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Background Determinants of maternal-fetal cytomegalovirus (CMV) transmission and factors influencing the severity of congenital CMV (cCMV) infection are not well understood. Methods We conducted a descriptive, multicenter study in pregnant women ≥18 years old with primary CMV infection and their newborns to explore maternal immune responses to CMV and determine potential immunologic/virologic correlates of cCMV following primary infection during pregnancy. We developed alternative approaches looking into univariate/multivariate factors associated with cCMV, including a participant clustering/stratification approach and an interpretable predictive model–based approach using trained decision trees for risk prediction (post hoc analyses). Results Pregnant women were grouped in 3 distinct clusters with similar baseline characteristics, particularly gestational age at diagnosis. We observed a trend for higher viral loads in urine and saliva samples from mothers of infants with cCMV versus without cCMV. When using a trained predictive-model approach that accounts for interaction effects between variables, anti-pentamer immunoglobulin G antibody concentration and viral load in saliva were identified as biomarkers jointly associated with the risk of maternal-fetal CMV transmission. Conclusions We identified biomarkers of CMV maternal-fetal transmission. After validation in larger studies, our findings will guide the management of primary infection during pregnancy and the development of vaccines against cCMV. Clinical Trials Registration NCT01251744. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DNA repair processes modulate genotoxicity, mutagenesis, and adaption. Nucleotide excision repair removes bulky DNA damage, and in Escherichia coli, basal excision repair, carried out by UvrA, B, C, and D, with DNA PolI and DNA ligase, occurs genome-wide. In transcription-coupled repair (TCR), the Mfd protein targets template strand (TS) lesions that block RNA polymerase for accelerated repair by the basal repair enzymes. Accelerated repair is also seen with particular adducts. Notably, of the two major UV photoproducts, basal repair of (6-4) photoproducts [(6-4) PPs] is about 10× faster than repair of cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers (CPDs). To better understand repair prioritization in E. coli, we used XR-seq to measure TCR of UV photoproducts genome-wide. With CPDs, we found that TCR occurred at early time points, increased with transcription level, and was Mfd dependent; later, with completion of TS repair, nontranscribed strand (NTS) repair predominated. With (6-4) PP, when analyzing all genes, TCR was not observed; in fact, among the most highly transcribed genes, slightly more repair of (6-4) PPs in the NTS was evident. Thus, the very rapid basal repair of (6-4) PP in the NTS was faster than TCR of (6-4) PPs in the TS. Overall, TCR is of limited importance in (6-4) PP repair, and TCR of CPDs is limited to the TS of more highly transcribed genes. These results are consistent with the significant role of Mfd in mutagenesis and the modest effect of mfd deletion on UV survival and bear upon the response of E. coli to bulky DNA damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Aim Methods Findings Discussion Conclusions Implications for nursing policy Missed care has negative consequences for patients, directly affecting the quality of nursing care and patient safety.This study investigated the effect of missed care on the nursing image perceived by patients and their trust relationships with nurses.This descriptive and correlational study was conducted in all inpatient wards of a hospital in southern Türkiye. The sample consisted of 200 patients. Data were collected using a patient information form, the MISSCARE Survey‐Patient, the Nursing Image Scale (NIS), and the Trust in Nurses Scale (TNS). The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (for Windows 25.0). The study adhered to the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) guidelines.Participants had a mean MISSCARE Survey‐Patient, TNS, and NIS score of 2.09 ± 0.53, 23.48 ± 5.01, and 71.52 ± 6.75, respectively. There was a moderate negative correlation between MISSCARE Survey‐Patient and TNS scores. There was a weak negative correlation between MISSCARE Survey‐Patient and NIS scores. Moreover, there was a strong positive correlation between NIS and TNS scores.MISSCARE Survey‐Patient total scores vary due to the imbalance in the number of nurses and the complexity of their tasks. Poor quality of care and incomplete care undermine the image of nursing and negatively affect the trust relationship between patients and nurses.Nursing image and trust in nurses decreases as patient–nurse communication and basic care interventions are skipped.Inadequate care can have a detrimental effect on the nursing image and erode patient–nurse trust relationships. Therefore, there is a pressing need for ongoing review and enhancement of nursing education, policy, and practice to elevate the quality of care provided. Further research utilizing objective staff measures and outcome assessments, along with gathering primary data directly from patients, is essential to substantiate the assertion that missed care significantly influences patient outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The study aims to investigate the outcomes of patients who underwent myomectomy during cesarean section in our tertiary center. Material and method: This study was conducted between January 1, 2015 and May 31, 2022. The patients included in the study were divided into three groups: patients with myoma uteri and pregnancy who underwent cesarean section and simultaneous myomectomy (Group 1), patients with myoma uteri and pregnancy who underwent cesarean section only (Group 2), and pregnant patients without myoma who underwent cesarean section only (Group 3). The groups were compared in terms of preoperative and postoperative results. Results: A total of 138 patients, 56 40.6% (Group 1), 31 22.5% (Group 2), 51 37% (Group 3) were included in the study. When compared according to demographic characteristics, Group 1 and Group 2 had significantly higher age and significantly lower gravida and parity (p: <0.001, p: 0.048, p: 0.005, respectively). There was no significant difference between Group 1 and Group 2 in terms of myoma size and number (p: 0.162, p: 0.228, respectively). Operative time, laboratory results, and blood transfusion requirements were similar between the groups. Conclusion: Performing a myomectomy during a cesarean section, considering the potential risks based on our data, is a feasible procedure when carried out by experienced surgeons at tertiary hospitals. Precautions should also be taken regarding complications. We believe that the decision to include or exclude a myomectomy during a cesarean section should be discussed with the patient, considering the risk-benefit ratio and the factors mentioned above, and should be made on a case-by-case basis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is aimed to see how gender and whether tooth is placed on the right or left affected the length of the operation, edema, trismus, and discomfort after surgical extraction of an impacted mandibular third molar. This prospective study was conducted in the Inonu University. The study included 104 mandibular wisdom tooth with bone retention. There were 55 females and 49 males among the 104 patients, with 53 left and 51 right impacted mandibular third molar. The operations were performed by the same surgeon in the same operating room. The time between the incision and the suture was determined and recorded as the operation time for each procedure. Before surgery, on the 2nd postoperative day, and on the 7th postoperative day, the patients were compared in terms of facial swelling impacted mandibular third molar, discomfort, and trismus. IBM SPSS V23 was used to evaluate the data. The left impacted mandibular third molar extraction takes longer than the right impacted mandibular third molar extraction. Tooth 38, which have a longer operation time, are more prone to swelling, discomfort, and trismus. When tooths are extracted, right-handed surgeons cause less postoperative morbidity 48. We recommend that both right-handed, left-handed surgeons operate in clinics that conduct impacted tooth extractions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Our research aims to shed light on the connection between histopathological differences that affect the prognosis of endometrial cancer and Doppler indices measured in the uterine arteries. Methods: Seventy‐four women with a confirmed diagnosis of endometrial cancer participated in this prospective study. The flow characteristics of the bilateral uterine arteries were evaluated and recorded using color Doppler sonography. After hysterectomy, a correlation analysis was performed between these factors and histological findings. Results: Patients who complained of menometrorrhagia had significantly higher uterine artery peak systolic flow (p = 0.020) than those who had postmenopausal vaginal bleeding. Endometrioid adenocarcinoma was the most common type (71.4%). Doppler pulsatility index and resistance index in the uterine arteries didn't show statistically significant differences between histologic subtypes, tumor grade, myometrial invasion, lymphovascular invasion, lymph node involvement, malignant peritoneal cytology, genetic mutation, or extrauterine involvement. Those without cervical involvement had higher uterine artery Doppler peak systolic flow/end diastolic flow (p = 0.024). Conclusions: Endometrial cancer made uterine artery, myometrium and endometrium less resistant to blood flow. However, these blood flow indices have not been standardized enough to be utilized as diagnostic tests just yet. Standardization based on more advanced studies would make it possible to use ultrasonography for non‐invasive diagnosis and would accelerate and facilitate clinical management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The root cause of type 2 diabetes (T2D) is insulin resistance (IR), defined by the failure of cells to respond to circulating insulin to maintain lipid and glucose homeostasis. While the causes of whole-body insulin resistance are multifactorial, a major contributing factor is dysregulation of liver and adipose tissue function. Adipose dysfunction, particularly adipose tissue-IR (adipo-IR), plays a crucial role in the development of hepatic insulin resistance and the progression of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) in the context of T2D. In this review, we will focus on molecular mechanisms of hepatic insulin resistance and its association with adipose tissue function. A deeper understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms of the transition from a healthy state to insulin resistance, impaired glucose tolerance, and T2D may enable us to prevent and intervene in the progression to T2D. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The Family Caregiver Medication Administration Hassles Scale (FCMAHS) was developed to evaluate the hassles and concerns experienced by family caregivers in medication administration. Objective This study aimed to evaluate the reliability and validity of the Turkish version of the Family Caregiver Medication Administration Hassles Scale (FCMAHS-TR). Methods The FCMAHS-TR was developed after translation, cultural adaptation, and a pilot study. The cross-sectional study was conducted among family caregivers (≥18 years) in community pharmacies. Test–retest reliability analysis, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were performed. Hypothesis testing was used for the assessment of construct validity. Results The majority (68.7%) of the family caregivers were female (n = 470). In the test–retest reliability analysis (n = 30), the ICC value was 0.917 (P < 0.001). In EFA analysis (n = 251), the Kaiser‒Meyer‒Olkin (KMO) measure was 0.799, 62.6% of the total variance was explained by five factors including eighteen items, and Cronbach's alpha was 0.836. According to CFA (n = 219), the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) was 0.0654, and the comparative fit index (CFI) was 0.918. In construct validity, family caregivers with low reading ability of health-related materials and with high care burden had significantly higher median scores for all the factors of the FCMAHS-TR (P < 0.05 for all). Conclusions The FCMAHS-TR can be used to evaluate the hassle and concerns experienced by family caregivers in medication administration. This scale can be used by healthcare professionals to identify family caregivers who need individualized interventions for medication administration hassles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of osteoporosis (OP) on the outcomes of facet medial branch radiofrequency thermocoagulation (RFT). Materials and Methods: Thirty-six patients with chronic lower back pain due to lumbar facet joint syndrome (LFJS) who underwent facet medial branch RFT were retrospectively reviewed. The patients were divided into two groups: Group I (without OP, n=19) and group II (with OP, n=16). Pre-intervention and post-intervention evaluations of the patients were assessed at 1, 6, and 12th months by visual analog scale (VAS). Results: In both groups, VAS scores 1st, 6th, and 12th months after intervention were lower than those at baseline (p=0.001). There were no significant difference between the groups in terms of VAS score improvement. Conclusion: Lumbar facet medial branch RFT is an effective and safe treatment method in both the short and long-term in patients with LFJS. OP therapy had no effect on RFT treatment results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background television has been found to negatively impact children's language development and self‐regulatory skills, possibly due to decreased parent‐child interactions. Most of the research on the relationship between background TV and caregiver‐child interactions has been conducted in laboratory settings. In the current study, we conducted home observations and investigated whether infants engage in fewer interactions with family members in homes where background TV is more prevalent. We observed 32 infants at the ages of 8, 10, and 18 months in their home environments, coding for dyadic interactions (e.g., parent talking to and/or engaging with the child), triadic interactions (e.g., parent and infant play with a toy together), and infants' individual activities. Our findings revealed that background TV was negatively associated with the time infants spent in triadic interactions, positively associated with time spent engaging in individual activities, and not significantly related to the time spent in dyadic interactions. Apart from the relationship between background TV and individual activity time at 8 months, these associations remained significant even after accounting for families' socioeconomic status. These findings imply a correlation between background TV exposure and caregiver‐infant‐object interactions, warranting a longitudinal analysis with larger sample sizes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Urinary incontinence (UI) is the involuntary loss of urine or the inability to control urination. The International Continence Society defines UI as any complaint of involuntary loss of urine. UI is a very important health problem that affects women’s quality of life. It can lead to a decrease in women’s self-confidence and prevent them from participating in social activities. This study was conducted to investigate the prevalence of UI in women living in Turkey, the factors affecting it, and women’s attitudes toward UI. Methods: This descriptive and cross-sectional study included 903 women who applied to 17 family health centers in Mersin, Turkey, between May 10th to June 10th 2019 for any reason. The data of the study were obtained using the descriptive information form and the Urinary Incontinence Attitude Scale (UIAS). Data analysis was performed with SPSS-21 using percentiles, mean±standard deviation, and Pearson chi-square tests. Results: According to the results obtained, 28.9% of the women had UI problems, more than half (54.6%) of the women with UI did not present to a health institution for this problem, and 54.8% did not receive any treatment. In addition, the frequency of experiencing UI was higher in those with a chronic disease (59.2%) than in those without any chronic disease, and the difference was significant. Conclusion: The demographic and fertility characteristics of the women influenced the frequency of experiencing UI. In addition, among the women participating in the study, those with negative attitudes toward UI experienced more UI problems. There should be greater efforts to raise awareness among women on this subject. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investing in a machinery park is a crucial decision process for businesses, as it requires significant resources and subsequently affects all production activities. Proper utilization of machinery improves production processes, increases efficiency and reliability, and enables flexibility and effectiveness in manufacturing. This process, which requires experience and knowledge, encompasses multiple criteria and involves various departments. This research aims to solve the printing machine selection problem using fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making methods, for an investment in a newspaper printing facility. Fuzzy AHP is employed to determine the importance weights of criteria, while fuzzy EDAS is used to evaluate alternatives based on criteria. The criteria considered in the study, based on expert opinions and literature review, are as follows: cost, efficiency, and flexibility. Four different printing machines that are deemed suitable for the process and feasible for purchase are selected as machine alternatives. The decision-making group consists of the printing manager, business development manager, technical manager, and electrical and mechanical maintenance engineers. Sensitivity analysis results conducted to assess the impact of linguistic expression variations on the analysis outcomes demonstrate a high level of validity in the research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background television has been found to negatively impact children's language development and self‐regulatory skills, possibly due to decreased parent‐child interactions. Most of the research on the relationship between background TV and caregiver‐child interactions has been conducted in laboratory settings. In the current study, we conducted home observations and investigated whether infants engage in fewer interactions with family members in homes where background TV is more prevalent. We observed 32 infants at the ages of 8, 10, and 18 months in their home environments, coding for dyadic interactions (e.g., parent talking to and/or engaging with the child), triadic interactions (e.g., parent and infant play with a toy together), and infants' individual activities. Our findings revealed that background TV was negatively associated with the time infants spent in triadic interactions, positively associated with time spent engaging in individual activities, and not significantly related to the time spent in dyadic interactions. Apart from the relationship between background TV and individual activity time at 8 months, these associations remained significant even after accounting for families' socioeconomic status. These findings imply a correlation between background TV exposure and caregiver‐infant‐object interactions, warranting a longitudinal analysis with larger sample sizes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cross-linked polyethylenes (XLPE) are not preferred in industrial pyrolysis applications and mechanical recovery methods due to great thermochemical resistance to heat and deformation. The studies on pyrolysis of XLPE up to 600 °C on obtaining fuel have generally yielded high levels of wax and have not been of interest to the energy sector. In this study, two-stage pyrolysis of XLPE was carried out catalytically and also without catalyst (thermal, T--pyr) under 500 °C with heating rates of 5 and 10 °C min-1. In the pyrolysis experiments, three different catalytic studies were performed by adding MCM--41 + HZSM-5 catalyst mixture to the polymer phase only (PPC-pyr), by filling Cu(I)-MAS + HZSM-5 catalyst mixture to the gas outlet column only (GPC--Pyr) and adding catalyst mixtures in both polymer phase and gas phase (MPC--pyr). The highest diesel-like fuel (91.40 wt. %) was obtained in multiphase catalytic pyrolysis experiments at 460 °C with a heating rate of 5 °C min-1. The calorific value, kinematic viscosity, density, flash point and cetane number of the fuel were found as 45.97 MJ kg-1, 2.72 cSt, 832.5 kg m-3, 57 and 59 °C, respectively. The results of the two-stage catalytic cracking and the heating rate profile will be a guide for industrial pyrolysis applications. The simple feasibility for industrial applications showed that it would be a very profitable investment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study investigates the role of teacher behaviors in toddlers' executive function development. Teachers' (N = 215) emotional and behavioral support and instructional support were observed through classroom observations when children were 2 years old. Selective attention, verbal short‐term memory, and visuospatial working memory of children (N = 876, 48.4% female) were assessed at age 2 (Mage = 28.60 months, SD = 2.83) and 3 (Mage = 42.38 months, SD = 2.47). Teachers' instructional support positively predicted growth in selective attention, but not verbal short‐term memory or visuospatial working memory. Teachers' emotional and behavioral support did not predict the growth in executive function measures. Findings have implications for understanding the role of teacher‐child interactions in executive function development in toddlerhood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Problematic Pornography Consumption Scale (PPCS) was developed to assess problematic pornography use (PPU). A Cronbach's alpha generalization meta-analysis was conducted to estimate the average Cronbach's alpha score of the PPCS.Seventeen Cronbach's alpha scores from 12 studies (N = 41974) yielded excellent Cronbach's alpha score estimates. The average Cronbach's alpha score of the PPCS was.91 indicating excelltent internal consistency (95% CI =.883,.931; p <.001). Clinicians and researchers can be more confident in knowing that the PPCS is a reliable scale for measuring problematic pornography use across different populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemical fertilizer use efficiencies should be increased to reduce fertilizer quantities and potential negative impacts of excessive uses on soil and environmental health. Therefore, alternative soil nutrient sources are searched for and biological alternatives offer promising outcomes in this sense. In this study, effects of single, dual and triple combinations of phosphorous-solubilizing (Bacillus megatherium var. phosphaticum [ M-13]) a nd N -fixing b acteria ( Stenotrophomonas maltophilia [82] and Ralstonia pickettii [73]) treatments on plant growth, yield and yield component of barley were investigated and potential effects were compared with chemical fertilizers (N (80 kg ha-1 N ), P (50 kg ha-1 P 205) and N+P (80 kg ha-1 + 50 kg ha-1 P205) and Control treatments. The longest grain filling period was obtained from Ralstonia pickettii, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia and Bacillus megatherium var. phosphaticum + Stenotrophomonas maltophilia bacteria treatments. The highest number of spikes per m², 1000-kernel weight, and test weight values were obtained from sole N treatments, the highest number of kernels per spike, protein content, grain yield, and biological yield from N+P treatments and the highest harvest index values from Ralstonia pickettii + Stenotrophomonas maltophilia treatments. In general, bacterial treatments resulted in significant changes in yield and yield parameters of barley and significant increases were achieved as compared to the Control. Keywords: P-solubilizing, N-fixing, bacteria inoculation [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Complex rigid foot deformities include three-plane deformities and usually presents with poor soft tissue coverage. In the last decades, gradual correction with computer-assisted fixator became an appropriate option for the treatment rigid foot deformities. This study aims to report our experience about treatment of complex foot deformities using Smart Correction fixator system®. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 13 complex rigid foot deformities of ten consecutive patients treated with Smart Correction fixator system® from 2016 to 2020. Primary outcomes were classified as good, fair, and poor according to previously determined criteria. The outcomes were also assessed with The Manchester-Oxford Foot Questionnaire (MOXFQ). Non-parametric analysis (Wilcoxon test) for continuous variables and the Fisher's exact test for categorical variables were used. Results: Plantigrade foot was achieved in all patients after correction program. Supramalleolar osteotomy was applied in nine feet, midfoot osteotomy was applied in two feet, hindfoot osteotomy was required in one foot, and only soft tissue distraction performed in two feet. Two patients had recurrent deformity managed by further acute corrections. The mean MOXFQ scores improved from 72.7 preoperatively to 24.8 at last follow-up. Conclusions: Present study shows that SCF the reliable option for the treatment of complex foot deformities, which also facilitates three-plane correction and concomitant lengthening with gradual soft tissue balance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infants' and parents' pointing gestures predict infants' concurrent and prospective language development. Most studies have measured vocabulary size using parental reports. However, parents tend to underestimate or overestimate infants' vocabulary necessitating the use of direct measures alongside parent reports. The present study examined whether mothers' index‐finger pointing, and infants' whole‐hand and index‐finger pointing at 14 months associate with infants' receptive and expressive vocabulary based on parental reports and directly measured lexical processing efficiency (LPE) concurrently at 14 months and prospectively at 18 months. We used the decorated room paradigm to measure pointing frequency, the Turkish communicative development inventory I to measure infants' receptive vocabulary, Turkish communicative development inventory II to measure their expressive vocabulary, and the Looking‐While‐Listening (LWL) task to measure LPE. At 14 months, 34 mother‐infant dyads, and at 18 months, 30 dyads were included in the analyses. We found that only infants' index‐finger pointing frequency at 14 months predicted their LPE (both reaction time and accuracy) prospectively at 18 months but not concurrently at 14 months. Neither maternal pointing nor infants' pointing predicted their receptive and expressive vocabulary based on indirect measurement. The results extend the evidence on the relation between index‐finger pointing and language development to a more direct measure of vocabulary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: After the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 pandemic, the role of Vitamin D has become even more critical for people worldwide. The most accurate way to define vitamin D level is 25-hydroxy vitamin D(25-OH-D) blood test. However, this blood test is not always feasible. Most data sets used in health science research usually contain highly correlated features, which is referred to as multicollinearity problem. This problem can lead to misleading results and overfitting problems in the ML training process. Therefore, the proposed study aims to determine a clinically acceptable ML model for the detection of the vitamin D status of the North Cyprus adult participants accurately, without the need to determine 25-OH-D level, taking into account the multicollinearity problem. Method: The study was conducted with 481 observations who applied voluntarily to Internal Medicine Department at NEU Hospital. The classification performance of four conventional supervised ML models, namely, Ordinal logistic regression(OLR), Elastic-net ordinal regression(ENOR), Support Vector Machine(SVM), and Random Forest (RF) was compared. The comparative analysis is performed regarding the model's sensitivity to the participant's metabolic syndrome(MtS)'positive status, hyper-parameter tuning, sensitivities to the size of training data, and the classification performance of the models. Results: Due to the presence of multicollinearity, the findings showed that the performance of the SVM(RBF) is obviously negatively affected when the test is examined. Moreover, it can be obviously detected that RF is more robust than other models when the variations in the size of training data are examined. This experiment's result showed that the selected RF and ENOR showed better performances than the other two models when the size of training samples was reduced. Since the multicollinearity is more severe in the small samples, it can be concluded that RF and ENOR are not affected by the presence of the multicollinearity problem. The comparative analysis revealed that the RF classifier performed better and was more robust than the other proposed models in terms of accuracy (0.94), specificity (0.96), sensitivity or recall (0.94), precision (0.95), F1-score (0.95), and Cohen's kappa (0.90). Conclusion: It is evident that the RF achieved better than the SVM(RBF), ENOR, and OLR. These comparison findings will be applied to develop a Vitamin D level intelligent detection system for being used in routine clinical, biochemical tests, and lifestyle characteristics of individuals to decrease the cost and time of vitamin D level detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main purpose of this research is to analyze the structural relationships between perceived value, accessibility and revisit intention in medical tourism from a customer/patient perspective. The structural relationship between perceived value, accessibility and revisit intention in medical tourism is the subject of the research. The universe of the research consists of international patients who have received health tourism services from health facilities operating in Istanbul and have health tourism facility authorization certificates and reached through social media channels (Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook). The sample group consisted of 520 international health tourists, who were reached from the social media addresses (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook) of health tourism authorized health institutions operating in the province of Istanbul. Online survey technique was used as data collection method. The study was conducted as a cross-sectional study of international patients reached via social media (Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook). Within the scope of the research, IBM SPSS 23 and AMOS statistical analysis programs were used together for the analysis of the data set. The relationship between "Perceived Value in Health Tourism" and "Revisit Intention" is highly significant (P<0.001). In another saying; As the Perceived Value of Health Tourism increases, the Revisit Intent will also increase. The relationship between "Accessibility" and "Perceived Value in Health Tourism" is significant (P<.05). In another saying; as accessibility increases, Perceived Value in Health Tourism will also increase. The relationship between "Accessibility" and "Revisit Intention" is highly significant (P<0.001). In another saying; As Availability increases, so will Revisit Intent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Aims: Although the mandible is the largest and strongest bone of the facial skeleton, it is frequently broken. The fracture location in the mandible depends on the biomechanical features, direction and angle of the trauma, and masticatory muscles. This study aimed to evaluate the stresses caused by trauma to the corpus and angle regions from different angles. Materials and Methods: After computer‐based mandible models were created using finite element analysis, a force of 2000 Newton(N) was simulated with the mouth open or closed to the corpus and the angle. To the corpus: at 90° (Model 1) in the lateromedial direction, 45° (Model 2) in the lateromedial–inferosuperior direction, and 90° (Model 3) in the inferosuperior direction. To angle: 90° (Model 4) in the lateromedial direction and 45° (Model 5) in the lateromedial–inferosuperior direction. The resulting stress intensity was assessed using FEA. Results: Following the simulated forces, the maximum stress in the mandible occurred in the condylar region, except in Model 3 (Left(L)Corpus2[36 megapascals(MPa)]) in the mouth‐closed condition. After traumas in Model 1 (open‐mouth: LCondyle2[547 MPa]) and Model 4 (closed‐mouth: LCondyle2[607 MPa]), higher stress values occurred in the condyle. In the mouth open‐closed state, there was no significant stress change in the condyle region in Model 1 (open‐mouth: LCondyle2[547 MPa], closed‐mouth:LCondyle2[546 MPa]) or in Model 2 (open mouth: Right(R)Condyle2[431 MPa], closed‐mouth:LCondyle2[439 MPa]). In Model 3, lower stress values occurred in the closed‐mouth rather than the open‐mouth (LCondyle1[167 MPa]) state. In Models 4 and 5, the stress values increased in the mouth‐closed condition compared with the mouth‐open condition. Conclusions: Stress in the mandible is affected by the location of the trauma and the angle of incidence of the blow. In trauma to both the corpus and the angle, the most common area to be fractured is the condyle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Aim: The mandible is the largest, strongest bone in the maxillofacial region. When a fracture occurs in the mandible, its location depends on several factors: the direction of the trauma, the angle of the trauma, masticatory muscles and the quality of the bone. The aim of this study was to evaluate the stresses caused by trauma to the symphysis region from different angles. Materials and Methods: Computer‐based mandible models were created, and a 2000 N force was applied to the symphysis at three different angles using finite element analysis. Six trauma situations were simulated with the mouth open or closed. Forces were applied to the symphysis at 90° (Model 1) in the anteroposterior direction, 45° (Model 2) in the anteroposterior–inferosuperior direction and 90° (Model 3) in the inferosuperior direction, when the mouth was open or closed. The resulting stress intensity was assessed using finite element analysis. Results: As a result of trauma applied to the symphysis region, maximum stresses were found where the impact originated and at the condyle region (Model 2, open mouth: condyle 1 [1172 MPa]). The open mouth position caused higher stress values than the closed mouth position (Model 2, open mouth: condyle 1 [1172 MPa]; closed mouth: symphysis 4 [82 MPa]). The Model 2, open‐mouth state (Model 2, open mouth: condyle 1 [1172 MPa]) sustained higher stresses than all the other models. Conclusion: The stress values in the mandible were affected by the force applied to the symphysis region, the angle of impact arrival and the open or closed state of the mouth. Keeping the mouth closed at the time of trauma reduced the stress value. A closed mouth during trauma directed at the symphysis reduced the possibility of mandible fractures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Since inflammation plays an important role in radiculopathies, and that neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet/lymphocyte ratios (PLR) are known to be associated with inflammation, the effects of these values on transforaminal epidural steroid injections (TFESI) in patients with lumbar radiculopathy were investigated. Methods: A total of 101 patients, who were diagnosed with lumbar radiculopathy and underwent TFESI, were retrospectively analyzed. Therapeutic success was considered to be a ≥ 50% decrease in visual analog scale (VAS) scores one month after TFESI. The patients in the study were placed in two groups according to whether their treatment was successful or unsuccessful, according to this criteria, and hemogram parameters in the two groups were then compared. Results: The study included 46 female and 55 male patients with a mean age of 49.43 ± 13.29. The median duration of symptoms was 3.0 (3.0-8.0) months. It was found that there was no significant difference between the groups in terms of neutrophil, lymphocyte, monocyte, platelet counts, mean plazma volümü (MPV), kırmızı hücre dağılım genişliği (RDW), platelet/ lenfosit oranı (PLR), sistemik inflamatuar indeks (SII), sedimentation, and C-reactive protein (CRP), although it was observed that there were significant increases in NLR in the successful group [2.34 (1.70-3.17)], as compared to the unsuccessful group [1.79 (1.51-2.57)] (p=0.026). Conclusion: Neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio is able to predict the response to TFESI treatment in patients with lumbar radiculopathy, in that patients with a higher NLR demonstrate a better response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antimicrobial peptides are the first defense molecules against various organisms such as bacteria, fungi and are produced by different organisms. In this study, we aimed to investigate the anticancer effects of an insect antimicrobial peptide, cryptonin isolated from the hemolymph of cicada, Cryptotympana dubia on malignant melanoma cells. Cryptonin decreased the cell viability in a dose and time-dependent manner and these effects are more in metastatic cells than in other cell lines. The release of LDH from damaged cells and the detection of HMGB1 in cell culture media after peptide treatment indicated that cryptonin could induce cell necrosis and this cell death may activate an immune response. The peptide also increased the necrotic cell nucleus stained with ethidium bromide. According to reactive oxygen species production and mitochondrial membrane depolarization results, the apoptotic effect of the peptide was low in melanoma cells. Although the peptide killed the keratinocytes in vitro, cryptonin or cryptonin- derived peptide may have potential use in the treatment of malignant melanoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We aimed to evaluate the incidental risk of malignancy in mature cystic teratomas (MCT) and check the management. We retrospectively reviewed records of patients diagnosed and treated with MCT and divided patients into two groups as pure MCT and malignant transformation of MCT. In our clinic incidence of incidental malignant transformation of ovarian MCTs was 2.7%. Median age (p = 0.005) and mass size (p = 0.027) were statistically higher in malignant group. The most common histological type of malignant transformations was malignant struma ovarii (35.7%). In malignant group, five-year disease-free survival was 66.7% and five-year overall survival was 86.7%. Although the risk of malignancy in mature cystic teratomas is rare, it should not be ignored. Age, mass size, and preoperative imaging should all be evaluated with suspicion and if available, frozen section should be used. Management is inconsistent as a result of its rarity. New management practices should be developed with further studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To determine the frequency and types of incidental findings on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine in patients with intervertebral discopathy. Patients and Methods: This retrospective study included 1000 patients (513 females and 487 males, with a mean age of 50.5 years) with clinically suspected intervertebral discopathy who underwent MRI. Any abnormal findings and congenital anomalies/anatomical variations unrelated to the primary complaint were referred to as incidental findings. Frequency distributions of the assessed imaging characteristics were calculated. Results: Of the 1000 patients, 192 (19.2%) patients were presented with incidental findings. The positive findings in the thoracic spine (26%) were higher than those in the lumbar (19.8%) and cervical spine (13.7%). The study found vertebral haemangioma to be the most common finding, followed by Schmorl's nodes in the thoracic and lumbar spine. Thyroid nodules constituted the most common finding in the cervical spine, followed by vertebral haemangioma. Renal cysts in the thoracic and lumbar spine and thyroid nodules in the cervical spine were the most frequent extraspinal findings. Conclusion: Incidental findings are commonly detected during MRI examination of intervertebral discs, and most are benign findings. However, incidental findings including clinically essential findings can alter the patient's treatment or affect the patient's life. Therefore, it is crucial to systematically evaluate MRIs without focusing solely on the spine and report incidental findings detected on MRI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: This descriptive research was conducted to determine the relationship between COVID-19 vaccine literacy and public attitude towards the COVID-19 vaccine. Material and Methods: The research data were collected by convenience sampling between June and September 2021. The population of the research consisted of 1112 individuals aged 18 and over. The data were collected online using a personal information form, the COVID-19 Vaccine Literacy Scale, and the Attitudes Towards the COVID-19 Vaccine (ATV-COVID-19) Scale. Results: The mean COVID-19 Vaccine Literacy scale total score was 2.91±0.43, while the mean ATV-COVID-19 scale total was 3.68±0.76. A statistically significant and positive relationship existed between the participants' COVID-19 VL scale total scores and their ATV-COVID-19 scale total scores. Conclusion: The vaccine literacy of the participants was relatively high, and their attitudes toward the COVID-19 vaccine were positive. As vaccine literacy increased, positive attitudes toward vaccines also increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to examine pollen morphologically via studies of 16 plant taxa from Turkish flora. The pollen structures of the taxa examined, and their microscopic relevance, was discussed and studied with the help of microscopic visualization using scanning and transmission microscopies. Pollen grains were first acetolyzed, and then quantitative and qualitative pollen features were used to evaluate the species. The pollen grains were prolate, spherical, elliptic, tricolporate, 3-colpate, and hexacolpate. Sculpturing patterns of surfaces vary from reticulate, micro-reticulate, and striate regulate. As the findings reveal, palynological data can aid in the taxonomic classification of Turkish floral species. Microscopic implications can be made via micromorphological examination to correctly identify the species. While the pollen morphology of 16 taxa collected from the study area was studied for the first time from this region, the palynological research of some taxa was introduced to the literature for the first time with this study. Pollen morphology and photographic and statistical data of the taxa in our study were determined. This study contributed to bee plant research, melisapalinological studies, and systematic botanical flora studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aimed to investigate how the video editing process professionally affected preservice teachers' reflection levels and whether it differed by the type of in-class teaching experiences (their own and expert teacher experiences). The editing procedure of video cases means selecting and combining parts from an entire recorded in-class teaching experience and adding reflective thinking on actions. Seven participants took part in the research process during a semester, with three-cycle of the video case editing procedures being applied separately to two different research groups. Both inductive and deductive content analysis procedures were applied in a total of 21 video cases edited by PTs. By editing in-class teaching experiences, PTs could deeply analyse the events and transform their reflections on the contextual features. The process facilitated PTs' professional development by identifying, noticing, and reflecting on in-class teaching experiences. PTs learned to analyse their experiences by using different types of perspectives. PTs could deeply analyse the events and transform their reflections on the contextual features. Contrary to the difficulties for PTs' reflection-in-action, the process of editing in-class teaching experiences expanded their reflection-on-action opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although price stability has been ensured in recent years, economic crises have brought to the agenda that it is not sufficient to only ensure price stability to prevent economic crises. Therefore, the importance of financial stability in predicting economic crises has increased recently. In line with this development, financial stability was analyzed instead of price stability in the study. In this direction, the aim of the study is to analyze the effects of central bank independence, current account balance, international reserves, exchange rate, and total loans on financial stability in Turkey between 1990-2021. The index developed by Jacome-Vasquez (2008), representing the independence of the Central Bank, was used. Tobin Q value was used to represent financial stability. Linear time series methods that take into account structural breakage were used for the analysis. As a result of the analysis, it was concluded that the central bank's independence and the international reserves have a positive effect on Tobin Q value and consequently financial stability, and the balance of total loans and current transactions has a negative impact on financial stability. These results show that the central bank cannot ensure financial stability by targeting price stability only and that it should also focus on intermediate targets such as credit growth and current account deficit without compromising price stability in order to achieve financial stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this research is to investigate the perceptions of university students of the cyber identity they experience on a day-to-day basis, especially following the pandemic lockdown. The research uses a basic interpretive research design with a qualitative, and particularly focuses on the phenomenological perspective. The data was gathered from 155 university students from 18 universities in Turkey and was analysed through the use of the inductive content analysis method. The meaning-creation process of students leads them to view cyber identity as a process which includes the personal characteristics and interpersonal interaction that takes place in any kind of digital platform. The findings from the study are categorized into two main themes: structural conditions and inner conditions. These themes consist of issues related to process, technology, personal factors, and other issues. In this study, cyber identity is considered to refer to a new way of relating to the technological world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study investigated the effects of political violence on people exposed to terrorist attacks in Istanbul between 2015 and 2016, and the role of resilience in both psychological stress and posttraumatic stress. The data was collected from 172 people using the Resilience Scale for Adults (RSA), General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12), and Traumatic Stress Symptoms Checklist (TSSC). Only 25.9% of the participants who were directly exposed to terrorist attacks and 13.8%who were exposed indirectly, had probable posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The frequency of probable PTSD was higher in participants who were present at the explosion area during the attack, provided either physical or emotional aid to a terror survivor, and who escaped from the attacks by chance. "Perception of future" and "perception of self" had a negative correlation with both TSSC PTSD scores and psychological stress scores. "Perception of future," "family coherence," "perception of self," and "social resources" were negatively correlated with TSSC PTSD scores. In addition, "perception of future" and "perception of self" were negatively correlated with psychological stress scores. The psychological impact of ongoing exposure to violence is destructive; in a context of persistent violence, intervention strategies focused on resilience are essential for patient care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This qualitative case study aimed to explore how novice instructional designers solved a real-world problem by proposing an instructional design model in Second Life. Twenty-one novice instructional designers who enrolled in a Distance Education course were tasked with proposing an instructional design model to solve the high drop-out rate problem in a Distance Education center. In the Second Life environment, an island was rented and a Distance Education center was built. The participants worked in teams to propose an instructional design model for solving the real-world problem by simulating themselves as distance education specialists in this virtual Distance Education center. The data were collected through interviews, open-ended questionnaires, system logs, and group reports regarding their problem-solving processes. The results showed that the novice instructional designers stated that carrying out the problem-solving process in the Second Life promoted their motivation and engagement related to the real-world problem. To solve the real-world problem, five groups proposed Analysis-Design-Development-Implementation-Evaluation model, while one group proposed an Attention-Relevance-Confidence-Satisfaction model. Although the participants were aware of the potential of the Second Life as a Problem-based Learning environment, they stated that they preferred alternative technologies due to access and usability issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Clinical prognosis of coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) may be severe and unexpected. Patients may quickly progress to respiratory failure, infections, multiple organ dysfunction, and sepsis. The main objective of this study is to investigate the drug-related problems of patients with COVID-19 and related factors. Method: A prospective observational study was conducted on patients with COVID-19 between September 2020 and May 2021. Patients' demographics, comorbid diseases, prescribed medicines and laboratory findings were recorded. Drug-related problems (DRPs) were identified by a clinical pharmacist according to recent guidelines, UpToDate® clinical decision support system and evidence-based medicine. Results: The median age of 107 patients was 64 and 50.46% of them were male. The median number of comorbidities was 3 (2-4) per patient. The majority of the patients had at least one comorbidity (88.79%) other than COVID-19 and the most frequent comorbidities were hypertension, diabetes mellitus and coronary artery disease. The total number of DRPs was recorded as 201 and at least one DRP was seen in 75 out of 107 patients. The median number of DRPs was 2 (0-8). In multivariate model, number of comorbidities (odss ratio (OR)=1.952; 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.07-3.54, p<0.05, number of medications (OR=1.344; 95% CI=1.12-1.61, p<0.001), and serum potassium levels (OR=5.252; 95% CI=1.57-17.56, p<0.001) were the factors related with DRP. Conclusion: This study highlights the DRPs and related factors in patients with COVID 19 in hospital settings. Considering unknown features of the infection and multiple medication use, DRPs are likely to occur. It would be beneficial to consider the related factors in order to reduce the number of the DRPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Coccydynia is defined as pain in the area of the coccyx. The initial treatment is conservative therapy, although several interventional treatments can be performed in patients who do not respond well. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacies of ganglion impar blocks and caudal epidural steroid injections in the treatment of coccydynia. Materials and Methods: From January 2019 to June 2021, a retrospective review was conducted on 65 patients who underwent ganglion impar block (n = 25) or ganglion impar block and caudal epidural steroid injection (n = 40) for coccydynia. Pain scores at baseline and at the first and third months after the procedure were compared between two groups. Results: In both groups, a statistically significant decrease was found at the first and third months when post-injection Visual Analog Scale (VAS) scores were compared to the basal VAS scores (p < 0.05). However, no statistically significant difference was found between the groups at the first and third months (p = 0.39 and p = 0.82, respectively). Conclusion: Ganglion impar block is effective for patients with coccydynia in providing pain relief. However, the addition of caudal epidural steroid injection to the ganglion impar block in patients with coccydynia has no additional contribution to pain relief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In our study, we aimed to evaluate the risk of skull base perforation during endoscopic sinus surgery in individuals with hypoplasic maxillary sinuses using Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT). We included 52 patients with bilateral maxillary sinus hypoplasia and 52 patients with normal maxillary sinus in the study. Reviewing paranasal CBCT scans, we noted the olfactory fossa depths and lateral lamella lengths of all the groups and compared between the hypoplasia groups and the control group. Compared the maxillary hypoplasia sinus individuals with the control group, both the olfactory fossa depths and the lateral lamina length were different in the maxillary hypoplasic individuals. In individuals with hypoplasic maxillary sinus, the olfactory fossa depth and the lateral lamina length values are higher, which increases the risk of complications in endoscopic sinus surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of the study is to evaluate the association between serum uric acid (SUA) and 25-OH Vitamin D (25-OH-VIT D). There is no data about the association between hyperuricemia and 25-OH-VIT D deficiency for North Cyprus. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed on 356 adults aged between 18-75 years in the North Cyprus. Patients socio-demographic information, clinical and biochemical characteristics, eating habits, and lifestyle choices were recorded. Biochemical parameters were evaluated in all patients. Data were analysed by Chi-square test, Student’s t test, and ANOVA, as appropriate. Also, the Gamma correlation coefficient was calculated for the relationship between 25-OH Vitamin D groups and the other variables. Results: The prevalence of 25-OH-VIT D deficiency was 55.9% among the patients (12.86±4.63 ng/mL), the prevalence of 25-OH-VIT D insufficiency (23.44±2.38 ng/mL) was 27%, and 25-OH-VIT D levels were sufficient in only 17.1% of the patients (36.01±5.83 ng/mL). The ANOVA results indicated statistically significant differences SUA for both male and female patients between the 25-OH-VIT D groups. According to the Gamma correlation coefficient values, 25-OH Vitamin D levels were significantly negatively correlated with SUA. Conclusion: In our study indicated a high prevalence of 25-OHVIT D deficiency and insufficiency in North Cyprus adults and we have found a significant association between SUA levels and 25-OH-VIT D. As a result, both vitamin D supplementation and uric acid-lowering therapies are important in protecting patients against future atherosclerotic diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tire pyrolytic oil (TPO) obtained from thermal pyrolysis of scrap tires is not a diesel equivalent fuel which can be used directly in vehicles due to its high density, viscosity, sulfur content, low flash point and low cetane index. It can only be used in a limited way by mixing with diesel fuel (DF) in amounts less than 30 %. In this study, the pyrolysis of scrap tires was carried out at a heating rates of 5 and 10 °C min-1 in the range of 450--600 °C, using a mixture of hierarchical zeolite (HZSM-5), mesoporous silica (MCM-41) and quicklime (CaO) as the catalyst. The obtained TPO and catalytic pyrolytic oil (CPO) were upgraded by pre-treatment, and distillation consisting of a mixture of Cu(I)- -loaded mesoporous aluminosilicate (Cu(I)--MAS) and MCM-41, desulfurization and decolourization steps, respectively. To obtain diesel-like fuel, the upgraded catalytic pyrolytic oil (UCPO) and biodiesel (PBD) obtained from palm oil were blended in certain proportions. Density, viscosity, flash point and cetane index of the obtained diesel-like fuels were found within the limit values of diesel fuel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study aimed to analyze long-term survival rate and clinical outcomes of a NexGen LPS knee system. The effect of component alignment parameters on clinical scores and patient satisfaction was also investigated. Methods: Between June 2002 and January 2010, 204 knees of 152 patients underwent total knee arthroplasty with NexGen LPS-Flex knee system with fix bearings. The mean follow-up was 13.2 (range, 10 to 18 years). The relationship between radiologic and clinical results was investigated with component angles. Outlier angles were determined according to cutoff values of alpha, beta, gamma, and delta angles on the radiographs taken immediately after the operation. Knees were classified based on existing outliers they have as "No Outliers" (Group 1), "Single Outliers" (Group 2), and "Multiple Outliers" (Group 3). Results: Revision surgery was required for ten patients, and the overall survival rate was 95.1% at the last follow-up. "Single Outliers" did not show a clinically significant difference in functional scores compared to the "No Outliers" group. However, KSKS and FJS-12 were significantly lower in "Multiple Outliers" knees (p: 0.039 and 0.019, respectively). Conclusion: NexGen LPS-Flex knee system has satisfactory results with 95.1% implant survival in 13.2 years. FJS-12 measurements at the end of the follow-up demonstrate a favourable result of the fixed bearing design. On two plane X-ray evaluations, components malaligned with two or more outliers in the same knee deteriorate patient satisfaction and clinical results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although near-miss is an important tendency indicator for gambling addiction, no scale has been developed to evaluate these feelings. In this study, the aim is to develop a Near Miss Scale (NMS) to assess the tendency of gambling. In the first step, a 38-item measurement tool was prepared by the first author, which was examined by 8 experts. According to their comments and opinions, a 32-item 5-point Likert-type pre-form was created. The study was conducted with 600 gamblers in Northern Cyprus between December 2018-March 2019 and data from 563 of them were included in the statistical analysis. In the questionnaire, Socio-demographic form, Gambling Craving Scale (GCS), South Oaks Gambling Screening Test (SOGST) and NMS were used. With the SPSS 23 and R Studio statistical programs, after calculating the item-total correlations of the items in the NMS form, items with low item total-correlation values were excluded from the scale and 30 items were analysed statistically. In the study, it was seen that the factor loads of the relevant items in NMS were between .715 and .896. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) showed that a single factor model in the scale was valid. NMS had a positive correlation with SOGST (r = 0.601) and GCS (r = 0.752). The 2-week test-retest results of NMS with a Cronbach alpha of 0.981 were determined as 0.972. The validity and reliability results suggest that NMS is a valid and reliable as 30-item, one-dimensional measurement tool for assessing gambling tendency among gamblers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines preservice teachers' (PTs') video case (VC) editing process to enhance their self-reflection on instructional decisions in teaching experiences. We apply the triple-cycle process, including teaching experiences, video editing, and peer discussion. Each PT edited three teaching experiences and discussed a total of forty-eight VCs. While editing VCs, PTs tended to notice, describe, identify the reason, judge, express emotions, analyse, and generalize with any other situations. The results indicated that while editing their teaching experiences, PTs improved self-reflection on their instructional decisions, which increased from defining to analysing and generalizing the instructional decisions. Editing video-cases improve PT's self-reflection on their instructional decisions. Viewing and discussing peers' experiences enrich PT's teaching repertoire. PT tend to focus on how to teach including classroom management and teaching methods. Editing and discussing video-cases enhance PT's noticing skills from both the teacher's and the student's perspectives. Thereby, editing video-cases and viewing and discussing peers' experiences improved PT's self-reflection and the ability to notice through the eyes of both the student and the teacher. And it also enriched PT's teaching repertoire. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pancreatic cell dynamics have important contributions to the development of type 2 diabetes and related diseases such as nonalcoholic fatty pancreas disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of prolonged excessive glucose exposure on the functions of pancreatic beta cells and duct cells in single and co-culture conditions. In this study, we focused on the effects of glucotoxicity on insulin secretion which is the main function of beta cells and on progenitor functions of duct cells. Rat primary INS1 beta cells and ARIP duct cells were exposed to glucose (25 mM) for 72 h under single or indirect co-culture conditions. Glucotoxicity stimuli increased insulin secretion and decreased insulin expression in single beta cells while stimulating beta-cell differentiation and adipogenesis in single duct cells. On the other hand, glucotoxicity caused functional loss and increased proliferation and apoptosis in beta cells while increasing proliferation but suppressed beta-cell differentiation and adipogenesis in duct cells under co-culture conditions. The expression level of miR-335, a microRNA known to be upregulated by leptin and target Runx2, was measured. As a result, unlike single-cell culture, glucotoxicity upregulated miR-335, downregulated Runx2, and decreased insulin signaling in beta cells while downregulating miR-335 and upregulating Runx2, and decreased insulin signaling in duct cells under co-culture conditions. When the results of single and co-culture experiments are compared, insulin and miR-335 may be seen as important mediators for setting up the relation between beta and duct cells. Our findings are important for preventing the development of type 2 diabetes and nonalcoholic fatty pancreas disease, even developing new diagnosis and treatment strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To study the effect of lumbar sympathetic block (LSB) with a mixture of local anesthetics and steroids on pain in patients with chronic ischemic lower limb disease. Methods: Retrospectively 23 patients were reviewed with peripheral arterial disease who underwent LSB using a mixture of 8 mg of dexamethasone, 80 mg of 2% lidocaine, and 4 mL of saline at 2 levels, L2 and L4, under the guidance of fluoroscopy. Recordings of the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) scores at 3 days before the blockage, and 1 month and 3 months after treatment were obtained. Results: The study included 20 (87%) male and 3 (13%) female patients. The mean age of the patients was 59.65±13.33 years. The patients’ post-blockage 3rd day, and 1st and 3rd month VAS scores were significantly lower than the baseline VAS scores (p<0.05). The proportion of patients with 50% improvement in the VAS scores at 3rd days, and 1st and 3rd months was 47.8%, 21.7%, and 21.7%, respectively. No complications or side effects were observed. Conclusion: Lumbar sympathetic block with a mixture of local anesthetics and steroids appears to be effective in patients who have non-reconstructable arterial occlusive disease, with reduced pain scores and low complication rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atmospheric factors have a great influence on the shaping of the environment in which people live. Atmospheric factors not only affect the environment, but also affect the bioclimatic comfort conditions of people during their daily activities. Human bioclimatology is affected by atmospheric factors such as temperature, relative humidity, wind and precipitation. For this reason, many indices have been created to determine people's bioclimatic comfort perceptions. Some of these indexes only consider atmospheric conditions. In recent years, in addition to atmospheric conditions, the personal characteristics of people have been included in the indexes by researchers. In this study, the heat index, which enables the determination of bioclimatic comfort areas by taking advantage of temperature and relative humidity conditions, was used. The sensed temperature values obtained were applied to the Physiological Equivalent Temperature classification and the bioclimatic comfort areas of Antalya province were determined.When the temperature values were examined, it was seen that the temperature values on the Mediterranean coast reached up to 30 °C in summer. On the other hand, it drops below 0 °C in the high parts in winter. When the relative humidity values are examined, it has been determined that the relative humidity rates reach up to 89% in the winter season. Considering the bioclimatic comfort perception levels of the research area, the "Comfortable" thermal perception level was determined in May, June, July, August, September and October. Apart from this, there is no"Hot" and "Very Hot" thermal perception level in PET classification. In addition, it has been determined that there are differences in the distribution of bioclimatic comfort areas depending on the topography and altitude characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The progress in information technologies has allowed the concepts such as time, space and distance in education to be narrowed down and reinterpreted, and the new generation open education system has emerged. The most important aim of Atatürk University Faculty of Open Education is to serve individuals who are in disadvantaged groups such as women, the elderly and the disabled who want to continue their higher education. Atatürk University Faculty of Open Education, which has approximately seven hundred thousand students, also includes more than five thousand disabled students who are considered to be in the disadvantaged group. The aim of this study is to minimize the difficulties that students with disabilities may encounter during their education period, which starts with the registration process of the Faculty and ends with their graduation. A request/follow-up and management system has been established in order to follow up the material fee exemption or refund procedures for students, to receive healthy examination services according to their disability, and to systematize all transactions by accelerating the process. In this framework, a system was developed using ASP.NET web development platform and SQL Server database. The related system was started to be used for the transactions of 7568 students with disabilities and a contribution was made to the university without disabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Integrating clinical pharmacists in a multidisciplinary patient care team improves the treatment process by identifying and resolving drug-related problems (DRPs). The aim of the study was to determine the effect of clinical pharmacist intervention for DRPs in the gastroenterology service. The first period of the study was conducted between 15.06.2018 and 15.02.2019. Eighty patients admitted to the gastroenterology ward, who used at least one medication, were included in 'the study group'. The clinical pharmacist participated in ward rounds and made interventions to solve identified DRPs. In the second period of the study, the control group consisted of 80 patients admitted to the same ward between 01.03.2019 and 06.06.2019. DRPs were determined only from the data obtained from the hospital system in the control group. DRPs were classified according to the European Pharmaceutical Care Network (PCNE V9.1). A total of 136 and 46 with an average of 1.7 and 0.57 DRPs per patient (p≤0.01) were identified in the study and control groups, respectively. Of the DRPs in the study group, 59 were related to treatment effectiveness, while 61 were related to treatment safety. Likewise, 21 DRPs were related to treatment effectiveness in the control group, while 12 were related to treatment (p≤0.01). 65% of the interventions were made at the physician level and 49% at the drug level. 97% (n=133) of the total interventions were accepted. The number of DRPs was significantly reduced in the control group within the time frame after the clinical pharmacist intervention period. In conclusion, clinical pharmacists' importance in detecting and preventing DRPs in the gastroenterology ward has been demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]