Tag: pubmed

J Med Econ. 2026 Dec;29(1):433-454. doi: 10.1080/13696998.2026.2623789. Epub 2026 Feb 22.

ABSTRACT

AIMS: A systematic review of the economic burden of advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

METHODS: Articles from 2011 onwards reporting the economic burden of locally advanced (stage IIIB/C)/metastatic (stage IV) NSCLC were identified through systematic and supplementary searches. Outcomes included hospitalizations, emergency department (ED) and outpatient visits, and direct and indirect costs, amongst others.

RESULTS: Across 50 publications (43 studies), patients with advanced NSCLC had high rates of healthcare resource utilization (HCRU), with most reporting hospitalization (ranging from 13.0% to 98.2% of patients), ED visits (2.5% to 83.1%), outpatient visits (74.6% to 100.0%), and diagnostic or monitoring tests (45.9% to 92.0%). HCRU (hospitalizations, ED visits and pharmacy visits) appeared to be lower with immunotherapy as compared to chemotherapy. Brain/central nervous system (CNS) metastases were the major clinical factor influencing HCRU. Mean direct costs ranged from US$5,647 (Brazil) to US$158,908 (US) over 12-24 months, and were generally higher in the US, Korea, Germany, and the UK (vs. Brazil, France, and Italy). The main direct cost drivers were drug-related costs (9.5-76.0% of total), overall outpatient costs (39-70.6%), and inpatient costs (5.0-58.1%). Costs were higher for chemotherapy than for immunotherapy. In China, indirect medical costs were US$1,413 per case. In general, mean total healthcare costs were higher for metastatic disease. Disease severity/diagnosis, presence of brain/CNS metastases, targeted therapy and chemotherapy (vs. immunotherapy) and the presence of comorbidities were the main factors influencing higher costs.

LIMITATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS: Patients with advanced NSCLC had high rates of HCRU, and costs were substantial, though varying greatly across countries. HCRU and costs were higher in patients with brain/CNS metastases. Since this was a qualitative review, no formal quantitative synthesis was attempted. Costs reported in different currencies and heterogeneity across studies limited comparability. Finally, a single reviewer extracted data.

PMID:41723781 | DOI:10.1080/13696998.2026.2623789

Dermatol Ther (Heidelb). 2026 Feb 22. doi: 10.1007/s13555-026-01672-7. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Although recognition of prurigo nodularis (PN) and lichen simplex chronicus (LSC) of the scalp is usually straightforward, they may sometimes pose difficulties in terms of differential diagnosis with other similar dermatoses. The aim of this observational retrospective study was to assess dermoscopic features of PN and LSC of the scalp across fair- and dark-skinned individuals and compare them with those of clinical mimickers.

METHODS: Fair-skinned (Fitzpatrick phototypes I-III) and dark-skinned (Fitzpatrick phototypes IV-VI) patients with a histological diagnosis of PN/LSC of the scalp, along with controls, were considered. All the images were randomly evaluated by two independent investigators to identify findings according to standardized criteria. Interobserver agreement was evaluated through Cohen’s kappa coefficient, while Fisher’s exact test with p value set at 0.01 was used for comparative analyses between cases and controls.

RESULTS: The study included 79 cases, including 40 instances of PN/LSC of the scalp (27 with fair skin and 13 with dark skin) and 39 controls. The most common dermoscopic findings (> 1/3 of cases) of PN/LSC in both light and dark phototypes included sparse follicular plugs, broken hairs, purple structureless areas, broom-like hairs, and erosions. Additionally, purple dots, perivascular white halo and dotted vessels with unspecific distribution were also common in fair skin, while white lines (peripheral-radial) and structureless areas turned out to be as frequent in dark skin. Comparative analysis showed that dotted vessels, follicular plugs, broken hairs, broom-like hairs, purple structureless areas, and perivascular white halo were more common compared to control in light phototypes, whereas only erosions, peripheral white lines, and purple structureless areas reached statistical significance in dark-skinned patients (p < 0.01). Kappa values were 0.88 and 0.81 for fair and dark skin, respectively.

CONCLUSION: Dermoscopy is a valuable adjunct in the non-invasive diagnosis of PN and LSC of the scalp, with good reproducibility across skin phototypes.

PMID:41723776 | DOI:10.1007/s13555-026-01672-7

Dermatol Ther (Heidelb). 2026 Feb 22. doi: 10.1007/s13555-026-01690-5. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Atopic dermatitis (AD) involving special areas such as the hands, head and neck, and genital region poses important therapeutic challenges owing to distinct barrier fragility, environmental exposure, and mixed Th1/Th2/Th17 activation. These sites often drive treatment escalation despite limited overall body surface involvement. Evidence on the real-world effectiveness of upadacitinib in these anatomical locations remains limited.

METHODS: A retrospective, observational multicenter study was conducted across five Spanish dermatology departments (November 2024 to November 2025). Adults and adolescents with moderate-to-severe AD and involvement of at least one special area treated with upadacitinib (15 or 30 mg) for ≥ 16 weeks were included. Disease severity was assessed using the Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI), body surface area (BSA), pruritus numeric rating scale (NRS), Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI), Investigator’s Global Assessment (IGA), and local 0-4 Physician Global Assessment (PGA). Minimal disease activity (MDA) was defined as EASI ≤ 3 plus pruritus-NRS 0-1. Descriptive statistics were applied. Distribution-shift plots were used to analyze categorical changes in special areas.

RESULTS: Overall, 57 patients were included (mean age 47.9 ± 17.6 years, 59.6% women). Facial/neck, hand, and genital involvement were present in 73.7%, 61.4%, and 21.1% of patients, respectively; 31.9% had ≥ 2 special areas affected. Upadacitinib induced rapid improvement, with EASI decreasing from 18.9 to 2.7 at week 16 and 2.4 at week 52. MDA was reached by 61% at week 16 and 69% at week 52. Special-area PGA improved markedly across all sites.

CONCLUSIONS: Upadacitinib provided rapid, sustained, and clinically meaningful improvement in AD involving special areas, supporting its use in anatomically sensitive areas.

PMID:41723774 | DOI:10.1007/s13555-026-01690-5

Environ Geochem Health. 2026 Feb 22;48(4):186. doi: 10.1007/s10653-026-03076-0.

ABSTRACT

Madurai, a rapidly growing urban center in South India, faces increasing freshwater demand due to urbanization. In line with Sustainable Development Goal 6 (clean water and sanitation), this study evaluates groundwater quality for drinking and agriculture, highlighting the need for sustainable water management. Fifty groundwater samples were collected and analyzed using standard hydrogeochemical methods to assess seasonal variations and distinguish natural from anthropogenic influences. Results show a significant increase in total dissolved solids (TDS), electrical conductivity (EC), and major ions during the post-monsoon (POM) season, suggesting enhanced mineral leaching and possible surface water contamination. Multivariate statistical analyses provided deeper insights into the relationships among hydrogeochemical variables. Principal component analysis (PCA) indicated a shift from geogenic to anthropogenic influences across seasons, while hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) revealed greater spatial variability in pre-monsoon (PRM) samples, with POM samples showing more homogeneity due to dilution. Water Quality Index (WQI) analysis showed a seasonal decline in water quality, with more samples rated as ‘poor,’ ‘very poor,’ or ‘unfit’ for drinking in POM. While sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) remained within safe irrigation limits, other indices such as sodium percentage (Na%), permeability index (PI), and Kelly ratio (KR) suggested lower irrigation suitability in POM. Mineral saturation indices indicated continued undersaturation, implying ongoing aquifer mineral dissolution. These findings underscore the need for sustained groundwater monitoring and effective management to safeguard water quality. Achieving SDG 6 requires proactive measures amid growing environmental and anthropogenic pressures.

PMID:41723759 | DOI:10.1007/s10653-026-03076-0

J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2026 Feb 22:S0022-5223(26)00088-7. doi: 10.1016/j.jtcvs.2026.01.019. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:41723743 | DOI:10.1016/j.jtcvs.2026.01.019

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2026 Feb 22:e22707. doi: 10.1002/anie.202522707. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

In the oxygen evolution reaction (OER), the structural reconstruction and elemental segregation of alloy catalysts are key factors influencing their activity and stability, while the irreversible structural evolution induced by high current density is the primary issue leading to performance degradation. Herein, we designed a multi-element alloy nanoparticle (MEA-NP) model electrocatalyst from binary (FeIr) to quinary alloy (FeCoNiIrRu), modulating the configuration entropy to explore its influence on structural stability. The single-nanoparticle collision (SNC) based on scanning electrochemical cell microscopy (SECCM) was employed to facilitate efficient mass transfer and ultrahigh current density, thereby accelerating structural evolution during OER. By combining multidimensional feature extraction and clustering analysis of transient signals, it was found that increasing the number of constituent elements improves the structural stability under OER conditions, and high entropy effectively suppresses elemental segregation. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), in situ Raman spectroscopy, and density functional theory (DFT) calculations further confirmed the advantages of the quinary alloy in terms of structural homogeneity and stability. This study established a statistical correlation between elemental segregation and single-particle transient OER signals, proposed a strategy similar to “accelerated testing under extreme conditions”, providing new insights for the mechanistic study and rational design of OER catalysts.

PMID:41723734 | DOI:10.1002/anie.202522707

J Man Manip Ther. 2026 Feb 22:1-7. doi: 10.1080/10669817.2026.2632710. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To validate the Neck Disability Index (NDI) and Mandibular Functional Impairment Questionnaire (MFIQ) instruments for telephone applications in patients with temporomandibular dysfunction (TMD).

METHODS: This cross-sectional study invited participants with TMD to answer the NDI and MFIQ on two randomized occasions, face-to-face and by telephone, 5 to 7 days apart. The order of the assessments was randomized. The Student’s t-test was used to assess statistically significant differences between the scores obtained face-to-face and by telephone. The Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) and weighted kappa were used to assess the level of agreement between the total scores and the scores for each item.

RESULTS: Seventy participants (18 men; mean age, 29 years; standard deviation, 12 years) were included. No statistically significant difference was found between the scores obtained using the two methods (face-to-face and telephone). Regarding the level of agreement of the total scores obtained on the two occasions, high ICCs were found: 0.97 NDI, NDI and 0.96 for the MFIQ. Considering the agreement for each item obtained in the two occasions, the NDI scores showed substantial agreement for nine items (0.55≥Kappa ≥0.79) and moderate agreement for one item (Kappa = 0.42), while in the MFIQ all the items showed substantial agreement (0.52≥Kappa ≥0.78).

CONCLUSION: Telephone-based administration of the NDI and MFIQ is valid for the assessment of individuals with TMD.

PMID:41723701 | DOI:10.1080/10669817.2026.2632710

Phys Rev Lett. 2026 Feb 6;136(5):051802. doi: 10.1103/fj4q-t8jg.

ABSTRACT

The first observation of the decay B^{+}→pΛ[over ¯] is presented using proton-proton collision data collected by the LHCb experiment between 2016 and 2018 at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5.4 fb^{-1}. The signal significance exceeds seven standard deviations. Using the B^{+}→K_{S}^{0}π^{+} decay as a normalization channel, the branching fraction is measured and combined with previous LHCb results based on data collected at 7 and 8 TeV in 2011 and 2012, yielding B(B^{+}→pΛ[over ¯])=(1.24±0.17±0.05±0.03)×10^{-7}, where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second is systematic, and the third comes from the uncertainty on the branching fraction of the normalization channel. The B^{+}→pΛ[over ¯] weak decay parameter is measured to be α_{B}=0.87_{-0.29}^{+0.26}±0.09, indicating the presence of comparable S-wave and P-wave decay amplitudes.

PMID:41723698 | DOI:10.1103/fj4q-t8jg

Phys Rev Lett. 2026 Feb 6;136(5):050802. doi: 10.1103/n9wg-k6q9.

ABSTRACT

The so-called state-carving protocol generates high-fidelity entangled states at an atom-cavity interface without requiring high cavity cooperativity. However, this protocol is limited to 50% efficiency, which restricts its applicability. We propose a simple modification to the state-carving protocol to achieve efficient entanglement generation, with unit probability in principle. Unlike previous two-photon schemes, ours employs only one photon which interacts with the atoms twice-avoiding separate photon detections which causes irrecoverable probability loss. We present a detailed description and performance evaluation of our protocol under nonideal conditions. High fidelity of 0.999 can be achieved with cavity cooperativity of only 34. Efficient state carving paves the way for large-scale entanglement generation at cavity interfaces for modular quantum computing, quantum repeaters, and creating arbitrary shaped atomic graph states, essential for one-way quantum computing.

PMID:41723653 | DOI:10.1103/n9wg-k6q9

Immunohorizons. 2026 Feb 12;10(2):vlag004. doi: 10.1093/immhor/vlag004.

ABSTRACT

Kidney transplant recipients (KTRs) exhibit impaired immune responses to vaccination against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus, remaining vulnerable to severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) even after multiple vaccine doses. We hypothesized that repeated SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations in KTRs might promote remodeling of the adaptive immune repertoire. In order to address this hypothesis and gain insight into adaptive immune dynamics in this population, we employed next-generation sequencing (NGS) to determine longitudinal alterations in immunoglobulin (IG) and T cell receptor (TR) gene repertoires following multiple mRNA vaccinations and functional experiments to assess lymphocyte signaling capacity. TR gene repertoire analysis revealed increased diversity and reduced clonality after booster immunizations, indicative of substantial repertoire renewal. Although the relative frequency of SARS-CoV-2-specific TR clonotypes remained stable over time, significant shifts in TRBV gene usage reflected dynamic reshaping of the TR clonal architecture. Parallel IG gene repertoire profiling demonstrated increased diversity and limited oligoclonal expansions after booster mRNA vaccination. These changes were accompanied by elevated levels of somatic hypermutation in IG clonotypes similar to published SARS-CoV-2-specific clonotypes, suggestive of more efficient humoral responses following repeated antigenic exposure. Phospho-specific flow cytometry analysis revealed initially diminished B cell receptor signaling, which was restored following multiple immunizations, consistent with reversal of B cell anergy status. Altogether, our findings support the notion that repeated SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations drive the remodeling of cellular and humoral immune landscapes in KTRs. These results underscore the importance of tailored vaccination strategies to optimize immune protection in immunocompromised individuals.

PMID:41723636 | DOI:10.1093/immhor/vlag004