Superstable lipid vacuoles endow cartilage with its shape and biomechanics.

Conventionally, the size, shape, and biomechanics of cartilages are determined by their voluminous extracellular matrix. By contrast, we found that multiple murine cartilages consist of lipid-filled cells called lipochondrocytes. Despite resembling adipocytes, lipochondrocytes were molecularly distinct and produced lipids exclusively through de novo lipogenesis.

Effect of Glomerular Hyperfiltration on Incident Cardiovascular Disease in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

Background: The effects of glomerular hyperfiltration (GHF) on cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) were explored.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study enrolled 1,952,053 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus from the Korean National Health Insurance Service database between 2015 and 2016. Based on age- and sex-specific estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) percentiles, patients were classified into five groups: <5 (low filtration), 5-40, 40-60, 60-95, and >95 (GHF).

Mild behavioral impairment in idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder and Lewy body disease continuum.

To investigate the clinical impact of mild behavioral impairment (MBI) in a predefined cohort with Lewy body disease (LBD) continuum. Eighty-four patients in the LBD continuum participated in this study, including 35 patients with video-polysomnography-confirmed idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder (iRBD) and 49 clinically established LBD. Evaluations included the Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS), neuropsychological tests, and MBI Checklist (MBI-C).

Intra-individual comparison of long-term outcomes between combined and indirect bypass surgery in adult moyamoya disease.

Purpose: Bypass surgery is regarded as the standard treatment option for symptomatic and hemodynamically unstable moyamoya disease (MMD). However, there is ongoing debate about the most effective type of bypass surgery. We aimed to analyze the long-term outcomes of combined and indirect bypasses for MMD patients through intra-individual comparisons.

The effect of treadmill exercise on memory function and gut microbiota composition in old rats.

Aging is associated with declines in memory function and significant change in gut microbiota. In this study, we investigated how exercise affects age-related memory decline and inflammation, and gut microbiota diversity. Bl6 mice were divided into control, control and exercise, old, and old and exercise groups.

Speech-mediated manipulation of da Vinci surgical system for continuous surgical flow.

Unlabelled: With the advent of robot-assisted surgery, user-friendly technologies have been applied to the da Vinci surgical system (dVSS), and their efficacy has been validated in worldwide surgical fields. However, further improvements are required to the traditional manipulation methods, which cannot control an endoscope and surgical instruments simultaneously. This study proposes a speech recognition control interface (SRCI) for controlling the endoscope via speech commands while manipulating surgical instruments to replace the traditional method.

Enhanced diagnosis of pes planus and pes cavus using deep learning-based segmentation of weight-bearing lateral foot radiographs: a comparative observer study.

Unlabelled: A weight-bearing lateral radiograph (WBLR) of the foot is a gold standard for diagnosing adult-acquired flatfoot deformity. However, it is difficult to measure the major axis of bones in WBLR without using auxiliary lines. Herein, we develop semantic segmentation with a deep learning model (DLm) on the WBLR of the foot for enhanced diagnosis of pes planus and pes cavus.

A New Era in Diabetic Kidney Disease Treatment: The Four Pillars and Strategies to Build Beyond.

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is a prevalent and complex disease among patients with diabetes in Korea, requiring comprehensive treatment strategies. Traditional management strategies targeting blood pressure, blood sugar, lipid, and lifestyles are foundational approaches of DKD treatment, each of them still holding importance in current paradigms. The four pillars, renin-angiotensin system(RAS) inhibitors, sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitors, glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, and non-steroidal mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (nsMRA) can enhance DKD treatment.

Ultrafast MRI for Pediatric Brain Assessment in Routine Clinical Practice.

Objective: To assess the feasibility of ultrafast brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in pediatric patients.

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 194 pediatric patients aged 0 to 19 years (median 10.2 years) who underwent both ultrafast and conventional brain MRI between May 2019 and August 2020.

Establishment of Local Diagnostic Reference Levels for Pediatric Neck CT at Nine University Hospitals in South Korea.

Objective: To establish local diagnostic reference levels (DRLs) for pediatric neck CT based on age, weight, and water-equivalent diameter (WED) across multiple university hospitals in South Korea.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective study analyzed pediatric neck CT examinations from nine university hospitals, involving patients aged 0-18 years. Data were categorized by age, weight, and WED, and radiation dose metrics, including volume CT dose index (CTDI) and dose length product, were recorded.

Prospective Evaluation of Accelerated Brain MRI Using Deep Learning-Based Reconstruction: Simultaneous Application to 2D Spin-Echo and 3D Gradient-Echo Sequences.

Objective: To prospectively evaluate the effect of accelerated deep learning-based reconstruction (Accel-DL) on improving brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) quality and reducing scan time compared to that in conventional MRI.

Materials And Methods: This study included 150 participants (51 male; mean age 57.3 ± 16.

Clinical Efficacy of Ultrafast Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced MRI Using Compressed Sensing in Distinguishing Benign and Malignant Soft-Tissue Tumors.

Objective: To evaluate the clinical efficacy of ultrafast dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE)-MRI using a compressed sensing (CS) technique for differentiating benign and malignant soft-tissue tumors (STTs) and to evaluate the factors related to the grading of malignant STTs.

Materials And Methods: A total of 165 patients (96 male; mean age, 61 years), comprising 111 with malignant STTs and 54 with benign STTs according to the 2020 WHO classification, underwent DCE-MRI with CS between June 2018 and June 2023. The clinical, qualitative, and quantitative parameters associated with conventional MRI were also obtained.

Radiofrequency Ablation for Recurrent Thyroid Cancers: 2025 Korean Society of Thyroid Radiology Guideline.

Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a minimally invasive treatment modality used as an alternative to surgery in patients with benign thyroid nodules, recurrent thyroid cancers (RTCs), and primary thyroid microcarcinomas. The Korean Society of Thyroid Radiology (KSThR) initially developed recommendations for the optimal use of RFA for thyroid tumors in 2009 and revised them in 2012 and 2017. As new meaningful evidence has accumulated since 2017 and in response to a growing global interest in the use of RFA for treating malignant thyroid lesions, the task force committee members of the KSThR decided to update the guidelines on the use of RFA for the management of RTCs based on a comprehensive analysis of current literature and expert consensus.

Neo-aorta reconstruction with retained stented patch in Norwood procedure after hybrid palliation of high-risk hypoplastic left heart syndrome: a case report.

Hybrid procedure of hypoplastic left heart syndrome, comprising ductus arteriosus stenting and bilateral pulmonary artery banding, is a good surgical option for initial palliative procedure for high-risk patients for Norwood procedure. However, ductal stenting may cause retrograde aortic blood flow obstruction. Furthermore, complete removal of stent while performing the Norwood procedure make the operation more difficult.

Birth Outcomes of Infants Born to Mothers with Alopecia Areata: A Nationwide Population-based Study in Korea.

Data on pregnancy outcomes in patients with alopecia areata (AA) are limited. The aim of this study is to determine the association between maternal AA and risk of adverse birth outcomes in children. A retrospective cohort study was conducted on 45,328 children born to mothers with AA and 4,703,253 controls born to mothers without AA using the Korean National Health Insurance Claims database from 2002 to 2016.

A novel technique of blindly positioning bronchial blockers for one-lung ventilation: a prospective, randomized, crossover study.

Background: Several methods for blindly positioning bronchial blockers (BBs) for one-lung ventilation (OLV) have been proposed. However, these methods do not reliably ensure accurate positioning and proper direction. Here, we developed a clinically applicable two-stage maneuver by modifying a previously reported one-stage maneuver for successful insertion of a BB at the appropriate depth and direction in patients requiring lung isolation where a flexible bronchoscope (FOB) is not applicable.

Comparison of Toric Intraocular Lens Axis Accuracy between Optical Biometry and Dual Scheimpflug Topography.

Purpose: To evaluate the accuracy of toric intraocular lens (IOL) axis prediction between two preoperative measurement devices: the optical biometry (IOLMaster 500 or 700) and the dual Scheimpflug topography (Galilei G4).

Methods: Medical records of 64 eyes from 44 patients who underwent phacoemulsification and posterior chamber toric IOL (Zeiss AT TORBI 709M) implantation between July 2017 and January 2022 were reviewed. All patients underwent preoperative evaluation by optical biometry (IOLMaster 500 or IOLMaster 700) and Galilei G4.

Multiomic quantification of the KRAS mutation dosage improves the preoperative prediction of survival and recurrence in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Most cancer mutation profiling studies are laboratory-based and lack direct clinical application. For clinical use, it is necessary to focus on key genes and integrate them with relevant clinical variables. We aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of the dosage of the KRAS G12 mutation, a key pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) variant and to investigate the biological mechanism of the prognosis associated with the dosage of the KRAS G12 mutation.

Intestinal TM6SF2 protects against metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis through the gut-liver axis.

Transmembrane-6 superfamily member 2 (TM6SF2) regulates hepatic fat metabolism and is associated with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH). TM6SF2 genetic variants are associated with steatotic liver disease. The pathogenesis of MASH involves genetic factors and gut microbiota alteration, yet the role of host-microbe interactions in MASH development remains unclear.

Preoperative radiotherapy combined with surgery versus surgery alone for primary retroperitoneal sarcoma: a meta-analysis.

The efficacy of preoperative radiotherapy combined with surgery (preRT + S) for primary retroperitoneal sarcoma (RPS) remains unclear. This study aimed to compare preRT + S with surgery alone (SA) in patients with RPS. Core databases were searched for directly comparative studies depending on preRT.

Role of dehydrated human amnion/chorion membrane in enhancing functional outcomes after robot-assisted radical prostatectomy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Dehydrated human amnion/chorion membrane (dHACM) has shown potential in enhancing neurovascular recovery and functional outcomes in robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP).

Aim: To evaluate the effects of dHACM on continence recovery, sexual function, and oncological outcomes in patients undergoing RARP.

Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted following PRISMA guidelines, analyzing data from PubMed, Cochrane, and EMBASE.

A Novel Point-of-Care Prediction Model for Steatotic Liver Disease: Expected Role of Mass Screening in the Global Obesity Crisis.

Background/aims: The incidence of steatotic liver disease (SLD) is increasing across all age groups as the incidence of obesity increases worldwide. The existing noninvasive prediction models for SLD require laboratory tests or imaging and perform poorly in the early diagnosis of infrequently screened populations such as young adults and individuals with healthcare disparities. We developed a machine learning-based point-of-care prediction model for SLD that is readily available to the broader population with the aim of facilitating early detection and timely intervention and ultimately reducing the burden of SLD.

Membranous Overexpression of Fibronectin Predicts Microvascular Invasion and Poor Survival Outcomes in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Background/aims: Fibronectin (FN) has recently been identified as being overexpressed in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and deemed a promising biomarker of vascular invasion. The aim of this study was to examine the patterns of FN expression in HCC cells and their clinicopathological significance, such as their association with vascular invasion and angiogenesis patterns.

Methods: Immunohistochemical analysis of FN was conducted using tissue microarrays from 258 surgically resected HCCs and matched nontumorous liver tissues.