Inter-Institutional Dynamics and Impact of Fluconazole-Resistant Candida parapsilosis.

Background: Infections with fluconazole-resistant Candida parapsilosis have been increasing in Israeli hospitals with unclear implications for patient outcomes.

Objectives: To determine the frequency, mechanisms, molecular epidemiology, and outcomes of azole-resistant C. parapsilosis bloodstream infections in four hospitals in Israel.

Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Clarstatin, a Shared-Epitope-Antagonistic Cyclic Peptide, on Experimental Autoimmune Uveitis in Mice.

Purpose: Polymorphism and mutations of human leukocyte antigens (HLAs) and calreticulin are risk factors for uveitis. Here, we sought to determine the therapeutic effects of Clarstatin, a cyclic peptide antagonist of the HLA shared-epitope-calreticulin interaction, in experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU) models.

Methods: Mice were injected with Clarstatin intraperitoneally and its effect was compared to that of corticosteroid.

Brain MRI Screening for Bilateral Retinoblastoma Patients.

Purpose: Trilateral retinoblastoma (TRB), intracranial neoplasm in heritable retinoblastoma patients, is a very rare fatal disease. Many ocular oncology centers conduct routine screening of retinoblastoma patients by brain imaging. Nevertheless, there is a debate regarding its ability to prolong TRB patients' survival and the number-needed-to-treat.

Genetic Risk of Ankylosing Spondylitis and Second-Line Therapy Need in Crohn's Disease: A Mendelian Randomization Study.

Crohn's disease (CD) and Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) are chronic conditions with overlapping inflammatory pathways. This research investigates the genetic association between AS and the requirement for more aggressive therapeutic interventions in CD, suggesting a likelihood of increased severity in CD progression among individuals diagnosed with AS. This study utilized two-sample Mendelian randomization (TSMR) to analyze GWAS datasets for AS and CD requiring second-line treatment.

Comparing Images from Near-Infrared Light Reflection and Bitewing Radiography to Detect Proximal Caries in Primary Teeth.

Objectives: The present prospective study aimed to compare near-infrared light reflection (NIRI) and bitewing radiographs (BWR) images to detect proximal caries in primary teeth.

Methods: 71 children underwent routine BWR, and scans were performed using an intra-oral scanner (iTero Element 5D, Align Technology, Tempe, AZ, USA), including a near-infrared light source (850 nm) and sensor. Five specialist pediatric dentists examined the NIRI and BWR images.

Stereotactic implantation of diffusing alpha-emitters radiation therapy sources in the swine brain: a potential new focal therapy for brain tumors.

Purpose: Diffusing alpha-emitters Radiation Therapy ("Alpha DaRT") is a new cancer treatment modality that employs radium-224-loaded metal sources implanted in solid tumors to disperse alpha-emitting atoms within a therapeutic "kill-zone" of a few millimeters around each source. Preclinical studies have demonstrated tumor growth delay in various cancer types, including glioblastoma multiforme, and the method is used in clinical trials for patients with skin and head and neck cancer. This study aims to assess the safety and feasibility of implementing Alpha DaRT for brain tumor treatment in a large animal model.

The constrained-disorder principle defines the functions of systems in nature.

The Constrained Disorder Principle (CDP) defines all systems in nature by their degree of inherent variability. Per the CDP, the intrinsic variability is mandatory for their proper function and is dynamically changed based on pressures. The CDP defines the boundaries of inherent variability as a mechanism for continuous adaptation to internal and external perturbations, enabling survival and function under dynamic conditions.

G6PC2 controls glucagon secretion by defining the set point for glucose in pancreatic α cells.

Elevated glucagon concentrations have been reported in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). A critical role for α cell-intrinsic mechanisms in regulating glucagon secretion was previously established through genetic manipulation of the glycolytic enzyme glucokinase (GCK) in mice. Genetic variation at the glucose-6-phosphatase catalytic subunit 2 () locus, encoding an enzyme that opposes GCK, has been reproducibly associated with fasting blood glucose and hemoglobin A1c.

Post-Relapse Outcomes of Older Patients With NPM1-Mutated AML Are Favorable With Allo Transplant in Second Remission.

Molecular assessment of measurable residual disease (MRD) in NPM1-mutated AML patients is a powerful prognostic tool to identify the risk of relapse. There is limited data regarding MRD-guided decisions against alloSCT in elderly patients and FLT3-ITD co-mutation. We describe the outcome of NPM1-mutated AML patients in whom alloSCT was deferred based on ELN 2017 risk and MRD response.

Assessment of peri- and post-operative outcomes following apical prolapse repair in octogenarians: A retrospective cohort study.

Objective: To assess the risk of postoperative complications and unanticipated healthcare encounters in octogenarians compared to younger patients following apical prolapse repair.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Settings: University-affiliated academic tertiary hospital center.

Fiber optic laryngoscopy findings in pediatric burn patients referred to the pediatric emergency department.

Introduction: Facial burn injuries can compromise the airways in pediatric patients. Because prompt assessment of airway safety is a must, most assessment algorithms rely mainly on clinical judgment. There is little data on the value or utility of Fiber Optic Laryngoscopy (FOL) as an ancillary test.

The effect of biological treatment on female fertility: A cohort study of women with rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis.

Objectives: To investigate female fertility in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) exposed to biological drugs.

Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, based on an electronic health record database, 4517 women with RA were compared to 1415 patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA). Patients were 18-40 years-of-age at diagnosis.

Impact of Race on the Outcomes of Retinoblastoma Treated With Primary Enucleation: A Global Study of 1426 Patients.

Background: To evaluate the clinical presentation, pathological features and outcomes of retinoblastoma based on the race of origin in a global cohort of patients.

Methods: Retrospective collaborative study of 1426 patients who underwent primary enucleation for retinoblastoma.

Results: Patients were grouped into Caucasians (n = 231, 16%), Asians (n = 841, 59%), Hispanics (n = 226, 16%), Arabs (n = 96, 7%) and Others (Africans, African Americans, Indigenous Australians; n = 32, 2%) cohorts.

Empagliflozin in acute myocardial infarction in patients with and without type 2 diabetes: A pre-specified analysis of the EMPACT-MI trial.

Aims: In the EMPACT-MI trial, empagliflozin reduced heart failure (HF) hospitalizations but not mortality in acute myocardial infarction (MI). Contemporary reports of clinical event rates with and without type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in acute MI trials are sparse. The treatment effect of empagliflozin in those with and without T2DM in acute MI is unknown.

Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation in Small and Very Small Aortic Valve Annuli: A Propensity-Matched Analysis Between Self-Expanding Versus Balloon-Expandable Valves.

Background: The management of Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation (TAVI) patients with a small aortic annulus (SAA) postures a substantial challenge, increasing the risk of patient- prosthesis mismatch (PPM) and overall mortality.

Aims: This study aimed to compare the hemodynamic and clinical outcomes of transcatheter balloon-expandable valve (BEV) versus transcatheter self-expandable valve (SEV) in SAA.

Methods: We conducted propensity score matching (PSM) of severe AS patients with SAA who underwent trans-femoral TAVR and enrolled to the Israeli TAVR registry between the years 2008 and 2023.

Health disparities in diabetes treatment: The challenge of G6PD deficiency.

Aims: To assess the impact of Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency, an enzymatic deficiency prevalent in individuals of African or Asian descent, on Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels, diabetes medication purchases, and the cumulative incidence of diabetes related complications.

Methods: A large cohort study was conducted within a national health organization, comparing 3,913 G6PD-deficient patients to a matched control group without G6PD deficiency over two decades. The main measures and outcomes were the HbA1c levels, patterns of diabetes medication purchases, and the incidence of severe diabetes-related complications.

Age against the machine-susceptibility of large language models to cognitive impairment: cross sectional analysis.

Objective: To evaluate the cognitive abilities of the leading large language models and identify their susceptibility to cognitive impairment, using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and additional tests.

Design: Cross sectional analysis.

Setting: Online interaction with large language models via text based prompts.

Graph convolution networks model identifies and quantifies gene and cancer specific transcriptome signatures of cancer driver events.

Background: The identification and drug targeting of cancer causing (driver) genetic alterations has seen immense improvement in recent years, with many new targeted therapies developed. However, identifying, prioritizing, and treating genetic alterations is insufficient for most cancer patients. Current clinical practices rely mainly on DNA level mutational analyses, which in many cases fail to identify treatable driver events.