Retrospective analysis of hemophilia B in Turkey: identifying main characteristics and treatment options.

Background: Hemophilia B (HB), an X-linked recessive inherited bleeding disorder, exhibits a high prevalence among males.

Objectives: To present the first national cohort of persons with HB to define the demographics, clinical characteristics, and treatment patterns in Turkey.

Methods: This multicenter, retrospective study included 433 alive persons with HB registered in 35 centers between 1961 and 2018.

Clinical spectrum of primary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis: experience of reference centers in Central and Southeast Anatolia.

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a life-threatening disease, with a high mortality if left untreated. In addition, the disease has unique diagnostic challenges. Therefore, despite the existing guidelines on management, current clinical practice data is informative on the course and outcome.

Pyruvate kinase deficiency in 29 Turkish patients with two novel intronic variants.

Pyruvate kinase (PK) is a key enzyme of anaerobic glycolysis. The genetic heterogeneity of PK deficiency (PKD) is high, and over 400 unique variants have been identified. Twenty-nine patients who had been diagnosed as PKD genetically in seven distinct paediatric haematology departments were evaluated.

Pulmonary Embolism in Childhood: A Multicenter Experience from Turkey.

Background: Pulmonary embolism is a clinical condition caused by the obstruction of the pulmonary artery and its branches with endogenous, exogenous embolism, or local thrombus formation. It is a rare but potentially life-threatening event in the pediatric population. Pediatric pulmonary embolism has many unknown characteristics.

Central Nervous System Fungal Infections in Children With Leukemia and Undergoing Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation: A Retrospective Multicenter Study.

Background: Central nervous system fungal infections (CNSFI) are seen in patients with hematologic malignancies and have high morbidity and mortality. Because of their rarity, there is limited data on CNSFI in children with no established treatment protocols or guidelines.

Materials And Methods: In this multicenter retrospective study, 51 pediatric patients with leukemia, 6 of whom had undergone bone marrow transplantation, with proven or probable CNSFI were evaluated.

Impact of the HEAD-US Scoring System for Observing the Protective Effect of Prophylaxis in Hemophilia Patients: A Prospective, Multicenter, Observational Study.

Objective: This study aimed to observe the preventive effect of prophylactic treatment on joint health in people with hemophilia (PwH) and to investigate the importance of integration of ultrasonographic examination into clinical and radiological evaluation of the joints.

Materials And Methods: This national, multicenter, prospective, observational study included male patients aged ≥6 years with the diagnosis of moderate or severe hemophilia A or B from 8 centers across Turkey between January 2017 and March 2019. Patients were followed for 1 year with 5 visits (baseline and 3, 6, 9, and 12 month visits).

Homozygous c.130-131 ins A (pW44X) mutation in the HAX1 gene as the most common cause of congenital neutropenia in Turkey: Report from the Turkish Severe Congenital Neutropenia Registry.

Background: Severe congenital neutropenia is a rare disease, and autosomal dominantly inherited ELANE mutation is the most frequently observed genetic defect in the registries from North America and Western Europe. However, in eastern countries where consanguineous marriages are common, autosomal recessive forms might be more frequent.

Method: Two hundred and sixteen patients with severe congenital neutropenia from 28 different pediatric centers in Turkey were registered.

Traumatic hyphema in a patient with severe hemophilia A: Clinical features and management.

Purpose: To describe a case of traumatic hyphema in a patient with severe hemophilia A.

Case: We present a case of a 16-year-old boy with severe hemophilia A who presented to our ophthalmology department with total hyphema and elevated intraocular pressure 3 days after a history of blunt ocular trauma on his right eye. Due to the persistent intraocular pressure elevation and total hyphema despite medical intervention, an early anterior chamber washout was performed with the replacement of factor VIII preoperatively and postoperatively.

Glanzmann Thrombasthenia in a Newborn with Heterozygous Factor V Leiden and Heterozygous MTHFR C677T Gene Mutations.

Introduction: Glanzmann thrombasthenia is a rare congenital platelet dysfunction.

Case Characteristics: A 2-day-old male neonate delivered at 35 weeks' gestation was referred with extensive bruising and jaundice. His elder sibling had Glanzmann thrombasthenia, and his mother had thrombophilic risk factors.

Deferasirox in children with transfusion-dependent thalassemia or sickle cell anemia: A large cohort real-life experience from Turkey (REACH-THEM).

Objectives: To evaluate the long-term efficacy and safety of deferasirox therapy in a large observational cohort of children with transfusion-dependent thalassemia (TDT) and sickle cell anemia (SCA) in Turkey.

Methods: This was a multicenter, prospective cohort study including TDT and SCA patients aged 2-18 years with iron overload (≥100 mL/kg of pRBC or a serum ferritin [SF] level >1000 μg/L) receiving deferasirox. Patients were followed for up to 3 years according to standard practice.

Coexistence of Kasabach-Merritt Syndrome and placental chorioangioma in a premature infant.

Kasabach-Merritt syndrome is a rare life-threatening clinical presentation in neonatal period. it is characterized by giant hemangioma and serious thrombocytopenia. The diagnostic criteria include: 1) hemangiomas on skin, 2) thrombocytopenia or coagulopathy, 3) hemangioma on internal organs diagnosed by ultrasonography, computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging, and 4) excluding reasons, such as idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura or hypersplenism.

Differences in Granule Morphology yet Equally Impaired Exocytosis among Cytotoxic T Cells and NK Cells from Chediak-Higashi Syndrome Patients.

Chediak-Higashi syndrome (CHS) is caused by autosomal recessive mutations in , resulting in enlarged lysosomal compartments in multiple cell types. CHS patients display oculocutaneous albinism and may develop life-threatening hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH). While NK cell-mediated cytotoxicity has been reported to be uniformly defective, variable defects in T cell-mediated cytotoxicity has been observed.

A National Registry of Thalassemia in Turkey: Demographic and Disease Characteristics of Patients, Achievements, and Challenges in Prevention.

Objective: The Turkish Society of Pediatric Hematology set up a National Hemoglobinopathy Registry to demonstrate the demographic and disease characteristics of patients and assess the efficacy of a hemoglobinopathy control program (HCP) over 10 years in Turkey.

Materials And Methods: A total of 2046 patients from 27 thalassemia centers were registered, of which 1988 were eligible for analysis. This cohort mainly comprised patients with β-thalassemia major (n=1658, 83.

Juvenile Myelomonocytic Leukemia in Turkey: A Retrospective Analysis of Sixty-five Patients.

Objective: This study aimed to define the status of juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML) patients in Turkey in terms of time of diagnosis, clinical characteristics, mutational studies, clinical course, and treatment strategies.

Materials And Methods: Data including clinical and laboratory characteristics and treatment strategies of JMML patients were collected retrospectively from pediatric hematology-oncology centers in Turkey.

Results: Sixty-five children with JMML diagnosed between 2002 and 2016 in 18 institutions throughout Turkey were enrolled in the study.

Isotypic analysis of antibodies against activated Factor VII in patients with Factor VII deficiency using the x-MAP technology.

While the immune response to hemophilic factors in hemophilia has been widely studied, little is known about the development of anti-Factor VII (FVII) antibodies in FVII deficiency. We developed a robust technique based on the x-MAP technology to detect the presence of antibodies against FVII and characterize their isotype and validated this method using blood samples from 100 patients with FVII deficiency (median FVII clotting activity [FVII:C]: 6%) and 95 healthy controls. Anti-FVII antibodies were detected in patients but also in some controls, although the concentration of total immunoglobulin G (IgGt) and IgG1 and IgG4 subclasses was significantly different between groups.

Infectious diseases, autoimmunity and midline defect in a patient with a novel bi-allelic mutation in IL12RB1 gene.

Clinical disease caused by weakly pathogenic mycobacterial species, which is known as Mendelian susceptibility to mycobacterial disease (MSMD), is a rare entity. IFN-γ and IL-17 production are defective due to insufficient response to IL-2 and IL-23 in IL-12Rβ1 deficiency; so this also causes tendency to intracellular microorganisms and candidal diseases. Here, we present a patient who suffers IL-12Rβ1 deficiency caused by a novel bi-allelic mutation with recurrent salmonellosis, mycobacterial, fungal infections and remained asymptomatic during 13 months of follow-up after hIFN-γ treatment.

Effects of Prednisolone, L-Asparaginase, Gemfibrozil, and Combinations of These Elements on Mice Lipid Profile, Liver, and Pancreas.

The aim of this study is to determine the effects of L-asparaginase (L-ASP), corticosteroids (CSs), and antilipidemics, separately and in combination, on the lipid profiles and the liver and pancreas histology in mice. This study included 8 groups of 7 mice each. Before any drug administration, serum samples were taken from all of the mice.

Novel plasminogen gene mutations in Turkish patients with type I plasminogen deficiency.

The plasminogen (Plg) protein is the inactive proenzyme form of plasmin that dissolves fibrin thrombi by a process called fibrinolysis. It has been shown that homozygous or compound-heterozygous deficiency of this protein is a major cause of a rare inflammatory disease affecting mainly mucous membranes found in different body sites. In this study, five individual Turkish patients and nine Turkish families with type 1 Plg deficiency were investigated for PLG gene mutations.

Ophthalmic manifestations in recently diagnosed childhood leukemia.

Purpose: To determine the prevalence and the pattern of ocular involvement in children with leukemia at the time of diagnosis.

Methods: The data of patients with leukemia who underwent complete ophthalmic examination at the time of diagnosis between January 2005 and December 2014 were retrospectively reviewed. Demographic data, type of leukemia, ocular findings, blood parameters, and duration of follow-up were analyzed.

Essential thrombocythemia with Mpl W515 K mutation in a child presenting with Budd-Chiari syndrome.

Essential thrombocythemia (ET) is an extremely rare childhood disorder characterised by clonal expansion of megakaryocytic lineage in bone marrow, leading to a persistent increase in the number of circulating thrombocytes and thus increased risk for thrombotic and haemorrhagic events. The molecular mechanisms of ET are not fully understood. Most children with ET have the JAK2 V617F somatic mutation; however, another mutation, involving a W to L or K substitution at Mpl codon 515, was reported in a small proportion of adult ET patients that is extremely rare in children.

Novel mutations of integrin αIIb and β3 genes in Turkish children with Glanzmann's thrombasthenia.

Glanzmann's thrombasthenia (GT) is an inherited disorder of platelet aggregation, characterized by qualitative and quantitative defect on platelet αIIbβ3 integrin (GpIIb/IIIa), resulting in lifelong bleeding tendency due to defective platelet plug formation. The αIIb gene (ITGA2B) and β3 gene (ITGB3) are closely located at chromosome 17q21.31-32.

Pilomatrixoma in childhood.

Context: Pilomatrixoma is a benign tumor of the skin. Malignant transformation can be seen rarely in the small percentage.

Aim: The aim of the following study is to attract attention to this tumor in the differential diagnosis because if it is not kept in mind it leads to both unnecessary interventions and treatments for the patient.

Coexistence of glomangioma and yolk sac tumour in a child: a case report.

Glomus tumours (GTs) primarily arise from glomus bodies that are located in the dermis layer of skin. However, they can be encountered ectopically in most parts of the body. As a result of researches done in a 17-month-old male patient who prssented to us with complaint of an increasingly growing swelling, he was diagnosed with a yolk sac tumour.

Spectrum of the mutations in Bernard-Soulier syndrome.

Bernard-Soulier syndrome (BSS) is a rare autosomal recessive bleeding disorder characterized by defects of the GPIb-IX-V complex, a platelet receptor for von Willebrand factor (VWF). Most of the mutations identified in the genes encoding for the GP1BA (GPIbα), GP1BB (GPIbβ), and GP9 (GPIX) subunits prevent expression of the complex at the platelet membrane or more rarely its interaction with VWF. As a consequence, platelets are unable to adhere to the vascular subendothelium and agglutinate in response to ristocetin.