Factors Associated With Semaglutide Initiation Among Adults With Obesity.

Importance: Semaglutide, a novel glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist medication, was approved for weight management in individuals with obesity in June 2021. There is limited evidence on factors associated with uptake among individuals in this subgroup without diabetes.

Objective: To explore factors associated with semaglutide initiation among a population of commercially insured individuals with obesity but no diagnosed diabetes.

Key Challenges Experienced by Bangladeshi Human Trafficking Survivors During Social Reintegration: Insights from Survivors, Experts, and Social Workers.

Purpose: Human trafficking survivors' successful social reintegration is of paramount importance. However, survivors found it difficult to build their lives in Bangladesh upon return. The specific challenges encountered by Bangladeshi trafficking survivors remain underexplored, particularly regarding individual, socio-cultural, and systematic factors.

Tacrolimus and diabetic rodent models.

Tacrolimus (TAC) is an immunosuppressant widely utilized in organ transplantation. One of its primary adverse effects is glucose metabolism disorder, which significantly increases the risk of diabetes. Investigating the molecular mechanisms underlying TAC-induced diabetes is essential for developing effective prevention and treatment strategies for these adverse effects.

Matters arising: cost-utility and cost-effectiveness analysis of disease-modifying drugs of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis: a systematic review.

Background: In their interesting systematic review, Gallehzan et al. quoted our article Cost-utility analysis of teriflunomide in naïve vs. previously treated patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) in Italy.

Exploring the influence of medical staffing and birth volume on observed-to-expected cesarean deliveries: a panel data analysis of integrated obstetric and gynecological departments in Germany.

Introduction: Cesarean deliveries account for approximately one-third of all births in Germany, prompting ongoing discussions on cesarean section rates and their connection to medical staffing and birth volume. In Germany, the majority of departments integrate obstetric and gynecological care within a single department.

Methods: The analysis utilized quality reports from German hospitals spanning 2015 to 2019.

NnMTP10 from Nelumbo nucifera acts as a transporter mediating manganese and iron efflux.

Deficiency or excess of mineral elements in the environment is a primary factor limiting crop yields and nutritional quality. Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) is an important aquatic crop in Asia, but the mechanism for accumulating mineral nutrients and coping with nutrient deficiency/excess is still largely unknown. Here, we identified NnMTP10, a member of the cation diffusion facilitator family, by screening the cDNA library of lotus.

Analysis of the economically justifiable price of mepolizumab in adults with asthma in Colombia.

Introduction: Asthma imposes a critical economic burden on health systems, especially with the incorporation of new drugs. Recently, mepolizumab has been approved to prevent exacerbations in patients with eosinophilic asthma, however their high cost constitutes a barrier for their use, especially in middle- and low-income countries. This study aimed to estimate the economically justifiable price of mepolizumab for preventing exacerbations in patients with severe asthma in Colombia.

Neighborhood Socioeconomic Status and Breastfeeding Initiation and Duration Among Primiparous Black Women.

Social determinants of health account for racial inequities in breastfeeding rates in the United States. There is a gap in the role of neighborhood socioeconomic status (NSES) as it relates to breastfeeding disparities. Using longitudinal data from the Black Women's Health Study, we assessed associations of NSES with breastfeeding initiation and duration in a cohort of primiparous U.

High Cirrhosis Surgical Volume Centers have Reduced Postoperative Mortality in Patients with Cirrhosis Undergoing Major Surgery.

Patients with cirrhosis have increased surgical risk and require care team expertise. We explored the association between center cirrhosis surgical volume and post-operative mortality in a large VA dataset. In this retrospective cohort study of 14,500 major surgeries in patients with cirrhosis, we found in adjusted analysis that high-volume centers (>16 surgeries in past year) had a 36% reduced hazard of post-operative mortality through 90 days versus low-volume centers (<9 surgeries in past year; hazard ratio 0.

A comprehensive assessment of headache characteristics, management, and burden of migraine in comparison with tension-type headache in Türkiye: Results of a cross-sectional survey of adult patients.

Objectives: Migraine is a common cause of headache and a leading cause of morbidity in Türkiye. This study aimed to describe the clinical characteristics and management of migraine and to compare migraine with tension-type headache (TTH) regarding the burden of disease and healthcare resource utilization.

Methods: A total of 1368 patients (aged 18-65 years) with migraine or TTH were surveyed regarding sociodemographics, headache characteristics, clinical management, disease burden, quality of life, and healthcare resource utilization within the previous 12 months.

Gesture screening in young infants: Highly sensitive to risk factors for communication delay.

Introduction: Children's early language and communication skills are efficiently measured using parent report, for example, communicative development inventories (CDIs). These have scalable potential to determine risk of later language delay, and associations between delay and risk factors such as prematurity and poverty. However, there may be measurement difficulties in parent reports, including anomalous directions of association between child age/socioeconomic status and reported language.

Postdoc publications and citations link to academic retention and faculty success.

Postdoctoral training is a career stage often described as a demanding and anxiety-laden time when many promising PhDs see their academic dreams slip away due to circumstances beyond their control. We use a unique dataset of academic publishing and careers to chart the more or less successful postdoctoral paths. We build a measure of academic success on the citation patterns two to five years into a faculty career.

Sociodemographic and regional differences in neonatal and infant mortality in Switzerland in 2011-2018: the Swiss National Cohort.

Background And Aims: Despite a well-funded healthcare system with universal insurance coverage, Switzerland has one of the highest neonatal and infant mortality rates among high-income countries. Identifying avoidable risk factors targeted by evidence-based policies is a public health priority. We describe neonatal and infant mortality in Switzerland from 2011 to 2018 and explore associations with neonatal- and pregnancy-related variables, parental sociodemographic information, regional factors and socioeconomic position (SEP) using data from a long-term nationwide cohort study.

Economic evaluation in the treatment of unruptured intracranial aneurysms in the Swiss healthcare system: a retrospective cost evaluation.

The choice of modality of treatment for unruptured intracranial aneurysms is based on various clinical aspects and the patient's preference. Financial considerations should not be among these. To evaluate any financial variations between endovascular and microsurgical treatment of unruptured intracranial aneurysms in the Swiss healthcare system, we retrospectively reviewed 100 consecutive aneurysm cases treated as inpatients in our institution.

A cost-effectiveness analysis of sotorasib as second-line treatment for patients with KRAS-G12C-mutated metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (mNSCLC) in Switzerland.

Background And Objective: Because of the lack of effective targeted treatment options, docetaxel has long been the standard second-line therapy for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer, including the Kirsten rat sarcoma virus (KRAS) G12C mutation. The CodeBreak 200 trial demonstrated that sotorasib, a new drug targeting the G12C-mutated KRAS protein, modestly improved progression-free survival compared with docetaxel in patients whose cancer had progressed after receiving platinum chemotherapy and programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) / programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) inhibitors as first-line treatment. Consequently, sotorasib received temporary approval in Switzerland.

Selumetinib for children with neurofibromatosis type 1 and plexiform neurofibromas that can't be removed by surgery, and impact on how the condition affects caregivers: a plain language summary.

What Is This Summary About?: Neurofibromatosis type 1 (also called NF1) is a rare genetic condition. It causes a range of symptoms that develop from childhood onwards and worsen over time. Some children with NF1 develop non-cancerous nerve tumors called plexiform neurofibromas.

Artificial Intelligence in Transcranial Doppler Ultrasonography.

Transcranial Doppler is an instrumental ultrasound method capable of providing data on various brain pathologies, in particular, the study of cerebral hemodynamics in stroke, quickly, economically, and with repeatability of the data themselves. However, literature reviews from clinical studies and clinical trials reported that it is an operator-dependent method, and the data can be influenced by external factors, such as noise, which may require greater standardization of the parameters. Artificial intelligence can be utilized on transcranial Doppler to increase the accuracy and precision of the data collected while decreasing operator dependencies.

Evaluating the Cost-Effectiveness of Antenatal Screening for Major Structural Anomalies During the First Trimester of Pregnancy: A Decision Model.

Objective: To assess the cost-effectiveness of modifying current antenatal screening by adding first trimester structural anomaly screening to standard of care second trimester anomaly screening.

Design: Health economic decision model.

Setting: National Health Service (NHS) in England and Wales.

Association between exposure to environmental pollutants and increased oral health risks, a comprehensive review.

The burden of disease and death attributable to environmental pollution is a growing public health challenge worldwide, particularly in developing countries. While the adverse effects of environmental pollution on oral health have garnered increasing attention, a comprehensive and systematic assessment remains lacking. This article delves into the intricate relationship between environmental pollution and oral health, highlighting significant impacts on various aspects such as dental caries, periodontal diseases, oral facial clefts, cancer, as well as other oral diseases.

Geographic disparities in physical and mental health comorbidities and socioeconomic status of residence among Medicaid beneficiaries in Utah.

To examine the relationship between socioeconomic deprivation and complex needs, defined as mental and physical comorbidities, we conducted a cross-sectional retrospective cohort analysis of adult Utah Medicaid beneficiaries. Our analysis included Medicaid beneficiaries with geocoded addresses aged ≥18 years in Utah ( = 157,739). We geocoded beneficiary addresses and assigned them to census block groups.

Preventable hospitalizations through ED: does the number of hospital beds matter under the global budget in a single-payer system in Taiwan?

Background: Taiwan implemented global hospital budgeting with a floating-point value, which created a prisoner's dilemma. As a result, hospitals increased service volume, which caused the floating-point value to drop to less than one New Taiwan Dollar (NTD). The recent increase in the number of hospital beds and the call to enhance the floating-point value to one NTD raise concerns about the potential for increased financial burden without adding value to patient care if hospitals expand their bed capacity for volume-based competition.

Does women empowerment alone influence contraception utilization in Bangladesh perspective? Findings from the 2017-2018 Demographic Health Survey using a structural equation model analysis.

Background: Women empowerment is a crucial issue that is less studied as a factor of contraceptive use among married women that helps to achieve sustainable development goals.

Objective: This study aimed to assess the relationship between women empowerment and contraceptive use.

Study Design: This cross-sectional study used 2017-2018 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey data, which included 12,006 women (weighted) aged 15 to 49 years.

Emirates consensus recommendations on cardiovascular risk management in type 2 diabetes.

Background: The combination of cardiovascular disease and diabetes is a highly prevalent condition in the United Arab Emirates. Development and dissemination of evidence-based regional recommendations for optimal screening, treatment and referrals of people with diabetes and high cardiovascular risk is an important priority.

Consensus Panel: An expert panel of diabetologists, endocrinologists and cardiologists from the Emirates Cardiac Society and Emirates Diabetes and Endocrine Society as well as different entities in the UAE, discussed and reviewed evidence and also a consensus report from the American Diabetes Association to formulate contextualized recommendations that could be applied for optimal management of cardiovascular risk in people with diabetes in the UAE.

Efficacy and safety of interferon-alpha 1b injection into the intervertebral foramen with ultrasonic guidance in patients with postherpetic neuralgia: study protocol for a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter clinical trial.

Purpose: Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is a type of refractory neuropathic pain that causes significant suffering, disability, economic loss, and medical burden. In this study, we aim to evaluate the efficacy and safety of interferon (IFN)-α1b injection into the intervertebral foramen of patients with PHN.

Patients And Methods: This is a study protocol for a randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled multicenter clinical trial.

Evaluating the role of generative AI and color patterns in the dissemination of war imagery and disinformation on social media.

This study explores the evolving role of social media in the spread of misinformation during the Ukraine-Russia conflict, with a focus on how artificial intelligence (AI) contributes to the creation of deceptive war imagery. Specifically, the research examines the relationship between color patterns (LUTs) in war-related visuals and their perceived authenticity, highlighting the economic, political, and social ramifications of such manipulative practices. AI technologies have significantly advanced the production of highly convincing, yet artificial, war imagery, blurring the line between fact and fiction.