Publications by authors named "Kilic Levent"
Background/aim: The transition from pediatric to adult-oriented care for individuals with juvenile-onset systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) poses significant challenges. This study aimed to assess the outcomes of transitioning patients with juvenile-onset SLE from pediatric to adult-oriented care.
Materials And Methods: Patients with juvenile-onset SLE were included in the study.
Article Synopsis
- - The study focuses on improving transitional care for adolescents with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) as they move to adult healthcare systems, suggesting the need for tailored programs in each country.
- - A Delphi study involving adolescents, parents, and clinicians was conducted to gather expert opinions and identify key components of transitional care, with significant participation in the initial surveys.
- - While a consensus was reached on essential transitional care issues for JIA patients, further agreement is needed on practical applications of a final checklist to enhance care in Turkey.
Background/purpose: Our objective was to investigate real-world outcomes and treatment strategies in individuals affected by DADA2 using over 10-year period real-life experience.
Methods: This descriptive analysis encompassed all adult/pediatric patients with DADA2 from our Vasculitis Research Center prospective database. Patients on anti-TNF therapy have been specifically examined, analyzing the treatment's duration, indications, and outcomes.
Objectives: To evaluate the risk of liver fibrosis and associated factors with the non-invasive fibrosis score-4 (FIB-4) index in patients with inflammatory arthritis using methotrexate (MTX).
Methods: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) who were followed up in the rheumatology outpatient clinic, who were on methotrexate only and for whom FIB-4 index was could be calculated at methotrexate initiation and follow-up were included. The FIB-4 index was calculated according to the following formula: age (years) × AST(IU/L)/(platelet count(10 (9)/L) × √ALT(IU/L)).
Article Synopsis
- The study analyzed temporal artery biopsy (TAB) results of 90 patients diagnosed with Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA) to determine histopathological findings related to definite vasculitis based on 2022 ACR/EULAR criteria.
- Of the patients, 73.3% were initially diagnosed with vasculitis, and additional evaluation of specimens led to a further 41.6% showing definite vasculitis signs.
- The analysis also revealed that biopsy length was a key indicator for diagnosing definite vasculitis, with a notable sensitivity and specificity ratio, suggesting that longer biopsies improve diagnostic accuracy.
Aim: Pulmonary artery involvement is a severe complication of Behcet's disease (BD). Although venous thrombosis is common in BD, pulmonary embolism is considered to be rare because the inflammatory nature makes the thrombi strongly adherent to the venous walls. This study aimed to define the radiological characteristics of pulmonary artery thrombosis (PAT) on computed tomography (CT) imaging in BD patients.
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- Forced vital capacity (FVC) is an important test to check lung health in people with a disease called systemic sclerosis (SSc).
- In a study, it was found that SSc patients have lower quality FVC test results compared to healthy controls, with issues like muscle weakness and limited joint movement affecting these results.
- Doctors need to pay close attention to these factors when looking at FVC test results for SSc patients to get the best understanding of their lung health.
Objectives: The transition of adolescents and young adults (AYAs) from pediatric to adult-oriented healthcare may be affected by many factors, including the personal and cultural settings. We aimed to analyze the transition readiness and the factors affecting the transition success in rheumatology.
Methods: Patients older than 12 years were included in this prospective study.
Article Synopsis
- A study examined cancer rates in patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV) by comparing them to cancer risks in the Turkish population and identifying independent risk factors.
- Of the 461 AAV patients tracked, 19 developed cancer after an average follow-up of about 3.4 years, with higher cancer risks noted in older males and those with anti-PR3-ANCA positivity.
- The overall cancer risk for AAV patients was 2.1 times higher than that of the general population, highlighting the need for targeted cancer screening, especially for lung and head-neck cancers in older male patients.
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to translate and culturally adapt the modified Short Questionnaire to Assess Health-enhancing physical activity (mSQUASH) into Turkish, using a systematic approach that included expert reviews and patient feedback.
- The translation process was straightforward, with minor issues resolved through expert consensus; the Turkish mSQUASH was found to be clear, relevant, and easy for patients to understand, though some sport examples were modified to better fit Turkish culture.
- The final Turkish version of mSQUASH demonstrated good initial validity and usability, but further evaluation of its psychometric properties is necessary before it can be fully implemented in clinical settings.
Background: Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a prevalent childhood chronic arthritis, often persisting into adulthood. Effective transitional care becomes crucial as these patients transition from pediatric to adult healthcare systems. Despite the concept of transitional care being recognized, its real-world implementation remains inadequately explored.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe aim of the study is to investigate the frequency of triggering factors in colchicine-resistant and -responsive Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF) patients as well as the effect of interleukin (IL)-1 antagonist treatment on the triggering factors. Both colchicine-resistant (patients on IL-1 antagonist treatment) and colchicine-responsive (patients on colchicine who had ≤ 3 attacks in the last year) patients were questioned for the presence of 12 different triggering factors, including exposure to cold, emotional stress, fatigue, physical activity, menstruation (for females), sleeplessness, prolonged standing, long-duration travel, high-fat diet intake, starvation, infection, and trauma. Colchicine-resistant patients were questioned for the presence of triggering factors for two time periods, before and after treatment with IL-1 antagonists.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: We aimed to determine the choice of biologic/targeted synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (b/ts-DMARDs), factors associated with the development of chronic kidney disease (CKD), and mortality in RA patients with CKD receiving b/ts-DMARDs.
Methods: Two thousand one hundred forty-one RA (79.4% female) patients were included in the analysis from the HUR-BIO prospective registry.
Article Synopsis
- - The study investigates how environmental factors, specifically climate-related natural hazards, may affect the diagnosis and symptoms of Sjögren's syndrome across different countries, examining aspects like epidemiological profiles and sicca symptoms.
- - Researchers analyzed data from 16,042 patients in 23 countries, determining that those in countries severely impacted by climate hazards (like extreme precipitation and flooding) were often diagnosed with Sjögren's syndrome earlier and exhibited varying symptom frequencies.
- - Findings revealed statistically significant patterns, indicating lower occurrences of dry eyes and mouth in patients from countries facing specific climate threats, while showing that increased climate-related risks correlated with higher disease activity scores (ESSDAI).
Objectives: To analyse how the potential exposure to air pollutants can influence the key components at the time of diagnosis of Sjögren's phenotype (epidemiological profile, sicca symptoms, and systemic disease).
Methods: For the present study, the following variables were selected for harmonization and refinement: age, sex, country, fulfilment of 2002/2016 criteria items, dry eyes, dry mouth, and overall ESSDAI score. Air pollution indexes per country were defined according to the OECD (1990-2021), including emission data of nitrogen and sulphur oxides (NO/SO), particulate matter (PM2.
Article Synopsis
- * Researchers analyzed data from 330 patients diagnosed with GCA, finding that 18.8% experienced relapses during a follow-up period, and only 23.8% were able to stop GC treatment entirely.
- * The study highlighted that a significant portion of patients (66.2%) had at least one indication of damage due to vasculitis, and there were also considerable side effects related to GC treatment.
Article Synopsis
- The study looked at how well a medication called tocilizumab (TCZ) works for people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who didn't respond well to other treatments.
- Researchers collected data from 258 patients using a special online registry in Turkey to track their health and any side effects.
- TCZ showed good results, with over 80% of patients still using it after a year, and it helped reduce their disease symptoms safely.
Background: Little is known about the prevalence and causes of pulmonary hypertension (PH) in Behçet's disease (BD). This study was conducted to determine the prevalence and causes of PH in BD.
Methods: In this descriptive study, we screened 154 patients with BD for PH using transthoracic echocardiography between February 2017 and October 2017.
Background: What baseline predictors would be involved in mortality in people with primary Sjögren syndrome (SjS) remains uncertain. This study aimed to investigate the baseline characteristics collected at the time of diagnosis of SjS associated with mortality and to identify mortality risk factors for all-cause death and deaths related to systemic SjS activity measured by the ESSDAI score.
Methods: In this international, real-world, retrospective, cohort study, we retrospectively collected data from 27 countries on mortality and causes of death from the Big Data Sjögren Registry.
Objective: Our understanding of IgG4-RD and pachymeningitis has grown substantially, but the optimal approach for diagnosis, management, and long-term outcomes is still an area of uncertainty.
Methods: HUVAC is a database for IgG4-RD patients, this database was retrospectively evaluated for pachymeningeal disease. Demographic, clinical, serological, imaging, histopathological data, and treatment details were re-interpreted in patients with pachymeningitis.
Introduction: This study aimed to assess the incidence of hematologic malignancy (HM) among inflammatory arthritis (IA) patients receiving tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFi) compared with the general Turkish population.
Methods: HUR-BIO (Hacettepe University Rheumatology Biologic Registry) is a single-center biological disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug (bDMARD) registry since 2005. Patients with IA, including rheumatoid arthritis, spondyloarthritis, or psoriatic arthritis who had at least one visit after the TNFi were screened from 2005 to November 2021.
We aimed to obtain the effects of immunosuppressive doses on the QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFT-Plus) test results in Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) patients. Besides this, the impact of the TB2 tube in QFT-Plus test was also investigated. This study included RA patients registered to HURBIO and were screened via QFT-Plus test for latent tuberculosis between January 2018 and March 2021, before the initiation of treatment of biologic/targeted-synthetic disease modifying anti-rheumatismal drugs (b/ts-DMARDs).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The significance of antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) is controversial in Takayasu arteritis (TA). This study was conducted to explore the frequency of aPL and their association with disease-related complications in TA.
Methods: : This cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate the presence of anti-cardiolipin (aCL), anti-beta 2 glycoprotein- 1(aβ2G1) antibodies, and lupus anticoagulant (LA) in TA patients.