Increasing provider awareness of Lp(a) testing for patients at risk for cardiovascular disease: A comparative study.

Background: Lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] is a low-density lipoprotein variant with atherogenic, thrombogenic, and pro-inflammatory properties that may have numerous pathologic effects, including dyslipidemia. Screening for Lp(a) is clinically significant, due to its causal role in atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). Among clinicians, however, there remains a general lack of both clinical awareness of Lp(a) and adequate tools to track Lp(a) testing in patients.

Characterizing the Relationships Amongst Psychological Safety, the Learning Environment, and Well-Being in Surgical Faculty and Trainees.

Objective: Learning environments affect the well-being of surgical faculty and trainees. Psychological safety (PS) has been linked with learning behaviors and aspects of well-being within medicine; however, given the unique challenges inherent to the surgical learning environment, there is a need to more closely examine these concepts for surgical faculty and trainees. The objective of this study is to examine the relationships between learning environment and PS, as well as PS and well-being with surgery.

Rare dysfunctional SCN2A variants are associated with malformation of cortical development.

Objective: SCN2A encodes the voltage-gated sodium (Na+) channel α subunit Na1.2, which is important for the generation and forward and back propagation of action potentials in neurons. Genetic variants in SCN2A are associated with a spectrum of neurodevelopmental disorders.

2024 Update of the RECOVER-Adult Long COVID Research Index.

Importance: Classification of persons with long COVID (LC) or post-COVID-19 condition must encompass the complexity and heterogeneity of the condition. Iterative refinement of the classification index for research is needed to incorporate newly available data as the field rapidly evolves.

Objective: To update the 2023 research index for adults with LC using additional participant data from the Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery (RECOVER-Adult) study and an expanded symptom list based on input from patient communities.

Light adjustable lens in eyes with a history of radial keratotomy.

Purpose: To evaluate visual and refractive outcomes in eyes with a history of radial keratotomy (RK) implanted with the second-generation light-adjustable lens (LAL).

Setting: Private practice, multiple locations.

Design: Retrospective, consecutive case series.

Association of Plasma Omega-3 Levels With Incident Heart Failure and Related Mortalities.

Objective: To investigate the association between plasma omega-3 levels and incident heart failure (HF) and to examine their relationship with total and cardiovascular (CV) mortality among patients with preexisting HF.

Patients And Methods: The UK Biobank is an ongoing prospective cohort study of individuals recruited in the United Kingdom between April 1, 2007, and December 31. 2010.

Omega-3 and Risk of atrial fibrillation: Vagally-mediated double-edged sword.

Objective: Studies regarding effects of omega-3 fatty acids, specifically eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), on risk of atrial fibrillation (AF) have reported discordant results. The aim of this review is to clarify effects of marine omega-3 intake on risk of AF.

Patients And Methods: A PubMed search was performed using terms: atrial fibrillation, omega-3, EPA, DHA, vagal tone.

Fostering the international interoperability of clinical research networks to tackle undiagnosed and under-researched rare diseases.

Clinical research is an essential component to advance diagnosis and therapeutic development. In 2022, the International Rare Diseases Research Consortium (IRDiRC) and the European Joint Programme on Rare Diseases (EJP RD) brought together key stakeholders from across the globe to discuss common themes in clinical research networks (CRNs) for rare diseases. Various topics were raised during discussions including current state of CRNs, the need for new CRNs, multi-stakeholder perspectives on value of CRNs, and ways to collaborate on a global scale.

Two-Year Efficacy and Safety Outcomes of the Pivotal OASIS Study Using the Revi System for Treatment of Urgency Urinary Incontinence.

Purpose: The BlueWind Medical Device, Revi, is a novel implantable tibial neuromodulation system powered by an external, battery-operated wearable that facilitates individually tailored stimulation to provide treatment for urgency urinary incontinence (ie, overactive bladder wet). The Revi System is the first Food and Drug Administration-cleared implantable neuromodulation device which can be used without prior failure with more conservative treatment options. Two-year follow-up results of the OASIS study are presented.

A sexually dimorphic signature of activity-dependent BDNF signaling on the intrinsic excitability of pyramidal neurons in the prefrontal cortex.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of neurodevelopmental disorders with strong genetic heterogeneity and more prevalent in males than females. We and others hypothesize that diminished activity-dependent neural signaling is a common molecular pathway dysregulated in ASD caused by diverse genetic mutations. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a key growth factor mediating activity-dependent neural signaling in the brain.

Airway ciliary microenvironment responses in mice with primary ciliary dyskinesia and central pair apparatus defects.

Dysfunction of motile cilia can impair mucociliary clearance in the airway and result in primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD). We previously showed that mutations in central pair apparatus (CPA) genes perturb ciliary motility and result in PCD in mouse models. However, little is known about how epithelial cell types in the ciliary microenvironment of the upper airway respond to defects in ciliary motility and mucociliary clearance.

Impact of using dosing criteria to refine pharmacogenomic clinical decision support for tricyclic antidepressants.

Disclaimer: In an effort to expedite the publication of articles, AJHP is posting manuscripts online as soon as possible after acceptance. Accepted manuscripts have been peer-reviewed and copyedited, but are posted online before technical formatting and author proofing. These manuscripts are not the final version of record and will be replaced with the final article (formatted per AJHP style and proofed by the authors) at a later time.

Downregulation of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) within the paraventricular nucleus in Ins2-type-1 diabetic mice contributes to sympatho-excitation.

Activation of both renin-angiotensin system (RAS) and the sympathetic system is the primary etiologic event in developing cardiovascular complications in diabetes mellitus (DM). However, the precise mechanisms for sympathetic activation in DM have not been elucidated. Here we attempted to investigate diabetes-linked cardiovascular dysregulation due to angiotensin II (Ang II)-mediated reduction in neuronal nitric oxide (NO) synthase (nNOS) within the paraventricular neuleus (PVN).

Gestational Diabetes-like Fuels Impair Mitochondrial Function and Long-Chain Fatty Acid Uptake in Human Trophoblasts.

In the parent, gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) causes both hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia. Despite excess lipid availability, infants exposed to GDM are at risk for essential long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LCPUFA) deficiency. Isotope studies have confirmed less LCPUFA transfer from the parent to the fetus, but how diabetic fuels impact placental fatty acid (FA) uptake and lipid droplet partitioning is not well-understood.

The Effects of Omega-3 Supplementation on the Omega-3 Index and Quality of Life and Pain Scores in Dogs.

This study in dogs had two objectives: first, to determine whether a daily supplement of marine omega-3 (EPA and DHA) would (1) increase red blood cell EPA + DHA levels (i.e., the Omega-3 Index derived from dried blood spot analysis) and (2) impact health-related measures.

Heart rate variability during pregnancy moderates the impact of depressive symptoms on fetal growth.

Depression occurs in up to 13 % of all pregnancies and is associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes. However, the literature regarding associations between depression and lower birth weight or fetal growth has been inconsistent. Here, we consider if high frequency heart rate variability (HF-HRV) may moderate the association between depression and birth weight.

Recent studies confirm the utility of the omega-3 index.

Purpose Of Review: The Omega-3 Index (O3I) was proposed 20 years ago as not only a marker of body omega-3 fatty acid status, but more importantly, as a risk factor for fatal coronary heart disease. The purpose of this review is to document the continued and growing use of this metric in nutrition research.

Recent Findings: Of the 456 citations to the O3I in PubMed, 58 have appeared in the last 18 months.

Cross-sectional analysis of plasma n-3 fatty acid levels and self-reported hearing difficulty in the UK Biobank Cohort.

Background: Disabling hearing loss affects ∼430 million people globally. Fish consumption and long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) intake were inversely associated with risk of hearing loss, but the association of plasma n-3 PUFAs and hearing loss is unclear.

Objective: To examine the associations between plasma n-3 PUFA fractions (as % of total fatty acids), i.