Intravascular Ultrasound-Guided vs Angiography-Guided Drug-Coated Balloon Angioplasty in Patients With Complex Femoropopliteal Artery Disease.

Background: Intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) guidance has been shown to yield favorable outcomes for endovascular treatment of femoropopliteal artery (FPA) disease with drug-coated balloon (DCB) angioplasty. However, the specific benefits of IVUS for treatment of complex FPA lesions remain uncertain.

Objectives: In this study, the authors compared the clinical impact of IVUS-guided vs angiography-guided DCB angioplasty in patients with complex or noncomplex FPA lesions.

PREDICTORS OF TSH NORMALIZATION IN THYROTOXICOSIS PATIENTS AFTER TREATMENT.

Context: Understanding factors delaying recovery in thyrotoxicosis patients is crucial for optimizing treatment plan.

Objective: This study aimed to identify predictive factors for the delayed thyroid function recovery in thyrotoxicosis patients.

Design: The study is a retrospective review of medical records of adult thyrotoxicosis patients diagnosed at Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Taiwan, from January 2014 to December 2021.

Amyloid-β and tau deposition in traumatic brain injury: a study of Vietnam War veterans.

Traumatic brain injury is widely viewed as a risk factor for dementia, but the biological mechanisms underlying this association are still unclear. In previous studies, traumatic brain injury has been associated with the hallmark pathologies of Alzheimer's disease, i.e.

Receipt of medications for opioid use disorder among rural and urban veterans health administration patients.

Aim: We examined differences in medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) receipt between rural and urban veteran patients following initiatives within the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to expand access to MOUD.

Methods: Data for this retrospective cohort study were obtained from the VA Corporate Data Warehouse, which contains national electronic health record data for all VA patients. The analytic sample included all patients diagnosed with OUD from 10/1/2018-9/30/20.

VA physicians intent to leave and correlations to drivers of burnout: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Physician well-being and workforce retention within the healthcare system is of critical importance. Understanding physicians' intent to leave the organization will inform efforts on optimizing the physician workforce. In this study, we examine the association of burnout and specific drivers of burnout on turnover intentions.

Integrating functional proteomics and next generation sequencing reveals potential therapeutic targets for Taiwanese breast cancer.

Integrating functional proteomics and next-generation sequencing (NGS) offers a comprehensive approach to unraveling the molecular intricacies of breast cancer. This study investigates the functional interplay between genomic alterations and protein expression in Taiwanese breast cancer patients. By analyzing 61 breast cancer samples using tandem mass tag (TMT) labeling and mass spectrometry, coupled with whole-exome sequencing (WES) or targeted sequencing, we identified key genetic mutations and their impact on protein expression.

Genomics yields biological and phenotypic insights into bipolar disorder.

Bipolar disorder is a leading contributor to the global burden of disease. Despite high heritability (60-80%), the majority of the underlying genetic determinants remain unknown. We analysed data from participants of European, East Asian, African American and Latino ancestries (n = 158,036 cases with bipolar disorder, 2.

Cardiovascular and locomotor effects of binary mixtures of common 'bath salts' constituents: Studies with methylone, methylenedioxypyrovalerone and caffeine in rats.

Background And Purpose: The use of 'bath salts' drug preparations has been associated with high rates of toxicity and death. Preparations often contain mixtures of drugs, including multiple synthetic cathinones or synthetic cathinones and caffeine. Little is known about the interactions of 'bath salts' constituents and adverse effects often reported by users.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom clusters associated with an indicator of heart rate variability: The ADVANCE cohort study.

Background: Heart rate variability (HRV) is governed by of sympathetic and parasympathetic regulatory systems. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) may influence these systems and consequently affect cardiovascular functioning.

Methods: The sample consisted of 860 UK male military personnel approximately half of who had sustained physical combat injuries in Afghanistan.

Abelacimab versus Rivaroxaban in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation.

Background: Abelacimab is a fully human monoclonal antibody that binds to the inactive form of factor XI and blocks its activation. The safety of abelacimab as compared with a direct oral anticoagulant in patients with atrial fibrillation is unknown.

Methods: Patients with atrial fibrillation and a moderate-to-high risk of stroke were randomly assigned, in a 1:1:1 ratio, to receive subcutaneous injection of abelacimab (150 mg or 90 mg once monthly) administered in a blinded fashion or oral rivaroxaban (20 mg once daily) administered in an open-label fashion.

What does it mean when the pleasant smells come and go? Correlation between UPSIT odor identification status and fluctuation of non-motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by motor and non-motor symptoms, including olfactory dysfunction. Prior studies have shown that olfaction deteriorates with disease progression, however fluctuations in olfaction and related PD symptoms have been less explored. This study aimed to investigate correlations between changes in odor identification ability and PD symptoms.

Healthy Aging and the Gut Microbiome in People With and Without HIV.

Background: Aging-related comorbidities are more common in people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) compared to people without HIV. The gut microbiome may play a role in healthy aging; however, this relationship remains unexplored in the context of HIV.

Methods: 16S rRNA gene sequencing was conducted on stool from 1409 women (69% with HIV; 2304 samples) and 990 men (54% with HIV; 1008 samples) in the MACS/WIHS Combined Cohort Study.

Establishing a Just Culture: Implications for the Veterans Health Administration Journey to High Reliability.

Background: To establish a culture of safety and improve patient care, the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is identifying and implementing necessary parameters and objectives across the health care landscape to enhance services on its journey to becoming a high reliability organization (HRO).

Methods: This quality improvement initiative sought to increase the understanding of factors that influence the establishment and sustainment of a just culture and identify specific methods for improving their implementation. Focus groups of HRO leads at 16 VHA hospital facilities identified emergent themes, facilitators, and barriers to maintaining a just culture and developed recommendations for enhancing both psychological safety and accountabilitity.

Associations of Concordant and Shared Lung Cancer Screening Decision Making with Decisional Conflict: A Multi-Institution Cross-Sectional Analysis.

Unlabelled: Many organizations recommend structured communication processes, including formal shared decision making (SDM), for patients undergoing lung cancer screening (LCS) using low-dose computed tomography (LDCT). We sought to understand if concordant and shared LCS decision making was associated with decisional conflict. In this prospective, observational study, we enrolled patients from 3 medical centers (2 Veterans Health Administration, 1 academic facility) after a decision-making interaction about undergoing LCS but before receiving the LDCT.

Multidisciplinary Amputation Prevention at the DeBakey VA Hospital: Our First Decade.

Background: In 2011, the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) undertook multidisciplinary efforts to improve care for patients with nonhealing foot ulcers and reduce leg amputation rates. This article examines the impact of interdisciplinary care for amputation prevention in the VHA.

Methods: The VHA patient population was characterized using internal registries.

Assessment of Vertebral Bone Marrow Perfusion, Fat/Water Content, and Trabecular Bone Changes Using Multimodal MRI and Micro-CT in a Rat Model of Chronic Kidney Disease.

Background: Disturbances in calcium and phosphorus homeostasis resulting from chronic kidney disease (CKD) may lead to atherosclerotic changes in blood vessels, potentially altering bone marrow perfusion. Our study aimed to investigate vertebral bone marrow perfusion using dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) MRI with a pharmacokinetic model. We also measured possible changes in water and fat content and bony trabeculae using T2* quantification, MR spectroscopy (MRS), and microcomputed tomography (μCT).

Patterns of pharmacological treatment in patients with atrial fibrillation: an analysis from the prospective GLORIA-AF Registry Phase III.

Background: Polypharmacy (i.e., treatment with ≥ 5 drugs) is common in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and has been associated with suboptimal management and worse outcomes.

Indoxyl Sulfate Induces Ventricular Arrhythmias Attenuated by Secretoneurin in Right Ventricular Outflow Tract Cardiomyocytes.

Ventricular arrhythmias (VAs) are major causes of sudden cardiac death in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. Indoxyl sulfate (IS) is one common uremic toxin found in CKD patients. This study investigated whether IS could induce VAs via increasing right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) arrhythmogenesis.

Hypoglycemia and hospital mortality in critically ill patients.

Prior research has indicated that adopting strict glycemic control measures might elevate the risk of hypoglycemia and result in higher mortality rates among critically ill patients. However, there is a lack of studies investigating the incidence of hypoglycemia and its consequential outcomes in real-world clinical settings. This retrospective cohort study was conducted at Taichung Veterans General Hospital, utilizing critical care databases covering the period from 2015 to 2020.

Department of Defense Military Treatment Facility and Community Care Costs After Traumatic Brain Injury in Service Members and Veterans Treated in Veterans Affairs Polytrauma Rehabilitation Centers: A VA TBI Model Systems Study.

Objective: To estimate cost models of military traumatic brain injury (TBI) that can provide evidence for future cost-effectiveness analyses highlighted as a gap in the recent National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) report on accelerating progress in TBI.

Setting: Military Treatment Facilities (MTFs) and community care facilities within the Military Health System (MHS).

Participants: 1,101 service members/veterans (SMV) diagnosed with a TBI and treated at a Veterans Administration (VA) Polytrauma Rehabilitation Center (PRC).

Survivorship After Cardiogenic Shock.

Advances in critical care therapies for patients with cardiogenic shock (CS), including temporary mechanical circulatory support and multidisciplinary shock teams, have led to improved survival to hospital discharge, ranging from 60% to 70%. After their index hospitalization, however, survivors of CS may continue to face cardiac as well as extracardiac sequelae of these therapies and complications for years to come. Most studies in CS have focused primarily on survival, with limited data on long-term recovery measures among survivors.

Establishment of reference audiometric norms for the elderly population: A community-based study on mean and median hearing thresholds.

Background: This investigation quantifies the mean and median hearing thresholds and assesses the prevalence of age-related hearing loss within the senior population of Taipei.

Methods: In a substantive geriatric assessment supported by government initiative, 1696 individuals from a community hospital partook in this cross-sectional study (2016-2018). Detailed audiometric evaluations logged pure-tone thresholds across critical frequencies (0.

ARTN and CCL23 predicted chemosensitivity in acute myeloid leukemia: an Olink proteomics approach.

Background: The standard "7 + 3" induction results in 30% of de novo acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients not achieving complete remission (CR). We aimed to utilize the Olink platform to compare the bone marrow plasma proteomic profiles of newly diagnosed de novo AML patients who did and did not achieve CR following "7 + 3" induction treatment.

Methods: This prospective study included 43 untreated AML patients, stratified into CR (n = 29) and non-CR (n = 14) groups based on their response to "7 + 3" induction therapy.

Variants and vaccines impact nasal immunity over three waves of SARS-CoV-2.

Viral variant and host vaccination status impact infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), yet how these factors shift cellular responses in the human nasal mucosa remains uncharacterized. We performed single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) on nasopharyngeal swabs from vaccinated and unvaccinated adults with acute Delta and Omicron SARS-CoV-2 infections and integrated with data from acute infections with ancestral SARS-CoV-2. Patients with Delta and Omicron exhibited greater similarity in nasal cell composition driven by myeloid, T cell and SARS-CoV-2 cell subsets, which was distinct from that of ancestral cases.