Risk of atherosclerosis-related diseases in polymyositis and dermatomyositis patients: A large-scale population-based study.

Background And Aims: Several systemic autoimmune diseases predispose to the enhancement of Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease (ASCVD). These findings underline the role of inflammation in atherogenesis. Dermatomyositis (DM) and polymyositis (PM) are polygenic autoimmune disorders involving mainly skeletal muscles.

Should antinuclear antibodies (ANA) be used to screen for connective tissue disease in neurological patients?

Background: Patients with connective tissue diseases (CTD) can have a wide range of neurological manifestations. Neurological complaints may be the presenting symptom of CTD. Therefore, screening for CTD using anti-nuclear antibodies (ANA) is a common practice.

The potential of autologous patient-derived circulating extracellular vesicles to improve drug delivery in rheumatoid arthritis.

Recognizing the need for innovative therapeutic approaches in the management of autoimmune diseases, our current investigation explores the potential of autologous extracellular vesicles (EVs), derived from the blood of rheumatoid arthritis patients, to serve as therapeutic vectors to improve drug delivery. We found that circulating EVs derived from arthritic mice (collagen-induced arthritis model) express the joint/synovia homing receptor, αVβ3 integrin. Importantly, both autologous labeled EVs, derived from the blood of arthritic mice (collagen antibody-induced arthritis model) and healthy mice-derived EVs, exhibit targeted migration toward inflamed synovia without infiltrating healthy joints, as demonstrated by an in vivo imaging system.

Dynamical integrity of the safe basins in a problem of forced escape.

This paper explores the use of the approximation of isolated resonance method for determining the safe basins (SBs) in the problem of escape from a potential well. This study introduces a novel approach to capture the location and shape of the SBs and establish their erosion profiles. This research highlights the concept of "true" safe basins, which remain invariant with phase shifts, a critical factor often faced in real-world applications.

Real-World Drug Survival of Biologics and Targeted Synthetic Disease-Modifying Anti-rheumatic Drugs Among Patients with Psoriatic Arthritis.

Background: While the variety of biologics (b) and targeted synthetic (ts) disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) available for patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) has proved to be efficacious in randomized clinical trials, there is a growing importance to understand the benefits and potential drawbacks of these different therapies in real-world settings, which includes bio-experienced and older patients as well.

Objective: To evaluate the real-world adherence, drug survival, and discontinuation risk of bDMARDs and tsDMARDs among patients with PsA, comprising both younger and older patients.

Methods: A retrospective study using a computerized database.

Motion and Orientation of Janus Spherical Particles at a Liquid-Air Interface Governed by the Moses Effect.

We investigated the motion of spherical polystyrene/polypyrrole-coated polystyrene Janus particles placed at an air/saline interface and driven by a permanent magnetic field of ca. 0.5 T.

Increased Risk for Pulmonary Embolism among Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis-Results from a Large Database Analysis.

Axial spondyloarthropathy(AS) is a chronic inflammatory disease primarily affecting the axial skeleton, often characterized by sacroiliitis. While pulmonary embolism (PE), a potentially lethal condition, has been linked to several autoimmune diseases, limited data exist regarding PE risk among patients with AS. This retrospective cohort study utilized the Clalit Healthcare Services (CHS) database, including 5825 patients with AS and 28,356 matched controls.

Exploring the Link Between Ankylosing Spondylitis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background: Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are chronic conditions with overlapping pathogenic mechanisms. The genetic predisposition and inflammatory pathways common to both diseases suggest a syndemic relationship. While some evidence points to a connection between the two conditions, other reports do not support this link.

Arthroplasty rates and risk in familial Mediterranean fever patients: a large population-based study.

Background: FMF is a genetic disorder characterized by recurrent episodes of fever and inflammation in various organs, including the joints. Traditionally, the arthritis of FMF has been considered relatively harmless. However, anecdotal evidence has suggested that it may contribute to long-term joint damage, which may necessitate surgical joint replacement.

A Superhydrophobicity-Slipperiness Switchable Surface with Magneto- and Thermo-responsive Wires for Repelling Complex Droplets.

The inefficacy of repelling water droplets laden with macromolecules (complex droplets or diluted polymer solution) is a long-standing shortcoming of superhydrophobic surfaces, which severely limits their reliability in practical applications. Here, we design a surface termed the superhydrophobicity-slipperiness switchable surface (3S surface), which demonstrates superhydrophobicity at room temperature and slipperiness when heated. The 3S surface is composed of magneto-responsive wires coated with superhydrophobic nanoparticles and impregnated with thermoresponsive paraffin, exhibiting lotus leaf-inspired passive water repellency and respiratory cilia-inspired active water repellency at room temperature.

Biologic Treatment Modification Efficacy in Concurrent Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Ankylosing Spondylitis: A Retrospective Cohort Study at a Single Tertiary Center.

Background: The link between ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is well-established, with concurrent prevalence estimates ranging from 5-10%. However, there are still significant gaps in our understanding, and a comprehensive treatment guideline for these co-diagnosed patients has yet to be established. Our objective was to explore patterns of treatment alterations following the diagnosis of AS in patients previously diagnosed with IBD, and vice versa.

Apple-like Shape of Freezing Paraffin Wax Droplets and Its Origin.

Paraffin wax stores energy in the form of latent heat at a nearly constant temperature during melting and releases this energy during solidification. This effect is used in industrial energy storage. At the same time, the possible deformation of even small volumes of material as a result of phase change is insufficiently studied.

Nonlinear dynamics and bifurcations of a planar undulating magnetic microswimmer.

Swimming microorganisms such as flagellated bacteria and sperm cells have fascinating locomotion capabilities. Inspired by their natural motion, there is an ongoing effort to develop artificial robotic nanoswimmers for potential in-body biomedical applications. A leading method for actuation of nanoswimmers is by applying a time-varying external magnetic field.

Resonant escape induced by a finite time harmonic excitation.

The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, we obtain the critical forcing needed for a resonant escape in finite time in the presence of damping. Second, we adapt the isolated resonance approximation (AIR) method to find the escaping time and analyze the escape in finite time.

Association of fibromyalgia with cancerous and non-cancerous gastrointestinal comorbidities: a cross-sectional study.

Objectives: Several studies have shown a higher prevalence of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) among patients with fibromyalgia yet, data regarding association between fibromyalgia and other gastrointestinal disorders have been relatively overlooked. Our aim was to investigate the association between fibromyalgia and gastrointestinal disorders including both benign and malignant conditions.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study based on the comprehensive electronic database of the largest health maintenance organisation in Israel.

Increased risk for stroke in patients with familial Mediterranean fever: results from a large population-based study.

Objective: The association between chronic inflammatory conditions and cardiovascular disease is well established. Considering FMF, few studies exist investigating the risk of ischaemic heart disease, and none address the risk of stroke. We aimed to evaluate the incidence and risk for stroke in FMF patients compared with the general population.

The possible onset of fibromyalgia following acute COVID-19 infection.

Introduction: The exact pathogenesis of fibromyalgia (FM) syndrome is unclear. However, various infectious have been implicated with the development of FM after their acute phase. We aimed to investigate the incidence of FM syndrome among convalesced individuals following hospitalization for Acute Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19).

Association Between Behçet's Disease and Depression.

Background: Behçet's disease (BD) is a chronic vasculitic multi-systemic disease of unknown etiology. BD is characterized by recurrent attacks of oral aphthae, genital ulcers, and uveitis. BD is a multisystemic disorder and as such it may provoke various psychiatric manifestations, including depression.

Increased risk of venous thromboembolism among patients with familial Mediterranean fever.

Introduction: Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF) is an auto inflammatory disease characterized by acute febrile attacks, serositis, arthritis and skin rash. Previous studies have identified an association between venous thromboembolism (VTE) and various inflammatory and autoimmune disorders, driven in large part by inflammatory processes. Despite these established associations, there remains a paucity of data linking FMF to VTE.

From Chaos to Ordering: New Studies in the Shannon Entropy of 2D Patterns.

Properties of the Voronoi tessellations arising from random 2D distribution points are reported. We applied an iterative procedure to the Voronoi diagrams generated by a set of points randomly placed on the plane. The procedure implied dividing the edges of Voronoi cells into equal or random parts.

Three's Company: Coexistence of Silicosis, Scleroderma, and Sjogren Syndrome in a Single Patient.

We describe a patient who presented with silicosis, scleroderma, and Sjogren syndrome all at the same time. The diagnoses in this case are all associated with continuous exposure to crystalline silica at the patient's workplace. The following report discusses this unique presentation.