Effectiveness of home exercise in pregnant women with carpal tunnel syndrome: Randomized Control Trial.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of a home exercise programme in pregnant patients with carpal tunnel syndrome. METHODS: The randomised, single-blind, controlled clinical study was conducted at Vakif University School of Medicine, Istanbul, Turkey, From December 2017 to June 2018 and comprised pregnant women with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) . Clinical evaluation of each patient was performed by a blind researcher and (EMG) Electromyography measurements were performed by another blind researcher. Patients were divided into two groups with normal and (mild or moderate) CTS based on EMG results and clinical examination. Patients with symptoms, clinical signs and CTS in EMG were included in group 1, while patients whose symptoms and clinical evaluation (such as Tinel, Phalen, Reverse Phalen and Durkan's test) were positive but not CTS in EMG were included in group 2. Exercise forms were given to both groups and they were asked to perform the exercises stated in the form in 3 sets each day and 10 repetitions in each set. The Sick Boston Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Questionnaire was administered face-to-face to collect data which was analysed using SPSS 22. RESULTS: Of the 33 subjects, 19(57.6%) were in patient group 1 and 14(42.4%) in control group 2. The overall mean age of the sample was 28.84±3.62 years. There were no significant differences between the groups in terms of symptoms and clinical tests (p>0.05). The symptom severity scale between the groups was significantly high in group 1 (p<0.05). Patients receiving treatment showed a decrease in symptom severity and functional capacity, but only the former showed a significant decrease in group 2 (p>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Nerve and tendon slip exercises for patients with mild to moderate carpal tunnel syndrome symptoms were found to be simple and reliable methods that could be applied to patients to increase their functionality and to reduce the severity of the disease.

Coexistence of Peripheral Spondyloarthritis and Familial Adenomatous Polyposis: A Rare Case Report with Treatment Contradictions and Review of the Literature.

BACKGROUND: The coexistence of familial adenomatous polyposis and spondyloarthritis is rarely defined in literature. The primary aim of this presentation is to report a development of peripheral arthritis in 3 years following colon surgery with the diagnosis of familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP). The secondary aim is to discuss the challenge of in treatment of refractory arthritis, which needs to be treated with biologics. However, it is not yet known well about their safety on patients who have risks for cancer development. CASE DETAILS: A 25-year-old female patient was admitted to the rheumotology outpatient clinic. The patient had undergone total colectomy and ileoanal anastomosis because of FAP three years ago. On her physical examination, there was arthritis on her left ankle and enthesitis on both Achilles tendons. CONCLUSION: This case report presents a 25-year-old female patient with Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and FAP whose treatment with biologics is critical due to the risk of cancer development due FAP. Although the potential risk of development of malignancies with TNF-blocking therapy seems to be no more than TNF-naïve patients and general population. But the safety of these drugs on patients with risks for cancer development is still unknown.

Bone mineral density evaluation of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

[Purpose] Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder resulting from a defect in insulin secretion, insulin action, or both. A consequence of this is chronic hyperglycemia with disturbances in carbohydrate, fat and protein metabolism. We investigated whether there is any difference among DM patients and a control group in terms of lumbar and femur BMD (bone mineral density), and standard deviation scores (Z score and T score). [Subjects and Methods] This randomized, prospective, controlled, single-blind study was conducted in the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Department Faculty of Medicine, Bezm-i Alem Vakif University. Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus were included in the patient groups. Healthy individuals were included in the control group. [Results] A total of 126 patients completed the study (63 in the study group, 63 in the control group). There was no significant difference in the results of the laboratory examinations of the cases. The bone mineral densities of the cases were found to be significantly low in terms of the lumbar (L1-4) T scores in the type 2 diabetes group. [Conclusion] Although osteoporosis is one of the potential complications of type 1 diabetes, its effect on bone mineral density in type 2 DM is controversial. In different studies, the bone mineral density values have increased, decreased or remained normal. With the exception of the lumbar (L1-4) T score, similar results were obtained in this study.