Preventability of ischemic stroke/transient ischemic attack in a tertiary care center in Argentina.

Introduction: Cardiovascular disease remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, with many individuals presenting with acute ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack (AIS/TIA) due to underlying vascular risk factors (VRF). While these patients typically undergo routine evaluations for acute treatment, the prevention of these conditions is often underestimated. This study reports the prevalence of non-optimized VRF and estimates their degree of avoidability in a cohort of patients treated in a tertiary care center following AIS/TIA.

Towards evidence-based empiric antibiotic recommendations for spontaneous infections in patients with cirrhosis.

Background: With the emergence of multidrug-resistant infections, healthcare professionals must evaluate the effectiveness of empiric antibiotic treatments.

Aims: To assess the antibiotic susceptibility patterns of microorganisms causing spontaneous infections in patients with cirrhosis and to evaluate the suitability of empiric antibiotic treatments based on major clinical guidelines.

Methods: This cross-sectional study utilized two datasets from prospective studies of patients with cirrhosis and culture-positive spontaneous bacterial infections in Argentina and Uruguay.

[Lung injury associated with vaping: A case report].

Vaping is the practice of inhaling an aerosol created by heating a liquid with an electronic cigarette. These aerosols contain toxic, carcinogenic compounds and nicotine, an addictive substance. In Argentina, the commercialization of electronic cigarettes is prohibited.

Navigating the Indeterminate Zone: Surgeons' Decision-Making Factors in Treating Vertebral Metastases with Spinal Instability Scores of 7-12.

Background: The Spinal Instability Neoplastic Score (SINS) classification system is a validated and the most widely accepted instrument for defining instability in vertebral metastasis (VM), in which lesions scoring between 7 and 12 are defined as indeterminate and the treatment is controversial. This study aimed to determine which variables more frequently are considered by spine surgeons for choosing between the conservative and the surgical treatment of VMs among patients with an indeterminate SINS.

Methods: A single-round online survey was conducted with 10 spine surgeons with expertise in the management of VMs from our AO Spine Region.

Patients Age 40 Years and Younger With Multiple Myeloma Have the Same Prognosis as Older Patients: An Analysis of Real-World Patients' Evidence From Latin America.

Purpose: Multiple myeloma (MM) is a highly heterogeneous, incurable disease most frequently diagnosed in the elderly. Therefore, data on clinical characteristics and outcomes in the very young population are scarce.

Patients And Methods: We analyzed clinical characteristics, response to treatment, and survival in 103 patients with newly diagnosed MM age 40 years or younger compared with 256 patients age 41-50 years and 957 patients age 51 years or older.

[Clinical, functional and tomographic respiratory sequels of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 at one year of diagnosis: SECUELAR-19 TRIAL].

Introduction: There is scarce information on longterm evolution of hospitalized patients with moderate (MP) and severe (SP) COVID-19 pneumonia.

Objective: to determine clinical, respiratory function, and tomographic (HRCT) impact after being discharged 12 months after diagnosis.

Methods: Analysis according to MP and SP, desaturator patients (DP) in 6-minute walking test (6MWT) and HRCT fibrotic-like pattern (FLP).

[Analysis of BRAF and NRAS mutations in thyroid tumors in patients from Argentina].

Introduction: Molecular alterations in follicular cells in the BRAF or NRAS genes have been reported to be associated with the process of carcinogenesis. Our aim was to determine the mutational frequency of BRAF and NRAS in fine-needle aspiration (FNA) specimens in our population.

Methods: The mutational status of BRAF (codon 600) and NRAS (codon 61) was analysed by qPCR in 193 FNA specimens from suspicious nodules and compared with pathological data of 115 patients.

Clinical and microbiological characteristics of bacterial infections in patients with cirrhosis. A prospective cohort study from Argentina and Uruguay.

Introduction And Objectives: there is insufficient data regarding bacterial infections in patients with cirrhosis to support recommendations for empiric antibiotic treatments, particularly in Latin America. This study aimed to evaluate bacterial infection's clinical impact and microbiological characteristics, intending to serve as a platform to revise current practices.

Materials And Methods: multicenter prospective cohort study of patients with cirrhosis and bacterial infections from Argentina and Uruguay.

Norfloxacin prophylaxis effect on multidrug resistance in patients with cirrhosis and bacterial infections.

It is unclear whether norfloxacin predisposes to infections by multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs). We aimed to evaluate if patients with cirrhosis receiving norfloxacin prophylaxis at the time of the diagnosis of bacterial infections were more likely to present a multidrug-resistant isolate than those without prophylaxis. This is a cross-sectional study of hospitalized patients with cirrhosis and bacterial infections from Argentina and Uruguay (NCT03919032) from September 2018 to December 2020.

[Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitors. What does the oncohematologist and the cardiologist need to know?].

Advances in knowledge incorporated in the last decade have modified the treatment paradigm in most of the malignant hematological diseases. In particular, the introduction of Bruton tyrosine kinase inhibitors (BTKi) and other target drugs together with new monoclonal antibodies have become agents of choice for both chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and other peripheral "B" lymphomas such as mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). The results of efficacy against genotoxic therapy are so successful that the end of chemoimmunotherapy, especially for CLL, is already a postulate recognized by the main research groups.

Why are frailty indices not used systematically during preoperative spine consultations?

Introduction: Frailty indices are highly predictive of major medical and mechanical complications, lengths of hospital stay, and mortality rates after spine procedures. However, several barriers limit the extent to which spine surgeons employ these indices. The main purposes of the current study were to assess the use of frailty indices by Latin-American spine surgeons and identify the main barriers perceived to restrict their clinical application.

An independent inter- and intra-observer agreement assessment of the AOSpine upper cervical injury classification system.

Background Context: The complex anatomy of the upper cervical spine resulted in numerous separate classification systems of upper cervical spine trauma. The AOSpine upper cervical classification system (UCCS) was recently described; however, an independent agreement assessment has not been performed.

Purpose: To perform an independent evaluation of the AOSpine UCCS.

Complications in Spinal Fusion Surgery: A Systematic Review of Clinically Used Cages.

Spinal fusion (SF) comprises surgical procedures for several pathologies that affect different spinal levels, and different cages are employed in SF surgery. Few clinical studies highlight the role of cages in complications beyond the outcomes. The aim of this systematic review is to collect the last 10 years' worth of clinical studies that include cages in SF surgery, focusing on complications.

[Clinical, functional and tomographic respiratory sequels of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 at six month of diagnosis: SECUELAR-19 trial].

Introduction: There is scarce information about middle-term evolution of hospitalized patients who suffer from pneumonia caused by COVID-19. The objective of this study is to determine the clinical, respiratory, tomographic and functional impact on COVID-19 patients with moderate (MP) to severe (SP) pneumonia after six months of acute infection.

Methods: Analysis was carried out by MP and SP groups, desaturators during the 6-minute-walking test and the presence of fibrotic like pattern on HRCT.

Unstable Thoracolumbar Injuries: Factors Affecting the Decision for Short-Segment vs Long-Segment Posterior Fixation.

Background: Factors influencing the length of spinal instrumentation have been mostly evaluated in burst fractures, receiving more attention than other unstable thoracolumbar injuries. We aimed to evaluate clinical factors affecting surgical decision-making and associated complications.

Methods: This was a multicentric retrospective cohort study.

Retrospective Multicenter Real-Life Study on the First-Line Treatment of Classical Hodgkin Lymphoma in Argentina.

There are no data in Argentina on the response rates to first-line treatment of classical Hodgkin Lymphoma (cHL) outside clinical trials. A total of 498 patients from 7 public and private hospitals in Argentina were retrospectively examined. The median follow-up was 37.

Percutaneous Versus Open Pedicle Screw Fixation for Pyogenic Spondylodiscitis of the Thoracic and Lumbar Spine: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Study Design: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: This meta-analysis aimed to compare percutaneous (PPS) versus open pedicle screw (OPS) fixation for treatment of thoracic and lumbar spondylodiscitis.

Summary Of Background Data: Pyogenic spondylodiscitis of the thoracic and lumbar spine can produce instability, deformity, and/or neurological compromise.

International Society of Blood Transfusion survey of experiences of blood banks and transfusion services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background And Objectives: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted blood systems worldwide. Challenges included maintaining blood supplies and initiating the collection and use of COVID-19 convalescent plasma (CCP). Sharing information on the challenges can help improve blood collection and utilization.

Appropriate Telemedicine Utilization in Spine Surgery: Results From a Delphi Study.

Study Design: Delphi expert panel consensus.

Objective: To obtain expert consensus on best practices for appropriate telemedicine utilization in spine surgery.

Summary Of Background Data: Several studies have shown high patient satisfaction associated with telemedicine during the COVID-19 peak pandemic period as well as after easing of restrictions.

An inter- and intra-rater agreement assessment of a novel classification of pyogenic spinal infections.

Purpose: Pola et al. described a clinical-radiological classification of pyogenic spinal infections (PSI) based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features including vertebral destruction, soft tissue involvement, and epidural abscess, along with the neurological status. We performed an inter- and intra-observer agreement evaluation of this classification.

Cystoisospora belli, liver disease and hypothesis on the life cycle.

Cystoisospora belli causes chronic diarrhoea, acalculous cholecystitis, cholangiopathy and disseminated cystoisosporosis in patients with AIDS. Clinical manifestations and histological stages during C. belli infection in a patient with AIDS and liver disease were described.

Inter- and intra-observer agreement using the new AOSpine sacral fracture classification, with a comparison between spine and pelvic trauma surgeons.

Background: Sacral fractures treatment frequently involves both spine and pelvic trauma surgeons; therefore, a consistent communication among surgical specialists is required. We independently assessed the new AOSpine sacral fracture classification's agreement from the perspective of spine and pelvic trauma surgeons.

Methods: Complete computerized tomography (CT) scans of 80 patients with sacral fractures were selected and classified using the new AOSpine sacral classification system by six spine surgeons and three pelvic trauma surgeons.

Six-Month Glycemic Control with a Hybrid Closed-Loop System in Type 1 Diabetes Patients in a Latin American Country.

The goal of this study was to assess the 6-month effectiveness of hybrid closed loop on glycemic control in type 1 diabetes (T1D) patients in Latin America. An exploratory analysis of data prospectively collected from non-selected consecutive patients with T1D who initiated treatment with the MiniMed™ 670G system in Argentina was conducted. Baseline and follow-up visits at days 7, 28, 90, and 180 were carried out and data were downloaded at each visit.