Sampling time for self-taking an oropharyngeal swab for gonorrhoea and chlamydia testing.

Self-taking oropharyngeal swabs for sexually transmitted infections such as gonorrhoea and chlamydia has become more common during the COVID-19 pandemic to minimise the risk to healthcare workers. However, there have been no standardised guidelines on sampling time for taking an oropharyngeal swab for gonorrhoea and chlamydia testing. We recruited 215 participants at the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre, Australia, between November 2021 and January 2022. We asked participants to report the time they spent on self-taking the oropharyngeal swab. The median self-taking sampling time was 8s (IQR=5-12), and the time did not differ between oropharyngeal gonorrhoea positivity (P =0.570) and oropharyngeal chlamydia positivity (P =0.457).

Antibiotic versus cranberry in the treatment of uncomplicated urinary infection: a randomized controlled trial

SUMMARY OBJECTIVE: This study was designed to determine the effect of cranberry extract used in patients with single urinary tract infections. METHODS: Patients with simple-type urinary tract infections were divided into two groups. Treatment with fosfomycin or cranberry tablet was started. On days 1, 3, and 7 of the treatment, whether there was a decrease in the complaints was evaluated with a Likert-type scale. The recovery status of urinary tract infections and the well-being of patients were compared via antibiotic and cranberry groups. RESULTS: After the treatment, the leukocyte levels of the cranberry users were at the same level as those of the other group, and the rate of well-being and the portion of patients that reported to be "very well" on days 3 and 7 in the cranberry group was significantly higher compared with the fosfomycin group (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Considering the results of this study, it was determined that the patient's complaints decreased from day 3 and their well-being increased with the use of cranberry only. Specifically, on day 7, the well-being of the cranberry group was higher than that of the fosfomycin group. For this reason, cranberry is a favorable alternative to antibiotics in uncomplicated and simple urinary tract infections.

The role of serum adropin in determining the clinical outcomes of patients with traumatic brain injury: a case-control study

SUMMARY OBJECTIVE: It has been determined that adropin has a role in tissue healing. This study aimed to determine the effects of head trauma on the tissues and blood levels of patients admitted to the emergency department. METHODS: The study group was divided into two to compare the adropin level in healthy individuals and patients with head trauma. Blood tests from patients and healthy volunteers were compared using the adropin kit. Adropin levels, Glasgow Coma Scale, and revised scores of trauma patients were recorded and analyzed. RESULTS: All patients in the trauma group had significantly higher adropin levels than the control group. Among these patients, the adropin level of the discharged patients was higher than the others. In addition, patients with high Glasgow Coma Scale and normal blood pressure were found to have higher adropin levels than the others. CONCLUSION: Although adropin cannot make a sharp distinction in determining the prognosis, the increase in its level in trauma patients shows that it triggers a protective mechanism.

¿Es el intervalo libre de docetaxel un factor predictivo para el cáncer de próstata resistente a la castración? / Is docetaxel-free interval a predictive factor for castration-resistant prostate cancer?

Objetivo: El cáncer de próstata (CaP) es el segundo tumor sólido más frecuente en los varones y la quinta causa de muerte relacionada con el cáncer. En los estadios avanzados de la enfermedad se administran tratamientos paliativos en lugar de terapias curativas, por lo que, conocer los posibles indicadores predictivos, parece importante. Se revisaron retrospectivamente los pacientes con cáncer de próstata resistente a la castración (CPRC) que recibieron quimioterapia con docetaxel (Dx). El objetivo de este estudio fue investigar si el intervalo libre de Dx podría tener un valor predictivo para el CaP e influir en las terapias secuenciales.Material y métodos: Este ensayo clínico se realizó en 104 pacientes en la Clínica de Oncología de la Universidad de Medeniyet en 2018-2020. Todos los pacientes con CPRC metastásico recibieron Dx como primer tratamiento y fueron sometidos a terapia dirigida al receptor de andrógenos (ARAT, por sus siglas en inglés) tras la progresión de la enfermedad. Se analizó el tiempo hasta la progresión de los pacientes después de la terapia con Dx y los efectos sobre el tratamiento secuencial.Resultados: Posterior al tratamiento con Dx, los pacientes recibieron ARAT (abiraterona [ABI] n: 49 [47,1%] y enzalutamida [ENZ] n: 54 [51,9%]) como tratamiento de segunda línea, excepto un paciente que recibió cabazitaxel. Hubo una relación estadísticamente significativa entre el intervalo libre de Dx y la duración de la respuesta al ARAT (p<0,001). El tiempo de respuesta al tratamiento con ARAT fue <10,5 meses en todos los pacientes con un período de intervalo libre de Dx<9 meses.Conclusiones: Nuestros resultados avalan la hipótesis de que el intervalo libre de Dx puede ser un factor predictivo para el CPRC. El CPRC podría clasificarse como enfermedad sensible al Dx o resistente al Dx en función del intervalo libre de Dx; y la decisión sobre los tratamientos posteriores podría tomarse con base en esta información. (AU)

Objective: Prostate cancer (PCa) is the second most common solid tumor in men and the fifth leading cause of cancer-related death. In advanced stage, palliative treatments are used instead of curative therapies. Therefore, finding predictive indicators seems crucial. Patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) that received Dx chemotherapy have been retrospectively reviewed. The aim of this study was to investigate whether docetaxel (Dx)-free interval could have a predictive value for PCa and influence other sequential therapies.Material and methods: This clinical trial study was performed on 104 patients at Medeniyet University Oncology Clinic in 2018-2020. All CRPC patients had metastases, received Dx as first-line treatment and underwent androgen receptor axis targeted (ARAT) therapy after disease progression. We analyzed patients’ progression time after Dx therapy and the effects on sequential treatment.Results: After Dx therapy, all patients received ARAT (abiraterone (ABI) n: 49 (47.1%) and enzalutamide (ENZ) n: 54 (51.9%)) as a second-line treatment, except for one patient who received cabazitaxel. There was a statistically significant relationship between the Dx-free interval and duration of response to ARAT (P<.001). The response time of ARAT treatment was <10.5 months in all patients whose Dx-free interval period was <9 months.Conclusions: Our findings support the theory that Dx-free interval can be a predictive factor for CRPC. CRPC disease can be classified as Dx-sensitive disease or Dx-resistance disease, based on the Dx-free interval. Decision on subsequent treatments could be made considering this information. (AU)