Kara S

Adnan Menderes University

Publications

h-index

(741 citations, 115 total works)

Research Topics

Pneumonia and Respiratory Infections (15) Bacterial Infections and Vaccines (15) Respiratory viral infections research (10) Ear Surgery and Otitis Media (9) Viral gastroenteritis research and epidemiology (9)

PFAPA Syndrome Publications

Long-term efficacy of tonsillectomy/adenotonsillectomy in patients with periodic fever aphthous stomatitis pharyngitis adenitis syndrome with special emphasis on co-existence of familial Mediterranean fever.

Gozen ED, Yildiz M, Kara S, Tevetoglu F, Haslak F , et al.

Rheumatology international • 2023-Jan-01

Periodic fever, aphthous stomatitis, pharyngitis, adenitis (PFAPA) syndrome is one of the most common autoinflammatory fever disorders in the childhood which may co-exists with familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) causing treatment complexity. As the role of surgery in PFAPA syndrome is still controversial, in this paper, our aim is to present our results of tonsillectomy/adenotonsillectomy in the treatment of PFAPA syndrome. Archives of a tertiary care hospital were investigated for patients who underwent tonsillectomy or adenotonsillectomy due to PFAPA Syndrome between 2010 and 2020. 344 patients were found but only 281 of them were accessible. Through phone call interview and chart review methods, preoperative and postoperative the number and severity of the attacks and general satisfaction after the operation were recorded and analyzed. Also, patients with concomitant FMF were analyzed separately. A total of 281 patients were included in the study. There was no improvement in 10 (3.55%) patients. Eight (2.84%) patients showed mild improvement, 29 (10.32%) patients had moderate improvement and 234 (83.27%) patients had full recovery after tonsillectomy. There were 266 PFAPA patients without FMF. No improvement, mild improvement, moderate improvement, and full recovery in this patient group were 5 (1.9%), 6 (2.3%), 25 (9.4%) and 230 (86.5%), respectively. FMF was present in 5.33% (15/281) of the patients. In PFAPA + FMF group 5 patients had no improvement (33.3%), 2 had mild improvement (13.3%), 4 had moderate improvement (26.7%) and 4 had full recovery (26.7%). Benefit of tonsillectomy was significantly lower in the patients with concomitant FMF when compared to the patients who did not have FMF (p < 0.001). Age of diagnosis, age of operation, severity of the disease, type of operation, and gender were found to have no significant relationship with the benefit from surgery (p < 0.05). According to the findings of this study, tonsillectomy is an effective long-term treatment for PFAPA syndrome with success rate of 83.27%. Also, preoperatively FMF should be considered in these patients, which dramatically reduces surgical efficacy.

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Various clinical conditions can mimic Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever in pediatric patients in endemic regions.

Kara SS, Kara D, Fettah A

Journal of infection and public health • 2016-01-01

Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a tick-borne disease with high mortality. Many disorders can mimic CCHF. It is important to recognize the condition and to perform differential diagnosis in endemic countries. Twenty-one children aged 18 years or less with a preliminary diagnosis of CCHF were retrospectively evaluated. Real-time PCR and a confirmatory indirect immunofluorescence assay for negative results were performed. The diagnoses determined that 9 patients had (42.9%) CCHF; 7 patients had (33.3%) viral upper respiratory tract infections (URTI); 2 patients had (9.5%) brucellosis; 1 patients had (4.7%) periodic fever, aphthous stomatitis, pharyngitis, and adenitis (PFAPA) syndrome episode; 1 patient had (4.7%) cerebral palsy, diabetes insipidus, acute gastroenteritis, and hypernatremic dehydration; and 1 patient had (4.7%) cellulitis after a tick bite. The mean age of patients with CCHF was greater than that of the other patients (116.1±53.6 vs. 94.1±52.1 months, p=0.02). Seventeen (81%) of the children included had a history of tick bites, 2 (9.5%) had a history of contact with a patient with CCHF, and 2 (9.5%) had no exposure, but were living in an endemic region. Three patients had an underlying disorder: cerebral palsy and diabetes insipidus, epilepsy, or PFAPA. All of the children experienced fever. Other frequent symptoms were malaise, diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain, but none of these differed statistically between the patient groups. CCHF patients had a longer mean duration of symptoms (10.56±1.42 vs. 6.75±3.62 days, p=0.008) and a longer mean length of hospitalization (8.00±2.08 vs. 3.58±1.56 days, p<0.001) than the other patients. At laboratory examination, patients with CCHF had statistically significant lower leukocyte and platelet counts, more prolonged coagulation parameters, and greater AST, ALT, LDH, and CK levels than the other patients. No mortality or complications occurred in the study. Both infectious causes, such as URTI, cellulitis, and brucellosis, and non-infectious causes may resemble CCHF. Although they are not pathognomonic, some indicators, including a longer symptom duration and hospitalization, cytopenia, elevated liver enzymes, creatine kinase and prolonged coagulation parameters, were found to be in favor of CCHF.

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