Articles: treatment.
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For augmented intelligence (AI) tools to realize their potential, critical care clinicians must ensure they are designed to improve long-term outcomes. This overview is intended to align professionals with the state-of-the art of AI. ⋯ Plans for long-term management of ICU survivors must account for the development of a holistic follow-up system that incorporates AI across multiple platforms. A tiered post-ICU screening program may be established wherein AI tools managed by ICU follow-up clinics provide appropriate assistance without human intervention in cases with less pathology and refer severe cases to expert treatment.
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Nociplastic pain, characterized by abnormal pain processing without an identifiable organic cause, affects a significant portion of the global population. Unfortunately, current pharmacological treatments for this condition often prove ineffective, prompting the need to explore new potential targets for inducing analgesic effects in patients with nociplastic pain. In this context, toll-like receptors (TLRs), known for their role in the immune response to infections, represent promising opportunities for pharmacological intervention because they play a relevant role in both the development and maintenance of pain. ⋯ In addition, we explore the association between nociplastic pain and psychiatric comorbidities, proposing that modulating TLRs can potentially alleviate both pain syndromes and related psychiatric disorders. Finally, we discuss the potential sex differences in TLR signaling, considering the higher prevalence of nociplastic pain among women. Altogether, this review aims to shed light on nociplastic pain, its underlying mechanisms, and its intriguing relationship with TLR signaling pathways, ultimately framing the potential therapeutic role of TLRs in addressing this challenging condition.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
The downside to choice: instrumental control increases conditioned nocebo hyperalgesia.
Nocebo hyperalgesia is a pervasive problem in which the treatment context triggers negative expectations that exacerbate pain. Thus, developing ethical strategies to mitigate nocebo hyperalgesia is crucial. Emerging research suggests that choice has the capacity to reduce nocebo side effects, but choice effects on nocebo hyperalgesia have not been explored. ⋯ The positive choice information failed to attenuate the effect of choice on nocebo hyperalgesia. The current results suggest that, rather than decreasing nocebo hyperalgesia, treatment choice may exacerbate pain outcomes when a painful procedure is repeatedly administered. As such, using choice as a strategy to mitigate nocebo outcomes should be treated with caution.
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Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) accounts for 15% of all breast cancers and is characterized by more aggressive biology, significant disease heterogeneity, and worse clinical outcomes. In recent years, improved understanding of TNBC tumor biology and its heterogeneity have led to the identification of new molecular targets, opening avenues for novel treatment strategies. Clinical trials evaluating immunotherapy, poly-ADP ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitors, and antibody drug conjugates have shown improvement in clinical outcomes, leading to their incorporation to the treatment options available for patients with TNBC. This review aimed to provide the internal medicine specialist and primary care provider with a comprehensive overview of the current systemic therapy approaches for TNBC and introduce clinicians to novel therapies that have recently been added to the treatment armamentarium against this disease.
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We present our experience in the management of symptomatic vertebral hemangiomas with epidural extension (SVHEE) using spine stereotactic radiosurgery (SSRS). ⋯ To our knowledge, this represents the largest series of SVHEE patients treated with SSRS, either as monotherapy or part of a multimodal/separation surgery treatment approach. We demonstrate that SSRS represents a potentially safe and effective treatment option in these patients. However, larger prospective studies and longer follow-ups are necessary to further assess the role, durability, and toxicity of SSRS in the management of these patients.