Nevin Manimala

J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2021 Dec 14:dgab885. doi: 10.1210/clinem/dgab885. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

CONTEXT: Excessive production of fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23) by tumor was considered as the main pathogenesis in tumor-induced osteomalacia (TIO). Despite its importance to comprehensive understanding of pathogenesis and diagnosis, the regulation of systemic metabolism in TIO remains unclear.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to systematically characterize the metabolome alteration associated with TIO.

METHODS: By means of liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS) based metabolomics, we analyzed the metabolic profile from 96 serum samples (32 initial diagnosis TIO patients, pairwise samples after tumor resection and 32 matched healthy control subjects). In order to screen and evaluate potential biomarkers, statistical analyses, pathway enrichment and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) were performed.

RESULTS: Metabolomic profiling revealed distinct alterations between TIO and HC cohort. Differential metabolites were screened and conducted to functional clustering and annotation. Significantly enriched pathway was found involved in arachidonic acid metabolism. A combination of 5 oxylipins, 4-HDoHE, leukotriene B4, 5-HETE, 17-HETE and 9,10,13-TriHOME, demonstrated a high sensitivity and specificity panel for TIO prediction screened by random forest (RF) algorithm (AUC=0.951, 95% confidence interval, CI 0.827-1). Supported vector machine (SVM) model and partial least-squares (PLS) model were conducted to validate the predictive capabilities of the diagnostic panel.

CONCLUSIONS: Metabolite profiling of TIO altered significant compared with HC. A high sensitivity and specificity panel with 5 oxylipins were tested as diagnostic predictor. For the first time, we provide the global profile of metabolomes and identify potential diagnostic biomarkers of TIO. The present work may offer novel insights into the pathogenesis of TIO.

PMID:34904633 | DOI:10.1210/clinem/dgab885

Ann Ital Chir. 2021 Nov 29;10:S0003469X21035454. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic has seriously affected our society. Governments have difficult situations by adopting strict and severe mitigation measures in order to contain the pandemic spreading. These decisions influenced significatively people’s behavior changing their habits and routines. This study offers a statistical analysis of the incidence of the Maxillo-Facial traumas in Tuscany southern area, during the pandemic lockdown. The statistical analyzed has been obtained comparing the maxillo-facial trauma occurrence during the Italian lockdown between the 9th of March and the 18th of May 2020 in comparison with same period of the five previous years. KEY WORDS: Covid-19, Italian covid-19, Maxillofacial surgery, Maxillofacial trauma, Pandemic, Surgery management, Trauma incidence in Italy.

PMID:34904572

Rev Alerg Mex. 2021 Oct-Dec;68(4):225-232. doi: 10.29262/ram.v68i4.881.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To describe the medical and laboratory profile of the patients who have been diagnosed with chronic urticaria in the outpatient clinic of a tertiary care hospital of the social security system in Costa Rica.

METHODS: All patients over 13 years of age who had been diagnosed with chronic urticaria between January 1st, 2014, and December 31st, 2018 were included. Variables of medical and laboratory data were statistically analyzed, and the treatment of the patients between their first and last medical consultation was compared.

RESULTS: This was about 160 patients who had been diagnosed with chronic urticaria; 129 of them were women, 45.7 % between the ages of 30-49 years; in 17.5 % of them (28 patients), inducible urticaria was associated; 54.8 % (46/84) had positive antithyroperoxidase antibodies; 16.9 % (27 patients) maintained a single dose of second-generation anti-H1 antihistamines in the last consultation; 16.3 % (26 patients) no longer required antihistamine treatment in the last consultation. Cyclosporine was used in 8.8 % (14 patients), and omalizumab was used in 2.5 % (four patients).

CONCLUSION: Since this is a real-life study in a geographic region with limited publications on this pathology, we trust that the provided information will contribute to the scientific community in order to improve the quality of life of patients with chronic urticaria through a timely diagnosis and an effective and efficient treatment.

PMID:34904558 | DOI:10.29262/ram.v68i4.881

Glob Health Action. 2021 Jan 1;14(1):1985761. doi: 10.1080/16549716.2021.1985761.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Young people in low- and middle-income countries are often neglected in designing youth-friendly health services, especially HIV testing and preventive services. Designathons, which are time-bounded co-creation events where individuals gather in teams to develop solutions to a problem, could promote youth participation and ownership of health services.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to examine youth participation in a designathon to create youth-friendly health services in Nigeria.

METHODS: Our designathon was based on crowdsourcing principles and informed by a human-centered design approach. The designathon included an open call for Nigerian youths between 14 and 24 years to share ideas on how to promote uptake of HIV self-testing services and a three-day sprint event that brought together diverse teams to develop strategies enhancing linkage to care. Teams pitched their solutions to a panel of five independent experts who scored ideas based on the desirability, feasibility, potential impact, and teamwork. We used descriptive statistics to summarize participants’ demographics and conducted a content analysis to synthesize themes from youth proposals.

RESULTS: Nine hundred seventy-six youth across Nigeria applied to join the designathon. Forty-eight youth in 13 teams participated in the designathon with a median age of 20 years (IQR: 17-22]. Boys and young men were 48.5% (446/919) of the total applicants, 62.5% (30/48) of the designathon participants, and 63.6% (7/11) of the finalists. Students, from all educational levels, represented 91.2% (841/922) of the total applicants, 88.4% (38/43) of the designathon participants, and 90.0% (9/10) of the finalists. About twenty-three percent (3/13) of the final proposals were top ranked. The three finalist approaches to optimize youth-friendly health services centered on decentralizing service delivery to young people through mobile health technologies, use of mobile tents, or peer support services.

CONCLUSIONS: Our open call engaged diverse groups of Nigerian youth, including young women and students. Our data suggest that designathons may be useful for developing tailored youth-friendly health services. Further research is needed to understand the designathon process and the effectiveness of the finalist submissions.

PMID:34904539 | DOI:10.1080/16549716.2021.1985761

Soc Work Health Care. 2021 Dec 14:1-11. doi: 10.1080/00981389.2021.2001711. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Background: SBIRT (Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment) is an effective early intervention approach for individuals with substance misuse. The purpose of this study was to determine if medical learners are more adept at learning a brief substance use intervention compared to non-medical learners (e.g., social work students). The dissemination of SBIRT training among many helping professions can increase service delivery for substance use problems. Methods: A total of 2,488 participants completed SBIRT training, representing 15 different disciplines and over 20 different institutions. General linear models and paired t-tests were used to investigate the effects of SBIRT training on changes in knowledge and attitude of alcohol and drug use and satisfaction. Results: There were no statistical differences in the change of satisfaction, knowledge, and attitude between medical and non-medical discipline participants. Both medical and non-medical participants had greater improvement in attitude and knowledge scores post-training. Similar improvements in attitude, knowledge, and satisfaction were observed in all the health-care discipline participants. Discussion: SBIRT skills may be transferable to disciplines including non-prescribing professionals (e.g., social work, nursing, physical therapy, rehabilitation science, and pharmacy). In an effort to expand treatment, health-care training institutions adopt SBIRT as a core competency for professional practice.

PMID:34904523 | DOI:10.1080/00981389.2021.2001711

J Obstet Gynaecol. 2021 Dec 14:1-4. doi: 10.1080/01443615.2021.1979947. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to determine the presence of Chlamydia trachomatis (ChT) and Neisseria gonorrhoae (NG) in the genital tract of women with ectopic pregnancy and to compare the positive results with patients’ self-reported history of PID. Overall 40 women were eligible for the study. The samples for the ChT and NG Polymerase Chain-reaction (PCR) detection were obtained from the cervix, endometrium and fallopian tube. The results of testing for NG at all sites were negative as were the results from cervical testing for ChT. The prevalence of ChT in the upper genital tract was 12.5%. No statistically significant correlation was found between the positive cases and the previous signs of PID and laparoscopic findings. We found statistically significant relationship between signs of pelvic inflammation in a pacients’ history and histopathological findings of tubal inflammation. 12.5% prevalence of ChT confirms the ascending genital infection. There was no association between the positive PCR result and clinical history of pelvic inflammation.IMPACT STATEMENTWhat is already known on this subject? Pelvic inflammatory disease, Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoae infections are the main risks for ectopic pregnancy. Clinical history of PID and perioperative adhesions may suggest prior upper genital infection.What do the results of this study add? Chlamydia trachomatis positive PCR result can be found in the upper genital tract without the positivity of cervical smear in women with ectopic pregnancy. Our study is unique in assessing the endometrial biopsy for the presence of Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoae.What are the implications of these findings for future clinical practice and/or future clinical research? There is no statistically significant association between positive PCR result and clinical history of PID or pelvic adhesions found during laparoscopy for tubal pregnancy. Therefore there is no need for the preventive antibiotic treatment in patients with these findings.

PMID:34904517 | DOI:10.1080/01443615.2021.1979947

J Feline Med Surg. 2021 Dec 14:1098612X211064697. doi: 10.1177/1098612X211064697. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to determine the feasibility of ultrasonographically measuring the caudal vena cava (CVC) at the subxiphoid view of healthy, lightly sedated cats in a standing position and lateral recumbency.

METHODS: This was a prospective, observational, experimental single-centre study. Twenty healthy research-purposed cats were enrolled. Two trained operators scanned each cat in two positions – standing and lateral recumbency – in a randomised order. CVC diameter was measured at the narrowest diameter during inspiration and at the widest diameter during expiration, at two anatomical locations along the CVC – where the CVC crosses the diaphragm (base) and 2 mm caudal to the diaphragm. The CVC collapsibility index (CVC-CI) was calculated for each site. Normalcy was assessed with a Shapiro-Wilk test. A one-way ANOVA with post-hoc Tukey’s test was used to compare inspiratory with expiratory values within and between groups. A paired t-test compared the CVC-CI between groups (P ⩽0.05 indicated statistical significance). Spearman’s correlation and Bland-Altman analysis assessed inter-operator variability.

RESULTS: All ultrasonographic data passed normalcy and were reported as mean ± SD. When compared with each other, inspiratory and expiratory values were statistically different for position, location and operator (all P <0.0001). There was no statistically significant difference between lateral recumbency or standing position for inspiratory, expiratory and CVC-CI values. Inter-operator variability was substantial, with operator 2 consistently obtaining smaller measurements than operator 1. The mean CVC-CI in lateral recumbency at the base was 24% for operator 1 and 37% for operator 2. For the same site in standing position, CVC-CI was 27% and 41% for operators 1 and 2, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: This pilot study demonstrates that it is possible to ultrasonographically measure the CVC diameter in both lateral recumbency and a standing position in healthy, lightly sedated cats. However, measurements obtained are operator dependent with variability between individuals. Further studies are needed to determine if ultrasonographic CVC assessment will prove helpful in estimating intravascular volume status in cats.

PMID:34904481 | DOI:10.1177/1098612X211064697

J Feline Med Surg. 2021 Dec 14:1098612X211064702. doi: 10.1177/1098612X211064702. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the change in packed cell volume (PCV) and total protein following intramuscular preanesthetic sedation with one of three drug combinations in cats.

METHODS: Thirty client-owned cats were enrolled in this prospective, randomized, blinded, clinical study. A venous blood sample was obtained prior to administration of any sedation and PCV, total protein, electrolytes (Na⁺, K⁺, Cl^–, iCa²⁺), glucose and lactate were measured. Cats were randomly assigned to receive one of three intramuscular sedation protocols (n = 10 cats/protocol): methadone 0.2 mg/kg + acepromazine 0.02 mg/kg (MA), methadone 0.2 mg/kg + dexmedetomidine 5 µg/kg (MD) or methadone 0.2 mg/kg + midazolam 0.2 mg/kg + alfaxalone 2 mg/kg (MMA). Twenty-five minutes later, cats were assessed for level of sedation followed by another venous blood sampling to evaluate the same variables as above.

RESULTS: There were no significant differences in demographics (age, weight, sex) between groups. Level of sedation was significantly higher in MMA cats. Within groups, after premedication, PCV and hemoglobin significantly decreased in all groups, total protein significantly decreased in the MA and MMA groups and glucose significantly increased in the MD group. For electrolytes, statistical changes were not clinically relevant; Cl^– mean difference was significantly different between MA and MD; in the MD group Na⁺ and Cl^– significantly decreased and in the MMA group Cl^– significantly increased.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: All three sedation protocols caused significant decreases in PCV and hemoglobin in healthy cats.

PMID:34904480 | DOI:10.1177/1098612X211064702

J Feline Med Surg. 2021 Dec 14:1098612X211063768. doi: 10.1177/1098612X211063768. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to compare the failure rate of two new generation pulse oximeters at different probe positions, and with and without vasoconstriction, in anaesthetised cats.

METHODS: This prospective clinical study included 103 cats in which the new generation pulse oximeters, the Rad-5 (Masimo) and EDAN H100N (EDAN), were evaluated. Premedication consisted of the vasoconstrictive drug combination butorphanol (0.2 mg/kg IV) and dexmedetomidine (5 µg/kg IV), or butorphanol only (0.2 mg/kg IV). Pulse oximeter failure rate at the tongue was compared between both groups. Pulse oximeter failure rate was also analysed at the alternative probe positions of the lip, pinna, knee fold and toe in the butorphanol group. Student’s t-test, Wilcoxon matched pairs signed rank test, Mann-Whitney U-test, Friedman test and χ² test were performed. A P value <0.05 was considered to be statistically significant.

RESULTS: Overall failure to achieve an adequate signal was 37.6% with the Masimo and 48.0% with the EDAN pulse oximeter (P <0.0001). At the standard probe position on the tongue, the Masimo failed in 4.5%, while the EDAN failed in 35.3% (P <0.0001). Vasoactive premedication increased the failure rate for the Masimo from 3.8% to 5.2% (P = 0.3414) and for the EDAN from 22.4% to 49.0% (P <0.0001). At the alternative probe positions of the lip and knee fold, failure rates for the Masimo were lower (39.7% and 81.4%) than with the EDAN (52.6% and 94.4%; P = 0.0231 and P = 0.0005, respectively), while the Masimo failed more often at the pinna (63.5%) than the EDAN (47.4%; P = 0.0044). At the alternative probe position of the toe, the failure rate for the Masimo (32.7%) was not different from the EDAN (38.5%; P = 0.7547).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: The Masimo pulse oximeter had lower signal failure rates at the standard probe position on the tongue and at 2/4 alternative probe positions. The standard probe position on the tongue had the lowest failure rate for both devices. Dexmedetomidine-induced vasoconstriction increased the failure rate for the EDAN but not for the Masimo pulse oximeter.

PMID:34904479 | DOI:10.1177/1098612X211063768

J Int Med Res. 2021 Dec;49(12):3000605211063721. doi: 10.1177/03000605211063721.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of atorvastatin on serum periostin level and blood eosinophil count in patients with asthma.

METHODS: Patients diagnosed with asthma were enrolled and randomised into an intervention or placebo group, to receive 40 mg atorvastatin or similar placebo, daily, for 8 weeks. Spirometry was performed at baseline, and at the end of weeks 4 and 8; patients also provided blood samples and completed an asthma control test (ACT) at baseline and at the end of week 8. Primary study outcomes were blood eosinophil count and serum periostin levels.

RESULTS: Eighty patients completed the study (40 per group). Mean ACT scores were similar between the intervention and placebo groups at baseline (17.95 ± 3.75 versus 17.98 ± 3.77, respectively), and improved in the intervention group (19.88 ± 3.28), but remained unchanged in the placebo group (18.6 ± 3.26) during the treatment period. No statistically significant differences in spirometric changes, blood eosinophil count or serum periostin levels were observed between the groups during the treatment period.

CONCLUSION: Spirometric parameters and inflammatory markers did not change significantly in response to atorvastatin treatment, and did not differ between the placebo and intervention groups.

PMID:34904467 | DOI:10.1177/03000605211063721