Psychiatric comorbidities are prevalent in patients with chronic somatic disorders such as asthma. But, there is no clear evidence regarding the effect of atopic status and the type of sensitized allergen on emotional status. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of house dust mites and pollen allergies on emotional status, asthma control and the quality of life in patients with atopic asthma. The study included 174 consecutive patients who were diagnosed with asthma accoring to the GINA criteria and who did not receive therapy for their allergy. All patients underwent a skin prick test. The asthma control, quality of life, and emotional status were evaluated using the ACT (asthma control test), AQLQ (asthma-specific quality of life questionnaire), and HAD (hospital anxiety depression questionnaire). Atopy was detected in 134 (78.7%) patients. Of those patients: 58 (33.3%) had anxiety and 83 (47.7%) had depression. There was no relationship between emotional status, atopic status, and the type of indoor/outdoor allergen. Furthermore, there was no relationship between atopy and asthma severity, asthma control, and the quality of life. The anxiety and depression scores were significantly higher and the quality of life scores lower in the uncontrolled asthma group. The ACT and AQLQ scores were also lower in the anxiety and depression groups. It was concluded that anxiety and depression are prevalent in patients with uncontrolled asthma, and atopic status did not affect the scores in ACT, AQLQ, and emotional status tests.

Aim. The present study aimed to investigate the relation between FACED and BSI scores, which were developed to measure the severity of bronchiectasis, and systemic inflammation in patients with stable bronchiectasis. Methods. FACED and BSI scores of 117 patients with stable bronchiectasis were calculated. The correlations between mean scores and CRP levels, leukocyte count, and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio were investigated. Findings. Mean BSI and FACED scores were 7.2 ± 5.2 and 2.1 ± 1.8, respectively. The severity of bronchiectasis as determined based on BSI and FACED increased significantly with increasing levels of CRP in patients with stable bronchiectasis (p=0.001 and p=0.027, resp.). No significant changes were found in leukocyte count (p=0.72 and p=0.09, resp.) and N/L ratio (p=0.45 and p=0.71, resp.). BSI and FACED scores were significantly correlated with CRP but not with leukocyte count or N/L ratio. Conclusion. In patients with stable bronchiectasis who are evaluated based on FACED and BSI scores, CRP can be a useful biomarker as a direct indicator of the severity of systemic inflammation.

Silicosis is an interstitial lung disease developing as a result of inhalation of inorganic silica particles. In silicosis cases developing as a result of environmental and occupational exposure, an increase is observed in Turkey especially depending upon denim sandblasting. We present a 35-year-old female case who was applied to our hospital due to complaint of progressive dyspnea, had a history of working in denim sandblasting for 18 months, were diagnosed with silicosis as a result of high resolution computed tomography (HRCT) and diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma as a result of transbronchial lung biopsy made due to clinical deterioration and radiological progression within three months. The purpose of this report was to point out that lung cancer can develop in patients followed up with diagnosis of silicosis or radiologic findings in silicosis can be confused with lung cancer.

MBL acts as a binding protein that enables uptake of mycobacteria into macrophages. And, TNF-alpha is an important cytokine that is involved in control of mycobacterial infections both in-vivo and in-vitro. A large number of genetic factors exerting susceptibility to tuberculosis has been identified, among which mannose-binding lectin and tumor necrosis factor-alpha call attention. The objective of this study is to compare the frequency of TNF-alpha and MBL gene polymorphisms between patients diagnosed with tuberculosis and healthy volunteers in Turkey, and determine the association between tuberculosis and TNF-alpha gene (G308A) and MBL2 gene codon 54 polymorphisms. The study included 69 patients who were diagnosed with tuberculosis and 70 control subjects. The polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method was used to detect TNF-alpha (G308A) gene and MBL2 gene codon 54 polymorphisms. For statistical analysis, the significance level was determined as p0.05). However, a comparison of mean body mass index (BMI) and smoking status showed a statistically significant difference between the tuberculosis and control groups (p=0.01 and p=0.009, respectively). Our results suggest that the MBL2 gene Codon 54 and TNF-alpha gene G308A polymorphisms are not associated with an increased risk for development of tuberculosis in our patients. Further studies are required including more cases of tuberculosis patients and other potentially relevant gene polymorphisms.

Behcet's disease is a multi-systemic and chronic inflammatory vasculitis of unknown etiology characterized by recurrent oral and genital ulcers, uveitis, arthritis, arterial aneurysms, venous thrombosis, skin lesions and GIS lesions. Although pulmonary artery aneurysms are rare, it is a critical condition due to high risk of rupture. Venous involvement of Behcet's disease primarily occurs in the lower extremities. In the presence of deep vein thrombosis(DVT) and pulmonary embolism, the mainstay of treatment in Behcet's disease is immunosuppressant therapy. Anticoagulants can be used only after initiation of immunosuppressant therapy and suppression of the disease. Anticoagulant therapy alone may lead to fatal hemoptysis. We report the case of a 24 year-old patient who presented to the emergency service with complaints of shortness of breath, general condition disorder and hemoptyhis while using warfarin for DVT and whose thoracic CT angiography showed pulmonary embolism and pulmonary artery aneurysm and diagnosed with Behcet's disease.

Bronchiectasis is a chronic inflammatory lung disease and patients may occasionally experience acute exacerbations. Our study aims to determine the relationship between exacerbation periods and HALP (hemoglobin, albumin, lymphocyte, platelet) scores in patients with bronchiectasis. Adult patients diagnosed with bronchiectasis and followed up in our clinic between 02.2020-12.2022 were retrospectively evaluated. After the examinations, the effect of bronchiectasis exacerbation on the HALP score was investigated. A total of 84 patients diagnosed with non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis were included in our study. 42 of the patients were male (50%), and 42 were female. The average age of all patients was 52.37 ± 16.2. 35 patients (41.7%) were in the exacerbation period, and 49 patients (58.3%) were in the stable period. The median values of leukocytes, neutrophils, and C-reactive protein (CRP) were significantly higher in patients during the exacerbation period compared to the stable period (respectively p= 0.00, p= 0.00, p= 0.00). The average values of FEV1% and FVC% in patients during the exacerbation period were significantly lower compared to the stable period (p= 0.03, p= 0.00, respectively). The HALP score was significantly lower in patients during the exacerbation period compared to the stable period (p= 0.00). A significant negative correlation was found between the HALP score and leukocytes, neutrophils, and CRP (p= 0.00, p= 0.00, p= 0.00, respectively). Also, a significant positive correlation was found between the HALP score and FEV1% and FVC% (p= 0.00, p= 0.00, respectively). Our study revealed that the HALP score is associated with infectious and pulmonary functional parameters in bronchiectasis patients in the exacerbation period. We propose that the HALP score could serve as a valuable biomarker during exacerbations.