Predicting readmission and death after hospital discharge: a comparison of conventional frailty measurement with an electronic health record-based score.

Background: frailty measurement may identify patients at risk of decline after hospital discharge, but many measures require specialist review and/or additional testing.

Objective: to compare validated frailty tools with routine electronic health record (EHR) data at hospital discharge, for associations with readmission or death.

Design: observational cohort study.

Predictors of UK healthcare worker burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic is putting health professionals under increasing pressure. This population is already acknowledged to be at risk of burnout.

Aim: We aim to provide a 'snapshot' of the levels of burnout, anxiety, depression and distress among healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

High-Sensitivity Cardiac Troponin on Presentation to Rule Out Myocardial Infarction: A Stepped-Wedge Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: High-sensitivity cardiac troponin assays enable myocardial infarction to be ruled out earlier, but the safety and efficacy of this approach is uncertain. We investigated whether an early rule-out pathway is safe and effective for patients with suspected acute coronary syndrome.

Methods: We performed a stepped-wedge cluster randomized controlled trial in the emergency departments of 7 acute care hospitals in Scotland.

Cardiovascular biomarkers in patients with COVID-19.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has increased awareness that severe acute respiratory distress syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) may have profound effects on the cardiovascular system. COVID-19 often affects patients with pre-existing cardiac disease, and may trigger acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), venous thromboembolism (VTE), acute myocardial infarction (AMI), and acute heart failure (AHF). However, as COVID-19 is primarily a respiratory infectious disease, there remain substantial uncertainty and controversy whether and how cardiovascular biomarkers should be used in patients with suspected COVID-19.

Expert consensus on peri-operative myocardial injury screening in noncardiac surgery: A literature review.

Peri-operative myocardial injury, detected by dynamic and elevated cardiac troponin (cTn) concentrations, is a common complication of noncardiac surgery that is strongly associated with 30-day mortality. Although active screening for peri-operative myocardial injury has been suggested in recent guidelines, clinical implementation remains tentative due to a lack of examples on how to tackle such an interdisciplinary project at a local level. Moreover, consensus on which assay and cTn cut-off values should be used has not yet been reached, and guidance on whom to screen is lacking.

Atrial fibrillation self-management: a mobile telephone app scoping review and content analysis.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) affects over 1.4 million people in the UK, resulting in a five-fold increased stroke risk and a three to four times greater risk of severe, disabling stroke. Atrial fibrillation, a chronic disease, requires monitoring, medication, and lifestyle measures.

Generation of a Novel In Vitro Model to Study Endothelial Dysfunction from Atherothrombotic Specimens.

Purpose: Endothelial dysfunction is central to the pathogenesis of acute coronary syndrome. The study of diseased endothelium is very challenging due to inherent difficulties in isolating endothelial cells from the coronary vascular bed. We sought to isolate and characterise coronary endothelial cells from patients undergoing thrombectomy for myocardial infarction to develop a patient-specific in vitro model of endothelial dysfunction.

MINOCA: a heterogenous group of conditions associated with myocardial damage.

Myocardial infarction with non-obstructive coronary arteries (MINOCA) was first described over 80 years ago. The term has been widely and inconsistently used in clinical practice, influencing various aspects of disease classification, investigation and management. MINOCA encompasses a heterogenous group of conditions that include both atherosclerotic and non-atherosclerotic disease resulting in myocardial damage that is not due to obstructive coronary artery disease.

Optimizing the Use of High-Sensitivity Troponin Assays for the Early Rule-out of Myocardial Infarction in Patients Presenting with Chest Pain: A Systematic Review.

Background: We assessed the accuracy and clinical effectiveness of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin (hs-cTn) assays for early rule-out of non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) in adults presenting with acute chest pain.

Methods: Sixteen databases were searched to September 2019. Review methods followed published guidelines.

Beyond Engagement: Realizing Nurses' Capacity to Lead Sustainable Health Systems.

The health system is a major contributor to Canada's greenhouse gas emissions, largely arising from the ways that care is organized and delivered. Nurses, representing the largest group of regulated healthcare professionals, are experts in the organization and delivery of care, and are uniquely and critically positioned to witness and address the harmful effects of climate crisis. Thus, sustainable health systems cannot be achieved without nurses.

Optimising recruitment to the HAND-1 RCT feasibility study: integration of the QuinteT Recruitment Intervention (QRI).

Background: Recruitment to randomised controlled trials (RCTs) can be challenging, with most trials not reaching recruitment targets. Randomised feasibility studies can be set up prior to a main trial to identify and overcome recruitment obstacles. This paper reports on an intervention-the QuinteT Recruitment Intervention (QRI)-to optimise recruitment within a randomised feasibility study of surgical treatments for patients with Dupuytren's contracture (the HAND-1 study).

Clinical Switching Strategies of Various Antidepressants to Vortioxetine in the PREDDICT Trial.

Background: Partial response to antidepressant medication as well as relapse and treatment resistance are common in major depressive disorder (MDD). Therefore, for most patients with MDD, there will be a need to consider changing antidepressant medication at some stage during the course of the illness. The PREDDICT study investigates the efficacy of augmenting vortioxetine with celecoxib.

Review: Inflammation and anxiety-based disorders in children and adolescents - a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Anxiety-based disorders are common and are often chronic with an onset during childhood or adolescence. An emerging literature has examined the role of inflammation in these disorders by measuring blood concentrations of inflammatory markers such as cytokines, C-reactive protein (CRP) and immune markers such as white blood cell counts. However, existing results are inconsistent, with available meta-analyses only including adult populations.

In vitro Inhibition of Clinical Isolates of Otitis Media Pathogens by the Probiotic Streptococcus salivarius BLIS K12.

Otitis media is a common childhood infection, frequently requiring antibiotics. With high rates of antibiotic prescribing and increasing antibiotic resistance, new strategies in otitis media prevention and treatment are needed. The aim of this study was to assess the in vitro inhibitory activity Streptococcus salivarius BLIS K12 against otitis media pathogens.

EACVI survey on investigations and imaging modalities in chronic coronary syndromes.

Aims: The European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging (EACVI) Scientific Initiatives Committee performed a global survey to evaluate current practice for the assessment and management of patients with suspected and confirmed chronic coronary syndromes.

Methods And Results: One-hundred and ten imaging centres from 37 countries across the world responded to the survey. Most non-invasive investigations for coronary artery disease were widely available, except cardiovascular magnetic resonance (available 40% centres).

International Pediatric Otolaryngology Group (IPOG) consensus recommendations: Management of suprastomal collapse in the pediatric population.

Introduction: Suprastomal Collapse (SuStCo) is a common complication of prolonged tracheostomy in children. There is a paucity of literature on this subject, especially regarding how to manage significant suprastomal collapse that prevents safe decannulation.

Objective: Provide a definition, classification system, and recommend management options for significant suprastomal collapse in children with tracheostomy.

Flexible Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing in Breastfeeding Infants With Laryngomalacia: Observed Clinical and Endoscopic Changes With Alteration of Infant Positioning at the Breast.

Objectives: This retrospective cohort study uses endoscopic assessment of the pharyngeal phase of swallowing in infants with laryngomalacia, to ascertain the impact of infant positioning on airway compromise and fluid dynamics during breastfeeding. The study aims to identify whether modification of infant positioning at the breast may improve the possibility of safe, successful breastfeeding in infants with laryngomalacia and concurrent breastfeeding difficulty.

Methods: Twenty-three infants referred for noisy breathing and difficulty feeding were assessed with flexible endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) during breastfeeding.

Adverse health effects associated with household air pollution: a systematic review, meta-analysis, and burden estimation study.

Background: 3 billion people worldwide rely on polluting fuels and technologies for domestic cooking and heating. We estimate the global, regional, and national health burden associated with exposure to household air pollution.

Methods: For the systematic review and meta-analysis, we systematically searched four databases for studies published from database inception to April 2, 2020, that evaluated the risk of adverse cardiorespiratory, paediatric, and maternal outcomes from exposure to household air pollution, compared with no exposure.

Monitoring indirect impact of COVID-19 pandemic on services for cardiovascular diseases in the UK.

Objective: To monitor hospital activity for presentation, diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases during the COVID-19) pandemic to inform on indirect effects.

Methods: Retrospective serial cross-sectional study in nine UK hospitals using hospital activity data from 28 October 2019 (pre-COVID-19) to 10 May 2020 (pre-easing of lockdown) and for the same weeks during 2018-2019. We analysed aggregate data for selected cardiovascular diseases before and during the epidemic.