Maternal Infections, Antibiotics, Steroid Use, and Diabetes Mellitus Increase Risk of Early-Onset Sepsis in Preterm Neonates: A Nationwide Population-Based Study.

The global evolution of pathogens causing early-onset sepsis (EOS), a critical condition in preterm infants, necessitates a re-evaluation of risk factors to develop updated prevention and treatment strategies. This nationwide case-control study in Taiwan analyzed data from the National Health Insurance Research Database, Birth Reporting Database, and Maternal and Child Health Database from 2010 to 2019. The study included 176,681 mother-child pairs with preterm births.

Association of Pregnancy Complications with Endometrial or Ovarian or Breast Cancer: A Case Control Study.

: The relationship between pregnancy complications and the risk of gynecological and breast cancer remains inconclusive, with limited research available. This study aimed to determine whether pregnancy complications, including preeclampsia, gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), large for gestational age (LGA), or intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) are associated with the development of endometrial cancer (EC), ovarian cancer (OC), or breast cancer (BC). : This was a population-based case-control study linked to the National Health Insurance Research Database from 2008 to 2020, using ICD codes to identify parous gynecological cases (n = 6714).

Genetic Variations in Gene Contribute to Renal Cell Carcinoma Susceptibility: A Genotype-Phenotype Correlation Study.

Background: This study aimed to investigate the polymorphic genotypes of rs937282, rs937283, rs2279744, and rs769412, as well as the combined effects of genotypes and environmental factors on RCC susceptibility.

Methods: A total of 135 RCC patients and 590 controls were recruited for genotyping using the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method. Quantitative PCR was performed to assess MDM2 mRNA levels among 30 healthy individuals and 22 RCC patients.

Assessment of delirium in Indonesian pediatric intensive care unit: a psychometric evaluation of the Cornell Assessment of Pediatric Delirium.

Unlabelled: This study has the objective to translate the Cornell Assessment of Pediatric Delirium (CAPD) into Indonesian and evaluate the psychometric properties and diagnostic accuracy of the Indonesian version of the CAPD (I-CAPD) in identifying delirium in critically ill children. This prospective methodological study was conducted between January and April 2024 in a 6-bed pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). In total, 90 children aged 0-18 years hospitalized in the PICU were included.

Protective effects of against hepatocyte apoptosis and liver fibrosis induced by high palmitic acid diet.

Background: Fatty Liver Disease (FLD) progresses from steatosis to steatohepatitis and, if left untreated, can lead to irreversible conditions such as cirrhosis and hepatocarcinoma. The etiology of FLD remains unclear, but factors such as overconsumption, poor diet, obesity, and diabetes contribute to its development. Palmitic acid (PA) plays a significant role in FLD progression by inducing apoptosis, inflammation, oxidative stress, and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in hepatocytes.

Short-term and long-term outcomes of acute severe ulcerative colitis in Taiwan: a multicenter study with pre- and post-biologics comparison.

Background/aims: Data from Asia regarding the short-term and long-term outcomes for acute severe ulcerative colitis (ASUC) are limited. We assessed the outcomes of ASUC, identified the risk factors for colectomy, and compared colectomy rates between the pre-biologics and post-biologics eras in Taiwan.

Methods: The patients with an ASUC diagnosis between January 2013 and March 2022 at 5 tertiary medical centers were retrospectively analyzed.

Sjögren's Syndrome Is Associated With an Increased Risk of Vitiligo.

Objectives: Limited studies reported the correlation between Sjögren's syndrome (SS) and vitiligo. This study explores the association between SS and the risk of developing vitiligo and assesses comorbidity profiles and medication impacts.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective, population-based analysis using data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database, spanning 2008 to 2019.

A pre- and post-course survey of an elective Chinese medicine curriculum among junior Western medical students in Taiwan.

Background: Demonstrating a positive impact of educational programs on clinical care outcomes is challenging. We assess students' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors as short-term outcomes of integrating a structured Traditional Chinese Medicine course within a Western medical school.

Methods: A prospective questionnaire survey was conducted among first-year and second-year undergraduate medical students who participated in the "Introduction to Chinese Medicine" course in 2020.

Effectiveness of a scenario-based simulation course on improving the clinical communication skills of dietetic students.

Background: Effective clinical communication skills are essential for dietitians as it impacts patient outcomes and satisfaction across diverse clinical and public healthcare settings. Despite its importance as a core competency, many dietetics programs, including those in Taiwan, need to provide sufficient training in this area. This study aimed to develop and assess a scenario-based simulation course to improve communication skills in dietetic students.

Knowledge, attitudes and practices of healthcare professionals in the management of patients with hypertension and concurrent bronchial asthma: a cross-sectional study in the Yellow River Delta region of China.

Objective: To assess the Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices (KAP) among healthcare professionals in managing patients with coexisting hypertension and bronchial asthma.

Design: A cross-sectional survey. The reporting of this study followed the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology checklist.

An in-depth review of AI-powered advancements in cancer drug discovery.

The convergence of artificial intelligence (AI) and genomics is redefining cancer drug discovery by facilitating the development of personalized and effective therapies. This review examines the transformative role of AI technologies, including deep learning and advanced data analytics, in accelerating key stages of the drug discovery process: target identification, drug design, clinical trial optimization, and drug response prediction. Cutting-edge tools such as DrugnomeAI and PandaOmics have made substantial contributions to therapeutic target identification, while AI's predictive capabilities are driving personalized treatment strategies.

Epithelium-derived exosomal dipeptidyl peptidase-4 involved in arecoline-induced oral submucous fibrosis.

Introduction: Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 is known to be involved in the progression of several fibrogenic diseases, but its association with oral submucous fibrosis remains unclear. This study aims to ascertain whether dipeptidyl peptidase-4 plays a role in the pathogenesis of arecoline-induced oral submucous fibrosis.

Methods: We assessed the expression of dipeptidyl peptidase-4 in arecoline-treated epithelial cells and the exosomes derived from cells.

Erythropoietin treatment and osteoporotic fracture risk in hemodialysis patients: A nationwide population-based study.

Objectives: Concerns about erythropoietin (EPO) therapy for anemia in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) contributing to potential bone loss and increased fracture risks are growing. This study investigated the impact of EPO administration on the risk of common osteoporotic fractures in ESRD patients.

Methods: This population-based retrospective cohort study compared EPO users and non-EPO users among ESRD patients undergoing hemodialysis, diagnosed with ESRD between 2000 and 2014 identified from the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan.

Preventable hospitalizations through ED: does the number of hospital beds matter under the global budget in a single-payer system in Taiwan?

Background: Taiwan implemented global hospital budgeting with a floating-point value, which created a prisoner's dilemma. As a result, hospitals increased service volume, which caused the floating-point value to drop to less than one New Taiwan Dollar (NTD). The recent increase in the number of hospital beds and the call to enhance the floating-point value to one NTD raise concerns about the potential for increased financial burden without adding value to patient care if hospitals expand their bed capacity for volume-based competition.

Exploring effects of a booster workshop on progression and retention of resuscitation skills of residents when added to regular low-dose simulation.

Background: Improving the resuscitation and teamwork skills of residents is key to better outcomes of in-hospital cardiac arrest events. This study aims to explore the effects of regular low-dose simulation combined with a booster workshop on the progression and retention of resuscitation skills and teamwork among residents.

Methods: This comparative study took place at a teaching hospital in Northern Taiwan from August 2019 to June 2021.

Impact of quality of life on overall work productivity impairment and activity impairment of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus: the PEONY study.

Objectives: Even in a lupus low disease activity state (LLDAS), many patients with SLE continue to face residual symptoms and disease burden. We aimed to evaluate the quality of life, activity impairment and overall work productivity impairment among patients in LLDAS. Residual disease burden was also evaluated for patients in LLDAS.

Driver identification in advanced transportation systems using osprey and salp swarm optimized random forest model.

Enhancement of security, personalization, and safety in advanced transportation systems depends on driver identification. In this context, this work suggests a new method to find drivers by means of a Random Forest model optimized using the osprey optimization algorithm (OOA) for feature selection and the salp swarm optimization (SSO) for hyperparameter tuning based on driving behavior. The proposed model achieves an accuracy of 92%, a precision of 91%, a recall of 93%, and an F1-score of 92%, significantly outperforming traditional machine learning models such as XGBoost, CatBoost, and Support Vector Machines.

Association Between Serum Levels of Sestrin-2 and Galectin-3 and Atrial Remodelling in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation.

Objective: To explore the prognostic significance of Sestrin-2 and Galectin-3 levels in atrial fibrillation complicated by left atrial remodelling, aiming to offer novel insights for prevention, treatment, and follow-up strategies.

Study Design: Analytical study. Place and Duration of the Study: Department of Cardiology, Second People's Hospital of Anhui Province, Hefei, China, from January 2021 to December 2023.

Comparative In vitro antibacterial activity of nemonoxacin and other fluoroquinolones in correlation with resistant mechanisms in contemporary methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus blood isolates in Taiwan.

Background: Nemonoxacin is a new quinolone with an antibacterial efficacy against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Certain sequence types (STs) have been emerging in Taiwan, including fluoroquinolone-resistant ST8/USA300. It's an urgent need to determine nemonoxacin susceptibility against ST8/USA300 and other emerging lineages, if any.

Association of clinical knowledge with patient care ownership among resident physicians: a nationwide cross-sectional study in Japan.

Purpose: Both clinical knowledge and patient care ownership (PCO) are crucial to the provision of quality patient care and should be acquired during training. However, the association between these two concepts is under-examined. Here, we conducted a nationwide cross-sectional study to investigate the association between clinical knowledge and PCO among resident physicians in Japan.

Aspirin after completion of standard adjuvant therapy for colorectal cancer (ASCOLT): an international, multicentre, phase 3, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Background: Aspirin is a simple, globally available medication that has been shown to reduce the incidence of colorectal cancer. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of aspirin in the secondary prevention of colorectal cancer.

Methods: This phase 3, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was conducted at 66 centres across 11 countries and territories (ten in Asia-Pacific; one in the Middle East).

The severity of coronary heart disease and the incidence of later diabetic retinopathy in diabetic population: A retrospective cohort study.

Objectives: The coronary heart disease (CHD) can influence the development of several diseases. The presence of CHD is correlated to a higher incidence of concurrent diabetic retinopathy (DR) in previous study. Herein, we aim to analyze the relationship between the CHD severity and following DR with different severity.

The role of socioeconomic factors in sex differences in intrinsic capacity among older adults: A cross-sectional study in Taiwan.

Objectives: The World Health Organization's Integrated Care for Older People (ICOPE) framework launched in 2019 is used to assess the intrinsic capacity of older individuals. Older women may face greater socioeconomic disadvantages, which can impact their physical and mental well-being. Therefore, we examined sex differences in intrinsic capacity and the influence of socioeconomic status.

Evaluating the Efficacy and Safety of Halo-Femoral Traction and Halo-Gravity Traction Techniques in Severe Kyphoscoliosis With Spinal Cord Risk Classification (SCRC) Type 3 Over the Apex.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Objective: To analyze the efficacy and safety of Halo-femoral traction (HFT) following spinal release, and preoperative Halo-gravity traction (HGT) in patients with severe spinal kyphoscoliosis and spinal cord risk classification (SCRC) type 3 at the apex.

Methods: A total of 73 patients (24 males, 49 females, mean age 22.

Exosomes as promising frontier approaches in future cancer therapy.

In this editorial, we will discuss the article by Tang published in the recent issue of the . They explored an innovative approach to enhancing gemcitabine (GEM) delivery and efficacy using human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (HU-BMSCs)-derived exosomes. The manufacture of GEM-loaded HU-BMSCs-derived exosomes (Exo-GEM) has been optimized.