A Behavioral Characteristics Observational Measure of Youth with Somatic Symptom Disorder during Physical Rehabilitation.

Background: Youth with somatic symptom disorder (SSD) present unique behavioral characteristics.

Aims: To develop and examine the psychometric properties of an observational measure of behavioral characteristics for youth with SSD (the Somatization Behavioral Characteristics Questionnaire, SBCQ).

Methods: N = 80 youth with SSD and 31 with non-SSD impairments participated in this study (age = 13.

Temporary Mechanical Circulatory Support in Cardiogenic Shock Patients after Cardiac Procedures: Selection Algorithm and Weaning Strategies.

Mechanical circulatory support has proven effective in managing postcardiotomy cardiogenic shock by stabilizing patients' hemodynamics and ensuring adequate organ perfusion. Among the available device modalities, the combination of extracorporeal life support and a microaxial flow pump for left ventricular unloading has emerged as a valuable tool in the surgical armamentarium. In this publication, we provide recommendations for the application and weaning of temporary mechanical circulatory support in cardiogenic shock patients, derived from a consensus among leading cardiac centers in German-speaking countries.

The effect of Oxytocin administration on patient-therapist alliance congruence: Results from a randomized controlled trial.

Objectives: The effects of oxytocin (OT) administration on psychotherapeutic processes have thus far been elusive. This study explored the effect of OT administration on patient-therapist congruence of the working alliance.

Method: Inpatients with mental disorders (= 87) participating in a randomized controlled trial received OT (= 44) or placebo (= 43) intranasally twice a day, for four weeks.

Surgery or Not? A Systematic Review of Facial Congenital Melanocytic Nevi Treatment Patterns and Outcomes.

Background: Treatment management for congenital melanocytic nevi (CMN) on the face (FCMN) is highly variable and requires a thorough assessment of multiple factors. To date, a systematic review of FCMN treatment is lacking. The purpose of the present study was to elucidate the frequency, variety, and outcomes of treatment modalities for FCMN with different levels of complexity.

Evaluation of clinical and genetic factors in obstructive sleep apnoea.

Purpose: To evaluate the correlation between several presumed candidate genes for obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) and clinical OSA phenotypes and propose a predictive comprehensive model for diagnosis of OSA.

Methods: This case-control study compared polysomnographic patterns, clinical data, morbidities, dental factors and genetic data for polymorphisms in between confirmed OSA cases and ethnically matched clinically unaffected controls. A logistic regression model was developed to predict OSA using the combined data.

The evolving landscape of COVID-19 and post-COVID condition in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia: A study by ERIC, the European research initiative on CLL.

In this retrospective international multicenter study, we describe the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and related disorders (small lymphocytic lymphoma and high-count monoclonal B lymphocytosis) infected by SARS-CoV-2, including the development of post-COVID condition. Data from 1540 patients with CLL infected by SARS-CoV-2 from January 2020 to May 2022 were included in the analysis and assigned to four phases based on cases disposition and SARS-CoV-2 variants emergence. Post-COVID condition was defined according to the WHO criteria.

Mutated in Circulating Tumor DNA as a Risk Level Biomarker in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma Patients.

Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) has been suggested as a surrogate biomarker for early detection of cancer recurrence. We aimed to explore the utility of ctDNA as a noninvasive prognostic biomarker in newly diagnosed head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients. Seventy HNSCC specimens were analysed for the detection of genetic alterations utilizing next-generation sequencing (NGS).

Optimization of Radiofrequency Needle Placement in Percutaneous Cordotomy Using Electromyography in the Deeply Sedated Patient.

Background And Objectives: Cordotomy, the selective disconnection of the nociceptive fibers in the spinothalamic tract, is used to provide pain palliation to oncological patients suffering from intractable cancer-related pain. Cordotomies are commonly performed using a cervical (C1-2) percutaneous approach under imaging guidance and require patients' cooperation to functionally localize the spinothalamic tract. This can be challenging in patients suffering from extreme pain.

The future of artificial intelligence in clinical nutrition.

Purpose Of Review: Artificial intelligence has reached the clinical nutrition field. To perform personalized medicine, numerous tools can be used. In this review, we describe how the physician can utilize the growing healthcare databases to develop deep learning and machine learning algorithms, thus helping to improve screening, assessment, prediction of clinical events and outcomes related to clinical nutrition.

Colorectal cancer among inflammatory bowel disease patients: risk factors and prevalence compared to the general population.

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a feared complication of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We aimed to investigate the prevalence and risk factors of CRC among a large cohort of IBD patients.

Methods: Data on IBD patients free of CRC at baseline was extracted using the MDClone platform of the Clalit health maintenance organization in Israel.

Outcomes of cesarean delivery in placenta accreta: conservative delivery vs. cesarean hysterectomy.

Objectives: To compare delivery outcomes of pregnancies diagnosed with placenta-accreta-syndrome (PAS) who underwent conservative treatment to patients who underwent cesarean hysterectomy.

Methods: A retrospective study of all women diagnosed with PAS treated in one tertiary medical center between 03/2011 and 11/2020 was performed. Comparison was made between conservative management during cesarean delivery and cesarean hysterectomy.

Type VII secretion system and its effect on group B Streptococcus virulence in isolates obtained from newborns with early onset disease and colonized pregnant women.

Introduction: GBS may cause a devastating disease in newborns. In early onset disease of the newborn the bacteria are acquired from the colonized mother during delivery. We characterized type VII secretion system (T7SS), exporting small proteins of the WXG100 superfamily, in group B Streptococci (GBS) isolates from pregnant colonized women and newborns with early onset disease (EOD) to better understand T7SS contribution to virulence in these different clinical scenarios.

Artificial intelligence modelling to assess the risk of cardiovascular disease in oncology patients.

Aims: There are no comprehensive machine learning (ML) tools used by oncologists to assist with risk identification and referrals to cardio-oncology. This study applies ML algorithms to identify oncology patients at risk for cardiovascular disease for referrals to cardio-oncology and to generate risk scores to support quality of care.

Methods And Results: De-identified patient data were obtained from Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

Metabolic and nutritional aspects in continuous renal replacement therapy.

Nutrition is one of the foundations for supporting and treating critically ill patients. Nutritional support provides calories, protein, electrolytes, vitamins, and trace elements via the enteral or parenteral route. Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common and devastating problem in critically ill patients and has significant metabolic and nutritional consequences.

Comparing the efficacy of antimicrobial pocket-irrigation protocols in an in vivo breast implant infection model.

Background: Breast implant infection and biofilm formation are major concerns in reconstructive and esthetic breast surgery, with significant medical and economic consequences. Staphylococcus is the common pathogen, with rapidly increasing rates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). There is no consensus on prevention practices.

The Use of the Off-the-Shelf Inner Branch E-nside Endograft for the Treatment of Elective and Emergent Complex Aortic Aneurysms-A Single-Center Experience.

Background: The aim of this single-center study was to evaluate the early results of the off-the-shelf inner branch E-nside endograft in the treatment of complex aortic aneurysms and thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms.

Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of a prospectively maintained database of all patients treated with the E-nside endograft at our institution during the years 2021-2023. Parameters evaluated were technical success, early major adverse events, target vessel patency, and the presence of endoleaks.

A Platform for Assessing Cellular Contractile Function Based on Magnetic Manipulation of Magnetoresponsive Hydrogel Films.

Despite significant advancements in in vitro cardiac modeling approaches, researchers still lack the capacity to obtain in vitro measurements of a key indicator of cardiac function: contractility, or stroke volume under specific loading conditions-defined as the pressures to which the heart is subjected prior to and during contraction. This work puts forward a platform that creates this capability, by providing a means of dynamically controlling loading conditions in vitro. This dynamic tissue loading platform consists of a thin magnetoresponsive hydrogel cantilever on which 2D engineered myocardial tissue is cultured.

Left atrium volume and ventricular volume ratio algorithm as indication of pulmonary hypertension etiology.

Background: Pressure overload of the right heart (pulmonary hypertension [PH]) can be an acute or a chronic process with various pathophysiologic changes affecting the dimensions of the heart chambers. The automatic four-chamber volumetric analysis tool is now available to measure the volume of the cardiac chambers in patients undergoing a computed tomography pulmonary angiogram (CTPA).

Purpose: To characterize the volumetric changes that occurred in response to increased systolic pulmonary arterial pressures (sPAP) in acute events, such as acute pulmonary embolism (APE), compared with other etiologies.

A tailored phase I-specific patient-reported outcome (PRO) survey to capture the patient experience of symptomatic adverse events.

Background: Patient perspectives are fundamental to defining tolerability of investigational anti-neoplastic therapies in clinical trials. Phase I trials present a unique challenge in designing tools for efficiently collecting patient-reported outcomes (PROs) given the difficulty of anticipating adverse events of relevance. However, phase I trials also offer an opportunity for investigators to optimize drug dosing based on tolerability for future larger-scale trials and in eventual clinical practice.

Gastrointestinal failure, big data and intensive care.

Purpose Of Review: Enteral feeding is the main route of administration of medical nutritional therapy in the critically ill. However, its failure is associated with increased complications. Machine learning and artificial intelligence have been used in intensive care to predict complications.

Quality of life, post-operative complications, and hernia recurrence following enhanced-view Totally Extra-Peritoneal (eTEP) Rives-Stoppa for incisional and primary ventral hernia repair.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the quality of life (QoL), early post-operative complications, and hernia recurrence rate following laparoscopic enhanced-view Totally Extra-Peritoneal (eTEP) Rives-Stoppa (RS) for incisional and primary ventral hernia repair. Retrospective review of a prospectively maintained database of all patients undergoing eTEP-RS between 2017 and 2020. Data retrieved included demographics, and clinical and operative variables.

Is There an Association between BMI, Height, and Gender and Long-Bone Fractures during Childhood and Adolescence? A Large Cross-Sectional Population Study of 911,206 Subjects.

Introduction: Traumatic long-bone fractures (TLFs) among children and adolescents are relatively common, with morbidity and economic consequences. Obesity has become a significant global concern. Studies have found an association between TLFs and BMI in the past but not in a large cross-sectional population study.