Reduced-Dose Systemic Fibrinolysis in Massive Pulmonary Embolism: A Pilot Study.

Objective: Severe pulmonary embolism (PE) has a high mortality rate, which can be lowered by thrombolytic therapy (TT). However, full-dose TT is associated with major complications, including life-threatening bleeding. The aim of this study was to explore the efficacy and safety of extended, low-dose administration of tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) on in-hospital mortality and outcomes in massive PE.

The predictive value of galectin-3 levels on left atrial low voltage areas assessed by high-density mapping in patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation.

Aims: Galectin-3 is an inflammation biomarker that is associated with atrial fibrosis and plays a role in the development of atrial fibrillation (AF). Low voltage areas (LVAs) identified using an electroanatomical mapping system represent the presence of fibrotic tissue. The present study aimed to determine the relationship between coronary sinus (CS) serum sampling of galectin-3 levels and the presence and extent of LVA in patients with paroxysmal AF.

Global range expansion history of pepper ( spp.) revealed by over 10,000 genebank accessions.

Genebanks collect and preserve vast collections of plants and detailed passport information, with the aim of preserving genetic diversity for conservation and breeding. Genetic characterization of such collections has the potential to elucidate the genetic histories of important crops, use marker-trait associations to identify loci controlling traits of interest, search for loci undergoing selection, and contribute to genebank management by identifying taxonomic misassignments and duplicates. We conducted a genomic scan with genotyping by sequencing (GBS) derived single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of 10,038 pepper ( spp.

Assessment of Arterial Stiffness with Cardio-Ankle Vascular Index in Patients with Mitral Annular Calcification.

Objective: Arterial stiffness is related to arteriolosclerotic diseases and is a marker of adverse cardiovascular events. Mitral annular calcification (MAC) is progressive calcium deposition on the posterior and inferior mitral annulus and is associated with atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. Cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) is a measurement technique used to estimate the degree of arterial stiffness without effect from blood pressure.

Brain metabolite alterations in Eisenmenger syndrome: Evaluation with MR proton spectroscopy.

Objective: Eisenmenger syndrome (ES) is a life-threatening disease characterized by pulmonary hypertension and cyanosis in patients with congenital heart diseases. The aim of this study was to determine the brain metabolite changes in Eisenmenger syndrome compared with a control group using MR proton spectroscopy.

Methods And Materials: The study included 10 children (3 male, 7 female) with congenital heart diseases and a diagnosis of Eisenmenger syndrome.

Brain diffusion changes in Eisenmenger syndrome.

Objective: This preliminary study aimed to evaluate whether there are changes in the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values of the brain in patients presenting with Eisenmenger syndrome (ES).

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 10 consecutively recruited patients with ES and 10 healthy control subjects. In the patients and controls, eight distinct neuroanatomical locations were selected for analysis.

Usefulness of Heart-Type Fatty Acid-Binding Protein and Myocardial Performance Index for Early Detection of 5-Fluorouracil Cardiotoxicity.

In the present study, we aimed to evaluate temporal changes in heart-type fatty acid-binding protein (h-FABP) and myocardial performance index (Tei index) following administration of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), a chemotherapeutic agent associated with myocardial ischemia induced by coronary vasospasm. Thirty-two patients with cancer receiving their first 5-FU-based chemotherapy were included in the study. Prior to chemotherapy and 24 hours after the initiation of chemotherapy, all patients underwent a comprehensive echocardiographic examination.

The Relationship between GRACE Score and Epicardial Fat Thickness in non-STEMI Patients.

Background: GRACE risk score (GS) is a scoring system which has a prognostic significance in patients with non-ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (non-STEMI).

Objective: The present study aimed to determine whether end-systolic or end-diastolic epicardial fat thickness (EFT) is more closely associated with high-risk non-STEMI patients according to the GS.

Methods: We evaluated 207 patients who had non-STEMI beginning from October 2012 to February 2013, and 162 of them were included in the study (115 males, mean age: 66.

Urothelial Carcinoma Concomitant With Malakoplakia In Non-Functioning Nephrolithic Kidneys.

Nephrolithic non-functioning kidney and malakoplakia are major health problems. Kidney function cannot be fulfilled and also this leads to a high risk of development of urothelial neoplasm. We report herein a case of urothelial carcinoma concomitant with malakoplakia in non-functioning nephrolithic kidneys.

Efficacy of diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging in follow-up patients treated with open partial cystectomy of liver hydatid cysts.

Background And Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of DWI in differentiation of patients with residual cavity and type 1 hydatid cyst (HC) in the liver.

Methods: 32 patients were included. 12 of these patients had type 1 HC and the remainders (n = 20) had postoperative residual cavities.

Effect of transcatheter aortic valve implantation on QT dispersion in patients with aortic stenosis.

Background: QT dispersion (QTd) is a predictor of ventricular arrhythmia. Ventricular arrhythmia is an important factor influencing morbidity and mortality in patients with aortic stenosis. Surgical aortic valve replacement reduced the QTd in this patients group.

[Complex regional pain syndrome type 1 after fracture of distal phalanx: case report].

Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) is a disease characterized especially by pain, swelling, limited range of motion, vasomotor instability and patchy bone demineralization in the extremities. In this case, we report a 46-year-old woman diagnosed with CRPS type 1, whose complaints, such as swelling in the left hand, pain, and limitation of movement, started 2 months after a fracture of the distal phalanx in the left 4th finger. Her complaints were reduced with treatment of calcitonin, gabapentin, calcium and vitamin D3, retrograde edema massage, contrast baths, conventional TENS, pulsed ultrasound, desensitization and exercise with range of joint motion.

Primary tubercular chorioretinitis.

The aim of this report is to emphasize that corticosteroids should not be prescribed when the etiological factors remain unidentified. A 34-year-old male visited our ophthalmology clinic suffering from blurred vision. Behçet's disease had been diagnosed 5 years prior, and the patient was taking an oral immunosuppressant and a systemic corticosteroid.

Association of Mitral Annular Calcification with Left Ventricular Mechanics: A Speckle Tracking Study.

Background: Mitral annular calcification (MAC) is a common echocardiographic finding in clinical practice and is associated with cardiovascular risk factors and atherosclerosis. However, data regarding left ventricular (LV) functions are lacking. We aimed to evaluate the relationship between MAC and LV mechanical functions with the utility of two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (2DSTE).

The influence of dipper/nondipper blood pressure patterns on global left ventricular systolic function in hypertensive diabetic patients: a speckle tracking study.

Objective: This study was designed to investigate the effects of dipper and nondipper patterns on global longitudinal systolic functions of left ventricle (LV) by means of two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography in treated hypertensive diabetic patients with preserved left ventricular ejection fraction.

Patients And Methods: We enrolled 86 hypertensive diabetic patients. Twenty-four hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and echocardiography were performed in each patient.

The BODE index, a multidimensional grading system, reflects impairment of right ventricle functions in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a speckle-tracking study.

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is not only characterized by chronic airflow limitation, but is also a systemic disease. There is no information about alterations in right ventricle (RV) functions precipitated by systemic manifestations of COPD.

Objectives: We aimed to evaluate the relationship between the BODE (body mass index, airflow obstruction, dyspnea, and exercise capacity) index that evaluates systemic manifestations of COPD and RV functions by means of 2-dimensional speckle-tracking echocardiography (2D-STE) in COPD patients.

Cardio-ankle vascular index may be an important marker of silent neuronal injury after percutaneous coronary angiography and intervention: a prospective observational study on diagnostic accuracy.

Objective: The relationship between silent neuronal injury (SNI) and arterial stiffness assessed by cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) has not been evaluated in patients treated with coronary angiography and intervention due to acute coronary syndrome (ACS). The aim of this study is to evaluate the value of CAVI in prediction of SNI after percutaneous coronary angiography and intervention in patients presented with ACS.

Methods: Eighty-three consecutive patients presented with ACS, who underwent percutaneous coronary angiography and intervention, were included in this prospective observational study on diagnostic accuracy.

The relationship between C-reactive protein and the lapse of time since the onset of the symptoms after acute myocardial infarction: an prospective-observational study.

Objective: It is important to know the elapsed symptom-to-door (StD) time between the emergence of ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) symptoms and admission to the hospital in terms of the selection of appropriate treatment and prognosis. In this study, we aimed to assess the relationship between serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and StD time after STEMI.

Methods: 436 of the patients admitted to our center with STEMI between August 2012-February 2013 (338 male, mean age, 63.

Evaluation of resistive index using color Doppler imaging of orbital arteries in geriatric patients with hypertension.

Background And Aim: Resistive index (RI) is an indirect measurement of blood flow resistance that can be used to evaluate vascular damage in ophthalmologic disease. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between RI values of orbital arteries using the color Doppler imaging (CDI) in geriatric hypertensive patients with or without retinopathy.

Setting And Design: Designed as a cross-sectional study.

Relation of epicardial fat thickness to subclinical right ventricular dysfunction assessed by strain and strain rate imaging in subjects with metabolic syndrome: a two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography study.

Background: Right ventricular (RV) function is known to be impaired in the presence of metabolic syndrome (MetS). Epicardial adipose tissue is a metabolically active organ that generates various bioactive molecules, which might affect cardiac function and morphology. Thus, we hypothesized that RV dysfunction in patients with MetS may be related to increased epicardial fat thickness (EFT) in these patients.

Assessment of Silent Neuronal Injury Following Coronary Angiography and Intervention in Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the incidence and predictors of silent neuronal injury (SNI) after coronary angiography (CAG) and intervention by serial measurement of serum neuron-specific enolase (NSE) in patients presented with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Ninety-eight consecutive patients presented with ACS and underwent CAG and intervention were included in the study. The NSE levels significantly increased after CAG and intervention compared to baseline levels (22.

Intracranial lipomas: clinical and imaging findings.

Purpose: Intracranial lipomas are rare congenital malformations. The most common location of intracranial lipoma is the midline cerebral structures. The most frequently seen symptoms are headaches, seizures, psychomotor retardation and cranial nerve deficits.

[Blunt renal trauma in children: a retrospective analysis of 41 cases].

Background: The majority of renal injury secondary to blunt abdominal trauma can be successfully treated conservatively. In the present study, the clinical features and outcomes of children who presented with renal injury secondary to blunt abdominal trauma were evaluated.

Methods: This study was carried out retrospectively using data from children at the Department of Pediatric Surgery who were hospitalized for renal injury due to blunt abdominal trauma between 2000 and 2012.

Value of coronary artery calcium score to predict severity or complexity of coronary artery disease.

Background: Prediction of severity or complexity of coronary artery disease (CAD) is valuable owing to increased risk for cardiovascular events. Although the association between total coronary artery calcium (CAC) score and severity of CAD, Gensini score was not used, it has been previously demonstrated. There is no information about the association between total CAC score and complexity of CAD.