Rosmarinic Acid, as an NHE1 Activator, Decreases Skin Surface pH and Improves the Skin Barrier Function.

Stratum corneum (SC) pH regulates skin barrier functions and elevated SC pH is an important factor in various inflammatory skin diseases. Acidic topical formulas have emerged as treatments for impaired skin barriers. Sodium proton exchanger 1 (NHE1) is an important factor in SC acidification.

Correlation between Forced Vital Capacity and the Severity of Frailty-Induced Dysphagia.

Introduction: Frailty syndrome is a complex condition characterized by the gradual deterioration of an individual’s physical, mental, and social functions. Dysphagia is a dysfunction triggered by frailty. However, in patients with frailty syndrome, dysphagia is often undermined, and a proper evaluation is not performed.

Unilateral sternoclavicular arthritis: inflammatory arthritis or septic arthritis, that is the question - a case report.

Sternoclavicular (SC) joint inflammatory arthritis and septic arthritis can have very similar presentations and can be indistinguishable if a joint fluid aspiration sample cannot be obtained. Septic arthritis of the SC joint accounts for less than 1% of all joint infections. Diagnosis is usually made on the basis of the clinical history combined with elevated infection markers in the blood, specific imaging findings, and most importantly, a positive joint aspiration bacterial culture.

The mechanism of action of pulsed radiofrequency in reducing pain: a narrative review.

Pain from nervous or musculoskeletal disorders is one of the most common complaints in clinical practice. Corticosteroids have a high pain-reducing effect, and their injection is generally used to control various types of pain. However, they have various adverse effects including flushing, hyperglycemia, allergic reactions, menstrual changes, immunosuppression, and adrenal suppression.

The Relationship Between Dysphagia and Pneumonia in Acute Stroke Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: Dysphagia is a common complication after stroke and is associated with the development of pneumonia. This study aimed to summarize the relationship between dysphagia and pneumonia in post-stroke patients.

Materials And Methods: Articles published up to November 2021 were searched in the PubMed, Embase, Cochrane library, and Scopus databases.

YouTube as a source of information regarding the effect of vitamin C on coronavirus disease.

Objectives: With the expansion of the internet, social media platforms have become a major source of medical information. However, medical information on online multimedia platforms is often inaccurate. In the current study, we evaluated the reliability, quality, and accuracy of the most viewed YouTube videos featuring the effects of vitamin C on COVID-19.

Hepatitis B core-related antigen serum levels are associated with significant liver fibrosis in treatment-naive chronic HBV infection patients.

Several hepatitis B virus (HBV) serum markers have been identified as risk factors for liver fibrosis in patients with chronic HBV infection, and several noninvasive fibrosis tests based on serum indexes are now used to identify the severity of liver fibrosis. We aimed to identify the relationship between hepatitis B core-related antigen (HBcrAg) serum levels and liver fibrosis in treatment-naive chronic HBV infection patients. A total of 246 treatment-naive chronic HBV infection patients were enrolled in this study.

Clinical and electrophysiological characteristics of respiratory onset amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a single-centre study.

Background: We compared the clinical characteristics of patients with respiratory, bulbar and limb onset amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) who visited a single tertiary centre for 8 years.

Methods: Total of 115 ALS patients with respiratory, bulbar and limb onset ALS, including sex, body mass index (BMI), presence of lung disease, age at diagnosis, disease duration after initial symptoms, ALS Functional Rating Scale (ALSFRS-R) and progression rate (Delta-FS), pulmonary function, amplitude and distal latency (DL) of the phrenic nerves and blood creatine kinase (CK) and uric acid levels were collected.

Results: The prevalence of respiratory, bulbar and limb onset ALS were 5.

Practical Machine Learning Model to Predict the Recovery of Motor Function in Patients with Stroke.

Background: Machine learning (ML) is an artificial intelligence technique in which a system learns patterns and rules from a given data.

Objectives: The objective of the study was to investigate the potential of ML for predicting motor recovery in stroke patients.

Methods: We analyzed data from 833 consecutive stroke patients using 3 ML algorithms: deep neural network (DNN), random forest, and logistic regression.

Short-term Effect of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation on Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathic Pain.

Background: Approximately half of the patients with long-standing diabetes are known to have diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN). Pain from DPN deteriorates quality of life and hinders activities of daily living.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the short-term effect of high-frequency (10 Hz) repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on the left primary motor cortex (M1) for neuropathic pain in the lower extremities due to DPN.

Relationship between treatment types and blood-brain barrier disruption in patients with acute ischemic stroke: Two case reports.

Background: Blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption plays an important role in the development of neurological dysfunction in ischemic stroke. However, diagnostic modalities that can clearly diagnose the degree of BBB disruption in ischemic stroke are limited. Here, we describe two cases in which the usefulness of dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) in detecting BBB disruption was evaluated after treatment of acute ischemic stroke using two different methods.

Ultrasound-guided 3-in-1 trigger point injection for treating myofascial pain syndrome in muscles of the lateral scapular area: a case report.

Background: Myofascial pain syndrome (MPS) is a common cause of musculoskeletal pain. MPS in the muscles of the lateral scapula frequently develops due to poor sitting posture (rounded shoulders and cervical kyphosis) in the office as well as long working hours. Herein, we introduce the use of the trigger point injection (TPI) technique in three muscles (i.

Why does mode of conception affect early breastfeeding outcomes? A retrospective cohort study.

Introduction: It is uncertain whether Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) is associated with an increased risk of poor breastfeeding outcomes and what could be possible mechanisms. This study aimed to examine the effect of mode of conception on breastfeeding outcomes during the first two months postpartum and identify the potential mediating pathways for this relationship.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted in a sample of 3,565 women with live births.

Deterioration of the Corticobulbar Tract in Older Dysphagic Patients Without Neurologic Diseases.

Objectives: Less is known how dysphagia affects older patients without neurologic diseases and whether the symptoms of dysphagia have any association with impaired central control of swallowing. This study investigated the state of the corticobulbar tract, the surrogate marker for the central control of swallowing, in older dysphagic patients without any neurologic diseases, using diffusion tensor tractography.

Design: This retrospective observational study was conducted at a tertiary university hospital including 10 patients 60 yrs or older with oropharyngeal dysphagia without neurological disease and 11 age- and sex-matched control participants.

Iontophoretic ocular delivery of latanoprost-loaded nanoparticles via skin-attached electrodes.

Prolonged drug efficacy to reduce the number of administrations is a key factor in the successful treatment of glaucoma through topical drug delivery to the eye. Therefore, we propose a new strategy for iontophoretic ocular delivery of drug-loaded nanoparticles. Considering safety and convenience, our strategy is involved with topical administration of the drug-loaded nanoparticles followed by their permeation into the eye tissues via noninvasive iontophoresis, using the skin-attached electrodes.

Cytomegalovirus lumbosacral polyradiculitis in patients with long-term use of an oral corticosteroid: a case report.

Background: The long-term use of an oral corticosteroid suppresses immunity. Here, we describe a case involving a patient with weakness in the bilateral lower extremities due to cytomegalovirus (CMV) lumbosacral polyradiculitis.

Case Presentation: A 64-year-old man visited a university hospital for symmetric motor weakness in both lower extremities (Medical Research Council grade: 2).

Deep Learning Analysis to Automatically Detect the Presence of Penetration or Aspiration in Videofluoroscopic Swallowing Study.

Background: Videofluoroscopic swallowing study (VFSS) is currently considered the gold standard to precisely diagnose and quantitatively investigate dysphagia. However, VFSS interpretation is complex and requires consideration of several factors. Therefore, considering the expected impact on dysphagia management, this study aimed to apply deep learning to detect the presence of penetration or aspiration in VFSS of patients with dysphagia automatically.

Microchannel-embedded implantable device with fibrosis suppression for prolonged controlled drug delivery.

For the prolonged, controlled delivery of systemic drugs, we propose an implantable drug-delivery chip (DDC) embedded with pairs of a microchannel and drug-reservoir serving as a drug diffusion barrier and depot, respectively. We pursued a DDC for dual drugs: a main-purpose drug, diclofenac (DF), for systemic exposure, and an antifibrotic drug, tranilast (TR), for local delivery. Thus, the problematic fibrotic tissue formation around the implanted device could be diminished, thereby less hindrance in systemic exposure of DF released from the DDC.

Model-Based Efficacy and Toxicity Comparisons of Moxifloxacin for Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis.

Background: Moxifloxacin (MOX) is used as a first-choice drug to treat multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB); however, evidence-based dosing optimization should be strengthened by integrative analysis. The primary goal of this study was to evaluate MOX efficacy and toxicity using integrative model-based approaches in MDR-TB patients.

Methods: In total, 113 MDR-TB patients from 5 different clinical trials were analyzed for the development of a population pharmacokinetics (PK) model.

The pros and cons of entry restrictions: are entry restrictions really effective in preventing the spread of SARS-CoV-2?

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has rapidly spread worldwide, leading the World Health Organization to declare coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) a pandemic. To curb the unchecked spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection, most countries have enforced travel restrictions. However, it is debatable whether such restrictions are effective in containing infections and preventing pandemics.