Perioperative Management of Women Undergoing Risk-reducing Surgery for Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer

Carriers of genetic mutations that predispose to cancer syndromes are often faced with complex decisions. For women with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer in particular, the decision to undergo risk-reducing mastectomy or bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy is burdensome from a physical and psychological perspective. Although risk-reducing surgery is the most effective preventative measure in reducing a genetic mutation carrier's risk of breast or ovarian cancer, the success of these procedures requires a multidisciplinary approach that centers on careful counseling regarding the risks and benefits of risk-reducing surgery. The physical and psychological distress associated with risk-reducing surgery often makes a combined surgical approach attractive to some patients. In this review, we present the evidence surrounding the comprehensive surgical care of women with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndromes and evaluate the perioperative factors that influence surgical management.     

Perception of Impossible Scenes Reveals Differential Hippocampal and Parahippocampal Place Area Contributions to Spatial Coherency

Surprisingly little is known about how the brain combines spatial elements to form a coherent percept. Regions that may underlie this process include the hippocampus (HC) and parahippocampal place area (PPA), regions central to spatial perception but whose role in spatial coherency has not been explored. Participants were scanned with functional MRI while they judged whether Escher‐like scenes were possible or impossible. Univariate analyses revealed differential HC and PPA involvement, with greater HC activity during spatial incoherency detection and more PPA activity during spatial coherency detection. Recognition and eye‐tracking data ruled out long‐ or short‐term memory confounds. Multivariate statistics demonstrated spatial coherency‐dependent functional connectivity for the HC, but not PPA, with greater HC connectivity to various brain regions including lateral occipital complex during spatial incoherency detection. We suggest the PPA is preferentially involved during the perception of spatially coherent scenes, whereas the HC binds distinct features to create coherent representations. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Depression partially mediated the relationship between basic psychological needs and quality of life among people living with HIV

Few studies have examined the relationship between basic psychological needs (BPN), depression and quality of life (QOL) in people living with HIV (PLWH). This cross-sectional study (N?=?65; 37% females, 37% Caucasian, mean age?=?55?±?6 years, mean CD4 count?=?668?±?368?cells/mm³, average duration of HIV?=?18?±?4 years) found that BPN frustration was related with lower QOL. The strength of this relationship was reduced after controlling for depression. This suggests that depression partially mediated the relationship between BPN and QOL. BPN and depression may be specific targets for psychosocial interventions aimed at improving QOL in PLWH to promote successful aging.     

Food Sources of Fiber and Micronutrients of Concern in Infants and Children in the United Arab Emirates: Findings from the Feeding Infants and Toddlers Study (FITS) and the Kids Nutrition and Health Survey (KNHS) 2020

We estimated the usual intakes of fiber, iron, zinc, calcium, folate, vitamin D, and vitamin A and the top foods that contribute to them among children in the UAE. Dietary intake was assessed using 24 h recalls among 5 age groups of infants and children. Foods were clustered into 54 food groups and ranked by their percentage contribution to the nutrients of interest in this study. The percentage achieving the adequate intake (AI) of fiber was negligible among all children. The top source of fiber was vegetables among children under 4 years, and white breads among those over 4 years. Only 45% of infants achieved iron adequacy, but iron standards were met by most children beyond the age of 1. The main contributors to iron intake were infant/young child formula and baby cereal in children under 4 years, while children over 4 years obtained it primarily from grains (fortified) and meat/fish. Vitamin D was inadequate across all age groups, with the percentage achieving adequacy ranging from 0 to 19% among pre-adolescents and toddlers, respectively. The top sources of vitamin D were fortified milks. Overall, nutrient inadequacies in fiber, calcium, and vitamin D highlight the need for greater intakes of whole grains and fortified dairy products in the UAE.     

Extracellular vesicles and reproduction-promotion of successful pregnancy

Extracellular vesicles （EVs） are membrane-bound complexes secreted from cells under both physiological and pathological conditions. They contain proteins, nucleic acids and lipids and act as messengers for cell-cell communication and signalling, particularly between immune cells. EV research is a rapidly evolving and expanding field, and it appears that all biological fluids contain very large numbers of EVs; they are produced from all cells that have been studied to date, and are known to have roles in several reproductive processes. This review analyses the evidence for the role of EVs throughout human reproduction, starting with the paternal and maternal gametes, followed by the establishment and continuation of successful pregnancies, with specific focus, where possible, on the interaction of EVs with the maternal immune system. Importantly, variations within the EV populations are identified in various reproductive disorders, such as pre-term labour and pre-eclampsia.     

Effect of carbosulfan pesticide and selenium on some semen characteristics and serum testosterone in male rabbits

This study was undertaken to investigate the hazardous effects of carbosulfun pesticide on the level of serum testosterone and on semen quality in male New Zealand rabbits, and to determine whether selenium can alleviate these effects when given to the treated animals. Carbosulfan was given orally to animals in two doses (1/100 LD50 and 1/10 LD50 per kg body weight) weekly, while selenium (0.3 mg per kg body weight) was given alone or in combination with carbosulfan. The experiment was divided into three periods of 6 weeks each as follows: preliminary, treatment and recovery. Semen and blood samples were collected weekly and biweekly throughout experiment, respectively. Semen analyses indicated significant decreases in ejaculate volume, sperm concentration, total sperm output, sperm motility and fructose content. This was associated with a significant decline in the level of serum testosterone in the treated animals. Meanwhile pesticide treatment caused increases in the percentages of abnormal and dead spermatozoa, sperm without acrosomes and methylene-blue reduction time. Selenium combined with carbosulfan reduced the detrimental effects of the pesticide in most of the measured parameters.     

Prevalence of non-adherence to antihypertensive medication in Asia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy - Background Hypertension and its associated complications are one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in Asia. Racial disparities in terms...