A new preprocedural predictive risk model for post-endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography pancreatitis: The SuPER model.

Background: Post-endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) pancreatitis (PEP) is a severe and deadly adverse event following ERCP. The ideal method for predicting PEP risk before ERCP has yet to be identified. We aimed to establish a simple PEP risk score model (SuPER model: Support for PEP Reduction) that can be applied before ERCP.

Predictive accuracy of lactate albumin ratio for mortality in intensive care units: a nationwide cohort study.

Background: The lactate albumin ratio (LAR), a simple prognostic marker used in intensive care units (ICUs), combines lactate and serum albumin levels to predict patient outcomes. Despite its potential, the predictive accuracy of the LAR remains insufficiently explored. This study aimed to assess the usefulness of the LAR in predicting mortality among patients in the ICU.

Sonic Hedgehog signaling regulates the optimal differentiation pace from early-stage mesoderm to cardiogenic mesoderm in mice.

Sonic Hedgehog (Shh), encoding an extracellular signaling molecule, is vital for heart development. Shh null mutants show congenital heart disease due to left-right asymmetry defects stemming from functional anomaly in the midline structure in mice. Shh signaling is also known to affect cardiomyocyte differentiation, endocardium development, and heart morphogenesis, particularly in second heart field (SHF) cardiac progenitor cells that contribute to the right ventricle, outflow tract, and parts of the atrium.

Analysis of Pleiotropic Effects of Nivolumab in Patients with relapsed Pleural Mesothelioma: A Single center retrospective study.

Introduction: In August 2018, the Japanese PMDA approved nivolumab, an immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI), for previously treated, unresectable, advanced, or recurrent pleural mesothelioma (PM) based on the MERIT trial, a phase II study of 34 cases. However, concerns regarding limited evidence persist.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 83 patients with previously treated, unresectable, advanced, or recurrent malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) treated with nivolumab from August 2018 to May 2022.

Physiological effects of combined breathing and physical training in middle-aged and older adults.

[Purpose] The safety and physiological effects of combined training with breathing resistance and sustained physical exertion in middle-aged and older adults remain unclear. This pilot study investigated the safety and physiological benefits of this training method in older adults. [Participants and Methods] Participants aged 55-75 without respiratory, circulatory, or metabolic diseases were randomly divided into two groups: a combined breathing and physical training group and a control group.

Evaluation of the Adequacy of Using the Supraglottic Airway Device (i-gel®) in Cases With Epiglottic Masses: A Mannequin Simulation Study.

Background: Epiglottic masses are often asymptomatic, making them difficult to detect during preoperative examinations. Consequently, anesthesiologists may face ventilation difficulties with no apparent cause. Epiglottic masses can sometimes obstruct laryngoscope insertion into the epiglottic vallecula, complicating general anesthesia induction.

The relationship between long COVID, labor productivity, and socioeconomic losses in Japan: A cohort study.

Objectives: We examined shifts in labor productivity and their economic ramifications among adult patients with long COVID in Japan.

Methods: A total of 396 patients were categorized into three groups based on symptom progression: non-long COVID, long COVID recovered, and long COVID persistent. Patient-reported outcomes were assessed at three time intervals: 3, 6, and 12 months after COVID-19 diagnosis.

Differential linea alba width in pediatric umbilical hernias: a comparative analysis.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between linea alba width and unclosed pediatric umbilical hernias.

Methods: A retrospective chart review was conducted on patients with pediatric umbilical hernias persisting beyond the age of 2, from April 2014 to March 2021. Additionally, data from children who underwent computed tomography (CT) for other conditions or injuries, such as diarrhea or traffic accidents, were collected from April 2010 to March 2022.

Utility of Orthosis in the Conservative Treatment of Proximal Phalanx Fractures: A Preliminary Study in Healthy Participants.

Background: The standard treatment for the conservative management of a proximal phalanx fracture of the little finger involves immobilizing the fracture site with a cast. However, cast immobilization presents challenges in maintaining hygiene during treatment and restricts the fine motor movements of the fingers. In this study, we developed a removable orthosis that immobilizes only the ring and little fingers.

Lanthanide chloride clusters, LnCl, = 1-6: an ion mobility and DFT study of isomeric structures and interconversion timescales.

Ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) (also including IMS-IMS measurements) as well as DFT calculations have been used to study isomer distributions and isomer interconversion in a range of electrospray-generated lanthanide chloride cluster anions, LnCl (where = 1-6, and Ln corresponds to the 15 lanthanide elements (except for radioactive Pm)). Where measurement and structural rearrangement timescales allow, we obtain almost quantitative agreement between experiment and theory thus confirming isomer predictions and reproducing isomer intensity ratios. LnCl structures reflect strong ionic bonding with limited directionality.

Therapeutic Agents and Patient Characteristics Affecting Metabolism of Thiopurines in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

Objectives: In inflammatory bowel disease therapy, thiopurines have been essential.　However, several reports have investigated factors affecting thiopurine metabolism to date.　This study investigated factors affecting intracellular concentrations of 6-thioguanine nucleotide (6-TGN) and 6-methylmercaptopurine (6-MMP) in a real-world setting.

Real-world toxicity and efficacy of asciminib in heavily pretreated patients with chronic myeloid leukemia.

Although tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have improved the prognosis of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), some patients do not respond to TKIs. We evaluated 21 patients with CML treated with asciminib, which is effective in heavily pretreated patients. The median age was 63 years (range 25-82).

Novel integrated multiomics analysis reveals a key role for integrin beta-like 1 in wound scarring.

Exacerbation of scarring can originate from a minority fibroblast population that has undergone inflammatory-mediated genetic changes within the wound microenvironment. The fundamental relationship between molecular and spatial organization of the repair process at the single-cell level remains unclear. We have developed a novel, high-resolution spatial multiomics method that integrates spatial transcriptomics with scRNA-Seq; we identified new characteristic features of cell-cell communication and signaling during the repair process.

One-Step Esterification of Phosphoric, Phosphonic and Phosphinic Acids with Organosilicates: Phosphorus Chemical Recycling of Sewage Waste.

Global concerns regarding the depletion and strategic importance of phosphorus resources have increased demand for the recovery and recycling. However, waste-derived phosphorus compounds, primarily as chemically inert phosphoric acid or its salts, present a challenge to their direct conversion into high-value chemicals. We aimed to develop an innovative technology that utilizes the large quantities of sewage waste, bypasses the use of white phosphorus, and enables esterification of phosphoric acid to produce widely applicable phosphate triesters.

Differences in regions of interest to identify deeply invasive colorectal cancers: Computer-aided diagnosis vs expert endoscopists.

Diagnostic performance of a computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) system for deep submucosally invasive (T1b) colorectal cancer was excellent, but the "regions of interest" (ROI) within images are not obvious. Class activation mapping (CAM) enables identification of the ROI that CAD utilizes for diagnosis. The purpose of this study was a quantitative investigation of the difference between CAD and endoscopists.

Integration of Augmented Reality in Temporal Bone and Skull Base Surgeries.

Augmented reality technologies provide transformative solutions in various surgical fields. Our research focuses on the use of an advanced augmented reality system that projects 3D holographic images directly into surgical footage, potentially improving the surgeon's orientation to the surgical field and lowering the cognitive load. We created a novel system that combines exoscopic surgical footage from the "ORBEYE" and displays both the surgical field and 3D holograms on a single screen.

Impact of bone marrow nucleated cell subfractions on transplant outcomes in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Objectives: Our previous study showed that a high pre-transplant nucleated cell count in the bone marrow is associated with increased non-relapse mortality (NRM) and decreased overall survival (OS) in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in remission. In this retrospective multicenter study, we aimed to examine the association between nucleated cell subfractions and transplant outcomes using the same patient cohort as our previous study.

Methods: This study included patients with ALL who underwent their first allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) between 2010 and 2022.