Confined Excitons in Spherical-Like Halide Perovskite Quantum Dots.

Quantum dots (QDs) offer unique physical properties and novel application possibilities like single-photon emitters for quantum technologies. While strongly confined III-V and II-VI QDs have been studied extensively, their complex valence band structure often limits clear observations of individual transitions. In recently emerged lead-halide perovskites, band degeneracies are absent around the bandgap reducing the complexity of optical spectra. We show that for spherical-like CsPbBr3 QDs with diameters >6 nm, excitons confine with respect to their center-of-mass motion leading to well-pronounced resonances in their absorption spectra. Optical pumping of the lowest-confined exciton with femtosecond laser pulses not only bleaches all excitons but also reveals a series of distinct induced absorption resonances which we attribute to exciton-to-biexciton transitions and are red-shifted by the biexciton binding energy (∼40 meV). The temporal dynamics of the bleached excitons further support our exciton confinement model. Our study provides the first insight into confined excitons in CsPbBr3 QDs and gives a detailed understanding of their linear and nonlinear optical spectra.

Extreme Appraisals of Internal States and Duration of Remission in Remitted Bipolar Patients.

INTRODUCTION: To identify dysfunctional attitudes seen in bipolar disorder (BPD) is important for the cognitive theories of BPD and corresponding psychosocial interventions. Cognitions are seen as vulnerability factors in the development and maintenance of BPD. The present study aims to contribute to the cognitive literature on BPD by examining depressive and hypomanic attitudes and their contribution to the prediction of BPD diagnosis as well as by exploring the relationship between dysfunctional cognitions and clinical features (types of episodes experienced, duration of illness, and duration of remission). METHODS: One hundred and eighteen remitted bipolar patients and 103 healthy controls completed the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ), Turkish Brief-Hypomanic Interpretations and Positive Predictions Inventory (HAPPI), and Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale. RESULTS: The bipolar group had significantly higher depressive and hypomanic attitudes than the control group. No significant differences were found regarding the types of episodes experienced and duration of illness. However, both types of attitudes decreased as the duration of remission increased. They were also found to contribute to the prediction of bipolar diagnosis together with the screening of the MDQ. CONCLUSION: The results pointed out that dysfunctional cognitions may be utilized as possible indicators for the risk of relapse in clinical groups and vulnerability for BPD among other populations.

Platelet-rich fibrin plays a role on healing of acute-traumatic ear drum perforation.

OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to demonstrate the effects of platelet-rich fibrin (PRF) for the healing of acute ear drum perforation. METHODS: Thirty-two patients with acute traumatic ear drum perforations were randomly separated into 2 groups. In group 1 (n = 14), PRF was used for the repair of ear drum perforation; in group 2 (n = 18), we did not make any intervention. RESULTS: At initial inspection, perforation sizes were measured as 10.93 ± 3.58 mm in group 1 and 10.05 ± 4.02 mm in group 2. After 1 month, perforation sizes were 1.35 ± 2.53 mm in group 1 and 4.44 ± 3.34 mm in group 2 (P < 0.01). In the study group, the rate of ear drum closure was 64.3% and in the control group it was 22.2% (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Here we found that PRF is a biomaterial that quickens the healing of ear drum which is autogenous and simply prepared.

[The validity and reliability of the Brief-Hypomanic Attitudes and Positive Predictions Inventory-Turkish version]. / "Hipomanik Tutumlar ve Pozitif Yordamalar Ölçegi" kisa formunun geçerlik ve güvenilirlik çalismas.

OBJECTIVE: There has been a great deal of interest in specific dysfunctional beliefs that may be associated with susceptibility to mania. The Hypomanic Attitudes and Positive Predictions Inventory (HAPPI) was developed by Mansell (2006) to identify such beliefs. The present study aimed to measure the psychometric properties of the Turkish version of the brief version of the HAPPI (Brief-HAPPI-TR). METHOD: The study sample consisted of 115 outpatients with bipolar disorder (BD) and 103 healthy controls. Participants were administered the Brief-HAPPI-TR, Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ), and Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale (DAS). RESULTS: The reverse-scored HAPPI items lowered the alpha coefficient and were therefore excluded from the total score. The remaining items had high internal consistency for the entire sample (r = 0.84), for the BD group (r = 0.83), and for the control group (r = 0.86). The test-retest reliability coefficient was moderately high (r = 0.41). Brief-HAPPI-TR scores were significantly correlated with MDQ and DAS scores. Finally, Brief-HAPPI-TR was able to differentiate between the BD patients and controls. CONCLUSION: Brief-HAPPI-TR was observed to be valid and reliable for assessing hypomanic attitudes in Turkish BD patients in remission. In addition, we think that within the cognitive-behavioral paradigm this scale can be used to identify and treat dysfunctional cognitions in Turkish BD patients.

Topical Nigella Sativa for nasal symptoms in elderly.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effects of intranasal application of black seed (Nigella Sativa) oil (NSO) and isotonic sodium chloride solution (ISCS) on nasal symptoms of the elderly. METHODS: In this prospective, crossover randomized controlled trial, 42 geriatric patients with nasal dryness and related symptoms were randomized to receive either 2 weeks of isotonic sodium chloride solution (ISCS) followed by 2 weeks of N. sativa oil (NG oil) or the same treatment in the opposite order. There was a washout period of 3 weeks in between the treatment periods. Subjective symptoms including nasal dryness, burning, obstruction, itching and crusting were evaluated by a visual analog scale. Mucociliary function was evaluated with saccharin test. RESULTS: Nasal dryness, obstruction and crusting improved significantly with the use of NSO compared to ISCS without any evidence of relevant carryover effects (p<0.05 for all for the difference in treatment). There was no significant difference between the effect of NSO and ISCS on nasal burning and itching (p>0.05 for all). There was no change in mucociliary clearance during any of the treatment periods. CONCLUSION: NSO is a better alternative to ISCS to treat nasal mucosa symptoms due to aging.

Is there any predictor for tinnitus outcome in different types of otologic surgery?

Our objective was to determine the effect of different types of otologic surgeries on tinnitus symptoms. Our study consisted of 63 patients who were operated between January and June 2011. Variables such as age, sex, presence of systemic diseases, location and size of the perforation, duration of dry period, type of otological surgery, peroperative presence of cholesteatoma, timpanosclerotic plaques and ossicular chain discontinuity were evaluated. Audiologic evaluation by pure tone audiometry and assessment of THI scores were conducted before surgery and 12 weeks after surgery. There was a very significant difference between preoperative and postoperative mean THI scores (p < 0.01). There was no significant effect of presence of ossicular discontinuity, cholesteatoma, tympanosclerotic plaques, type of surgery or duration of symptoms on the difference of preoperative and postoperative THI scores (p > 0.05). There was a significant positive relationship between audiological gain and THI scores (r = 0.355, p < 0.01). In our study, we investigated the relationship between many types of otological surgeries including some preoperative and peroperative pathological findings and tinnitus. As a result, we found that postoperative audiologic gain is an important factor determining outcome of tinnitus in these types of otological surgeries.

[Adaptation, validity, and reliability of the Metacognition Questionnaire-30 for the Turkish population, and its relationship to anxiety and obsessive-compulsive symptoms]. / Ustbilis Olçegi-30'un Türkçe uyarlamasi, geçerligi, güvenirligi, kaygi ve obsesif-kompülsif belirtilerle iliskisi.

OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the short form of the Metacognition Questionnaire (MCQ-30) in a population of Turkish university students. The metacognitions questionnaire (MCQ) measures individual differences in a selection of metacognitive beliefs, judgments, and monitoring tendencies considered important in the metacognitive model of psychological disorders. METHOD: The study included 850 university students from 15 Turkish universities. Mean age age of the participants was 21.22 years, 282 (33.17%) were female, and 568 (66.82%) were male. RESULTS: Construct validity was evaluated by exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Exploratory factor analysis revealed that the Turkish version of MCQ-30 has 5 components, which is same factor structure as the original form. In addition, the fit indices of CFA suggested an acceptable fit to a 5-factor model consistent with the original MCQ-30. The Turkish MCQ-30 showed acceptable to good test-retest reliability, internal consistency, and convergent validity. Significant positive relationships between the subscales of MCQ-30 and measures of anxiety and obsessive-compulsive symptoms provided further support for the convergent validity of the Turkish version. Moreover, significant negative correlations were observed between age and the MCQ-30 subscales, and the effect of gender was significant on some of the subscales. CONCLUSION: The psychometric properties of the Turkish version of MCQ-30 showed that the instrument is a valuable additional tool for the assessment of metacognition in Turkey.

Exploring the role of metacognition in obsessive--compulsive and anxiety symptoms.

This study tests three hypotheses, predicting first that metacognition is highly correlated with anxiety and obsessive-compulsive (O-C) symptoms, second that it mediates the relationship between O-C symptoms and anxiety, and third that the meta-cognitive predictors of anxiety are different from the meta-cognitive predictors of O-C symptoms. The sample of the present study was 850 students selected from various universities in Turkey. Significant correlations between metacognition, O-C symptoms and anxiety were observed. Also, mediation analysis confirmed that metacognition fully mediated the relationship between O-C symptoms and anxiety. Consistent with our hypothesis, trait anxiety and O-C symptoms had different meta-cognitive predictors. Although, we expected that meta-cognitive beliefs would vary based on the sub-type of O-C symptoms, meta-cognitive beliefs did not differ according to the O-C symptom subtypes. We discussed results with reference to the literature of meta-cognition, anxiety and O-C symptoms.