Digital health care solution for proactive heart failure management with the Cordella Heart Failure System: results of the SIRONA first-in-human study.

Aims: Incorporation of remote monitoring of pulmonary artery pressure and vital signs has been demonstrated to reduce heart failure (HF) hospitalization and all-cause mortality in selected symptomatic HF patients. The aim of this study is to investigate the safety and accuracy of the new Cordella Pulmonary Artery Pressure Sensor (Endotronix, Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) and the usability of the comprehensive Cordella Heart Failure System (CHFS).

A Risk Assessment Tool for Predicting Fragility Fractures and Mortality in the Elderly.

Existing fracture risk assessment tools are not designed to predict fracture-associated consequences, possibly contributing to the current undermanagement of fragility fractures worldwide. We aimed to develop a risk assessment tool for predicting the conceptual risk of fragility fractures and its consequences. The study involved 8965 people aged ≥60 years from the Dubbo Osteoporosis Epidemiology Study and the Canadian Multicentre Osteoporosis Study.

Individualized blood pressure targets during postcardiac arrest intensive care.

Purpose Of Review: To discuss recent findings relevant to optimizing blood pressure targets in adult, postcardiac arrest (PCA) patients and whether to tailor these based on specific patient, cardiac arrest or treatment characteristics.

Recent Findings: Observational data suggest that mean arterial pressure (MAP) below 65-75 mmHg in PCA patients is associated with worse outcome. A higher MAP could be beneficial in patients with chronic hypertension who more frequently have a right shift of the cerebral autoregulation curve.

Malocclusion, Dental Caries and Oral Health-Related Quality of Life: A Comparison between Adolescent School Children in Urban and Rural Regions in Peru.

Rural, isolated areas benefit less from caries prevention programs and access to treatment than urban areas, and, hence, differences in oral health can be expected. This study aims to assess the prevalence of caries and malocclusion in urban and rural areas of Peru and to compare them with patients' oral health perception. A total of 1062 adolescents were examined in five schools of rural (Titicaca) and urban (Lima and Cuzco) areas in Peru.

Evaluation of inferential methods for the net benefit and win ratio statistics.

General Pairwise Comparison (GPC) statistics, such as the net benefit and the win ratio, have been applied in clinical trial data analysis and design. In the literature, inferential methods based on re-sampling, asymptotic or exact methods have been proposed for these GPC statistics, but they have not been compared to each other. In this paper, the small sample bias of the variance estimation, Type I error control and 95% confidence interval coverage of the GPC inferential methods are evaluated using simulations.

Evaluation of kidney function throughout the heart failure trajectory - a position statement from the Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology.

Appropriate interpretation of changes in markers of kidney function is essential during the treatment of acute and chronic heart failure. Historically, kidney function was primarily assessed by serum creatinine and the calculation of estimated glomerular filtration rate. An increase in serum creatinine, also termed worsening renal function, commonly occurs in patients with heart failure, especially during acute heart failure episodes.

Factors associated with mortality in persons co-infected with tuberculosis and HIV in Suriname: a retrospective cohort study.

Objective: To identify socio-demographic and clinical factors associated with mortality among persons with tuberculosis (TB) and TB/HIV co-infection in Suriname.

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study using data from the national TB and HIV databases for 2010 - 2015. The survival probability of TB and TB/HIV co-infected patients was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier estimates and the log-rank test.

Diabetes and fractures: new evidence of atypical femoral fractures?

Unlabelled: Patients with diabetes have an increased risk of fractures. In this study, subtrochanteric and femoral shaft fractures were increased in patients with type 1 diabetes compared with the general population. In the light of this, more evidence points towards an association between diabetes and atypical femoral fractures.

Multi-factorial age estimation: A Bayesian approach combining dental and skeletal magnetic resonance imaging.

Purpose: To study age estimation performance of combined magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data of all four third molars, the left wrist and both clavicles in a reference population of females and males. To study the value of adding anthropometric and sexual maturation data.

Materials And Methods: Three Tesla MRI of the three anatomical sites was prospectively conducted from March 2012 to May 2017 in 14- to 26-year-old healthy Caucasian volunteers (160 females, 138 males).

Fungal Bezoars Mimicking an Enterovesica Fistula: A Unique Case Report.

Fungal colonization or infection of the urinary tract system is relatively common in patients with diabetes or a compromised immune system. However, fungal intravesical bezoars are extremely rare. We present a unique case with multiple, gas-holding fungals bezoars and emphysematous cystitis caused by

The Effect of 1 Year of Romosozumab on the Incidence of Clinical Vertebral Fractures in Postmenopausal Women With Osteoporosis: Results From the FRAME Study.

Radiographic vertebral fractures (VFxs) are the most common fractures in osteoporosis and are associated with increased morbidity, mortality, and costs. A subset of VFxs manifest clinically, usually with a sudden onset of severe back pain. Romosozumab is a monoclonal antibody that binds and inhibits sclerostin, increasing bone formation and decreasing bone resorption, leading to rapid and large increases in bone density and strength and reduction in fracture risk.

Effects of Serelaxin in Patients with Acute Heart Failure.

Background: Serelaxin is a recombinant form of human relaxin-2, a vasodilator hormone that contributes to cardiovascular and renal adaptations during pregnancy. Previous studies have suggested that treatment with serelaxin may result in relief of symptoms and in better outcomes in patients with acute heart failure.

Methods: In this multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled, event-driven trial, we enrolled patients who were hospitalized for acute heart failure and had dyspnea, vascular congestion on chest radiography, increased plasma concentrations of natriuretic peptides, mild-to-moderate renal insufficiency, and a systolic blood pressure of at least 125 mm Hg, and we randomly assigned them within 16 hours after presentation to receive either a 48-hour intravenous infusion of serelaxin (30 μg per kilogram of body weight per day) or placebo, in addition to standard care.

Reduced Bone Loss Is Associated With Reduced Mortality Risk in Subjects Exposed to Nitrogen Bisphosphonates: A Mediation Analysis.

Bisphosphonates, potent antiresorptive agents, have been found to be associated with mortality reduction. Accelerated bone loss is, in itself, an independent predictor of mortality risk, but the relationship between bisphosphonates, bone loss, and mortality is unknown. This study aimed to determine whether the association between bisphosphonates and mortality is mediated by a reduction in the rate of bone loss.

Staging Clavicular Development on MRI: Pitfalls and Suggestions for Age Estimation.

Background: MRI of the clavicle's sternal end has been studied for age estimation. Several pitfalls have been noted, but how they affect age estimation performance remains unclear.

Purpose/hypothesis: To further study these pitfalls and to make suggestions for a proper use of clavicle MRI for forensic age estimation.

The evolution of self-esteem before, during and after orthodontic treatment in adolescents with dental malocclusion, a prospective cohort study.

Objectives: This study aimed (1) to investigate the evolution of self-esteem through orthodontic treatment, and (2) to study how key demographic factors would affect these evolutions and to assess relationships between self-esteem and orthodontic treatment need.

Methods: This longitudinal prospective cohort study comprised of 326 adolescents (172 girls and 154 boys) aged 11-16 years; data were obtained from 325 adolescents at T0 and 123 at T2. Three hundred twenty-one adolescents filled in questionnaires at T0, whereas 118 at T2.

Clinical practice update on heart failure 2019: pharmacotherapy, procedures, devices and patient management. An expert consensus meeting report of the Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology.

The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) has published a series of guidelines on heart failure (HF) over the last 25 years, most recently in 2016. Given the amount of new information that has become available since then, the Heart Failure Association (HFA) of the ESC recognized the need to review and summarise recent developments in a consensus document. Here we report from the HFA workshop that was held in January 2019 in Frankfurt, Germany.

A comprehensive report of long-term outcomes after catheter-directed thrombolysis for occluded infrainguinal bypass grafts.

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the technical and short- and long-term clinical outcomes of catheter-directed thrombolysis (CDT) with urokinase for occluded infrainguinal bypass grafts. In addition, factors associated with technical success and amputation-free survival were assessed.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of a cohort of patients treated with catheter-directed urokinase-based thrombolysis for occluded infrainguinal bypass grafts was conducted between January 2000 and December 2015.

Early goal-directed haemodynamic optimization of cerebral oxygenation in comatose survivors after cardiac arrest: the Neuroprotect post-cardiac arrest trial.

Aims: During the first 6-12 h of intensive care unit (ICU) stay, post-cardiac arrest (CA) patients treated with a mean arterial pressure (MAP) 65 mmHg target experience a drop of the cerebral oxygenation that may cause additional cerebral damage. Therefore, we investigated whether an early goal directed haemodynamic optimization strategy (EGDHO) (MAP 85-100 mmHg, SVO2 65-75%) is safe and could improve cerebral oxygenation, reduce anoxic brain damage, and improve outcome when compared with a MAP 65 mmHg strategy.

Methods And Results: A total of 112 out-of-hospital CA patients were randomly assigned to EGDHO or MAP 65 mmHg strategies during the first 36 h of ICU stay.

Difference and relation between adolescents' and their parents or caregivers' reported oral health-related quality of life related to orthodontic treatment: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Parents/caregivers play an important role in deciding whether their children will undergo orthodontic treatment or not. Their perceptions also have an influence on other choices involving orthodontic treatment. The purpose of this study was to investigate the difference and correlation between the ratings given by children and their parents or caregivers on their oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) before, during and after orthodontic treatment.

Mortality risk reduction differs according to bisphosphonate class: a 15-year observational study.

Unlabelled: In this prospective cohort of 6120 participants aged 50+, nitrogen-bisphosphonates but not non-nitrogen bisphosphonates were associated with a significant 34% mortality risk reduction compared to non-treated propensity score matched controls. These findings open new avenues for research into mechanistic pathways.

Introduction: Emerging evidence suggests that bisphosphonates (BP), first-line treatment of osteoporosis, are associated with reduced risks for all-cause mortality.

The burden of common variable immunodeficiency disorders: a retrospective analysis of the European Society for Immunodeficiency (ESID) registry data.

Background: Common variable immunodeficiency disorders (CVID) are a group of rare innate disorders characterized by specific antibody deficiency and increased rates of infections, comorbidities and mortality. The burden of CVID in Europe has not been previously estimated. We performed a retrospective analysis of the European Society for Immunodeficiencies (ESID) registry data on the subset of patients classified by their immunologist as CVID and treated between 2004 and 2014.