Unexpected Discrepancies in the Histopathological and Microbiological Diagnoses of Suspected Mucormycosis Cases at a South Indian Tertiary Care Center During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Introduction Mucormycosis is an uncommon fungal infection caused by filamentous fungi of the Mucorales order, namely Rhizopus, Lichthemia, andMucor species. The incidence and prevalence of mucormycosis reached an all-time high during the COVID-19 pandemic due to excessive steroid use and other factors, leading to the coining of the term CAM (COVID Associated Mucormycosis). The diagnosis of mucormycosis is by a combination of histopathology and microbiological techniques, such as KOH mount and culture.

Ubrogepant users' real-world experience: Patients on ubrogepant, characteristics and outcomes (UNIVERSE) study.

Objective: To assess the real-world effectiveness of ubrogepant by evaluating self-reported satisfaction with pain relief, ability to think clearly, and return to normal function in individuals who had used ubrogepant to treat a migraine episode within the preceding 14 days.

Background: Ubrogepant is an oral calcitonin gene-related peptide receptor antagonist approved for the acute treatment of migraine in adults. Few studies have evaluated the real-world effectiveness of ubrogepant.

Shorter Duration Hepatitis C Virus Treatment is Associated with Better Persistence to Prescription Refills in People Who Inject Drugs: A Real-World Study.

Introduction: Direct-acting antiviral (DAA) therapy is highly effective in curing hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in people who inject drugs (PWID). Previous studies showed declining persistence to DAA therapy over the course of treatment. This study compares real-world medication persistence to prescription refills for 8- versus 12-week DAA in treatment-naïve PWID with chronic HCV with compensated cirrhosis or without cirrhosis.

Exploring the Boundaries of Reality: Investigating the Phenomenon of Artificial Intelligence Hallucination in Scientific Writing Through ChatGPT References.

Background Chatbots are computer programs that use artificial intelligence (AI) and natural language processing (NLP) to simulate conversations with humans. One such chatbot is ChatGPT, which uses the third-generation generative pre-trained transformer (GPT-3) developed by OpenAI. ChatGPT has been praised for its ability to generate text, but concerns have been raised about its accuracy and precision in generating data, as well as legal issues related to references.

Dual Mobile Total Hip Replacement in Super Obesity: A Case Report and Review of Literature.

Introduction: More than 13 million people in the US are morbidly obese. It is associated with various medical and anesthetic complications. Higher rate of dislocation in total hip replacement (THR) associated with morbid obesity due to thigh girth, low muscle mass and high-fat content.

Effect of an Integrated Naturopathy and Yoga Program on Long-Term Glycemic Control in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Aim: Lifestyle is an important risk factor for increasing the prevalence of diabetes in the Indian population. In this study, we evaluate the effects of naturopathy treatment, salt-restricted low-calorie diets, and yoga in long-term glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Methods: In this prospective, longitudinal, two-arm cohort study, patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus referred from a tertiary care center undergoing a 3-month residential naturopathy treatment were compared with those undergoing only conventional management on glycemic control.

Effect of Surface Pretreatment and Thermal Activation of Silane Coupling Agent on Bond Strength of Fiber Posts to Resin Cement.

Introduction: For the restoration of grossly decayed root canal treated teeth, posts are used frequently to retain core for the definitive restoration. Therefore, it is necessary to create adequate adhesion at the post-root-cement interface for long-term performance of a post retained restoration.

Aim: To establish the outcome of surface pretreatments such as silanization, sandblasting, and silanization followed by thermal activation of fiber posts on bonding with a dual-cured adhesive resin-based cement.

Patterns of Prescription Opioid Use in Women With Endometriosis: Evaluating Prolonged Use, Daily Dose, and Concomitant Use With Benzodiazepines.

Objective: To examine opioid use, opioid prescribing patterns, and timing of the first opioid prescription in endometriosis patients compared with matched women in the control group without endometriosis.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of the Clinformatics Datamart database. Women diagnosed with endometriosis from January 2006 through December 2016 and aged 18-49 years were compared with women in the control group matched on age, region, race, insurance payer, and plan type.

Development of a Comprehensive Dataset of Hepatitis C Patients and Examination of Disease Epidemiology in the United States, 2013-2016.

Introduction: Chronic infection with hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a leading cause of liver disease and infectious disease deaths. While recent and emerging treatment options for HCV patients have enabled higher rates of sustained virologic response (SVR), the demographic, clinical, geographic, and payer characteristics of the estimated 3.4 million chronic HCV patients in the USA are poorly understood.

Adherence to thyroid hormone replacement therapy: a retrospective, claims database analysis.

Objective: The objective of this analysis was to compare adherence at 6 months and 12 months across levothyroxine formulations for patients with hypothyroidism.

Methods: This retrospective analysis utilized insurance claims data from a commercially insured population from January 1, 2000 through March 31, 2016. Patients were included if they were diagnosed with hypothyroidism and initiated treatment with generic levothyroxine, Levoxyl, Synthroid, Unithroid, or Tirosint.

Premature ovarian senescence and a high miscarriage rate impair fertility in women with HCV.

Background & Aims: Premenopausal women who are HCV positive (HCV+) have failing ovarian function, which is likely to impact their fertility. Thus, we investigated the reproductive history, risk of infertility, and pregnancy outcomes in women of childbearing age who were HCV+.

Methods: Three different groups were studied: (1) Clinical cohort: 100 women who were HCV+ and also had chronic liver disease (CLD), age matched with 50 women who were HBV+ with CLD and with 100 healthy women; all women were consecutively observed in three gastroenterology units in hospitals in Italy; (2) 1,998 women who were HCV+ and enrolled in the Italian Platform for the Study of Viral Hepatitis Therapies (PITER); (3) 6,085 women, who were mono-infected with HCV, and 20,415 women, who were HCV-, from a large de-identified insurance database from the USA.

Ankylosing spondylitis diagnosis in US patients with back pain: identifying providers involved and factors associated with rheumatology referral delay.

This study aimed to identify providers involved in diagnosing ankylosing spondylitis (AS) following back pain diagnosis in the USA and to identify factors leading to the delay in rheumatology referrals. The Truven Health MarketScan® US Commercial Database was searched for patients aged 18-64 years with back pain diagnosis in a non-rheumatology setting followed by AS diagnosis in any setting during January 2000-December 2012. Patients with a rheumatologist visit on or before AS diagnosis were considered referred.

The impact of ribavirin on real-world adherence rates in hepatitis C patients treated with sofosbuvir plus simeprevir.

Background: Combination therapy with sofosbuvir (SOF) and simeprevir (SIM) is used to treat patients with hepatitis C virus infection. It is currently unknown whether adding ribavirin (RBV) to SOF + SIM, which raises the pill count from two up to eight pills a day, impacts adherence. The aim of this study is to examine the impact of pill count on real-world adherence rates in patients treated with SOF + SIM with and without RBV.

Early View of the Effectiveness of New Direct-Acting Antiviral (DAA) Regimens in Patients with Hepatitis C Virus (HCV).

Introduction: Clinical trials have demonstrated the efficacy of all-oral direct-acting antiviral (DAA) regimens in the treatment of patients infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). This study assessed real-world effectiveness of two recently approved regimens; paritaprevir/ritonavir/ombitasvir; dasabuvir (3D), and sofosbuvir/ledipasvir (SOF/LDV) in patients with HCV genotype 1.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of administrative claims data (IMS Health Patient-Centric Data Warehouse/Medivo database) from October 1, 2013 to August 14, 2015 was conducted.

Effectiveness of CoQ10 Oral Supplements as an Adjunct to Scaling and Root Planing in Improving Periodontal Health.

Introduction: Deficiency of CoQ 10 was found in human inflamed gingiva and has been found to be responsible for periodontal destruction.

Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness of CoQ 10 supplementation as an adjunct to scaling and rootplaning in reducing gingival inflammation and periodontal pocket depth.

Materials And Methods: The study was a randomized, double-blind, controlled, parallel group design clinical trial.

Comparative evaluation of subgingivally delivered chlorhexidine varnish and chlorhexidine gel in reducing microbial count after mechanical periodontal therapy.

Context: Antimicrobial efficacy of subgingival chlorhexidine (CHX) application using two different vehicles of delivery.

Aims: The aim was to evaluate the efficacy of CHX varnish and gel as an adjunct to scaling and root planing (SRP) in reducing microbial count within moderate to deep periodontal pockets.

Settings And Design: Experimental parallel mouth study.

Pyogenic granuloma near the midline of the oral cavity: A series of case reports.

Pyogenic granuloma (PyG) is a common cause of swelling in the oral cavity during pregnancy and also as an exaggerated response to any minor trauma. The condition is frequently associated with periodontal pain and discomfort, in some cases interfering with mastication and creating esthetic problems. Six patients reported to the Department of Periodontics with gingival overgrowth in the lower anteriors.

Impact of change in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol from baseline on risk for major cardiovascular events.

Introduction: Low concentration of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) has increasingly been recognized as a strong and independent predictor of cardiovascular risk. The aim of this study was to determine the association between change in HDL-C concentration from baseline and risk of a major cardiovascular event in a commercially insured population cohort with suboptimal HDL-C and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) concentrations at baseline.

Methods: A retrospective longitudinal survival analysis was conducted using claims data from a large, commercial US health plan.

Association between HDL-C concentration and risk for a major cardiovascular event.

Objective: To determine the association between baseline HDL-C concentrations and risk of a major cardiovascular event (within 5 years) in a large US claims database.

Methods: A retrospective longitudinal analysis using claims data from the i3 Ingenix LabRx database was conducted. Patients were included if they had complete lipid panel lab results, were continuously enrolled for >or=6 months prior to and >or=12 months following the lab test (index date), and were >or=50 years of age.