Publications by authors named "C M Blok"

Background: Explantation often alleviates symptoms in women with breast implant illness. However, persistent complaints in some cases may be linked to persistent silicone-induced inflammation from residual silicone particles. Positron emission tomography (PET) imaging could potentially detect this inflammation.

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Context: Breast development is an important outcome for trans women receiving gender affirming hormone therapy (GAHT). Limited breast development has been reported, possibly because of testosterone exposure during puberty. The impact of puberty suppression (PS) on breast development is unclear.

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: This study aims to describe a prospective clinical cohort of patients with silicone breast implants and suspected Breast Implant Illness (BII). : Women were included in a specialized silicone outpatient clinic at Amsterdam UMC, the Netherlands. Baseline characteristics were collected including medical history, implant details, and symptoms.

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Article Synopsis
  • Silicone breast implants often face issues like ruptures and gel bleed, and while MRI is seen as the best imaging method, recent studies indicate that ultrasound might also be effective.
  • This study involved 104 women who underwent both ultrasound and MRI on the same day, with radiologists evaluating the results for accuracy in detecting implant ruptures and silicone deposits in lymph nodes.
  • Findings revealed that ultrasound was highly accurate (96%) for detecting ruptures and was better than MRI for finding silicone in lymph nodes, leading to a recommendation to start examinations with ultrasound before using MRI if needed.
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Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are nanoscale particles that facilitate intercellular communication. They are regarded as a promising natural drug delivery system for transporting and delivering bioactive macromolecules to target cells. Recently, researchers have engineered EVs with FKBP12/FRB heterodimerization domains that interact with rapamycin to load and deliver exogenous proteins for both and applications.

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