Nevin Manimala

Turk J Gastroenterol. 2023 Jul 24. doi: 10.5152/tjg.2023.22694. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Various tissue preservation solutions are used during the removal of the organ and during transplantation to protect the normal histological and biochemical characteristics of tissue while performing a successful liver transplant. In our study, it was aimed to investigate the effects of intraperitoneal melatonin administration on liver preservation damage before transplantation.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: In our study, the histological and biochemical characteristics of University of Wisconsin+melatonin group rats treated with melatonin 45 minutes before hepatectomy were compared between serum physiologic group and University of Wisconsin group.

RESULTS: When hematoxylin and eosin staining was evaluated in terms of hydropic degeneration, sinusoidal dilatation, and hepatocyte necrosis, there was no statistically significant difference. Caspase 3 immunohistochemical staining showed a significant increase in Caspase 3 immunoreactivity positivity at the 12th-hour University of Wisconsin group compared to University of Wisconsin+melatonin group. As a result of biochemical analysis, the malondialdehyde and total oxidant status levels in the University of Wisconsin+melatonin group decreased significantly compared to the University of Wisconsin group. When the reduced glutathione activity and total antioxidant capacity level were compared, a significant increase was observed in the University of Wisconsin+melatonin group compared to the University of Wisconsin group at the 12th hour. It was also found that aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, and alkaline phosphatase levels decreased significantly in the University of Wisconsin+melatonin 12th-hour group compared to the University of Wisconsin 12th hour and control group.

CONCLUSION: When the findings were evaluated, intraperitoneal administration of melatonin, a cytoprotective antioxidant, was found to play an effective role in preserving immunohistochemical and biochemical properties of liver tissue integrity and hepatocytes in University of Wisconsin solution.

PMID:37485562 | DOI:10.5152/tjg.2023.22694

Brief Bioinform. 2023 Jul 24:bbad270. doi: 10.1093/bib/bbad270. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Numerous biological studies have shown that considering disease-associated micro RNAs (miRNAs) as potential biomarkers or therapeutic targets offers new avenues for the diagnosis of complex diseases. Computational methods have gradually been introduced to reveal disease-related miRNAs. Considering that previous models have not fused sufficiently diverse similarities, that their inappropriate fusion methods may lead to poor quality of the comprehensive similarity network and that their results are often limited by insufficiently known associations, we propose a computational model called Generative Adversarial Matrix Completion Network based on Multi-source Data Fusion (GAMCNMDF) for miRNA-disease association prediction. We create a diverse network connecting miRNAs and diseases, which is then represented using a matrix. The main task of GAMCNMDF is to complete the matrix and obtain the predicted results. The main innovations of GAMCNMDF are reflected in two aspects: GAMCNMDF integrates diverse data sources and employs a nonlinear fusion approach to update the similarity networks of miRNAs and diseases. Also, some additional information is provided to GAMCNMDF in the form of a ‘hint’ so that GAMCNMDF can work successfully even when complete data are not available. Compared with other methods, the outcomes of 10-fold cross-validation on two distinct databases validate the superior performance of GAMCNMDF with statistically significant results. It is worth mentioning that we apply GAMCNMDF in the identification of underlying small molecule-related miRNAs, yielding outstanding performance results in this specific domain. In addition, two case studies about two important neoplasms show that GAMCNMDF is a promising prediction method.

PMID:37482409 | DOI:10.1093/bib/bbad270

Neurosciences (Riyadh). 2023 Jul;28(3):190-194. doi: 10.17712/nsj.2023.3.20220141.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: To assess the impact of a stroke code on the door to needle time during Hajj at a tertiary center in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. Stroke is one of the most common medical problems globally. Tissue plasminogen activator is an effective treatment in patients with acute ischemic stroke. However, its efficacy is time-dependent.

METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study on acute ischemic stroke patients who presented within the study window and were eligible for intravenous thrombolysis therapy at King Abdullah Medical City in Makkah between September 1, 2015 and July 2020.

RESULTS: Sixty-nine patients received intravenous tissue plasminogen activator and enrolled in this study, 28 patients of which presented during the Hajj period. We found a statistically significant reduction in both the door to needle time and the door to computed tomography time during the Hajj period. In addition, the length of hospital stay reduced significantly in the same period CONCLUSION: We observed a 44% reduction in the door to needle time during the implementation of the stroke code. However, we did not observe a significant difference in clinical outcomes. This study is limited by its small sample size and it lacks a long follow-up for clinical conditions.

PMID:37482386 | DOI:10.17712/nsj.2023.3.20220141

Neurosciences (Riyadh). 2023 Jul;28(3):177-183. doi: 10.17712/nsj.2023.3.20220127.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: To establish the prevalence of Neuropsychiatric Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (NPSLE) symptoms in Saudi Arabia and the variables that are linked to it.

METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted in June 2021 among SLE patients in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Rheumatism Association exploited social media platforms to provide a self-administered online questionnaire to SLE patients. All data analyses were performed using the Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26.

RESULTS: Two hundred and eight SLE patients participated in the study (females 91.3% vs. males 8.7%). In addition, 13.5% of patients had a family history of SLE, and 26% had SLE for one to 3 years. The most common symptoms of NPSLE were alteration or loss of sensation (53.4%), followed by fear (52.4%), and headache (48.1%). The prevalence of patients with NPSLE was 40%. In a multivariate regression model, fear, altered sensations, cerebrovascular illness, sleep disruption, and diminished interest in routine activities were identified as independent risk variables for NPSLE CONCLUSION: Nearly half of SLE patients demonstrated NP manifestations, with significant symptoms including fear, alteration of sensation, cerebrovascular disease, sleep disturbance, and reduced interest in normal activities. To detect the pathophysiology of NPSLE, it is necessary to understand the relationship between neuropsychiatric morbidity and other relevant rheumatic disorders in the SLE population.

PMID:37482382 | DOI:10.17712/nsj.2023.3.20220127

Neurosciences (Riyadh). 2023 Jul;28(3):184-189. doi: 10.17712/nsj.2023.3.20230005.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: To measure the cranial capacity of members of the Saudi adult population across ages and genders.

METHODS: This was a retrospective cross-sectional study that used 488 Computed Tomography (CT) scans of heads (of which 275 males) to measure cranial volume. The CT slices 0.625 mm thick were uploaded using the freely available software “3D-Slicer”, which then reconstructed the images and built a 3D module.

RESULTS: The mean (±SD) cranial capacity of the males was 1481.6 (±110) cm³ (range: 1241-1723 cm3), whereas the cranial capacity of the females was 1375.4 (±104) cm³ (range: 1203-1678 cm3). This study showed that the males had a mean cranial capacity that was 7% greater than that of the females in this study. The average cranial capacity of the males between the ages of 31 and 40 years was statistically significantly larger to that of the males aged 61-80 (p<0.05).

CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that the average cranial capacity of the males was larger than that of the females. These study results can help to determine the normal cranial capacity of adults in Saudi Arabia. Further work should be carried out to aid in establishing reference data for the Saudi population.

PMID:37482378 | DOI:10.17712/nsj.2023.3.20230005

J Mot Behav. 2023 Jul 23:1-10. doi: 10.1080/00222895.2023.2236950. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The aim of the study was to investigate how high-heeled walking affects the coordination changes of timing of upper trunk muscle activation, and the possible occurrence of health problems in this part of the body of young women. We used surface electromyography (EMG) for data collection. The research group consisted of 30 women. Statistical significance of the changes in muscle coordination was confirmed when evaluating two of the four upper trunk muscles studied. M. trapezius and m. pectoralis major are not subject to changes in gait in high heels (HH) from the point of view of timing on a statistical level, but HH increase the intensity of muscle contraction of all monitored muscles, and therefore we recommend limiting the wearing of HH in case of health problems related to these muscles.

PMID:37482373 | DOI:10.1080/00222895.2023.2236950

Photodiagnosis Photodyn Ther. 2023 Jul 21:103718. doi: 10.1016/j.pdpdt.2023.103718. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is the most common malignant tumor among women, and its incidence is increasing annually. At present, the results of the study on whether optical coherence tomography (OCT) can be used as an intraoperative margin assessment method for breast-conserving surgery (BCS) are inconsistent. We herein conducted this systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the diagnostic value of OCT in BCS.

METHODS: PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Embase were used to search relevant studies published up to September 15, 2022. We used Review Manager, Meta-Disc, and STATA 16 for statistical analysis.

RESULTS: The results displayed 18 studies with 782 patients included according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Meta-analysis showed the pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (PLR), negative likelihood ratio (NLR), diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) and the area under the curve (AUC) of OCT in the margin assessment of BCS were 0.91 (95% CI 0.88-0.93), 0.88 (95% CI 0.83-0.92), 7.53 (95% CI 5.19-10.93), 0.11(95% CI 0.08-0.14), 70.37 (95% CI 39.78-124.47), and 0.94 (95% CI 0.92-0.96), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS: OCT is a promising technique in intraoperative margin assessment of breast cancer patients.

PMID:37482370 | DOI:10.1016/j.pdpdt.2023.103718

Sci Total Environ. 2023 Jul 21:165648. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165648. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

In the context of dual carbon targets, a reliable prediction of China’s carbon dioxide emissions is of great significance to the design and formulation of emission reduction policies by Chinese government. To this end, a novel grey Verhulst model with four parameters is proposed in this paper according to the evolution law and the data characteristics of China’s carbon dioxide emissions. The new model solves the defect of poor structural adaptability of the traditional grey Verhulst model by introducing a nonlinear correction term. Besides, the range of values for the order of the grey generation operator of the new model is expanded from a positive real number to any real number (r ∈ R⁺ → r ∈ R) by expanding the value range of the Gamma function. The new model is used to simulate China’s carbon dioxide emissions, and its comprehensive mean relative percentage error is only 0.65 %, which is better than that of the other three grey models (2.39 %, 2.34 %, 2.35 % respectively). It shows that the proposed new model has better modeling ability. Finally, the new model is applied to predict China’s carbon dioxide emissions, and the results show that it will still increase year by year, reaching 13,687 million tons by 2028 (only 11,420 million tons in 2021). Therefore, some countermeasures and suggestions are proposed to control China’s carbon dioxide emissions in this paper.

PMID:37482363 | DOI:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165648

Spine J. 2023 Jul 21:S1529-9430(23)03281-3. doi: 10.1016/j.spinee.2023.07.014. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND CONTEXT: Postoperative incisional concerns including non-purulent drainage are relatively common following spine surgery. Evidence-based management protocols are lacking.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to determine if prescribing empiric oral antibiotics for non-purulent wound drainage is beneficial for the prevention of chronic infection or reoperation.

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective chart review PATIENT SAMPLE: Patients calling the office with post-surgical wound concerns OUTCOME MEASURES: Not applicable METHODS: In a large, multi-surgeon, spine surgery practice, review of the communications log showed that 298 patients called or messaged the office with a concern regarding postoperative non-purulent wound drainage. Patients were prescribed empiric oral antibiotics based on surgeon preference. Patients who received empiric oral antibiotic treatment (AbxTx) were propensity matched to patients who did not (No AbxTx) based on sex, age, BMI, ASA grade, smoking status, prior spine surgery, anatomic location, and number of surgical levels. The number of patients requiring surgical intervention (debridement) and/or developing a chronic infection were determined.

RESULTS: Oral antibiotics were prescribed for 112 of the 298 (38%) of the patients with reports of non-purulent drainage. Demographic and surgical characteristics of the two matched cohorts were similar. Although there were more patients in the AbxTx group who required surgical intervention (n=17, 17%) compared to the No AbxTx group (n=9, 9%), this difference was not statistically significant (p=0.139). The intra-operative culture results showed no growth in 94% (16/17) of the AbxTx group versus 67% (6/9) of the No AbxTx group (p=0.103). One patient in each group required a return to the operating room within the year after the initial surgical debridement for management of chronic infection.

CONCLUSION: In this large series (n=298) of patients with non-purulent wound drainage following spine surgery, 87% resolved without the need for surgical intervention. Empiric oral antibiotics did not reduce the need for surgical intervention or the development of a chronic infection. In addition to added cost, potential adverse reactions, development of resistant organisms, and inaccurate labeling of surgical site infection; empiric oral antibiotics may lead to a negative intra-operative culture for those requiring surgical intervention impacting the ability to prescribe a specific antibiotic regimen.

PMID:37482252 | DOI:10.1016/j.spinee.2023.07.014

J Shoulder Elbow Surg. 2023 Jul 21:S1058-2746(23)00532-3. doi: 10.1016/j.jse.2023.06.022. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to compare clinical and radiological outcomes of two treatment methods of massive and irreparable rotator cuff tears: partial repair (PR) and PR with long head of the biceps tendon augmentation (PRLHBTA). Biceps tendon augmentation is believed to promote better healing at the bone-tendon junction, leading clinical and radiological outcomes.

METHODS: This retrospective and comparative study included patients with chronic, massive and irreparable rotator cuff tears involving both the supraspinatus (SSP) and infraspinatus (ISP) muscles. Only patients who had previously failed non-operative treatment and had at least 1-year follow-up between 2013 and 2018 were analyzed. The patients were divided into 2 groups based on the chosen treatment method. Irreparability was defined intraoperatively as the inability to achieve sustainable repair of the SSP after complete release, typically corresponding to Goutallier classification of ≥ 3 and stage 3 in the Patte classification. The clinical assessment protocol involved measuring of range of motion (ROM), shoulder strength, Constant-Murley Score (CMS) and SST Scores. Radiological assessment comprised measurements of the Acromio-Humeral Index (AHI), the Hamada classification, the Sugaya’s classification and Goutallier classification for both SSP and ISP.

RESULTS: The study included data from 60 patients (30 in each group) with a mean age of 62.5 years and a mean follow-up of 34.5 months. The retear rate for PRLHBTA was 43.3% and 73.3% for PR alone (p=0.036). During the final examination statistically significant differences in favour of PRLHBTA were observed for: CMS 76.2±0.9 vs 70.9±11.5 (p=0.034), Sugaya’s classification 3.5±1.1 vs 4.1±0.9 (p=0.035) and AHI 5.8±2mm vs 4.7±1.3 (p=0.021). There were no significant differences between the groups in patients’ ROM, shoulder strength, the Hamada classification, Simple Shoulder Test (SST) and postoperative Goutallier scales.

CONCLUSION: PR with LHBTA for patients with irreparable MRCT provides a lower retear rate and better humeral head centralization, and improved results measured by CMS compared to PR alone.

PMID:37482246 | DOI:10.1016/j.jse.2023.06.022