tbuckley/cabot-search huggingface dataset:
Contemporary approaches to visual prostheses
Authors: Rebecca M. Mirochnik, John S. Pezaris
Journal: Military Medical Research (2019)

Visual prostheses serve to restore visual function following acquired blindness. Acquired blindness (as opposed to congenital blindness) has many causes, including diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa, glaucoma, and macular degeneration, or trauma such as caused by automobile accident or blast damage from explosions. Many of the blindness-causing diseases target the retina or other ocular structure. Often, despite the loss of sensitivity to light, the remainder of the visual pathway is still functional, enabling electrical devices to deliver effective and meaningful visual information to the brain via arrays of electrodes. These arrays can be placed in any part of the early visual pathway, such as the retina, optic nerve, lateral geniculate nucleus, or visual cortex. A camera or other imaging source is used to drive electrical stimulation of remaining healthy cells or structures to create artificial vision and provide restoration of function. In this review, each approach to visual prostheses is described, including advantages and disadvantages as well as assessments of the current state of the art. Most of the work to-date has been targeting stimulation of (a) the retina, with three devices approved for general use and two more in clinical testing; (b) the lateral geniculate nucleus, with efforts still in the pre-clinical stage; and (c) the cortex, with three devices in clinical testing and none currently approved for general use despite the longest history of investigation of the three major approaches. Each class of device has different medical indications, and different levels of invasiveness required for implantation. All contemporary devices deliver relatively poor vision. There has been remarkable progress since the first proof-of-concept demonstration that used stimulation of the primary visual cortex, with the field exploring all viable options for restoration of function. Much of the progress has been recent, driven by advances in microelectronics and biocompatibility. With three devices currently approved for general use in various parts of the world, and a handful of additional devices well along in the pipeline toward approval, prospects for wide deployment of a device-based therapy to treat acquired blindness are good.
Re: Concordance Between Intracervical and Fundal Injections for Sentinel Node Mapping in Patients With Endometrial Cancer? A Study Using Intracervical Radiotracer and Fundal Blue Dye Injections
Authors: Fabio Martinelli, Antonino Ditto, Francesco Raspagliesi
Journal: Clinical Nuclear Medicine (2019)

Department of Gynecologic Oncology Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale Tumori Milan, Italy [email protected] Conflicts of interest and sources of funding: none declared.
Publisher Correction: L3MBTL1 regulates ALS/FTD-associated proteotoxicity and quality control
Authors: Jiayin Lu, Goran Periz, Yu-Ning Lu, Qing Tang, Yang Liu, Tao Zhang, Yajas Shah, Ravi Thombre, Reham Aljumaah, Weixin Li, Jelena Mojsilovic-Petrovic, Yon Ji, Kenji Johnson, Robert Kalb, Jiou Wang
Journal: Nature Neuroscience (2019)
Health-Related Quality of Life Impact from Adding Bevacizumab to Cisplatin-Pemetrexed in Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma in the MAPS IFCT-GFPC-0701 Phase III Trial
Authors: Guillaume Eberst, Amélie Anota, Arnaud Scherpereel, Julien Mazieres, Jacques Margery, Laurent Greillier, Clarisse Audigier-Valette, Denis Moro-Sibilot, Olivier Molinier, Hervé Léna, Frédéric Rivière, Isabelle Monnet, Valérie Gounant, Henri Janicot, Radj Gervais, Chrystelle Locher, Emilie Charton, Franck Morin, Gérard Zalcman, Virginie Westeel
Journal: Clinical Cancer Research (2019)

The IFCT-GFPC-0701 MAPS phase III trial highlighted significant improvement in overall survival from adding bevacizumab to the standard first-line chemotherapy regimen [cisplatin plus pemetrexed (PC)] in advanced malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM). We present the results of health-related quality of life (HRQoL), a secondary endpoint of MAPS.HRQoL was assessed using the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Quality of Life Questionnaire QLQ-C30 and the lung cancer-specific module QLQ-LC13 at randomization and then every 9 weeks until disease progression.HRQoL deterioration-free survival (QFS), used to analyze longitudinal HRQoL data, was defined as the interval between randomization and the occurrence of the first clinically relevant definitive deterioration compared with the HRQoL score at baseline, or death.A total of 448 patients were included in the MAPS trial between 2008 and 2014. At baseline, 425 patients (94.8%) completed the HRQoL questionnaire. We report that adding bevacizumab to cisplatin and pemetrexed (PCB) significantly improved QFS for the peripheral neuropathy dimension, with a median QFS of 12.09 months [95% confidence interval (CI), 9.59-13.67] in the PCB arm versus 7.59 months (95% CI, 6.57-8.61) in the PC arm [HR (PCB vs. PC) = 0.74; 95% CI, 0.61-0.91; P = 0.004]. QFS was also longer in the PCB arm for the pain dimension (HR = 0.84; 95% CI, 0.69-1.02; P = 0.08).This study demonstrated that adding bevacizumab to standard chemotherapy in patients with advanced MPM had no negative impact on HRQoL. A significant improvement in the peripheral neuropathy and pain HRQoL dimensions was even observed.
Abstract 15830: Novel Rodent Model of Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction (HFpEF) Involving Supracoronary Aortic Banding and L-NAME
Authors: Hiroshi Koiwaya, David J Polhemus, Rishi K Trivedi, Craig Zibilich, Juan Gao, Daniel R Kapusta, David J Lefer
Journal: Circulation (2017)

Background: Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) accounts for 50% of heart failure (HF) cases and is associated with poor prognosis. However, there are no approved therapies avail...
Abstract P128: Accelerometer-determined Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity and the Cardiovascular Response to Stress in Children
Authors: Nicole L Spartano, Kevin S Heffernan, Amy K Dumas, Brooks B Gump
Journal: Circulation (2016)

Background: Physical activity (PA) has been associated with lower cardiovascular reactivity in adults, but little data is available in children. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between PA and cardiovascular reactivity to stress in children. Methods: This study sample included children from the Oswego Lead Study (n=79, 46% female, 9-11 years old). Impedance cardiography was performed while children participated in a stress response protocol consisting of three stress tasks in random order, separated by 8-minute intertask rest periods. Change in heart rate (HR) and systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP and DBP) (from baseline to stress level) were standardized within each task, then averaged across tasks (zMean [[Unable to Display Character: &amp;#8710;]]). Total peripheral resistance (TPR) was calculated using BP and cardiac output (CO); TPR = ([(SBP-DBP)/3] + DBP)/CO X 80. Percent change in TPR (from baseline to stress level) was standardized within each task, and then averaged across tasks (zMean %[[Unable to Display Character: &amp;#8710;]]). Children were also asked to wear Actigraph accelerometers on their wrists for 3 days to measure intensity and duration of PA and sedentary time. Results: In multivariable regression models, moderate to vigorous (MV) PA was associated with a lower body mass index (BMI) percentile, lower resting heart rate (HR), and lower TPR response to stress (Table 1; all p &lt; 0.05). After additional adjustment for BMI, MVPA was also associated with lower diastolic blood pressure response to stress (p &lt; 0.05). Sedentary time was not associated with resting measures or cardiovascular responses to stress (data not shown). Conclusions: A modest relation was observed between MVPA and vascular reactivity to stress in children after accounting for the effect of BMI. These data provide confirmatory evidence that the promotion of PA recommendations for children are important for cardiovascular health.
Health literacy in psoriasis care
Authors: M.H. Larsen, Y.A.S. Strumse, C.R. Borge, R. Osborne, M.H. Andersen, A.K. Wahl
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (2019)

Psoriasis is a long‐lasting (chronic) skin disease, which affects 2% to 3% of the population in Scandinavia as well as the UK. Treatment generally requires a high level of self‐management by patients, such as applying medications at home. Psoriasis can have several different treatment options, comorbidities (other diseases occurring alongside psoriasis) and lifestyle recommendations, which can be hard for patients to process. Health literacy (HL) is the ability to seek, understand and apply health information. Lower HL has been linked with poorer health outcomes (meaning less successful treatment) in several chronic conditions, but has not been studied in psoriasis. This study from Norway aimed to investigate the HL strengths and weaknesses of patients with psoriasis. The study included 825 patients with moderate to severe psoriasis who had participated in ‘climate helio therapy’ (use of natural sunlight) in Gran Canaria from 2011 to 2016. All completed questionnaires and The Health Literacy Questionnaire (HLQ) assessed HL. The study found that higher HL predicted higher quality of life and psoriasis knowledge. Sex, educational attainment, age and disease severity had less influence on health literacy. The study shows that improving HL may be a useful strategy for strengthening psoriasis self‐management. Interventions that aim to reduce disease severity and increase psoriasis knowledge, self‐management and quality of life may positively increase HL.
Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia with Deletion 13q: Prognostic Predictors and Outcome after Treatment with Fludarabine, Cyclophosphamide and Rituximab (FCR)
Authors: Abdul Rashid Shah, Tariq Muzzafar, Romana Asad, Christine B Peterson, Hagop M. Kantarjian, Alessandra Ferrajoli, William G Wierda, Jan A. Burger, Nitin Jain, Gautam Borthakur, Maliha Khan, Abhishek Chilkulwar, Brion Randolph, Lohith Gowda, Michael J Keating
Journal: Blood (2017)
Factors influencing low‐value follow‐up care after BCC
Authors: S. Egmond, M. Wakkee, A. Rengen, M.T. Bastiaens, T. Nijsten, M. Lugtenberg
Journal: British Journal of Dermatology (2019)

Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common type of cancer worldwide and its incidence is still rising. It is a type of skin cancer, but it is generally slow‐growing and very rarely spreads elsewhere in the body. Currently, guidelines recommend to only provide follow‐up care (e.g. annual check‐ups) to BCC patients considered ‘high risk’ according to certain factors, such as the size of the tumour, its location, and if it was faster growing than normal. However, dermatologists still provide follow‐up care to patients with low‐risk BCCs as well. To understand why this so called ‘low‐value care’ is provided and to identify strategies to reduce this care, the Dutch authors (based in Rotterdam) interviewed 18 dermatologists and organised three focus groups with 17 low‐risk BCC patients. The interviews and focus groups were audio taped and then transcribed literally. These transcripts were then loaded into a software programme and analysed for themes. Two main reasons given by dermatologists for providing low‐value follow‐up care were: i) complying with patient preferences and ii) a lack of trust in general practitioners (GPs) to identify suspicious lesions (possible skin cancers). Financial incentives and force of habit were two further reasons. Patients also expressed a lack of trust in GPs, and whereas some of the BCC patients preferred receiving periodic follow‐up care, other patients felt it was unnecessary. Several strategies for reducing follow‐up care were suggested, of which educating patients was identified as potentially effective by dermatologists and patients. Results of this study have already been incorporated in a pilot study, in which BCC patients receive written information which includes information about their disease, treatment, recurrence chance and chance of subsequent BCC. This letter is tailored to their specific situation.
Abstract 120: A Case With Left Ventricular Failure And Unconsciousness Treated With Plasma Exchange
Authors: Yuriko Abe, Mamoru Ayusawa, Masataka Kato, Ami Cho, Hirohumi Watanabe, Hiromi Okuma, Akiko Komori, Rie Ichikawa, Hiroshi Kamiyama, Shori Takahashi
Journal: Circulation (2015)

Background: Either encephalopathy or left ventricular (LV) failure complicated with Kawasaki disease (KD) is rare but occasionally fatal. We experienced a critical case simultaneously complicated with both of them and successfully rescued by plasma exchange (PE). Case report: A 4-year-old girl was hospitalized with a high fever lasting 7 days, conjunctival injection, reddened and swollen lips, cervical lymphadenopathy and erythema of the palms and soles. Laboratory tests revealed that her white blood cells count 35,400/μl, C-reactive protein was 35 mg/dl, N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide was 15,317 pg/ml, and interleukin-6 reported afterward was 354 pg/ml. Echocardiography showed that LV ejection fraction was 40%. She was diagnosed as KD and was treated with 2g/kg of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) and oral aspirin on the 7th day of illness. On the following day, however, her blood pressure declined to 80/40mmHg and LV function was becoming gradually poorer despite of intravenous injection of dobutamine. As her consciousness was unclear and electroencephalogram (EEG) indicated slow waves, she was additionally treated with D-mannitol. Infliximab is not indicated because of heart failure. Therefore, repetitive PE was started immediately after deep sedation with mechanical respiratory assist. Her fever, EEG and LV function began improving by PE consecutive 3 days, however, those findings recurrently worsened at every interval of PE. IVIG and steroid pulse therapy were added on the 12th day after PE. On the 13th day, she became defervescent and her consciousness became clear and EEG normalized. She returned to daily life without cardiac or neurologic abnormalities after discharge. Conclusions: PE is a rapid and sufficiently effective strategy for a critical KD case when infliximab is not indicated or immediate effectiveness of steroid including pulse therapy is not expected.
Publisher Correction: Common schizophrenia alleles are enriched in mutation-intolerant genes and in regions under strong background selection
Authors: Antonio F. Pardiñas, Peter Holmans, Andrew J. Pocklington, Valentina Escott-Price, Stephan Ripke, Noa Carrera, Sophie E. Legge, Sophie Bishop, Darren Cameron, Marian L. Hamshere, Jun Han, Leon Hubbard, Amy Lynham, Kiran Mantripragada, Elliott Rees, James H. MacCabe, Steven A. McCarroll, Bernhard T. Baune, Gerome Breen, Enda M. Byrne, Udo Dannlowski, Thalia C. Eley, Caroline Hayward, Nicholas G. Martin, Andrew M. McIntosh, Robert Plomin, David J. Porteous, Naomi R. Wray, Armando Caballero, Daniel H. Geschwind, Laura M. Huckins, Douglas M. Ruderfer, Enrique Santiago, Pamela Sklar, Eli A. Stahl, Hyejung Won, Esben Agerbo, Thomas D. Als, Ole A. Andreassen, Marie Bækvad-Hansen, Preben Bo Mortensen, Carsten Bøcker Pedersen, Anders D. Børglum, Jonas Bybjerg-Grauholm, Srdjan Djurovic, Naser Durmishi, Marianne Giørtz Pedersen, Vera Golimbet, Jakob Grove, David M. Hougaard, Manuel Mattheisen, Espen Molden, Ole Mors, Merete Nordentoft, Milica Pejovic-Milovancevic, Engilbert Sigurdsson, Teimuraz Silagadze, Christine Søholm Hansen, Kari Stefansson, Hreinn Stefansson, Stacy Steinberg, Sarah Tosato, Thomas Werge, David A. Collier, Dan Rujescu, George Kirov, Michael J. Owen, Michael C. O’Donovan, James T. R. Walters
Journal: Nature Genetics (2019)
Intensive care use and mortality among patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction: retrospective cohort study
Authors: Thomas S Valley, Theodore J Iwashyna, Colin R Cooke, Shashank S Sinha, Andrew M Ryan, Robert W Yeh, Brahmajee K Nallamothu
Journal: BMJ (2019)

To evaluate the effect of intensive care unit (ICU) admission on mortality among patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).Retrospective cohort study.1727 acute care hospitals in the United States.Medicare beneficiaries (aged 65 years or older) admitted with STEMI to either an ICU or a non-ICU unit (general/telemetry ward or intermediate care) between January 2014 and October 2015.30 day mortality. An instrumental variable analysis was done to account for confounding, using as an instrument the additional distance that a patient with STEMI would need to travel beyond the closest hospital to arrive at a hospital in the top quarter of ICU admission rates for STEMI.The analysis included 109 375 patients admitted to hospital with STEMI. Hospitals in the top quarter of ICU admission rates admitted 85% or more of STEMI patients to an ICU. Among patients who received ICU care dependent on their proximity to a hospital in the top quarter of ICU admission rates, ICU admission was associated with lower 30 day mortality than non-ICU admission (absolute decrease 6.1 (95% confidence interval -11.9 to -0.3) percentage points). In a separate analysis among patients with non-STEMI, a group for whom evidence suggests that routine ICU care does not improve outcomes, ICU admission was not associated with differences in mortality (absolute increase 1.3 (-0.9 to 3.4) percentage points).ICU care for STEMI is associated with improved mortality among patients who could be treated in an ICU or non-ICU unit. An urgent need exists to identify which patients with STEMI benefit from ICU admission and what about ICU care is beneficial.
Coroner calls for national policy for managing asthma after death of 10 year old
Authors: Clare Dyer
Journal: BMJ (2019)

A coroner has demanded a national policy for managing asthma after the death of a 10 year old girl who had sought medical help 48 times with acute asthma attacks, at least 10 of which had life threatening features.

Sophie Holman had been taken to hospital emergency departments 18 times following attacks, over 70% of them life threatening, but had never been referred to specialist respiratory services. The National Review of Asthma Deaths (NRAD), published in May 2014, recommends referral of anyone having two or more attacks in a year.

Despite attending her GP practice and three hospitals on numerous occasions, a coordinated plan for her care was never put in place, and each incident was treated as an acute attack. …
Ambient Temperature and Markers of Fetal Growth: A Retrospective Observational Study of 29 Million U.S. Singleton Births
Authors: Shengzhi Sun, Keith R. Spangler, Kate R. Weinberger, Jeff D. Yanosky, Joseph M. Braun, Gregory A. Wellenius
Journal: Environmental Health Perspectives (2019)

Background: Emerging studies suggest that ambient temperature during pregnancy may be associated with fetal growth, but the existing evidence is limited and inconsistent. Objectives: We aimed to evaluate the association of trimester-specific temperature with risk of being born small for gestational age (SGA) and birth weight—markers of fetal growth—among term births in the contiguous United States. Methods: We included data on 29,597,735 live singleton births between 1989 and 2002 across 403 U.S. counties. We estimated daily county-level population-weighted mean temperature using a spatially refined gridded climate data set. We used logistic regression to estimate the association between trimester-specific temperature and risk of SGA and linear regression to evaluate the association between trimester-specific temperature and term birth weight z-score, adjusting for parity, maternal demographics, smoking or drinking during pregnancy, chronic hypertension, and year and month of conception. We then pooled results overall and by geographic regions and climate zones. Results: High ambient temperatures (>90th percentile) during the entire pregnancy were associated with higher risk of term SGA {odds ratio [OR] = 1.041 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.029, 1.054]} and lower term birth weight [standardized to −15g (95% CI: −17g, −13g) reduction in birth weight for infants born at 40 weeks of gestation]. Low temperatures (≤10th percentile) during the entire pregnancy were not associated with SGA [OR = 1.003 (95% CI: 0.991, 1.015)] but were associated with a small decrement in term birth weight [standardized to −6g (95% CI: −8g, −4g)]. Risks of term SGA and birth weight were more strongly associated with temperature averaged across the second and third trimesters, in areas the Northeast, and in areas with cold or very cold climates. Conclusions: Above-average temperatures during pregnancy were associated with lower fetal growth. Our findings provide evidence that temperature may be a novel risk factor for reduced fetal growth. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP4648
Sixty seconds on . . . poetry
Authors: Abi Rimmer
Journal: BMJ (2019)

It is, but these are medical poems—Hippocratic hymns, if you will. In Scotland all lucky doctors graduating in 2019, 2020, and 2021 will be given a volume of verse called Tools of the Trade .

This is the second instalment of the book. The first edition was given to doctors graduating in 2014 …
A smoking cessation intervention for people with chronic Hepatitis C : a randomised controlled trial
Authors: Mary Fenech, Carol Reid
Journal: Hepatology (2012)

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the validity of current practice in smoking cessation for the general population i.e., a telephone counselling and nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) intervention and its applicability to people with chronic hepatitis-C. Methods A randomised controlled trial was conducted over twelve weeks. Following consent, ninety-two smokers (outpatients) with chronic hepatitis-C were recruited by the Nurse Practitioner hepatology, randomly assigned and stratified by number of cigarettes smoked (i.e., 15 and greater; <15) into the intervention group (telephone counselling and NRT) and control group (telephone counselling). Outcomes measured included socio-demographics, nicotine dependence, depression, anxiety and stress and quality of life (QOL). All statistical data were analysed using SPSS. Results After 12 weeks, the intervention group showed a sustained reduction of smoking i.e., 5.8(CI: 2.4,9.3) cigarettes less per day, whereas the control group showed 1.6(CI:-1.9,5.2) cigarette reduction. Although not statistically significantly different (F=2.9, p=0.090) the intervention group on average smoked 4.2 fewer cigarettes compared to the control group. After twelve weeks, seven patients in the intervention group and three patients in the control group reported quitting. Whilst not statistically significant (Fisher’s Exact, p=0.311) this was a clinically significant result. No differences were found for nicotine dependence or depression, anxiety and stress. The intervention group experienced no change in QOL (-0.1,CI:-0.9, 0.6), however, the environmental score for the control group decreased by 1.8(CI:1.0, 2.6,p= 0.001). This was statistically significant. Conclusion A telephone counselling and nicotine replacement therapy intervention from the nurse practitioner, hepatology reduced smoking in patients with chronic hepatitis-C. The intervention group showed a sustained reduction over the 12 weeks. A total of 10 patients quit smoking at the end of the study. QOL deteriorated in the environmental subscale for the control group. These results informed a nurse practitioner model of care for approaches to smoking cessation.