Trends of chronic liver diseases by income level and socioeconomic factors in the United States: A population-based study.

Background/aims: With polarizing income disparities, this study investigated the prevalence and trends of liver disease in a U.S. population-based sample based on income-to-poverty ratio (IPR).

Pressure injury pain over time among nursing home residents.

Objective: Examine pressure injury (PrI) pain severity, stability, and current treatment of PrI pain among nursing home (NH) residents using two assessment tools and a descriptive cohort study design.

Background: PrI pain affects quality of life of NH residents yet, best assessment methods, stability of PrI pain, and how to take care of the pain are not well known.

Methods: Data collected from 33 residents with PrI (stages 1-4) from 4 NHs.

Reducing Delays in MRIs Under Sedation and General Anesthesia Using Quality Improvement Tools.

Objective: Develop structured, quality improvement interventions to achieve a 15%-point reduction in MRIs performed under sedation or general anesthesia (GA) delayed more than 15 min within a 6-month period.

Methods: A prospective audit of MRIs under sedation or GA from January 2022 to June 2023 was conducted. A multidisciplinary team performed process mapping and root cause analysis for delays.

How Social Connectedness Helps Patients Stay Home After Hospital at Home Enrollment: A Mixed Methods Study.

Background: While enrolled in Hospital at Home (HaH) programs, patients rely on their social network to provide supportive behaviors that are routinely provided by hospital staff in the inpatient setting.

Objective: This study investigated how social connectedness is associated with patient outcomes in a HaH program.

Design: The explanatory iterative sequential mixed methods design included an electronic health record review to collect quantitative measures to describe the severity of patient illness and healthcare utilization and then qualitative interviews to explain quantitative findings.

Investigating disparities in smoking cessation treatment for veterans with multiple sclerosis: A national analysis.

Background And Aims: Smoking is a risk factor for multiple sclerosis (MS) development, symptom burden, decreased medication efficacy, and increased disease-related mortality. Veterans with MS (VwMS) smoke at critically high rates; however, treatment rates and possible disparities are unknown. To promote equitable treatment, we aim to investigate smoking cessation prescription practices for VwMS across social determinant factors.

Daily life activities of young adults with obesity living in highly accessible and compact urban environments in Seoul, South Korea: a spatiotemporal qualitative study protocol.

Introduction: Amid the growing global concern about obesity, young adults in South Korea are particularly affected, with 30.8% of people aged 19-34 classified as obese. Given the urban-centric lifestyle of Korean youth, understanding the relationship between daily life activities and the urban environment holds great promise for effective interventions.

Does Patient Blood Management Affect Outcomes in Metastatic Spine Tumour Surgery? A Review of Current Concepts.

Study Design: Narrative review.

Objective: The spine is the most common site of metastases, associated with decreased quality of life. Increase in metastatic spine tumour surgery (MSTS) has caused us to focus on the management of blood, as blood loss is a significant morbidity in these patients.

Hyperpolarisation of Mitochondrial Membranes Is a Critical Component of the Antifungal Mechanism of the Plant Defensin, Ppdef1.

Plant defensins are a large family of small cationic proteins with diverse functions and mechanisms of action, most of which assert antifungal activity against a broad spectrum of fungi. The partial mechanism of action has been resolved for a small number of members of plant defensins, and studies have revealed that many act by more than one mechanism. The plant defensin Ppdef1 has a unique sequence and long loop 5 with fungicidal activity against a range of human fungal pathogens, but little is known about its mechanism of action.

In situ production and secretion of proteins endow therapeutic benefit against psoriasiform dermatitis and melanoma.

Genetic medicines have the potential to treat various diseases; however, certain ailments including inflammatory diseases and cancer would benefit from control over extracellular localization of therapeutic proteins. A critical gap therefore remains the need to develop and incorporate methodologies that allow for posttranslational control over expression dynamics, localization, and stability of nucleic acid-generated protein therapeutics. To address this, we explored how the body's endogenous machinery controls protein localization through signal peptides (SPs), including how these motifs could be incorporated modularly into therapeutics.

Graft-derived cfDNA Monitoring in Plasma and Bile During Normothermic Machine Perfusion in Liver Transplantation Is Feasible and a Potential Tool for Assessing Graft Viability.

Background: Ex vivo normothermic machine perfusion (NMP) is an organ preservation technique that enables an extended assessment of graft suitability before liver transplantation (LT). Established monitoring protocols used during NMP vary significantly in their assessment of transplant suitability when applied to the same grafts. Graft-derived cell-free DNA (gdcfDNA) analysis is an emerging tool for monitoring graft health post-transplantation.

Cross-Cultural Adaptation of Lung Cancer Screening Health Belief Scale in Chinese Americans: A Methodological Study.

The purpose of this study is to report the process of adapting the existing Lung Cancer Screening Health Belief Scale to be used in Chinese Americans. Guided by Flaherty et al.'s cross-cultural equivalency model, the methodology used in the adaptation process consists of four steps, including preliminary modification after a comprehensive literature review, forward and backward translation, expert review, and cognitive interviews among participants.

Recent Developments in the Therapeutic Landscape of Advanced or Metastatic Hormone Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer.

Hormone receptor-positive (HR+) disease is the most frequently diagnosed subtype of breast cancer. Among tumor subtypes, natural course of HR+ breast cancer is indolent with favorable prognosis compared to other subtypes such as human epidermal growth factor protein 2-positive disease and triple-negative disease. HR+ tumors are dependent on steroid hormone signaling and endocrine therapy is the main treatment option.

Effectiveness of a nurse-led decision counselling programme on hepatocellular carcinoma screening uptake among patients with hepatitis B: A randomised controlled trial.

Background: The globally endemic hepatocellular carcinoma induced by hepatitis B highlights the need for an ultrasonography-based screening strategy to reduce the tumour burden. However, patient non-adherence due to unawareness and complex decisions in weighting uncertainties of hepatocellular carcinoma screening has continuously challenged its continuum.

Objective: To examine the effectiveness and process of a nurse-led decision counselling programme for improving hepatocellular carcinoma screening among patients with hepatitis B.

Cancer Screening Rates Among Asian Americans: A Cross-Sectional Secondary Data Analysis Study.

Purpose: This study aims 1) to investigate recent cancer screening rates among Asian Americans and 2) to test the relationship between race/ethnicity and cancer screening rates.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional secondary data analysis study using data from the 2019 National Health Interview Survey. The screening rates of prostate cancer, colorectal cancer, cervical cancer, and breast cancer among non-Hispanic (NH) Asian Americans, Hispanics, NH Whites, NH African Americans, and NH American Indian and Alaska Natives (AIAN) were analyzed in July 2022.

Off-Label Reduced Dose Apixaban in Older Adults With Atrial Fibrillation and Associated Outcomes.

Background: Apixaban is commonly used to prevent stroke in older adults with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF). Although its package insert has specific dose reduction criteria, providers may dose reduce outside of these parameters based on clinical scenarios.

Objective: The primary objective was to determine the incidence of apixaban off-label reduced dosing, while secondarily determining the safety and efficacy outcomes associated with such dosing.

Race/ethnicity-stratified fine-mapping of the MHC locus reveals genetic variants associated with late-onset asthma.

Asthma is a chronic disease of the airways that impairs normal breathing. The etiology of asthma is complex and involves multiple factors, including the environment and genetics, especially the distinct genetic architecture associated with ancestry. Compared to early-onset asthma, little is known about genetic predisposition to late-onset asthma.

Development of a nurse-led decision counseling program for improving hepatocellular carcinoma screening: A typology-guided feasibility study.

Objective: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is frequently diagnosed late. Although ultrasound-based HCC screening is recommended, its effectiveness is restricted by underutilization. This study aimed to develop a nurse-led decision counseling program used to improve HCC screening in patients with hepatitis B and to evaluate its feasibility in terms of process, resources, management, and cultural acceptance.

Smoking Prevalence and Correlates among Chinese Immigrants: A Secondary Data Analysis Study.

Purpose: This study aimed to (1) identify the smoking prevalence among Chinese immigrants and (2) explore associations between their current smoking behaviors and demographic factors, psychological distress, and health utilization factors.

Methods: Inclusion criteria were applied to extract data from the 2016 California Health Interview Survey; 650 eligible Chinese immigrant respondents were included in the sample. Independent variables were extracted based on the Integrated Model of Behavioral Prediction.