True Grit: The Tale of American Integrated Plastic Surgery Residency Applicants.

Introduction: Selecting candidates for plastic and reconstructive surgery (PRS) residency is complex, involving academic metrics and intrinsic personal qualities. "Grit"-perseverance and passion for long-term goals may be one of these valued qualities. This study investigates how grit scores relate to securing a PRS residency, hypothesizing that higher grit correlates with greater matching success.

Polar charge density wave in a superconductor with crystallographic chirality.

Symmetry plays an important role in determining the physical properties in condensed matter physics, as the symmetry operations of any physical property must include the symmetry operations of the point group of the crystal. As a consequence, crystallographic polarity and chirality are expected to have an impact on the Cooper pairing in a superconductor. While superconductivity with crystallographic polarity and chirality have both been found in a few crystalline phases separately; however, their coexistence and material realizations have not been studied.

The impact of demographics and socioeconomic status on the receipt of immunotherapy for stage III melanoma.

Background: There is limited data examining potential disparities in the receipt of immunotherapy among patients with stage III melanoma.

Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort review using the National Cancer Database (NCDB) including adult patients with stage III melanoma between 2004 and 2017. We compared receipt of immunotherapy based on demographic and socioeconomic factors for patients diagnosed 2004-2014 and 2016-2017, before and after FDA approval of immune checkpoint blockade.

Cost Analysis of Early vs Delayed Outpatient Repair of Inguinal Hernias in Premature Infants.

Introduction: Premature infants treated for inguinal hernias after hospital discharge require overnight post-operative observation for apnea monitoring until 50-60 weeks adjusted gestational age (AGA). This study aimed to compare costs associated with early (at time of diagnosis) versus delayed (at AGA not requiring overnight observation) repair of inguinal hernia in premature infants.

Methods: Costs were estimated using the average hospital charges at a single institution for three scenarios: 1) delayed repair 2) early repair requiring overnight observation, and 3) incarcerated inguinal hernia reduced but requiring delayed repair at 48 h.

Characterizing outcomes in a large cohort of latinx patients with autoimmune hepatitis.

Introduction And Objectives: This study aimed to characterize a large cohort of Latinx patients with autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) and analyze clinical outcomes, including biochemical remission, duration of steroid treatment, fibrosis regression, and incidence of clinical endpoints (hepatic decompensation, need for liver transplant, and death).

Materials And Methods: This was a retrospective descriptive study of patients with biopsy proven AIH (2009-2019) at a single urban center. Demographics, medical comorbidities, histology, treatment course, biochemical markers, fibrosis using dynamic non-invasive testing (NIT), and clinical outcomes at three months and at one, two, and three years were analyzed.

Investigation of outcomes following transcatheter edge to edge repair of the mitral valve versus medical management alone in patients with cardiogenic shock and mitral regurgitation.

Study Objective: Assessing if Transcatheter Edge to Edge Repair (TEER) with Mitraclip™ in patients with moderate to severe mitral regurgitation (MR) and cardiogenic shock (CS) improves outcomes compared to medical management alone.

Design: A single-center, retrospective study was performed in an urban tertiary referral center.

Setting: Rush University Medical Center, United States.

A DIEP Dive into Patient Risk Factors for Hernia and Bulge Development: A Meta-regression.

Background:  This meta-regression aims to investigate risk factors for abdominal hernia and bulge in patients undergoing deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flaps and the effect of prophylactic mesh placement on postoperative complications.

Methods:  A systematic search was conducted in July of 2022 in alignment with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines. Seventy-four studies published between 2000 and 2022 met the inclusion criteria.

Written communication and the ICU team experience (WRITE): A pre-post intervention study.

Objective: Families of critically ill patients may benefit from receiving a written update of patient care each day. Our objective was to develop a system to facilitate care provider creation of written updates and to determine the effect of implementing this process on the care provider experience.

Design: The experiences of ICU care providers (nurses, advanced practice providers, and physicians) were measured monthly during a 3-month pre-intervention and a 3-month intervention period.

Optical manipulation of the charge-density-wave state in RbVSb.

Broken time-reversal symmetry in the absence of spin order indicates the presence of unusual phases such as orbital magnetism and loop currents. The recently discovered kagome superconductors AVSb (where A is K, Rb or Cs) display an exotic charge-density-wave (CDW) state and have emerged as a strong candidate for materials hosting a loop current phase. The idea that the CDW breaks time-reversal symmetry is, however, being intensely debated due to conflicting experimental data.

Low-energy electronic structure in the unconventional charge-ordered state of ScVSn.

Kagome vanadates AVSb display unusual low-temperature electronic properties including charge density waves (CDW), whose microscopic origin remains unsettled. Recently, CDW order has been discovered in a new material ScVSn, providing an opportunity to explore whether the onset of CDW leads to unusual electronic properties. Here, we study this question using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) and scanning tunneling microscopy (STM).

Capturing artificial intelligence applications' value proposition in healthcare - a qualitative research study.

Artificial intelligence (AI) applications pave the way for innovations in the healthcare (HC) industry. However, their adoption in HC organizations is still nascent as organizations often face a fragmented and incomplete picture of how they can capture the value of AI applications on a managerial level. To overcome adoption hurdles, HC organizations would benefit from understanding how they can capture AI applications' potential.

Platelet-Rich Plasma, Bone Marrow Aspirate Concentrate, and Hyaluronic Acid Injections Outperform Corticosteroids in Pain and Function Scores at a Minimum of 6 Months as Intra-Articular Injections for Knee Osteoarthritis: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-analysis.

Purpose: To compare the efficacy of common intra-articular injections used in the treatment of knee osteoarthritis, including corticosteroid (CS), hyaluronic acid (HA), platelet-rich plasma (PRP), and bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC), with a minimum follow-up of 6-months.

Methods: A literature search was conducted using the 2020 Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines in August 2022 in the following databases: PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Cochrane Database of Controlled Trials, and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. Level I to II randomized clinical trials with a minimum follow-up of 6 months that investigated the treatments of interest were included.

A nationwide analysis of salvage surgery for laryngeal cancer in the elderly.

Background: We aim to describe outcomes of elderly patients undergoing salvage surgery for laryngeal cancer and to characterize the interplay of age with various other factors in this growing population.

Methods: Using the National Cancer Database, we identified cases of salvage laryngectomy in patients who failed chemoradiation. An age cutoff of 70 years was used to separate subjects into two groups.

Written Communication, Visitation Policies, and Awareness of Medical Issues Among Intensive Care Unit Families.

Background: Open intensive care unit (ICU) visitation policies facilitate communication between clinicians and patients' families. Restrictive visitation policies (eg, during a pandemic) may reduce families' comprehension of information.

Objectives: To determine whether written communication increased awareness of medical issues among ICU families and whether the effect size depended on the visitation policies in place when participants were enrolled.

A new index, Respiratory Insufficiency index and Modified Early Warning Scores predict extubation failure.

Background: Extubation failure occurs in 5%-20% of patients and is associated with poor clinical outcomes. The primary aim of this project was to determine the predictive ability of the Respiratory Insufficiency (RI) index, Respiratory Oxygenation (ROX) index and Modified Early Warning Score (MEWS) in identifying extubation failure.

Methods: This was a secondary analysis of a prior cross-sectional retrospective study conducted from February 2018 through December 2018 among adult subjects who received mechanical ventilation for more than 24 h.

Disparities in Utilization of Same-Day Discharge Following Appendectomy in Children.

Introduction: Disparities in the delivery of pediatric surgical care exist for racial and ethnic minority groups. Utilization of same-day discharge (SDD) following appendectomy for acute, uncomplicated appendicitis is increasing; however, rates among diverse populations have not been explored to evaluate equitable care delivery and healthcare utilization. Our objective was to determine whether race and ethnicity are associated with rates of SDD and postdischarge healthcare utilization.

Patients With Autoimmune Hepatitis and Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: Characteristics, Treatment, and Outcomes.

Goal: The objective of this study was to characterize an autoimmune hepatitis (AIH)/nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) overlap cohort, determine if they received standard of care treatment, and delineate their outcomes in comparison with patients with AIH or NAFLD alone.

Background: AIH is a relatively rare and heterogeneously presenting liver disease of unknown etiology. NAFLD is a leading cause of liver disease worldwide.

Defining diverticular fistula through inpatient admissions: a population study.

Background: Diverticular fistula, a pathologic connection from the colon to the skin or another organ, is an uncommon sequela of diverticular disease. It is generally considered an indication for surgery. The current literature is limited in terms of defining the epidemiology of this disease process.

Daily Written Care Summaries for Families of Critically Ill Patients: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objectives: To determine the effect of daily written updates on the satisfaction and psychologic symptoms of families of ICU patients.

Design: Randomized controlled trial.

Setting: Single, urban academic medical center.

Healthy lifestyle and life expectancy with and without Alzheimer's dementia: population based cohort study.

Objective: To determine the impact of lifestyle factors on life expectancy lived with and without Alzheimer's dementia.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Setting: The Chicago Health and Aging Project, a population based cohort study in the United States.

Impact of Inequities on Delay in Breast Cancer Management in Women Undergoing Second Opinions.

Background: Inequities in breast cancer treatment lead to delay in therapy, decreased survival and lower quality of life. This study aimed to examine demographics and clinical factors impacting time to treatment for second-opinion breast cancer patients.

Materials And Methods: We performed a retrospective chart review to analyze patients presenting to one academic institution for second opinion of breast imaging, diagnosis, or breast-related treatment.

Imposter Syndrome in Surgical Trainees: Clance Imposter Phenomenon Scale Assessment in General Surgery Residents.

Background: Imposter syndrome occurs when high-achieving individuals have a pervasive sense of self-doubt combined with fear of being exposed as a fraud, despite objective measures of success. This threatens mental health and well-being. The prevalence and severity of imposter syndrome has not been studied among general surgery residents on a large scale.