The Role of IL-6 and TNF-Alpha Biomarkers in Predicting Disability Outcomes in Acute Ischemic Stroke Patients.

Introduction: Inflammatory biomarkers, including Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), play a significant role in influencing stroke outcomes, particularly in the progression of post-stroke disability. While numerous studies have suggested a correlation between elevated levels of these cytokines and poor functional recovery, further investigation is needed to understand their prognostic value in acute ischemic stroke.

Materials And Methods: We conducted a prospective study on 56 patients diagnosed with acute ischemic stroke, evaluating IL-6 and TNF-alpha levels on days 1 and 7 post symptom onset.

Evaluation of real-world evidence to assess health outcomes related to deprescribing medications in older adults: an International Society for Pharmacoepidemiology-endorsed systematic review of methodology.

Background: Observational studies using real-world data (RWD) can address gaps in knowledge on deprescribing medications but are subject to methodological issues. Limited data exist on the methods employed to use RWD to measure the effects of deprescribing.

Objective: To describe methodological approaches used in observational studies of deprescribing medications in older adults.

The effect of carbapenem-resistant versus carbapenem-susceptible infections on patient outcomes at an academic medical center.

Objective: We sought to compare patient outcomes between carbapenem-resistant (CRE) and carbapenem-susceptible (CSE) infections at our academic medical center.

Design: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of adult patients with a positive culture of E. coli, E.

A Literature Review and Meta-Analysis on the Potential Use of miR-150 as a Novel Biomarker in the Detection and Progression of Multiple Sclerosis.

Background: MicroRNA-150 (miR-150) plays a critical role in immune regulation and has been implicated in autoimmune diseases like Multiple Sclerosis (MS). This review aims to evaluate miR-150's potential as a biomarker for MS, necessitating this review to consolidate current evidence and highlight miR-150's utility in improving diagnostic accuracy and monitoring disease progression.

Methods: A comprehensive literature search was conducted in databases like PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, SciSpace, MDPI and Web of Science, adhering to PRISMA guidelines.

Abuse-deterrent formulations and opioid-related harms in North Carolina, 2010-2018.

Abuse-deterrent formulations of opioid analgesics (ADFs) were introduced to reduce opioid-related harms among pain patients, but post-marketing study results have been mixed. However, these studies may be subject to bias from selection criteria, comparator choice, and potential confounding by "indication," highlighting the need for thorough study design considerations. In a sample of privately insured patients prescribed ADF or non-ADF extended-release/long-acting (ER/LA) opioids in North Carolina, we implemented a version of the prevalent new-user design to evaluate the relationship between ADFs and opioid use disorder (OUD, n=235) and opioid overdose (n=18) through six months of follow-up using inverse probability-weighted cumulative incidence functions and Fine-Gray models.

Understanding Gastric GIST: From Pathophysiology to Personalized Treatment.

Gastric gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) represent a subset of gastrointestinal tumors predominantly found in the stomach. Despite their rarity, these tumors carry significant implications for patient health and management. GISTs are potentially malignant tumors with unpredictable progression.

The Association of Gabapentin Initiation with Cognitive and Behavioral Changes in Older Adults with Cognitive Impairment: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background: Although gabapentin has been increasingly prescribed to older adults, the relation between gabapentin initiation and longer-term neurocognitive changes is not well understood. Thus, this study aimed to examine the association of gabapentin initiation with cognitive and motor function decline in older adult participants with cognitive impairment.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted using the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center Uniform Data Set (2005-March 2023).

A Systematic Literature Review on Inflammatory Markers in the Saliva of Patients with Multiple Sclerosis: A Cause or a Consequence of Periodontal Diseases.

: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurodegenerative disease often linked with systemic conditions such as periodontal diseases (PDs). This systematic review aims to explore the association between inflammatory markers in saliva and PDs in MS patients, assessing the use of saliva as a non-invasive tool to monitor disease progression. : 82 publications were examined after a thorough search of scholarly databases to determine whether inflammatory markers were present in MS patients and whether they were associated with periodontal disease (PD).

Medicare medication therapy Management: Beneficiary characteristics and utilization patterns in a national CMS Medicare fee-for-service sample (2013 to 2016).

Background: The Medicare Medication Therapy Management (MTM) program has been available to eligible Medicare Part D beneficiaries since 2006, but research regarding program utilization and characterization is limited.

Objective: To describe enrollee and MTM program characteristics in a national sample of Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) beneficiaries (2013 to 2016).

Methods: Using a 5% random sample of Medicare FFS beneficiaries, we conducted a descriptive time series analysis to examine annual MTM enrollment and describe the type of MTM criteria at enrollment (Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services [CMS] vs.

Correlation between Depth of the Curve of Spee and Some Specific Malocclusion Characteristics in a Population from Sibiu County, Romania-A Cross-Sectional Study.

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the Curve of Spee (COS) depth and malocclusion characteristics in a population from Sibiu County, Romania. The research sought to understand how the COS's anatomical dimensions correlate with different classes of malocclusion and the position of the frontal teeth. A total of 265 participants from the Dentistry Ambulatory of the Military Hospital of Sibiu were included in this study.

Matching study design to prescribing intention: The prevalent new-user design for studying abuse-deterrent formulations of opioids.

Purpose: In drug studies, research designs requiring no prior exposure to certain drug classes may restrict important populations. Since abuse-deterrent formulations (ADF) of opioids are routinely prescribed after other opioids, choice of study design, identification of appropriate comparators, and addressing confounding by "indication" are important considerations in ADF post-marketing studies.

Methods: In a retrospective cohort study using claims data (2006-2018) from a North Carolina private insurer [NC claims] and Merative MarketScan [MarketScan], we identified patients (18-64 years old) initiating ADF or non-ADF extended-release/long-acting (ER/LA) opioids.

Higher First 30-Day Dose of Buprenorphine for Opioid Use Disorder Treatment Is Associated With Decreased Mortality.

Objective: Buprenorphine is a medication for opioid use disorder that reduces mortality. This study aims to investigate the less well-understood relationship between the dose in the early stages of treatment and the subsequent risk of death.

Methods: We used Kentucky prescription monitoring data to identify adult Kentucky residents initiating transmucosal buprenorphine medication for opioid use disorder (January 2017 to November 2019).

Complete regression of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma after right portal vein ligation. Case report.

Introduction: Spontaneous tumor regression is an extremely rare phenomenon in the oncology field.

Presentation Of Case: We present the case of a 72-years-old male patient presenting with a bulky hepatic tumor mass located in segment V and extending into segments IVb and VI with MRI features of atypical cholangiocarcinoma with a liver metastasis in segment III. In first surgical step, excision of the metastasis, and ligation of the right portal vein was done.

National Trends of Vascular Risk Factor Control Among Stroke Survivors: From the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2009 to 2020.

Background: Contemporary data describing the national trends on vascular risk factor control among stroke survivors are limited.

Methods And Results: This is a cross-sectional analysis of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey cycles 2009 to 2010 to 2017 to March 2020. Adults (≥18 years of age) with a self-reported diagnosis of stroke were identified.

Improvement in Post-traumatic Stress Symptoms Following an Internet-based Cognitive-Behavioral Intervention for Insomnia: An Open Trial among Rural Appalachian Women.

Appalachian women face significant health disparities and have limited access to health care. Mental health conditions and treatment-seeking are stigmatized in Appalachian communities. Appalachian women may benefit from web-based interventions targeting less stigmatized health complaints (e.

Transabdominal Preperitoneal Versus Lichtenstein Procedure for Inguinal Hernia Repair in Adults: A Comparative Evaluation of the Early Postoperative Pain and Outcomes.

Inguinal hernia repairs are one of the most common procedures in general surgery. In addition to classical open surgery, laparoscopic techniques, such as transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) and total extraperitoneal (TEP) hernia repair, have gained acceptance and are increasingly used for inguinal hernia repairs, and these three techniques are the only standards for inguinal hernia repairs. This study aimed to compare the results of inguinal hernia repairs in adult patients using the TAPP patch technique and Lichtenstein techniques regarding the level of pain perceived one day after surgery and the number of days of hospitalization.

Translation, cultural adaptation and validation of the revised patients' attitudes towards deprescribing (rPATD) questionnaire in Romanian older adults.

Background: Deprescribing is part of ensuring appropriate medication use and may reduce medication-related harm. Capturing the beliefs and attitudes of patients towards deprescribing by using a validated tool may support optimizing medication use in practice.

Objectives: To translate, culturally adapt and validate the revised Patients' Attitudes Towards Deprescribing (rPATD) questionnaire in Romanian and to investigate the attitudes and beliefs of older adults towards deprescribing.

Urinary Incontinence in a Community-Based Autopsy Cohort Is Associated with Limbic Predominant Age-Related TDP-43 Encephalopathy Neuropathologic Changes.

Background: Dementia and urinary incontinence (UI) are etiologically complex clinical syndromes. Dementia and UI often occur in the same individuals, but underlying factors connecting them are incompletely understood.

Objective: Query data from a community-based autopsy series to assess pathologies that underlie UI.

Prescribing Characteristics of Octreotide Immediate-Release and Long-Acting Release in Patients with Neuroendocrine Tumors.

Background: Treatment recommendations for patients with neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) include the use of octreotide long-acting release (LAR) for long-term therapy and immediate-release (IR) as rescue therapy to control the breakthrough symptoms of carcinoid syndrome (CS). High doses of LAR are commonly used in clinical practice. This study aimed to evaluate the real-world utilization of LAR and preceding IR use at the prescription and patient levels.

Acceptability of patient-centered, multi-disciplinary medication therapy management recommendations: results from the INCREASE randomized study.

Background: Polypharmacy and inappropriate medications may be a modifiable risk factor for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD). Medication therapy management (MTM) interventions may mitigate medication-induced cognitive dysfunction and delay onset of symptomatic impairment. The objective of the current study is to describe an MTM protocol for a patient-centered team intervention (pharmacist and non-pharmacist clinician) in a randomized controlled trial (RCT) directed at delaying the symptomatic onset of ADRD.