Overweight, obesity, and cardiovascular disease in heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia: the EAS FH Studies Collaboration registry.

Background And Aims: Overweight and obesity are modifiable risk factors for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) in the general population, but their prevalence in individuals with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia (HeFH) and whether they confer additional risk of ASCVD independent of LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) remains unclear.

Methods: Cross-sectional analysis was conducted in 35 540 patients with HeFH across 50 countries, in the EAS FH Studies Collaboration registry. Prevalence of World Health Organization-defined body mass index categories was investigated in adults (n = 29 265) and children/adolescents (n = 6275); and their association with prevalent ASCVD.

Efficacy and Safety of Polatuzumab-Vedotin plus Bendamustine and Rituximab in patients with Relapsed/Refractory Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), the most common non-Hodgkin's lymphoma subtype, relapses or becomes refractory (R/R) in 40% of cases after initial treatment. Among the second-line treatments for these patients is CAR T-cell therapy, which is considered the gold standard and treatment better than SCT. For these patients, polatuzumab vedotin in combination with bendamustine and rituximab (Pola-BR) is a novel treatment.

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice (KAP) Regarding the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Hospital Settings in Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.

Background Artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing healthcare globally by enhancing diagnostic accuracy, predicting patient outcomes, and enabling personalized treatment plans. However, in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) like Pakistan, the integration of AI into healthcare is limited due to challenges such as lack of funding, provider resistance, and inadequate training. Despite these barriers, there is growing interest among healthcare providers in understanding and adopting AI technologies to improve professional efficiency.

Removal of a circumferentially torn stuck balloon from a calcified right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit.

We report a case of right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit angioplasty in which a valvuloplasty balloon ruptured circumferentially and was retained within the conduit. A high-pressure balloon was used to relieve the obstruction and free the ruptured balloon. The procedure was further complicated when the distal part of the balloon broke away from the proximal part during an attempt to retrieve it back into the femoral sheath.

Factors Associated With Erectile Dysfunction in Men: A Cross-Sectional Study From Balochistan, Pakistan.

Background: Erectile dysfunction (ED) in men is overlooked and is often linked with psychogenic causes. Due to cultural barriers, this area of research remains neglected.

Objective: The study was conducted to determine the factors that can be associated with ED in otherwise apparently healthy men.

The striatal compartments, striosome and matrix, are embedded in largely distinct resting state functional networks.

The striatum is divided into two interdigitated tissue compartments, the striosome and matrix. These compartments exhibit distinct anatomical, neurochemical, and pharmacological characteristics and have separable roles in motor and mood functions. Little is known about the functions of these compartments in humans.

Integration of Immune Responses and Transcriptomic Signatures Reveals the Efficacy of Maternal Genetic Vaccination in a Pregnant Model and Its Neonates.

Maternal vaccination is essential for safeguarding both mother and foetus from infectious diseases. This study investigated the immunogenicity and efficacy of a maternal ORF-B2L genetic vaccine in a pregnant rat model, focusing on maternal-neonatal immune modulation, placental and neonatal spleen transcriptomics and the underlying mechanisms contributing to neonatal immune development. Female rats received intramuscular injections of either a gene vaccine (GV) containing 200 μg of recombinant ORF-B2L DNA and 50 μg of a subunit protein or an empty plasmid as a control.

Implant waste and associated costs in trauma and orthopaedic surgery: a systematic review.

Purpose: Trauma and orthopaedic (T&O) surgery relies on medical implants and materials, often resulting in metalwork wastage (prosthesis, screws, nails, and plates). This places an economic strain on healthcare services and the environment. Our primary outcome is to quantify the implant wastage across the literature, and secondarily investigate the associated costs in this specialty.

Systematic review of the association between thyroid disorders and hyperprolactinemia.

Introduction: Thyroid disease (TD), particularly hypothyroidism, is an important etiology of hyperprolactinemia (HPRL). We conducted a systematic review of the clinical characteristics, management, and outcomes of adults (> 18 years) with this clinical association.

Materials And Methods: We searched PUBMED, SCOPUS, and EMBASE to find eligible articles published in English from any date till 15th December 2022.

Demographic, social and health system factors associated with maternal mortality in Pakistan: A nested case-control study.

Background: Pakistan has experienced a significant reduction in maternal mortality with a decline of 33 percent between 2006 and 2019. However, the country still grapples with a high number (186 per 100,000 live births) of maternal deaths each year. This study aims to identify socio-demographic and health system related factors associated with maternal mortality.

Organotin(IV) derivatives of 4-chloro-2-methylphenoxyacetic acid: synthesis, spectral characterization, X-ray structures, anticancer, enzyme inhibition, antileishmanial, antimicrobial and antioxidant activities.

Four organotin(IV) carboxylate complexes; (CH)SnL (), CHSnL (), (CH)SnL () and (CH)SnL () are synthesized by the condensation reaction of organotin(IV) chlorides with sodium-4-chloro-2-methylphenoxyacetate (). The FT-IR spectra suggested bridging/chelating bidentate coordination of the ligand to the tin atom. Single-crystal XRD analysis authenticated the FT-IR findings for and .

How AI competencies can make B2B marketing smarter: strategies to boost customer lifetime value.

There has been a rapid rise in utilization of artificial intelligence (AI) in many different sectors in the last several years. However, business-to-business (B2B) marketing is one of the more notable examples. The initial assessments emphasize the significant advantages of AI in B2B marketing, including its knack for yielding unique understandings into consumer behaviors, recognizing crucial market trends, and improving operational efficiency.

Management Outcomes of Variceal Bleeding in Northern Tanzania: Insights From a Single-Center Retrospective Analysis.

Aims: Due to the expensiveness and unavailability of endoscopy management in Tanzania, the management outcomes of variceal bleeding are unknown. The objective of this study was to assess the management outcomes of patients with variceal bleeding.

Methods: This was a retrospective study conducted between April 2012 and April 2022.

Designing multi-epitope vaccines against Echinococcus granulosus: an in-silico study using immuno-informatics.

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a worldwide zoonotic public health issue. The reasons for this include a lack of specific therapy options, increasing antiparasitic drug resistance, a lack of control strategies, and the absence of an approved vaccine. The aim of the current study is to develop a multiepitope vaccine against CE by in-silico identification and using different Antigen B subunits.

Awareness of Melanoma and Skin Self-Examination at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Pakistan: A Study of Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices.

Background Melanoma, the most lethal form of skin cancer, contributes to a majority of skin cancer fatalities globally. It carries a grim prognosis with a high propensity for early metastasis. People are not aware of moles, their natural course of progression, and skin self-examination.

Metabolic Syndrome and Associated Factors Among People Living With HIV on Dolutegravir-Based Antiretroviral Therapy in Northern Tanzania.

Purpose: Chronic systemic inflammation from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) may cause metabolic abnormalities in lipid metabolism. Additionally, the development of metabolic syndrome has been associated with specific anti-retroviral therapy, particularly dolutegravir. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and associated factors of metabolic syndrome among people living with HIV on dolutegravir-based anti-retroviral therapy.

Host-microbiome determinants of ready-to-use supplemental food efficacy in acute childhood malnutrition.

Ready-to-use supplemental foods (RUSF) are energy-dense meals formulated to prevent and treat moderate and severe childhood acute malnutrition (MAM and SAM) in high-risk settings. Although lifesaving, the degree and durability of weight recovery with RUSF is unpredictable. We examined whether environmental enteric dysfunction (EED) and gut microbiota perturbations are risk factors for RUSF failure in a birth cohort of 416 rural Pakistani children followed for growth, common childhood illnesses, and biomarkers from blood, urine, and stool.

Silencing PADI-2 induces antitumor effects by downregulating NF-κB, Nrf2/HO-1 and AKT1 in A549 lung cancer cells.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the tumorigenic role and regulatory pathways of peptidyl arginine deiminase 2 (PAD-2) in A549 lung cancer cells following treatment with small interfering RNA (PADI-2 siRNA) or the pharmacological pan-PAD inhibitor BB-Cl amidine.

Materials And Methods: A549 lung cancer cells were treated with PADI-2 siRNA to knock down PADI-2 expression or with BB-Cl amidine to inhibit PAD2 activity. The effects on cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and cell cycle phases were assessed.

A giant ovarian atypical proliferative mucinous tumor in a young adult: A rare case report and review of the literature.

Introduction And Importance: Ovarian atypical proliferative mucinous tumor (APMT) is a low-malignant or borderline tumor that originates from the ovary's surface epithelium. This tumor can grow to a massive size, causing abdominal distention, which can result in a variety of compression symptoms if it is not discovered early.

Case Presentation: A 23-year-old female presented with a chronic, gradually developing abdominal distention that had been persistent for a year.

Unmanned aerial vehicles for human detection and recognition using neural-network model.

Introduction: Recognizing human actions is crucial for allowing machines to understand and recognize human behavior, with applications spanning video based surveillance systems, human-robot collaboration, sports analysis systems, and entertainment. The immense diversity in human movement and appearance poses a significant challenge in this field, especially when dealing with drone-recorded (RGB) videos. Factors such as dynamic backgrounds, motion blur, occlusions, varying video capture angles, and exposure issues greatly complicate recognition tasks.

Examining Gender Representation in US News and World Report Top 25 Urology Departments: Female Faculty Hold Lower Professorial Levels and Publication Rates Than Male Counterparts.

Objectives: To examine female representation in US News and World Report (USNWR) top 25 US Urology departments and identify trends of female representation in institutional roles.

Methods: Using the 2022 USNWR, we collected data from each institution's websites along with a compared geographically local cohort to evaluate the presence of female residents, female attendings, and professorial levels. First or last author faculty publications numbers were found using PubMed and Scopus in fiscal year 2022.

Hybrid bagging and boosting with SHAP based feature selection for enhanced predictive modeling in intrusion detection systems.

The novelty and growing sophistication of cyber threats mean that high accuracy and interpretable machine learning models are needed more than ever before for Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems. This study aims to solve this challenge by applying Explainable AI techniques, including Shapley Additive explanations feature selection, to improve model performance, robustness, and transparency. The method systematically employs different classifiers and proposes a new hybrid method called Hybrid Bagging-Boosting and Boosting on Residuals.

Quality of Life Among Kurdish Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis in Duhok Governorate.

Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic disease and a leading cause for pain, stiffness, functional dependence, and diminished quality of life (QoL). The assessment of the latter in OA is becoming increasingly common in both research and clinical settings.

Objectives: The study aimed to examine OA among Kurdish patients with unilateral or bilateral OA.

Role of Supplementation with Selenium and Myo-Inositol Versus Selenium Alone in Patients of Autoimmune Thyroiditis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Objective: The main objective was to assess the therapeutic efficacy of selenium alone versus a combination of myo-inositol and selenium (MI + Se) in treating patients with autoimmune thyroiditis (AIT). The study aims to determine which treatment option is more effective in restoring euthyroid state, as indicated by changes in thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), T3, T4, thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPOAb), and thyroglobulin antibodies (TgAb).

Methods: Google Scholar and PubMed databases were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies that reported outcomes of combined treatment (MI + Se) in restoring a euthyroid state, specifically comparing it with selenium-only (Se-only) treatment.