Ali Çeliksöz

Effects of giardiasis on school success, weight and height indices of primary school children in Turkey.

Abstract Background : Giardia intestinalis, the most common parasite in the world, causes several adverse effects on school children, with the prevalence rate ranging between 7.3% and 28% (mean 13.8%) in Turkey. The aim of the present study was to investigate possible adverse effects of G. intestinalis on success at school, and the mean weight and height of primary school children in Sivas, Turkey.

In vitro amoebicidal activity of Origanum syriacum and Origanum laevigatum on Acanthamoeba castellanii cysts and trophozoites

In some patients, complete treatment of amoebic keratitis is difficult because of the resistance of cysts to therapeutic agents. The aim of this study was to evaluate the in vitro amoebicidal activity of methanolic extracts of Origanum syriacum and Origanum laevigatum. In the presence of methanolic extracts (ranging from 1.0 to 32.0mg/ml), numbers of the viable Acanthamoeba castellanii trophozoites and cysts were decreased. Both extracts showed a time and dose dependent amoebicidal action on the trophozoites and cysts. Of the extracts tested, O. syriacum showed the stronger amoebicidal effect on the trophozoites and cysts. In the presence of 32 mg/ml extract, no viable trophozoites were observed within third hour. The extract was also found effective against the cysts within 24th hour. In the case of O. laevigatum, no viable trophozoites were observed within 72nd hour at the concentrations of 16 and 32 mg/ml. As expected, cysts were found more resistant to the extracts than the trophozoites.

The retrospective annual surgical incidence of cystic echinococcosis in Sivas, Turkey.

Cystic echinococcosis is an important public health problem in our region. The aim of this study was to assess the surgical incidence of cystic echinococcosis in Sivas, Turkey. A retrospective follow‐up study was carried out between 1997 and 2004. The mean age of 124 men (39.2%) and 192 women was 36.4 years. The liver was the primary site of cyst development (76.6%), followed by the lungs (19.9%), the spleen (5.4%), the kidneys (3.5%) and the peritoneal cavity (3.2%). Mean annual surgical incidence was 6.4 per 100 000 inhabitants for a 7‐year period. The most common site of recurrence was the liver. Hepatic cysts were more frequently infected than pulmonary cysts (P < 0.05). In those patients with an infected cyst, the mean circulating eosinophil level was significantly lower than in those without. Rupture and infection were more common in men (P < 0.01). In conclusion, serious structural, legislative, surveillance, prevention and control measures for echinooccus should be undertaken in our region.

The role of Casoni's skin test and indirect haemagglutination test in the diagnosis of hydatid disease.

Casoni’s skin test and indirect haemagglutination test (IHA) are still used in Turkey. The preoperative IHA test or Casoni’s skin test results of 120 patients with surgically confirmed hydatidosis were retrospectively studied during 1997–2004. At the same period, 306 patients with non-hydatid disease had serologic results for echinococcosis. The sensitivity of immediate intradermal reaction, delayed intradermal reaction, and IHA were 70, 62, and 56%, respectively. Casoni’s skin test components had higher sensitivity than IHA (P<0.01). The specificity of immediate intradermal reaction, delayed intradermal reaction, and IHA were 87, 85, and 84%, respectively. Cystic lesions in non-hydatid patients were localised commonly in the lungs. The occurrence of hydatid disease for pulmonary, hepatic, and renal cysts was 19, 54, and 5%, respectively. An immediate skin reaction to crude hydatid antigens is more useful than IHA.

Primary hydatid disease of the pancreas mimicking pancreatic pseudo-cyst in a child: case report and review of the literature.

Primary hydatid disease of the pancreas is very rare. We report the case of a 7-year-old girl who presented with abdominal pain and an epigastric mass. The Casoni and indirect hemagglutination test for hydatid disease were negative. A diagnosis of a pancreatic pseudocyst was established by ultrasonography (US) and computed tomography scan before surgery. Ultrasound guided percutaneous drainage was planned as treatment. During the procedure, the cyst was perforated and as germinative membrane was seen by US, we arranged surgery. Hydatid disease should be considered in the differential diagnosis of all cystic masses in the pancreas, even if Casoni and indirect hemagglutination tests negative, especially in geographic regions like Turkey, where the disease is endemic.

The Investigation of Entamoeba histolytica Prevalence in Some Villages of Sivas by ELISA Method

OBJECTIVE Humans may be infected with three morphologically identical Entamoeba species; pathogenic E. histolytica, commensal E. moshkowskii and E. dispar. The aim of the present study was to determine the true prevalence of the E. histolytica using native lugol, trichrome staining and a monoclonal antigen detection kit (ELISA kit E. histolytica-II; Techlab, Inc., Blacksburg, VA) among primary school children living in the rural areas around Sivas. METHODS A total of 1449 stool samples were examined by native lugol and Trichrome staining, and 312 (22%) samples were positive for one or more parasite species. Additionally, 22 (1.5%) stool samples were found to be positive for the presence of E. histolytica/dispar cysts, and these samples were further examined by E. histolytica specific antigen based ELISA. RESULTS As a result, ELISA test gave negative reactions for all the samples. Also, there was no cross reaction with other luminal protozoa such as E. coli, G. intestinalis, B. hominis and I. butschlii. CONCLUSION The data reveals that E. histolytica prevalence may be lower than estimated.

SİVAS YÖRESİ SIĞIRLARDA PARAMPHİSTOMUM SPP. YAYGINLIĞI

Bu calisma Mart-Nisan 2005 tarihlerinde Sivas’ta sigirlarda Paramphistomum spp. gorulme sikligini belirlemek amaciyla yapilmistir. Bunun icin kesim sonrasi 271 sigirin rumen ve retikulumu incelenmistir. Bakisi yapilan 271 sigirdan 24’unde (%8.9) Paramphistomum spp. saptanmistir. Erkek sigirlarda Paramphistomum spp. orani %5.1, disilerde ise % 11.8 olarak belirlenmistir. Infeksiyon orani disilerde daha fazla olmasina ragmen istatistiksel olarak fark saptanmamistir. Calismada, 1-3 yasindaki sigirlarda %2.2, 3 yasin uzerindeki sigirlarda ise %12.1 oraninda Paramphistomum spp. bulunmus ve istatistiksel olarak aradaki farkin onemli oldugu belirlenmistir(p<0,05). Sonuc olarak Sivas ve yoresinde, sigirlarda Paramphistomum spp. gorulme orani %8.9 olarak belirlenmistir. Anahtar kelimler: Paramphistomum spp, sigir, yayginlik

A Giant Pulmonary Hydatid Cyst Treated without Lobectomy

A 20 year-old woman was admitted to our clinic complaining of dyspnea, cough, chest pain and pleural effusion. The diagnosis of pulmonary hydatid cyst was made on the basis of parasitology laboratory findings, computed tomographic results and chest radiographic findings. A giant pulmonary hydatid cyst (33×14×12 cm) was located in the left lower lobe, which involved more than 90% of the lobe. The patient was treated surgically using cystotomy and capitonnage. This is a case of a giant pulmonary hydatid cyst published in the literature, which was surgically treated without a lobectomy, by preserving the lung parenchyma.