Comparison of renal cell cancer surgery during Covid-19 pandemic with prepandemic period, Turkey multicenter study (preprint)

Aim: COVID-19 pandemic changed the priorities in medical field. Many elective surgeries for renal cell cancers (RCC) have been postponed. In this study, we aimed to examine the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the surgical treatment of RCC in Turkey. Methods 457 patients that underwent surgery for kidney tumor in the 2-year period between March 1, 2019 and February 28, 2021 in 9 centers in Turkey were analyzed retrospectively. Results The number of surgical treatments for RCC during the COVID-19 pandemic has decreased significantly compared to the same period before COVID-19. No significant differences were found between the two periods in terms of admission symptoms (p=0.32). However, while the rate of application due to hematuria was 6.1% in the pre-COVID-19 period, it was 13.1% during the COVID-19 period. Despite not being significant, this difference was still proportional. Two study periods differed significantly in terms of the rate of metastatic RCC detected in preoperative imaging (13.1% vs 6.1%, during COVID-19 and pre-COVID-19, respectively) (p=0.01). Moreover, the study periods differed significantly in terms of time between imaging and operation (55.98±51.02 vs 40.30±34.9 days, during COVID-19 and pre-COVID-19, respectively) (p=0.01). However, there was no significant difference between the two periods in terms of tumor size, type of surgery, and pathological stage (p>0.05). Conclusion There was a significant decrease in the number of RCC-related surgeries over 1-year period during the pandemic. However, the rate of surgery for metastatic disease increased. Covid-19 is a pandemic that continues to affect the whole world. Oncological diseases are negative affected in this process in terms of early diagnosis and treatment.

Mucolitic, Alkaline and Antiviral Properties of Potassium Hydroxide (preprint)

Introduction: Although ash has been used for treatment and cleaning among the people since Avicenna, its use for therapeutic purposes is not common in modern medicine. The main ingredient of ash is potassium hydroxide (KOH). Methods: : In this paper, the antiviral properties of KOH were studied in vivo and in vitro conditions in mucolytic, alkaline and enveloped viruses that cause respiratory tract disease. For this purpose, a 6-stage study was planned. The physicochemical properties of the highest dose of KOH, whose caustic properties are well known, that can be used orally in humans, and the changes in the structure of mucus were investigated. Then, interactions of KOH with the membrane phospholipid bilayer complex, mucin 5AC, corona viruses spike glycoprotein, TMPRSS2 and human ACE2 (hACE2) receptors, and neuraminidase active site in influenza virus were investigated in silico, and the toxicity and beneficial properties of KOH in cells, both in vitro and in vivo, were evaluated. Results: : It has been shown that at the applied doses, KOH has a mucolytic effect and increases the pH of the environment in mucus. It has been shown to prolong life span in cell culture and have no toxicity, and in the in silico study it binds to the hydrophilic part of the cell membrane, corona virus spike glycoprotein, TMPRSS2 hACE2 receptor and neuraminidase active site in influenza virus. Oral use of KOH in the form of a spray in mice had no toxic effects on the mucosa and the inhaler application has a mucolytic effect by decreasing the viscosity of mucus in the respiratory tract. Conclusion: In light of these findings, KOH can be mucolytic, alkaline, and antiviral for enveloped viruses in the respiratory tract.

Challenge Accepted: Experiences of Turkish Faculty Members at the Time of Emergency Remote Teaching

Pandemija covida-19 je vse ujela nepripravljene. Pričakovalo se je, da bodo visokošolske ustanove zaradi dolge zgodovine izobraževanja na daljavo, ki je omogočila razvoj strokovnega znanja in tehnične infrastrukture, najmanj prizadete. Pa je bilo res tako? Ta študija se osredinja na izkušnje akademikov med poučevanjem na daljavo v izrednih razmerah in po njem. Za izvedbo študije je bila zasnovana metoda anketiranja. Raziskovalci so razvili spletni vprašalnik, imenovan Vprašalnik o stališčih o poučevanju na daljavo v izrednih razmerah, ki so ga uporabljali na visokošolskih ustanovah po vsej Turčiji. S kombinacijo naključnega vzorčenja in vzorčenja s snežno kepo je bilo zajetih 351 akademikov iz 72 različnih javnih in zasebnih visokošolskih ustanov. Deskriptivna analiza podatkov je pokazala, da se skoraj 62 % akademikov pred pandemijo covida-19 ni udeležilo nobenega usposabljanja o spletnem poučevanju na daljavo. Čeprav je petina akademikov navedla, da so imeli pred pandemijo trikrat ali večkrat izkušnjo z izobraževanjem na daljavo, se jih je približno 62 % s poučevanjem na daljavo srečalo prvič. Številni akademiki so navedli, da so za poučevanje na daljavo porabili več časa kot za poučevanje na fakulteti, da so imeli težave s spremljanjem razvoja študentov, da so bili študentje nezainteresirani za pouk, da so imeli tehnične težave, a so dobili tudi podporo svojih ustanov. Čeprav je le četrtina akademikov navedla, da niso prepričani o kakovosti svojega poučevanja na daljavo, jih je 75 % menilo, da poučevanje na daljavo ni bilo tako uspešno kot poučevanje na fakulteti. To je bilo še posebej očitno na področju ocenjevanja in evalvacije. Na podlagi teh rezultatov je mogoče sklepati, da visokošolske ustanove niso bile pripravljene, a je bilo njihovo prilagajanje zelo hitro.Alternate abstract:The Covid-19 pandemic caught everyone unprepared. Higher education institutions were expected to be the least affected due to their long history of distance education, which has enabled the development of expertise and technical infrastructure, but were they? The present study focuses on faculty members' experiences at the time of emergency remote teaching and afterwards. The survey method was devised to conduct the study. An online questionnaire called the Emergency Remote Teaching Views Questionnaire was developed by the researchers and administered at higher education institutions throughout Turkey. With a combination of convenience and snowball sampling, 351 faculty members from 72 different public and private higher education institutions were reached. The descriptive analysis of the data revealed that almost 62% of the faculty members had never taken any form of training regarding online distance education before the Covid-19 pandemic. Although one fifth of the faculty members indicated that they had had distance education experience three times or more before the pandemic, around 62% of them encountered remote teaching for the first time. Many faculty members indicated that they spent more time on remote teaching than face-to-face teaching;they had trouble following students' development;the students were disinterested in the classes;they had technical problems, but they also received support from their institutions. Although only one fourth of the faculty members reported being unsure about the quality of their remote teaching, three fourths of them believed that it was not as fruitful as face-to-face teaching. This was especially evident in the area of assessment and evaluation. Based on these results, it can be concluded that higher education institutions were caught unprepared, but their adaptation was very quick.