A Parallel Human and Rat Investigation of the Interaction Between Descending and Spinal Modulatory Mechanisms.

Background: Healthy individuals demonstrate considerable heterogeneity upon dynamic quantitative sensory testing assessment of endogenous pain modulatory mechanisms. For those who stratify into a 'pro-nociceptive profile' cohort, consisting of inefficient conditioned pain modulation (CPM) and elevated temporal summation of pain (TSP), the optimal approach for balancing the net output of pain modulatory processes towards anti-nociception remains unresolved. In this translational healthy human and rat study, we examined whether descending modulation countered spinal amplification during concurrent application of a CPM and TSP paradigm alongside pupillometry since pontine activity was previously linked to functionality of endogenous pain modulatory mechanisms and pupil dilation.

Congenital Titinopathy: Comprehensive Characterization of the Most Severe End of the Disease Spectrum.

Unlabelled: Congenital titinopathy has recently emerged as one of the most common congenital muscle disorders.

Objective: To better understand the presentation and clinical needs of the under-characterized extreme end of the congenital titinopathy severity spectrum.

Methods: We comprehensively analyzed the clinical, imaging, pathology, autopsy, and genetic findings in 15 severely affected individuals from 11 families.

Scanner-based real-time three-dimensional brain + body slice-to-volume reconstruction for T2-weighted 0.55-T low-field fetal magnetic resonance imaging.

Background: Motion correction methods based on slice-to-volume registration (SVR) for fetal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allow reconstruction of three-dimensional (3-D) isotropic images of the fetal brain and body. However, all existing SVR methods are confined to research settings, which limits clinical integration. Furthermore, there have been no reported SVR solutions for low-field 0.

Immunobridging Trials: An Important Tool to Protect Vulnerable and Immunocompromised Patients Against Evolving Pathogens.

Safeguarding patients from emerging infectious diseases demands strategies that prioritise patient well-being and protection. Immunobridging is an established trial methodology which has been increasingly employed to ensure patient protection and provide clinicians with swift access to vaccines. It uses immunological markers to infer the effectiveness of a new drug through a surrogate measure of efficacy.

Protocol of an Efficacy Study on Nursing Consultation in Weight Management and Metabolic Syndrome Based on the Carbohydrate-Insulin Theory in Individuals with First-Episode Psychosis.

: Individuals with severe mental illness live, on average, up to 30 years less than the general population, with cardiovascular disease being the leading cause of death. Metabolic syndrome (MetS) plays a significant role in this, making it crucial to manage this issue in individuals with psychosis at the onset of the illness. The approach to managing this issue has evolved from a focus on calorie counting to a deeper understanding of hormone function, particularly the role of insulin resistance in MetS.

Development of Prevascularized Synthetic Block Graft for Maxillofacial Reconstruction.

Cranio-maxillofacial bone reconstruction, especially for large defects, remains challenging. Synthetic biomimetic materials are emerging as alternatives to autogenous grafts. Tissue engineering aims to create natural tissue-mimicking materials, with calcium phosphate-based scaffolds showing promise for bone regeneration applications.

The Use of SGLT-2 Inhibitors and GLP-1RA in Frail Older People with Diabetes: A Personalised Approach Is Required.

Frailty is an increasingly recognised complication of diabetes in older people and should be taken into consideration in management plans, including the use of the new therapies of sodium glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT-2) inhibitors and glucagon like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA). The frailty syndrome appears to span across a spectrum, from a sarcopenic obese phenotype at one end, characterised by obesity, insulin resistance, and prevalent cardiovascular risk factors, to an anorexic malnourished phenotype at the other end, characterised by significant weight loss, reduced insulin resistance, and less prevalent cardiovascular risk factors. Therefore, the use of the new therapies may not be suitable for every frail older individual with diabetes.

Physician Perceptions of the Safety and Efficacy of GLP-1 Receptor Agonists: Underestimation of Cardiovascular Risk Reduction and Discrepancies with Clinical Evidence.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide/GLP-1 receptor agonists (GIP/GLP-1 RAs) are emerging as effective treatments for obesity and cardiometabolic disease. This study evaluated physician perceptions of the safety and efficacy of semaglutide and tirzepatide through a questionnaire administered to 165 attending physicians specializing in internal or family medicine, with 122 responses received. Physicians reported an average patient weight loss of 9.

Exploring the Intersection of ADHD and Music: A Systematic Review.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a highly prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder, affecting both children and adults, which often leads to significant difficulties with attention, impulsivity, and working memory. These challenges can impact various cognitive and perceptual domains, including music perception and performance. Despite these difficulties, individuals with ADHD frequently engage with music, and previous research has shown that music listening can serve as a means of increasing stimulation and self-regulation.

Integrating AI into Cancer Immunotherapy-A Narrative Review of Current Applications and Future Directions.

Background: Cancer remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Traditional treatments like chemotherapy and radiation often result in significant side effects and varied patient outcomes. Immunotherapy has emerged as a promising alternative, harnessing the immune system to target cancer cells.

Large language model based mutations in genetic improvement.

Ever since the first large language models (LLMs) have become available, both academics and practitioners have used them to aid software engineering tasks. However, little research as yet has been done in combining search-based software engineering (SBSE) and LLMs. In this paper, we evaluate the use of LLMs as mutation operators for genetic improvement (GI), an SBSE approach, to improve the GI search process.

Translation of PET radiotracers for cancer imaging: recommendations from the National Cancer Imaging Translational Accelerator (NCITA) consensus meeting.

Background: The clinical translation of positron emission tomography (PET) radiotracers for cancer management presents complex challenges. We have developed consensus-based recommendations for preclinical and clinical assessment of novel and established radiotracers, applied to image different cancer types, to improve the standardisation of translational methodologies and accelerate clinical implementation.

Methods: A consensus process was developed using the RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method (RAM) to gather insights from a multidisciplinary panel of 38 key stakeholders on the appropriateness of preclinical and clinical methodologies and stakeholder engagement for PET radiotracer translation.

"We're all in the same storm, but not all of us are in the same boat": qualitative exploration of UK response-focused civil servants experiences of working from home during COVID-19.

Introduction: The experiences of UK Government response-focused employees, who were considered frontline workers during the coronavirus response, are missing from current literature. Meeting the demands of being on the frontline, whilst also adjusting from a normal and practiced way of working to having to work from within one's home, may bring a plethora of new barriers and facilitators associated with providing an effective pandemic response.

Method: This interview study collected and analysed data from 30 UK Civil servants who worked on the COVID-19 pandemic response from their own homes.

Exploring the involvement of people with lived experience of mental disorders in co-developing outcome measures: a systematic review.

People with lived experience of mental health difficulties have highlighted that research outcomes do not capture issues they feel are important. This mismatch might affect the validity of trials, such that beneficial effects could be missed or results could be counted as a benefit when they are not. Co-development of patient-reported outcome measures ensures patient perspectives are captured adequately.

Comparative effectiveness of antipsychotic treatment strategies for relapse prevention in first-episode schizophrenia in Finland: a population-based cohort study.

Background: The best pharmacological treatment practices for relapse prevention in patients with first-episode schizophrenia are unclear. We aimed to assess different treatment strategies used before and after the first relapse, and their associations with subsequent relapse risk.

Methods: In this population-based cohort study, we enrolled individuals (aged ≤45 years) with first-episode schizophrenia who were hospitalised and subsequently relapsed between 1996 and 2014 from the nationwide Finnish Hospital Discharge Register.

Analysis of Acute Cerebrovascular Accidents following Cardiovascular Surgical Procedures: A Comprehensive 17-year study involving 24,412 patients at a leading Tertiary care institution in the United Kingdom.

Objective: The primary objective of this study is to quantify the incidence of stroke following cardiac surgery over 17 years at our centre. Additionally, we evaluated the potential risk factors leading to postoperative stroke in these patients.

Methods: Patient characteristics and perioperative data were collected for 24,412 patients undergoing surgery at our centre between January 2005 and December 2021.

The Role of Sex and Gender in Acute Kidney Injury - Consensus Statements from the 33 Acute Disease Quality Initiative.

Sex differences exist in acute kidney injury (AKI), and the role that sex and gender play along the AKI care continuum remains unclear. The 33 Acute Disease Quality Initiative meeting evaluated available data on the role of sex and gender in AKI and identified knowledge gaps. Data from experimental models, pathophysiology, epidemiology, clinical care, gender, social determinants of health, education, and advocacy were reviewed.

What is the effect of different interprofessional education teaching strategies on healthcare professions students' interprofessional learning outcomes? A systematic narrative review.

Aim: To explore different types of interprofessional education (IPE) teaching strategies used in pre-licensure interprofessional learning programmes and the effective components of these strategies in promoting student learning, IPE skills, behavioural change, organisational practice, or patient health outcomes.

Background: IPE is rapidly becoming a core element of health professions preparation programmes worldwide, but the differential effects of different ways of delivering IPE are not well documented.

Design: Systematic narrative review.

Consent and violence amongst men in the context of sexualised drug use: A systematic scoping review.

Sexualised drug use (SDU) is a highly prevalent phenomenon of increasing public health significance in communities of men who have sex with men (MSM). This prospectively registered PRISMA-ScR-adherent systematic scoping review examines the current state of knowledge surrounding violence amongst MSM in the context of SDU. A broad search was conducted across four databases, with no restrictions.

VIEWER: an extensible visual analytics framework for enhancing mental healthcare.

Objective: A proof-of-concept study aimed at designing and implementing Visual & Interactive Engagement With Electronic Records (VIEWER), a versatile toolkit for visual analytics of clinical data, and systematically evaluating its effectiveness across various clinical applications while gathering feedback for iterative improvements.

Materials And Methods: VIEWER is an open-source and extensible toolkit that employs natural language processing and interactive visualization techniques to facilitate the rapid design, development, and deployment of clinical information retrieval, analysis, and visualization at the point of care. Through an iterative and collaborative participatory design approach, VIEWER was designed and implemented in one of the United Kingdom's largest National Health Services mental health Trusts, where its clinical utility and effectiveness were assessed using both quantitative and qualitative methods.