Analysis of potential predatory journals in radiology.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study is to determine the presence and evaluate the features of potential predatory journals in the radiology field. METHODS: The presence of the keywords related to radiology listed in the name of journals was investigated in Beall's list. We have searched and recorded the features and the information of the included journals listed under the following headings: address and location, publishing features, editorial board, indexing features, submission, and peer-review processes. RESULTS: A total of 66 radiology journals from 27 publishers were identified from the updated version of the original Beall's list. Regarding the publishers, 33 journals (50%) reported an address in the United States of America, while others were from United Kingdom, India, Hong Kong, Iran, and Canada. While 44 journals' (67%) website reported a contact address, no addresses were declared in the website of 21 journals (32%). The median time of publication activity was 3.5 years (interquartile range [IQR], 1-5 years; range, 0-16 years). Thirty-five journals (53%) indicated their publication ethics policy on the website. Forty-seven (71%) journals reported a regular editorial board (EB) list. The competency of the EB was considered as "inappropriate" in 27 (41%) journals. Only 18% of the total number of EB members had affiliations related to radiology (n=286/1566). Forty journals (61%) did not report any indexing and database coverage. We found 26 journals (39%) which had a DOI number in its latest 5 articles. Fifty-nine (89%) journals clearly reported article processing change (APC) on the webpage. The median APC value was 641.43 USD (IQR, 300-918.75 USD; range, 100-2588 USD). Considering the latest 5 articles, the number of journals with radiologic images in all of the articles was 8 (12%). Mean peer-review time was 63.5 days (IQR, 21.75-87.5 days; range, 1-237 days) for the journals which indicated the submission and acceptance dates clearly. CONCLUSION: We demonstrated the several main characteristics of potential predatory journals in the radiology field such as reliability of the reported address, APC, publication frequencies, indexing features, features of published article and peer-review time which were all found to be similar to the characteristics of potential predatory journals in other biomedical fields.

Factors affecting survival in patients with isolated liver-metastatic colorectal cancer treated with local ablative or surgical treatments for liver metastasis.

PURPOSE: Local treatments for isolated synchronous or metachronous liver metastases in colorectal cancer (CRC) have been shown to improve overall survival (OS). The aim of this study was to investigate the factors affecting OS in CRC patients with isolated liver metastasis in whom the primary tumor and corresponding liver metastasis were treated with curative intent using local ablative or surgical methods. METHODS: A total 47 surgical operated CRC patients presenting with an initial or subsequent isolated liver metastasis, who were treated with local surgical or ablative treatment for liver metastasis with curative intent, were enrolled in this study between 2007 and 2017. The possible factors affecting OS were analyzed. RESULTS: Of the 47 patients, 35 (74.5%) were male. The median age was 61 (25 - 80) years. Thirty-four (72.3%) patients underwent liver metastasectomy, while 13 (27.7%) patients were treated with non-surgical local ablative therapies (NSLAT) for liver metastasis. Median OS (mOS) could not be reached in patients who underwent metastasectomy at the time of diagnosis compared to 55 months in those undergoing metastasectomy following a chemotherapy period (p = 0.03). Patients treated with NSLAT had a mOS of 60 months compared to ''not reached'' in those who underwent liver metastasectomy (p = 0.45). mOS was higher in patients with pT4 stage vs. with

Evaluation of endothelial dysfunction in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: Association of selenoprotein P with carotid intima-media thickness and endothelium-dependent vasodilation.

BACKGROUND: In patients with NAFLD, there is an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Selenoprotein P (SelP), a hepatokine, is associated with insulin resistance (IR) and serum SelP was found to be elevated in patients with NAFLD. AIM: This study aimed to determine the risk of CVD in NAFLD patients and the association of serum SelP levels with this NAFLD related CVD risk. METHODS: Ninety-three patients with NAFLD and 37 healthy controls were included in the study. Complete blood count, C-reactive protein (CRP), fasting glucose, serum lipid levels, and SelP levels were tested from fasting blood samples. Moreover, body mass index (BMI), HOMA-IR, carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) and flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) were measured. RESULTS: In patients with NAFLD, the FMD ratio was significantly lower than in controls (P=0.027). cIMT measurements were similar in both groups (P=0.996). Serum SelP levels were significantly higher than controls (P<0.001). SelP levels were significantly correlated with BMI, fasting glucose, LDL-cholesterol and HOMA-IR (r=0.395, P<0.001; r=0.322, P=0.002; r=0.353, P<0.001; r=0.521, P<0.001, respectively). Also, SelP levels were significantly lower and correlated with FMD (r=-0.674, P<0.001). SelP, ESR and CRP were significantly higher (P<0.05) and FMD ratios were significantly lower (P<0.05) in patients with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) when compared to patients with simple steatosis. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that in young NAFLD patients without additional comorbidities, there is an increased risk of CVD. FMD may be a better predictor for assessment of CVD risk when compared with cIMT. We assume that there could also be an important role of SelP in the pathogenesis of NASH.

The role of coronary CT angiography in diagnosis of patent foramen ovale.

PURPOSE: We aimed to examine the incidence of patent foramen ovale (PFO) and atrial septal aneurysms (ASA) in the Turkish population using coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA); assess the feasibility of coronary CTA for PFO diagnosis by conducting a comparison with transthoracic echocardiography (TTE); and determine the diagnostic role and characteristics of the interatrial tunnel, free flap valve (FFV), and shunts. METHODS: The present study was conducted retrospectively and included a sample of 782 patients. Coronary CTA results for all patients were evaluated for the following parameters: the presence of PFO, the degree of contrast jet (if present due to PFO), ASA existence, free flap valve (FFV) length, and PFO tunnel diameters (1 and 2). Coronary CTA and TTE results for PFO detection were also compared for 19 patients who underwent both procedures. RESULTS: PFO was present in 118 patients (15%). In 19 patients who underwent both CTA and TTE, the shunt was present in 15 patients on TTE compared with nine patients on CTA. The sensitivity and specificity of CTA for shunt existence were 53% (8/15) and 75% (3/4), respectively. FFV was observed on CTA in 118 patients (15%). No significant relationship was observed between shunt existence and FFV length (P = 0.148), or between shunt existence and tunnel diameter-1 (P = 0.638) or diameter-2 (P = 0.058). ASAs were present in 16 patients (2%), while accompanying PFO was present in three patients (2.4%). CONCLUSION: Coronary CTA constitutes a more practical and efficient alternative to TTE for PFO diagnosis. Further, it allows the clear visualization of anatomical details of the interatrial tunnel, shunts, and associated abnormalities and detects ASAs.