Improved cognition and preserved hippocampal fractional anisotropy in subjects undergoing carotid endarterectomy "CEA preserves cognition & hippocampal structure".

Objectives: A growing body of data indicates that extracranial carotid artery disease (ECAD) can contribute to cognitive impairment. However, there have been mixed reports regarding the benefit of carotid endarterectomy (CEA) as it relates to preserving cognitive function. In this work, diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) and neurocognitive testing are used to provide insight into structural and functional brain changes that occur in subjects with significant carotid artery stenosis, as well as changes that occur in response to CEA.

Workflow and Patient Satisfaction in Treating Peripheral Arterial Disease in the Office-Based Setting.

Contemporary concepts in health-care reform promote a shift in the provision of care away from hospitals in favor of the more cost-effective and efficient use of outpatient facilities including ambulatory surgery centers and office-based procedure centers particularly in the care of cardiovascular disease. This article reviews the experience of patients and specialists in caring for patients with peripheral arterial disease in an office-based care setting.

Solid state, pulsed-wave 355 nm UV laser atherectomy debulking in the treatment of infrainguinal peripheral arterial disease: The Pathfinder Registry.

Background: Atherectomy is an important option for debulking atherosclerotic plaque from diseased arteries in patients with infrainguinal arterial disease. Laser atherectomy uses a high-powered laser to remove the plaque from the arteries to restore blood flow.

Aims: The Pathfinder multicenter registry was initiated to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the 355 nm laser atherectomy system in a real-world setting for the treatment of de novo, re-stenotic and in-stent restenosis (ISR) lesions in infrainguinal arteries of patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD).

Initial experience with the ambulatory management of acute iliofemoral deep vein thrombosis with May-Thurner syndrome with percutaneous mechanical thrombectomy, angioplasty and stenting.

Objective: Patients undergoing intervention for acute iliofemoral deep vein thrombosis (IFDVT) with May-Thurner syndrome (MTS) typically require inpatient (IP) hospitalization for initial treatment with anticoagulation and management with pharmacomechanical thrombectomy. Direct oral anticoagulants and percutaneous mechanical thrombectomy (PMT) devices offer the opportunity for outpatient (OP) management. We describe our approach with these patients.

Convalescent Plasma Therapy in Immunocompromised Patients Infected With the BA.1 or BA.2 Omicron SARS-CoV-2.

The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant has led to a complete reconfiguration of the therapeutic landscape, with all monoclonal antibodies having lost any neutralization activity. We report here a case series of 75 immunocompromised patients infected by the Omicron variant who benefited from COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP). At Day 28, the overall survival was 76% (95% CI 67-86) with no significant difference in the clinical outcome between patients with hematological malignancies, solid organ transplantation or autoimmune diseases.

Antimicrobial for 7 or 14 Days for Febrile Urinary Tract Infection in Men: A Multicenter Noninferiority Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Randomized Clinical Trial.

Background: The optimal duration of antimicrobial therapy for urinary tract infections (UTIs) in men remains controversial.

Methods: To compare 7 days to 14 days of total antibiotic treatment for febrile UTIs in men, this multicenter randomized, double-blind. placebo-controlled noninferiority trial enrolled 282 men from 27 centers in France.

Acute Limb Arterial Ischemia Following Iliac Vein Stenting in the Setting of a Frozen Pelvis.

The authors report on a young patient with previous radiation to her pelvis who presented with acute limb ischemia following iliac vein stenting believed to be secondary to extrinsic iliac artery compression in the setting of a frozen pelvis. She underwent revascularization and a trans-femoral amputation, ultimately needing a femoral to femoral artery crossover bypass in order to achieve amputation stump healing. This case describes a potential arterial complication of venous stenting in a previously irradiated field.

Increased risk of severe COVID-19 in hospitalized patients with SARS-CoV-2 Alpha variant infection: a multicentre matched cohort study.

Background: The impact of the variant of concern (VOC) Alpha on the severity of COVID-19 has been debated. We report our analysis in France.

Methods: We conducted an exposed/unexposed cohort study with retrospective data collection, comparing patients infected by VOC Alpha to contemporaneous patients infected by historical lineages.

Ibalizumab shows in-vitro activity against group A and group B HIV-2 clinical isolates.

Objective: Treatment of multidrug-resistant HIV-2 is an emerging issue, because of the rapid selection of mutations at time of virological failure and the low number of antiretrovirals active on HIV-2. The aim of this study was to determine the susceptibility of HIV-2 primary isolates to ibalizumab, a long-acting monoclonal antibody that binds to CD4 that is approved for the treatment of MDR HIV-1.

Methods: In-vitro phenotypic susceptibility of 16 HIV-2 primary isolates was measured using a modified version of the ANRS peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) assay.

The Use of Re-Entry Devices Through Pedal Arterial Access in the Management of Chronic Limb-Threatening Ischemia.

Infra-inguinal arterial chronic total occlusions remain a challenging scenario for the endovascular practitioner. Retrograde access has quickly become an essential tool in approaching such lesions, increasing the chances of crossing success. When antegrade and retrograde access techniques fail in achieving lesion crossing, re-entry devices have proven to be useful.

Convalescent plasma improves overall survival in patients with B-cell lymphoid malignancy and COVID-19: a longitudinal cohort and propensity score analysis.

Patients with hematological malignancy and COVID-19 display a high mortality rate. In such patients, immunosuppression due to underlying disease and previous specific treatments impair humoral response, limiting viral clearance. Thus, COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP) therapy appears as a promising approach through the transfer of neutralizing antibodies specific to SARS-CoV-2.

Delayed inflammation decrease is associated with mortality in Tocilizumab-treated critically ill SARS-CoV-2 patients: A retrospective matched-cohort analysis.

Little is known about the immuno-inflammatory response to Tocilizumab and its association with outcome in critically-ill SARS-CoV2 pneumonia. In this multicenter retrospective cohort of SARS-CoV-2 patients admitted to three intensive care units between March and April 2020, we matched on gender and SAPS II 21 Tocilizumab-treated patients to 42 non-treated patients. Need for mechanical ventilation was 76% versus 79%.

Why are people still dying of drug-susceptible TB in Paris in the 21 century?

Although the burden of TB is lower in France than in low-income countries, patients continue to die from TB in Paris. Our goal was to describe TB-related deaths and to identify associated risk factors. We conducted a retrospective cohort study in two hospitals in Paris between 2013 and 2018.

Tocilizumab and COVID-19: Timing of administration assessment.

Recent evidence showed greater efficacy of tocilizumab (TCZ) in the subgroups of COVID-19 patients who presented with symptoms for less than 7 days and in those only receiving oxygen. We retrospectively analyzed a compassionate use cohort to determine the best timing for TCZ injection. We showed no association between the timing of injection after symptom onset and the efficacy of TCZ on mortality.

A case of leiomyosarcoma of the common femoral artery.

Leiomyosarcomas are rare malignant tumors of smooth muscle cell origin with those originating from blood vessels accounting for <1%. We report the unusual case of a leiomyosarcoma originating in the wall of the common femoral artery, highlighting the management decisions for vascular tumors and providing a brief literature review for these unusual malignancies.

Hybrid Approach with Angiography and Limited Open Exposure to Treat Type Ia Endoleaks after Endovascular Aortic Aneurysm Repair.

Background: Type Ia endoleaks after endovascular aortic repair (EVAR) almost always mandate secondary percutaneous reinterventions. Several patients, however, will require conversion to open surgical repair with complete graft explant, which is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. We herein present 3 cases of hybrid surgical repair for type Ia endoleaks, using a limited open exposure for proximal stent graft edge revision to achieve graft preservation and effective aneurysm sac exclusion.

Retrograde deep femoral artery puncture for the treatment of an iatrogenic dissection flap of the common femoral artery bifurcation.

The authors report on a diabetic patient with tissue loss, previously treated with a femoral-tibial bypass, which occluded shortly after construction. A combination of antegrade contralateral femoral and retrograde tibial access was used for revascularization. Angiogram demonstrated a dissection flap occluding the deep femoral artery flow, which was unable to be crossed from an antegrade approach.

Distal Retrograde Access for Infrainguinal Arterial Chronic Total Occlusions: A Prospective, Single Center, Observational Study in the Office-Based Laboratory Setting.

Objective: To assess the safety and efficacy of retrograde arterial recanalization of infrainguinal CTOs in the OBL setting.

Methods: Consecutive patients who underwent interventions for lower extremity CTOs in the OBL setting by a single vascular surgeon were evaluated (January 2013-November 2017). If antegrade crossing was not possible, then a retrograde distal approach was used.

Emerging RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase Mutation in a Remdesivir-Treated B-cell Immunodeficient Patient With Protracted Coronavirus Disease 2019.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a newly discovered virus for which remdesivir is the only antiviral available. We report the occurrence of a mutation in RdRP (D484Y) following treatment with remdesivir in a 76-year-old female with post-rituximab B-cell immunodeficiency and persistent SARS-CoV-2 viremia. A cure was achieved after supplementation with convalescent plasma.

[The value of healthy skin biopsy in the diagnosis of intravascular B-cell lymphoma: A case report and systematic literature review].

Background: Intravascular large B-cell lymphoma (ivLBCL) is a rare blood dyscrasia that is difficult to diagnose. Healthy skin biopsies may prove useful in diagnosis of the condition. Herein we report a case of ivLBCL diagnosed using this type of examination, and we provide a literature review to determine the sensitivity of such testing.

Invasive cervical cancer in HIV-infected women: risk and survival relative to those of the general population in France. Results from the French Hospital Database on HIV (FHDH)-Agence Nationale de Recherches sur le SIDA et les Hépatites Virales (ANRS) CO4 cohort study.

Objectives: We examined trends in the incidence rates of invasive cervical cancer (ICC) and in the rate of survival after ICC among women living with HIV (WLHIV) in France and compared them to those of the general population.

Methods: Histologically validated incident cases of ICC in the period 1992-2009 from the French Hospital Database on HIV (FHDH-ANRS CO4) were included in the study. Age-standardized incidence rates were estimated for FHDH and the general population in France for 1992-1996 [pre-combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) period], 1997-2000 (early cART period), 2001-2004 (intermediate cART period), and 2005-2009 (late cART period).