Although aneurysmal disease is rare in Behçet disease, it can complicate the clinical picture and cause life-threatening complications. We believe that the establishment of remission before the surgical intervention decreases the incidence of postoperative complications. Because recurrence at the site of anastomosis is possible, prolonged monitoring is required.

Background We investigated patient and technique survival and factors affecting mortality in Turkish peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. Patients and Methods This was a retrospective study. 423 PD patients were included. The demographic, clinical, and biochemical data were collected from the medical records. Clinical outcomes were mortality and technique failure. Results Mean age at the start of PD was 46.0 ± 14.3 years and mean PD duration was 37.1 ± 28.3 (median: 30, range: 4 – 137) months. Diabetes mellitus was the most common cause of end-stage renal disease (35.2%), followed by hypertension (14.7%). There were 89 (21.0%) deaths. 25 (5.9%) patients received a kidney transplant, 74 (17.4%) patients were transferred to hemodialysis. Estimation of technique survival by Kaplan–Meier was 96.1%, 83.2%, 67.6%, 45.8%, and 33.6% at 1, 3, 5, 8, and 10 years. Technique failure was associated with peritonitis rate [relative risk (RR): 3.22, p < 0.001] and peritoneal Kt/V urea (RR: 0.38, p = 0.001) in the Cox proportional hazards model analysis. Estimation of patient survival by Kaplan–Meier was 96.9%, 83.8%, 68.8%, 50.2%, and 40.7% at 1, 3, 5, 8, and 10 years, respectively. In the Cox proportional hazards model analysis, age (RR: 1.01, p = 0.05), transfer to PD from hemodialysis (RR: 1.84, p = 0.03), comorbid cardiovascular disease (RR: 1.90, p = 0.004), serum creatinine level (RR: 0.75, p < 0.001), total Kt/V urea (RR: 0.34, p < 0.001), peritonitis rate (RR: 1.87, p < 0.001), and dialysate-to-plasma creatinine ratio (RR: 6.49, p = 0.04) predicted mortality. Conclusions Even though we cannot conclude with certainty that survival rates in Turkish patients are better than those in the United States and Europe, our results seem to suggest this and warrant further studies adjusted for more extensive demographic features and comorbidities. The factors affecting mortality in Turkish PD patients are similar to other populations.

We observed that depression is a common psychiatric disorder and has no significant effect on proinflammatory cytokine levels in HD patients; no important improvement in cytokine levels was observed after antidepressant therapy.

Adefovir dipivoxil is a safe, effective treatment option for post-transplant HBV recurrence even among patients with fibrosing cholestatic hepatitis caused by lamivudine-resistant HBV.

The aim of this prospective study was to evaluate long-term effects of arteriovenous fistula (AVF) on the development of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and the relationship between blood flow rate of AVF and pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) in the patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). This prospective study was performed in 20 patients with ESRD. Before an AVF was surgically created for hemodialysis, the patients were evaluated by echocardiography. Then, an AVF was surgically created in all patients. After mean 23.50 ± 2.25 months, the second evaluation was performed by echocardiography. Also, the blood flow rate of AVF was measured at the second echocardiographic evaluation. Pulmonary arterial hypertension was defined as a systolic PAP above 35 mmHg at rest. Mean age of 20 patients with ESRD was 55.05 ± 13.64 years; 11 of 20 patients were males. Pulmonary arterial hypertension was detected in 6 (30%) patients before AVF creation and in 4 (20%) patients after AVF creation. Systolic PAP value was meaningfully lower after AVF creation than before AVF creation (29.95 ± 10.26 mmHg vs. 35.35 ± 7.86 mmHg, respectively, P: 0.047). However, there was no significant difference between 2 time periods in terms of presence of PAH (P>0.05). Pulmonary artery pressure did not correlate with blood flow rate of AVF and duration after AVF creation (P>0.05). In hemodialysis patients, a surgically created AVF has no significant effect on the development of PAH within a long-term period. Similarly, blood flow rate of AVF also did not affect remarkably systolic PAP within the long-term period.