Vitamin D ameliorates particulate matter induced mitochondrial damages and calcium dyshomeostasis in BEAS-2B human bronchial epithelial cells.

Background: Mitochondria is prone to oxidative damage by endogenous and exogenous sources of free radicals, including particulate matter (PM). Given the role of mitochondria in inflammatory disorders, such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, we hypothesized that supplementation of vitamin D may play a protective role in PM-induced mitochondrial oxidative damages of human bronchial epithelial BEAS-2B cells.

Methods: BEAS-2B cells were pretreated with 1,25(OH)D, an active form of vitamin D, for 1 h prior to 24-hour exposure to PM (SRM-1648a).

Immune killer cells treatment for previously treated stage IV NSCLC patients.

The 5-year survival is poor for stage IV non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Recently, cell immunotherapy has emerged as a new treatment strategy. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Immune killer cells (IKC) in patients with stage IV NSCLC after the failure of prior chemotherapy.

Feasibility of forecasting future critical care bed availability using bed management data.

Objectives: This project aims to determine the feasibility of predicting future critical care bed availability using data-driven computational forecast modelling and routinely collected hospital bed management data.

Methods: In this proof-of-concept, single-centre data informatics feasibility study, regression-based and classification data science techniques were applied retrospectively to prospectively collect routine hospital-wide bed management data to forecast critical care bed capacity. The availability of at least one critical care bed was forecasted using a forecast horizon of 1, 7 and 14 days in advance.

Age, sex, and pre-arrest comorbidities shape the risk trajectory of sudden cardiac death- Patterns highlighted by population data in Taiwan.

Objectives: Few reports have indicated the secular trend in the sudden cardiac death (SCD) incidence and pre-arrest comorbidities. This study aimed to comprehensively analyze the trend of SCD incidence and its association with pre-arrest comorbidities.

Methods: This population-based cohort study analyzed Taiwan's National Health Insurance (NHI) research database and identified SCD incidents by inspecting data from all emergency department visits from 2011 to 2018.

The clinical impacts of lung microbiome in bronchiectasis with fixed airflow obstruction: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Airflow obstruction is a hallmark of disease severity and prognosis in bronchiectasis. The relationship between lung microbiota, airway inflammation, and outcomes in bronchiectasis with fixed airflow obstruction (FAO) remains unclear. This study explores these interactions in bronchiectasis patients, with and without FAO, and compares them to those diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Differences between atrial fibrillation diagnosed before and after stroke: A large real-world cohort study.

The clinical characteristics and long-term outcomes of patients with ischemic stroke (IS) and atrial fibrillation detected after stroke (AFDAS) have not been clearly established. Previous studies evaluating patients with AFDAS were limited by the low prescription rates of anticoagulants and short follow-up periods. Consecutive patients hospitalized for IS between 2014 and 2017 were identified from a National Health Insurance Research Database.

Long-term effects on growth in preterm and small for gestational age infants: A national birth cohort study.

Background: Premature and small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infants tend to have long-term growth morbidities such as short stature, failure to thrive, and obesity. Although most of these infants show catch-up growth at 2-4 years of age, they are still more susceptible to childhood obesity and related metabolic disorders. Those who fail to achieve catch-up will suffer from pathological short stature and neurodevelopmental impairment through adulthood.

The optimal measurement period of actigraphy for circadian rhythm in relation to adiposity: A retrospective case-control study.

Background: This study focused on the relationship between adiposity and Rest-Activity Rhythms (RAR), utilizing both parametric cosine-based models and non-parametric algorithms. The emphasis was on the impact of varying measurement periods (7-28 days) on this relationship.

Methods: We retrieved actigraphy data from two datasets, encompassing a diverse cohort recruited from an obesity outpatient clinic and a workplace health promotion program.

Pre-pregnancy shift work's influence on postpartum weight retention: Body mass index's role.

Shift work is a prevalent workplace exposure, which increases the possibility of unhealthy behaviours and circadian rhythm disruptions and elevates the risk of metabolic diseases and adverse reproductive outcomes. But its potential of increasing the risk of postpartum weight retention remains uncertain. This study aimed to investigate the association between maternal shift work prior to conception and postpartum weight retention, and to identify modifiable factors during pregnancy for prevention.

Associations of fish oil with cardiovascular disease events: results from the Taiwan longitudinal study in aging.

Background: The effectiveness of fish oil in preventing cardiovascular events is still debating. Some studies indicate a correlation between the use of fish oil supplements and reduced mortality or decreased incidence of stroke. However, other studies show no significant association between fish oil intake and stroke prevention, indicating an ongoing debate.

Frailty or frailties: exploring frailty index subdimensions in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing.

Background: Frailty, a state of increased vulnerability to adverse health outcomes, has garnered significant attention in research and clinical practice. Existing constructs aggregate clinical features or health deficits into a single score. While simple and interpretable, this approach may overlook the complexity of frailty and not capture the full range of variation between individuals.

Protocol update for a multi-centre randomised controlled trial of exercise rehabilitation for people with pulmonary hypertension: the SPHERe trial.

Background: The SPHERe (Supervised Pulmonary Hypertension Exercise Rehabilitation) trial is a multi-centre, pragmatic, randomised controlled trial assessing the clinical and cost-effectiveness of supervised exercise rehabilitation with psychosocial and motivational support compared to best-practice usual care for people with pulmonary hypertension (PH). The original protocol was published in BMC Pulmonary Medicine (accessible online). We randomised our first participant in January 2020.

Paediatric schistosomiasis: last mile preparations for deploying paediatric praziquantel.

Schistosomiasis is the second most important parasitic disease of public health importance in Africa, affecting over 50 million children aged <5 years old. Schistosomiasis control has focused on treating school-aged children (>6 years) and adults through mass drug administration (MDA). Following the recent development of a paediatric praziquantel (PZQ) formulation for children aged <5 years, there are now concerted efforts to determine optimal and effective ways to integrate treatment of these children into national schistosomiasis control programmes.

Molecular subtypes explain lupus epigenomic heterogeneity unveiling new regulatory genetic risk variants.

The heterogeneity of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) can be explained by epigenetic alterations that disrupt transcriptional programs mediating environmental and genetic risk. This study evaluated the epigenetic contribution to SLE heterogeneity considering molecular and serological subtypes, genetics and transcriptional status, followed by drug target discovery. We performed a stratified epigenome-wide association studies of whole blood DNA methylation from 213 SLE patients and 221 controls.

Harm from others' drinking among young adults in Taiwan: Predictors and deteriorating quality of life.

Introduction: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of different forms of harm from others' drinking (HFOD), predictors and the relationship with multi-dimensional quality of life among young adults in an emerging alcohol market in Asia-Taiwan.

Methods: Data were extracted from a 2018 household survey with national representativeness on substance use experiences. The analytic sample comprised 4901 participants aged 18-34.

Associations between long-term ambient PM exposure and the incidence of cardiopulmonary diseases and diabetes, attributable years lived with disability, and policy implication.

Long-term exposure to ambient PM is known associated with cardiovascular and respiratory health effects. However, the heterogeneous concentrationresponse function (CRF) between PM exposure across different concentration range and cardiopulmonary disease and diabetes mellitus (DM) incidence, and their implications on attributable years lived with disability (YLD) and regulation policy has not been well-studied. In this retrospective longitudinal cohort study, disease-free participants (approximately 170,000 individuals, aged ≥ 30 years) from the MJ Health Database were followed up (2007-2017) regarding incidents of coronary heart disease (CHD), ischemic stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lower respiratory tract infections (LRIs), and DM.