Enteral Feedings Do Not Increase the Risk of NEC in ELBW Infants Undergoing Treatment of Patent Ductus Arteriosus With Acetaminophen.

Objective: Acetaminophen (APAP) is an alternative to indomethacin and ibuprofen for treatment of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). The side effect profile of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) presents enteral feeding safety concerns; however, the safety of enteral feeding on APAP is largely unknown. Optimal feeding strategies during pharmacological PDA treatment are unknown, leading to practice variation.

Fetal MRI Analysis of Corpus Callosal Abnormalities: Classification, and Associated Anomalies.

Background: Corpus callosal abnormalities (CCA) are midline developmental brain malformations and are usually associated with a wide spectrum of other neurological and non-neurological abnormalities. The study aims to highlight the diagnostic role of fetal MRI to characterize heterogeneous corpus callosal abnormalities using the latest classification system. It also helps to identify associated anomalies, which have prognostic implications for the postnatal outcome.

Caudal regression syndrome type 1 with minimally invasive computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging autopsy: a case report.

Background: Caudal regression syndrome is a rare complex congenital anomaly with reduced penetrance and phenotypic variability characterized by osseous defects of the caudal spine, lower limb anomalies, and accompanying genitourinary, gastrointestinal/anorectal, and cardiac system soft tissue defects. We report a rare presentation of type 1 caudal regression syndrome in a pregnant woman with preexisting diabetes, in which early recognition of severe fetal anomalies on routine antenatal ultrasound facilitated confirmation with fetal magnetic resonance imaging to characterize extent of disease and prognosticate fetal outcome.

Case Presentation: This case of type 1 caudal regression syndrome in the setting of maternal pregestational diabetes mellitus resulted in stillbirth.

Scoliosis flexibility correlates with post-operative outcomes following growth friendly surgery.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between pre-operative scoliosis flexibility and post-operative outcomes, including curve correction and complications, for patients who have been treated with growth friendly surgery (GFS) for early onset scoliosis (EOS).

Methods: The study was conducted as a retrospective review of prospectively collected data from an international, multicenter, EOS database. EOS patients with pre-operative flexibility radiographs (traction or bending) were identified.

Body mass index affects outcomes after vertebral body tethering surgery.

Purpose: To compare the outcomes of anterior Vertebral Body Tethering (AVBT) surgery between overweight and non-overweight patients.

Methods: AIS/JIS patients with AVBT with 2-year follow-up from a multi-center pediatric spine database were evaluated pre-operatively, 1st post-operative erect, and 2 years post-operatively. ANOVA was used to compare 3 categories of BMI with significance as per Tukey-Kramer HSD post hoc test.

Use of Social Media as a Platform for Education and Support for People With Diabetes During a Global Pandemic.

Background: Patient education is a fundamental aspect of self-management of diabetes. The aim of this study was to understand whether a social media platform is a viable method to deliver education to people with diabetes and understand if people would engage and interact with it.

Methods: Education sessions were provided via 3 platforms in a variety of formats.

Evaluation of vitamin D protocol in the neonatal intensive care unit at Rush University Medical Center.

Background: In 2017, the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Rush University Medical Center (RUMC) implemented a protocol to provide individualized vitamin D supplementation dosing for very low-birth-weight (VLBW) and very preterm infants. This study evaluated the association of demographic and socioeconomic factors, vitamin D dose, and health indicators, including bone mineral status, measured by alkaline phosphatase and phosphorus levels; linear growth velocity; and occurrence of fractures.

Method: This retrospective cross-sectional study included 227 VLBW or very preterm infants (34 VLBW, 12 very preterm, and 181 VLBW and very preterm) born in and discharged from the RUMC NICU between February 1, 2017, and October 31, 2019.

Maternal production of milk for infants in the neonatal intensive care unit.

Mother's own milk (MOM) feeding is a cost-effective strategy to reduce risks of comorbidities associated with prematurity and improve long-term health of infants hospitalized in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Significant racial and socioeconomic disparities exist in MOM provision in the NICU, highlighting the importance of developing strategies to reduce these disparities. Mothers of infants in the NICU experience many health concerns which may negatively impact lactation physiology.

Development and evaluation of a brief educational cartoon on trainee clinicians' awareness of risks of ionising-radiation exposure: a feasibility pre-post intervention study of a novel educational tool to promote patient safety.

Background: Over recent decades, CT scans have become routinely available and are used in both acute medical and outpatient environments. However, there is a small increase in the risk of adverse consequences, including an increase in the risk of both malignancy and cataracts. Clinicians are often unaware of these facts, and this represents a challenge for medical educators in England, where almost 5 million CT scans are done annually.

Brain State Monitoring: Current Research and Future Possibilities.

Processed electroencephalography (pEEG) devices have been used as depth of anesthesia monitors for over two decades to monitor anesthetic depth and reduce the incidence of awareness with recall (AWR). Each device has unique strengths and weaknesses. A growing body of evidence questions the ability of a pEEG-derived numerical indices to consistently, rapidly, and reliably quantify consciousness and prevent AWR in patients under general anesthesia.

Mother's own milk dose is associated with decreased time from initiation of feedings to discharge and length of stay in infants with gastroschisis.

Objective: To determine if mother's own milk (MOM) dose after gastroschisis repair is associated with time from feeding initiation to discharge. Secondary outcomes included parenteral nutrition (PN) duration and length of stay (LOS).

Study Design: Retrospective study of 44 infants with gastroschisis examined demographics, gastroschisis type, PN days, timing of nutrition milestones, feeding composition, and LOS.

Quantitative magnetic resonance imaging and histological hoof wall assessment of 3-year-old Quarter Horses.

Background: Few noninvasive methods are available for equine hoof wall evaluation. The highly organised wall structures and composition of proteoglycans and collagens may make this region amenable to quantitative MRI (qMRI) techniques of T1ρ and T2 mapping to identify pathology related to proteoglycan content and collagen organisation respectively.

Objective: To establish normative T1ρ and T2 values of the equine hoof wall of 3-year-old Quarter Horses with histological comparison.

Intestinal microcirculation and necrotizing enterocolitis: The vascular endothelial growth factor system.

Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in preterm neonates, is a devastating disease characterized by intestinal tissue inflammation and necrosis. NEC pathogenesis is multifactorial but remains unclear. Translocation of bacteria and/or bacterial products across a weak intestinal barrier in the setting of impaired mucosal immunity leads to an exaggerated inflammatory response and secondary mucosal epithelial injury.

Experimental platform utilising melting curve technology for detection of mutations in Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates.

Tuberculosis (TB) remains one of the most deadly infections with approximately a quarter of cases not being identified and/or treated mainly due to a lack of resources. Rapid detection of TB or drug-resistant TB enables timely adequate treatment and is a cornerstone of effective TB management. We evaluated the analytical performance of a single-tube assay for multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) on an experimental platform utilising RT-PCR and melting curve analysis that could potentially be operated as a point-of-care (PoC) test in resource-constrained settings with a high burden of TB.

Dimethyloxalylglycine preserves the intestinal microvasculature and protects against intestinal injury in a neonatal mouse NEC model: role of VEGF signaling.

BackgroundNecrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a devastating neonatal disease characterized by intestinal necrosis. Hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) has a critical role in cellular oxygen homeostasis. Here, we hypothesized that prolyl hydroxylase (PHD) inhibition, which stabilizes HIF-1α, protects against NEC by promoting intestinal endothelial cell proliferation and improving intestinal microvascular integrity via vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling.

Effect of red blood cell storage time on markers of hemolysis and inflammation in transfused very low birth weight infants.

BackgroundProlonged storage of transfused red blood cells (RBCs) is associated with hemolysis in healthy adults and inflammation in animal models. We aimed to determine whether storage duration affects markers of hemolysis (e.g.

Morphological evaluation of Merkel cells and small lamellated sensory receptors in the equine foot.

OBJECTIVE To examine the equine foot for the presence of sensory receptors including Merkel cells and small lamellated Pacinian-like corpuscles (SLPCs). SAMPLE Forefeet obtained from 7 horses following euthanasia for reasons other than foot disease. PROCEDURES Disarticulated feet were cut into either sagittal sections or cross sections and immersed in neutral-buffered 4% formalin.

The microvasculature in the equine distal phalanx: implications for fracture healing.

Objectives: To describe the intra-osseous microvasculature of the distal phalanx of the equine forelimb with regard to its potential clinical relevance.

Methods: Eleven clinically normal equine forelimbs were used from six adult horses (range: 4 to 18 years old) euthanatized for reasons unrelated to lameness. In each limb the median artery was catheterized at the level of the carpus and India ink was injected under constant manual pressure.

Mesoporous matrix encapsulation for the synthesis of monodisperse Pd5P2 nanoparticle hydrodesulfurization catalysts.

The synthesis of monodisperse 5-10 nm Pd5P2 catalytic particles by encapsulation in a mesoporous silica network, along with preliminary data on hydrodesulfurization (HDS) activity, is reported. Precursor Pd-P amorphous nanoparticles are prepared by solution-phase reaction of palladium(II) acetylacetonate with trioctylphosphine at temperatures up to 300 °C. Direct crystallization of Pd5P2 in solution by increasing the temperature to 360 °C leads to sintering, but particle size can be maintained during the transformation by encapsulation of the amorphous Pd-P particles in a mesoporous silica shell, followed by treatment of the solid at 500 °C under a reducing atmosphere, yielding Pd5P2@mSiO2.

Equine hoof wall tubule density and morphology.

Density and morphologic features of hoof wall tubules in horses' hooves are described. The sample population consisted of hooves (n=12) from both live and deceased adult horses. Full wall thicknesses of the hoof wall were prepared histologically from sites at the toe, medial quarter and lateral quarter.

Acupuncture Points of the Horse's Distal Thoracic Limb: A Neuroanatomic Approach to the Transposition of Traditional Points.

Veterinary acupuncture charts were developed based on the concept of transpositional points whereby human acupuncture maps were adapted to animal anatomy. Transpositional acupuncture points have traditionally been placed in specific locations around the horse's coronet and distal limb believed to be the closest approximation to the human distal limb points. Because the horse has a single digit and lacks several structures analogous to the human hand and foot, precisely transposing all of the human digital points is not anatomically possible.

Effects of barefoot trimming on hoof morphology.

Objective: To monitor changes in hoof morphology in response to barefoot trimming.

Methods: Seven horses were trimmed every 6 weeks according to barefoot trimming principles, which involved levelling the hoof to live sole, lowering the heels, bevelling the toe and rounding the peripheral wall, while leaving the sole, frog and bars intact. A 4-month period was allowed to lower the heels sufficiently to achieve a hoof shape representative of the barefoot trim.

Cysteamine toxicity in patients with cystinosis.

Objective: To report new adverse effects of cysteamine.

Study Design: Detailed clinical information was obtained from the patients' physicians.

Results: New adverse events were reported in 8 of 550 patients with cystinosis treated with cysteamine in Europe during the last 5 years.