Combined transbronchial needle aspiration and PET/CT for mediastinal staging of lung cancer.

In this study, we aimed to evaluate the performance of transbronchial needle aspiration (TBNA) combined with positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) for the staging of lung cancer. Twenty-five patients having lymphadenopathies greater than 1 cm on thorax CT and maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) ≥ 2.5 on PET/CT were included in this prospective study performed between March 2006 and March 2008.

Impact of CPAP treatment on cardiac biomarkers and pro-BNP in obstructive sleep apnea syndrome.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy on pro-brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) and cardiac markers in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and normal cardiac function.

Methods: Thirty-three consecutive patients with sleep apnea syndrome were analysed for serum pro-BNP and cardiac markers prior to and after 6 months of CPAP therapy.

Results: Twenty five patients had normal (83.

Recent discovery of an old disease: malignant pleural mesothelioma in a village in south-east Turkey.

Background And Objective: Environmental asbestos exposure is reportedly common in some districts of Turkey. The aim of this study was to investigate the presence and effect of environmental asbestos exposure in a village in Gaziantep, Turkey, with reported cases of mesothelioma.

Methods: All villagers > or =14 years old were subject to an interview rediagnosis and a detailed questionnaire.

A randomized trial of smoking cessation. Medication versus motivation.

Objective: A prospective randomized study was undertaken to assess the effectiveness and side effect profiles of nicotine patch and bupropion therapies for smoking cessation.

Methods: Three hundred and fifty patients were referred to our smoking cessation program in the Department of Pulmonary Diseases, Gaziantep University between September 2002 and July 2003. Of these, only 131 patients fulfilled the trial criteria.

Horseshoe lung associated with scimitar syndrome and pleural lipoma.

Horseshoe lung is a rare congenital anomaly characterized by the presence of unilateral pulmonary hypoplasia and a midline isthmus bridging the right and the left lung. Almost all cases of horseshoe lung are associated with the scimitar syndrome. The scimitar syndrome, sometimes called the congenital pulmonary venolobar syndrome, is a rare but well-described constellation of cardio-pulmonary anomalies.

Protective role of glutathione S-transferase P1 (GSTP1) Val105Val genotype in patients with bronchial asthma.

Background: Glutathione S-transferase P1 (GSTP1), the abundant isoform of glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) in lung epithelium, plays an important role in cellular protection against oxidative stress and toxic foreign chemicals. It has been suggested that polymorphisms in the GSTP1 gene are associated with asthma and related phenotypes. As significant interindividual and interethnic differences exist in the distribution of xenobiotic-metabolizing enzymes, we have studied the GSTP1 Ile105Val polymorphism in patients with asthma in a Turkish sample.

Association between the N-acetylation genetic polymorphism and bronchial asthma.

Aims: Since polymorphic N-acetyltransferase 2 (NAT2) has been suggested as a susceptibility factor for atopic diseases, the study was undertaken to investigate whether an association exists between acetylation polymorphism and asthma patients with atopy.

Methods: The frequencies of NAT2 alleles and genotypes were determined by PCR/RFLP in a total of 210 asthma patients (extrinsic (n = 108) and intrinsic (n = 102) asthmatics) and 240 control subjects. Presence of the NAT2*4 (wild-type) allele defined a NAT2 genotype as rapid and combinations of mutant alleles NAT2*5 A, *5B, *5C, *6 A, and *7B as slow.