Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Pediatric and Adolescent ASCVD Risk Factors.

Purpose Of Review: In this review, we provide insight into and raise awareness of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the prevalence of acquired atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk factors in adolescents. We highlight data that could be used to guide the response to a future pandemic with the goal of reducing premature cardiovascular disease (CVD)-related morbidity and premature mortality.

Recent Findings: During the global COVID-19 pandemic, many individuals, including youth, voluntarily or were mandated to alter the usual lifestyle in order to limit exposure and reduce the spread of the virus.

Analysis of [C]Choline and [N]Ammonia using a single HPIC method.

A single HPIC method was developed and validated for the analysis of both [C]Choline and [N]Ammonia with the same setup. The HPIC system suitability tests were performed and [C]Choline and [N]Ammonia were used to verify their performance on this HPIC method. The HPIC setup and method provides qualitative and quantitative analysis information of [C]Choline and [N]Ammonia.

PET Imaging of Tumor Perfusion: A Potential Cancer Biomarker?

Perfusion, as measured by imaging, is considered a standard of care biomarker for the evaluation of many tumors. Measurements of tumor perfusion may be used in a number of ways, including improving the visual detection of lesions, differentiating malignant from benign findings, assessing aggressiveness of tumors, identifying ischemia and by extension hypoxia within tumors, and assessing treatment response. While most clinical perfusion imaging is currently performed with CT or MR, a number of methods for PET imaging of tumor perfusion have been described.

Influential Factors in the Preparation of Ga-DOTATATE.

Acceptable and reproducible radiochemical purity (RP) for Ga-DOTATATE was difficult to obtain with the NETSPOT kit because the manufacturer instructions lacked details on the heater or needles used. The drug was prepared in an International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 5 environment. Multiple dry baths and needle types were used to investigate the effects of reaction temperature and metal contamination, respectively.

Radiation induced oxidation of [F]fluorothia fatty acids under cGMP manufacturing conditions.

Objective: The objectives of the present work were to optimize and validate the synthesis and stability of 14(R,S)-[F]fluoro-6-thia-heptadecanoic acid ([F]FTHA) and 16-[F]fluoro-4-thia-palmitic acid ([F]FTP) under cGMP conditions for clinical applications.

Methods: Benzyl-14-(R,S)-tosyloxy-6-thiaheptadecanoate and methyl 16-bromo-4-thia-palmitate were used as precursors for the synthesis of [F]FTHA and [F]FTP, respectively. For comparison, a fatty acid analog lacking a thia-substitution, 16-[F]fluoro-palmitic acid ([F]FP), was synthesized from the precursor methyl 16-bromo-palmitate.

Rapid Instant Thin-Layer Chromatography System for Determining the Radiochemical Purity of Ga-DOTATATE.

The objective of this study was to develop instant thin-layer chromatography (ITLC) conditions for the determination of radiochemical purity of Ga-DOTATATE in a shorter time period than those stated in the NETSPOT (Advanced Accelerator Applications, Saint-Genis-Pouilly, France; AAA) kit package insert (PI). A faster ITLC system is needed to reduce the 48- to 50-min development time so that more radioactivity is available for single patient use and wait times are shorter in the event of kit failure. Variations of the PI mobile system were evaluated with microfiber chromatography paper impregnated with silica gel (ITLC-SG).

Efficacy and safety of ezetimibe monotherapy in children with heterozygous familial or nonfamilial hypercholesterolemia.

Objectives: To evaluate the lipid-altering efficacy and safety of ezetimibe monotherapy in young children with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HeFH) or nonfamilial hypercholesterolemia (nonFH).

Study Design: One hundred thirty-eight children 6-10 years of age with diagnosed HeFH or clinically important nonFH (low-density lipoprotein cholesterol [LDL-C] ≥ 160 mg/dL [4.1 mmol/L]) were enrolled into a multicenter, 12-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

Allergic reaction to polysulphone membrane dialyser masquerading as infection.

Hypersensitivity reactions during haemodialysis are well documented in the literature. Most dialysis membrane reactions occur with ethylene oxide or non-biocompatible membranes and less frequently with biocompatible membranes. The symptoms are non-specific except for the temporal relationship typically occurring during the haemodialysis.

Preparation and preliminary evaluation of 63Zn-zinc citrate as a novel PET imaging biomarker for zinc.

Unlabelled: Abnormalities of zinc homeostasis are indicated in many human diseases. A noninvasive imaging method for monitoring zinc in the body would be useful to understand zinc dynamics in health and disease. To provide a PET imaging agent for zinc, we have investigated production of (63)Zn (half-life, 38.

Synthesis and preliminary evaluation of N-(16-18F-fluorohexadecanoyl)ethanolamine (18F-FHEA) as a PET probe of N-acylethanolamine metabolism in mouse brain.

N-Acylethanolamines are lipid signaling molecules found throughout the plant and animal kingdoms. The best-known mammalian compound of this class is anandamide, N-arachidonoylethanolamine, one of the endogenous ligands of cannabinoid CB1 and CB2 receptors. Signaling by N-acylethanolamines is terminated by release of the ethanolamine moiety by hydrolyzing enzymes such as fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) and N-acylethanolamine-hydrolyzing amidase (NAAA).

Non-HDL-cholesterol in an adolescent diabetes population.

Background: Screening for dyslipidemia poses some challenges. Nonfasting lipid profiles frequently have elevated triglycerides. In addition, in the standard lipid profile, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol is a calculated value rather than a direct measurement and is triglyceride dependent.

Comparison of FASTlab 18F-FDG production using phosphate and citrate buffer cassettes.

Unlabelled: The objective of this research is to determine whether there are significant differences in the (18)F-FDG produced by either the phosphate or the citrate buffer cassettes in the FASTlab synthesizer.

Methods: Forty batches of (18)F-FDG were produced with each cassette and analyzed retrospectively. The analysis consisted of determining the mean radiochemical yield (RCY)-uncorrected and corrected for decay-radiochemical purity (RCP), pH, and residual solvent content (ethanol and acetonitrile).

Expected body weight in adolescents: comparison between weight-for-stature and BMI methods.

Objective: To test the hypothesis that the weight-for-stature (WFS) and BMI methods are not equivalent in determining expected body weight (EBW) in adolescents with eating disorders and to determine the sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value of each method to detect those <75% EBW. We hypothesized that differences in EBW would be greatest at the extremes of height.

Methods: EBW was determined for 12 047 individual adolescents aged 12 to 19 years by the WFS and BMI methods by utilizing the same National Center for Health Statistics data sets.

Stability evaluation of (18)F-FDG at high radioactive concentrations.

Unlabelled: The objective of our study was to determine the concentration of ethanol, a known radiolytic stabilizer, needed to maintain stability for 12 h at an (18)F-FDG concentration of 19.7-22.6 GBq/mL (533-610 mCi/mL) at the end of synthesis (EOS).

Effect of weight loss on menstrual function in adolescents with polycystic ovary syndrome.

Study Objective: To compare the effects of a hypocaloric low-fat diet with those of a very low carbohydrate diet on body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and menstrual function in overweight adolescent females with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Design: Randomized pilot trial of two diets in a prospective, 12-week study.

Setting: A hospital-based, academic adolescent medicine division.

Metabolic assessment of menstruating and nonmenstruating normal weight adolescents.

Objective: Resumption of menses (ROM) is a key indicator of recovery in AN, but patients may remain amenorrheic despite weight restoration. The objective of this study is to better understand the mechanism of amenorrhea in patients with eating disorders.

Method: A retrospective chart review was conducted of 382 normal weight adolescents with a history of anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, or eating disorder not otherwise specified, who had been referred for indirect calorimetry tests.

Radiolysis of 2-[18F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose ([18F]FDG) and the role of ethanol and radioactive concentration.

Radiolysis is the process by which radioactively labeled compounds degrade. Many positron emission tomography (PET) radiopharmaceuticals produced with high radioactive concentrations and specific activities exhibit low radiochemical purity because of radiolysis. Little data exist that describe the radiolytic decomposition of 2-[(18)F]fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose ([(18)F]FDG).

Screening adolescents for lipid disorders: what is the best approach?

Coronary artery disease is the most common cause of death in the United States and the leading cause of hospital-related health care costs. Hypercholesterolemia is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease, and both genetic and environmental factors affect cholesterol levels. Although the clinical symptoms and signs of elevated cholesterol levels in children do not occur until adulthood, arterial dysfunction and plaque formation begin much earlier.

Insulin resistance and parental obesity as predictors to response to therapeutic life style change in obese children and adolescents 10-18 years old.

Objective: To study insulin resistance and parental obesity as predictors of improvement in weight status in obese children and adolescents undergoing therapeutic life change intervention (TLC).

Design: A retrospective chart review.

Subjects: One hundred thirty-four adolescents 10 to 18 years old above the 95th percentile for body mass index (BMI), referred to the Center for Atherosclerosis Prevention from January through December 2003.