Assessment of periapical health, quality of root canal filling, and coronal restoration by using cone-beam computed tomography.

Aim: The purpose of this study is to use cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) to describe the prevalence of apical health, the quality of root canal filling, and coronal restorations of endodontically treated teeth in the east Anatolian subpopulation of Turkey.

Materials And Methods: CBCT scans were taken from 748 patients attending for the 1st time to the clinic at the Oral Diagnosis and Radiology Department at Ataturk University's Faculty of Dentistry in Erzurum, Turkey. All images were analyzed by two research assistants who were trained using examples of CBCT images with and without the presence of periapical radiolucency.

Is emotion recognition the only problem in ADHD? effects of pharmacotherapy on face and emotion recognition in children with ADHD.

The objectives of this study were to evaluate both face and emotion recognition, to detect differences among attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) subgroups, to identify effects of the gender and to assess the effects of methylphenidate and atomoxetine treatment on both face and emotion recognition in patients with ADHD. The study sample consisted of 41 male, 29 female patients, 8-15 years of age, who were diagnosed as having combined type ADHD (N = 26), hyperactive/impulsive type ADHD (N = 21) or inattentive type ADHD (N = 23) but had not previously used any medication for ADHD and 35 male, 25 female healthy individuals. Long-acting methylphenidate (OROS-MPH) was prescribed to 38 patients, whereas atomoxetine was prescribed to 32 patients.

N-3 vs. n-6 fatty acids differentially influence calcium signalling and adhesion of inflammatory activated monocytes: impact of lipid rafts.

Background: Anti-inflammatory n-3 fatty acids (FA) like docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) opposed to the pro-inflammatory n-6 FA arachidonic acid (AA) might modulate lipid rafts within the cell membrane by differential incorporation. In inflammation, monocyte adhesion to endothelial cells is a crucial step mediated by intracellular calcium changes. We investigated whether lipid rafts mediate FA-induced modulation of adhesion and intracellular calcium.

Factors Affecting Mortality After Major Nontraumatic Lower Extremity Amputation.

Our aim was to evaluate the factors affecting the mortality of patients who underwent nontraumatic major lower limb amputation due to ischemic and/or diabetic causes. A total of 100 patients were included in the study. Among these patients, 70 (70%) underwent below-knee amputation, whereas 30 (30%) underwent above-knee amputation.

Failure of Femoral Access to Electrophysiological Evaluation Due to Aplasia of the Inferior Vena Cava.

We report an interesting case of a man with a persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) with left azygos vein who underwent electrophysiological evaluation. Further evaluation revealed congenital dilated azygos vein, while a segment connecting the inferior vena cava (IVC) to the hepatic vein and right atrium was missing. The azygos vein drained into the superior vena cava, and the hepatic veins drained directly into the right atrium.

Vitamin C suppresses lipopolysaccharide-induced procoagulant response of human monocyte-derived macrophages.

Objective: Although vitamin C is a strong antioxidant, the epidemiologic evidence to support its role in lowering risk of cardiovascular disease is inconsistent. In order to define the role of vitamin C in vascular pathophysiology, we have investigated the effect of vitamin C on the tissue factor (TF) and Factor VII Activating Protease (FSAP) expression induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in human monocyte-derived macrophages.

Materials And Methods: Vitamin C at clinically relevant doses was tested to its ability to influence the LPS- and reactive oxygen species (ROS) - generating system of xanthine/xanthine oxidase (X/XO) NF-kB activity in human monocyte-derived macrophages.

Temporal trends in the utilization of vasopressors in intensive care units: an epidemiologic study.

Background: The choice of vasopressor use in the intensive care unit (ICU) depends primarily on provider preference. This study aims to describe the rate of vasopressor utilization and the trends of each vasoactive agent usage in the ICU over the span of 7 years in a tertiary referral center.

Methods: All adult ICU admissions, including medical, cardiac, and surgical ICUs from January 1st, 2007 through December 31st, 2013 were included in this study.

Factors effecting influenza vaccination uptake among health care workers: a multi-center cross-sectional study.

Background: The present study aimed to identify factors affecting vaccination against influenza among health professionals.

Methods: We used a multi-centre cross-sectional design to conduct an online self-administered questionnaire with physicians and nurses at state and foundation university hospitals in the south-east of Turkey, between 1 January 2015 and 1 February 2015. The five participating hospitals provided staff email address lists filtered for physicians and nurses.

New high-speed centre of mass method incorporating background subtraction for accurate determination of fluorescence lifetime.

We demonstrate an implementation of a centre-of-mass method (CMM) incorporating background subtraction for use in multifocal fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy to accurately determine fluorescence lifetime in live cell imaging using the Megaframe camera. The inclusion of background subtraction solves one of the major issues associated with centre-of-mass approaches, namely the sensitivity of the algorithm to background signal. The algorithm, which is predominantly implemented in hardware, provides real-time lifetime output and allows the user to effectively condense large amounts of photon data.

Randomised clinical trial: mixed soluble/insoluble fibre vs. psyllium for chronic constipation.

Background: Fibre supplements are useful, but whether a plum-derived mixed fibre that contains both soluble and insoluble fibre improves constipation is unknown.

Aim: To investigate the efficacy and tolerability of mixed soluble/insoluble fibre vs. psyllium in a randomized double-blind controlled trial.

Spontaneous Rectus Sheath Hematoma: an Overview of 4-Year Single Center Experience.

Rectus sheath hematoma is a clinical entity characterized by the presence of blood within rectus abdominis muscle sheath. The aim of this study was to analyze clinical characteristics, diagnostic approach, treatment strategy, and outcomes of patients with rectus sheath hematoma. Patients diagnosed and treated for spontaneous rectus sheath hematoma between March 2010 and March 2014 were included in the study.

Small Intestinal and Mesenteric Multiple Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors Causing Occult Bleeding.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors are the meseancymal neoplasms which may involve any part of gastrointestinal tract. C-Kit and platelet derived factor receptor alpha polypeptide are believed to be responsible for the genetic basis. This case presentation aimed to discuss the diagnostic and therapeutic modality of multiple small intestinal, omental, and mesenteric GISTs with different sizes which caused occult bleeding in a 43-year-old male patient.

Development and validation of clinical performance assessment in simulated medical emergencies: an observational study.

Background: Critical illness is a time-sensitive process which requires practitioners to process vast quantities of data and make decisions rapidly. We have developed a tool, the Checklist for Early Recognition and Treatment of Acute Illness (CERTAIN), aimed at enhancing care delivery in such situations. To determine the efficacy of CERTAIN and similar cognitive aids, we developed rubric for evaluating provider performance in a simulated medical resuscitation environments.

A Retrospective Investigation of Clozapine Treatment in Autistic and Nonautistic Children and Adolescents in an Inpatient Clinic in Turkey.

Objective: The aim of this retrospective study is to examine the clinical outcomes and safety of clozapine in children and adolescents with schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders/autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or affective disorders.

Methods: The inpatient and outpatient files of all children and adolescents treated with clozapine over a period of 34 months (from October 2011 to July 2014) were reviewed. Demographic and clinical data were examined to describe clinical and metabolic findings, dosing, and tolerability of clozapine treatment in youth with schizophrenia, other psychotic disorders, ASD, or bipolar disorder.

The Effectiveness of Measures Aimed at Noise Reduction in an Intensive Care Unit.

Noise is a significant problem for both hospitalized patients and health care workers. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of noise reduction strategies in an intensive care unit. Noise was measured in two phases.

Combination of zoledronic acid and serine/threonine phosphatase inhibitors induces synergistic cytotoxicity and apoptosis in human breast cancer cells via inhibition of PI3K/Akt pathway.

The aim of this study was to investigate the cytotoxic and apoptotic effects of zoledronic acid (ZA) in combination with serine/threonine protein phosphatase inhibitors, calyculin-A (CA) and okadaic acid (OA), in human MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. XTT cell viability assay was used to evaluate cytotoxicity. DNA fragmentation and caspase-3/7 activity assays were performed to evaluate apoptosis.

The Role of Body Mass Index in Triple Negative Breast Cancer.

Background: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has none of the targeted treatment choices due to its distinct biological property, making this subtype a unique disease. In this study, we evaluated the impact of obesity on clinical outcomes of TNBC.

Methods: The data of breast cancer patients admitted to our department were collected.

Total knee arthroplasty after osseous ankylosis of the knee joint.

Objective: A knee fusion is associated with considerable restrictions, including the inability to sit properly, use public transportation, and climb stairs. The purpose of this study is to report and discuss our cases of spontaneous ankylosed knees which were taken down and underwent total knee arthroplasty (TKA).

Methods: Six patients who experienced spontaneous ankylosis of the knee undergoing conversion to TKA between 2003-2012 were enrolled retrospectively in this study.

0.5 billion events per second time correlated single photon counting using CMOS SPAD arrays.

We present a digital architecture for fast acquisition of time correlated single photon counting (TCSPC) events from a 32×32 complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) single photon avalanche detector (SPAD) array (Megaframe) to the computer memory. Custom firmware was written to transmit event codes from 1024-TCSPC-enabled pixels for fast transfer of TCSPC events. Our 1024-channel TCSPC system is capable of acquiring up to 0.