BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Genetic influence on T-wave peak to End (Tpe) time in patients with a first anterior acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is uncertain. A polymorphism in the angiotensin-II type 1 receptor (AT1R) gene was discovered recently. The polymorphism consists of an A or C variant, given three different possible genotypes: AA, AC, CC. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of polymorphism of the AT1R gene polymorphism on Tpe after a first anterior AMI. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The subjects were 142 patients (110 men, 32 women, 58±13 years) with a first anterior AMI; ten patients were excluded from this study. Based on the polymorphism of the AT1R gene, they were classified into two groups: Group 1 (AA genotype) of 91 patients and group 2 (AC and CC genotype) of 41 patients. A 12-lead resting ECG was recorded at admission to the coronary care unit in patients with anterior AMI and were manually measured with a ruler. QTc, QTd, QTcd, Tpe, Tpe/QT parameters were measured. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the baseline characteristics of patients (p>0.05). We found significant reduction in QTc, QTd, QTcd, Tpe, Tpe/QT indices Group 1 (AA genotype) (mean 66±28 ms) than group 2 (AC and CC genotype) (mean 95±34 ms) (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: In patients with a first anterior AMI, AT1R gene polymorphisms may influence on repolarization parameters. Although further studies are required.
Coronary Care Units ; Electrocardiography ; Female ; Genotype ; Humans ; Male ; Myocardial Infarction*

Epistaxis, active bleeding from the nose, is a common ear nose and throat emergency, and can be severe or even fatal. We report a severe life threatening recurrent massive nasal bleeding caused by intranasal heroin use that has not hitherto been reported in the English literature. A 24-year-old male who took heroin several times nasally presented with massive nasal bleeding. A blood transfusion and an operation to halt nasal bleeding were required. The patient did not experience a bleeding attack 2 months following cessation of nasal heroin use.
Blood Transfusion ; Ear ; Emergencies ; Epistaxis ; Hemorrhage ; Heroin ; Humans ; Male ; Nose ; Pharynx ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVE: Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder. Thus, the present study aimed to determine the effects of a single dose of methylphenidate (Mph) on neurometabolite levels according to polymorphisms of the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) gene. METHODS: This study evaluated the neurometabolite levels including N-acetylaspartate (NAA), creatine (Cr), and choline (Cho) of ADHD patients, before and after treatment with Mph (10 mg) according to the presence of COMT polymorphisms. The spectra were obtained from the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), cerebellum, and striatum. RESULTS: The NAA levels of the val/val and val genotype carriers (val/val and val/met genotypes) increased in the DLPFC and ACC, respectively, following Mph treatment. The NAA/Cr ratio was lower in the DLPFC of val carriers than in the met/met genotype carriers prior to Mph administration. The Cho levels of the val/met genotype and val carriers increased in the striatum following Mph treatment. Following Mph treatment, the Cr levels of the met/met genotype carriers were higher than those of the val/met genotype and val carriers. Additionally, after Mph treatment, there was a significant increase in Cr levels in the DLPFC of the met/met genotype carriers but a significant decrease in such levels in the striatum of val/val genotype carriers. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that polymorphisms of the COMT gene can account for individual differences in neuro-chemical responses to Mph among ADHD patients. Therefore, further studies are needed to fully characterize the effects of the Val158met polymorphism of the COMT gene on treatment outcomes in patients with ADHD.
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity* ; Catechol O-Methyltransferase ; Cerebellum ; Choline ; Creatine ; Genotype ; Gyrus Cinguli ; Humans ; Individuality ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy* ; Methylphenidate* ; Prefrontal Cortex

OBJECTIVE: Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that negatively affects different areas of life. We aimed to evaluate the associations between the Val66Met polymorphism of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and ADHD and to assess the effect of the BDNF polymorphism on the neurocognitive profile and clinical symptomatology in ADHD. METHODS: Two hundred one ADHD cases and 99 typically developing subjects (TD) between the ages of 8 and 15 years were involved in the study. All subjects were evaluated using a complete neuropsychological battery, Child Behavior Checklist, the Teacher's Report Form (TRF) and the DSM-IV Disruptive Behavior Disorders Rating Scale-teacher and parent forms. RESULTS: The GG genotype was significantly more frequent in the patients with ADHD than in the TD controls, and the GG genotype was also significantly more frequent in the ADHD-combined (ADHD-C) subtype patients than in the TDs. However, there were no significant associations of the BDNF polymorphism with the ADHD subtypes or neurocognitive profiles of the patients. The teacher-assessed hyperactivity and inattention symptom count and the total score were higher, and the appropriately behaving subtest score of the TRF was lower in the GG genotypes than in the GA and AA (i.e., the A-containing) genotypes. CONCLUSION: We found a positive association between the BDNF gene Val66Met polymorphism and ADHD, and this association was observed specifically in the ADHD-C subtype and not the ADHD-predominantly inattentive subtype. Our findings support that the Val66Met polymorphism of BDNF gene might be involved in the pathogenesis of ADHD. Furthermore Val66Met polymorphism of BDNF gene may be more closely associated with hyperactivity rather than inattention.
Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor* ; Checklist ; Child ; Child Behavior ; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ; Genotype ; Humans ; Neurodevelopmental Disorders ; Parents ; Problem Behavior ; Risk Factors*

Objective: To evaluate long-term effects of COVID-19, and to determine the risk factors in long-COVID in a cohort of the Turkish Thoracic Society (TTS)-TURCOVID multicenter registry. Methods: Thirteen centers participated with 831 patients; 504 patients were enrolled after exclusions. The study was designed in three-steps: (1) Phone questionnaire; (2) retrospective evaluation of the medical records; (3) face-to-face visit. Results: In the first step, 93.5% of the patients were hospitalized; 61.7% had a history of pneumonia at the time of diagnosis. A total of 27.1% reported clinical symptoms at the end of the first year. Dyspnea (17.00%), fatigue (6.30%), and weakness (5.00%) were the most prevalent long-term symptoms. The incidence of long-term symptoms was increased by 2.91 fold (95% CI 1.04-8.13, P=0.041) in the presence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and by 1.84 fold (95% CI 1.10-3.10, P=0.021) in the presence of pneumonia at initial diagnosis, 3.92 fold (95% Cl 2.29-6.72, P=0.001) of dyspnea and 1.69 fold (95% Cl 1.02-2.80, P=0.040) fatigue persists in the early-post-treatment period and 2.88 fold (95% Cl 1.52-5.46, P=0.001) in the presence of emergency service admission in the post COVID period. In step 2, retrospective analysis of 231 patients revealed that 1.4% of the chest X-rays had not significantly improved at the end of the first year, while computed tomography (CT) scan detected fibrosis in 3.4%. In step 3, 138 (27.4%) patients admitted to face-to-face visit at the end of first year; at least one symptom persisted in 49.27% patients. The most common symptoms were dyspnea (27.60%), psychiatric symptoms (18.10%), and fatigue (17.40%). Thorax CT revealed fibrosis in 2.4% patients. Conclusions: COVID-19 symptoms can last for extended lengths of time, and severity of the disease as well as the presence of comorbidities might contribute to increased risk. Long-term clinical issues should be regularly evaluated after COVID-19.