The use of overlapping self-expandable covered stents in the management of long-segment tracheobronchomalacia: A case report.

Tracheomalacia is a condition where the tracheal wall is abnormally soft and prone to collapse during increased respiratory efforts. Airway malacia can manifest as segmental conditions like laryngomalacia, tracheomalacia and bronchomalacia, or as diffuse conditions such as tracheobronchomalacia (TBM). Unlike long-segment congenital tracheal stenosis, where surgery may be the preferred treatment, the management of long-segment TBM remains controversial.

Anti-influenza A (H1N1) virus effect of gallic acid through inhibition of virulent protein production and association with autophagy.

Influenza remains one of the most serious infectious diseases. Gallic acid is one of the most common and representative phenolic acids found in various plants. This is an interesting subject to explore how gallic acid could inhibit H1N1 influenza virus infection by reducing the production of virulent proteins and interrupting autophagy machinery for influenza virus replication on the host cell.

Clinical feature-based diagnosis criteria of eosinophil and non-eosinophil chronic rhinosinusitis in Taiwan.

Background: The prevalence of eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis (ECRS) has increased in Taiwan with a higher recurrence rate of nasal polyps after surgery. Therefore, we aimed to formulate the pre-operative diagnostic criteria for patients with ECRS in Taiwan.

Methods: This case-control study included patients diagnosed with CRS with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) who underwent functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) at a tertiary hospital in Taiwan.

Prenatal Exposure to Heavy Metals and Adverse Birth Outcomes: Evidence From an E-Waste Area in China.

Electronic waste that has not been properly treated can lead to environmental contamination including of heavy metals, which can pose risks to human health. Infants, a sensitive group, are highly susceptible to heavy metals exposure. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between prenatal heavy metal exposure and infant birth outcomes in an e-waste recycling area in China.

Primary versus salvage intratympanic steroid treatment for idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss.

Objective: The objective of this research is to compare primary and salvage intratympanic (IT) steroid treatments in terms of hearing outcomes in patients with idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (ISSNHL).

Methods: The patients were randomized into two (primary and salvage) groups. Both groups received systemic steroid treatment for 2 weeks.

Sex Differences in Temporal Trends and Risk Factors of Aortic Dissection in Taiwan.

Background Although sex differences in the epidemiological features of aortic dissection (AD) are known, whether there were sex differences in the associations of comorbidities and risk factors with AD is unclear. We evaluated the temporal trends and risk factors of AD by sex. Methods and Results Using claims data from a universal health insurance program linked to the National Death Registry in Taiwan, we identified 16 368 men and 7052 women with newly diagnosed AD from 2005 to 2018.

Injectable bioactive glass/sodium alginate hydrogel with immunomodulatory and angiogenic properties for enhanced tendon healing.

Tendon healing is a complex process involving inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling, eventually achieving a state of hypocellularity and hypovascularity. Currently, few treatments can satisfactorily restore the structure and function of native tendon. Bioactive glass (BG) has been shown to possess immunomodulatory and angiogenic properties.

Inhaled Carbon Dioxide Improves Neurological Outcomes by Downregulating Hippocampal Autophagy and Apoptosis in an Asphyxia-Induced Cardiac Arrest and Resuscitation Rat Model.

Background Protracted cerebral hypoperfusion following cardiac arrest (CA) may cause poor neurological recovery. We hypothesized that inhaled carbon dioxide (CO) could augment cerebral blood flow (CBF) and improve post-CA neurological outcomes. Methods and Results After 6-minute asphyxia-induced CA and resuscitation, Wistar rats were randomly allocated to 4 groups (n=25/group) and administered with different inhaled CO concentrations, including control (0% CO), 4% CO, 8% CO, and 12% CO.

An optimal control model for COVID-19, zika, dengue, and chikungunya co-dynamics with reinfection.

The co-circulation of different emerging viral diseases is a big challenge from an epidemiological point of view. The similarity of symptoms, cases of virus co-infection, and cross-reaction can mislead in the diagnosis of the disease. In this article, a new mathematical model for COVID-19, zika, chikungunya, and dengue co-dynamics is developed and studied to assess the impact of COVID-19 on zika, dengue, and chikungunya dynamics and vice-versa.

Incidental finding of situs ambiguus in a middle-aged woman.

Situs ambiguus is a rare congenital abnormality with outcomes ranging from asymptomatic to fatal. Here we present a woman with an incidental finding of situs ambiguus hinted by her chest radiograph. This case highlights the importance of actively seeking diagnosis when right sub-diaphragmic air is noted when viewing a chest radiograph.

Cytotoxicity and cell imaging of six types of carbon nanodots prepared through carbonization and hydrothermal processing of natural plant materials.

In this study we prepared six types of carbon nanodots (CNDs) from natural plant materials - through carbonization of two species of bamboo (Bamboo-I, Bamboo-II) and one type of wood (Wood), and through hydrothermal processing of the stem and root of the herb Hayata (MO) and of the agricultural waste of two species of pineapple root (PA, PB). The resulting CNDs were spherical with dimensions on the nanoscale (3-7 nm); furthermore, CND-Bamboo I, CND-Wood, CND-Bamboo II, CND-MO, CND-PA, and CND-PB displayed fluorescence quantum yields of 9.63, 12.

Meckel's diverticulum diagnosed by double-balloon enteroscopy: A single-center retrospective study in Taiwan.

Background And Aim: Meckel's diverticulum (MD) is a common congenital abnormality of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Although a few patients with MD present symptoms, preoperative diagnosis of MD is a clinical challenge because of its endoscopic inaccessibility. The aim of the present study was to investigate patients with MD diagnosed by double-balloon enteroscopy (DBE) in Taiwan.

estimation for COVID-19 pandemic through exponential fit.

We provide an easy and accurate method for approximating the reproduction number defined in an SIR epidemic model. At first, we present a formula extracting the exact in case of constant rates of infection and recovery assumed in an SIR model. Then, we proceed proposing an exponential fitting to various data taken from the real-world epidemics.

Followers' unclear demands during the COVID-19 pandemic can undermine leaders' well-being: A moderated mediation model from an entrapment perspective.

Although effective leaders are important for reducing employee stress during the COVID-19, limited studies have examined how follower behaviors can influence leader stress and well-being during the COVID-19. This study draws on defeat-entrapment theory to examine how followers' unclear demands during the COVID-19 consequently impact leaders' psychological states and well-being. We conducted a three-wave time-lagged investigation with a sample of 281 leaders in the United Kingdom and found that followers' unclear demands could generate feelings of entrapment in leaders, leading to decreased levels of well-being outcomes in leaders.

Diameter Reduction Determined Through Carotid Ultrasound Associated With Cardiovascular and All-Cause Mortality: A Single-Center Experience of 38 201 Consecutive Patients in Taiwan.

Background Few studies have evaluated the prognostic significance of diameter-based carotid sonographic measurements for mortality. We investigated whether a reduction in diameter of different carotid anatomical segments is associated with cardiovascular and all-cause mortality in a hospital-based cohort with universal health care. Methods and Results We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 38 201 patients who underwent carotid duplex ultrasound at a medical center in Taiwan.

E3 ligase activity of Carboxyl terminus of Hsc70 interacting protein (CHIP) in Wharton's jelly derived mesenchymal stem cells improves their persistence under hyperglycemic stress and promotes the prophylactic effects against diabetic cardiac damages.

Recent studies indicate that umbilical cord stem cells are cytoprotective against several disorders. One critical limitation in using stem cells is reduction in their viability under stressful conditions, such as diabetes. However, the molecular intricacies responsible for diabetic conditions are not fully elucidated.

Bracteanolide A abrogates oxidative stress-induced cellular damage and protects against hepatic ischemia and reperfusion injury in rats.

Liver diseases, including viral hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, and liver cancer, mostly remain silent until the late stages and pose a continuing threat to millions of people worldwide. Liver transplantation is the most appropriate solution in the case of liver failure, but it is associated with hepatic ischemia and reperfusion (I/R) injury which severely reduces the prognosis of the patients. In order to ameliorate I/R injury, we investigated the potential of bracteanolide A, from the herb Kunth in protecting the liver from I/R injury.

Ropeginterferon alfa-2b in patients with genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C: Pharmacokinetics, safety, and preliminary efficacy.

Background And Aim: Ropeginterferon alfa-2b (P1101) is a novel long-acting mono-PEGylated recombinant proline interferon (IFN) conjugated to a 40 kDa branched polyethylene glycol (PEG) chain at its N-terminus, allowing every-two-week injection. It received European Medicines Agency and Taiwan marketing authorization for the treatment of polycythemia vera in 2019 and 2020, respectively. This phase 2 study aimed to evaluate the pharmacokinetics, safety, and preliminary efficacy of ropeginterferon alfa-2b as compared with PEG-IFN-α2a in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus genotype 1 infection.

Analysis of fractional COVID-19 epidemic model under Caputo operator.

The article deals with the analysis of the fractional COVID-19 epidemic model (FCEM) with a convex incidence rate. Keeping in view the fading memory and crossover behavior found in many biological phenomena, we study the coronavirus disease by using the noninteger Caputo derivative (CD). Under the Caputo operator (CO), existence and uniqueness for the solutions of the FCEM have been analyzed using fixed point theorems.

Erythropoietin Use and the Risk of Stroke in Patients on Hemodialysis: A Retrospective Cohort Study in Taiwan.

Background Targeting higher hemoglobin levels with erythropoietin to treat anemia in patients with chronic kidney disease is associated with increased cardiovascular risk, including that of stroke. The risks of the subtypes of stroke, ischemic, hemorrhagic, and unspecified, following the administration of erythropoietin in patients with end-stage renal disease receiving hemodialysis remain unclear. Methods and results Overall, 12 948 adult patients with end-stage renal disease treated during 1999 to 2010 who had undergone hemodialysis were included.

Antioxidant vitamins promote anticancer effects on low-concentration methotrexate-treated glioblastoma cells via enhancing the caspase-3 death pathway.

Vitamin C and vitamin E are well-known antioxidant vitamins, both of which are also applied as adjunct treatments for cancer therapy. Methotrexate (MTX) is a clinical drug that is used widely for rheumatoid arthritis and cancer treatment. Human glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is an aggressive malignant brain tumor; the mean survival time for GBM patients is <2 years with traditional therapies.

Automatic capture management may cause unnecessary battery depletion in selective his-bundle pacing.

A routine change in the automatic capture management algorithm from "adaptive" to "off or monitor" is required to conserve device longevity in a permanent pacemaker with His-bundle pacing.

An antidiabetic nutraceutical combination of red yeast rice (), bitter gourd (), and chromium alleviates dedifferentiation of pancreatic β cells in db/db mice.

Antidiabetic properties of red yeast rice, bitter gourd, and chromium have gained scientific support. This study aimed to test whether a nutraceutical combination of these 3 materials prevented dedifferentiation of pancreatic β cells. Male db/db mice (8 weeks of age) were allocated into four groups (DB, DB/L, DB/M, and DB/H;  = 8-10) and fed a high-fat diet containing 0%, 0.