Usefulness of the Autologous Serum Test for the Diagnosis of Chronic Idiopathic Urticaria

( Oyku Marasoglu Celen ),( Zekayi Kutlubay ),( Ertugrul H. Aydemir ) 대한피부과학회 2014 Annals of Dermatology Vol.26 No.5

Background: The majority of chronic urticaria cases are chronic idiopathic urticaria (CIU) with no specific identifiable etiology. The role of autoantibodies in such cases remains controversial. Objective: This study determined the positivity rate of autologous serum tests in CIU patients. Methods: This study was performed on 30 patients with CIU and 30 individuals without any systemic or dermatologic disease. After the volar parts of right and left forearms were cleansed, 0.05 ml serum physiologic and 0.05 ml autologous serum were injected intradermally on the right forearm 5 cm apart from each other, resulting in the formation of small papules; meanwhile, 0.05 ml histamine alone was injected to the left forearm. The test results were evaluated after 30 minutes as positive in positive cases. Results: The autologous serum test produced significant and non-significant results in patients with CIU and controls, respectively. The positivity rates of the autologous serum test in the CIU and control groups were 53.3% and 26.6%, respectively. There was no relationship between autologous serum test positivity and sex in either group. In male patients with CIU, positive results ranged widely with age, while in female patients, positive results were mainly observed at younger ages with a narrow age range. Conclusion: The autologous serum test is a useful test in the diagnosis and treatment of CIU as well as the selection of immunotherapy, especially in patients refractory to classic therapy. (Ann Dermatol 26(5) 592∼597, 2014)

Influence of carbon nanotube inclusions to electrical, thermal, physical and mechanical behaviors of carbon-fiber-reinforced ABS composites

Akar Alinda Oyku,Yildiz Umit Hakan,Tirkes Seha,Tayfun Umit,Hacivelioglu Ferda 한국탄소학회 2022 Carbon Letters Vol.32 No.4

Acrylonitrile–butadiene–styrene (ABS) terpolymer was compounded with short carbon fiber (CF) and carbon nanotube (CNT) using a micro-extruder followed by the injection molding process. Composite samples were fabricated with loading ratios of 20 wt.% CF and 0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 wt.% of CNT. Mechanical, electrical, thermo-mechanical, thermal, melt-flow, and structural investigations of ABS-based composites were conducted by performing tensile, impact, hardness, and wear tests, conductive atomic force microscopy (AFM), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), melt flow rate test (MFR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) characterization techniques, respectively. According to mechanical test data of resultant composites including tensile and impact test findings, CNT additions led to the remarkable increase in tensile strength and impact resistance for CF reinforced ABS composites. The formation of synergy between CNT nanoparticles and CF was confirmed by electrical conduction results. The conductive path in ABS/CF composite system was achieved by the incorporation of CNT with different loading levels. SEM micrographs of composites proved that CNT nanoparticles exhibited homogeneous dispersion into ABS matrix for lower loadings.

Antidepressants in Spine Surgery: A Systematic Review to Determine Benefits and Risks

Ahmed B. Bayoumi,Oyku Ikizgul,Ceren Nur Karaali,Selma Bozkurt,Deniz Konya,Zafer Orkun Toktas 대한척추외과학회 2019 Asian Spine Journal Vol.13 No.6

Antidepressant drugs can be advantageous in treating psychiatric and non-psychiatric illnesses, including spinal disorders. However, spine surgeons remain unfamiliar with the advantages and disadvantages of the use of antidepressant drugs as a part of the medical management of diseases of the spine. Our review article describes a systematic method using the PubMed/Medline database with a specific set of keywords to identify such benefits and drawbacks based on 17 original relevant articles published between January 2000 and February 2018; this provides the community of spine surgeons with available cumulative evidence contained within two tables illustrating both observational (10 studies; three cross-sectional, three case-control, and four cohort studies) and interventional (seven randomized clinical trials) studies. While tricyclic antidepressants (e.g., amitriptyline) and duloxetine can be effective in the treatment of neuropathic pain caused by root compression, venlafaxine may be more appropriate for patients with spinal cord injury presenting with depression and/or nociceptive pain. Despite the potential associated consequences of a prolonged hospital stay, higher cost, and controversial reports regarding the lowering of bone mineral density in the elderly, antidepressants may improve patient satisfaction and quality of life following surgery, and reduce postoperative pain and risk of delirium. The preoperative treatment of preexisting psychiatric diseases, such as anxiety and depression, can improve outcomes for patients with spinal cord injury-related disabilities; however, a preoperative platelet function assay is advocated prior to major spine surgical procedures to protect against significant intraoperative blood loss, as serotonergic antidepressants (e.g., selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) and bupropion can increase the likelihood of bleeding intraoperatively due to drug-induced platelet dysfunction. This comprehensive review of this evolving topic can assist spine surgeons in better understanding the benefits and risks of antidepressant drugs to optimize outcomes and avoid potential hazards in a spine surgical setting.

Temperament in Adulthood Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder without Bipolar Disorder

Filiz Ozdemiroglu,Kadir Karakus,Cagdas Oyku Memis,Levent Sevincok,Sanem Mersin 대한신경정신의학회 2018 PSYCHIATRY INVESTIGATION Vol.15 No.3

Objective-We examined whether some temperamental traits would be associated with persistence of attention deficit-hyperacitivty disorder (ADHD) in adulthood independent from bipolar disorder (BD). Methods-Eighty-one ADHD patients without a comorbid diagnosis of BD were divided into two groups, those with childhood ADHD (n=46), and those with Adulthood ADHD (n=35). The severity of childhood and adulthood ADHD were assessed by using the Wender Utah Rating Scale (WURS-25) and Turgay’s Adult ADD/ADHD Diagnosis and Evaluation Scale (DES). Subjects’ temperamental characteristics were examined using the Temperament Evaluation of Memphis, Pisa, Paris and San Diego-auto questionnaire (TEMPS-A). Results-The mean scores of WURS-25 were higher in adult ADHD group than in childhood ADHD group (p<0.001). Adult ADHD group had significantly higher scores on cyclothymic (p=0.002), irritable (p<0.0001), and anxious (p=0.042) subscales of TEMPS-A. The scores of WURS-25 in adulthood ADHD group were positively correlated with cyclothymia scores (r=0.366, p=0.033). Total scores of Turgay’s Adult ADD/ADHD DES were positively correlated with cyclothymic (r=0.354, p=0.040), hyperthymic (r=0.380, p=0.026), and irritable (r=0.380, p=0.026) subscale scores. Cychlothymic and irritable temperaments were significantly associated with the severity of adulthood symptoms of ADHD. Conclusion-We might suggest that cyclothymic and irritable temperaments would predict the diagnosis of adulthood ADHD independent from BD.

Bi4O5I2 nanosheets as a novel nanofiller for fabrication of antifouling polyethersulfone nanocomposite membranes

Vahid Vatanpour,Borte Kose-Mutlu,Oyku Mutlu-Salmanli,Gulmire Ilyasoglu,Soheila Asadzadeh-Khaneghah,Aziz Habibi-Yangjeh,Ismail Koyuncu 한국공업화학회 2023 Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Vol.117 No.-

Bi4O5I2 is one of the bismuth-rich oxyhalides that exhibited impressive activity in the photodegradationof different organic pollutants. In this research, Bi4O5I2 nanosheets were synthesized, characterized, andapplied for fabricating a hydrophilic and antifouling polyethersulfone (PES) membrane by blending in themembrane matrix. The prepared nanocomposite membranes exhibited improved antifouling propertiesespecially when UV irradiation was used during the washing of the fouled membranes. Hydrophilicityenhancement and photocatalytic property of the Bi4O5I2 nanosheets have an excellent synergistic effect,which can yield more hydroxyl radicals (OH) for efficient removal of the foulant from the membranesurface. The pure water flux can achieve 235.4 L/m2 h (3 bar) when 0.5 wt% Bi4O5I2 was used. The additionof the nanosheets to the membrane matrix in low amounts decreased the membrane surface roughnessand increased membrane porosity. The BSA, Reactive Orange 16, Reactive Black 5, and Pb(II)filtration tests showed that the 1 wt% Bi4O5I2 PES membranes provided a good performance of 98.3,70.3, 92.6, and 47.2 % rejection ability, respectively. In this research, for the first time, the Bi4O5I2 photocatalystwas blended into the membrane matrix which provided a new idea for the progress of highlyeffective self-cleaning ultrafiltration membranes.