Effects of adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells and/or sildenafil citrate in experimental colon anastomosis model.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to evaluate the healing effects of adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (AT-MSC) and sildenafil citrate alone or in combination of colon anastomosis experimental model. METHODS: A total of 40 female Wistar rats were randomly distributed to four groups: Control (without any intervention post-anas-tomosis), stem cell (AT-MSC injection on the anastomosis site), SIL (oral gavage of 10 mg/kg sildenafil citrate), and stem cell + SIL (AT-MSC injection and oral administration of sildenafil citrate) groups. Rats were euthanized 5 days post-anastomosis. Intra-abdominal adhesion status and anastomotic burst pressure were measured to assess anastomotic healing. Hydroxyproline and TNF-α level, neu-trophil leukocyte infiltration, epithelial regeneration, and necrosis in the anastomosis tissue were examined. RESULTS: Anastomosis leakage and anastomosis burst pressure were not different among the groups. Treatment with sildenafil, stem cell, and stem cell + SIL reduced the degree of perianastomotic adhesions compared to control (p<0.05). A significant increase was noted in hydroxyproline in the stem cell and stem cell + SIL groups (p=0.001). AT-MSC injection alone or in combination with sildenafil citrate reduced the TNF-α concentration at the anastomosis site (p=0.001). Histopathological examination revealed that all treatments enhanced the clearance of the necrotic debris, reduced leukocytes infiltration, and accelerated the retraction of anastomo-sed ends except control (p=0.001). Epithelial regeneration was more pronounced in the stem cell group than other groups (p=0.001). Macrophage density was lower in groups treated with the SIL or stem cell groups than the control and stem cell + SIL groups (p=0.001). CONCLUSION: Sildenafil citrate and/or AT-MSC in the anastomosed rats promoted the anastomosis healing that was more pro-nounced in groups receiving stem cell injections.

Predicting critical duration and reversibility of damage in acute mesenteric ischemia: An experimental study.

BACKGROUND: The objective of the current study was to investigate the value of the ischemic biomarkers endothelial cell-specific molecule-1 (endocan) and signal peptide-CUB-EGF domain-containing protein-1 (SCUBE-1) in the diagnosis and assessment of earlystage and irreversible damage in acute mesenteric ischemia. METHODS: An experimental mesenteric ischemia reperfusion model was designed using 54 rats. Nine groups were created: Three sham groups [Groups I (30th minute), IV (2nd hour), and VII (6th hour)], in which only blood and tissue specimens were sampled; 3 ischemia groups [Groups II (30th minute), V (2nd hour), and VIII (6th hour)], in which blood and tissue specimens were sampled after ligation of the superior mesenteric artery (SMA); and 3 reperfusion groups [Groups III (30th minute), VI (2nd hour), and IX (6th hour)], in which blood and tissue specimens were sampled after declamping the SMA and reperfusion for 1 hour. SCUBE-1 and endocan samples obtained from blood and tissue were examined histopathologically. RESULTS: The SCUBE-1 level was higher in the ischemia groups when compared with the sham groups (p<0.05), and the endocan level was markedly different in the late ischemia (6th hour) group. When these 2 markers were used together to assess irreversible mesenteric damage in the histopathological examination, the sensitivity in distinguishing between reversible or irreversible damage was 94.1% with a specificity of 73.7%. CONCLUSION: The elevation of SCUBE-1 alone seems to be significant for predicting early mesenteric ischemia in laboratory rats. The combination of SCUBE-1 and endocan may be useful to detect irreversible intestinal damage.

Cognition of breast cancer among gestational age Turkish women: a cross-sectional study.

The aim of the study is to describe the cognition of breast cancer with respect to knowledge, beliefs, attitudes and behavior in a group of gestational age Turkish women. A questionnaire survey was therefore performed on 201 randomly selected women registered to the health database in Aydin. In age, marital status, and occupation were found to significantly impact on breast self-examination (BSE) performance, which should still be considered as an important tool for early diagnosis, although it does not substitute clinical examination and education. As delayed diagnosis is the leading problem in the management of disease, well-structured education should be supported to increase awareness of breast cancer. Given to the remarkable role of nurses in the community on women's health, a more focused approach on education of young female populations by nurses in Turkey should be considered.

C-reactive protein may be a marker of bacterial translocation in experimental intestinal obstruction.

BACKGROUND: C-reactive protein (CRP) is used as a marker of intestinal ischaemia. This study evaluated whether CRP levels can be used to detect ischaemia-induced (strangulated) intestinal obstruction and subsequent bacterial translocation. METHODS: Forty-eight rats, divided into four groups underwent the following procedures: anaesthesia alone (native controls), laparotomy (sham-operated controls), or surgical induction of simple or strangulated intestinal obstruction (simple and strangulated obstruction groups, respectively). Blood samples were collected for culture and serum CRP analysis. In addition, liver and mesenteric lymph node (MLN) specimens were collected for culture, to determine the presence of bacterial translocation; and ileal segments, for histopathological investigation. RESULTS: CRP levels and rates of bacterial translocation, expressed as colony forming units (cfu) per gram wet tissue, were higher in both intestinal obstruction groups than in the native and sham-operated control groups (P < 0.001 for both). The increases in CRP levels paralleled increases in the number of cfu in the MLN and liver cultures (P < 0.01). Compared to controls, animals in the obstruction groups also had a higher incidence of positive blood cultures (P < 0.005) and greater histopathologic evidence of inflammatory infiltration of the lamina propria (P < 0.01). However, no significant difference between the simple and strangulated obstruction groups was observed. CONCLUSION: CRP levels increase with the severity of bacterial translocation in acute intestinal obstruction but do not permit discrimination between simple and strangulated intestinal obstruction.

Nitric oxide regulates bacterial translocation in experimental acute edematous pancreatitis.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The role of nitric oxide (NO) in bacterial translocation (BT) associated with acute pancreatitis is controversial. We investigated the effects of the NO synthase substrate, L-arginine, and the NO synthase inhibitor, N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME), on BT in caerulein-induced acute pancreatitis in rats. METHODS: Acute pancreatitis was induced by subcutaneous injections of caerulein (12 microg/kg) at 6-hour intervals for 2 days. Subcutaneous injections of L-arginine (100 mg/kg) or L-NAME (10 mg/kg) were administeredonce daily for 2 days. At 48 h, pancreatic injury and BT to the mesenteric lymph nodes (MLN), liver, and peritoneum were assessed. RESULTS: Compared with controls, rats that received caerulein injections alone had increased BT to the MLN and pancreatic inflammatory changes. L-Arginine significantly reduced the inflammation and BT caused by caerulein. L-NAME did not significantly alter pancreatic inflammation. Although caerulein + L-NAME-treated rats had increased BT to the peritoneum, MLN, and liver compared with controls, rates of BT did not significantly differ between caerulein alone- and caerulein + L-NAME-treated rats. CONCLUSION: In acute edematous pancreatitis, BT is increased and is regulated by NO. NO substrates limit BT and pancreatic inflammation associated with acute pancreatitis, probably by their bactericidal actions and ability to improve pancreatic blood flow.

Effects of laparoscopic models on anaerobic bacterial growth with bacteroides fragilis in experimentally induced peritonitis.

BACKGROUND: Previous reports of recurrent intra-abdominal abcess formation after the laparoscopic treatment of perforated acute appendicitis led us to investigate the possible effects of gas insufflation on the spread of infection. We previously showed that Escherichia coli counts were significantly higher in a laparoscopy group that underwent carbon dioxide (CO2) insufflation than in control and laparotomy groups. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of intra-abdominal CO2 and nitrous oxide (N2O) insufflation on anaerobic bacterial growth in a rat model. METHODS: A standard strain of Bacteroides fragilis (ATCC 25285) was injected intraperitoneally (1 x 10(6) cfu/mL per kilogram) in 40 Wistar rats under sterile conditions. Forty rats with induced peritonitis were randomly divided into five groups: control, laparotomy, CO2 insufflation, N2O insufflation, and one group without pneumoperitoneum. Eight hours after the intraperitoneal injection of B. fragilis, peritoneal aspirates were obtained and inoculated onto Brucella agar. At the sixteenth hour of induced peritoneal infection (corresponding to hour 8 in the laparoscopy groups) all animals underwent laparotomy; peritoneal aspirates were obtained and inoculated into Brucella agar for bacterial counts. The colonies of B. fragilis were counted manually, and the results were expressed as the mean number of colony-forming units per milliliter. RESULTS: No significant differences in microorganism counts were noted between the study groups before the procedure (p>.05 for all comparisons). We observed a significant increase in the number of bacteria (mean +/- SD) in the CO2 insufflation group between hour 8 and hour 16 of peritoneal contamination. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that CO2 insufflation may promote the growth of intra-abdominal anaerobic bacteria. Such bacterial growth may lead to intra-abdominal abcess formation or cause localized peritonitis to develop into generalized peritonitis. We suggest that laparoscopy without pneumoperitoneum may be preferred in patients with peritonitis.

Strangulated ventral hernia model in rats.

This study was performed to describe a new model of strangulation obstruction mimicking the situations relevant to abdominal hernias. The strangulation obstruction was induced either by intra-abdominal ligation of an ileal segment 2 cm in length (n = 20) or by a pursestring suture around a fascial defect with a strangulated intestinal loop placed subcutaneously (n = 20). Ten animals served as sham operated controls (n = 10). All animals were euthanized at 12 h postoperatively; strangulated ileum segments were collected for histopathological examination. Microscopic injury scores were similar in both strangulation groups, which were significantly different from the control group (p <.001). The model described here seems to be appropriate for use in further experimental studies concerning strangulation obstruction injury and its consequences, with the added advantage of visualization of the strangulated intestinal loop beneath the skin.

A patient with liver trauma and incomplete behcet s disease.

Behcet' s Disease (BD ) is a complex multisystemic disease, which is characterized by recurrent oral and genital aphteous ulcers and iritis in which vasculitis can also be one of the possible clinical manifestations. A thirty seven year-old female patient with incomplete BD was admitted to emergency service, with intra-abdominal hemorrhage more severe than that would be expected, with the degree of related trauma. We decided to manage the patient conservatively, observing vital signs, haemogram, computed tomography (CT) and angiography instead. Subcapsular hematomas were detected in the right and left lobes of the liver. No data was encountered in the literature and textbooks referring to liver trauma with BD, except a case of fatal hemobilia. H ere in we present a liver trauma case with hemorrhage and hepatic fragility due to vasculitis in Behcet' s disease and review the literature. Key words: liver trauma, incomplete Behcet' s disease