Baseline and average platelet count can predict the outcome of patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Background: Baseline values and the change of platelet count (PLT) during disease were reported to be associated with prognosis of patients with cancer and intensive care treatment. We aimed to evaluate the association between PLT with the course and prognosis of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH).

Methods: Admission (AdmPLT) and the 14-days mean PLT (MeanPLT) values of 763 SAH patients treated between 01/2005 and 06/2016 were recorded and, for further analysis, divided into four categories: <150, 150-260, 261-400 and > 400 × 10/L.

A nomogram for predicting prognostic risk factors in individuals with poor grade aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage: a retrospective study.

Poor-grade aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (PGASAH) is associated with high mortality and morbidity despite advanced treatments. Accurate prediction of prognosis remains a clinical challenge. This study aimed to identify independent risk factors and develop a predictive nomogram for unfavorable outcomes in PGASAH patients.

Analyzing temporal imaging patterns in acute ischemic stroke via DICOM-timestamps.

Acute stroke management is time-sensitive, making time data crucial for both research and quality management. However, these time data are often not reliably captured in routine clinical practice. In this proof-of-concept study we analysed image-based time data automatically captured in the DICOM format.

Evidence for spinal disinhibition as a pain-generating mechanism in fibromyalgia syndrome.

Introduction: Pain phenomenology in patients with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) shows considerable overlap with neuropathic pain. Altered neural processing leading to symptoms of neuropathic pain can occur at the level of the spinal cord, and 1 potential mechanism is spinal disinhibition. A biomarker of spinal disinhibition is impaired H-reflex rate-dependent depression (HRDD).

Virtual reality-guided therapy on a stroke unit: a feasibility study.

Background: VR (Virtual Reality) has emerged as a recent treatment approach in neurorehabilitation. The feasibility of VR-guided therapy in the acute phase after stroke has not been assessed.

Methods: This was a cohort study of consecutive patients with suspected stroke who were admitted to the Essen University Hospital Stroke Unit between March 2022 and May 2022.

SOX17-Associated Pulmonary Hypertension in Children: A Distinct Developmental and Clinical Syndrome.

Objective: To characterize clinical, hemodynamic, imaging, and pathologic findings in children with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and variants in SRY-box transcription factor 17 (SOX17), a novel risk gene linked to heritable and congenital heart disease-associated PAH.

Study Design: We assembled a multi-institutional cohort of children with PAH and SOX17 variants enrolled in the Pediatric Pulmonary Hypertension Network (PPHNet) and other registries. Subjects were identified through exome and PAH gene panel sequencing.

Perturbations of tryptophan catabolism via the kynurenine pathway are associated with stage 2 postoperative outcomes in single ventricle heart disease.

Preliminary evidence suggests perturbations of the kynurenine pathway (KP) of tryptophan metabolism in infants with single ventricle heart disease (SVHD). In 72 infants with SVHD undergoing stage 2 palliation (S2P) and 41 controls, we quantified serum KP metabolite concentrations via tandem mass spectroscopy pre-S2P and post-S2P at 2, 24, and 48 h and assessed metabolite relationships with post-S2P outcomes (length of stay, hypoxemia burden, and intubation duration). Pre-S2P, SVHD infants had lower tryptophan and serotonin levels and higher kynurenic acid, 3-hydroxykynurenine, and picolinic acid levels than controls.

Vimentin molecular linkages with nesprin-3 enhance nuclear deformations by cell geometric constraints.

The nucleus is the organelle of the cell responsible for controlling protein expression, which has a direct effect on cellular biological functions. Here we show that the cytoskeletal protein vimentin plays an important role in increasing cell-generated forces transmitted to the cell nucleus, resulting in increased nuclear deformations in strongly polarized cells. Using micropatterned substrates to geometrically control cell shape in wild-type and vimentin-null cells, we show vimentin increases polarization and deformation of the cell nucleus.

Suspected Pseudobulbar Affect in Neurodegenerative Disease.

Objective: To investigate the association between suspected pseudobulbar affect (PBA), clinical diagnosis, cognitive testing, and self-reported mood in older adults presenting for evaluation of dementia.

Participants: Patients presenting to an outpatient memory disorders clinic (N = 311).

Methods: We used traditional and novel network modeling approaches to examine associations between neuropsychological (NP) tests, patient and clinician rating scales, and the Center for Neurological Study-Lability Scale (CNS-LS) among patients with suspected AD (n = 133) and other neurocognitive diagnosis (n = 178).

Impact of general anesthesia on the echocardiographic assessment of right ventricular function in pediatric patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension.

One of the great diagnostic challenges for children with pulmonary arterial hypertension is the need for general anesthesia (GA) to enable successful right heart catheterization. Here, for the first time, we describe how echocardiographic estimates of right ventricular function and pulmonary pressures change in pediatric patients during GA.

Disruption of the Circulating Proteome in Neonates Receiving Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Following Congenital Heart Disease Surgery: A Nested Case-Control Study.

This nested case-control study identified broad dysregulation of the circulating proteome in neonates receiving postoperative extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support after congenital heart disease surgery, including differential responses in those not surviving to hospital discharge. Tissue hypoxia and mitochondrial-associated proteins may represent novel candidate biomarkers for poor extracorporeal membrane oxygenation outcomes.

Idiopathic Distal Sensory Polyneuropathy and Fibromyalgia Syndrome: A Comparative Phenotyping Study.

Introduction: Painful idiopathic distal sensory polyneuropathy (IDSP) and fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) are cryptogenic chronic pain syndromes. The contribution of small fibre pathology (SFP) in FMS remains controversial. This study aims to quantify small nerve pathology in participants with IDSP and FMS and identify relationships of SFP with sensory phenotypes.

Management of Central Poststroke Pain: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Central poststroke pain (CPSP) is a neuropathic pain condition prevalent in 8 to 35% of stroke patients. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to provide insight into the effectiveness of available pharmacological, physical, psychological, and neuromodulation interventions in reducing pain in CPSP patients (PROSPERO Registration: CRD42022371835). Secondary outcomes included mood, sleep, global impression of change, and physical responses.

Prevalence, risk factors, microbiological results and clinical outcome in unexpected positive intraoperative cultures in unclear and presumed aseptic hip and knee revision arthroplasties - A ten-year retrospective analysis with a minimum follow up of 2 years.

Background: The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence, microbiological spectrum, risk factors, and clinical outcomes of unexpected-positive-intraoperative-cultures (UPIC) in presumed aseptic and unclear revision-total-hip-/knee-arthroplasties (rTHA and rTKA) compared to culture-negative (CN) revisions.

Methods: This study reviewed all International-consensus-meeting-2018 (ICM 2018) negative or inconclusive rTHA (n = 751) and rTKA (n = 679) performed at our institution from 2011 to 2020 with a minimum follow-up of two years. A Kaplan-Meier-analysis was performed to determine the septic and aseptic-free implant survival in cases with UPIC's and matched culture-negative cases.

Establishing Medical Intelligence-Leveraging Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources to Improve Clinical Management: Retrospective Cohort and Clinical Implementation Study.

Background: FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources) has been proposed to enable health data interoperability. So far, its applicability has been demonstrated for selected research projects with limited data.

Objective: This study aimed to design and implement a conceptual medical intelligence framework to leverage real-world care data for clinical decision-making.

Automated immunohistochemistry of intra-epidermal nerve fibres in skin biopsies: A proof-of-concept study.

Aims: To develop a standardised, automated protocol for detecting protein gene product 9.5 (PGP9.5) positive intra-epidermal nerve fibres (IENFs) in skin biopsies, transitioning from the established manual technique to an automated platform.

Estimation of pulmonary vascular resistance for Glenn physiology.

Children with single ventricle heart disease typically require a series of three operations, (1) Norwood, (2) Glenn, and (3) Fontan, which ultimately results in complete separation of the pulmonary and systemic circuits to improve pulmonary/systemic circulation. In the last stage, the Fontan operation, the inferior vena cava (IVC) is connected to the pulmonary arteries (PAs), allowing the remainder of deoxygenated blood to passively flow to the pulmonary circuit. It is hypothesized that optimizing the Fontan anatomy would lead to decreased power loss and more balanced hepatic flow distribution.

High Demand for Psychological Support in Patients Who Have Periprosthetic Hip and Knee Joint Infections: An Analysis of 13,976 Patients.

Background: There is only sparse knowledge on the psychological burden of patients who have periprosthetic joint infections. The aim of our study was to assess the need for psychological support following total joint arthroplasty of the hip and knee. A special focus was set on patients who had aseptic and septic complications.

Cognition Mediates the Association Between Cerebrospinal Fluid Biomarkers of Amyloid and P-Tau and Neuropsychiatric Symptoms.

Background: Neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) can be an early manifestation of Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, the associations among NPS, cognition, and AD biomarkers across the disease spectrum are unclear.

Objective: We analyzed cross-sectional mediation pathways between cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers of AD (Aβ1-42, p-tau181), cognitive function, and NPS.