Transperitoneal versus low anterior access single-port pyeloplasty: surgical and functional outcomes from a tertiary referral center.

Background: Transperitoneal approach to robot-assisted pyeloplasty (RAP) have been preferred in the last decades because of the use of multi-port robotic platforms. However, this approach is linked to notable issues, such as pneumoperitoneum and lateral decubitus position, which is associated with potential soft tissues injuries, and it is a time-consuming procedure. Single-port (SP) platform was introduced to potentially address these issues.

Analysis of skew, examination of intercorrelations, and determining the optimal threshold for performance invalidity when 10 performance validity tests are administered during a neuropsychological evaluation.

Introduction: This study cross-validates and expands upon previous research by examining the optimal number of PVT failures necessary to determine invalid performance when 10 PVTs are administered during a neuropsychological evaluation. Additionally, the study assessed the degree of skewness of individual PVTs and PVT intercorrelations for the overall sample and by validity group.

Method: Participants were 283 adult neuropsychology outpatients evaluated at an academic medical center.

Prevalence of prescription medication use that can exacerbate heart failure among US adults with heart failure.

Introduction: Heart failure (HF) affects more than 6 million adults in the United States, contributing to substantial morbidity, mortality, and health care costs. Despite advances in medical care, many medications can exacerbate HF, yet their prevalence of use remains unknown. This study examined the national use of prescription medications that could exacerbate HF in adults with self-reported HF.

Long-term outcomes of second-generation drug-eluting stents versus coronary artery bypass graft: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials and multivariable adjusted data.

Long-term data are limited comparing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with second-generation drug-eluting stents (S-DES) vs coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) in patients with complex coronary artery disease (CAD). We aimed to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis comparing these interventions in patients with left main or multivessel CAD. We systematically reviewed PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane for studies that compared PCI with S-DES and CABG in patients with left main or multivessel CAD with a minimum mean follow-up period of 3 years.

Composite spin probes with adjustable oxygen sensitivity for pulse electron paramagnetic resonance imaging.

Purpose: Solid crystalline spin probes, such as lithium phthalocyanine (LiPc) and lithium octa-n-butoxynaphthalocyanine (LiNc-BuO), allow repeated oxygen measurement using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR). Due to their short relaxation times, their use for pulse EPR oxygen imaging is limited. In this study, we developed and tested a new class of solid composite spin probes that modified the relaxation rates R and R of LiPc or LiNc-BuO probes, which allowed pO measurements in the full dynamic (0-760 torr) range.

Performance-based and patient-reported outcome measures for custom ankle-foot orthosis users: reliability, validity, and sensitivity evidence.

Purpose: To evaluate the psychometric properties of performance and patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) for custom ankle-foot orthosis (AFOs) users.

Materials And Methods: Current AFO users completed two assessments one week apart; new AFO users completed an assessment before device delivery and at one- and two-months post-delivery.

Results: Seventy current and 31 new users consented and provided data.

Does the CDC Surgical Wound Classification adequately predict postoperative infection in lower extremity fracture surgery?

Objectives: The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the utility of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Surgical Wound Classification (SWC) in predicting surgical site infection (SSI) after orthopaedic trauma procedures.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting: Level I academic trauma center.

Facilitators and Barriers to Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Uptake Willingness for Full-Service Sex Workers: A Social-Ecological Approach.

Full-service sex workers (FSSWs) are at heightened risk of contracting HIV due to facing multi-level challenges to sexual health. This study investigated factors associated with willingness to use Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) - a daily HIV preventative medication, among FSSWs. Using social-ecological theory, an online survey was developed with initial guidance from a local sex worker advocacy organization to assess barriers and facilitators to PrEP uptake willingness.

Correlates of mental health of people living with HIV co-infected with SARS-CoV-2: findings from the COVIDHIV study in France.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected vulnerable populations, especially individuals living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). The convergence of HIV/AIDS and COVID-19 presents unique challenges, exacerbating existing health concerns and magnifying the strain on individuals already grappling with compromised immune systems. This study aimed to investigate the mental well-being repercussions faced by PLWHA co-infected with SARS-CoV-2 in France.

Prevalence of food allergy and its association with atopic dermatitis in Iran: Results from the PERSIAN birth cohort.

Background: The incidence of food allergy (FA) has been increasing worldwide, causing growing concern on a global scale.

Objective: This birth cohort study analyzes the incidence of reported FA and other atopic comorbidities in children from birth to age 2 years who were living in 4 urban and semiurban areas in Iran.

Methods: Children were followed from birth until age 24 months, with follow-up questionnaires administered through parent or guardian interviews conducted when the children were aged 2, 4, 6, 12, and 24 months.

A Qualitative Study of First HIV Test Experiences Among Sexual and Gender Minority Adolescents.

Introduction: This qualitative study examined adolescents' first experiences with HIV testing.

Methods: Data were collected from April 2018 to October 2020 as part of an HIV prevention and sex education intervention; SGM adolescents ( = 175) answered open-ended questions regarding experiences with their first HIV test and advice for other adolescents seeking HIV testing. Data were analyzed through inductive content analysis.

Template for positioning miniplates (PUNPLAPOT-M) on mandibular symphysis: Novel innovation.

Purpose: This study was conducted to check the efficacy of PUNPLAPOT-innovative Template for positioning of the bone miniplate for fracture fixation.

Material And Methods: Twenty dried mandible specimens were used in this study. The specimens were then divided into two groups using random sampling.

The Complete Genome Sequences of 22 Species of Owls (Strigiformes, Aves).

We present the complete genome sequences of 22 species of owls. Illumina sequencing was performed on DNA extracted from wild-caught specimens. The reads were assembled using a method followed by a finishing step.

The Influence of Artificial Light Exposure on Indigenous Populations: Exploring Its Impact on Menarcheal Age and Reproductive Function.

The impact of artificial light exposure on human health has garnered significant attention in recent years. In particular, its effects on reproductive health have raised concerns. Given that the onset of menarche serves as a crucial indicator of reproductive maturity, understanding the implications of artificial light exposure becomes paramount.

Liver Xenotransplantation: A Path to Clinical Reality.

Liver xenotransplantation has emerged as a potential solution to the shortage of deceased human donor organs and is now becoming a reality due to recent developments in genetic engineering and immunosuppressive therapy. Early efforts using non-human primates and genetically modified pigs faced significant challenges such as thrombocytopenia and graft rejection. Understanding the mechanism behind those challenges and using novel genetically engineered pigs enabled researchers to overcome some of the hurdles, but more research is needed.

Diabetes Centers' Participation in the T1D Exchange Quality Improvement Collaborative Advances Health Equity and Clinical Outcomes.

As the learning health network known as the T1D Exchange Quality Improvement Collaborative (T1DX-QI) has expanded on a significant scale to provide care for more than 120,000 people since its inception in 2016, assessing the quality improvement (QI) culture and monitoring clinical outcome improvements of participating centers has become vital to understanding the network's progress and success. Centers participating in the T1DX-QI complete regular QI culture self-assessments to quantify four evidence-based areas of culture: QI team structure, QI foundation, QI capacity, and QI success. This study builds on a previous baseline analysis to demonstrate self-reported improvements in T1DX-QI centers' QI culture from 2021 to 2022 and summarizes QI successes experienced by participating centers.

Risk of Severe Hypoglycemia After Initiation of Noninsulin Glucose-Lowering Therapies in Adults With Type 2 Diabetes at Moderate Cardiovascular Disease Risk.

In this emulated comparative effectiveness target trial of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist, sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4) inhibitor, and sulfonylurea therapy among adults with type 2 diabetes at moderate cardiovascular disease risk, sulfonylurea use was associated with a significantly higher risk of hypoglycemia requiring emergency department or hospital care than treatment with DPP-4 inhibitors, GLP-1 receptor agonists, or SGLT2 inhibitors. This consideration can guide the choice of glucose-lowering therapy in this highly prevalent patient population, in whom avoidance of hypoglycemia is important, yet among whom the risk of severe hypoglycemia has not been examined previously.

Circulating molecules reflect imaging biomarkers of hemorrhage in cerebral cavernous malformations.

Increases in mean lesional iron content by quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) by ≥6% and/or vascular permeability by dynamic contrast enhanced quantitative perfusion (DCEQP) by ≥40% on MRI have been associated with new symptomatic hemorrhage (SH) in cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs). It is not known if plasma biomarkers can reflect these changes within the lesion proper. This cohort study enrolled 46 CCM patients with SH in the prior year.

Shear thickening inside elastic open-cell foams under dynamic compression.

We measure the response of open-cell polyurethane foams filled with a dense suspension of fumed silica particles in polyethylene glycol at compression speeds spanning several orders of magnitude. The gradual compressive stress increase of the composite material indicates the existence of shear rate gradients in the interstitial suspension caused by wide distributions in pore sizes in the disordered foam network. The energy dissipated during compression scales with an effective internal shear rate, allowing for the collapse of three data sets for different pore-size foams.

Neighborhood Social Processes and Adolescents' Depressive Symptoms: The Intervening Role of Neighborhood Self-Efficacy.

Via observational data from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods collected between 1994 and 2001, this study examined the degree to which neighborhood disorder, collective efficacy, and youth-centered institutional resources are directly associated with adolescents' depressive symptoms across time, and the mediating role of adolescents'neighborhood self-efficacy. Latent variable structural equation models were estimated among an unweighted representative sample of 1448 adolescents (59% male, mean age 15.19), across 79 neighborhoods in Chicago, to examine the direct effects of neighborhood disorder, collective efficacy, and availability of youth-centered resources at baseline (measured at timepoint 1; reported by an independent sample of Chicago adults) on adolescents' depressive symptoms (measured a timepoint 3), and the mediating effect of adolescents' neighborhood-anchored self-efficacy (measured at timepoint 2).

Chicago Riders' Choice of Uber and Lyft over Transit Implies a Median Breakeven Value of Travel Time Equal to the Regional Hourly Wage of $30 per Hour.

The use of transportation network companies (TNCs), such as Uber and Lyft, is widespread in many US cities, including those with good transit. However, transit use produces smaller externalities relative to private vehicles and is cheaper but can increase travel time. Here we compare the benefits and costs of real TNC trips in Chicago to a counterfactual in which they are performed by transit.