Publications by authors named "M-C Law"

Background: Sacubitril/valsartan, an angiotensin receptor-neprilysin inhibitor (ARNI), is an established treatment for heart failure (HF) with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction. It has not been rigorously compared with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors in children. PANORAMA-HF (Prospective Trial to Assess the Angiotensin Receptor Blocker Neprilysin Inhibitor LCZ696 Versus Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitor for the Medical Treatment of Pediatric HF) is a randomized, double-blind trial that evaluated the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics (PK/PD), safety, and efficacy of sacubitril/valsartan versus enalapril in children 1 month to <18 years of age with HF attributable to systemic left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD).

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  • The LIVE-LQTS study aimed to investigate whether vigorous exercise increases the risk of ventricular arrhythmias in individuals with congenital long QT syndrome (LQTS) by tracking participants' activity and health events over three years.
  • Among 1,413 participants, 52% engaged in vigorous exercise, and the study found similar rates of serious cardiac events (2.6% in vigorous exercisers vs. 2.7% in non-vigorous) suggesting that vigorous exercise may not significantly increase risk for these individuals.
  • The results had a hazard ratio of 0.97, indicating that vigorous exercisers experienced similar or potentially lower rates of adverse events than those who did not exercise vigorously, providing insight into safe exercise practices for LQ
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We assessed the impact of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) preventive characteristics on the intentions of pregnant people and healthcare providers (HCPs) to protect infants with a maternal vaccine or monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). Pregnant people and HCPs who treated pregnant people and/or infants were recruited via convenience sample from a general research panel to complete a cross-sectional, web-based survey, including a discrete choice experiment (DCE) wherein respondents chose between hypothetical RSV preventive profiles varying on five attributes (effectiveness, preventive type [maternal vaccine vs. mAb], injection recipient/timing, type of medical visit required to receive the injection, and duration of protection during RSV season) and a no-preventive option.

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  • Patients with acute intracerebral hemorrhage who were on factor Xa inhibitors were studied to evaluate the effectiveness of andexanet alfa in reversing hematoma expansion compared to usual care.
  • In a clinical trial, 263 patients received andexanet while 267 received standard treatment, focusing on hemostatic efficacy and safety outcomes.
  • Results showed that andexanet significantly improved hemostatic efficacy (67% vs. 53%) and substantially reduced anti-factor Xa activity, but also led to more thrombotic events (10.3% vs. 5.6% in usual care).
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  • Brain tumor diagnostics have progressed with techniques like PET and advanced MRI, aiding in tumor differentiation, extent evaluation, and treatment response assessment.
  • Joint recommendations from major medical groups emphasize the significant value of using radiolabeled amino acids alongside standard MRI for better clinical outcomes.
  • Despite their importance, these imaging methods face challenges that need to be addressed through standardized protocols and interdisciplinary collaboration to enhance patient care in brain tumor management.
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Background: Beta thalassemia, related to HBB mutation and associated with elevated hemoglobin A2 (HbA2), is an important genetic hemoglobinopathy with high incidences of disease and carrier rates in Singapore. Carrier screening is essential to facilitate prenatal counseling and testing. However, when individuals with elevated HbA2 do not have an identifiable HBB disease-associated variant, there is ambiguity on risk to their offspring.

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Background: A substantial proportion of persons who develop COVID-19 report persistent symptoms after acute illness. Various pathophysiologic mechanisms have been implicated in the pathogenesis of postacute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC).

Objective: To characterize medical sequelae and persistent symptoms after recovery from COVID-19 in a cohort of disease survivors and controls.

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Background And Purpose: Perivascular spaces surround the blood vessels of the brain and are involved in neuroimmune functions and clearance of metabolites via the glymphatic system of the brain. Enlarged perivascular spaces could be a marker of dysfunction in these processes and, therefore, are highly relevant to monitoring disease activity in MS. This study aimed to compare the number of enlarged perivascular spaces in people with relapsing MS with MR imaging markers of inflammation and brain atrophy.

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  • Neonates and infants with coronary artery fistulas (CAFs) are rare, and this study examines their outcomes post-treatment through a retrospective review.
  • Out of 48 patients analyzed, most had proximal CAFs, with high procedural success rates for both transcatheter (92%) and surgical closure (94%).
  • Follow-up results showed that while a majority had optimal coronary remodeling, those with distal CAFs experienced more complications, including symptomatic and asymptomatic thrombosis.
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Background And Purpose: The computed tomography angiography or contrast-enhanced computed tomography based spot sign has been proposed as a biomarker for identifying on-going hematoma expansion in patients with acute intracerebral hemorrhage. We investigated, if spot-sign positive participants benefit more from tranexamic acid versus placebo as compared to spot-sign negative participants.

Methods: TICH-2 trial (Tranexamic Acid for Hyperacute Primary Intracerebral Haemorrhage) was a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial recruiting acutely hospitalized participants with intracerebral hemorrhage within 8 hours after symptom onset.

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Rationale: Whereas co-use of alcohol and marijuana is prevalent in adolescents, the effects of such drug co-exposure on ingestive and cognitive behaviors remain largely unexplored. We hypothesized that co-exposure to alcohol and ∆-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive constitute of marijuana, alters feeding behavior and cognition differently from either drug alone.

Methods: Male rats received daily THC (3-20 mg/kg/day) or oil vehicle through subcutaneous injection or consumption of a cookie with access to saccharin or saccharin-sweetened alcohol during adolescence (P30-45).

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Purpose To evaluate the utility of amide proton transfer (APT) imaging in the characterization of head and neck tumors. Materials and Methods This retrospective study of APT imaging included 117 patients with 70 nasopharyngeal undifferentiated carcinomas (NUCs), 26 squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs), eight non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHLs), and 13 benign salivary gland tumors (BSGTs). Normal tissues were examined in 25 patients.

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This guideline provides recommendations for the use of PET imaging in gliomas. The review examines established clinical benefit in glioma patients of PET using glucose ((18)F-FDG) and amino acid tracers ((11)C-MET, (18)F-FET, and (18)F-FDOPA). An increasing number of studies have been published on PET imaging in the setting of diagnosis, biopsy, and resection as well radiotherapy planning, treatment monitoring, and response assessment.

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  • The study aimed to define new CSF β-amyloid 1-42 (Aβ42) cutpoints for detecting cortical amyloid deposition using 11C-Pittsburgh compound B ([11C]PiB)-PET imaging and compare these with existing clinical cutpoints.
  • It involved 433 participants across 5 European centers, calculating Aβ42 cutpoints for both individual centers and a pooled group based on visual interpretations of PET images.
  • Findings indicated that the new Aβ42 cutpoints (ranging from 521 to 616 pg/mL) were higher than current clinical cutpoints (400 to 550 pg/mL) and displayed 84% concordance with [11C]PiB-PET
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Disparities exist in breast cancer (BC) outcomes between racial and ethnic groups in the United States. Reasons for these disparities are multifactorial including differences in genetics, stage at presentation, access to care, and socioeconomic factors. Less is documented on racial/ethnic differences in subsequent risk of second primary cancers (SPC).

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Most biopotential readout front-ends rely on the g m- C lowpass filter (LPF) for forefront signal conditioning. A small g m realizes a large time constant ( τ = C / g m) suitable for ultra-low-cutoff filtering, saving both power and area. Yet, the noise and linearity can be compromised, given that each g m cell can involve one or several noisy and nonlinear V- I conversions originated from the active devices.

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