Risk factors for silicotuberculosis among miners: a scoping review.

Background: Miners exposed to silica dust are susceptible to silicotuberculosis (STB) outcome - the development of tuberculosis (TB) in miners with silicosis. STB is an important occupational and public health issue in the twenty-first century. This scoping review aimed to map the risk factors associated with STB.

Identification, Synthesis, and Characterization of N-Formyl Mirabegron: A New Degradation Product Formed by Formic Acid Impurity in Pharmaceutical Excipients.

This study demonstrated the impact of formic acid (FAc), a common reactive impurity in pharmaceutical excipients, on the stability of mirabegron (MB). The investigation of MB-excipient compatibility tests revealed the formation of a new degradation product, FAc-DP, at 0.2% after 7 days of isothermal stress at 55°C.

Being a Pakistani mother in Catalonia: a mixed methods study.

Introduction: In Pakistani migrant families, contextual transformation can affect adult caregivers' parental skills and their ability to exercise positive parenting. We focused on identifying and describing patterns, practices and beliefs about parenting, identifying differential characteristics between the context of origin and the host context, and exploring Pakistani immigrants' use of resources or assets in the area of parenting support.

Methods: Participants consisted of 20 women, established in Catalonia, Spain (<5 years of residence) who have children (at least one of preschool-age).

The path of least resistance: The unusual extradigestive journey of a nasogastric tube following oropharyngeal perforation.

Nasogastric tube placement is frequently performed in various medical settings. While generally deemed safe in patients without risk factors, complications may occur due to malposition, justifying the need of systematic confirmation of position with chest radiographs. We present the case of a critically ill male adult patient for whom the tube position was initially deemed very unusual on postinsertion radiographs, prompting further workup which ultimately confirmed an oropharyngeal perforation with a left parapharyngeal, left visceral, retrotracheal, and right retrodiaphragmatic course, and resulting in a recurrent pneumothorax and empyema treated by surgical decortication.

The distribution of regions of homozygosity (ROH) among consanguineous populations-implications for a routine genetic counseling service.

Regions of homozygosity (ROH) increase the risk of recessive disorders, and guidelines recommend reporting of excessive ROH in prenatal testing. However, ROH are common in populations that practice endogamy or consanguinity, and cutoffs for reporting ROH in such populations may not be evidence-based. We reviewed prenatal testing results (based on cytogenetic microarrays) from 2191 pregnancies in the Jewish and non-Jewish populations of Northern Israel and estimated the prevalence of ROH according to self-reported ethnicity and parental relationships.

Combined Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma and Chromophobe Renal Cell Carcinoma: A Case Report.

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a diverse array of cancers arising from renal tubular epithelial cells. RCC presenting with distinct morphological subtypes, such as the simultaneous presence of chromophobe RCC (chRCC) and clear cell RCC (ccRCC) lesions within the same kidney, is rare. We present the case of a 79-year-old female with a history of breast cancer who presented to our facility with right flank pain.

Design, synthesis, molecular docking, and molecular dynamic studies of novel quinazoline derivatives as phosphodiesterase 7 inhibitors.

Phosphodiesterase 7 (PDE7) is a high-affinity cyclic AMP (cAMP)-specific PDE that is expressed in immune and proinflammatory cells. In this work, we explore the possibility that selective small molecule inhibitors of this enzyme family could provide a novel approach to alleviate the inflammation that is associated with many inflammatory diseases. A series of novel substituted 4-hydrazinoquinazoline derivatives and fused triazoloquinazolines were designed, synthesized, and evaluated for their PDE7A inhibition activities, in comparison with Theophylline, a non-selective PDE inhibitor, and BRL50481, a selective PDE7A inhibitor.

Persistent Cutaneous Lesions of Darier Disease and Second-Hit Somatic Variants in ATP2A2 Gene.

Importance: Darier disease (DD) is a rare genetic skin disorder caused by heterozygous variants in the ATP2A2 gene. Clinical manifestations include recurrent hyperkeratotic papules and plaques that occur mainly in seborrheic areas. Although some of the lesions wax and wane in response to environmental factors, others are severe and respond poorly to therapy.

3D-printed hydrogels dressings with bioactive borate glass for continuous hydration and treatment of second-degree burns.

Recent advances in additive manufacturing have led to the development of innovative solutions for tissue regeneration. Hydrogel materials have gained significant attention for burn wound treatment in clinical practice among various advanced dressings due to their soothing and moisturizing activity. However, prolonged healing, pain, and traumatic removal due to the lack of long-term wound hydration are some of the challenges in the treatment of second-degree burn wounds.

Traumatic penetrating head injury by crossbow projectiles: A case report and literature review.

Background: Low-energy penetrating head injuries caused by arrows are relatively uncommon. The objective of this report is to describe a case presentation and management of self-inflicted intracranial injury using a crossbow and to provide a relevant literature review.

Case Report: A 31-year-old man with a previous psychiatric history sustained a self-inflicted injury using a crossbow that he bought from a department store.

Lack of mitochondrial complex I assembly factor NDUFAF2 results in a distinctive infantile-onset brainstem neurodegenerative disease with early lethality.

Background: Congenital disorders of the mitochondrial respiratory chain are a heterogeneous group of inborn errors of metabolism. Among them, NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase (complex I, CI) deficiency is the most common. Biallelic pathogenic variants in NDUFAF2, encoding the nuclear assembly CI factor NDUFAF2, were initially reported to cause progressive encephalopathy beginning in infancy.

Child labor and associated risk factors in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic: a scoping review.

Child labor can significantly impact the health, welfare, and development of children engaged in labor. The spread of child labor around the globe is predicted to accelerate as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. To this end, a scoping review was conducted to (a) synthesize emerging themes and results from recent research on child labor during the COVID-19 pandemic, (b) identify factors that increase the risk of children falling into child labor and (c) provide recommendations that can inform the development of policies and programs to ensure that previous efforts to combat child labor are not lost.

Parents' Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Related to Childhood Constipation in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

Introduction Functional constipation in children is described as irregular or difficult bowel motions without underlying systemic or anatomical causes. Although constipation can have a serious negative impact on a child's health and the lives of their parents. This study aimed to assess the knowledge of parents about childhood constipation, intending to reduce morbidity and mortality through increased public health education in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

Healthcare Workers' Assessment of a Visual Triage System (VTS).

Overcrowding and extended waiting times in the emergency department (ED) can pose a significant risk of COVID-19 transmission from patients to healthy individuals. In 2017, the Saudi Ministry of Health (MOH) introduced a visual triage system (VTS) with scoring to notify healthcare workers (HCWs) in EDs about the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection risk. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the MOH employed a VTS to classify patients according to their potential risk of COVID-19 infection upon their admission to the ED.

Educational tools support informed decision-making for genetic carrier screening in a heterogenic Israeli population.

Reproductive genetic carrier screening (RGCS) aims to provide couples with information to make informed decisions. Since 2013, the Israeli Carrier Screening Program has been offered routinely and free of charge to all Israelis of reproductive age, personalized based on religion, ethnicity, and village/tribe where a disorder is frequent. This study evaluated the impact of two educational tools on an informed choice on RGCS uptake and satisfaction with counselling within a heterogeneous population in northern Israel.

Awareness of Hernias and Their Risk Factors Among Adults in the Western Region of Saudi Arabia.

Objective To assess the awareness of hernia and its risk factors among adults in the western region of Saudi Arabia. Our hypothesis was that the studied population was in need of education regarding this matter.  Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted in the western region of Saudi Arabia from November to December 2022, using a Google form.

Exploring antiproliferative activities and kinase profile of ortho-substituted N-(4-(2-(benzylamino)-2-oxoethyl)phenyl)benzamides.

Designing kinase inhibitors that bind to the substrate site of oncogenic kinases in a promising, albeit less explored, approach to kinase inhibition as it was sought to avoid the issue of untoward off-target modulations. Our previously identified compound KAC-12 with a meta-chlorophenyl substitution was an example of this approach. While it showed confirmed inhibitory activity against cancer cells, this substitution shifted the profile of affected targets away from Src/tubulin which were seen with the parent KX-01.

B-mode ultrasound characteristics of carotid plaques in symptomatic and asymptomatic patients with low-grade stenosis.

Carotid plaque features assessed using B-mode ultrasound can be useful for the prediction of cerebrovascular symptoms. Therefore, the aim of this retrospective study was to determine the ability of ultrasound B-mode imaging to differentiate between carotid plaques causing less than 50% stenosis in symptomatic and asymptomatic patients. A dataset of 1,593 patients with carotid disease who underwent carotid ultrasound between 2016 and 2021 was evaluated retrospectively between January and April of 2022.

The Association Between Long-Term Corticosteroids Use and Dental Caries: A Systematic Review.

Corticosteroids (CSs) are a group of medications prescribed regularly to treat a wide range of inflammatory and immune-related conditions with great benefit. The impact of long-term use of CSs on the oral cavity has been reported before, including increased risk of periodontal disease and dental caries. Thus, the aim of this study is to evaluate the prevalence of dental caries in patients using CSs.

The effect of a prior e-learning tool on genetic counseling outcomes in diverse ethnic couples with abnormal Down syndrome screening tests: A randomized controlled trial.

Genetic counseling (GC) following abnormal Down syndrome (DS) screening tests aims to ensure learning of complex medical concepts and discussion of counselees' personal desires. Pre-GC use of electronic learning tools (e-learning tools) can facilitate GC sessions by allowing more time for dialogue rather than learning medical and genetic concepts, enabling greater focus on the counselee's decisional, psychological, and personal needs. Few studies have investigated such tools for DS screening tests and those who have focused on screening uptake rather than abnormal results and implications.

Accumulation of oxysterols in the erythrocytes of COVID-19 patients as a biomarker for case severity.

Background: Due to the high risk of COVID-19 patients developing thrombosis in the circulating blood, atherosclerosis, and myocardial infarction, it is necessary to study the lipidome of erythrocytes. Specifically, we examined the pathogenic oxysterols and acylcarnitines in the erythrocyte homogenate of COVID-19 patients. These molecules can damage cells and contribute to the development of these diseases.

A Multicenter Experience of Inducible Clindamycin Resistance in Staphylococcus aureus Infection among 800 Egyptian Patients with or without Diabetes Mellitus.

Staphylococcus aureus causes a wide range of illnesses, from skin infections and persistent bone infections to life-threatening septicemia and endocarditis. Methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) is one of the most common bacteria that cause nosocomial and community-acquired infections.

The Contribution of Cell Blocks in the Diagnosis of Mediastinal and Hilar Lymphadenopathy Samples From Endobronchial Ultrasound-Guided Transbronchial Needle Aspiration (EBUS-TBNA).

Background Endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) is a diagnostic procedure that allows clinicians to stage lung cancer by sampling lymph nodes in the mediastinum. EBUS-TBNA is recommended as a first step prior to mediastinoscopy for lung cancer mediastinal staging. This procedure has greatly aided pulmonologists in diagnosing mediastinal pathologies with substantial progress.

Synergistic Benefits: Exploring the Anti-Virulence Effects of Metformin/Vildagliptin Antidiabetic Combination against via Controlling Quorum Sensing Systems.

The repurposing of drugs is one of the most competent strategies for discovering new antimicrobial agents. Vildagliptin is a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitor (DPI-4) that is used effectively in combination with metformin to control blood glucose levels in diabetic patients. This study was designed to evaluate the anti-virulence activities of this combination against one of the most clinically important pathogens, .