Overactive bladder (OAB) significantly impairs quality of life in the elderly. Although the intradetrusor injection of botulinum toxin type A (BoNT-A) is a treatment option, its effects on older adults remain uncertain. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of BoNT-A intradetrusor injections in elderly OAB patients through a systematic review and meta-analysis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: While significant progress has been made to clarify the effects of Au and Ag nanoparticle size on SERS enhancement, research on the size effects of copper nanoparticles and copper-related nanoalloys on SERS enhancement remain scarce. Nanoscale copper (Cu) is important because of its unique sensing and catalytic properties; however, research on its size and compositional effects remains a significant challenge because of the intricate fabrication process and difficulty in preventing oxidation.
Results: Our study elucidated the size-dependent, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) of Cu NPs, particularly the sensing capabilities of both electromagnetic (EM) SERS at 1.
Unlabelled: The association between influenza infection and thromboembolism (TE) events, including cardiovascular events, cerebrovascular events, pulmonary embolism, and deep vein thrombosis, is supported by compelling evidence. However, there is a disparity in the risk factors that impact the outcomes of severe influenza-complicated TE in intensive care unit (ICU) patients. The objective of this study was to evaluate the outcomes of severe influenza-complicated TE in ICU patients and identify any associated risk factors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Endothelial cells (EC) can be generated from porcine-induced pluripotent stem cells (piPSC), but poor efficiency in driving EC differentiation hampers their application and efficacy. Additionally, the culture of piPSC-derived EC (piPSC-EC) on three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds has not been fully reported yet. Here, we report a method to improve the generation of EC differentiation from piPSC and to facilitate their culture on 3D scaffolds, providing a potential resource for in vitro drug testing and the generation of tissue-engineered vascular grafts.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: The influence of deranged body composition on stage I/II hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after surgery remains undetermined. The current study aimed to investigate the impact of low skeletal muscle bulk and disturbed body fat mass on the recurrence outcome of stage I/II HCC patients undergoing liver resection. The associated metabolomic alterations were also assessed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Obesity may serve as a protective factor in blunt abdominal trauma (BAT) patients due to a "cushion effect". In this study, we aim to use computed tomography (CT) scans to measure abdominal adiposity and its correlation with injury severity in BAT patients.
Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of male BAT patients who had undergone CT scans.
Molecular techniques that recover unknown sequences next to a known sequence region have been widely applied in various molecular studies, such as chromosome walking, identification of the insertion site of transposon mutagenesis, fusion gene partner, and chromosomal breakpoints, as well as targeted sequencing library preparation. Although various techniques have been introduced for efficiency enhancement, searching for relevant single molecular event present in a large-sized genome remains challenging. Here, the optimized ligation-mediated polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method was developed and successfully identified chromosomal breakpoints far away from the exon of the new exon junction without the need for nested PCR.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFReal-world clinical experience of using anti-programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) combined with chemotherapy in the first-line treatment of extensive-stage small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) patients has rarely been reported. In this study, we aimed to perform a retrospective multicenter clinical analysis of extensive-stage SCLC patients receiving first-line therapy with anti-PD-L1 ICIs combined with chemotherapy. Between November 2018 and March 2022, 72 extensive-stage SCLC patients receiving first-line atezolizumab or durvalumab in combination with chemotherapy, according to the cancer center databases of Linkou, Chiayi, and Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospitals, were retrospectively included in the analysis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRationale: The prevalence, clinical characteristics, and outcomes of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis in patients with severe community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in intensive care units remain underestimated because of the lack of a disease-recognition scheme and the inadequacy of diagnostic tests.
Objectives: To identify the prevalence, risk factors, and outcomes of severe CAP complicated with invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) in intensive care units (ICUs).
Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study including recruited 311 ICU-hospitalized patients with severe CAP without influenza or with influenza.
Aim: Preclinical studies have shown that sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2is) have a neuroprotective effect. This study compared the risks of carpal tunnel syndrome and carpal tunnel release surgery between new users of SGLT2is and new users of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs).
Methods: A retrospective new-user active comparator cohort study with a target trial design was conducted by using the TriNetX platform.
Objective: To evaluate the association of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH) D) levels with bone mineral density (BMD), fracture risk, and bone metabolism.
Methods: This multicenter cross-sectional study recruited menopausal females and males greater than or equal to 50 year old with osteoporosis/fractures between September 2016 and September 2021. Assessment included clinical data, 25(OH)D, intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH), procollagen type 1 amino-terminal propeptide (P1NP), carboxy-terminal collagen crosslinks (CTX), lateral thoracolumbar spine x-rays, and BMD.
Aim: Theoretically, sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2is) reduce the risk of rotator cuff tear through an anti-inflammatory mechanism. To clarify this association, in this study, we compared SGLT2is users and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) users in terms of the risk of rotator cuff tear and the risk of receiving rotator cuff repair surgery.
Methods: A retrospective cohort analysis was conducted using data from the TriNetX platform.
We explore the effect of complete oral motor intervention (OMI) and nonnutritive sucking (NNS) alone on oral feeding in preterm infants through a meta-analysis. We searched the Embased, Medline, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science databases for randomized controlled trials up to 8 August 2023, based on established selection criteria. Quality evaluations of the studies were carried out by applying both the Cochrane risk of bias assessment tool and the Jadad scale.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: The objective was to investigate the relationships among disease characteristics, sarcopenia risk, bone function, sleep quality, depressive symptoms, and health-related quality of life in menopausal women. Additionally, we also examined the potential mediating role of coping in the relationship between these factors and health outcomes for individuals with osteoporosis.
Methods: In a cross-sectional approach, 201 participants were referred by a physician from the Family Medicine Department during their outpatient visits at a general hospital in Southern Taiwan.
Introduction: The clinical outcomes of sequential treatment of advanced epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients with first-line bevacizumab combined with 1st/2nd-generation EGFR-TKIs are unclear. Thus, we aimed to analyze the outcomes of these patients.
Methods: Between January 2015 and December 2020, data for 102 advanced EGFR-mutated lung adenocarcinoma patients receiving first-line bevacizumab combined with erlotinib or afatinib followed by treatments at multiple institutions were retrospectively analyzed.
Dyssynergic defecation (DD) is a common cause of chronic constipation. Owing to the lack of a comprehensive synthesis of available data on the effectiveness of botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT) for treating DD, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis. We searched the PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane databases from inception to May 9, 2023.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Botulinum toxin (BoNT) causes sarcopenia and low bone mass in animal studies. Whether such effect exists in children and adolescents with spastic cerebral palsy (CP) is not clear yet. To investigate the influences of BoNT on grip strength (GS), skeletal muscle mass, and bone mineral density (BMD) in children and adolescents with spastic CP, we conducted this uncontrolled longitudinal study.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Inhaled medication adherence is an important issue for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) because adhering to inhaled medications could substantially improve their health. However, patients with COPD may not be always adhere to the prescribed inhaled medications. Therefore, understanding the underlying reasons for patients with COPD adhering to inhaled medications is important.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTaiwan J Ophthalmol
May 2023
Purpose: To characterize the epidemiology, associated complications, and risk factors of orbital floor fractures in a nationwide longitudinal health insurance database.
Materials And Methods: Claims data from a million randomly selected registered residents from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database were analyzed between 2001 and 2011 as part of a retrospective cohort review. Patients were identified using the International Classification of Disease-9 diagnosis codes for orbital floor fracture (closed: 802.
(1) Background: The purpose of this study was to determine whether the drooling of adult patients with diverse central nervous system diseases can be treated with botulinum toxin type A. (2) Methods: The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, and Embase were all searched for studies that fit the inclusion criteria. The patients in the studies had to be adults (>18 years old), and the studies had to be randomized placebo-controlled trials, controlled trials, or prospective studies.
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