CoronaVac vaccine does not affect ovarian reserve.

OBJECTIVES: In this study, our aim is to investigate the effect of CoronaVac vaccine on ovarian reserve in female patients followed up for infertility. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Our study is a retrospective study. Forty-six infertile patients who received two doses of CoronaVac vaccine one month apart and had not had a previous Covid 19 infection were included in the study. Anti-müllerian hormone (AMH) and folliculometry of 46 patients one month before CoronaVac vaccine and one month after the second dose of vaccine were compared. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference in the change of AMH level and follicle number before and after vaccination (respectively p = 0.366; 0.610). CONCLUSIONS: Considering that having a COVID-19 infection has a negative effect on female fertility and causing ovarian damage in recent studies, vaccination is a rational and cost-effective approach to protect ovarian reserve. Knowing that the vaccine does not have a negative effect on fertility may increase the application of the vaccine in women of reproductive age.

Galectin-3 levels in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and its relationship with left ventricular mass index and function.

OBJECTIVE: Cardiac fibrosis is an important contributor to adverse left ventricular (LV) remodeling and arrhythmias in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Galectin-3 (Gal-3) is a novel marker of cardiac fibrosis and inflammation. In this study, we investigated Gal-3 levels in patients with HCM and controls and assessed the relationship between Gal-3 level and echocardiographic indices using strain echocardiography in patients with HCM. METHODS: Forty patients with HCM in sinus rhythm and 35 healthy controls were prospectively enrolled in this case-control study. The HCM diagnosis was based on two-dimensional echocardiographic demonstration of a hypertrophied and non-dilated left ventricle (LV) with a wall thickness ≥15 mm in one or more LV myocardial segments in the absence of any cardiac or systemic disease capable of inducing LV hypertrophy. Patients with one of the followings were excluded: coronary artery disease, atrial fibrillation episodes on 24-h Holter electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring, history of an invasive intervention to alleviate an LV outflow (LVOT) obstruction, inadequate image quality, renal disease, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, liver cirrhosis, and pulmonary fibrosis. Global LV longitudinal, circumferential strain and strain rates, peak torsion, and LV mass index (LVMI) of all subjects were assessed by echocardiography. Gal-3 levels were measured in all subjects. RESULTS: Left ventricular global longitudinal strain (-13.37±4.6% vs. -18.93±2.5%, p<0.001) and strain rate (0.66±0.22 s-1 vs. 1.08±0.14 s-1, respectively; p<0.001) values were lower in patients with HCM than in controls. Gal-3 levels were significantly higher in patients with HCM than in controls (16.9±6.64 ng/mL vs. 13.21±3.42 ng/mL, p=0.005). Gal-3 levels were associated with the thickness of the interventricular septum (r=0.444, p=0.004) and LVMI (r=0.365, p=0.021); however, they were not associated with LV global longitudinal strain (p=0.42) or strain rate (p=0.28). CONCLUSION: Gal-3 levels increased and were correlated with the degree of LV hypertrophy in patients with HCM. Gal-3 is not a good marker of decreased myocardial LV diastolic and systolic functions in these patients.

Analytical performance of a direct assay for LDL-cholesterol: a comparative assessment versus Friedewald's formula.

OBJECTIVE: Because low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) is a modifiable risk factor for coronary artery disease (CAD), its routine measurement is recommended in the evaluation and management of hypercholesterolemia. Concentrations of LDL-C are commonly monitored by means of the Friedewald formula (FF), which provides a relative estimation of LDL-C concentration when the triglyceride (TGs) concentration is <200 mg/dl and there are no abnormal lipids. Because of the limitations of the Friedewald calculation, direct methods for an accurate quantification of LDL-C are needed. METHODS: We critically examined an immunoseparation method for direct assay of LDL-C in a comparison with FF. 1) We measured intraassay and interassay precision using quality-control sera and patient serum pools. Accuracy was evaluated from total error analyses. Sample stability was examined over 2 months. 2) The LDL-C levels obtained with direct assay were compared with those calculated by the FF in 47 randomly chosen patient samples. The samples were classified as group 1 (patients with TGs 60-308 mg/dl, n=25) and group 2 (patients with TGs 320-695 mg/dl, n=22). RESULTS: The direct immunoseparation assay displayed an excellent precision (total coefficient of variance (CV)<2.5%, intraassay CV<1.5% and interassay CV<1.5%). Mean total error was 4.34%. The direct assay met the current National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) requirements for LDL-C testing for precision and accuracy. The results of direct method (x) and the FF (y) were highly correlated (r=0.9908, y=1.030 x -0.289, n=25) in group 1, but the results of two methods disagreed (r=0.716, y=0.956 x -24.869, n=22) in group 2 (patients with TGs 320-695 mg/dl). CONCLUSION: The direct immunoseparation assay meets the currently established analytical performance goals and may be useful for the diagnosis and management of hyperlipidemic patients.