Factors associated with the quality of corneas retrieved for transplantation by Eye Banks: a scoping review protocol.

Introduction: The cornea is an avascular and transparent layer of connective tissue crucial to retinal image quality. Diseases can impair its quality, affecting vision. Keratoplasty is the only therapy capable of restoring vision quality in severe corneal involvement.

Genome sequence of PSonyx, a singleton bacteriophage infecting .

PSonyx is a newly isolated phage that infects . This siphovirus was isolated from a French pond in the south of Paris by students from Paris-Saclay University. Its 80,277-bp singleton genome carries 136 protein-coding genes and 5 tRNAs.

Examination of disparities in prehospital encounters for pediatric asthma exacerbations.

Introduction: There are disparities in multiple aspects of pediatric asthma care; however, prehospital care disparities are largely undescribed. This study's objective was to examine racial and geographic disparities in emergency medical services (EMS) medication administration to pediatric patients with asthma.

Methods: This is a substudy of the Early Administration of Steroids in the Ambulance Setting: An Observational Design Trial, which includes data from pediatric asthma patients ages 2-18 years.

Early Administration of Steroids in the Ambulance Setting: An Observational Design Trial (EASI-AS-ODT).

Background: In the emergency department (ED), prompt administration of systemic corticosteroids for pediatric asthma exacerbations decreases hospital admission rates. However, there is sparse evidence for whether earlier administration of systemic corticosteroids by emergency medical services (EMS) clinicians, prior to ED arrival, further improves pediatric asthma outcomes.

Methods: Early Administration of Steroids in the Ambulance Setting: An Observational Design Trial is a multicenter, observational, nonrandomized stepped-wedge design study with seven participating EMS agencies who adopted an oral systemic corticosteroid (OCS) into their protocols for pediatric asthma treatment.

Clinical Spectrum of Tuberculosis Otitis Media (TBOM) and Management Outcomes.

Objectives: To determine the initial clinical diagnoses of patients with tuberculous otitis media (TBOM), to determine the value of PCR test, biopsy, and ancillary diagnostic procedures in detecting middle ear TB infection, and to establish the differences in treatment outcomes.

Methods: The clinical records of twenty-eight patients identified with middle ear TB infection by PCR test and biopsy, from January 2010 to December 2016, were reviewed to determine their initial clinical diagnoses. The positivity rates of PCR test and biopsy were compared.

EMS Administration of Systemic Corticosteroids to Pediatric Asthma Patients: An Analysis by Severity and Transport Interval.

Introduction: Pediatric asthma exacerbations are a common cause of emergency medical services (EMS) encounters. Bronchodilators and systemic corticosteroids are mainstays of asthma exacerbation therapy, yet data on the efficacy of EMS administration of systemic corticosteroids are mixed. This study's objective was to assess the association between EMS administration of systemic corticosteroids to pediatric asthma patients on hospital admission rates based on asthma exacerbation severity and EMS transport intervals.

CD25high Effector Regulatory T Cells Hamper Responses to PD-1 Blockade in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

Unlabelled: Regulatory T cells (Treg) impede effective antitumor immunity. However, the role of Tregs in the clinical outcomes of patients with triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) remains controversial. Here, we found that an immunosuppressive TNBC microenvironment is marked by an imbalance between effector αβCD8+ T cells and Tregs harboring hallmarks of highly suppressive effector Tregs (eTreg).

First-in-Human Study in Healthy Subjects with the Noncytotoxic Monoclonal Antibody OSE-127, a Strict Antagonist of IL-7Rα.

OSE-127 is a humanized mAb targeting the IL-7Rα-chain (CD127), under development for inflammatory and autoimmune disease treatment. It is a strict antagonist of the IL-7R pathway, is not internalized by target cells, and is noncytotoxic. In this work, a first-in-human, phase I, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single-center study was carried out to determine the safety, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and immunogenicity of OSE-127 administration.

Audiologic Measures in an Indigenous Community with and Related Otitis Media.

Many indigenous peoples are at elevated risk for otitis media, however there is limited information on hearing loss due to OM in these communities. An Indigenous Filipino community that has previously been described with an elevated prevalence of OM that is due to rare variants and a common variant underwent additional phenological testing. In this study, we describe the audiologic profiles in - and -related otitis media and the validity of otoscopy and genotyping for and variants in screening for otitis media and hearing loss.

Modeling Complex Word Reading: Examining Influences at the Level of the Word and Child on Mono- and Polymorphemic Word Reading.

Purpose: The probability of a child reading a word correctly is influenced by both child skills and properties of the word. The purpose of this study was to investigate child-level skills (set for variability and vocabulary), word-level properties (concreteness), word structure (mono- vs. polymorphemic), and interactions between these properties and word structure within a comprehensive item-level model of complex word reading.

Cervical cancer screening uptake: A randomized controlled trial assessing the effect of sending invitation letters to non-adherent women combined with sending their general practitioners a list of their non-adherent patients (study protocol).

Introduction: Cervical cancer (CC) is the fourth most common cancer among women. It can be cured if diagnosed at an early stage and treated promptly. The World Health Organization suggests that 70% of women should be screened with a high-performance test by the age of 35.

Clinical, Operational, and Socioeconomic Analysis of EMS Bypass of the Closest Facility for Pediatric Asthma Patients.

Introduction: Pediatric hospital care is becoming increasingly regionalized, with fewer facilities providing inpatient care for common conditions such as asthma. That trend has major implications for emergency medical services (EMS) medical care and operations because EMS historically transports patients to the closest facility. This study describes EMS transport patterns of pediatric asthma patients in greater depth, including an analysis of facility bypass rates and the association of bypass with demographics and clinical outcomes.

Hiding for Survival: Highlighting the Lived Experiences of Precarity and Labour Abuse Among Filipino Non-status Migrants in Canada.

are individuals who do not hold a valid immigration document or official status to stay in Canada. This paper presents a case study on the experiences of non-status migrants seeking access to health, social, and community services. Through interviews with five non-status migrants, the authors explore the specific needs, rights, services and barriers they encountered.

Effect of Endotracheal Intubation on Voice.

Objectives: Following endotracheal intubation (ETI), voice changes can be observed quite frequently. Considering that the pressure that occurs increases as the duration of anesthesia with ETI increases, with the aim to contribute to literature, we realized objective acoustic analysis by grouping patients according to the length of surgical periods. We wanted to investigate both the impact of endotracheal intubation on the voice and how long this impact lasted by performing voice analyzes on the preoperative, postoperative first day and postoperative fifth day.

Selective SIRPα blockade reverses tumor T cell exclusion and overcomes cancer immunotherapy resistance.

T cell exclusion causes resistance to cancer immunotherapies via immune checkpoint blockade (ICB). Myeloid cells contribute to resistance by expressing signal regulatory protein-α (SIRPα), an inhibitory membrane receptor that interacts with ubiquitous receptor CD47 to control macrophage phagocytosis in the tumor microenvironment. Although CD47/SIRPα-targeting drugs have been assessed in preclinical models, the therapeutic benefit of selectively blocking SIRPα, and not SIRPγ/CD47, in humans remains unknown.

Otitis media susceptibility and shifts in the head and neck microbiome due to variants.

Background: Otitis media (OM) susceptibility has significant heritability; however, the role of rare variants in OM is mostly unknown. Our goal is to identify novel rare variants that confer OM susceptibility.

Methods: We performed exome and Sanger sequencing of >1000 DNA samples from 551 multiethnic families with OM and unrelated individuals, RNA-sequencing and microbiome sequencing and analyses of swabs from the outer ear, middle ear, nasopharynx and oral cavity.

Caudal Anesthesia for Pediatric Subumbilical Surgery, Less Load on the Postoperative Recovery Unit.

Introduction Caudal epidural anesthesia, when used as a sole method for surgical anesthesia, has favorable effects on the recovery duration and the time spent in the recovery unit. In this study we made a retrospective analysis of pediatric surgery operations under local, regional and general anesthesia. We aimed to find shorter postoperative recovery times with local and regional anesthesia.

A2ML1 and otitis media: novel variants, differential expression, and relevant pathways.

A genetic basis for otitis media is established, however, the role of rare variants in disease etiology is largely unknown. Previously a duplication variant within A2ML1 was identified as a significant risk factor for otitis media in an indigenous Filipino population and in US children. In this report exome and Sanger sequencing was performed using DNA samples from the indigenous Filipino population, Filipino cochlear implantees, US probands, Finnish, and Pakistani families with otitis media.

Findings in Appendectomies with Infection: Pinworm Is Not A Cause of Appendicitis.

Objective: To evaluate the histopathological findings in appendectomy materials with infection.

Methods: Appendectomy materials with infection of 24 cases were evaluated for the presence of acute inflammation, congestion, hemorrhage, perforation, lymphoid hyperplasia (LH), necrosis, granuloma, fecalith, obliteration, hyalinization, eosinophilic infiltration and mucosal architectural distortion.

Results: The frequency of among 3222 appendectomies that were scanned for the study was 0.

FUT2 Variants Confer Susceptibility to Familial Otitis Media.

Non-secretor status due to homozygosity for the common FUT2 variant c.461G>A (p.Trp154) is associated with either risk for autoimmune diseases or protection against viral diarrhea and HIV.

Molecular detection of ephemeral fever virus among large ruminants in the Philippines.

In the Philippines, bovine ephemeral fever (BEF) is currently undetected and considered as an exotic disease of both cattle and water buffaloes. The Philippines until now has no official data regarding the occurrence of BEF. There were no existing control programs or vaccine used for the prevention of the disease.

Tunable Strain in Magnetoelectric ZnO Microrod Composite Interfaces.

The intrinsic strain at coupled components in magnetoelectric composites plays an important role for the properties and function of these materials. In this in situ X-ray nanodiffraction experiment, the coating-induced as well as the magnetic-field-induced strain at the coupled interface of complex magnetoelectric microcomposites were investigated. These consist of piezoelectric ZnO microrods coated with an amorphous layer of magnetostrictive (FeCo)SiB.

A retrospective analysis of 254 acute stroke cases admitted to two university hospitals in Beirut: classification and associated factors.

Lebanon is a developing country where the prevalence of stroke subtypes and their correlation with risk factors have not been studied, even though stroke management is an ongoing major national healthcare challenge. In a retrospective study conducted in two university hospitals, data were collected on all stroke cases admitted in 2012 and 2013. Ischemic strokes were then classified according to a modified TOAST classification.

Minute Ventilation Limitations of Two Field Transport Ventilators.

Knowledge of transport ventilator performance impacts patient safety. This study compared minute ventilation (V) of the MOVES and Uni-Vent 731 when ventilating the VentAid Training Test Lung with compliance (C) ranging from 0.02 to 0.

Genetic and Environmental Determinants of Otitis Media in an Indigenous Filipino Population.

Objective: To identify genetic and environmental risk factors for otitis media in an indigenous Filipino population.

Study Design: Cross-sectional study.

Setting: Indigenous Filipino community.