Pharmacist intervention to improve patients' knowledge and attitude towards hepatitis B infection.

OBJECTIVE: Lack of knowledge/awareness of people living with hepatitis B (PLH) often leads to misinformation and stigmatisation. This study aimed to assess the contribution of the clinical pharmacist (CP)-led education on knowledge of PLH about their disease. METHODS: This prospective, cross-sectional study was carried out between 1 October 2017 and 1 April 2018, at infectious disease and gastroenterology outpatient clinics in a university hospital. All PLH were interviewed face-to-face by a CP and a questionnaire about hepatitis B virus (HBV) knowledge was applied both at the beginning of the study (first interview) and 3 months later (second interview). Correct information was provided verbally to the patients by the CP concerning their incorrect answers during the first interview. A 10% increase in the number of correct answers was targeted for the second interview. RESULTS: A total of 147 PLH with a mean age of 43.05 ± 13.25 years were included in the study (55.8% female). In the first interview, the mean (±standard deviation) number of correct answers was 35.53 ± 9.15 out of 51 questions. In the second interview, correct answers were 48.67 ± 2.74 with an increase of 25.8% (P < .001). In the first interview, the number of correct answers was higher for the following groups: 20-39 age group, people with monthly income of >1081 $ and university graduates. The number of correct answers to all questions but one was elevated (P < .001) in the second interview. Answers to the question "there is a carrier state in chronic hepatitis B (CHB)" did not change (P = .125). CONCLUSION: Significant improvement was observed in the correct answer rate after CP's contribution, therefore as a team member, CP has an important role in improving patients' knowledge and attitude towards HBV infection.

Changing rates of the modes of delivery over the decades (1976, 1986, 1996, 2006, and 2016) based on the Robson-10 group classification system in a single tertiary health care center.

AIM: To identify the underlying factors that may affect the changing rates of modes of delivery over the decades based on Robson-10 group classification system (TGCS) in a single tertiary health care center. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study included data from 10,458 deliveries in 1976, 1986, 1996, 2006, and 2016 with fetuses more than or equal to 500 g at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Hacettepe University Hospital. Patient characteristics and the mode of delivery were evaluated according to the TGCS. RESULTS: The cesarean section (CS) rates were 11.4% (304/2668), 19.2% (459/2393), 44.7% (783/1751), 69.3% (1213/1751), and 77.9% (1477/1895) in 1976, 1986, 1996, 2006, and 2016, respectively. CS has become the preferred method of delivery for multiple pregnancies and breech presentations over the years. TGCS Group 5 was the greatest contributor to increased CS ratios. Relative contributions of TGCS Groups 1 and 3 were decreased and relative contributions of Groups 2 and 4 were increased. Operative vaginal deliveries decreased over the years. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, effective management of labor induction, choosing vaginal delivery for appropriate breech presentations and multifetal pregnancies, proper education of obstetricians for operative vaginal delivery and objective evaluation of labor dystocia might be key points in CS rate debates.

First trimester complete blood cell indices in early and late onset preeclampsia.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to compare the first trimester complete blood count (CBC) indices of pregnancies complicated by early-onset preeclampsia (EOPE) or late-onset preeclampsia (LOPE). MATERIAL AND METHODS: A retrospective case-control study was conducted with 186 patients. Patients were classified into three subgroups: EOPE, LOPE, and control groups. First trimester CBC results were obtained for each patient. Hemoglobin, hematocrit, red blood cell distribution width, mean corpuscular volume, white blood cell (WBC) count, neutrophil, eosinophil, basophil, lymphocyte, monocyte, mean platelet volume, platelet distribution width, plateletcrit, and platelet count were compared. The neutrophil lymphocyte ratio was calculated by dividing the absolute lymphocyte count by the absolute neutrophil count. The platelet lymphocyte ratio was calculated by dividing the absolute lymphocyte count by the absolute platelet count. RESULTS: The total number of cases was 21, 42, and 123, in the EOPE, LOPE, and control groups, respectively. There were statistically significant differences in the total WBC and neutrophil counts between the three groups (both p<0.05). WBC and neutrophil counts were found to be highest in the EOPE group, and the LOPE group had higher levels compared with controls. The optimal cut-off values to predict EOPE for WBC and neutrophil counts were 9.55×103/ µL (sensitivity 71.4% and specificity 70.7%) and 6.45×103/µL (sensitivity 66.7% and specificity 74.8%), respectively. CONCLUSION: Increased first trimester WBC and neutrophil counts may be predictive for EOPE.

Clinical importance of the 75-g glucose tolerance test (GTT) in the prediction of large for gestational age (LGA) fetuses in non-diabetic pregnancies.

Objective To demonstrate clinical importance of the 75-g glucose tolerance test (GTT) in the prediction of large for gestational age (LGA) fetuses in non-diabetic pregnancies. Methods We retrospectively evaluated 75-g GTT screening results of 356 pregnancies without prompt diagnosis of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) between January 2013 and December 2017. Newborns with a birthweight greater than the 90th percentile were evaluated as LGA. Pregnancies with LGA and non-LGA fetuses were compared by demographic and historical factors - maternal age, gravidity, parity, birthweight, birthweek, GTT results and birthweight percentiles - via Student's t-test. Multiple linear regression using the backward elimination method was performed to define the correlation between parameters and LGA (P-value of <0.20 was identified as the threshold). Receiver operator characteristics (ROC) curve analysis was performed for further analysis. Results The cohort was consisted of 45 (12.6%) and 311 (87.4%) pregnancies with LGA and non-LGA fetuses, respectively. Maternal age and 2nd-h GTT results were found to be significantly higher in patients with LGA newborns (P<0.001 and P=0.016, respectively). Fasting glucose levels and GTT 1st-h results were also higher (P=0.112, P=0.065). The coefficient of multiple determination (R2) was 0.055 by multiple linear regression analysis. Accordingly, GTT 2nd-h result and maternal age were statistically significant and contributed to the explanation of LGA, although the R2 value was not that much higher (P=0.016; P=0.001). Maternal age and GTT 2nd-h results were found to be associated with LGA fetuses with area under the curve (AUC) values of 0.662 and 0.608 according to ROC curve analysis. Conclusion Maternal age and 75-g GTT 2nd-h results were significantly higher in gestations with LGA newborns without GDM.

Polypharmacy and drug-related problems among people living with HIV/AIDS: a single-center experience

Background/aim: The HIV-infected population is aging, and the concomitant comorbidities increase the likelihood of polypharmacy. There is a scarcity of data for determining drug-related problems in people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out between 1 September 2015 and 1 July 2016. All patients underwent a face-to-face interview with a clinical pharmacist. PCNE Classification V 7.0 was used classify incident drug-related problems (DRPs). Results: The mean age of the patients was 40.4 ± 13.06 years. The rate of polypharmacy was 66.1% in patients with comorbidities and 12.3% in those without comorbidities (P < 0.001). DRPs were more prominent in older patients (46 vs. 37 years, P < 0.001), those with longer durations of antiretroviral therapy (ART) (45 vs. 27 months, P = 0.014), and those with lower education levels (P = 0.013). Receiving >3 ART drugs was associated with more DRPs in the logistic regression model (odds ratio: 8.299, 95% confidence interval: 1.924­35.803). Fifty-eight interventions were performed in 45 (24.9%) patients. Clinical pharmacist interventions were performed in 18.9% of patients without polypharmacy and in 38.9% of patients with polypharmacy (P < 0.001). Conclusion: DRPs and polypharmacy are common among elderly PLWHA. More interventions are warranted to boost the quality of life in aging PLWHA.

Gestational Outcomes of Pregnant Women Who Have Had Invasive Prenatal Testing for the Prenatal Diagnosis of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

AIM: To show the importance of prenatal diagnosis of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) and to demonstrate the effect of DMD gene mutations on gestational outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated 89 pregnancies in 81 individuals who were referred to Hacettepe University for prenatal diagnosis of DMD between January 2000 and December 2015. Prenatal diagnostic methods (chorionic villus sampling (CVS): 66, amniocentesis (AC): 23) were compared for test results, demographic features, and obstetric outcomes of pregnancies. The female fetuses were divided into two groups according to the DMD status (healthy or carrier) to understand the effect of DMD gene mutations on obstetric outcomes. RESULTS: Eight prenatally diagnosed disease-positive fetuses were terminated. There was no statistically significant difference between the CVS and AC groups in terms of study variables. There were 46 male fetuses (51.6%) and 43 female fetuses (48.4%). Fifteen of the female fetuses were carriers (34.8%). Median birthweight values were statistically insignificantly lower in the carrier group. CONCLUSION: Pregnancies at risk for DMD should be prenatally tested to prevent the effect of disease on families and DMD carrier fetuses had obstetric outcomes similar to DMD negative female fetuses.