Worldwide SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection: Emerging sub-variants and future vaccination perspectives.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has sparked widespread concern globally, particularly with the Omicron variant and its sub-lineages emerging as the predominant cause of infection for nearly two years. Taiwan's successful containment of COVID-19, underscored by broad vaccine coverage, the utilization of anti-viral therapeutics, and timely response strategies, has resulted in reduced excess mortality. Moreover, there is a crucial need for a phased exit strategy, balancing efforts to curtail disease transmission with the mitigation of socioeconomic impacts from rigorous measures.

Immunologic difference between hypersensitivity to mosquito bite and hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis associated with Epstein-Barr virus infection.

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a life-threatening, virus-triggered immune disease. Hypersensitivity to mosquito bite (HMB), a presentation of Chronic Active Epstein-Barr Virus infection (CAEBV), may progress to HLH. This study aimed to investigate the immunologic difference between the HMB episodes and the HLH episodes associated with EBV infection.

A simplified approach to assessing penile endothelial function in young individuals at risk of erectile dysfunction.

Erectile dysfunction (ED) reflects a risk for systemic cardiovascular diseases by virtue of a common etiology of vascular endothelial dysfunction, which is increasingly reported to affect young adults. On the basis of physiological phenomenon of reactive hyperemia (RH), systemic and penile endothelial functions in healthy young adults were compared with the use of digital data on arterial waveforms before and after RH induction. Between July 2009 and March 2011, 32 young adult volunteers with normal erectile functions were recruited.

Penile arterial waveform analyzing system for early identification of young adults with high risk of erectile dysfunction.

Introduction: High prevalence of erectile dysfunction in young adults has raised much concern regarding early identification of risk factors for timely intervention.

Aim: This study aimed at identifying young males at risk through a novel penile arterial waveform analyzing system.

Methods: Between July 2009 and December 2010, 30 young adult volunteers of age 18 to 29 without known history of vascular diseases or erectile dysfunction were recruited.

Penile arterial waveform analyzer for assessing penile vascular function in young adults.

Not only does erectile dysfunction (ED) reflect penile vascular disorder in the majority of patients, but it also implicates their high systemic cardiovascular risk. Based on the principle of reactive hyperemia after a brief period of penile ischemia, in this study, we tested the validity of a new Penile Arterial Waveform Analyzer (PAWA) in assessing the relative increase in post-ischemic penile perfusion. Twenty young adult males (mean age 24.

Clinical and laboratory manifestations of Kikuchi's disease in children and differences between patients with and without prolonged fever.

Background: Kikuchi's disease (KD) is characterized by cervical lymphadenopathy with or without fever. It has been recognized worldwide but seldom reported in pediatric patients.

Methods: From January 1985 through December 2001, 64 patients younger than 18 years of age with pathologic proof of KD were enrolled in this study.

The effect of shoe soling tread groove width on the coefficient of friction with different sole materials, floors, and contaminants.

Tread groove design is very common in footwear. However, coefficient of friction (COF) measurements between the footwear material and floor using a slipmeter were commonly performed using flat footwear pads. Such measurements might underestimate the actual slip resistance of the footwear pad.