A Novel Preoperative Scoring System to Accurately Predict Cord-Level Intraoperative Neuromonitoring Data Loss During Spinal Deformity Surgery: A Machine-Learning Approach.

Background: An accurate knowledge of a patient's risk of cord-level intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) data loss is important for an informed decision-making process prior to deformity correction, but no prediction tool currently exists.

Methods: A total of 1,106 patients with spinal deformity and 205 perioperative variables were included. A stepwise machine-learning (ML) approach using random forest (RF) analysis and multivariable logistic regression was performed.

Modulation of the endocannabinoid system by (S)-ketamine in an animal model of depression.

Ketamine (KET) is recognized as rapid-acting antidepressant, but its mechanisms of action remain elusive. Considering the role of endocannabinoids (eCB) in stress and depression, we investigated if S-KET antidepressant effects involve the regulation of the eCB system using an established rat model of depression based on selective breeding: the Flinders Sensitive Line (FSL) and their controls, the Flinders Resistant Line (FRL). S-KET (15 mg/kg) effects were assessed in rats exposed to the open field and forced swimming test (FST), followed by analysis of the eCB signaling in the rat prefrontal cortex (PFC), a brain region involved in depression neurobiology.

Improvements in Insulin Resistance and Glucose Metabolism Related to Breastfeeding Are Not Mediated by Subclinical Inflammation.

Lactation is known to improve insulin resistance, but this phenomenon remains poorly understood. Our goal was to evaluate whether subclinical inflammation could mediate the association between breastfeeding (BF) and improvement in glucose metabolism and markers of insulin resistance (MIRs) in the postpartum. A total of 95 adult women (≥18 years) with a BMI ≥ 25 kg/m from the outpatient clinic of the Federal University of São Paulo were followed from early pregnancy until 60 to 180 days postpartum.

Robot-assisted partial nephrectomy vs. percutaneous cryoablation for T1a renal tumors: a single-center retrospective analysis of outcomes and costs.

Purpose: The aim of this study is to compare perioperative, functional, and oncological outcomes between robot-assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN) and cryoablation (CRYO), based on a 3-year experience at our Institution. Additionally, a secondary aim is to conduct a comparative cost analysis between the two procedures.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted, including patients who underwent RAPN or CRYO between January 2020 and December 2023.

Modelling the Relative Vaccine Efficacy of ARCT-154, a Self-Amplifying mRNA COVID-19 Vaccine, versus BNT162b2 Using Immunogenicity Data.

: Self-amplifying mRNA vaccines have the potential to increase the magnitude and duration of protection against COVID-19 by boosting neutralizing antibody titers and cellular responses. : In this study, we used the immunogenicity data from a phase 3 randomized trial comparing the immunogenicity of ARCT-154, a self-amplifying mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, with BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine to estimate the relative vaccine efficacy (rVE) of the two vaccines over time in younger (<60 years) and older (≥60 years) adults. : By day 181 post-vaccination, the rVE against symptomatic and severe Wuhan-Hu-1 disease was 9.

A multi-disciplinary approach based on chemical characterization of foreshore sediments, ecotoxicity assessment and statistical analyses for environmental monitoring of marine-coastal areas.

The present work aims at providing a multi-disciplinary approach for environmental monitoring in marine-coastal areas. A monitoring campaign of 13 months (October 2022-October 2023) was carried out on sandy foreshore sediments (SFSs). The SFSs were analysed for potentially toxic elements (PTEs) and rare earth elements (REEs) content determination.

High free sugars, insulin resistance, and low socioeconomic indicators: the hubs in the complex network of non-communicable diseases in adolescents.

Background: Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) predominantly affect adults, but pathophysiological changes begin decades earlier, as a continuum, with initial events apparent in adolescence. Hence, early identification and intervention are crucial for the prevention and management of NCDs. We investigated the complex network of socioeconomic, behavioral, and metabolic factors associated with the presence of NCD in Brazilian adolescents.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on respiratory failure caused by respiratory viruses in children and adolescents.

Background: In addition to the direct impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on child/adolescent health, changes in infections caused by other viruses have been observed. Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and influenza are important agents of acute respiratory failure (ARF) in these age groups. This study presents an analysis of the influence of the pandemic on the seasonal and clinical patterns of ARF caused by RSV and influenza.

Introducing the "Nursing Education Integrating Social Change for Health Equity (NISCHE)" framework for nursing education.

Background: A need exists for a unified curriculum framework for nurse educators, recognizing racism as a central driver of health inequities.

Purpose: This paper provides nurse educators with a unifying curriculum framework that centers racism as a root cause of health inequity shaping SSDH.

Methods: A critical examination of the social and structural determinants of health (SSDH) and Yob's (2018) Framework for a Curriculum in Social Change was conducted, to develop a curriculum framework tailored to the intersection of SSDH and social change within nursing education.

Mechanical thrombectomy using neurovascular catheter from radial artery during acute myocardial infarction: A case report.

Coronary occlusion due to large thrombus is frequently encountered during ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Despite guidelines discourage this practice, often thrombus aspiration is necessary to reduce thrombotic burden and to prevent embolization. We report a case of mechanical thrombectomy with a Neurovascular Catheter from radial artery during inferior STEMI.

Does an improvement in cord-level intraoperative neuromonitoring data lead to a reduced risk for postoperative neurologic deficit in spine deformity surgery?

Purpose: To determine if an improvement in cord-level intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) data following data loss results in a reduced risk for new postoperative motor deficit in pediatric and adult spinal deformity surgery.

Methods: A consecutive series of 1106 patients underwent spine surgery from 2015 to 2023 by a single surgeon. Cord alerts were defined by Somatosensory-Evoked Potentials (SSEP; warning criteria: 10% increase in latency or > 50% loss in amplitude) and Motor-Evoked Potentials (MEP; warning criteria: 75% loss in amplitude without return to acceptable limits after stimulation up 100 V above baseline level).

Intergenerational consequences of violence: violence during pregnancy as a risk factor for infection in infancy.

Introduction: Psychosocial stress during pregnancy has long-lasting and important consequences in the following generations, as it can affect intrauterine development. The impact on the developing immune system is notoriously important due to the associated morbidity and mortality in the first years of life. Little attention has been given to the role of violence during pregnancy (VDP), especially its impact on infant infectious morbidity.

Contact-force local impedance algorithm to guide effective pulmonary vein isolation in AF patients: 1-year outcome from an international multicenter clinical setting.

Background: The combination of highly localized impedance (LI) and contact force (CF) may improve tissue characterization and lesion prediction during radiofrequency (RF) pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF).

Objective: We report the outcomes of our acute and long-term clinical evaluation of CF-LI-guided PVI in consecutive AF ablation cases from an international multicenter clinical setting.

Methods: Three hundred twenty-four consecutive patients from 20 European centers undergoing RF catheter ablation with the Stablepoint™ catheter were enrolled in the CHARISMA registry.

Children picturing their own worlds: Using photovoice to amplify children's voice in sociological research.

This research note highlights an emerging transdisciplinary research method-photovoice-and why it is particularly suited for sociological studies of children and youth. Traditional social science data collection methods can be limited in their ability to capture both the depth and breadth of childhood experiences and children's perceptions of their experiences. We describe an emerging method, photovoice, that is used more frequently in other disciplines, and its suitability for sociologically studying youth and children.

Experimental Property Reconstruction in a Photonic Quantum Extreme Learning Machine.

Recent developments have led to the possibility of embedding machine learning tools into experimental platforms to address key problems, including the characterization of the properties of quantum states. Leveraging on this, we implement a quantum extreme learning machine in a photonic platform to achieve resource-efficient and accurate characterization of the polarization state of a photon. The underlying reservoir dynamics through which such input state evolves is implemented using the coined quantum walk of high-dimensional photonic orbital angular momentum and performing projective measurements over a fixed basis.

Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial of the Parent-Child Assistance Program: a case management and home visiting program for people using substances during pregnancy.

Background: Perinatal substance use can have significant adverse effects on maternal and child health and family stability. Few interventions are specifically designed to address this significant public health problem. The Parent-Child Assistance Program (PCAP) is a 3-year case management and home-visiting intervention that seeks to help birthing persons with at-risk substance use during pregnancy to achieve and maintain substance use disorder recovery and avoid exposing future children to substances prenatally.

Causal Pathways Between the Acute Experience of Violence During Pregnancy and Fetal Intrauterine Growth Restriction: A Cohort Study.

Violence during pregnancy (VDP) is a prevalent global issue with dire consequences for the mother and the developing fetus. These consequences include prematurity, low birthweight, and intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), but its pathways remain elusive. This study investigated the causal pathways between VDP and IUGR using mediation analysis.

Antibody response to four doses of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in rare autoimmune rheumatic diseases: an observational study.

Objective: Antibody responses to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines are reduced among immunocompromised patients but are not well quantified among people with rare disease. We conducted an observational study to evaluate the antibody responses to the booster SARS-CoV-2 vaccine in people with rare autoimmune rheumatic diseases (RAIRD).

Methods: Blood samples were collected after second, before third, after third and after fourth vaccine doses.

Evolving Role of Three-Dimensional Echocardiography for Right Ventricular Volume Analysis in Pediatric Heart Disease: Literature Review and Clinical Applications.

Accurate knowledge of right ventricular (RV) volumes and ejection fraction is fundamental to providing optimal care for pediatric patients with congenital and acquired heart disease, as well as pulmonary hypertension. Traditionally, these volumes have been measured using cardiac magnetic resonance because of its accuracy, reproducibility, and freedom from geometric assumptions. More recently, an increasing number of studies have described the measurement of RV volumes using three-dimensional (3D) echocardiography.