Publications by authors named "Sebastjan Bevc"

Coronary artery disease is the most common cause of mortality worldwide. Percutaneous coronary intervention represents an important method of treatment. Over time, the methods have been refined to improve safety and efficacy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Hypertension is associated with higher cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in chronic haemodialysis patients. Altering dialysate sodium (dNa) concentration presents a possibility of sodium balance control and blood pressure (BP) management.

Methods: We performed a prospective, randomized, single-centre study, including 45 patients, divided into three groups of 15.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

: In mouse models of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), an effective anti-leukemia immune response was obtained by depleting a specific regulatory T-cell (Treg) subset. While STAT5 signaling could alter the homeostasis of naïve (nTreg) and activated (aTreg) subsets, which are capable of suppressing also CLL patients' responses to microbial antigens, perturbed STAT3 signaling could drive CXCR5 expression in circulating T-follicular regulatory cells (Tfr) and their entry into the lymph node/tumor microenvironment. : By using phospho-specific flow cytometry, we monitored STAT signaling/phosphorylation (pSTAT), in vitro responses to Sars-Cov2-antigen-specific stimulation, and circulating Treg subsets in relation to Binet stage and total tumor mass/tumor distribution (TTM/TD) scoring in 62 patients with CLL.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The inter-related pandemics of obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are fueling a rise in the prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD), which amplifies the risk of cardiovascular events and which may progress to end-stage kidney disease (ESKD). Treatment options for such patients have rapidly expanded over the past decade, and continue to evolve. Herein, we primarily focus on glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) and their role in the management of CKD in the setting of overweight/obesity and T2DM.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Hyperlactatemia is common in intensive care unit (ICU) patients. The aim of our retrospective observational study was to analyse the impact of serum lactate on admission on mortality in patients with acute kidney injury (AKI) treated with renal replacement therapy (RRT).

Methods: During the study period of 4 years, 2939 patients were admitted to the ICU, 503 patients were diagnosed with AKI and 209 of them required RRT.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The kidneys are integral to homeostasis but are susceptible to nephrotoxic compounds. Proximal tubular epithelial cells (PTECs) mediate drug metabolism and transport and are widely used in preclinical studies. However, commercial PTECs are limited in availability and physiological relevance.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and chronic kidney disease are global public health issues associated with high morbidity and mortality. Both diseases are also interlinked. Little is known about the meaning of NAFLD in hemodialysis (HD) patients.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Over the past decade, diabetes mellitus (DM) has emerged as a growing epidemic, with a direct link to an increased risk of hospitalization and a strong effect of glycemic control on clinical outcomes. The aim of this document was to critically appraise and adapt existing clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) to provide specific recommendations for the management of hyperglycemia in hospitalized adults with and without previously known DM, in an attempt to provide a practical tool to reduce the risk of major in-hospital complications.

Methods: The first step of the adaptation process was to identify unsolved clinical questions (PICOs) in hospitalized persons with hyperglycemia.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Kidney diseases are among the leading causes of death globally. With the increasing rates of acute kidney injury (AKI) requiring hospitalisation, a better understanding of pathophysiological mechanisms is needed to treat the patients more efficiently. Nephrotoxicity is one of the most common causes of AKI, mainly due to the high availability of over-the-counter drugs and natural supplements, which may interact with prescribed drugs at the level of pharmacokinetics, among other factors.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Factor XIII (FXIII) is a key coagulation factor involved in blood clotting and is especially important for managing blood in various patient scenarios, like surgeries and trauma.
  • Research shows FXIII affects many other substances crucial for hemostasis, aiding in wound healing and tissue repair.
  • FXIII deficiency is a rare condition that results in prolonged bleeding, complications during surgery, and slower healing, which the article aims to explore further.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Advanced chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) leads to an increase in regulatory T cells (Tregs) and higher risk of severe infections, particularly linked to heightened FOXP3 expression in these cells.
  • A study utilizing flow cytometry assessed STAT5 signaling in Treg subsets among 37 CLL patients, looking at how this related to disease progression and tumor mass.
  • Findings indicated that a specific subset of activated Tregs (aTregs) was correlated with advanced disease and severe infection rates, suggesting aTreg levels could serve as a marker for disease severity and that increased STAT5 signaling may contribute to their expansion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists (MRAs) are one of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors widely used in clinical practice. While spironolactone and eplerenone have a long-standing profile in clinical medicine, finerenone is a novel agent within the MRA class. It has a higher specificity for mineralocorticoid receptors, eliciting less pronounced adverse effects.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

International consensus supports the development of standardized protocols for measured glomerular filtration rate (mGFR) to facilitate the integration of mGFR testing in both clinical and research settings. To this end, the European Kidney Function Consortium convened an international group of experts with relevant experience in mGFR. The working group performed an extensive literature search to inform the development of recommendations for mGFR determination using 1-compartment plasma clearance models and iohexol as the exogenous filtration marker.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: This retrospective study aimed to evaluate the 30 and 60-day survival of critically ill patients with COVID-19 and AKI.

Methods: Inflammatory and biochemical biomarkers, length of intensive care unit (ICU) stay and mortality at Day 30 and Day 60 after ICU admission were analyzed. A total of 44 patients treated with continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) with cytokine adsorber (CA group) were compared to 58 patients treated with CRRT alone (non-CA group).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates the relationship between renal disease and metabolic syndrome (MS) by evaluating kidney histology in participants from the European Nephrectomy Biobank.
  • Researchers defined MS based on criteria like BMI, blood pressure, glucose levels, and cholesterol, excluding patients with diabetes or known renal disease.
  • Results show that individuals with MS are older, have a higher prevalence of chronic kidney disease, and display more severe renal morphological changes compared to those without MS, suggesting that ischemic renal disease and potential diabetic nephropathy may contribute to their kidney issues.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Diabetic kidney disease is a frequent microvascular complication of diabetes and is currently the leading cause of chronic kidney disease and end-stage kidney disease worldwide. Although the prevalence of other complications of diabetes is falling, the number of diabetic patients with end-stage kidney disease in need of kidney replacement therapy is rising. In addition, these patients have extremely high cardiovascular risk.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Unlabelled: The Perceived Inventory of Technological Competency as Caring in Nursing (PITCCN) questionnaire has been designed to measure technological competency as caring in nursing practice. It incorporates the use of technology with the fundamental principles of caring that are central to nursing. As there were no psychometrically sound instruments to quantify the concept of technological competency as caring in the Slovene language, we adapted the English version of the questionnaire to the local environment.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Protein-energy wasting (PEW) is a common and serious co-morbidity in haemodialysis (HD) patients. Its importance as a prognostic factor has been increasingly recognised during the past decades. Much effort has been invested in the improvement of nutritional status and amelioration of consequences through different therapeutic approaches, either intradialytic parenteral nutrition or more commonly oral nutritional supplementation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Acute kidney injury and chronic kidney disease are among the most common non-communicable diseases in the developed world, with increasing prevalence. Patients with acute kidney injury are at an increased risk of developing chronic kidney disease. One of kidney injury's most common clinical sequelae is increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Obesity is associated with several neurohumoral changes that play an essential role in organ damage. Increased arterial stiffness causes functional vessel wall changes and can therefore lead to accelerated target organ damage as well. Whether obesity causes an independent increase in central arterial stiffness is, however, not yet fully known.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is one of the most common chronic diseases worldwide, with prevalence currently projected at 10% and rising. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in CKD patients and is integrally linked with atherogenesis and vascular stiffness. Estimated glomerular filtration rate and the level of proteinuria are not only markers of kidney function but of cardiovascular risk, as well.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The kidneys are the body's main excretion organ with several additional functions, and the nephron represents their central structural unit. It is comprised of endothelial, mesangial, glomerular, and tubular epithelial cells, as well as podocytes. Treatment of acute kidney injury or chronic kidney disease (CKD) is complex due to broad etiopathogenic mechanisms and limited regeneration potential as kidney cells finish their differentiation after 34 weeks of gestation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • There is a global obesity pandemic, with around 30% of adults in Europe classified as obese, which is linked to a higher risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and related complications.
  • Although obesity generally increases mortality risk, data on how weight impacts survival in CKD patients is mixed, with some evidence suggesting better survival in obese end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients.
  • Management strategies for obesity include lifestyle changes, bariatric surgery, and medication, with new treatments showing promise for non-CKD patients, but more research is needed specifically for those with CKD.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Increased frequency of CD4CD25 regulatory T-cells (Treg) has been associated with disease progression in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Flow cytometric methods, which allow for the simultaneous analysis of their specific transcription factor Foxp3 and activated STAT proteins, together with proliferation can help to elucidate the signaling mechanisms driving Treg expansion and suppression of FOXP3- conventional CD4T-cells (Tcon). Herein, we first report a novel approach in which STAT5 phosphorylation (pSTAT5) and proliferation (BrdU-FITC incorporation) could be analyzed specifically in FOXP3+ and FOXP3- responding cells after CD3/CD28 stimulation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF