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Objective: The new type of Corona virus (SARS-CoV-2) is the most important item on the agenda, currently affecting our world The number of cases has exceeded millions and the number of dead has exceeded hundreds of thousands The precautions to be taken by societies and individuals, especially states, will undoubtedly be the most important task at the end of this epidemic In our study, analyzes the data and consequences regarding COVID-19, making use of worldwide experiences and national statistics In the report writing process, evidence-based and scientific tables and charts were used In these times when most citizens have just begun to encounter the word pandemic, this report has been prepared using the data and scientific facts of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Turkey In this study, it was aimed to evaluate "contact tracing management" (detection, referral and follow-up) studies for positive cases with COVID-19 test results and their contacts in Ankara Methods: With the Laboratory Information Management System (LBYS), Public Health Management System (HSYS), Contact Tracing and Isolation Tracking System (FITAS) and the Family Medicine Information System (AHBS) prepared by our Ministry, the COVID-19 test results in Ankara were directed towards the "the Our study, which aims to evaluate contact tracing management" (detection, referral and follow-up) studies, is a descriptive study Within the scope of the research, the studies between March 11, 2020 and May 31, 2020 were examined In order to use the data in the study, permission was obtained from the General Directorate of Public Health of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Turkey dated 06/12/2020 and numbered 119016548 Results: In Ankara, the number of contacts per case is 4 07 and the number of contact tracing per case is 4 05 With a total of 398 "Field Contact Tracing Teams" consisting of 1 doctor and 2 health care personnel throughout the city, the average of 50 ± standard deviations reached 99 4% within hours Conclusion: The most effective way to prevent the spread of the virus;the epidemic is expected to be brought under control by public health interventions such as mask use, social distance, hand washing, hygiene rules, infection prevention activities such as indoor ventilation and contact management made through Field Contact Tracing Teams" and Family Medicine providing service across the country with GPS-based mobile application FITAS © 2020 Refik Saydam National Public Health Agency (RSNPHA)

Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) are widely used for image classification and have achieved significantly accurate performance in the last decade. However, they require computationally intensive operations for embedded applications. In recent years, FPGA-based CNN accelerators have been proposed to improve energy efficiency and throughput. While dynamic partial reconfiguration (DPR) is increasingly used in CNN accelerators, the performance of dynamically reconfigurable accelerators is usually lower than the performance of pure static FPGA designs. This work presents a dynamically reconfigurable CNN accelerator architecture that does not sacrifice throughput performance or classification accuracy. The proposed accelerator is composed of reconfigurable macroblocks and dynamically utilizes the device resources according to model parameters. Moreover, we devise a novel approach, to the best of our knowledge, to hide the computations of the pooling layers inside the convolutional layers, thereby further improving throughput. Using the proposed architecture and DPR, different CNN architectures can be realized on the same FPGA with optimized throughput and accuracy. The proposed architecture is evaluated by implementing two different LeNet CNN models trained by different datasets and classifying different classes. Experimental results show that the implemented design achieves higher throughput than current LeNet FPGA accelerators.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE: Yılmaz N, Çifci A, Balcı M, Cesur S, Sabah Özcan S, Şen SS, et al. Hemodiyaliz hastalarında okült hepatit B ve hepatit C enfeksiyonu sıklığı [Frequency of occult hepatitis B and C infections in hemodialysis patients]. Ortadogu Tıp Derg 2018;10(2):174-8. https://doi.org/10.21601/ortadogutipdergisi.324840 This document states corrections to the original article., ORİJİNAL MAKALE: Yılmaz N, Çifci A, Balcı M, Cesur S, Sabah Özcan S, Şen SS, et al. Frequency of occult hepatitis B and C infections in hemodialysis patients [Frequency of occult hepatitis B and C infections in hemodialysis patients]. Ortadogu Tıp Derg 2018;10(2):174-8. https://doi.org/10.21601/ortadogutipdergisi.324840Bu doküman, orijinal makaledeki hataları bildirmektedir.

Purpose In this study we aimed to propose an algorithm for initial anti HCV EIA reactive blood donations in Turkey where nucleic acid amplification tests are not yet obligatory for donor screening. Methods A total of 416 anti HCV screening test reactive donor samples collected from 13 blood centers from three cities in Turkey were tested in duplicate by Ortho HCV Ab Version 3.0 and Radim HCV Ab. All the repeat reactive samples were tested by INNO-LIA HCV Ab 3.0 or Chiron RIBA HCV 3.0 and Abbott Real Time HCV. Intra-assay correlations were calculated with Pearson r test. ROC analysis was used to study the relationship between EIA tests and the confirmatory tests. Results The number of repeat reactive results with Ortho EIA were 221 (53.1%) whereas that of microEIA, 62 (14.9%). Confirmed positivity rate was 14.6% (33/226) by RIBA and 10.6% (24/226) by NAT. Reactive PCR results were predicted with 100% sensitivity and 95% specificity with S/CO levels of 8.1 with Ortho EIA and 3.4 with microEIA. Conclusions Repeat reactivity rates declined with a second HCV antibody assay. Samples repeat reactive with one HCV antibody test and negative with the other were all NAT negative. All the NAT reactive samples were RIBA positive. None of the RIBA indeterminate or negative samples were NAT reactive. Considering the threshold values for EIA kits determined by ROC analysis NAT was decided to be performed for the samples above the threshold value and a validated supplemental HCV antibody test for the samples below.

Amac: Bu calismada . uc farkli merkezde, yogun bakim unitelerinde yatan hastalarin cesitli klinik orneklerinden izole edilen 80 Acinetobacter baumannii ( A.baumannii ) susunun farkli antibiyotik gruplarina direnc oranlarinin E-test veya disk difuzyon yontemleriyle belirlenmesi amaclandi. Yontem ve gerecler : Calismaya 2010-2012 yillari arasinda Ankara, Antalya ve Van illerindeki uc merkezde yogun bakim unitesinde yatan toplam 80 hastanin tek bir klinik orneginden izole edilen 80 A.baumannii susu dahil edildi. Suslarin 34’u derin trakeal aspirat, 16’si yara, 14’u idrar, 10’u kan, 2’si kateter, 2’si balgam, 2’i ise beyin-omurilik sivisi orneginden izole edildi . A. baumanii suslarinda kolistin (CO), tigesiklin (TG), doripenem (DOR), piperasilin-tazobaktam (TZP) ve sefoperazon-sulbaktam (CES) duyarliliklari E-test yontemiyle, imipenem (IMP), meropenem (MEM), tikarsilin-klavunat (TIM), siprofloksasin (CIP), sefepim (FEB), ampisilin-sulbaktam (SAM), tobramisin (TOB), netilmisin (NET), amikasin (AK) duyarliliklari ise disk-difuzyon yontemiyle Klinik ve Laboratuar Standartlari Kurumu (CLSI) onerileri dogrultusunda calisildi. Bulgular: Yogun bakim unitesinde yatan hastalardan izole edilen 80 A .baumannii susunun coklu ilaca direncli (CID) oldugu saptandi.Izole edilen coklu ilaca direncli A.baumannii suslarinda E-test yontemiyle CO direnci saptanmazken, TG’ne %6 oraninda , DOR’ e %87, TZP’ye %92 , CES’a % 89 oraninda direnc saptandi. Kirby-Bauer disk-diffuzyon yontemiyle saptanan direnc oranlari ise; IMP’e %94, MEM’e %90, TIM’a %95, CIP’e %100, FEB’e %97, SAM’ne %91, NET’e %79, AK’e %82, TOB’ne %90 idi. Izole edilen suslarda CO, TG, DOR, CPS ve TZP icin MIK50 ve MIK90 degerleri sirasiyla; 0.125,0.75; 0.75,24; 24, 128; 32,128 ; 128,256 olarak belirlendi. Sonuc: Calismada yogun bakim unitesinde yatan hastalarin cesitli orneklerinden izole edilen CID A.baumannii suslarinda MIK50 ve MIK90 degerleri goz onune alindiginda en etkili antibiyotikler sirasiyla; kolistin ve tigesiklin olarak belirlendi. Karbapenemlere (DOR, MEM ve IMP) , TZP ve CES’e ve diger antibiyotiklere yuksek oranlarda direnc saptanmasi dikkat cekiciydi. Sonuc olarak yogun bakim unitelerinde CID- A.baumannii enfeksiyonlarinin onlenmesi icin enfeksiyon kontrol onlemlerinin titizlikle uygulanmasi ve akilci antibiyotik tedavisi ve antibiyotik direnc oranlarinin izlenmesi gereklidir.

In this study, we propose a novel single image Bayesian super-resolution (SR) algorithm where the hyperspectral image (HSI) is the only source of information. The main contribution of the proposed approach is to convert the ill-posed SR reconstruction (SRR) problem in the spectral domain to a quadratic optimization problem in the abundance map domain. In order to do so, Markov Random Field (MRF) based energy minimization approach is proposed and proved that the solution is quadratic. The proposed approach consists of five main steps. First, the number of endmembers in the scene is determined using virtual dimensionality. Second, the endmembers and their low resolution abundance maps are computed using simplex identification via the splitted augmented Lagrangian (SISAL) and fully constrained least squares (FCLS) algorithms. Third, high resolution (HR) abundance maps are obtained using our proposed maximum a posteriori (MAP) based energy function. This energy function is minimized subject to smoothness, unity and boundary constraints. Fourth, the HR abundance maps are further enhanced with texture preserving methods. Finally, HR HSI is reconstructed using the extracted endmembers and the enhanced abundance maps. The proposed method is tested on three real HSI datasets; namely the Cave, Harvard and Hyperspectral Remote Sensing Scenes (HRSS) and compared to state-of-the-art alternative methods using peak signal to noise ratio, structural similarity, spectral angle mapper and relative dimensionless global error in synthesis metrics. It is shown that the proposed method outperforms the state of the art methods in terms of quality while preserving the spectral consistency.

Amaç: Hepatit B virüsü (HBV) ve Hepatit C virüsü (HCV) diyaliz ünitelerinde sıklıkla bulaşabilen virüslerdendir. Okült HBV veya HCV enfeksiyonu serumda HBsAg veya anti-HCV saptanamayankişilerdeki HBV veya HCV enfeksiyonunun varlığının kan veya karaciğer dokusundamoleküler yöntemlerle (HBV-DNA, HCV-RNA ile) gösterilmesidir. Bu çalışmada hemodiyalize giren, HBV ve HCVseronegatif hemodiyaliz hastalarına ait plazma örneklerinde HBV-DNA ve HCV-RNA tayini ile okült HBV ya da HCV enfeksiyonu sıklığınınaraştırılması amaçlandı.Gereç ve Yöntem: Çalışmaya hemodiyalizegiren, HBV ve HCV göstergeleri (HBsAg, HBcIgG ve IgM , Anti-HCV) negatif olan121 erişkin hasta dahil edildi. Hastalar hemodiyaliz süresi, kan transfüzyonuöyküsü, ailede hepatit B ve C enfeksiyonu varlığı açısından sorgulandı.Hastalardan alınan plazma örneklerindeHBV-DNA ve HCV-RNA varlığı COBAS® TaqMan® 48 Analyzer (for automated real-time PCR amplificationand detection) kullanılarak COBAS Taqmankitleri ( Cobas Taqman HBV v.2 ve HCV v.2 Roche, US) kiti ile kantitatif olarak araştırıldı. . Bulgular: Toplam 121 hemodiyalizhastasının 1’inde (%0.82) HCV-RNA pozitifliği saptanırken (138.000 IU/ml ), 10(%8.2)’unda HBV-DNA saptanabilir düzeyde idi. HBV-DNA saptanan 10 plasma örneğinin 7 (%70)’sinde HBV-DNA düzeyi < 6IU/ml iken 3(%30)’ünde HBV-DNA düzeyi > 6IU/ml olarak bulundu. HBV-DNA düzeyi > 6IU/ml olan 3 hastaya ait HBV-DNA miktarları 108 IU/ml, 157.000.000 IU/ml ve 72.5 IU/ml olarak saptandı.Sonuç: Çalışmamızda Hepatit B ve C yönünden serolojik göstergeleri negatif olanhemodiyaliz hastalarında okült hepatit B enfeksiyonu sıklığı okült hepatit Cenfeksiyonundan yaklaşık 10 kat daha fazla oranda saptandı. Serumda, veyakaraciğerde HBV DNA veya HCV RNA pozitifliği hemodiyaliz ünitelerindepotansiyel bulaş kaynağıdır. Hemodiyaliz hastalarında HBV veya HCV’yebağlı okült hepatit varlığı diğer hastalara ve sağlık personeline bulaşolasılığı ve böbrek naklinden sonra hastalarda özellikle hepatit reaktivasyonu veya kronik karaciğer hastalığı gelişmesiaçısından önemlidir. Bu nedenle özellikle transplantasyon planlanan hemodiyalizhastalarında okült hepatit varlığı moleküler yöntemlerle araştırılmasınınyararlı olacağı görüşündeyiz., Aim: Hepatitis B (HBV) virus andHepatitis C virus (HCV ) are commonly transmitted viruses in dialysis units.Occult HBV or HCV infections are HBV or HCV infections in patients when HBs Agor anti-HCV is not detected in serum. In this study, it was aimed to detect HBVDNA and HCV RNA in plasma samples belonging to hemodialysis patients who areseronegative for HBV and HCV and to investigate frequency of occult HBV or HCVinfections.Material and Method: 121 adult patientswho are receiving hemodialysis and whose HBV and HCV indicators (HBsAg, HBcIgG andIgM, Anti-HCV) are negative were included in the study. Presence of HBV-DNA andHCV-RNA in plasma samples of patients was investigated by using COBAS® TaqMan®48 Analyzer (for automated real-time PCR amplification and detection) in aquantitative fashion with COBAS Taqman kits (Cobas Taqman HBV v.2 and HCV v.2Roche, USA)Results: In 1 out of 121 hemodialysispatients (0.82%), HCV-RNA level was detected as 138.000 IU/ml, in 10 out of 121hemodialysis patients (8.2%) HBV-DNA was at detectable level. While in 7 of 10plasma samples (70%) in which HBV-DNA was detected, HBV-DNA level was 6IU/ml.HBV-DNA amounts belonging to 3 patients whose HBV-DNA level was >6 IU/mlwere found as 108 IU/ml, 157.000.000 IU/ml and 72.5 IU/ml.Conclusion: It was found out that inhemodialysis patients whose serologic indicators for Hepatitis B and C arenegative, occult Hepatitis B infection is seen 10 times more frequently thanHepatitis C infection. Positive demonstration of HBV-DNA or HCV-RNA in serum orliver is potentially seen in hemodialysis units. Incidence of occult hepatitisdue to HBV or HCV in hemodialysis patients is of significant importance interms of the probability of its transmission to other patients and healthcarestaff and development of especially hepatitis reactivation or chronic liverdisease in patients after kidney transplant.For this reason,we believe it would be particularly useful to investigate the presence ofoccult hepatitis by molecular methods in hemodialysis patients especially scheduled for transplantation.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to determine the ratio of nasal carriage of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and the risk factors among 1500 subjects including 689 hospital staff, 609 inpatients, and 202 outpatients in Ankara Training and Research Hospital. Materials and Methods: Nasal swabs were obtained from hospital staff, inpatients and outpatients, which were then inoculatedinto mannitol-salt agar, oxacillin resistance screening agar base (ORSAB), and chromogenic MRSA agar media, respectively. Methicillin resistance was confirmed with cefoxitin disk by the disk-diffusion test. In statistical analyses, the Chi-square and the Kruskal Wall is tests were used, considering p< 0.05 value statistically significant. Results: MRSA nasal carriage rate was determined 3.03%, 9.03% and 3.96% in hospital staff, inpatients and outpatients, respectively. The rate of nasal carriage of MRSA amongst doctors, nurses and auxiliary health personnel was 1.36%, 1.735% and 5.06% respectively. Conclusion: Hospital staff,especially auxiliary health personnel, should be trained on hospital infections, routes of transmission, and protective measures. In addition, in clinics where MRSA infections and colonization is common, hospital staff and inpatients should be screened for MRSA nasal carriage at certain intervals and patients to be admitted to the intensive care and surgical units should undergo screening for MRSA nasal carriage before admission.

Objective: The aim of this study is to determine the physical/organoleptic properties and quantitative of nutritional values in the dietary foods for special medical purposes used with the aim of satisfying the dietary management of patients. Method: A total of 13 samples were examined physical and organoleptic properties as colour, appearance, odour. After the examination, the many methods were used for quantitative determinations of protein (kjeldahl), invert sugar (titrimetric), fat (acidobutirometric), vitamins (A, E, B2, B6, C – HPLC/high pressure liquid chromatographic) and elements (calcium – Ca, chromium Cr, copper Cu, iron Fe, sodium Na, potassium K, phosphorus P, manganese Mn, molybdenum Mo, magnesium Mg, zinc Zn ICP OES/inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy) in these products. Results: It was found that the values of protein in 100 g or 100 mL of these samples was 2.31 43.7 g. It was determined that invert sugar and fat were ranged from 0.5 15.3 g and 0 121.69 g, respectively. The values of vitamins (C, 7.54 1195.8 mg; B2, 0.16 0.99 mg; B6, 0.12 0.78 mg; E, 1.22 397.37 mg; A, 41.56 450.69 μg RE retinol equivalent) were established. Also, the values of minerals (Na, 12.2 600 mg; K, 18.8 926 mg; P, 12.1 464 mg; Ca, 4.81 455 mg; Mg, 0.15 128 mg; OZET Amac: Hastalarin diyetlerini duzenlemek amaciyla kullanilan ozel tibbi amacli diyet gidalarin fiziksel ve organoleptik muayeneleri ile etiketlerinde yer alan bazi besin ogelerinin miktarlarinin belirlenmesi amaclanmistir. Yontem: Toplam 13 adet ozel tibbi amacli diyet gida numunesi renk, gorunus ve koku yonunden fiziksel ve organoleptik incelenmistir. Inceleme sonrasinda numunelerin bazi besin ogeleri yonunden protein (kjeldahl), invert seker (titrimetrik), yag (asidobutirometrik), vitamin (A, E, B2, B6, C – HPLC/yuksek basincli sivi kromatografisi) ve elementlerin (kalsiyum Ca; krom Cr; bakir Cu, demir Fe, sodyum Na, potasyum K, fosfor P, manganez Mn, molibden Mo, magnezyum Mg, cinko Zn; ICP OES/induktif eslesmis plazma-optik emisyon spektrometresi) miktarlarinin belirlenmesi icin farkli yontemler kullanilmistir. Bulgular: Ozel tibbi amacli diyet gida numunelerinin 100 g veya 100 mL’ sinde protein, 2,31 43,7 g; invert seker, 0,5 15,3 g ve yag 0 121,69 g arasinda bulunmustur. Bu numunelerin 100 g veya 100 mL’ sinde vitamin C, 7,54 1195,8 mg; vitamin B2, 0,16 0,99 mg; vitamin B6, 0,12 0,78 mg; vitamin E, 1,22 397,37 mg ve vitamin A, 41,56 450,69 μg RE (retinol esdegeri) arasinda belirlenmistir. Ayrica numunelerin 100 g veya 100 mL’sinde element degerleri ise sirasiyla Na, 12,2 600 mg; K, 18,8 926 mg; * Bu calismanin sonuclari, 4. Gida Guvenligi Kongresinde (14–15 Mayis 2013, Istanbul-TURKIYE) poster bildirisi olarak sunulmustur. Cilt 71  Sayi 1  2014 Turk Hij Den Biyol Derg 10 Hastalarin diyetlerini duzenlemek amaciyla tibbi gozetim altinda kullanilan ve ozel olarak uretilmis ya da formule edilmis gidalar “ozel tibbi amacli diyet gidalar” olarak tanimlanmaktadir (1). Ozel tibbi amacli diyet gidalarin uzerinde yer alan etiketlerinde enerji-besin ogeleri olan yag, karbonhidrat, protein, vitamin ve mineral degerleri bulunmaktadir. Vucudun buyumesi, dokularin yenilenmesi ve calismasi icin gerekli olan tum besin ogelerinin her birinin yeterli miktarda ve gerekli oranda alinmasiyla mumkundur (2). Vitamin ve mineraller vucudumuzda gerceklesen tum islemlerde anahtar rol oynayan ve ortak fonksiyon gosterdikleri diger besin ogelerinin yerine de calisarak organizmada bircok isin aksamadan yerine getirilmesini saglayan besin ogeleri olarak bilinmektedirler (3). Probiyotik ve fruktooligosakkarit icerikli tibbi amacli beslenme urunlerinde; protein, hidrolizlenebilen toplam seker, yag, bazi vitamin ve mineral miktarlarinin belirlemesi uzerine calisma yapilmis ve calismanin sonucunda; belirlenen degerlerin numune etiket degerlerine uyumlu olduklari gozlemlenmistir (4). Ozel tibbi amacli diyet gidalarin yaninda farkli gidalarin icerdikleri besin ogelerinin miktarlari cesitli yontemler kullanilarak belirlenmistir (5-10). Calismamizda, ozel tibbi amacli diyet gidalarin fiziksel ve organoleptik muayeneleri ile etiketlerinde yer alan bazi besin ogelerinin miktarlarinin belirlenmesi amaclanmistir. GEREC Ocak-Mart 2012 tarihleri arasinda Tuketici Guvenligi Laboratuvarlari Daire Baskanliginin ilgili laboratuvarlarinda toplam 13 adet toz ve sivi formdaki ozel tibbi amacli diyet gida numunesi fiziksel ve organoleptik muayene ile etiketlerinde yer alan bazi besin degerleri yonunden incelenmistir. YONTEM Fiziksel ve Organoleptik Muayene Ozel tibbi amacli diyet gida numuneleri fiziksel ve organoleptik muayenede; renk, koku ve tat acisindan incelenmistir. Besin Degerleri Yonunden Inceleme Bu numunelerin etiketlerinde beyan edilen besin ogelerinden protein, invert seker, yag, bazi vitamin (A, E, B2, B6, C) ve mineral (Na, K, P, Ca, Mg, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Cr, Mo) yonunden analiz edilmistir. Protein Analizi Ozel tibbi amacli diyet gida numunelerinin protein miktarlarini belirlemek icin Kjeldahl (11) yontemi kullanilmistir. 0,5-1 ± 0,001 g tartilan numuneler yakma tuplerine alinmistir. Tuplere 5,0 g yakma tuzu katalizor (Gerhardt) ve 7,5 mL derisik H2SO4 (Merck) ilave edilerek yakma unitesine yerlestirilmistir. Yakma unitesine yerlestirilen tuplerde yaklasik 400 oC’de yakma islemi gerceklestirilmistir. Yakma GIRIS OZEL TIBBI AMACLI DIYET GIDALAR P, 12,1 464 mg; Ca, 4,81 455 mg; Mg, 0,15 128 mg; Mn, 0,14 312 mg; Fe, 0,92 7,80 mg; Cu, 0,09 0,64 mg; Cr, 0,003 0,020 mg; Mo, 0,003 0,036 mg ve Zn, 1,03 17,20 mg arasinda tespit edilmistir. Sonuc: Ozel tibbi amacli diyet gida numunelerinde analiz edilen besin ogesi iceriklerinin etiketlerinde beyan edilen degerlere uygun oldugu belirlenmistir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Ozel tibbi amacli diyet gida, besin degeri, analiz, Mn, 0.14 312 mg; Fe, 0.92 7.80 mg; Cu, 0.09 0.64 mg; Cr, 0.003 0.020 mg; Mo, 0.003 0.036 mg ve Zn, 1.03 17.20 mg) were obtained. Conclusion: It was observed that the values determined for dietary foods for special medical purposes were similar to the values declared on the labels of the products.

Super-resolution Reconstruction (SRR) is technique to increase the spatial resolution of images. It is especially useful for hyperspectral images (HSI), which have good spectral resolution but low spatial resolution. In this study, we propose an improvement to our previous work and present a novel MAP-MRF (maximum a posteriori-Markov random Fields) based approach for the SRR of HSI. The key point of our approach is to find the abundance maps of an HSI and perform SRR on the abundance maps using MRF based energy minimization, without needing any other additional source of information. In order to do so, first, PCA is used to determine the endmembers. Second, SISAL and fully constraint least squares (FCLS) are used to estimate the abundance maps. Third, in order to find the high resolution abundance maps, the ill-posed inverse SRR problem for abundances is regularized with a MAP-MRF based approach. The MAP-MRF formulation is restricted with the constraints which are specific to the abundances. Using the non-linear programming (NLP) techniques, the convex MAP formulation is minimized and High Resolution (HR) abundance maps are obtained. Then, these maps are used to construct the HR HSI. This improved SRR method is verified on real data sets, and quantitative performance comparison is achieved using PSNR, SSIM and PSNR metrics. Our results indicate that this improved method gives very close results to the original high resolution images, keeps the spectral consistency, and performs better than the compared algorithms.

Despite their high spectral resolution, hyperspectral images have low spatial resolution which adversely affects the applications that use hyperspectral images. In this study, instead of the traditional way of using spectral images, abundances of the endmembers are used in resolution enhancement. In the proposed method, first, endmembers are extracted with the SISAL algorithm. Then, the abundance maps are estimated using FCLS. From the low resolution abundance maps, high resolution abundance maps are obtained with a total variation based minimization. Finally, high resolution hyperspectral images are constructed from high resolution abundance maps. The proposed method is tested on real hyperspectral images. The experimental results and comparative analysis show the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Leblebicioglu, Hakan/0000-0002-6033-8543; WOS: 000369680000004 PubMed: 26695860 Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a tick-borne viral disease of humans that affects a wide geographic area of Africa and Eurasia, including Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Russia. Since the first detection of CCHF cases in Turkey in 2002, more than 9700 patients have been reported, with an overall mortality rate just under 5%. This article assesses the present epidemiological situation of CCHF in Turkey, with an updated literature review, describes national practices and summarizes lessons learned in preparation for future outbreaks. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Background Depressive symptoms and myalgia are commonly seen in patients with chronic hepatitis B and chronic hepatitis C. Objective To investigate the efficacy of acupuncture treatment on depressive symptoms and myalgia in patients with hepatitis. Methods Of 44 patients with hepatitis screened for depression and myalgia, 28 were enrolled and included in the study. The main outcome measure for depressive symptoms was Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI). For pain/myalgia, patients rated their pain on a scale from 0 to 10. Patients with a score greater than the cut-off point in either score were allocated to acupuncture treatment. The Chinese method of acupuncture was used. Treatment continued for 6 weeks. Results At baseline, 17/44 patients (39%) had a BDI score ≥17 and 24 (55%) had a pain score ≥5. A total of 28 patients were allocated to acupuncture treatment, forming three groups: group 1, 13 patients with high BDI and high myalgia scores; group 2, 11 patients with low BDI score but high myalgia score; group 3, 4 patients with high BDI score but low myalgia score. Adherence to treatment was good; all patients completed the sessions and there were no drop-outs. Significant improvements in end-treatment BDI and in myalgia scores compared with baseline levels was found. Conclusion Acupuncture seems to be a promising treatment for patients with hepatitis. Further studies are warranted in large populations to establish the therapeutic role of acupuncture.

Summary Introduction Brucellosis is the most prevalent bacterial zoonosis worldwide. In this study, we aimed to compare our 1028 brucellosis cases with other big series in the literature in view of epidemiological, clinical, and laboratory findings and therapeutic features. Methods A total of 1028 brucellosis cases admitted to the Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology over a 10-year period were included in the study. A retrospective analysis was undertaken and patient files were reviewed for history, clinical and laboratory findings, and therapeutic features, as well as complications. Results Of the 1028 patients, 539 (52.4%) were female and 489 (47.6%) were male. The mean age of patients was 33.7±16.34 years and 69.6% of cases were aged 13–44 years. Four hundred and thirty-five cases (42.3%) had a history of raising livestock and 55.2% of the cases were found to have no occupational risk for brucellosis. Six hundred and fifty-four of the cases (63.6%) had a history of raw milk and dairy products consumption. The most frequently seen symptoms were arthralgia (73.7%) and fever (72.2%), while the most common clinical findings were fever (28.8%) and hepatomegaly (20.6%). The most frequent laboratory finding was a high C-reactive protein level (58.4%). The standard tube agglutination (STA) test+Coombs STA test was positive in 1016 cases (98.8%). Focal involvement was present in 371 (36.1%) cases. The most frequent involvement was osteoarticular involvement with 260 cases (25.3%). The overall relapse rate for patients with brucellosis was 4.7%. The highest relapse rate, 8.5%, was observed in the group of patients with osteoarticular involvement. Regimens including doxycycline and streptomycin with or without rifampin appeared more effective than other regimens in osteoarticular involvement. Conclusions In humans, brucellosis may lead to serious morbidity, and it continues to be a major health problem in Turkey. There is no recommended treatment protocol for complicated brucellosis. Large multicenter studies are needed to determine the most appropriate treatment choices and durations in complicated brucellosis.

Objective: We aimed to retrospectively evaluate our cases followed up in department of Infectious Diseases, Medical Faculty of Yuzuncu Yil University with the diagnosis of bacterial meningitis between January 1995 and August 2008 in view of their clinical and laboratory findings. Material and Methods: Demographic features, history, physical examination and laboratory findings were achieved by screening the files. The diagnosis of bacterial meningitis in cases clinically consistent with suspected meningitis was done by microbiological, biochemical and serological tests performed on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples, by radiological examinations of central nervous system (CNS) and the answers of the patients to antibacterial treatment. Results: Of 204 patients, 96 were females and 108 were males with an average age of 30.8 +/- 13.9 years. Thirty three percent of cases had acute bacterial meningitis (ABM), 44% had tuberculous meningitis (TM) and 23% brucella meningitis (BrM). Headache was the most frequent symptom in all cases with 80%, being 89.5% in ABM cases, 71% in TM cases and 74.5% in BrM cases. In CSF cultures of the patients with ABM, S. pneumonia was isolated in 13.4% of the cases, N.meningitides in 7.5% and S.aures in 3%. In patients with TM, acid-fast bacilli was seen in 20% of the cases. B. melitensis was grown from CSF in 10.6% of the patients with BrM and from blood in 17.2% of the patients. Mortality rate was 13.4% in ABM cases, 14.4% in TM cases and 2.1% in BrM cases. Conclusion: TM seems to be more frequent in our region when compared to other causes of bacterial meningitis and its high morbidity and mortality rates attract the attention. Clinical and laboratory findings of BrM are vaguer than other forms of bacterial meningitis.

Adult onset Still’s disease is rare syndrome consisting of recurrent fever, rash, artralgia or arthritis. A sixty-five years old female was admitted to the hospital for high fever with one month duration, accompanied with fatique and lack of appetite. Findings of physical examination, laboratory test results and radioghraphic evaluations were negative for infectious diseases, malignancy and immunological disorders. The diagnosis of Still’s disease was made on the clinical findings and exclusion of other possible diseases. High serum ferritin value was a key factor in making the diagnosis. The patients with Still’s disease can apply to the infectious diseases department because of the fever of unknown origin (FUO) and this disorder can be the cause of FUO in the elderly as well as in the younger population.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection may progress to liver failure and liver cancer, for this reason it is a serious health problem. The mechanisms of chronicity are poorly understood. The balances in cytokine production profiles may play a crucial role in determining the resolution or persistence of infection. In this study, we aimed to determine various cytokine levels in patients with chronic HBV infection and to reveal the relationship between levels of cytokines and different clinical phases. HBsAg positive patients with a duration of positivity longer than six months who applied to outpatient clinic of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology Department of Ankara Training and Research Hospital between October 2005 and June 2006 were included to the study. There were 57 patients in chronic hepatitis B group. There were 24 healthy individuals in the control group. Serum interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-10 levels were detected and compared between patients and controls. There were 25 chronic hepatitis and 32 inactive carrier patients in the patient group. Serum IL-6 levels in patients with chronic HBV infection (8.496 pg/mL) were higher than those of the control group (6.850 pg/mL) and the difference was statistically significant (p= 0.022). Serum IL-10 levels were 0.784 pg/mL and 0.052 pg/mL in patient and control groups, respectively. There was a statistically significant difference between these groups (p= 0.019). Correlation between serum alanin aminotransferase (ALT) levels and cytokine levels were also examined. There wasn’t any correlation between the levels of IL-6 and IL-10, and ALT in patients. As a conclusion, increased IL-10 levels may be associated with persistence of hepatitis B infection. Testing the level of serum IL-6 may be helpful to determine the liver inflammation in patients with chronic hepatitis B infection.

Central nervous system (CNS) involvement is uncommon in brucellosis. Neurological complications of brucellosis may be divided into 2 major groups: 1) those related to the acute-febrile state that occurs in acute disease (toxic-febrile neurobrucellosis), and 2) those related to actual invasion and localization of the pathogen in the CNS (classical neurobrucellosis). In this paper, we present 4 cases of toxic-febrile neurobrucellosis and discuss clinical findings and outcome of treatment in these cases. All patients had fever, headache, stupor or coma with neuropsychiatric symptoms such as hallucination, delirium, convulsion, dysarthria, psychosis, and night raving. Peripheral and cranial vasculitis was present in case 3 and bilateral sensorioneural hearing loss in case 4. Neither pleocytosis nor hyperproteinorrachia was present in any patient in lumbar puncture. Brucella melitensis was isolated in case 3 from bone marrow, and in case 4 both from blood and bone marrow. All patients received combined treatment consisting of ceftriaxone, rifampicin, and doxycycline. They were discharged from the hospital with full recovery. No recurrence or any complaint was observed during the follow-up. In conclusion, despite the rapid course and serious complications, outcome from febrile-toxic neurobrucellosis is excellent especially when effective antimicrobial therapy is started early in the course of illness.

Amaç: Bu çalışmada, klinik ve laboratuvar bulgularıyla kesin pandemic influenza A (H1N1) enfeksiyonu tanısı konan yatan hastalar, üst solunum yolu enfeksiyonu enfeksiyonu tanısı konan poliklinik hastlarında serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alfa, neopterin düzeyleri ve plazma solubl ürokinaz plazminojen aktivatör reseptörü (suPAR) düzeyinin klinik öneminin belirlenmesi amaçlandı. Yöntem: Çalışmaya influenza A (H1N1) enfeksiyonu tanısı klinik ve laboratuvar testiyle (polimeraz zincir reaksiyonu: PZR) tanısı konan 26 yatan hasta, üst solunum yolu enfeksiyonu (akut sinüzit, akut tonsillofarenjit, akut nazofarenjit vb.)tanısı konan 30 poliklinik hastası ve hiçbir yakınması olmayan 24 sağlıklı birey dahil edildi. Serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alfa, neopterin düzeyleri ve plazma suPAR düzeyi ELISA yöntemiyle üretici firmanın önerileri doğrultusunda belirlendi. İstatistiksel değerlendirmede Kruskal- Wallis, Mann-Whitney U testi ve Ki-kare testleri kullanıldı.Bulgular: İnfluenza A (H1N1) enfeksiyonu olan yatan hastalarda serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alfa, neopterin düzeyleri ile plazma suPAR düzeyleri median değeri sırasıyla; 27,8 ng/ml, 9,29 ng/ml, 11,04 ng/ml, 8,82 ng/ml ,5,64 ng/ml olarak belirlendi.Üst solunum yolu enfeksiyonu tanısı konan poliklinik hastalarında serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alfa, neopterin düzeyleri ve plazma suPAR düzeyi median (ortanca) değeri sırasıyla; 7,24 ng/ml, 1,9 ng/ml, 19,74 ng/ml, 4,37 ng/ml, 3,33 ng/ml idi.Sağlıklı bireylerde ise serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alfa, neopterin düzeyleri ve plazma suPAR düzeyi median değeri sırasıyla; 0,97 ng/ml, 0,16 ng/ml, 4,46 ng/ml, 2,38 ng/ml, 1,65 ng/ml olarak belirlendi.İnfluenza A (H1N1) enfeksiyonu tanısı konan yatan hastalarda serum IL-6, IL-10, neopterin düzeyleri, üst solunum yolu enfeksiyonu tanısı konan poliklinik hastalarınkınden istatistiksel olarak anlamlı yüksekti. Üst solunum yolu enfeksiyonu tanısı konan poliklinik hastalarında serum TNF-alfa düzeyleri H1N1 tanısı konan yatan hastalardan daha yüksekti. Üst solunum yolu enfeksiyonu tanısı konan poliklinik hastalarında, serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alfa, neopterin düzeyleri ile plazma suPAR düzeyleri kontrol grubundan anlamlı oranda yüksekti.İnfluenza A (H1N1) enfeksiyonu tanısı alan yatan hastalarda serum IL-6, IL-10,neopterin ve plazma suPAR düzeyi sağlıklı bireylere göre anlamlı yükseklik gösterdi.Sonuç: Serum IL-6, IL-10, neopterin, TNF-alfa düzeyleri ve plazma suPAR düzeyi influenza A (H1N1) enfeksiyonu olan hastaların klinik izleminde kullanılabilir, Objective: This study aims to investigate the clinical importance of serum interleukin (IL) 6, IL-10, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), neopterin, and plasma soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) levels in patients with pandemic H1N1 influenza infection and outpatients diagnosed with upper respiratory infections. Materials and Methods: Twenty-six inpatients with H1N1 infection confirmed by clinical findings and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test 30 outpatients diagnosed with upper respiratory infections, and 24 healthy individuals without any complaints were included. Serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alpha, neopterin levels and plasma suPAR levels were compared between the patients groups and the 24 healthy controls. Serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alpha, neopterin levels and plasma suPAR levels were determined through the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) as per manufacturer’s instructions.Results: The median serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alpha, neopterin, and plasma suPAR levels were 27.8 ng/ml, 9.29 ng/ml, 11.04 ng/ml, 8.82 ng/ml and 5.64 ng/ml, respectively in inpatients with H1N1. In 30 outpatients diagnosed with upper respiratory infections, the median serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alpha, neopterin, and plasma suPAR levels were 7.24 ng/ml, 1.9 ng/ml, 19.74 ng/ml, 4.37ng/ml and 3.33 ng/ml, respectively. In healthy individuals, the mean IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alpha, neopterin, and plasma suPAR levels were 97 ng/ml, 0.16 ng/ml, 4.46 ng/ml, 2.38 ng/ml, 1.65 ng/ml, respectively. In inpatients with H1N1, serum IL-6, IL-10, neopterin levels were significantly higher than those of outpatients diagnosed with upper respiratory infections. In outpatients with upper respiratory infections, serum TNF-alpha levels were higher than in inpatients with H1N1 infection as confirmed by laboratory findings (PCR). In outpatients, serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alpha, neopterin, and plasma suPAR levels were significantly higher from those in the control group. In patients with influenza A (H1N1) infection, serum cytokine levels and plasma suPAR levels were significantly higher from healthy individuals.Conclusion: Serum IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alpha, neopterin, and plasma suPAR levels may be used as clinical follow-up markers in patients with H1N1 infection. J Microbiol Infect Dis 2015;5(3): 119-124 Key words: Pandemic influenz A (H1N1), cytokines, soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR), diagnostic value.

Hyperspectral imaging is widely used in many fields such as geology, medicine, meteorology, and so on. Despite the high spectral resolution, the spatial resolution of the hyperspectral sensors is severely limited. In this paper, we propose a novel maximum a posteriori (MAP)-based approach based on the joint superresolution of the abundance maps, to enhance the resolution of hyperspectral images. In the proposed approach, first, the endmembers and their abundance maps are estimated using Vertex Component Analysis (VCA) and Fully Constrained Least Squares (FCLS), respectively. Second, a high resolution (HR) abundance map is reconstructed for each low resolution (LR) abundance map using a MAP-based approach. In the MAP-formulation data, smoothness and edge preservation constraints are extended to include a unity constraint term specific to abundances. Finally, HR hyperspectral images are reconstructed using the HR abundance maps. The proposed algorithm is tested on both synthetic images and real image sequences. The experimental results and comparative analysis verify the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.

Objectives: Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a tick borne zoonotic infection. Up till now knowledge about pathogenesis of the disease is limited. Cytokine response is quite important during this infection. The aim of this study was to determine the serum tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and the interleukin-4 (IL-4) levels in patients with CCHF and compare with those of healthy controls. Materials and methods: Forty-two adult CCHF patients and 40 healthy subjects were included in this study. The diagnosis of CCHF was based upon anti-CCHF virus IgM positivity (ELISA method), and/or positivity in real time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in acute phase serum samples. Serum TNF-α and IL-4 levels were determined by ELISA method. Results: In patients with CCHF the mean serum TNF-α level was significantly higher than the control group (15.01 vs. 7.69 pg/ml; p

An 18- year old female patient was admitted to the Emergency Department with complaints of fever and fatigue beginning 15 days ago associated with headache, weakness, palpitation, abdominal pain, and diarrhea a week later. The patient who apathic confused and discordant was transferred to the Department of Infectious Diseases. There was also hypocalcemia, hypopotassemia, pancytopenia, intestinal hemorrhage, and hepatic involvement. S. typhi was grown in the blood culture. The patient was discharged with full recovery after ciprofloxacin treatment in addition to electrolyte replacement. Typhoid fever is a widespread infectious disease in our country and should be taken into consideration in differential diagnosis of many diseases because it may involve a number of systems and may present with a variety of complications

The clinical utility of two complementary tests for brucellosis, the Brucella IgM and IgG flow assays, was evaluated in a hospital in eastern Turkey. The results show that the flow assays are convenient diagnostic tests for use in endemic areas. A positive result in the flow assays was obtained in 91% and 97% of the admission sera from adult and pediatric patients with brucellosis, respectively, and the sensitivity at admission was 100% for culture-confirmed brucellosis. The assay system performed equally well in diagnosing patients at different stages of illness including patients with acute, subacute, or chronic disease and with relapse. The results of the flow assays correlated well with those of a serum agglutination test at a cut-off greater than or equal to1:160. The agreement was 92%. Application of the flow assays on serum samples collected during a village survey for brucellosis after an outbreak demonstrated their diagnostic potential as field tests.

Liver cirrhosis is a severe disease with complications and viruses take the first place in the etiology of cirrhosis. In this study, the effects of liver cirrhosis due to viral hepatitis cardiac ventricular functions were analyzed. Thirty patients (mean age 43.6±12, 20 male) with liver cirrhosis underwent echocardiographic studies and were compared with 30 healthy controls (mean age 37.3±2, 22 male). Right and left atrium and right ventricle dimensions, interventricular septum, right ventricle free wall thickness, pulmonary artery diameter and assumed mean pulmonary artery pressure measured with 2-dimensional echocardiography were significantly increased in the patient group. In Doppler echocardiographic studies, right ventricle diastolic functions were significantly impaired in the patient group. There were no significant differences in left ventricle systolic and diastolic functions between the groups. In conclusion, liver cirrhosis causes dilatation in right heart spaces and diastolic dysfunction.

Leptospirosis is a widespread zoonosis manifesting itself in various types all over the world. A 23-yearold male patient, who referred to the Emergency Unit of Yüzüncü Y›l University Medical Faculty, suffered from fever, sweats, anorexia, fatigue, headache, myalgia, hiccups, nausea and vomiting, oliguria and darkening of the urine beginning 15 days before. Leptospiras were seen by dark field examination of the preparations from urine samples of the patient that we were informed to be a building worker in Istanbul. In the serum samples taken from pre-treatment period, we have found a positiveness against Leptospira icterohaemorrhagiae Wijnberg strain at a titer of 1/3200 by method of microscopic agglutination test (MAT) in Etlik Veterinary Control and Investigation Institute. The patient who was determined to have acute renal failure and hepatic function disorder was discharged from the hospital after treatment with a complete recovery.

Brucellosis is still a public health problem, particularly in developing countries. After the primary infection subsides, a chronic stage characterized by nonspecific manifestations can develop, during which it may not be possible to isolate Brucella organisms and agglutination test titers may or may not be high. We present the case of a 49-year-old man who had only nonspecific symptoms and a 2-month history of a pulsatile painful swelling in his right popliteal region. He had no history of trauma or surgery in that region, but he did ingest unpasteurized milk products. The patient's agglutination test titers were high, and Brucella melitensis was isolated from a bone marrow culture. Color Doppler sonography, T2-weighted MRI, and digital subtraction angiography were performed. Treatment with ultrasound-guided compression of the pseudoaneurysm failed because of high blood flow in its neck. Aneurysmectomy was undertaken, and the excised material was consistent with that from a mycotic pseudoaneurysm. Although both MRI and angiography provided useful information, the color Doppler sonography findings were characteristic of a pseudoaneurysm in the popliteal artery, and only that modality could detect the flow dynamics within the pseudoaneurysm. (C) 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Pericardial hydatid cyst is rare. We present a 32-year-old man with a pericardial. hydatid cyst. Chest x-ray film showed a spherical mass located left mediastinum. A pericardial cyst with low signal intensity was noted on T1 weighted magnetic resonance (MR) images. The cyst had high signal intensity, but signal intensity of folded parasitic membranes in the cyst were seen lower intensity on T2 weighted MR images. Based on these MR findings, pericardial hydatid cyst was diagnosed. The patient underwent surgical removal of the cyst. Histologic study of the cyst confirmed hydatid cyst diagnosis. (C) 2003 Tohoku University Medical Press.

Levamisole is an immunopotenciator drug which is used as an antihelmintic drug as well as very effective remedy on cellular immunity compared with humoral immunity. A total 71 patients (37 men, 34 women) who referred to our department between March 1997 and December 2001, with a history of the disease for about I year, were diagnosed as having chronic brucellosis through those tests brucella serum agglutination test (SAT), SAT with Coombs and SAT with 2-mercaptoethanol. The patients were randomly divided into levamisole group (36 patients) and control group (35 patients). All patients were given rifampicin 600 mg/day + doxycycline 200 mg/day for 6 weeks as a standard classical combined therapy for brucellosis. In the levamisole group, oral levamisole 80 mg every other day for 6 weeks was added to the treatment. There was a statistically significant difference between two groups, in complaints of arthralgia, fatigue and sweats before and 6 months after treatment, as well as in erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reactive protein elevations and lymphomonocytosis finding. While it was provided both clinical and serological improvement in all patients in the levamisole group; 11 patients in the control group did not improve both clinically and in view of specific and nonspecific laboratory findings and a recurrence occurred in one case, in this group. In conclusion, levamisole added to classical antibiotic therapy in treatment of chronic brucellosis was found quite efficient in all patients in providing adequate clinical and laboratory response in comparison to classical antibiotic therapy alone. -chronic brucellosis; levamisole; treatment (C) 2003 Tohoku University Medical Press.

Background In 2011, Turkish Ministry of Health (MoH) initiated a nation-wide “Smoking Cessation Treatment Support Program” (SCTSP), to provide smoking cessation drugs free of charge. Methods SCTSP was conducted in all 81 cities of Turkey, at 228 smoking cessation clinics, and by over 400 physicians. In total, 164,733 participants took advantage of the program between January and November 2011. Varenicline (Champix ® , Pfizer) and Bupropion (Zyban ® , GlaxoSmithKline) were used in the program at a ratio of 0.7 and 0.3 respectively. Post-program data were obtained by phone interviews from randomly selected participants, who had completed a 1-year follow-up after enrollment in the program. Findings Quit rates were 29.6% for those given Varenicline and 25.1% for those given Bupropion. The quit rates for participants with hypertension (35.0%), diabetes mellitus (36.9%), coronary artery disease (32.1%) and cerebrovascular events (34.0%) were higher than those without. Increased age, female gender, longer duration of cessation drug use, low Fagerstrom score, the presence of hypertension, the absence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and the absence of cancer were found to be associated with higher success rates. Interpretation SCTSP is the first successful report of a nation-wide community-based smoking cessation intervention. The real-life quit rates obtained herein are comparable to those of clinical evidence to date. The centralization of smoking cessation clinics, standardization of treatment guidelines, application of a specific drug assignment algoritm, and provision of primary care support and follow-ups by trained physicians, appeared to be key elements for success.

Although neurological symptoms in brucellosis are frequent,, central nervous system (CNS) involvement is uncommon. Five patients with neurobrucellosis are presented. Three patients presented with meningoencephalitis, one with polyradiculoneuritis and one with myelitis and an eighth nerve palsy. All patients had lymphocytic pleocytosis, low glucose and elevated levels of protein in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Gamma-globulin and IgG values in the CSF were also increased. Results of agglutination tests for Brucella in serum and CSF were positive for all patients, although titres were less in the CSF. Brucella melitensis was cultured from two patients. Treatment included concurrent administration of three of the following drugs: doxycycline, rifampicin, streptomycin, co-trimoxazole, ceftriaxone or ciprofloxacin. The three patients with meningoencephalitis fully recovered; the other two patients were left with minor disability.

Traffic Sign Recognition Systems (TSR) is one of the most important parts of the Advanced Driver Assistance Systems. For improved safety of ride, these systems should be reliable and must run in real-time. In this paper, a real time color and shape based TSR is proposed. Performance results are obtained by implementing proposed system on ML507 Evaluation Board.

Introduction: In 2008, Turkey became one of 26 countries with a complete ban on all forms of direct and indirect tobacco marketing. We assessed the level of exposure to anti- and pro-cigarette advertising and to cigarette promotions and sponsorships among various demographic groups in Turkey. Methods: We used the data from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS), conducted in November 2008 in Turkey. The data consist of answers to GATS questions by 9030 respondents from a nationally representative, multistage probability sample of adults 15 years of age or older. To find differences in exposure to the advertising by sex, age, education level and smoking status, we analyzed responses to GATS questions about cigarette advertisements and anti-cigarette smoking information in various forms and through various advertising channels, during the 30 days before the survey, using bivariate analysis. Results: Overall, 13.3% of respondents aged 15 years or older noticed some type of cigarette marketing during the 30 days before the survey: 7.1% saw advertisements, 5.3% saw promotions and 3.3% saw sports sponsorships. Men were more likely than women to have seen cigarette promotions (7.8% versus 3.0%) and sports sponsorships (5.3% versus 1.4%). Respondents aged 15–24 years were more likely than those aged 25 years or older to have seen cigarette advertisements (10.2% versus 6.2%), promotions (8.7% versus 4.4%) and sponsorships (6.6% versus 2.3%), respectively. Respondents were most likely to have seen cigarette advertisements on television (3.4%) or in shops (2.7%). In addition, 2.8% of respondents reported seeing a clothing item with a brand name or logo, 2.5% reported that they received free samples of cigarettes and 0.3% received gifts along with the purchase of cigarettes. Almost 9 of 10 survey respondents (88.8%) reported having noticed some anti-cigarette information during the 30 days before the survey. Most anti-cigarette information was seen on television (85.5%). The anti-cigarette information was seen by slightly more cigarette smokers (91.6%) than nonsmokers (87.6%). Persons with less than a primary education were less likely to notice anti-cigarette information than those with a higher level of education, in all examined media channels. Conclusions: Our findings showed a low prevalence of noticing cigarette marketing, which indicates high compliance with the Turkish law banning such marketing. GATS data provide an in-depth understanding of the level of exposure to pro- and anti-cigarette information in 2008 and they are of practical assistance to those who implement policies to reduce the demand for tobacco. The challenge now is to maintain rigorous enforcement. To do so requires ongoing surveillance to produce data on the effectiveness of the enforcement efforts.