COVID-19 Vaccine Booster Uptake and Effectiveness Among Persons With Systemic Autoimmune and Rheumatic Diseases.

Objective: To assess coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) booster uptake and vaccine effectiveness (VE) in reducing COVID-19 hospitalization in persons with systemic autoimmune and rheumatic diseases (SARDs).

Methods: Adult patients with SARDs receiving disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs at 4 health systems in the United States were identified retrospectively. Exposures were (1) receipt of an additional dose of monovalent COVID-19 vaccine prior to January 1, 2022, with follow-up to August 31, 2022; and (2) receipt of bivalent COVID-19 vaccine between September 1, 2022 and August 31, 2023.

Clinical Pathways in Vestibular Care: Referral Trends Between Vestibular Rehabilitation and Objective Vestibular Testing.

Purpose: Patients with vestibular-related dysfunction are commonly referred to a physical therapist for vestibular rehabilitation (VR) or possibly to an audiologist for objective vestibular test battery (VTB). As a conservative first step, patients are often referred to VR for evaluation and management and from there patients may be referred for VTB when patients are not meeting therapy goals or VR evaluation is unclear of the diagnosis. This research aimed to investigate the referral patterns from VR to VTB and VTB to VR.

Invasive Fungal Infections in Orthotopic Heart Transplant Patients: Incidence and Risk Factors in the Modern Era.

Background: Invasive fungal infections (IFI) post-orthotopic heart transplant (OHT) have not been well studied due to limited information in large databases. The goal of the study is to describe the incidence and risk factors for IFI.

Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, we analyzed risk factors associated with IFI among OHT recipients in our center in the period 2010-2020.

Obesity and male infertility - a tenuous relationship: Facts discerned for the busy clinicians.

Obesity is a common health problem affecting over a third of the population worldwide. Obesity has been correlated with many diseases, including cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, cancer, brain degeneration, and premature aging. In men, obesity can also cause issues like erectile dysfunction, poor sperm quality, and prostate problems.

Efficacy and safety of Ensitrelvir in asymptomatic or mild to moderate COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Introduction: Since late 2019, COVID-19 has had a catastrophic impact on public health. Ensitrelvir, a new antiviral targeting the SARS-CoV-2 main protease, has reduced viral replication and disease severity. This meta-analysis and systematic review assessed Ensitrelvir's efficacy and safety in patients with mild-to-moderate COVID-19 symptoms.

Silicon-Based Agent Attenuates Age-Related Spermatogenesis Disorder.

Objectives: The progressive decline in birth rates due to delayed marriage has become a significant issue in developed countries, with male spermatogenetic capabilities gradually declining with age. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a silicon-based agent (Si-based) that efficiently generates hydrogen in the body to improve spermatogenic function in aged mice.

Methods: Eighty-five-week-old (aged) C57BL/6J mice were administered either a normal diet or a diet supplemented with a Si-based agent.

Sex differences in high-potency P2Y12 inhibitors prescription among patients with acute myocardial infarction.

Background: Sex differences in the outcomes of patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) persist and could be related to the differences in management including high-potency P2Y12 inhibitors.

Methods: Patients with AMI undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) from the American Heart Association Get With The Guidelines®-Coronary Artery Disease Registry between October 2019 to December 2022 were included. Multivariable hierarchical models were used to assess whether there are differences in high-potency P2Y12 inhibitors (i.

A fibroblast activation protein targeted optical tracer for identifying primary and metastatic sarcoma during resection.

Background: Sarcomas represent a heterogeneous group of mesenchymal tumors that, despite accounting for only 1% of cancers worldwide, rank among the top five causes of cancer-related deaths in patients under 20 years old. Surgical resection remains the primary treatment for these malignancies, as effective systemic therapies are limited, particularly for high-grade disease. However, surgical outcomes are often compromised by incomplete resection, leading to high local and distal recurrence rates.

Effect of Emergency Department Boarding on ICU Length of Stay and In-Hospital Mortality; A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Introduction: One of the main contributing factors of emergency department (ED) crowding is ED patient boarding. This study aimed to assess the factors influencing length of stay (LOS) in intensive care unit (ICU) and in-hospital mortality (IHM) among ICU-admitted ED boarded cases.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on adult patients at a tertiary care hospital in Lebanon who required ICU admission and stayed for 6+ hours in the ED during one year.

Searching for Clues in the Diagnosis of McArdle Disease.

Introduction McArdle disease (glycogen storage disorder type 5) is an autosomal recessive metabolic myopathy caused by a myophosphorylase enzyme deficiency. Most patients develop symptoms during childhood; however, diagnosis is usually delayed until adulthood. Our study aimed to identify clues for an earlier recognition of this rare disease.

Outcomes in diabetic vs nondiabetic patients requiring cardiac resynchronization therapy for heart failure: A meta-analysis.

Background: Heart failure (HF) affects millions globally, causing severe symptoms and poor prognosis. Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) has been shown to improve heart function and quality of life in HF patients with electrical dyssynchrony, but its effectiveness in diabetic patients remains unclear due to the complexities associated with diabetes.

Objective: This study evaluates the impact of diabetes mellitus on CRT by comparing outcomes between diabetic and nondiabetic patients through a meta-analysis.

Integrated multiomics of pressure overload in the human heart prioritizes targets relevant to heart failure.

Pressure overload initiates a series of alterations in the human heart that predate macroscopic organ-level remodeling and downstream heart failure. We study aortic stenosis through integrated proteomic, tissue transcriptomic, and genetic methods to prioritize targets causal in human heart failure. First, we identify the circulating proteome of cardiac remodeling in aortic stenosis, specifying known and previously-unknown mediators of fibrosis, hypertrophy, and oxidative stress, several associated with interstitial fibrosis in a separate cohort (N = 145).

Implementation of an endometriosis-specific MRI protocol reduces diagnostic laparoscopy rates and alters treatment paradigms in suspected deep endometriosis.

Objective: To evaluate the impact and diagnostic accuracy of an endometriosis-specific magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) protocol on the management of deep endometriosis (DIE).

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study at the Cleveland Clinic's Center for Pelvic Pain and Endometriosis, a tertiary care academic medical center.

Participants: 444 new patients, aged ≥ 18, without prior diagnoses of endometriosis, gynecologic cancer, or pregnancy, who presented with pelvic pain suspicious for DIE between 2013 and 2020.

Multicenter evaluation of the ProNephro AKI™ assay performance and stability in pediatric patients.

Introduction: Acute Kidney Injury (AKI), defined by increased serum creatinine or decreased urine volume, is highly prevalent in critically ill pediatric patients. Reliance on these for AKI diagnosis is unreliable due to inaccuracy and delayed response. Neutrophil Gelatinase-Associated Lipocalin (NGAL) is a promising biomarker for early AKI detection.

Female Mice Lacking LSD1 in Myeloid Cells Are Resistant to Inflammatory Bone Loss.

Osteoclasts, which are derived from myeloid precursors, are essential for physiologic bone remodeling but also mediate pathological bone loss in inflammatory diseases such as periodontitis and rheumatoid arthritis. Lysine-specific demethylase (LSD1/KDM1A) is a histone demethylase that modulates the chromatin landscape via demethylation of H3K4me1/2 and H3K9me1/2, thereby regulating the expression of genes essential for deciding cell fate. We previously demonstrated that myeloid-specific deletion of LSD1 (LSD1LysM-Cre) disrupts osteoclast differentiation, leading to enhanced BV/TV under physiological conditions.

Attitudes of Gastroenterologists Regarding Preoperative Anxiety Prior to Colonoscopy: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Colonoscopy is often considered by patients to be an anxiety-provoking procedure. Studies have investigated different approaches to help alleviate anxiety prior to colonoscopies. However, there have been no investigations of gastroenterologists and their attitudes towards pre-procedural anxiety of patients.