Prediction of cccDNA dynamics in hepatitis B patients by a combination of serum surrogate markers.

Quantification of intrahepatic covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA) is a key for evaluating an elimination of hepatitis B virus (HBV) in infected patients. However, quantifying cccDNA requires invasive methods such as a liver biopsy, which makes it impractical to access the dynamics of cccDNA in patients. Although HBV RNA and HBV core-related antigens (HBcrAg) have been proposed as surrogate markers for evaluating cccDNA activity, they do not necessarily estimate the amount of cccDNA.

Human cortical high-gamma power scales with movement rate in healthy participants and stroke survivors.

Motor cortical high-gamma oscillations (60-90 Hz) occur at movement onset and are spatially focused over the contralateral primary motor cortex. Although high-gamma oscillations are widely recognized for their significance in human motor control, their precise function on a cortical level remains elusive. Importantly, their relevance in human stroke pathophysiology is unknown.

Implant-based reconstruction and adjuvant radiotherapy in breast cancer patients-current status and DEGRO recommendations.

Purpose: The aim of this review is to give an overview of the results of prospective and retrospective studies using allogenic reconstruction and postmastectomy radiotherapy (PMRT) in breast cancer and to make recommendations regarding this interdisciplinary approach.

Materials And Methods: A PubMed search was conducted to extract relevant articles from 2000 to 2024. The search was performed using the following terms: (breast cancer) AND (reconstruction OR implant OR expander) AND (radiotherapy OR radiation).

RAD51 testing in patients with early HER2-negative breast cancer and homologous recombination deficiency: post-hoc analysis of the GeparOla trial.

Purpose: The randomized GeparOla trial reported comparable pathological complete response (pCR) rates with neoadjuvant containing olaparib vs. carboplatin treatment. Here, we evaluate the association between functional homologous repair deficiency (HRD) by RAD51 foci and pCR, and the potential of improving patient selection by combining RAD51 and stromal tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (sTILs).

Facilitators and Barriers for Physiotherapists to Engage in Goal-Setting With Patients During Their Hospital Stay-An Explanatory Sequential Mixed-Methods Study.

Background And Purpose: Goal setting is a key aspect of patient-centered physiotherapy, helping to motivate patients, align healthcare efforts, prevent oversight, and stop ineffective interventions. This study aims to identify facilitators and barriers for physiotherapists in hospitals to set and document patient treatment goals.

Methods: An explanatory sequential mixed-methods approach was used.

Awareness and knowledge regarding female genital schistosomiasis among European healthcare workers: a cross-sectional online survey.

Background: Adequate knowledge and awareness regarding diseases are essential for appropriate, high-quality healthcare. Female Genital Schistosomiasis (FGS) is a non-sexually transmitted gynaecological disease that is caused by the presence of Schistosoma haematobium eggs in the female genital tract and the resulting immune response that causes tissue damage. It is estimated to affect 56 million women, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where healthcare workers (HCWs) have limited awareness and knowledge of FGS.

Psychological interventions for refugees with depression: a systematic literature review.

Background: Ongoing global crises are forcing an increasing number of people to seek refuge in other countries. Refugees have often experienced multiple potentially traumatic events before and during their flight and are burdened by psychosocial problems in exile. Epidemiological research suggests that many refugees suffer from depression and need psychological care.

Course of Mental Disorders in Early Cancer Survivorship in Relation to Socioeconomic Status: A Multi-Center Prospective Longitudinal Study (LUPE).

Objective: Individuals with low socioeconomic status (SES) exhibit higher rates of mental disorders; however, data in oncological populations are insufficient. This study investigated the course of DSM-5 mental disorders in cancer patients, stratified by SES, over a period of 1.5 years following initial cancer diagnosis.

A novel prognostic risk model for patients with refractory/relapsed acute myeloid leukemia receiving venetoclax plus hypomethylating agents.

Off-label hypomethylating agents and venetoclax (HMA/VEN) are often used for relapsed and refractory (R/R) AML patients. However, predictors of outcome are elusive. The objective of the current retrospective observational multicenter study of 240 adult patients (median age 68.

Effects of time-of-day on the noradrenaline, adrenaline, cortisol and blood lipidome response to an ice bath.

While the effect of time-of-day (morning versus evening) on hormones, lipids and lipolysis has been studied in relation to meals and exercise, there are no studies that have investigated the effects of time-of-day on ice bath induced hormone and lipidome responses. In this crossover-designed study, a group of six women and six men, 26 ± 5 years old, 176 ± 7 cm tall, weighing 75 ± 10 kg, and a BMI of 23 ± 2 kg/mhad an ice bath (8-12 °C for 5 min) both in the morning and evening on separate days. Absence from intense physical exercise, nutrient intake and meal order was standardized in the 24 h prior the ice baths to account for confounders such as diet or exercise.

Continuous vital sign monitoring of patients recovering from surgery on general wards: a narrative review.

Most postoperative deaths occur on general wards, often linked to complications associated with untreated changes in vital signs. Monitoring in these units is typically intermittent checks each shift or maximally every 4-6 h, which misses prolonged periods of subtle changes in physiology that can herald a critical downstream event. Continuous monitoring of vital signs is therefore intuitively necessary for patient safety.

The Role of Atrial Fibrillation and Oral Anticoagulation Status in Health-Related Quality of Life 12 Months After Ischemic Stroke or TIA.

Aims: Atrial fibrillation (AF) accounts for about 20% of all ischemic strokes worldwide. It is known that AF impairs health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in the general population, but data on HRQOL in stroke patients with newly diagnosed AF are sparse.

Methods: Post hoc analysis of the prospective, investigator-initiated, multicenter MonDAFIS study (NCT02204267) to analyze whether AF-related oral anticoagulation (OAC), and/or AF-symptom severity are associated with HRQOL after ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA).

Clearance of Driver Mutations after Transplantation for Myelofibrosis.

Background: Allogeneic hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation is the only curative treatment for myelofibrosis. Driver mutations are the pathophysiological hallmark of the disease, but the role of mutation clearance after transplantation is unclear.

Methods: We used highly sensitive polymerase-chain-reaction technology to analyze the dynamics of driver mutations in peripheral-blood samples from 324 patients with myelofibrosis (73% with mutations, 23% with mutations, and 4% with mutations) who were undergoing transplantation after reduced-intensity conditioning.

Pomalidomide, Bortezomib, and Dexamethasone Versus Bortezomib and Dexamethasone in Relapsed or Refractory Multiple Myeloma: Final Survival and Subgroup Analyses From the OPTIMISMM Trial.

Introduction: In the OPTIMISMM trial, pomalidomide/bortezomib/dexamethasone (PVd) significantly prolonged median progression-free survival (PFS) versus bortezomib/dexamethasone (Vd) in lenalidomide-exposed relapsed and refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM). We report final overall survival (OS) and updated efficacy analyses.

Methods: Adults with RRMM who had 1-3 prior regimens, including lenalidomide (≥ 2 cycles), were assigned (1:1) to PVd or Vd.

Sepsis-induced NET formation requires MYD88 but is independent of GSDMD and PAD4.

Neutrophils are peripheral blood-circulating leukocytes that play a pivotal role in host defense against bacterial pathogens which upon activation, they release web-like chromatin structures called neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). Here, we analyzed and compared the importance of myeloid differentiation factor 88 (MYD88), peptidyl arginine deiminase 4 (PAD4), and gasdermin D (GSDMD) for NET formation in vivo following sepsis and neutrophilia challenge. Injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)/E.

Creative Aging: Unraveling the Psychosocial Benefits of Art Among Germany's Oldest Old. Findings From the Nationally Representative Study "Old Age in Germany (D80+)".

Objective: There is a dearth of studies examining the link between artistic activity and psychosocial outcomes exclusively among the oldest old. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the association between artistic activity and psychosocial outcomes among individuals aged 80 years and over in Germany.

Methods/design: Data for this analysis were taken from the "Old Age in Germany (D80+)" study, a nationwide sample encompassing both community-dwelling individuals aged 80 and above, as well as those residing in care facilities.

Characteristics of patients with somatoform pain disorder.

Background: Patients with somatoform pain experience physical pain that cannot be attributed to any underlying medical or physiological cause, and it is often thought to be related to psychological factors. Health professionals encounter difficulties identifying this specific type of chronic pain, leading to suboptimal treatment strategies. Therefore, we aimed to describe the characteristics of patients with somatoform pain, to support the identification of affected patients.

Clinical Outcomes According to the Extent of Atherosclerotic Disease in Female Patients Undergoing Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement: An Analysis From the WIN-TAVI Registry.

Background: Limited data exist on the impact of polyvascular disease (PolyVD) on clinical outcomes in female patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). We therefore sought to investigate clinical outcomes in women with versus without PolyVD undergoing TAVR.

Methods: Female participants from the multicentre Women's International Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation (WIN-TAVI) registry were categorized based on the presence or absence of PolyVD.

PCA-based spatial domain identification with state-of-the-art performance.

Motivation: The identification of biologically meaningful domains is a central step in the analysis of spatial transcriptomic data.

Results: Following Occam's razor, we show that a simple PCA-based algorithm for unsupervised spatial domain identification rivals the performance of ten competing state-of-the-art methods across six single-cell spatial transcriptomic datasets. Our reductionist approach, NichePCA, provides researchers with intuitive domain interpretation and excels in execution speed, robustness, and scalability.

Evolution of frontline treatment for multiple myeloma: clinical investigation of quadruplets containing carfilzomib and anti-CD38 monoclonal antibodies.

Although survival rates for patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM) have improved over recent decades, multiple myeloma (MM) remains without a cure for most. There is increasing consensus that achievement of deep remissions, especially minimal residual disease negativity (MRD -), in frontline treatment is crucial and translates into improved survival. The standard of care (SOC) for NDMM consists at minimum of a triplet regimen of therapies, with or without an autologous stem cell transplant, or a doublet regimen for certain ineligible, particularly frail patients who may have specific limitations.

Endogenous CD4 T cells that recognize ALK and the NPM1::ALK fusion protein can be expanded from human peripheral blood.

Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-fusion proteins resulting from chromosomal rearrangements are promising targets for cancer immunotherapy. While ALK-specific CD8+ T cells and epitopes presented on MHC class I have been identified in patients with ALK-positive malignancies, little is known about ALK-specific CD4+ T cells. We screened peripheral blood of ten ALK-positive anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALK+ALCL) patients in remission and six healthy donors for CD4+ T-cell responses to the whole ALK-fusion protein, nucleophosmin (NPM1)::ALK.

Identification of optimal portal pressure decrease to control ascites while minimizing hepatic encephalopathy after TIPS: A multicenter study.

Background Aims: Clinically-significant portal hypertension (CSPH) in liver cirrhosis patients can lead to refractory ascites. A transjugular-intrahepatic-portosystemic shunt (TIPS) treats CSPH but may cause overt hepatic encephalopathy (oHE). Our aim was to determine the optimal reduction of the portal pressure gradient (PPG) via TIPS to control ascites without raising oHE risk.

Safety and efficacy of the therapeutic DNA-based vaccine VB10.16 in combination with atezolizumab in persistent, recurrent or metastatic HPV16-positive cervical cancer: a multicenter, single-arm phase 2a study.

Background: Second-line treatment options for persistent, recurrent or metastatic (r/m) cervical cancer are limited. We investigated the safety, efficacy, and immunogenicity of the therapeutic DNA-based vaccine VB10.16 combined with the immune checkpoint inhibitor atezolizumab in patients with human papillomavirus (HPV)16-positive r/m cervical cancer.