Tag: nevin manimala

PEC Innov. 2023 May 26;2:100170. doi: 10.1016/j.pecinn.2023.100170. eCollection 2023 Dec.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: This article details the development of an interdisciplinary graduate medical education (GME) narrative curriculum.

METHODS: Descriptive statistics were conducted for the narrative session surveys. Two separate qualitative analyses were conducted. First, content and thematic analyses of the open-ended questions in the survey using NVIVO software occurred. Second, an inductive analysis of the participants’ 54 stories was performed to identify unique themes not related to the prompt topics.

RESULTS: Quantitative survey results demonstrated that 84% of learners’ felt the session benefited their personal or professional sense of wellbeing and resilience, 90% of learners believed the sessions aided in their ability to listen more effectively, and 86% of learners could apply what they practiced or witnessed. Qualitative analysis of survey data showed learners focused on patient care and listening. Thematic analysis of participants’ narratives revealed strong feelings and emotions, struggles with time management, increase in self- and other-awareness, and challenges managing job-life balance.

CONCLUSION: The longitudinal interdisciplinary Write-Read-Reflect narrative exchange curriculum is cost-effective, sustainable, and demonstrably valuable to learners and their program directors across multiple disciplines.

INNOVATION: The program was designed for 4 graduate programs’ learners to simultaneously experience a narrative exchange model to improve patient-provider communication, support professional resilience, and deepen relationship-centered care skills.

PMID:37384161 | PMC:PMC10294085 | DOI:10.1016/j.pecinn.2023.100170

J Paediatr Child Health. 2023 Jun 29. doi: 10.1111/jpc.16462. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

AIMS: The aim of this study was to characterise and compare the biopsychosocial characteristics of children admitted with failure to thrive (FTT), subdivided into those with underlying medical complexities (categorised as organic FTT – OFTT) and those with none (categorised as non-organic FTT – NOFTT), with a focus on the medical, nutritional, feeding skills and psychosocial domains.

METHODS: A retrospective review of medical records was conducted in children admitted with FTT from January 2010 to December 2020. Descriptive statistics were used for data analysis.

RESULTS: A total of 353 children were included, with the mean age of presentation 0.82 ± 2.05 years (OFTT 1.16 ± 2.50 years, NOFTT 0.49 ± 1.41 years, P = 0.002). Approximately, half of the children were classified as having OFTT. These children had lower birth weights, were more likely to have a history of intrauterine growth restriction and had longer hospital stays. The NOFTT group had significantly more abnormal feeding strategies identified in their caregivers, whereas the OFTT group had more delayed feeding skills and oral aversion. There was no significant difference in psychosocial domains, with both groups having a comparably high risk of abuse and neglect.

CONCLUSIONS: The classification of FTT as non-organic or organic based purely on psychosocial parameters did not reflect the complex nature of FTT within our local population. These groups had different medical variables, and caregiver feeding strategies. A multidisciplinary team approach is recommended for the assessment and intervention for children with FTT to address these domains and the complex interactions between them.

PMID:37382081 | DOI:10.1111/jpc.16462

Sarcoidosis Vasc Diffuse Lung Dis. 2023 Jun 29;40(2):e2023022. doi: 10.36141/svdld.v40i2.14017.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: In Primary Health Care (PHC) many interstitial lung disease (ILD) cases may remain at diagnostic delay, due to their challenging presentation and the limited experience of general practitioners (GPs) in recognizing their early symptoms.

OBJECTIVE: We have designed a feasibility study to investigate early ILD case-finding competency between PHC and tertiary care.

METHODS: A cross-sectional prospective case-finding study was launched at two private health care centers of Heraklion, Crete, Greece, during nine months (2021-2022). After clinical assessment by GP, PHC attenders, who agreed to participate in the study, were referred to the Respiratory Medicine Department, University Hospital of Heraklion, Crete, underwent Lung Ultrasound (LUS) and those with an overall suspicion for ILDs underwent high resolution computed tomography (HRCT) scan. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were used. Multiple Poisson regression analysis was performed to explain positive LUS and HRCT decision with selected variables.

RESULTS: One hundred and nine patients out of 183 were finally included (54.1% females; mean age 61, SD: 8.3 years). Thirty-five (32.1%) were current smokers. Overall, two out of ten cases were assessed to need HRCT due to a moderate or high suspicion (19.3%; 95%CI 12.7, 27.4). However, in those who had dyspnea in relation to counterparts, a significantly higher percentage of patients with LUS findings (57.9% vs. 34.0%, p=0.013) was found, as in those who had crackles (100.0% vs. 44.2%, p= 0.005). Detected possible ILD provisional labelling cases were 6, and most importantly, 5 of those cases were considered highly suspicious for further evaluation based on LUS findings.

CONCLUSIONS: This is a feasibility study exploring potentials by combining data of medical history, basic auscultation skills, as crackles detection, and inexpensive and radiation-free imaging technique, such as LUS. Cases of ILD labeling may be hidden within PHC, sometimes, much before any clinical manifestation.

PMID:37382071 | DOI:10.36141/svdld.v40i2.14017

Sarcoidosis Vasc Diffuse Lung Dis. 2023 Jun 29;40(2):e2023017. doi: 10.36141/svdld.v40i2.14327.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The prognosis of sarcoidosis is challenging and largely depends on the persistence of disease activity and the degree of organ dysfunction. Various biomarkers have been evaluated for diagnosis, disease activity assessment, and prognosis. This study aimed to determine if the ratios of monocytes to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (MHR), platelets to lymphocytes (PLR), neutrophils to lymphocytes (NLR), and lymphocytes to monocytes ratio (LMR) could be used as novel sarcoidosis activity markers.

METHODS: In a case-control study, 54 patients with biopsy-confirmed sarcoidosis were divided into two groups; group 1: consisted of 27 patients with active sarcoidosis who were newly diagnosed and treatment-naive, and group 2: consisted of 27 patients with inactive sarcoidosis who had been on treatment for at least 6 months. All patients were subjected to a comprehensive history, physical examination, laboratory tests, chest imaging, spirometry, and screening for extrapulmonary organ involvement by means of electrocardiogram and eye examination.

RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 44 ± 11 years (79.6% were females & 20.4% were males). MHR, NLR, and LMR were significantly higher in patients with active sarcoidosis than in an inactive disease with a cut-off value of 8.6, a sensitivity of 81.5%, and a specificity of 70.4% (P-value < 0.001), a cut-off value of 1.95, sensitivity of 74% and specificity of 66.7% (P-value 0.007) and a cut-off value of < 4, a sensitivity of 81.5%, and a specificity of 85.2% (P-value < 0.001), respectively. In contrast, PLR was not statistically significant between active and inactive sarcoidosis patients.

CONCLUSIONS: The lymphocytes monocytes ratio is a highly sensitive and specific biomarker that could be used to assess the disease activity in sarcoidosis patients.

PMID:37382070 | DOI:10.36141/svdld.v40i2.14327

Eur J Neurosci. 2023 Jun 29. doi: 10.1111/ejn.16065. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Neural populations, rather than single neurons, may be the fundamental unit of cortical computation. Analysing chronically recorded neural population activity is challenging not only because of the high dimensionality of activity but also because of changes in the signal that may or may not be due to neural plasticity. Hidden Markov models (HMMs) are a promising technique for analysing such data in terms of discrete latent states, but previous approaches have not considered the statistical properties of neural spiking data, have not been adaptable to longitudinal data, or have not modelled condition-specific differences. We present a multilevel Bayesian HMM addresses these shortcomings by incorporating multivariate Poisson log-normal emission probability distributions, multilevel parameter estimation and trial-specific condition covariates. We applied this framework to multi-unit neural spiking data recorded using chronically implanted multi-electrode arrays from macaque primary motor cortex during a cued reaching, grasping and placing task. We show that, in line with previous work, the model identifies latent neural population states which are tightly linked to behavioural events, despite the model being trained without any information about event timing. The association between these states and corresponding behaviour is consistent across multiple days of recording. Notably, this consistency is not observed in the case of a single-level HMM, which fails to generalise across distinct recording sessions. The utility and stability of this approach is demonstrated using a previously learned task, but this multilevel Bayesian HMM framework would be especially suited for future studies of long-term plasticity in neural populations.

PMID:37382060 | DOI:10.1111/ejn.16065

Dent Med Probl. 2023 Apr-Jun;60(2):279-285. doi: 10.17219/dmp/141919.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Platelet concentrates (PCs) are a boon in the field of dentistry. Various generations of PCs have been tried and utilized in different treatment methods, such as intrabony defect therapy, root coverage procedures, oral surgical procedures, and palatal wound healing. Titanium-prepared platelet-rich fibrin (T-PRF) is a third-generation PC that is prepared in medical-grade titanium tubes and achieves good healing in the field of periodontics.

OBJECTIVES: Not many studies have been performed utilizing T-PRF in the treatment of gingival recession (GR). The present case series study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of T-PRF in the treatment of Cairo’s Type 1 GR defects.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 20 patients with 34 Cairo’s Type 1 GR defects were recruited. The surgical sites were treated using the trapezoidal coronally advanced flap (CAF) technique and T-PRF as a biomaterial underneath the flap. The plaque index (PI) and the gingival index (GI), recession depth (RD) and recession width (RW), as well as the width of keratinized tissue (WKT), were measured at baseline and 6 months postoperatively. The obtained values were subjected to statistical analysis. The values were presented as mean (M) and standard deviation (SD), the paired t test was performed to measure all the parameters, and a p-value <0.05 was considered to be statistically significant.

RESULTS: The changes observed 6 months after the use of T-PRF were non-significant for PI (p = 0.053) and significant for GI (p = 0.016) as compared to the baseline. Significant reductions (p < 0.001) were noted for RD and RW, as well as a significant increase in WKT and a mean root coverage (MRC) of 91%.

CONCLUSIONS: Titanium-prepared platelet-rich fibrin can be used as a biomaterial for the treatment of GR defects, as it eliminates the possible silica contamination, as in the case of leukocyte-platelet-rich fibrin (L-PRF), and the need for a second surgical site, as with subepithelial connective tissue graft (SCTG). Moreover, the use of T-PRF results in a thicker membrane formation, and titanium tubes can be reused after proper sterilization.

PMID:37382053 | DOI:10.17219/dmp/141919

Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2023 Jun 29. doi: 10.1002/acr.25181. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Use of biologic and targeted synthetic DMARDs (b/tsDMARDs) in patients with pre-existing tuberculosis (TB), hepatitis B virus (HBV), or hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection can have serious consequences. Although various society guidelines recommend routine screening for these infections prior to initiating certain b/tsDMARDs adherence to these recommendations varies widely. This quality improvement initiative evaluated local compliance with screening and assessed if automated computerized decision support system (CDSS) in the form of a best practice advisory (BPA) in the electronic health record could improve patient screening.

METHODS: Established patients with autoimmune rheumatic disease (ARD) aged 18 years or older with at least one visit to our rheumatology practice between 10/1/2017 and 3/3/2022 were included. When prescribing a new b/tsDMARD, clinicians were alerted via a BPA that showed the most recent results for TB, HBV, and HCV. Screening proportions for TB, HBV, and HCV before BPA initiation were compared with those of eligible patients after the BPA implementation.

RESULTS: A total of 711 patients pre-BPA and 257 patients post-BPA implementation were included in the study. The BPA implementation was associated with statistically significant improvement in screening for TB from 66% to 82% (p=<0.001), HCV from 60 to 79% (p=<0.001), hepatitis B core antibody (HBcAb) 32% to 51% (p=<0.001), and hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) from 51% to 70% (p=<0.001).

CONCLUSION: Implementation of a BPA can improve infectious disease screening for patients with ARD who are started on b/tsDMARD and has potential to improve patient safety. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

PMID:37382043 | DOI:10.1002/acr.25181

J Viral Hepat. 2023 Jun 29. doi: 10.1111/jvh.13864. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

We evaluated geographic heterogeneity in hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment penetration among people who inject drug (PWID) across Baltimore, MD since the advent of direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) using space-time clusters of HCV viraemia. Using data from a community-based cohort of PWID, the AIDS Linked to the IntraVenous Experience (ALIVE) study, we identified space-time clusters with higher-than-expected rates of HCV viraemia between 2015 and 2019 using scan statistics. We used Poisson regression to identify covariates associated with HCV viraemia and used the regression-fitted values to detect adjusted space-time clusters of HCV viraemia in Baltimore city. Overall, in the cohort, HCV viraemia fell from 77% in 2015 to 64%, 49%, 39% and 36% from 2016 to 2019. In Baltimore city, the percentage of census tracts where prevalence of HCV viraemia was ≥85% dropped from 57% to 34%, 25%, 22% and 10% from 2015 to 2019. We identified two clusters of higher-than-expected HCV viraemia in the unadjusted analysis that lasted from 2015 to 2017 in East and West Baltimore and one adjusted cluster of HCV viraemia in West Baltimore from 2015 to 2016. Neither differences in age, sex, race, HIV status, nor neighbourhood deprivation were able to explain the significant space-time clusters. However, residing in a cluster with higher-than-expected viraemia was associated with age, sex, educational attainment and higher levels of neighbourhood deprivation. Nearly 4 years after DAAs became available, HCV treatment has penetrated all PWID communities across Baltimore city. While nearly all census tracts experienced improvements, change was more gradual in areas with higher levels of poverty.

PMID:37382024 | DOI:10.1111/jvh.13864

Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi. 2023 Jun;48(12):3386-3393. doi: 10.19540/j.cnki.cjcmm.20230311.501.

ABSTRACT

The present study collected data on traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) compounds effective in relieving pain from the patent database of the State Intellectual Property Office(SIPO), sorted out the TCM compounds against pain in patents, and analyzed the medication rules to provide references for the research and development of new TCM drugs against pain. The data were subjected to frequency statistics, association rules, cluster analysis, and complex network analysis by IBM SPSS Modeler 18.3 and SPSS Statistical 26.0. The results showed that among the 101 oral prescriptions included in the statistics, the top 5 drugs were Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma, Angelicae Sinensis Radix, Paeoniae Radix Alba, Chuanxiong Rhizoma, and Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix et Rhizoma, and among the 49 external prescriptions included in the statistics, the top 5 drugs were Myrrha, Olibanum, Angelicae Dahuricae Radix, Borneolum Syntheticum, and Chuanxiong Rhizoma. Whether oral or external prescriptions, the drugs were mainly warm in nature, and bitter, pungent, and sweet in flavor. According to TCM complex network analysis, the core drugs were Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma, Angelicae Sinensis Radix, Paeoniae Radix Alba, and Chuanxiong Rhizoma in oral prescriptions, and Olibanum, Myrrha, Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma, Chuanxiong Rhizoma, and Angelicae Sinensis Radix in external prescriptions. Overall, the therapeutic principles of oral prescriptions were mainly replenishing Qi, nourishing blood, and promoting Qi and blood circulation, while those of external prescriptions were activating blood, resolving stasis, promoting Qi flow, and relieving pain on the basis of the oral prescriptions. In the future research and development of TCM compounds against pain, the prescriptions should be modified with mind-tranquilizing and depression-relieving drugs. With the modernization of TCM, the development of new pain-relieving TCM compound patents based on ancient methods and clinical experience adhering to the guidance of TCM treatment based on syndrome differentiation can meet the new demand for pain treatment in the current society and give full play to the advantages of TCM in pain treatment.

PMID:37382021 | DOI:10.19540/j.cnki.cjcmm.20230311.501

Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi. 2023 Jun;48(12):3317-3326. doi: 10.19540/j.cnki.cjcmm.20230119.401.

ABSTRACT

In recent years, reports of adverse reactions related to traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) have been on the rise, especially some traditionally considered &quot;non-toxic&quot; TCM(such as Dictamni Cortex). This has aroused the concern of scholars. This study aims to explore the metabolomic mechanism underlying the difference in liver injury induced by dictamnine between males and females through the experiment on 4-week-old mice. The results showed that the serum biochemical indexes of liver function and organ coefficients were significantly increased by dictamnine(P&lt;0.05), and hepatic alveolar steatosis was mainly observed in female mice. However, no histopathological changes were observed in the male mice. Furthermore, a total of 48 differential metabolites(such as tryptophan, corticosterone, and indole) related to the difference in liver injury between males and females were screened out by untargeted metabolomics and multivariate statistical analysis. According to the receiver operating characteristic(ROC) curve, 14 metabolites were highly correlated with the difference. Finally, pathway enrichment analysis indicated that disorders of metabolic pathways, such as tryptophan metabolism, steroid hormone biosynthesis, and ferroptosis(linoleic acid metabolism and arachidonic acid metabolism), may be the potential mechanism of the difference. Liver injury induced by dictamnine is significantly different between males and females, which may be caused by the disorders of tryptophan metabolism, steroid hormone biosynthesis, and ferroptosis pathways.

PMID:37382016 | DOI:10.19540/j.cnki.cjcmm.20230119.401