Publications by authors named "Villamil A"

This study examined the complexities surrounding migrants' health-seeking behaviors in the United States. Using intersectionality as a guiding analytic, we conducted in-depth interviews with 15 visa-holding migrants from West African, East, and Southeast Asian countries to understand their experiences navigating healthcare in another country. Participants mentioned the convergence of three power systems: nativity/language of origin status, education status, and migration (legal) status.

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  • Obeticholic acid (OCA) was evaluated in the COBALT trial for its effectiveness in treating primary biliary cholangitis (PBC), showing mixed results in the randomized controlled trial (RCT) compared to external controls.
  • In the RCT, similar rates of severe outcomes occurred between OCA and placebo groups, but issues like unblinding influenced the results; however, analysis adjustments gave OCA an advantage.
  • The external control group indicated that OCA significantly lowered the risk of negative outcomes, highlighting its potential benefits for patients with PBC and endorsing the use of real-world data in clinical research.
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  • The study investigates the prognostic value of changes in liver stiffness measurement (LSM) over time in patients with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) who are being treated with ursodeoxycholic acid.
  • It utilizes data from 3,078 patients over a 19-year period, finding that 59% of participants had an increase in LSM, which is linked to a higher risk of serious clinical events such as cirrhosis complications and liver transplants.
  • The research concludes that monitoring LSM changes provides essential prognostic information, suggesting its potential as a valuable endpoint in clinical trials for PBC treatment.
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Background & Aims: Recurrent primary biliary cholangitis (rPBC) develops in approximately 30% of patients and negatively impacts graft and overall patient survival after liver transplantation (LT). There is a lack of data regarding the response rate to ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) in rPBC. We evaluated a large, international, multi-center cohort to assess the performance of PBC scores in predicting the risk of graft and overall survival after LT in patients with rPBC.

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Objective: To evaluate the usefulness of Anali scores, determined by magnetic resonance imaging, for predicting the prognosis of primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) and to analyze interobserver variability, as well as to assess the impact of periportal edema and heterogeneous signal intensity on diffusion-weighted imaging of the liver.

Materials And Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study of 29 patients with PSC and baseline magnetic resonance imaging. Anali scores, without gadolinium (0-5 points) and with gadolinium (0-2 points), were calculated by two radiologists.

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Background: The convergence of hypervirulence and carbapenem resistance in the bacterial pathogen Klebsiella pneumoniae represents a critical global health concern. Hypervirulent K. pneumoniae (hvKp) strains, frequently from sequence type 23 (ST23) and having a K1 capsule, have been associated with severe community-acquired invasive infections.

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  • Seladelpar, a medication aimed at treating primary biliary cholangitis, was tested in a phase 3 trial involving patients who didn't respond well to the standard treatment, ursodeoxycholic acid.
  • The trial showed that a significantly higher percentage of patients taking seladelpar achieved a biochemical response and normalized alkaline phosphatase levels compared to those on placebo.
  • Additionally, seladelpar was more effective in reducing itchiness, with patients reporting greater relief from pruritus than those receiving placebo, although some adverse events were noted.
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Online environments, such as metaverses, provide distinct social environments for people to engage in complex, cognitive, and multidirectional learning and meaning-making experiences. These engaging and influential environments highlight important factors associated with the Social Learning Theory (a process through which external settings influence behavior in specific environments). According to this theory, environments provide a space for youth to engage in reciprocal interactions of interpersonal, behavioral, and environmental cues.

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  • Primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) is a chronic liver disease affecting bile ducts, and the effectiveness of elafibranor, a dual PPAR α and δ agonist, in treating PBC was investigated through a clinical trial.
  • In a phase 3, double-blind trial with 161 participants, those treated with elafibranor showed a significant biochemical response (51%) compared to only 4% in the placebo group, indicating substantial improvement in liver function.
  • While 15% of elafibranor-treated patients normalized their alkaline phosphatase levels, the results for reducing itching (pruritus) between the elafibranor and placebo groups were not statistically
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Background And Purpose: Liver injury after Covid-19 vaccine has been described, although the incidence was not well established. We aimed to compare cumulative incidence of new onset liver test alteration after Covid-19 vaccination, and to compare with an historical control of influenza vaccination.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study which included adults who received at least one dose of Covid-19 vaccine from January 1 to May 30, 2021 and a control group who received a single dose of influenza vaccine during 2019, in a tertiary medical center from Argentina.

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The focus on the negative side of technology has become a prominent factor in the understanding of the interactions between humans and technology. However, there is a positive side to technology use that has been less investigated in scientific research. Well-being researchers have determined that it is not just the absence of negative emotions or experiences, but rather the presence and frequency of positive ones that matter most.

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Background And Aims: Normal alkaline phosphatase (ALP) levels in ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA)-treated patients with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) are associated with better long-term outcome. However, second-line therapies are currently recommended only when ALP levels remain above 1.5 times the upper limit of normal (×ULN) after 12-month UDCA.

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Background & Aims: Liver injury with autoimmune features after vaccination against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is increasingly reported. We investigated a large international cohort of individuals with acute hepatitis arising after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination, focusing on histological and serological features.

Methods: Individuals without known pre-existing liver diseases and transaminase levels ≥5x the upper limit of normal within 3 months after any anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, and available liver biopsy were included.

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Objective: Local control is a major challenge in treating canine nasal tumors, and cytoreduction following radiation therapy has been recommended to extend survival and to delay local recurrence. Our objective was to compare the effect of definitive radiotherapy on the tumor volume of intranasal carcinomas compared to sarcomas. We evaluated 15 dogs that received radiotherapy within 1 month of initial CT scan, and post radiation CT scans performed within 3 months of completing full course definitive megavoltage radiation.

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Chronic hepatitis C (HCV) is a global health problem. Worldwide, 170 million people are chronically infected. In Latin America its prevalence is estimated between 1.

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Objective: To evaluate the inter- and intra-observer variability in measurement of the angle of lateral opening (ALO) and version angle measurement using digital radiography and computed tomography (CT).

Methods: Each hemipelvis was implanted with a cementless acetabular cup. Ventrodorsal and mediolateral radiographs were made of each pelvis, followed by CT imaging.

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Type I interferons are potent cytokines that possess antiviral, immunomodulating and antiproliferative actions. The development of autoimmune hepatitis is a well recognized complication of treatment with alpha IFN in patients with chronic viral hepatitis. Yet, the occurrence in patients under treatment with beta IFN for other indications is controversial and its occurrence often underestimated.

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Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae, the causative agent of porcine contagious pleuropneumonia (PCP), causes significant economic losses associated mainly with growth stunting of animals. Although serotypes can be distinguished according to their virulence, most of the studies are focused in A. pleuropneumoniae infections with virulent serotypes.

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Background: Assessment of renal function 12 months after liver transplantation (LT) predicts chronic renal failure on long-term follow up.

Objective: To evaluate pre- and post- LT factors associated with development of renal dysfunction (RD) in cirrhotic patients.

Methods: Between June 2005 and June 2010, 104 cirrhotic patients were selected from 268 consecutively transplanted adult patients.

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The purposes of this study were to describe cases of feline gastric lymphoma with regards to signalment, clinical presentation, laboratory and ancillary study findings, response to therapy, and outcomes and to identify prognostic variables. Sixteen cats with stage I and II gastric lymphoma treated with chemotherapy were included in this study. Seventy-five percent of cats experienced remission.

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Brugada phenocopies (BrP) are clinical entities that are etiologically distinct from true congenital Brugada syndrome (BrS). BrP are characterized by type 1 or type 2 Brugada electrocardiogram (ECG) patterns in precordial leads V1 -V3 ; however, BrP are elicited by various underlying clinical conditions such as electrolyte disturbances, myocardial ischemia, or poor ECG filters. In this report, we describe the first case of clinically reproducible BrP which is important to the conceptual evolution of BrP.

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Objective: The aim of this study is to analyze the clinical and surgical features of patients who underwent robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) at our institution, and the impact of the surgeon's experience in the oncological results related to pathological stage.

Material And Methods: An analysis of 300 RARP consecutively performed by the same urologist was conducted. Patients were divided into 3 groups of 100 patients in chronological order, according to surgery date.

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Unlabelled: After the introduction of high active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) was no longer considered a contraindication for transplantation. Yet, liver disease in this population is characterized by an accelerated course that may impact on the waiting list.

Objective: To evaluate the experience in Argentina with HIV positive patients listed for liver transplantation.

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