Challenges in Interpreting Thyroid Stimulating Hormone Results in the Diagnosis of Thyroid Dysfunction

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Challenges in Interpreting Thyroid Stimulating Hormone Results in the Diagnosis of Thyroid Dysfunction Via Journal of Thyroid Research The pituitary hormone, thyrotropin (TSH), is regarded as the primary biomarker for evaluating thyroid function and is useful in guiding treatment with levothyroxine for patients with hypothyroidism. The amplified response of TSH to slight changes in thyroid hormone levels provides a large and easily measured signal in the routine care setting. Laboratories provide reference ranges with upper and lower cutoffs for TSH to define normal thyroid function. The upper limit of the range, used to diagnose subclinical (mild) hypothyroidism, is itself a matter for debate, with authoritative guidelines recommending treatment to within the lower half of the range. Concomitant diseases, medications, supplements, age, gender, ethnicity, iodine status, time of day, time of year, autoantibodies, heterophilic ant ibodies, smoking, and other factors influence the level of TSH, or the performance of current TSH assays. The long-term prognostic implications of small deviations of TSH from the reference range are unclear. Correction of TSH to within the reference range does not always bring thyroid and other biomarkers into range and will not always resolve the patient's symptoms. Overt hypothyroidism requires intervention with levothyroxine. It remains important that physicians managing a patient with symptoms suggestive of thyroid disease consider all of the patient's relevant disease, lifestyle, and other factors before intervening on the basis of a marginally raised TSH level alone. Finally, these limitations of TSH testing mitigate against screening the population for the undoubtedly substantial prevalence of undiagnosed thyroid disease, until appropriately designed randomised trials have quantified the benefits and harms from this approach. View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Increasing the reliability of real-time electrocochleography during cochlear implantation: a standardized guideline

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Increasing the reliability of real-time electrocochleography during cochlear implantation: a standardized guideline Via http://link.springer.com/journal/405,European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology,The European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2022 Jan 20. doi: 10.1007/s00405-021-07204-7. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT PURPOSE: Electrocochleography (ECochG) measures electrical potentials generated by the inner ear in response to acoustic stimulation. Real-time (rt) recordings are increasingly used during cochlear implant (CI) surgeries to monitor the inner ear function. However, the performance of rt-ECochG is a delicate measurement procedure involving several pitfalls, which lead to inaccurate or invalid signal recordings in up to 20%. In order to use the technique routinely in CI candidates, an improvement in measurement reliability must be achieved. METHODS: In our prospective study, we systematically investigated potential pitfalls and error sources during rt-ECochG recordings. We performed experiments (i) on a head and torso simulator, (ii) on a whole-head cadaver specimen, (iii) as well as in vivo during rt-ECochG recordings in CI reci pients. After analyzing experiments i-iii, a standardized measurement procedure was developed. We followed this guideline in 10 CI recipients to test the measurement reliability. RESULTS: Besides improper installation, surgical and patient-specific factors influenced the measured signal. In particular, the unattenuated presentation of the acoustic stimulus was of importance. We summarized our findings in a standardized guideline. Following this guideline, we measured successful intraoperative ECochG recordings in 9/10 patients. CONCLUSIONS: Our error analysis improved the understanding of successful rt-ECochG measurements. When following our proposed guideline, we achieved more reliable intraoperative ECochG recordings. PMID:35048175 | DOI:10.1007/s00405-021-07204-7 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Change in Thyroid Hormone Metabolite Concentrations Across Different Thyroid States

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Change in Thyroid Hormone Metabolite Concentrations Across Different Thyroid States Via liebertpub1 Thyroid, Ahead of Print. View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Parotidectomy and neck dissection in locally advanced and relapsed cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck region

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Parotidectomy and neck dissection in locally advanced and relapsed cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck region Via Associação Brasileira de Otorrinolaringologia e Cirurgia Cérvico-Facial Braz J Otorhinolaryngol. 2021 Dec 10:S1808-8694(21)00210-X. doi: 10.1016/j.bjorl.2021.11.007. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prognostic factors to developing parotid and neck metastasis in locally advanced and relapsed Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma (CSCC) of the head and neck region. METHODS: Single-center retrospective cohort study enrolling consecutive patients with advanced CSCC from 2009 to 2019. Seventy-four cases were identified. Study variables demographic data, clinical skin tumor stage, neck stage, parotid stage (P stage), surgical treatment features, and parotid, regional, and distant metastases. Survival measures: Overall Survival (OS) and Disease-Specific Survival (DSS). RESULTS: The study group included 72.9% men (median age, 67 years); 67.5% showed T2/T3 tumors, 90.5% comorbidities, 20.2% immunosuppressed, with median follow-up: 35.8 months. The most frequent skin primary wer e auricular and eyelid regions, 75% underwent primary resection with flap reconstruction. Parotid metastasis was present in 50%, 32.4% showing parotid extracapsular spread, multivariate analysis found OR = 37.6 of positive parotid metastasis evolving into positive neck metastasis, p = 0.001. Occult neck metastasis, neck metastasis, and neck extracapsular spread were observed in 13.5%, 51.3%, and 37.8%, respectively. Kaplan-Meier survival: Clinical T4 versus T1, p = 0.028, P1 stage: 30% and 5% survival at 5 and 10 years, P3 stage: 0%, p = 0.016; OS and DSS showed negative survival for the parotid metastasis group, p = 0.0283. CONCLUSION: Our outcomes support a surgically aggressive approach for locally advanced and relapsed CSCC, with partial parotidectomy for P0, total parotidectomy for P1-3, selective I-III neck dissection for all patients and adjuvant radiochemotherapy to appropriately treat these patients with advanced CSCC of the head and neck region. LEVEL OF EVIDEN CE: II b - Retrospective Cohort Study - Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine (OCEBM). PMID:35042657 | DOI:10.1016/j.bjorl.2021.11.007 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Complications of Gastrostomy Tubes in Patients With Head and Neck Cancer

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Complications of Gastrostomy Tubes in Patients With Head and Neck Cancer Via The Laryngoscope Objectives Head and neck cancers (HNCs) include various malignant tumors of the upper aerodigestive tract. Due to their anatomical location, HNCs can cause obstruction, odynophagia, or trismus, leading to dysphagia. In addition, this patient group may be vulnerable to treatment side effects both by surgery and oncological treatment, exposing the patients to an even higher risk of malnutrition. The risk of malnourishment is often resolved by applying a feeding gastrostomy tube. The present study aims to identify complication rates after percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) and open gastrostomy (OG) in patients treated for HNC in a high-volume center. Study Design Retrospective cohort study. Methods A retrospective cohort study of all patients treated for a new diagnosis of HNC at the Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery at Karolinska University Hospital between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2018 in whom gastrostomy was performed. Results Regarding tumor location, 165 (56.7%) were in the pharynx, 68 (23.4%) in the oral cavity, 57 (19.6%) in the larynx, and 1 (0.3%) in the nasal cavity. PEG was performed in 240 (82.5%) and OG in 51 (17.5%) patients. The overall complication rate was 28.2%: 64 (26.7%) among PEG patients and 18 (35.3%) among OG patients. The incidence of major complications was 3.1%. Conclusions Our study confirms that enteral feeding via gastrostomy is a safe method, regardless of the technique used (PEG or OG), with a low rate of major complications and no mortality linked to the procedure. Level of Evidence 3 Laryngoscope, 2022 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Quality of life after tonsillectomy in adult patients with recurrent acute tonsillitis: a systematic review

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Quality of life after tonsillectomy in adult patients with recurrent acute tonsillitis: a systematic review Via http://link.springer.com/journal/405,European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology,The European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2022 Jan 19. doi: 10.1007/s00405-022-07260-7. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT PURPOSE: The aims of this systematic review were to (1) explore the evidence for improved quality of life (QOL) in adult patients undergoing tonsillectomy because of recurrent acute tonsillitis (RT) and (2) evaluate which set of guidelines for tonsillectomy in adult RT patients is preferable, using QOL as outcome measure. METHODS: A systematic search was conducted in the PubMed, Embase, and Scopus databases. RCT/cohort studies exploring the effect of elective tonsillectomy in adult RT patients using any QOL assessment tool no less than 6 months after surgery were included. Studies were divided into two guideline groups based on the number of tonsillitis episodes required for tonsillectomy (Group 1: ≥ 5; Group 2: ≤ 4). RESULTS: A total of 364 unique records were identified. Seven studies (n = 409 patients) were includ ed in a qualitative analysis and four studies were included in a meta-analysis. Patients' QOL rose significantly, primarily because of improvements in the general and physical domains. In the meta-analysis, 96% (293/304) of patients benefitted from tonsillectomy. Patients included in guideline Group 1 studies had significantly higher QOL scores (Glasgow Benefit Inventory (GBI) 39.6) compared to patients in Group 2 studies (GBI 24.9) (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Adult patients undergoing tonsillectomy because of RT reported improved QOL 6-84 months after surgery. The benefit of tonsillectomy was higher among patients in studies with a higher minimum number of tonsillitis episodes compared to those included in studies with less strict criteria. Whether the improved QOL outweigh the morbidity associated with surgery in both guideline groups remains unclear. PMID:35044507 | DOI:10.1007/s00405-022-07260-7 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid 3 Expression Is Increased In Non‐Lesional Skin Of Atopic Dermatitis Patients

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid 3 Expression Is Increased In Non‐Lesional Skin Of Atopic Dermatitis Patients Via Experimental Dermatology Abstract TRPV3 (transient receptor potential vanilloid 3) is a pro-inflammatory ion channel mostly expressed by keratinocytes of the human skin. Previous studies have shown that the expression of TRPV3 is markedly upregulated in the lesional epidermis of atopic dermatitis (AD) patients suggesting a potential pathogenetic role of the ion channel in the disease. In the current study, we aimed at defining the molecular and functional expression of TRPV3 in non-lesional skin of AD patients as previous studies implicated that healthy-appearing skin in AD are markedly distinct from normal skin with respect to terminal differentiation and certain immune function abnormalities. By using multiple, complementary immunolabeling and RT-qPCR technologies on full-thickness and epidermal shave biopsy samples from AD patients (lesional, non-lesional) and healthy volunteers, we provide the first evidence that the expression of TRPV3 is markedly upregulated in non-lesional human AD epidermis, similar to les ional AD samples. Of further importance, by using the patch-clamp method on cultured healthy and non-lesional AD keratinocytes, we also show that this upregulation is functional as determined by the significantly augmented TRPV3-specific ion current (induced by agonists) on cultured non-lesional AD keratinocytes when compared to healthy ones. View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

How Often Does Retrieval of a Clipped Lymph Node Change Adjuvant Therapy Recommendations? A Prospective, Consecutive, Patient Cohort Study

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader How Often Does Retrieval of a Clipped Lymph Node Change Adjuvant Therapy Recommendations? A Prospective, Consecutive, Patient Cohort Study Via radioactive iodine Ann Surg Oncol. 2022 Jan 18. doi: 10.1245/s10434-022-11324-7. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: Prior studies examining sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) for cN1 patients have demonstrated that 20% of biopsied, clipped lymph nodes (cLNs) are nonsentinel lymph nodes (non-SLNs). Our goal was to determine how often the cLN was a non-SLN among both cN0 and cN1 patients and how often cLN pathology impacted management. METHODS: Overall , 238 patients treated with NAC and surgery January 2019 to June 2020 were prospectively examined. Patients underwent routine axillary ultrasound, biopsy of suspicious nodes, and clip placement. Radioactive iodine-125 seed localization of the cLN was performed in cN1 patients only. Isolated tumor cells (ITCs) were considered node positive (ypN+) for both cN0 and cN1 cohorts. Chart review was performed to determine if cLNs were non-SLN and their ypN status. RESULTS: Of 118 cN0 patients, 115 of 118 (97%) underwent successful SLNB, 33 of whom had a cLN present; 21 of 33 (64%) cLNs were non-SLNs. Overall, 9 of 118 (8%) were ypN+; no cLN was ypN+ without additional +SLNs. Of 120 cN1 patients, 104 of 120 (87%) converted to cN0, 98 of 104 (94%) of which had attempted SLNB, and 95 of 98 (97%) successfully mapped. The cLN was a non-SLN in 18 of 95 (19%). Overall, 58 of 104 (56%) cN1 patients were ypN+. One patient had a positive cLN in the absence of +SLNs. This patient underwent axill ary lymph node dissection (ALND); adjuvant treatment recommendations were unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: The cLN was a non-SLN in 19% of cN1 patients. cLN pathology did not impact adjuvant therapy recommendations, calling into question the utility of routinely clipping biopsied lymph nodes. PMID:35041097 | DOI:10.1245/s10434-022-11324-7 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Markers to sensibility and relapse on IMR-32 neuroblastoma cell line cultured in monolayer (2D) and neurosphere (3D) models cisplatin-treated

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Markers to sensibility and relapse on IMR-32 neuroblastoma cell line cultured in monolayer (2D) and neurosphere (3D) models cisplatin-treated Via histochem Acta Histochem. 2022 Jan 13;124(2):151849. doi: 10.1016/j.acthis.2022.151849. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT The complexity of different components of tumor stroma poses huge challenges for therapies targeting the neuroblastoma (NB) microenvironment. The present study aimed to evaluate platinum-based response in IMR-32 neuroblastoma cell line cultured in monolayer (2D) and neurosphere (3D) models. For this, we evaluated mRNA expression of heat shock proteins HSPA1A, HSPB1, TRAP1, HSPA1AL, HSPD1, and DNA damage repair gene ERCC1. After treatment, residual cells were grafted on CAM (chicken chorioallantoic membrane) to evaluate the growth capability and histological paraffin sections were made to assess Ki-67 and HER-2 proteins by immunofluorescence. Our results showed that cisplatin induces mRNA downregulation of Heat Shock Proteins and ERCC1 in IMR-32 cells cultured in 2D or 3D models. In addition, the cisplatin-treatment approach increased HER-2 expression in residual IMR-32 cells grafted on the CAM. Therefore, these insights provide many advances in neuroendocrine tumor biology and knowledge about cisplatin-response in neuroblastoma. PMID:35033934 | DOI:10.1016/j.acthis.2022.151849 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Benefit on daily listening with technological advancements: comparison of basic and premium category hearing aids

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader Benefit on daily listening with technological advancements: comparison of basic and premium category hearing aids Via http://link.springer.com/journal/405,European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology,The European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2022 Jan 17. doi: 10.1007/s00405-021-07240-3. Online ahead of print. ABSTRACT PURPOSE: The aim of the study was to compare the user-rated benefit of two categories of hearing aids, mainly the basic and premium categories of hearing aids. METHODS: A questionnaire was administered on 102 hearing aids users (47 basic and 55 premium category users) with severity of hearing loss ranging from mild to moderately severe sensorineural hearing loss. The questionnaire administered was divided into mainly seven subscales which included speech intelligibility in quiet and in noise, ease of communication, the efficiency of noise reduction, localization, quality of music perception and cost effectiveness. The effect of duration of daily usage of hearing aids on performance among these different subscales was also assessed. RESULTS: Ease of communication was rated better by premium hearing aid users, whereas the cost effectiveness was rated to be better by basic users. There was no significant difference observed between performances of basic versus premium category of hearing aids in other listening domains assessed. There was no significant difference in any of the listening domains with daily usage duration for both categories of hearing aid users. CONCLUSION: The users of premium category devices revealed better ease of communication in daily environments, whereas performance of these devices on other listening domains remains questionable. Cost effectiveness was reported to be better by the users of basic hearing aids. A prospective and controlled paired series comparison of hearing aid performance needs to be performed to confirm these findings. PMID:35038028 | DOI:10.1007/s00405-021-07240-3 View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

FOCUS THEME ISSUE: CONCISE COMMUNICATION Dysbiosis of nail microbiome in patients with psoriasis

xlomafota13 shared this article with you from Inoreader FOCUS THEME ISSUE: CONCISE COMMUNICATION Dysbiosis of nail microbiome in patients with psoriasis Via Experimental Dermatology ABSTRACT Shifts in skin microbiome are considered to be involved in the pathogenesis of psoriasis. However, data on the microbial dysbiosis of nail psoriasis is scarce. In this study, we aim to investigate and characterize the nail bacterial and fungal microbiome in patients with psoriasis. Nail samples were collected prospectively from 36 subjects with nail psoriasis, 24 psoriatic subjects without nail involvement, and 32 healthy controls. Amplicon sequencing was performed to evaluate the bacterial and fungal community compositions. Significant alterations in the bacterial microbiome were found in the nail samples of psoriatic patients. The unaffected nails in psoriatic patients were associated with higher bacterial diversity, and a higher relative abundance of Enhydrobacter, whereas nail psoriasis was correlated with a decreased relative abundance of Anaerococcus. Shifts in fungal community composition was reflected by a higher proportion of Malassezia in the unaffec ted nails of psoriatic patients and an increased proportion of Candida in psoriatic nails. Shifts in the nail microbiome in psoriasis suggest a potential role of microbes in the development of nail psoriasis. Future researches focusing on these microorganisms may help to explain the pathogenesis of psoriasis. View on the web Inoreader. Take back control of your news feed. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.