Decreased Structural Connectivity Between Thalamic Nuclei and Hippocampus in Temporal Lobe Epilepsy-A Diffusion Tensor Imaging-Based Study.

Background: Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) can lead to structural brain abnormalities, with thalamus atrophy being the most common extratemporal alteration. This study used probabilistic tractography to investigate the structural connectivity between individual thalamic nuclei and the hippocampus in TLE.

Methods: Thirty-six TLE patients who underwent pre-surgical 3 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and 18 healthy controls were enrolled in this study.

The effect of long-chain n-3 PUFA on liver transcriptome in human obesity.

Background And Aims: Obesity is associated with a higher risk of severe diseases such as atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). Polyunsaturated fatty acids, of the omega-3 family (n-3 PUFA), have been shown to reduce adipose tissue inflammation in obesity, as well as to have lipid-lowering effects and improve insulin sensitivity. However, direct effects on liver transcriptome in humans have not been described.

Frequency, type and severity of drug-related problems and pharmacist interventions in Paxlovid® prescribing: a descriptive analysis.

Background: Paxlovid® (nirmatrelvir and ritonavir) is the only licensed oral antiviral for COVID-19. Ritonavir is a potent inhibitor of cytochrome P450 enzymes causing numerous drug-drug interactions (DDIs).

Aim: To describe the frequency, type, and severity of detected drug related problems (DRPs) associated with Paxlovid®.

Oscillometry reference values for children and adolescents.

Background: Oscillometry devices allow quantification of respiratory function at tidal breathing but device-specific reference equations are scarce: the present study aims to create sex-specific oscillometric reference values for children and adolescents using the Resmon PRO FULL device.

Methods: Healthy participants (n=981) aged 6 to 17 years of the Austrian LEAD general population cohort were included. Subjects had normal weight (body mass index ≤99th percentile) and normal lung volumes (total lung capacity (TLC) ≥ lower limit of normal).

Sleep-Disordered Breathing in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure and Its Implications on Real-Time Hemodynamic Regulation, Baroreceptor Reflex Sensitivity, and Survival.

Impairment in autonomic activity is a prognostic marker in patients with heart failure (HF), and its involvement has been suggested in cardiovascular complications of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) and Cheyne-Stokes respiration (CSR). This prospective observational study aims to investigate the implications of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) on hemodynamic regulation and autonomic activity in chronic HF patients. Chronic HF patients, providing confirmation of reduced ejection fraction (≤35%), underwent polysomnography, real-time hemodynamic, heart rate variability (HRV), and baroreceptor reflex sensitivity (BRS) assessments using the Task Force Monitor.

Reduced Functional Connectivity in the Default Mode Network in EEGs without Other Abnormalities in Early Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease.

Introduction: Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is a rare, neurodegenerative disorder that is incurable, always fatal, and transmissible. EEG is an integral part of the diagnostic workup with typical periodic sharp wave complexes indicative of CJD, but early in the disease EEG is often unaltered. Accordingly, we aimed at evaluating disruption of brain network functional connectivity (FC) in regions belonging to the default mode network (DMN) as a potential early marker in CJD when EEG is considered visually normal.

Type-2 Inflammation in Health and Disease: Prevalence, Risk Factors and Multimorbidity.

In patients with airflow obstruction, the levels of biomarkers of Type-2 (T2) inflammation serve to predict the effectiveness of inhaled corticosteroid and biological therapies. Elevated biomarkers of T2 inflammation, including fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO, ≥20 ppb) and blood eosinophil counts (BEC, ≥300 cells/µL), were investigated in a population-based cohort of the Austrian LEAD study. A total of 4976 individuals (aged 18-82 years) were categorised into four groups based on their FeNO and BEC levels: normal with FeNO < 20 ppb and BEC < 300 cells/µL (n = 2634); FeNO ≥ 20 ppb only (n = 1623); BEC ≥ 300 cells/µL only (n = 340); and FeNO ≥ 20 ppb and BEC ≥ 300 cells/µL (n = 379).

Reference equations for pulse wave velocity, augmentation index, amplitude of forward and backward wave in a European general adult population.

Pulsatile hemodynamics have been shown to be independent predictors of cardiovascular events. The aim of the current study was to describe four pulsatile hemodynamic markers in a large, well-established, population-based cohort and to provide reference equations for sex- and age-based standardization of these measurements. 6828 adult participants from the Austrian LEAD (Lung, hEart, sociAl, boDy) cohort study, who were free from overt cardiovascular disease, non-diabetic based on blood test results, and had no history of pharmacological treatment for hypertension, dyslipidemia, and diabetes, comprised the "reference population".

Prevalence and etiotypes of persistent airflow obstruction in the general population across the lifetime.

Background And Objectives: Different factors (etiotypes) can lead to persistent airflow obstruction (PAO) across the lifetime, including genetic factors, abnormal lung development, cigarette smoking, traffic pollution exposure, respiratory infections and asthma. Here we explore the prevalence of PAO and associated etiotypes in the general population in different age bins.

Methods: We studied 664 individuals with PAO (FEV1/FVC post bronchodilation (post-BD) below the lower limit of normal (LLN)) and 11,522 with normal lung function (FEV1/FVC, FEV1 and FVC ≥ LLN and ≤ upper limit of normal (ULN) post-BD) included in the LEAD Study (NCT01727518), a general population cohort in Vienna (Austria).

Benchmarking medical laboratory performance on a global scale.

Background And Aims: Laboratory performance as a relative concept needs repetitive benchmarking for continuous improvement of laboratory procedures and medical processes. Benchmarking as such establishes reference levels as a basis for improvements efforts for healthcare institutions along the diagnosis cycle, with the patient at its center. But while this concept seems to be generally acknowledged in laboratory medicine, a lack of practical implementation hinders progress at a global level.

Soluble ST2 is associated with postoperative atrial fibrillation after cardiac surgery in postmenopausal women.

Background: Postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) represents the most common complication following cardiac surgery. Approximately one-third of patients experiencing POAF transition to atrial fibrillation within a year, challenging the notion of POAF as merely a transient event. Soluble ST2 (sST2) is an established biomarker regarding fibrosis and myocardial stretch, however, its role in predicting the onset of POAF remains unclear.

Associations of long-term exposure to air pollution and noise with body composition in children and adults: Results from the LEAD general population study.

Background: While long-term air pollution and noise exposure has been linked to increasing cardiometabolic disease risk, potential effects on body composition remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the associations of long-term air pollution, noise and body composition.

Methods: We used repeated data from the LEAD (Lung, hEart, sociAl, boDy) study conducted in Vienna, Austria.

Reference Equations for Within-Breath Respiratory Oscillometry in White Adults.

Background: Within-breath analysis of oscillometry parameters is a growing research area since it increases sensitivity and specificity to respiratory pathologies and conditions. However, reference equations for these parameters in White adults are lacking and devices using multiple sinusoids or pseudorandom forcing stimuli have been underrepresented in previous studies deriving reference equations. The current study aimed to establish reference ranges for oscillometry parameters, including also the within-breath ones in White adults using multi-sinusoidal oscillations.

Association of Preserved Ratio Impaired Spirometry with Arterial Stiffness.

Preserved ratio impaired spirometry (PRISm) is a recently recognized spirometric pattern defined by a ratio of forced expiratory volume in 1 second to forced vital capacity of at least 0.70 and a forced expiratory volume in 1 second  <80% of reference. For unclear reasons, PRISm is associated with increased cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality.

Feasibility of an Integrated Telemonitoring System for Home-Recorded EEG with Automated AI-Based EEG Analysis.

Background: Self-recorded EEG by patients at home might present a viable alternative to inpatient epilepsy evaluations.

Objectives And Methods: We developed a novel telemonitoring system comprising seamlessly integrated hard- and software with automated AI-based EEG analysis.

Results: The first complete study participation results demonstrate feasibility and clinical utility.

Idiopathic generalized epilepsies in the epilepsy monitoring unit: Systematic quantification of focal EEG and semiological signs.

Objective: Focal seizure symptoms (FSS) and focal interictal epileptiform discharges (IEDs) are common in patients with idiopathic generalized epilepsies (IGEs), but dedicated studies systematically quantifying them both are lacking. We used automatic IED detection and localization algorithms and correlated these EEG findings with clinical FSS for the first time in IGE patients.

Methods: 32 patients with IGEs undergoing long-term video EEG monitoring were systematically analyzed regarding focal vs.

Updated reference values for static lung volumes from a healthy population in Austria.

Background: Reference values for lung volumes are necessary to identify and diagnose restrictive lung diseases and hyperinflation, but the values have to be validated in the relevant population. Our aim was to investigate the Global Lung Function Initiative (GLI) reference equations in a representative healthy Austrian population and create population-derived reference equations if poor fit was observed.

Methods: We analysed spirometry and body plethysmography data from 5371 respiratory healthy subjects (6-80 years) from the Austrian LEAD Study.

Ocular manifestation of hand, foot, and mouth disease : A case series.

Virus-related illnesses are a common phenomenon, especially in the colder months of the year. They usually manifest with cough, cold, and other flu-associated symptoms. They affect people of all ages and genders.

T-Cell Subtypes and Immune Signatures in Cutaneous Immune-Related Adverse Events in Melanoma Patients under Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy.

Immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) improves outcomes in melanoma patients, but associated T-cell activation frequently leads to immune-related cutaneous adverse events (cutAEs). To dynamically identify T-cell subtypes and immune signatures associated with cutAEs, a pilot study was performed in stage III-IV melanoma patients using blood samples for flow cytometry and cytokine analysis. Blood samples were taken from patients before initiation of ICI (naive), at the onset of a cutAE, and after 6 months of ICI treatment.