Nonacademic predictors of China medical licensing examination.

Background: National Medical Licensing Examination (NMLE) is the entrance exam for medical practice in China, and its general medical knowledge test (GMKT) evaluates abilities of medical students to comprehensively apply medical knowledge to clinical practice. This study aimed to identify nonacademic predictors of GMKT performance, which would benefit medical schools in designing appropriate strategies and techniques to facilitate the transition from medical students to qualified medical practitioners.

Methods: In 1202 medical students, we conducted the deletion-substitution-addition (DSA) and structural equation model (SEM) analyses to identify nonacademic predictors of GMKT performance from 98 candidate variables including early life events, physical conditions, psychological and personality assessments, cognitive abilities, and socioeconomic conditions.

The interaction of structured data using openEHR and large Language models for clinical decision support in prostate cancer.

Background: Multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) are essential for cancer care but are resource-intensive. Decision-making processes within MDTs, while critical, contribute to increased healthcare costs due to the need for specialist time and coordination. The recent emergence of large language models (LLMs) offers the potential to improve the efficiency and accuracy of clinical decision-making processes, potentially reducing costs associated with traditional MDT models.

Investigation of tritium content in wild plants growing in an area with an underground source of tritium.

Within the framework of the presented work, the results of large-scale studies of the content of TFWT in wild plants growing in an area with an underground source of tritium are presented. Various types of plants were studied: herbaceous, shrubby, woody. The concentration of TFWT in various vegetative organs of the same plants was analyzed separately.

Paradoxical Deterioration During Treatment of Tuberculous Meningitis Responded to Infliximab But Not to Steroids.

Unlabelled: Paradoxical deterioration in patients with tuberculous meningitis is a significant diagnostic and treatment challenge. We present the case of a 55-year-old previously healthy male, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-negative, presenting with headache, fever, agitation and slurred speech, who was ultimately diagnosed with tuberculous meningoencephalitis confirmed by cerebrospinal fluid polymerase chain reaction positive for complex. After initiation of a standard antitubercular therapy combined with glucocorticoids, the patient experienced an initial neurological improvement.

International survey on diagnostic reference levels based on clinical indications in plain radiography.

Purpose: To collect and analyze radiation dose-related data as part of international cooperation; to define diagnostic reference levels (DRL) for 24 X-ray projections in plain radiography (DX) considering anatomical region, clinical task, and procedural technique; and to harmonize the exposure practice across country borders.

Methods: A multicenter study was performed in Austria, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland in 2022-23 to provide dose-related data. Healthcare facilities were asked to provide processed data from their dose management systems.

Pilot analysis of magnetic resonance imaging-based contributors to patient-centred optimization of mandibular advancement devices in obstructive sleep apnea.

Mandibular advancement devices are an effective treatment option for obstructive sleep apnea. While their efficacy depends on the degree of mandibular protrusion, other contributing factors influencing the optimal outcome are not fully understood. This magnetic resonance imaging-based pilot study aimed at investigating whether there are promising planimetric parameters that may be related to the optimal therapeutic position.

A 54-Year-Old Man With High-Grade Fever, Cough, Dyspnea, and Vesiculobullous Skin Eruptions.

A 54-year-old Egyptian man with a 5-day history of worsening cough, high-grade fever, and progressive dyspnea was referred to our hospital. A 3-day course of ceftriaxone provided in an outpatient setting showed no clinical improvement. Medical history was unremarkable, except for bilateral pulmonary embolism diagnosed 3 years earlier.

ESR Essentials: radiomics-practice recommendations by the European Society of Medical Imaging Informatics.

Radiomics is a method to extract detailed information from diagnostic images that cannot be perceived by the naked eye. Although radiomics research carries great potential to improve clinical decision-making, its inherent methodological complexities make it difficult to comprehend every step of the analysis, often causing reproducibility and generalizability issues that hinder clinical adoption. Critical steps in the radiomics analysis and model development pipeline-such as image, application of image filters, and selection of feature extraction parameters-can greatly affect the values of radiomic features.

68 Ga-DOTATATE and 18 F-FDG PET/CT in a Rapidly Progressing Lymphoma.

68 Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT targeting somatostatin receptors is commonly utilized in the imaging of neuroendocrine tumors. However, other malignancies such as lymphomas (both Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin) also have expression of somatostatin receptors, albeit to a lesser degree compared with the neuroendocrine tumors, and thus can be positive on a 68 Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT. We describe an atypical presentation of an aggressive large B-cell lymphoma mimicking a metastatic neuroendocrine tumor at initial presentation with high somatostatin receptor expression demonstrated on the 68 Ga-DOTATATE PET/CT and a rapidly progressing course on the subsequent 18 F-FDG PET/CT.

Unusual presentation of PYGM gene mutation as late-onset McArdle disease with camptocormia: a case report.

Background: Glycogen storage disease type 5 (McArdle disease) leads to a deficiency in the activity of myophosphorylase resulting in an impaired glucose utilization. The disease can be caused by a variety of mutations in the PYGM gene, and its typical clinical manifestation is muscles weakness within the first three decades of life.

Case Presentation: In this case report we present the diagnostic work-up of a physically active 78-year-old Caucasian patient suffering from a 2-year history of progressive camptocormia including clinical, radiologic, histological, and genetic tests.

Primary Results of NRG-RTOG1106/ECOG-ACRIN 6697: A Randomized Phase II Trial of Individualized Adaptive (chemo)Radiotherapy Using Midtreatment F-Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography in Stage III Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Purpose: NRG-RTOG0617 demonstrated a detrimental effect of uniform high-dose radiation in stage III non-small cell lung cancer. NRG-RTOG1106/ECOG-ACRIN6697 (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01507428), a randomized phase II trial, studied whether midtreatment F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FDG-PET/CT) can guide individualized/adaptive dose-intensified radiotherapy (RT) to improve and predict outcomes in patients with this disease.

Rare intravascular large B-cell lymphoma (IVLBCL) can cause atypical intracerebral haemorrhage and mislead diagnostics.

Intravascular large B-cell lymphoma (IVLBCL) is a rare type of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Common neurological symptoms are cognitive impairment and dementia. Only a few cases have been published reporting intracranial haemorrhage due to IVLBCL.

Identification of proliferative hepatocellular carcinoma using the SMARS score and implications for microwave ablation.

Objective: To compare therapeutic outcomes of predicted proliferative and nonproliferative hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after microwave ablation (MWA) using a previously developed imaging-based predictive model, the SMARS score.

Methods: This multicenter retrospective study included consecutive 635 patients with unresectable HCC who underwent MWA between August 2013 and September 2020. Patients were stratified into predicted proliferative and nonproliferative phenotypes according to the SMARS score.

Cerebral abscess in Down syndrome: a systematic review on treatment and prognosis. Illustrative case.

Background: No universal protocol exists for treating cerebral abscesses in Down syndrome. An illustrative case supplemented with a systematic literature review on brain abscesses in Down syndrome is presented, comprising a total of 16 cases. Preoperative infectious disease workups, cardiac examinations including echocardiography, as well as reported surgical and antibiotic treatments were correlated in the reported cohorts.

Evaluation of C-Reactive Protein and Computer-Aided Analysis of Chest X-rays as Tuberculosis Triage Tests at Health Facilities in Lesotho and South Africa.

Background: To improve tuberculosis case-finding, rapid, non-sputum triage tests need to be developed according to the World Health Organization target product profile (TPP) (>90% sensitivity, >70% specificity). We prospectively evaluated and compared artificial intelligence-based, computer-aided detection software, CAD4TBv7, and C-reactive protein assay (CRP) as triage tests at health facilities in Lesotho and South Africa.

Methods: Adults (≥18 years) presenting with ≥1 of the 4 cardinal tuberculosis symptoms were consecutively recruited between February 2021 and April 2022.

Pipeline Vantage Embolization Device for the treatment of intracranial aneurysms: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: The Pipeline Vantage Embolization Device (PVED) is a novel coated flow diverter with reduced wire diameters to improve neoendothelialization and stent porosity. This systematic review evaluates the safety and efficacy of the PVED based on the current literature.

Methods: Following the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, a thorough literature search was conducted using PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane.

The pollen quality of woody and herbaceous plants from the Chernobyl exclusion zone.

Pollen abnormalities frequency of Scots pine and pollen sterility of white clover, common columbine, and greater celandine growing in the Bryansk and Gomel' regions radioactively contaminated after the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant (NPP) were assessed. The frequency of abnormal pine pollen at the most contaminated plots significantly exceeded the control level and positively correlated with the total absorbed dose and the absorbed dose from β-radiation. No sustainable significant changes in pollen sterility of the herbaceous plants studied were found in the exclusion zone of the Chernobyl NPP.

Comparison of the dosimetry of scandium-43 and scandium-44 patient organ doses in relation to commonly used gallium-68 for imaging neuroendocrine tumours.

Background: Several research groups have explored the potential of scandium radionuclides for theragnostic applications due to their longer half-lives and equal or similar coordination chemistry between their diagnostic and therapeutic counterparts, as well as lutetium-177 and terbium-161, respectively. Unlike the gallium-68/lutetium-177 pair, which may show different in-vivo uptake patterns, the use of scandium radioisotopes promises consistent behaviour between diagnostic and therapeutic radiopeptides. An advantage of scandium's longer half-life over gallium-68 is the ability to study radiopeptide uptake over extended periods and its suitability for centralized production and distribution.