Category: Nevin Manimala

J Periodontol. 2021 Mar 10. doi: 10.1002/JPER.21-0004. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Periodontitis and the Triglyceride/High Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol (TG/HDL-C) ratio have both been associated with cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome and obesity. Additionally, the ratio is a possible substitute for predicting insulin resistance. This study investigated the association between periodontitis, its severity levels (exposures), and the TG/HDL-C ratio (outcome).

METHODS: A cross-sectional study of public health service users in Brazil considered socioeconomic-demographic characteristics, lifestyle behavior, and general and oral health conditions. Anthropometric measurements and blood pressure were also measured. Systemic biomarker data were obtained, as well as assessment of periodontal diagnosis and its severity. The TG/HDL-C ratio was calculated using the serum triglyceride level over HDL cholesterol and the cut-off point, TG/HDL-C ≥2.3 serving as the cutoff indicting dyslipidemia. Logistic and linear regression were used to statistically analyze the data.

RESULTS: A total of 1,011 participants were included, with 84.17% having periodontitis and 49.85% having a TG/HDL-C ratio ≥2.3. For individuals with periodontitis, the odds of TG/HDL-C ratio ≥2.3 was 1.47 times greater than in those without periodontitis (OR_Adjusted = 1.47, 95%CI: 1.02-2.14). Similar results were found for those with moderate and severe periodontitis, with a slight increase in the measurement magnitude with disease severity.

CONCLUSION: A positive relationship between periodontitis and the TG/HDL-C ratio ≥2.3 was found, suggesting a possible association with periodontal disease severity. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

PMID:33689171 | DOI:10.1002/JPER.21-0004

Zoo Biol. 2021 Mar 10. doi: 10.1002/zoo.21597. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Red pandas (Ailurus fulgens) are small charismatic mammals native across montane southern Asia, now endangered by human impacts. They are considered “living fossils” as the sole member of a distinct family, warranting higher conservation priority. Therefore, ex situ breeding programs were initiated to prevent extinction and act as genetic reservoirs for reintroduction, although complicated by apparent taxonomic subdivision. This study investigated whether the separation of captive red pandas in the North American Species Survival Plan® by putative subspecies was justified. A 383-bp segment of mitochondrial DNA control region was therefore sequenced from 67 members representing matriarchal lineages of both groups. A network analysis placed the 11 haplotypes found into separate but closely connected clusters, with one group more strongly related than the other. Statistical analyses and diversity indices corroborated differentiation between the two management units. Phylogenetic analyses employing multiple outgroups confirmed, although not robustly, reciprocal monophyly of the four- and seven-haplotype clades representing putative subspecies Ailurus fulgens fulgens and Ailurus fulgens styani, respectively. These empirical results are adequate to justify continued independent management of these zoo subpopulations, but cannot be definitive for taxonomic classification due to limited sampling from their native range. They will, however, be useful in evaluating long-term genetic diversity changes, focusing management efforts on newly revealed evolutionary limitations, and comparing with an assessment of wild red pandas to determine how representative zoo populations are for reintroduction purposes. Maintaining genetic diversity and population structure of endangered species is essential to protect evolutionary potential and adaptations for long-term sustainability.

PMID:33689172 | DOI:10.1002/zoo.21597

Cancer Cytopathol. 2021 Mar 10. doi: 10.1002/cncy.22402. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to determine the pathological and ultrasound (US) features of benign nonpalpable breast lesions (NPBLs) classified as Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) category 4C or 5.

METHODS: Between 2003 and 2007, 849 consecutive NPBLs detected at US and classified as BI-RADS category 4C (505) or 5 (344) initially underwent US-guided fine needle aspiration (FNA) at our institution. Benign diagnoses were established according to surgical excision findings or during a minimal 6-month imaging follow-up (mean, 3.7 years [SD, 2.6 years]). US BI-RADS features were reviewed and compared retrospectively using a chi-square test for the following pathological categories: epithelial and fibrous proliferation (EFP), cystic and papillary lesion (C&P), inflammatory lesion (IL), benign tumor (BT), intramammary lymph node (ILN), intraepithelial proliferative lesion (IPL), and nonspecific morphological alteration (NMA). The performance of FNA in the diagnosis of benignity was assessed.

RESULTS: Of 849 NPBLs, 110 (12.9%) NPBLs were benign: 88 (17.4%) were BI-RADS category 4C, and 22 (6.4%) were BI-RADS category 5. Forty-four (40%) were EFPs, 21 (19%) were C&Ps, 13 (12%) were NMAs, 11 (10%) were ILs, 11 (10%) were BTs, 8 (7%) were IPLs, and 2 (2%) were ILNs. Lesion shape, US pattern distribution, and posterior features showed statistically significant differences between these categories (P < .05): 33 (75%) EFPs exhibited posterior shadowing, 18 (86%) C&Ps were homogenous, 9 (82%) ILs were heterogeneous, 11 (100%) BTs were homogeneous, 9 (82%) BTs were oval, and 6 (75%) IPLs were irregularly shaped. Of the 110 benign NPBLs, FNA diagnosis was falsely positive in 7 (6%), suspicious in 10 (9%), and benign in 90 (82%), and 3 (3%) were inadequate for diagnosis.

CONCLUSION: A diverse array of benign NPBLs can be classified as BI-RADS category 4C or 5 on US, each showing specific imaging presentations.

PMID:33689204 | DOI:10.1002/cncy.22402

Pediatr Radiol. 2021 Mar 10. doi: 10.1007/s00247-021-05009-8. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Abdominopelvic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is increasingly being used to evaluate children with abdominal pain suspected of having acute appendicitis. At our institution, these examinations are preliminarily interpreted by radiology residents, especially when performed after hours.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the accuracy of preliminary reports rendered by radiology residents in this setting.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Three hundred seventy-seven pediatric abdominopelvic MRI examinations were included. The preliminary (resident) and final (attending) radiology reports were coded as diagnosing acute appendicitis or no acute appendicitis. The concordance between resident and attending radiologist interpretations was calculated. Additionally, both resident and attending reports were compared to available surgical pathology or clinical follow-up data.

RESULTS: Overall concordance rate for the diagnosis of acute appendicitis was 97.1%. Concordance for verified cases of acute appendicitis was 93.4%. Concordance rates did not differ by residents’ postgraduate year levels. When compared against surgical pathology or clinical follow-up data, residents demonstrated 91.2% sensitivity and 97.6% specificity. There was no statistically significant difference in the sensitivity or specificity of resident or attending radiologist interpretations.

CONCLUSION: Radiology residents demonstrate high concordance with attending pediatric radiologists in their interpretations of pediatric abdominopelvic MRI for acute appendicitis. The diagnostic performances of residents and attendings were comparable.

PMID:33688988 | DOI:10.1007/s00247-021-05009-8

World J Urol. 2021 Mar 10. doi: 10.1007/s00345-021-03646-0. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To explore the risk of encrustation and biofilm formation for silicone ureteral stents compared to percuflex polymer stents, through a randomized multicenter study.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: Design, setting and participants: A Multicenter, prospective, randomized, single blind, comparative study of hydrocoated silicone stent (Coloplast Imajin^® hydro) versus Percuflex™ Plus stent (Boston Scientific), in 141 patients treated by flexible URS for a kidney stone. The study had ethical committee approval in the respective hospitals. Outcome measurements and statistical analysis: Endpoints related to encrustation were biofilm formation and mineral encrustation after a period of 3-week indwelling time. They were evaluated at removal through a scoring scale of ureteral stents encrustation, infrared spectroscopy and optical microscopy of inner and outer surfaces of tips, angles and along the stent’s body. Comparison was performed using ANOVA.

RESULTS: 119 stents were available after removal for analysis, 56 in the silicone and 63 in the Percuflex TM Plus group. Mean dwelling duration was 21.8 days for silicone, 22.1 days for PercuflexTM Plus. There was significantly more biofilm on Percuflex™ Plus compared to silicone (1.24 ± 0.08 vs 0.93 ± 0.09, p = 0.0021), and more mineral encrustation (1.22 ± 0.10 vs 0.78 ± 0.11, p = 0.0048), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS: This multicenter randomized study shows that silicone-hydrocoated stents are less prone to encrustation than PercuflexTM Plus after a 3-week dwelling period and confirms the low encrustation potential of silicone.

PMID:33688992 | DOI:10.1007/s00345-021-03646-0

Arch Sex Behav. 2021 Mar 10. doi: 10.1007/s10508-020-01862-0. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Evidence suggests that sexual minorities (e.g., those identifying as lesbian, gay, or bisexual) experience increased rates of depression compared to heterosexual individuals. Minority stress theory suggests that this disparity is due to stigma experienced by sexual minorities. Stigma processes are proposed to contribute to reduced coping/support resources and increased vulnerability processes for mental health problems. This review provided a systematic examination of research assessing the evidence for mediating factors that help explain such disparities. A literature search was conducted using the databases PubMed, PsycINFO, and Web of Science. The review included 40 identified studies that examined mediators of sexual minority status and depressive outcomes using a between-group design (i.e., heterosexual versus sexual minority participants). Studies of adolescents and adult samples were both included. The most common findings were consistent with the suggestion that stressors such as victimization, harassment, abuse, and increased stress, as well as lower social and family support, may contribute to differing depression rates in sexual minority compared to heterosexual individuals. Differences in psychological processes such as self-esteem and rumination may also play a role but have had insufficient research attention so far. However, caution is needed because many papers had important methodological shortcomings such as the use of cross-sectional designs, inferior statistical analyses for mediation, or measures that had not been properly validated. Although firm conclusions cannot be drawn, the current evidence base highlights many factors potentially suitable for further exploration in high-quality longitudinal research or randomized studies intervening with the potential mediators.

PMID:33689086 | DOI:10.1007/s10508-020-01862-0

Biol Trace Elem Res. 2021 Mar 10. doi: 10.1007/s12011-021-02652-y. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Hypercapnia can increase the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) by inducing oxidative stress in cells. Transient receptor potential melastatin 2 (TRPM2) channel activation that is realized by ROS plays a critical role in the cellular mechanism. It was shown that antioxidants such as zinc (Zn), selenium (Se), and glutathione (GSH) can partake in the structures of enzymes and create a protective effect against oxidative stress. This study revealed the relationship between TRPM2 channel and hypercapnia, and the interaction of zinc, selenium, and glutathione. In our study, normoxia, hypercapnia, hypercapnia + Zn, hypercapnia + Se, and hypercapnia + GSH were created, in transfected HEK293 cells. The cells were exposed to normoxia or hypercapnia gasses in two different times (30 min and 60 min), while Zn, Se, and GSH were applied to the cells in the other groups before being exposed to the gas mixtures. The statistical evaluation showed a significant increase in lipid peroxidation (LPO) level and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)% in the hypercapnia 30 min and 60 min groups, compared to the normoxia 30 min and 60 min groups, and an increase in LPO level and LDH% in the hypercapnia groups that Zn, Se, and GSH were applied. It was determined that in comparison with the normoxia 30 min and 60 min groups, the amount of inward Ca⁺² current across TRPM2 channels and mean current density increased in the groups that were exposed to hypercapnia for 30 min and 60 min, while the same values significantly decreased in the hypercapnia groups that Zn, Se, and GSH were applied. Also, it was shown that oxidative stress rose as the duration of hypercapnia exposure increased. It was concluded that hypercapnia increased oxidative stress and caused cellular membrane damage, while the addition of Zn, Se, and GSH could protect the cell membrane from these damaging effects.

PMID:33689144 | DOI:10.1007/s12011-021-02652-y

JAMA Cardiol. 2021 Mar 10. doi: 10.1001/jamacardio.2021.0122. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

IMPORTANCE: Accurate prediction of adverse outcomes after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) can guide the triage of care services and shared decision-making, and novel methods hold promise for using existing data to generate additional insights.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether contemporary machine learning methods can facilitate risk prediction by including a larger number of variables and identifying complex relationships between predictors and outcomes.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This cohort study used the American College of Cardiology Chest Pain-MI Registry to identify all AMI hospitalizations between January 1, 2011, and December 31, 2016. Data analysis was performed from February 1, 2018, to October 22, 2020.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Three machine learning models were developed and validated to predict in-hospital mortality based on patient comorbidities, medical history, presentation characteristics, and initial laboratory values. Models were developed based on extreme gradient descent boosting (XGBoost, an interpretable model), a neural network, and a meta-classifier model. Their accuracy was compared against the current standard developed using a logistic regression model in a validation sample.

RESULTS: A total of 755 402 patients (mean [SD] age, 65 [13] years; 495 202 [65.5%] male) were identified during the study period. In independent validation, 2 machine learning models, gradient descent boosting and meta-classifier (combination including inputs from gradient descent boosting and a neural network), marginally improved discrimination compared with logistic regression (C statistic, 0.90 for best performing machine learning model vs 0.89 for logistic regression). Nearly perfect calibration in independent validation data was found in the XGBoost (slope of predicted to observed events, 1.01; 95% CI, 0.99-1.04) and the meta-classifier model (slope of predicted-to-observed events, 1.01; 95% CI, 0.99-1.02), with more precise classification across the risk spectrum. The XGBoost model reclassified 32 393 of 121 839 individuals (27%) and the meta-classifier model reclassified 30 836 of 121 839 individuals (25%) deemed at moderate to high risk for death in logistic regression as low risk, which were more consistent with the observed event rates.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: In this cohort study using a large national registry, none of the tested machine learning models were associated with substantive improvement in the discrimination of in-hospital mortality after AMI, limiting their clinical utility. However, compared with logistic regression, XGBoost and meta-classifier models, but not the neural network, offered improved resolution of risk for high-risk individuals.

PMID:33688915 | DOI:10.1001/jamacardio.2021.0122

Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2021 Mar 1;62(3):15. doi: 10.1167/iovs.62.3.15.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To characterize the peripheral defocus of isolated human crystalline lenses and its age dependence.

METHODS: Data were acquired on 116 isolated lenses from 99 human eyes (age range, 0.03-61 years; postmortem time, 40.1 ± 21.4 hours). Lenses were placed in a custom-built combined laser ray tracing and optical coherence tomography system that measures the slopes of rays refracted through the lens for on-axis and off-axis incidence angles. Ray slopes were measured by recording spot patterns as a function of axial position with an imaging sensor mounted on a positioning stage below the tissue chamber. Delivery angles ranged from -30° to +30° in 5° increments using a 6 mm × 6 mm raster scan with 0.5-mm spacing. Lens power at each angle was calculated by finding the axial position that minimizes the root-mean-square size of the spot pattern formed by the 49 central rays, corresponding to a 3-mm zone on-axis. The age dependence of the on-axis and off-axis optical power and the relative peripheral defocus (difference between off-axis and on-axis power) of lenses were quantified.

RESULTS: At all angles, lens power decreased significantly with age. Lens power increased with increasing delivery angle for all lenses, corresponding to a shift toward myopic peripheral defocus. There was a statistically significant decrease in the lens peripheral defocus with age.

CONCLUSIONS: The isolated human lens power increases with increasing field angle. The lens relative peripheral defocus decreases with age, which may contribute to the age-related changes of ocular peripheral defocus during refractive development.

PMID:33688927 | DOI:10.1167/iovs.62.3.15

Bundesgesundheitsblatt Gesundheitsforschung Gesundheitsschutz. 2021 Mar 10. doi: 10.1007/s00103-021-03305-0. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Since 1963, the poison control center in Berlin has been the central helpline for the Berlin and Brandenburg population on the subject of poisoning. Furthermore, the institution performs a vital function in the field of poisoning prevention. The aim of this paper is to describe the development of the volume of consultations and their content from 1999 to 2018. Differences in the urban and rural origin of the callers as well as in the private or professional background of the inquiries are considered. The results will serve to improve prevention work.

METHODS: The case data of the poison control center (1999-2018) were evaluated and analyzed using descriptive statistical methods. Correlations between the categories “origin of call” (urban or rural area), “background” (private or professional), and “noxious agent” were analyzed using the Pearson’s chi-squared test.

RESULTS: The annual volume of consultations tended to increase. In particular, the increases are mainly related to inquiries regarding exposures of adults and seniors. The most frequent topics were poisoning with medications and products used in daily life. Inquiries about illegal drugs increased the most (average annual growth rate 6.3%). Inquiring persons with a private background can be helped directly in most cases (86.8%), so medical treatment is rarely recommended. Private persons call more frequently from urban areas, while calls from medical staff predominate in rural areas. Calls about pesticides, mushrooms, animals, and plants were more common in rural areas. Calls about food, foreign bodies, stimulants (alcoholic, caffeinated, and nicotine-containing foods/consumables), or illegal drugs, on the other hand, were received more frequently from urban areas.

PMID:33688973 | DOI:10.1007/s00103-021-03305-0