cardiovascular diseases is well known, the relationship in patients with asthma is not fully understood. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether there is a relationship between asthma and visceral fat by using epicardial fat thickness (EFT) measurement. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 401 subjects (229 patients with persistent asthma and 172 controls) were enrolled in the study. In our study, EFT was measured, recorded by echocardiography, and was evaluated whether there was a statistical significant difference between the two groups. RESULTS: The mean EFT was 5.84±0.79 mm in the patient group and 5.71±0.93 mm in the control group. There was no statistically significant difference between the groups (p=0.145). Similarly, when we compared control and asthma severity subgroups, we did not find statistically significant differences (control group mean 5.71±0.93 mm, mild group mean 5.86±0.81 mm, moderate group mean 5.8±0.84 mm, and severe group mean 5.83±0.67 mm, p=0.505). CONCLUSION: In the present study, we observed that the EFT did not increase in patients with asthma compared with the normal population. Based on our results, we suggest that visceral obesity may not be a significant risk factor for asthma.

Pneumonia in Renal Transplant Recipients: A Single-Center Study.

OBJECTIVES: Pulmonary infections are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in solid-organ transplant recipients despite enhanced facilities for perioperative care. The aim of this study was to evaluate the demographic characteristics, clinical course, and outcomes of renal transplant recipients with pneumonia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The medical records of all renal transplant recipients from January 2010 to December 2014 were retrospectively reviewed, and patients diagnosed with pneumonia according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria were evaluated. Pneumonia was classified as community acquired or nosocomial. Patient demographics, microbiologic findings, need for intensive care/mechanical ventilation over the course of treatment, and information about clinical follow-up and mortality were all recorded. RESULTS: Eighteen (13.4%) of 134 renal transplant recipients had 25 pneumonia episodes within the study period. More than half (56%) of the pneumonia episodes developed within the first 6 months of transplant, whereas 44% developed after 6 months (all > 1 year). Eight cases (32%) were considered nosocomial pneumonia, and 17 (68%) were considered community-acquired pneumonia. Bacteria were the most common cause of pneumonia (28%), and fungi ranked second (8%). No viral or mycobacterial agents were detected. No patients required prolonged mechanical ventilation. No statistically significant difference was found in the need for intensive care or regarding mortality between patients with nosocomial and community-acquired pneumonia. Two patients (11%) died, and all remaining patients recovered. CONCLUSIONS: The present study confirmed that pneumonia after renal transplant is not a rare complication but a significant cause of morbidity. Long-term and close follow-up for pneumonia is necessary after renal transplant.

Liver Transplant and Reexpansion Pulmonary Edema: A Case Report.

Hydrothorax occurs frequently in patients with endstage liver disease and usually requires drainage of pulmonary effusion during the hepatectomy phase of liver transplant. Reexpansion pulmonary edema is a rare but potentially fatal complication seen after rapid reexpansion of the collapsed lung following thoracentesis of pleural fluid or tube drainage of pneumothorax. This condition, which manifests with various degrees of clinical severity, is rarely reported following liver transplantation. Herein, we present a 62-year-old male patient who developed reexpansion pulmonary edema after drainage of massive pleural effusion, which caused a total collapse in the right hemithorax during liver transplant. Six hours after pleural fluid drainage, the patient developed a nonproductive cough, mild tachypnea, shortness of breath, and low oxygen saturation (88%). His chest radiograph showed diffuse heterogeneous opacities in the right hemithorax. Computed tomography of the thorax revealed consolidations containing air bronchograms and ground glass opacities in the parenchyma of the right lung; these findings did not extend to the periphery and were observed less frequently in the inferoposterior left lung. These symptoms and radiologic findings were diagnosed as reexpansion pulmonary edema. Complete clinical and radiologic improvements were achieved within 72 hours of mechanical ventilatory support.

Investigation of the relationship between asthma and subclinical atherosclerosis by carotid/femoral intima media and epicardial fat thickness measurement.

OBJECTIVE: Since asthma and atherosclerosis may share similar pathophysiological mechanism, this study is planned to investigate whether epicardial fat thickness (EFT), carotid and femoral intima media thicknesses, which are markers of subclinical atherosclerosis, are increased in patients with asthma. METHODS: The study was designed as a cross-sectional study. A total of 154 participants (83 patients with asthma and 71 healthy volunteers) were enrolled into the study. Epicardial fat, carotid, and femoral intima media thicknesses were measured and recorded in both groups. The statistical difference between the two groups was examined. RESULTS: Both carotid and femoral intima media thicknesses were significantly higher in patients with asthma compared to control group (5.52 ± 0.4 mm vs. 5.36 ± 0.4 mm; p = 0.038 and 5.64 ± 0.4 mm vs. 5.46 ± 0.5 mm; p = 0.036, respectively). However, there was not a significant difference in EFT between the groups [5.9 mm (5.3-6.6; IQR = 1.3) vs. 5.6 mm (4.7-6.5; IQR = 1.8); p = 0.1]. On comparison of control group and asthma subgroups (mild, moderate, and severe), there was a statistically significant difference among these four groups in terms of carotid and femoral intima media thicknesses (p = 0.002 and p < 0.001, respectively). Subgroup analyses showed that this difference was mainly due to patients with severe asthma. CONCLUSIONS: Carotid and femoral intima media thicknesses in asthmatic patients were found to be increased compared to the normal population. As a result, the risk of subclinical atherosclerosis in asthmatic patients may be high.

[Schistosomiasis and pulmonary hypertension]. / Sistosomiyazis ve pulmoner hipertansiyon.

Schistosomiasis is one of the most prevelant parazitic diseases in the world. It is endemic in more than 70 countries, and more than 200 million people worldwide are infected with Schistosoma. Pulmonary hypertension (PHT) is one of the chronic complications of schistosomiasis. The exact pathogenesis of schistosomiasis-associated pulmonary hypertension (S-PHT) remains unclear, although several mechanisms such as parazitic arterial embolisation, pulmonary arteriopathy, and portopulmonary hypertension have been suggested. Pathological pulmonary vascular changes in S-PHT were found similar to those in idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH). The fact that schistosomiasis is one of the most common causes of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), particularly in the developing countries, underlines the importance of enhancing our knowledge on this disease. Developments in the treatment of PAH have resulted in improved prognosis and significant increase in life expectancy and quality of life in the last two decades, which has enhanced the importance of S-PHT. Schistosomiasis is treated with praziquantel. Nevertheless, there is limited evidence that this treatment is effective for PHT. Although antihelmintic medications do not lead to significant improvement, they have beneficial effects and may slow down disease progression. Using PAH-specific treatments in the patients with schistosomiasis-associated PAH (S-PAH) can improve prognosis. However, inadequate clinical studies and limited sources in the endemic regions restrict extensive usage of these expensive medications. Further studies are required to determine the efficacy of these treatment modalities.

What should be the appropriate minimal duration for patient examination and evaluation in pulmonary outpatient clinics?

INTRODUCTION: Patient examinations performed in a limited time period may lead to impairment in patient and physician relationship, defective and erroneous diagnosis, inappropriate prescriptions, less common use of preventive medicine practices, poor patient satisfaction, and increased violent acts against health-care staff. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine the appropriate minimal duration of patient examination in the pulmonary practice. METHODS: A total of 49 researchers from ten different study groups of the Turkish Thoracic Society participated in the study. The researchers were asked to examine patients in an almost ideal manner, without time constraint under available conditions. RESULTS: A total of 1680 patient examinations were reviewed. The mean duration of patient examination in ideal conditions was determined to be 20.4 ± 9.6 min. Among all steps of patient examination, the longest time was spent for "taking medical history." The total time spent for patient examination was statistically significantly longer in the university hospitals than in the governmental hospitals and training and research hospitals (P < 0.001). Among different patient categories, the patients with a chronic disorder presenting for the first time and were referred from primary or secondary to tertiary care for further evaluation have required the longest time for patient examination. CONCLUSION: According to our study, the appropriate minimal duration for patient examination is 20 min. It has been observed that in university hospitals and in patients with chronic pulmonary diseases, this duration has been increased to above 25 min. The durations in clinical practice should be planned accordingly.

Granulomatous polyangitis (Wegener granulomatosis): Clinical findings and results of long-term follow-up.

INTRODUCTION: To evaluate long-term outcome of patients with granulomatous polyangitis (GPA) followed up in a tertiary university hospital. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We reviewed medical records of 22 patients with GPA diagnosis confirmed by tissue biopsies between 2004 and 2014. RESULT: The mean time from the onset of symptoms to diagnosis was 7.8 ± 12.3 months [interquartile range (IR)= 4.0]. The most commonly involved organs were the upper respiratory tract (URT) (72.7%), lower respiratory tract (81.8%) and kidneys (72.7%). URT involvement indicated good prognosis (p= 0.046). Survival in the patients with and without URT involvement was 124.6 ± 6.9 months and 59.7 ± 22.9 months, respectively. End-stage renal failure (ESRF) requiring dilaysis and cardiac involvement were associated with mortality (p= 0.022 and p= 0.026, respectively). Of the 12 dialysis-dependent patients at diagnosis, 11 survived > 3 months and seven regained renal function permanently. Dialysis dependency was significantly lower in patients who received plasmapheresis (p= 0.047). Overall mortality rate was 18% (4/22). Mean survival was 55.9 ± 42.8 months (IR= 84.0). CONCLUSIONS: Diagnosis of GPA may be delayed by the nonspecific nature of its symptoms. URT involvement was associated with good prognosis, whereas cardiac involvement and ESRF requiring dialysis were associated with poor outcome. Plasmapheresis may increase the rate of renal recovery in the patients with ESRF requiring dialysis.

A rarely seen diffuse parenchymal lung disease: diffuse pulmonary meningotheliomatosis.

Pulmonary meningothelial-like nodules (MLNs) are usually detected incidentally during pathologic evaluation of resected pulmonary parenchymal specimens and autopsies. These nodules are generally asymptomatic and most often single. Diffuse pulmonary involvement by MLNs is less frequently described. MLNs are benign lesions and have been associated with neoplastic and non-neoplastic pulmonary conditions and occasionally with extrapulmonary diseases. We report a case of a female patient presenting with multiple and bilateral pulmonary nodules diagnosed with "diffuse pulmonary meningotheliomatosis" by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS). Diffuse pulmonary meningotheliomatosis should be included in the differential diagnosis of diffuse bilateral lung nodules in the radiologic studies.

Chest radiography and CT findings in patients with the 2009 pandemic (H1N1) influenza.

PURPOSE: To present chest radiography and thoracic computed tomography (CT) findings for patients with pandemic influenza A (H1N1) from November-December 2009 and to explore any differences compared to previously reported imaging findings. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty-two hospitalized patients with pandemic influenza (H1N1) were included in the study. All of the patients underwent chest radiography, and 28 patients were also evaluated by thoracic CT. Group 1 comprised 24 (46%) patients with no identified risk factors for H1N1 influenza infection. Group 2 comprised the remaining 28 (54%) patients with identified risk factors. The distribution of lung involvement, consolidation, ground-glass opacity (GGO), lymph nodes, and pleural effusion were evaluated. RESULTS: Abnormal findings were observed in 85% of the patients. Bilateral lung involvement was present in 80% of the patients. The most common finding was a mixture of GGO and air-space consolidation. Lower zone predominance occurred in 89% of group 1 and 85% of group 2 patients. The involvement was observed most frequently in the peripheral and central perihilar areas of the lung in 80% of the patients. The extent of disease was greater in group 2 patients with the involvement of three or more lung zones in 62% of the patients. CONCLUSION: The most common imaging finding for lung involvement was a mixture of air-space consolidation and GGO with a patchy pattern and lower/middle zone predominance. Pulmonary involvement of the disease was more extensive than that described in previous reports.

QT dispersion in patients with pulmonary embolism.

BACKGROUND: Various ECG patterns have been associated with acute pulmonary embolism. However, there is no data regarding the association between QT interval measurements and pulmonary embolism. We aimed to investigate the association between QT dispersion and the severity of pulmonary embolism (PE). METHODS: One hundred twenty-nine pulmonary embolism patients (mean age 58 ± 16.5 years) with ECGs obtained within the first 24 hours of hospital admission were included in the study. Patients were classified into low, intermediate and high-risk groups. We retrospectively measured ECG scores; maximum and minimum corrected QT intervals (QTc(max) and QTc(min)) and corrected QT interval dispersion (QTcd) in each risk group of patients. RESULTS: There was an increasing ECG score through from low to high-risk PE [3 (Interquartile Range, IQR: 2), 5 (IQR: 6) and 10 (IQR: 7) p < 0.0001]. QT interval analysis showed that QTcd was higher in high-risk group than in low and intermediate-risk groups (59.5 ± 23.4, 69.2 ± 21, 95.9 ± 33.2, p <0.001 and p = 0.01, respectively). Patients who died after diagnosis had significantly higher QTcd values at baseline compared with the QTcd values of surviving patients (89.1 ± 45.5 to 65 ± 22.9, p = 0.001). The sensitivity of QTcd > 71.5 ms for prediction of mortality was 71% with a specificity of 73% (p = 0.001). We observed a strong correlation between QTcd and ECG score values (r = 0.69, p< 0.001). There was also a correlation between QTcd values and pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) (r = 0.27, p = 0.05). CONCLUSION: QTcd is significantly increased in high-risk PE patients compared to intermediate and low-risk patients. In addition, QTcd is significantly correlated with ECG score and PAP.