Using Implementation Science to Evaluate the Implementation of Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) in a Clinical Heart Failure Care Setting.

Background: Patients with heart failure (HF) can experience a poor quality-of-life (QOL), recurring hospitalizations, and progressive disease symptoms. Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) integrate patients' voices into clinical care, by assessing patient symptoms, function, and QOL. In 2022, PROMs were incorporated into the electronic health record system (Epic) at a large academic hospital in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Transfabric Leaks After Percutaneous Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion Procedures with the WATCHMAN FLX Device.

Background: Cardiac computed tomography imaging with contrast is being used increasingly to image left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) devices. Contrast flow across a device, also known as a transfabric leak (TFL), may indicate a lack of complete LAAO-device endothelialization. The data on the rate, predictors, and clinical events associated with TFL are limited.

Bringing Care Close to Home: Remote Management of Heart Failure In Partnership with Indigenous Communities In Northern Ontario, Canada.

Background: The Weeneebayko Area Health Authority (WAHA) is a regional, community-based Indigenous health authority in Northern Ontario, Canada. From September 2022 to March 2023, the WAHA and University Health Network engaged in a partnership that designed a collaborative model of care to address inequities in cardiology specialist access in Northern Ontario. This model implemented a digital therapeutic for heart failure, (the Medly program) and in-person cardiology clinics in the region.

Thrombus on Mitral Annular Calcification: A Systematic Review of Management and Outcomes.

Background: Mitral annular calcification (MAC) is a common chronic degenerative process of the mitral valve. Thrombus formation on MAC is a rare complication that likely contributes to the increased risk of thromboembolic events. Outcomes and management strategies for this condition are unknown.

Quantitative Characterization of Partitioning Stringency in SELEX.

Maintaining stringent conditions in SELEX (Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment) is crucial for obtaining high-affinity aptamers. However, excessive stringency greatly increases the risk of SELEX failure. Controlling stringency has remained a technical challenge, largely dependent on intuition, due to the absence of a clear, quantitative measure of stringency.

Comparison of Clinical and Patient Reported Outcomes in One-Sided Cruciate-Retaining Versus Other-Sided Posterior Stabilizing Protheses in Bilateral Simultaneous Total Knee Arthroplasty.

Introduction: Cruciate retaining and posterior stabilizing knee systems are frequently used in total knee replacements. Most researchers compare the results of Cruciate Retaining (CR) and Posterior Stabilizing (PS) knees with those of a control group. The results of using both knee systems in a single patient in simultaneous Total Knee Arthroplasty (TKA) have been studied less.

What Outcomes Are Associated with Learning About Colonialism and Its Impacts on Indigenous Peoples in Health Professional Programs? A Critical Integrative Review.

Background: The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada called upon health professional programs to teach about historical and on-going colonalism. Since these calls to action, there has been an increase in educational opportunities on the topic. Although it is generally assumed that learning about colonialism will reduce racism and improve allyship towards Indigenous Peoples, an evaluation of this assumption is needed.

Differences in smoking cessation behaviors and vaping status among adult daily smokers with and without depression, anxiety, and alcohol use: Findings from the 2018 and 2020 International Tobacco Control Four Country Smoking and Vaping (ITC 4CV) Surveys.

This study examined differences in quit attempts, 1-month quit success, and vaping status at follow-up among a cohort of 3709 daily smokers with and without depression, anxiety, and regular alcohol use who participated in both the 2018 and 2020 International Tobacco Control Four Country Smoking and Vaping (ITC 4CV) Surveys. At baseline, a survey with validated screening tools was used to classify respondents as having no, or one or more of the following: 1) depression, 2) anxiety, and 3) regular alcohol use. Multivariable adjusted regression analyses were used to examine whether baseline (2018) self-report conditions were associated with quit attempts; quit success; and vaping status by follow-up (2020).

Patterns of the left thalamus embedding into the connectome associated with reading skills in children with reading disabilities.

We examined how thalamocortical connectivity structure reflects children's reading performance. Diffusion-weighted MRI at 3 T and a series of reading measures were collected from 64 children (33 girls) ages 8-14 years with and without dyslexia. The topological properties of the left and right thalamus were computed based on the whole-brain white matter network and a hub-attached reading network, and were correlated with scores on several tests of children's reading and reading-related abilities.

Noninvasive Management after a Traumatic Anterior Knee Dislocation in a Cruciate Retaining Total Knee Arthroplasty: A Case Report.

The reported case describes a traumatic anterior knee dislocation of a previous asymptomatic knee after a posterior cruciate-retaining primary knee arthroplasty. The described patient accidentally rolled over her knee six years after the surgical intervention. Anterior traumatic dislocation after knee arthroplasty is an uncommon event often leading to prosthetic's components revision due to its associated ligament injuries.

Small cell lung carcinoma metastatic to the stomach: Commonly overlooked, limited treatment options.

Small cell lung carcinoma metastatic to the stomach, whether synchronous or metachronous, is a rare phenomenon accounting for < 0.5% of lung cancers. Hence it can be overlooked by clinicians resulting in delayed diagnosis.

Stalking the stalk: Isolated pituitary stalk thickening and predictive factors for proliferative disease.

Background: Few studies have evaluated predictive factors of isolated pituitary stalk thickening (iPST) in children.

Methods: In this retrospective study, radiology, endocrinology, and neuro-oncology databases were interrogated to identify patients with iPST between January 2000 and June 2019. A blinded, longitudinal assessment of MRIs was performed using quantitative, semi-quantitative, and qualitative metrics.

Evaluation of the efficacy of transfer energy capacitive and resistive therapy in patients with knee osteoarthritis.

Background/aim: This study aimed to compare the therapeutic efficacy of conventional physical therapy (CPT) methods for knee osteoarthritis (OA) and transfer energy capacitive and resistive (TECAR) therapy, a relatively new and increasingly used treatment modality, based on patient clinical outcomes assessments.

Materials And Methods: Two groups of 54 patients, aged 40 to 75, were randomly assigned. CPT was given to both groups.

Cross-contamination risks in dry produce packinghouses: Efficacy of alcohol-based sanitizers to reduce Salmonella and potential surrogates on relevant surface materials.

A 2020 Salmonella outbreak was epidemiologically linked to red onions; however, insufficient cleaning and sanitation in the packinghouse expanded the recall to include all onions handled by the packing house in the preceding 3 months. Our objective was to evaluate the efficacy of dry sanitizers to reduce cross-contamination risk on food contact surfaces (FCS) found in post-harvest packing areas. Transfer of Salmonella and potential surrogates (Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecium) to and from onions to FCS materials (high density polypropylene, polyester-nylon conveyor belts, plywood) was quantified.

Racial Discrimination-related Interoceptive Network Disruptions: A Pathway to Disconnection.

Background: Racial discrimination (RD) disrupts regulatory systems in minoritized individuals, particularly those that govern attention, including attention to visceral signals (interoception). RD frequency is linked to physiological "shut down" responses, characterized clinically by dissociation. We examined associations between RD frequency and functional connectivity of attention and interoceptive networks in sample of trauma-exposed Black women, investigating how connectivity alterations associate with dissociation severity.

Neurotoxic effects of citronellol induced by the conversion of kynurenine to 3-hydroxykynurenine.

Citronellol is widely utilized in consumer products, including cosmetics, fragrances, and household items. However, despite being considered a relatively safe chemical, the health effects and toxicity mechanisms associated with exposure to high concentrations of citronellol, based on product content, remain inadequately understood. Here, we aimed to analyze the neurological effects of citronellol in zebrafish larvae using behavioral and histological analyses and elucidate the mechanisms underlying its neurotoxicity in vivo.

Acute suppurative thyroiditis in a child secondary to pyriform sinus fistula: From single case to systematic review.

Acute suppurative thyroiditis (AST), a rare yet potentially life-threatening infection, comprises less than 1 % of neck pathologies and requires prompt treatment. Symptoms range from neck pain and fever to dysphagia and possible abscess formation. Broad-spectrum antibiotics are the primary treatment; however, surgical drainage may be necessary for abscesses to prevent systemic infection.

Primary care follow-up improves outcomes in older adults following emergency general surgery admission.

Background: While preoperative optimization improves outcomes for older adults undergoing major elective surgery, no such optimization is possible in the emergent setting. Surgeons must identify postoperative interventions to improve outcomes among older emergency general surgery (EGS) patients. The objective of this cohort study was to examine the association between early follow-up with a primary care physician (PCP) and the risk of nursing home acceptance or death in the year following EGS admission among older adults.

Spatial and temporal analysis of West Nile virus infection in mosquito and human populations based on arboviral detection testing data.

West Nile virus (WNV) is a mosquito-borne zoonotic flavivirus which often causes asymptomatic infection in humans but may develop into a deadly neuroinvasive disease. In this study, we aimed to investigate variables potentially associated with human WNV infection using human and mosquito WNV surveillance and monitoring datasets, established over 20 years, from 2003 to 2022, across the province of Ontario, Canada. We combined climatic and geographic data, mosquito surveillance data (n = 3010 sites), blood donation arboviral detection testing data in the human population, and demographic and socio-economic data from Canadian population censuses.

Towards a histological diagnosis of childhood small vessel CNS vasculitis.

Background: Primary small vessel CNS vasculitis (sv-cPACNS) is a challenging inflammatory brain disease in children. Brain biopsy is mandatory to confirm the diagnosis. This study aims to develop and validate a histological scoring tool for diagnosing small vessel CNS vasculitis.

Distinct network patterns emerge from Cartesian and XOR epistasis models: a comparative network science analysis.

Background: Epistasis, the phenomenon where the effect of one gene (or variant) is masked or modified by one or more other genes, significantly contributes to the phenotypic variance of complex traits. Traditionally, epistasis has been modeled using the Cartesian epistatic model, a multiplicative approach based on standard statistical regression. However, a recent study investigating epistasis in obesity-related traits has identified potential limitations of the Cartesian epistatic model, revealing that it likely only detects a fraction of the genetic interactions occurring in natural systems.

Four COVID-19 screening strategies for early case identification within the homeless shelter population: a cluster randomized controlled trial.

Background: To compare the effectiveness of four surveillance strategies for detecting SARS-CoV-2 within the homeless shelter population in Hamilton, ON and assess participant adherence over time for each surveillance method.

Methods: This was an open-label, cluster-randomized controlled trial conducted in eleven homeless shelters in Hamilton, Ontario, from April 2020 to January 2021. All participants who consented to the study and participated in the surveillance were eligible for testing by self-swabbing.