Approach to the Patient: New Era Emerges for Craniopharyngioma Management.

Papillary craniopharyngioma (PCP) and adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma (ACP) are distinct, slow-growing tumors of the suprasellar region. Their location, composition, and biology have historically evaded successful surgical radiation and medical therapy. Meanwhile compromise of critical structures either by tumor or treatments increase morbidity, impacting patient and carer quality of life.

Primary surgical repair of tetralogy of fallot at the Uganda Heart Institute: a ten-year review of 30day mortality and morbidity.

Background: Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) is the most common form of cyanotic congenital heart disease (CHD) worldwide. It accounts for 7% of CHD cases in Uganda and leads to fatal outcomes in the long term without surgery. Surgery is often delayed in developing countries like Uganda due to limited resources.

Paediatric testicular torsion in low- and middle-income countries: an OxPLORE scoping study.

Background: Literature on paediatric surgical conditions in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) remains limited. As a common emergency, timely treatment of testicular torsion acts as a benchmark of adequate emergency service delivery in paediatric surgery. This scoping study aims to synthesise all existing literature on paediatric testicular torsion in LMICs.

Gender dimensions of COVID-19 preventive policies: a global perspective.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on the global population not just from morbidity and mortality associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection, but also due to measures imposed upon populations to slow the transmission and prevent infections. Measures introduced by policymakers have included self-isolation of infective or potentially infective individuals, social distancing, travel bans, school closures, and mandatory face coverings. Most recently, the introduction of vaccination has been a key preventative measure encouraged by many governments.

Functional and structural brain network correlates of visual hallucinations in Lewy body dementia.

Visual hallucinations are a common feature of Lewy body dementia. Previous studies have shown that visual hallucinations are highly specific in differentiating Lewy body dementia from Alzheimer's disease dementia and Alzheimer-Lewy body mixed pathology cases. Computational models propose that impairment of visual and attentional networks is aetiologically key to the manifestation of visual hallucinations symptomatology.

An OxPLORE Initiative Evaluating Children's Surgery Resources Worldwide: A Cross-sectional Implementation of the OReCS Document.

Background: The Global Initiative for Children's Surgery (GICS) group produced the Optimal Resources for Children's Surgery (OReCS) document in 2019, listing standards of children's surgical care by level of healthcare facilities within low resource settings. We have previously created and piloted an audit tool based on the OReCS criteria in a high-income setting. In this study, we aimed to validate its use in identifying gaps in children's surgery provision worldwide.

COVID-19 Vaccines: Ensuring Social Justice and Health Equity among Refugees in Africa.

COVID-19 poses a particular threat to refugees in Africa. Overcrowded living conditions and lack of effective sanitation make refugees highly vulnerable to infection. Furthermore, migration has the potential to undermine measures to control viral spread.

The feasibility and acceptability of a psychosocial intervention to support people with dementia with Lewy bodies and family care partners.

Objectives: Psychosocial support for people with dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and family care partners is frequently lacking, despite the need expressed by those with lived experience. Our objective was to examine the feasibility and acceptability of an intervention designed to build coping capability.

Design: The design was non-randomised with all participants receiving the intervention.

Exploring Bottom-Up Visual Processing and Visual Hallucinations in Parkinson's Disease With Dementia.

Visual hallucinations (VH) are a common symptom of Parkinson's disease with dementia (PDD), affecting up to 65% of cases. Integrative models of their etiology posit that a decline in executive control of the visuo-perceptual system is a primary mechanism of VH generation. The role of bottom-up processing in the manifestation of VH in this condition is still not clear although visual evoked potential (VEP) differences have been associated with VH at an earlier stage of PD.

Weighted network measures reveal differences between dementia types: An EEG study.

The diagnosis of dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) versus Alzheimer's disease (AD) can be difficult especially early in the disease process. However, one inexpensive and non-invasive biomarker which could help is electroencephalography (EEG). Previous studies have shown that the brain network architecture assessed by EEG is altered in AD patients compared with age-matched healthy control people (HC).

Structural Brain Correlates of Attention Dysfunction in Lewy Body Dementias and Alzheimer's Disease.

Lewy body dementia (LBD) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) are common forms of dementia that have different clinical profiles but are both commonly associated with attentional deficits. The aim of this study was to investigate efficiency of different attentional systems in LBD and AD and its association with brain structural abnormalities. We studied reaction time (RT) data from 45 LBD, 31 AD patients and 22 healthy controls (HCs) using the Attention Network Test (ANT) to assess the efficiency of three different attentional systems: alerting, orienting and executive conflict.

Cadherin 8 regulates proliferation of cortical interneuron progenitors.

Cortical interneurons are born in the ventral forebrain and migrate tangentially in two streams at the levels of the intermediate zone (IZ) and the pre-plate/marginal zone to the developing cortex where they switch to radial migration before settling in their final positions in the cortical plate. In a previous attempt to identify the molecules that regulate stream specification, we performed transcriptomic analysis of GFP-labelled interneurons taken from the two migratory streams during corticogenesis. A number of cadherins were found to be expressed differentially, with Cadherin-8 (Cdh8) selectively present in the IZ stream.

Reduced occipital GABA in Parkinson disease with visual hallucinations.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between visual hallucinations in Parkinson disease (PD) and levels of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in the primary visual cortex.

Methods: We utilized magnetic resonance spectroscopy to investigate occipital GABA levels in 36 participants with PD, 19 with and 17 without complex visual hallucinations, together with 20 healthy controls without hallucinations. In addition, we acquired T1-weighted MRI, whole-brain fMRI during a visual task, and diffusion tensor imaging.

Quantitative electroencephalography as a marker of cognitive fluctuations in dementia with Lewy bodies and an aid to differential diagnosis.

Objective: We investigated for quantitative EEG (QEEG) differences between Alzheimer's disease (AD), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and Parkinson's disease dementia (PDD) patients and healthy controls, and for QEEG signatures of cognitive fluctuations (CFs) in DLB.

Methods: We analysed eyes-closed, resting state EEGs from 18 AD, 17 DLB and 17 PDD patients with mild dementia, and 21 age-matched controls. Measures included spectral power, dominant frequency (DF), frequency prevalence (FP), and temporal DF variability (DFV), within defined EEG frequency bands and cortical regions.

Electroencephalographic derived network differences in Lewy body dementia compared to Alzheimer's disease patients.

Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) require differential management despite presenting with symptomatic overlap. Currently, there is a need of inexpensive DLB biomarkers which can be fulfilled by electroencephalography (EEG). In this regard, an established electrophysiological difference in DLB is a decrease of dominant frequency (DF)-the frequency with the highest signal power between 4 and 15 Hz.

Risk Factors for Adverse Events in Patients With Breast, Colorectal, and Lung Cancer.

Objective: The aim of the study was to identify risk factors associated with medical errors and iatrogenic injuries during an initial course of cancer-directed treatment.

Methods: In this retrospective cohort study of 400 patients 18 years or older undergoing an initial course of treatment for breast, colorectal, or lung cancer at a comprehensive cancer center, we abstracted patient, disease, and treatment-related variables from the electronic medical record. We examined adverse events (AEs) and preventable AEs by risk factor using the χ2 or Fisher exact tests.

A Communication Training Program to Encourage Speaking-Up Behavior in Surgical Oncology.

Patient safety in the OR depends on effective communication. We developed and tested a communication training program for surgical oncology staff members to increase communication about patient safety concerns. In phase one, 34 staff members participated in focus groups to identify and rank factors that affect speaking-up behavior.

Preventable and mitigable adverse events in cancer care: Measuring risk and harm across the continuum.

Background: Patient safety is a critical concern in clinical oncology, but the ability to measure adverse events (AEs) across cancer care is limited by a narrow focus on treatment-related toxicities. The objective of this study was to assess the nature and extent of AEs among cancer patients across inpatient and outpatient settings.

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of 400 adult patients selected by stratified random sampling who had breast (n = 128), colorectal (n = 136), or lung cancer (n = 136) treated at a comprehensive cancer center in 2012.

Protective role of Cadherin 13 in interneuron development.

Cortical interneurons are generated in the ganglionic eminences and migrate through the ventral and dorsal telencephalon before finding their final positions within the cortical plate. During early stages of migration, these cells are present in two well-defined streams within the developing cortex. In an attempt to identify candidate genes which may play a role in interneuron stream specification, we previously carried out a microarray analysis which identified a number of cadherin receptors that were differentially expressed in these streams, including Cadherin-13 (Cdh13).

Performance of a Trigger Tool for Identifying Adverse Events in Oncology.

Purpose: Although patient safety is a priority in oncology, few tools measure adverse events (AEs) beyond treatment-related toxicities. The study objective was to assemble a set of clinical triggers in the medical record and assess the extent to which triggered events identified AEs.

Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort study to assess the performance of an oncology medical record screening tool at a comprehensive cancer center.

ReCAP: Detection of Potentially Avoidable Harm in Oncology From Patient Medical Records.

Purpose: Widespread consensus exists about the importance of addressing patient safety issues in oncology, yet our understanding of the frequency, spectrum, and preventability of adverse events (AEs) across cancer care is limited.

Methods: We developed a screening tool to detect AEs across cancer care settings through medical record review. Members of the study team reviewed the scientific literature and obtained structured input from an external multidisciplinary panel of clinicians by using a modified Delphi process.