Blood Biomarkers as a Non-Invasive Method for the Assessment of the State of the Fontan Circulation.

The Fontan operation has become the primary palliative treatment for patients with a functionally univentricular heart. The population of patients with Fontan circulation is constantly growing and aging. As the number of Fontan patients surviving into adulthood increases, there is a clear need for research on how best to follow these patients and manage their complications.

Perinatal and Delivery Outcomes Following Amniocentesis: A Case-Control Study in the Polish Population.

Amniocentesis is a widely used invasive prenatal diagnostic procedure, recognized for its high sensitivity and low risk of complications. This study aims to evaluate the association between amniocentesis and pregnancy outcomes, such as miscarriage, preterm rupture of membranes (PROM), and preterm birth, as well as perinatal outcomes. A case-control study was conducted at the Regional Hospital in Kielce, Poland, from 2016 to 2022, involving 1834 patients, 225 of whom underwent amniocentesis, while 1609 did not receive any invasive diagnostics.

Application of the OSNA Technique (One-Step Nucleic Acid Amplification Test) in Breast Cancer.

Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers diagnosed in both countries with high and low levels of socio-academic development. Routine, regular screening tests being introduced in an increasing number of countries make it possible to detect breast cancer at an early stage of development, as a result of which the trend in the incidence of metastatic breast cancer has been decreasing in recent years. The latest guidelines for the treatment of this tumor do not recommend axillary dissection, which limits the need for rapid assessment of the nodes during surgery.

Neural Plasticity in Migraine Chronification.

Chronic migraine (CM) is the ultimate and most burdensome form of the transformation from episodic migraine (EM), called chronification. The mechanism behind migraine chronification is poorly known and difficult to explore as CM has the same spectrum of pathogenesis as EM and the EM-CM transition is bidirectional. Central sensitization (CS) is a key phenomenon in migraine: its mechanisms include disturbed neural plasticity, which is the ability of the nervous system to adapt to endo- and exogenous changes.

Diagnostics and treatment of differentiated thyroid carcinoma in children - Guidelines of the Polish National Scientific Societies, 2024 Update.

The rapid progress made in recent years in thyroid cancer research has necessitated the systematic updating of current clinical recommendations. This update presents the evidence-based management of differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) and medullary thyroid carcinoma in children, including preoperative diagnostics, surgical management, radioiodine therapy in DTC treatment with L-thyroxine, disease monitoring, treatment of advanced disease, and finally, consequences of thyroid cancer treatment. Each recommendation is evaluated regarding its strength (Strength of Recommendation; SoR) and the quality of supporting data (QoE - Quality of Evidence).

The clinicopathological role of miRNA-196a and its SNP variant rs11614913 in high-grade ovarian cancer.

Introduction: Ovarian cancer is a significant cause of death among females. MiRNAs, particularly the miR-196 family, can influence tumor progression by targeting specific pathways. Detecting ovarian cancer early is challenging, highlighting the need for additional biomarkers such as miRNAs to improve diagnosis and treatment strategies.

Overweight, obesity, and cardiovascular disease in heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia: the EAS FH Studies Collaboration registry.

Background And Aims: Overweight and obesity are modifiable risk factors for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) in the general population, but their prevalence in individuals with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia (HeFH) and whether they confer additional risk of ASCVD independent of LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) remains unclear.

Methods: Cross-sectional analysis was conducted in 35 540 patients with HeFH across 50 countries, in the EAS FH Studies Collaboration registry. Prevalence of World Health Organization-defined body mass index categories was investigated in adults (n = 29 265) and children/adolescents (n = 6275); and their association with prevalent ASCVD.

Vitamin D and LC-PUFA and the Presence of Fetal Heart Defects-A Further Part of a Case-Control Study.

Introduction: The relationship between diet of mothers, including supplementation of vitamin D and Long Chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (LC-PUFA), and the prevalence of congenital heart defects (CHD) in the fetus has not been sufficiently studied. The aim of the study was to investigate the relationship between the intake of vitamin D and LC-PUFA by mother (from diet and with supplementation, including its time of implementation and applied dose), and the risk of CHD in the fetus.

Methods: This was a case-control study with the participation of a total of 79 women with prenatally diagnosed CHD in the fetus and 121 women without CHD in the fetus.

Evaluating the effect of the antiPCSK9 vaccine on systemic inflammation and oxidative stress in CFA-challenged albino mice.

Background: To investigate whether the antiPCSK9 vaccine can affect the CRP and oxidative stress (OS) during acute systemic inflammation.

Methods: Male albino mice were randomly divided into three groups: non-treated mice (the sham group), treated with a nonspecific stimulator of the immune response - Freund's complete adjuvant (CFA; the CFA group), and vaccinated mice treated with CFA (the vaccine group). The vaccine group was subcutaneously immunized with the antiPCSK9 formulation, 4 × in bi-weekly intervals.

Primary and secondary cardiovascular prevention: Recent advances.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide with 20 million deaths annually. Recent advances in both primary and secondary prevention strategies have shown promising results in reducing the incidence and recurrence of cardiovascular events, but a question of fundamental importance is whether we are effective enough when predicting risk only in those over 40 years of age and only for 10 years. A similarly important question concerns the pathophysiological border between primary and secondary prevention and whether we should reorient our focus to atherosclerosis prevention as a continuous process that becomes clinically apparent later in life.

The Influence of Long COVID on the Cardiovascular System and Predictors of Long COVID in Females: Data from the Polish Long COVID Cardiovascular (PoLoCOV-CVD) Study.

Female sex is one of the Long COVID (LC) risk factors; however, the LC predictors in females have not been established. This study was conducted to assess the influence of LC on the cardiovascular system and to assess the age-independent predictors of LC in females. : Patient information and the course of the disease with symptoms were collected in women at least 12 weeks after COVID-19 recovery.

Associations Between Clinical Manifestations of SARS-CoV-2 Infection and HLA Alleles in a Caucasian Population: A Molecular HLA Typing Study.

: Severe COVID-19 still constitutes an important health problem. Taking into account the crucial role of HLA in immune reactions, evaluation of the impact of HLA on COVID-19 risk and clinical course seemed necessary, as the already available data are inconsistent. The aim of the present study was to compare the HLA profiles of patients with symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection and a healthy control group, as well as to compare HLA allele frequencies in patients with severe and non-severe courses of COVID-19.

Sexual Dimorphism in Migraine. Focus on Mitochondria.

Purpose Of Review: Migraine prevalence in females is up to 3 times higher than in males and females show higher frequency, longer duration, and increased severity of headache attacks, but the reason for that difference is not known. This narrative review presents the main aspects of sex dimorphism in migraine prevalence and discusses the role of sex-related differences in mitochondrial homeostasis in that dimorphism. The gender dimension is also shortly addressed.

Achievements, priorities and strategies in pediatric nephrology in Europe: need for unifying approaches or acceptance of differences?

Background: There is a lack of information on the current healthcare systems for children with kidney diseases across Europe. The aim of this study was to explore the different national approaches to the organization and delivery of pediatric nephrology services within Europe.

Methods: In 2020, the European society for Paediatric Nephrology (ESPN) conducted a cross-sectional survey to identify the existing pediatric nephrology healthcare systems in 48 European countries covering a population of more than 200 million children.

Impact of surrogates for insulin resistance on mortality and life expectancy in primary care: a nationwide cross-sectional study with registry linkage (LIPIDOGRAM2015).

Background: Insulin resistance (IR) is an important risk factor for multiple chronic diseases, increasing mortality and reducing life expectancy. The associations between emerging surrogates for IR, triglyceride-glucose index (TyG) and TyG-related indicators, with all-cause mortality and life expectancy in middle-aged and older patients in primary care are unclear.

Methods: This study originated from the Polish primary care cohort LIPIDOGRAM2015, including patients aged ≥45 years.

Expanding the Molecular Landscape of Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome Through Next-Generation Sequencing.

Androgen insensitivity syndrome (AIS) is an X-linked genetic disorder caused by mutations in the androgen receptor gene (), leading to impaired androgen signaling and resulting in varying degrees of undermasculinization in individuals with a 46,XY karyotype. This study aimed to expand the molecular landscape of AIS by identifying and characterizing pathogenic variants in the gene via next-generation sequencing (NGS). Molecular diagnostics revealed eight distinct variants within the gene, two of which had not been previously described.

Effect of statins on arterial wall inflammation as assessed by 18F-FDG PET CT: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Pathogenesis of atherosclerosis is largely mediated by inflammatory process. Statins are lipid-lowering drugs which also have anti-inflammatory effects. 18 fluorine radiolabeled fluorodeoxyglucose (18 F-FDG) positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) is considered to be a good indicator of arterial wall inflammation.

Revolutionizing cancer treatment: the rise of personalized immunotherapies.

Interest in biological therapy for cancer has surged due to its precise targeting of cancer cells and minimized impact on surrounding healthy tissues. This review discusses various biological cancer therapies, highlighting advanced alternatives over conventional chemotherapy alone. It explores DNA and RNA-based vaccines, T-cell modifications, adoptive cell transfer, CAR T cell therapy, angiogenesis inhibitors, and the combination of immunotherapy with chemotherapy, offering a holistic view of the potential in cancer treatment.

Risk of adverse cardiovascular events based on common genetic variants in 8-year follow-up of the LIPIDOGEN2015 population using the polygenic risk score (PRS): study design and methodology.

Introduction: Classical risk factors such as hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, pre-diabetes, diabetes and obesity can predict adverse cardiovascular events, but they are less prognostic in patients aged < 60 years. Polygenic risk scores (PRS) can be effective in predicting adverse coronary events in younger and middle-aged patients. Our main aim is to assess the utility of a new PRS created for the Polish population in predicting mortality during an 8-year follow-up in the nationwide LIPIDOGEN2015 population.

Evaluation of predictive performance of fetal urinary inflammatory markers of postnatal kidney function in fetuses with posterior urethral valves.

Background: There are proposed roles for inflammation in the development of congenital obstructive uropathy in the setting of posterior urethral valves (PUV). However, the value of inflammatory proteins as predictive markers of postnatal kidney function, key in the management of fetuses with PUV, has not been explored. We screened fetal urine of fetuses with PUV with a panel of inflammatory proteins to determine their predictive value of postnatal kidney function.