Development and validation of the renal dosing questionnaire (RDQ-13) for pharmacists.

Pharmacists, as an integral part of the healthcare team, can play a crucial role in preventing drug-related problems in patients with chronic kidney disease that arise due to inappropriate doses. This study aimed to develop and validate a new tool, the renal dosing questionnaire (RDQ-13), for pharmacists working across hospital, community, and retail pharmacy settings. A cross-sectional study was conducted from January to March 2023 among pharmacists working in different settings.

Neuroanatomical and pharmaco-physiological effects of hypoxia and esketamine on breathing, the sympathetic nerve system, and cortical function.

Acute hypoxic ventilatory response is an important reflex that helps maintain breathing during low oxygen levels, but it is attenuated by most general anaesthetics. Analgesic doses of ketamine and esketamine are known to have respiratory stimulant effects. In their recent study in the British Journal of Anaesthesia, Jansen and colleagues show that low-dose esketamine preserved the acute hypoxic ventilatory response, while increasing breathing rate, systolic blood pressure, and heart rate.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma in the Sudan: clinical behavior, DNA ploidy and S-phase fraction characteristics.

Background: The DNA ploidy and the S phase fraction (SPF) are associated with advanced tumors progression. The present study aimed to investigate the clinicopathological behavior of oral squamous cell carcinoma(OSCC) and the prognostication of the DNA ploidy and the SPF on its clinical outcomes.

Methods: This a prospective longitudinal study of 93 OSCC patients (186 specimens).

Cucurbit[7]uril and β-cyclodextrin as hosts for dopamine: complexation, affinity, and computational insights.

Dopamine (DP), an essential neurotransmitter implicated in diverse brain functions, was investigated as a guest molecule within the host cavities of cucurbit[7]uril (CB7) and β-cyclodextrin (βCD) using isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), UV-titration, H NMR, molecular dynamics (MD) and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The experimentally estimated binding constants of the 1:1 complexes of DP with CB7 and βCD were found to be 5.3 × 10 and 2.

Comparing dual oral agents plus insulin vs. Triple oral agents in uncontrolled type II diabetes: A pilot study.

Introduction: Type II Diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients often do not achieve glycemic control with oral hypoglycemic agents (OHAs). There are two main approaches to address this challenge: transitioning to a triple OHA regimen, or adding Insulin to the existing dual OHA regimen.

Aim: This study aimed to compare the efficacy of adding Insulin to dual OHAs (Sitagliptin + Metformin) against adding a third OHA to Sitagliptin + Metformin in achieving glycemic control among patients with uncontrolled T2DM.

Global Pathology: A Snapshot of the Problems, the Progress, and the Potential.

Context.—: For equitable global health care, the United Nations has outlined Sustainable Development Goals for health in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) with the goal of reaching universal health care by 2030. Currently, 47% of the global population lacks access to basic diagnostics for many common diseases.

Association of Gestational Iron-deficiency Anemia with Antenatal Depression among Pregnant Women: A Case-control Study from Tertiary Care Hospitals, Lahore.

Objective: The goal of this study is to investigate the potential association between gestational anemia and antenatal depression in pregnant women.

Methods: It is a case-control study consisting of 684 pregnant women under 18 years recruited in different tertiary care hospitals, in Lahore, between June 2023 and December 2023. Utilizing an online questionnaire, data collection encompassed demographics, dietary habits, and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS).

Transpulmonary Pressure as a Predictor of Successful Lung Recruitment: Reanalysis of a Multicenter International Randomized Clinical Trial.

Background: Recruitment maneuvers are used in patients with ARDS to enhance oxygenation and lung mechanics. Heterogeneous lung and chest-wall mechanics lead to unpredictable transpulmonary pressures and could impact recruitment maneuver success. Tailoring care based on individualized transpulmonary pressure might optimize recruitment, preventing overdistention.

Patients' intention to make an up-front payment at private outpatient clinics in Malaysia as a no-show reduction method.

Regulating patients' no-show behavior is critical from the standpoints of sustainable medical services and operational efficiencies. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the patients' intention to make partial up-front payments at outpatient clinics. This was a cross-sectional study design introducing a self-administered questionnaire to 221 outpatients at a private health facility.

The association between intraoperative low driving pressure ventilation and perioperative healthcare-associated costs: A retrospective multicenter cohort study.

Study Objective: A low dynamic driving pressure during mechanical ventilation for general anesthesia has been associated with a lower risk of postoperative respiratory complications (PRC), a key driver of healthcare costs. It is, however, unclear whether maintaining low driving pressure is clinically relevant to measure and contain costs. We hypothesized that a lower dynamic driving pressure is associated with lower costs.

Previous Coronavirus Disease-2019 Infection and Lung Mechanics in Surgical Patients: A Hospital Registry Study.

Background: Long-term pulmonary complications have been reported after a coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). We hypothesized that a history of COVID-19 is associated with a measurable decrease in baseline respiratory system compliance in patients undergoing general anesthesia.

Methods: In this hospital registry study, we included adult patients undergoing general anesthesia between January 2020 and March 2022 at a tertiary health care network in Massachusetts.

HIV Knowledge and Its Associated Sociodemographic Factors among Female Sex Workers in Malaysia.

Background: Female sex workers (FSWs) have a high risk of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. In spite of the alarming fact that a large proportion of FSWs does not have adequate HIV knowledge, the association between sociodemographic factors and HIV knowledge among FSWs have yet to be thoroughly explored in the context of Malaysia. The aims of this study are the following: i) to determine HIV knowledge and ii) to examine the associated factors of HIV knowledge.

Relationship between anaemia, hypoalbuminaemia, and dietary lifestyle of the older adults attending a primary care clinic in Nigeria.

Objectives: To determine the prevalence and severity of anaemia and assess the relationship between dietary lifestyle, hypoalbuminaemia, and anaemia of older persons.

Design: A cross-sectional hospital-based study.

Setting: This study was conducted in the General Outpatient Clinic, the primary care unit of Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital in Kano, Nigeria.

Recurrence of oral squamous cell carcinoma in surgically treated patients at Khartoum Teaching Dental Hospital retrospective cross-sectional study.

Background: In terms of survival rate, recurrent oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) after primary surgery is considered as a poor prognostic indicator.

Objective: This study aims to determine the incidence of OSCC recurrence among patients treated at Khartoum Teaching Dental Hospital (KTDH) and possible risk factors associated with it.

Methods: Records of 303 patients with a history of radical surgery were retrieved from the hospital's archives, and the histopathological records were retrieved from the archival specimens of Professor Ahmed Suleiman Oral Pathology Laboratory, Faculty of Dentistry, and University of Khartoum.

Association of anaesthesia provider sex with perioperative complications: a two-centre retrospective cohort study.

Background: Previous studies suggested that surgeon sex is associated with differential patient outcomes. Whether this also applies to anaesthesia providers is unclear. We hypothesised that female sex of the primary anaesthesia provider is associated with lower risk of perioperative complications.

The genetics of spontaneous coronary artery dissection: a scoping review.

Background: Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is a multifactorial process that involves predisposing factors and precipitating stressors. Genetic abnormality has been implicated to play a mechanistic role in the development of SCAD. This systematic review aims to summarize the current evidence concerning the link between SCAD and genetic abnormalities.

Population Pharmacokinetic and Exposure-Response Modeling to Inform Risankizumab Dose Selection in Patients With Ulcerative Colitis.

Data from phase IIb/III and phase III studies were used to characterize the population pharmacokinetics of risankizumab and its exposure-response relationships for efficacy and safety in ulcerative colitis (UC) patients. A two-compartment model with first-order absorption and elimination accurately described risankizumab pharmacokinetics. Although certain covariates, namely, body weight, serum albumin, fecal calprotectin, sex, corticosteroid use, advanced therapy inadequate response, and pancolitis, were statistically correlated with risankizumab clearance, their impact on exposure was not clinically meaningful for efficacy or safety.

Presence of Cryptosporidium parvum in pre-washed vegetables from different supermarkets in South East England: A pilot study.

Cryptosporidium is an important water-borne and food-borne parasite with a high burden of disease. This organism has been shown to contaminate various leafy vegetables; however, studies assessing the presence of Cryptosporidium spp in pre-washed and ready-to-eat vegetables are limited. Routine surveillance in the UK revealed a nationwide exceedance of human cases of Cryptosporidium.

Ion transport induced room-temperature insulator-metal transition in single-crystalline CuSe.

CuSe is a superionic conductor above 414 K, with ionic conductivities reaching that of molten salts. The superionic behavior results from hopping Cu ions between different crystallographic sites within the Se scaffold. However, the properties of CuSe below 414 K are far less known due to experimental limitations imposed by the bulk or polycrystalline samples that have been available so far.

A Nearly Missed Case of Mitral Bioprosthetic Paravalvular Leak (PVL)-Related Waring Blender Syndrome Treated With Transcatheter Mitral PVL Closure.

A 72-year-old woman with recently diagnosed non-small cell lung cancer, who underwent cardiac bypass and bioprosthetic mitral valve replacement presented to our cancer center with lightheadedness, severe fatigue, and shortness of breath. Initial blood tests showed mild hemolytic anemia. The patient also complained of occasional bright red bleeding per rectum.