bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Serum albumin level as a potential predictor of delayed healing after minor oral surgery among patients aged over 65 years: the results of a retrospective cohort study
Authors: Kimura Taku , Hato Hiroyuki , Sakata Ken-ichiro , Hojo Takayuki , Asaka Takuya , Ohga Noritaka , Sato Jun , Satoh Chiharu , Yamazaki Yutaka , Kitagawa Yoshimasa 
Published: May 2023

Abstract

Background: Older adults compose the significant proportion of patients undergoing minor oral surgery to restore oral function worldwide; however, these procedures possess certain risks of late complications, particularly delayed healing.
Therefore, this study mainly aims to assess the frequency of this type of adverse effects and identify the predictors of delayed healing among patients aged over 65 years.
Methods: A total of 106 participants aged over 65 years who underwent minor oral surgical interventions at the Department of Oral Medicine, Hokkaido University Hospital from 2015 to 2022 were selected from the database and were divided into two healing groups: the non-delayed (n = 87) and delayed (n = 19). The delayed healing was defined as lack of healing for more than 10 days. The clinical parameters for comparison included those of clinical examination and laboratory tests assessed before surgery. Fisher’s exact test, the Wilcoxon rank-sum test, and logistic regression analysis were used to evaluate the results.
Results: Delayed healing was the most frequent postsurgical complication (17.9%) among all the patients. Serum albumin level (odds ratio, 10.0; 95% confidence interval, 2.15–46.6) significantly differed between the groups of patients with and without delayed healing. The multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that serum albumin level of <3.5 g/dL (odds ratio, 10.1; 95% confidence interval, 1.83–56.2) was strongly associated with delayed healing.
Conclusions: This study revealed that the level of serum albumin can predict delayed healing among patients aged over 65 years who undergo minor oral surgery.
Trial registration: Retrospectively registered.
Evaluating the relationship between conditional cash transfer programme on preterm births: a retrospective longitudinal study using the 100 Million Brazilian Cohort
Authors: Ortelan Naiá , Almeida Márcia Furquim , Júnior Elzo Pereira Pinto , Bispo Nivea , Fiaccone Rosemeire L. , Falcão Ila Rocha , Rocha Aline dos Santos , Ramos Dandara , Paixão Enny S. , Ribeiro-Silva Rita de Cássia , Rodrigues Laura C. , Barreto Mauricio L. , Ichihara Maria Yury T. 
Published: May 2023

Abstract
Background Preterm births increase mortality and morbidity during childhood and later life, which is closely associated with poverty and the quality of prenatal care. Therefore, income redistribution and poverty reduction initiatives may be valuable in preventing this outcome. We assessed whether receipt of the Brazilian conditional cash transfer programme - Bolsa Familia Programme, the largest in the world - reduces the occurrence of preterm births and explored how this association differs according to prenatal care and quality of Bolsa Familia Programme management.Methods A retrospective cohort study was performed involving live singleton births from 2012–2015 to mothers registered in the 100 Million Brazilian Cohort from 2004–2015, considering a deterministic linkage with the Bolsa Familia Programme payroll datasets and similarity linkage with the Brazilian Live Birth Information System. The exposed group consisted of newborns to mothers who received Bolsa Familia from conception to delivery. Our outcomes were infants born with a gestational age < 37 weeks: (i) all preterm births, (ii) moderate-to-late (32–36), (iii) severe (28–31), and (iv) extreme (< 28) preterm births compared to at-term newborns. We combined propensity score-based methods and weighted logistic regressions to compare newborns to mothers who did and did not receive Bolsa Familia, controlling for socioeconomic conditions. We also estimated these effects separately, according to the adequacy of prenatal care and the index of quality of Bolsa Familia Programme management.Results 1,031,053 infants were analyzed; 65.9% of the mothers were beneficiaries. Bolsa Familia Programme was not associated with all sets of preterm births, moderate-to-late, and severe preterm births, but was associated with a reduction in extreme preterm births (weighted OR: 0.69; 95%CI: 0.63–0.76). This reduction can also be observed among mothers receiving adequate prenatal care (weighted OR: 0.66; 95%CI: 0.59–0.74) and living in better Bolsa Familia management municipalities (weighted OR: 0.56; 95%CI: 0.43–0.74).Conclusions An income transfer programme for pregnant women of low-socioeconomic status, conditional to attending prenatal care appointments, has been associated with a reduction in extremely preterm births. These programmes could be essential in achieving Sustainable Development Goals.
Communication skills-based training about medication switch encounters: mixed-method study on pharmacy staff and patients’ experiences
Authors: Schackmann Laura , Koster E.S. , Dijk Liset van , Vervloet Marcia , Heringa Mette 
Published: May 2023

Abstract
Background.
Non-medical medication switches can lead to difficult conversations. To support pharmacy staff, a communication training has been developed based on two strategies: (1) 'positive message framing' to emphasize positive elements of the message and (2) 'breaking bad news model' to break the news immediately and address emotions.
Aim.
To assess how patients and trained pharmacy staff experience the application of communication strategies for non-medical medication switch conversations and which are barriers and facilitators for the application.
Method.
The Kirkpatrick training evaluation model (level 3 (‘behavior’, including barriers and facilitators) and 4 (‘results’) was used. Trained pharmacy staff registered conversation characteristics and asked patients to fill in a questionnaire. Semi-structured interviews with trained participants were conducted. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and interview data was analyzed thematically.
Results.
Of the 39 trained participants, 21 registered characteristics of 71 conversations, 31 patients filled in questionnaires, and 13 trained participants were interviewed. Level 3: participants self-reported they applied (aspects of) the strategies, though indicated this was not (yet) a standard process. Interviewees indicated signs of increased patient contact and job satisfaction. Time, face-to-face conversations, colleague support, and patient cooperation were facilitators. Level 4: participants were satisfied with most conversations (89%) post-training, particularly with addressing emotions (74%). Patients were (very) positive (77%) about the communication, particularly about clear explanations about the switch.
Conclusion.
Pharmacy staff’s learned behavior includes being able to apply aspects of the strategies. The training results show first signs of better patient-pharmacy staff relationships and increased job satisfaction.
Entropy Removal of Medical Diagnostics
Authors: He Shuhan , Chong Paul , Yoon Byung-Jun , Chung Pei-Hung , Chen David , Marzouk Sammer , Black Kameron , Sharp Wilson , Goldstein Joshua , Raja Ali , Lee Jarone 
Published: May 2023

Abstract
Shannon entropy is a core concept in machine learning and information theory, particularly in decision tree modeling. Decision tree representations of medical decision-making tools can be generated using diagnostic metrics found in literature and entropy removal can be calculated for these tools. This analysis was done for 623 diagnostic tools and provided unique insights into the utility of such tools. This concept of clinical entropy removal has significant potential for further use to bring forth healthcare innovation, such as the quantification of the impact of clinical guidelines and value of care and applications to Emergency Medicine scenarios where diagnostic accuracy in a limited time window is paramount. For studies that provided detailed data on medical decision-making algorithms, bootstrapped datasets were generated from source data in order to perform comprehensive machine learning analysis on these algorithms and their constituent steps, which revealed a novel thorough evaluation of medical diagnostic algorithms.
Expression of microRNAs ‘let-7d and miR-195’ and apoptotic genes ‘BCL2 and caspase-3’ as potential biomarkers of female breast carcinogenesis
Authors: Ibrahim Basma A. , Hegazy Abdelmonem Awad , Gobran Mai Ahmed , Zaitoun Mohamed Abdallah , Elmigdadi Fayig , El-Gindy Gehane A. , Hegazy Salwan Abdelmonem , Alashkar Elsayed M. , Omar Walaa E. 
Published: May 2023

Abstract

BackgroundBreast cancer (BC) is the most common cause of cancer-related death among women world-wide. Let-7d and microRNA-195 (miR-195) are members of microRNAsthat are well-known tumor suppressors involved in the regulation of apoptosis, invasion, and other cellular functions. However, the roles of these microRNAs in BC progression remain controversial. This study aimed to explore the correlation between the expression of let-7d and miR-195 and apoptosis-related genes (ARG) “B-cell lymphoma 2 (BCL2) and caspase-3 (CASP3)” as potential biomarkers of breast carcinogenesis.MethodsIt was a retrospective case-control study where expression of let-7d, miR-195, CASP3, and BCL2 was evaluated using quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR); and immunohistochemical (IHC) staining was used to determine expression of BCL2 and CASP3 in BC tissues versus normal breast tissues (NT)samples.ResultsExpression of let-7d and miR-195 was significantly reduced within BC tissues compared to NT (P: < 0.0001); and there was a statically positive correlation between them (r=0.314,P: 0.005). They have also been correlated to biomarkers’ expression of genes related to apoptosis. There was a statistically significant positive association between CASP3, and both let-7d, and miR-195 relative gene expression (r=0.713,P: <0.0001 and r=0.236, P: 0.03, respectively); in contrast, there was a statistically significant negative association between the relative gene expression of BCL2, and let-7d, and miR-195 (r=-0.221,P: 0.04 and r=-0.311,P: 0.005, respectively).ConclusionsLet-7d and miR-195 have been suggested to be involved in BC by modulating the ARG including BCL2 and CASP3. The qRT-PCR and IHC studies verified that low expression of let-7d and miR-195 prohibit apoptosis via downregulating CASP3 and increasing BCL2 expressions promoting BC progression These results also hypothesize that let-7d and miR-195 along with apoptotic biomarkers (BCL2 and CASP3) can be used in the future to introduce novel, non-invasive molecular biomarkers for BC into clinical practice.
RNA-Seq-Based Transcriptome Profiling of Early Fruit Development in Chieh-qua and Analysis of Related Transcription Factors
Authors: Du Xuan , Liu Na , Lu Panling , Wang Ying , Lu Bo , Tian Shoubo , Zhang Zhaohui 
Published: May 2023

Abstract

Background Chieh-qua (Benincasa hispida Cogn. var. Chieh-qua How.) early fruit development started post pollination. With the continuous expansion of the fruit, the soluble solid content of the fruit decreased. Although there was transcriptomics study on the early fruit development of cucumber, there was no report on the early fruit development of chieh-qua. In this study, fruit transcriptome of 0-, 3- and 7-days post pollination were compared.
Results 104747 unigenes in the range of 201–14,209bp with a N50 length of 2119bp and 161282 transcripts were assembled from clean reads and comparing with 6 public databases for similarity searching. Principal component analysis separated the fruit ages into three groups. Compared with the 0 dpp (C), there were differences in the expression of 12982 and 6541 genes in the fruit tissue 3 dpp and 7dpp respectively. Compared with 3 dpp (B), there were 14314 differentially expressed genes in the fruit of 7dpp (A). According to the analysis of transcription factors, 213 nuigenes in MYB_superfamily was obtained. Among them 94 unigenes of MYB_superfamily differentially expressing in three stages. In the differential expression analysis of pairwise comparison, eight unigenes (Gene_id: TRINITY_DN32880_c1_g2,
TRINITY_DN35142_c2_g2, TRINITY_DN32454_c11_g6,
TRINITY_DN34105_c2_g7, TRINITY_DN32758_c3_g3,
TRINITY_DN33604_c4_g10, TRINITY_DN34466_c3_g1,
TRINITY_DN35924_c3_g2) are homologous to MYB59, MYB-GT3b, MYB18, MYB4, MYB108, MYB306, MYB340, MYB-bHLH13. And these unigenes are significant differences among the three groups of comparison. Further, MYB59 and MYB18 exhibited higher expression during the fruit pollinated for one week. While, MYB4, MYB-GT3b, MYB108 and MYB306 showed the highest expression levels in the fruits that have been pollinated for three days. Additionally, MYB340 and MYB-bHLH13 have showed higher expressions at the stage of unpollinated.
Conclusion These results indicate that MYB59, MYB-GT3b, MYB18, MYB4, MYB108, MYB306, MYB340, MYB-bHLH13 could play crucial roles in chieh-qua fruit development, defence, and blossom. Overall, this study provides a basis for further investigations of the MYB_superfamily genes of early fruit expansion in chieh-qua.
Hypofractionated stereotactic radiotherapy for brain metastases in lung cancer patients: Dose‒response effect and toxicity
Authors: Pan Kaicheng , Wang Bing , Xu Xiao , Liang Jiafeng , Tang Yi , Ma Shenglin , Xia Bing , Zhu Lucheng 
Published: May 2023

Abstract
Background Lung cancer is the main cause of brain metastases, and approximately 40% of lung cancer patients are found to have brain metastasis during the course of the disease. For patients with limited brain metastases, hypofractionated stereotactic radiotherapy (HSRT) has been proven feasible. However, the optimal dose schedule of HSRT remains inconclusive. We aimed to investigate the dose response and toxicity in patients treated with HSRT.Methods A retrospective analysis was performed of lung cancer patients treated with 5-fraction HSRT for 1–10 brain metastases at Hangzhou Cancer Hospital from January 1, 2019, to January 1, 2021. All patients were followed up with MRI every 3 months after HSRT. The 1-year intracranial local control rate (iLC) was estimated using the Kaplan‒Meier method. The adverse radiation effects (AREs) were evaluated according to the criteria of the CTCAE 5.0.Results Forty patients with 70 brain metastases were reviewed. The median prescription dose was 30 (range, 25–40) Gy. The median maximum diameter of brain metastases was 1.3 (range, 0.6-4.0) cm. The 1-year iLC was 75.6% for patients treated with ≤ 30 Gy vs. 88.8% for patients treated with > 30 Gy (P = 0.09). For patients treated with HSRT combined with targeted therapy, immunotherapy and chemotherapy, the 1-year iLC was 88.9%, 100%, and 45.0%, respectively. No significant associations were observed between maximum diameter, tumour location, pathological type, or number of brain metastases. The rate of all-grade AREs was 32.5%. All AREs were grade 1–2 except for 2 patients with a total dose of 40 Gy who experienced grade 3 headache.Conclusions Increasing the prescription dose of HSRT for brain metastases is expected to improve local control, but the occurrence of side effects should also be carefully considered. Systemic therapy can impact the iLC rate, and individualized treatment regimens need to be developed.
Novel linkage approach to join community-acquired and national data
Authors: Tochel Claire , Pead Emma , McTrusty Alice , Buckmaster Fiona , MacGillivray Tom , Tatham Andrew J , Strang Niall , Dhillon Baljean , Bernabeu Miguel 
Published: May 2023

Abstract
Background: Community optometrists in Scotland have performed regular free-at-point-of-care eye examinations for all, for over 15 years. Eye examinations include retinal imaging but image storage is fragmented and they are not used for research. The Scottish Collaborative Optometry-Ophthalmology Network e-research project aimed to collect these images and create a repository linked to routinely collected healthcare data, supporting the development of pre-symptomatic diagnostic tools.
Methods: As the image record was usually separate from the patient record and contained minimal patient information, we developed an efficient matching algorithm using a combination of deterministic and probabilistic steps which minimised the risk of false positives, to facilitate national health record linkage. We visited two practices and assessed the data contained in their image device and Practice Management Systems. Practice activities were explored to understand the context of data collection processes. Iteratively, we tested a series of matching rules which captured a high proportion of true positive records compared to manual matches. The approach was validated by testing manual matching against automated steps in three further practices.
Results: A sequence of deterministic rules successfully matched 95% of records in the three test practices compared to manual matching. Adding two probabilistic rules to the algorithm successfully matched 99% of records.
Conclusions: The potential value of community-acquired retinal images can be harnessed only if they are linked to centrally-held healthcare care data. Despite the lack of interoperability between systems within optometry practices, data linkage is possible using robust, almost entirely automated processes.
Exploring the current state of medical education in obstetrics and gynecology: A nationwide survey among German teaching coordinators
Authors: Meyer Bastian , Riedel Fabian , Amann Niklas , Graf Anna , Stuehrenberg Antonia , Ritter Viktoria , Wallwiener Markus , Heublein Sabine , Recker Florian , Weiss Martin , Riedel Maximilian 
Published: May 2023

Abstract
Background: Obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN) is an essential medical field that focuses on women’s health. Universities aim to provide high-quality healthcare services to women through comprehensive education of medical students. The objective of the present survey was both to ascertain perspectives on the teaching methods, resources, and challenges faced by medical educators in the field of OB/GYN in Germany and to identify possible room from improvement. The survey was conducted with teaching coordinators from most German university OB/GYN departments.Methods: A questionnaire was sent to the teaching coordinators in all 41 OB/GYN departments at German university hospitals. The survey was delivered via email with a link to an online survey platform.Results: The study received 30 responses from 41 universities. In addition to standard teaching formats, such as lectures, seminars, and clinical clerkships, the universities differed in their additional teaching offerings. Gynecological history-taking and general gynecology had the highest rates of learning success, while subfields such as reproductive medicine and urogynecology performed poorly. E-learning was found to be widely used and was considered advantageous. While good teaching was found to be essential and valued by students, a shortage of resources for medical education was noted.Conclusion: The present study provides valuable insights into the current state of medical education in OB/GYN at German universities from the perspective of teaching experts. We discuss approaches to overcoming current obstacles and offer suggestions for improvement.
Clinical features of neuromyelitis optica combined with or without connective tissue disease
Authors: FANG XUE , Gu Shue , Zhang Junmei , DU Dandan , Chi Shuhong , Li Haining 
Published: May 2023

Abstract
Objective
To study the symptoms, clinical manifestations, laboratory tests, imaging, treatment and prognosis of neuromyelitis optica (NMOSD) with or without combined connective tissue disease (CTD).
Methods
The 226 NMOSD patients diagnosed at Ningxia Medical University General Hospital were divided into two groups according to the presence or absence of concurrent CTD. The clinical data and prognosis of NMOSD patients with combined CTD were analyzed and followed up. At the same time, NMOSD patients with combined CTD were compared with NMOSD patients without the presence of CTD in terms of laboratory tests, imaging tests, and the similarities and differences between the two groups were analyzed.
Results
CTD combined with NMOSD mostly occurred in females, and the most prevalent form of CTD is systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) or primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS). It has a variety of symptoms, the majority of which are visual loss or limb weakness and numbness, and the majority of patients are positive for AQP4-IgG. The symptoms resolve significantly after sequential hormonal shock therapy in the acute phase, but the relapse rate is high. Meanwhile, it was revealed that when compared between NMOSD patients with combined CTD and NMOSD patients without combined CTD, there was a significant difference between the recurrent events (including recurrence rate and number of recurrences) and degree of remission (p<0.05).
Conclusions
The high incidence of CTD combined with NMOSD in women and the high recurrence rate suggest that adjuvant immunosuppression should be given to further reduce recurrence.
Development and validation of predictive models for mortality of cases with COVID-19 (Omicron BA.5.2.48 and B.7.14): A retrospective study
Authors: Li Peifang , Yang Huiliang , Wu Jinyu , Ma Yanfei , Hou Ailin , Chen Jiali , Ning Ning 
Published: May 2023

Abstract
Background With the emergence of new COVID-19 variants (Omicron BA.5.2.48 and B.7.14), predicting the mortality of infected patients has become increasingly challenging due to the continuous mutation of the virus. Existing models have shown poor performance and limited clinical utility. This study aims to identify the independent risk factors and develop a practical predictive model for mortality among patients infected with new COVID-19 variants.Methods Demographic, clinical, and laboratory data of COVID-19 patients were retrospectively collected at our hospital between December 22, 2022, and February 15, 2023. Logistic regression (LR), decision tree (DT), and Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) models were developed to predict mortality. Those models were separately visualized via nomogram, decision trees, and Shapley Additive Explanations (SHAP). To evaluate those models, accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, precision, Youden’s index, and area under curve (AUC, 95% CI) were calculated.Results A total of 987 cases with new COVID-19 variants (Omicron BA.5.2.48 and B.7.14) were eventually included, among them, 153 (15.5%) died. Noninvasive ventilation, intubation, myoglobin, INR, age, number of diagnoses, respiratory, pulse, neutrophil, and albumin were the most important predictors of mortality among new COVID-19 variants. The AUC of LR, DT, and XGBoost models were 0.959, 0.878, and 0.961, respectively. The diagnostic accuracy was 0.926 for LR, 0.913 for DT, and 0.977 for XGBoost. XGBoost model had the highest sensitivity (0.983) and specificity (0.940).Conclusion Our study developed and validated three practical models for predicting mortality in patients with new COVID-19 variants. All models performed well, and XGBoost was the best-performing model.