Posterior Sacroiliac Fusion Surgery: A Retrospective Single Center Study.

Background: Chronic sacroiliitis has variable etiologies with numerous treatments of varying efficacy. In recent years, a novel posterior approach utilizing bone matrix has been developed although to date, there is limited data in the literature regarding efficacy and safety through this approach. Benefits described include reduced adverse outcomes and quicker recovery when compared to the lateral approach.

Perceptions of Communities of Practice and Sense of Belonging: Focus Groups of Academic Pediatric Faculty.

Background: Providing the opportunity for collaboration around a central purpose to improve skills and exchange knowledge, the Community of Practice model can be useful for faculty development. A sense of belonging enhances the engagement in communities. Yet, the barriers and contributors to academic medicine faculty's sense of belonging in communities are not as well explored.

Modeling HBV Infection and Therapy in Immunodeficient NOD-Rag1-/-IL2RgammaC-null (NRG) Fumarylacetoacetate Hydrolase (FAH) Knockout Mice with Human Chimeric Liver.

Chimeric mouse models with a humanized liver (Hu-HEP mice) provide a unique tool to study human hepatotropic virus diseases, including viral infection, viral pathogenesis, and anti-viral therapy. Here, we describe a detailed protocol for studying hepatitis B infection in NRG-derived fumarylacetoacetate hydrolase (FAH) knockout mice repopulated with human hepatocytes (FRG-Hu HEP mice). The procedures include (1) maintenance and genotyping of the FRG mice, (2) intrasplenic injection of primary human hepatocytes (PHH), (3) 2-(2-nitro-4-fluoromethylbenzoyl)-1,3-cyclohexanedione (NTBC) drug reduction cycling to improve human hepatocyte repopulation, (4) human albumin detection, and (5) HBV infection and detection.

"By Us for Us": Lessons Learned in Developing a National Training and Technical Assistance Center by and for CHWs.

In 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) funded 67 health departments to implement community health worker (CHW) programs to enhance COVID-19 response. The CDC also funded a unique CHW-led Technical Assistance and Training (TTA) Center called Envision, which supported health departments to implement CHW programs and promote CHW workforce sustainability. After 1 year, Envision evaluators interviewed Envision staff to assess barriers and facilitators in developing the Center and the degree to which CHW leadership was operationalized.

Impact of progressive chronic kidney disease stage on postoperative outcomes in metabolic surgery-a propensity-matched analysis using the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement database.

Background: Metabolic surgery (MS) is effective in improving renal parameters for individuals with obesity and chronic kidney disease (CKD). Despite recognized benefits, concerns linger about the perioperative safety of patients with CKD undergoing MS. This study aimed to identify the CKD stage associated with the most significant increase in postoperative complications.

Shear bond strength of orthodontic brackets to single-shade composite surfaces: An in-vitro comparative study of different surface preparations.

Purpose: The primary objective of this study was to determine which single-shade composite surface yielded clinically acceptable shear bond strength (SBS) to metal orthodontics brackets. The secondary objectives were to identify the best composite surface treatment to enhance SBS and determine which surface treatment produced the least surface damage at debond.

Methods: Forty dental composite samples were selected from four different manufacturers (n=160) and grouped by manufacturer, one standard multi-shade dental system (FilTek™ Supreme Ultra) and three single-shade dental composites systems (OmniChroma®, SimpliShade™ and Venus® Diamond One).

Adjunctive therapy with an oral HS donor provides additional therapeutic benefit beyond SGLT2 inhibition in cardiometabolic heart failure with preserved ejection fraction.

Background And Purpose: Sodium glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) have emerged as a potent therapy for heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Hydrogen sulphide (HS), a well-studied cardioprotective agent, could be beneficial in HFpEF. SGLT2i monotherapy and combination therapy involving an SGLT2i and HS donor in two preclinical models of cardiometabolic HFpEF was investigated.

Predictors of Toxic Metal/Metalloid Exposures Among Mexican Americans in Starr County, Texas.

Background: Arsenic, cadmium, and lead are toxic elements that widely contaminate our environment. These toxicants are associated with acute and chronic health problems, and evidence suggests that minority communities, including Hispanic/Latino Americans, are disproportionately exposed. Few studies have assessed culturally specific predictors of exposure to understand the potential drivers of racial/ethnic exposure disparities.

Diabetic Neuropathy: A Guide to Pain Management.

Purpose Of Review: Diabetic neuropathy is a common complication of diabetes mellitus (DM) and can affect up to 50% of DM patients during their lifetime. Patients typically present with numbness, tingling, pain, and loss of sensation in the extremities. Since there is no treatment targeting the underlying mechanism of neuropathy, strategies focus on preventative care and pain management.

Frontiers in Acute Pain Management: Emerging Concepts in Pain Pathways and the Role of VX-548 as a Novel NaV1.8 Inhibitor: A Narrative Review.

Purpose Of Review: Despite ongoing research into alternative postsurgical pain treatments, opioids remain widely used analgesics regardless of associated adverse effects, including dependence and overdose, as demonstrated throughout the current opioid crisis. This is likely related to a failure in proving the efficacy of alternative analgesics in clinical trials, despite strong evidence supporting the potential for effective analgesia through in vitro studies. While NaV1.

A Potential Role for MAGI-1 in the Bi-Directional Relationship Between Major Depressive Disorder and Cardiovascular Disease.

Purpose Of Review: Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is characterized by persistent symptoms such as fatigue, loss of interest in activities, feelings of sadness and worthlessness. MDD often coexist with cardiovascular disease (CVD), yet the precise link between these conditions remains unclear. This review explores factors underlying the development of MDD and CVD, including genetic, epigenetic, platelet activation, inflammation, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activation, endothelial cell (EC) dysfunction, and blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption.

Robot-assisted laser interstitial thermal therapy for drug-resistant epilepsy in hypothalamic hamartoma.

Hypothalamic hamartomas are congenital lesions of the hypothalamus, with a range of symptoms defined by lesion location. Common presenting symptoms include gelastic seizures and precocious puberty. When hamartoma-related seizures become resistant to medications, laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT) has been shown to be an effective treatment.

A Modified Switching Procedure from Temporary to Tunneled Central Venous Dialysis Catheters.

Tunneled central venous catheters are commonly used for dialysis in patients without a functional permanent vascular access. In an emergent setting, a non-tunneled, temporary central venous catheter is often placed for immediate dialysis. The most critical step in the catheter insertion is venipuncture, which is often a major cause for longer intervention times and procedure-related adverse events.

Impact of rural location on receipt of standard of care treatment and survival for locally advanced bladder cancer in Louisiana.

Objective: We aim to determine the effect of region of residence (urban vs. rural) on the odds of receiving standard of care treatment for locally advanced BCa in Louisiana and its impact on survival outcomes.

Methods: Using the Louisiana Tumor Registry, we identified American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) stage II or III, BCa diagnoses in Louisiana residents between 2010 and 2020.

Back pain in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis: frequency and risk factors.

Purpose: Although back pain is commonly reported in patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS), factors that influence the presence and severity of back pain in AIS, including curve-specific variables, have not been well studied. This study aims to describe the prevalence and severity of back pain in AIS patients and determine the extent to which patient characteristics, including curve-specific factors, are associated with a higher risk of back pain in AIS.

Methods: The study was a retrospective medical records review of adolescents (aged 10-17 years) diagnosed with AIS between 01/01/2018 and 12/31/2021 at an academic tertiary children's hospital.

Incidence of brain metastasis according to patient race and primary cancer origin: a systematic review.

Purpose: A systematic review was conducted to investigate differences in incidence and primary origin of synchronous brain metastasis (sBM) in varying racial groups with different primary cancers.

Methods: Adhering to PRISMA 2020 guidelines a search was conducted using PubMed and Ovid databases for publications from January 2000 to January 2023, with search terms including combinations of "brain metastasis," "race," "ethnicity," and "incidence." Three independent reviewers screened for inclusion criteria encompassing studies clearly reporting primary cancer sites, patient demographics including race, and synchronous BM (sBM) incidence.

Effects of exercise or metformin on myokine concentrations in patients with breast and colorectal cancer: A phase II multi-centre factorial randomized trial.

Background: Physical activity and metformin pharmacotherapy are associated with improved clinical outcomes in breast and colorectal cancer survivors. Myokines are cytokines secreted from skeletal muscle that may mediate these associations.

Methods: This hypothesis-generating analysis used biospecimens collected from a multi-centre 2 × 2 factorial randomized design of 116 patients with stage I-III breast and colorectal cancer who were randomized to 12 weeks of (1) aerobic exercise (moderate intensity titrated to 220 min/week); (2) metformin (850 mg daily for 2 weeks and then titrated to 850 mg twice per day); (3) aerobic exercise and metformin; or (4) control.

Siglec-H Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells Protect Against Acute Liver Injury by Suppressing IFN-γ/Th1 Response and Promoting IL-21 CD4 T Cells.

Background & Aims: Siglec-H is a receptor specifically expressed in mouse plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs), which functions as a negative regulator of interferon-α production and plays a critical role in pDC maturation to become antigen-presenting cells. The function of pDCs in autoimmune and inflammatory diseases has been reported. However, the effect of Siglec-H expression in pDCs in liver inflammation and diseases remains unclear.

Patient-Reported Outcomes after False Vocal Folds Injections for Adductor Spasmodic Dysphonia.

Objectives: The primary objective of this study is to investigate if false vocal folds (FVF) or simultaneous FVF with thyroarytenoid (FVF+TA) Botox® injections achieve comparable treatment effects to standard TA injections. This study also aims to determine how patient-reported outcomes contribute to the transition to, and continuation of, FVF or FVF+TA injections.

Methods: Retrospective chart review was performed for all patients receiving Botox® for adductor spasmodic dysphonia at a laryngology practice between 2005 and 2018.

Ablation of Fatty Acid Transport Protein-4 Enhances Cone Survival, M-cone Vision, and Synthesis of Cone-Tropic 9--Retinal in 12 Mouse Model of Leber Congenital Amaurosis.

The canonical visual cycle employing RPE65 as the retinoid isomerase regenerates 11--retinal to support both rod- and cone-mediated vision. Mutations of are associated with Leber congenital amaurosis that results in rod and cone photoreceptor degeneration and vision loss of affected patients at an early age. Dark-reared mouse has been known to form isorhodopsin that employs 9--retinal as the photosensitive chromophore.

Caregiver Satisfaction with Medical Providers' Communication: Comparison Between Spanish-Speaking Caregivers with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) and Caregivers Who Are English-Proficient (EP).

Objectives: Barriers to communication have been observed with patients and families who prefer a language other than English for medical conversations, referred to as individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP). We used the pediatric Family Satisfaction with ICU 24R (FS-ICU) survey to assess communication satisfaction for English-proficient (EP) and Spanish-speaking LEP caregivers. We added additional questions related to attendance at morning rounds, frequency of provider updates, interpreter use, and general satisfaction with communication.