Epitope load identifies kidney transplant recipients at risk of allosensitization following minimization of immunosuppression

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A hypothesis for reactivation of pulmonary tuberculosis: How thoracic wall shape affects the epidemiology of tuberculosis

This study was aimed at determining the cause for the high incidence of tuberculosis (TB) reactivation occurring in males with a low body mass index (BMI). Current thinking about pulmonary TB describes infection in the lung apex resulting in cavitation after reactivation. A different hypothesis is put forward for TB infection, suggesting that this occurs in subclinical apical cavities caused by increased pleural stress due to a low BMI body habitus. A finite element analysis (FEA) model of a lung was constructed including indentations for the first rib guided by paramedian sagittal CT reconstructions, and simulations were conducted with varying antero‐posterior (AP) diameters to mimic chests with a different thoracic index (ratio of AP to the transverse chest diameters). A Pubmed search was conducted about gender and thoracic index, and the effects of BMI on TB. FEA modeling revealed a tenfold increase in stress levels at the lung apex in low BMI chests, and a four‐fold increase with a low thoracic index, r² = 0.9748 P < 0.001. Low thoracic index was related to BMI, P = 0.001. The mean thoracic index was statistically significantly lower in males, P = 0.001, and increased with age in both genders. This article is the first to suggest a possible mechanism linking pulmonary TB reactivation to low BMI due to the flattened thoracic wall shape of young male adults. The low thoracic index in young males may promote TB reactivation due to tissue destruction in the lung apex from high pleural stress levels. Clin. Anat. 28:614–620, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Validation of the French Version of the Fear of COVID-19 Scale and Its Associations with Depression,Anxiety, and Differential Emotions

The COVID-19 crisis represents a global health concern, including mental health. Regarding the necessity to assess anxiety related to COVID-19, a scale was developed (Ahorsu et al., 2020). The goal of the present study was to validate the Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S) in French (official language in 29 countries), and investigate its relationship with indicators of affective disturbances. The sample comprised 316 participants (271 females) recruited online during the French lockdown. They were from several regions of France. The FCV-19S underwent a forward-backward translation procedure. Its psychometric properties were evaluated with the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The French FCV-19S demonstrated a stable unidimensional structure with robust psychometric properties (strong internal consistency, good convergent and divergent validity, and good test-retest validity). With its robust psychometric properties in assessing the unidimensional construct of the fear of COVID-19, this scale will help to provide a better understanding of the relationship between emotions and psychological or psychiatric disorders during the pandemics in French-speaking countries.

     

Human epididymis protein 4 (HE4) levels inversely correlate with lung function improvement (delta FEV1) in cystic fibrosis patients receiving ivacaftor treatment

Background

We have recently shown that human epididymis protein 4 (HE4) levels correlate with the severity of cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease. However, there are no data on how HE4 levels alter in patients receiving CFTR modulating therapy.