The aetiology of Takayasu's arteritis is unknown, but an association with tuberculosis has been reported. We report the case of a 12-year-old-boy with Takayasu's arteritis: his blood pressure was 150/90 mmHg and fundoscopic examination showed grade I hypertensive changes. A tuberculin test was positive and acid-fast bacteria were seen in the urine. Angiography revealed involvement of the descending aorta, thoracic aorta and upper abdominal aorta, with fusiform enlargement and no filling of the left renal artery. He was started on prednisolone therapy, with cyclophosphamide being added subsequently. Despite vigorous treatment, including three courses of nitroprusside infusion, the severe hypertension persisted and his blood pressure became regulated only after left nephrectomy. Acid-fast bacteria were seen in the nephrectomy material. The exact role of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in the pathogenesis of Takayasu's arteritis is still unknown. In this patient the tuberculin test was positive and acid-fast bacteria were seen in both the urine and nephrectomy material. This finding is suggestive of the association between tuberculosis and the disease process.

Objective:To investigate the prevalence of Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection in pre-school and school age children with C-14 urea breath test, and to explore its association with age and socioeconomic factors in Turkey.Methods:Hp infection status was determined by using Urea Breath Test (UBT). Patients who had previous gastric surgery, Hp eradication treatment or equivocal UBT results were excluded. A questionnaire was administered to elicit information on gender, age, ABO/Rh blood group type, presence of gastric disease in the family, domestic animal in the household, and treatment for idiopathic Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA).Results:This retrospective study included 500 pediatric patients (179 boys, 321 girls, mean age 10.7±4.3 years) of whom 62 (12.4%) were aged ≤6 years and 438 (87.6%) were aged 7 to 16 years. Helicobacter pylori (Hp) was positive in 245 (49%) cases. In the pre-school age group, 21/62 cases (34%) had positive UBT while in the school age group 224/438 children (51%) had positive UBT. A family history of dyspepsia and pet ownership were not associated with Hp positivity. Hp positive 76 (29.8%) children were on IDA treatment but this was not statistically significant.Conclusion:The Hp infection positivity rate was 49% in the pediatric age study group. The positivity rate was significantly lower at preschool age than school age, and it increased with age. There was no association with gender, ABO/Rh blood groups, presence of domestic pets, IDA, or history of gastric disease in the family.

Restaging of colorectal cancer and PET/CT Positron Emission Tomography/Computerized Tomography (PET/CT) is an important assessment method in restaging of oncology patients. Its ability to detect the metabolic/functional changes in patients with colorectal cancer during the early stages, in which morphological changes cannot be documented, is significantly superior to other imaging modalities.

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Aim: The aim of the present study is to investigate the impact of F-18 FDG PET/CT in the restaging of colorectal cancer in patients with suspected recurrence. Thus, PET/CT findings were compared with that of CT. In addition, the correlation between serum CEA levels and PET/CT and CT findings was investigated. Furthermore, the role of PET/CT in treatment response among patients who were treated after restaging was assessed. Material and Method: In this retrospective study, a total of 102 patients operated for colorectal cancer (63 female, 39 male, mean age 65.81±4.63 years) were investigated. F-18 FDG PET/CT scans were acquired in all patients. The findings of PET/CT were compared with that of concurrent CT, and also with CEA levels. Results: In the study, the success rates of PET/CT and CT in detecting pathologic lesions in colorectal cancer cases with suspected recurrence were 98% and 64.7%, respectively. In 34 cases, pathologic lesions were detected with PET/CT, while CT showed no recurrence. The lesions of 68 cases out of 70 with high CEA levels were localized by means of PET/CT, whereas pathology was observed by CT in only 45 cases. Thus, PET/CT was considered more successful than CT in detecting recurrence. In the liver where lesion was localized the most, the sensitivity and specificity of PET/CT were 88% and 92%, respectively, while the sensitivity and specificity of CT were 80% and 76%, respectively. Conclusion: In the light of findings, our study suggested PET/CT as a valuable imaging tool for restaging and treatment response assessment in colorectal cancer cases with suspected recurrence.

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BackgroundWe evaluated the stump region with scintigraphy and compared the correlation of treatment modalities and scintigraphic results.MethodsSixty-eight cases with extremity amputation were included in the study. Amputation applied cases underwent four-phase Tc-99m hydroxymethylene diphosphonate scintigraphy. Groups were performed according to the scanning time after amputation and amputation regions. After scintigraphic evaluation, results were recorded into five groups: osteomyelitis, soft-tissue infection, reactive changes secondary to surgery, chronic osteomyelitis, and normal. Post-surgical treatment modalities of the patients were determined and compared with scintigraphic results.ResultsIn the scintigraphic evaluation of stump regions of the 68 amputated cases, 34 patients had acute osteomyelitis, one had chronic osteomyelitis, 16 had soft-tissue infection, and eight had changes secondary to the surgery. Nine of 68 cases had normal scintigraphic features. In the scintigraphic evaluation, 43 patients took antibiotic treatment and 16 had surgery. There was a strong correlation between scintigraphic results and treatment approach (P < 0.0001, r = 0.803) by means of preferred therapy and effectiveness of the therapy according to the scintigraphic results. Scintigraphy need increases with age after amputation and a negative correlation between patient age and scintigraphic need was found (P < 0.02, r = -0.339). There was no pathology in the follow-up in the cases that were scintigraphically normal.ConclusionBone scintigraphy is a cost-effective, non-invasive, and efficient method that directs treatment in the evaluation of the stump region after amputation.