Are the Hematological Parameters Useful in Differentiating Acute Pyelonephritis from Cystitis in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease?

Background And Objectives: The importance of hematological parameters has started to be explored with increased interest in many fields lately, with different studies finding an association between those parameters and inflammatory status, atherosclerosis, comorbidities, malnutrition, neoplasia and even a faster progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD). On the other hand, CKD itself presents as an inflammatory condition, in which a lot of pathways are modified and the response to an infectious agent could be less than expected. Regarding the latter aspect, in this study we aim to explore the differences between the hematologic response during a lower versus upper urinary tract infection in patients with CKD.

Calcinosis in Rheumatic Disease Is Still an Unmet Need: A Retrospective Single-Center Study.

Patients with immune-mediated rheumatic disease-related calcinosis comprise a subgroup at risk of encountering a more severe clinical outcome. Early assessment is pivotal for preventing overall disease progression, as calcinosis is commonly overlooked until several years into the disease and is considered as a 'non-lethal' manifestation. This single-center retrospective study explored the prevalence, clinical associations, and impact on survival of subcutaneous calcinosis in 86 patients with immune-mediated rheumatic diseases (IMRD).

Validation and incorporation of digital entheses into a preliminary GLobal OMERACT Ultrasound DActylitis Score (GLOUDAS) in psoriatic arthritis.

Objectives: The main objective was to generate a GLobal OMERACT Ultrasound DActylitis Score (GLOUDAS) in psoriatic arthritis and to test its reliability. To this end, we assessed the validity, feasibility and applicability of ultrasound assessment of finger entheses to incorporate them into the scoring system.

Methods: The study consisted of a stepwise process.

The Impact of Infections on the Progression of Chronic Kidney Disease.

: Infectious diseases continue to be a global burden and their impact is even worse if the patients already have other comorbidities. Because chronic kidney disease is very frequent, affecting 10% of the population, our study aims to explore the impact that infectious events have on its progression. : This is a retrospective, observational study based on a cohort of 238 dialyzed patients from the Nephrology Clinic of "Dr.

Chemical Solution Deposition of Insulating Yttria Nanolayers as Current Flow Diverter in Superconducting GdBaCuO Coated Conductors.

The primary benefit of a metallic stabilization/shunt in high temperature superconductor (HTS) coated conductors (CCs) is to prevent joule heating damage by providing an alternative path for the current flow during the HTS normal state transition (i.e., quench).

The EFSUMB Guidelines and Recommendations for Musculoskeletal Ultrasound - Part II: Joint Pathologies, Pediatric Applications, and Guided Procedures.

The second part of the Guidelines and Recommendations for Musculoskeletal Ultrasound (MSUS), produced under the auspices of EFSUMB, following the same methodology as for Part 1, provides information and recommendations on the use of this imaging modality for joint pathology, pediatric applications, and musculoskeletal ultrasound-guided procedures. Clinical application, practical points, limitations, and artifacts are described and discussed for every joint or procedure. The document is intended to guide clinical users in their daily practice.

Residual Pain in the Context of Selecting and Switching Biologic Therapy in Inflammatory Rheumatic Diseases.

For many years, inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRDs) represented a source of disappointment in medical care caused by the mediocre efficacy of the available treatments. Some of these diseases, like Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) or Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS), caused fear in the general population, especially due to associated joint deformities and subsequent disabilities. However, in the last 20 years, a new successful class of antirheumatic drugs has become available: biologic Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drugs (bDMARDs).

The EFSUMB Guidelines and Recommendations for Musculoskeletal Ultrasound - Part I: Extraarticular Pathologies.

The first part of the guidelines and recommendations for musculoskeletal ultrasound, produced under the auspices of the European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (EFSUMB), provides information about the use of musculoskeletal ultrasound for assessing extraarticular structures (muscles, tendons, entheses, ligaments, bones, bursae, fasciae, nerves, skin, subcutaneous tissues, and nails) and their pathologies. Clinical applications, practical points, limitations, and artifacts are described and discussed for every structure. After an extensive literature review, the recommendations have been developed according to the Oxford Centre for Evidence-based Medicine and GRADE criteria and the consensus level was established through a Delphi process.

Ultrasound of Subtalar Joint Synovitis in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis: Results of an OMERACT Reliability Exercise Using Consensual Definitions.

Objective: To evaluate the intraobserver and interobserver reliability of the ultrasonographic (US) assessment of subtalar joint (STJ) synovitis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Methods: Following a Delphi process, 12 sonographers conducted an US reliability exercise on 10 RA patients with hindfoot pain. The anteromedial, posteromedial, and posterolateral STJ was assessed using B-mode and power Doppler (PD) techniques according to an agreed US protocol and using a 4-grade semiquantitative grading score for synovitis [synovial hypertrophy (SH) and signal] and a dichotomous score for the presence of joint effusion (JE).

Does patients' opinion of remission in rheumatoid arthritis overlap ultrasound "true" remission? - a pilot study.

Aim: Patients describe rheumatoid arthritis (RA) remission as the absence of any symptoms or return to normality. Residual ultrasound (US) synovitis was frequently described in remission cohorts in previous studies. US tenosynovitis evaluation and scoring seems to better follow clinical remission scores compared with synovitis in RA.

Identification of calcium pyrophosphate deposition disease (CPPD) by ultrasound: reliability of the OMERACT definitions in an extended set of joints-an international multiobserver study by the OMERACT Calcium Pyrophosphate Deposition Disease Ultrasound Subtask Force.

Objectives: To assess the reliability of the OMERACT ultrasound (US) definitions for the identification of calcium pyrophosphate deposition disease (CPPD) at the metacarpal-phalangeal, triangular fibrocartilage of the wrist (TFC), acromioclavicular (AC) and hip joints.

Methods: A web-based exercise and subsequent patient-based exercise were carried out. A panel of 30 OMERACT members, participated at the web-based exercise by evaluating twice a set of US images for the presence/absence of CPPD.

Quantitative Doppler in musculoskeletal ultrasonography - suboptimal performance of both experienced and in-training sonographers in selection of the highest Doppler signal image from cine-loops.

Aims: Doppler ultrasonography assessment is mandatory nowadays for the complete description of rheumatic disease activity. Initially it was performed in semi quantitative way but recently the (fully) quantitative assessment is gaining more interest. In quantitative assessment, the ratio between total colorized and total pixels (CTR) is computed for the whole image or just for the region of interest (ROI).

The 2017 EULAR standardised procedures for ultrasound imaging in rheumatology.

Background: In 2001, the European League Against Rheumatism developed and disseminated the first guidelines for musculoskeletal (MS) ultrasound (US) in rheumatology. Fifteen years later, the dramatic expansion of new data on MSUS in the literature coupled with technological developments in US imaging has necessitated an update of these guidelines.

Objectives: To update the existing MSUS guidelines in rheumatology as well as to extend their scope to other anatomic structures relevant for rheumatology.

Definition and Reliability Assessment of Elementary Ultrasonographic Findings in Calcium Pyrophosphate Deposition Disease: A Study by the OMERACT Calcium Pyrophosphate Deposition Disease Ultrasound Subtask Force.

Objective: To define the ultrasonographic characteristics of calcium pyrophosphate crystal (CPP) deposits in joints and periarticular tissues and to evaluate the intra- and interobserver reliability of expert ultrasonographers in the assessment of CPP deposition disease (CPPD) according to the new definitions.

Methods: After a systematic literature review, a Delphi survey was circulated among a group of expert ultrasonographers, who were members of the CPPD Ultrasound (US) Outcome Measures in Rheumatology (OMERACT) subtask force, to obtain definitions of the US characteristics of CPPD at the level of fibrocartilage (FC), hyaline cartilage (HC), tendon, and synovial fluid (SF). Subsequently, the reliability of US in assessing CPPD at knee and wrist levels according to the agreed definitions was tested in static images and in patients with CPPD.

Clinical Phenotype of Endothelial Dysfunction in Romanian Scleroderma Patients.

Objective: To identify the particularities of the clinical phenotype of endothelial dysfunction in a lot of Romanian patients from a reference center and compare it to data reported by international registries.

Material And Methods: 51 patients were included in a cross-sectional study. The patients were evaluated for the pattern of disease, main visceral involvement, serum markers of disease.

Musculoskeletal ultrasonography in routine rheumatology practice: data from Central and Eastern European countries.

The main aim was to gain structured insight into the use of musculoskeletal ultrasonography (MSUS) in routine rheumatology practices in Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries. In a cross-sectional, observational, international, multicenter survey, a questionnaire was sent to investigational sites in CEE countries. Data on all subsequent routine MSUS examinations, site characteristics, MSUS equipment, and investigators were collected over 6 months or up to 100 examinations per center.

Socio-economical factors that influence the perception of quality of life in patients with osteoporosis.

The appearance of osteoporosis in elders and the growth of the frequency which it is diagnosed with as we approach patients who are older and older, makes this health problem very important in the societies in which a high number of persons reach old age. These societies, usually belonging to economically advanced jurisdictions, are the first interested in the way health expenses can balance the benefits of the quality of life acquired in these groups of population. The evaluation of the quality of life has become a very important process, which still raises methodological problems to the researchers.

Evaluation of adherence to anti-osteoporosis treatment from the socio-economic context.

Osteoporosis is a disease characterized by the reduction of the bone mass and the modification of the bone architecture, which leads to the risk of fracture of the fragile bones, this being the main clinical consequence of the disease. At the same time, osteoporosis is not only a problem by itself, but it is very important from the point of view of the consequences it may produce. Among its consequences, fractures should be mentioned especially in elders, their presence finally leading to an important decrease in the quality of life or even to death.

Tenosynovitis US scoring systems follow synovitis and clinical scoring systems in RA and are responsive to change after biologic therapy.

Aims: To investigate by ultrasonography (US) in a cohort of active RA patients starting biologic therapy the responsiveness of tenosynovitis of wrist and hands compared to the responsiveness of synovitis in a 6 month period follow-up, to compare the responsiveness of finger flexor tenosynovitis with the responsiveness of wrist extensor tenosynovitis and to describe the subclinical synovitis and tenosynovitis in RA patients in clinical remission.

Material And Methods: Fifty seven patients with active RA starting biologic therapy were included. Clinical, laboratory, and US evaluations were performed at baseline, 1, and 6 months.

Clinical Phenotype of Endothelial Dysfunction in a Lot of Romanian Scleroderma Patients.

Objectives: to identify the particularities of the clinical phenotype of endothelial dysfunction in a lot of Romanian patients from a reference center and compare it to data reported by international registries.

Materials And Methods: 51 patients were included in a cross sectional study. The patients were evaluated for the pattern of disease, main visceral involvement, serum markers of disease.

Lasing in DNA-CTMA doped with Rhodamine 610 in butanol.

The light emission properties of the complex formed from deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)-cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTMA) surfactant doped with different concentrations of Rhodamine 610 (Rh610) dye and dissolved in butanol are investigated and discussed. The results are compared to those obtained when only the Rh610 dye is dissolved in butanol, at the same concentrations. The light emission is excited in the investigated samples by the nanosecond pulses of a frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser, at a wavelength of 532 nm.

The place of musculoskeletal ultrasonography in gout diagnosis.

Gout represents a common inflammatory arthritis conditions in which the monosodium urate (MSU) crystals are deposited in joints and other tissues producing attacks of acute arthritis/ chronic arthropathy with important destructive lesions in articular or juxta-articular spaces. High resolution ultrasonography (US) is able to detect these deposits and their consequences: hyaline cartilage pathology, joint effusions, synovitis, bone erosions, tendons, bursitis, and other soft tissues involvement. Moreover, there are characteristic findings of this aggregates that can be detected by US, helping the clinician for positive and differential diagnosis.

Dysregulation of anergy-related factors involved in regulatory T cells defects in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus patients: Rapamycin and Vitamin D efficacy in restoring regulatory T cells.

Aim: Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) patients display dysfunctions in T cell activation and anergy. Therefore the aims of our study were to explore the expression of anergy-related factors in CD4 T cells in relationship with regulatory T cells (Tregs) frequency in SLE patients and to identify strategies to redress these defects.

Method: Casitas B-cell lymphoma b (Cbl-b) and 'gene related to anergy in lymphocytes' (GRAIL) proteins were analyzed in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from SLE patients and healthy donors (HD) by immunoblotting.