International treatment outcomes of neonates on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) with persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN): a systematic review.

Background: PPHN is a common cause of neonatal respiratory failure and is still a serious condition and associated with high mortality.

Objectives: To compare the demographic variables, clinical characteristics, and treatment outcomes in neonates with PHHN who underwent ECMO and survived compared to neonates with PHHN who underwent ECMO and died.

Methods: We adhered to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guideline and searched ProQuest, Medline, Embase, PubMed, CINAHL, Wiley online library, Scopus and Nature for studies on the development of PPHN in neonates who underwent ECMO, published from January 1, 2010 to May 31, 2023, with English language restriction.

Characteristics of chest pain among children presenting to the pediatric emergency department.

Chest pain in pediatric patients is a common concern in pediatric emergency departments (ED). In most cases, benign conditions are related to noncardiac causes, and only a minority of the cases are caused by heart disease. This research aimed to evaluate the causes and characteristics of chest pain among children in a pediatric emergency department.

A lifestyle intervention to prevent hypertension in primary healthcare settings: A Saudi Arabian feasibility study.

Background: Hypertension is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Saudi Arabia, causing a significant public health challenge in the kingdom. In this study, we aimed to assess the feasibility of the Blood pressure LifeStyle Management (BLSM) program for preventing hypertension by making a significant changes in lifestyle interventions through controlling some risk factors such as behavior, diet, physical activities, and weight in Primary Care.

Aim: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the Blood pressure LifeStyle Management (BLSM) program in reducing blood pressure.

Severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children with inborn errors of immunity (primary immunodeficiencies): a systematic review.

Background: Inborn errors of immunity (IEIs) are considered significant challenges for children with IEIs, their families, and their medical providers. Infections are the most common complication of IEIs and children can acquire coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) even when protective measures are taken.

Objectives: To estimate the incidence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in children with IEIs and analyse the demographic parameters, clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes in children with IEIs with COVID-19 illness.

Longevity of Immunoglobulin-G Antibody Response Against Nucleocapsid Protein Against SARS-CoV-2 Among Healthcare Workers.

Background: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused the latest pandemic and the most significant challenge in public health worldwide. Studying the longevity of naturally developed antibodies is highly important clinically and epidemiologically. This paper assesses the longevity of antibodies developed against nucleocapsid protein amongst our health-care workers.

A Clinical and Biochemical Comparative Study Of Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA) in Newly Diagnosed Vs Known Cases of Type 1 Diabetic Children.

We aimed to study the characterizing clinical and biochemical profiles of Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA) in children with newly diagnosed Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (Type 1DM) compared to children with established diagnosis of Type 1DM presenting with DKA admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit of a large university hospital in the eastern region of Saudi Arabia. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 211 patients who were admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit with diabetic ketoacidosis between 2010 and 2019. The diagnosis of diabetic ketoacidosis was based on symptoms of polydipsia, polyurea, weight loss, vomiting, dehydration, abdominal pain, breathing problems, lethargy or coma, biochemical hyperglycemia (blood glucose level of >200 mg/dL), venous pH of <7.

SAA-UNet: Spatial Attention and Attention Gate UNet for COVID-19 Pneumonia Segmentation from Computed Tomography.

The disaster of the COVID-19 pandemic has claimed numerous lives and wreaked havoc on the entire world due to its transmissible nature. One of the complications of COVID-19 is pneumonia. Different radiography methods, particularly computed tomography (CT), have shown outstanding performance in effectively diagnosing pneumonia.

Family-base rare variant association analysis in Saudi Arabian hydrocephalus subjects using whole exome sequencing.

Background: Hydrocephalus is a highly heterogeneous multifactorial disease that arises from genetic and environmental factors. Familial genetic studies of hydrocephalus have elucidated four robustly associated hydrocephalus associated loci. This study aims to identify potential genetic causation in cases of hydrocephalus, with or without spina bifida and Dandy Walker Syndrome (DWS), using family-based rare variant association analysis of whole exome sequencing.

Thyroid Disorders Spectrum in Pediatric Endocrine Clinic; Seven-Year Experience of a Teaching Hospital in Saudi Arabia.

Thyroid disorders constitute one of the major endocrine disorders in pediatric service. It includes a range of congenital versus acquired anatomic and/or functional thyroid diseases in growing children that has a spectrum of severity from severe intellectual disability effect to subclinical mild pathologies. This study was designed to analyze the demographic characteristics, clinical pattern, and severity of thyroid disorders in the pediatric endocrine clinic patients at the teaching hospital of the university over a 7-year duration.

Development of national framework for health status and health system performance indicators in Saudi Arabia.

Background: The global shift to value-based care has highlighted the necessity for performance measurement in healthcare. While the implementation may be incomplete, governments and providers have been moving towards value-based models of care delivery, funding and performance measurement.

Objectives: The purpose of this report is to illustrate the steps taken in designing the framework in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), using a 4-step approach: Key Input Analysis, Hierarchy Design, Indicator Analysis and Selection, and Indicator Profile Development.

Association between stuttering and psychosocial complications in Saudi Arabian individuals: A pilot study.

Background: Stuttering is a multifaceted speech disorder that affects the interpersonal communication. It has a significant psychosocial impact on individuals who stutter and on their families. Stuttering is associated with substantial psychosocial morbidity, including social or generalized anxiety, stigmatization or discrimination, impaired self-image, and poor quality of life.

Global Coinfections with Bacteria, Fungi, and Respiratory Viruses in Children with SARS-CoV-2: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: Coinfection with bacteria, fungi, and respiratory viruses has been described as a factor associated with more severe clinical outcomes in children with COVID-19. Such coinfections in children with COVID-19 have been reported to increase morbidity and mortality. Objectives: To identify the type and proportion of coinfections with SARS-CoV-2 and bacteria, fungi, and/or respiratory viruses, and investigate the severity of COVID-19 in children.

Study and analysis of the optical absorption cross section and energy states broadenings in quantum dot lasers.

In this report, we measured experimentally the modal absorption spectra of the InP and InAsP quantum dot (QD) lasers using multi-section device technique. The optical absorption cross section ( ) and inhomogeneous broadening for the ground state (GS) and excited state (ES) were analyzed and calculated theoretically from the absorption spectra. The results showed that the InP QD laser exhibited to be and for GS and ES respectively, whereas for the InAsP QD material it was found as and for GS and ES respectively.

Refractory Salmonella Prosthetic Valve Endocarditis Complicated by Splenic Infarction and Aortic Pseudoaneurysm in a Patient with Double Prosthetic Valves: A Case Report.

Endocarditis is an extremely rare complication of with an incidence of 0.2-0.4%.

A Cohort Study of Seroprevalence of Antibodies Against SARS-CoV-2 Infection Among Healthcare Workers at a Tertiary Hospital in Saudi Arabia.

Background: The nature of the healthcare workers' jobs standing at the frontline against the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) puts them at a higher risk of unknowingly contracting the disease and potentially contributing to the spread. This study aims to assess the overall positive seroconversion prevalence of SARS-CoV-2.

Methods: This is a longitudinal cohort study of healthcare workers at Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare (JHAH).

Breast-cancer detection using blood-based infrared molecular fingerprints.

Background: Breast cancer screening is currently predominantly based on mammography, tainted with the occurrence of both false positivity and false negativity, urging for innovative strategies, as effective detection of early-stage breast cancer bears the potential to reduce mortality. Here we report the results of a prospective pilot study on breast cancer detection using blood plasma analyzed by Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy - a rapid, cost-effective technique with minimal sample volume requirements and potential to aid biomedical diagnostics. FTIR has the capacity to probe health phenotypes via the investigation of the full repertoire of molecular species within a sample at once, within a single measurement in a high-throughput manner.

Tawazon- An Intensive Lifestyle Diabetes Prevention Program: The Saudi Arabian Pilot.

Background: Lifestyle modification interventions help prevent or postpone Type 2 Diabetes and its complications with diet modification and increasing physical activity. This is translational research of Tawazon-DPP in which we evaluate the efficacy of the intensive lifestyle modification program.

Methods: Tawazon was piloted in 2 phases over 6 and 9 months at a Tertiary Hospital.

Evaluation of a Video-Assisted Patient Education Program to Reduce Blood Pressure Delivered Through the Electronic Medical Record: Results of a Quality Improvement Project.

Background: Low-cost, automated interventions that increase knowledge and skills around diet and lifestyle modifications are recommended for cardiovascular disease risk reduction.

Methods: We initiated a quality improvement program to assess the impact of a web-based diet and lifestyle intervention utilizing short animated videos in adults with high blood pressure (BP) at a primary care clinic in Saudi Arabia. We enrolled adults with elevated BP, not on BP medications, who were identified using the electronic medical record.

Clinical and economic burden of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis in Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Kuwait.

Background And Aims: The Middle East (ME) has a high prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), driven by obesity and type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Studies in Saudi Arabia (KSA) and United Arab Emirates (UAE) predict an escalating impact of NAFLD/NASH, particularly advanced fibrosis due to NASH (AF-NASH), increasing cases of cirrhosis, liver cancer and death. The scale of this burden in other ME countries is unknown with no reports of NAFLD/NASH healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) or costs.