Epileptic Patients with More Clinic Visits Are More Likely to Be Diagnosed with Dementia-A Population-Based Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objective: This retrospective cohort study assessed dementia risk in epilepsy patients associated with the compliance to epileptic treatment visits.

Methods: We used Taiwanese insurance claims data to establish an epilepsy cohort ( = 39,216) diagnosed in 2000-2015 and a matched control cohort without epilepsy ( = 156,864), evaluating the incident dementia by the end of 2016.

Results: The dementia incidence was 2.

Coil Embolization Is Not Justified for Treating Patients with Veno-Occlusive Dysfunction: Case Series and Narrative Literature Review.

Herein, we explore whether coil embolization (CE) is effective in treating veno-occlusive dysfunction (VOD). We present five cases with seven CE episodes and a narrative literature review. From 2013 to 2018, refractory impotence prompted five men to seek penile vascular stripping (PVS), although seven CE episodes were included.

Emergent Penile Venous Stripping for Treating Adolescent Impotence.

Introduction: Traditional anatomy-based penile venous surgery is deemed inadequate. Based on revolutionary insights into penile vasculature, penile venous stripping (PVS) shows promise in treating adolescent erectile dysfunction (AED). We aimed to report on this novel approach.

Sex Differences in the Role of Multimorbidity on Poststroke Disability: The Taiwan Stroke Registry.

Background And Objectives: Multimorbidity is common in patients who experience stroke. Less is known about the effect of specific multimorbidity patterns on long-term disability in patients with stroke. Furthermore, given the increased poststroke disability frequently seen in female vs male patients, it is unknown whether multimorbidity has a similar association with disability in both sexes.

Risk of Malnutrition in Adults Who Have Undergone Sleeve Gastrectomy: A Retrospective Study.

Sleeve gastrectomy achieves long-term weight control by reducing gastric volume. However, postoperative gastrointestinal symptoms and insufficient nutritional intake are likely to occur, which are not conducive to physical health. A retrospective study aimed to investigate changes in nutritional status and associated factors in patients after sleeve gastrectomy.

Factors influencing the effects of the mindfulness-based interventions of patients with substance abuse: A qualitative systematic review and meta-synthesis.

Objective: This article aims to provide the experiences of mindfulness treatments from the perspectives of patients with a history of substance abuse.

Data Source: Peer-reviewed articles on 5 databases, namely, PubMed, PsychINFO, Medline, CINAHL and the Cochrane Library, between the year of 2000 and 2023.

Study Inclusion And Exclusion Criteria: Studies were included if they were published in the English language and reported on qualitative studies that directly engaged patients with experiences of substance abuse and mindfulness treatments.

Increasing Use of Telemedicine for Neurological Disorders During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Mini-Review.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is a highly contagious viral infection. In addition to its association with common pulmonary and gastrointestinal complications, COVID-19 is also associated with numerous neurological and neuropsychiatric conditions. This minireview aims to cover current literature addressing the application of telemedicine in neurological disorders and neuropsychiatric conditions, especially in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Stroke Risk in Young Women with Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Propensity-Score-Matched Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background: Studies on strokes associated with dysmenorrhea are limited. We conducted a propensity-score-matched retrospective cohort study to assess the risk of stroke in women with primary dysmenorrhea (PD).

Methods: From the claims data of one million people in Taiwan's insurance program, we identified 18,783 women aged 15-40 years, newly diagnosed with PD in 2000-2010, without a history of stroke.

Assessment of the anti-nociceptive effects of fetal ventral mesencephalic tissue allografts in a rat model of hemi-Parkinson's disease using fMRI.

Extensive studies showed increased subjective pain sensitivity in Parkinson's disease (PD), which appeared to be partially reversed by dopaminergic (DA) treatment. Although cell replacement represents an attractive therapeutic strategy, its potential for PD-related hyperalgesia remains unclear. We investigated re-establishment of DA function allografting exogenic DA cells on pain hypersensitivity in a rat model of PD.

Risk of Ischemic Heart Disease Associated with Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Population-Based Retrospective Cohort Study.

The awareness on ischemic heart disease (IHD) in women with dysmenorrhea is insufficient. We utilized the National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) of Taiwan to evaluate this relationship. From the claims data, we established a cohort of women aged 15-50 years with primary dysmenorrhea diagnosed from 2000 to 2008 ( = 18,455) and a comparison cohort ( = 36,910) without dysmenorrhea, frequency matched by age and diagnosis date.

Comparing Prodrugs with Acyclovir for Treating Postherpetic Neuralgia among Herpes Zoster Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is a common, painful, and long-term complication of herpes zoster (HZ). PHN increases the demand for healthcare services and, previous studies showed that patients who received antiviral agents were less likely to develop PHN. The objective of this study was to compare the efficacy of prodrugs and acyclovir in treating PHN among patients with HZ.

New insight into chronic pruritus' characteristics and association with the demographic characteristics and sleep of community-dwelling older adults in Taiwan.

This study aimed to understand the characteristics of chronic pruritus (CP), its correlations with sleep quality and demographic characteristics, and its impacts on sleep of older adults. This study used convenience sampling to recruit adults aged 65 or older and living at home. The prevalence rate of CP in older adults was 25.

Impact of Rotating Shifts on Lifestyle Patterns and Perceived Stress among Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Although rotating shifts have a negative health impact, their association with hospital nurses’ health risks remains controversial due to incomplete adjustment in lifestyle patterns and heterogeneity of work schedules. However, whether work schedule characteristics are associated with lifestyle patterns and perceived stress remains undetermined. We assessed the correlations of work schedule characteristics, lifestyle patterns, and perceived stress among hospital nurses.

Women With Osteoarthritis Are at Increased Risk of Ischemic Stroke: A Population-Based Cohort Study.

Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) is more prevalent in women with age. Comorbidities are prevalent in OA patients. In this study, we conducted a follow-up study to evaluate whether women with OA are at an increased risk of ischemic stroke using insurance claims data of Taiwan.

High phosphate induces skeletal muscle atrophy and suppresses myogenic differentiation by increasing oxidative stress and activating Nrf2 signaling.

Skeletal muscle wasting represents both a common phenotype of aging and a feature of pathological conditions such as chronic kidney disease (CKD). Although both clinical data and genetic experiments in mice suggest that hyperphosphatemia accelerates muscle wasting, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. Here, we showed that inorganic phosphate (Pi) dose-dependently decreases myotube size, fusion index, and myogenin expression in mouse C2C12 skeletal muscle cells.

Stroke risks in women with dysmenorrhea by age and stroke subtype.

Background: Dysmenorrhea and stroke are health problems affecting women worldwide in their day-to-day lives; however, there is limited knowledge of the stroke risk in women with dysmenorrhea, and there have been no studies assessing the specific distribution of stroke subtypes. This case-control study assessed stroke subtypes by age and the role of comorbidities in women with dysmenorrhea.

Methods And Findings: Data obtained between 1997 and 2013 from Taiwan's health insurance database identified 514 stroke cases and 31,201 non-stroke controls in women with dysmenorrhea aged 15-49 years.

Estimation and clinical verification of the effective and skin doses for pediatric and adult patients undergoing the cardiac interventional examination using five PMMA phantoms and TLD/ionization chamber technique.

Background: Effective and skin doses gain much attention since the cardiac catheterization laboratory (CCL) is a place where both patients and medical staff are exposed to X-ray or fluoroscopy environment and gain a cumulative dose during the cardiac interventional procedure.

Objective: These doses for pediatric and adult patients undergone cardiac interventional examination using five PMMA phantoms and thermoluminescence dosimeter (TLD)/ionization chamber technique were estimated in this work with the further clinical verification.

Methods: Five PMMA phantoms (10, 30, 50, 70, and 90 kg) were customized to represent baby, child, adult female, adult male, and overweight adult (by Asian complexion standards), respectively, in accordance with the ICRU-48 report.

Assessing the seasonality of occupancy number-associated CO level in a Taiwan hospital.

This study enabled the assessment of indoor CO levels and evaluated the relationship between occupancy numbers with CO levels in a Taiwan hospital. The measurements were conducted over four seasons for five working days (Monday to Friday), with sampling conducted simultaneously from 09:00 am to 5:00 pm and across six locations (for spatial variability): hall (H), registration and cashier (RC), waiting area (WA), occupational therapy room (OT), physical therapy room (PT), and outdoors (O). Based on the analysis, three of the five indoor sampling sites showed significant differences in seasonal CO concentrations (p < 0.

Safrole induced cytotoxicity, DNA damage, and apoptosis in macrophages via reactive oxygen species generation and Akt phosphorylation.

Safrole is a natural compound categorized as a group 2B carcinogen extracted from betel quid chewing, which is a common practice of psychoactive habits integrated into social and cultural ceremonies among serveral million people, especially in Southern or Southeastern Asia. Safrole is one of the major risk compunds for development of oral squamous cell carcinoma and hepatocellular carcinoma via DNA adduction. In innate immunity, macrophages are the predominant cells for non-specific first line defense against pathogens in oral tissue.

Higher stroke incidence in the patients with pancreatic cancer: A nation-based cohort study in Taiwan.

No study has investigated the role of pancreatic cancer in the stroke risk using population data. We used claims data obtained from a universal health insurance program of Taiwan to evaluate the stroke risk in pancreatic cancer patients.From the catastrophic disease registry of the insurance, we identified 7479 patients with pancreatic malignancy without stroke history from 2000 to 2009.

Predictability of successful trans-arterial embolization in pelvic fracture bleeding based on patient initial presentation.

Background: Pelvic fracture bleeding generally leads to hemorrhagic shock. Trans-arterial embolization (TAE) is regarded as the most useful treatment; however, the initial presentation of the patient can impact the effectiveness of TAE for pelvic fracture bleeding. The aim of this retrospective study is to explore whether the patient data at the initial presentation can predict the success of TAE for pelvic fracture bleeding.

The multifaceted link between inflammation and human diseases.

Increasing reports on epidemiological, diagnostic, and clinical studies suggest that dysfunction of the inflammatory reaction results in chronic illnesses such as cancer, arthritis, arteriosclerosis, neurological disorders, liver diseases, and renal disorders. Chronic inflammation might progress if injurious agent persists; however, more typically than not, the response is chronic from the start. Distinct to most changes in acute inflammation, chronic inflammation is characterized by the infiltration of damaged tissue by mononuclear cells like macrophages, lymphocytes, and plasma cells, in addition to tissue destruction and attempts to repair.

Tanshinone IIA Inhibits β-Catenin Nuclear Translocation and IGF-2R Activation via Estrogen Receptors to Suppress Angiotensin II-Induced H9c2 Cardiomyoblast Cell Apoptosis.

Cardiomyopathy involves changes in the myocardial ultra-structure, hypertrophy, apoptosis, fibrosis and inflammation. Angiotensin II (AngII) stimulates the expression of insulin like-growth factors (IGF-2) and IGF-2 receptor (IGF-2R) in H9c2 cardiomyoblasts and subsequently leads to apoptosis. Estrogen receptors protect cardiomyocytes from apoptosis and fibrosis.