Complex Management Decisions in a Professional Athlete With Recurrent Pericarditis.

A 32-year-old professional athlete developed chronic recurrent pericarditis despite standard medical therapy. Etiology included postpericardiotomy syndrome, viral, or COVID-19 vaccine related, all potentially exacerbated by intense exercise. Treatment and return-to-play decisions were complicated by potential side-effect profile of therapies and ability to limit exercise as a professional athlete.

Impact of a Student-Led Rheumatology Interest Group on Medical Student Interest in Rheumatology.

Objectives: This observational study was designed to evaluate the impact of a student-led Rheumatology Interest Group on medical student interest in rheumatology.

Methods: The mean numbers of student-rheumatology interactions per six months were assessed for elective enrollment, abstract submissions, and manuscripts, in the pre- and postinterest group period.

Results: Enrollment in the rheumatology elective increased from 2.

Radiation Exposure Among Scrub Technologists and Nurse Circulators During Cardiac Catheterization: The Impact of Accessory Lead Shields.

Objectives: This study was performed to determine if the use of an accessory lead shield is associated with a reduction in radiation exposure among staff members during cardiac catheterization.

Background: Accessory lead shields that protect physicians from scatter radiation are standard in many catheterization laboratories, yet similar shielding for staff members is not commonplace.

Methods: Real-time radiation exposure data were prospectively collected among nurses and technologists during 764 consecutive catheterizations.

Intracoronary near-infrared spectroscopy: an overview of the technology, histologic validation, and clinical applications.

Intracoronary near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) imaging, which is now clinically available in a combined NIRS and intravascular ultrasound catheter, is a novel catheter-based imaging modality capable of identifying lipid core plaque within the coronary arteries of living patients. The present manuscript provides an overview of intracoronary NIRS imaging with a focus on several concepts essential to individuals seeking to better understand this novel imaging modality. One of the major assets of NIRS is that it has been rigorously validated against the gold standard of histopathology and has been shown to accurately identify histologically-proven fibroatheroma.