Most Viewed Articles

Background: Since 2019, remote patient monitoring (RPM) for patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) has been supported by the European Society of Cardiology. However, real-world data on the use of such solutions has been limited and not primarily based on patient-reported outcomes. The aim of this study was to describe the Satelia® Cardio solution in France within the French ETAPES funding program and assess the security and performance of its clinical algorithm.Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted on CHF patients monitored by RPM through Satelia® Cardio. From September 1, 2018, to June 30, 2020, patients were included if they had completed over six months of follow-up. The risk of a possible CHF decompensation was categorized by the system in three levels: green, orange and red. The algorithm security and performance were assessed through the negative predictive value (NPV) of the prediction of hospitalization of a patient within seven days.Results: In total, 331 patients were included in this study with 36,682 patient self-administered questionnaires answered. Patients were mostly males (70.4%) and had a mean age of 68.1 years. The mean left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was 35.4% (± 12.3) and 73.3% of patients had a LVEF ≤ 40%. The questionnaire response rate was 90.9%. A green status was generated for 95.3% of answers. There were 4.5% (n = 1,499) orange alerts and 0.2% (n = 74) red alerts. Overall, 92.1% of patients had at least one CHF related hospitalization and 31.7% (n = 105) of these cases were non-scheduled. The NPV at seven days was 99.43%.Conclusion: Satelia® Cardio is a feasible, relevant and reliable solution to safely monitor the cohorts of patients with CHF, reassuring cardiologists about patient stability.

Neurological disorders are a significant cause of mortality and disability across the world. The current aging population and population expansion have seen an increase in the prevalence of neurological and psychiatric disorders such as anxiety, bipolar disorder, depression, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and schizophrenia. These pose a significant societal burden, especially in low - and middle-income countries. Many neurological disorders have complex mechanisms and lack definitive cures; thus, improving our understanding of them is essential. The pathophysiology of neurological disorders often includes inflammation, mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress. Oxidative stress processes, especially the generation of reactive oxygen species, are key mechanisms in the development of neurological disorders. Oxidative stress refers to an imbalance between the production of reactive oxygen species and antioxidants that can counteract them. Through their impacts on the pathophysiology of neurological disorders, nutrients with anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective and antioxidative properties have been suggested to prevent or mitigate these disorders. Certain vitamins, minerals, polyphenols and flavonoids may have therapeutic effects as adjuvant treatments for neurological disorders. Diet quality is also a risk factor for some neurological and psychiatric disorders and addressing nutritional deficiencies may alleviate symptoms. Therefore, optimizing nutritional intake may represent a potential treatment or prevention strategy. This review summarizes a selection of promising nutrients for the prevention and amelioration of neurological disorders to provide a summary for scientists, clinicians and patients, which may improve understanding of the potential benefits of nutrients in the treatment of neurological disorders.

Today HPLC is widely applied for separations and purifications in a variety of areas including pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, environmental, polymer and food industries. It is accomplished by injection of a small amount of liquid sample into a moving stream of liquid (called the mobile phase) that passes through a column packed with particles of the stationary phase. The separation of a mixture into its components depends on different degrees of retention of each component in the column. HPLC is just one type of liquid chromatography, meaning the mobile phase is a liquid. Reversed-phase HPLC is the most common type of HPLC. The reversed-phase means the mobile phase is relatively polar, and the stationary phase is relatively non-polar. HPLC instrumentation includes a Solvent reservoir, pump, injector, column, detector, and integrator or acquisition and display system. The heart of the system is the column where separation occurs. The information that can be obtained using HPLC includes identification, quantification, and resolution of a compound. The major applications are in the area of Pharmaceuticals, food, research, manufacturing, forensics, and bio-monitoring of pollutants.

In our study, we aimed to show that alternative iron salts containing different additives are safe to use in patients who have type 1 hypersensitivity reactions to iron drugs and need iron replacement therapy.Materials and methods: Between January 2022 and June 2022, patients who had previously developed type 1 hypersensitivity reactions with iron preparations and needed iron replacement were included in the study. The study was designed retrospectively. Skin tests were first performed on patients to demonstrate a type 1 hypersensitivity reaction. If skin tests were negative and there was no history of life-threatening anaphylaxis, oral provocation tests were continued. If the absence of variability in symptoms and perimeter values, the drug allergy test was considered negative. Results: Twenty-two patients were included in the study. Twenty-one of the patients were female and one was male. Iron deficiency anemia was found in nine patients, and low iron stores in thirteen patients without anemia were found. Type 1 hypersensitivity reaction developed with Iron 3 Carboxymaltose in 7 patients, Iron 2 Sulfate in 5 patients, Iron 2 Glycine in 4 patients, Iron 3 Hydroxy Polymaltose in 4 patients, Iron 2 Fumarate in 1 patient and Iron 3 Hydroxide Sucrose in 1 patient. Allergy tests with all alternative iron drugs containing additional additives were negative.Conclusion: If patients with allergic reactions cannot be referred to allergy clinics, we think that oral iron salts with different additives can be used after the first dose is given in the hospital under general anaphylaxis precautions. We show that oral iron salts containing different additives can be safely used.

Introduction: In the present study we evaluated and compared RBC parameters, iron status, and ferritin for discriminating between patients with iron deficiency anemia and anemia of chronic disease. Anemia that accompanies infection, inflammation, and cancer, is commonly termed anemia of chronic disease (ACD). Methods: We compared the ability of serum ferritin concentration, using the microplate immunoenzymometric assay method with other, more traditional indicators of iron status like total iron binding capacity [TIBC], mean corpuscular volume [MCV], percent transferrin saturation [%TS], RBC distribution width [RDW], and serum iron concentration [SIC]. The ferritin concentration was determined in 80 serum samples selected from men and women above the age of 18 years. The patients were assigned to IDA and ACD groups based on serum ferritin concentration.Observation: By studying the ROC Curve for various red cell parameters for the diagnosis of IDA and ACD, we found that diagnostic accuracy of various indicators was as follows TIBC>TS%>MCV>MCH>SI>MCHC for anemia of chronic diseases, and TIBC>MCH>MCV>MCHC>TS%>SI for iron deficiency anemia. When both the value of AUCs (Area under Curve) of ROC were compared it is apparent that TIBC, TS%, MCV, and MCH are important discriminating factors between IDA and ACD. Conclusion: Conventional laboratory parameters play an important role in distinguishing overt causes of IDA and ACD. MCV, MCH, and TIBC were found to be (p -value < .05) significantly discriminated against IDA and ACD. Serum ferritin is an important diagnostic tool with reasonable accuracy for the detection and differentiation of iron deficiency anemia and anemia of chronic disease.

Background: Cesarean section at the second stage of labor occurs when the mother requires delivery with full dilatation of the cervix by cesarean section (CS), which poses a risk to the mother and fetus.Purpose: To study the maternal and fetal outcomes of second-stage cesarean section. Methods: This comparative study was conducted at Alhasahisa Teaching Hospital from August 2021 to January 2022. The study sample comprised 226 women who fulfilled the inclusion criteria, including 113 who delivered by second-stage cesarean section and 113 who delivered by first-stage labor cesarean section as controls. Data were collected using a questionnaire filled out by doctors after informed consent was obtained. Results: The common indications in women who delivered via second-stage cesarean section were fetal distress in 62(51.9%), obstructed labor in 26(23%), and failure to progress in 25(22.1%). In women who underwent first-stage cesarean section, the common indications were failure to progress in 85(75.2%), fetal distress in 16(14.2%), and chorioamnionitis in 12(10.6%) (p < 0.05).  The reported maternal complications in women who underwent second-stage cesarean section were postpartum hemorrhage in 34(30.1%), sepsis in 11(9.7%), prolonged labor in eight (7.1%), extended tears in four (3.5%), umbilical cord prolapse in three (2.7%), and episiotomy in three (2.7%). The admission to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and the causes of admission were more common among the babies of the women delivered by second-stage cesarean section than the babies of the women delivered by first-stage cesarean section (p value < 0.05). Maternal complications in women who underwent second-stage cesarean section included postpartum hemorrhage in 34(30.1%), sepsis in 11(9.7%), prolonged labor in 8(7.1%), uterine extension in 4(3.5%), umbilical cord prolapse in 3(2.7%), and episiotomy in 3(2.7%) (p < 0.05).Conclusion: Second-stage labor cesarean section showed more complications of postpartum hemorrhage, sepsis, and extended tears, as well as more fetal complications, such as admission to the neonatal intensive care unit, fresh stillbirths, low Apgar scores, and birth asphyxia.

Airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) is a hallmark of persistent asthma measured using direct or indirect airway bronchial challenge testing. The purpose of this study is to investigate the putative relationships between type 2 inflammatory biomarkers, airway geometry (FEV1 and FEF25-75) and specific IgE (RAST or skin prick) to AHR. We performed a retrospective analysis of our database (n = 131) of patients with asthma. Of these subjects, 75 had a histamine challenge and 56 had a mannitol challenge. Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) and specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) but not blood eosinophils were significantly higher in patients with AHR to either histamine or mannitol. FEV1 % and FEF25 - 75 % were significantly lower in patients with AHR. Elevated Type 2 biomarkers including FeNO and specific IgE but not blood eosinophils were associated with AHR. Highlights: FeNO and specific IgE but not blood eosinophils are raised in patients with airway hyperresponsiveness.

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is one of the most effective treatments for severe aortic valve stenosis (AVS). Different genres and generations of transcatheter heart valves (THVs) are accessible, offering operators an opportunity to choose a patient-tailored device. In this single-center study, we present the outcomes of Serbian patients treated with next-generation Myval THV for severe symptomatic AVS. Myval THV was implanted in all consecutive patients who underwent TAVI at the Dedinje Cardiovascular Institute of Belgrade, Serbia between October 2020 and September 2021. The primary endpoint was device success on day 30. Secondary endpoints included 30-day all-cause mortality, cardiovascular death, stroke, moderate/severe paravalvular leak (PVL), and new permanent pacemaker implantation (PPI). TAVI was performed as per the European Society of Cardiology guidelines. The study comprised thirteen patients, aged 72±13 years with mean EuroSCORE (7.17%) and Society of Thoracic Surgeons (2.72%,) scores who underwent TAVI successfully with 92.3% using the percutaneous approach. Myval THV intermediate and extra-large sizes were implanted in 46% and 15% of patients, respectively. This acute procedure success rate was 100%. The primary composite endpoint of early device success was achieved in all patients. None of the patients had clinically significant aortic regurgitation or moderate/severe PVL. No patient experienced stroke, contrast-induced acute kidney injury, device-related vascular complications, or a new PPI. The all-cause mortality rate at 30 days was 0%. Myval THV system demonstrated a favorable safety/efficacy profile within 30 days post-procedure at a single center in Serbia. This is the first report of my experience with Myval THV from Serbia.

Fibromuscular dysplasia is a rare, non-atherosclerotic, non-inflammatory vascular disease that typically affects women between the ages of 20 and 60 years.Although any artery can be affected fibromuscular dysplasia most commonly affects the renal and carotid arteries. Fibromuscular dysplasia of the renal arteries usually presents with hypertension, while carotid or vertebral artery disease causes transient ischemic attacks, strokes, or dissection. Aortic dissection is rare. We present the clinical case of a patient with fibromuscular dysplasia with type B aortic dissection.

SARS-CoV-2 is a virus that has a positive-sense, single-stranded RNA genome that encodes 4 structural proteins, the main one being the S protein (Spike) responsible for mediating with ACE2 and TMPRSS2 for entry into the host cell. The study of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of ACE2 and TMPRSS2 can elucidate their possible intervention in the action of the protein, its activity, and the gene expression of encoding these enzymes, which may increase susceptibility to viral infection. From this, literature searches were carried out until December 2021, listing 11,820 publications for literary analysis on the described genetic variations of these protein structures, as well as their relation and influence on the pathology. It was possible to conclude that there is a great influence exerted by genetic variability in ACE2 and TMPRSS2 increasing the ability of the virus to bind to the host cell and the development of COVID-19 with complications.