Publications by authors named "Rerkasem K"

Article Synopsis
  • AI is transforming medical writing by increasing efficiency and accuracy in healthcare communication and research, while still requiring human expertise.
  • AI technologies like natural language processing help with rapid draft creation, literature summarization, and consistent documentation, particularly in areas such as ischemic leg ulcers.
  • Despite its benefits, AI raises ethical concerns, such as biases and privacy issues, emphasizing the need for human oversight and further research on cost-effectiveness in clinical trials and medical writing.
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Lower extremity arteriovenous (AV) access serves as a crucial alternative for hemodialysis when upper extremity options are no longer viable. While there are numerous reports on functional patency, limited information exists regarding complications related to venous insufficiency and postoperative quality of life. This study aims to assess the actual incidence of such complications and provide evidence-based insights for clinical decision-making.

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Objective: Two walking tests including the six-minute walk test (6MWT) and the incremental shuttle walk test (ISWT) are widely used to evaluate functional ability in individuals with disease conditions. However, it remains unclear whether these walking tests effectively manifest clinical impairment in individuals with asymptomatic peripheral artery disease (PAD). We aimed (i) to compare the walking performance of individuals with and without asymptomatic PAD using the 6MWT and ISWT, and (ii) to investigate the correlation between ankle-brachial index and toe-brachial index (ABI-TBI) and the walking distance.

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Article Synopsis
  • * Data from 356 patients were analyzed, revealing that the 30-day amputation rates were comparable between PF (12.5%) and NPF (10%) groups, but PF patients had significantly lower overall survival rates within 30 days and long-term (1 and 5 years) compared to NPF.
  • * Additionally, wound infection rates were higher in the PF group (5.5%) than in the NPF group (1.7%), suggesting
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  • A study in rural Northern Thailand explored how arterial stiffness affects health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in older adults with HIV, highlighting elevated cardiovascular risks among this group.
  • 338 participants aged 50 and over were tracked over five years, with findings indicating that higher arterial stiffness (CAVI ≥8) was linked to lower physical and mental health scores compared to those with normal levels (CAVI <8).
  • The study emphasizes the need for regular screening and comprehensive care strategies to address cardiovascular risks in older adults with HIV, although its findings may not be widely applicable due to regional limitations and participant dropout.
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Vascular pythiosis is a dreadful vascular infection that presents as a chronic leg ulcer. To distinguish this infectious disease from atherosclerotic occlusion of the lower limb, we investigated the imaging appearance and presence of thick and irregular arterial wall enhancement, named crusty thrombosed arterial sign, on computed tomography images in cases with vascular pythiosis infection of lower extremities. In this study, 13 cases of vascular pythiosis of lower extremities with available images from 2016 to 2022 were reviewed and the presence of crusty thrombosed arterial signs, segments of vascular involvement, and radiological findings of hematologic disease, including hepatosplenomegaly and bone changes were recorded.

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Objectives: After forearm and arm cephalic veins are no longer available as options, the choices of arm vascular access between one-staged brachial-basilic vein transposition (BBAVF) and arm straight arteriovenous graft (AS-AVG) for hemodialysis are controversial. This study aims to compare outcomes between groups.

Methods: All one-staged BBAVF and AS-AVG from August 2014 to December 2019 were reviewed.

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Background: Maternal obesity is associated with an increased risk of large-for-gestational-age births and childhood obesity. However, evidence on its potential associations with long-term offspring body composition remains limited. This prospective cohort study examined associations between maternal body mass index (BMI) during pregnancy and body composition in the young adult offspring.

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Antibiotic resistance (AR) associated with chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI) poses additional challenges for the management of ischemic leg ulcers, increasing the likelihood of severe outcomes. This study assessed AR prevalence in bacteria isolated from CLTI-associated leg ulcers before (1 January 2017-10 March 2020; = 69) and during (11 March 2020-31 December 2022; = 59) the COVID-19 pandemic from patients admitted with positive wound cultures to a regional hospital in Chiang Mai (Thailand). There was a marked reduction in AR rates from 78% pre-pandemic to 42% during the pandemic ( < 0.

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Pythiosis is an infectious disease in humans and animals caused by an aquatic fungus-like micro-organism, . Vascular pythiosis is a difficult condition to treat and can lead to loss of limb in addition to being a potentially life-threatening infection. The condition is furthermore unfamiliar among healthcare workers, which often results in delayed treatment or even misdiagnosis.

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This study aims to explore the effect in each stage of chronic kidney disease (CKD) on the major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in diabetes mellitus (DM) patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD). A total of 246 DM patients with diagnosed PAD were enrolled in this study. Of these, 86 patients (35%) died and 34 patients had non-fatal cardiovascular events occurred at the last 7 years follow-up.

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Critical limb ischemia (CLI) is the advanced stage of peripheral arterial disease, which impairs blood flow to the extremities due to occlusion of arteries, in which patients suffer from ischemic pain at rest and gangrene or ulcers. It is frequently accompanied by major adverse cardiac events, resulting in exceedingly high mortality from a cardiac or cerebrovascular event in this population. Although there have been considerable amounts of novel and costly revascularization and wound dressing technology, mortality is still high.

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Objectives: This review aims to undertake a comprehensive review of the literature and investigate associations of age and gender on 30 days post carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and up to 5 years post CEA stroke, death, and combined stroke and death.

Design: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Methods: Three main electronic databases including the Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, and Embase were searched from their inception to July 2022.

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Exercise training adjuvant to standard compression is considered to improve calf muscle pump dysfunction in venous leg ulcer (VLU) and subsequent healing. The objectives of this trial were to assess the effectiveness of a tailored exercise training intervention in addition to standard compression therapy on health-related quality of life and anticipating wound healing. Twenty-four VLU participants were recruited and randomly divided into 2 groups.

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Since the introduction of antiretroviral treatment (ART), people living with HIV worldwide live into older age. This observational study described the characteristics, clinical outcomes, and mortality of older adults living with HIV (OALHIV) receiving ART from the National AIDS program in northern Thailand. Participants aged ≥ 50 years were recruited from the HIV clinics in 12 community hospitals.

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Background: There is uncertainty whether elderly patients with symptomatic carotid stenosis have higher rates of adverse events following carotid endarterectomy. In trials, recurrent stroke risk on medical therapy alone increased with age, whereas operative stroke risk was not related. Few octogenarians were included in trials and there has been no systematic analysis of all study types.

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Background: In animal models, prenatal zinc deficiency induced epigenetic changes in the fetus, but data in humans are lacking. We aimed to examine associations between maternal zinc levels during pregnancy and DNA methylation in LINE-1 and Alu repetitive sequences in young adult offspring, as well as anthropometry and cardiometabolic parameters.

Methods: Participants were 74 pregnant women from the Chiang Mai Low Birth Weight cohort, and their offspring followed up at 20 years of age.

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Background: The failure of arteriovenous fistulas (AVF) to mature is a major problem in patients with kidney failure who require haemodialysis (HD). Preoperative planning is an important factor in increasing functional AVF. Upper limb exercise has been recommended to gain AVF maturation.

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The polyester dressing containing herbal extract had been used for several years. However, some properties had not been investigated. This study examined three parts including in vitro studies, skin irritation in an animal model, and the pilot clinical study in traumatic wounds.

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