Medical management or surgery for acute cholecystitis: Enhancing treatment selection with decision trees.

Background: This study aimed to create an algorithm using the decision tree method to classify patients with suspected acute cholecystitis into those who may improve with medical treatment, those who should undergo surgery for acute cholecystitis, and those with complicated cholecystitis, using laboratory parameters alone.

Methods: A total of 1,352 patients treated for acute cholecystitis at our hospital over four years were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were divided into groups based on whether they received medical treatment or surgery.

Prognostic Significance of Tumor and Inflammatory Markers in Disease-Free and Overall Survival Duration in Colonic Adenocarcinoma Patients.

Introduction Colorectal carcinoma (CRC) continues to be a major global health concern, contributing substantially to cancer incidence and mortality. Colonic adenocarcinoma, a common subtype of CRC, is influenced by various prognostic factors, including tumor stage, histopathological characteristics, and tumor markers. Despite their routine use in clinical settings, the prognostic value of traditional tumor markers, such as carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA 19-9), and others, is still under debate.

Enhancing motor performance through brief skin cooling: exploring the role of enhanced sympathetic tone and muscle spindle sensitivity.

Background: Although brief skin cooling (BSC) is widely used in sports medicine and rehabilitation for its positive effects on motor performance, the mechanism underlying this motor facilitation effect remains unclear.

Objectives: To explore the hypothesis that BSC enhances muscle force generation, with cold-induced sympathetic activation leading to heightened muscle spindle sensitivity, thereby contributing to this effect.

Methods: The study involved two experiments.

Different doses of hyaluronic acid injections in patients with knee osteoarthritis: A multicenter, randomized, prospective, single-blind, clinical study.

Background: Many formulations and dosing regimens are available for hyaluronic acid (HA).

Objective: To compare different doses of linear, high-molecular weight (HMW) HA injections among patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA).

Methods: Hundred patients were included in this randomized, single-blinded trial and randomly divided into three HA injection groups.

Nickel Sensitivity in Patients With Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

Aim: Nickel (Ni) is the most common contact allergen in the population. We aimed to investigate whether there is a relationship between Ni sensitivity and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in our study.

Materials And Methods: This study was conducted in 50 patients with IBS who were followed up between March 2018 and July 2018, and 40 healthy people as a control group in a single center with a dermatology department.

Celiac disease and H. pylori existence in the adult population and its effects on anemia incidence.

Objective: Anemia is a common extraintestinal symptom of celiac disease; however, inflammation and Helicobacter pylori (HP) infection can also induce anemia. Anemia is associated with both H. pylori infection and celiac disease, which can significantly impact public health.

A new index for predicting malignant causes in patients with extrahepatic biliary obstruction: the hemoglobin, albumin, lymphocyte, and platelet (HALP) score.

Objective: The study aimed to investigate whether the pre-procedural hemoglobin, albumin, lymphocyte, and platelet (HALP) scores can distinguish between benign and malignant causes of obstruction in patients who undergo endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for extrahepatic biliary obstruction (EBO).

Patients And Methods: The HALP scores of the patients were calculated according to the values before ERCP. The patients were divided into two groups as malignant and benign according to their diagnosis after ERCP.

The Effects of Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation on Swallowing Functions in Post-stroke Dysphagia: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

The study aimed to evaluate the effects of traditional dysphagia therapy (TDT) and neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) combined with TDT on functionality of oral intake, dysphagia symptom severity, swallowing- and voice-related quality of life, leakage, penetration-aspiration, and residue levels in patients with post-stroke dysphagia (PSD). Thirty-four patients with PSD were included in our prospective, randomized, controlled, and single-blind study. The patients were divided into two groups: (1) TDT only (control group, n = 17) and (2) TDT with NMES (experimental group, n = 17).

Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the management of diabetic foot ulcers: experiences from a dedicated diabetic foot care center.

Introduction: As did many other nations, the Turkish government implemented precautions and lockdown measures in response to the rapid spread of the COVID-19 viral infection. The pandemic has caused millions of deaths globally, resulted in the development of comorbidities, and negatively affected national health care systems. The increased workload at hospitals and spread of the virus among health care professionals have resulted in delays in health care services delivery.

A New Risk-Scoring System for Colorectal Cancer and Polyp Screening by Turkish Colorectal Cancer and Polyp Study Group.

Background: Colorectal cancer is one of the most commonly diagnosed types of cancer worldwide. An early diagnosis and detection of colon cancer and polyp can reduce mortality and morbidity from colorectal cancer. Even though there are a variety of options in screen- ing tests, the question remains on which test is the most effective for the early detection of colorectal cancer.

Does lymph node ratio (metastasis/total lymph node count) affect survival and prognosis in gastric cancer?

Objectives: To investigate the influence of the metastatic lymph node/total lymph node ratio (N-ratio) on survival and prognosis in surgically treated gastric carcinomas.

Methods: A retrospective review of 73 patients who underwent curative resection at the Department of General Surgery, Hitit University Faculty of Medicine, Turkey. Receiver operating characteristic analysis was used to calculate the cut-off value for the N-ratio of the patients.

Gastric neuroendocrine neoplasms: A review.

Gastric neuroendocrine neoplasms (g-NENs) or neuroendocrine tumors are generally slow-growing tumors with increasing incidence. They arise from enterochromaffin like cells and are divided into four types according to clinical characteristic features. Type 1 and 2 are gastrin dependent, whereas type 3 and 4 are sporadic.

Analysis of Risk Factors for Rectus Sheath Hematoma.

Objective: To evaluate the risk factors for developing rectus sheath hematoma (RSH).

Study Design: An observational study.

Place And Duration Of Study: Department of General Surgery, Hitit University School of Medicine, Erol Olcok Training and Research Hospital, Turkey; from January 2018 to April 2020.

HBV flare associated with immunosuppressive treatments: it is still dangerous in the third-generation antivirals era.

Background: There are limited data about the mortality and morbidity of patients with HBV flare related to immunosuppressive treatments (IST) in the third-generation antivirals era. Herein, we performed a multi-centric study in patients treated with entecavir (ETV) or tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) and evaluated their clinical course.

Methods: The study group included patients who were referred to gastroenterology or infectious disease specialists at eight different hospitals in Turkey.

Frontal lobe cognitive functions and electroencephalographic features in juvenile myoclonic epilepsy.

Purpose: The study aimed to examine the relationship between frontal lobe functions and interictal electroencephalography (EEG) discharge characteristics of patients with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME).

Method: Thirty patients with JME who had EEG with asymmetrical generalized discharge (aEEG), 15 patients with JME who had EEG with symmetrical generalized discharge (sEEG), and 15 healthy controls were included in the study. To evaluate attention, the digit span and Corsi block tests were used; to evaluate memory, we applied verbal and visual memory tests; to evaluate frontal lobe functions, we used clock drawing, verbal fluency, the Stroop test, trail making, mental control, and antisaccadic eye movement tests as well as the continuous performance (CPT) tests.

Nickel sensitivity in patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease.

Objective: Various foods play important role in the pathogenesis of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). These foods are shown to increase gastroesophageal reflux symptoms via various mechanisms and majority of these foods also contain nickel. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the relationship between Nickel sensitivity and GERD.

Acute effects of Red Bull energy drink on ventricular repolarization in healthy young volunteers: a prospective study.

Objective: Energy drinks (EDs) are widely consumed products of the beverage industry and are often chosen by teenagers and young adults. Several adverse cardiovascular events and malignant cardiac arrhythmias following consumption of EDs have been reported in the literature. Several studies have suggested that the interval from the peak to the end of the electrocardiographic T wave (Tp-e) may correspond to the dispersion of repolarization and that an increased Tp-e interval and Tp-e/QT ratio are associated with malignant ventricular arrhythmias.

Prognostic importance of fibroblast growth factor-23 in dialysis patients.

Introduction. In this study, we aimed to demonstrate the correlation of FGF-23 levels with bone-mineral metabolism, anemia, and the treatment in dialysis patients. Methods.

Evaluation of colorectal adenocarcinomas at single-institution with respect to microsatellite instability.

Background And Aim: Hereditary non-poliposis colorectal cancers exhibit a high rate of microsatellite instability. Comparative studies involving stage and other prognostic parameters demonstrate a better prognosis in the presence of microsatellite instability versus colon cancers without microsatellite instability.

Methods: Our study included 608 cases diagnosed with colorectal adenocarcinoma by our laboratory between 2004-2010.

A lower serum gamma-glutamyltransferase level does not predict a sustained virological response in patients with chronic hepatitis C genotype 1.

Background/aims: Low gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) level was shown to be an independent predictor of a sustained virological response (SVR) in chronic hepatitis C. We aimed to determine factors associated with high GGT level, and to evaluate whether low GGT level is an independent predictor of a SVR in chronic hepatitis C genotype 1.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed our data of patients with chronic hepatitis C genotype 1 treated with pegylated interferon-α and ribavirin.