An Evaluation of Antimicrobial Prescribing and Risk-adjusted Mortality.

Unlabelled: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends tracking risk-adjusted antimicrobial prescribing. Prior studies have used prescribing variation to drive quality improvement initiatives without adjusting for severity of illness. The present study aimed to determine the relationship between antimicrobial prescribing and risk-adjusted ICU mortality in the Pediatric Health Information Systems (PHIS) database, assessed by IBM-Watson risk of mortality.

The adaptive aging brain.

The aging brain is shaped by many structural and functional alterations. Recent cross-disciplinary efforts have uncovered powerful and integrated adaptive mechanisms that promote brain health and prevent functional decline during aging. Here, we review some of the most robust adaptive mechanisms and how they can be engaged to protect, and restore the aging brain.

Impact of PCV-13 vaccine on invasive pneumococcal disease in hospitalised children: A multi-institutional analysis.

Aim: We aimed to describe changes in invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) hospitalisations after introduction of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13).

Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of the Pediatric Health Information System (PHIS) database, including children with IPD pre-PCV13 (2004-2009) and post-PCV13 (2012-2017). Healthy children and those with chronic conditions were analysed separately.

Hyperglycemia requiring insulin during acute lymphoblastic leukemia induction chemotherapy is associated with increased adverse outcomes and healthcare costs.

Background: Hyperglycemia is a complication of induction chemotherapy in 10%-50% of pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Though hyperglycemia in ALL patients is usually transient, it may be associated with adverse health outcomes. However, the risk factors for and consequences of hyperglycemia are poorly understood.

Regulation of lifespan by neural excitation and REST.

The mechanisms that extend lifespan in humans are poorly understood. Here we show that extended longevity in humans is associated with a distinct transcriptome signature in the cerebral cortex that is characterized by downregulation of genes related to neural excitation and synaptic function. In Caenorhabditis elegans, neural excitation increases with age and inhibition of excitation globally, or in glutamatergic or cholinergic neurons, increases longevity.