The therapeutic potential of targeting Oncostatin M and the interleukin-6 family in retinal diseases: A comprehensive review.

Retinal diseases, which can lead to significant vision loss, are complex conditions involving various cellular and molecular mechanisms. The interleukin-6 (IL-6) family, particularly Oncostatin M (OSM), has garnered attention for their roles in retinal inflammation, angiogenesis, and neuroprotection. This comprehensive review explores the dual nature of OSM and other IL-6 family members in retinal pathophysiology, highlighting their contribution to both degenerative and regenerative processes.

Dietary or pharmacological inhibition of insulin-like growth factor-1 protects from renal ischemia-reperfusion injury in mice.

One-week protein restriction (PR) limits ischemia-reperfusion (IR) damages and improves metabolic fitness. Similarly, longer-term calory restriction results in increased lifespan, partly via reduced insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1. However, the influence of short-term PR on IGF-1 and its impact on IR are unknown.

A digital tool for multidimensional assessment and prediction of treatment effectiveness in chronic pain management.

Given the multidimensional aspect of pain, the assessment of treatment efficacy is challenging. The prospective observational multicenter PREDIBACK study aimed to assess, compare, and predict the effectiveness of different treatments for persistent spinal pain syndrome type 2 (PSPS-T2) using a digital tool and the Multidimensional Clinical Response Index (MCRI) including pain intensity, functional disability, quality of life, anxiety and depression, and pain surface. Results indicated that neurostimulation was the most effective treatment at 3-, 6-, 9-, and 12-month follow-up compared to baseline, leading to significant improvements in pain, function, and quality of life, whereas optimized medical management (OMM) and spinal reoperation showed no significant benefits.

The Burden of Insurance Prior Authorization on Cancer Care: A Review of Evidence From Radiation Oncology.

Purpose: Despite its high cost-effectiveness, radiation oncology faces the greatest prior authorization (PA) burden of any medical specialty. Insurance denials and resulting treatment delays have been documented across several treatment modalities, including stereotactic body radiation, intensity modulated radiation, and proton therapy. Although insurance companies suggest that PA is intended to control health care spending and ensure the implementation of evidence-based practice, the number of radiation treatment plans reviewed by the PA process that result in changes is quite low.

Optimal Setup and Parameters of Diffusion-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging for Translational Evaluation of a Tumor Progression Model for Soft Tissue Sarcomas.

Purpose: Defining a microscopic tumor infiltration boundary is critical to the success of radiation therapy. Currently, radiation oncologists use margins to geometrically expand the visible tumor for radiation treatment planning in soft tissue sarcomas (STS). Image-based models of tumor progression would be critical to personalize the treatment radiation field to the pattern of sarcoma spread.

Multi-view fusion of diffusion MRI microstructural models: a preterm birth study.

Objective: High Angular Resolution Diffusion Imaging (HARDI) models have emerged as a valuable tool for investigating microstructure with a higher degree of detail than standard diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging (dMRI). In this study, we explored the potential of multiple advanced microstructural diffusion models for investigating preterm birth in order to identify non-invasive markers of altered white matter development.

Approach: Rather than focusing on a single MRI modality, we studied on a compound of HARDI techniques in 46 preterm babies studied on a 3T scanner at term-equivalent age and in 23 control neonates born at term.

Geospatial Access to Emergency Obstetric Surgery in Indonesia: Is Travel Time for Access Too Long?

Ensuring timely access to safe and affordable surgery within a travel time of a 2‑h drive or 30‑min walk is crucial for achieving universal health coverage, as endorsed by the Lancet Commission on Global Surgery (LCoGS). In this study, we aimed to quantify the percentage of Indonesian women of reproductive age (WRA) who can access a hospital with emergency obstetric and gynecological services within this time frame. In addition, we aimed to identify the underserved populations.

Obesity and the development of Parkinson's disease within the Framingham Heart study cohort.

Objective: To determine the role of obesity in the development of Parkinson's disease (PD).

Background: Obesity has been reported to be both a risk factor for PD, as well as potentially protective. The Framingham Heart Study (FHS) is a multigenerational longitudinal cohort study that was started in 1948, which is well-known for its cardiovascular health studies.

Brief Report: Precision Language and Deletion of the "S" Word.

Introduction: In 2021, the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) published the IASLC Language Guide as guidance on preferred language and phrasing in oral and written communications, including presentations at conferences. This study analyzed presentations from the 2022 IASLC World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) one year after implementation of the Language Guide to identify adoption rates of non-stigmatizing language and to determine correlations with presenter characteristics.

Methods: We downloaded 522 slide presentations from the IASLC WCLC 2022 conference attendee portal.

Tumor burden with AFP improves survival prediction for TACE-treated patients with HCC: An international observational study.

Background & Aims: Current prognostic models for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) undergoing transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) are not extensively validated and widely accepted. We aimed to develop and validate a continuous model incorporating tumor burden and biology for individual survival prediction and risk stratification.

Methods: Overall, 4,377 treatment-naive candidates for whom TACE was recommended, from 39 centers in five countries, were enrolled and divided into training, internal validation, and two external validation datasets.

Use of Complementary and Integrative Medicine Among Low-Income Persons With Mental Health Disorders.

Objective: To evaluate the use of complementary and integrative medicine (CIM) among a low-income population with mental health diagnoses and to assess differences in social determinants of health (SDOH) on the basis of CIM use.

Patients And Methods: We surveyed patients with mental health diagnoses and/or substance use disorders during outpatient evaluations between August 11, 2020, and November 18, 2021, at a community behavioral health center in Rochester, MN. We measured knowledge of current CIM, interest in future use of CIM, and SDOH.

E-norms and AI in clinical neurophysiology.

Objective: To describe the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to automate the e-norms method, a technique used to derive normative data from patient studies, mixed datasets that contain both normal and abnormal data. Multiple studies have shown that normal values collected with the e-norms method compare favorably with those collected from healthy volunteers using traditional methods.

Methods: OpenAI's ChatGPT was used by the author to build a Python script to automate the e-norms method's plateau identification, the area of the e-norms curve where a variable's normal values lie.

Strategies for Academic Advisors and Mentors to Support Medical Students Entering Clinical Rotations.

Medical school offers comprehensive education and career development both in the classroom and clinical spaces. Much of the literature surrounding optimizing and navigating clinical rotations is directed towards faculty, such as clerkship directors. However, as advisors for medical students, we notice a large gap exists in peer-reviewed content focused on teaching medical students concrete skills of navigating clinical years.

Enhancing immune response and survival in hepatocellular carcinoma with novel oncolytic Jurona virus and immune checkpoint blockade.

Members of the genus including Jurona virus (JURV) have emerged as promising immunotherapeutic agents, characterized by their tumor selectivity, fast kinetics, low seroprevalence, and minimal toxicity in humans. Here, we demonstrate that the administration of JURV leads to tumor regression in both hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) xenograft and syngeneic models. Furthermore, our findings indicate that combining JURV and anti-PD-1 therapy reduced tumor burden and improved survival rates over JURV or anti-PD-1 alone in an orthotopic HCC model.

Genetic Associations Among Inflammation, White Matter Architecture, and Extracellular Free Water.

Phenotypic and genetic relationships between white matter microstructure (i.e., fractional anisotropy [FA]) and peripheral inflammatory responses (i.

Real-world healthcare utilization and costs of peripheral nerve stimulation with a micro-IPG system.

Aim: To characterize real-world healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) and costs in adults with chronic pain of peripheral nerve origin treated with peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) using the micro-implantable pulse generator (IPG).

Materials & Methods: This retrospective observational study (9/1/19-1/31/23) linked patients from the Nalu medical database to the OM1 Real-World Data Cloud (RWDC). Eligible patients received the micro-IPG implant for PNS, were identifiable in both databases, and had ≥ 12 months of RWDC pre/post-implantation claims data.

A Randomized Controlled Trial Using Continuous Glucose Monitoring to Guide Food Choices and Diabetes Self-Care in People with Type 2 Diabetes not Taking Insulin.

Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) is an effective tool for individuals with type 2 diabetes (T2D) on insulin. This study evaluated the effect of using CGM to reduce hyperglycemia, by focusing on food and lifestyle choices, in people with T2D not taking insulin. A 6-month randomized, prospective four-center study was conducted.

Biofeedback-Based Videogame May Improve Rage Attacks in Tourette Syndrome.

Approximately 20%-40% of individuals with Tourette syndrome (TS) have rage attacks (RAs), which are recurrent, explosive behavioral outbursts that can cause significant functional impairment. Despite the impact of RA in TS, there has been limited research on treatment, and most studies have focused on pharmacologic interventions. Nonpharmacologic interventions have the potential to improve symptoms with fewer side effects.

The Patient Perspective on Discussion of Perioperative Code Status: A Blind Spot in Efforts to Promote Goal-Concordant Surgical Care.

Despite long-standing recognition that providers should discuss DNR (do-not-resuscitate) orders prior to surgery, there is evidence that perioperative code status discussions are frequently of limited quality. Limited attention has been paid to patient perspectives. Determine the scope of literature on management of perioperative DNR orders from the patient perspective.

Cellular and extracellular white matter alterations after childhood trauma experience in individuals with schizophrenia.

Background: Childhood trauma (CT) is related to altered fractional anisotropy (FA) in individuals with schizophrenia (SZ). However, it remains unclear whether CT may influence specific cellular or extracellular compartments of FA in SZ with CT experience. We extended our previous study on FA in SZ (Costello et al.

Moral injury: State of the Science.

In this paper, I provide a concise overview of the state of the scientific study of moral injury (MI). I argue that the state of science is immature, characterized by the lack of a paradigmatic theory and a lack of rigor in terms of construct definition and measurement. Because researchers, clinicians, and the media reify the results of empirical and clinical outcome studies that are chiefly exploratory and fraught with internal validity problems, enthusiasm about MI continues to far outweigh scientific and actionable, practice-based knowledge.