Preprocedural Screening Tool to Guide Nonpulmonary Vein Trigger Testing in First-Time Atrial Fibrillation Ablation.

Background: Patients undergoing first-time atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation can benefit from targeting non-pulmonary vein (PV) triggers. Preprocedural identification of high-risk individuals can guide planning of ablation strategy. This study aimed to create a preprocedural screening tool to identify patients at risk of non-PV triggers during first-time AF ablation.

A systematic review on revision total hip arthroplasty employing the direct anterior approach.

Introduction: The increased use of the direct anterior approach (DAA) for primary total hip arthroplasty (THA) has extended to revision THA. This systematic review evaluated studies reporting both the utility and clinical outcomes of revision THA using DAA, focusing on studies comparing revision approaches.

Materials And Methods: A review of the Cochrane Library, EMBASE, and MEDLINE databases identified 577 publications.

Techniques and outcomes of atrial fibrillation ablation in patients with persistent left superior vena cava.

Objectives: To investigate tailored approaches, techniques, and outcomes of catheter ablation in patients with persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) undergoing atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation.

Background: PLSVC presents unique challenges for AF ablation due to its potential as an arrhythmogenic source and the complex anatomical variations it introduces.

Methods: The retrospective cohort included 16 patients with PLSVC that underwent 21 AF ablation procedures between August 1, 2008, and February 14, 2024, at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

Endoluminal Vacuum Therapy for the Management of Boerhaave Syndrome: A Case Series.

Introduction: Boerhaave syndrome is a rare condition associated with high morbidity and mortality. Prompt intervention greatly improves outcomes, with surgery traditionally being the mainstay of management. Recent advances in therapeutic endoscopy have led to increasing interest in endoluminal vacuum therapy (EVT), a minimally invasive technique, allowing wound debridement and drainage, encouraging granulation tissue formation.

Discovery of Antinociceptive α9α10 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Antagonists by Stable Receptor Expression.

Chronic neuropathic pain is an increasingly prevalent societal issue that responds poorly to existing therapeutic strategies. The α9α10 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) has emerged as a potential target to treat neuropathic pain. However, challenges in expressing functional α9α10 nAChRs in mammalian cell lines have slowed the discovery of α9α10 ligands and studies into the relationship between α9α10 nAChRs and neuropathic pain.

An original study assessing biomarker success rate in breast cancer recurrence biomarker research.

Background: Breast cancer is the second most common cause of cancer mortality worldwide. Biomarker discovery has led to advances in understanding molecular phenotyping and thus has a great potential for precision management of this diverse disease. Despite increased interest in the biomarker field, only a small number of breast cancer biomarkers are known to be clinically useful.

Barriers and facilitators to uptake and persistence on prep among key populations in Southern Province, Zambia: a thematic analysis.

Background: Especially in high HIV prevalence contexts, such as Zambia, effective biomedical prevention tools are needed for priority populations (PPs), including key populations (KPs), who are at higher risk. HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has been scaled up nationally in Zambia, but little is known about barriers to PrEP use among specific PPs to date.

Methods: To understand barriers and facilitators to PrEP use in Zambia, we conducted a qualitative case study of PrEP services to PPs including sero-discordant couples (SDCs), female sex workers (FSWs), and men who have sex with men (MSM) in Livingstone.

Development of a reliable surgical quality assurance tool for gastrectomy in oncological trials.

Background: Despite its recognized importance, there is currently no reliable tool for surgical quality assurance (SQA) of gastrectomy in surgical oncology. The aim of this study was to develop an SQA tool for gastrectomy and to apply this tool within the ADDICT Trial in order to assess the extent and completeness of lymphadenectomy.

Methods: The operative steps for D1+ and D2 gastrectomy have been previously described in the literature and ADDICT trial manual.

Ampicillin susceptibility testing of Haemophilus influenzae in the routine clinical laboratory by the EUCAST methodology compared to broth microdilution and the presence of ftsI gene mutations.

Objectives: To investigate the prevalence of ampicillin resistance in Haemophilus influenzae and the diagnostic accuracy of the EUCAST recommended disc diffusion method to detect the increasingly prevalent ampicillin resistance due to the presence of PBP3 alterations based on mutations in the ftsI gene.

Methods: During a 6-month period all consecutive non-duplicate H. influenzae isolates were prospectively collected and stored.

Synthesis of α3β4 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Modulators Derived from Aristoquinoline That Reduce Reinstatement of Cocaine-Seeking Behavior.

Growing evidence suggests that inhibition of the α3β4 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) represents a promising therapeutic strategy to treat cocaine use disorder. Recently, aristoquinoline (), an alkaloid from , was identified as an α3β4-selective nAChR inhibitor. Here, we prepared 22 derivatives of and evaluated their ability to inhibit the α3β4 nAChR.

Digital outpatient health solutions as a vehicle to improve healthcare sustainability-a United Kingdom focused policy and practice perspective.

Introduction: In the midst of a global climate emergency and with health care systems across the world facing extreme pressure, interest in digital approaches as a potential part-solution to these challenges has increased rapidly. The evidence base to support the role that digitalization can play in moving towards more sustainable models of healthcare is growing, as is the awareness of this key area of healthcare reform amongst policy makers, clinicians and the public.

Method And Results: In this policy and practice review we explore four domains of healthcare sustainability-environmental, economic, and patient and clinician, delineating the potential impact that digitally enabled healthcare can have on each area.

The Biomarker Toolkit - an evidence-based guideline to predict cancer biomarker success and guide development.

Background: An increased number of resources are allocated on cancer biomarker discovery, but very few of these biomarkers are clinically adopted. To bridge the gap between Biomarker discovery and clinical use, we aim to generate the Biomarker Toolkit, a tool designed to identify clinically promising biomarkers and promote successful biomarker translation.

Methods: All features associated with a clinically useful biomarker were identified using mixed-methodology, including systematic literature search, semi-structured interviews, and an online two-stage Delphi-Survey.

A YOLOv5-based network for the detection of a diffuse reflectance spectroscopy probe to aid surgical guidance in gastrointestinal cancer surgery.

Purpose: A positive circumferential resection margin (CRM) for oesophageal and gastric carcinoma is associated with local recurrence and poorer long-term survival. Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) is a non-invasive technology able to distinguish tissue type based on spectral data. The aim of this study was to develop a deep learning-based method for DRS probe detection and tracking to aid classification of tumour and non-tumour gastrointestinal (GI) tissue in real time.

Chronotropic Incompetence after Heart Transplantation Is Associated with Increased Mortality and Decreased Functional Capacity.

Introduction: The contribution of chronotropic incompetence to reduced exercise tolerance after a heart transplant is well known, but its role as a prognostic marker of post-transplant mortality is unclear. The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between post-transplant heart rate response (HRR) and survival.

Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of all adult heart transplant recipients at the University of Pennsylvania between the years 2000 and 2011 who underwent a cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) within a year of transplant.

Nutrient dynamics of 12 Sphagnum species during establishment on a rewetted bog.

Peatland degradation through drainage and peat extraction have detrimental environmental and societal consequences. Rewetting is an option to restore lost ecosystem functions, such as carbon storage, biodiversity and nutrient sequestration. Peat mosses (Sphagnum) are the most important peat-forming species in bogs.

Molecular Modeling of Double Retrograde Vaporization Using Monte Carlo Simulations and Equations of State.

Vapor-liquid equilibria of binary systems consisting of a low-boiling (i.e., more volatile) and a high-boiling compound may exhibit unexpected behavior near the critical point of the low-boiling compound.

Durable Left Ventricular Assist Device Outflow Graft Obstructions: Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes.

Purpose: We report on the clinical course and management of patients supported with durable implantable LVADs who developed outflow graft obstructions at a large academic center.

Methods: We performed a retrospective review of patients receiving LVAD support from 2012 through 2020. Patients who developed an outflow graft obstruction diagnosed by computed tomography angiography (CTA) or angiogram were identified, and patient characteristics and outcomes were reported.