Pulsed field ablation in patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices: an ex vivo assessment of safety.

Background: Pulse field ablation (PFA) is a novel catheter ablation technology with potential safety benefits due to its tissue selectivity. It has the potential to directly damage or interact with the functionality of cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) in the form of electromagnetic interference (EMI). The aim of our study was to assess the impact of PFA on CIEDs.

Acute responses of postural alignment and intermuscular coherence to anti-gravitational muscle engagement-A randomized crossover trial.

Introduction: Posture is a facet of clinical assessment in several rehabilitative disciplines. Despite extensive clinical focus, the precision with which posture can be evaluated and intervened upon is limited by the very general terms used to describe it. The purpose of this crossover trial was to quantify the effects of targeted postural intervention motivated by theoretical sagittal gravitational collapsing (SGC) tendencies on: 1) distance from SGC, 2) intermuscular coherence (iCOH), and 3) kinematic chain connectivity.

Accuracy of Age Estimation Using Three Dental Age Estimation Methods in a Young, Large, and Multiethnic Patient Sample.

European countries have become host countries for migrants and unaccompanied minors. However, many migrants arrive without identity documents. Many methods exist to estimate age; among them, several methods using dental age have been proposed.

VT ablation based on CT imaging substrate visualization: results from a large cohort of ischemic and non-ischemic cardiomyopathy patients.

Introduction: The eradication of ventricular tachycardia (VT) isthmus sites constitutes the minimal procedural endpoint for VT ablation procedures. Contemporary high-resolution computed tomography (CT) imaging, in combination with computer-assisted analysis and segmentation of CT data, facilitates targeted elimination of VT isthmi. In this context, inHEART offers digitally rendered three-dimensional (3D) cardiac models which allow preoperative planning for VT ablations in ischemic and non-ischemic cardiomyopathies.

Longitudinal Evaluation of an Integrated Post-COVID-19/Long COVID Management Program Consisting of Digital Interventions and Personal Support: Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: The postacute COVID-19 syndrome (PACS) can be addressed with multidisciplinary approaches, including professional support and digital interventions.

Objective: This research aimed to test whether patients who received a health care facilitation program including medical internet support from human personal pilots and digital interventions (intervention group [IG] and active control group [ACG]) would experience fewer symptoms and have higher work ability and social participation than an untreated comparison group (CompG). The second objective was to compare the impact of a diagnostic assessment and digital interventions tailored to patients' personal capacity (IG) with that of only personal support and digital interventions targeting the main symptoms (ACG).

Ex vivo drug response profiling for response and outcome prediction in hematologic malignancies: the prospective non-interventional SMARTrial.

Ex vivo drug response profiling is a powerful tool to study genotype-drug response associations and is being explored as a tool set for precision medicine in cancer. Here we conducted a prospective non-interventional trial to investigate feasibility of ex vivo drug response profiling for treatment guidance in hematologic malignancies (SMARTrial, NCT03488641 ). The primary endpoint to provide drug response profiling reports within 7 d was met in 91% of all study participants (N = 80).

Cardiologist-Directed Sedation Management in Patients Undergoing Transvenous Lead Extraction: A Single-Centre Retrospective Analysis.

Background: The demand for transvenous lead extraction (TLE) has increased. In line with this, the safety of such procedures has also increased. Traditionally, TLE is performed under resource-intensive general anaesthesia.

Incidence and Predictors of Ventricular Arrhythmias in Transthyretin Amyloid Cardiomyopathy.

Background: Wild-type transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy (wtATTR-CM) is characterized by heart failure, conduction abnormalities and arrhythmias. The incidence of ventricular arrhythmias, particularly ventricular tachycardias (VTs), in wtATTR-CM is unclear. With the development of targeted therapies and improved overall prognosis, there is an unmet need to identify patients at high risk for VTs who might benefit from ICD therapy.

Tympanoplasty Healing Outcomes With Use of Postoperative Otic Quinolones.

Objective: Tympanoplasty usually results in tympanic membrane perforation (TMP) closure, but healing may be suboptimal (e.g., excess scarring).

Infection promotes Ser-214 phosphorylation important for generation of cytotoxic tau variants.

Patients who recover from hospital-acquired pneumonia exhibit a high incidence of end-organ dysfunction following hospital discharge, including cognitive deficits. We have previously demonstrated that pneumonia induces the production and release of cytotoxic oligomeric tau from pulmonary endothelial cells, and these tau oligomers can enter the circulation and may be a cause of long-term morbidities. Endothelial-derived oligomeric tau is hyperphosphorylated during infection.

Comparing the value of mono- vs coculture for high-throughput compound screening in hematological malignancies.

Large-scale compound screens are a powerful model system for understanding variability of treatment response and discovering druggable tumor vulnerabilities of hematological malignancies. However, as mostly performed in a monoculture of tumor cells, these assays disregard modulatory effects of the in vivo microenvironment. It is an open question whether and to what extent coculture with bone marrow stromal cells could improve the biological relevance of drug testing assays over monoculture.

Factors affecting polysomnography compliance and delays to surgical treatment of obstructive sleep apnea.

Objective: To evaluate adherence to polysomnography in pediatric patients and determine if demographics, socioeconomic status, polysomnography indication, or prior otolaryngology intervention are associated with polysomnography adherence and time to definitive surgery.

Study Design: Retrospective review study.

Setting: Tertiary-care children's hospital.

High-power chargers for electric vehicles: are they safe for patients with pacemakers and defibrillators?

Aims: Battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales and use are rapidly expanding. Battery electric vehicles, along with their charging stations, are a potential source of electromagnetic interference (EMI) for patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs). The new 'high-power' charging stations have the potential to create strong electromagnetic fields and induce EMI in CIEDs, and their safety has not been evaluated.

[Evaluation of the "TeleCOVID Hesse" project after 1 year in operation].

Background: The SARS-CoV‑2 pandemic posed unexpected challenges for hospitals worldwide and in addition to the supply emergency, simultaneously caused a high pressure to innovate. Due to the high number of cases of COVID-19 patients requiring intensive care, structured networking of hospitals gained particular importance. The tele-ICU communication platform TeleCOVID was developed to improve the quality of intensive care both by enabling teleconsultations and by supporting patient transfers.

Modeling of the stability of water-based graphite dispersions using polyvinylpyrrolidone on the basis of the DLVO theory.

The applications of graphite nanoparticle dispersions emerge due to the increasing importance of printed electronics and microelectronics, lithium-ion batteries, and supercapacitors. Promising technologies are inkjet printing processes, which are significantly influenced by the dispersion stability. Achieving stability is particularly challenging for nanoparticle dispersions due to the strong attractive forces emanating from the large particle surfaces.

REACT DX registry: Real world REACTion to atrial high rate episodes detected in implantable cardioverter-defibrillator recipients with a DX lead.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with significant morbidity and is predicted by atrial high rate events. The early detection of AF is paramount to timely interventions to reduce the morbidity of AF. The DX ICD system combined with Home Monitoring® allows for continuous atrial rhythm monitoring without the need for a dedicated atrial lead.

Ultrasound-Guided Access Reduces Vascular Complications in Patients Undergoing Catheter Ablation for Cardiac Arrhythmias.

Background: Femoral vascular access using the standard anatomic landmark-guided method is often limited by peripheral artery disease and obesity. We investigated the effect of ultrasound-guided vascular puncture (UGVP) on the rate of vascular complications in patients undergoing catheter ablation for atrial or ventricular arrhythmias. Methods: The data of 479 patients (59% male, mean age 68 years ± 11 years) undergoing catheter ablation for left atrial (n = 426; 89%), right atrial (n = 28; 6%) or ventricular arrhythmias (n = 28; 6%) were analyzed.

Communicating the relevance of neurodegeneration and brain atrophy to multiple sclerosis patients: patient, provider and researcher perspectives.

Central nervous system (CNS) atrophy provides valuable additional evidence of an ongoing neurodegeneration independent of lesion accrual in persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). However, there are limitations for interpretation of CNS volume changes at individual patient-level. Patients are receiving information on the topic of atrophy through various sources, including media, patient support groups and conferences, and discussions with their providers.

Separation and identification of a complex flurbiprofen-polyethylene glycol mono- and diester mixture via a hyphenated HPLC-DAD-HRMS/SPE NMR system.

We report the use of a hyphenated HPLC-DAD(diode array detector)-HRMS/SPE NMR system for the separation and isolation of a complex mixture of esters, containing substances with very similar LC retention times. The literature known mono- and diesters of the drug Flurbiprofen and polyethylene glycol, which form a large number of substances with varying chain lengths, were chosen for this study. We demonstrate the use of this hyphenated system to quickly and effectively isolate sixteen of these highly similar individual esters in an automated fashion, demonstrating its applicability in standard pharmaceutical analysis and quality control of drugs.