Minimally Invasive Mitral Valve Repair with Intercostal Cryoablation: A Case Report.

 Minimally invasive lateral thoracotomies may cause severe postoperative pain and discomfort. We describe an intraoperative intercostal cryo-neuronal pain block as one possibility for postoperative pain relief.  A 63-year-old male patient underwent minimally invasive mitral valve repair.

Impact of absolute values and changes in meteorological and air quality conditions on community-acquired pneumonia in Germany.

Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a major global health concern as it is a leading cause of morbidity, mortality and economic burden to the health care systems. In Germany, more than 15,000 people die every year from CAP. Climate change is altering weather patterns, and it may influence the probability and severity of CAP.

Adult-onset status epilepticus in patients with COQ8A coenzyme Q10 deficiency: A case series.

This case series describes the clinical features, diagnostic challenges, treatment approaches, and outcomes of three adult patients with COQ8A-related CoQ10 deficiency presenting with focal status epilepticus, who were effectively treated at the Department of Neurology, Philipps University Marburg, Marburg, Germany. The patients, all from consanguineous families with the first two being siblings, presented with a late onset of the disease, characterized by progressive cerebellar ataxia and epilepsy, with clinical deterioration and focal status epilepticus occurring in adulthood. The first patient exhibited myoclonic status, while the second and third patients presented with bilateral tonic-clonic seizures followed by focal status epilepticus manifesting with cortical blindness.

Quantification of Different Types of Waste and Batteries Associated With the Widespread Usage of Continuous Glucose Monitoring Systems.

Background: People with diabetes benefit from continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems. A downside of these valuable aids for diabetes management is the generation of a tremendous amount of waste. This study aimed to quantify this CGM-related waste.

Endosonography in head and neck imaging and surgery.

This CME article explores the evolving role of endosonography in otorhinolaryngology and head and neck surgery. Endosonography offers significant potential to improve imaging inside the upper respiratory tract, particularly with advancements in probe technology and imaging resolution. The article will describe the sonoanatomy of the oral cavity, pharynx, and larynx and the selection of probes and scanning techniques used for the various anatomical sites.

Comparison of fludarabine/melphalan (FM140) with fludarabine/melphalan/BCNU (FBM110) in patients with relapsed/refractory AML undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation - a registry study on behalf of the EBMT Acute Leukemia Working Party.

The treatment of relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is associated with a dismal prognosis. The allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) is frequently performed as salvage therapy. Reduced intensity conditioning protocols have been developed with the aim of reducing the leukemia burden without increasing their toxicity.

Visual detection of pulselessness by carotid artery sonography - A prospective observational study among medical students.

Aim: This cross-sectional study aimed to determine whether medical students with little to no ultrasound experience could correctly distinguish between 'pulsation present' and 'no pulsation present' after a short introductory video on the subject using ultrasound videos of the common carotid artery (CCA).

Methods: Ultrasound videos (B-mode, M-mode, and Color Doppler) of pulsatile (systolic blood pressure 70-80 mmHg) and non-pulsatile (cardiopulmonary bypass surgery, clamped aorta) CCA were created. These were demonstrated to the medical students for a period of ten seconds - corresponding to the duration of the manual pulse palpation during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

Central vs. Brachial Blood Pressure and Pulse Pressure Amplification for Mortality Risk Prediction in Patients Undergoing Coronary Angiography.

Background: Arterial hypertension is a significant risk factor for cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality. Although central blood pressure (BP) evaluation is considered the gold standard, the reliability of non-invasive measurements remains unclear. Therefore, we compared the predictive value of invasively measured central BP with non-invasively measured brachial BP and analyzed pulse pressure (PP) amplification (delta-PP; difference between central and peripheral PP) as an independent predictor of mortality.

Effectiveness of fissure sealants in 8- to 10-year-olds with and without molar-incisor hypomineralization (MIH) - results from a cross-sectional epidemiological study.

Objective: This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the use, quality, and caries-preventive effects of fissure sealants (FSs) in 8- to 10-year-olds with and without molar-incisor hypomineralization (MIH).

Materials And Methods: A total of 5,418 children (2,692 males, 2,726 females) were examined via standard instruments (dental mirrors, CPI probes, adequate lighting, mobile examination tables, and air syringes) and methods for the recording of caries (DMFT index, WHO method) and FSs. The classification of MIH followed the recommendations of the European Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (EAPD).

Genes, Gene Loci, and Their Impacts on the Immune System in the Development of Multiple Sclerosis: A Systematic Review.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a condition that is characterized by damage to the central nervous system (CNS) that causes patients to experience cognitive and physical difficulties. Although the disease has a complex etiology that involves genetic and environmental factors, little is known about the role of genes and gene loci in its development. Aims: This study aimed to investigate the effects of genes and gene loci on the immune system during the development of MS.

Differentiation of Tumors of the Upper Respiratory Tract Using Optical Metabolic Imaging.

Objectives: With over 184,000 new cases and more than 99,000 deaths per year, malignancies of the larynx are a global health problem. Currently, a dedicated screening method enabling a direct onsite diagnosis is missing. This can lead to delayed diagnosis and worse outcomes of the patients.

Synchrotron-Based Phase-Contrast Micro-CT Combined With Histology to Decipher Differences Between Hereditary and Sporadic Pediatric Pulmonary Veno-Occlusive Disease.

Pulmonary veno-occlusive disease (PVOD) is a lethal variant of pulmonary hypertension. The degree of pulmonary arterial involvement varies. Here, we compare two PVOD patients who were transplanted at 8 years of age, whereof one is a homozygous mutation carrier.

Riociguat in pulmonary arterial hypertension: Application of the 4-strata COMPERA 2.0 risk assessment tool in the PATENT studies.

Background: Risk stratification is an essential part of evaluating disease severity in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). This study applied the 4-strata COMPERA 2.0 risk model to the Phase 3 PATENT-1/2 studies of riociguat.

Do we need standardized postoperative radiographs after locking plate fixation of distal radius fractures - A retrospective analysis of 664 patients.

Introduction: After surgical treatment of fractures of the distal radius, radiographs in 2 planes are routinely performed postoperatively as a standard procedure to verify anatomic reduction and implant positioning. However, the postoperative radiological examinations rarely has a consequence. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the frequency of treatment plan changes based on standardized postoperative radiographs.

Isatuximab, Lenalidomide, Bortezomib, and Dexamethasone Induction Therapy for Transplant-Eligible Newly Diagnosed Multiple Myeloma: Final Part 1 Analysis of the GMMG-HD7 Trial.

Previously, addition of isatuximab (Isa) to standard-of-care lenalidomide-bortezomib-dexamethasone (RVd) in transplant-eligible patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma in the GMMG-HD7 trial (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03617731) resulted in a significant increase of minimal residual disease negativity (MRD-) rates after induction therapy. A total of 662 patients were randomly assigned to receive induction therapy with Isa-RVd (n = 331) or RVd (n = 329), followed by single or tandem autologous stem-cell transplant and second random assignment to maintenance with lenalidomide alone or Isa-lenalidomide.

Association of Patients' Knowledge on the Disease and Its Management with Indicators of Disease Severity and Individual Characteristics in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD): Results from COSYCONET 2.

Background: In patients with chronic diseases, including those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), knowledge on the disease and its self-management is considered as relevant for improving disease control and long-term outcome. We studied to which extent components of knowledge depended on potential predictors, such as participation in educational programs and disease severity. For example, the perception of exacerbations or GOLD grade might modulate the content and reliability of COPD understanding.

Endoscopic submucosal dissection of colorectal pedunculated polyps.

For pedunculated colon polyps, en bloc resection with inclusion of the polyp stalk is necessary to yield an accurate histologic staging. This can be challenging in cases of a large polyp and/or broad stalk using conventional snare resection. We evaluated the feasibility of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for large pedunculated polyps with broad stalks.

Efficacy and Safety of Sotatercept Across Ranges of Cardiac Index in Patients with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension: A Pooled Analysis of PULSAR and STELLAR.

Background: This analysis compared effects of the activin signaling inhibitor, sotatercept, across pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) subgroups stratified by baseline cardiac index (CI).

Methods: Pooled data from PULSAR (N=106; NCT03496207) and STELLAR (N=323; NCT04576988) were analyzed using two different CI thresholds, < and ≥ 2.0 L/min/m or 2.

Endoscopic papillectomy versus surgical ampullectomy for adenomas and early cancers of the papilla: a retrospective Pancreas2000/European Pancreatic Club analysis.

Objective: Ampullary neoplastic lesions can be resected by endoscopic papillectomy (EP) or transduodenal surgical ampullectomy (TSA) while pancreaticoduodenectomy is reserved for more advanced lesions. We present the largest retrospective comparative study analysing EP and TSA.

Design: Of all patients in the database, lesions with prior interventions, benign histology advanced malignancy (T2 and more), patients with hereditary syndromes and those undergoing pancreatoduodenectomy were excluded.

GOLD Science Committee recommendations for the use of pre- and post-bronchodilator spirometry for the diagnosis of COPD.

The Global initiative for chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) report states that the diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) should be considered in individuals with chronic respiratory symptoms and / or exposure to risk factors. Forced spirometry demonstrating airflow obstruction after bronchodilation is required to confirm the diagnosis using a threshold of forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV) / forced vital capacity (FVC) ratio<0.7.