The Economic Burden of Myasthenia Gravis (MG): A Survey of Affected People and Their Families.

Introduction/aims: Claims-based analyses have demonstrated high medical costs associated with myasthenia gravis (MG). We examined the economic burden of MG from the perspective of affected people and their families.

Methods: The Muscular Dystrophy Association developed and conducted an online survey of people with MG and their caregivers between October 26 and December 6, 2021.

Assessment and Management of Maxillary Labial Frenum-A Scoping Review.

Background: The maxillary labial frenum (MLF) is a soft tissue fold connecting the upper lip to the alveolar process. Abnormal attachment can cause periodontal, functional, and esthetic problems. Differential diagnosis is important and can prevent unnecessary interventions.

Military Family Perspectives on Enrollment and Engagement in the WIC Program.

Introduction: One in four U.S. service members endorses food insecurity.

The Muscular Dystrophy Association's neuroMuscular ObserVational Research Data Hub (MOVR): Design, Methods, and Initial Observations.

Background: Neuromuscular disease (NMD) research is experiencing tremendous growth as a result of progress in diagnostics and therapeutics yet there continues to be a significant clinical data shortage for these rare diseases. To maximize the development and impact of new therapies, the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) created the neuroMuscular ObserVational Research Data Hub (MOVR) as an observational research study that collects disease-specific measures from individuals living with NMDs in the United States.

Objective: This manuscript provides a description of MOVR, participants enrolled in MOVR, and longitudinal data availability.

Termination of Sustained Ventricular Fibrillation During Radiofrequency Catheter Ablation.

After a ST-segment elevation inferior myocardial infarction, a patient developed multiple drug-refractory ventricular fibrillation (VF), triggered by a stereotypic premature ventricular complex. During an episode of sustained VF, catheter ablation of the moderator band terminated VF, with transition into monomorphic ventricular tachycardia. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first-in-human report of termination of VF during delivery of radiofrequency energy, which suggests that the focal area on moderator band of Purkinje system had an active role in the perpetuation of VF.

Refractory Ventricular Tachycardia Originating From an Intracardiac Metastasis Treated With Catheter Ablation.

A 45-year-old man with stage IV melanoma presented with incessant nonsustained wide complex tachycardia. He was found to have a right ventricular intracardiac metastasis that created a nidus for ventricular tachycardia refractory to multiple therapeutic interventions. The patient underwent catheter ablation for this rare indication, with successful arrhythmia control by direct ablation over the tumor surface.

Maternal exposure to soy diet reduces atheroma in hyperlipidemic F1 offspring mice by promoting macrophage and T cell anti-inflammatory responses.

Background And Aims: Maternal hypercholesterolemia has been implicated in earlier onset of atherosclerotic lesions in neonatal offspring. In this study, we investigated whether maternal exposure to soy protein isolate (SPI) diet attenuated the progression of atherosclerosis in F1 offspring.

Method: Pregnant apolipoprotein E knockout (Apoe) female mice were fed SPI diet until postnatal day 21 (PND21) of the offspring (SPI-offspring).

Genital Chlamydia infection in hyperlipidemic mouse models exacerbates atherosclerosis.

Background And Aims: Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease, and recent studies have shown that infection at remote sites can contribute to the progression of atherosclerosis in hyperlipidemic mouse models. In this report, we tested the hypothesis that genital Chlamydia infection could accelerate the onset and progression of atherosclerosis.

Methods: Apolipoprotein E (Apoe) and LDL receptor knockout (Ldlr) mice on a high-fat diet were infected intra-vaginally with Chlamydia muridarum.

Variation in use and outcomes related to midline catheters: results from a multicentre pilot study.

Background: While midline vascular catheters are gaining popularity in clinical practice, patterns of use and outcomes related to these devices are not well known.

Methods: Trained abstractors collected data from medical records of hospitalised patients who received midline catheters in 12 hospitals. Device characteristics, patterns of use and outcomes were assessed at device removal or at 30 days.

Virologic outcome among patients receiving antiretroviral therapy at five hospitals in Haiti.

Introduction: Viral load (VL) assessment is the preferred method for diagnosing and confirming virologic failure for patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART). We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study to evaluate the virologic suppression rate among patients on ART for ≥6 months in five hospitals around Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

Methods: Plasma VL was measured and patients with VL <1,000 copies/mL were defined as virologically suppressed.

Building and Rebuilding: The National Public Health Laboratory Systems and Services Before and After the Earthquake and Cholera Epidemic, Haiti, 2009-2015.

Before the 2010 devastating earthquake and cholera outbreak, Haiti's public health laboratory systems were weak and services were limited. There was no national laboratory strategic plan and only minimal coordination across the laboratory network. Laboratory capacity was further weakened by the destruction of over 25 laboratories and testing sites at the departmental and peripheral levels and the loss of life among the laboratory health-care workers.

Why we need intravenous antiplatelet agents.

Oral ADP-receptor antagonists combined with aspirin are the standard for dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, the oral route of administration of ADP-receptor antagonists leaves them vulnerable to unpredictable and often inadequate platelet inhibition at the time of PCI, while their prolonged effects often lead to the decision not to load them prior to PCI. Intravenous antiplatelet agents, including glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors (GPI) and cangrelor, a reversible P2Y12 inhibitor, address these shortcomings.

Soy protein inhibits inflammation-induced VCAM-1 and inflammatory cytokine induction by inhibiting the NF-κB and AKT signaling pathway in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice.

Purpose: Inflammation is a hallmark of many diseases, such as atherosclerosis, autoimmune diseases, obesity, and cancer. Isoflavone-free soy protein diet (SPI(-)) has been shown to reduce atherosclerotic lesions in a hyperlipidemic mouse model compared to casein (CAS)-fed mice, despite unchanged serum lipid levels. However, possible mechanisms contributing to the athero-protective effect of soy protein remain unknown.

The insertion of intramedullary nail locking screws without fluoroscopy: a faster and safer technique.

Objective: This study was designed to compare the accuracy, time, and radiation exposure during the insertion of intramedullary nail locking screws using either standard fluoroscopic assistance or an electromagnetic (EM)-based navigational system without fluoroscopy.

Design: Prospective.

Setting: Level I academic trauma center.

Rapid detection of Panton-Valentine leukocidin in Staphylococcus aureus cultures by use of a lateral flow assay based on monoclonal antibodies.

Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) is a virulence factor of Staphylococcus aureus, which is associated with skin and soft-tissue infections and necrotizing pneumonia. To develop a rapid phenotypic assay, recombinant PVL F component was used to generate monoclonal antibodies by phage display. These antibodies were spotted on protein microarrays and screened using different lukF-PV preparations and detection antibodies.

Effect on blood loss and cost-effectiveness of pain cocktails, platelet-rich plasma, or fibrin sealant after total knee arthroplasty.

Unlabelled: This study evaluated the effect of periarticular pain cocktail, platelet-rich plasma, or fibrin sealant injections on blood loss, transfusion rate, and hospital costs after total knee arthroplasty. A retrospective review of 400 patients undergoing primary total knee arthroplasty with one of the different periarticular treatments as stated above was performed. Postoperative blood loss, hemoglobin levels, allogenic blood transfusion rates, and per-case hospital injection cost were reported.

Nursing staff perceptions of student contributions in clinical settings.

Because nursing is a practice discipline, students are placed in clinical settings to collaborate with professional nurses in caring for patients. This descriptive study aimed to explore the benefits and limitations of undergraduate nursing students in the clinical setting. A 54-item instrument, Nursing Students' Contributions to Clinical Agencies, was used to collect data from staff nurses (N = 84) at three hospitals.

Attenuated atherosclerotic lesions in apoE-Fcγ-chain-deficient hyperlipidemic mouse model is associated with inhibition of Th17 cells and promotion of regulatory T cells.

Though the presence of antioxidized low-density lipoprotein IgG is well documented in clinical and animal studies, the role for FcγRs to the progression of atherosclerosis has not been studied in detail. In the current study, we investigated the role for activating FcγR in the progression of atherosclerosis using apolipoprotein E (apoE)-Fcγ-chain double-knockout (DKO) mice. Relative to apoE knockout (KO) mice, arterial lesion formation was significantly decreased in apoE-Fcγ-chain DKO mice.

The use of a mobile application to track process workflow in perioperative services.

This article discusses the data collection tool developed to investigate how patient flow is affected by the delivery of different types of care within Perioperative Services. To better understand the Perioperative Services processes, this study tracked staff members as they perform their activities. A challenging aspect of documenting the processes observed while tracking the Perioperative Services staff is to record the specific times and order in which the activities took place.

Initial experience of the Journey-Deuce bicompartmental knee prosthesis: a review of 36 cases.

We evaluated the effectiveness of a novel bicompartmental knee arthroplasty prosthesis for the treatment of degenerative disease affecting the medial and patellofemoral compartments. The study included 36 knees in 32 patients with a mean follow-up of 21 months. The mean Knee Society functional survey and Western Ontario McMaster Osteoarthritic Index Survey scores were 65.

Açaí juice attenuates atherosclerosis in ApoE deficient mice through antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities.

Objective: Açaí fruit pulp has received much attention because of its high antioxidant capacity and potential anti-inflammatory effects. In this study, athero-protective effects of açaí juice were investigated in apolipoprotein E deficient (apoE(-/-)) mice.

Methods And Results: ApoE(-/-) mice were fed AIN-93G diet (CD) or CD formulated to contain 5% freeze-dried açaí juice powder (AJ) for 20 weeks.

Dietary rice protein isolate attenuates atherosclerosis in apoE-deficient mice by upregulating antioxidant enzymes.

Rice-based diets may have been reported to protect against the development of atherosclerosis; however, the underlying mechanism(s) for this protection remains unknown. In this report, the mechanism(s) contributing to the atheroprotective effects of rice-based diet was addressed using the apolipoprotein E knockout (apoE-/-) mice fed rice protein isolate (RPI) or casein (CAS). Reduced atherosclerotic lesions were observed in aortic sinus and enface analyses of the descending aorta in RPI-fed apoE-/- mice compared with CAS-fed mice.

Dietary blueberries attenuate atherosclerosis in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice by upregulating antioxidant enzyme expression.

Protective effects of blueberries (BB) against atherosclerosis and potential underlying mechanisms in reducing oxidative stress were examined in apoE-deficient (apoE(-/-)) mice. ApoE(-/-) mice were fed an AIN-93G diet (CD) or CD formulated to contain 1% freeze-dried whole BB for 20 wk. The mean lesion area for apoE(-/-) mice fed BB was reduced by 39% (P < 0.

Dietary soy protein isolate ameliorates atherosclerotic lesions in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice potentially by inhibiting monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 expression.

Soy-based diets reportedly protect against the development of atherosclerosis; however, the underlying mechanism(s) for this protection remains unknown. In this report, the mechanism(s) contributing to the atheroprotective effects of a soy-based diet was addressed using the apolipoprotein E knockout (apoE-/-) mice fed soy protein isolate (SPI) associated with or without phytochemicals (SPI+ and SPI-, respectively) or casein (CAS). Reduced atherosclerotic lesions were observed in aortic sinus and enface analyses of the descending aorta in SPI+- or SPI(-)-fed apoE-/- mice compared with CAS-fed mice.