Influence of Obesity, Race and Gender on Radiation Exposure for Epidural Procedures.

Purpose Of Review: This retrospective, case controlled, comparative evaluation review of radiation exposure during epidural procedures in interventional pain management assessed variations in radiation exposure based on obesity, race, and gender.

Recent Findings: Numerous publications have shown increasing radiation exposure based on body mass index (BMI). However, the influence of race and gender have not been studied.

Continent catheterizable channels: Does "hitching" the bladder reduce complications?

Background: Continent catheterizable channels (CCC) are a mainstay for reconstruction in patients with neurogenic bladders. Common complications include false passage, channel stenosis/difficult catheterization, channel incontinence, and stomal stenosis. This may result in the need for surgical revision or replacement.

Utilization of transitional care management services and 30-day readmission.

Transitional care management (TCM) visits have been shown to reduce 30-day readmissions, but it is unclear whether the decrease arises from the TCM visit itself or from clinic-level changes to meet the requirements of the TCM visits. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis using data from Northwell Health to examine the association between the type of post-discharge follow-up visits (TCM visits versus non-TCM visits based on billing) and 30-day readmission. Furthermore, we assessed whether being seen by a provider who frequently utilizes TCM visits or the TCM visit itself was associated with 30-day readmission.

The Effects of Adverse Events and Associated Costs on Value-Based Care for Metastatic Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma.

Rising oncology healthcare costs have led to value-based care reimbursement models that coordinate care and improve quality while reducing overall spending. These models are increasingly important for traditional Medicare and other payers. To compare the incidence of adverse events (AEs), AE-associated excess costs, and total cost of care (TCOC) of 3 cohorts receiving first-line treatment for metastatic pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (mPDAC).

A 24% Decline in the Utilization of Epidural Procedure Visits for Chronic Spinal Pain Management in the Medicare Population from 2019 to 2022: Updated Analysis of the Effect of Multiple Factors.

Background: The analysis of epidural procedure utilization has revealed several notable trends over recent years. Utilization increased significantly until 2004, then rose minimally until 2011, followed by gradual declines up to 2019 in the Medicare population. The COVID-19 pandemic led to a marked 19% decline in usage from 2019 to 2020.

Escalating Growth to Rapid Decline of Utilization Patterns of Facet Joint Interventions in Managing Spinal Pain in the Medicare Population: Updated Analysis of the Effect of Multiple Factors from 2000 To 2022.

Background: The use of facet joint interventions for spinal pain management experienced rapid growth between 2000 and 2010, with an annual increase of 14.2%. However, this trend slowed significantly from 2010 to 2019, with a reduced growth rate of just 2.

Let it shine: Autofluorescence of Papanicolaou-stain improves AI-based cytological oral cancer detection.

Background And Objectives: Oral cancer is a global health challenge. The disease can be successfully treated if detected early, but the survival rate drops significantly for late stage cases. There is a growing interest in a shift from the current standard of invasive and time-consuming tissue sampling and histological examination, towards non-invasive brush biopsies and cytological examination, facilitating continued risk group monitoring.

Associations between neighborhood built-environment characteristics and hepatic steatosis: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Objective: To characterize the spatio-temporal association between features of the built environment and subclinical liver disease.

Design: We used data from a large community-based population, the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (2000-2002, N = 5542) with linked historical residential data that characterized past exposure to alcohol outlets (bars and liquor stores), healthy foods stores, and physical activity facilities (1990-2001). We examined whether and how past residential relate to hepatic steatosis (proxied by liver attenuation measured using computed tomography, with lower attenuation indicating higher hepatic steatosis).

Exponential Decline of 28.9% in Utilization of Interventional Pain Management Techniques Among Medicare Beneficiaries From 2019 to 2022: Updated Analysis on the Ongoing Effects of COVID-19, Economic Decline, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and Medical Policies.

Background: Numerous studies have highlighted the escalating costs associated with managing low back and neck pain, as well as other musculoskeletal disorders. In the past, there was a notable increase in the use of interventional techniques to address these disorders. However, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted various chronic pain treatment approaches, including interventional procedures and opioid use, following a broader trend of reduced healthcare services.

Tripartite interactions of PKA catalytic subunit and C-terminal domains of cardiac Ca channel may modulate its β-adrenergic regulation.

Background: The β-adrenergic augmentation of cardiac contraction, by increasing the conductivity of L-type voltage-gated Ca1.2 channels, is of great physiological and pathophysiological importance. Stimulation of β-adrenergic receptors (βAR) activates protein kinase A (PKA) through separation of regulatory (PKAR) from catalytic (PKAC) subunits.

Real-world rates and risk factors for subsequent treatment with vertebroplasty or balloon kyphoplasty after initial vertebral augmentation: a retrospective cohort study.

Unlabelled: The purpose of this study was to determine the real-world incidence and predictors of additional vertebroplasty or balloon kyphoplasty after initial vertebral augmentation, as a proxy for subsequent symptomatic vertebral fracture. Of patients, 15.5% underwent subsequent vertebral augmentation.

Deep Multimodal Representations and Classification of First-Episode Psychosis via Live Face Processing.

Schizophrenia is a severe psychiatric disorder associated with a wide range of cognitive and neurophysiological dysfunctions and long-term social difficulties. In this paper, we test the hypothesis that integration of multiple simultaneous acquisitions of neuroimaging, behavioral, and clinical information will be better for prediction of early psychosis than unimodal recordings. We propose a novel framework to investigate the neural underpinnings of the early psychosis symptoms (that can develop into Schizophrenia with age) using multimodal acquisitions of neural and behavioral recordings including functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and electroencephalography (EEG), and facial features.

Embolization of the Middle Meningeal Artery for Chronic Subdural Hematoma.

Background: Patients receiving standard treatment for chronic subdural hematoma have a high risk of treatment failure. The effect of adjunctive middle meningeal artery embolization on the risk of treatment failure in this population remains unknown.

Methods: We randomly assigned patients with symptomatic chronic subdural hematoma to undergo middle meningeal artery embolization as an adjunct to standard treatment (embolization group) or to receive standard treatment alone (control group).

Comprehensive Evidence-Based Guidelines for Implantable Peripheral Nerve Stimulation (PNS) in the Management of Chronic Pain: From the American Society Of Interventional Pain Physicians (ASIPP).

Background: Peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) has been used for over 50 years to treat chronic pain by delivering electrical pulses through small electrodes placed near targeted peripheral nerves those outside the brain and spinal cord. Early PNS systems often required invasive neurosurgical procedures. However, since 2015, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved percutaneously implanted PNS leads and neurostimulators  offering a much less invasive, non-opioid option for managing recalcitrant chronic pain.

Neighborhood physical activity facilities predict risk of incident mixed and vascular dementia: The Cardiovascular Health Cognition Study.

Introduction: Neighborhood environments may promote neurocognitive health in part by providing amenities that encourage physical activity. We examined associations between quantity of walkable facilities, including specifically physical activity facilities (e.g.

Structural and social determinants of health: The multi-ethnic study of atherosclerosis.

Background: Researchers have increasingly recognized the importance of structural and social determinants of health (SSDOH) as key drivers of a multitude of diseases and health outcomes. The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) is an ongoing, longitudinal cohort study of subclinical cardiovascular disease (CVD) that has followed geographically and racially/ethnically diverse participants starting in 2000. Since its inception, MESA has incorporated numerous SSDOH assessments and instruments to study in relation to CVD and aging outcomes.

Unveiling pepper immunity's robustness to temperature shifts: insights for empowering future crops.

Boosting plant immunity is an effective alternative to pesticides. However, environmental variations, accentuated by climate change, can compromise immunity. The robustness of a trait corresponds to the absence (or low level) of variation in that trait in the face of an environmental change.

[Gender-Specific and Cross-Gender Reasons for Choosing 'Surgeon' as a Career - A Scoping Review].

Introduction: The availability of highly qualified surgical staff in Germany has been a challenge for years. Despite various initiatives to increase the attractiveness of surgical training programs, there are still problems in attracting motivated and qualified doctors to surgery. In order to develop customized offers for recruiting junior staff, the decision-making factors must be known.