Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

S Baltaci

Publications and source records attributed to S Baltaci.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1998

A prospective randomized study of transurethral resection of the prostate and transurethral vaporization of the prostate as a therapeutic alternative in the management of men with BPH.

OBJECTIVE: The common goals of new surgical treatment for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) are to improve subjective and objective symptoms, to decrease the risk of postoperative complications and short hospitalization. Transurethral electrovaporization of the prostate (TUVP) is a new, minimally invasive and a promising alternative to standard transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) in the treatment of BPH. The aim of this study is to compare the efficacy and safety of these two treatment alternatives. METHODS: A prospective randomized trial of 60 patients with symptomatic BPH was performed. Preoperative and postoperative International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), maximum flow rates (Qmax) and complications were recorded in each patient. The volume of the prostate was measured preoperatively and postoperatively using transrectal ultrasound. RESULTS: Of the 30 patients who underwent TURP, mean hospital stay was 4.5 days. The Foley catheter was removed on postoperative day 4 following surgery. IPSS decreased from 21.6 to 5.2, Qmax increased from 9.2 to 19.2 ml/s at 3 months. Mean prostatic volume at 3 months decreased from 51.7 to 26.2 g, a 49.3% reduction. Of 30 patients undergoing TUVP, mean hospital stay was 2.5 days and the catheter was removed within 2 days following surgery. Postoperative urinary retention did not occur in any patient. IPSS decreased from 19.4 to 4.1 and Qmax increased from 7.9 to 17.7 ml/s at 3 months. Mean prostatic volume decreased from 48.9 to 27.8 g, a 43.1% reduction at 3 months. In the TUVP group, none of the patients required blood transfusions or developed clinical transurethral resection syndrome. There were no major complications. Sphincteric incontinence, urethral strictures or bladder neck contractures were not recorded. At 3 months postoperatively, 13 patients in the TURP group and 7 patients in the TUVP group had retrograde ejaculation. CONCLUSION: Our initial experience of TUVP suggests advantages over conventional TURP through reduced blood loss and shorter hospital stay. It appears to be an effective treatment for BPH; however, long-term results should be evaluated.

Electrosurgery↗
PubMed1998

Long-term outcome of a patient with intrascrotal extratesticular malignant schwannoma.

We have the opportunity to present a rare case of late local recurrence after treatment of intrascrotal extratesticular malignant schwannoma with rhabdomyoblastic features in an adult man. As our case is the first in the literature, we want to inform the reader about the long-term follow-up of our patient and suggest that these tumors may have a long survival and late recurrences may occur even after 5 years postoperatively.

Chemotherapy, Adjuvant↗
PubMed1997

Determination of in vitro drug sensitivity to a panel of cystostatic drugs and interferon alpha-2b in patients with renal cell carcinoma.

Fresh operative cells from 27 renal cell carcinomas (RCC) were cultured in vitro for the determination of in vitro drug sensitivity. Two samples were not culturable. Incubation was carried out in triplicate in the presence and absence of various concentrations of chemotherapeutic agents. Sensitivity of the tumour cells to interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha), cisplatin (CDDP), mitomycin C (MMC), vinblastine (VBL), doxorubicin (DOX), etoposide (ETOP), bleomycin (BLM), vincristine (VCR) were tested by a colorimetric assay using MTT. A preexposure viability over 75% was essential for in vitro drug sensitivity assay (IVDSA). Sensitivity was determined by a more than 50 +/- 2 SD% reduction from the control absorbance. All eight drugs in their low concentrations exhibited cell proliferation inhibition in 0-12% of RCCs. On the other hand, IFN-alpha in its higher concentration (60 IU/ml) was effective in 88% of RCCs. After IFN, CDDP was found to be the second most effective drug in its higher concentration (36% efficacy). The results indicate that IFN appears to be the most effective in vitro agent in our 25 RCCs and the clinical trials either as a monotherapy or multiple combinations of various agents should include IFNs for the treatment of RCC.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

In vitro drug sensitivity testing of human testicular germ cell tumours with cytostatic drugs and interferon alpha-2b.

In spite of the significant advances in the chemotherapy of germ cell neoplasms, some patients do not achieve disease-free status and ultimately die from their diseases. Therefore, it is reasonable to select the best chemotherapeutic agents in these patients by in vitro drug sensitivity assay (IVDSA) in order to apply the most effective agent in case of resistance to primary chemotherapy. Fresh operative cells from 12 testicular germ cell tumours (TGCT) were cultured in vitro. Sensitivity of the tumour cells to interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha), cisplatin, mitomycin C, vinblastine, doxorubicin, etoposide, bleomycin, vincristine (VCR) were tested by a colorimetric assay using MTT. A preexposure viability over 75% was essential for IVDSA. Sensitivity was determined by a more than 50 +/- 2 SD% reduction from the control absorbance. All eight drugs in their high concentrations exhibited cell proliferation inhibition in 83.3 +/- 100% of TGCT. But in low concentrations efficacy of IFN and VCR were found to be lower than the others (33.3% and 58.3%, respectively). The results indicated that although TGCT are highly sensitive to various agents IVDSA may help to identify the effective agents which might be necessary for second line chemotherapy in a small percentage of patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Immunohistochemical determination of p53 protein in prostatic cancer and prostatic intraepithelial neoplasms.

A role of genetic alterations in the p53 tumor suppressor gene has been implicated in many types of human malignancies. In this study, we examined the prevalence of immunohistochemically detectable p53 accumulation in prostatic tissues obtained from patients with prostatic adenocarcinoma, benign prostate hyperplasia and prostatic intraepithelial neoplasms. Six of 36 (16.7%) cancer cases and 2 of 11 (18.2%) cases of high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasms showed p53 expression while no nuclear staining was observed in normal and hyperplastic prostatic tissues. Correlation of p53 expression with cancer stage, Gleason score and serum prostate-specific antigen level demonstrated that there was no statistically significant relationship between p53 expression and these clinicopathological parameters. Also, no significant association between p53 expression and prognosis was observed.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1997

Evaluation of urinary glycosaminoglycan excretion in patients with renal cell carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate a possible correlation between the urinary excretion of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) and tumor stage and size in renal cell cancer (RCC), a prospective controlled study was performed. METHODS: 34 patients (13 females, 21 males) with clinically and histologically proven RCC were included in the study. Following the staging procedures of RCC in each patient nephrectomy was performed; subsequently the size of the tumor (length and width) was calculated using nephrectomy material. Urinary GAG excretion was determined using a previously described method. RESULTS: Urinary GAG excretion was found to be increased in RCC patients, with a strong relation to the size of the tumor. Patients with relatively larger tumor masses seemed to excrete higher amounts of GAGs in urine (r = 0.8235; p < 0.001). In contrast, we were not able to show any significant difference in urinary GAG excretion with respect to tumor stage (f = 5.92; p = 0.0068). Patients with multiple foci of RCC (n = 3) had relatively higher rates of GAG excretion than patients with same-size single-tumor masses. CONCLUSIONS: Although our results revealed GAG excretion in RCC patients as a possibly useful marker with respect to tumor size, no correlation to the stage of RCC was observed. Further investigation using larger series of patients and other definitive parameters is certainly needed in order to provide more reliable data, before considering urinary GAG excretion as a useful marker.

Biomarkers, Tumor↗
PubMed1996

Ultrastructual changes of corpora cavernosa in vascular erectile dysfunction.

Corpora cavernosa of 4 impotent patients with arterial pathology and 6 with venous insufficiency were studied by electron microscopy. The findings in all of the smooth muscle samples were the following: pronounced thickening of the basal lamina; marked reduction of contractile myofilaments and electron dense bodies; finger-like cytoplasmic projections; increase in mitochondria with swelling and aggregation; huge protrusions of nuclear membrane into the cytoplasm; increased proportion of interstitial matrix to smooth muscle cells. These were more marked in the dark than in the light cells, which was considered as the beginning of degeneration. Another finding was degenerative changes in the endothelial cell lining of the sinusoids, especially denudation, fragmentation and marked thickening of the basal lamina. Severity of the symptoms did not change in any of the patients with different pathologies. So, we can assume that the pathological alterations may be due to chronic penile vascular insufficiency or vice versa.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Serum neuron specific enolase: can it be a tumour marker for renal cell carcinoma?

Neuron specific enolase (NSE) is an isoenzyme of the glycolytic enzyme enolase. It is not only a marker for all types of neurons but also for all neuroendocrine or paraneuronal cells and various malignant tumours, even of non-neuroendocrine types. We had studied serum NSE in 25 consecutive patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC). The study included 10 stage I, 3 stage II, 3 stage III-B and 9 stage IV-B patients. Both pretreatment and posttreatment levels were evaluated. Regardless of stage, overall we observed elevated levels of NSE in 80% (20/25) at diagnosis. After the appropriate treatment, according to the stage, there had been a statistically significant (p < 0.05) decrease in the serum levels in all stage I, II and III-B patients. The posttreatment values were not available for stage IV-B patients because they did not come for follow-up. The preliminary results of our study revealed that serum NSE may be considered as a useful marker in the evaluation and surveillance of RCC.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Leucine aminopeptidase enzymuria: quantification of renal tubular damage following extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy.

To evaluate the extent of renal parenchymal injury following high energy shock wave (HESW) application we measured the urine levels of two renal tubular brush border enzymes: leucine aminopeptidase (LAP) and gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase (GGT) the day before, 24 hours and 7 days after extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) in 23 patients. All patients had caliceal stones and were treated with a Dornier MPL 9000 lithotriptor under sedoanalgesia. Creatinine concentration of each sample together with total shock wave effect (TSWE) values were also assessed and comparatively evaluated with enzymuria levels. Our results indicated a statistically significant rise in urinary excretion of both enzymes after 24 hours following lithotripsy (p < 0.05). All these values returned to normal limits within 7 days after ESWL (p > 0.05). Transient tubular damage due to HESW was found to be related to TSWE values assessed in our group.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

The efficacy of urinary cytology in the detection of recurrent bladder tumours.

In a prospective study, 71 patients with superficial transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder were given topical immunotherapy with bacillus Calmette-Guerin after transurethral resection and the impact of cystoscopy and bladder wash-out cytology in assessment of recurrent tumours was investigated. Sixteen recurrences were noted histopathologically during the follow-up and 15 of them were also diagnosed properly by wash-out cytology (sensitivity 93.8%). During the follow-up, 10 patients had positive cytology results without evidence of recurrent tumour and 6 of them had recurred cystoscopically in 3 months' time. However, the remaining 4 patients were still tumour-free cystoscopically after a follow-up of 6 months (specificity 92.7%, positive predictive value 78.9%). Although, some false-positive results may be obtained by urine cytology after topical immunotherapy, urine cytology seems to be a reasonable alternative to more invasive and expensive methods during the follow-up of bladder tumours.

BCG Vaccine↗
PubMed1996

Staging with computed tomography, transrectal ultrasonography and transurethral resection of bladder tumour: comparison with final pathological stage in invasive bladder carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the accuracy of clinical staging methods in patients with locally advanced bladder cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Sixty-five patients with invasive bladder cancer primarily staged using transrectal ultrasonography (TRUS), computed tomography (CT) and transurethral resection of the bladder tumour (TURBT) were compared with the final pathological stage determined after radical cystectomy. RESULTS: Accurate staging was obtained by TRUS, CT and TURBT in 40, 35 and 46% of the patients, respectively. The rank correlation between primary clinical stage and final pathological stages was significant by all three methods, but not close. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study raise doubts about the assumed benefit of TRUS and CT in the clinical staging of invasive bladder tumours. These methods did not improve the findings obtained by TURBT alone.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Effects of extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy on urinary concentration of epidermal growth factor.

In a prospective study, we tried to determine whether extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy (SWL) has any effect on urinary epidermal growth factor (EGF) concentrations and to investigate whether EGF can be used as a marker for detecting shockwave-induced impairment of distal tubular cells. A total of 12 patients with renal pelvic or caliceal stones < or = 2 cm undergoing anesthesia-free SWL without ancillary measures and a control group of 10 patients without any urologic symptoms were included in this study. The urinary concentrations of EGF were measured by radioimmunoassay before and 4 hours, 24 hours, and 7 days after SWL. Relative urinary EGF concentrations were expressed as the ratio of EGF to creatinine (ng/mL creatinine). The mean urinary EGF concentration (mean +/- standard error) in control subjects and patients with renal pelvic or caliceal stones before SWL was 23.90 +/- 3.15 ng/mL creatinine and 22.18 +/- 6.85 ng/mL creatinine, respectively (p > 0.05). In patients with stones, we found a decrease in urinary EGF concentration 4 hours, 24 hours, and 7 days after SWL. Indeed, 7 days after SWL, the EGF concentration was on average half of the original value, a biologically significant, although not statistically significant, decrease.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Clinical experience with inflatable and malleable penile implants in 104 patients.

Penile prosthesis was implanted for erectile impotence of mainly organic origin in 104 patients. The AMS Dynaflex penile prosthesis was inserted in 39 cases, the AMS Malleable 600 prosthesis in 61 and the AMS Ultrex Plus prosthesis in 4. In 1 patient receiving a malleable prosthesis both rods had to be removed owing to erosion into the urethra and reimplantation was performed at the same operation. Only 1 patient who underwent implantation of the Dynaflex device had mechanical failure that necessitated surgical revision. After implantation of the new prosthesis both patients had satisfactory intercourse. One Dynaflex penile prosthesis, implanted into a juvenile-onset diabetic, became infected and required removal. Another complication was secondary to spontaneous erosion (noninfected) in 1 patient with malleable prosthesis who suffered loss of only one rod and who is still satisfied with the result. The overall complication rate in our series has been approximately 4%. The rest of the patients report satisfaction with the ability to move the penis voluntarily permitting normal sexual activities as well as normal appearance in the flaccid position. According to our experience, careful preoperative assessment from the views of both patient and device selection along with patient education, and strictly obeying the rules of sterility during implantation and applying systemic and local antimicrobial prophylaxis are essential in obtaining a successful result in prosthesis implantation for the individual patient.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Human chorionic gonadotropin in serum and neoplastic tissue from patients with bladder carcinoma.

Serum levels and tissue expression of beta subunit of human chorionic gonadotropin were determined in 25 patients with bladder carcinoma. Elevated gonadotropin levels in serum were observed in 5 (20%) patients and immunoreactive cells were found in 5 (20%) tumours. The correlation was poor between serum level and immunohistochemical gonadotropin status. Only one patient showed both elevated serum level and immunohistochemical gonadotropin expression. Our observations suggest that elevated serum levels of gonadotropin may be an indicator of poor prognosis. However, immunohistochemical expression of gonadotropin did not seem to have a similar impact on prognosis in this series.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Treating erectile dysfunction with a vacuum tumescence device: a retrospective analysis of acceptance and satisfaction.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the quality of erections, ability to perform sexual intercourse, incidence of complications and satisfaction of patients using an external vacuum erection device in the treatment of erectile failure. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Of the 61 impotent men who participated in this clinical trial, 49 used the device and were surveyed. The mean follow-up period was 12.8 months. A subjective rating scale from 1 to 10 was used to assess the patients' satisfaction with the device, where 1 indicated 'dissatisfied' and 10 indicated 'very satisfied'. RESULTS: The ease of using the device, satisfaction with the quality of erections and ability to perform intercourse were given scores > 5 by 88, 84 and 82% of the patients, respectively. Sixteen (33%) of the men withdrew from the trial, primarily because they were unable to achieve and maintain a full erection, or suffered conflicts in their relationship, or for reasons not related to the device. Overall, the effectiveness rate was 67%. Of 32 patients with arteriogenic impotence, 28 (88%) had satisfactory results and had an improvement in their capacity for spontaneous erections with the device. The most frequent adverse effects were blocked ejaculation, bruising or the development of ecchymosis, discomfort during pumping and discomfort from using the constriction bands. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the vacuum device is an effective and safe treatment for impotence of various aetiologies, especially for those patients with arteriogenic impotence.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Evaluation of cellular immunity following bacillus Calmette-Guérin therapy in patients with superficial bladder cancer.

Despite its marked effectiveness in the prevention of tumor recurrences, a great deal of information on the mode of action of Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) as an antitumor therapy modality is still lacking. In this prospective study, by performing lymphocyte subset analysis and quantitative assessment of delayed hypersensitivity skin reactions before transurethral resection of the detected tumor and 3-6 months after intravesical BCG administration in 23 patients with superficial bladder carcinoma, we tried to demonstrate the immunostimulatory effect of BCG therapy. We had 4 recurrences at 6 months' follow-up. Evaluation of lymphocyte subset analysis readings in our group revealed a statistically significant difference (p < 0.05) in CD4+/CD8+ ratio between baseline values and that obtained following BCG administration at 3 and 6 months. However, there was no statistically significant increase of this value in 4 patients who had tumor recurrences. Evaluation of delayed hypersensitivity skin test score results revealed a statistically significant increase in the whole group at 3 months of follow-up (p < 0.05) but the same evaluation at 6 months of follow-up showed no statistically significant difference with respect to this evaluation. Again, no statistically significant difference was found in 4 patients who had tumor recurrences. These results support the idea that BCG-associated antitumor activity is an immune-mediated reaction and the assessment of T-lymphocyte subsets together with quantitative evaluation of delayed hypersensitivity skin reactions would give us a definite idea about the immunotherapeutic effects of BCG in such patients.

Administration, Intravesical↗