Attitude towards seeking psychological help regarding psychiatric symptoms and stigma in patients with fibromyalgia.

OBJECTIVE: The current study aimed to examine the psychiatric symptoms that can be seen in fibromyalgia (FM) patients, their attitudes toward seeking psychological help, and their concerns about stigma. Besides, it was investigated whether the stigma concerns that they may experience about receiving psychiatric treatment constitute an obstacle for patients to receive psychiatric treatment. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted between February and July 2020. Various seeking help were measured with Attitude Towards Seeking Psychological Help Scale-Short Form (ATSPPH-SF), Self-Stigma in the Process of Seeking Psychological Help Scale (SSPSPHS), Intention to Seek Psychological Help Inventory (ISPHI), and Social Stigma Due to Seeking Psychological Help Scale (SSDSPHS). FM symptoms of patients were measured with The Symptom Screening Questionnaire, Revised 90 Items (SCL-90-R). Quality-of-life parameters were measured with Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ). RESULTS: Fibromyalgia patients had higher somatization (p=0.001), psychotism (p=0.045) and phobic anxiety (p=0.015) scores than controls. The ATSPPH-SF (p=0.002) and SSPSPHS (p=0.043) scale scores of the FM patients were higher than the controls. There was a significant positive correlation between FIQ and SSPSPHS (r=0.288, p=0.043) and SCL-90 overall (r=0.602, p<0.001) and all subscales scores. Patients with high active psychotic symptom levels had higher FM exposure scale scores and SCL-90 overall scores than those with low active psychotic symptom levels (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study showed that fibromyalgia patients have more somatization symptoms than healthy individuals, and as psychiatric symptoms increase in these individuals, their level of being affected by FM increases.

The relationship of serum asprosin level with diabetic and non-diabetic retinopathy.

OBJECTIVE: This study was aimed at investigating the role of serum asprosin level in diabetic retinopathy pathogenesis and differential diagnosis diabetic and non-diabetic retinopathy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted between May 2021 and August 2021. A total of 21 subjects with diabetic retinopathy, 21 subjects with non-diabetic retinopathy, 21 subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) without retinopathy and 21 healthy controls were included in the study. Biochemical parameters, serum asprosin, serum IL-6 and TNF-α levels were measured in all participants. RESULTS: Fasting blood glucose (FBG), HbA1c, HOMA-IR and LDL levels were higher in diabetic patients than non-diabetic. The blood asprosin levels were higher in the diabetic retinopathy group compared to the healthy control group (p=0.001), T2DM without diabetic retinopathy (p=0.010), and non-diabetic retinopathy group (p=0.043). There is a significant positive relationship between asprosin level and high FBG, HbA1c and HOMA-IR scores. CONCLUSIONS: Serum asprosin level is significantly increased in DRP group than others. A high asprosin level might be a risk factor for the development of diabetic complications, such as diabetic retinopathy. These findings suggest that the measurement of serum asprosin level may support clinicians in determining the risk of DRP development.

Predictive value of inflammatory and hematological data in diabetic and non-diabetic retinopathy.

OBJECTIVE: The current study aimed at investigating the predictive role of inflammatory, hematological and biochemical parameters in diabetic and non-diabetic retinopathy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted between June 2019 and September 2020. We included patients with diabetic retinopathy (proliferative DR=14, non-proliferative DR=16), patients with non-diabetic retinopathy (n=30), patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) without retinopathy (n=30) and control group (n=30). Demographic, hematological, and biochemical parameters of the participants were examined. RESULTS: Participants' age and duration of diabetes mellitus were higher in proliferative and non-proliferative DR groups than patients with T2DM without retinopathy (p<0.001). There were significantly difference in terms of BMI (p<0.001), HbA1c (p<0.001), glucose (p<0.001), LDL (p<0.001), AST (p=0.001), hemoglobin (p<0.001), urea (p<0.001), creatinine (p<0.001), lymphocyte (p=0.001), and neutrophil (p=0.002) levels between groups. IL-6 levels were higher in proliferative DR, non-proliferative DR, and non-diabetic retinopathy groups than the control group. TNF-α levels were higher in proliferative DR and non-diabetic retinopathy groups than the control group. The NLR and PLR median values were significantly higher in the proliferative DR group than in other groups (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The current study showed that IL-6 and TNF-α levels are elevated in diabetic and non-diabetic retinopathy. In addition, neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet/lymphocyte ratio (PLR) median levels are higher in proliferative diabetic retinopathy than other groups. These findings support the inflammatory process may be accelerating the development of retinopathy.

Factors affecting dental job satisfaction: a cross-sectional survey in Turkey.

In this cross-sectional study, a randomly selected group of dentists (n = 855) from nine provinces of Turkey were interviewed for their levels of intrinsic, extrinsic, and overall job satisfaction. The proportion of overall job satisfaction was computed as the proportion of dentists who had mean general satisfaction scores > or = 4 on a 5-point, Likert-type scale and was found to be 40.8% for the sample as a whole. The significant factors that affected overall satisfaction were age, the type of social insurance possessed, income level, the presence of dental auxiliaries, and the number of patients examined per day. Multivariate analysis of the data revealed that the type of social insurance, the amount of monthly income, and the number of patients examined per day were the most common and statistically significant predictors of intrinsic, extrinsic, and overall satisfaction in Turkish dentists.

Utilisation of dental services in Turkey: a cross-sectional survey.

AIM: To assess the factors affecting the utilisation of dental service in Turkey. METHOD: A cross-sectional study using a sample of 866 adults randomly selected from nine provinces, collecting data on socio-demographic characteristics, frequency of dental visits and attitudes toward dental services in face-to-face interviews. RESULTS: 40.4% of adults had visited a dentist within the previous year. Logistic regression analysis showed that gender and educational level were significant factors affecting the utilisation of dental services, with women using dental services significantly more than men and those having higher education compared to those having low education. Satisfaction from the services of the private dental offices and private hospitals was higher than from state hospitals. Age, reasons for dental visit and the place of the last visit were found to be the most significant predictors of satisfaction. CONCLUSION: Utilisation of dental services is low amongst Turkish adults. Women and individuals with higher levels of education use dental services more than others. The majority of the people prefer private dental offices, where the patient satisfaction is high.