Primary umbilical endometriosis presenting with umbilical bleeding: A case report.

Endometriosis is a condition in which endometrial tissue implants outside the uterine cavity, which can cause cyclic pain, dysmenorrhea, dyspareunia, and infertility. Endometriosis implants are typically seen on pelvic peritoneal surfaces and extra-pelvic disease is uncommon. We present an interesting case of primary umbilical endometriosis in a patient who presented with umbilical bleeding with a history of pelvic inflammatory disease complicated by bilateral tubo-ovarian abscesses.

Biallelic variants in CHST3 cause Spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia with joint dislocations in three Pakistani kindreds.

Background: Skeletal dysplasia is a heterogeneous group of disorders. Spondyloepiphyseal dysplasias comprise one subgroup. Deficiency of carbohydrate sulfotransferase 3 has been reported in a small number of patients with recessively inherited spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia with joint dislocation, short stature and scoliosis.

Therapeutic Effects of Salvianolic Acid B on Angiotensin II-Induced Atrial Fibrosis by Regulating Atrium Metabolism via Targeting AMPK/FoxO1/miR-148a-3p Axis.

The present study highlights the effects of salvianolic acid B (Sal B) on angiotensin II (Ang II)-activated atrial fibroblasts as well as the associated potential mechanism from the metabonomics perspective. Metabolic profile analysis performed an optimal separation of the Ang II and control group, indicating a recovery impact of Sal B on Ang II-activated fibroblasts (FBs). We found that metabolite levels in the Ang II + Sal B group were reversed to normal.

The usefulness of speckle tracking echocardiography in identifying subclinical myocardial dysfunction in young adults recovered from mild COVID-19.

Background: Myocardial strain assessed with speckle tracking echocardiography is a sensitive marker of cardiac dysfunction. Both left-ventricular global longitudinal strain (LV-GLS) and right ventricular longitudinal strain (RV-LS) were affected by severe SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, data about cardiac involvement in patients with asymptomatic/mild Coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) is still lacking.

Prolonged lower extremity endovascular procedures for patients with claudication increase risk of adverse outcomes.

Objective: Historically, longer operative times for open infrainguinal revascularization have been associated with higher perioperative complication rates, especially surgical site infections and extended lengths of stay. We sought to determine whether an association existed between the procedure length and morbidity or mortality after elective lower extremity endovascular interventions.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional retrospective analysis of the targeted lower extremity National Surgery Quality Improvement Program database from 2012 to 2017.

Hematologic side effects of biologics and kinase inhibitors used in rheumatologic diseases: a review of the current evidence.

Treatment options for various rheumatologic diseases have been limited until the introduction of biologic agents and kinase inhibitor therapy in recent decades. Since their arrival, they have steadily been integrated into routine management. Given their wide use and overall successful outcomes, it becomes increasingly pertinent for clinicians to readily identify their side effects.

Trends and Outcomes of Hospitalized Influenza Patients With End-Stage Kidney Disease: Insights From the National Inpatient Sample 2010-2019.

Introduction Influenza causes significant morbidity and mortality annually in the United States (US) and people with chronic medical conditions are thought to be at higher risk for severe disease and death. Infection is a leading cause of death for patients with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD). We used a national-level inpatient database to study the trend of influenza hospitalizations and in-hospital mortality for patients without and with ESKD.

Transfusing Convalescent Plasma as Post-Exposure Prophylaxis Against Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Infection: A Double-Blinded, Phase 2 Randomized, Controlled Trial.

Background: The efficacy of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) convalescent plasma (CCP) for preventing infection in exposed, uninfected individuals is unknown. CCP might prevent infection when administered before symptoms or laboratory evidence of infection.

Methods: This double-blinded, phase 2 randomized, controlled trial (RCT) compared the efficacy and safety of prophylactic high titer (≥1:320 by Euroimmun ELISA) CCP with standard plasma.

Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis Secondary to Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy.

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a fatal systemic inflammatory syndrome. HLH has been reported as a rare immune-related adverse event (irAE) in patients receiving immunotherapy with nivolumab, ipilimumab, and/or pembrolizumab. The data are limited to case reports and case series.

Robotic-assisted thoracoscopic surgery demonstrates a lower rate of conversion to thoracotomy than video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery for complex lobectomies.

Objectives: Locally advanced lung cancers present a significant challenge to minimally invasive thoracic surgeons. An increasing number of centres have adopted robotic-assisted thoracoscopic surgeries for these complex operations. In this study, we compare surgical margins achieved, conversion rates to thoracotomy, perioperative mortality and 30-day readmission rates for robotic and video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) lobectomy for locally advanced lung cancers.

Diagnostic dilemma in a patient presenting with thrombotic microangiopathy in the setting of pregnancy.

We report a case of thrombotic microangiopathy in a postpartum female for which considerable diagnostic uncertainty existed initially regarding the etiology. This case highlights the limitations surrounding PLASMIC scoring criteria for the diagnosis of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP). A 32-year-old woman presented to maternofetal medicine in her third trimester of pregnancy at 32 weeks for a routine follow up and was subsequently found to have elevated blood pressures with proteinuria, and was diagnosed with pre-eclampsia.

FOXC1 Binds Enhancers and Promotes Cisplatin Resistance in Bladder Cancer.

Chemotherapy resistance is traditionally attributed to DNA mutations that confer a survival advantage under drug selection pressure. However, in bladder cancer and other malignancies, we and others have previously reported that cancer cells can convert spontaneously to an aggressive drug-resistant phenotype without prior drug selection or mutational events. In the current work, we explored possible epigenetic mechanisms behind this phenotypic plasticity.

Nationwide Trends in Hospitalizations and Outcomes of Pulmonary Circulation Disorders Among Patients With Cannabis Use Disorder in the United States.

Background and objective The use of cannabis through smoking and vaping has increased significantly over the past decade. However, the prevalence of pulmonary circulation disorder (PCD)-related hospitalizations among cannabis users and their outcomes remain poorly understood. In this study, we used a nationally representative sample to assess the prevalence and trends of hospitalization among cannabis users with PCD.

Early Outpatient Treatment for Covid-19 with Convalescent Plasma.

Background: Polyclonal convalescent plasma may be obtained from donors who have recovered from coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). The efficacy of this plasma in preventing serious complications in outpatients with recent-onset Covid-19 is uncertain.

Methods: In this multicenter, double-blind, randomized, controlled trial, we evaluated the efficacy and safety of Covid-19 convalescent plasma, as compared with control plasma, in symptomatic adults (≥18 years of age) who had tested positive for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, regardless of their risk factors for disease progression or vaccination status.

How do I implement an outpatient program for the administration of convalescent plasma for COVID-19?

Convalescent plasma, collected from donors who have recovered from a pathogen of interest, has been used to treat infectious diseases, particularly in times of outbreak, when alternative therapies were unavailable. The COVID-19 pandemic revived interest in the use of convalescent plasma. Large observational studies and clinical trials that were executed during the pandemic provided insight into how to use convalescent plasma, whereby high levels of antibodies against the pathogen of interest and administration early within the time course of the disease are critical for optimal therapeutic effect.

Frequency and Geographic Distribution of Borrelia miyamotoi, Borrelia burgdorferi, and Babesia microti Infections in New England Residents.

Background: Borrelia miyamotoi is a relapsing fever spirochete that relatively recently has been reported to infect humans. It causes an acute undifferentiated febrile illness that can include meningoencephalitis and relapsing fever. Like Borrelia burgdorferi, it is transmitted by Ixodes scapularis ticks in the northeastern United States and by Ixodes pacificus ticks in the western United States.

Foreign body reaction mimicking local recurrence from polyactide adhesion barrier film after laparoscopic colorectal cancer surgery: A retrospective cohort study.

Polyactide (PLA) barrier is one of the most commonly used materials to prevent the formation of postoperative adhesion. Even though previous studies supported the anti-adhesion efficacy of PLA barrier, there have been limited reports focusing on the associated foreign body reaction. We sought to investigate the potential complication of PLA barrier placement that could lead to unnecessary intervention.

Nontuberculous Mycobacterial Infection Mimicking Inflammatory Tenosynovitis: A Real Head Scratcher.

Nontuberculous mycobacterial tenosynovitis is a rare entity that is often misdiagnosed as bacterial or inflammatory tenosynovitis. We present a case of a 64-year-old man who presented with pain and swelling of his right wrist for several weeks. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of his right upper extremity showed findings consistent with prominent tenosynovitis in the right extensor digitorum tendon sheath.

Randomized Controlled Trial of Early Outpatient COVID-19 Treatment with High-Titer Convalescent Plasma.

Background: The efficacy of polyclonal high titer convalescent plasma to prevent serious complications of COVID-19 in outpatients with recent onset of illness is uncertain.

Methods: This multicenter, double-blind randomized controlled trial compared the efficacy and safety of SARS-CoV-2 high titer convalescent plasma to placebo control plasma in symptomatic adults ≥18 years positive for SARS-CoV-2 regardless of risk factors for disease progression or vaccine status. Participants with symptom onset within 8 days were enrolled, then transfused within the subsequent day.

Impact of multidisciplinary radiologic-pathologic correlation conference for benign image-guided breast biopsies on discordance rates and patient outcomes in a community teaching hospital.

As the assessment for radiologic-pathologic concordance, particularly for benign image-guided breast biopsies, is crucial in the management of patients with imaging abnormalities, many health institutions now conduct multidisciplinary conferences to assess the imaging and pathology findings in patients who had image-guided needle biopsy. We aimed to identify the radiologic-pathologic discordance rates and changes in patient outcomes resulting from the implementation of radiologic-pathologic correlation conferences in a community teaching hospital. Twenty-two (5.

Possible Aripiprazole-Induced Hypothermia: An "Icy" Side Effect?

Antipsychotics are a widely used class of drugs. They have been frequently associated with temperature dysregulation, especially hyperthermia. Hypothermia is also a rare but very serious side effect associated with these drugs.

Iatrogenic Pneumocephalus Resolved by Oxygen Therapy.

Iatrogenic pneumocephalus and dural puncture are some causes of headache following cervical epidural injection. A 50-year-old woman presented with a sharp headache at the base of her skull following a cervical epidural injection for chronic neck pain. It was not relieved by lying down and was associated with nausea, vomiting, and photophobia without fever or neck rigidity.

Randomized controlled trial transfusing convalescent plasma as post-exposure prophylaxis against SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Background: The efficacy of SARS-CoV-2 convalescent plasma (CCP) for preventing infection in exposed, uninfected individuals is unknown. We hypothesized that CCP might prevent infection when administered before symptoms or laboratory evidence of infection.

Methods: This double-blinded, phase 2 randomized, controlled trial (RCT) compared the efficacy and safety of prophylactic high titer (≥1:320) CCP with standard plasma.

Ventricular fibrillation arrest due to Brugada syndrome in a coronavirus disease 2019 patient with negative procainamide challenge: a case report.

Background: Pharmacologic challenge test is often used to diagnose Brugada syndrome (BrS) when spontaneous electrocardiograms (ECG) do not show type I Brugada pattern but reported sensitivity varies. The role of the exercise stress test in diagnosing Brugada syndrome is not well-established.

Case Summary: A patient had a type I Brugada pattern ECG during the recovery phase of exercise stress test but had a negative procainamide challenge test.