pH-responsive i-motif-conjugated nanoparticles for MRI analysis.

Gadolinium (Gd)-based contrast agents (CAs) are widely used to enhance anatomical details in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Significant research has expanded the field of CAs into bioresponsive CAs by modulating the signal to image and monitor biochemical processes, such as pH. In this work, we introduce the modular, dynamic actuation mechanism of DNA-based nanostructures as a new way to modulate the MRI signal based on the rotational correlation time, .

Communicating effectively with patients about vaccination: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials.

Background: Good communication between healthcare professionals and their patients is essential to enlighten the benefits and risks of vaccination. Despite the availability of effective vaccines, reluctance prevails, sometimes fuelled by sub-optimal communication leading to a lack of trust. An evaluation of the effectiveness of a communication strategy for which healthcare professionals are trained has yet to be carried out.

A novel robust discrete-time integral sliding mode tracking control design for time-varying delay MIMO systems with unknown uncertainties.

This paper proposes a novel robust tracking control scheme for discrete time linear uncertain Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) systems subject to time-varying delay on the states. The considered system is affected by unknown but norm bounded uncertainties on parameters as well as matched disturbances on the states. The designed controller is based upon a proposed novel integral sliding surface and a new switching type of reaching law.

Accuracy and interrater agreement of death event adjudications by physician trainees: validation of the ISTH definition of pulmonary embolism-related death in an autopsy cohort.

Background: We previously determined good agreement and high specificity of the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH) definition of pulmonary embolism (PE)-related death among an expert central adjudication committee (CAC). CACs are often composed of experts in the corresponding research field. Involving physician trainees in CACs would allow investigators to divide the workload and foster trainees' research experience.

Nucleic acid nanostructures for applications: The influence of morphology on biological fate.

The development of programmable biomaterials for use in nanofabrication represents a major advance for the future of biomedicine and diagnostics. Recent advances in structural nanotechnology using nucleic acids have resulted in dramatic progress in our understanding of nucleic acid-based nanostructures (NANs) for use in biological applications. As the NANs become more architecturally and functionally diverse to accommodate introduction into living systems, there is a need to understand how critical design features can be controlled to impart desired performance .

Development of an international standard set of outcome measures for patients with venous thromboembolism: an International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement consensus recommendation.

The International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement assembled an international working group of venous thromboembolism experts and patient representatives to develop a standardised minimum set of outcomes and outcome measurements for integration into clinical practice and potentially research to support clinical decision making and benchmarking of quality of care. 15 core outcomes important to patients and health-care professionals were selected and categorised into four domains: patient-reported outcomes, long term consequences of the disease, disease-specific complications, and treatment-related complications. The outcomes and outcome measures were designed to apply to all patients with venous thromboembolism aged 16 years or older.

Predicting alternate light absorption in areas of trauma based on degree of skin pigmentation: Not all wavelengths are equal.

Detection and documentation of bruises on survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) can provide valuable evidence to support investigation and subsequent prosecution of these crimes. Detection of bruises in persons with darker skin tones is often difficult, contributing to disparities in health and criminal justice responses to IPV. The purpose of this secondary data analysis was to determine whether use of an alternate light source (ALS) increased the predictive probability of successfully detecting bruises on diverse skin tones following a history of physical trauma.

Frailty assessment in emergency medicine using the Clinical Frailty Scale: a scoping review.

Background: Frailty is a common condition present in older Emergency Department (ED) patients that is associated with poor health outcomes. The Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS) is a tool that measures frailty on a scale from 1 (very fit) to 9 (terminally ill). The goal of this scoping review was to describe current use of the CFS in emergency medicine and to identify gaps in research.

Identification of outcomes in clinical studies of interventions for venous thromboembolism in non-pregnant adults: A scoping review.

Background: The development of a core outcome set (COS), defined as an agreed minimum set of outcome domains that should be measured and reported in all trials of a specific disease, aims to increase the relevance of study findings to stakeholder groups and improve standardization.

Objectives: As the first step in developing a COS for venous thromboembolism (VTE) treatment studies, we aimed to generate an inclusive list of unique outcomes reported in previous VTE treatment studies and classify them into domains and core areas.

Methods: MEDLINE, Embase and CENTRAL were searched for prospective studies reporting on interventions for VTE in non-pregnant adults.

Visceral artery aneurysmal lesion of the omentum - a rare cause of spontaneous fatal intra-abdominal hemorrhage.

We report unexpected death of a 72-year-old man due to a hemoperitoneum (1.9 L of blood in the abdominal cavity). Postmortem examination revealed that the cause of the hemorrhage was an arterial aneurysmal lesion in the greater omentum.

Characterization of DNA nanostructure stability by size exclusion chromatography.

DNA-based nanostructures (DNs) are advantageous for the design of functional materials for biology and medicine due to the nanoscale control provided by their predictable self-assembly. However, the use of DNs has been limited due to structural instability in biofluids. As the stability of a particular DN sets the scope of its potential biological applications, efficient methods to characterize stability are required.

Investigating the Source of Fatal Pulmonary Thromboembolism in a Coronial Postmortem Population.

The incidence of how often a deep vein thrombosis is found in the calves of the legs at coronial postmortem examination is unclear. This study retrospectively examined postmortem examination reports from Australian Coronial investigations of sudden death resulting from pulmonary thromboembolism to determine the likelihood of dissection of the deep veins of calves of the legs revealing the source of a pulmonary thromboembolism. From 450 cases taken from the National Coronial Information System (NCIS) for 2016, the postmortem reports of 327 cases were reviewed to provide demographic details of victims of sudden death from pulmonary thromboembolism.

Towards conceptual convergence: A systematic review of psychological resilience in family caregivers of persons living with chronic neurological conditions.

Background: The demand for family caregiving in persons with chronic neurological conditions (CNCs) is increasing. Psychological resilience may empower and protect caregivers in their role. Thus, a synthesis of resilience evidence within this specific population is warranted.

ISTH definition of pulmonary embolism-related death and classification of the cause of death in venous thromboembolism studies: Validation in an autopsy cohort.

Background: The International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH)'s Scientific and Standardization Committee (SSC) recently proposed a definition of pulmonary embolism (PE)-related death.

Objectives: To evaluate the accuracy and interrater reliability of the ISTH definition of PE-related death in an autopsy cohort.

Methods: We reviewed reports of 1064 consecutive adult autopsies that were performed at the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital from January 2010 until July 2019.

Post-mortem cardiac magnetic resonance parameters in normal and diseased conditions.

Background: Post-mortem cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) is a non-invasive alternative to conventional autopsy. At present, diagnostic guidelines for cardiovascular conditions such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy have not been established. We correlated post-mortem CMR images to definite conventional autopsy findings and hypothesed that elevated T2-weighted signal intensity and RV to LV area ratios can identify myocardial infarction and pulmonary emboli respectively.

Lethal mechanisms in cases of inverted suspension from the lap component of seat belts.

A retrospective review of autopsy files at Forensic Science South Australia in Adelaide, Australia, was undertaken over a five-year period from January 2014 to December 2018 for all motor vehicle crashes with rollovers ending with the vehicle inverted and the occupants suspended by the lap component of their seat belts. There were five cases, all male drivers (aged 18-67 years;  = 32 years). Acute neck flexion or head wedging was noted in four cases, with facial petechiae in four and facial congestion in one.

Comparison of conventional autopsy with post-mortem magnetic resonance, computed tomography in determining the cause of unexplained death.

Conventional autopsy is the gold standard for identifying unexplained death but due to declines in referrals, there is an emerging role for post-mortem imaging. We evaluated whether post-mortem magnetic resonance (PMMR) and computed tomography (PMCT) are inferior to conventional autopsy. Deceased individuals ≥ 2 years old with unexplained death referred for coronial investigation between October 2014 to December 2016 underwent PMCT and PMMR prior to conventional autopsy.

Development and implementation of common data elements for venous thromboembolism research: on behalf of SSC Subcommittee on official Communication from the SSC of the ISTH.

Clinical research in venous thromboembolism (VTE) is hindered by variability in the collection and reporting of data and outcomes. A consistent data language facilitates efficiencies, leads to higher quality data, and permits between-study comparisons and evidence synthesis. The International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH) launched an international task force of more than 50 researchers to develop common data elements for clinical research in venous thromboembolism.

A toolkit for the collection of thrombosis-related data elements in COVID-19 clinical studies.

Thrombosis has emerged as an important complication of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), particularly among individuals with severe illness. However, the precise incidence of thrombotic events remains uncertain due to differences in study design, patient populations, outcome ascertainment, event definitions, and reporting. In an effort to overcome some of these challenges and promote standardized data collection and reporting in clinical studies, the American Society of Hematology Research Collaborative COVID-19 Non-Malignant Hematology Task Force, in collaboration with the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis COVID-19 Task Force, developed sets of data elements in the following domains: venous thromboembolism, myocardial infarction, stroke/transient ischemic attack, peripheral arterial thrombosis, bleeding, laboratory investigations, and antithrombotic therapy.

Protocol for a scoping review of outcomes in clinical studies of interventions for venous thromboembolism in adults.

Introduction: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a common, potentially fatal yet treatable disease. Several advances in treatment of VTE have been made over the past decades, but definition and reporting of outcomes across those studies are inconsistent. Development of an international core outcome set for clinical studies of interventions for VTE addresses this lack of standardisation.

How often is autopsy contributory in cases of sepsis?

This study sought to determine how often a medico-legal (coronial) autopsy contributes by identifying the source of infection when there has been a clinical diagnosis of sepsis prior to death. Autopsy reports were retrieved in which it was documented there had been a clinical diagnosis of sepsis preceding death. The autopsy report was reviewed to determine if a source for sepsis had been identified.