The landscape of family medicine in India - A cross-sectional survey study.

Family medicine was recognized as a distinct specialty in India in the early 1980s, but it is at an early stage of implementation. There are few training programs, and little is known about family physicians' training, perceptions, and current practices. This paper describes the findings from the first national survey of family medicine in India.

Endocrine alterations in patients with pachydermoperiostosis.

Context: Pachydermoperiostosis (primary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy, PHO) usually due to biallelic loss-of-function variants in HPGD and SLCO2A1, has some features overlapping with acromegaly and often referred to endocrinologists. A detailed endocrine assessment is not available for these patients.

Objective: To assess the genetic and endocrine characteristics of PHO patients referred to endocrine centres with a possible diagnosis of acromegaly.

Implicit bias assessment by career stage in medical education training: a narrative review.

Implicit biases involve associations outside conscious awareness that lead to a negative evaluation of a person based on individual characteristics. Early evaluation of implicit bias in medical training can prevent long-term adverse health outcomes related to racial bias. However, to our knowledge, no present studies examine the sequential assessment of implicit bias through the different stages of medical training.

The use of large language models in detecting Chinese ultrasound report errors.

This retrospective study evaluated the efficacy of large language models (LLMs) in improving the accuracy of Chinese ultrasound reports. Data from three hospitals (January-April 2024) including 400 reports with 243 errors across six categories were analyzed. Three GPT versions and Claude 3.

IN SILICO AND IN VITRO ASSESSMENT OF ANTI-Leishmania infantum ACTIVITY OF A NOVEL CYCLOHEXYL-1,2,4-OXADIAZOLE DERIVATIVE.

Globally, an estimated 1 billion people reside in endemic areas, and over 12 million individuals are infected with leishmaniasis. Despite its prevalence, leishmaniasis continues to be a neglected disease, mainly affecting underdeveloped countries. In Brazil, the available treatments are pentavalent antimonials and Amphotericin B, which are outdated, toxic, require prolonged parenteral administration and have limited efficacy.

Candidate Genes Related to Spiritual Mediumship: A Whole Exome Sequencing Analysis of Highly Gifted Mediums.

Objective: There has been a call for neuroscientific studies of spiritual experiences due to their global prevalence, significant impact, and importance for understanding the mind-brain problem. Mediumship is a spiritual experience where individuals claim to communicate with or be influenced by deceased persons or non-material entities. We assessed whether mediums possess specific genetic alterations.

Hydrocortisone Attenuates the Development of Malformations of the Polymicrogyria Spectrum.

Most of the malformations of the polymicrogyria spectrum are caused by destructive lesions of the neocortex during the third trimester of pregnancy, triggered by hypoxic-ischemic, hemorrhagic or infectious events, with neuroinflammation as a common pathophysiological mechanism. Our study investigated hydrocortisone treatment in attenuating inflammation, malformations development and seizures predisposition in mice subjected to neonatal transcranial freeze lesion. Our results show attenuation of malformation and predisposition to febrile seizures, with concomitant reduction of macrophages/microglia after neonatal freeze lesion, polarizing them towards an anti-inflammatory profile.

Physiological, Psychological, and Functional Health Determinants of Depressive Symptoms Among the Elderly in India: Evaluation of Classification Performance of XGBoost Models.

Background: Depression among the elderly is a growing public health concern, especially in India. This study aimed to investigate the predictive validity of physiological, psychological, and functional health factors in classifying the level of depressive symptoms among the elderly using the extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) technique. Additionally, we compared the performance of models trained on original and resampled data.

Robotic surgery for paediatric neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction: a systematic review.

Objective: To evaluate in a systematic review the outcomes, benefits, and limitations of robot-assisted surgeries for paediatric neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction (LUTD), as robot-assisted techniques have emerged as a potential alternative, offering enhanced precision, dexterity, and visualisation.

Methods: This review was registered in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO identifier CRD42023464849) and adhered to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. We included studies of paediatric patients (aged <18 years) with neurogenic LUTD undergoing robot-assisted continence surgery, assessing safety and efficacy.

Identification of Novel MICB Alleles in Haematopoietic Stem Cell Donors of Indian Origin.

Novel MICB alleles MICB*004:01:31, MICB*004:01:32, MICB*004:01:33 and MICB*005:02:59, were identified using next generation sequencing.

Smurf2 Suppresses Proliferation and Cell Cycle of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Cells by Promoting the Polyubiquitination and Degradation of RPL35A.

Human L35a ribosomal protein (RPL35A) has been reported to confer higher drug resistance and viability to triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells, but the mechanism related to its promotion of TNBC malignant progression is still unclear. Here, we found that silencing of RPL35A could inhibit the proliferation of TNBC cells by suppressing the G1/S phase transition. Furthermore, SMAD-specific E3 ubiquitin protein ligase 2 (Smurf2) was found to be a potential upstream ubiquitin ligase of RPL35A.

Quality of orthodontic care in an academic setting in the Middle East.

Assessment of the quality of orthodontic care in a UAE-based orthodontic postgraduate training institution was conducted using multiple indices, including the Peer Assessment Rating (PAR), American Board of Orthodontics Objective Grading System (ABO-OGS), and Index of Complexity Outcome and Need (ICON). Retrospective evaluation of pre- and post-treatment records of patients (n = 201) treated with fixed orthodontic appliances was performed by two examiners Statistical analysis assessed the influence of gender, type of malocclusion, need for extraction, missed appointments and number of treating residents on treatment duration. The average numerical reduction of the PAR and ICON scores at the start and end of the treatment were 17.

Lerodalcibep and evolocumab for the treatment of homozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia with PCSK9 inhibition (LIBerate-HoFH): a phase 3, randomised, open-label, crossover, non-inferiority trial.

Background: Lerodalcibep, a small binding anti-PCSK9 protein (adnectin), showed effective LDL cholesterol reduction in heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia. We aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of lerodalcibep and evolocumab in a globally diverse homozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia population.

Methods: This phase 3, randomised, open-label, crossover, non-inferiority study consisted of two 24-week treatment periods separated by an 8-week washout.

Abbreviated Duration of Vasoactive Agents Has Similar Outcomes as Standard Duration of Therapy in Patients with Liver Cirrhosis and Variceal Bleeding: An Individual Patient Data Meta-Analysis.

Background: This two-stage individual patient data meta-analysis (IPD-MA) compared the efficacy of a shorter duration (≤ 2 days) of vasoactive (VA) drug therapy to standard duration (3-5 days) after acute variceal bleeding (AVB) in patients with liver cirrhosis.

Patients And Methods: Randomized clinical trials on patients with cirrhosis and AVB undergoing endoscopic band ligation which compared a short duration versus the standard duration of VA therapy were included. The primary outcome was 5-day rebleeding rate.

Depression, anxiety, stress, and coping among men with infertility seeking treatment at a tertiary care hospital in South India: A mixed-method study.

Background: Many studies in India and all over the world have focused on the psychological aspect of infertility in women, but only a few have explored it among men. To deal with psychological distress, sometimes, individuals may use maladaptive coping strategies which can further worsen the stress instead of reducing it.

Aim: To assess symptoms of depression, anxiety, stress, and various coping strategies adopted by men with infertility along with exploring their coping experiences.

Ukrainian Patients' Perspectives on Advanced Pharmaceutical Services Provided by Polish Pharmacists: A Cross-Border Support Initiative.

Introduction: Pharmacists are essential healthcare professionals which play a pivotal role in public health protection by offering diverse pharmacy services. This includes not only serving individuals in Ukraine but also addressing the needs of Ukrainian citizens residing in Poland. An exemplary initiative is the creation of the website , which provides organized and systematic support.

Enhancing paediatric and congenital cardiology e-learning postgraduate education: insights from the Association for European Paediatric and Congenital Cardiology directed webinar series.

Objective: A series of webinars covering widespread knowledge on paediatric cardiology and cardiac surgery topics was initiated by Association for European Paediatric and Congenital Cardiology, serving towards preparation for the Association for European Paediatric and Congenital Cardiology certification in paediatric and congenital cardiology. This study investigated the impact of webinars as educational tools for junior paediatric cardiologists in the post-COVID-19 pandemic era.

Materials And Methods: A cross-sectional survey design study using an online survey as a tool for the assessment of trainees.

Influence of HLA-B Leader (-21M/T) Dimorphism With Bw4/Bw6 Epitopes on Graft Versus Host Disease After Allogenic Haematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation in North Indians.

High degree of variability in human leukocyte antigens (HLAs) system restricts availability of histocompatible HLA-matched-related donors, thus increasing reliance on worldwide bone marrow registries network. Nevertheless, due to limited coverage/accessibility/affordability of some ethnicities in these registries, haploidentical haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) emerged as an alternative option, though with allorecognition-mediated graft versus host disease (GvHD) (>40% cases). A dimorphism [-21 methionine (M) or threonine (T)] in HLA-B leader peptide (exon 1) which differentially influences its HLA-E binding, plausibly regulates natural killer cell functionality, affecting GvHD vulnerability and clinically in practice for donor selection.

Identifying Preferred Features of Influenza Vaccination Programs Among Chinese Clinicians Practicing Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western Medicine: Discrete Choice Experiment.

Background: Achieving high vaccine coverage among clinicians is crucial to curb the spread of influenza. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), rooted in cultural symbols and concepts without direct parallels in modern Western medicine, may influence perspectives on vaccination. Therefore, understanding the preferences of TCM clinicians towards influenza vaccines is of great importance.

Pulsed Field Ablation in the Elderly via a Pentaspline Multielectrode Catheter: Safety, Efficacy, and Comparison with Cryoballoon and Radiofrequency Devices.

Background: Catheter ablation is an effective treatment for atrial fibrillation (AF). Pulsed field ablation (PFA) has emerged as a novel energy modality, which relies on high-voltage electric fields to achieve cardiac tissue ablation. Data on its efficacy in the elderly are scarce.

Adolescent mice exposed to TBI developed PD-like pathology in middle age.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is identified as a risk factor for Parkinson's disease (PD), which is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra (SN). However, the precise mechanism by which chronic TBI initiates PD pathogenesis is not yet fully understood. In our present study, we assessed the chronic progression and pathogenesis of PD-like behavior at different intervals in TBI mice.

Chordoma Spontaneous Regression After COVID-19.

Chordomas are a low-to-intermediate-grade slow-growing subtype of sarcoma, but show propensity to grow and invade locally with recurrence and metastasis in 10-40% of cases. We describe the first case of spontaneous regression of a solid tumor (histologically and immunohistochemically proven chordoma) after COVID-19. A female patient with clival chordoma underwent occipitocervical fixation prior to tumor resection.