Impaired network organization in mild age-related hearing loss.

Age-related hearing loss (ARHL) is considered one of the most common neurodegenerative disorders in the elderly; however, how it contributes to cognitive decline is poorly understood. With resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging from 66 individuals with ARHL and 54 healthy controls, group spatial independent component analyses, sliding window analyses, graph-theory methods, multilayer networks, and correlation analyses were used to identify ARHL-induced disturbances in static and dynamic functional network connectivity (sFNC/dFNC), alterations in global network switching and their links to cognitive performances. ARHL was associated with decreased sFNC/dFNC within the default mode network (DMN) and increased sFNC/dFNC between the DMN and central executive, salience (SN), and visual networks.

The uses of right heart catheterization in cardio-pulmonary disease: State-of-the-art.

The right heart catheterization (RHC) remains an important diagnostic tool for a spectrum of cardiovascular disease processes including pulmonary hypertension (PH), shock, valvular heart disease, and unexplained dyspnea. While it gained widespread utilization after its introduction, the role of the RHC has evolved to provide valuable information for the management of advanced therapies in heart failure (HF) and cardiogenic shock (CS) to name a few. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview on the indications, utilization, complications, interpretation, and calculations associated with RHC.

Trends in stroke-related mortality in atrial fibrillation patients in the United States: Insights from the CDC WONDER database.

Background: Stroke associated with atrial fibrillation (AF) is a significant cause of mortality. This study analyzed demographic trends and disparities in mortality rates due to stroke in AF patients aged ≥25 years.

Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted to acquire death data using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention database from 1999 to 2020.

Mutation in and a Variant Linked to a Severe Sporadic Infant Dilated Cardiomyopathy Case.

Structural or electrophysiologic cardiac anomalies may compromise cardiac function, leading to sudden cardiac death (SCD). Genetic screening of families with severe cardiomyopathies underlines the role of genetic variations in cardiac-specific genes. The present study details the clinical and genetic characterization of a malignant dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) case in a 1-year-old Mexican child who presented a severe left ventricular dilation and dysfunction that led to SCD.

Personalized Cutoffs for the Diagnosis of Neutropenic Fever Based on Patients' Baseline Body Temperature: A Retrospective Pilot Study.

Background The management of neutropenic fever patients remains challenging. Patients' individual baseline body temperature may provide diagnostic and prognostic value. Methods This study is a retrospective analysis of 92 adults admitted for neutropenic fever to model the length of stay (LOS) and the ability to find a definitive diagnosis using the deviation of patients' temperature on admission from their outpatient baseline, acuity on admission, neutropenia level and persistence, fever persistence, and patients' age.

The association between cardiovascular health and obstructive sleep apnea symptoms: findings from NHANES.

Objective: To investigate the association between cardiovascular health (CVH) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) within the U.S. population.

The Relationship Between Quantitative Ischemia, Early Revascularization, and Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events: A Multicenter Study.

Background: Observational data have suggested that patients with moderate to severe ischemia benefit from revascularization. However, this was not confirmed in a large, randomized trial.

Objectives: Using a contemporary, multicenter registry, the authors evaluated differences in the association between quantitative ischemia, revascularization, and outcomes across important subgroups.

Effects of bilingual language exposure on toddlers with autism spectrum disorder.

Research analyzing the effects of bilingual language exposure on children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has increased in frequency. Utilizing the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-Third Edition, the current study analyzed the effects of bilingual language exposure and age on language development, cognitive development, and social emotional development in toddlers with ASD. Older children demonstrated higher language scores than younger children.

Employer Perspective on Pain Fellowship Education: A Survey to Understand the Current State of Pain Medicine Training.

Background: Pain medicine care has expanded to encompass a wider range of conditions, necessitating updated education and training for pain specialists to utilize emerging technologies effectively. A national survey was conducted through several verified Pain organizations regarding pain physician employers' perspectives on pain medicine fellowship training and education. The survey aimed to gather insights from a diverse range of geographic locations, practice types (academic and private practice), and practice settings.

Quantitative and longitudinal assessment of human placental inflammation using diffusion basis spectrum imaging.

Besides exchanging nutrients, gases, and wastes, placenta is an intermediary between maternal and fetal immune systems. However, no method exists to safely image and monitor placental inflammation during pregnancy. We customized a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) method, diffusion basis spectrum imaging (DBSI), to measure immune cells in placenta.

Multi-tensor fixel-based metrics in tractometry: application to multiple sclerosis.

Traditional Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) metrics are affected by crossing fibers and lesions. Most of the previous tractometry works use the single diffusion tensor, which leads to limited sensitivity and challenging interpretation of the results in crossing fiber regions. In this work, we propose a tractometry pipeline that combines white matter tractography with multi-tensor fixel-based metrics.

Dengue Virus Structural Proteins Are Expressed on the Surface of DENV-Infected Cells and Are a Target for Antibody-Dependent Cellular Phagocytosis.

Background: Dengue virus (DENV) is an arboviral pathogen found in >100 countries and a source of significant morbidity and mortality. While the mechanisms underpinning the pathophysiology of severe Dengue are incompletely understood, it has been hypothesized that antibodies directed against the DENV envelope (E) protein can facilitate antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE) of the infection, increasing the number of infected cells and the severity of disease in an exposed individual. Accordingly, there is interest in defining mechanisms for directly targeting DENV-infected cells for immunologic clearance, an approach that bypasses the risk of ADE.

Changing Treatment and Metastatic Disease Patterns in Patients with EGFR Mutated NSCLC: An Academic Thoracic Medical Investigator's Consortium Registry Analysis.

Introduction: Osimertinib is now a standard first-line (1L) therapy for EGFR-mutated (EGFRm) advanced NSCLC. We aimed to characterize patterns of therapy and longitudinal risk of brain and liver metastasis in a cohort of EGFRm NSCLC.

Methods: Patients with metastatic EGFRm NSCLC who received 1L systemic therapy at sites within the Academic Thoracic Medical Investigator's Consortium were included; demographic and clinical data including treatment patterns were described.

Brief Report: Precision Language and Deletion of the "S" Word.

Introduction: In 2021, the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) published the IASLC Language Guide as guidance on preferred language and phrasing in oral and written communications, including presentations at conferences. This study analyzed presentations from the 2022 IASLC World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) one year after implementation of the Language Guide to identify adoption rates of non-stigmatizing language and to determine correlations with presenter characteristics.

Methods: We downloaded 522 slide presentations from the IASLC WCLC 2022 conference attendee portal.

Causal Discovery with Generalized Linear Models through Peeling Algorithms.

This article presents a novel method for causal discovery with generalized structural equation models suited for analyzing diverse types of outcomes, including discrete, continuous, and mixed data. Causal discovery often faces challenges due to unmeasured confounders that hinder the identification of causal relationships. The proposed approach addresses this issue by developing two peeling algorithms (bottom-up and top-down) to ascertain causal relationships and valid instruments.

IAMSE Artificial Intelligence Meeting Survey: AI's Impact on Medical Education Faculty.

This report describes the results of an AI Needs Assessment survey conducted during the IAMSE Annual Meeting in June 2024. It assessed IAMSE members' use of AI, implementation challenges, their organization's AI initiatives, and internal and external resources needed for effective AI adoption. Although many respondents were comfortable with AI (53%), they reported substantial challenges in adopting AI at the personal and organizational levels.

Transcreating BMT4me: A protocol for adapting an mobile health medication adherence app for Spanish-speaking caregivers in pediatric hematopoietic stem cell transplant.

Objective: Hematopoietic stem cell transplant is a life-saving procedure that treats patients with various conditions by transplanting hematopoietic stem cells from bone marrow. Mobile health apps could be useful in closing the digital divide and improving health equity among Spanish-speaking caregivers of children who undergo pediatric hematopoietic stem cell transplant. This study aims to transcreate the BMT4me adherence app originally designed for English-speaking caregivers for Spanish-speaking caregivers and evaluate the feasibility and usability.

Strengthening tobacco control research: key factors impacting policy outcomes and health equity.

In this policy brief, we explore several potential drivers of heterogeneity in policy outcomes that can be examined in tobacco control policy evaluations, expanding the evidence base to contribute to continued, equitable progress in reducing tobacco-related health outcomes. We discuss these factors in the context of a hypothetical evaluation of the impact of smoke-free laws on current smoking and quit attempts in the Tobacco Nation. Despite a similar policy environment within the Tobacco Nation, there is variation in the strength of smoke-free law coverage across states.

Characterizing localized nitrogen sensitivity of tree species and the associated influences of mediating factors.

Critical loads (CLs) are frequently used to quantify terrestrial ecosystem impacts from nitrogen (N) deposition using ecological responses such as the growth and mortality of tree species. Typically, CLs are reported as a single value, with uncertainty, for an indicator across a species' entire range. Mediating factors such as climate and soil conditions can influence species' sensitivity to N, but the magnitudes of these effects are rarely calculated explicitly.

Egg shape and color mediate acceptance thresholds in diverse avian host species with different rates of antiparasitic egg rejection.

Eggshell recognition in parental birds is vital for nest management, defense against brood parasitism, optimal embryonic development, and minimizing disease and predation risks. This process relies on acceptance thresholds balancing the risk of rejecting own eggs against the benefit of excluding foreign ones, following signal detection theory. We investigated the role of object shape in egg rejection decisions among three host species of the brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater), each with a varying known response to parasitic eggs.

Genomic and Transcriptomic Profiling of Digital Papillary Adenocarcinomas Reveals Alterations in Matrix Remodeling and Metabolic Genes.

Background: Digital papillary adenocarcinoma (DPAC) is a rare but aggressive cutaneous malignant sweat gland neoplasm that occurs on acral sites. Despite its clinical significance, the cellular and genetic characteristics of DPAC remain incompletely understood.

Methods: We conducted a comprehensive genomic and transcriptomic analysis of DPAC (n = 14) using targeted next-generation DNA and RNA sequencing, along with gene expression profiling employing the Nanostring Technologies nCounter IO 360 Panel.

The Impact of Cardiac Damage on In-Hospital Outcomes for Patients With Aortic Stenosis in the United States: An Analysis From The National Inpatient Sample.

Introduction: The objective of this study is to determine if cardiac damage based on hospital discharge codes is associated with in-hospital outcomes in patients with aortic stenosis (AS).

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of hospital admissions between 2016 and 2021 with a diagnosis of AS in the National Inpatient Sample (NIS). The cardiac damage stages 0-4 were determined based on hospital discharge codes.

A Simple Endoscopic Score for Crohn's Disease (SES-CD) ≥ 7 Predicts Disease Progression.

Background: Up to 30% of patients with Crohn's disease (CD) will experience a mild disease course. However, there is no consensus definition for mild CD.

Aim: To examine the Simple Endoscopic Score for Crohn's disease (SES-CD) thresholds best associated with low likelihood of long-term disease progression.

Characterizing populations prioritized for PrEP in 19 African countries: a review of national guidance.

Introduction: While African countries have expanded access to HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) since 2015, regional targets for PrEP uptake remain unmet. Understanding which populations are prioritized for PrEP at the policy level is an important step in determining the scope of PrEP distribution across Africa and identifying gaps in programme implementation. We reviewed national guidance to characterize populations prioritized for PrEP in Africa.

Development of Receptor Desolvation Scoring and Covalent Sampling in DOCK 6: Methods Evaluated on a RAS Test Set.

Molecular docking methods are widely used in drug discovery efforts. RAS proteins are important cancer drug targets, and are useful systems for evaluating docking methods, including accounting for solvation effects and covalent small molecule binding. Water often plays a key role in small molecule binding to RAS proteins, and many inhibitors─including FDA-approved drugs─covalently bind to oncogenic RAS proteins.