Risk of invasion and disease transmission by the Australasian freshwater snail Orientogalba viridis (Lymnaeidae): a field and experimental study.

Background: Biological invasions pose risks to the normal functioning of ecosystems by altering the structure and composition of several communities. Molluscs stand out as an extensively studied group given their long history of introduction by either natural or anthropogenic dispersal events. An alien population of the lymnaeid species Orientogalba viridis was first sighted in 2009 in southern Spain.

Restoring susceptibility to β-lactam antibiotics in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

Infections by Staphylococcus aureus have been treated historically with β-lactam antibiotics. However, these antibiotics have become obsolete in methicillin-resistant S. aureus by acquisition of the bla and mec operons.

Online resources as a source of information for exercise and physical activity in solid organ transplant recipients.

Introduction: Exercise training post-transplant has been shown to improve physical function and quality of life in solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients. Online resources in the form of websites and videos are commonly used to provide education and instruction on exercise and physical activity in SOT; however, the content and quality of these online resources has not been evaluated.

Methods: The first 200 websites and videos identified on Google and YouTube using the English search term "exercise and physical activity in solid organ transplantation" were analyzed.

Induction therapy in heart transplantation: A systematic review and network meta-analysis for developing evidence-based recommendations.

Introduction: Induction therapy (IT) utility in heart transplantation (HT) remains contested. Commissioned by a clinical-practice guidelines panel to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of IT in adult HT patients, we conducted this systematic review and network meta-analysis (NMA).

Methods: We searched for studies from January 2000 to October 2022, reporting on the use of any IT agent in adult HT patients.

The USCENTCOM Walking Blood Bank Performance Benchmark and Anticipated Benefit of Universal Low Titer Type O Screening.

The walking blood bank (WBB) is a system for emergency blood acquisition from nearby donors if a patient's blood needs exceed the immediate supply. USCENTCOM medical units will perform a walking blood bank if immediate blood requirements exceed the local supply. A benchmark WBB performance time was needed to provide a training goal for military WBB exercises.

GRADE concept paper 8: judging the certainty of discrimination performance estimates of prognostic models in a body of validation studies.

Background: Prognostic models incorporate multiple prognostic factors to estimate the likelihood of future events for individual patients based on their prognostic factor values. Evaluating these models crucially involves conducting studies to assess their predictive performance, like discrimination. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses of these validation studies play an essential role in selecting models for clinical practice.

Factors Impacting Physician Prognostic Accuracy in Heart Failure Patients With Reduced Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction.

Background: A recent study showed that the accuracy of heart failure (HF) cardiologists and family doctors to predict mortality in outpatients with HF proved suboptimal, performing less well than models.

Objectives: The authors sought to evaluate patient and physician factors associated with physician accuracy.

Methods: The authors included outpatients with HF from 11 HF clinics.

Use of induction therapy post-heart transplantation: Clinical practice recommendations based on systematic review and network meta-analysis of evidence.

Background: The use of induction therapy (IT) agents in the early post-heart transplant period remains controversial. The following recommendations aim to provide guidance on the use of IT agents, including Basiliximab and Thymoglobulin, as part of routine care in heart transplantation (HTx).

Methods: We recruited an international, multidisciplinary panel of 15 stakeholders, including patient partners, transplant cardiologists and surgeons, nurse practitioners, pharmacists, and methodologists.

Psychotic symptoms with and without a primary psychotic disorder in children requiring inpatient mental health admission.

Psychotic symptoms are relatively common in children and adolescents attending mental health services. On most occasions, their presence is not associated with a primary psychotic disorder, and their clinical significance remains understudied. No studies to date have evaluated the prevalence and clinical correlates of psychotic symptoms in children requiring inpatient mental health treatment.

Visitor engagement with zoo staff and interpretive demonstrations increases visitor stay time in two free-flight aviaries.

Understanding how visitors spend time in zoo exhibits is important as zoological facilities work to enhance visitor experience and conservation education outcomes. We explored a variety of factors we hypothesized would influence visitor stay times in two aviaries at Disney's Animal Kingdom®. Within these aviaries, visitors could utilize educational materials, listen to staff-led demonstrations, or talks, view animal training sessions, or speak directly with animal care or education staff.

Drug levels after sirolimus initiation and short-term outcomes in ambulatory heart transplantation recipients.

Introduction: We evaluated the effect of relative changes in combined tacrolimus and sirolimus (drug) levels, following sirolimus initiation, on outcomes in ambulatory heart transplantation (HTx) recipients.

Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of HTx recipients who received tacrolimus, followed by sirolimus initiation, any time after HTx. We calculated the relative change in combined drug levels 1-month post-sirolimus initiation, relative to tacrolimus levels pre-initiation, and categorized patients into decreased (≥15% decrease), stable (<15% decrease to <15% increase), or increased (≥15% increase) groups.

The design of studies testing the effectiveness of risk-guided care has many challenges: a scoping review addressing key considerations.

Objectives: Studies evaluating the effectiveness of care based on patients' risk of adverse outcomes (risk-guided care) use a variety of study designs. In this scoping review, using examples, we review characteristics of relevant studies and present key design features to optimize the trustworthiness of results.

Study Design And Setting: We searched five online databases for studies evaluating the effect of risk-guided care among adults on clinical outcomes, process, or cost.

Feasibility, safety and efficacy of COVID-19 severe acute respiratory distress syndrome management without invasive mechanical ventilation.

Background: COVID-19 acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is often managed with mechanical ventilation (MV), requiring sedation and paralysis, with associated risk of complications. There is limited evidence on the use of high flow nasal cannula (HFNC). We hypothesized that management of COVID-19 ARDS without MV is feasible.

Endomyocardiofibrosis in the Americas Collaborative Study: The EMF-SIAC Registry.

Endomyocardiofibrosis (EMF) is a restrictive cardiomyopathy characterized by subendocardial fibrosis due to eosinophilic myocardial infiltration. EMF may commonly present with heart failure (HF) or atrial fibrillation (AF). Immunosuppression can be effective in early stages, but not in the chronic phase.

The impact of obesity and LVAD-bridging on heart transplant candidate outcomes: a linked STS INTERMACS - OPTN/UNOS data analysis.

Background: Limited data integrating waitlist and postheart transplant (HT) mortality have evaluated outcomes of left ventricular assist device (LVAD)-bridged strategy vs no LVAD according to patient characteristics. We evaluated waitlist and post-HT mortality in LVAD-bridged vs nonbridged patients based on body mass index (BMI).

Methods: We included linked adults listed for HT in Organ Procurement and Transplant Network/United Network for Organ Sharing and patients receiving durable LVAD as bridge to HT or candidacy in Society of Thoracic Surgeons/Interagency Mechanical Circulatory Support databases (2010-2019).

Predicting 1-Year Mortality in Outpatients With Heart Failure With Reduced Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction: Do Empiric Models Outperform Physician Intuitive Estimates? A Multicenter Cohort Study.

Background: Many studies have demonstrated that physicians often err in estimating patient prognosis. No studies have directly compared physician to model predictive performance in heart failure (HF). We aimed to compare the accuracy of physician versus model predictions of 1-year mortality.

GRADE guidance 36: updates to GRADE's approach to addressing inconsistency.

Objectives: To update previous Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) guidance by addressing inconsistencies and interpreting subgroup analyses.

Study Design And Setting: Using an iterative process, we consulted with members of the GRADE working group through multiple rounds of written feedback and discussions at GRADE working group meetings.

Results: The guidance complements previous guidance with clarification in two areas: (1) assessing inconsistency and (2) assessing the credibility of possible effect modifiers that might explain inconsistency.

Identification and Characterization of Three New Antimicrobial Peptides from the Marine Mollusk (Gmelin, 1791).

Mollusks have been widely investigated for antimicrobial peptides because their humoral defense against pathogens is mainly based on these small biomolecules. In this report, we describe the identification of three novel antimicrobial peptides from the marine mollusk . A pool of peptides was analyzed with nanoLC-ESI-MS-MS technology, and three potential antimicrobial peptides (Nv-p1, Nv-p2 and Nv-p3) were identified with bioinformatical predictions and selected for chemical synthesis and evaluation of their biological activity.

Sex differences in the diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of cancer: the rationale for an individualised approach.

Background: Precision medicine in oncology aims to identify the most beneficial interventions based on a patient's individual features and disease. However, disparities exist when providing cancer care to patients based on an individual's sex.

Objective: To discuss how sex differences impact the epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, disease progression, and response to treatment, with a focus on data from Spain.