Prediction of axillary lymph node metastasis in breast cancer patients based on ultrasonograhic-clinicopathologic features.

Background & Objective: Determination of axillary lymph-node status plays a pivotal role in decision making for breast cancer treatment. Biopsy is the current standard of care but hold risks of complications as well. We aimed to find out the correlation of sonographic features of lymph node and histo-pathological findings, to predict axillary lymph-node metastasis in breast cancer patients.

A Novel Fibrinolysis Resistance Capacity Assay Can Detect Fibrinolytic Phenotypes in Trauma Patients.

Background:  To evaluate residual fibrinolysis resistance activity (FRA) in plasma, a detergent-modified plasma clot lysis assay time (dPCLT) was established in which α2-antiplasmin (A2AP) and plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 (PAI-1) are inactivated without impacting protease activity. We applied this novel assay to severely injured trauma patients' plasma.

Material And Methods:  Tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA)-induced plasma clot lysis assays were conducted after detergents- (dPCLT) or vehicle- (sPCLT) treatment, and time to 50% clot lysis was measured ("transition midpoint", T ).

The tissue-plasminogen activator-challenged thromboelastography provides a comprehensive assessment of fibrinolysis in the severely injured.

Background: Tissue-plasminogen activator-challenged thromboelastography (tPA-TEG) predicts massive transfusion and mortality better than conventional rapid thromboelastography (rTEG), with little concordance between their lysis values (LY30). We hypothesized that the main fibrinolytic inhibitors plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) and α-2 antiplasmin (A2AP), as well as markers of fibrinolytic activation (plasmin-antiplasmin [PAP], tPA-PAI-1 complex, tPA activity), would correlate more strongly with tPA-TEG versus rTEG LY30 and may explain the recent findings of four distinct fibrinolytic phenotypes in trauma based on these two TEG methodologies.

Methods: Adult trauma patients (n = 56) had tPA-TEG, rTEG, and plasma obtained on arrival to the emergency department with institutional review board approval.

Rising cardiovascular mortality among obstructive sleep apnea patients: United States epidemiological trends (1999-2019).

Background: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) prevalence has risen significantly, affecting millions globally and posing a major healthcare burden. OSA is strongly associated with cardiovascular diseases (CVD) such as heart failure, stroke, and ischemic heart disease. However, trends in CVD-related mortality among individuals with OSA remain underexplored.