Pressure ulcer development in patients treated for acute ischaemic stroke.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of pressure ulcers (PUs) in patients treated for acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) and to evaluate comorbid/confounding factors. METHOD: The study included patients treated for AIS who were divided into three treatment groups: those receiving intravenous tissue plasminogen activator therapy (tPA); patients receiving mechanical thrombectomy (MT); and those receiving both tPA and MT. PUs were classified according to the international classification system and factors that may influence their development were investigated. RESULTS: A total of 242 patients were included in this study. The incidence of PUs in patients treated for AIS was 7.4%. Most PUs were located on the sacrum (3.7%), followed by the gluteus (3.3%) and trochanter (2.9%). With regards to PU classification: 29% were stage I; 34% were stage II; and the remainder were stage III. Age was not a significant factor in the development of PUs (p=0.172). Patients in the tPA group had a lower PU incidence (2.3%) than patients in the tPA+MT group (15.7%) and MT group (12.1%) (p=0.001). Patients with PUs had a longer period of hospitalisation (18.5±11.92 days) than patients without a PU (8.0±8.52 days) (p=0.000). National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores at admission were higher in patients with PUs than in patients without a PU (14.33±4.38 versus 11.08±5.68, respectively; p=0.010). The difference in presence of comorbidities between patients with and without PUs (p=0.922) and between treatment groups (p=0.677) were not statistically significant. The incidence of PUs was higher in patients requiring intensive care, but this difference was not statistically significant (p=0.089). CONCLUSION: In this study, patients treated for AIS with high NIHSS scores at admission and/or receiving MT were at higher risk for PUs, and so particular attention should be given to these patients in order to prevent PU development.

Evaluation of peripapillary and subfoveal choroidal vascularity index in patients with multiple sclerosis.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the changes in the peripapillary choroidal vascularity index (PCVI) and subfoveal choroidal vascularity index (SFCVI) in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and healthy subjects. METHODS: A total of 145 eyes of 73 patients were investigated in this cross-sectional study. 78 eyes of 39 MS patients (Group 1) and 67 eyes of 34 healthy subjects (Group 2) were evaluated. MS patients with a history of optic neuritis (ON) constituted Group 1a, those without a history of ON constituted Group 1b. RESULTS: The mean PCVI was significantly lower in Group 1 than Group 2 (61,39 ± 3,00% vs 64,49 ± 2,29%, respectively, p < 0.001). The mean SFCVI scores of Group 1 was significantly lower than Group 2 (64,01 ± 2,66% vs. 66,87 ± 2,14%, respectively, p < 0.001). The mean PCVI of Group 1a (59,26 ± 2,85%) was significantly lower compared to Group 1b (62,87 ± 2,08%) and Group 2 (64,49 ± 2,29%, p1 < 0.001, p2 < 0.001). The mean SFCVI of Group 1a was significantly lower than Group 2 (64.26 ± 2.75% vs. 66.87 ± 2.14%, respectively, p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: PCVI and SFCVI scores were significantly lower in MS patients compared to healthy controls. PCVI scores of MS patients who had a history of ON were significantly lower than those of patients without a previous ON attack, as were SFCVI scores. We consider that evaluation of PCVI and SFCVI might be useful for monitoring ocular involvement in patients with MS.

The Relationship between Polyneuropathy and Cognitive Functions in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients.

OBJECTIVES: Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is a risk factor for mild cognitive impairment (MCI), Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. However, it is not known which pathophysiological mechanisms lead to impairment in cognitive functions in Type 2 DM. This study aims to compare the cognitive functions of diabetic patients with and without polyneuropathy using standardized Mini-Mental Test (MMSE) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale (MoCA) and to assess whether the presence of polyneuropathy is a predictive factor for the development of cognitive impairment. METHODS: Patients with DM who underwent our EMG laboratory for polyneuropathy between January 2014 and January 2015 were included in this study. Patients who underwent electrophysiological examinations were evaluated for polyneuropathy. Patients with polyneuropathy were classified as a patient group and other patients as a control group. In all cases, MMSE and MoCA were administered. The demographic data and educational status of the patients were recorded. Hypertension, coronary artery disease, smoking and alcohol use were questioned. Their complaints, duration of illness and the treatment they were receiving were questioned. Glycosylated hemoglobin (HBA1C) values in the last three months and physical examination findings of patients were recorded. Patients with and without polyneuropathy were compared with statistical methods. RESULTS: Polyneuropathy was detected in 34 (42%) of the 81 patients who participated in our study. The age, disease duration and HBA1C levels were statistically higher in the polyneuropathy group than in the control group (p=0.024, p=0.000, p=0.016). However, there was no statistically significant difference between MMSE and MoCA scores of these groups. In both groups, there were no patients scoring below the MMSE cut-off value of 24. Seventeen of the 34 patients (50%) in the polyneuropathic group and 19 (40,4%) of the 47 patients in the control group had scores below the MoCA cut-off value 21. However, there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups. We also found that the mean MoCA value of all DM patients was 21, which was the MoCA cut-off value. Also, factors affecting cognitive functions in all Type 2 DM patients were evaluated by logistic regression analysis, and it was found that duration of education was an independent factor affecting cognitive impairment (OR=8.167; p=0.001). CONCLUSION: In our study, we did not observe significant differences between MMSE and MoCA scores of Type 2 DM patients with and without polyneuropathy. However, the cross-sectional nature of our study makes it impossible to comment on this issue. To clarify whether the presence of polyneuropathy is a predictive factor in the development of cognitive impairment in Type 2 DM, there is a need for a larger sample group and long-term follow-up studies. It has also been shown that patients with Type 2 DM may have low scores according to the MOBID cut-off value even though peripheral neurologic involvement findings are not observed. In the Type 2 DM population, it has also been shown that MoCA may be affected by education level.