Sleep quality in patients with Behçet's disease.

AIM: The aim of this study was to evaluate sleep quality and the related variables in patients with Behçet's disease (BD). METHOD: One hundred and twelve patients diagnosed with BD and 67 age- and gender-matched healthy controls were enrolled in the study. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was used for the evaluation of sleep disturbance in all participants. The quality of life (QoL) of all patients were evaluated by Nottingham Health Profile (NHP), and anxiety and depression which were assessed by Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). RESULTS: The patients with BD had significantly higher scores in subjective sleep quality, sleep latency, sleep efficiency, sleep disorder, functional disorder in the morning and total PSQI score compared to the healthy control group. According to Pearson's analysis, there was a significantly higher correlation between the anxiety, depression and all components of NHP scores and the total PSQI score. Logistic regression analyses indicated that genital ulcer and arthritis were predictors for poor sleep quality. CONCLUSION: Sleep quality is disturbed in patients with BD. The lower quality of sleep is greatly associated with anxiety, depression, QoL, genital ulcers and arthritis.

Fibromyalgia incidence among patients with hepatitis B infection.

AIM: The purpose of our investigation was to evaluate the incidence of fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) and identify FMS-related clinical symptoms in hepatitis B virus (HBV) patients. METHODS: One hundred and eighteen HBV surface antigen (HbsAg)-positive patients (40 with chronic active hepatitis B, 40 hepatitis B carriers and 38, all of whom had been antiretroviral-treated for at least 3 months) were included in this study. In addition, 60 age- and gender-matched HbsAg-negative healthy controls were included in the study. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in age, gender or body mass index (BMI) between the two groups (P > 0.05). Serum aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase levels were significantly higher in HBV patients relative to the control group (P < 0.05). The incidence of FMS, widespread body pain, fatigue, sleep disturbance, anxiety, morning stiffness, arthralgia was significantly greater among HBV patients relative to the control group. Additionally, the mean tender point counts and the visual analog scale values were significantly higher among the HBV patients (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The results of the present study demonstrate that FMS incidence is greater among HBV patients relative to control subjects. However, there were no differences in FMS incidence among the subgroups of HBV diagnoses.

Serum Cytokine Levels in Behçet's Disease.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to investigate and compare the serum levels of various cytokines in patients with Behçet's Disease and healthy controls. METHODS: Thirty-five patients with Behçet's disease and 29 age and sex-matched healthy controls were included in the study. The patients were separated into groups with active and inactive disease. Serum IL-2, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-17A, and IFN-γ levels were determined using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. Cytokine levels of the two patient groups and healthy controls were compared using SPSS 15.0. RESULTS: Ten patients with active disease and 25 patients with inactive disease were present. Serum IL-8 levels of active BD patients were higher compared to inactive patients (P = 0.048) and healthy controls (P = 0.02). IL-8 levels were correlated with the duration of symptoms (r = 0.490, P = 0.003) and time passed since diagnosis (r = 0.579, P ˂ 0.001). CONCLUSION: Behçet's disease involves complex interactions of cells of the immune system, mainly T lymphocytes and neutrophils. Further studies on the cytokine profile in Behçet's disease will aid in elucidation of its pathogenesis.

Serum prolidase enzyme activity and oxidative status in patients with Behçet's disease.

OBJECTIVES: To assess serum prolidase enzyme activity and oxidative stress in patients with Behçet's disease (BD). METHODS: The study population consisted of BD patients (n = 42) and healthy participants (n = 29). BD patients were classified as active (n = 18) or inactive (n = 24) according to disease activity. Serum prolidase enzyme activity, total antioxidant status (TAS), total oxidative status (TOS), oxidative stress index (OSI), and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were measured. RESULTS: In BD patients with active disease, serum prolidase activity was significantly higher compared with the inactive and control participants. Serum prolidase activity was also significantly higher in all BD patients in comparison with controls. Serum prolidase activity was also positively correlated with OSI, C-reactive protein, and active BD. MDA, TOS, and OSI levels were all significantly higher in the BD group when compared with the healthy control participants. Serum TAS levels were significantly lower in BD patients in comparison with healthy controls. CONCLUSION: High prolidase activity may indicate critical biological activities relevant to pathological events in BD, and this activity may be a biological indicator of disease. Further studies are needed to verify these findings.