No abstract

Occult tracheobronchial foreign body aspirations are infrequently seen in adults because there is usually a high index of suspicion. Occult foreign bodies can remain undetected for months to years and often are misdiagnosed. The aim of this paper is to report the cases of four adult patients with occult bronchial foreign body aspiration. None of the patients had a previous history of aspiration. One patient had been misdiagnosed as having asthma. One was thought to have tuberculosis, while unresolved pneumonia was present in another. A CXR showed the presence of a foreign body in only one patient because it was metallic. The foreign bodies included a stone, a tooth fragment, a bone fragment, and a needle. The foreign bodies were removed using a rigid bronchoscope in two patients and via a surgical procedure in the other two. In conclusion, tracheobronchial foreign body aspiration should always be taken into consideration in the differential diagnosis of radiographic lesions or chronic respiratory symptoms that are poorly explained, even in the absence of a previous history of aspiration.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the value of Ca 125, a tumour marker, in evaluation of pulmonary tuberculosis activity. This study included 96 subjects who were divided into three groups. Group 1 consisted of 40 patients with active pulmonary tuberculosis. Group 2 included 20 patients with inactive pulmonary tuberculosis. There were 36 healthy subjects in group 3. While measurement of serum Ca 125 level was performed only once in groups 2 and 3, Ca 125 levels were measured five times in group 1. The measurements were performed before the treatment, at the second, fourth and sixth months and the third year following the end of the treatment. Mean +/- SD serum Ca 125 concentrations were 109.7 +/- 86.9 U ml(-1) in group 1, 14.5 +/- 7.8 U ml(-1) in group 2 and 10.5 +/- 7.3 U ml(-1) in group 3. Serum Ca 125 levels were significantly higher in group 1 than in the other groups (P < 0.0001), but there was no significant statistical difference between the values of groups 2 and 3 (P > 0.05). Ca 125 levels in group 1 showed a significant decrease after treatment (P < 0.0001). For estimation of the activity of tuberculosis, the sensitivity and specificity of Ca 125 were found 97.5% and 100%, respectively at a 31 U ml(-1) cut-off point. Our results suggest that Ca 125 is beneficial in the determinaton of tuberculosis activity and in differentiation between active and inactive pulmonary tuberculosis.

Although impaired LV diastolic function was detected using conventional parameters, only novel advanced echocardiographic modalities demonstrated impaired bi-ventricular and atrial mechanical functions in patients with sarcoidosis.

Increased IMA, AOPP and PAB, and decreased FRAP are likely to be results of oxidative stress, a condition in which an imbalance occurs between the production and inactivation of reactive oxygen species in AD. The IMA could be used for the better evaluation of clinical status, as well as the independent characteristic symptoms of AD, for the purposes of routine clinical laboratory analysis.

A single-pass needle technique in transthoracic fine-needle aspiration is preferred because there is no significant difference between single-pass needle and multiple-pass coaxial needle systems with respect to the diagnostic accuracy and the complication rate and, in addition, the single-pass needle has a lower cost. The results of the present study suggest that immediate cytological assessment during the procedure reduces an inadequate sampling rate, thus increasing the diagnostic accuracy of the procedure.

This cross-sectional survey showed that AERD is highly prevalent among adult asthmatics and its prevalence seems to be affected by family history of ASA hypersensitivity, history of rhinosinusitis and presence of NP.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate long-term efficacy of a patient education programme in an asthma out-patient clinic. The study included two groups. Educational group consisted of 25 patients who were given special education for one year. Usual care group included 27 patients who were not given special education. All patients were evaluated after 3 years follow-up period. Mean per cent asthma knowledge score (KS%), mean per cent demonstration score (DS%), daytime and nighttime symptom scores, Aas score, and pulmonary function tests were measured. The asthma-quality-of-life assessment was performed. The rate of application to emergency room and admission to hospital for last 1 year had been calculated. KS% was higher in educational group than in usual care group (P < 0.001). Daytime score was 0.3 +/- 0.6 in educational group and was 0.8 +/- 1.2 in usual care group (P = 0.08). Nighttime symptom score was found to be 0.5 +/- 0.9 and 0.9 +/- 1.3, respectively (P = 0.07). Usual care group had higher Aas score compared to educational group (P = 0.048). The total score of quality of life was 197.1 +/- 17.8 in educational group and was 176.7 +/- 33.7 in usual care group (P = 0.009). While none of the patients had emergency room application and hospital admission in educational group, seven patients had 21 emergency room application (P = 0.01) and four patients had four hospital admissions in usual care group. Additional short-acting inhaled beta-2 agonist usage was found lower in the educational group (P = 0.068). In conclusion, proper drug use and usual care of patients are not sufficient for asthma treatment. Patient education is an important component of therapy in asthma patients. For a life with optimum standards, in addition to these factors, patient education must be accepted first by doctors and then by patients.