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Purpose: Fasciotomy is a surgical procedure that involves the incision of fascial compartments in the body to relieve pressure, prevent tissue damage, and maintain blood flow. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of the Bogota Bag technique in closing fasciotomy wounds in patients with lower limb compartment syndrome., Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted between October 2022 and October 2023 to document our experience in employing the Bogota Bag technique for fasciotomy closure. The study included the evaluation of medical files from fifteen patients aged 17 to 61., Results: The outcomes of the study present the initial series of limb fasciotomies treated with the Bogota Bag technique. Fifteen patients (14 male, 1 female) were included in the study. The average age of the patients was 34.73 ± 13.9 years and the average hospitalization was 8.33 ± 3.2 days. The average closure time of fasciotomy is 3.6 ± 1.4 days., Conclusion: This report makes a significant contribution as the first documented series of limb fasciotomies treated with the Bogota Bag technique. This method exhibits simplicity in execution, cost-effectiveness, and a low incidence of complications., (© 2024. The Author(s) under exclusive licence to SICOT aisbl.)

Objectives: The aim was to evaluate the current status of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS), perceptions, education, training, and barriers to using POCUS in pediatric emergency departments (PEDs) and pediatric intensive care units (PICUs) in Turkey., Methods: A descriptive, multicenter, cross-sectional study through an online survey was developed using the REDCap online platform. The survey was distributed through the Turkish Society of Pediatric Emergency and Intensive Care e-mail group. Each survey was answered only once by each PED/PICU and by the clinical chief of the department., Results: A total of 19 PEDs and 26 PICUs responded to the survey. Among them, 84.2% of PEDs and 100% of PICUs reported the clinical use of POCUS. For diagnostic applications, the most common areas for PEDs and PICUs were thoracic (93.7%/100%) and cardiovascular (62.5%/65.4%) assessment, and in the procedural use of POCUS, the most frequent applications were those for vascular access (75.0%/92.3%) and thoracentesis (31.2%/65.4%). The most commonly reported clinical benefits were rapid diagnosis, rapid treatment, and decreased complications during procedural applications for PEDs and PICUs. Evaluating the barriers to POCUS use in PEDs and PICUs, the most common reasons for insufficient use were the lack of ultrasound machines and/or equipment, a shortage of manpower, lack of awareness, and lack of training. For PEDs (68.4%) and for PICUs (84.6%), participants agreed that POCUS training should be mandatory during fellowship programs., Conclusions: Most participants were aware of the need for POCUS. However, lack of education, equipment, manpower, and infrastructure still emerged as barriers to the use of POCUS. To further promote POCUS use, it would be helpful to improve accessibility by ensuring sufficient numbers of ultrasound devices together with sufficient numbers of appointed physicians and by expanding POCUS education in PEDs and PICUs., Competing Interests: Disclosure: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a rare, chronic autoimmune disorder associated with disability, diminished physical function, fatigue, pain, and mental health concerns. We assessed minimal detectable changes (MDCs) of the Health Assessment Questionnaire-Disability Index (HAQ-DI), Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System-29 Profile version 2.0 (PROMIS-29v2.0) domains, and Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)-8 in people with SSc., Methods: Scleroderma Patient-Centered Intervention Network Cohort participants completed the HAQ-DI, PROMIS-29v2.0 domains, and PHQ-8 at baseline assessments from April 2014 until August 2023. We estimated MDC95 (smallest change that can be detected with 95% certainty) and MDC90 (smallest change that can be detected with 90% certainty) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) generated via the percentile bootstrapping method resampling 1,000 times. We compared MDC estimates by age, sex, and SSc subtype., Results: A total of 2,571 participants were included. Most were female (n = 2,241; 87%), and 38% (n = 976) had diffuse SSc. Mean (±SD) age was 54.9 (±12.7) years and duration since onset of first non-Raynaud phenomenon symptom was 10.8 (±8.7) years. MDC95 estimate was 0.41 points (95% CI 0.40-0.42) for the HAQ-DI, between 4.88 points (95% CI 4.72-5.05) and 9.02 points (95% CI 8.80-9.23) for the seven PROMIS-29v2.0 domains, and 5.16 points (95% CI 5.06-5.26) for the PHQ-8. MDC95 estimates were not materially different across subgroups., Conclusion: MDC95 and MDC90 estimates were precise and similar across age, sex, and SSc subtype groups. HAQ-DI MDC95 and MDC90 were substantially larger than previous estimates of HAQ-DI minimal important difference from several small studies. Minimally important differences of all measures should be evaluated in large studies using anchor-based methods., (© 2024 The Author(s). Arthritis Care & Research published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American College of Rheumatology.)

Bladder cancer, often asymptomatic in the early stages, is a type of cancer where early detection is crucial. Herein, endoscopic images are meticulously evaluated by experts, and sometimes even by different disciplines, to identify tissue types. It is believed that the time spent by experts can be utilized for patient treatment with the creation of a computer-aided decision support system. For this purpose, in this study, it is evaluated that the performances of three models proposed using the bladder tissue dataset. The first model is a convolutional neural network (CNN)-based deep learning (DL) network, and the second is a model named hybrid cnn-machine learning (ML) or DL + ML, which involves classifying deep features obtained from a CNN-based network with ML. The last one, and the one that achieved the best performance metrics, is a vision transformer (ViT) architecture. Furthermore, a graphical user interface (GUI) is provided for an accessible decision support system. As a result, accuracy and F1 score values for DL, DL + ML, and ViT models are 0.9086-0.8971-0.9257 and 0.8884-0.8496-0.8931, respectively., (© 2024. The Author(s) under exclusive licence to Society for Imaging Informatics in Medicine.)

Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare the short-term effects of connective tissue massage (CTM) and classic massage (CM) on pain, functional and emotional status, and menstrual complaints in women with primary dysmenorrhea (PD)., Methods: Women with PD were randomly assigned to 2 groups: CTM (n = 19) and CM (n = 19). CTM or CM was applied 5 days a week from the estimated date of ovulation to the onset of the next menstruation. The pain intensity with the Visual Analog Scale and functional and emotional status with the Functional and Emotional Dysmenorrhea Scale (FEDS) were assessed before and after the applications. Pain duration and the presence of menstrual complaints were recorded., Results: In the postintervention period, both groups had decreased menstrual pain intensity and duration, drug use, and FEDS scores (P < .001). Pain duration and FEDS-functional scores decreased more in the CTM group than in the CM group (P < .05). Moreover, in the postintervention period, fewer women were nervous in the CM group, whereas low back pain, constipation, and sleeplessness were less frequent in the CTM group, compared with their preintervention period (P < .05). A difference was observed between groups only in terms of the changes in sleeplessness between before and after intervention (P = .016)., Conclusion: CTM and CM improved menstrual pain and functional and emotional status, and decreased drug use. Moreover, CTM was superior in improving pain duration, functional status, and sleeplessness compared with CM in PD. CTM and CM might be useful treatment methods for PD., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

The studies evaluating the impact of Her2 levels in neoadjuvant setting have conflicting data. The aim of the study was to evaluate the prognostic impact of Her2 status in early triple negative breast cancer(TNBC). In the study TNBC patients who were treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) and surgery were analyzed retrospectively. The primary aim of the study was to analyze the impact of Her2 status(Her2-0 and Her2-low) on pathological complete response (pCR). The secondary objectives were disease free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). 620 female triple negative breast cancer patients were evaluated. 427 patients (68.9%) had Her2-0 and 193(31.1%) had her2-low pathology. The pCR rates were similar between Her2-0 and Her2-low patients (33.0% vs. 27.5%, p = 0.098). Although Her2-0 group has better DFS (106 vs. 50 months, p = 0.002), in multivariate analysis it had a HR of 0.74 (p = 0.06). In addition, OS was similar (131 vs. 105 months, p = 0.13) with a HR of 0.88 (p = 0.61). In multivariate analysis; presence of LVI (HR:2.2 (95% CI 1.1-3.5) p = 0.001), Clinical stage T1/T2 (HR:0.39 (95% CI 0.2-0.6) p < 0.001) and lymph node negativity (HR:0.35 (95% CI 0.1-0.9) p = 0.03) were independent factors for OS. Although there were pathological and clinical differences, the pCR, DFS and OS were similar between Her2-0 and Her2-low TNBC patients. The importance of Her2 status of TNBC in neoadjuvant setting should be further studied., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Invasive fungal infection (IFI) is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in acute leukemia patients. In the past few decades, the incidence of IFI has dramatically increased. Nevertheless, the management of IFI has become more complicated owing to changes in the epidemiology of fungal diseases and therapeutic regimens. Therefore, it is important to establish an appropriate strategy for centers that provide the diagnosis and treatment of acute leukemia patients based on scientific data and with available resources. In this study we investigated the incidence of IFI, pathogens, the use of diagnostic methods, and risk factors for IFI in acute leukemia patients over a 17-year period. A total of 502 acute leukemia patients (male/female: 57%/43%, mean age: 57.7 ± 15.5 years) hospitalized at adult and oncology hospitals between 2003 and 2020 were reviewed retrospectively. The incidence of proven and probable IFI was 13.2% (33.1%, when possible cases were included). The most common IFI was aspergillosis (49 patients, 9.7%), followed by candidemia, mucormycosis, and Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia. The galactomannan antigen test was positive in the serum of 39 (23.5%) patients and in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid in 6 (3.6%) patients. Thirteen (7.8%) sputum cultures (11 Aspergillus spp. and 2 Candida spp.) and 4 (2.4%) BAL fluid (1 Aspergillus spp., 2 Candida spp., 1 P jirovecii) were positive for a fungal pathogen. Neutropenia, intensive care unit (ICU) follow-up and mechanical ventilation (MV) increased the risk of IFI by 3.5, 2.5, and 1.8 times, respectively. The median survival was 5 (range: 1.9-8) months. ICU follow-up shortened the survival by 12 months and increased the death risk by 2.49-fold. MV shortened survival by 57 months and increased the death risk by 3.82-fold. IFI remains a significant contributor to the morbidity and mortality in acute leukemia patients. Pulmonary involvement is the most common site. Neutropenia, ICU follow-up and MV are associated with an increased risk for IFI and mortality. We recommend in the IFI approach, to be aware of IFI in patients receiving intensive chemotherapy and/or recipients of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and to evaluate with microbiological, serological and radiological tests during the clinical follow-up., Competing Interests: The authors have no funding and conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.)

Background/Objectives: Following the results of the phase 3 KEYNOTE-522 trial, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved pembrolizumab, a humanized IgG4 kappa monoclonal antibody, in combination with neoadjuvant chemotherapy as a new standard of care for high-risk early-stage triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). This retrospective, multicenter study in Türkiye assessed the real-world efficacy and safety of neoadjuvant pembrolizumab combined with chemotherapy in early-stage TNBC. Methods: The study included 108 patients treated between 2021 and 2023 across 14 oncology centers. Three distinct neoadjuvant regimens incorporating pembrolizumab were administered at the discretion of the treating physicians. The primary outcomes were the pathological complete response (pCR) rate after neoadjuvant therapy and the 2-year event-free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS) rates. Results: The observed pCR rate was 63.9%, closely mirroring the 64.8% reported in the KEYNOTE-522 trial. At the two-year mark, the EFS rate was 87.2% and the OS rate was 92.3%. Multivariable analysis identified pCR as the sole independent predictor of both EFS and OS. The safety profile was consistent with previous clinical trial data, with most adverse events being of grade 1-2 in severity. Conclusions: These findings provide valuable real-world confirmation of the efficacy and safety of neoadjuvant pembrolizumab-chemotherapy in early-stage TNBC, complementing evidence from randomized trials.

Objectives: To determine whether idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) may affect white matter integrity and optic pathways by using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and to correlate the DTI metrics with intracranial pressure (ICP)., Methods: This study is a retrospective case-control study. A total of 42 patients who underwent lumbar puncture and those with elevated ICP, meeting the diagnostic criteria for IIH, were included in the study. All patients had supportive magnetic resonance imaging findings for the diagnosis of IIH. The headache control group comprised 36 patients who presented to the Neurology Department with infrequent episodic tension-type headache, had a normal neurologic examination, and had clinical and radiological findings suggestive of normal ICP. For each patient with IIH, clinical findings and ophthalmological measurements were recorded. The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), fractional anisotropy (FA), axial diffusivity (AD), and radial diffusivity (RD) values were calculated using a region of interest-based method in different white matter tracts and optic pathways and compared., Results: A total of 42 patients diagnosed with IIH (three males, 39 females), with a mean (standard deviation [SD] age of 38.1 (8.9) years), and 36 headache controls (10 males, 26 females, mean [SD] age; 38.1 [9.4] years) were included in the study. The mean (SD) body mass index (BMI) of the patients with IIH was 25.2 (1.9) kg/m 2 , and the mean (SD) BMI of the headache controls was 23.3 (1.5) kg/m 2 (p < 0.001). Decreased FA values and increased RD values in the cingulum were detected in patients with IIH compared to the headache controls (p = 0.003, Cohen's d = 0.681; p = 0.002 Cohen's d = -0.710). Decreased AD values in the left and right superior cerebellar peduncle and increased ADC values in the middle cerebellar peduncle were detected in patients with IIH compared to the headache controls (p < 0.001, Cohen's d = 0.961; p = 0.009, Cohen's d = 0.607; p = 0.015, Cohen's d = -0.564). Increased ADC and RD values and decreased FA values in optic nerve were detected in patients with IIH (p = 0.010, Cohen's d = -0.603; p = 0.004, Cohen's d = -0.676; p = 0.015 Cohen's d = 0.568). A positive correlation was found between the cerebrospinal fluid pressure and ADC values of the left and right superior and left inferior longitudinal fasciculus, genu of the corpus callosum, and right optic radiation (r = 0.43, p = 0.005; r = 0.31, p = 0.044; r = 0.39, p = 0.010; r = 0.35, p = 0.024; r = 0,41, p = 0.007). There was a positive correlation between the retinal nerve fiber layer thickness and the ADC values of the optic nerve (r = 0.32, p = 0.039)., Conclusions: Intracranial hypertension can be associated with deteriorated DTI values, which might be interpreted as a sign of impaired white matter microstructural integrity in many brain regions beyond the periventricular white matter. Pressure-induced edema and axonal degeneration may be the potential underlying mechanisms of this microstructural damage., (© 2024 American Headache Society.)

Background: The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between serum uric acid level at diagnosis and asymptomatic brain metastasis in patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer., Methods: A total of 69 patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer without symptomatic brain metastases, whose serum uric acid level was measured at the time of diagnosis, were included in this retrospective cross-sectional study. The patients were divided into two groups as those with and without asymptomatic brain metastases. The Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison between groups, and Spearman's correlation test was used for correlation analysis. The cut-off level of serum uric acid level was analyzed, and sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy rates were determined for brain metastasis. Independent factors affecting asymptomatic brain metastasis were determined by multivariate Cox regression analysis., Results: The median serum uric acid level of all patients was 6.9 mg/dL. Twenty-two percent of patients had asymptomatic brain metastases, and serum uric acid levels were significantly higher in these patients (P = 0.0014). The cut-off value for serum uric acid level was calculated as 6.2 mg/dL. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of this value for brain metastasis were 84%, 76%, and 78%, respectively. High serum uric acid level was an independent risk factor for asymptomatic brain metastasis (OR 3.446 95% CI 1.337-5.480; P = 0.005)., Conclusion: In conclusion, a serum uric acid level of 6.2 mg/dL and above at the time of diagnosis may predict asymptomatic brain metastasis in patients., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) is used as a current marker in preoperative staging and surgical decision-making, but current evidence on predicting post-surgical oncological outcomes based on preoperative mpMRI findings is limited. In this study We aimed to develop a risk classification based on mpMRI and mpMRI-derived biopsy findings to predict early biochemical recurrence (BCR) after radical prostatectomy., Methods: Between January 2017 and January 2023, the data of 289 patients who underwent mpMRI, transrectal ultrasound-guided cognitive and fusion targeted biopsies, and subsequent radical prostatectomy (RP) with or without pelvic lymph node dissection in a single center were retrospectively re-evaluated. BCR was defined as a prostate specific-antigen (PSA) ≥ 0.2 ng/mL at least twice after RP. Multivariate logistic regression models tested the predictors of BCR. The regression tree analysis stratified patients into risk groups based on preoperative mpMRI characteristics. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC)-derived area under the curve (AUC) estimates were used to test the accuracy of the regression tree-derived risk stratification tool., Results: BCR was detected in 47 patients (16.2 %) at a median follow-up of 24 months. In mpMRI based multivariate analyses, the maximum diameter of the index lesion (HR 1.081, 95%Cl 1.015-1.151, p = 0.015) the presence of PI-RADS 5 lesions (HR 2.604, 95%Cl 1.043-6.493, p = 0.04), ≥iT3a stage (HR 2.403, 95%Cl 1.013-5.714, p = 0.046) and ISUP grade ≥4 on biopsy (HR 2.440, 95%Cl 1.123-5.301, p = 0.024) were independent predictors of BCR. In regression tree analysis, patients were stratified into three risk groups: maximum diameter of index lesion, biopsy ISUP grade, and clinical stage on mpMRI. The regression tree-derived risk stratification model had moderate-good accuracy in predicting early BCR (AUC 77 %) CONCLUSION: Straightforward mpMRI and mpMRI-derived biopsy-based risk stratification for BCR prediction provide an additional clinical predictive model to the currently available pathological risk tools., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The differentiation of benign and malignant parotid gland tumors is of major significance as it directly affects the treatment process. In addition, it is also a vital task in terms of early and accurate diagnosis of parotid gland tumors and the determination of treatment planning accordingly. As in other diseases, the differentiation of tumor types involves several challenging, time-consuming, and laborious processes. In the study, Magnetic Resonance (MR) images of 114 patients with parotid gland tumors are used for training and testing purposes by Image Fusion (IF). After the Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC), Contrast-enhanced T1-w (T1C-w), and T2-w sequences are cropped, IF (ADC, T1C-w), IF (ADC, T2-w), IF (T1C-w, T2-w), and IF (ADC, T1C-w, T2-w) datasets are obtained for different combinations of these sequences using a two-dimensional Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT)-based fusion technique. For each of these four datasets, ResNet18, GoogLeNet, and DenseNet-201 architectures are trained separately, and thus, 12 models are obtained in the study. A Graphical User Interface (GUI) application that contains the most successful of these trained architectures for each data is also designed to support the users. The designed GUI application not only allows the fusing of different sequence images but also predicts whether the label of the fused image is benign or malignant. The results show that the DenseNet-201 models for IF (ADC, T1C-w), IF (ADC, T2-w), and IF (ADC, T1C-w, T2-w) are better than the others, with accuracies of 95.45%, 95.96%, and 92.93%, respectively. It is also noted in the study that the most successful model for IF (T1C-w, T2-w) is ResNet18, and its accuracy is equal to 94.95%., (© 2024. The Author(s) under exclusive licence to Society for Imaging Informatics in Medicine.)

Aims: This study aims to use deep learning (DL) to classify thyroid nodules as benign and malignant with ultrasonography (US). In addition, this study investigates the impact of DL on the diagnostic success of radiologists with different experiences. Material and methods: This study included 576 US images of thyroid nodules. The dataset was divided into 80% training and 20% test sets. Four radiologists with different levels of experience classified the images in the test set as benign-malignant. A DL model was then trained with the train set and predicted benign-malignant for the test set. Then, the output of the DL model for each nodule in the test set was presented to 4 radiologists, who were asked to make a benign-malignant classification again considering these DL results., Results: The accuracy of the DL model was 0.9391. The accuracy for junior resident (JR) 1, JR 2, senior resident (SR), and senior radiologist (Srad) before DL-assisting were 0.7043, 0.7826, 0.8435, and 0.8522 respectively. The accuracy in DL-assisted classifications was 0.9130, 0.8696, 0.9304, and 0.9043 for JR 1, JR2, SR, and Srad, respectively. DL assistance changed the decisions of less experienced radiologists more than more experienced radiologists. Conclusion: The DL model has superior accuracy in classifying thyroid nodules as benign-malignant with US images than radiologists with different levels of experience. Additionally, all radiologists, and most notably less experienced radiology residents, increased their accuracy in DL-assisted predictions.

The prevalence of penile calcification in the population remains uncertain. This retrospective multicenter study aimed to determine the prevalence and characteristics of penile calcification in a large cohort of male patients undergoing non-contrast pelvic tomography. A total of 14 545 scans obtained from 19 participating centers between 2016 and 2022 were retrospectively analyzed within a 3-months period. Eligible scans (n = 12 709) were included in the analysis. Patient age, penile imaging status, presence of calcified plaque, and plaque measurements were recorded. Statistical analysis was performed to assess the relationships between calcified plaque, patient age, plaque characteristics, and plaque location. Among the analyzed scans, 767 (6.04%) patients were found to have at least one calcified plaque. Patients with calcified plaque had a significantly higher median age (64 years (IQR 56-72)) compared to those with normal penile evaluation (49 years (IQR 36-60) (p < 0.001). Of the patients with calcified plaque, 46.4% had only one plaque, while 53.6% had multiple plaques. There was a positive correlation between age and the number of plaques (r = 0.31, p < 0.001). The average dimensions of the calcified plaques were as follows: width: 3.9 ± 5 mm, length: 5.3 ± 5.2 mm, height: 3.5 ± 3.2 mm, with an average plaque area of 29 ± 165 mm² and mean plaque volume of 269 ± 3187 mm³. Plaques were predominantly located in the proximal and mid-penile regions (44.1% and 40.5%, respectively), with 77.7% located on the dorsal side of the penis. The hardness level of plaques, assessed by Hounsfield units, median of 362 (IQR 250-487) (range: 100-1400). Patients with multiple plaques had significantly higher Hounsfield unit values compared to those with a single plaque (p = 0.003). Our study revealed that patients with calcified plaques are older and have multiple plaques predominantly located on the dorsal and proximal side of the penis., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited.)

Background: Pontocerebellar hypoplasia type 10 (PCH10) due to CLP1 gene mutations is characterized by structural brain anomalies, progressive microcephaly, severe intellectual and physical disabilities, and spasticity. In this follow-up study, evolution of phenotypic and neurological characteristics of patients with PCH10 is discussed., Methods: Phenotype, growth parameters, motor functions, developmental tests, spasticity assessments, functional independence assessments, electroencephalography (EEG), and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of 10 patients with PCH10 were monitored on separate examinations. Alterations were recorded., Results: Patients were followed-up for an average of 2.83 years. The tone of the upper extremities was significantly higher than that of the lower extremities, according to Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) values. Sixty percent of patients could sit unsupported; 20% achieved supported sitting initially but lost the ability during follow-up. Absence of grabbing or sitting was observed in 20% of patients. During follow-up, one person achieved supported sitting and one person achieved head holding. Only one patient was able to speak a few words. Cerebellar atrophy (two of 10), pons hypoplasia (four of 10), cortical atrophy (seven of 10), enlarged ventricles (10 of 10), thinning of the corpus callosum (10 of 10), hypomyelination (six of 10), and increased white matter signal intensity (six of 10) were the observed MRI findings., Conclusions: Progressive cerebral and cerebellar atrophy was demonstrated radiologically for the first time in a PCH10 cohort. It is of crucial importance to identify these patients promptly with the help of dysmorphic findings and spasticity being pronounced in the upper extremities. Furthermore, we note that phenotypic and neurological examination findings tend to change slightly over time., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background and Objective: Alzheimer's disease dementia (ADD) is well known to induce alterations in both structural and functional brain connectivity. However, reported changes in connectivity are mostly limited to global/local network features, which have poor specificity for diagnostic purposes. Following recent advances in machine learning, deep neural networks, particularly Graph Neural Network (GNN) based approaches, have found applications in brain research as well. The majority of existing applications of GNNs employ a single network (uni-modal or structure/function unified), despite the widely accepted view that there is a nontrivial interdependence between the brain's structural connectivity and the neural activity patterns, which is hypothesized to be disrupted in ADD. This disruption is quantified as a discrepancy score by the proposed "structure-function discrepancy learning network" (sfDLN) and its distribution is studied over the spectrum of clinical cognitive decline. The measured discrepancy score is utilized as a diagnostic biomarker and is compared with state-of-the-art diagnostic classifiers., Methods: sfDLN is a GNN with a siamese architecture built on the hypothesis that the mismatch between structural and functional connectivity patterns increases over the cognitive decline spectrum, starting from subjective cognitive impairment (SCI), passing through a mid-stage mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and ending up with ADD. The structural brain connectome (sNET) built using diffusion MRI-based tractography and the novel, sparse (lean) functional brain connectome (ℓNET) built using fMRI are input to sfDLN. The siamese sfDLN is trained to extract connectome representations and a discrepancy (dissimilarity) score that complies with the proposed hypothesis and is blindly tested on an MCI group., Results: The sfDLN generated structure-function discrepancy scores show high disparity between ADD and SCI subjects. Leave-one-out experiments of SCI-ADD classification over a cohort of 42 subjects reach 88% accuracy, surpassing state-of-the-art GNN-based classifiers in the literature. Furthermore, a blind assessment over a cohort of 46 MCI subjects confirmed that it captures the intermediary character of the MCI group. GNNExplainer module employed to investigate the anatomical determinants of the observed discrepancy confirms that sfDLN attends to cortical regions neurologically relevant to ADD., Conclusion: In support of our hypothesis, the harmony between the structural and functional organization of the brain degrades with increasing cognitive decline. This discrepancy, shown to be rooted in brain regions neurologically relevant to ADD, can be quantified by sfDLN and outperforms state-of-the-art GNN-based ADD classification methods when used as a biomarker., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None Declared., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: In advanced breast cancer, endocrine therapy is preferred in the absence of visceral crisis. Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors (CDKi) are the gold standards. The selection of subsequent treatments after CDKi treatment is still controversial, and the efficacy of everolimus (EVE) combinations is unknown. In this study, we aimed to investigate the efficacy of EVE after CDKi administration in real-life experiences., Method: The study received data from 208 patients from 26 cancer centers. Demographic and histologic features, diagnosis, progression, last visit dates, and toxicities were recorded. This study was a retrospective case series., Results: One hundred and seven patients received palbociclib, while 101 patients received ribociclib as a CDKi. The overall response and disease control rates of EVE combinations were 60% and 88%, respectively. In univariate analysis, the absence of liver metastasis, age > 40 years, better type of response, and immediate treatment after CDKi were related to increased progression-free survival. Liver metastasis and response type were significantly associated with overall survival. In the multivariate analysis, response remained significant in terms of progression-free survival, while response type, liver metastatic disease, and hematologic toxicity were prognostic in terms of overall survival., Conclusion: This study provides evidence of the benefits of EVE combinations after CDKi treatment. EVE combinations may be more appropriate for patients with non-liver metastasis, and the first treatment response shows the benefit of treatment. In addition, immediate treatment after CDKi treatment is more beneficial than later lines of treatment., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Clinical cognitive decline, leading to Alzheimer's Disease Dementia (ADD), has long been interpreted as a disconnection syndrome, hindering the information flow capacity of the brain, hence leading to the well-known symptoms of ADD. The structural and functional brain connectome analyses play a central role in studies of brain from this perspective. However, most current research implicitly assumes that the changes accompanying the progression of cognitive decline are monotonous in time, whether measured across the entire brain or in fixed cortical regions. We investigate the structural and functional connectivity-wise reorganization of the brain without such assumptions across the entire spectrum. We utilize nodal assortativity as a local topological measure of connectivity and follow a data-centric approach to identify and verify relevant local regions, as well as to understand the nature of underlying reorganization. The analysis of our preliminary experimental data points to statistically significant, hyper and hypo-assortativity regions that depend on the disease's stage, and differ for structural and functional connectomes. Our results suggest a new perspective into the dynamic, potentially a mix of degenerative and compensatory, topological alterations that occur in the brain as cognitive decline progresses., Competing Interests: Declarations Conflict of Interest The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. Ethics Approval The studies involving humans were approved by Istanbul University, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Ethics Committee Approval: 877/30.05.2014; Bogazici University. Ethics Committee Approval: 2014 - 1/17.02.2014. The studies were conducted in accordance with the local legislation and institutional requirements. The participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study. Consent to Participate Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study, (© 2024. The Author(s).)

The COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus has been studied predominantly in terms of its immediate respiratory and systemic effects. However, emerging evidence suggests possible long-term effects, including its role in carcinogenesis. This comprehensive review explores the complex relationship between COVID-19 and cancer development, focusing on immune dysregulation, chronic inflammation, genetic and epigenetic alterations, and the impact of therapeutic interventions. We also focused on the molecular mechanisms by which SARS-CoV-2 may facilitate cancer progression, including the roles of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), transmembrane serine protease 2 (TMPRSS2), and FURIN. Additionally, we examined the possible carcinogenic effects of long-term COVID-19 treatments and the interaction between co-infections and cancer risk. Our findings highlight the need for increased cancer surveillance in COVID-19 survivors. In the post-COVID-19 period, it can be thought that inflammation associated with excessive cytokine release, especially interleukin-6, genetic and epigenetic changes, and co-infections with oncogenic viruses such as Epstein-Barr virus or human papillomavirus may be effective in the development and progression of cancer. Further research is needed to explain the mechanisms underlying this relationship., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work., (Copyright © 2024, Tanrıverdi et al.)

This study aimed to investigate the effect of changing the indoor unit air flow rate on the performance of an automobile heat pump with a suction line heat exchanger. Using a four-way valve, the automotive heat pump system was developed by reversing the refrigerant direction in the automobile air conditioning system, excluding the compressor. A suction line heat exchanger was added to the test system to enhance heat transfer between the liquid and suction lines of the automotive heat pump system. Performance comparisons were first performed for R134a and R1234yf by disabling the suction line heat exchanger. Then, the suction line heat exchanger was activated for R1234yf, and the tests were repeated. Performance comparisons were made for two different compressor speeds and three different indoor unit airflow speeds. It was found that using the heat exchanger in R1234yf operations improved the heating capacity, compressor discharge temperature and coefficient of performance by approximately 1.8 %, 5.1 % and 5.9 %, respectively. The heating capacity of the heat pump system using R134a, R1234yf, and R1234yf with the suction line heat exchanger was determined to be in the range of 2.46-3.29 kW, 2.35-3.04 kW, and 2.39-3.11 kW, respectively. An increase in the airflow speed of the indoor unit from 1.4 m s -1 to 3.2 m s -1 resulted in an average decrease of approximately 12.3 % in the compressor discharge temperature. In contrast, the heating capacity and coefficient of performance increased by approximately 11.8 % and 14.4 % on average, respectively, for R1234yf operations with the heat exchanger. This study revealed that by optimizing the air flow rate in the R1234yf heat pump system with a suction line heat exchanger, improvements in the heating capacity and coefficient of performance can be achieved, thus providing better thermal comfort in the passenger compartment., Competing Interests: The author declares that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Author.)

Purpose: Invasive methods such as lumbar puncture and intraventricular catheters are commonly used to measure intracranial pressure (ICP). This study aims to develop quantitative and non-invasive techniques to measure ICP in patients with Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension (IIH) using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings., Methods: MRI data obtained from 50 patients with IIH and 30 age- and sex- matched controls were analyzed and optic nerve sheath diameter (ONSD), eyeball transverse diameter (ETD) and optic nerve diameter (OND) were measured. ONSD, ONSD/ETD and OND/ONSD indexes were calculated according to different ONSD measurement distances. Correlations of MRI findings with ICP were calculated. Sensitivity and specificity of all methods were analyzed., Results: ONSD and ONSD/ETD index at 3 mm and 10 mm behind the eyeball were significantly higher (p < 0.001) and OND/ONSD index at 3 mm behind the eyeball was significantly lower (p < 0.001) in the IIH group. The ONSD/ETD index at 3 mm had the highest area under the curve (AUC) value (0.898) with a cut-off of 0.27 mm (82% sensitivity and 91.67% specificity) for predicting high cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pressure, followed by ONSD measurements at 3 mm (AUC = 0.886) with a cut-off of 6.17 mm (83% sensitivity and 86.67% specificity). The OND/ONSD index at 3 mm posterior to the eyeball decreased significantly as ICP increased, and the strength of the relationship was moderate (p < 0.001; r = -0.358)., Conclusions: ONSD and ONSD/ETD index measured on MRI sequences are potentially useful in detecting elevated ICP. The OND/ONSD index correlates with CSF pressure and these techniques may be helpful in diagnosing IIH., (© 2024. The Author(s) under exclusive licence to Belgian Neurological Society.)

Background: Information on the current status of oral health and related risk factors is lacking in Turkiye. This study aimed to evaluate dental caries and associated factors among the Turkish population using the findings of the third national oral health survey., Methods: This cross-sectional epidemiological survey was carried out between March and September in 2018 including five index ages and age groups (5-, 12-, 15-year-olds, 35-44 and 65-74 age groups). A multistage cluster sampling design was used to obtain a national representative sample of these age groups. Participants were interviewed face-to-face using a structured questionnaire, and oral examinations were performed based on the methods and criteria suggested by the World Health Organization. The adjusted prevalence ratio for dental caries was estimated considering sociodemographic and behavioural characteristics by using log-binomial and robust Poisson regression analysis in R and SAS software., Results: After data cleaning, a total of 11 091 participants remained. The prevalence of dental caries was 76.5% (95% confidence interval: 75.4%-77.7%) and determined to be associated with age, dental visit, and pain or discomfort history during the previous year among the Turkish population. Prevalence was also associated with the mother's education level among 5-, 12- and 15-year-olds. For the 35-44 age group, individuals living in urban areas had lower dental caries than those living in rural areas. For 65-74 age group, none of the factors were significantly associated with dental caries., Conclusion: A high prevalence of dental caries was observed in Turkish children and adults. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen current preventive oral health programs. Regular disease surveillance should be maintained. National oral health targets should be formulated in accordance with Turkiye's needs, resources and structure., (© 2024 The Authors. Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Introduction: Multisystemic inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C) is a newly described disease manifestation in children associated with the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 infection and can be easily confused with Kawasaki disease with its clinical and laboratory findings. In this study, the clinical findings, organ involvements, similarities, and differences in laboratory and imaging of the children with MIS-C and KD at the time of admission will be revealed in detail, and the treatment methods and follow-up results will be revealed., Material and Method: Our study was a single-center study and included pediatric patients who were treated with a diagnosis of MIS-C between March 2020 and July 2023 in the pediatric cardiology, pediatric emergency, pediatric infection, and pediatric intensive care clinics at Celal Bayar University and who were treated with a diagnosis of KD (complete/incomplete) between January 2015 and July 2023. MIS-C diagnosis was made according to the Turkish Ministry of Health COVID-19 guidelines. Sociodemographic characteristics, clinical, laboratory, and echocardiography findings, treatments given, and clinical course of all patients included in the study were evaluated., Results: The median age was 30 months (7-84) in KD and 96 months (6-204) in MIS-C, and it was significantly higher in the MIS-C group (p = 0.000). Symptom duration was significantly longer in the MIS-C group (p = 0.000). In terms of clinical features, gastrointestinal syndrome findings (nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain) and respiratory findings (dyspnea) were significantly higher in the MIS-C group (p = 0.007, p = 0.000, p = 0.002, respectively). Regarding cardiovascular system involvement, coronary involvement was significantly higher in the KD group. However, valvular involvement, left ventricular systolic dysfunction, and pericardial effusion were significantly higher in the MIS-C group (p = 0.000, p = 0.001, p = 0.003, p = 0.023, respectively). In terms of laboratory findings, white blood cell count was higher in KD (p = 0.000), absolute lymphocyte count, platelet level, blood sodium, and albumin levels were lower in MIS-C group (p = 0.000, p = 0.000, p = 0.000, p = 0.000, p = 0.003, respectively), ferritin and troponin levels were significantly higher in MIS-C group. These results were statistically significant (p = 0.000, p = 0.000, respectively). D-dimer and fibrinogen levels were high in both groups, and no significant statistical difference was detected between the two groups. There was no significant difference between the two groups regarding the length of hospitalization and mortality, but steroid use was significantly higher in the MIS-C group (p = 0.000)., Conclusion: In conclusion, this study has demonstrated the similarities and differences between MIS-C and KD regarding clinical findings, organ involvement, and laboratory and imaging results. The results of our study have important implications in terms of contributing to the data in the existing literature on these two diseases and for the correct diagnosis and better management of pediatric patients presenting with these disorders., What Is Known: Multisystemic inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C) is a newly described disease manifestation in children associated with the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 infection and can be easily confused with Kawasaki disease with its clinical and laboratory findings., What Is New: Although MIS-C and KD have many similarities, their symptoms, disease processes, possible complications, and treatment regimens may differ., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Purpose: This study aimed to determine the impact of mortality and morbidity indices on the diagnosis and prognosis of patients suffering from necrotizing fasciitis., Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on 41 patients (26 females, 15 males) with necrotizing fasciitis (NF). The SII (Systemic Immune-Inflammation Index) was computed using the formula SII = (P × N)/L, where P, N, and L measure the counts of peripheral platelets, neutrophils, and lymphocytes, respectively. This study evaluated the clinicopathological characteristics and follow-up information to assess the comparative effectiveness of SII, CCI (Charlson Comorbidity Index), and LRINEC (Laboratory Risk Indicator for Necrotizing Fasciitis) scores as mortality and morbidity indices for patients with NF., Results: The optimal cut-off for SII was determined to be 455. The SII value in the group with mortality was significantly higher compared to the group without mortality (p < 0.05). The CCI value in the group with mortality was significantly higher than the group without mortality (p < 0.05). The SII and CCI values were found to be effective in distinguishing between patients who suffered mortality and those who did not., Conclusion: SII is a powerful tool for predicting mortality in patients with necrotizing fasciitis (NF). The SII index provides a novel, easily accessible, and inexpensive indicator for monitoring the progress and predicting the survival of patients with NF., (© 2024. The Author(s) under exclusive licence to SICOT aisbl.)

Background and Aim: Thoracic involvement of Immunoglobulin G4-related disease (IgG4-RD) is relatively rare and may be disregarded at the time of initial diagnosis due to its asymptomatic nature. This study aimed to ascertain the prevalence and patterns of thoracic involvement in a retrospective cohort of Turkish patients with IgG4-RD., Methods: A total of 90 patients (47 males and 43 females, with a mean age of 57.7±15.5 years) diagnosed with IgG4-RD were reviewed retrospectively. All computed tomography (CT) scans were re-evaluated by two thoracic radiologists and IgG4-related thoracic disease was assessed on four compartments: The mediastinum, pulmonary parenchyma, airways, and pleura. IgG4-related thoracic disease was categorized as: definite, highly probable, probable or possible., Results: There were 64 patients who had undergone at least one thorax CT examination, and 18 (28%) were diagnosed with IgG4-related thoracic disease. The rate of IgG4-related thoracic disease increased by 20% and reached a ratio of 48.4% (n=31) after a thorough reevaluation of registry data specifically to thoracic findings. The mediastinum was the most frequently involved compartment, affecting 16 (51.6%) patients, followed by pulmonary parenchyma in 14 (45.2%) patients, and airways and pleura in 10 (32.3%) patients each. Other organ involvements were more prevalent and IgG4 levels were higher in patients with thoracic involvement. Eosinophils were significantly elevated in patients with thoracic involvement (p=0.023)., Conclusions: IgG4-related thoracic disease is heterogeneous and likely to be more prevalent than currently recognized. The mediastinum is the most frequently involved compartment. It is important to assess IgG4-related thoracic disease at the time of initial diagnosis. Elevated levels of serum IgG4 and eosinophils, as well as a greater number of organ involvements may serve as indicators of thoracic involvement.

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of combined therapy of teriparatide and raloxifene on the osseointegration of titanium dental implants in a rabbit model of osteoporotic bone., Materials and Methods: Sixty female rabbits were randomly divided into six groups. The sham ovariectomy group (control) consisted of animals that received no medication. Animals in the ovariectomy group (OVX) underwent ovariectomy and received no medication. The combined group consisted of ovariectomized animals that received combined teriparatide (10 mg/kg) for 12 weeks and raloxifene (10 mg/kg) for 12 weeks. The sequential group (SEQ) consisted of ovariectomized animals that received teriparatide (10 mg/kg) for the first 6 weeks and raloxifene therapy (10 mg/kg) for the following 6 weeks sequentially. The parathormone (PTH) and raloxifene (RAL) groups consisted of ovariectomized animals that received only teriparatide (10 mg/kg) for 12 weeks or raloxifene (10 mg/kg) for 12 weeks, respectively. Dental implants (Bilimplant) were placed in the proximal metaphysis of both tibias in all rabbits. Histomorphometric and microCT studies were performed on the specimens obtained from the right tibia bone. Removal torque (RTQ) and implant stability quotient (ISQ) tests were performed on the specimens obtained from the left tibia bone. The results were compared and evaluated statistically., Results: RTQ analysis revealed a statistically significant difference between the mean values of the combined group (93.01 ± 27.19 Ncm) and the OVX group (49.6 ± 12.5 Ncm) (P = .015). The highest mean T0 (implantation day) value was obtained in the control group (67.1 ± 3.4 Ncm), and the lowest mean value was obtained in the OVX group (61.4 ± 3.8 Ncm). The highest T1 mean (3 months after implantation) was obtained by the combined group (76.6 ± 3.8 Ncm), and the lowest mean was obtained by the OVX group (68.9 ± 6.2 Ncm). Histomorphometric analyses showed that the mean percentage of bone-to-implant contact (BIC%) of the combined group (51.2%) was significantly higher than that of the OVX group (28.6%) (P =.006). In the microCT examinations, it was found that the mean BIC% value of the combined group (41.1%) was significantly higher than that of the OVX group (24.1%) (P < .001)., Conclusions: According to the results of the current study, combined therapy of teriparatide and raloxifene improves the BIC and osseointegration of titanium dental implants in osteoporotic bone compared with sequential or independent therapy with these agents.

Background: To investigate whether there is a difference in mean diffusivity (MD) and fractional anisotropy (FA) values in the auditory pathways of neurofibromatosis type 1 patients with and without focal areas of abnormal signal intensity (FASI) compared to healthy controls by using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). Methods: Patients were classified as group 1 with focal areas of abnormal signal intensity in the brainstem, group 2 without focal areas of abnormal signal intensity, and healthy control group 3 according to the MRI findings. Mean diffusivity and fractional anisotropy values of lateral lemniscus, inferior colliculus, corpus geniculatum mediale, Heschl gyrus, and brainstem were compared between groups. The correlation between mean diffusivity and fractional anisotropy values of auditory pathways and age was investigated. Results: There was a significant difference between group 1 and group 2 in terms of mean diffusivity and fractional anisotropy values at lateral lemniscus, inferior colliculus, corpus geniculatum mediale, and Heschl gyrus. Increased mean diffusivity and decreased fractional anisotropy values at brainstem were found in group 1. There was a significant difference between group 1 and group 3 in terms of mean diffusivity values at all auditory pathways. Fractional anisotropy values obtained from lateral lemniscus, inferior colliculus, and Heschl gyrus decreased in group 1 compared with group 3. There was a negative correlation between mean diffusivity values and positive correlation between fractional anisotropy values at lateral lemniscus, inferior colliculus, Heschl gyrus, and age. Conclusions: Our diffusion tensor imaging findings show that the neuronal integrity of the auditory pathways is affected in neurofibromatosis type 1 patients with brainstem focal areas of abnormal signal intensity. We think that the disappearance of brainstem focal areas of abnormal signal intensity associated with myelin repair and the regression of diffusion tensor imaging changes in the auditory pathways occur simultaneously with advancing age in patients with neurofibromatosis type 1., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Introduction: Recent guidelines suggest that biopsy may be omitted in some groups of patients with PI-RADS 3 lesions on mpMRI. In this study, we aimed to evaluate biopsy strategies involving prostate-specific antigen density (PSAd) to avoid unnecessary biopsy versus the risk of missing clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa) in patients with PI-RADS 3 lesions., Material and Methods: Data of 616 consecutive patients who underwent PSAd and mpMRI before prostate biopsy between January 2017 and January 2022 at a single center were retrospectively assessed. All of these patients underwent combined cognitive or fusion targeted biopsy of suspicious lesions and transrectal ultrasonography guided systematic biopsy. PI-RADS 3 based strategies with PSAd and mpMRI combination were created. For each strategy, avoided unnecessary biopsy, reduced ISUP Grade 1, and missed ISUP Grade ≥ 2 ratios were determined. Decision curve analysis (DCA) was used to statistically compare the net benefit of each strategy., Results: DCA revealed that patients who had PI-RADS 3 lesions with PSAd ≥ 0.2, and/or patients who had PI-RADS 4 and 5 lesions had the most benefit, under the threshold probability level between 10% and 50%, which avoided 48.2% unnecessary prostate biopsies and reduced 51% of ISUP grade 1 cases, while missed 17.5% of ISUP grade ≥ 2 cases. (22.1% for ISUP grade 2 and 8.8% for ISUP grade ≥ 3). Strategy 1 (PI-RADS 4-5 and/or PSAd ≥ 0.2), 3 (PI-RADS 4-5 and/or PI-RADS 3 if PSAd ≥ 0.15), and 7 (PI-RADS 4-5 and/or PI-RADS 3 if PSAd ≥ 0.15 and/or PI-RADS 2 if PSAd ≥ 0.2) were the next three best strategies., Conclusion: mpMRI combined with PSAd strategies reduced biopsy attempts in PI-RADS 3 lesions. Using these strategies, the advantage of avoiding biopsy and the risk of missing the diagnosis of csPCa can be discussed with the patient, and the biopsy decision can be made afterwards., Competing Interests: Disclosure The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Pulmonary embolism (PE) refers to the occlusion of pulmonary arteries by blood clots, posing a mortality risk of approximately 30%. The detection of pulmonary embolism within segmental arteries presents greater challenges compared with larger arteries and is frequently overlooked. In this study, we developed a computational method to automatically identify pulmonary embolism within segmental arteries using computed tomography (CT) images. The system architecture incorporates an enhanced Mask R-CNN deep neural network trained on PE-containing images. This network accurately localizes pulmonary embolisms in CT images and effectively delineates their boundaries. This study involved creating a local data set and evaluating the model predictions against pulmonary embolisms manually identified by expert radiologists. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, Dice coefficient, and Jaccard index values were obtained as 96.2%, 93.4%, 96.%, 0.95, and 0.89, respectively. The enhanced Mask R-CNN model outperformed the traditional Mask R-CNN and U-Net models. This study underscores the influence of Mask R-CNN's loss function on model performance, providing a basis for the potential improvement of Mask R-CNN models for object detection and segmentation tasks in CT images.

Background Vaccines have the most important role in the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic. With the widespread use of vaccines, COVID-19 has remarkably declined. Adolescents were vaccinated after approvals for this age group, which was later than adults, and a nationwide vaccination program was implemented in August 2021 in Turkey for adolescents ≥12 years of age. Therefore, we aimed to determine the effects of the COVID-19 nationwide adolescent vaccination program on adolescent hospitalizations due to COVID-19 and multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) by comparing two periods, including the vaccination period (VP) and the pre-VP (PVP). The second aim of this study is to compare the clinical features and disease severity of vaccine-breakthrough COVID-19 hospitalizations with unvaccinated individuals in the VP. Methods A retrospective multicenter study was conducted to determine and compare the number of hospitalizations due to COVID-19 and MIS-C between the VP (September 1, 2021, to August 31, 2022) and PVP (September 1, 2020, to August 31, 2021). We also compared the characteristics, risk factors, and outcomes of breakthrough infections of adolescents aged 12-18, which required hospitalization with the same age group of unvaccinated hospitalized individuals during the VP. Results During the study period, 3967 children (0-18 years) were hospitalized in the PVP and 5143 (0-18 years) in the VP. Of them, 35.4% were adolescents (12-18 years) in the PVP, and this rate was 18.6% in the VP; relative risk was 0.6467 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.6058-0.6904; p < 0.001). Patients with breakthrough COVID-19 were older (201 vs. 175 months, p < 0.001) and less commonly hospitalized for COVID-19 (81.5% vs. 60.4%, p < 0.001, odds ratio [OR]: 0.347 [95% CI: 0.184-0.654]). The majority of these infections were asymptomatic and mild (32% vs.72.9%: p < 0.001, OR: 5.718 [95% CI: 2.920-11.200]), and PICU admission was less frequently required (p = 0.011, OR: 0.188 [95% CI: 0.045-0.793]). Most breakthrough COVID-19 infections occurred within three months after the last vaccine dose (54.2%). Conclusions This study demonstrated a significant decrease in adolescent hospitalizations due to COVID-19 and MIS-C after implementing COVID-19 vaccines in Turkey. Breakthrough cases were less severe and mostly occurred three months after the last dose. This study emphasizes the importance of COVID-19 vaccines and that parents' decisions may be changed, particularly those who hesitate to or refuse vaccination., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright © 2024, Şahbudak Bal et al.)

While some clinics have adopted abbreviated neoadjuvant treatment for HER2-positive breast cancer, there remains a shortage of comprehensive clinical data to support this practice. This is a retrospective, multicenter study. A total of 142 patients were included in the study who are HER2-positive breast cancer, aged ≤ 65 years, with left ventricular ejection fraction ≥ 50%, received neoadjuvant chemotherapy and underwent surgery at 10 different oncology centers in Türkiye between October 2016 and December 2022. The treatment arms were divided into 4-6 cycles of docetaxel/trastuzumab/pertuzumab for arm A, 4 cycles of adriamycin/cyclophosphamide followed by 4 cycles of taxane/TP for arm B. There were 50 patients (35.2%) in arm A and 92 patients (64.8%) in arm B. The median follow-up of all of the patients was 19.9 months (95% CI 17.5-22.3). The 3-year DFS rates for treatment arms A and B were 90.0% and 83.8%, respectively, and the survival outcomes between the groups were similar (p = 0.34). Furthermore, the pathologic complete response rates were similar in both treatment arms, at 50.0% and 51.1%, respectively (p = 0.90). This study supports shortened neoadjuvant treatment of HER2-positive breast cancer, a common practice in some clinics., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between attitudes toward physical activity and weight gain among children and young adolescents with an additional focus on the impact of gender on these attitudes., Methods: Employing a descriptive survey method, data were systematically gathered via purposive sampling from 11 specific cities in Türkiye, ensuring representation from all seven regions. A total of 3,138 students, aged between 9 and 14 years, participated in this study, with a distribution of 46% girls and 54% boys. To assess the attitudes of children and young adolescents toward physical activity, the Youth Physical Activity Attitude Scale was utilized. Height and body weight measurements were taken to determine the body mass index of participants. SPSS 26.0 software facilitated the statistical analyses, including Pearson correlation analysis to explore relationships between variables. Multivariate Analysis of Variance was employed to evaluate the impact of age, BMI, and gender on attitudes toward physical activity., Results: Participants classified as normal weight exhibited a more positive attitude towards physical activity compared to their obese and overweight counterparts. Moreover, a significant gender difference emerged, with boys demonstrating significantly higher positive attitudes toward physical activity than girls. However, no significant difference was observed in negative attitudes based on gender. The study also revealed that an escalation in negative attitudes towards physical activity correlated with students being categorized as underweight, overweight, or obese, as opposed to having a normal weight status. Additionally, a statistically significant divergence in both positive and negative attitudes towards physical activity was found based on age. Specifically, the results indicated that students aged 9 and 14 exhibited lower levels of positive attitude when contrasted with their counterparts of different age groups. Conversely, in the domain of negative attitudes, students at the age of 9 scored higher than their peers in other age categories., Discussion: Attitudes towards physical activity can serve as a convenient indicator and guide for assessing the effectiveness of various practices or interventions aimed at promoting physical activity, with recognition of the significant gender difference in positive attitudes among children and young adolescents., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (© 2024 Özer, Uyhan, Devrilmez, Orhan, Bilgiç, Uğurlu, Tabak, Yüksel, Şentürk, Karakullukçu, Eler, Özcan and Akpınar.)

The purpose of this study was to elucidate the effects of mandibular anatomy and osteotomy technique on lingual fracture patterns in SSRO. The predictor variables were: length of horizontal medial osteotomy; type of border osteotomy; buccolingual width; and vertical length of the basal cortex. The outcome variable was the type of lingual split pattern. This was categorized into four types according to a lingual split scale (LSS): LSS 1, true Hunsuck; LSS 2, fracture line to posterior border of the ramus; LSS 3, through to mandibular canal; LSS 4, unfavorable fracture pattern. Data were analyzed using analysis of variance and the Pearson χ 2 test. Values of p < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. The study sample comprised 312 lingual split patterns in 156 patients. The most common type of lingual split pattern was LSS 1 (n = 204). There was a significant relationship between inferior border osteotomy type and LSS type (p = 0.001). Whilst LSS 1 was the most common among all border osteotomy types. LSS 4 was most frequently observed in cases where the lower border osteotomy remained in the buccal surface. According to the results of this study, the likelihood of an unfavorable split pattern increases when the lower border osteotomy remains in the buccal surface., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest in regard to this work., (Copyright © 2024 European Association for Cranio-Maxillo-Facial Surgery. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Natural sounds are easily perceived and identified by humans and animals. Despite this, the neural transformations that enable sound perception remain largely unknown. It is thought that the temporal characteristics of sounds may be reflected in auditory assembly responses at the inferior colliculus (IC) and which may play an important role in identification of natural sounds. In our study, natural sounds will be predicted from multi-unit activity (MUA) signals collected in the IC. Data is obtained from an international platform publicly accessible. The temporal correlation values of the MUA signals are converted into images. We used two different segment sizes and with a denoising method, we generated four subsets for the classification. Using pre-trained convolutional neural networks (CNNs), features of the images were extracted and the type of heard sound was classified. For this, we applied transfer learning from Alexnet, Googlenet and Squeezenet CNNs. The classifiers support vector machines (SVM), k-nearest neighbour (KNN), Naive Bayes and Ensemble were used. The accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, precision and F1 score were measured as evaluation parameters. By using all the tests and removing the noise, the accuracy improved significantly. These results will allow neuroscientists to make interesting conclusions.

Objectives: The purpose of this study to determinate whether there is a relationship between the nutritional status and white matter integrity in older patients by using Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI)., Methods: The patients were evaluated by Mini-Nutritional Assessment Scale. The patients are categorized in the groups of well-nourished, risk of malnutrition, or malnourished, depending on the overall score> 23.5, 17-23.5, or 17; respectively. All patients had brain MRI and DTI. The mean diffusivity (MD), fractional anisotropy (FA), axial diffusivity (AD) and radial diffusivity (RD) values were calculated by ROI-based method in white matter tracts., Results: Total of the 224 patients; 86 patients had normal nutrition status (group 1), 107 patients were diagnosed with malnutrition risk (group 2) and 31 patients were diagnosed with malnutrition (group 3). Significantly decreased FA values of genu of corpus callosum, forceps minor and significantly increased MD values of middle cerebellar peduncle, and superior frontooccipital fasciculus were detected in group 2 in comparison to group 1 (p < 0.05). After adjusting for the folate and age, MD and RD values of cingulum remained significantly higher and the AD values of superior cerebellar peduncle remained significantly lower in group 3 (p < 0.05)., Conclusions: Malnutrition was associated with deteriorated DTI values, especially in cingulum and superior cerebellar peduncle. Assessing the nutritional status of older individuals is crucial to avoid its negative impact on brain., Advances in Knowledge: Early diagnosis of malnutrition-related impaired WM integrity is important for prevention and intervention, and DTI is a useful non-invasive technique to be used for this purpose., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd and European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism. All rights reserved.)

Background: Athletic taping has long been a physiotherapeutic application in individuals with patellofemoral pain (PFP). However, the therapeutic effects of local and proximal taping have not been fully determined., Objective: To evaluate the effects of two different taping techniques applied in addition to exercise on patellofemoral alignment, pain, and function in individuals with PFP., Design: Randomized controlled trial., Setting: An outpatient hospital clinic., Participants: Individuals with PFP aged 18-50 years (n = 36)., Interventions: Group 1 underwent only the exercise program. Group 2 underwent the exercise plus McConnell patellar taping (MPT), and Group 3 underwent the exercise plus femoral rotational taping (FRT) (6 weeks)., Main Outcome Measures: Bisect offset index (BOI) and patellar tilt angle (PTA) were measured in relaxed and maximum voluntary contractions of the quadriceps muscle (MVCq) using magnetic resonance imaging. Pain intensity was assessed by the Visual Analog Scale for three conditions: at daytime rest, during activity, and at nighttime. Functional level was assessed by the Kujala Patellofemoral Scoring System., Results: Significant improvements in the BOI of Group 2 at rest (p = .015; r = 0.593) and in PTA of Group 3 at MVCq (p = .010; r = 0.613) were found. Improvements in pain under all three conditions were significant within groups (all, p values < .050 and r > 0.5). The change in pain was similar between groups (all, p values > .05). All groups showed significant improvement in functional level (all, p values < .010 and r > 0.5). However, the increase in Group 3 was higher than that in Group 1 (p = .019)., Conclusion: This study shows that MPT and FRT applications increase functionality and can affect patellofemoral alignment in different ways. In the treatment of PFP, more successful results can be obtained with appropriate taping techniques for the local and proximal region., (© 2023 American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.)

Introduction: Adjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT) is the optimal management strategy in resectable gastric cancer. There is a debate about the efficacy of more aggressive CRT plus chemotherapy regimens in adjuvant setting. This study aimed to compare the efficacy of adjuvant CRT plus docetaxel-cisplatin-fluorouracil (DCF) versus CRT plus fluorouracil-folinic acid (FUFA) in stage III gastric cancer., Methods: Patients with a diagnosis of stage III gastric cancer treated with adjuvant therapy after curative resection were analyzed. Patients' disease characteristics and impacts of the regimens on median disease-free survival (DFS) and median overall survival (OS) were analyzed retrospectively., Results: One hundred sixty-one patients (102 in FUFA arm and 59 in DCF arm) with a median age of 56.0 (29-79) were evaluated. In the DCF arm, there were more renal toxicities (31.6% vs 6.4% P < 0.001), emergency department admissions (64.9% vs 23.7%, P < 0.001), and dose reductions/treatment modifications in the DCF arm (51.6% vs 37.2, P < 0.001). The median follow-up was 23 months (1-124) in the FUFA arm and 26.0 months (1-77) in the DCF arm. The median DFS was 25.0 months (%95 CI, 12.7-37.2) in the DCF arm and 17.0 months (%95 CI, 2.6-31.3) in the FUFA arm, P = 0.66. The median OS was 28.0 months (%95 CI, 17.0-38.9) in the DCF arm and 25.0 months (%95 CI, 11.9-36.0) in the FUFA arm, P = 0.70., Conclusion: In conclusion, when compared with FUFA regimen, more aggressive therapy with DCF was more toxic and did not improve OS in adjuvant setting of stage III gastric cancer., (Copyright © 2024 Copyright: © 2024 Journal of Cancer Research and Therapeutics.)

Objective: To compare the functional (obstruction relieving) outcomes and complications of unilateral J-cut division, partial and subtotal vaginal removal techniques were performed for mesh-related urethral obstruction (MRUO) in females., Methods: Patient review included demographics, a medical history and proforma with details of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), physical and urodynamic findings, detailed surgical reports and follow-up data. Variables were compared between the three groups., Results: Out of 130 patients with sling revision surgery (SRS), 54 women underwent SRS for MRUO with a median follow-up of 48 (17-96) months. Unilateral J-cut division, partial and subtotal vaginal removal techniques were performed in 12, 31 and 11 patients with a median duration of surgery of 30 (25-34), 40 (35-56) and 60 (60-70) minutes, respectively ( p  = 0.001). Statistically significant increase in median maximum free urine flow rate and decrease in median post-void residual urine volume were found after SRS in the three groups, while de novo stress urinary incontinence (SUI) developed in 10%, 44% and 60% of the patients in the unilateral J-cut division, partial and subtotal removal groups, respectively ( p  = 0.007)., Conclusions: The unilateral J-cut division technique was as effective as the partial and subtotal vaginal removal techniques in relieving MRUO with a shorter duration of surgery time ( p  = 0.001) and lower risk of de novo SUI ( p  = 0.007). Comparative studies with a larger number of patients are needed., Competing Interests: There is no conflict of interest., (© 2024 The Authors. BJUI Compass published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of BJU International Company.)

The only phase 3 study on the effectiveness of CDK 4-6 inhibitors in first-line treatment in premenopausal patients with hormone receptor (HR) positive, HER2 negative metastatic breast cancer is the MONALEESA-7 study, and data on the effectiveness of palbociclib is limited. Data are also limited regarding the effectiveness of CDK 4-6 inhibitors in patients whose dose was reduced due to neutropenia, the most common side effect of CDK 4-6 inhibitors. In our study, we aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of palbociclib and ribociclib in first-line treatment in patients with premenopausal metastatic breast cancer and the effect of dose reduction due to neutropenia on progression-free survival. Our study is a multicenter, retrospective study, and factors affecting progression-free survival (PFS) were examined in patients diagnosed with metastatic premenopausal breast cancer from 29 different centers and receiving combination therapy containing palbociclib or ribociclib in the metastatic stage. 319 patients were included in the study. The mPFS for patients treated with palbociclib was 26.83 months, and for those receiving ribociclib, the mPFS was 29.86 months ( p  = 0.924). mPFS was 32.00 months in patients who received a reduced dose, and mPFS was 25.96 months in patients who could take the initial dose, and there was no statistical difference ( p  = 0.238). Liver metastasis, using a fulvestrant together with a CDK 4-6 inhibitor, ECOG PS 1 was found to be a negative prognostic factor. No new adverse events were observed. In our study, we found PFS over 27 months in patients diagnosed with premenopausal breast cancer with CDK 4-6 inhibitors used in first-line treatment, similar to post-menopausal patients. We did not detect any difference between the effectiveness of the two CDK 4-6 inhibitors, and we showed that there was no decrease in the effectiveness of the CDK 4-6 inhibitor in patients whose dose was reduced due to neutropenia.

Pneumonia is a disease caused by bacteria, viruses, and fungi that settle in the alveolar sacs of the lungs and can lead to serious health complications in humans. Early detection of pneumonia is necessary for early treatment to manage and cure the disease. Recently, machine learning-based pneumonia detection methods have focused on pneumonia in adults. Machine learning relies on manual feature engineering, whereas deep learning can automatically detect and extract features from data. This study proposes a deep learning feature extraction-based hybrid approach that combines deep learning and machine learning to detect pediatric pneumonia, which is difficult to standardize. The proposed hybrid approach enhances the accuracy of detecting pediatric pneumonia and simplifies the approach by eliminating the requirement for advanced feature extraction. The experiments indicate that the hybrid approach using a Medium Neural Network based on AlexNet feature extraction achieved a 97.9% accuracy rate and 98.0% sensitivity rate. The results show that the proposed approach achieved higher accuracy rates than state-of-the-art approaches., (© 2023. Australasian College of Physical Scientists and Engineers in Medicine.)

Objective: To assess the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Mandibular Function Impairment Questionnaire (MFIQ-TR)., Methods: Included in this study were 248 patients diagnosed with temporomandibular disorder (TMD) according to Diagnostic Criteria for TMD Axis I protocol. Construct-related validity was evaluated through internal and external construct validity; convergent and divergent validities were evaluated by the average variance extracted (AVE), composite reliability (CR), and bivariate correlations between factors. Reliability was assessed by internal consistency and test-retest reliability., Results: All items of the MFIQ-TR had content validity and factor loadings above 0.5. The model statistics indicated a good fit. The convergent validity was very good (AVE > 0.5 and CR > 0.7), and the discriminant validity was satisfied. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability of the MFIQ-TR were excellent., Conclusion: The MFIQ-TR is a valid and reliable instrument for evaluating the impairment of mandibular function in Turkish patients with TMD.

Purpose: To evaluate the mortality rate, intensive care unit (ICU) referral, and Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) between different types of vaccinated and non-vaccinated patients operated on due to intertrochanteric femoral fracture (IFF) during the pandemic., Methods: Ninety-six patients (43 males, 53 females) who had proximal femur nails (PFN) for the IFF during the pandemic were included in the study. The patients were divided into four subgroups; non-vaccinated, and different types of vaccinated. Mortality rates, ICU referrals, and CCI relations were evaluated., Results: No significant difference was observed in terms of demographic data such as age, gender, side, CCI, and ICU referrals between the subgroups (p = 0.164, p = 0.546, p = 0.703, p = 0.771, p = 0.627 respectively). The mortality rate was significantly lower in the Sinovac + BioNTech subgroup (p = 0.044)., Conclusion: No relationship was found between mortality rate, ICU referral, and CCI in different types of vaccinated and non-vaccinated patient subgroups., (© 2023. The Author(s) under exclusive licence to SICOT aisbl.)

Purpose: To investigate the alterations in the diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) parameters measured in the hunger and satiety centers of the brain before and after bariatric surgery (BS) in morbidly obese patients., Methods: Fourty morbidly obese patients were evaluated before and after BS. Mean diffusivity (MD) and fractional anisotropy (FA) values were calculated from 14 related brain locations, and the DTI parameters were analyzed., Results: After the BS, the mean BMI of the patients decreased from 47.53 ± 5.21 to 31.48 ± 4.21. The MD and FA values in the all of the hunger and satiety centers was found statistically significant different in the pre-surgery period compared to the post-surgery period (for each; p-value < 0.001)., Conclusion: The FA and MD changes after BS may be attributed to reversible neuroinflammatory alterations in the hunger and satiety centers. Decreased MD and FA values after BS may be explained by the neuroplastic structural recovery in the related brain locations., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Royal Academy of Medicine in Ireland.)

Introduction: This study aimed to show the relationship between the serum uric acid level measured at diagnosis and the BRAF mutation status in the primary tumor tissue in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer., Methods: In this retrospective cross-sectional study, 264 patients (64% male) whose serum uric acid level was measured at the time of diagnosis and whose BRAF mutation status in the primary tumor was determined were included., Results: The BRAF mutation rate was 14% (n = 37). The median serum uric acid levels of all patients were 6.9 mg/dL (25%, 75% percentile range 3.7, 8.2). The serum uric acid level cut-off value was 6.6 mg/dL. Sensitivity and specificity for BRAF mutated patients were 84% and 27%, respectively. These rates were calculated as 85% and 70% in BRAF-mutated patients aged 65 and over. There was a significant correlation between BRAF mutation and high serum uric acid level, female gender, tumor located in the ascending colon, and multiple metastatic sites. The independent factors affecting BRAF mutation were age 65 and over, tumor in the ascending colon, and high serum uric acid level., Conclusion: As a result, we concluded that high serum uric acid level measured during diagnosis in metastatic colorectal cancer is an accessible and economical biomarker that can predict BRAF mutation in patients aged 65 and over., (© 2024 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Rationale and Objectives: Salivary gland tumors constitute 2%-6% of all head and neck tumors and are most common in the parotid gland. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is the most sensitive imaging modality for diagnosis. Tumor type, localization, and relationship with surrounding structures are important factors for treatment. Therefore, parotid gland tumor segmentation is important. Specialists widely use manual segmentation in diagnosis and treatment. However, considering the development of artificial intelligence-based models today, it is seen that artificial intelligence-based automatic segmentation models can be used instead of manual segmentation, which is a time-consuming technique. Therefore, we segmented parotid gland tumor (PGT) using deep learning-based architectures in the paper., Materials and Methods: The dataset used in the study includes 102 T1-w, 102 contrast-enhanced T1-w (T1C-w), and 102 T2-w MR images. After cropping the raw and manually segmented images by experts, we obtained the masks of these images. After standardizing the image sizes, we split these images into approximately 80% training set and 20% test set. Hereabouts, we trained six models for these images using ResNet18 and Xception-based DeepLab v3+. We prepared a user-friendly Graphical User Interface application that includes each of these models., Results: From the results, the accuracy and weighted Intersection over Union values of the ResNet18-based DeepLab v3+ architecture trained for T1C-w, which is the most successful model in the study, are equal to 0.96153 and 0.92601, respectively. Regarding the results and the literature, it can be seen that the proposed system is competitive in terms of both using MR images and training the models independently for T1-w, T1C-w, and T2-w. Expressing that PGT is usually segmented manually in the literature, we predict that our study can contribute significantly to the literature., Conclusion: In this study, we prepared and presented a software application that can be easily used by users for automatic PGT segmentation. In addition to predicting the reduction of costs and workload through the study, we developed models with meaningful performance metrics according to the literature., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Association of University Radiologists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: Due to its link with the 2019 coronavirus, the multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MISC) has garnered considerable international interest. The aim of this study, in which MISC patients were evaluated multicenter, and the data of the third period of the Turk-MISC study group, to compare the clinical and laboratory characteristics and outcomes of MISC patients who did and did not require admission to an intensive care unit (ICU)., Methods: This retrospective multicenter observational study was carried out between June 11, 2021, and January 01, 2022. The demographics, complaints, laboratory results, system involvements, and outcomes of the patients were documented., Results: A total of 601 patients were enrolled; 157 patients (26.1%) required hospitalization in the intensive care unit (ICU). Median age was 8 years (interquartile range (IQR) 4.5-11.3 years. The proportion of Kawasaki disease-like features in the ICU group was significantly higher than in the non-ICU group (56.1% vs. 43.2% p = 0.006). The ICU group had considerably lower counts of both lymphocytes and platelets (lymphocyte count 900 vs. 1280 cells × μL, platelet count 153 vs. 212 cells × 10 3 / μL, all for p< 0.001). C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, and ferritin levels were significantly higher in the ICU group (CRP 164 vs. 129 mg/L, procalcitonin 9.2 vs. 2.2 μg/L, ferritin 644 vs. 334 μg/L, all for p< 0.001). Being between ages 5-12 and older than 12 increased the likelihood of hospitalization in the ICU by four [95% confidence intervals (CI)1.971-8.627] and six times (95% CI 2.575-14.654), respectively, compared to being between the ages 0-5. A one-unit increase in log D-dimer (µg/L) and log troponin (ng/L) was also demonstrated to increase the need for intensive care by 1.8 (95% CI 1.079-3.233) and 1.4 times (95% CI 1.133-1.789), respectively.     Conclusion: By comparing this study to our other studies, we found that the median age of MISC patients has been rising. Patients requiring an ICU stay had considerably higher levels of procalcitonin, CRP, and ferritin but significantly lower levels of lymphocyte and thrombocyte. In particular, high levels of procalcitonin in the serum might serve as a valuable laboratory marker for anticipating the need for intensive care., What Is Known: • Lymphopenia and thrombocytopenia were an independent predictor factors in patients with MISC who needed to stay in intensive care unit. • The possibility of the need to stay in the intensive care unit in patients with MISC who had Kawasaki disease-like findings was controversial compared with those who did not., What Is New: • A one-unit increase log D dimer and log troponin was demonstrated to require for intensive care unit by 1.8 and 1.4 times, respectively. • Serum procalcitonin levels had the best performance to predict stay in the intensive care unit stay., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Abstract: Hydatid cyst disease is a zoonotic infection caused by the genus Echinococcus. Hydatid cysts are usually located in the liver or lungs whereas the brain is an unusual location. A 45-year-old male patient was diagnosed with an intracranial mass suggesting a metastasis in the frontal region shown in the cranial computed tomography (CT) scan following a cranial trauma. The histological evaluation revealed an acellular laminated lesion surrounded with reactive changes, compatible with a cuticle. These findings were evaluated in favour of a hydatid cyst caused by Echinococcus multilocularis. Alveolar echinococcosis is a zoonotic disease caused by the genus Echinococcus multilocularis. Hydatid cyst is a common public health issue in the countries where livestock farming is common. Primary or metastatic tumours and abscesses should be considered in the differential diagnosis of hydatid cysts regardless of their location., (Copyright © 2023 Indian Journal of Pathology and Microbiology | Published by Wolters Kluwer – Medknow.)

Purpose: Metastases are the most common neoplasm in the adult brain. In order to initiate the treatment, an extensive diagnostic workup is usually required. Radiomics is a discipline aimed at transforming visual data in radiological images into reliable diagnostic information. We aimed to examine the capability of deep learning methods to classify the origin of metastatic lesions in brain MRIs and compare the deep Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) methods with image texture based features., Methods: One hundred forty three patients with 157 metastatic brain tumors were included in the study. The statistical and texture based image features were extracted from metastatic tumors after manual segmentation process. Three powerful pre-trained CNN architectures and the texture-based features on both 2D and 3D tumor images were used to differentiate lung and breast metastases. Ten-fold cross-validation was used for evaluation. Accuracy, precision, recall, and area under curve (AUC) metrics were calculated to analyze the diagnostic performance., Results: The texture-based image features on 3D volumes achieved better discrimination results than 2D image features. The overall performance of CNN architectures with 3D inputs was higher than the texture-based features. Xception architecture, with 3D volumes as input, yielded the highest accuracy (0.85) while the AUC value was 0.84. The AUC values of VGG19 and the InceptionV3 architectures were 0.82 and 0.81, respectively., Conclusion: CNNs achieved superior diagnostic performance in differentiating brain metastases from lung and breast malignancies than texture-based image features. Differentiation using 3D volumes as input exhibited a higher success rate than 2D sagittal images., (© 2023 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)