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Gülay Oyur Celik Izmir Katip Celebi Universty, Health Science Faculty, Surgical Nursing Department, Izmir, Turkey Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the patient satisfaction and emotional intelligence skills of nurses working in the surgical clinic.Methods: The study included two groups: a total of 79 nurses working for the surgical clinics of a university hospital in the city of Izmir and a total of 113 inpatients between January 1 and February 20, 2015. The nurses were asked to fill out the Emotional Intelligence Scale and a 12-question self-description form, while the patients were given the Scale of Satisfaction for Nursing Care and an 11-question self-description form.Results: We found a positive and statistically significant relationship between the satisfaction scores and emphatic concern, utilization of emotions, and emotional awareness subheadings of the patients (P

The electric dipole transition probabilities and the oscillator strengths of neutral scandium have been calculated using the quantum defect orbital theory and the Cowan code for the 3d4[s.sup.2]-3d4s4p, 3[d.sup.2]4s-3[d.sup.2]4p, and 3d4[s.sup.2]-4[s.sup.2]4p transitions. In addition, a parametric analysis of the fine structure for the 3d4[s.sup.2] configuration of even parity is performed using Cowan code. The transition probabilities and the oscillator strengths obtained in this work are mostly in agreement with the data obtained from different theoretical works given in the literature. Moreover, transition probabilities for 24 levels of neutral scandium are given for the first time. PACS Nos.: 32.70.Cs, 31.15.A-. Les probability de transition dipolaires electriques et les forces d'oscillateur du scandium neutre sont calculees ici dans le cadre de la theorie des orbitales a defaut quantique, utilisant le code source de Cowan pour les transitions 3d4[s.sup.2]-3d4s4p, 3[d.sup.2]4s-3[d.sup.2]4p et 3d4[s.sup.2]-4[s.sup.2]4p. Le code de Cowan permet aussi une analyse parametrique de la structure fine de la configuration de parite paire 3d4[s.sup.2]. Les probabilites de transition et les forces d'oscillateur obtenues ici sont generalement en bon accord avec les donnees de differentes etudes theoriques trouvees dans la litterature. De plus, nous donnons pour la premiere fois les probabilites de transition de 24 niveaux du scandium neutre. [Traduit par la Redaction], 1. Introduction The atomic transition probability is an important fundamental parameter in the fields of atomic spectroscopy, astronomy, and plasma physics. In particular, accurate oscillator strengths are necessary for the [...]

Galectin-1 is an important mediator that regulates the T-cell-mediated immune response. It has many other biological functions such as cell growth, immunomodulation, and wound healing. The aim of this study was to reveal the role of galectin-1 on liver morphology, cell proliferation, apoptosis, inflammatory and anti-inflammatory mediators, oxidative stress, and antioxidant system in colitis-mediated hepatotoxicity induced by dextran sulfate sodium (DSS). In the present study, adult mice were divided into four groups: The control group intraperitoneally injected with phosphate buffer saline (I), the group which was orally administered with DSS (II), the control group which was injected with galectin-1 (III), and the group which was given DSS and galectin-1 (IV). DSS administration caused degenerative changes and diffuse necrotic damage, an increase in caspase-3 and cyclooxygenase-2 expression, the levels of lipid peroxidation and tumor necrosis factor-alpha, lactate dehydrogenase, and myeloperoxidase activities, and a decrease in cell proliferation, interleukin-10 levels, and antioxidant system parameters in liver tissues. Treatment of DSS group with galectin-1 reversed these effects and prevented liver damage. This study showed that galectin-1 has proliferative, antiapoptotic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effects against DSS-induced liver injury in mice. It is expected considering all results of this study that galectin-1 may be useful as a protective agent against liver toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and purpose: Hemodialysis (HD) may have some adverse effects on the nervous system. Headache is the most commonly reported neurological symptom amongst HD patients. Our aim was to determine the frequency, clinical characteristics and triggering factors of HD‐related headache (HRH) and to evaluate preventive strategies for reducing HRH. Method: In all, 494 patients were included. Comparative controls (CC) were classified within the same patients without headache. Arterial systolic/diastolic blood pressure, blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine were correlated before/after one HD. The urea reduction ratio during the dialysis session was determined. Results: A total of 175 patients (35.4%) with a mean age of 57.3 ± 15.7 years were diagnosed with HRH. HRH was more common in males (P < 0.001). Headache was started a mean of 2.90 ± 0.86 h after the HD. The common localization of pain was reported to be bifrontal in 41.7% (n = 73). The mean duration of headache was 6.22 ± 7.8 h, with a duration of ≤4 h reported by 64.0% of patients. The mean Visual Analog Scale score was 5.64 ± 2.05. The differences between pre/post‐dialysis BUN values were 94.6 ± 31.1 in HRH patients and 86.8 ± 28.5 in the CC group (P = 0.006). The systolic blood pressure difference between the pre/post‐dialysis measurements was 22.4 ± 16.5 mmHg in HRH patients and 12.8 ± 19.4 mmHg in CC(P < 0.001). Patients with HRH had significantly higher mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure pre‐dialysis values (systolic, P = 0.002; diastolic, P < 0.001). The differences in systolic/diastolic blood pressure between pre/post‐dialysis were higher in the HRH group (P < 0.001, P = 0.001, respectively). Conclusion: Regulating the frequency and timing of dialysis may provide better management in HRH with high BUN levels and high pre‐dialysis blood pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract In this paper, we present an overall data link design for a tactical wireless sensor network operating at VHF band considering software defined radio (SDR) approach. An empirical channel modeling for the target environment is developed, and the large and small scale statistics of the wireless channel are obtained. Then, the physical layer properties including modulation, channel coding, frequency hopping are designed according to the power and bandwidth efficiency requirements. Additionally, the medium access control (MAC) and automatic repeat request (ARQ) protocols are designed and the complete end-to-end system is tested in the field using the SDR platform. The measurement results are promising for the proposed datalink of the VHF wireless sensor networks operating in the dense hilly environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drug hypersensitivity reactions (DHRs) affect an unknown proportion of the general population, and are an important public health problem due to their potential to cause life-threatening anaphylaxis and rare severe cutaneous allergic reactions. DHR evaluations are frequently needed in both ambulatory and hospital settings and have a complex diagnosis that requires a detailed clinical history and other tests that may include in vitro tests and in vivo procedures such as skin tests and drug provocation tests. Although over the years both European and U.S. experts have published statements on general procedures for evaluating DHRs, a substantial discordance in their daily management exists. In this review, we highlight both the differences and the similarities between the European and U.S. perspectives. While a general consensus exists on the importance of skin tests for evaluating DHRs, concordance between Americans and Europeans exists solely regarding their use in immediate reactions and the fact that a confirmation of a presumptive diagnosis by drug provocation tests is often the only reliable way to establish a diagnosis. Finally, great heterogeneity exists in the application of in vitro tests, which require further study to be well validated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The strongest and best-documented risk factor for drug hypersensitivity ( DH) is the history of a previous reaction. Accidental exposures to drugs may lead to severe or even fatal reactions in sensitized patients. Preventable prescription errors are common. They are often due to inadequate medical history or poor risk assessment of recurrence of drug reaction. Proper documentation is essential information for the doctor to make sound therapeutic decision. The European Network on Drug Allergy and Drug Allergy Interest Group of the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology have formed a task force and developed a drug allergy passport as well as general guidelines of drug allergy documentation. A drug allergy passport, a drug allergy alert card, a certificate, and a discharge letter after medical evaluation are adequate means to document DH in a patient. They are to be handed to the patient who is advised to carry the documentation at all times especially when away from home. A drug allergy passport should at least contain information on the culprit drug(s) including international nonproprietary name, clinical manifestations including severity, diagnostic measures, potential cross-reactivity, alternative drugs to prescribe, and where more detailed information can be obtained from the issuer. It should be given to patients only after full allergy workup. In the future, electronic prescription systems with alert functions will become more common and should include the same information as in paper-based documentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drug hypersensitivity reactions ( DHRs) are a matter of great concern, both for outpatient and in hospital care. The evaluation of these patients is complex, because in vivo tests have a suboptimal sensitivity and can be time-consuming, expensive and potentially risky, especially drug provocation tests. There are several currently available in vitro methods that can be classified into two main groups: those that help to characterize the active phase of the reaction and those that help to identify the culprit drug. The utility of these in vitro methods depends on the mechanisms involved, meaning that they cannot be used for the evaluation of all types of DHRs. Moreover, their effectiveness has not been defined by a consensus agreement between experts in the field. Thus, the European Network on Drug Allergy and Drug Allergy Interest Group of the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology has organized a task force to provide data and recommendations regarding the available in vitro methods for DHR diagnosis. We have found that although there are many in vitro tests, few of them can be given a recommendation of grade B or above mainly because there is a lack of well-controlled studies, most information comes from small studies with few subjects and results are not always confirmed in later studies. Therefore, it is necessary to validate the currently available in vitro tests in a large series of well-characterized patients with DHR and to develop new tests for diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to assess choroidal thickness in migraine patients during acute migraine attacks and compare them with healthy controls, using spectral domain optical coherence tomography (OCT).Patients and methodsIn this prospective case-control study, choroidal thicknesses of 46 migraine patients during acute migraine attacks and 46 age- and sex-matched healthy subjects were measured using a high-speed, high-resolution frequency domain-OCT device. All patients underwent a complete ophthalmic examination before the measurements. OCT measurements were taken at the same time of day (0900 hours), in order to minimize the effects of diurnal variation.ResultsThere was a statistically significant difference in mean choroidal thickness between the migraine patients during acute migraine attacks (356.3±21.46 μm) and the controls (302.3±18.34 μm; P=0.000). There were significant differences at all measurement points (P<0.001 for all).ConclusionThe increased choroidal thickness of the migraine patients during acute migraine attacks might be related to the vascular pathology of the disease. Further studies are needed to evaluate the etiopathologic relationship between choroidal thickness and acute migraine attack. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Behçet's disease (BD) is a systemic vasculitis involving diverse sizes of arteries and veins. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between central blood pressures, pulse wave velocity (PWV) measurements, and biochemical parameters in patients with inactive and active BD and control subjects. Method: Ninety-six patients with BD were recruited in this study. Each subject was evaluated in active and inactive disease periods. For the control group, 54 healthy age- and sex-matched subjects were enrolled. All patients completed a standard questionnaire form and various laboratory parameters were evaluated. Vascular measurements were performed with a Mobil-O-Graph 24-h PWA Monitor, an automatic oscillometric device. Results: According to the vascular function parameters of patients with active and inactive BD, 24-h, day, and night PWV values were higher in patients with active BD than in patients with inactive BD (p < 0.05). When we performed a linear regression analysis, 24-h PWV was positively correlated with age and duration of BD. Cardiac output (CO) values and day central diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were higher in patients with BD than in the control group (p < 0.05). Conclusions: PWV values were higher in patients with active BD than in patients with inactive BD. This may be explained by more prominent inflammatory changes in the vascular wall in the active disease period. Further studies in large populations are required to confirm our results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives: The significant rise in food borne infections is mainly caused by Campylobacter spp., Salmonella serovars and Verotoxigenic Escherichia coli. As the emerging food borne pathogens cause disease, more studies have been conducted for rapid detection of these pathogens. The combination of immunomagnetic separation and polymerase chain reaction (IMS-PCR) is the most accurate and rapid test preferred by almost every researcher. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) is preferred for being a new, user friendly and rapid technique in microbiological analyses. The main aim of this study is to detect application of IMS-FTIR for Salmonella identification from foods in a short time with a higher sensitivity. Materials and Methods: Conventional Culture Technique (CC), IMS-CC, IMS-PCR and IMS-FTIR techniques were compared with each other for rapid detection in artificially contaminated minced beef with Salmonella Typhimurium, as of the 2nd, 4th and 8th hours of contamination. The method was evaluated in different food matrices and sensitivity, specifity and overall recovery was calculated. Results: The results indicate that IMS-FTIR can detect S. Typhimurium as of the 8th hour with sensitivity of 95.6667, accuracy of 91.69329, false positive ratio of 0.04333 and overall recovery of 95.66%. Conclusion: It can be suggested that the IMS-FTIR method is capable of detecting S.Typhimurium in a short time with lower cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Epidemiological characteristics of sarcoidosis differ according to geographical distribution. The aim of our study was to disclose epidemiological characteristics in our country. The data was collected from investigators, who sent information on newly-diagnosed patients via internet. In 2 years 198 female and 95 male patients were enrolled to the study (f/m:2.08). Mean age of patients was 44±13 years (17–90). Mean age of male patients was 38±12 while mean age of female patients was 48±13 (p <0.001). 73.4% of patients were nonsmokers (85.4% of females; 48.4% of males; (p <0.001)). About 50% of our 293 patients were housewives. Familial sarcoidosis was found in 3 patients'' first degree relatives. Estimated annual incidence of sarcoidosis for Turkey was calculated as 4 per 100,000 person. According to our study, 2/3 of sarcoidosis patients were women; mean age of patients was 45 and the disease began 10 years later in female patients. 80% of patients were nonsmokers; negative relation between sarcoidosis and smoking was evident especially in women. Familial sarcoidosis frequency was lower compared to other studies in the literature. There was no occupational exposure history in our patients. Our incidence rate, is similar with the results of other European studies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM: All-ceramic restorations have been advocated for superior esthetics, and various materials have been used to improve ceramic core strength, but there is a lack of information on how color is affected by different core substructures and fabrication procedures. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of various dentin ceramic thicknesses and repeated firings on the color of lithium disilicate glass-ceramic (IPS e.max Press) and zirconium-oxide (DC-Zirkon) all-ceramic systems. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Thirty disc-shaped specimens, 4 mm in diameter with a 1-mm core thickness, and 0.5-, 1-, or 1.5-mm dentin ceramic thicknesses, were made from each of 2 ceramic systems (n=10). Repeated firings (3, 5, 7, or 9) were performed, and the color of the specimens was compared with the color after the initial firing. Color differences among ceramic specimens were measured using a spectrophotometer (VITA Easyshade), and data were expressed in CIELAB system coordinates. Repeated measures ANOVA was used to analyze the data (number of firings, ceramic composition, and ceramic thickness) for significant differences. The Tukey HSD test and paired 2-tailed tests were used to perform multiple comparisons (alpha=.05). RESULTS: L*a*b* values of the ceramic systems were affected by the number of firings (3, 5, 7, or 9 firings) (P<.001), ceramic composition (DC-Zirkon or IPS e.max Press) (P<.001), and ceramic thickness (0.5, 1, or 1.5 mm) (P<.001). Significant interactions were present in L*a*b* values between the number of firings and ceramic composition (P<.001) and between the number of firings and ceramic thickness (P<.001). Significant interactions were present between the number of firings and ceramic thickness and ceramic composition (P<.05) in L* and b* values, but not for the a* value (P=.068). As the ceramic thickness increased, significant reductions in L* values (P<.01) were recorded for IPS e.max Press and DC-Zirkon specimens. For IPS e.max Press specimens, there were significant increases in a* and b* values (P<.01). For DC-Zirkon specimens, significant increases in a* values were observed; however, no significant differences were recorded for b* values. CONCLUSIONS: The analysis revealed that there were significant changes in L*a*b* color data as the number of firings increased, which resulted in perceptual color changes in L*a*b* color parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nocardiosis is a rare disease, and worldwide, respiratory and disseminated infections are most often due toNocardia asteroideswhich is recognised increasingly as an opportunistic infection in patients with underlying chronic debilitating disease or immunodeficiency. However, infection withN. otitidiscaviarumand pulmonary nocardiosis in an immune-competent host remains very rare. We report a 65-year-old immune-competent male with pulmonaryN. otitidiscaviaruminfection in whom complete cure was provided with a 6 months of antibiotic combination including trimethoprim-sulfomethaxazol. This is the first report of pulmonaryN. otitidiscaviaruminfection in an immune-competent patient from Turkey. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parallel placement of 2 separate bars may be indicated in patients where bone is available in the posterior part of the maxilla. Bars and stud attachments are the primary attachment systems compatible with the majority of the implant systems currently available; however, treatment planning in certain situations may be challenging due to the component available with the implant system used. This report describes the fabrication of a cemented bar design for use in situations when the components of the implant system are inadequate for fabrication of a screw-retained bar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wireless geolocation considering Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access (NOMA) is particular of interest for enabling high precision location based services (LBSs) in 5G networks. In this paper, we study the fundamental limits of Time-of-arrival (TOA) positioning for uplink cooperative NOMA in the power domain under different 5G network conditions with special emphasis on the user fairness. The theoretical analysis is conducted in terms of Cramer–Rao Lower Bound (CRLB) expressions. More specifically, the CRLB of TOA positioning for uplink cooperative NOMA and OMA are obtained considering Amplify-and-Forward (AF) and Decode-and-Forward (DF) relaying strategies. Then, the numerical results of both TOA positioning for uplink cooperative NOMA and OMA are obtained and compared under different 5G network scenarios. In particular, the effects of successive interference cancellation (SIC) error, bandwidth, number of relays, and number of UEs and relaying strategy type on the performance of position accuracy are investigated. The results reveal that the cooperative NOMA outperforms cooperative OMA in terms of location estimation accuracy under different network conditions. Furthermore, the results suggest that TOA positioning of cooperative NOMA is a promising choice for supporting high precision LBSs in 5G networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Co3V2O8 is a member of kagomé staircase oxides, represented by general formula M3V2O8 (M = Ni, Co, Mn). It attracted great attention due to strong magnetic anisotropy, magnetic phase transition, genuine macroscopic quantum effects, strong quantum fluctuations, low-temperature ferroelectricity, field-induced magnetic transitions, complicated phase diagram and displays long-range magnetic order because of geometrical frustration. Different routes to prepare the frustrated magnetic material was reported such as floating zone technique and conventional high temperature method. Co3V2O8 (International Centre for Diffraction Data (ICDD): 16-675) was synthesized with Co3O4 (ICDD: 80-1536) as binary phase by microwave assisted preparation using Co(NO3)2.6H2O and NH4VO3. The synthesized material was characterization by powder X-ray diffraction, the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric-differential thermal analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A response by G. Celik, J. Schroeder and N.F. Adkinson to a letter to the editor about their article "Effect of in vitro aspirin stimulation on basophils in patients with aspirinexacerbated respiratory disease," is presented.

Viral infections lead to significant morbidity and mortality in kidney transplant recipients. We evaluated 49 kidney transplant recipients for human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) and BK polyomavirus infections in conjunction with data obtained from 43 donors. The seroprevalence of HHV-8 was 6.9% in donors and 12.2% in recipients. HHV-8 DNA was detected below the limit of quantification (<5000 copies/mL) in a recipient with HHV-8 seropositivity at the pretransplant period and was undetectable at month 3 after transplantation. Transient viruria with BK polyomavirus was recorded in 10.2% of recipients without viremia. Multiple factors contribute to viral reactivation, particularly immunosuppressive treatment. Reduction in maintenance immunosuppression seems beneficial in terms of viral reactivation. At our center, routine use of valganciclovir for antiviral prophylaxis may be effective for the prevention of HHV-8 reactivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]