Comparison of a Novel Head-Mounted Perimeter versus the Humphrey Field Analyzer.

Purpose: Perimetry is a critical tool for the diagnosis and monitoring of glaucomatous visual field defects. The Humphrey Field Analyzer (HFA) is a large, relatively expensive device that does not normally allow for examination outside the clinic, and it can be ergonomically difficult to tolerate for some patients. The present study compared the novel Smart System Virtual Reality (SSVR) perimetric headset test to the HFA in a group of patients with glaucoma.

Phase II study of nab-paclitaxel with gemcitabine for relapsed/refractory small cell lung cancer.

Background: Patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) often respond to first-line chemoimmunotherapy. However, relapse is inevitable and is associated with a poor prognosis. Treatments for relapsed SCLC, such as lurbinectedin and topotecan, are limited by modest efficacy and significant hematologic adverse events, leaving a need for newer therapeutic agents or regimens.

Development and comparison of novel bioluminescent mouse models of pancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasm metastasis.

Pancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms (pNENs) are slow growing cancers of increasing incidence that lack effective treatments once they become metastatic. Unfortunately, nearly half of pNEN patients present with metastatic liver tumors at diagnosis and current therapies fail to improve overall survival. Pre-clinical models of pNEN metastasis are needed to advance our understanding of the mechanisms driving the metastatic process and for the development of novel, targeted therapeutic interventions.

Addition of I-MIBG to PRRT (Y-DOTATOC) for Personalized Treatment of Selected Patients with Neuroendocrine Tumors.

Peptide receptor radionuclide therapy (PRRT) is an effective treatment for metastatic neuroendocrine tumors. Delivering a sufficient tumor radiation dose remains challenging because of critical-organ dose limitations. Adding I-metaiodobenzylguanidine (I-MIBG) to PRRT may be advantageous in this regard.

Association of gallbladder hyperkinesia with acalculous chronic cholecystitis: A case-control study.

Background: This is the first case-control study investigating an association between gallbladder hyperkinesia and symptomatic acalculous chronic cholecystitis.

Methods: This retrospective study in a single academic center compared resolution of biliary pain in adults with gallbladder hyperkinesia, defined as a hepatobiliary iminodiacetic acid scan ejection fraction ≥80%, undergoing cholecystectomy (study group) with those treated medically without cholecystectomy (control group). Of 1,477 hepatobiliary iminodiacetic acid scans done between 2013 and 2018, a total of 296 adults without gallstones had an ejection fraction ≥80%, of whom 46 patients met predetermined eligibility criteria.

Lymphedema following breast cancer: The importance of surgical methods and obesity.

Background: Breast cancer-related arm lymphedema is a serious complication that can adversely affect quality of life. Identifying risk factors that contribute to the development of lymphedema is vital for identifying avenues for prevention. The aim of this study was to examine the association between the development of arm lymphedema and both treatment and personal (e.

Discrepancy between treatment goals documentation by oncologists and their understanding among cancer patients under active treatment with chemotherapy.

Objective/background: Discussion of treatment goals between oncologists and patients is challenging. Patients frequently misunderstand goals of therapy. There are several methods to document goals of chemotherapy, however, and are frequently not incorporated into patient charts.

Screening Patients with Esophageal Cancer to Determine Eligibility for Adjuvant Treatment Trials.

Background: The tolerability of adjuvant chemotherapy in esophageal cancer is unclear.

Patients And Methods: This was a phase II trial of adjuvant paclitaxel in patients with esophageal cancer after trimodality treatment. Patients with residual viable tumor after resection were eligible for study inclusion.

Y-DOTATOC Dosimetry-Based Personalized Peptide Receptor Radionuclide Therapy.

Pretherapy PET with Y-DOTATOC is considered the ideal dosimetry protocol for Y-DOTATOC therapy; however, its cost, limited availability, and need for infusion of amino acids to mimic the therapy administration limit its use in the clinical setting. The goal of this study was to develop a dosimetric method for Y-DOTATOC using Y-DOTATOC PET/CT and bremsstrahlung SPECT/CT and to determine whether dosimetry-based administered activities differ significantly from standard administered activities. This was a prospective phase 2 trial of Y-DOTATOC therapy in patients with somatostatin receptor-positive tumors.

The Effective Dynamic Ranges for Glaucomatous Visual Field Progression With Standard Automated Perimetry and Stimulus Sizes III and V.

Purpose: It has been shown that threshold estimates below approximately 20 dB have little effect on the ability to detect visual field progression in glaucoma. We aimed to compare stimulus size V to stimulus size III, in areas of visual damage, to confirm these findings by using (1) a different dataset, (2) different techniques of progression analysis, and (3) an analysis to evaluate the effect of censoring on mean deviation (MD).

Methods: In the Iowa Variability in Perimetry Study, 120 glaucoma subjects were tested every 6 months for 4 years with size III SITA Standard and size V Full Threshold.

Localization of Unknown Primary Site with Ga-DOTATOC PET/CT in Patients with Metastatic Neuroendocrine Tumor.

Localization of the site of the unknown primary tumor is critical for surgical treatment of patients presenting with neuroendocrine tumor (NET) with metastases. Forty patients with metastatic NET and unknown primary site underwent Ga-DOTATOC PET/CT in a single-site prospective study. The Ga-DOTATOC PET/CT was considered true-positive if the positive primary site was confirmed by histology or follow-up imaging.

Integrating independent spatio-temporal replications to assess population trends in disease spread.

Glaucoma is the second leading cause of blindness in the USA. A visual field test (perimetry) is used to sample and quantitate visual field function in preselected regions in the eye. These regions can be considered a spatial field with replications across independently measured individuals.

Prevalence of Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies in the United States.

Objective: To estimate prevalence of childhood-onset Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies (DBMD) in 6 sites in the United States by race/ethnicity and phenotype (Duchenne muscular dystrophy [DMD] or Becker muscular dystrophy [BMD]).

Methods: In 2002, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention established the Muscular Dystrophy Surveillance, Tracking, and Research Network (MD STARnet) to conduct longitudinal, population-based surveillance and research of DBMD in the United States. Six sites conducted active, multiple-source case finding and record abstraction to identify MD STARnet cases born January 1982 to December 2011.

Vasopressin in preeclampsia: a novel very early human pregnancy biomarker and clinically relevant mouse model.

Preeclampsia, a cardiovascular disorder of late pregnancy, is characterized as a low-renin hypertensive state relative to normotensive pregnancy. Because other nonpregnant low-renin hypertensive disorders often exhibit and are occasionally dependent on elevated arginine vasopressin (AVP) secretion, we hypothesized a possible use for plasma AVP measurements in the prediction of preeclampsia. Copeptin is an inert prosegment of AVP that is secreted in a 1:1 molar ratio and exhibits a substantially longer biological half-life compared with AVP, rendering it a clinically useful biomarker of AVP secretion.

Repeatability of gallium-68 DOTATOC positron emission tomographic imaging in neuroendocrine tumors.

Objective: To evaluate the repeatability of gallium-68 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-N,N',N'',N'''-tetraacetic (DOTA)-D-Phe1-Try3-octreotide (68Ga-DOTATOC) positron emission tomography (PET) in neuroendocrine tumors.

Methods: Five patients with neuroendocrine tumors were imaged with 68Ga-DOTATOC PET twice within 5 days. Maximum and mean standardized uptake values (SUVmax and SUVmean) and kinetic parameters (K-Patlak and K-influx) of target lesions were measured.

Comparison of spirometric thresholds in diagnosing smoking-related airflow obstruction.

Background: Diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is based on detection of airflow obstruction on spirometry. There is no consensus regarding using a fixed threshold to define airflow obstruction versus using the lower limit of normal (LLN) adjusted for age. We compared the accuracy and discrimination of the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) recommended fixed ratio of forced expiratory volume in the first second/forced vital capacity<0.

An algorithm for utilizing peripheral blood CD34 count as a predictor of the need for plerixafor in autologous stem cell mobilization--cost-effectiveness analysis.

Certain patients who receive granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (GCSF) for autologous hematopoietic stem cell (AHSC) collection fail to mobilize well enough to proceed with transplant. When plerixafor is used with GCSF, the likelihood of achieving the CD34⁺ stem cell target in fewer collections is higher; plerixafor use in all patients is unlikely to be cost-effective. This study retrospectively evaluated the effectiveness of utilizing a peripheral blood CD34⁺ stem cell count (PBCD34) ≤8/µL on day 4 of GCSF-based AHSC mobilization as a threshold for plerixafor administration, and compared the efficacy of collection and cost analysis using historical controls.

Familial trends in a population with macular holes.

Purpose: To determine if patients with macular hole report an increased family history of macular hole compared with control patients and compare the report of family history between patients with unilateral and bilateral macular holes.

Methods: This was a multicenter case-control study. Charts of patients coded with diagnosis of macular hole were reviewed, and the diagnosis of idiopathic full-thickness macular hole was ascertained in 166 patients.

Incidence, survival, and prevalence of neuroendocrine tumors versus neuroblastoma in children and young adults: nine standard SEER registries, 1975-2006.

Background: The incidence, survival, and prevalence of neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) in children were determined as a first step in improving diagnosis and therapy. Outcomes were compared with neuroblastoma, a pediatric malignancy that shares several biomarkers.

Methods: Incidence rates, observed survival rates and 31-year limited duration prevalence counts were obtained from SEER*Stat for diagnosis years 1975 to 2006.

Validation of a novel physical activity assessment device in morbidly obese females.

Assessment of physical activity in morbidly obese subjects is important especially in bariatric surgery. We examined the validity of Intelligent Device for Energy Expenditure and Activity (IDEEA) for measuring physical activity and sedentary behavior in morbidly obese women. Activity types, gait counts, and speed detected by the IDEEA monitor were compared to those reported by an observer.

The risk of developing arm lymphedema among breast cancer survivors: a meta-analysis of treatment factors.

Background: As more women survive breast cancer, long-term complications that affect quality of life, such as lymphedema of the arm, gain greater importance. Numerous studies have attempted to identify treatment and prognostic factors for arm lymphedema, yet the magnitude of these associations remains inconsistent.

Methods: A PubMed search was conducted through January 2008 to locate articles on lymphedema and treatment factors after breast cancer diagnosis.

Morphological parameters for assessment of burn severity in an acute burn injury rat model.

Determination of burn severity (i.e. burn depth) is important for effective medical management and treatment.