Risk Factors for Viral Coinfections in Blood Donors in Bahia, Brazil.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Human T Lymphotropic Virus (HTLV), Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) and Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) coinfection may lead to disease progression or worsen its clinical presentation. Viral coinfections screening during blood donation is critical. To identify risk factors for coinfection among blood donors, we assessed the blood donations at the Fundação de Hematologia e Hemoterapia da Bahia, from 2008 to 2017.

Ivory Vertebra Phenomenon as a Sign of Metastatic Dissemination in Pancreatobiliary Neoplasia: A Case Report and Literature Review.

The bone tissue is a specialised connective tissue composed of several components that undergo constant remodelling. The balance between bone deposition and resorption is essential for maintaining a healthy bone structure. In case of a disruption in this remodelling process, which can lead to an imbalance between bone deposition and resorption, an increase in the opacity of a vertebral body may be observed in imaging studies, resulting in what is known as the "ivory vertebra sign".

Community-based model for management and follow-up by non-physician healthcare workers to improve awareness, treatment, and control of hypertension: The COTRACO study protocol.

Introduction: Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death and morbidity worldwide, with a significantly higher burden in low- and middle-income countries. Hypertension, a major risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, remains under-diagnosed and poorly controlled, especially in regions such as Latin America. The HOPE-4 study demonstrated that the involvement of non-physician health workers (NPHWs), the use of standardized treatment algorithms, the provision of free antihypertensive drugs and home follow-up can significantly improve hypertension control and reduce cardiovascular risk, as demonstrated in Colombia and Malaysia.

Effect of Bacille Calmette-Guérin vaccination on immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 vaccination.

Objectives: Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination has off-target effects on disease risk for unrelated infections and immune responses to vaccines. This study aimed to determine the immunomodulatory effects of BCG vaccination on immune responses to vaccines against SARS-CoV-2.

Methods: Blood samples, from a subset of 275 SARS-CoV-2-naïve healthcare workers randomised to BCG vaccination (BCG group) or no BCG vaccination (Control group) in the BRACE trial, were collected before and 28 days after the primary course (two doses) of ChAdOx1-S (Oxford-AstraZeneca) or BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) vaccination.

Risk factors affecting the therapeutic effect of onabotulinum toxin a on chronic migraine.

Background: OnabotulinumtoxinA demonstrates effectiveness in chronic migraine prevention but is hindered by variable patient responses. This study aims to identify modifiable and non-modifiable risk factors influencing the response to onabotulinumtoxinA.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study at a tertiary hospital involving chronic migraine patients treated with onabotulinumtoxinA.

A descriptive analysis of nurses' self-reported mental health symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic: An international study.

Aim: To describe the self-reported mental health of nurses from 35 countries who worked during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: There is little occupationally specific data about nurses' mental health worldwide. Studies have documented the impact on nurses' mental health of the COVID-19 pandemic, but few have baseline referents.

Early Prognostic Markers for Idiopathic Facial Palsy.

Objectives: To analyze the prognostic value of markers available at the onset of idiopathic facial palsy. To define the evolution of the episode by tracing changes in facial function over time.

Methods: This is an observational prospective study on patients with facial palsy consulting in the first 24 hs.

Mitrofanoff complications: time-to-event analysis of split versus intact appendix and meta-analysis.

Objectives: To assess the complication rates associated with split versus intact appendix Mitrofanoff procedures using a single-center retrospective analysis and a systematic review with meta-analysis.

Subjects And Methods: The study comprised a retrospective cohort analysis at a single institution, analyzing patients who underwent a laparoscopic-assisted Mitrofanoff with or without splitting the appendix from 2005 to 2016. The focus was on complications related to both Mitrofanoff and ACE channels.

PCMMD: A Novel Dataset of Plasma Cells to Support the Diagnosis of Multiple Myeloma.

Multiple Myeloma (MM) is a cytogenetically heterogeneous clonal plasma cell proliferative disease whose diagnosis is supported by analyses on histological slides of bone marrow aspirate. In summary, experts use a labor-intensive methodology to compute the ratio between plasma cells and non-plasma cells. Therefore, the key aspect of the methodology is identifying these cells, which relies on the experts' attention and experience.

Transient lymphocyte count decrease correlates with oncolytic adenovirus efficacy in humans: mechanistic and biomarker findings from TUNIMO phase I trial.

Background: Oncolytic viruses (OVs) are promising immunotherapeutics to treat immunologically cold tumors. However, research on the mechanism of action of OVs in humans and clinically relevant biomarkers is still sparse. To induce strong T-cell responses against solid tumors, TILT-123 (Ad5/3-E2F-d24-hTNFa-IRES-hIL2, igrelimogene litadenorepvec) was developed.

Portuguese consensus on first line treatment of moderate-to-severe psoriasis with a non-TNF inhibitor therapy - a delphi methodology.

Introduction: Psoriasis (PsO) is a common chronic, inflammatory, immune-mediated disease. In 2023, a 4.4% prevalence of PsO was reported in Portugal.

Safety and effectiveness of pulsed field ablation for pulmonary vein isolation in atrial fibrillation patients: One-year single center experience.

Introduction And Objectives: Pulmonary vein (PV) isolation is one of the cornerstones of rhythm-control therapy for symptomatic atrial fibrillation (AF) patients. Pulsed field ablation (PFA) is a novel ablation modality that involves the application of electrical pulses causing cellular death, and it has preferential tissue specificity. In this study, we aimed to share a one-year single center experience of AF ablation with PFA.

Autoantibody clusters in childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus: Insights from a multicenter study with 912 patients.

To identify clusters of autoantibodies in a large cSLE population and to verify possible associations between different autoantibody clusters and the following variables: demographic data, cumulative clinical and laboratory manifestations, disease activity, cumulative damage and mortality. A cross-sectional study was performed in 27 Pediatric Rheumatology University centers, including 912 cSLE patients. The frequencies of seven selected autoantibodies (anti-dsDNA, anti-Ro/SSA, anti-La/SSB, anti-Sm, anti-RNP, aCL IgM and/or IgG and LA) were used for cluster analysis using the K-means method.

Respiratory syncytial virus vaccination in older adults and patients with chronic disorders: A position paper from the Portuguese Society of Pulmonology, the Portuguese Association of General and Family Medicine, the Portuguese Society of Cardiology, the Portuguese Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, the Portuguese Society of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, and the Portuguese Society of Internal Medicine.

Background: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is an important cause of lower respiratory tract infection, hospitalisation and death in adults.

Methods: Based on evidence regarding the impact of RSV on adult populations at risk for severe infection and the efficacy and safety of RSV vaccines, the Portuguese Society of Pulmonology, the Portuguese Association of General and Family Medicine, the Portuguese Society of Cardiology, the Portuguese Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, the Portuguese Society of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, and the Portuguese Society of Internal Medicine endorses this position paper with recommendations to prevent RSV-associated disease and its complications in adults through vaccination.

Conclusion: The RSV vaccine is recommended for people aged ≥50 years with risk factors (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, heart failure, coronary artery disease, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, chronic liver disease, immunocompromise, frailty, dementia, and residence in a nursing home) and all persons aged ≥60 years.

Role of major cardiovascular surgery-induced metabolic reprogramming in acute kidney injury in critical care.

Purpose: Major cardiovascular surgery imposes high physiologic stress, often causing severe organ dysfunction and poor outcomes. The underlying mechanisms remain unclear. This study investigated metabolic changes induced by major cardiovascular surgery and the potential role of identified metabolic signatures in postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI).

Effector genes of type III secretion system and biofilm formation in virulent isolates carrying and genes in hospital environment.

In critically ill patients, the occurrence of multidrug-resistant infection is a significant concern, given its ability to acquire multidrug-resistant, form biofilms and secrete toxic effectors. In Brazil, limited data are available regarding the prevalence of dissemination, and the impact of the type III secretion system (T3SS) on toxin production and biofilm formation in clinical isolates of . This study investigates the dissemination of virulent harbouring the and genes, the presence of T3SS genes and their biofilm-forming capability.

Cutaneous Manifestations of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Their Correlation With Cardiac Involvement.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a chronic autoimmune disorder characterized by widespread immune dysregulation that affects multiple organ systems, including the skin and cardiovascular system. The crosstalk between different cell death pathways-such as apoptosis, necroptosis, and neutrophil extracellular trap (NETosis), plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of SLE, influencing both cutaneous and cardiac manifestations. Cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE) is one of the most common early signs of SLE, affecting up to 80% of patients.

Sterile osteomyelitis: a cardinal sign of autoinflammation.

Autoinflammatory bone disorders (ABDs) are characterized by sterile bone inflammation stemming from dysregulated innate immune responses. This review focuses on the occurrence of sterile osteomyelitis in ABDs and related diseases, notably chronic nonbacterial osteomyelitis (CNO) and its sporadic and monogenic forms, such as deficiency of the interleukin-1 (IL-1) receptor antagonist, Majeed syndrome, CNO related to mutation, and pyogenic arthritis, pyoderma gangrenosum, and acne (PAPA syndrome). Additionally, other autoinflammatory disorders (AIDs) are discussed, including classical periodic fever syndromes (e.

Idiopathic pulmonary arteriovenous malformation: a rarity in clinical practice.

Pulmonary arteriovenous malformations (PAVM) are characterized by abnormal pulmonary vessels forming arteriovenous shunts that compromise oxygenation of the blood, causing hypoxemia, and predispose to infections and cerebral ischemia. The patient in this case was a 38-year-old male who presented with tachypnea and dyspnea, cyanosis of extremities, and significant digital clubbing. The patient had structural epilepsy secondary to neurosurgery for a cerebral abscess during childhood.

Mandibular ossifying fibroma in 2 cattle in Brazil.

Ossifying fibroma (OF) is a slow-growing, expansive, and benign fibro-osseous neoplasm that is rare in cattle. It mainly affects the craniofacial bones, especially the mandible. Here, we report 2 cases of mandibular OF in Nelore and mixed-breed steers with enlarged masses in the rostral portion of the mandible.

Benchmarking antimicrobial use to antimicrobial resistance: a comparative study of two hospitals using current National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) metrics.

Objective: We aimed to determine whether benchmarking antimicrobial use (AU) to antimicrobial resistance (AR) using select AU/AR ratios is more informative than AU metrics in isolation.

Design: We retrospectively measured AU (antimicrobial therapy days per 1,000 days present) and AU/AR ratios (specific antimicrobial therapy days per corresponding AR event) in two hospitals during 2020 through 2022. We then had antimicrobial stewardship committee members evaluate each AU and corresponding AU/AR value and indicate whether they believed it represented potential overuse, appropriate use, or potential underuse of the antimicrobials, or whether they could not provide an assessment.

Evaluation of l-cell activity in the small intestine according to the extension of the biliopancreatic loop in patients undergoing Roux-en-Y gastric by-pass.

Background: Individuals with severe obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus have reduced secretion of incretins by L cells. Studies suggest an increase in L cell activity according to the length of the Biliopancreatic Loop (BPL).

Objective: Compare the effect of biliopancreatic loop extension on the number and expression of L cells in patients undergoing RYGB METHODS: Subjects (n = 13) undergoing RYGB with a BPL of 100 cm (G1) or 200 cm (G2).