Effects of Semaglutide Treatment on Psoriatic Lesions in Obese Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: An Open-Label, Randomized Clinical Trial.

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease with relapsing nature. Estimates are that approximately 2-3% of the world's population suffers from this disease. More severe forms of psoriasis are conditions of high inflammation, which is confirmed by the clinical picture and numerous inflammatory parameters such as C-reactive protein (CRP), cytokines and homocysteine, which vary with disease activity.

Laryngeal Carcinoma Characteristics Associated with Positive Margins and Endoscopic Understaging.

: The study aims to analyse the factors associated with positive margins and endoscopic understaging in laryngeal carcinoma. It also aims to assess the diagnostic accuracy of Narrow Band Imaging (NBI) in comparison to White Light Endoscopy (WLE) and other diagnostic methods. : In this retrospective comparative cohort analysis, 206 patients who underwent endoscopic laser surgery for T1 and T2a glottic squamous cell carcinoma between 1 January 2016 and 30 April 2023 were included.

Analyzing Predictive Factors for the Media's Impact on the Nursing Profession.

Mass media play a crucial role not only in informing the public but also in shaping public perception, educating, and enhancing the visibility of various professions, including nursing. Despite being the most populous healthcare profession, nursing remains underrepresented in media coverage. This imbalance affects the social status of the nursing profession and its public perception.

Right brain hemisphere lesions affecting language functioning in the acute phase of stroke recovery: A Croatian survey.

Unlabelled: Greater empirical and scientific attention is still put on patients with left brain hemisphere (LBH) damage where language impairments are common and expected. In patients with RBH damage, language assessment is therefore rarely done in the acute phase of stroke recovery.

Purpose: To investigate language impairments in the acute phase of stroke using a Croatian standardized language battery for the first time and compare patients with RBH stroke, LBH stroke and healthy individuals.

Predictive performance of ROX index and its variations for NIV failure.

Objective: To determine whether the ROX index and its variations can predict the risk of intubation in ICU patients receiving NIV ventilation using large public ICU databases.

Design: Retrospective observational cohort study.

Setting: Patient data was extracted from both the AmsterdamUMCdb and the MIMIC-IV ICU databases, which contained data related to 20,109 and 50,920 unique patients.

The Role of SHBG as a Marker in Male Patients with Metabolic-Associated Fatty Liver Disease: Insights into Metabolic and Hormonal Status.

: Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is a spectrum of liver diseases linked to insulin resistance (IR), type 2 diabetes, and metabolic disorders. IR accelerates fat accumulation in the liver, worsening MAFLD. Regular physical activity and weight loss can improve liver function, reduce fat, and lower cardiovascular risk.

Assesment of Salivary and Serum Levels of HBD2 in Patients with Chronic Angioedema.

: Human β-defensin 2 (HBD2) is a protein that plays an important role in activating the immune system by modulating spinal pathways and the inflammatory response. According to previous research, HBD2 was proven to be important in chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) (their values were significantly elevated in CSU patients, with a significant correlation between HBD2 levels and the percentage of peripheral basophils, suggesting that elevated HBD2 levels may be a potential marker of basophil and mast cell activation), which led us to additional research on the HBD2 molecule in isolated chronic angioedema. The aim of this research is to examine HBD2 values in the saliva and serum of patients with isolated angioedema, as a potential biomarker of the disease.

Current Challenges in Pancreas and Islet Transplantation: A Scoping Review.

Type 1 diabetes mellitus is an autoimmune condition characterized by the destruction of pancreatic β-cells, necessitating insulin therapy to prevent life-threatening complications such as diabetic ketoacidosis. Despite advancements in glucose monitoring and pharmacological treatments, managing this disease remains challenging, often leading to long-term complications and psychological burdens, including diabetes distress. Advanced treatment options, such as whole-pancreas transplantation and islet transplantation, aim to restore insulin production and improve glucose control in selected patients with diabetes.

Melanoma's New Frontier: Exploring the Latest Advances in Blood-Based Biomarkers for Melanoma.

Melanoma is one of the most malignant cancers, and the global incidence of cutaneous melanoma is increasing. While melanomas are highly prone to metastasize if diagnosed late, early detection and treatment significantly reduce the risk of mortality. Identifying patients at higher risk of metastasis, who might benefit from early adjuvant therapies, is particularly important, especially with the advent of new melanoma treatments.

Expression of Wnt signaling proteins LEF1, β-catenin, GSK3β, DVL1, and N-myc varies across retinoblastoma subtypes and pRb phosphorylation status.

Retinoblastoma, a rare childhood eye cancer, has hereditary and non-hereditary forms. While TNM classification helps in prognosis, understanding molecular mechanisms is vital for the clinical behavior of retinoblastoma prediction. Our study aimed to analyze the expression levels of key Wnt pathway proteins, GSK3β, LEF1, β-catenin, and DVL1, and associate them to non-phosphorylated active form (pRb) and the phosphorylated inactive form (ppRb) and N-myc expression, in retinoblastoma cells and healthy retinal cells, in order to elucidate their roles in retinoblastoma and identify potential targets that could help to improve diagnostic and therapy.

Verification of automated review, release and reporting of results with assessment of the risk of harm for patients: the procedure algorithm proposal for clinical laboratories.

Objectives: Autoverification increases the efficiency of laboratories. Laboratories accredited according to ISO 15189:2022 need to validate their processes, including autoverification, and assess the associated risks to patient safety. The aim of this study was to propose a systematic verification algorithm for autoverification and to assess its potential risks.

Predicting Mortality in Severe Burns: A Comparison of Four Mortality Prediction Scores and the Role of Organizational Changes in the Croatian Burn Center.

Background: The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of four burn prognostic scores-Abbreviated Burn Severity Index (ABSI), Ryan, Belgium Outcome Burn Injury (BOBI), and revised Baux score (rBaux) in a Croatian burn center. A secondary aim was to compare patient outcomes before and after the organizational and protocol changes.

Methods: A retrospective study and comparison of four prediction scores was conducted over a nine-year period in burn patients with ≥20% total body surface area (TBSA) burned.

Salivary Cortisol Concentration Is an Objective Measure of the Physiological Response to Loud Music.

: This study examines the potential associations between salivary cortisol concentrations and subjective stress test scores in healthy individuals subjected to sound-related, psychological, and physical stressors. : This study employed a single-center observational cross-sectional design, with a sample size of 36 subjects recruited from a tertiary referral audiology center. Between 2023 and 2024, the study recruited subjects with normal hearing, baseline salivary cortisol levels, and subjective stress levels.

The role of sphingolipid rheostat in the adult-type diffuse glioma pathogenesis.

Gliomas are highly aggressive primary brain tumors, with glioblastoma multiforme being the most severe and the most common one. Aberrations in sphingolipid metabolism are a hallmark of glioma cells. The sphingolipid rheostat represents the balance between the pro-apoptotic ceramide and pro-survival sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P), and in gliomas it is shifted toward cell survival and proliferation, promoting gliomas' aggressiveness, cellular migration, metastasis, and invasiveness.

Pros and cons of sub-specialisation in orthopaedics and traumatology-Is the general orthopaedic and trauma surgeon a relic of the past?

The evolution of orthopaedics has witnessed a pronounced shift from generalist practice to subspecialisation, a trend that has fundamentally reshaped the field over the past century. Originally, orthopaedic surgeons were trained to address a broad spectrum of musculoskeletal conditions. However, increasing complexity and specialization in knowledge have driven a progressive narrowing of focus within orthopaedics.

Invasive pneumococcal disease in adults after the introduction of pneumococcal vaccination: a retrospective study in the metropolitan area of Zagreb, Croatia (2010-2022).

Introduction: Invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) is a severe form of illness caused by with high morbidity and mortality rate in the general population, particularly in children <5 years of age, adults ≥65 years of age and the immunocompromised. As known, pneumococcal vaccination lowers the risk of IPD so the aim of this study was to investigate whether the introduction of pneumococcal vaccination has influenced the incidence and mortality of IPD in adults in Croatia.

Materials And Methods: A retrospective study was conducted among adult patients (aged ≥18 years) hospitalized due to IPD in the metropolitan area of Zagreb from 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2022.

Redifferentiation Therapies in Thyroid Oncology: Molecular and Clinical Aspects.

Since the 1940s, 131-I radioiodine therapy (RIT) has been the primary treatment for metastatic differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC). Approximately half of these patients respond favorably to RIT, achieving partial or complete remission or maintaining long-term stable disease, while the other half develop radioiodine-refractory DTC (RAI-R DTC). The main genomic alteration involved in radioiodine resistance is the activated mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway, which results in the loss of sodium iodide symporters (NIS).

Understanding the Impact of Obesity and Parental Blood Pressure in Identifying Optimal Hypertension Screening Group in Youth.

Background The rising incidence of hypertension (HTN) in pediatric patients imposes the need for its timely recognition by finding the optimal screening population. The goal of our study was to explore the ambulatory blood pressure (BP) parameters in selected groups of obese children and adolescents with different obesity levels and quantify the impact of parental hypertension (PH) on their blood pressure (BP) values. Methods This retrospective study included 176 obese Caucasian patients, 94 (53.