Int J Med Sci
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Observational Study
Impact of Footwear and Foot Deformities in patients with Parkinson's disease: A Case-Series Study.
Background: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common and complex neurological problem. Gait abnormalities are frequent in PD patients, and this increases the risk of falls. However, little is known about foot deformities and footwear in this vulnerable population. ⋯ This has a negative impact on the quality of life of these patients. Conclusions: This research detected an elevated number of people with foot deformities or alterations. Moreover, a high proportion of participants with PD wear inadequate footwear (in length, width, or both).
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Aim: In other respiratory infectious diseases, obesity may be associated with a poor outcome. For coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the association between obesity and severity or prognosis requires further analysis. Methods: This was a retrospective, single-center study. ⋯ Multiple logistic regression showed that obesity increased the risk of developing severe+critical illness (Odd ratio 3.586, 95% CI 1.550-8.298, P=0.003) in patients with COVID-19, and did not affect the risk of critical illness, organ damage and endpoints. Overweight did not affect the risk of severity, organ damage or endpoint in patients with COVID-19. Conclusion: Obesity may be a risk factor for developing severity in patients with COVID-19.
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Observational Study
Prognostic value of central venous-to-arterial carbon dioxide difference in patients with bloodstream infection.
Background: Bloodstream infection (BSI) are prone to circulation disorders, which portend poor outcome. The central venous-to-arterial carbon dioxide difference (Pcv-aCO2) is a biomarker for circulation disorders, but the prognostic value of Pcv-aCO2 in BSI patients remains unclear. This study was to investigate the association of Pcv-aCO2 with adverse events in BSI patients. ⋯ The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of Pcv-aCO2 for prediction of 28-day mortality in patients with BSI was 0.794. Pcv-aCO2>6 mmHg had 81.1% sensitivity and 78.8% specificity for predicting 28-day mortality. Conclusion: Pcv-aCO2 may be a simple and valuable biomarker to assessment of 28-day mortality in patients with BSI.
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Background: Chronic lumbar radicular pain often accompanies neuropathic pain. The treatment may follow a screening for probable neuropathic pain rather than the definitive diagnosis, which is often difficult in daily practice. However, interventional management may have limited effects on symptoms in patients with neuropathic radicular pain refractory to conservative treatments. ⋯ After adjusting in multivariate regression analysis, the DN4 score was independently associated with response after lumbar epidural intervention (odds ratio [OR]=0.838; 95% confidence interval [CI]=0.718-0.978; P=0.025). In subgroup logistic regression analysis according to the DN4 score, adjuvant administration of hypertonic saline during epidural interventions in patients with a DN4 score ≥4 (OR=3.71; CI=1.142-12.457; P=0.029) was associated with the success of the lumbar epidural procedure at 1 month. Conclusion: The adjuvant use of hypertonic saline in lumbar epidural interventions may be effective at least 1 month after the intervention in patients with probable neuropathic lumbar radicular pain ≥4 using the DN4.
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Clinical Trial
Radiomics based on fluoro-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography predicts liver fibrosis in biopsy-proven MAFLD: a pilot study.
Rationale: Since non-invasive tests for prediction of liver fibrosis have a poor diagnostic performance for detecting low levels of fibrosis, it is important to explore the diagnostic capabilities of other non-invasive tests to diagnose low levels of fibrosis. We aimed to evaluate the performance of radiomics based on 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) in predicting any liver fibrosis in individuals with biopsy-proven metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). Methods: A total of 22 adults with biopsy-confirmed MAFLD, who underwent 18F-FDG PET/CT, were enrolled in this study. ⋯ The coarseness of neighborhood grey-level difference matrix (NGLDM) and long-run emphasis (LRE) of grey-level run length matrix (GLRLM) were selected to predict fibrosis. The logistic regression model performed best with an AUROC of 0.817 [95% confidence intervals, 0.595-0.947] for prediction of liver fibrosis. Conclusion: These preliminary data suggest that 18F-FDG PET radiomics may have clinical utility in assessing early liver fibrosis in MAFLD.