Evaluating pulmonary stenosis and regurgitation impact on cardiac strain and strain rate in a porcine model via magnetic resonance feature tracking.

Background: Pulmonary stenosis (PS) is common in congenital heart disease and an integral finding in Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF). Pulmonary regurgitation (PR) is more commonly found following surgery in repaired TOF. We aimed to evaluate the haemodynamic effects of PS and PR on cardiac physiology in a porcine model using cardiac magnetic resonance-based feature tracking (CMR-FT) deformation imaging.

Intracardiac or transesophageal echocardiography for left atrial appendage occlusion: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) appears to be a potential alternative for percutaneous left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) to transesophageal echocardiography (TEE). Thus, a meta-analysis was performed comparing ICE vs. TEE for LAAO guidance.

Sex differences in patients with working diagnosis of myocardial infarction with nonobstructive coronary arteries (MINOCA).

Myocardial infarction with nonobstructive coronary arteries (MINOCA) constitutes 3-15% of all acute myocardial infarctions. Women are more frequently diagnosed with MINOCA, although the influence of sex on long-term outcomes is still unclear. In this study we aimed to compare sex-based differences in baseline characteristics and clinical outcomes in patients with suspected MINOCA.

Phage therapy could be key to conquering persistent bacterial lung infections in children.

Persistent bacterial lung infections in children lead to significant morbidity and mortality due to antibiotic resistance. In this paper, we describe how phage therapy has shown remarkable efficacy in preclinical and clinical studies, demonstrating significant therapeutic benefits through various administration routes. Ongoing trials are evaluating its safety and effectiveness against different pathogens.

Spinal cord injury induces transient activation of hepatic stellate cells in rat liver.

Spinal cord injury (SCI) causes abnormal liver function, the development of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease features and metabolic impairment in patients. Experimental models also demonstrate acute and chronic changes in the liver that may, in turn, affect SCI recovery. These changes have collectively been proposed to contribute to the development of a SCI-induced metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH).

Patient-derived xenografts from circulating cancer stem cells as a preclinical model for personalized pancreatic cancer research.

Patient-derived xenografts (PDXs) provide biologically relevant models and potential platforms for the development of treatment strategies for precision medicine in pancreatic cancer. Furthermore, circulating epithelial tumor cells (CETCs/CTCs) are released into the bloodstream by solid tumors and a rare subpopulation-circulating cancer stem cells (cCSCs) - is considered to be responsible for recurrence and plays a key role in metastasis. For the identification of cCSCs, an innovative in vitro assay to generate tumorspheres was established in this study.

Multiplex-PCR technique to predict polymorphic antigens - M, N, S and s - and associations between their alleles and Mi-associated hybrid glycophorins.

Serological typing of MNS polymorphic antigens - M, N, S and s - remains a fundamental technique in transfusion medicine and prenatal care, providing essential information for matching blood donors and recipients and managing haemolytic disease. Although this method is well proven and routinely used, it is not a comprehensive solution, as it has several weaknesses. Alternatively, multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a commonly used genotyping tool due to its potency and ability to amplify several DNA targets simultaneously in a single reaction.

Evaluation of feasibility accuracy and safety after 79 O-ARM based stereotactic brain biopsies.

Frame-based Stereotactic Brain Biopsy (FSBB) is a minimally invasive procedure with a view to increasing the diagnostic yield. The aim of this study was to investigate the accuracy and safety of FSBB with the help of the intraoperative 3D O-ARM system. A preoperative MRI allowed for targeting the tissue to be sampled.

A systematic review of emergency room laparotomy in patients with severe abdominal trauma.

Traumatic intra-abdominal hemorrhage contributes to mortality in patients with trauma. However, initiating an emergent laparotomy in the operating room (OR) as a standard treatment can sometimes be time-consuming. To overcome this issue, laparotomy is performed in the emergency room (ER) in some institutions.

RNAi-based ALOX15B silencing augments keratinocyte inflammation in vitro via EGFR/STAT1/JAK1 signalling.

Arachidonate 15-lipoxygenase type B (ALOX15B) peroxidises polyunsaturated fatty acids to their corresponding fatty acid hydroperoxides, which are subsequently reduced into hydroxy-fatty acids. A dysregulated abundance of these biological lipid mediators has been reported in the skin and blood of psoriatic compared to healthy individuals. RNAscope and immunohistochemistry revealed increased ALOX15B expression in lesional psoriasis samples.

Tp53 determines the spatial dynamics of M1/M2 tumor-associated macrophages and M1-driven tumoricidal effects.

The spatial role of M1 and M2 tumor-associated macrophages (M1/M2 TAMs) in precision medicine remains unclear. EGFR and TP53 are among the most frequently mutated genes in lung adenocarcinoma. We characterized the mutation status and density of M1/M2 TAMs within tumor islets and stroma in 117 lung adenocarcinomas using next-generation sequencing and immunohistochemistry, respectively.

Emotion regulation-based internet-delivered cognitive behavioural therapy for premenstrual dysphoric disorder: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial in Sweden.

Introduction: Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) is a cyclic mood disorder affecting around 2%-5% of women of reproductive age. Pharmacological interventions exist, but many patients with PMDD experience residual symptoms, discontinue medications or refrain from them due to side effects. Thus, non-pharmacological treatments are needed as an alternative or additive treatment strategy.

Improving sonographic visualisation of the appendix in a regional referral hospital.

Ultrasound is a first-line and often preferred imaging modality in the diagnosis of acute appendicitis. When the appendix is not visualised during a dedicated appendix ultrasound study, patients may require a CT study, which uses ionising radiation, or undergo conservative clinical observation with the inherent risk of clinical deterioration, perforation and sepsis. Median baseline data, at our hospital imaging department, revealed a rate of combined normal and abnormal appendix visualisation of 34.

Safety and efficacy of early initiation of sodium-glucose co-transporter inhibitors 2 in patients hospitalized for acute heart failure: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Aims: Data on the early use of sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) in patients with acute heart failure (HF) are conflicting, and mostly evaluating soft endpoints (i.e., indices of congestion, renal function, ejection fraction, and diuresis).

Frequency of anti-IgLON5 disease in patients with a typical clinical presentation of progressive supranuclear palsy/corticobasal syndrome.

Serum anti-IgLON5 antibodies, which were tested in 223 patients meeting the diagnostic criteria for progressive supranuclear palsy/corticobasal syndrome (PSP/CBS), were negative in all patients. Our study suggests that the frequency of anti-IgLON5 disease is extremely rare in patients with typical presentation of PSP/CBS.

A noise-robust post-processing pipeline for accelerated phase-cycled Na Multi-Quantum Coherences MRI.

Purpose: To develop an improved post-processing pipeline for noise-robust accelerated phase-cycled Cartesian Single (SQ) and Triple Quantum (TQ) sodium (Na) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) of in vivo human brain at 7 T.

Theory And Methods: Our pipeline aims to tackle the challenges of Na Multi-Quantum Coherences (MQC) MRI including low Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) and time-consuming Radiofrequency (RF) phase-cycling. Our method combines low-rank k-space denoising for SNR enhancement with Dynamic Mode Decomposition (DMD) to robustly separate SQ and TQ signal components.

Effect of empagliflozin on plasma lipids and lipoproteins in type 2 diabetes and heart failure - Empire HF and SIMPLE.

Objective: Beyond glucose-lowering, sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors have cardioprotective effects with unclear mechanisms. We examined changes in an extensive panel of plasma lipids, lipoproteins, and apolipoproteins and whether these changes were independent of weight loss, hemoglobin A1c, and hematocrit in patients treated with empagliflozin versus placebo to better understand the observed cardioprotective effects.

Methods: Post-hoc analyses of two double-blind, placebo-controlled trials, the Empire HF trial including 190 patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction and the SIMPLE trial including 90 patients with type 2 diabetes randomized to, respectively, 10 mg and 25 mg empagliflozin daily or placebo for 12 weeks.

Prostate-specific Membrane Antigen-radioguided Surgery in an EMBARK-like Cohort of Patients with Oligorecurrent Hormone-sensitive Prostate Cancer: Delay in Systemic Treatment.

We analyzed data for a cohort of 111 patients with EMBARK-like biochemical recurrence (BCR) of prostate cancer (prostate-specific antigen [PSA] doubling time ≤9 mo, PSA ≥1 ng/ml) after radical prostatectomy and localized oligorecurrence on prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-based imaging. All patients underwent PSMA-radioguided surgery (RGS). At PSMA-RGS, the median PSA was 1.

Influence of sintering temperature and aging on the color and translucency of zirconia.

Statement Of Problem: Translucent zirconias are promising materials for monolithic prostheses. However, information on their optical behavior after sintering and aging protocols is scarce.

Purpose: The purpose of this in vitro study was to evaluate the color and translucency of zirconia subjected to different sintering temperatures and aging.

WHO guidelines on waist circumference and physical activity and their joint association with cancer risk.

Objective: Low body fat and high physical activity levels are key lifestyle factors in cancer prevention, but the interplay of abdominal obesity and physical activity on cancer risk remains unknown. We explored individual and joint associations of waist circumference and physical activity with cancer risk.

Methods: Using UK Biobank data (n=315 457), we categorised individuals according to WHO guideline thresholds for waist circumference and self-reported physical activity levels.

Proximal protection devices for carotid artery stenting - A benchtop assessment of flow reversal performance.

Background And Purpose: Proximal protection devices, such as TransCarotid Artery Revascularization (TCAR, SilkRoad Medical, Sunnyvale), aim to yield better outcomes in carotid artery stenting (CAS) than distal protection devices by preventing plaque embolization to the brain. However, transfemoral catheters may not fully reverse flow from the external carotid artery (ECA) to the internal carotid artery (ICA). We assess a new balloon-sheath device, Femoral Flow Reversal Access for Carotid Artery Stenting (FFRACAS), for this purpose.