Lineage labeling with zebrafish Cre and CreERT2 recombinase CRISPR knock-ins.

Background: The ability to generate endogenous Cre recombinase drivers using CRISPR-Cas9 knock-in technology allows lineage tracing, cell type specific gene studies, and validation of inferred developmental trajectories from phenotypic and gene expression analyses. This report describes endogenous zebrafish Cre and CreERT2 drivers generated with GeneWeld CRISPR-Cas9 precision targeted integration.

Results: and knock-ins crossed with ubiquitous -based Switch reporters led to broad labeling in expected mesodermal and neural crest-derived lineages in cardiac, pectoral fins, pharyngeal arch, liver, intestine, and mesothelial tissues, as well as enteric neurons.

Vitamin D in patients with low tumor-burden indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma treated with rituximab therapy (ILyAD): a randomized, phase 3 clinical trial.

Background: There is a significant association between low vitamin D levels at diagnosis of indolent B-cell lymphomas and inferior overall survival (OS). To determine whether supplemental vitamin D improves event-free survival (EFS) in these patients, we conducted a comparative double-blind study of vitamin D vs. placebo.

Extrarenal manifestations of atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Atypical Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (aHUS) is categorized as a thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA), which arises due to abnormal or unregulated complement pathway activation. While the disease frequently affects renal blood vessels, it can also involve multiple other organ systems. This review examines the prevalence and clinical outcomes of aHUS patients with extrarenal involvement.

Prospective observational study of FKRP-related limb-girdle muscular dystrophy R9: A GRASP consortium study.

Objective: Limb-girdle muscular dystrophy R9 (LGMDR9, formerly known as LGMD2I), caused by variants in the fukutin-related protein (FKRP) gene leads to progressive muscle weakness of the shoulder and pelvic limb-girdles and loss of motor function over time. Clinical management and future trial design are improved by determining which standardized clinical outcome assessments (COA) of function are most appropriate to capture disease presentation and progression, informing endpoint selection and enrollment criteria. The purpose of our study was to evaluate the cross-sectional validity and reliability of clinical outcome assessments in patients with FKRP-related LGMDR9 participating in the Genetic Resolution and Assessments Solving Phenotypes in LGMD (GRASP) natural history study.

Neurocardiology: Major mechanisms and effects.

Neurocardiology is a broad interdisciplinary specialty investigating how the cardiovascular and nervous systems interact. In this brief introductory review, we describe several key aspects of this interaction with specific attention to cardiovascular effects. The review introduces basic anatomy and discusses physiological mechanisms and effects that play crucial roles in the interaction of the cardiovascular and nervous systems, namely: the cardiac neuraxis, the taxonomy of the nervous system, integration of sensory input in the brainstem, influences of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) on heart and vasculature, the neural pathways and functioning of the arterial baroreflex, receptors and ANS effects in the walls of blood vessels, receptors and ANS effects in excitable cells in the heart, ANS effects on heart rate and sympathovagal balance, endo-epicardial inhomogeneity, ANS effects with a balanced vagal and sympathetic stimulation, sympathovagal interaction, arterial baroreflex, baroreflex sensitivity and heart rate variability, arrhythmias and the arterial baroreflex, the cardiopulmonary baroreflex, the exercise pressor reflex, exercise-recovery hysteresis, mental stress, cardiac-cardiac reflexes, the cardiac sympathetic afferent reflex (CSAR), and neuromodulation.

The effect of anti-scatter grids on radiation exposure during transcatheter patent ductus arteriosus closure in premature infants.

Background: Radiation exposure and the effect of anti-scatter grids are not well studied in premature infants during transcatheter patent ductus arteriosus closure.This study aimed to investigate whether the use of anti-scatter grids altered the level of radiation exposure to premature infants undergoing transcatheter patent ductus arteriosus closure.

Methods And Results: Demographic and radiation exposure data for premature infants who underwent transcatheter patent ductus arteriosus closure at the Stead Family Children's Hospital from 10/2019 to 10/2021 were retrospectively reviewed and analyzed.

Social media provides support and education for pregnant people when healthcare does not.

Introduction: The use of social media for health-related reasons is growing, but there is a dearth of research on the mechanisms of support provided. Understanding how social media groups work could improve communications between providers and patients. Preeclampsia (PreE) is a hypertensive disease of pregnancy that has short- and long-term physical and psychosocial effects.

The impact of fellowship training on current practice patterns and the job market: a survey of Fellowship Council graduates.

Background: General surgery has changed significantly over the last decades, with the need for advanced training and expertise. The Fellowship Council (FC) accredits fellowships that train approximately 200 fellows annually. This study aimed to analyze FC graduates' perceptions of training, current practices, and the job market.

Estimation of prevalence of autoimmune diseases in the United States using electronic health record data.

Background: Previous epidemiologic studies of autoimmune diseases in the United States (US) have included a limited number of diseases or used meta-analyses that rely on different data collection methods and analyses for each disease.

Methods: To estimate the prevalence of autoimmune diseases in the US, we used electronic health record data from six large medical systems in the US. We developed a software program using common methodology to compute the estimated prevalence of autoimmune diseases alone and in aggregate that can be readily used by other investigators to replicate or modify the analysis over time.

Archetypal Analysis Reveals Consistent Visual Field Patterns for Stimulus Sizes III and V in Glaucoma and NAION.

Purpose: Disorders of the anterior optic nerve cause quantifiable patterns, or archetypes (AT), in visual fields (VFs) obtained using standardized automated perimetry using stimulus size III (size III). VFs with stimulus size V (size V) can reduce retest variability in eyes with moderate to severe loss. We postulated that VF testing using both stimuli would show similar ATs in eyes with glaucoma and nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION).

Development of a collaborative learning health system data mart in pediatric liver transplantation.

Pediatric liver transplant is a lifesaving intervention for children with disparate pathology ranging from single-gene defects to global liver dysfunction and complications from progressive cirrhosis and portal hypertension. The Starzl Network for Excellence in Pediatric Transplantation (SNEPT), a novel learning health system dedicated to pediatric liver transplant, has previously identified practice variability, waitlist mortality, perioperative complications, and inadequate quality initiative implementation as critical barriers that deserve prioritization in the field. This project was a novel partnership between SNEPT and the United Network for Organ Sharing to co-design a pediatric transplant-specific data mart and web portal to systematically map an approach to understanding these barriers and deliver strategies to combat them.

Therapeutic efficacy of JNJ-49214698, an RSV fusion inhibitor, in RSV-infected neonatal lambs.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a leading cause of respiratory infection, hospitalization and death in infants worldwide. No fully effective RSV therapy using direct antivirals is marketed. Since clinical efficacy data from naturally infected patients for such antivirals are not available yet, animal studies are indispensable to predict therapeutic intervention.

Factors associated with discussing high blood pressure readings in clinical notes.

Background: Blood pressure (BP) is routinely measured and recorded at healthcare visits, but high BP (HBP) measurements are not always discussed in clinical notes. Our objective was to identify patient- and visit-level factors associated with discussion of HBP measurements in clinical notes, among patients without prior diagnosis of hypertension.

Methods: Data from 2016-2022 for all patients with any BP record of 140/90 mmHg or greater were obtained from University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics electronic medical records.

Kidney Outcomes in Children Receiving Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation: A Single-Center Acute Cohort From 2009 to 2019, Followed to 2021.

Objectives: Long-term kidney outcomes after extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) are little quantified and understood. We aimed to describe the frequency of kidney dysfunction screening during follow-up and the prevalence of long-term kidney disease.

Design: Retrospective cohort of pediatric ECMO patients with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) (mL/min/1.

Epistaxis Risk in Patients Treated With Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion Versus Oral Anticoagulation.

Introduction: Anticoagulants (AC) are associated with epistaxis in atrial fibrillation (AF) patients. Left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) is a treatment that allows AF patients to stop AC. The aim of this study is to evaluate the risk of developing epistaxis following LAAO versus direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC) and warfarin.

Artificial intelligence-guided design of lipid nanoparticles for pulmonary gene therapy.

Ionizable lipids are a key component of lipid nanoparticles, the leading nonviral messenger RNA delivery technology. Here, to advance the identification of ionizable lipids beyond current methods, which rely on experimental screening and/or rational design, we introduce lipid optimization using neural networks, a deep-learning strategy for ionizable lipid design. We created a dataset of >9,000 lipid nanoparticle activity measurements and used it to train a directed message-passing neural network for prediction of nucleic acid delivery with diverse lipid structures.

Billing for Exercise Is Medicine: An Analysis of Reimbursement Trends for Physical Activity-Related Billing Codes.

Background: Physical inactivity is a significant health risk factor linked to chronic diseases and premature death. To address this, initiatives like Exercise is Medicine® aim to promote physical activity in health care systems. However, integrating physical activity counseling into clinical practice faces barriers such as limited reimbursement.

Impact of COVID-19 on newborn hearing screening (NBHS) and early hearing detection and intervention (EHDI) services: A statewide analysis of differences and policy implications.

Introduction: This study investigates the pandemic's impact on newborn hearing screening (NBHS) and access to hearing services for children in Utah. Specifically, it explores the differences in NBHS rates, diagnostic hearing testing, early intervention enrollment, and congenital cytomegalovirus (cCMV) screening before and during the pandemic.

Methods: Utilizing a comprehensive statewide Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) database, we analyzed data from January 2017 to December 2021, excluding a 6-month period preceding March 16, 2020, to eliminate potential confounders related to pandemic onset.

Supplementary oxygen efficacy for chronic pulmonary disorders and exertion desaturation.

Introduction: Exertion-induced desaturation (EID) is a common complication of numerous pulmonary disorders and often treated with supplementary oxygen during exertion. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised clinical trials (RCTs) to evaluate the efficacy of supplementary oxygen for EID in pulmonary disorders.

Material And Methods: Medline and Embase were systematically searched from July 2022 to June 2023 following PRISMA guidelines.

Treatment With mTOR Inhibitors as Primary Immunosuppression After Combined Heart and Kidney Transplantation.

Aims: Sirolimus (SRL) mitigates cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) progression and confers renal protection after heart transplantation (HT). However, its safety and efficacy in patients undergoing combined heart and kidney transplantation (HKT) are unclear. This study aimed to investigate the impact of conversion from calcineurin inhibitors (CNI) to SRL on CAV progression, renal function, and outcomes in HKT compared to isolated HT.

Development and Validation of the Length, Segment, and Etiology Anterior Urethral Stricture Disease Staging System Using Longitudinal Urethroplasty Outcomes Data From the Trauma and Urologic Reconstruction Network of Surgeons.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to create and validate an anterior urethral stricture disease (aUSD) staging system based on the previously validated Length (L), Urethral Segment (S), and Etiology (E, LSE) classification system.

Materials And Methods: The Trauma and Urologic Reconstruction Network of Surgeons (TURNS) prospective database was used to create and validate the staging system. A novel Urethroplasty Triad Score was created to aid in ranking the stagings into stricture severity based on (1) functional outcomes, (2) location of urethral meatus (eg, orthotopic, perineal), and (3) number of surgeries required for repair.