A Six Sigma Trial For Reduction of Error Rates in Pathology Laboratory.

Objective: A major target of quality assurance is the minimization of error rates in order to enhance patient safety. Six Sigma is a method targeting zero error (3.4 errors per million events) used in industry.

Does grafting of the tuberosities improve the functional outcomes of proximal humeral fractures treated with reverse shoulder arthroplasty?

Background: Functional outcomes of reverse total shoulder arthroplasty (rTSA) can be improved by fixation of the tuberosities. This study compares clinical and radiologic results of patients with comminuted proximal humeral fractures treated with rTSA, with and without autologous grafting.

Methods: Thirty-three patients with proximal humeral fractures were treated with rTSA and tuberosity fixation.

Estrogen receptor agonists alleviate cardiac and renal oxidative injury in rats with renovascular hypertension.

Although endogenous estrogen is known to offer cardiac and vascular protection, the involvement of estrogen receptors in mediating the protective effect of estrogen on hypertension-induced cardiovascular and renal injury is not fully explained. We aimed to investigate the effects of estrogen receptor (ER) agonists on oxidative injury, cardiovascular and renal functions of rats with renovascular hypertension (RVH). Female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided as control and RVH groups, and RVH groups had either ovariectomy (OVX) or sham-OVX.

Biomechanical comparison of oblique and step-cut osteotomies used in total hip arthroplasty with femoral shortening.

Background: Various types of shortening osteotomies and prosthesis are used for femoral reconstruction in total hip arthroplasty of the high hip dislocation. This biomechanical study investigates whether step-cut osteotomies result in better stability than oblique osteotomies and cylindrical femoral stems enhance stability of the osteotomy more than conical stems, and which osteotomy and prosthesis type maintain the stability better after cyclical loading.

Methods: Oblique and step-cut shortening osteotomies were compared under axial and rotational forces, using synthetic femur models and conical or cylindrical femoral prostheses.

Pain treatment in patients with acute pancreatitis: A randomized controlled trial.

Background/aims: In this study, the analgesic effectiveness of tramadol, a synthetic opioid, was compared with paracetamol and dexketoprofen in adult patients with acute pancreatitis in the emergency department.

Materials And Methods: Study drugs were similar in color and appearance, enabling the patients to be blind to the intervention. Study patients were intravenously administered 1 g paracetamol, 50 mg dexketoprofen trometamol, or 1 mg/kg tramadol with 100 mL normal saline with a 4-5 min infusion.

Publication rates of full-text journal articles converted from abstracts presented during the 22(nd) Turkish National Urology Congress.

Objective: To analyze the publication rates of full-text journal articles converted from the abstracts presented in the 22(nd) Turkish National Urology Congress in 2012.

Material And Methods: A total of 576 abstracts accepted for presentation at the 22(nd) Turkish National Urology Association Meeting were identified from the published abstract book. The abstracts were categorized into subsections such as endourology and pediatric urology.

Intraoperative diagnosis of cecal diverticulitis during surgery for acute appendicitis: Case series.

Objective: Cecal diverticulum is a rare entity, and can cause acute abdomen by the way of diverticulitis and perforation of diverticulitis. In this study, we aimed to perform an analysis of patients that have cecal diverticulitis, and presented with acute abdomen.

Material And Methods: Patients who were admitted to emergency clinic between 2009-2012 and had acute abdomen due to cecal diverticulitis were included into study retrospectively.

Intraocular pressure in infants and its association with hormonal changes with vaginal birth versus cesarean section.

To investigate cord arterial blood sample and the relationship between birth stress and intraocular pressure in infants at 5 min after delivery. The IOP measurements were taken using Tonopen-Avia tonometer to 158 newborns (158 eyes) at 5th min after birth, in a university hospital. Cord blood was collected within 3 min after delivery.

Relationship between hyperandrogenism, obesity, inflammation and polycystic ovary syndrome.

This prospective study aimed to determine the status of circulating levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), IL-27, IL-35, IL-37, α-1 acid glycoprotein in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) compared with controls and to evaluate their relation with hyperandrogenism and obesity. Forty-eight patients with PCOS (29 obese, 19 lean) and 40 healthy controls (20 obese, 20 lean) were enrolled. CRP, TNF-α, IL-27, IL-35, IL-37, α-1 acid glycoprotein, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) levels were measured.

The relationship between left ventricular mass index and body composition in new-diagnosed hypertensive patients.

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is considered a public health burden and most common cause of mortality in all over the world. The latency time for developing CVD may be several decades. the objective of this study was to examine the relationship between body composition and Left Ventriculare Mass Index (LVMI) in newly diognosed hypertensive patients.

Interactive effects of 9-cis-retinoic acid and androgen on proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis of LNCaP prostate cancer cells.

9-cis-Retinoic acid (9cRA), which binds to both retinoic acid receptors and retinoic X receptors, inhibits prostate cancer induction in rats and reduces growth of prostate cancer cells. However, the nature of this growth inhibition and the interactive influence of androgens are not well defined and are the subject of this report. LNCaP and PC-3 cells were cultured and treated with a range of 9cRA concentrations for 3-6 days in the absence or presence of 5α-dehydrotestosterone.

Comparison of efficacy and safety of three different chemotherapy regimens delivered with concomitant radiotherapy in inoperable stage III non-small cell lung cancer patients.

Concomitant administration of chemotherapy and radiotherapy is currently recognized as the standard of treatment in locally advanced inoperable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Our study aimed to compare the efficacy and toxicities of three different chemotherapy regimens delivered concurrently with radiotherapy. We retrospectively reviewed the clinical records of patients who received the PE (cisplatin, 50 mg/m(2), on days 1, 8, 29, and 36 plus etoposide, 50 mg/m(2), on days 1 to 5 and 29 to 33), PD (docetaxel, 20 mg/m(2), on day 1 plus cisplatin, 20 mg/m(2), on day 1, every week), and PC (carboplatin, AUC 2 plus paclitaxel, 45 mg/m(2), on day 1, every week) regimens concurrently with radiotherapy.

The relationship between admission monocyte HDL-C ratio with short-term and long-term mortality among STEMI patients treated with successful primary PCI.

Background: Monocyte to HDL-C ratio (MHR) represents a simple assessment method for inflammatory status. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether MHR may be of short-term and long-term prognostic value in ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients who have undergone a primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

Materials And Methods: A total of 682 consecutive STEMI patients who underwent successful primary PCI between March 2013 and September 2015 were included in this study.

Beware Postpartum Shortness of Breath.

Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is one of the potentially life-threatening complications of pregnancy. We report a case of a 36-year-old female patient who presented with shortness of breath, swelling of feet after giving birth to triplets, and her tests revealed that left ventricle is dilated with its diameter on the borderline and she had EF 35% with advanced systolic dysfunction. Anterior wall and septum were severely hypokinetic.

Predictors of Prolonged In-Hospital Stay After Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention for ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction.

Health care costs increase with prolonged in-hospital stays. Many factors influence the length of stay for patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). In this study, we aimed to determine the differences between long-stay and early discharged patients with STEMI.

Acute pancreatitis following adult liver transplantation: A systematic review.

Although uncommon, acute pancreatitis is a well-recognized, but generally serious, complication following liver transplantation. In addition to being more prevalent in patients who underwent liver transplantation than in the general population, it has a more aggressive course and can be responsible for significant morbidity and mortality. The post-liver transplant population has altered anatomy, increased comorbidities, and requires a myriad of drugs.

Evaluation of prognostic factors in localized high-grade undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma: report of a multi-institutional experience of Anatolian Society of Medical Oncology.

Most data on prognostic factors for patients with high-grade undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma (HGUPS) is obtained from analyses of soft tissue sarcomas. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinicopathologic features and their impact on outcomes specifically in patients diagnosed with HGUPS. In this multicenter trial, we retrospectively analyzed 112 patients who were diagnosed and treated at 12 different institutions in Turkey.

Genes that Affect Brain Structure and Function Identified by Rare Variant Analyses of Mendelian Neurologic Disease.

Development of the human nervous system involves complex interactions among fundamental cellular processes and requires a multitude of genes, many of which remain to be associated with human disease. We applied whole exome sequencing to 128 mostly consanguineous families with neurogenetic disorders that often included brain malformations. Rare variant analyses for both single nucleotide variant (SNV) and copy number variant (CNV) alleles allowed for identification of 45 novel variants in 43 known disease genes, 41 candidate genes, and CNVs in 10 families, with an overall potential molecular cause identified in >85% of families studied.

The efficacy and safety of capecitabine plus bevacizumab combination as first-line treatment in elderly metastatic colorectal cancer patients.

Aim: The optimal treatment in older persons with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) is complicated by a lack of general agreement. The aim of this study was to evaluate the activity of bevacizumab plus capecitabine combination in elderly mCRC patients who were not suitable for chemotherapy with irinotecan and oxaliplatin-containing regimens.

Materials And Methods: Seventy years and older patients with metastatic colorectal carcinoma were included in this retrospective study.

Multifetal gestations with assisted reproductive technique before the single-embryo transfer legislation: obstetric, neonatal outcomes and congenital anomalies.

Objective: To compare perinatal, neonatal outcome and congenital anomalies of multiple gestations conceived by means of assisted reproductive techniques with spontaneously conceived multiples before the limitation of number of embryo transfer.

Methods: Cases consisted of assisted reproductive technique (ART) multifetal gestations and control group comprised of spontaneously conceived multifetal gestations delivered in the same time period. Outcomes were perinatal, neonatal outcome, long-term outcomes and congenital anomalies of multiple gestations.

Is second-line systemic chemotherapy beneficial in patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)? A multicenter data evaluation by the Anatolian Society of Medical Oncology.

Patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) generally require second-line treatment although their prognosis is poor. In this multicenter study, we aimed to detect the characteristics related to patients and disease that can predict the response to second-line treatments in advanced NSCLC. Data of 904 patients who have progressed after receiving first-line platinum-based chemotherapy in 11 centers with the diagnosis of stage IIIB and IV NSCLC and who were evaluated for second-line treatment were retrospectively analyzed.

Lumbar (Petit's) hernia: A rare entity.

Lumbar hernias are rare and diagnostically challenging for surgeons. We present the case of a middle-aged patient who presented with swelling in the left back. Subcutaneous lipoma was included in the differential diagnosis.

Are Growing Pains Related to Vitamin D Deficiency? Efficacy of Vitamin D Therapy for Resolution of Symptoms.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] status of children with growing pains and to evaluate the efficacy of vitamin D treatment on the resolution of pain symptoms.

Subjects And Methods: One hundred and twenty children with growing pains were included in a prospective cohort study. Serum 25(OH)D and bone mineral levels were measured in all subjects at the time of enrollment.