TsT, Quantiferon-Tb Gold test and T-spoT.Tb test for detecting latent tuberculosis infection in patients with rheumatic disease prior to anti-Tnf therapy Introduction: Before starting tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α blocking agents, standard tests should be used for the diagnosis of tuberculosis infection. The specificity of traditional tuberculin skin test (TST) is low in immunosuppressed patients due to prior Bacille Calmette Guérin (BCG) vaccination, non-tuberculous mycobacteria infections, false positive and negative results. In this study, we aimed to compare TST and Interferon-Gamma Release Assay (IGRA) tests for detecting latent tuberculosis infection in patients with rheumatic disease planned to receive TNF-α blocking agents. Materials and Methods: One hundred and nine patients (45 male, 64 female) with the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) (n= 70) and ankylosing spondylitis (AS) (n= 39) were included in the study. Age, sex, number of BCG scar, results of TST (using the Mantoux method), QuantiFERON-TB Gold test and T-SPOT.TB test were recorded for all patients. Correlation between the tests was assessed by Pearson correlation coefficient. results: The mean age of RA and AS patients were 50 ± 13 (19-78 years). The prevalence of latent tuberculosis was 43.1% for TST, 39.4% for QuantiFERON-TB Gold test and 13.8% for T-SPOT.TB test, compared with the evaluation using the composite criteria such as close contact with active tuberculosis infection and/or suspicious fibrotic/calcific lesions on chest X-Ray without active tuberculosis infection. There was a moderate correlation between BCG scar number and TST (p< 0.001, r= 0.495

Anah tar Ke li me lerAstım, ev içi ortam, ev tozu allerjenleri, Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay testi Keywords Asthma, indoor conditions, house dust mite allergens, Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test Öz Abstract Objective: Mites in house dust play a prominent role in the development of allergic sensitization and as a triggering factor that impairs disease control in asthma. The aim of the study was to determine whether the concentration of house dust mite allergens is associated with indoor conditions in stable asthmatics. Materials and Methods: During the study period, a total of 97 asthmatic patients were queried with a standard survey for their demographical characteristics and living environment. House dust samples from their houses were collected to quantitatively measure Dermatophagoides farinae (Der f2) and Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Der p2) levels by using the Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. Results: Using the quantitative ELISA method, measurable levels of mite allergens were found in 54.1% of the houses. Higher antigen detection rate was found in houses with visible mould and in those with moisture. The number of household was found to be significantly higher in houses with antigens than in those without antigens. When the indoor characteristics were evaluated by logistic regression analysis, larger number of household (≥4) was found to be a significant risk factor for the presence of mite allergens. The odds ratio for detecting Der p2 and Der f2 antigen was found to be 5.29 (confidence interval 2.18-12.86) (p<0.001). Conclusion: Mite allergen was detected in the house dusts of more than half of the cases by using quantitative ELISA method. Our results did not found any association between concentrations of allergens and indoor characteristics.Amaç: Ev tozunda bulunan akarlar, astımda allerjik duyarlılığın gelişmesinde ve hastalık kontrolünü bozan tetikleyici olarak önemli rol oynar. Bu çalışmanın amacı, stabil astımlılarda ev tozu akarı allerjen yoğunluğunun ev içi ortam özellikleriyle ilişkisini incelemektir. Gereç ve Yöntemler: Çalışma süresi içerisinde polikliniğe başvuran 97 ardışık stabil astım hastası, demografik özellikleri ve ev içi ortam değerlendirmesi için yüz yüze uygulanan standart bir anket yardımıyla sorgulandı. Evlerinden ev tozu örnekleri toplandı ve Dermatophagoides farinae (Der f2) ve Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Der p2) düzeyleri Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) yöntemiyle kantitatif olarak ölçüldü.