Testosterone and estradiol reduce inflammation of human macrophages induced by anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG.

COVID-19, the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, particularly causes severe inflammatory disease in elderly, obese, and male patients. Since both aging and obesity are associated with decreased testosterone and estradiol expression, we hypothesized that decreased hormone levels contribute to excessive inflammation in the context of COVID-19. Previously, we and others have shown that hyperinflammation in severe COVID-19 patients is induced by the production of pathogenic anti-spike IgG antibodies that activate alveolar macrophages.

I am a total failure: associations between beliefs and anxiety and depression in patients with inflammatory bowel disease with poor mental quality of life.

Background: According to cognitive behavioural theory, cognitive factors (i.e. underlying general dysfunctional beliefs and (situation) specific illness beliefs) are theorized to lead to outcomes like anxiety and depression.

Promoting shared decision making in advanced cancer: Development and piloting of a patient communication aid.

Objective: To learn how to configure a patient communication aid (PCA) to facilitate shared decision-making (SDM) about treatment for advanced cancer.

Methods: The PCA consists of education about SDM, a question prompt list, and values clarification methods. Study 1.

Complications after hip arthroplasty and the association with hospital procedure volume.

Background And Purpose: It has been suggested that a higher procedure volume is associated with less complications after hip arthroplasty. In order to investigate the incidence of serious negative outcomes and a possible association with procedure volume, we performed a retrospective nationwide cohort study on total hip replacements in all Dutch hospitals.

Methods: All total hip replacements (n = 50,080) that were identified as primary intervention in all general and university medical centers between January 1, 2002 and October 1, 2004 were included.

A nationwide study of three invasive treatments for trigeminal neuralgia.

Invasive procedures for treatment of trigeminal neuralgia (TGN) include percutaneous radiofrequency thermocoagulation (PRT), partial sensory rhizotomy (PSR), and microvascular decompression (MVD). Using a nationwide discharge registry from The Netherlands, we assessed the frequency of use and patient characteristics, and evaluated treatment failure for each patient undergoing PRT, PSR, or MVD from January 2002 through December 2004. Only patients without a procedure in the year prior were included.