Relationship of OCT-Based Diabetic Retinal Neurodegeneration to the Development and Progression of Diabetic Retinopathy: A Cohort Study.

Purpose: To evaluate the relationship between diabetic retinal neurodegeneration (DRN), as quantified by optical coherence tomography (OCT), to the development of diabetic retinopathy (DR), progression of DR, and development of proliferative DR (PDR).

Methods: This was a prospective cohort study, including 385 eyes with no DR or nonproliferative DR at baseline. The thicknesses of the macular ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (m-GCIPL), macular retinal nerve fiber layer, and peripapillary RNFL (p-RNFL) were measured using Cirrus OCT (Carl Zeiss Meditec, Dublin, CA, USA).

Interdisciplinary rehabilitation for the transition out of homelessness with a traumatic brain injury.

People experiencing homelessness (PEH) face higher rates of traumatic brain injury (TBI), which is associated with greater unmet healthcare and social needs and increased difficulty transitioning out of homelessness. While efforts have emerged to address this TBI disparity via screening, staff training and case management, gaps exist in the delivery of evidence-based TBI rehabilitation to PEH. This case report describes the delivery of interdisciplinary TBI rehabilitation to a male patient experiencing homelessness within a US context.

Structural MRI findings in the brain related to pain distribution in chronic overlapping pain conditions: An explorative case-control study in females with fibromyalgia, temporomandibular disorder-related chronic pain and pain-free controls.

Background: Few neuroimaging studies have investigated structural brain differences associated with variations in pain distribution.

Objective: To explore structural differences of the brain in fibromyalgia (FM), temporomandibular disorder pain (TMD) and healthy pain-free controls (CON) using structural and diffusion MRI.

Methods: A case-control exploratory study with three study groups with different pain distribution were recruited: FM (n = 16; mean age [standard deviation]: 44 [14] years), TMD (n = 17, 39 [14] years) and CON (n = 10, 37 [14] years).

Late-Onset Nontuberculous Mycobacterial Keratitis After Small Incision Lenticule Extraction.

Purpose: The purpose of this article was to report a case of unilateral late-onset nontuberculous mycobacterial keratitis after small incision lenticule extraction (SMILE).

Methods: This was a case report.

Results: A 27-year-old woman presented with Mycobacterium chelonae keratitis 3 weeks after uncomplicated SMILE with a solitary interface infiltrate.

Atypical mycobacterium infection following upper eyelid Müller's muscle-conjunctival resection - case report.

Periorbital non-tuberculous mycobacterium (NTM) infections are uncommon. To the best of our knowledge, NTM infection as a complication following Müller's muscle-conjunctival resection (MMCR) surgery has not been reported before. We report a case of left upper lid infection following MMCR surgery.

Internet-Based Multimodal Pain Program With Telephone Support for Adults With Chronic Temporomandibular Disorder Pain: Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial.

Background: Chronic pain from temporomandibular disorders remains an undertreated condition with debate regarding the most effective treatment modalities.

Objective: The aim of the study was to investigate the treatment effect of an internet-based multimodal pain program on chronic temporomandibular disorder pain and evaluate the feasibility of a larger randomized controlled trial.

Methods: An unblinded randomized controlled pilot trial was conducted with 43 participants (34 females, 9 males; median age 27, IQR 23-37 years) with chronic temporomandibular pain.

Spectroscopic differences in posterior insula in patients with chronic temporomandibular pain.

Background and aims Chronic pain including temporomandibular disorder (TMD) pain involves a complex interplay between peripheral and central sensitization, endogenous modulatory pathways, cortical processing and integration and numerous psychological, behavioral and social factors. The aim of this study was to compare spectroscopic patterns of N-Acetyl-aspartate (NAA), total creatine (tCr), choline (Cho), myo-inositol (MI), glutamate (Glu), and the combination of Glu and glutamine in the posterior insula in patients with chronic generalized or regional chronic TMD pain (gTMD and rTMD, respectively) compared to healthy individuals (HI) in relation to clinical findings of TMD pain. Methods Thirty-six female patients with chronic rTMD or gTMD with at least 3 months duration were included in the study.

Effects of Hospital-Based Physical Therapy on Hospital Discharge Outcomes among Hospitalized Older Adults with Community-Acquired Pneumonia and Declining Physical Function.

To examine whether hospital-based physical therapy is associated with functional changes and early hospital readmission among hospitalized older adults with community-acquired pneumonia and declining physical function. Study design was a retrospective observation study. Participants were community-dwelling older adults admitted to medicine floor for community-acquired pneumonia (n = 1,058).

The effects of shared situational awareness on functional and hospital outcomes of hospitalized older adults with heart failure.

Background: Functional decline of hospitalized older adults is common and triggers health care expenditures. Physical therapy can retard the functional decline that occurs during hospitalization. This study aims to examine whether shared situational awareness (SSA) intervention may enhance the benefits of physical therapy for hospitalized older persons with a common diagnosis, heart failure.

Associations between the 2007 Medicare reimbursement reduction for bone mineral density testing and osteoporosis drug therapy patterns of female Medicare beneficiaries.

Objective: To examine how drug therapy patterns for osteoporosis have changed after the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) reimbursement reduction in 2007, in relation to follow-up bone mineral density (BMD) testing status.

Methods: We used a retrospective temporal shift design to examine changes in drug therapy patterns before (Phase 1: January 1, 2005-December 31, 2006) and after (Phase 2: July 1, 2007-June 30, 2009) the MPFS reimbursement reduction in 2007, Cleveland, OH, USA. Participants were osteoporotic older women in Phase 1 (n=1,340) and Phase 2 (n=1,437).

Culturally Sensitive Depression Assessment for Chinese American Immigrants: Development of a Comprehensive Measure and a Screening Scale Using an Item Response Approach.

The present mixed methods study developed a comprehensive measure and a screening scale of depression for Chinese American immigrants by combining an emic approach with item response analysis. Clinical participants were immigrants diagnosed by licensed clinicians who worked in the community. Qualitative interviews with clinicians and clinical participants (N = 63) supported the definition of the construct of depression-which guided scale development-and a 47-item pilot scale.

Diosgenin modulates vascular smooth muscle cell function by regulating cell viability, migration, and calcium homeostasis.

In this study, we compared the potencies of diosgenin, a plant-derived sapogenin structurally similar to estrogen and progesterone, on vascular smooth muscle functions ranging from contraction and migration to apoptosis. The effects of diosgenin on vascular smooth muscle cell viability and migration were measured using a primary mouse aortic smooth muscle cell culture. The effects of diosgenin on smooth muscle cell contraction and calcium signaling were investigated in the isolated mouse aorta using wire myography and confocal microscopy, respectively.

FcRgamma activation regulates inflammation-associated squamous carcinogenesis.

Chronically activated leukocytes recruited to premalignant tissues functionally contribute to cancer development; however, mechanisms underlying pro- versus anti-tumor programming of neoplastic tissues by immune cells remain obscure. Using the K14-HPV16 mouse model of squamous carcinogenesis, we report that B cells and humoral immunity foster cancer development by activating Fcgamma receptors (FcgammaRs) on resident and recruited myeloid cells. Stromal accumulation of autoantibodies in premalignant skin, through their interaction with activating FcgammaRs, regulate recruitment, composition, and bioeffector functions of leukocytes in neoplastic tissue, which in turn promote neoplastic progression and subsequent carcinoma development.