Lactobacillus acidophilus regulates abnormal serotonin availability in experimental ulcerative colitis.

OBJECTIVES: Probiotics are known to play a beneficial role in curing irritable bowel syndrome such as ulcerative colitis. Commensal Lactobacillus species are thought to play a protective role against ulcerative colitis, as they restore homeostasis in intestinal disorders. Abnormal serotonin availability has been described in ulcerative colitis, but the underlying mechanism is still unclear. The aim of this study was to determine the anti-inflammatory role of Lactobacillus acidophilus (L. acidophilus) and its effect on serotonin expression. METHODS: Ulcerative colitis was created with the intrarectal administration of acetic acid. A total of 40 adult male rats were divided into five groups of eight rats as control, sham, experimental colitis, treatment (Colitis + L. acidophilus) and protective group (L. acidophilus + colitis). To evaluate the effects of L. acidophilus on serotonin expression in ulcerative colitis, this bacterial strain was administered orally to the rats with acetic acid-induced colitis. After oral administration of L. acidophilus for 14 days, serotonin content was biochemically measured and serotonin expression was evaluated immunohistochemically. RESULTS: The expression of serotonin and its protein content was significantly increased in colitis compared to the control and sham groups. Abnormal serotonin availability in the rats with acetic acid-induced colitis was significantly reduced by the L. acidophilus. CONCLUSIONS: In our study, it was observed that the amount of serotonin in the intestinal tissue increased excessively with ulcerative colitis. In addition, L.acidophilus has been found to reduce the abnormally increased amount of serotonin in the colon tissue, as well as reduce the inflammation in the intestinal tissue that occurs with ulcerative colitis. With our findings, it is predicted that probiotic application can be used as a treatment option in ulcerative colitis.

Probiotics in Experimental Ulcerative Colitis: Mast Cell Density and Neuronal Hypertrophy.

BACKGROUND: Probiotics such as Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium are among the supportive treatment methods to achieve effective results in ulcerative colitis. This study was established to investigate the effect of probiotics in experimental ulcerative colitis and to detect changes in mast cell and neuronal structures in this treatment method. METHODS: A total of 48 adult male rats were used to study the effects of probiotics on ulcerative colitis. The animals were divided into 6 groups as control, experimental colitis, and four probiotic protective groups. Three different bacterial strains were administered to the protective groups individually and in combination by gavage. PGP 9.5 antibody and mast cell tryptase were used for the detection of neuronal structures and mast cells. The number of Schwann cells and ganglia, size measurements of ganglia, and density of mast cells were evaluated. RESULTS: Compared to the control, an increase in the number of mast cells was detected in all groups. Especially the increase in the num- ber of mast cells was found to be statistically significant in combined probiotic administration. In the detection of neuronal structures, a significant increase in the number of Schwann cells and ganglia was detected in groups where probiotics were administered combined and individually. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that probiotics may play a role in the supporting effect of increasing the number of mast cells and neuronal structures, protecting the intestinal wall. We think that more specific and detailed studies should be conducted to evaluate the protective/therapeutic effect of probiotics in future studies.

The influences of porus acusticus internus on ethnicity and importance in preoperative and intraoperative approaches.

PURPOSE: The influences of porus acusticus internus (PAI) on ethnicity and differences between populations have not been investigated so far. Therefore, we performed this study to elucidate further the relationship between the different morphologies of PAI and ethnicity and to discuss their effects on surgery. METHODS: One hundred twenty dry adult human temporal bones (61 male, 59 female) were investigated in the study. Their horizontal diameter (HD), vertical diameter (VD), shape, prevalence of the shapes of PAI, and the distance from the sulcus for the sigmoid sinus (SSS), sulcus for superior petrosal sinus (SSPS), and jugular foramen (JF) of dry Turkish temporal bones were recorded. RESULTS: Forty-three (35.8%) elliptical (or transverse) and 77 (64.1%) oval (or round) PAI were detected in the Turkish dry temporal bones. On both sides, round PAI were identified more frequently than elliptical ones (32; 26.6% (left); 39; 32.5% (right)) (p < 0.05). There was a similarity between the Indian and Turkish dry temporal bones in terms of distance from the PAI to the SSPS (7-8 mm) and SSS (19-20 mm) (p = 0.01) and prevalence of morphology of PAI (oval and elliptical) (p = 0.04, p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The findings of the present study provided a detailed understanding of the preoperative and intraoperative identification of different morphologies of PAI and ethnicity. The ethnicity might contribute to morphology of the PAI and it can be explain the similar forms and distances between the various ethnic populations.

Investigation of the Relationship Between Maternal Attachment and Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy and Affecting Factors in Turkish Sample.

PURPOSE: This research aimed to investigate the factors affecting the perception of mothers about breastfeeding self-efficacy and their maternal attachment between the fourth and eighth postnatal weeks and their relation. DESIGN AND METHODS: This research, which is descriptive, was conducted on 351 postpartum women between December 2017-2018. The study used the Mother Descriptive Information Form, Maternal Attachment Inventory (MAI), and the Short Form of the Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale (BSES-SF). RESULTS: It was found that, mothers' mean scores on the BSES-SF and MAI were affected by their educational level, the status of regular health checkups during the last pregnancy, the number of visits for health checkups during the last pregnancy, the place where they held their babies, the status of breastfeeding previous babies, prenatal breastfeeding training, the status of finding their own breast milk sufficient, the time when they first breastfed the baby, the first food the baby received, the status of being willing to breastfeed, the status of having fatigue due to breastfeeding, the planned duration of breastfeeding, the status of using additional infant formula, and the status of having a close relative or friend also breastfeeding. It was also determined that there was a low positive relationship between breastfeeding self-efficacy and maternal attachment. CONCLUSIONS: The level of breastfeeding self-efficacy and maternal attachment status of mothers should be determined in the postpartum period, and health personnel should intervene on alterable factors that adversely affect breastfeeding self-efficacy and attachment status, especially in mothers at risk.

Investigation of factors affecting postpartum maternal weight retention: A cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: To examine weight retention and affecting factors among 12-18 months postpartum women.. METHODS: The descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from January 1 to June 30, 2012 at Gazikent 3rd Primary Health Care Centre, Izmir, Turkey, and comprised pregnant women registered with the centre in their 12-18 months postpartum phase. Data was collected using Mother Introduction Form and International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form. SPSS 15 was used for data analysis. RESULTS: There were 239 women with a mean age of 30.81±4.59 years. Of the total, 182(76.2%) subjects had weight retention; 106(44.4%) having 0.5-5kg, and 49(20.6%) with 5.5-10 kg. Overall mean weight retention rate was 4.09±4.90kg (range: -9-27kg). Weight retention had significant correlations with chronic illness (p=0.037), having been educated about physical exercise during pregnancy (p=0.001), skipping meals (p=0.036), average pre-pregnancy weights (p=0.019), average pre-pregnancy body mass index (p=0.049), average weight gained during pregnancy (p=0.009), achieving weight gain during pregnancy as recommended by the Institute of Medicine guidelines (p=0.002), and mean physical activity score (p=0.006). CONCLUSIONS: Women should be monitored for their body mass index and weight in the postpartum period and during pregnancy.

An examination of the sexual functions of patients who underwent a gynecologic cancer operation and received brachytherapy.

OBJECTIVE: This study was planned as a descriptive study for the purpose of examining the sexual functions of patients' who underwent a gynecological operation and received brachytherapy. METHODS: The study was conducted with 118 women who attended the Radiation Oncology Unit at Ege University Medical Faculty Hospital in Izmir Province for Gynecological Oncology follow-up, who participated voluntarily and were assigned using the random sampling method. The participants were married, sexually active, had a diagnosis of gynecologic cancer, underwent an operation and received brachytherapy for four months after the operation. The Individual Identification Form and Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) were used as the data collection tools. RESULTS: The average age of women who participated in study was 50.90±7.98 and 41.5% of them had completed primary school. About 60% of the participants had cervical cancer and 69.5% had a total abdominal hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oopherectomy. The FSFI average score was determined to be 15.77±8.71. It was found that 97.5% of the participants received fewer than 30 points from the scale and these participants thus experienced sexual dysfunction. CONCLUSIONS: According to the findings obtained from the study, almost all thewomen that had an operation as a result of adiagnosis of gynecologic cancer and received brachytherapy experienced sexual dysfunction.

Apelin/APJ expression in the heart and kidneys of hypertensive rats.

Hypertension is an important health problem that is manifested by systemic arterial blood pressure being permanently elevated and leading to serious complications. Hypertension is the basis for coronary heart diseases, heart failure, kidney damage, cerebrovascular diseases. Due to ethical concerns, there is no detailed study of the mechanism, side effects and treatment of hypertension in humans. For this reason, specific studies related to the organ of hypertension are performed in experimental animals. The heart and kidney tissue, which are the most important organs that hypertension has damaged, have formed specific organs of our work. In our experimental study, a total of 35 (hypertensive group: 20, control group: 15) Rattus Norvegicus Wistar albino rats were used. In order to obtain our hypertension model, our experimental animals were given L-NAME together with drinking water for six weeks. After six weeks, the experimental procedures were terminated. Heart and kidney tissues of the hypertensive and control group were obtained. Expression of apelin and apelin receptor (APJ) was demonstrated by immunohistochemical and Western Blot protocols. Hypertrophic cardiac atrium of the hearts of the large cavities, interventricular septum and myocardium to the disintegration, as well as an increase in the diameter of the coronary artery has been observed. In general, kidney tissues of the hypertensive group showed narrowing in cortical renal structures and enlargement in structures in the renal medulla. As a result, in hypertensive cases, there was an increase in expression of Apelin and APJ receptor in heart tissue, and a decrease in expression of Apelin and APJ receptor in kidney tissue. We think that our findings may contribute to experimental or clinical studies related to hypertension and apelin.

Accessory Ossicles of the Foot and Ankle: Disorders and a Review of the Literature.

Accessory ossicles of the foot and ankle are normal variants of bone development that usually remain asymptomatic. However, they may be involved in various disorders and become a source of pain such as in fractures, dislocations, degenerative changes, osteonecrosis, osteoarthritis, osteochondral lesions, avascular necrosis, and irritation or impingement of adjacent soft tissues. Hence, during the assessment of the situations above, knowledge about these little-known ossicles could be very important to reach the correct diagnosis. Recent studies in the literature have mostly focused on the most frequent 9-12 accessory bones. In this review, 24 types of accessory ossicle are described. These ossicles are accessory navicular bone, os peroneum, os trigonum, os intermetatarseum, os vesalianum. os subfibulare, os subtibiale, os calcaneus secundarius, os calcanei accessorium, os supratalare, os sustentaculi, os talotibiale, os tali accessorium, talus secundarius, os subcalcis, os cuboideum secundarium, os supranaviculare, os infranaviculare, os paracuneiforme, os intercuneiforme, os cuneometatarsale I tibiale, os cuneometatarsale plantare, os cuneo-I metatarsale-II dorsale, and os aponeurosis plantaris. The clinical importance of these bones should be known thoroughly to reduce unnecessary orthopedic consultations and misdiagnosis. This article describes the clinical importance of the accessory ossicles and their possible pathological conditions. Understanding the possible disorders of the accessory ossicles of the foot and ankle can provide a more accurate diagnostic process.

The relationship between breastfeeding self-efficacy and LATCH scores and affecting factors.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: This study investigates the relationship between breastfeeding self-efficacy and LATCH scores and affecting factors in Turkish mothers. BACKGROUND: The benefits of breastfeeding for newborns and mothers are well documented. Type of birth, maternal and neonatal complications; lack of support from healthcare professionals during breastfeeding, hospital routines, time and duration of mother-newborn attachment; and insufficiency of husband and family support are the most significant factors affecting breastfeeding initiation and mothers' breastfeeding self-efficacy in early postpartum period. Therefore, it is important to determine how all these factors affect breastfeeding. DESIGN: This was a cross-sectional, descriptive study. METHODS: The sample of the study consisted of 303 postpartum women who were recruited at the obstetrics clinic of maternity hospital in one of the three largest city of Turkey. The data were obtained using Personal Identification Form, Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form and LATCH Breastfeeding Assessment Tool to determine breastfeeding success. The mean, standard deviation, frequency, percentages, correlation analysis and Kruskal-Wallis variance analysis were used in data collection. RESULTS: The main finding of the study was a weak positive correlation between average LATCH scores and average Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form scores of women in the postpartum period. The women becoming pregnant four times or more got significantly higher average Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form and average LATCH scores, and the women married for 11 years or longer and the mothers starting to breastfeed their babies within 30 minutes of their birth got significantly higher average LATCH scores. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the present research affirm the beneficial role of high self-efficacy in successful breastfeeding. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: It is of great importance that midwives and obstetric nurses routinely evaluate breastfeeding self-efficacy and the capability of breastfeeding for early detection of problems related to breastfeeding.

Febrile neutropenia in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia: single center experience.

AIM: An important life-threatening complication of intensive chemotherapy administered in children with leukemia is febrile neutropenia. The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical features and consequences of febrile neutropenia attacks in children who were treated for acute lymphoblastic leukemia. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Nighty-six children who received chemotherapy for acute lymphoblastic leukemia in our center between January 1995 and December 2010 were included in the study. The data related to demographic characteristics, treatment features, relapse and febrile neutropenia incidences, risk factors, culture results and prognosis were retrospectively evaluated from the patients' files. RESULTS: A total of two hundred-ninety nine febrile neutropenia attacks observed in the patients during initial treatment and relapse treatment were evaluated. When the incidence of febrile neutropenia was evaluated by years, it was observed that the patients treated after year 2000 had statistically significantly more febrile neutopenia attacks compared to the patients treated before year 2000. When the incidences of febrile neutropenia during initial treatment and during relapse treatment were compared, it was observed that more febrile neutropenia attacks occured during relapse treatment. Fifty-nine percent of all febrile neutropenia attacks were fever of unknown origin. Eighty microorganisms grew in cultures during febrile neutropenia throughout treatment in 75 patients; 86% were bacterial infections (50% gram positive and 50% gram negative), 8% were viral infections and 6% were fungal infections. Coagulase negative staphylococcus (n=17) was the most frequent gram positive pathogen; E. Coli (n=17) was the most commonly grown gram negative pathogen. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, it was found that an increase in the incidence of febrile neutropenia occured in years. Increments in treatment intensities increase the incidence of febrile neutropenia while improving survival. Evaluation of febrile neutropenia results by hematology-oncology units in years will be directive in early and successful treatment.

[Alcaligenes xylosoxidans bacteremia in a patient with acute lymphoblastic leukemia]. / Akut lenfoblastik lösemili bir olguda Alcaligenes xylosoxidans bakteriyemisi.

Alcaligenes xylosoxidans which is an aerobic, non-fermentative gram-negative bacillus found in aqueous environments and human flora, can lead to opportunistic infections. It causes infections in elderly, immunocompromised patients, patients with chronic disorders or premature infants. In this report, a case of A. xylosoxidans bacteremia that developed in a child with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) was presented. Four-years-old male patient under ALL induction therapy was admitted with symptoms of lethargy, headache, somnolence, and fever (39 degrees C). Cerebrospinal fluid, blood, throat and urine cultures were taken from the patient and empirical treatment with sulbactam cefoperazon and amikacin was initiated. Blood cultures in BacT Alert 3D (Bio Merieux, France) revealed the growth of a gram-negative coccobacillus. The agent which was non-fermentative, indol and H2S negative, was identified as A. xylosoxidans by API 20 NE (Bio Merieux, France). Since fever continued under the current antibiotic treatment, the therapy was switched to imipenem (90 mg/kg 3x/day) and the patient's condition improved markedly after 24 hours. Disc diffusion susceptibility testing of the isolate revealed that it was resistant to ampicillin, cephalothin, cefuroxime, cefoxitin, cefotaxime, amikacin, netilmicin and gentamicin; susceptible to amoxicillin clavulanate, piperacillin tazobactam, seftazidime, cefepime, imipenem and ciprofloxacin. Following 14 days of imipenem therapy, the patient recovered and discharged from the hospital on routine follow-up. It is important to consider A. xylosoxidans as a possible causative agent particularly in the infections that develop in high risk patients at oncology, dialysis and neonatal intensive care units.