Tag: pubmed

J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2022 May 4:glac085. doi: 10.1093/gerona/glac085. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The association of pulmonary function (PF) with motor function and disability remains unclear. We investigate the association of PF with motor function trajectories and disability progression, and explore the role of social activity, cognitive function and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) in this relationship.

METHODS: Within the Rush Memory and Aging Project, 1,403 disability-free participants (mean age: 79.28 years) were followed for up to 22 years. PF was measured with a composite score based on peak expiratory flow, forced expiratory volume in 1 second, and forced vital capacity at baseline. Global motor function including dexterity, gait, and hand strength was assessed annually using 10 motor tests. Disability was evaluated according to the basic activities of daily living. Social activity was defined as the frequency of common types of social interaction. Global cognitive function was assessed using a battery of 19 cognitive performance tests. CVDs (including stroke, congestive heart failure, and heart diseases) were ascertained at baseline. Linear mixed-effects models were used.

RESULTS: Compared to high PF, low PF was related to faster decline in global motor function (β= -0.005, 95% CI: -0.008 to -0.001) and all three specific motor abilities (P < 0.05), as well as faster progression of disability (β= 0.012, 95% CI: 0.009 to 0.014). There was a statistically significant interaction between PF and social activity/cognitive function on disability progression (β: 0.005, 95% CI: 0.001 to 0.009, P= 0.010/β: 0.004, 95% CI: 0.001 to 0.009, P= 0.025).

CONCLUSIONS: Poor PF accelerates motor function decline and the progression of disability. A high level of social activity and cognitive function appear to decelerate disability progression related to poor PF.

PMID:35512113 | DOI:10.1093/gerona/glac085

Medicine (Baltimore). 2022 Apr 29;101(17):e29201. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000029201.

ABSTRACT

The impact of serum prealbumin in patients with esophageal carcinoma after undergoing esophagectomy remains unclear, we speculated that serum prealbumin is associated with anastomotic leak (AL) after surgery, low serum prealbumin level may lead to AL. The aim of the study was to evaluate the relationship between serum prealbumin levels and AL after esophagectomy, to explore the value of serum prealbumin as an early predictor of AL after esophagectomy.Between January 2014 and December 2018, 255 patients were enrolled in this study, their basic characteristics and perioperative serum prealbumin levels were retrospectively analyzed. Statistical analysis by t test, nonparametric test and logistic regression were used to analyze data for patients with and without AL. Based on a receiver operator characteristic curve, a cut-off value for serum prealbumin levels as a predictor of AL was determined.Among the 255 patients, 18 patients were diagnosed with AL. The overall AL rate was 7.0% (18/255) including 12 cases of intrathoracic AL and 6 cases of cervical AL. By univariate analysis, we identified postoperative serum prealbumin level as a risk factor for AL (P < .001). Multivariate analysis also demonstrated postoperative serum prealbumin level (P = .028) to be an independent risk factor for AL. The best cut-off value of postoperative serum prealbumin level was 131 mg/L for predicting AL, with 83.3% sensitivity and 72.2% specificity.Postoperative serum prealbumin level was significantly associated with AL. it may help the early prediction of postoperative AL.

PMID:35512077 | DOI:10.1097/MD.0000000000029201

Oral Radiol. 2022 May 5. doi: 10.1007/s11282-022-00613-2. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: The present radiological observational controlled study aims to evaluate the impact of secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) due to chronic kidney disease (CKD) as well as the duration of dialysis on the mineralization of the mandible by standardized qualitative evaluation of digital panoramic radiographs.

METHODS: Panoramic radiographs of CKD patients with SHPT and healthy controls were used for the qualitative analysis of the mandibular cortical index (MCI), the trabecular bone pattern (TBP), and calcification and resorption foci. Radiomorphometric indices were correlated to biochemical parameters and the duration of dialysis using the Spearman Rho test. Group comparisons were conducted using the Mann-Whitney U test and Fisher’s exact test at a significance level of α ≤ 0.05. Interrater reliability of two physicians was estimated using Cohen’s kappa.

RESULTS: Inclusion and exclusion criteria were fulfilled by N = 41 patients. Statistically significant differences in the MCI (p < 0.001) as well as the TBP (p = 0.002) could be detected for the experimental group in comparison to the healthy control group. Focusing on calcification and resorption foci, no statistically significant difference could be detected between the groups (p = 0.244). The level of the detected parathyroid hormone (PTH) significantly correlated with TBP (Rho = 0.338; p = 0.031), while no significant relationship between TBP and the duration of the dialysis could be found.

CONCLUSIONS: Patients with SHPT due to CKD show statistically significant bone changes in the panoramic radiograph, whereby the grade of trabecular bone change correlates to PTH values.

PMID:35511337 | DOI:10.1007/s11282-022-00613-2

Int Ophthalmol. 2022 May 5. doi: 10.1007/s10792-022-02310-9. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate ocular blood flow and, retinal, choroidal and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness in children with familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) with patients who had at least five attacks.

METHODS: Fifty-six patients with FMF and 56 healthy subjects were enrolled in the study. Each participant’s choroidal thickness (CT) and retinal thickness (RT) measurements were performed in the foveola and at horizontal nasal and temporal quadrants within 500-μm intervals up to 1.500 μm from the foveola using spectral-domain optical coherence tomography as well as the retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFLT). Disc boundaries were determined manually by identifying seven points on the inner edge of the scleral ring. Following complete ophthalmological evaluation, peak systolic velocity (PSV), end-diastolic velocity (EDV), and resistivity index (RI) values in the central retinal artery (CRA), ophthalmic artery (OA), and nasal posterior ciliary artery (NPCA) were measured using color Doppler ultrasonography (CDU) in the left eyes of the patients diagnosed with FMF and the controls. The results were subsequently compared.

RESULTS: No statistically significant differences were observed between the groups in terms of all RNFLT quadrant and RT measurements. All CT measurements were thinner in patients with FMF than in the controls (For Central and Temporal_1500 p = 0.01; For Temporal_500, Nasal 500 and Nasal_1000 p < 0.001; Temporal_1000 p = 0.002) except than the Nasal_1500 point. For nasal_1500 p = 0.121). The PSV and EDV values in the OA, CRA, and NPCA were significantly lower in patients with FMF compared to healthy controls (p < 0.001 for all). In contrast, the RI values of all arteries were significantly higher than in the control group (Regarding OA, CRA and NPCA RI, p = 0.003, p = 0.039, and p = 0.039, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study support the idea that chronic inflammation and frequent attacks in FMF may have an effect on decreased ocular blood flow and choroidal thinning.

PMID:35511318 | DOI:10.1007/s10792-022-02310-9

Mol Biol Rep. 2022 May 5. doi: 10.1007/s11033-022-07465-3. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Biomarkers, such as microRNAs, are helpful in diagnosing colorectal cancer, regulating disease progression, predicting disease recurrence, and determining therapy success. This research aimed to look at the clinicopathological characteristics of serum miRNA-203a-3p expression in colorectal cancer patients.

METHODS AND RESULTS: This case-control study was conducted on 43 patients with colorectal cancer and 43 healthy individuals. After RNA extraction, cDNA was synthesized. The expression of miR-203a-3p was measured using RT-qPCR. Demographic and histochemical data were extracted from patient documents. SPSS and GraphPad Prism software were used to analyze the data. The expression of miR-203a-3p in CRC patients was 2.39 times lower than in the control group (p < 0.0001). The miR-203a-3p expression was significantly lower in the CRC tumor stages, tumor grades, and lymph node metastasis compared to the control group (p < 0.0001 each). The ROC curves showed that the AUC was 0.73, and the best cut-point based on the Youden index was 0.3954, 0.7105, 0.5087, and 0.4868 for detecting colorectal cancer (p = 0.0002), tumor grade (p = 0.006), tumor stage (p = 0.001), and lymph node metastasis (p = 0.0011) compared to the control group, respectively. The binary logistic regression analysis was performed on the correlation between BMI, smoking, and cancer inheritance with miR-203a-3p in cancer and control groups.

CONCLUSION: This study’s findings revealed that serum miR-203a-3p is a fair non-invasive molecular biomarker for diagnosing and progressing tumor grade, tumor stage, and lymph node metastasis in colorectal cancer. However, further research with higher statistical numbers is needed to strengthen the correlation and be used for diagnostic applications.

PMID:35511316 | DOI:10.1007/s11033-022-07465-3

Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol. 2022 May 5. doi: 10.1007/s00417-022-05679-6. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: PERSEUS-IT (NCT02289924) was a prospective, observational, 2-year study evaluating the effectiveness and treatment patterns of intravitreal aflibercept (IVT-AFL) in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) in routine clinical practice in Italy.

METHODS: Treatment-naïve patients with nAMD receiving IVT-AFL per routine clinical practice were enrolled. The primary endpoint was mean change in visual acuity (VA; decimals) from baseline to month (M) 12 and M24. Outcomes were evaluated for the overall study population and independently for the 2 treatment cohorts: regular (3 initial monthly doses, ≥ 7 injections by M12, and ≥ 4 injections between M12 and M24) and irregular (any other pattern).

RESULTS: Of 813 patients enrolled, 709 were included in the full analysis set (FAS); VA assessments were available for 342 patients at M12 (FAS1Y, 140 regular and 202 irregular) and 233 patients at M24 (FAS2Y, 37 regular and 196 irregular). In the overall FAS, the mean ± SD change in VA from baseline to M12 and M24 was + 0.09 ± 0.24 and + 0.02 ± 0.25 decimals, and there was a statistically significant difference between the regular and irregular cohorts in both FAS1Y (p = 0.0034) and FAS2Y (p = 0.0222). Ocular treatment-emergent adverse events were reported in 4.1% (n = 33/810 [safety set]) of patients.

CONCLUSION: In PERSEUS-IT, clinically relevant functional and anatomic improvements were observed within the first 12 months of IVT-AFL treatment in routine clinical practice in Italy in patients with treatment-naïve nAMD. These gains were generally maintained across the 2-year study. The safety profile of IVT-AFL was consistent with prior studies.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02289924.

DATE OF REGISTRATION: November 13, 2014.

PMID:35511286 | DOI:10.1007/s00417-022-05679-6

Int Urogynecol J. 2022 May 5. doi: 10.1007/s00192-022-05209-2. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: Pelvic organ prolapse is among the most common gynecologic problems worldwide. It greatly influences women’s quality of life. However, research regarding the effect of pelvic organ prolapse on quality of life is limited in our study area.

METHODS: An institutional-based study design among women with the diagnosis of pelvic organ prolapse at Felege Hiwot Comprehensive Specialized Hospital was employed from May to July 2018. Interviewer-administered questionnaire and Prolapse Quality of Life assessment tool were used to collect data. Gynecologic speculum examination was done to collect objective data. Data were entered into Epi info version 7 and then exported in to SPSS, version 20.0, for analysis. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were used. All the statistical tests were significant at P < 0.05.

RESULTS: The average prolapse quality of life score was 48.35 ± 22.75 SD. The physical limitation (score: 69.83 ± 28.77 SD) and general health perception (score: 67.39 ± 20.26 SD) domains were the most affected life domains. Younger age (AOR = 3.02 [95% CI: 1.22-7.45]), being illiterate (AOR = 3.52 [95% CI: 1.12-11.10]), and having stage IV POP (AOR = 2.84 [95% CI: 1.16-7.00]) were associated with lower quality of life.

CONCLUSIONS: The QOL score showed huge variability among the study participants. The physical limitation and general health perception domains were most affected. Being illiterate, being < 35 years old, and having stage IV pelvic organ prolapse were the factors associated with lower quality of life.

PMID:35511251 | DOI:10.1007/s00192-022-05209-2

Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2022 May 5. doi: 10.1007/s00213-022-06156-y. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

RATIONALE: Clinical studies suggest that the highly lipophilic, anti-inflammatory molecule, simvastatin, might be an ideal candidate for drug repurposing in the treatment of depression. The neuropsychological effects of simvastatin are not known, but their ascertainment would have significant translational value about simvastatin’s influence on mood and cognition.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to investigate the effects of simvastatin on a battery of psychological tests and inflammatory markers in healthy volunteers.

METHODS: Fifty-three healthy subjects were randomly assigned to 7 days of either simvastatin (N = 27) or sucrose-based placebo (N = 26) given in a double-blind fashion. Then, participants were administered questionnaires measuring subjective rates of mood and anxiety, and a battery of tasks assessing emotional processing, reward learning, and verbal memory. Blood samples for C-reactive protein were also collected.

RESULTS: Compared to placebo, participants on simvastatin showed a higher number of positively valenced intrusions in the emotional recall task (F_1,51 = 4.99, p = 0.03), but also an increase in anxiety scores (F_1,51 = 5.37, p = 0.02). An exploratory analysis of the females’ subgroup (N = 27) showed lower number of misclassifications as sad facial expression in the simvastatin arm (F_1,25 = 6.60, p = 0.02). No further statistically significant changes could be observed on any of the other outcomes measured.

CONCLUSIONS: We found limited evidence that 7-day simvastatin use in healthy volunteer induces a positive emotional bias while also being associated with an increase in anxiety, potentially reflecting the early effects of antidepressants in clinical practice. Such effect might be more evident in female subjects. Different drug dosages, treatment lengths, and sample selection need consideration in further experimental medicine and clinical studies.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT04652089.

PMID:35511258 | DOI:10.1007/s00213-022-06156-y

Anal Bioanal Chem. 2022 May 5. doi: 10.1007/s00216-022-04064-w. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The stability of psychotropic substances representing various drug groups important from the perspective of forensic chemistry, including benzodiazepines, antidepressants, carbamazepine, cocaine, and their selected metabolites, was investigated for 1 month in two alternative biological matrices, vitreous humor and liver homogenate. Three different thermal storage conditions (-20, 4, and 20 °C) were tested. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) analysis was preceded by an effective solid-phase microextraction (SPME) procedure. The results were statistically analyzed using one-way ANOVA to find significant concentration variations over time. The results obtained allowed for dividing the analytes into four groups: stable under all tested conditions, only at -20 and 4 °C, only at 20 °C, and overall unstable. Nordiazepam, venlafaxine, and cocaine and its metabolites turned out to be the most unstable substances, while fluoxetine showed the highest storage stability in both matrices. The SPME/LC-MS method was comprehensively evaluated according to the principles of white analytical chemistry (WAC), which reconcile the greenness and functionality of the method. A close to 100% whiteness score proves its sustainability and suitability for the intended application.

PMID:35511247 | DOI:10.1007/s00216-022-04064-w

JMIR Serious Games. 2022 May 5;10(2):e34222. doi: 10.2196/34222.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: People with severe mental illness (SMI) face discriminatory situations because of prejudice toward them, even among health care personnel. Escape rooms can be a novel educational strategy for learning about and empathizing with SMI, thus reducing stigma among health care students.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to examine the effect of the Without Memories escape room on nursing students’ stigma against SMI.

METHODS: A pre- and postintervention study was conducted with a control group and an experimental group. A total of 306 students from 2 Andalusian universities participated in the study. Data were collected through a pre-post study questionnaire, consisting of an adapted version of the Attributional Style Questionnaire and a questionnaire on motivation for cooperative playful learning strategies. The control group carried out an escape room scenario without sensitizing content, whereas the experimental group carried out an escape room scenario on SMI, with both escape rooms being carried out in a 1-hour session of subjects related to mental health. To answer the research questions, a 2-way analysis of variance with repeated measures, a linear regression, and a 2-way analysis of variance were performed.

RESULTS: After the intervention, a significant reduction (P<.001) was observed in the experimental group in stigmatizing attitudes compared with the control group, in which no statistically significant changes (P>.05) were observed. In contrast, the linear regression (t₁₉₅=-22.15; P<.001) showed that there was an inverse relationship between flow and the level of reduced stigma. When controlling for having or not having a close relative, the intervention was also shown to be effective (P<.001) in reducing the stigma displayed, both for people with affected and unaffected relatives.

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that the Without Memories escape room can be used as an effective tool to educate and raise awareness about stigmatizing attitudes toward SMI in university students studying health care. Future testing of the effectiveness of educational escape rooms should be designed with new programs through playful strategies of longer duration to evaluate whether they can achieve a greater impact on motivation, acquisition of knowledge, and awareness. In addition, the feasibility of implementing the Without Memories escape room in other careers related to health and community should be investigated.

PMID:35511232 | DOI:10.2196/34222