The Burden of Premature Mortality in Turkey in 2001 and 2008.

BACKGROUND: Standard expected years of life lost (SEYLL) is a measure that is used to evaluate losses due to premature deaths. AIMS: The present study provides an analysis of premature mortality in Turkey for the years 2001 and 2008 and supplies evidence for making policies and setting health agendas over the long term. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. METHODS: This study calculated SEYLL by gender, age group and causes of death in Turkey in 2014. The SEYLL measure counts the years lost in a population as a result of premature mortality and is computed by multiplying the number of deaths and standard life expectancy at the age at which death occurs. RESULTS: The burden of premature mortality in Turkey was calculated as 4 104 253 SEYLL and 4 472 443 SEYLL in 2001 and 2008, respectively. Among these 42.7% and 43.9% of SEYLL were in females in 2001 and 2008, respectively. The leading five causes of premature mortality in the Turkish population in 2001 were cardiovascular system diseases (34.72%), perinatal conditions (12.69%), neoplasms (12.51%), external causes of injury (7.66%), and infections and parasitic diseases (6.57%). In 2008, the major causes were cardiovascular diseases (41.17%), neoplasms (14.63%), respiratory system diseases (9.81%), perinatal conditions (5.59%), and external causes of injury (5.29%). CONCLUSION: The majority of the burden of premature mortality in Turkey is attributable to non-communicable diseases. While premature deaths from infections and parasitic diseases, perinatal conditions and congenital anomalies decreased between 2001 and 2008, deaths from cardiovascular diseases, neoplasms and respiratory system diseases increased dramatically. Coordinated efforts for effective national prevention programs (such as regular monitoring of adults for early diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases and for malignancies by family physicians) should be developed by policy makers to decrease preventable and premature deaths from non-communicable diseases.

Do we really need to coat the novel silicone intranasal splints with antibiotics?

PURPOSE: The novel silicone intranasal splints are suggested to resist biofilm formation due to their surface characteristics. We aimed to ascertain the necessity of coating these splints with antibiotics to prevent splint associated infections, in vitro. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Pieces of Doyle II airway nasal splints made of medical grade silicone were divided into two test groups, treated with either (i) 0.2% nitrofurazone solution or (ii) 0.2% nitrofurazone containing ointment, and a control group, treated with (iii) 0.9% saline. Splint pieces were then incubated with Staphylococcus aureus solutions at 37°C for 48 and 96h. Following this, the splint pieces were incubated in 20ml Mueller Hinton agar and appearing colonies were counted. RESULTS: Following 48and 96h of incubation, the colonization rates in the saline group were significantly higher than the nitrofurazone ointment group (p<0.001). The colonization rates in the liquid nitrofurazone group were significantly lower in comparison to the nitrofurazone ointment group (p<0.001 and p=0.019 respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The method of coating the splints with antibiotic was superior to using uncoated splints in terms of preventing S. aureus colonization. The rather smooth surfaces of the splints were insufficient to block bacterial colonization and coating them with antibiotics seems to be beneficial for the prevention of infections.

Youth Sexual Health: Sexual Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behavior Among Students at a University in Turkey.

INTRODUCTION: To determine sexual attitudes, behavior, and knowledge of Namik Kemal University (NKU) students about sexual health and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). METHOD: A sample representing 10% of the undergraduate population of NKU in 2009-2010, was studied. Of 1,500 questionnaires distributed, 1,314 (87.6%) were filled out. RESULTS: The mean age of the respondents (52.9% male) was 20.07±1.75 years. The rate of students who had received sexual health education was 32.0%, and 15.3% had previously used a sexual health service. Eleven percent of the female students and 50.3% of the male students had had sexual intercourse. The average age of initial sexual intercourse was 16.83±2.07 years. Of the students who had had sexual intercourse, 46.6% reported that they did not use any contraception method. The most preferred method was condoms (37.6%). The rate of contraceptive use was 58.7% in sexually educated students and 43.9% in those not educated (p=.004). The most well-known STI was AIDS (96.5%), with sexually educated students giving higher rates of correct answers about STIs (p<.05). CONCLUSION: The students who had received sexual health education were more knowledgeable about vital consequences of STI's, even though it is not sufficient, than sexually active students. Awareness of safe sexual practices and changes in behavior, in particular, promoting condom use should be established in higher risk youths. Deficiencies in knowledge could be addressed by adding a sexual healthtraining component to the university curriculum, and unmet requirements could be met by reorganizing medico-social centers in universities.

Childhood asthma and vitamin D deficiency in Turkey: is there cause and effect relationship between them?

BACKGROUND: Epidemiological studies show that vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency are common worldwide and associated with many diseases including asthma. Our aim was to evaluate vitamin D insufficiency and its clinical consequences. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was carried out on 170 children consisted of 85 who were asthmatic and 85 who were not, aged 2 to 14 years in Tekirdag, Turkey, from September 2009 to May 2010. Children's basal serum D vitamin levels were determined, and their eating habits, vitamin D intake, exposure to sunlight and use of health services during the previous year were investigated. The severity of asthma and levels of asthma control were assessed according to the Global Initiative for Asthma guidelines. RESULTS: The difference between mean vitamin D levels in the asthmatic group (mean +/- SD) 16.6 +/- 8.5 ng/mL and the healthy control group (mean +/- SD) 28.2 +/- 19.5 ng/mL was found to be statistically significant (p < 0.001). Children in the asthma group had less exposure to sunlight and ate a diet less rich in vitamin D (p < 0.001). A significant difference was observed between the groups regarding the frequency of respiratory tract infections leading to emergency unit admissions and number of hospitalizations (p < 0.001). It was also shown that a decrease in vitamin D level increased the severity of asthma (p < 0.001) and decreased the frequency of controlled asthma (p = 0.010). CONCLUSION: This study has demonstrated the correlation between plasma 25 (OH) D levels and childhood asthma. Evidently, this relationship being influenced by multiple factors other than vitamin D, further studies should be conducted to explore the interrelation between all such factors.

The effects of educational level on breast cancer awareness: a cross-sectional study in Turkey.

Breast self-examination (BSE) is important for early diagnosis of breast cancer (BC). However, the majority of Turkish women do not perform regular BSE. We aimed to evaluate the effects of education level on the attitudes and behaviors of women towards BSE. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 413 women (20-59 years), divided into university graduates (Group I, n = 224) and high school or lower graduates (Group II, n = 189). They completed a 22-item scale assessing the knowledge level, attitudes and behaviors regarding BSE, and the Turkish version of the Champion's Revised Health Belief Model. A significantly higher number of women in Group II did not believe in early diagnosis of BC. A significantly higher number of Group I had conducted BSE at least once, and their BSE frequency was also significantly high. Moreover, a significantly lower number of Group I women considered themselves to not be at risk for BC and the scores for "perceived susceptibility" and "perceived barriers" were significantly higher. Logistic regression analysis identified the university graduate group to have a higher likelihood of performing BSE, by 1.8 times. Higher educational levels were positively associated with BSE performance. Overall, the results suggest that Turkish women, regardless of their education level, need better education on BSE. Consideration of the education level in women will help clinicians develop more effective educational programs, resulting in more regular practice and better use of BSE.