From the present study, we propose that after accurate classification, interventional bronchoscopic management may have an important role in the treatment of benign tracheal stenosis. Bronchoscopic treatment should be considered as first-line therapy for simple stenoses, whereas complex stenoses need a multidisciplinary approach and often require surgical intervention. However, bronchoscopic treatment may be a valid conservative approach in the management of patients with complex tracheal stenosis who are not eligible for operative treatment.

Volar locking plate fixation is an effective treatment in the anatomical and functional restoration of unstable distal radius fractures.

Unstable distal radius fractures can be treated with closed reduction and cast application in low-demand elderly patients to avoid risks and complications of surgery.

Study Objectives: The cardiovascular complications caused by obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) decrease after continuous positive airway pressure treatment (CPAP). Mean platelet volume (MPV), platelet distribution width (PDW), and red cell distribution width (RDW) are newly recognized tools for assessing cardiovascular risk. Methods: From a selection of patients with symptoms of nocturnal snoring and/or excessive daytime sleepiness, 36 males with an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) > 30/h and 22 age-matched normal male controls with AHI < 5/h were included. Patients with OSA underwent another night of CPAP titration, and 11 patients were excluded at the 6-month evaluation due to poor compliance with the home CPAP therapy. Complete blood count parameters of compliant patients and the control group were evaluated. S C I E N T I F I C I N V E S T I G A T I O N SO bstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is characterized by collapse of the upper airway during sleep, recurring apnea, intermittent hypoxemia, and daytime sleepiness. The severity of OSA is evaluated in terms of the number of apnea/hypopnea episodes per hour of sleep and is expressed as the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI). 1Red blood cell distribution width (RDW) is a numerical measure of the size variability of circulating erythrocytes and is routinely reported as a component of the complete blood count in the differential diagnosis of anemia. Disorders related to ineffective erythropoiesis or increased red blood cell destruction cause greater size heterogeneity and thus a higher RDW. 2,3Several studies have reported increased platelet activation and aggregation in patients with OSA. 4,5 It has been shown that platelet size, as measured by mean platelet volume (MPV), correlates with platelet reactivity, and is regarded as an easy and useful tool for indirect monitoring of platelet activity. As larger platelets have greater thrombotic potential, the RDW, MPV, and platelet distribution width (PDW) have been shown to be related to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients with cardiac diseases. In OSA patients, RDW, MPV, and PDW are newly recognized indicators of the severity of the condition that are associated with no additional cost compared to a routinely performed complete blood count. 11-14Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy is the gold standard in patients with severe OSA. MPV is reduced after CPAP therapy in severe OSA patients, indicating that CPAP therapy has cardioprotective effects. 15 To our knowledge, the effect of CPAP therapy on RDW and PDW in OSA patients has not been reported; thus, we decided to investigate this possibility. BRIEF SUMMARYCurrent Knowledge/Study Rationale: Mean platelet volume (MPV), platelet distribution width (PDW), and red cell distribution width (RDW) are newly recognized tools for assessing cardiovascular risk. These markers increase in patients with OSA. The effect of CPAP treatment on these parameters was evaluated. Study Impact: Our data suggest that complete blood count parameters such as MPV, PDW, and RDW changed ...

Osteoarthritis is a chronic disease that causes serious pain and limitations in activities. Intraarticular corticosteroid injections combined with pharmacological treatment and physiotherapy have been used for years to control the local inflammation and relieve pain in the patients with osteoarthritis. There are several animal experiments which suggested that the intraarticular corticosteroid injections impair cartilage protein synthesis. However, there are no serious evidences suggesting the increase of cartilage impairment. The aim of our study was to compare the efficacy of placebo and intraarticular corticosteroid agents in the patients with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis. One hundred and twenty patients with painful knee osteoarthritis were included in the prospective, randomized, controlled study. The patients were randomized into four groups. Each group consisted of thirty patients. Intraarticular single dose of methylprednisolone acetate (40 mg, 1 ml), Betametazone disodium phosphate (3 mg, 1 ml), Triamsinolon acetonate (40 mg, 1 ml), and serum physiological (0.09% NaCl, 1 ml) were administrated to the groups, respectively. The patients were evaluated by Visual Analog Scale (0-10 cm [VAS]) for the pain severity, and by Lequesne Functional Index for functional state before treatment, and at the 1st, 3rd, 6th, and 12th weeks. Our results showed that single doses of three agents provided symptomatic and functional relief and their effects reduced at the 12th week. However, methylprednisolone acetate was a statistically more effective analgesic as compared to the other agents until the sixth week.

Background. Carcinosarcoma of the lung is a rare malignant neoplasm. We evaluated the diagnosis and treatment of six carcinosarcoma cases, including a synchronous tumour and a solitary pulmonary tumour, along with the clinical and histological features and survival times.Methods. From a retrospective analysis of 1076 non-small-cell lung cancer resections performed between January 1996 and January 2011, six patients (0.5%) with pulmonary carcinosarcoma (all males; mean age 58 years; range 53–66) who underwent surgical treatment were studied.Results. The mean tumour pathological T diameter was 7.2 cm (median 6 cm, range 3–14.5 cm). Only one patient was diagnosed with carcinosarcoma preoperatively. The clinical presentation and tumour localisations differed. The operations performed were a lobectomy (n=4), pneumonectomy (n=1), and bilobectomy (n=1). Histologically, the epithelial characteristics of the tumours were consistent with squamous cell carcinoma in most of the patients. A complete resection was performed in all six patients. No mortality occurred in the early postoperative period. The median survival time was 9 (3–25) months.Conclusion. The preoperative diagnosis of carcinosarcoma of the lung is difficult due to the composition of the different histopathological structures. Complete surgical resection is the treatment of choice for pulmonary carcinosarcoma, although further studies are needed.

Purpose While the number of COVID‐19 cases is increasing day by day, there is limited information known about the hematological and laboratory findings of the disease. We aimed to investigate whether serum ferritin level predicts mortality, is a marker for rapid progression for inpatients. Methods Our study included 56 patients who were died due to COVID‐19 as the study group, and 245 patients who were hospitalized and recovered as the control group. The laboratory data of the patients were evaluated from the first blood tests (pre) taken from the first moment of admittion to the hospital and the blood tests taken from before the patient's discharge or exitus (post) were evaluated retrospectively. Results The mean age of the nonsurvivor group was 62.0 ± 15.7 and the mean age of the control group was 54.34 ± 13.03. Age and length of stay are significantly higher in the nonsurvivor group. When comparing the pre and post values of ferritin, according to the two groups separately, there was no significant difference in the control group and a high level of significance was observed in the nonsurvivor group (p <0.01). Conclusion COVID‐19 disease caused by SARS‐CoV‐2 causes high mortality with widespread inflammation and cytokine storm. Ferritin is a cheap and widespread available marker, ferritin, which can be used for its predictivity of the mortality and hope it would be a usefull marker for clinicians for the management of the disease. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

QFT-G test results were more closely associated with TB risk factors than were positive TST results. Additionally, the QFT-G test was not affected by BCG vaccination. We concluded that QFT-G test is a more useful diagnostic method than TST for detecting LTBI in HD patients.