Publications by authors named "Ali H Hakim"
Neuromuscular Junction Damage in the Calf Muscles of Patients With Advanced Peripheral Artery Disease.
Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol
February 2025
Aims: Peripheral artery disease (PAD) reduces blood flow to the legs and causes severe muscle and leg dysfunction for PAD patients. Skeletal muscle contractile function is dependent on the health of the muscle itself and that of the neuromuscular junction (NMJ) on the muscle membrane.
Methods: To determine whether the NMJ, including the motor nerve terminals and nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR), is damaged in PAD, gastrocnemius muscles were collected from 3 controls and 13 PAD patients to capture images from 331 control NMJs and 512 PAD NMJs.
The study aimed at determining the ileal nutrient digestibility, digestive enzyme activity, intestinal morphology, and nutrient transporters mRNA expressions in broiler chickens fed with fermented PKC (LPKC) based diets with different levels of fat supplementation under hot and humid conditions. From day 22 to 35, broiler chickens were randomly fed with either (1) 20% LPKC-based diet with 5% palm oil, (2) 20% LPKC based diet with 9.5% palm oil, (3) 20% PKC-based diet with 5% palm oil or (4) 20% PKC-based diet with 9.
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- This study evaluates long-term outcomes of two surgical methods for reconstructing the intervalvular fibrosa (IVF) in patients with severe double-valve infective endocarditis (IE) from 1988 to 2017.
- Among 138 patients, high rates of complications were noted, with 82% requiring reoperations and an overall survival rate of 67% at 1 year, declining to 37% at 10 years.
- The hemi-Commando procedure, which involves mitral valve repair, showed better early outcomes compared to the full Commando procedure, emphasizing its effectiveness in certain cases of IE.
Article Synopsis
- The study aimed to compare patient outcomes between those treated with inhaled epoprostenol (iEpo) and low tidal volume ventilation during cardiopulmonary bypass and those who did not receive the medication at all or only received it as a rescue therapy.
- A retrospective chart review involved 71 patients, predominantly male (78.9%), undergoing various cardiac procedures, revealing significant differences in postoperative complications between groups.
- Results showed that patients treated with iEpo had higher rates of open chest after surgery and longer mechanical ventilation duration compared to the control group, suggesting the use of iEpo as a preventive measure could lead to better outcomes than using it as a last resort.
Background: Recurrence and overall survival for incidental lung cancer in explanted lungs vary between different series. Recurrence patterns are also not well described. The primary objective of this study is to study the recurrence patterns and time to recurrence for various stages of lung cancer in lung transplant recipients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), when used as bridge to lung transplantation, (BTT) identifies high-risk candidates. Recent advances in cannula design and patient selection fosters "awake ambulatory ECMO" as a viable option for critically ill candidates in an attempt to retard deconditioning while awaiting allografts.
Methods: From 2012 to 2015, 30 patients underwent ECMO as BTT.
Objectives: Surgical management of invasive double-valve infective endocarditis (IE) involving the intervalvular fibrosa (IVF) is a technical challenge that requires extensive debridement followed by complex reconstruction. In this study, we present the early and mid-term outcomes of the hemi-Commando procedure and aortic root replacement with reconstruction of IVF using an aortomitral allograft.
Methods: From 2010 to 2017, 37 patients with IE involving the IVF underwent the hemi-Commando procedure.
Article Synopsis
- A novel iPhone case with embedded electrodes can effectively record heart rhythms for patients recovering from atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation.
- The study involved 60 patients who used both an AliveCor heart monitor (AHM) and a traditional transtelephonic monitor (TTM) to compare effectiveness in detecting AF.
- Results showed a high agreement between the two methods, with the AHM demonstrating 100% sensitivity and 97% specificity, and 92% of patients preferred using the AHM due to its ease of use.
Impurities in drug substances and drug products have been important regulatory issues in the Office of Generic Drugs by having significant impact on the approvability of Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDAs). This review begins with a discussion of ANDAs and its similarity/differences with NDAs, highlighting the importance of control of pharmaceutical impurities in generic drug product development and regulatory assessment. An overview of the FDA draft guidance documents "ANDAs: Impurities in Drug Substances" and "ANDAs: Impurities in Drug Products" are provided.
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