Conscious sedation during endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography: midazolam or midazolam plus meperidine?

Background And Objective: No consensus exists for the safest and most effective agent and for optimal drug doses for sedation during endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP). We aimed to compare the efficacy of midazolam with that of midazolam+meperidine, which provided comfort for the patient during ERCP.

Materials And Methods: The patients were randomized to sedation with midazolam only (2.

Serum adenosine deaminase levels in pancreatic diseases.

Background: Adenosine deaminase (ADA) is found in most tissues including the pancreas. Its role in inflammation and malignancy has been studied experimentally. To date, serum ADA levels in pancreatic diseases have not been studied before.

Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1 levels in hepatocellular carcinoma and correlations with clinicopathological features.

Background/aims: To determine the serum vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1 (VEGFR-1) levels in hepatocellular carcinoma patients and its correlations with the clinical and laboratory parameters.

Methodology: Serum VEGFR-1 levels were measured in 18 biopsy-proven treatment-naive hepatocellular carcinoma patients (female/male: 5/13; mean age: 59.22 +/- 13.

The significance of serum transforming growth factor beta 1 in detecting of gastric and colon cancers.

Background/aims: TGF-beta1 is a growth factor with wide ranging effects on proliferation, differentiation, immune suppression, apoptosis and matrix remodeling. We aimed to clarify the clinical significance of circulating levels of TGF-beta1 as a tumor marker in gastrointestinal tract cancers by comparing it to CEA across a range of parameters such as cancer type and severity.

Methodology: Sera collected from patients with gastrointestinal tract cancers (32 gastric, 36 colon) and from 25 healthy volunteers were analyzed for TGF-beta1 and CEA.

Serum and tissue beta-2 microglobulin levels in patients with Helicobacter pylori infection.

Background And Aim: Beta-2 microglobulin (beta2-m) is a minor plasma protein, secreted from the plasma membranes as a result of the continuous regeneration of membrane proteins in the cell surface of all nucleated cells. The relationship between Helicobacter pylori and beta2-m has not been adequately established in studies. In this study, we aimed to compare the levels of serum and tissue beta2-m in patients with and without H.

Primary anorectal malignant melanoma: two case reports and review of the literature.

Anorectal melanoma is a very rare tumor with poor prognosis because of delay in diagnosis. It is often mistaken for benign conditions such as hemorrhoids or rectal polyps. Surgical treatment ranges from local excision to radical abdominoperinal resection.

Onerous concomitant complications of ulcerative colitis: a case report.

Ulcerative colitis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the colon characterized by intermittent exacerbations and remissions. It may be complicated with colon cancer or autoimmune-related extracolonic problems. Herein, we present a woman with ulcerative colitis who developed sarcoidosis, colon cancer, primary sclerosing cholangitis, and cholangiocarcinoma.

Antimeasles antibodies in preterm infants during early infancy in Turkey.

Aim: To measure maternally derived measles antibodies in sera of premature infants at birth and seropositivity rates in early infancy in a rural area of central Turkey.

Methods: 65 premature and 24 full-term infants born in Erciyes University Hospital and their mothers were recruited to a longitudinal, prospective study. The infants were divided into three groups by gestational age: group A, <33 weeks; group B, 33-37 weeks; group C, >37 weeks.

Onychomycosis in a premature infant caused by Candida parapsilosis.

We report onychomycosis caused by Candida parapsilosis in a 35-day-old premature infant. To our knowledge, this represents the youngest instance of an isolated lesion of the nail plate without involvement of glabrous skin, caused by C. parapsilosis in this age group to be reported in the literature.

Adrenal haemorrhage with cholestasis and adrenal crisis in a newborn of a diabetic mother.

The large hyperaemic foetal adrenal gland is vulnerable to vascular damage. This may occur in the neonatal period as a consequence of difficult labour, or its aetiology may not be apparent. The spectrum of presentation is considerable, ranging from asymptomatic to severe life-threatening intra-abdominal haemorrhage.

Clinical features, serum interleukin-6, and interferon-gamma levels of 34 turkish patients with hepatoportal sclerosis.

Hepatoportal sclerosis (HPS) is a clinical disorder of obscure pathogenesis with a variable clinical profile. The aim of the study was to summarize the clinical features of Turkish patients with HPS and to measure the serum levels of interleukin (IL)-6 and interferon (IFN)-gamma to determine the T helper cell profile in the pathogenesis. The study was conducted on 34 HPS patients (17 men, 17 women; mean age at diagnosis, 27+/-10 years) and 15 healthy controls.

Left-sided portal hypertension.

Left-sided portal hypertension is a rare clinical syndrome which may lead to bleeding from isolated gastric varices. Pancreatic disease is the most common etiology. Left-sided portal hypertension should be considered in the presence of gastrointestinal bleeding with normal liver function and unexplained splenomegaly.

The relationship between birth weight leptin and bone mineral status in newborn infants.

Background: The positive relationship between fat mass, bone mass and leptin has been shown in fetal mouse cartilage/bone. It has been shown that umbilical venous leptin predicts both the size of the neonatal skeleton and its estimated volumetric mineral density.

Aims: This study investigates how birth weight and bone mineralization correlate with leptin levels.

Plasma levels of soluble vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1 (sVEGFR-1) in familial Mediterranean fever.

Aims: To assess the levels of soluble vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-1 (sVEGFR-1) in patients with familial Mediterranean fever (FMF).

Methods: Plasma levels of sVEGFR-1 were investigated in 33 FMF patients in an attack-free period (mean age 30.8 years; males/females 10/23), in 15 patients with acute FMF attack (mean age 32.

Influence of maternal smoking on neonatal aortic intima-media thickness, serum IGF-I and IGFBP-3 levels.

Epidemiological studies have reported associations between a range of cardiovascular risk factors such as smoking and intima-media thickness (IMT). Some reports indicate that the maternal tobacco smoking causes disturbances of the endocrine status of the foetus. There are several potential mechanisms by which insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) could modify atherosclerotic processes either locally or in a systemic manner.

Brucellosis with pulmonary involvement in a premature infant.

Congenital brucellosis is rare. A premature infant with transplacentally acquired congenital brucellosis and pulmonary involvement is described.

The relationship between birthweight, 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations and bone mineral status in neonates.

Background: Calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P) and 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OHD) are the major micronutrients for fetal skeletal development.

Aims: To compare whole body bone mineral density (WB BMD) and bone mineral content (WB BMC) in different birthweights of term neonates and to determine correlations of biological criteria of bone health between neonates and their mothers.

Subjects And Methods: Serum Ca, P, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and 25-OHD levels were measured in 30 small-for-gestational-age (SGA, group 1), 40 appropriate-for-gestational-age (AGA, group 2) and 30 large-for-gestational-age (LGA, group 3) neonates and their mothers in winter.

The relationship among intrauterine growth, insulinlike growth factor I (IGF-I), IGF-binding protein-3, and bone mineral status in newborn infants.

Insulinlike growth factors (IGFs) exert profound effects on somatic growth and cellular proliferation of many tissues and play an essential role in bone metabolism. The aim of this study was to investigate how fetal growth and bone mineralization correlate with IGF-I and IGF-binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3) levels of newborn infants and their mothers. In addition, we aimed to determine the predictive value of anthropometric measurements on variability in bone mineral status.

The utility of serum receptor-binding cancer antigen expressed on SiSo cells in gastrointestinal tract cancers.

Background: Receptor-binding cancer antigen expressed on SiSo cells (RCAS1) is a novel tumour marker that has been described in various kinds of cancer. The majority of observations include immunohistochemical studies; however, there are not enough data about the utility of this antigen as a serum tumour marker and its tumour specificity.

Aim: To measure the serum levels of RCAS1 in patients with gastrointestinal (GI) tract cancers and compare them with other GI tract tumour markers.

Aortic intima-media thickness and lipid profile in macrosomic newborns.

Macrosomia is associated with alterations in lipoprotein composition and concentration at birth. Exposure to diabetes in utero has been established as a significant risk factor for some of the components of metabolic syndrome. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of macrosomia on lipid metabolism, aortic intima-media thickness (aIMT) and subsequent atherogenic risk in newborn infants.