Incidence and Clinical Characteristics of Post LASIK Ectasia: A Review of over 30,000 LASIK Cases.

Purpose: To report the incidence of postoperative ectasia after laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK).

Methods: A retrospective case review of 30,167 eyes (16,732 patients) was conducted following LASIK between August 2007 and August 2015. The follow-up was between 2 and 8 years.

PM2.5 exposure aggravates left heart failure induced pulmonary hypertension.

Particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) exposure is high risk to cardiovascular diseases.

Impact on mortality of adherence to evidence-based interventions in patients with catheter-related bloodstream infection due to methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus.

Background: Recent studies have demonstrated improved survival when the management of Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infection (BSI) is compliant with evidence-based therapeutic interventions. Whether this effect extends to low-risk sources, such as catheter-related BSI, remains unclear.

Methods: We retrospectively included 225 episodes of methicillin-sensitive S.

Effects of match play and training on circulating S100B concentration in professional rugby players.

Objectives: Examine the effects of match play and a season of training on serum S100B concentration in male professional rugby players. To assess the influence of contact play, values were compared with age- and fitness-matched athletes not involved in a contact sport.

Methods: Over a 2-year period, blood samples were collected from 38 players in pre-season, end of season, and post-matches (within 2 h).

Prognostic utility of circulating nucleic acids in acute brain injuries.

Acute brain injuries represent major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Nevertheless, therapeutic options are centered mainly on supportive care, and accurate prognosis prediction following traumatic brain injury (TBI) or stroke remains a challenge in clinical settings. Areas covered: Circulating DNA and RNA have shown potential as predictive molecules in acute brain injuries.

Examining the relationship between performance-based and questionnaire assessments of executive function in young preterm children: Implications for clinical practice.

The aim of this study was to determine whether specific performance-based executive function assessment tools were associated with executive functioning in everyday life as reported by parents and teachers of four- to five-year-old preterm and term children. At the age of 4 years, 141 preterm children born <33 weeks' gestation and 77 term children were assessed using performance-based intelligence (WPPSI-III) and executive function (EF) assessment tools (NEPSY-II, Day-Night and Shape School tasks). The assessment results were compared with the parent and teacher completed questionnaires of EF (BRIEF-P) when the children started kindergarten at the age of 4 to 5 years.

infection in oncology patients: epidemiology, pathophysiology, risk factors, diagnosis, and treatment.

infection (CDI) is one of the most common healthcare-associated infections in the United States. Its incidence has been increasing in the recent years despite preventative measures. CDI increases annual expenses by 1.

Sexism, attitudes, and behaviors towards violence against women in medical emergency services workers in Erzurum, Turkey.

Background: In Turkey, almost every 4 out of 10 married women have been subjected to physical abuse by their spouses. Although studies on the prevalence of domestic violence in Turkey abound, little has been published about first responders' attitudes and behaviors towards violence against women and on sexism.

Objective: Our study examined the attitudes and behaviors of Erzurum City medical emergency services workers towards violence against women, and their relationship with sexist attitudes.

Evaluation of a community-based ART programme after tapering home visits in rural Sierra Leone: a 24-month retrospective study.

Evaluations of community-based antiretroviral therapy (ART) programmes have demonstrated positive outcomes, but little is known about the impact of tapering community-based ART. The objective of this study was to assess 24-month HIV retention outcomes of a community-based ART programme and its tapered visit frequency in Koidu City, Sierra Leone. This retrospective, quasi-experimental study compared outcomes of 52 HIV-infected persons initiated on community-based ART against 91 HIV-infected persons receiving the standard of care from November 2009 to February 2013.

Detection of pathogenic Leptospira in ornamental water fountains from urban sites in Cali, Colombia.

Leptospirosis is a disease endemic to both rural and urban areas of tropical countries and resource-poor communities. Little information is available on the presence of Leptospira spp. in urban water sources.

Recent developments in the use of biologics targeting IL-5, IL-4, or IL-13 in severe refractory asthma.

Severe or refractory asthma is seen in approximately 5% of asthmatic subjects who have unsatisfactory symptom control despite adherence to high-dose inhaled glucocorticoid therapies resulting in significant morbidity, reduced quality of life and health-care cost implications. Asthma exhibits marked heterogeneity both clinically and at the molecular phenotypic level requiring specifically targeted treatments to block the key pathways of the disease. Monoclonal antibody-based biologics targeted at inhibition of the type 2 cytokines IL-4, IL-5, and IL-13 have considerable potential as effective treatments for severe asthma.

Assessing learning in the adaptive curriculum.

Background: Medical education is a dynamic process that will continuously evolve to respond to changes in the foundations of medicine, the clinical practice of medicine and in health systems science.

Purpose: In this paper, we review how assessing learning in such a dynamic environment requires comprehensive flexible and adaptable methodological approaches designed to assess knowledge attainment and transfer, clinical skills/competency development, and ethical/professional behavior. Adaptive assessments should measure the learner's ability to observe where changes in health care delivery are needed and how to implement them.

Establishing the usefulness of the GO-QOL in a UK hospital-treated population with thyroid eye disease in the CIRTED trial.

Thyroid eye disease (TED) is a potentially sight-threatening and cosmetically disfiguring condition arising in 25-50% of patients with Graves' hyperthyroidism. CIRTED is the first study to evaluate the long-term role of radiotherapy and prolonged immunosuppression with azathioprine in treating TED, one aim of which was to validate the use of the English version of GO-QOL in an UK population with TED. In a three stage design over a 48 week period, the GO-QOL was tested and compared to a general measure of quality of life (WHOQOL-Bref).

Suitable hepatitis B vaccine for adult immunization in China: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection remains an important public health problem in China, and adults need to be vaccinated. This systematic review and meta-analysis assessed the appropriate immunization of adults in China. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were eligible, and seroprotection was defined as anti-HBs≥ 10 mIU/ml; 18,308 participants in 27 studies were included.

Rituximab and low dose oral immune modulating treatment to maintain a sustained response in severe pemphigus patients.

This pilot retrospective study examined the role of continuous low-dose maintenance immunomodulatory treatment (IMT) as an adjunct to rituximab (RTX) rescue therapy in severe pemphigus vulgaris (PV) and pemphigus foliaceus (PF) after a complete response (CR) to RTX was achieved. Ten severe pemphigus patients who received RTX rescue therapy were evaluated after achieving CR. The post-RTX clinical course and long-term follow up was compared between patients who adhered to a low recommended dose (LRMD) to patients who were non-compliant with LRMD.

Identification and description of controlled clinical trials published in Spanish Ophthalmology Journals.

Purpose: Properly conducted controlled clinical trials (CCTs) provide the highest level of evidence for optimising decision-making in healthcare. Electronic search strategies do not exhaustively retrieve them, because of issues related to indexing, exclusion of journals in languages other than English, among others. A handsearch approach is therefore warranted.

Acetazolamide alleviates sequelae of hyperglycaemic intracerebral haemorrhage by suppressing astrocytic reactive oxygen species.

Hyperglycaemia is associated with the poor outcome after intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH). Acetazolamide (AZA), a kind of carbonic anhydrogenase (CA) inhibitor, its effectiveness in ICH had been reported. However, the connections between AZA and ICH, especially in hyperglycaemia condition had never been defined.

Oncostatin M and its role in fibrosis.

Oncostain M, a member of the IL-6 family of cytokines, is produced by immune cells in response to infections and tissue injury. OSM has a broad, often context-dependent effect on various cellular processes including differentiation, hematopoiesis, cell proliferation, and cell survival. OSM signaling is initiated by binding to type I (LIFRβ/gp130) or type II (OSMRβ/gp130) receptor complexes and involves activation of Janus kinase/signal transducer and activator of transcription, mitogen-activated protein kinase, and phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase.

Child Sexual Abuse News: A Systematic Review of Content Analysis Studies.

Public knowledge and attitudes toward child sexual abuse are shaped through media depictions and coverage. Since the media are the main source of information about child sexual abuse, studies of child sexual abuse news can help us understand how news is created, how child sexual abuse is presented to the public, and what is the possible impact of such presentation and coverage on the audience. A systematic review of content analysis research is conducted using predefined criteria in order to identify quality studies, main findings, research gaps and to develop recommendations for future studies.