A Systematic Review of Lipid-Focused Cardiovascular Disease Research: Trends and Opportunities.

Lipids are important modifiers of protein function, particularly as parts of lipoproteins, which transport lipophilic substances and mediate cellular uptake of circulating lipids. As such, lipids are of particular interest as blood biological markers for cardiovascular disease (CVD) as well as for conditions linked to CVD such as atherosclerosis, diabetes mellitus, obesity and dietary states. Notably, lipid research is particularly well developed in the context of CVD because of the relevance and multiple causes and risk factors of CVD.

Effects of particle size reduction of meadow hay on feed intake, performance, and apparent total tract nutrient digestibility in dairy cows.

Forage-based diets are encouraged in organic dairy cattle production as this can increase the net human food supply, but their voluminous nature can limit dry matter intake (DMI) and performance. This study investigates the effects of a substantial particle size reduction of hay on dairy cows' feed intake, performance, and body characteristics, as well as on apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD). Eighteen lactating Holstein cows were allocated to two balanced feeding groups.

Establishment of minimally invasive ventral hernia repair with extraperitoneal mesh placement in a primary care hospital using the robotic platform.

Background: The progressive availability of robotic surgical systems opens new perspectives in abdominal wall surgery due to excellent visibility and dexterity of instruments. While complex hernias until today were treated primarily through an open access, we evaluated if this promising technology is suitable for treating the entire spectrum of a hernia center, including complex hernias.

Material/methods: In 2017, minimally invasive hernia surgery with extraperitoneal mesh placement was started in Kempten hospital.

Salivary Diagnostic for Monitoring Strenuous Exercise-A Pilot Study in a Cohort of Male Ultramarathon Runners.

Intense physical stress, such as that in ultramarathon running, affects the immune system. For monitoring in sports medicine, non-invasive methods, e.g.

How Safe is Singing Under Pandemic Conditions? - CO-Measurements as Simple Method for Risk Estimation During Choir Rehearsals.

Objectives: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has forced choirs to pause or at least to restrict rehearsals and concerts. Nevertheless, an uncertainty about the risks of infection while singing remains, especially with regard to distances, duration of singing, number of singers and their positions in the room, size of the room as well as ventilation strategies. Based on the assumption that CO is a suitable indicator for the exhaled aerosols in a room, it is the aim of this study to deduce recommendations for a choir rehearsal with a minimum risk of infection.

Oxygen transport during liquid ventilation: an in vitro study.

An in vitro experiment on the dissolved oxygen transport during liquid ventilation by means of measuring global oxygen concentration fields is presented within this work. We consider the flow in an idealized four generation model of the human airways in a range of peak Reynolds numbers of [Formula: see text]-3400 and Womersley numbers of [Formula: see text]-5. Fluorescence quenching measurements were employed in order to visualize and quantify the oxygen distribution with high temporal and spatial resolution during the breathing cycle.

Analysis of the CONKO-001 trial: Is the validity of the study sufficient to recommend adjuvant chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer?

Background: Since randomized controlled trials have indicated that adjuvant chemotherapy prolongs survival and reduces recurrence rates after surgical resection of pancreatic adenocarcinoma, a gemcitabine based chemotherapy has become part of the interdisciplinary treatment concept for pancreatic cancer in accordance to current guidelines.

Objectives: The aim of this project was to analyse the validity of the CONKO-001 trial as a basis for the recommendation of adjuvant chemotherapy in many international guidelines.

Methods: We analysed the validity of the CONKO-001 trial regarding study design, recruitment period, participating institutions, patient selection, randomisation, stratification, standardization of surgical treatment and histological examination, statistical methods and interpretation of results.

[Ventral Hernia Repair in Endoscopically Total Extrapertoneal Technique (eTEP) - Evaluation of Postoperative Outcome and One Year Follow-up].

Background: Several recent meta-analyses have identified the retromuscular plane as the preferred mesh position in ventral hernia repair. Open surgery used to be the standard technique for these procedures. However, new minimally invasive techniques with totally extraperitoneal access and mesh positioning in the retromuscular plane have evolved.

PDL1 expression on monocytes is associated with plasma cytokines in Tuberculosis and HIV.

Introduction: PDL1 and its interaction with PD1 is implicated in immune dysfunction in TB and HIV. The expression of PDL1 on multiple subsets of monocytes as well as their associations with cytokines and microbial products have not been well studied.

Method: HIV (TB-HIV+), TB (TB+HIV-) and TB/HIV co-infected (TB+HIV+) patients as well as apparently healthy controls (TB-HIV-) were recruited.

Robotically assisted enhanced-view totally extraperitoneal repair (eTEP) of a recurrent umbilical hernia in a patient with peritoneal dialysis.

Abdominal wall hernias are frequent in patients with peritoneal dialysis. Guidelines recommend an open hernia repair with extraperitoneal mesh placement to avoid access to the abdominal cavity. We performed a lateral docking robotically assisted enhanced-view totally extraperitoneal repair (eTEP) of a recurrent umbilical hernia with diastasis recti in a patient with peritoneal dialysis due to polycystic kidney disease.

Perioperative chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer - results from a tertiary-care hospital in Germany.

Background: Neoadjuvant/perioperative chemotherapy is the recommended treatment for advanced stages of gastric cancer (> T2, N+) before tumour resection in many European guidelines. However, there is no consensus as to whether perioperative chemotherapy is as effective in distal as in proximal tumours, in addition to a relevant uncertainty concerning appropriate treatment modalities for elderly patients.

Aim: To investigate the role of perioperative chemotherapy in advanced gastric cancer in patients from a German tertiary clinic with respect to efficacy, localisation, and age.

Organoaxial gastric volvulus: a rare cause of an acute abdomen.

We report the case of a 65-year-old male patient with massive epigastric pain of sudden onset and vomiting due to an organoaxial volvulus of the stomach. We comment on the surgical management in our case and discuss etiology and therapeutic options of this rare entity.

Revisiting high-frequency oscillatory ventilation in vitro and in silico in neonatal conductive airways.

Background: High frequency oscillatory ventilation is often used for lung support in premature neonates suffering from respiratory distress syndrome. Despite its broad use in neonatal intensive care units, there are to date no accepted protocols for the choice of appropriate ventilation parameter settings. In this context, the underlying mass transport mechanisms are still not fully understood.

Recurrent gastric ulcer and cholangitis caused by ectopic drainage of the bile duct into the stomach.

We report a case of recurrent gastritis with pyloric stenosis and cholangitis due to a rare variation in bile duct anatomy. A 72-year-old female patient showed recurrent gastral ulcers and biliary colic with cholangitis caused by gallstones in the main bile duct with an ectopic orifice in the prepyloric region and concurrent inflammatory pyloric stenosis. After temporarily successful endoscopic treatment with stenting and pyloric dilatation, the patient suffered from recurrent cholangitis.

Experimental methods for flow and aerosol measurements in human airways and their replicas.

Recent developments in the prediction of local aerosol deposition in human lungs are driven by the fast development of computational simulations. Although such simulations provide results in unbeatable resolution, significant differences among distinct methods of calculation emphasize the need for highly precise experimental data in order to specify boundary conditions and for validation purposes. This paper reviews and critically evaluates available methods for the measurement of single and disperse two-phase flows for the study of respiratory airflow and deposition of inhaled particles, performed both in vivo and in replicas of airways.

The impact of acute stress on hormones and cytokines, and how their recovery is affected by music-evoked positive mood.

Stress and recovery from stress significantly affect interactions between the central nervous system, endocrine pathways, and the immune system. However, the influence of acute stress on circulating immune-endocrine mediators in humans is not well known. Using a double-blind, randomized study design, we administered a CO2 stress test to n = 143 participants to identify the effects of acute stress, and recovery from stress, on serum levels of several mediators with immune function (IL-6, TNF-α, leptin, and somatostatin), as well as on noradrenaline, and two hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis hormones (ACTH and cortisol).

The Influence of Airway Tree Geometry and Ventilation Frequency on Airflow Distribution.

The human lung is known to be asymmetric and heterogeneous which leads to an inhomogeneous distribution of air. Within the scope of this paper the influence of the upper airway tree geometry on ventilation distribution and the differences between conventional mechanical ventilation (CMV) and high frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) will be analyzed. The comparison is carried out under the assumption of positive pressure ventilation.

Comparison of international guidelines on the accompanying therapy for advanced gastric cancer: reasons for the differences.

The purpose of this study was to determine if international guidelines differ in their recommendations concerning additive therapy for advanced, but potentially curable, gastric cancer. A systematic search of the English and German literature was conducted in the databases Medline, Cochrane Database, Embase, and PubMed. The search terms used were 'guidelines gastric cancer,' 'guidelines stomach cancer,' and 'Leitlinien Magenkarzinom.

Impact of lithium alone and in combination with antidepressants on cytokine production in vitro.

Lithium is an important psychopharmacological agent for the treatment of unipolar as well as bipolar affective disorders. Lithium has a number of side effects such as hypothyroidism and aggravation of psoriasis. On the other hand, lithium has pro-inflammatory effects, which appear beneficial in some disorders associated with immunological deficits, such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Can perioperative chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer be recommended on the basis of current research? A critical analysis.

Purpose: According to current guidelines, perioperative chemotherapy is an integral part of the treatment strategy for advanced gastric cancer. Randomized controlled studies have been conducted in order to determine whether perioperative chemotherapy leads to improved R0 resection rates, fewer recurrences, and prolonged survival. The aim of our project was to critically appraise three major studies to establish whether perioperative chemotherapy for advanced, potentially resectable gastric cancer can be recommended on the basis of their findings.

Modulation of cytokine production by drugs with antiepileptic or mood stabilizer properties in anti-CD3- and anti-Cd40-stimulated blood in vitro.

Increased cytokine production possibly due to oxidative stress has repeatedly been shown to play a pivotal role in the pathophysiology of epilepsy and bipolar disorder. Recent in vitro and animal studies of valproic acid (VPA) report antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties, and suppression of interleukin (IL)-6 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α. We tested the effect of drugs with antiepileptic or mood stabilizer properties, namely, primidone (PRM), carbamazepine (CBZ), levetiracetam (LEV), lamotrigine (LTG), VPA, oxcarbazepine (OXC), topiramate (TPM), phenobarbital (PB), and lithium on the production of the following cytokines in vitro: interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-17, IL-22, and TNF-α.

Validity of the MAGIC study: sufficient for recommendations?

According to the recommendations of the German S3 guideline, perioperative chemotherapy is an integral part of the treatment concept for advanced gastric cancer. The leading trial which examined the effects of perioperative chemotherapy is the MAGIC study. An examination of the validity of this study with a standardized method revealed shortcomings in the six areas: design, protocol, selection of patients, randomization / homogeneity of patient groups, quality of the surgical care and the statistical evaluation.

Comprehensive curriculum for phantom-based training of ultrasound-guided intercostal nerve and stellate ganglion blocks.

Objective: Ultrasound (US)-guided pain procedures become increasingly important due to their numerous advantages. Solid proficiency is necessary, however, to minimize complications and guarantee adequate performance. To enable beginners to learn the relevant skills in the technique of US-guided stellate ganglion (SGB) and intercostal nerve block (ICB), a training curriculum was developed and tested using self-made phantoms.

The impact of social isolation on immunological parameters in rats.

In various toxicological studies, single housing of rodents is preferred to standardize for regulatory purposes. However, housing conditions can have severe, often underestimated, impact on results in toxicological examinations. As different husbandry conditions have been shown to impose stress, we investigated their influence on plasma cytokines.