Effects of Intensive Impairment-Oriented Arm Rehabilitation for Chronic Stroke Survivors: An Observational Cohort Study.

: To assess the effects of a two-week course of intensive impairment-oriented arm rehabilitation for chronic stroke survivors on motor function. : An observational cohort study that enrolled chronic stroke survivors (≥6 months after stroke) with mild to severe arm paresis, who received a two-week course of impairment-oriented and technology-supported arm rehabilitation (1:1 participant-therapist setting), which was carried out daily (five days a week) for four hours. The outcome measures were as follows: the primary outcome was the arm motor function of the affected arm (mild paresis: BBT, NHPT; severe paresis: Fugl-Meyer arm motor score).

Ovarian Adult Granulosa Cell Tumors: A Scoping Review of DNA Alterations and Their Known Significance.

Background/aim: Adult granulosa cell tumor (aGCT) is a rare and challenging ovarian tumor due to its unpredictable recurrence and its associated increased risk of breast and endometrial cancer. Identifying and describing molecular alterations in tumors has become common with the advent of high-throughput sequencing. However, DNA sequencing in rare tumors, such as aGCT, often lacks statistical power due to the limited number of cases in each study, thereby clinical implications of DNA alterations are difficult to interpretate.

Surgical implications in intraocular lens exchange with an open posterior capsule: a retrospective case series and review of the literature.

Purpose: To determine characteristics and differences in intraocular lens (IOL) exchange between eyes with an open (OPC) and closed posterior capsule (CPC).

Setting: Department of Ophthalmology, Goethe-University, Frankfurt, Germany.

Design: Retrospective case series and review of literature.

Web-based pain coping skills training (PCST) for managing aromatase inhibitor-associated arthralgia in breast cancer survivors: Randomized controlled trial protocol.

Background: Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) are a cornerstone of adjuvant systemic therapy for postmenopausal patients with hormone-receptor positive (HR+) breast cancer. Although AIs decrease cancer recurrence rates and improve survival rates, approximately 50 % of patients experience arthralgia-persistent pain related to worse patient outcomes and poor AI adherence. Current medical interventions for AI-associated arthralgia have limited efficacy and side effects that restrict their use among older patients.

NCCN guideline concordance in colon and rectal cancer patients within a comprehensive health system.

Background: The National Comprehensive Cancer Care Network (NCCN) provides recommendations for patients with colorectal cancer. Concordance with evidence-based guidelines improves outcomes. Our objectives were to 1) examine rates of guideline non-concordance in a large vertically integrated health system; 2) examine factors associated with non-concordant care, and 3) identify geographical patterns of non-concordant care.

Early-Branching Cyanobacteria Grow Faster and Upregulate Superoxide Dismutase Activity Under a Simulated Early Earth Anoxic Atmosphere.

The evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis during the Archean (4-2.5 Ga) required the presence of complementary reducing pathways to maintain the cellular redox balance. While the timing of the evolution of superoxide dismutases (SODs), enzymes that convert superoxide to hydrogen peroxide and O, within bacteria and archaea is not resolved, the first SODs appearing in cyanobacteria contained copper and zinc in the reaction center (CuZnSOD).

Repeatability of Posterior Corneal Surface Measurements and Zernike Polynomials of Two Ocular Biometers With Single and Dual Scheimpflug Cameras in Keratoconus and Healthy Eyes.

Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the repeatability of posterior corneal surface and Zernike polynomial measurements of 2 different ocular biometers and Scheimpflug devices in keratoconus (KC) and healthy eyes.

Methods: This is a prospective, comparative study performed at the Department of Ophthalmology, Goethe-University Frankfurt, Germany. Included were KC and healthy eyes.

[Secondary intraocular lens implantation].

In recent years, techniques for the secondary implantation of intraocular lenses have undergone significant further development. Despite the wide range of surgical indications, IOL dislocation and aphakia following complicated cataract surgery or other complicated intraocular procedures and trauma remain the most common reasons for secondary IOL implantation. In cases where it is not feasible to place the artificial lens in the capsular bag due to zonular weakness or insufficient stability of the capsular bag, the intraocular lens can be implanted in the anterior chamber or fixed in the ciliary sulcus, on the iris or on the sclera.

Isoprene nitrates drive new particle formation in Amazon's upper troposphere.

New particle formation (NPF) in the tropical upper troposphere is a globally important source of atmospheric aerosols. It is known to occur over the Amazon basin, but the nucleation mechanism and chemical precursors have yet to be identified. Here we present comprehensive in situ aircraft measurements showing that extremely low-volatile oxidation products of isoprene, particularly certain organonitrates, drive NPF in the Amazonian upper troposphere.

Biomechanical Corneal Effects of LASIK-Xtra Compared to Conventional Femto-LASIK in High Myopic Eyes.

Purpose: This study seeks to investigate the in vivo corneal biomechanical response to femtosecond laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis (FS-LASIK) combined with accelerated corneal crosslinking (LASIK-Xtra) compared to conventional FS-LASIK (convLASIK) in highly myopic eyes.

Setting: Department of Ophthalmology, Goethe-University, Frankfurt, Germany.

Design: A prospective, randomized fellow eye-controlled clinical trial.

A comparison of cycloplegic effect of cyclopentolate 0.5% versus 1.0% eye drops with five different refraction measurement modalities in young adults.

Purpose: To compare the refraction before and after cycloplegia with 0.5% and 1.0% cyclopentolate eye drops using five different measurement modalities.

Differential Effects of Confinement on the Dynamics of Normal and Tumor-Derived Pancreatic Ductal Organoids.

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a cancer of the epithelia comprising the ductal network of the pancreas. During disease progression, PDAC tumors recruit fibroblasts that promote fibrosis, increasing local tissue stiffness and subjecting epithelial cells to increased compressive forces. Previous in vitro studies have documented cytoskeletal and nuclear adaptation following compressive stresses in two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) environments.

Fluorescence from a single-molecule probe directly attached to a plasmonic STM tip.

The scanning tunneling microscope (STM) provides access to atomic-scale properties of a conductive sample. While single-molecule tip functionalization has become a standard procedure, fluorescent molecular probes remained absent from the available tool set. Here, the plasmonic tip of an STM is functionalized with a single fluorescent molecule and is scanned on a plasmonic substrate.

Theoretical and experimental analysis of the modulated phase grating X-ray interferometer.

X-ray grating interferometry allows for the simultaneous acquisition of attenuation, differential-phase contrast, and dark-field images, resulting from X-ray attenuation, refraction, and small-angle scattering, respectively. The modulated phase grating (MPG) interferometer is a recently developed grating interferometry system capable of generating a directly resolvable interference pattern using a relatively large period grating envelope function that is sampled at a pitch that is small enough that X-ray spatial coherence can be achieved by using a microfocus X-ray source or G0 grating. We present the theory of the MPG interferometry system for a 2-dimensional staggered grating, derived using Fourier optics, and we compare the theoretical predictions with experiments we have performed with a microfocus X-ray system at Pennington Biomedical Research Center, LSU.

Gating Single-Molecule Fluorescence with Electrons.

Tip-enhanced photoluminescence (TEPL) measurements are performed with subnanometer spatial resolution on individual molecules decoupled from a metallic substrate by a thin NaCl layer. TEPL spectra reveal progressive fluorescence quenching with decreasing tip-molecule distance when electrons tunneling from the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope are injected at resonance with the molecular states. Rate equations based on a many-body model reveal that the luminescence quenching is due to a progressive population inversion between the ground neutral (S_{0}) and the ground charge (D_{0}^{-}) states of the molecule occurring when the current is raised.

The Systemic Effect of Ischemia Training and Its Impact on Bone Marrow-Derived Monocytes.

Objective: Monocytes are innate immune cells that play a central role in inflammation, an essential component during neovascularization. Our recent publication demonstrated that ischemia training by 24 h unilateral occlusion of the femoral artery (FA) can modify bone marrow-derived monocytes (BM-Mono), allowing them to improve collateral remodeling in a mouse model of hindlimb ischemia. Here, we expand on our previous findings, investigating a potential systemic effect of ischemia training and how this training can impact BM-Mono.

Automated, Real-Time Integration of Biometric Data From Wearable Devices With Electronic Medical Records: A Feasibility Study.

Purpose: A major barrier to the incorporation of biometric data into clinical practice is the lack of device integration with electronic medical records (EMRs). We developed infrastructure to transmit biometric data from an Apple Watch into the EMR for physician review. The study objective was to test feasibility of using this infrastructure for patients undergoing radiotherapy.

Financial toxicity in breast cancer patients receiving regional nodal irradiation: Variation by cancer subtype.

Background: We evaluated sociodemographic and clinical predictors of financial toxicity (FT) among patients with breast cancer with higher risk clinical factors warranting regional nodal irradiation (RNI).

Methods: Among 183 participants in a clinical trial of conventional vs. hypofractionated treatment with RNI, 125 (68 %) completed a pilot survey of FT measured using the validated Economic Strain and Resilience in Cancer (ENRICh) instrument, scored from 0 (minimal) to 10 (severe) FT.

A Qualitative Study Defining Perspectives on Rurality and Surgery From Midwestern Medical Schools.

Introduction: Rural general surgery faces a crisis as more surgeons undergo fellowship training and then practice in metropolitan areas, leaving rural Americans with decreasing surgical care. This study aims to identify how hometown rurality affects medical students' current level of knowledge and potential educational gaps within their understanding of the definition, benefits, and challenges of rural general surgery to define the need for enhanced education within medical schools.

Methods: In Spring 2021, 11 Midwestern medical schools participated in an electronic survey.

Short-term outcomes and inflammatory stress response following laparoscopy or robotic-assisted transabdominal preperitoneal inguinal hernia repair (TAPP): study protocol for a prospective, randomized trial (ROLAIS).

Background: Inguinal hernia repair is a frequently performed surgical procedure, with laparoscopic repair emerging as the preferred approach due to its lower complication rate and faster recovery compared to open repair. Mesh-based tension-free repair is the gold standard for both methods. In recent years, robotic hernia repair has been introduced as an alternative to laparoscopic repair, offering advantages such as decreased postoperative pain and improved ergonomics.

Orchestrating Stress Responses in Multiple Sclerosis: A Role for Astrocytic IFNγ Signaling.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory and neurodegenerative disease that is characterized by the infiltration of peripheral immune cells into the central nervous system (CNS), secretion of inflammatory factors, demyelination, and axonal degeneration. Inflammatory mediators such as cytokines alter cellular function and activate resident CNS cells, including astrocytes. Notably, interferon (IFN)γ is a prominent pleiotropic cytokine involved in MS that contributes to disease pathogenesis.

Axial length adjustment in eyes with silicone oil endotamponade reduces overestimation by a swept-source optical coherence tomography-based biometer.

Background: To assess changes in ocular biometry of the phakic eye after pars-plana-vitrectomy (PPV) and silicone oil (SO) endotamponade in eyes with a retinal detachment.

Methods: This retrospective, consecutive case series included 72 eyes of 72 patients who underwent PPV with 5000-centistokes SO endotamponade between July 2018 and June 2023. Pseudophakic eyes and eyes with a combined phacovitrectomy were excluded.