Search Results (5,542)

Antibacterial resistance is one of the most important global threats to human health. Several studies have been performed to overcome this problem and infection-preventive approaches appear as promising solutions. Novel antimicrobial preventive molecules are needed and microbial biosurfactants have been explored in that scope. Considering their structure, these biomolecules can be divided into different classes, glycolipids and lipopeptides being the most studied. Besides their antimicrobial activity, biosurfactants have the advantage of being biocompatible, biodegradable, and non-toxic, which favor their application in several areas, including the health sector. Often, the most difficult infections to fight are associated with biofilm formation, particularly in medical devices. Strategies to overcome micro-organism attachment are thus emergent, and it is possible to take advantage of the antimicrobial/antibiofilm properties of biosurfactants to produce surfaces that are more resistant to the deposition/attachment of bacteria. Approaches such as the covalent bond of biosurfactants to the medical device surface leading to repulsive physical–chemical interactions or contact killing can be selected. Simpler strategies such as the absorption of biosurfactants on surfaces are also possible, eliminating micro-organisms in the vicinity. This review will focus on the physical and chemical characteristics of biosurfactants, their antimicrobial activity, antimicrobial/antibiofilm approaches, and finally on their structure–activity relationship. Full article

Background/Objectives: Long COVID covers many cardio-pulmonary symptoms, worsening individuals’ health status. Health resort treatment applies balneological factors, physical medicine modalities, climate actions, and exercises that may be beneficial for COVID-19 survivors. This study aimed to assess the severity of the cardiopulmonary symptoms in people qualified for health resort treatment and its efficacy in this group of patients. Methods: Medical records of 239 people attending health resort treatment were analysed. A total of 122 people (71 women and 51 men) with a mean age of 64.35 years ± 8.66 years were enrolled in the analysis. The cardiopulmonary symptoms of long COVID were assessed twice: before and after health resort treatment. Results: Persisting COVID-19 symptoms do not differentiate between women and men. Health resort treatment reduces symptoms severity in both sexes. Age does not mediate the efficacy of health resort treatment. Conclusions: The persistent symptoms of COVID-19 are of low intensity in people qualified for health resort treatment and are independent of gender. Health resort treatment effectively mitigates dyspnoea, tightness of chest, and sputum in long COVID patients, so it should be implemented into the standard treatment course for COVID-19 survivors as a continuation of therapy. Full article

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) represents one of the most critical oncological diseases in neurological practice, being considered highly aggressive with a dismal prognosis. At a worldwide level, new therapeutic methods are continuously being researched. Magnetic hyperthermia (MHT) has been investigated for more than 30 years as a solution used as a single therapy or combined with others for glioma tumor assessment in preclinical and clinical studies. It is based on magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) that are injected into the tumor, and, under the effect of an external alternating magnetic field, they produce heat with temperatures higher than 42 °C, which determines cancer cell death. It is well known that iron oxide nanoparticles have received FDA approval for anemia treatment and to be used as contrast substances in the medical imagining domain. Today, energetic, efficient MNPs are developed that are especially dedicated to MHT treatments. In this review, the subject’s importance will be emphasized by specifying the number of patients with cancer worldwide, presenting the main features of GBM, and detailing the physical theory accompanying the MHT treatment. Then, synthesis routes for thermally efficient MNP manufacturing, strategies adopted in practice for increasing MHT heat performance, and significant in vitro and in vivo studies are presented. This review paper also includes combined cancer therapies, the main reasons for using these approaches with MHT, and important clinical studies on human subjects found in the literature. This review ends by describing the most critical challenges associated with MHT and future perspectives. It is concluded that MHT can be successfully and regularly applied as a treatment for GBM if specific improvements are made. Full article

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is one of the leading causes of death globally. There was a 70% increase in diabetes-related deaths between 2000 and 2020, particularly among males. This non-communicable disease is characterized by increased insulin resistance, leading to elevated blood sugar levels and, if untreated, resulting in complications such as nerve damage, kidney disease, blindness, and poor wound healing. T2D management includes dietary intervention, physical exercise, and the administration of blood sugar-lowering medication. However, these medications often have side effects related to intestinal discomfort. Therefore, natural alternatives to standard diabetes medications are being sought to improve the quality of life for individuals with this condition. Polyphenols, which are naturally occurring plant metabolites, have emerged as strong candidates for T2D control. Various phenolic acids (e.g., chlorogenic acid), flavonoids (e.g., quercetin), proanthocyanidins (e.g., procyanidin B2), gallotannins (e.g., monogalloyl hexoside), and ellagitannins (e.g., ellagic acid hexoside) can enhance insulin sensitivity in tissues, reduce chronic inflammation, scavenge free radicals, improve insulin secretion, inhibit enzymes involved in carbohydrate digestion, regulate glucose transport across cell membranes, and modulate gut microbiota. This contribution compiles up-to-date evidence from in vitro and in vivo studies on the role of polyphenols in the prevention and management of T2D, emphasizing the mechanisms of action underlying these effects. Full article

Background/Objectives: During the COVID-19 pandemic, children in Japan were restricted from sports and outdoor activities. Regular physical activity is essential for healthy growth and development in children, with recommendations advocating for activities such as strength training. However, the long-term effects of the restrictions have not been fully investigated. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of an “exercise class”, specifically a dance program, designed to improve motor function in elementary school children affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, which may have compromised their motor function. Methods: The dance program was developed by a sports science teacher, a professional dancer, and a physical therapist, and it was evaluated in a community-based participatory study. Trained dance instructors conducted one-hour dance sessions in a medical center, held once a week for two months from June to August 2023. A physical therapist and dance instructors led the elementary school children. Outcome measures included grip strength, lower extremity muscle strength, back muscle strength, dynamic balance function during movement, physical activity time, and body fat percentages. Descriptive statistics were used for analysis. Results: Twenty-four children aged 6–9 years participated in the exercise class over a two-month period. Improvement was observed in grip strength, lower extremity muscle strength, and dynamic balance function during movement. However, physical activity time, body fat percentages, and back muscle strength did not change. Conclusions: The results indicated a significant improvement in motor skills. Dance is an inexpensive program that elementary school children can enjoy while improving their motor skills. Full article

Background/Objectives: This review summarizes the current knowledge about factors that affect the physical characteristics of urine. It highlights proper urine sample collection and displays factors like diet, hydration status, and medications that can alter urine color, odor, clarity, specific gravity and pH. Results: Urinalysis is a minimally invasive examination of a patient’s health, especially concerning nephrological and endocrinological abnormalities, as well as dietary habits and stimulants used. Certain deviations in appearance, composition or frequency/pain during urination may indicate an ongoing disease process in the body. Based on laboratory results, further medical treatment is determined. The reason for a change in the color of the urine, for its clouding or intense odor may be a disease, as well as the consumption of food, medication, intensive physical exercise or inadequate hydration of the body. Well-standardized procedures for collecting, transporting, preparing and analyzing samples should become the basis for an effective diagnostic strategy in urinalysis. It is worth noting that pharmacists in pharmaceutical care are often the first people to whom a patient turns for health advice and for the interpretation of simple laboratory tests. Acquiring the ability to interpret the results of laboratory tests and the principles of proper sampling for laboratory tests is indispensable in the process of possible counseling and providing reliable answers to patients’ questions. Conclusions: Although urinalysis is not recommended as a routine screening tool for the general population, it can prove to be a valuable source of patient health data in some cases as the data will be useful to physicians and pharmacists to more effectively diagnose and better care for patients. Full article

The objective of this research is to investigate the awareness and opinions concerning forest therapy within a public health institution, specifically as a green prescription for patients with stable chronic disease. Through qualitative preliminary analysis, this study compared the responses of a group to gather physical activity and wood frequentation insights, as well as forest therapy patients’ attitudes. The results underline a general predisposition among respondents to engage in moderate physical activity and visit natural environments for relaxation purposes. Emerging parallelly is how forest therapy is largely an unknown practice, although it draws considerable interest and a general predisposition to participate. This research outlines the ideal conditions that emerge for participating in forest therapy sessions, including the availability to pay, pointing toward environmentally and socio-economically sustainable reflections. Further studies should extend this preliminary investigation using appropriate statistical methodologies on larger samples, involving different regions and medical conditions. Full article

Background: The definition of patients with special needs (SNs) is used in the literature to refer to individuals with mental and physical disorders for whom the usual perioperative pathways are not applicable due to lack of cooperation, regardless of age. Studies in the literature recognize the appropriateness of general anesthesia for performing day surgery dental care in this type of patient. Objectives: The main objective was to assess the possible incidence of difficult airway management, understood as difficulty ventilating and/or intubating the patient. A secondary objective was to highlight the influence of general anesthesia on patient outcomes by testing the incidence of perioperative complications. Methods: The present retrospective, single-center, observational study involved 41 uncooperative patients aged between 3 and 17 undergoing dental surgery under general anesthesia. Data relating to airway management and general anesthesia present in the medical records were analyzed. Results: Tracheal intubation was successfully completed in all of the patients considered, and in no case did the patient have to be woken up because of difficulty in airway management. No perioperative complications attributable to anesthesia were found in any patients. Conclusions: From the present experience, it can be concluded that general anesthesia is a suitable option for performing dental care in pediatric subjects with special needs, and that although the peculiar perioperative management of these patients might increase the risk of possible anesthesia-related side effects, no complications have been encountered in any case. Full article

Leveraging its high accuracy and stability, deep-learning-based coronary artery detection technology has been extensively utilized in diagnosing coronary artery diseases. However, traditional algorithms for localizing coronary stenosis often fall short when detecting stenosis in branch vessels, which can pose significant health risks due to factors like imaging angles and uneven contrast agent distribution. To tackle these challenges, we propose a preprocessing method that integrates Hessian-based vascular enhancement and image fusion as prerequisites for deep learning. This approach enhances fuzzy features in coronary angiography images, thereby increasing the neural network’s sensitivity to stenosis characteristics. We assessed the effectiveness of this method using the latest deep learning networks, such as YOLOv10, YOLOv9, and RT-DETR, across various evaluation metrics. Our results show that our method improves ${\mathrm{AP}}_{50}$ accuracy by 4.84% and 5.07% on RT-DETR R101 and YOLOv10-X, respectively, compared to images without special pre-processing. Furthermore, our analysis of different imaging angles on stenosis localization detection indicates that the left coronary artery zero is the most suitable for detecting stenosis with a ${\mathrm{AP}}_{50}(\%)$ value of 90.5. The experimental results have revealed that the proposed method is effective as a preprocessing technique for deep-learning-based coronary angiography image processing and enhances the model’s ability to identify stenosis in small blood vessels. Full article

Background/Objectives: Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) plays a vital role in cell proliferation and survival, with its overexpression linked to various malignancies, including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Although EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are a key therapeutic strategy, acquired resistance and relapse remain challenges. This study aimed to synthesize and evaluate novel rhenium-based complexes incorporating EGFR TKIs to enhance anticancer efficacy, particularly in radiosensitization. Methods: We synthesized a rhenium tricarbonyl complex (Complex 2) and its ^99mTc analog (Complex 2’) by incorporating triphenylphosphine instead of bromine as the monodentate ligand and ${\mathrm{P}\mathrm{F}}_6^{-}$ as the counter-ion, resulting in a positively charged compound that forms cationic structures. Cytotoxicity and EGFR inhibition were evaluated in A431 cells overexpressing EGFR using MTT assays, Western blotting, and flow cytometry. Radiosensitization was tested through MTT and clonogenic assays. The ^99mTc complex’s radiochemical yield, stability, and lipophilicity were also assessed. Results: Complex 2 exhibited significant cytotoxicity with an IC₅₀ of 2.6 μM and EGFR phosphorylation inhibition with an IC₅₀ of 130.6 nM. Both complex 1 and 2 induced G₀/G₁ cell cycle arrest, with Complex 2 causing apoptosis. Radiosensitization was observed at doses above 2 Gy. Complex 2’ demonstrated high stability and favorable lipophilicity (LogD_7.4 3.2), showing 12% cellular uptake after 30 min. Conclusions: Complexes 2 and 2’ show promise as dual-function anticancer agents, offering EGFR inhibition, apoptosis induction, and radiosensitization. Their potential as radiopharmaceuticals warrants further in-depth investigation in preclinical models. Full article

Gait instability is critical in medicine and healthcare, as it has associations with balance disorder and physical impairment. With the development of sensor technology, despite the fact that numerous wearable gait detection and recognition systems have been designed to monitor users’ gait patterns, they commonly spend a lot of time and effort to extract gait metrics from signal data. This study aims to design an artificial intelligence-empowered and economic-friendly gait monitoring system. A pair of intelligent shoes with a single inertial sensor and a smartphone application were developed as a gait monitoring system to detect users’ gait cycle, stand phase time, swing phase time, stride length, and foot clearance. We recruited 30 participants (24.09 ± 1.89 years) to collect gait data and used the Vicon motion capture system to verify the accuracy of the gait metrics. The results show that the gait monitoring system performs better on the assessment of the gait metrics. The accuracy of stride length and foot clearance is 96.17% and 92.07%, respectively. The artificial intelligence-empowered gait monitoring system holds promising potential for improving gait analysis and monitoring in the medical and healthcare fields. Full article

Background: Understanding complex neurosurgical procedures and diseases, such as skull-base meningiomas, is challenging for patients due to the intricate anatomy and the involvement of critical neurovascular structures. Enhanced patient comprehension is crucial for satisfaction and improved clinical outcomes. Patient-specific 3D models have demonstrated benefits in patient education, though they are costly and time-intensive to produce. This study investigates whether the use of 3D volumetric reconstructions with anatomical segmentation, widely available via neuronavigation software, can improve patients’ understanding of skull-base meningiomas, surgical procedures, and potential complications. Materials and Methods: This study included twenty patients with skull-base meningiomas. Three-dimensional volume reconstructions and anatomical segmentations were created using preoperative MRI sequences with neuronavigation software. These reconstructions were used during patient consultations where a surgeon explained key aspects of the disease, the surgical intervention, and potential complications. A questionnaire assessed the patients’ perceptions of the utility of these 3D reconstructions. Results: The majority of patients (75%) found the 3D volumetric reconstructions and anatomical segmentations to be more beneficial than MRI images for understanding their disease. Similarly, 75% reported improved comprehension of the surgical approach, and 85% felt that the reconstructions enhanced their understanding of potential surgical complications. Overall, 65% of patients considered the 3D reconstructions valuable in medical consultations. Conclusions: Our study indicates that using accessible, cost-effective, and non-time-consuming 3D volumetric reconstructions with anatomical segmentation enhances patient understanding of skull-base meningiomas. Further research is necessary to confirm these findings, compare these reconstructions with physical 3D models and virtual reality models, and evaluate their impact on patient anxiety regarding the surgical procedure. Full article

Adaptive radiotherapy (ART) workflows are increasingly adopted to achieve dose escalation and tissue sparing under dynamic anatomical conditions. However, recontouring and time constraints hinder the implementation of real-time ART workflows. Various auto-segmentation methods, including deformable image registration, atlas-based segmentation, and deep learning-based segmentation (DLS), have been developed to address these challenges. Despite the potential of DLS methods, clinical implementation remains difficult due to the need for large, high-quality datasets to ensure model generalizability. This study introduces an InterVision framework for segmentation. The InterVision framework can interpolate or create intermediate visuals between existing images to generate specific patient characteristics. The InterVision model is trained in two steps: (1) generating a general model using the dataset, and (2) tuning the general model using the dataset generated from the InterVision framework. The InterVision framework generates intermediate images between existing patient image slides using deformable vectors, effectively capturing unique patient characteristics. By creating a more comprehensive dataset that reflects these individual characteristics, the InterVision model demonstrates the ability to produce more accurate contours compared to general models. Models are evaluated using the volumetric dice similarity coefficient (VDSC) and the Hausdorff distance 95% (HD95%) for 18 structures in 20 test patients. As a result, the Dice score was 0.81 ± 0.05 for the general model, 0.82 ± 0.04 for the general fine-tuning model, and 0.85 ± 0.03 for the InterVision model. The Hausdorff distance was 3.06 ± 1.13 for the general model, 2.81 ± 0.77 for the general fine-tuning model, and 2.52 ± 0.50 for the InterVision model. The InterVision model showed the best performance compared to the general model. The InterVision framework presents a versatile approach adaptable to various tasks where prior information is accessible, such as in ART settings. This capability is particularly valuable for accurately predicting complex organs and targets that pose challenges for traditional deep learning algorithms. Full article

Objective: The aim was to investigate the association between baseline coexistence of hypertension (HTN) and arthritis, HTN alone, or arthritis alone, and their impact on longitudinal physical function measures among community-dwelling older adults over 5 years of follow-up. Methods: Ours was a longitudinal prospective cohort study from the second wave (2010–2011) and third wave (2015–2016) of the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP). Data for older adults were used. Participants were categorized based on self-reported diagnoses into four groups: coexisting HTN and arthritis, HTN only, arthritis only, or neither. Physical performance measures included walking speed using the 3-Meter Walk Test and the Five Times Sit-to-Stand Test (FTSST). Multiple generalized estimating equations with linear regression analyses were conducted, adjusting for age, sex, race, body mass index (BMI) educational level, pain severity, and baseline use of pain and hypertension medications. Results: Data for 1769 participants were analyzed. Slower walking speed was only associated with coexisting HTN and arthritis (B = −0.43, p < 0.001) after accounting for covariates. The coexisting HTN and arthritis group showed no significant association with FTSST (B = 0.80, p = 0.072) after accounting for covariates. Conclusions: The coexistence of baseline HTN and arthritis in older adults is associated with a gradual decline in only walking speed as a physical performance measure in older adults. Full article

Depression is a significant risk factor for other serious health conditions, such as heart failure, dementia, and diabetes. In this study, a quantitative method was developed to detect depressive states in individuals using electrocardiogram (ECG) and photoplethysmogram (PPG) signals. Data were obtained from 59 people affiliated with the high-specialized medical center of Bajio T1, which consists of medical professionals, administrative personnel, and service workers. Data were analyzed using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) to discern potential false positives. The statistical analyses performed elucidated distinctive features with variable behavior in response to diverse physical stimuli, which were adeptly processed through a machine learning classification framework. The method achieved an accuracy rate of up to 92% in the identification of depressive states, substantiating the potential of biophysical data in increasing the diagnostic process of depression. The results suggest that this method is innovative and has significant potential. With additional refinements, this approach could be utilized as a screening tool in psychiatry, incorporated into everyday devices for preventive diagnostics, and potentially lead to alarm systems for individuals with suicidal thoughts. Full article