Utilization and Outcomes Associated With Intravascular Ultrasound during Abdominal and Thoracic Endovascular Aortic Interventions in the United States in the Contemporary Era (2016-2023).

Background: Intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) use in aortic endovascular interventions, including thoracic endovascular aneurysm repair (TEVAR) and endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR), may have similar benefits to those seen in coronary and peripheral interventions, but limited utilization and outcome data exist.

Methods: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services claims data were used to identify patients undergoing TEVAR and EVAR from 2016 to 2023. Utilization trends were stratified by region, urbanicity, distressed communities index, community versus academic center, Medicare versus dual enrollment status, indication, urgency, and presence of dissection with malperfusion.

Relationship Between Coronary Artery Calcium Score and Vulnerability of Culprit Plaque Assessed by OCT in Patients With Established Coronary Artery Disease.

Background: Coronary artery calcium score (CACS) is widely used for risk stratification. However, in patients with established coronary artery disease, its clinical implication and relationship with plaque vulnerability are unclear. We sought to correlate the CACS and plaque vulnerability assessed by optical coherence tomography.

Multicenter Analysis of the Relationship Between Operative Team Familiarity and Safety and Efficiency Outcomes in Cardiac Surgery.

Background: Safety in cardiac surgical procedures is predicated on effective team dynamics. This study associated operative team familiarity (ie, the extent of clinical collaboration among surgical team members) with procedural efficiency and Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) adjudicated patient outcomes.

Methods: Institutional STS adult cardiac surgery registry and electronic health record data from 2014 to 2021 were evaluated across 3 quaternary hospitals.

scTrends: A living review of commercial single-cell and spatial 'omic technologies.

Understanding the rapidly evolving landscape of single-cell and spatial omic technologies is crucial for advancing biomedical research and drug development. We provide a living review of both mature and emerging commercial platforms, highlighting key methodologies and trends shaping the field. This review spans from foundational single-cell technologies such as microfluidics and plate-based methods to newer approaches like combinatorial indexing; on the spatial side, we consider next-generation sequencing and imaging-based spatial transcriptomics.

AAV delivery strategy with mechanical support for safe and efficacious cardiac gene transfer in swine.

Adeno-associated virus-based gene therapy is a promising avenue in heart failure treatment, but has shown limited cardiac virus uptake in humans, requiring new approaches for clinical translation. Using a Yorkshire swine ischemic heart failure model, we demonstrate significant improvement in gene uptake with temporary coronary occlusions assisted by mechanical circulatory support. We first show that mechanical support during coronary artery occlusions prevents hemodynamic deterioration (n = 5 female).

Durability and Efficacy of Faricimab in Treatment-Resistant Retinal Edema Utilizing "Real-World" Dosing Regimens.

To retrospectively analyze clinical outcomes of patients with "treatment-resistant" neovascular age-related macular degeneration or diabetic macular edema who were switched to intravitreal faricimab injections (IFIs) using a "real-world" treat-and-extend (TAE) protocol. Seventy-one eyes from 62 patients receiving antivascular endothelial growth factor injections were evaluated before and after switching to IFI. Demographic and clinical data were collected.

Do Ophthalmology Journals Have AI Policies for Manuscript Writing?

Purpose: To assess the prevalence of artificial intelligence (AI) usage policies in manuscript writing in PubMed-indexed ophthalmology journals and examine the relationship between the adoption of these policies and journal characteristics.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Subjects: PubMed-indexed ophthalmology journals.

Impacts of Hospital Volume and Patient-Hospital Distances on Outcomes of Older Adults Receiving Percutaneous Microaxial Ventricular Assist Devices for Cardiogenic Shock.

Background: Percutaneous microaxial ventricular assist devices (pVADs) have the potential to reduce mortality of patients with cardiogenic shock (CS). However, the association between the distribution of pVAD-performing centers and outcomes of CS has not been explored.

Methods: This observational study included Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries aged 65 to 99 years treated with pVAD for CS from 2016 to 2020.

Curriculum Research: Disseminating Neuropalliative Care Education Through an Adaptable Curriculum: A Multisite Feasibility Trial.

Introduction And Problem Statement: Neurologic disease is a leading cause of disability and death worldwide. As the global population ages, the burden of these diseases is expected to increase. Despite this increased clinical need, neurology trainees are seldom taught skills and concepts in palliative care.

Class I Recalls of Cardiovascular Devices Between 2013 and 2022 : A Cross-Sectional Analysis.

Background: Cardiovascular devices account for one third of all Class I recalls, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) most severe designation, indicating a reasonable probability of "serious adverse health consequences or death.

The Simultaneous Inhibition of Solute Carrier Family 6 Member 19 and Breast Cancer Resistance Protein Transporters Leads to an Increase of Indoxyl Sulfate (a Uremic Toxin) in Plasma and Kidney.

Solute carrier family 6 member 19 (SLC6A19) inhibitors are being studied as therapeutic agents for phenylketonuria. In this work, a potent SLC6A19 inhibitor (RA836) elevated rat kidney uremic toxin indoxyl sulfate (IDS) levels by intensity (arbitrary unit) of 13.7 ± 7.

Parent-Clinician Communication and Prolonged Grief in Parents Whose Child Died From Cancer.

Context: Parent-clinician communication is essential for high-quality end-of-life (EOL) care in children with cancer. However, it is unknown how parent-clinician communication affects parents' experience in the first two years after their child's death.

Objectives: To examine the association between communication and prolonged grief among parents whose child died from cancer and to explore the mediation effect of preparation for EOL care.

Risk Variants Associated With Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus: Genome-Wide Association Study in the FinnGen Cohort.

Background And Objectives: Large-scale genome-wide studies of chronic hydrocephalus have been lacking. We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) in normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH).

Methods: We used a case-control study design implementing FinnGen data containing 473,691 Finns with genotypes and nationwide health records.

Subgroup Analysis from a Phase 1/2 Randomized Clinical Trial of 2.6% EDTA Ophthalmic Solution in Patients with Age-Related Cataract.

Purpose: To explore the efficacy of topical 2.6% EDTA ophthalmic solution (C-KAD) as a treatment to improve visual function for the subgroup of patients with loss of contrast sensitivity (CS) due to early-stage age-related cataract.

Design: Subgroup analysis of randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, multicenter phase 1/2 clinical trial data.