Real-world clinical utility of Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra in the assessment of tuberculosis in a low-TB-incidence, high-resource setting.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis in the UK is impacted by delay and suboptimal culture-based microbiological confirmation rates due to the high prevalence of paucibacillary disease. We examine the real-world clinical utility of Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra (Xpert-Ultra) as a diagnostic test and biomarker of transmissible infection in a UK TB service.

Methods: Clinical specimens from suspected TB cases triple tested (smear microscopy, mycobacterial culture and Xpert-Ultra) at University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust (1 March 2018-28 February 2019) were retrospectively analysed.

Neighbourhood socioeconomic conditions and emergency admissions for ambulatory care sensitive conditions in children: a longitudinal ecological analysis in England, 2012-2017.

Background: Ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSCs) are those for which hospital admission could be prevented by interventions in primary care. Children living in socioeconomic disadvantage have higher rates of emergency admissions for ACSCs than their more affluent counterparts. Emergency admissions for ACSCs have been increasing, but few studies have assessed how changing socioeconomic conditions (SECs) have impacted this.

Importance, structure, cultivability, and resilience of the bacterial microbiota during infection of laboratory-grown Haematococcus spp. by the blastocladialean pathogen Paraphysoderma sedebokerense: evidence for a domesticated microbiota and its potential for biocontrol.

Industrial production of the unicellular green alga Haematococcus lacustris is compromised by outbreaks of the fungal pathogen Paraphysoderma sedebokerense (Blastocladiomycota). Here, using axenic algal and fungal cultures and antibiotic treatments, we show that the bacterial microbiota of H. lacustris is necessary for the infection by P.

Factors affecting the efficacy of human leukocyte antigen-selected platelet provision: A large retrospective study in the United Kingdom.

Background: A large, retrospective study was designed to interrogate current NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) HLA matching strategies for the provision of HLA selected platelets (HLA SP) and to determine whether additional factors such as ABO blood group matching, patient diagnosis, patient and/or donor age, sex, ethnicity, age of platelet unit at transfusion and possibly seasonal variation also play a role in transfusion efficacy.

Materials And Methods: Data for 56 640 HLA SP transfusions over a 3-year period were collected. Transfusions with missing data for any factor under consideration were excluded, resulting in a cohort of 13 044 transfusions for analysis.

Feasibility and Challenges of Pyeloureteral Magnetic Anastomosis Device in Domestic Pigs: A Stepwise Approach with Extended Observation.

Objective:  The pyeloureteral anastomosis remains the most challenging part of pyeloplasty. A purpose-built anastomotic device could simplify this step and potentially improve outcomes. The concept of a pyeloureteral magnetic anastomosis device (PUMA) was proven in minipigs, but only in short term.

Current availability of radiotherapy devices in Peru and artificial intelligence-based analysis for constructing a nationwide implementation plan.

Purpose: We provide for the first time a comprehensive situational diagnosis and propose an artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted nationwide plan of implementation, attending the most urgent needs.

Methods: Baseline information was collected from open-source databases of the Peruvian Government. Data on cancer incidence from the Health Authorities and GLOBOCAN were collected and compared.

Association Between Type 2 Diabetes Onset Age and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease and Mortality: Two Cohort Studies from United Kingdom and Hong Kong.

Objective: This study evaluated the association between age of onset of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality.

Method: Two retrospective cohort studies were conducted using the electronic health record from United Kingdom (UK) and Hong Kong (HK) (2008-2013) on adults without CVD. 128,918 and 185,646 patients with newly diagnosed T2DM were assigned to the T2DM group, and control group included 5,052,770 and 3,159,396 patients without T2DM in UK and HK cohort, respectively.

Control Performance Of Amphibian Metamorphosis Assays With Xenopus Laevis.

The amphibian metamorphosis assay (AMA) is an in vivo screen to assess potential interactions of chemicals with the amphibian thyroid system. Tadpoles are exposed for 21-days, then assessed for development and growth after 7 days and at test termination. This paper presents data from studies performed to satisfy test orders from the US EPA's Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program.

Evaluating the effectiveness of dengue surveillance in the tropical and sub-tropical Asian nations through dengue case data from travelers returning to the five Western Pacific countries and territories.

Introduction: Dengue, affecting over 3.9 billion people, is a significant health threat globally. Despite a tenfold increase in reported cases from 2000 to 2020, underreporting remains an issue.

Motives of Peer Volunteers Aged Over 50 in Physical Activity Programs: A Scoping Review.

Peer-volunteering schemes can facilitate health improvement via increasing physical activity levels. Understanding what motivates peer volunteers is valuable for the feasibility of volunteering schemes. This scoping review aims to explore the motivations of peer volunteers aged over 50 who participate in programs that promote physical activity.

Shattering the Shield: Embracing Complexity in Undergraduate Medical Education.

Background: Multimorbidity and patient complexity are increasing, yet undergraduate medical education curricula remain dominated by single disease frameworks, where students are often shielded from exposure to this complexity. Why this shielding continues to occur is understandable; however, this may leave graduates feeling underprepared for real-world practice. This study aimed to explore medical students' experiences of encountering, managing and dealing with complexity and to provide informed recommendations for integrating complexity into clinical teaching.

Foundational guidelines for enhancing neurotechnology research and development through end-user involvement.

Neurotechnologies are increasingly becoming integrated with our everyday lives, our bodies and our mental states. As the popularity and impact of neurotechnology grows, so does our responsibility to ensure we understand its particular implications on its end users, as well as broader ethical and societal implications. Enabling end-users and other stakeholders to participate in the development of neurotechnology, even at its earliest stages of conception, will help us better navigate our design around these serious considerations, and deliver more impactful technologies.

Accommodation microfluctuation in individuals with mTBI and the potential effect of chromatic filter on this parameter.

Individuals with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) exhibit significant accommodative abnormalities. Accommodation microfluctuation (MFs) plays an important role in the accommodation steady-state control. This study was set to investigate the characteristics of the MFs in mTBI subjects and whether chromatic filter (CF) or neutral density filter (ND) would impact these parameters.

A New Smartphone-Based Cognitive Screening Battery for Multiple Sclerosis (icognition): Validation Study.

Background: Cognitive deterioration is common in multiple sclerosis (MS) and requires regular follow-up. Currently, cognitive status is measured in clinical practice using paper-and-pencil tests, which are both time-consuming and costly. Remote monitoring of cognitive status could offer a solution because previous studies on telemedicine tools have proved its feasibility and acceptance among people with MS.

Barriers and Facilitators of User Engagement With Digital Mental Health Interventions for People With Psychosis or Bipolar Disorder: Systematic Review and Best-Fit Framework Synthesis.

Background: Digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) to monitor and improve the health of people with psychosis or bipolar disorder show promise; however, user engagement is variable, and integrated clinical use is low.

Objective: This prospectively registered systematic review examined barriers and facilitators of clinician and patient engagement with DMHIs, to inform implementation within real-world settings.

Methods: A systematic search of 7 databases identified empirical studies reporting qualitative or quantitative data about factors affecting staff or patient engagement with DMHIs aiming to monitor or improve the mental or physical health of people with psychosis or bipolar disorder.

Crossing the streams: Improving data quality and integration across the One Health genomics continuum with data standards and implementation strategies.

The Canadian Genomics Research and Development Initiative for Antimicrobial Resistance (GRDI-AMR) uses a genomics-based approach to understand how health care, food production and the environment contribute to the development of antimicrobial resistance. Integrating genomics contextual data streams across the One Health continuum is challenging because of the diversity in data scope, content and structure. To better enable data harmonization for analyses, a contextual data standard was developed.

Dissociation of hydrogen and formation of water at the (010) and (111) surfaces of orthorhombic FeNbO4.

The orthorhombic structure of FeNbO4, where the Fe and Nb cations are distributed randomly over the octahedral 4c sites, has shown excellent promise as an anode material in solid oxide fuel cells. We have used DFT+U-D2 calculations to explore the adsorption and dissociation of H2 molecules and the formation reaction of water at the (010) and (111) surfaces. Simulations of the surface properties confirmed that the bandgaps are significantly reduced compared to the bulk material.

Assessment of fracture risk with FRAX and FRAXplus.

FRAX, a risk calculator that provides individualized 10-year probabilities of hip and major osteoporotic fracture, has been widely used for fracture risk assessment since its launch in 2008. It is now incorporated into very many guidelines worldwide to inform osteoporosis management. In this review, we explore the development of FRAX and how it enhances fracture risk prediction as compared to use of bone mineral density alone, as well as approaches to utilizing FRAX in determining intervention and assessment thresholds.

Communicating hydrocephalus following stereotactic radiosurgery for periventricular meningiomas: illustrative cases.

Background: Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) is a well-established option for the management of intracranial tumors, including meningiomas. Although valued for its low invasiveness and precision, it still carries a risk of complications. Communicating hydrocephalus is a serious, albeit rarely reported, complication of SRS.

Estimating Trends in Cardiovascular Disease Risk for the EXPOSE (Explaining Population Trends in Cardiovascular Risk: A Comparative Analysis of Health Transitions in South Africa and England) Study: Repeated Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of death globally. Demographic, behavioral, socioeconomic, health care, and psychosocial variables considered risk factors for CVD are routinely measured in population health surveys, providing opportunities to examine health transitions. Studying the drivers of health transitions in countries where multiple burdens of disease persist (eg, South Africa), compared with countries regarded as models of "epidemiologic transition" (eg, England), can provide knowledge on where best to intervene and direct resources to reduce the disease burden.

Findings on impact of COVID-19 on mental health using keyword visualization.

Objective: The EU global health priorities focus on ensuring better health and well-being for people throughout their lives as well as on reducing inequalities between countries. The COVID-19 pandemic can be understood as a set of several events that directly or indirectly affected the mental health of people around the world. The aim of this study was to identify the main groupings of co-occurrence of all keywords related to the main keywords "COVID-19" and "mental health" acquired through search in the Scopus database using the VOSviewer tool.

Validated LC-MS/MS methodology for the quantification of CBD, trace level THCA and UK controlled cannabinoids (Δ-THC, Δ-THC, CBN and THCV) in food samples.

Products containing cannabidiol (CBD) have become increasingly popular due to consumer-perceived benefits of improving health and well-being. More specifically in the United Kingdom (UK), CBD food products are categorised as . For these products to remain on the market, they must have authorisation from the Food Standards Agency on the basis that they are safe, correctly labelled, and do not contain substances classified under controlled drugs legislation in accordance with any existing or future Home Office guidance.

L-ICG as an optical agent to improve intraoperative margin detection in breast-conserving surgery: a prospective study.

Purpose: Precise tumor excision is important in breast-conserving surgery (BCS). This study explores the safety and accuracy of fluorescence image-guided BCS (FIGS) using a lidocaine mucilage-ICG compound (L-ICG).

Methods: 54 patients who underwent BCS from August 2020 to September 2023 were enrolled.