Background: The aim of this study was to detect normal changes in fetal two-dimensional speckle-tracking echocardiography-derived values for global and regional longitudinal left and right ventricular strain, strain rate, and time to peak (T2P) global strain during pregnancy.
Methods: Forty-four healthy fetuses were examined prospectively during the second-trimester and third-trimester ultrasound examinations (20-24 and 30-34 weeks, respectively). Clips with high frame rates (mean, 120 frames/sec) of two-dimensional (B-mode) grayscale images of apical or basal four-chamber views of both ventricles were used for offline analyses of global and regional walls and segments (basal, mid, and apical) of myocardial strain and strain rate as well as T2P global strain in the longitudinal direction.
Results: There were statistically significant decreases in global and regional strain of the right ventricle between the second and third trimesters. No statistically significant changes were observed in global and regional strain of the left ventricle. Global and regional strain rates of both ventricles decreased in a similar way during pregnancy. The mean T2P longitudinal left ventricular global strain (adjusted for heart rate) increased mildly during fetal life. Whereas T2P longitudinal strain of the left ventricle at 20 to 24 weeks was statistically significantly shorter than that of the right ventricle, no difference in T2P longitudinal strain was found at 30 to 34 weeks of gestation between both ventricles.
Conclusions: The establishment of these changes between the second-trimester and third-trimester two-dimensional speckle-tracking echocardiography-derived reference values is a mandatory prerequisite for its use in evaluating (pathologic) changes in both ventricular functions during pregnancy.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.echo.2013.06.007 | DOI Listing |
Am J Trop Med Hyg
January 2025
Department of Environmental Biology & Medical Parasitology, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Neurocysticercosis, a central nervous system infection caused by the zoonotic parasite Taenia solium, is a leading cause of acquired epilepsy worldwide. It is common in areas with extensive pig farming and pork consumption. This report presents an unusual case of neurocysticercosis in a 28-year-old male from Timor-Leste, a region of nonendemicity for human cases of Taenia solium.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPLoS One
January 2025
Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
Background: Technological advancements and globalization have shifted dietary behaviours, contributing to increased chronic disease prevalence in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) like India. Adolescents are particularly vulnerable due to these changes, which can impact their lifelong health. This study aimed to assess the nutritional status of adolescents in public schools in Chandigarh, India.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPLoS One
January 2025
Department of Mathematics, University of Peshawar, Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
In biology and life sciences, fractal theory and fractional calculus have significant applications in simulating and understanding complex problems. In this paper, a compartmental model employing Caputo-type fractional and fractal-fractional operators is presented to analyze Nipah virus (NiV) dynamics and transmission. Initially, the model includes nine nonlinear ordinary differential equations that consider viral concentration, flying fox, and human populations simultaneously.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPLoS One
January 2025
Institute of Mental Health, Nottingham, United Kingdom.
Background: There is an urgent need to better understand the factors that predict mental wellbeing in vocationally active adults during globally turbulent times.
Aim: To explore the relationship between psychological detachment from work (postulated as a key recovery activity from work) in the first national COVID-19 lockdown with health, wellbeing, and life satisfaction of working age-adults one year later, within the context of a global pandemic.
Methods: Wellbeing of the Workforce (WoW) was a prospective longitudinal cohort study, with two waves of data collection (Time 1, April-June 2020: T1 n = 337; Time 2, March-April 2021: T2 = 169) corresponding with the first and third national COVID-19 lockdowns in the UK.
Andes Pediatr
August 2023
Departamento de Pediatría, Clínica Pediátrica Colsanitas, Bogotá, Colombia.
Unlabelled: Respiratory diseases, including bronchial asthma in children and adolescents, constitute a global public health problem. Educational strategies are an important tool for their control.
Objective: To evaluate the impact of a health literacy program for the care and self-management of respiratory diseases and bronchial asthma after five years of implementation.
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