M1Streptococcus pyogenes causing community-acquired pneumonia, pleural empyema and streptococcal toxic shock syndrome.

Objectives: Streptococcus pyogenes causes superficial infections but can also cause deep-seated infections and toxin-mediated diseases. In the present study, phylogenetic and in silico prediction analyses were performed on an antimicrobial resistant M1S. pyogenes strain causing severe clinical manifestations during the current surge of invasive group A Streptococcus (iGAS) disease.

Posthemithyroidectomy Hypothyroidism: Updated Meta-Analysis of Risk Factors and Rates of Remission.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to determine the incidence and risk factors for hypothyroidism, both clinical and subclinical, following hemithyroidectomy in preoperatively euthyroid patients, as well as hypothyroidism remission and its time of remission.

Materials And Methods: A search was performed in Medline (via PubMed), Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library using the keywords "hemithyroidectomy + postoperative + hypothyroidism" and "hemithyroidectomy + hormone supplementation".

Results: Fifty-four studies with a total of 9,999 patients were included.

The impact of COVID-19 lockdown on children's and adolescents' mental health in Greece.

The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on children's and adolescents' mental health in Greece during the lockdown of spring 2020. A cross-sectional survey of 1232 Greek parents was conducted in spring 2020. 35.

Severe anaphylactic reaction after blue dye injection for sentinel lymph node biopsy in breast surgery: Report of two cases and literature review.

Anaphylactic reactions, and especially the severe ones (types III and IV), should be kept in mind as considerable adverse effects while using blue dyes for SLNB.

Rationale and Design of the ACS-BP Study: Prognostic Value of In-Hospital Blood Pressure and Indices of Atherosclerosis in Acute Coronary Syndromes.

Background: High blood pressure (BP) is a leading risk factor for coronary artery disease and other major cardiovascular events.

Objective: Blood pressure variability (BPV), ambulatory arterial stiffness index (AASI) and ankle- brachial index (ABI) have been proposed as indices that can improve risk stratification for an adverse cardiac outcome. However, their utility in the setting of acute coronary syndromes (ACS) is unclear.

Newborn with a solitary hairless skin defect on the scalp vertex.

Aplasia cutis congenita is a rare congenital disorder usually presenting as an isolated lesion on the scalp that may be associated with genetic syndromes and congenital anomalies. Therefore, it is important to be aware of this syndrome.

Electrical storm in an acquired short QT syndrome successfully treated with quinidine.

Short QT syndrome (SQTS) is a malignant heart disorder defined by the presence of ventricular arrhythmias causing syncope and sudden cardiac arrest. The prevalence in the pediatric population is 0.05%.

Mitral valve in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy: a three-dimensional transesophageal study.

Background: It is reported that the mitral valve (MV) in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) has structural abnormalities.

Purpose: To assess the MV in HCM patients using Three-Dimensional Transesophageal Echocardiography (3DTEE).

Methods: Transthoracic and 3DTEE studies focused on the mitral valve were performed prospectively in 21 HCM patients with obstruction (Group I), 37 HCM patients without obstruction (Group II) and 28 controls (Group III).

Late T-wave inversion following resolution of non-ischemic acute pulmonary edema.

Electrocardiographic (ECG) changes occurring several hours after the onset of acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema have been seldom described. The proposed explanatory mechanisms are various and not fairly established. In the absence of significant coronary artery disease, these ECG abnormalities could be attributed to mechanisms implicated in coronary microcirculatory dysfunction.

Evaluation of portal hypertension in the cirrhotic patient: hepatic vein pressure gradient and beyond.

Portal hypertension (PH) is a major complication of liver cirrhosis, as it predisposes to the development of serious clinical manifestations such as ascites, hepatic encephalopathy and variceal bleeding. Till now, the measurement of hepatic vein pressure gradient (HVPG) is the gold standard method to ascertain the presence and significance of PH, as many studies have shown its correlation with the appearance of varices and the possibility of variceal bleeding. However, the invasiveness of this procedure makes it difficult to be used in daily clinical practice.

The inter-annual variability of heat-related mortality in nine European cities (1990-2010).

Background: The association between heat and daily mortality and its temporal variation are well known. However, few studies have analyzed the inter-annual variations in both the risk estimates and impacts of heat. The aim is to estimate inter-annual variations in the effect of heat for a fixed temperature range, on mortality in 9 European cities included in the PHASE (Public Health Adaptation Strategies to Extreme weather events) project for the period 1990-2010.

Cardiovascular morbidity of severe resistant hypertension among treated uncontrolled hypertensives: a 4-year follow-up study.

Data regarding the prognosis of resistant hypertension (RHTN) with respect to its severity is limited. We investigated the cardiovascular risk of severe RHTN in a prospective observational study. A cohort of 1700 hypertensive patient with treated uncontrolled HTN was followed for a mean period of 3.

Laparoscopic abdominoperineal resection for the treatment of a mucinous adenocarcinoma associated with an anal fistula.

Mucinous adenocarcinoma associated with an anal fistula is a rare oncologic entity which may pose diagnostic and therapeutic challenges for Surgeons and Medical Oncologists. Few reported cases without definite therapeutic guidelines exist. It represents 2-3% of all gastrointestinal malignancies and arises from chronic anal fistulas, ischiorectal or perianal abscesses.

Primary cardiac intimal sarcoma masquerading as mitral stenosis.

Intimal sarcomas are a very rare medical entity and usually arise from the pulmonary artery or the thoracic aorta. Sarcomas should be considered in the differential diagnosis in patients with suspected mitral valve disease. Echocardiography should be performed as early as possible to establish a prompt diagnosis and management.

Lactate serum concentrations during treatment with nucleos(t)ide analogues in hepatitis B with or without cirrhosis.

Objective: The aim of this study is to evaluate the clinical implications of lactate concentrations in patients with hepatitis B with or without cirrhosis during treatment with nucleos(t)ide analogues.

Patients And Methods: One hundred and seven consecutive patients with chronic hepatitis B and median age 57 (24-85) years were prospectively included. Lactate concentrations were measured at baseline and at 12, 24, 36, 48, and 60 months following the baseline measurements.

The endlessness evolution of medicine, continuous increase in life expectancy and constant role of the physician.

In this review, the endlessness evolution of medical science and medical technology, and its effects on disease metamorphosis and increased life expectancy are discussed. In certain instances, the past will be compared with the present and predictions for the future will be outlined. Further, the constant role of the physician in maintaining the health of human beings is emphasized in this endlessness evolution.

The Cardio-Renal Interrelationship.

The heart and the kidney are of utmost importance for the maintenance of cardiovascular (CV) homeostasis. In healthy subjects, hemodynamic changes in either organ may affect hemodynamics of the other organ. This interaction is fine-tuned by neurohumoral activity, including atrial natriuretic peptides, renin-angiotensin aldosterone system and sympathetic activity.

A 3-year study of atorvastatin in children and adolescents with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia.

Background: The efficacy and safety of atorvastatin in children/adolescents aged 10-17 years with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HeFH) have been demonstrated in trials of up to 1 year in duration. However, the efficacy/safety of >1 year use of atorvastatin in children/adolescents with HeFH, including children from 6 years of age, has not been assessed.

Objective: To characterize the efficacy and safety of atorvastatin over 3 years and to assess the impact on growth and development in children aged 6-15 years with HeFH.

Polycystic ovary syndrome and environmental toxins.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common, heterogeneous, and multifactorial endocrine disorder in premenopausal women. The pathophysiology of this endocrinopathy is still unclear; however, the heterogeneity of its features within ethnic races, geographic location, and families suggests that environment and lifestyle are of prime importance. This work is mainly focused on the possible role of the most common and studied environmental toxins for this syndrome in the pathogenesis of PCOS.

Emergency care provided in a Greek dental school and analysis of the patients' demographic characteristics: a prospective study.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence of pain of endodontic origin and its relationship with socio-economic and demographic factors among patients seeking unscheduled urgent dental care.

Methods: Patients attending the Emergency Clinic of Athens Dental School, Greece, between November 2011 and June 2012, were evaluated to determine their socio-economic profile, dental problem and treatment required. The facility operated from Monday to Friday, from 8.

MANAGEMENT OF ENDOCRINE DISEASE: Secondary polycystic ovary syndrome: theoretical and practical aspects.

PCOS is a clinical heterogeneous entity of female androgen excess diagnosed by exclusion of other disorders responsible for androgen excess. The concept of secondary PCOS implies that there is a primary well-defined cause leading to the PCOS phenotype with underlying androgen overproduction, regardless of the origin. In these cases, we presume the term of 'secondary PCOS' could be used.

Smoking cessation using innovative techniques: course report.

ERS Education hosted a 3-day course on smoking cessation in Athens, Greece http://ow.ly/UYuUd.

Characteristics and risk factors for 28-day mortality of hospital acquired fungemias in ICUs: data from the EUROBACT study.

Background: To characterize and identify prognostic factors for 28-day mortality among patients with hospital-acquired fungemia (HAF) in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

Methods: A sub-analysis of a prospective, multicenter non-representative cohort study conducted in 162 ICUs in 24 countries.

Results: Of the 1156 patients with hospital-acquired bloodstream infections (HA-BSI) included in the EUROBACT study, 96 patients had a HAF.