Yıldırım, Uğur

Objective: Tinnitus is a disease that concerns a large part of society and its pathophysiology and etiology have not been exactly clarified. This study will investigate the association between serum uric acid (SUA) levels and idiopathic subjective tinnitus. Material and Methods: Ninety-one tinnitus patients and 45 age-and sex-matched healthy volunteers were included in the study. Patients were divided into two groups as mild tinnitus and severe tinnitus according to the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory questionnaire. They underwent otolaryngologic examination, routine hematological and biochemical analyses, pure tone audiometry, doppler ultrasound, and magnetic resonance imaging to exclude possible causes of tinnitus. Patients with abnormalities in any test result were excluded from the study. The blood test results were statistically compared between the groups. Results: Except for SUA levels, no significant difference was found between groups in any blood test results (p>0.05). Significant differences among the groups were determined in SUA levels (p=0.001). SUA levels were found to be significantly higher in the severe tinnitus group than in the mild tinnitus or control group (p=0.002, p=0.001). However, there is no statistically significant difference between the mild tinnitus group and the control group (p=0.617). Conclusion: In this study, it was observed that there was a clear correlation between higher SUA levels and severe tinnitus. But this association did not reveal SUA levels as an accurate biological marker for tinnitus. It could only be utilized as a marker of disease severity. Further studies will help to reveal the exact relation.

Köseoğlu, Reşit Doğan; Turan, Fatih; Damcayırı Yeniel, Evrim; Bayram Kablan, Rana

Objectives: This study aims to use immunohistochemistry to compare histopathological findings and transforming growth factor beta1 (TGF-b1) levels in polyp tissue in cases of nasal polyp with histopathological findings and TGF-b1 levels in the nasal mucosa inpatients with obstructive nasal deformity.Patients and Methods: The study group consisted of 20 patients. The control group consisted to 20 patients scheduled for nasalsurgery due to septum deviation. Edema, mixed infection cell infiltration, eosinophil leukocyte infiltration and squamous metaplasiadevelopment were studied from hematoxylin-eosin stained slides containing polyp and conchal mucosa tissue specimenscollected from the study and control groups. These were then assessed semi-quantitatively. The presence or absence of TGF-b1antibody and positive reaction in the mucosal epithelium, submucosal glands, fibroblasts and inflammatory cells were evaluatedimmunohistochemically.Results: A positive association was determined between eosinophilia and edema on tissue staining with hematoxylin and eosin incases of nasal polyp, while no edema was observed in any cases in the control group. Comparison of the control and study groups onimmunohistochemical (TGF-b1 positive reaction) staining revealed no significant difference between epithelium, gland and fibroblaststaining. Immunohistochemical staining of inflammatory cells was more pronounced in the study group.Conclusion: We conclude that TGF-b1 may play a role together with other mediators, although not alone, in the pathophysiology ofnasal polyp.