The incidence of and risk factors for axillary web syndrome with limited shoulder movement after surgery for breast cancer, and the effect of early physical therapy intervention.

Background: The aims of this cohort study were to identify (1) the incidence and risk factors for axillary web syndrome (AWS) with shoulder movement limitation within 4 weeks after axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) for Asian women with breast cancer (BC), and (2) whether early intervention with physical therapy (PT) could improve AWS, and how many PT sessions would be needed.

Methods: A cohort study of patients with BC receiving ALND was performed at Changhua Christian Hospital, Taiwan, between January 2019 and December 2020. Those patients who were diagnosed with AWS with shoulder movement limitation were referred to receive PT twice weekly at the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

Assessing the Performance of Chatbots on the Taiwan Psychiatry Licensing Examination Using the Rasch Model.

Background/objectives: The potential and limitations of chatbots in medical education and clinical decision support, particularly in specialized fields like psychiatry, remain unknown. By using the Rasch model, our study aimed to evaluate the performance of various state-of-the-art chatbots on psychiatry licensing exam questions to explore their strengths and weaknesses.

Methods: We assessed the performance of 22 leading chatbots, selected based on LMArena benchmark rankings, using 100 multiple-choice questions from the 2024 Taiwan psychiatry licensing examination, a nationally standardized test required for psychiatric licensure in Taiwan.

Identifying the Needs of Paediatric-Friendly Care in Emergency Department: A Delphi Study.

Aims: To systematically analyse expert perspectives on paediatric-friendly care in the emergency department and establish specific indicators.

Background: With an increasing number of children seeking emergency care, nurses must understand the specific needs of paediatric patients and their families.

Design: A two-round modified Delphi method was used in this study.

ADHD and Risk of Precocious Puberty: Considering the Impact of MPH.

Background/objectives: The complex association between attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and methylphenidate (MPH) with precocious puberty (PP) is still unclear. This study aims to investigate the association between ADHD, MPH, and PP.

Methods: This is a nationwide cohort study including a total of 3,342,077 individuals, 186,681 with ADHD and 3,155,396 without.

Loss of resilience in Taiwan's pediatric care system after the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Taiwan's pediatric healthcare system faced its most severe shortage of pediatric residents in history. This review investigates the causes, consequences, and potential solutions to this shortage. Between 2020 and 2023, the recruitment rate of pediatric residents dropped by 27.

The Association between Autism Spectrum Disorder and Precocious Puberty: Considering Effect Modification by Sex and Neuropsychiatric Comorbidities.

Limited knowledge is available about the association between autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) and precocious puberty. Our study examined the association between the two medical conditions and effect modification by sex and neuropsychiatric comorbidities in a nationwide population. To compare the risk of precocious puberty between ASD and non-ASD cases, we conducted a Cox regression analysis using ASD as the exposure and time to precocious puberty as the outcome.

Effectiveness of corticosteroids and epinephrine use in neonates for the first extubation attempt: A retrospective study.

Background: This study aimed to analyze the use of corticosteroids and epinephrine in neonates for the first extubation attempt and compared clinical characteristics of infants with successful and failed extubation events.

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study conducted at a single level III neonatal intensive care unit in Taiwan. The study included 215 infants born between 2020 and 2021 who had been intubated for more than 48 h before their first extubation attempt.

Asthma control associated with anxiety and depression in asthmatic children following post-acute COVID-19.

Background: Poor asthma control may adversely affect mental health. Our study investigates the correlation between inadequate asthma control, exhaled nitric oxide (FENO) levels, and anxiety and depression among pediatric asthma patients with COVID-19.

Methods: This prospective case-control study enrolled 520 asthmatic children (8-15 years), including 336 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 after rapid antigen testing at home and 184 age-matched asthmatic patients without COVID-19 infection.

The relationship between schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder and type 1 diabetes mellitus: a scoping review of observational studies.

Objective: Both schizophrenia and type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) are known as immune-related disorders. We systematically reviewed observational studies to explore the relationship between schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder and T1D.

Methods: A preliminary search of articles was completed using the following databases: Airiti Library, CINAHL Complete (via EBSCOhost), OVID MEDLINE, Embase, and PubMed.

Evaluation of next-generation sequencing for measurable residual disease monitoring in three major fusion transcript subtypes of B-precursor acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

The use of next-generation sequencing (NGS) for monitoring measurable residual disease (MRD) in acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) has been gaining traction. This study aimed to investigate the utility of NGS in MRD monitoring for the three major fusion transcript (FT) subtypes of B-precursor ALL (B-ALL). The MRD results for 104 bone marrow samples from 56 patients were analysed through NGS and real time quantitative reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR) for the three major FTs: BCR::ABL1, TCF3::PBX1, and ETV6::RUNX1.

Refining risk stratification in paediatric B-acute lymphoblastic leukaemia: Combining IKZF1 and Day 15 MRD positivity.

This study investigates the potential utility of IKZF1 deletion as an additional high-risk marker for paediatric acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). The prognostic impact of IKZF1 status, in conjunction with minimal/measurable residual disease (MRD), was evaluated within the MRD-guided TPOG-ALL-2013 protocol using 412 newly diagnosed B-ALL patients aged 1-18. IKZF1 status was determined using multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification.

Nurses' perspectives on child-friendly care needs in emergency departments: A qualitative study.

Background: Children can become anxious when undergoing emergency medical treatment. Therefore, emergency departments should be child friendly. This study explored emergency nurses' perspectives on children's needs during emergency care.

Long-term PM exposure is associated with asthma prevalence and exhaled nitric oxide levels in children.

Background: Exhaled nitric oxide concentration (FENO) is a marker of airway inflammation. This study aimed to evaluate the association of air pollution exposure with FENO levels and asthma prevalence with respiratory symptoms in school children.

Methods: We analyzed 4736 school children who reside in six townships near industrial areas in central Taiwan.

Neurodevelopment Outcomes in Very-Low-Birth-Weight Infants with Metabolic Bone Disease at 2 Years of Age.

Metabolic bone disease (MBD) predominantly affects preterm infants, particularly very-low-birth-weight (VLBW) infants weighing <1500 g. However, there are limited reports on MBD and neurodevelopmental outcomes. This study aimed to analyze the risk factors for MBD and understand its impact on neurodevelopmental outcomes at 2 years of corrected age.

Predicting the therapeutic response to valproic acid in childhood absence epilepsy through electroencephalogram analysis using machine learning.

Childhood absence epilepsy (CAE) is a common type of idiopathic generalized epilepsy, manifesting as daily multiple absence seizures. Although seizures in most patients can be adequately controlled with first-line antiseizure medication (ASM), approximately 25 % of patients respond poorly to first-line ASM. In addition, an accurate method for predicting first-line medication responsiveness is lacking.

Quantitative DNA Methylation Analysis and Epigenotype-Phenotype Correlations in Taiwanese Patients with Silver-Russell Syndrome.

Silver-Russell syndrome (SRS; OMIM #180860) is a clinically and genetically heterogeneous imprinting disorder characterized by prenatal and postnatal growth failure. The aim of this study was to identify the epigenotype-phenotype correlations in these patients using quantitative DNA methylation analysis. One hundred and eighty-three subjects clinically suspected of having SRS were referred for diagnostic testing by the methylation profiling of -associated imprinting center (IC) 1 and imprinted regions using methylation-specific high-resolution melting analysis and methylation quantification with the MassARRAY assay.

Effectiveness of two same-manufacturer intravenous immunoglobulin for Kawasaki disease.

Background: To investigate whether two brands of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) from the same manufacturer lead to varied effects when administered to patients with Kawasaki disease.

(kd) Methods: Clinical characteristics, laboratory data, IVIG response, and coronary arteries change were analyzed between two groups.

Results: We included 158 KD cases.

Association Between Maternal Mood Disorders and Schizophrenia and the Risk of Type 1 Diabetes in Offspring: A Nationwide Cohort Study.

Objective: Our study aimed to determine whether mothers with bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, schizophrenia, or schizoaffective disorder affected the risk of type 1 diabetes (T1D) in their offspring.

Methods: We conducted a nationwide cohort study by using data from Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database and the Maternal and Child Health Database from 2004 to 2018. A total of 2,556,640 mother-child pairs were identified.

Late-onset symptomatic hyperprolactinemia in 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin synthase deficiency.

Background: Tetrahydrobiopterin (BH) deficiency caused by 6-pyruvoyl-tetrahydropterin synthase (PTPS) deficiency is a rare disorder that is one of the major causes of hyperphenylalaninemia in Taiwan.

Methods: In this study, we reviewed the clinical courses of 12 adolescent and adult patients (7 females and 5 males) with PTPS deficiency.

Results: The patients were treated shortly after diagnosis through newborn screening with a combination of BH, levodopa/carbidopa, and 5-OH-tryptophan.

Pathogenesis and novel therapeutics of regulatory T cell subsets and interleukin-2 therapy in systemic lupus erythematosus.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a heterogeneous multisystem inflammatory disease with wide variability in clinical manifestations. Natural arising CD4+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) play a critical role in maintaining peripheral tolerance by suppressing inflammation and preventing autoimmune responses in SLE. Additionally, CD8+ regulatory T cells, type 1 regulatory T cells (Tr1), and B regulatory cells also have a less well-defined role in the pathogenesis of SLE.