In situ Laser Fenestrations of Visceral Endografts (InLoVE) Midterm Outcomes From a Multicentre Study.

Objective: Emergent complex abdominal aortic diseases are challenging to treat. During in situ laser fenestration (ISLF), aortic branches are covered and flow is restored with in situ fenestration of the stent graft, with promising midterm results. This study aimed to expand on the limited body of knowledge of midterm outcomes of ISLF in renovisceral aortic pathology in a multicentre setting.

Automated 3D ultrasound bridges the gap between novices and experts in diameter assessment of abdominal aortic aneurysms.

Background: The current management of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) hinges upon assessing diameter using ultrasound (US). Diameter reproducibility with conventional two-dimensional ultrasound (2D-US) is challenging and requires experienced operators. A novel automatic three-dimensional ultrasound (3D-US) system enables on-cart software-assisted diameter estimation (3D-SAUS), potentially facilitating more precise diameter measurements than 2D-US.

PODO/TERT256 - A promising human immortalized podocyte cell line and its potential use for in vitro research at different oxygen levels.

Podocytes are of key interest for the prediction of nephrotoxicity as they are especially sensitive to toxic insults due to their central role in the glomerular filtration apparatus. However, currently, prediction of nephrotoxicity in humans remains insufficiently reliable, thus highlighting the need for advanced in vitro model systems using human cells with improved prediction capacity. Recent approaches for refining in vitro model systems focus on closely replicating physiological conditions as observed under the in vivo situation typical of the respective nephron section of interest.

Endoleak following endovascular repair of popliteal artery aneurysm: clinical outcome and contrast-enhanced ultrasound detection.

Background: Continued blood flow in the aneurysm sac after repair, also known as endoleak, can occur after both open and endovascular popliteal aneurysm repair (EPAR) with risk for aneurysm sac enlargement. Primary aims were to investigate aneurysm sac growth and the presence and classification of endoleak after EPAR using contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS).

Methods: Cross-sectional study of patients receiving EPAR with expanded polytetrafluorethylene (ePTFE) covered stent-grafts between 1 of January 2009 and 1 of February 2019 at a tertiary referral endovascular center.

One-year volume growth of abdominal aortic aneurysms measured by extended field-of-view ultrasound.

Background: Measurement of volume has the potential to detect subtle growth not recognized in the current surveillance paradigm of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs). Currently available three-dimensional ultrasound allows for estimation of AAA volume, but for most patients, the AAA extends beyond the ultrasound field-of-view and only allows visualization of a partial AAA volume. A new extended field-of-view three-dimensional ultrasound protocol (XFoV US) has been found to improve the proportion of patients with visualization of the full AAA volume.

Anticoagulants and reduced thrombus load in abdominal aortic aneurysms assessed with three-dimensional contrast-enhanced ultrasound examination.

Objective: The relationship between intraluminal thrombus (ILT) and abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) growth and rupture risk remains ambiguous. Studies have shown a limited effect of antiplatelet therapy on ILT size, whereas the impact of anticoagulant therapy on ILT is unresolved. This study aims to evaluate an association between antithrombotic therapy and ILT size assessed with three-dimensional contrast-enhanced ultrasound (3D-CEUS) examination in a cohort of patients with AAA.

Ultrasound Transducer Pressure: An Unexplored Source of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Measurement Error.

This study was aimed at quantifying the abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) compression phenomenon and assessing the use of a new tool to estimate transducer pressure in vivo. In this cross-sectional study, 47 participants with AAA and a median anterior-to-posterior (AP) AAA diameter of 46 mm (range: 30-76 mm) were included. The majority of the patients were overweight with body mass indexes >25 (33/47, 70%).

Full-Volume Assessment of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm by Improved-Field-of-View 3-D Ultrasound Performs Comparably to Computed Tomographic Angiography.

Three-dimensional ultrasound (US) of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) is limited by the field-of-view of the 3D-US transducer. To obtain an extended field-of-view (XFoV), two transducer navigation system-assisted US protocols have been developed: XFoV-2D and XFoV-3D. In this study, the XFoV US protocols were compared with the currently available 3D-US protocol with standard field-of-view (FoV-st) and the established gold standard, computed tomography angiography (CTA).

Profiling abdominal aortic aneurysm growth with three-dimensional ultrasound.

Background: Profiling is a new method based on three-dimensional ultrasound (3D-US) allowing for direct comparison of baseline and follow-up diameters along the AAA length. This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of profiling to visualize AAA changes at submaximum diameters, and to categorize the growth profiles.

Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of prospectively and consecutively included patients under AAA surveillance at a tertiary referral center.

Validation of an assessment tool for estimation of abdominal aortic aneurysm compression in diagnostic ultrasound.

The study investigated ultrasound (US) transducer push, tantamount to applied transducer pressure, during abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) US scanning in a simulated non-clinical setup. During an assessment of maximal AAA diameter on a three-dimensional print-based AAA phantom, US transducer push varied as much as 2000% (range: 0.52-12.

Full-Volume Assessment of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms by 3-D Ultrasound and Magnetic Tracking.

Volume assessment of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) using 3-D ultrasound (US) is an innovative technique reporting good agreement with computed tomography angiography. One major limitation of the current 3-D US technique is a limited field of view, allowing full AAA acquisition in only 60% of patients. This study presents two new US acquisition protocols using magnetic field tracking, providing an "extended field of view" (XFoV-2-D and XFoV-3-D) with the aim of including both the aortic bifurcation and neck for full-volume assessment, and compares these methods with the current standard 3-D US protocol and with computed tomography angiography.

An exploratory investigation of the effect of naturalistic light on fatigue and subjective sleep quality in stroke patients admitted for rehabilitation: A randomized controlled trial.

Background: Daylight entrains the central circadian pacemaker to the 24-hour day and is crucial for optimal alertness and sleep-quality. Rehabilitation patients tend to lack exposure to sufficient natural light.

Objective: Installed diurnal naturalistic light may reduce the known disrupted sleep quality and fatigue seen in post stroke patients.

An exploratory investigation of the effect of naturalistic light on depression, anxiety, and cognitive outcomes in stroke patients during admission for rehabilitation: A randomized controlled trial.

Background: Patients admitted for rehabilitation often lack sufficient natural light to entrain their circadian rhythm.

Objective: Installed diurnal naturalistic light may positively influence the outcome of depressive mood, anxiety, and cognition in such patients.

Methods: A quasi-randomized controlled trial.

Unbiased pattern analysis reveals highly diverse responses of cytoskeletal systems to cyclic straining.

In mammalian cells, actin, microtubules, and various types of cytoplasmic intermediate filaments respond to external stretching. Here, we investigated the underlying processes in endothelial cells plated on soft substrates from silicone elastomer. After cyclic stretch (0.

The Effects of Naturalistic Light on Diurnal Plasma Melatonin and Serum Cortisol Levels in Stroke Patients during Admission for Rehabilitation: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Stroke patients admitted for rehabilitation often lack sufficient daytime blue light exposure due to the absence of natural light and are often exposed to light at unnatural time points. We hypothesized that artificial light imitating daylight, termed naturalistic light, would stabilize the circadian rhythm of plasma melatonin and serum cortisol levels among long-term hospitalized stroke patients. A quasi-randomized controlled trial.

Reorientation dynamics and structural interdependencies of actin, microtubules and intermediate filaments upon cyclic stretch application.

Any cell within a tissue is constantly confronted with a variety of mechanical stimuli. Sensing of these diverse stimuli plays an important role in cellular regulation. Besides shear stress, cells of the vascular endothelium are particularly exposed to a permanent cyclic straining originating from the interplay of outwards pushing blood pressure and inwards acting contraction by smooth musculature.