Health Care Utilization Among Post-Stroke Women: Associations with Perceived Racism.

Post-stroke health care is crucial for recovery and preventing complications. This study explored the association between perceived racism and health care utilization among post-stroke women, highlighting the disparate utilization patterns of marginalized racial/ethnic women. The 2022 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey was used to characterize health care utilization among women with stroke diagnoses across different racial groups: White, Black, Hispanic, and Asian/Asian, Islander, Alaska Native/Other/Multiracial.

State of the Art in Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion.

Left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) has become an important therapeutic target for stroke prevention in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. Over the past 2 decades, several advancements in LAAO devices (percutaneous and surgical) have been made for stroke prevention and arrhythmia therapy. However, there are several unanswered questions regarding optimal patient selection, the preferred LAAO approach and device, the management of periprocedural and postprocedural complications, including pericardial effusion, device-related thrombus, and device leaks.

Determinants and progression of stigma in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/motor neuron disease.

: Stigma in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/motor neurone disease (ALS/MND) may be felt or enacted; felt stigma covers feeling devalued by the illness, whereas enacted stigma refers to being treated differently because of it. Stigma in ALS/MND has been shown to increase social withdrawal, worsen quality of life, and reduce use of assistive devices, so we explored prevalence and factors influencing stigma. : Participants in the Trajectories of Outcome in Neurological Conditions-ALS study completed scales measuring stigma, fatigue, spasticity, functioning, mood, worry, self-esteem, and perceived health, as well as demographic information and symptoms like head drop or emotional lability.

Assessing left main bifurcation anatomy and haemodynamics as a potential surrogate for disease risk in suspected coronary artery disease without stenosis.

Coronary anatomy governs local haemodynamics associated with atherosclerotic development, progression and ultimately adverse clinical outcomes. However, lack of large sample size studies and methods to link adverse haemodynamics to anatomical information has hindered meaningful insights to date. The Left Main coronary bifurcations of 127 patients with suspected coronary artery disease in the absence of significant stenosis were segmented from CTCA images before computing the local haemodynamics.

Factors that Influence Recovery From Concussion in Young Children and Preadolescents.

Objective: To examine differences in the presentation and management of concussion in younger children (aged 4-8 years) versus preadolescents (9-12 years) and identify factors that influence recovery time.

Design: Retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data.

Setting: Pediatric sports medicine and orthopedics clinic.