Ali Gül

Background and Aim Acute bronchiolitis is the most common cause of hospitalization in the first year of life. The neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and mean platelet volume (MPV) are readily calculable laboratory markers used to evaluate systemic inflammation. We aim to evaluate the optimal values of these markers for the prediction of severity and hospitalization in infants with acute bronchiolitis. Materials and Methods A total of 105 patients with acute bronchiolitis and 62 healthy controls aged 1 to 12 months were prospectively enrolled to the study. The patients' group was classified into two groups, namely, outpatient and inpatient, also divided into three groups according to clinical scoring: mild, moderate, and severe. The association of NLR and MPV with clinical severity and hospitalization was investigated. Results The mean age was 7.75 ± 2.98 months in patients and 7.69 ± 2.87 months in controls. The means of NLR were 0.47 and 0.64 in controls and patients, respective...

Intellectual Disability starts within the course of developmental stages and covers both intellectual and adaptive deficiencies in conceptual, social and applied fields. Individuals with intellectual disability experience many difficulties in social life due to challenging and inappropriate sexual behaviour. Suchdifficulties need to be addressed, reduced or treated. Traditional treatments often fail to treat and improve suchbehavior. Alternative treatment options need to be explored with studies conducted in this field. With this paper, we aimed to show and touch on alternative treatments for challenging and inappropriate behaviors of a 15-year old boy with intellectual disability, who was treated with GNRH analogues.

1Department of Pediatrics. Gaziosmanpasa University School of Medicine. Tokat, Turkey. 2Department of Pediatrics. Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. Selcuklu University School of Medicine. Konya, Turkey. Departments of 3Biochemistry and 4Biostatistics. Gaziosmanpasa University School of Medicine. Tokat, Turkey. 5Department of Nutrition and Dietetics. Mardin Artuklu University School of Health. Mardin, Turkey

Obesity, one of the most common disorders observed in clinical practice, has been associated with energy metabolism-related protein genes such as uncoupling proteins (UCPs). Herein, we evaluated UCPs as candidate genes for obesity and its morbidities. A total of 268 obese and 185 nonobese children and adolescents were enrolled in this study. To determine dyslipidemia, hypertension, and insulin resistance, laboratory tests were derived from fasting blood samples. UCP1-3826 A/G, UCP2 exon 8 deletion/insertion (del/ins), and UCP3-55C/T variants were also genotyped, and the relationship between the polymorphisms of these UCPs and obesity morbidities was investigated. The mean ages of the obese and control groups were 11.61 ± 2.83 and 10.74 ± 3.36 years, respectively. The respective genotypic frequencies of the AA, AG, and GG genotypes of UCP1 were 46.3%, 33.2%, and 20.5% in obese subjects and 46.5%, 42.2%, and 11.4% in the controls (p = 0.020). G alleles were more frequent in obese subj...

Objective The aim of this study was to determine the clinical characteristics, course of disease, and outcomes of patients admitted to our pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) for Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF). Materials and Methods Data of all patients with CCHF who were admitted to PICU during a 3-year period and whose diagnosis was confirmed by serological methods or polymerase chain reaction were retrospectively reviewed. Their presenting characteristics, treatments, and outcomes were extracted from the hospital’s electronic database. Disease severity scoring was performed using the severity scoring index and severity grading score system. Results The data of 22 of 123 patients with suspected CCHF who were admitted to PICU were evaluated. Among them, 68.2% were males and mean age of all patients was 13.4
2.2 years. The average length of stay of 10 patients was >10 days. On average, 3.72 units of platelet suspension per patient was transfused. In the course of the d...

ABS TRACT Öz Aim: In kidney diseases, renal damage may be mild and initially asymptomatic. Proteinuria, a marker of kidney injury, directly contributes to chronic tubulointerstitial damage. We investigated the prevalence of proteinuria (POP) in school-aged children in Turkey. Materials and Methods: The cluster sampling method was used to calculate the required size of the study group for this cross-sectional study. Urine samples were randomly obtained to determine urinary protein/creatinine ratio (Upr/Ucr) from 1374 children aged 6 to 18 years. POP was also specifically assessed in hypertensive and obese children. Results: The mean age of the subjects was 11.68±3.43 years. The children were from rural (23.9%) and urban (76.1%) regions of Tokat, Turkey. Upr/Ucr ≥0.20 was detected in 92 children, corresponding to a POP rate of 6.7%, without any statistically significant difference between girls and boys. Among 141 obese children, 16 (11.3%) and 76 of 1233 non-obese children (6.2%) had...

Abstract Background The pathophysiology of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) includes the massive production of endogenous cytokines with exaggerated activation of inflammatory pathways. Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) has been used as an anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-apoptotic agent. We investigated the possible protective effects of UDCA in a neonatal rat pup model of NEC. Methods We randomly divided rat pups into three groups: a control group, a non-treated NEC group, and a UDCA-treated NEC group. We induced NEC by feeding formula enterally and via hypoxia/reoxygenation. Intestinal samples were collected for histopathological and immunohistochemical evaluation. Blood samples were taken for biochemical analyses. Results UDCA significantly reduced the extents of terminal ileal and jejunal injuries compared to the NEC group (p < .01), reduced Bax and caspase-3 immunoreactivities (both p < .01), and lowered serum levels of platelet-activating factor and intestinal fatty acid-binding protein (p < .01, p = .023, respectively). Conclusions In a rat model of NEC, UDCA protects against adverse intestinal histological, immunohistochemical, and biochemical changes. UDCA significantly reduces the effects of NEC on the rat pup intestine.

The present study examined the relationship between clinical findings and mutation analyses in children with Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF) in the inner Black Sea region of Turkey. This retrospective, cross-sectional study included patients with FMF who were evaluated between 2007 and 2015. FMF was diagnosed according to the Tel Hashomer criteria. FMF mutations were analyzed using a Real-time PCR System (Roche Diagnostics, Mannheim, Germany), and patients were classified into three groups according to allele status. The most common symptom was abdominal pain (99%, n = 197). The most frequent mutations were M694V and R202Q. Chest pain was reported more often in patients homozygous for M694V (61.4%). Although fever, abdominal pain, and arthritis were more commonly observed with the M694V mutation, chest pain was the most common symptom in R202Q carriers (n = 10, 32.3%). Proteinuria was observed in 42 (21.2%) patients, frequently accompanied by the M694V mutation (28.6%). The most ...

OBJECTIVE: Newborns in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) are at high risk for developing nosocomial infections (NIs),
which may result in morbidity and mortality. In this study, we aimed to ascertain the bacteriological profiles and their antimicrobial
susceptibility patterns in NIs.
METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study in the NICU. Late-onset sepsis (LOS) cases confirmed with blood cultures were evaluated retrospectively. Laboratory parameters, demographics, and clinical data were collected and analyzed from hospital records retrospectively.
RESULTS: Of the 1210 infants in the NICU, 76 (6.3%) had LOS. A total of 86 episodes of LOS were documented; in 10 infants, two pathogens were identified. The mean gestational age (GA) of the infants with LOS was 33.2±4.8 weeks (23 to 42 weeks). Gram-positive cocci (GPC) caused most of the LOS episodes (65.8%, 50/76), with coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (CoNS) as the most common cause of LOS (50%, 38/76). Gram-negative rod species (GNRs) accounted for 32.9%
(25/76) of the LOS cases, and fungi accounted for 1.3% (1/76). The mortality rates for GNR and GPC were 17.9% and 6.4%, respectively (p>0.05). The mean CRP and conjugated bilirubin levels for the GPC and GNR groups were 37.5 vs. 29.5 mg/dl and 0.7 vs 1.5 mg/dl, respectively (p>0.05). GNRs had a 20–25% ceftriaxone resistance. Two (4%) GPC species were resistant to linezolid, while all were susceptible to vancomycin. All of the GNRs were susceptible to carbapenems.
CONCLUSION: These results underscore the recent emergence of CoNS in NICUs. LOS due to GNRs seems to display higher C-reactive protein and conjugated bilirubin values than those due to GPC. Clinical monitoring of NIs and bacterial resistance profiles are required in all NICUs.

Background: Obesity, one of the most common disorders observed in clinical practice, has been associated with energy metabolism-related protein genes such as uncoupling proteins (UCPs). Herein, we evaluated UCPs as candidate genes for obesity and its morbidities. Methods: A total of 268 obese and 185 nonobese children and adolescents were enrolled in this study. To determine dyslipidemia, hypertension, and insulin resistance, laboratory tests were derived from fasting blood samples. UCP1-3826 A/G, UCP2 exon 8 deletion/insertion (del/ins), and UCP3-55C/T variants were also gen-otyped, and the relationships among the polymorphisms of these UCPs and obesity morbidities were investigated. Results: The mean ages of the obese and control groups were 11.61-2.83 and 10.74-3.36 years, respectively. The respective genotypic frequencies of the AA, AG, and GG genotypes of UCP1 were 46.3%, 33.2%, and 20.5% in obese subjects and 46.5%, 42.2%, and 11.4% in the controls (p = 0.020). G alleles were more frequent in obese subjects with hypertriglyceridemia (42.9%; p = 0.048) than in those without, and the GG genotype presented an odds ratio for obesity of 2.02 (1.17-3.47; p = 0.010). The polymorphisms of UCP2 exon 8 del/ins and UCP3-55C/T did not influence obesity risk (p > 0.05). The I (ins) allele was associated with low HDL cholesterolemia (p = 0.023). Conclusion: The GG genotype of the UCP1-3826 A/G polymorphism appears to contribute to the onset of childhood obesity in Turkish children. The GG genotype of UCP1, together with the del/del genotype of the UCP2 polymorphism, may increase the risk of obesity with synergistic effects. The ins allele of the UCP2 exon 8 del/ins polymorphism may contribute to low HDL cholesterolemia.

Aim: Hypercalciuria is an important cause of urinary tract symptoms, and also frequently results in urolithiasis. Urinary calcium excretion varies for geographic areas. We aimed to assess percentiles of urinary calcium excretion and prevalence of hypercalciuria for school-aged children in Tokat (city located in inner northern region of Turkey). Material and Methods: One thousand three hundred seventy-five children aged 6 to 18 years were enrolled in the study. Urine samples were obtained randomly. The children's variables as sex, age, length, and weight were recorded. Urinary calcium and creatinine determined from the urine samples and urinary calcium/creatinine ratios (mg/mg) were calculated. Percentiles of urinary calcium/creatinine ratios were also assessed for each age of the children. Results: Six hundred eighty-three of the 1 375 children were girls and 692 were boys. The mean age of the children was 11.68±3.43 years. Some 23.9% of the children were living in rural regions and 76.1% were were living in urban regions. The mean urinary calcium/creatinine ratio was 0.080±0.24 and the 95th percentile value of the urinary calcium/creatinine ratio was 0.278. The hypercalciuria prevalence for school-aged children was 4.7% when the urinary calcium/creatinine ratio value for hypercalciuria was accepted as ≥0.21. The prevalence of hypercalciuria in rural and urban regions was 7.60% and 3.82%, respectively (p<0.05). Hypercalciuria was present in 7 of 141 patients who were obese (4.96%) and 58 of 1 234 patients who were not obese (4.70%) (p>0.05). Conclusion: The prevalence of hypercalciuria and urinary calcium excretion vary for different geographic areas, not only for countries. The per-centiles of urinary calcium excretion should be assesed for every geographic region and the prevalance of hypercalciuria should be determined with these values. There is controversy as to whether obesity is a risk factor for hypercalciuria. (Turk Pediatri Ars 2016; 51: 193-7)

Amaç: Hiperkalsiüri karın ağrısı ve üriner sistem yakınmalarıyla be-raber ürolitiyazise sebep olarak kronik böbrek rahatsızlıklarının da önemli bir sebebidir. İdrarda kalsiyum atılımı bölgesel farklılıklar gös-termektedir. Bu çalışmamızda Tokat bölgesi okul çocuklarında idrarda kalsiyum atılım persantillerini ve hiperkalsiüri yaygınlığını belirleme-yi amaçladık. Gereç ve Yöntemler: Tokat ilindeki 6-18 yaş arası 1 375 okul çocuğu çalışmaya alındı. Rastgele idrar örnekleri alındı. Olguların yaş, cinsi-yet, boy ve vücut ağırlığı kaydedildi. Alınan idrar örneğinde kalsiyum ve kreatinin ölçülerek idrar kalsiyum/kreatinin oranı (mg/mg) hesap-landı. Her bir yaş için idrar kalsiyum/kreatinin oranı persantilleri be-lirlendi. Bulgular: Çalışmaya alınan 1 375 çocuğun 683'ü (%49,7) kız, 692'sı (%50,3) erkek ve yaş ortalaması 11,68±3,43 idi (6 ile 18 yaş arası).Yüzde 23,9'u kırsal kesimde, %76,1'i ise il ve ilçe merkezlerinde yaşamaktay-dı. Tüm çalışma grubu için idrar kalsiyum/kreatinin oranı (mg/mg) or-talaması 0,080±0,24 ve 95 persantildeki idrar kalsiyum/kreatinin oranı 0,278'di. Hiperkalsiüri için idrar kalsiyum/kreatinin oranı sınır değeri 0,21 ve üzeri kabul edilerek Tokat ilinde okul çocuklarında hiperkal-siüri yaygınlığı %4,70 olarak saptandı. Kırsal kesimde hiperkalsiüri yaygınlığı %7,60 ve kentsel kesimde ise %3,82'di (p<0,05). Çalışma olgularındaki obez 141 çocuğun yedisinde (%4,96) hiperkalsiüri sap-tanırken, obez olmayan 1 234 hastanın 58'inde (%4,70) hiperkalsiüri saptandı (p>0,05). Çıkarımlar: Hiperkalsiüri yaygınlığı ve idrarla kalsiyum atılımı ülkesel olduğu gibi bölgesel de farklılıklar göstermektedir. Bölgesel yaşa göre idrarda kalsiyum atılım persantillerin belirlenmesi ve hiperkalsiürinin bu persantillere göre değerlendirilmesi gerekmektedir. Obezitenin hi-perkalsiüri için bir risk etmeni olduğu tartışmalıdır. Abstract Aim: Hypercalciuria is an important cause of urinary tract symptoms, and also frequently results in urolithiasis. Urinary calcium excretion varies for geographic areas. We aimed to assess percentiles of urinary calcium excretion and prevalence of hypercalciuria for school-aged children in Tokat (city located in inner northern region of Turkey). Material and Methods: One thousand three hundred seventy-five children aged 6 to 18 years were enrolled in the study. Urine samples were obtained randomly. The children's variables as sex, age, length, and weight were recorded. Urinary calcium and creatinine determined from the urine samples and urinary calcium/creatinine ratios (mg/mg) were calculated. Percentiles of urinary calcium/creatinine ratios were also assessed for each age of the children. Results: Six hundred eighty-three of the 1 375 children were girls and 692 were boys. The mean age of the children was 11.68±3.43 years. Some 23.9% of the children were living in rural regions and 76.1% were were living in urban regions. The mean urinary calcium/creati-nine ratio was 0.080±0.24 and the 95th percentile value of the urinary calcium/creatinine ratio was 0.278. The hypercalciuria prevalence for school-aged children was 4.7% when the urinary calcium/creatinine ratio value for hypercalciuria was accepted as ≥0.21. The prevalence of hypercalciuria in rural and urban regions was 7.60% and 3.82%, respectively (p<0.05). Hypercalciuria was present in 7 of 141 patients who were obese (4.96%) and 58 of 1 234 patients who were not obese (4.70%) (p>0.05). Conclusion: The prevalence of hypercalciuria and urinary calcium ex-cretion vary for different geographic areas, not only for countries. The percentiles of urinary calcium excretion should be assesed for every geographic region and the prevalance of hypercalciuria should be determined with these values. There is controversy as to whether obesity is a risk factor for hypercalciuria. (Turk Pediatri Ars 2016; 51: 193-7)

Background and Aim Acute bronchiolitis is the most common cause of hospitalization in the first year of life. The neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and mean platelet volume (MPV) are readily calculable laboratory markers used to evaluate systemic inflammation. We aim to evaluate the optimal values of these markers for the prediction of severity and hospitalization in infants with acute bronchiolitis.
Materials and Methods A total of 105 patients with acute bronchiolitis and 62 healthy controls aged 1 to 12 months were prospectively enrolled to the study. The patients’ group was classified into two groups, namely, outpatient and inpatient, also divided into three groups according to clinical scoring: mild,moderate, and severe. The association of NLR and MPV with clinical severity and hospitalization was investigated.
Results The mean age was 7.75
2.98 months in patients and 7.69
2.87 months in controls. The means of NLR were 0.47 and 0.64 in controls and patients, respectively (p ¼ 0.032) and of MPV were 9.64 and 8.9 (p < 0.001), respectively. Themeans of NLR were 0.73 and 0.50 in inpatient and outpatient groups, respectively (p ¼ 0.014) and of MPVwere 8.65 and 9.32 (p ¼ 0.046), respectively. NLR of 0.64 value was  calculated as a cutoff for the prediction of hospitalization with 45% sensitivity and 83% specificity (positive predictive value ¼ 81%, negative predictive value ¼ 19%).
Conclusion We found that blood neutrophil percentage and blood NLR are increased and also weakly predictive—but insufficient to be clinically useful—for the decision of hospitalization in acute bronchiolitis.When the positive predictive value of an NLR of 0.64 is sufficient to decide hospitalization, the negative predictive value is impractical.MPV value was less in infantswith acute bronchiolitis than healthy controls and in inpatients than outpatients with acute bronchiolitis. Low MPV might be marker of inflammation in acute bronchiolitis.

Introduction: Undescended testis and enuresis are frequently seen and important health problem for children and their families. They could lead to serious complications in advanced aged children. In this study, we aimed to determine the prevalence of undescended testis and enuresis in school-aged boys. Methods: This cross-sectional epidemiological study was performed with boys in the province and districts of Tokat province. External genital examinations were performed for undescended testis and enure-sis was asked. Anthropometric measurements of children, smoking and alcohol dinking in the family were questioned and that's relationships with undescended testis and enuresis were investigated. Children were divided into three groups as 6-9, 10-14 and 15-18 ages. Results: A total of 613 male school-aged children between 6 and 18 years aged were included in the study. Undescended testis was detected in 8 (1.3%) and enuresis in 116 (18.9%) children. The rate of smoking in mothers was 17.9% and 80% in fathers. The rate of smoking in home was 44.9%. The prevalence of undescended testis was found to be 2.2% in children of smoked home and 0.6% in children of non-smoked home (p=0.085). The prevalence of enuresis was 26.2% in children of smoked home and 13% in children of non-smoked home (p<0.001). In addition, the prevalence of enuresis in children aged 6 to 9 years was 61.8%, and was higher than other age groups (p<0.001). Discussion and Conclusion: Undiagnosed undescended testes are still present in school-aged children. Since the delay of diagnosis may cause serious consequences such as malignancy and infertility, extra efforts should be made to be taken into account in preventive medicine. Enuresis is frequently encountered in school-aged boys. In order to prevent the its negative effects on psychosocial development and academic success, it should be emphasized that their families should receive medical support. Smoking at home by parents may increase the frequency of enuresis in school-aged boys.
Amaç: İnmemiş testis ve enürezis, çocukluk çağında sık rastla-nan sağlık sorunları olup zamanında tanı ve tedavilerinin yapıl-ması gelecekteki komplikasyonların önlenmesi açısından büyük öneme sahiptir. Biz de bu çalışmada inmemiş testis ve enürezise dikkat çekerek okul çocuklarındaki prevalanslarını belirlemeyi amaçladık. Gereç ve Yöntem: Bu kesitsel epidemiyolojik çalışma Tokat il mer-kezi ve ilçelerindeki ilkokul ve orta öğretim okullarındaki erkek ço-cuklarda yapıldı. Dış genital muayeneleri inmemiş testis için yapıldı ve enürezis sorgulandı. Çocukların antropometrik ölçümleri, ailede sigara ve alkol kullanımı sorgulandı ve inmemiş testis ve enürezisle ilişkileri araştırıldı. Çalışmaya alınan çocuklar yaşa göre 6-9, 10-14 ve 15-18 şeklinde üç gruba ayrıldı. Bulgular: Toplam 6 ile 18 yaşları arasındaki 613 erkek okul çocu-ğu çalışmaya dahil edildi. İnmemiş testis 8 (%1,3), enürezis ise 116 (%18,9) çocukta saptandı. Annelerde sigara kullanımı oranı %17,9 iken babalarda %80 tespit edildi. Çocukların evinde %44,9 oranın-da sigara içilmekteydi. Evinde sigara içilenlerde inmemiş testis pre-valansı %2,2 iken içilmeyenlerde bu oran %0,6 saptandı (p=0,085). Evinde sigara içilenlerde enürezis prevalansı %26,2 iken içilme-yenlerde bu oran %13 hesaplandı (p<0,001). Ayrıca 6-9 yaş arası çocuklarda enürezis prevalansı %61,8 ile diğer yaş gruplarından yüksekti (p<0,001). Sonuç: Tanı almamış inmemiş testise okul çağı çocuklarında halen rastlanmaktadır. Geç kalınmasının malignensi ve infertilite gibi cid-di sonuçları olmasından koruyucu hekimlikte ciddiye alınması için çalışmalar yürütülmelidir. Enürezis erkeklerde sıkça rastlanmakta ve psikososyal gelişim ve akademik başarıdaki olumsuz etkilerinin önlenmesi için ailelerin tıbbi yardım almaları üstünde durulmalıdır. Evde sigara içilmesi erkek çocuklarda enürezis sıklığını arttırabilir. Anahtar Sözcükler: Alkol; enürezis; inmemiş testis; okul çocukları; sigara.

Resumen Introducción y objetivo: la obesidad infantil se asocia a un riesgo aumentado de enfermedades crónicas. El objetivo de este estudio es deter-minar la relación entre la defi ciencia en vitamina D y el riesgo cardiovascular en niños obesos. Método: se seleccionaron niños tratados en la clínica de obesidad, con edades entre 6 y 17 años. Los datos de laboratorio y la información demográfi ca básica se recogieron de forma retrospectiva a partir de las historias clínicas. Resultados: se evaluaron 310 estudiantes (178, 57,4% mujeres) midiendo los niveles de vitamina D a fi nales de invierno y en primavera. La prevalencia de defi ciencia en vitamina D, insufi ciencia y sufi ciencia fueron 62,3%, 34,5% y 3,2% respectivamente. Se encontró resistencia insulínica en 146 niños (47,1%); mientras que la frecuencia de dislipemia e hipertensión fue de 31% y 19,4%, respectivamente. La razón de aterogenicidad debida a dislipemia fue mayor en el grupo defi ciente (p = 0,049). Se encontró una correlación inversa entre los niveles de 25-OH-D y los valores de HOMA (r =-0,146; p = 0,01). Los valores medios de vitamina D (ng/Ml) fueron inferiores en niñas (12,15 ± 6,60) que en niños (16,48 ± 8,69) (p < 0,05) y en niños con hipertensión (11,92 ± 5,48 vs. 14,50 ± 8,24 en normotensos) (p < 0,05). Conclusiones: se encontró una prevalencia de defi ciencia en vitamina D en niños y adolescentes obesos superior a lo esperado. Nuestros hallazgos indican que los niveles bajos de vitamina D se asocian con resistencia insulínica. La defi ciencia en vitamina D podría contribuir a las morbilidades que se asocian a la obesidad infantil, como la resistencia insulínica o la diabetes mellitus, el aumento del riesgo cardiovascular, la dislipemia y la hipertensión. Abstract Background and aim: Childhood obesity is associated with an increased risk of chronic disease. We aimed to determine the association between vitamin D defi ciency and cardiovascular risks in obese children. Method: The studied children were selected from obese children who were followed up at obesity clinic, aged 6-17 years. Basic demographic information and laboratory data were collected retrospectively from hospital records. Results: A total of 310 students (178 [57.4%] girls) were evaluated for 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH] D) levels in late winter/spring. The prevalence rates of vitamin D defi ciency, insuffi ciency, and suffi ciency were 62.3%, 34.5%, and 3.2%, respectively. Insulin resistance was observed in 146 (47.1%) children; the frequencies of dyslipidemia and hypertension were 31% and 19.4%, respectively. The mean atherogenic dyslipidemia ratio was higher in the defi cient group (p = 0.049). Inverse correlations of 25(OH) D levels were observed with homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance values (r =-0.146, p = 0.010). The mean values of 25(OH) D (ng/mL) were lower in girls (12.15 ± 6.60) than in boys (16.48 ± 8.69) (p < 0.05) and in children with hypertension (11.92 ± 5.48) than in those without (14.50 ± 8.24) (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Vitamin D defi ciency is observed more frequently than expected in obese children and adolescents. Our fi ndings indicate that low 25(OH) D levels are associated with insulin resistance. Vitamin D defi ciency could contribute to the morbidities associated with childhood obesity, such as insulin resistance or diabetes mellitus, increased cardiovascular/cardiometabolic risks, atherogenic dyslipidemia, and hypertension.

Purpose: The β3-adrenergic receptor (ADRB3) is expressed in visceral adipose tissue and has been speculated to contribute to lipolysis, energy  metabolism, and regulation of the metabolic rate. In this study, we aimed  to investigate the association of polymorphism of the ADRB3 gene with  the sex of children with obesity and related pathologies.
Methods: ADRB3 gene trp64arg genotyping was conducted in 441  children aged 6-18 years. Among these subjects, 264 were obese (103  boys; 161 girls) and 179 were of normal weight (81 boys; 98 girls). In the  obese group, fasting lipids, glucose and insulin levels, and blood pressure were measured. Metabolic syndrome (MS) was defined  according to the modified World Health Organization criteria adapted for  children.
Results: The frequency of trp64arg genotype was similar in obese and  normal weight children. In obese children, serum lipid, glucose, and  insulin levels; homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance  (HOMA-IR) scores; and MS were not different between arg allele carriers  (trp64arg) and noncarriers (trp64trp). In 264 obese children, genetic  analysis results revealed that the arg allele carriers were significantly  higher in girls than in boys (p=0.001). In the normal weight group, no  statistically significant difference was found between genotypes of boys  and girls (p=0.771).
Conclusion: Trp64arg polymorphism of the ADRB3 gene was not  associated with obesity and MS in Turkish children and adolescents.  Although no relationships were observed between the genotypes and  lipids, glucose/insulin levels, or HOMA-IR, the presence of trp64arg variant was frequent in obese girls, which can lead to weight gain as well  as difficulty in losing weight in women.