Turkish version of C-ACT is an accurate and reliable tool to evaluate asthma control in children aged 4-11 years. Its widespread use may facilitate appropriate assessment of asthma control and may lead to decrease the number of uncontrolled patients.

Predicting unfavorable outcome is of paramount importance in clinical decision making. Accordingly, we designed this multinational study, which provided the largest case series of tuberculous meningitis (TBM). 43 centers from 14 countries (Albania, Croatia, Denmark, Egypt, France, Hungary, Iraq, Italy, Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, Syria, Turkey) submitted data of microbiologically confirmed TBM patients hospitalized between 2000 and 2012. Unfavorable outcome was defined as survival with significant sequela or death. In developing our index, binary logistic regression models were constructed via 200 replicates of database by bootstrap resampling methodology. The final model was built according to the selection frequencies of variables. The severity scale included variables with arbitrary scores proportional to predictive powers of terms in the final model. The final model was internally validated by bootstrap resampling. A total of 507 patients' data were submitted among which 165 had unfavorable outcome. Eighty-six patients died while 119 had different neurological sequelae in 79 (16%) patients. The full model included 13 variables. Age, nausea, vomiting, altered consciousness, hydrocephalus, vasculitis, immunosuppression, diabetes mellitus and neurological deficit remained in the final model. Scores 1-3 were assigned to the variables in the severity scale, which included scores of 1-6. The distribution of mortality for the scores 1-6 was 3.4, 8.2, 20.6, 31, 30 and 40.1%, respectively. Altered consciousness, diabetes mellitus, immunosuppression, neurological deficits, hydrocephalus, and vasculitis predicted the unfavorable outcome in the scoring and the cumulative score provided a linear estimation of prognosis.

As conclusions; in NM, Gram-negative pathogens were seen more frequently; A.baumanni was the predominant pathogen; and NM caused by Gram negatives had worse clinical and laboratory characteristic and prognostic outcome than Gram positives.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the clinical features of childhood-onset Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) patients and to assess the phenotype-genotype correlation. The study included patients with childhood-onset FMF that followed up over a period of 18 years in the Division of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology clinic. Twelve MEFV mutations were investigated in all patients. The patients were classified into four groups according to mutations: 1, M694V homozygote; 2, M694V heterozygote; 3, compound heterozygote for M694V; and 4, other-other gene mutation group. The following parameters were evaluated: gender, age of onset, age at diagnosis, time interval between disease onset and diagnosis, fever, abdominal pain, chest pain, arthralgia, arthritis, myalgia, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, headache, erysipela-like erythema, protracted febrile myalgia, splenomegaly, hepatomegaly, consanguinity, number of attacks before and after treatment, severity score, response to colchicine treatment. Of the 124 patients included in the study, 105 had at least one MEFV gene mutation. M694V homozygosity was the most common mutation, followed by M694V heterozygotes and M694V-M680I compound heterozygotes. Severity score was found significantly higher in patients with M694V homozygote and compound heterozygote for M694V compared with other groups. The data supported the findings in literature that FMF patients with M694V homozygote and compound heterozygote for M694V gene mutations experience a more severe clinical course.

Bronchiectasis (BE) is still an important cause of chronic supurative respiratory diseases in developing countries. Neutrophil-derived proteases such as neutrophil elastase and matrix metalloproteases (MMPs) are implicated in causing airway damage in chronic pulmonary disease. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the MMP-9 and its natural tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMP-1) levels utilizing the exhaled breath condensate (EBC) method and their relationship with radiological findings and pulmonary functions in children with BE.Thirty-eight children with BE and 12 healthy children were included: Group 1 (cystic fibrosis [CF] BE), Group 2 (non-CF BE), Group 3 (control group). High-resolution computerized tomography (HRCT) scores were calculated according to the anatomic extent of BE. Pulmonary function tests were performed, and MMP-9 and TIMP-1 levels in EBC were analyzed by ELISA.Exhaled breath condensate MMP-9 level was 48.9 +/- 26.8 ng/ml for Group 1, and for Group 2, 42.8 +/- 18.1 ng/ml; and for Group 3, 30 +/- 3.7 ng/ml. Although no statistically significant difference was found between the Groups 1 and 2, a significant difference was detected between these groups and controls. No statistically significant difference was found in TIMP-1 levels regarding all groups. EBC MMP-9 levels were inversely correlated with pulmonary functions test, and positively with HRCT scores and annual number of pulmonary infections.In conclusion, this study showed that EBC of children with both CF BE and non-CF BE contained higher levels of MMP-9 in comparison to controls. We suggest that EBC MMP-9 level may be a useful marker of airway injury in patients with BE however prospective studies are needed.