INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of obstructive jaundice on the liver and effectivity of alpha-lipoic acid on liver damage and oxidative stress. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty-six male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 3 groups per 12 animals, namely into Group I (control group): the bile duct was only mobilized by laparotomy, Group II (bile duct ligation group-BDL): the common bile duct was closed with clips and OJ was caused after laparotomy, and Group III (bile duct ligation and alpha-lipoic acid group-BDL+LA): after closing the common bile duct, LA was administered in an intramuscular dose of 50 mg/kg for 10 days. On the 10th day, malondialdehyde, glutathione and superoxide dismutase levels were measured in liver and histopathological evaluation was performed. RESULTS: AST (U/L)/ALT(U/L) in groups I, II and III were 155.33/51.83, 445.28/165.89, 380.78/173.33, respectively (p < 0.005). Superoxide dismutase and glutathione levels were lower in patient groups than in the control group (0.31 μl/g vs 0.36 μl/g; p < 0.05). After the lipoic acid treatment, none of the biochemical markers of liver improved. Only the increase in superoxide dismutase (0.31 μl/g and 0.34 μl/g in groups II and III, respectively) and glutathione levels (0.16 μl/g and 0.22 μl/g in groups II and III, respectively) was statistically signifi cant (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Histopathological damage was statistically signifi cantly decreased and antioxidant levels were statistically signifi cantly increased after LA treatment (Tab. 1, Fig. 6, Ref. 23).

Introduction: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a leading cause of mortality. C-reactive protein (CRP) is often elevated with acute infective and inflammatory situations. Hypoalbuminemia may be linked to chronic diseases and malnutrition. Here, we investigated the relationship between 1-year mortality and CRP/albumin ratio (CAR) among hospitalized elderly patients with COPD acute exacerbation. Materials and method: The records of patients who were hospitalized with COPD diagnosis in the internal medicine and chest diseases clinics of Kafkas University Medical Faculty Hospital between January 2014 and May 2017 were retrospectively evaluated to determine whether selected patients had died within 1 year of hospitalization. The patients who died (Group 1) and those who were living (Group 2) were compared in terms of various parameters, especially CAR. Results: In Group 1, CRP levels were high and albumin levels were significantly lower; the CAR ratio in group 1 was 0.36 (0.29-0.64), which was significantly elevated, compared with that of Group 2 (0.09; 0.03-0.27). In the multivariate analysis, independent predictors of 1-year mortality were CAR [1.116 (1.025-1.216), p=0.011], smoking (packs/year) [1.135 (1.082-1.190), p<0.05], pH [0.001 (0-0.14)], BODE index [1.693 (1.157-2.478)], and FEV1/FVC [0.911 (0.846-0.980)]. Area under the curve values of CAR for 1-year mortality were significantly higher than the values of both albumin and CRP alone (p<0.05). Conclusion: The CRP/albumin ratio is an independent predictor of 1-year mortality in patients with COPD. More comprehensive prospective studies are needed to confirm this finding.

Intracranial bleeding in hemophilia patients is a rare but a mortal complication. Diagnosis of hemophilia in adulthood is an uncommon occurrence. In this case report an adult patient with intracranial hemorrhage is presented.

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