Cervical Spine Myelopathy Caused by Calcium Pyrophosphate Dihydrate Deposition of the Ligamentum Flavum: A Case Report.

Calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate deposition (CPPD), commonly known as pseudogout, is an inflammatory arthropathy primarily affecting the knee, wrist, hip, and shoulder joints. However, it can occasionally deposit in various structures surrounding the spinal column, including the facet joints, ligamentum flavum, bursae, and intervertebral discs. Such occurrences are typically asymptomatic or associated with mild neck pain.

Demographic and physiological factors associated with clinically significant eyelid edema in patients following upper eyelid surgery.

Purpose: To investigate demographic and physiological variables associated with clinically significant edema after upper eyelid surgery.

Methods: A retrospective chart review was performed on patients who underwent blepharoplasty or external levator advancement with or without lid crease formation between January 2018 and January 2021 at the University of Southern California. Age, sex, pertinent medical history (medications causing edema and comorbidities), and pertinent surgical procedures were all collected.

Non-steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drug Use and Risk of Age-Related Macular Degeneration in the California Teachers Study.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine whether use of regular aspirin and/or other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) is associated with the development of age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Methods: In the California Teachers Study cohort (N = 88,481) we identified diagnoses of AMD up to December 31, 2012 by linkage to statewide hospital discharge records. Aspirin, ibuprofen, other NSAIDs, and acetaminophen use and comprehensive risk factor information were collected via self-administered questionnaires at baseline in 1995-1996 and a follow-up questionnaire in 2005-2006.

Physician assistants in geriatric medical care.

Background: The US population is maturing. As of 2020, over 52 million (16%) people are age 65 or older. With a citizenry that is increasingly "gray," the nation is short of medical providers who specialize in geriatric medical care.

Digital technology, tele-medicine and artificial intelligence in ophthalmology: A global perspective.

The simultaneous maturation of multiple digital and telecommunications technologies in 2020 has created an unprecedented opportunity for ophthalmology to adapt to new models of care using tele-health supported by digital innovations. These digital innovations include artificial intelligence (AI), 5th generation (5G) telecommunication networks and the Internet of Things (IoT), creating an inter-dependent ecosystem offering opportunities to develop new models of eye care addressing the challenges of COVID-19 and beyond. Ophthalmology has thrived in some of these areas partly due to its many image-based investigations.

Increased hepatic and circulating chemokine and osteopontin expression occurs early in human NAFLD development.

Background & Aims: Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a subtype of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) that can lead to fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma, is characterized by hepatic inflammation. Despite evolving therapies aimed to ameliorate inflammation in NASH, the transcriptional changes that lead to inflammation progression in NAFLD remain poorly understood. The aim of this pilot study was to define transcriptional changes in early, non-fibrotic NAFLD using two independent biopsy-proven NAFLD cohorts.

Misdiagnosis and Diabetic Ketoacidosis at Diagnosis of Type 1 Diabetes: Patient and Caregiver Perspectives.

Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is a life-threatening complication that frequently occurs at diagnosis of type 1 diabetes, occurs more commonly when a patient is misdiagnosed, is the leading cause of death in children with type 1 diabetes, and is associated with worse long-term outcomes. Our retrospective online survey found that 25% of all participants were misdiagnosed and that misdiagnosis was associated with an 18% increased risk for DKA compared to those correctly diagnosed. Adult providers should consider type 1 diabetes when diagnosing type 2 diabetes, and pediatric providers should rule out type 1 diabetes when a patient reports nonspecific viral symptoms.

Guided Imagery Council: Feasibility, Acceptability, and Preliminary Effects of a Novel Group-Based Lifestyle Intervention in Predominantly Latino Adolescents.

Background: The combination of higher stress and higher obesity rates suggests that Latino youth in the United States may be a population at particular risk for obesity-related adverse health outcomes. The objective of this article is to describe the feasibility, acceptability, and quantitative stress-related outcomes of a 6-week pilot lifestyle intervention using guided imagery (GI) council in order to reduce risk factors for obesity-related disease.

Methods: Seventeen urban, adolescents (12 females/5 males, 16 Latino, age 17 ± 1 years, grades 9-12, body mass index 22 ± 4) participated in the 6-week, after-school pilot intervention.

Multiparametric liquid biopsy analysis in metastatic prostate cancer.

Molecular profiling of prostate cancer with liquid biopsies, such as circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and cell-free nucleic acid analysis, yields informative yet distinct data sets. Additional insights may be gained by simultaneously interrogating multiple liquid biopsy components to construct a more comprehensive molecular disease profile. We conducted an initial proof-of-principle study aimed at piloting this multiparametric approach.

A randomized trial of a low-dose Rasagiline and Pramipexole combination (P2B001) in early Parkinson's disease.

Background: Rasagiline and pramipexole act to improve striatal dopaminergic transmission in PD via distinct and potentially synergistic mechanisms. We performed a placebo-controlled study to determine whether 2 doses of a novel slow-release, low-dose combination of rasagiline and pramipexole (P2B001) are effective and have a good safety profile in patients with early untreated PD.

Methods: Previously untreated patients with early PD were randomized (1:1:1) to once-daily treatment with P2B001 (0.

Maternal Preeclampsia and Odds of Childhood Cancers in Offspring: A California Statewide Case-Control Study.

Background: Preeclampsia is a major cause of adverse effects on fetal health. We examined associations between fetal exposure to preeclampsia and subsequent odds of childhood cancers.

Methods: We obtained childhood cancer cases (n = 13 669) diagnosed at 5 years old or younger between 1988 and 2012 from the California Cancer Registry and linked them to birth certificates.

Real-time analysis of RAG complex activity in V(D)J recombination.

Single-molecule FRET (smFRET) and single-molecule colocalization (smCL) assays have allowed us to observe the recombination-activating gene (RAG) complex reaction mechanism in real time. Our smFRET data have revealed distinct bending modes at recombination signal sequence (RSS)-conserved regions before nicking and synapsis. We show that high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) acts as a cofactor in stabilizing conformational changes at the 12RSS heptamer and increasing RAG1/2 binding affinity for 23RSS.

Genetic variability in ABCB1, occupational pesticide exposure, and Parkinson's disease.

Background: Studies suggested that variants in the ABCB1 gene encoding P-glycoprotein, a xenobiotic transporter, may increase susceptibility to pesticide exposures linked to Parkinson's Disease (PD) risk.

Objectives: To investigate the joint impact of two ABCB1 polymorphisms and pesticide exposures on PD risk.

Methods: In a population-based case control study, we genotyped ABCB1 gene variants at rs1045642 (c.

Sinusoidal endothelial cells prevent rat stellate cell activation and promote reversion to quiescence.

Unlabelled: Capillarization precedes hepatic fibrosis. We hypothesize that capillarization of sinusoidal endothelial cells (SEC) is permissive for hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation and therefore permissive for fibrosis. We examined whether freshly isolated SECs prevent activation of HSCs and promote reversion to quiescence, and whether this effect was lost in capillarization.

Murine hematopoietic stem cell characterization and its regulation in BM transplantation.

Using 5-color fluorescence-activated cell sorting, we isolated a subset of murine pluripotent hematopoietic stem cells (PHSC) with the phenotype Lin(-) Sca(+) kit(+) CD38(+) CD34(-) that appears to fulfill the criteria for most primitive PHSC. In the presence of whole bone marrow (BM) competitor cells, these cells produced reconstitution in lethally irradiated primary, secondary, and tertiary murine transplant recipients over the long term. However, these cells alone could not produce reconstitution in lethally irradiated recipients.