Effect of crystallization temperature on the flexural strength of lithium disilicate glass ceramics.

Purpose: This pilot study aimed to compare the flexural strength of Amber Mill CAD to IPS e.max CAD and to determine the impact of different crystallization protocols on the flexural strength of Amber Mill CAD ceramics.

Materials And Methods: Amber Mill CAD ceramic blocks of a known Vita Classic shade were selected for testing against control IPS e.

CAR-NK cell therapy: a potential antiviral platform.

Viral infections persist as a significant cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Conventional therapeutic approaches often fall short in fully eliminating viral infections, primarily due to the emergence of drug resistance. Natural killer (NK) cells, one of the important members of the innate immune system, possess potent immunosurveillance and cytotoxic functions, thereby playing a crucial role in the host's defense against viral infections.

Performance of Glomerular Filtration Rate Estimating Equations in Kidney Transplant Recipients of Various Races: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background: We assessed the accuracy of different GFR estimating equations in kidney transplant recipients across diverse racial backgrounds, addressing the previously identified validation gap in multiethnic populations predominantly studied in White cohorts.

Methods: In this single-center study, eGFR was compared to the measured GFR (mGFR) one year following kidney transplantation.

Results: The 1-year eGFR and mGFR data from 1145 participants (54% Whites, 23% Hispanics, 9% Blacks, 7% Native Americans, and 6% Asians) revealed varied correlations across racial groups.

Transcatheter Pulmonary Flow Restrictors as a Palliative Bridge to Heart Transplant.

Background: In recent years, transcatheter implantation devices to restrict pulmonary arterial flow have emerged as a potential alternative to surgical pulmonary artery banding.

Case Presentation: A term male was diagnosed with critical aortic stenosis (AS) and severely reduced left ventricle (LV) systolic function. He underwent aortic balloon valvuloplasty on day 2 of life, resulting in some antegrade flow, but LV ejection fraction only improved to 15%.

Diagnostic performance of shape-sensing robotic-assisted bronchoscopy for pleural-based and fissure-based pulmonary lesions.

Background: Sampling of peripheral pulmonary lesions (PPLs) abutting the pleura carries a higher risk of pneumothorax and complications. Although typically performed with image-guided transthoracic biopsy, the advent of shape-sensing robotic-assisted bronchoscopy (ssRAB) provides an alternative diagnostic procedure for this subtype of lesions.

Methods: A retrospective study on PPL attached to the peripheral pleura (PP), comprising costal and diaphragmatic pleura, mediastinal pleura (MP), and fissural pleura (FP) sampled by ssRAB, from January 2020 to December 2023.

ASRA Pain Medicine consensus practice infection control guidelines for regional anesthesia and pain medicine.

Background: To provide recommendations on risk mitigation, diagnosis and treatment of infectious complications associated with the practice of regional anesthesia, acute and chronic pain management.

Methods: Following board approval, in 2020 the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA Pain Medicine) commissioned evidence-based guidelines for best practices for infection control. More than 80 research questions were developed and literature searches undertaken by assigned working groups comprising four to five members.

More than a token photo: humanizing scientists enhances student engagement.

Despite broad consensus that highlighting counter-stereotypical scientist role models in educational materials promotes equity and success, the specific elements that make these materials effective remain untested. Are pictures of counter-stereotypical scientists enough to communicate to students that scientists come from a variety of backgrounds, or is additional information required? To parse the effects of including visual depictions and humanizing information about scientists featured in biology course materials, we distributed three randomized versions of assignments over several academic terms across 36 undergraduate institutions ( > 3700 students). We found that including humanizing information about scientists was key to increasing student engagement with the biology course materials.

Broad geographic dispersal is not a diversification driver for Emberizoidea.

The movement of species to new geographical areas has been proposed to be crucial for speciation. As such, dispersal has been regarded as a likely explanation for the variation in species richness among clades. The Emberizoidea are a highly diverse Oscine bird clade native to the New World that has been characterized for their ubiquitous distribution both ecologically and geographically, making this group ideal to test how biogeographical dispersal could promote speciation.

Some properties and applications of the tabletability equation.

A recently derived tabletability equation mathematically describes tablet tensile strength as a function of compaction pressure. In this work, further analysis of the tabletability equation reveals that the normalized slope at the inflection point correlates well with powder plasticity, indicating its potential use as a powder plasticity parameter. Additionally, we explore applications of the tabletability equation in quantifying errors caused by a tensile strength measurement method that disregards out-of-die elastic recovery for assessing tabletability.

Anxiety and depression in only children versus children with siblings: A cross-sectional study among Chinese medical students.

Objectives: This study aimed to explore the characteristics, overall anxiety and depression status, and influencing factors of only-child and non-only-child students by examining a medical student population in the post-COVID-19 era.

Study Design: This study was a cross-sectional design.

Methods: An online questionnaire survey was administered among medical students.

Multi-Institutional Analysis of Surgery for Lichen Sclerosus Induced Penile Urethral Stricture: Establishing Single-Stage Urethroplasty as a Primary Treatment Option.

Introduction: Ideal treatment of lichen sclerosus (LS) induced penile urethral strictures (PUS) remains elusive. The objective of this study is to compare multi-institutional outcomes of single-stage urethroplasty (SSU) with oral mucosal graft (OMG), staged urethroplasty and perineal urethrostomy (PU) for treatment of LS induced PUS.

Methods: Multi-institutional analysis was performed at 9 centers on males undergoing SSU, staged urethroplasty or PU for LS induced PUS.

Future Directions in the Management of Classic Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia Due to 21-Hydroxylase Deficiency.

Context: The traditional management of classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency (21OHD) is difficult and often suboptimal.

Objective: To review improvements in the diagnosis and management of 21OHD.

Design: Literature review, synthesis, and authors' experience.

Characteristics of Invasive Pneumococcal Diseases Cases Among U.S. Children With Hematologic Malignancies Before and After Introduction of Thirteen-valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine, 2005-2019.

Background: Children with hematologic malignancies (HMs) are at increased risk of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD). Data on long-term IPD trends in U.S.

Pitch Types and Their Influence on Elbow Varus Torque and Spin Rate in Professional Baseball Pitchers.

Background: Elbow injuries are prevalent among professional baseball pitchers as nearly 25% undergo ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction. Pitch type, ball velocity, and spin rate have been previously hypothesized to influence elbow varus torque and subsequent risk of injury, but existing research is inconclusive.

Purpose: To examine elbow varus torque, cumulative torque, and loading rate within professional pitchers throwing fastball, curveball, change-up, and slider pitches, as well as to identify potential influences of ball spin on the elbow.

Which comes first, puberty or identity? The longitudinal interrelations between pubertal timing and sexual minority self-identification among early adolescents.

Sexual minority adolescents experience puberty earlier than their heterosexual peers. Early puberty is an indicator of premature aging and can be partly driven by chronic stress linked to discrimination. Nonetheless, the neural, cognitive, and social development linked to puberty enables adolescents to explore and understand their sexual identities.

Capnographic monitoring using a novel mainstream system during endoscopic ultrasound and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography: A prospective randomized controlled trial.

Background/purpose: Insufficient studies exist on capnography efficacy during endoscopic ultrasound or endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, and no definitive conclusions have been drawn. To evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of a novel mainstream capnography using an over-the-biteblock end-tidal CO (EtCO) detector in decreasing the risk of hypoxemia during endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP).

Methods: Patients undergoing EUS or ERCP with conscious sedation at a single Japanese center were randomized to a control or a novel capnography monitored (intervention) group in a 1:1 ratio.

NORDIC denoising on VASO data.

The use of submillimeter resolution functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is increasing in popularity due to the prospect of studying human brain activation non-invasively at the scale of cortical layers and columns. This method, known as laminar fMRI, is inherently signal-to-noise ratio (SNR)-limited, especially at lower field strengths, with the dominant noise source being of thermal origin. Furthermore, laminar fMRI is challenged with signal displacements due to draining vein effects in conventional gradient-echo blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) imaging contrasts.

ROBUST OUTER VOLUME SUBTRACTION WITH DEEP LEARNING GHOSTING DETECTION FOR HIGHLY-ACCELERATED REAL-TIME DYNAMIC MRI.

Real-time dynamic MRI is important for visualizing time-varying processes in several applications, including cardiac imaging, where it enables free-breathing images of the beating heart without ECG gating. However, current real-time MRI techniques commonly face challenges in achieving the required spatio-temporal resolutions due to limited acceleration rates. In this study, we propose a deep learning (DL) technique for improving the estimation of stationary outer-volume signal from shifted time-interleaved undersampling patterns.

Social vulnerability index associated with higher COVID-19 seroprevalence in Nigeria.

Social vulnerability has been shown to be a strong predictor of disparities in health outcomes. A common approach to estimating social vulnerability is using a composite index, such as the social vulnerability index (SVI), which combines multiple factors corresponding to key social determinants of health. Lawal and Osayomi created an SVI to explore key social determinants of health-related COVID-19 infection among the Nigerian population.

Sexual Minority Stress: Preliminary Evidence of Accelerated Pubertal Development in Early Adolescence.

Introduction: Societal stressors place a tremendous burden on individuals who identify with a sexual minority identity. While minority stress experienced by racial/ethnic minority groups has been linked to accelerated aging, this link has yet to be examined among sexual minority youth. This study explores whether sexual minority youth who indicate experiencing stress at home or school (Minority Stress) due to their identity show evidence of accelerated aging (pubertal status or tempo) compared to those who do not report such experiences (No Minority Stress).

When death is desired: A case of MAiD & the CL psychiatrist.

Objectives: Since physician-assisted dying (PAD) has become a part of the clinical dialogue in the United States (US) and other Western countries, it has spawned controversy in the moral, ethical, and legal realm, with significant cross-country variation. The phenomenon of PAD includes 2 practices: Euthanasia and medical aid in dying (MAiD). Although euthanasia has been allowed in different parts of the world, in the US it is illegal.