Correction: Thrombotic and bleeding events,mortality, and anticoagulant use among 546,656 hospitalized patients with COVID‑19 in the United States: a retrospective cohort study

Journal of Thrombosis and Thrombolysis -     

Complications in Intermediate Uveitis: Prevalence,Time of Onset,and Effects on Vision in Short-Term and Long-Term Follow-Up

Purpose: To study the prevalence and time of onset of ocular complications in intermediate uveitis (IU) and to assess their effects on visual outcome in short-term and long-term follow-up.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study of patients with IU who had a minimal follow-up of one year.

Results: 96 patients (174 eyes, 70% females) were included with a mean age at presentation of 30 years. Children constituted 38% of all patients. Mean follow- up was 64.9 months. Pars planitis was the most common form followed by sarcoidosis and multiple sclerosis. Cystoid macular edema (CME), cataract, epiretinal membrane and posterior synechiae were the most prevalent complications. Posterior synechiae, band keratopathy, cataract and papillitis at presentation were associated with worse presenting visual acuity (VA). Of the late-onset complications, glaucoma/ocular hypertension (OHT) was the most significantly associated with worse long-term VA. Most sight-threatening complications (namely CME and glaucoma) were diagnosed at presentation while late complications predominantly affected the posterior segment and included among others peripheral retinal elevations, vasoproliferative tumors, and vitreous hemorrhage. Median LogMAR VA improved at short-term and long-term follow-up, from 0.2 to 0.1 (p<0.001). Subgroup analysis revealed significant VA improvement for eyes with all the different complications except for eyes with glaucoma/OHT.

Conclusion: IU is a chronic low-grade uveitis that may be associated with protean early and late complications of the anterior or posterior segments or both. Optimal treatment regimens are imperative for the strict control of inflammation and proper management of complications thus allowing a favorable long-term prognosis.     

Ambulatory total extraperitoneal inguinal hernia repair: feasibility and impact on quality of life.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Feasibility of ambulatory laparoscopic inguinal hernia repair in developing countries is not known due to lack of dedicated outpatient centers. This study prospectively evaluated the feasibility of outpatient discharge after laparoscopic total extraperitoneal inguinal hernia repair done in combination with in-hospital services and its impact on quality of life. METHODS: Forty patients were studied who had uncomplicated inguinal hernias and fulfilled the selection criteria. Quality of life was evaluated by using the SF-12 questionnaire. RESULTS: Ninety percent of patients could be discharged as outpatients. Four patients required admission. No major complications or readmissions occurred. Physical components of quality of life deteriorated in the immediate postoperative period but improved to above preoperative levels within one month. A transient deterioration in subgroups of the mental health component was observed, which recovered to normal in less than a week. There was no significant alteration in the emotional component. There has been no recurrence at a median follow-up of 25 months. CONCLUSION: It was feasible to safely perform outpatient TEP in combination with routine in-hospital services without increasing complications or causing any adverse impact on quality of life. This was possible subject to adherence to proper selection and discharge criteria.     

Executive and compensatory memory retraining in traumatic brain injury

A controlled treatment outcome study was conducted comparing the efficacy of memory remediation treatment with no treatment on traumatic brain-injury patients. The memory remediation treatment consisted of both compensatory and executive training skills and was delivered 6 hours weekly over a 2 1/2-week period. Six subjects in the treatment group and 6 subjects in the control group were matched on WAIS-R FSIQ scores, pre-test memory scores and age. Pre-and post-test measures were obtained for both groups on a paragraph memory task. A significant difference was demonstrated between the treatment and control post-test memory scores. The experimental group significantly improved memory scores beyond that of the control group, suggesting that memory remediation is effective for head-injury patients with memory deficits. Discussion of findings and suggestions for further investigation are presented.     

Is 18F-FDG PET/CT useful for imaging and management of patients with suspected occult recurrence of cancer?

Rising serum tumor markers may be associated with negative imaging in the presence of cancer. CT and (18)F-FDG PET may yield incongruent results in the assessment of tumor recurrence. The present study evaluates the incremental role of (18)F-FDG PET/CT for the diagnosis and management of cancer patients with increasing levels of tumor markers as the sole indicator of potential recurrence after initial successful treatment. METHODS: Thirty-six cancer patients with increasing levels of tumor markers during follow-up and negative CT underwent (18)F-FDG PET/CT, which showed 111 sites of increased tracer uptake. PET/CT was compared with PET results on a site-based analysis for characterization of (18)F-FDG foci and on a patient-based analysis for diagnosis of recurrence. The clinical impact of PET/CT on further patient management was evaluated. RESULTS: Thirty patients (83%) had recurrence in 85 malignant sites (77%). For the site-based analysis, PET had a sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of 96%, 50%, 85%, 85%, and 82%, respectively, as compared with the performance indices of PET/CT of 100%, 89%, 97%, 97%, and 100%, respectively. There was a statistically significant difference between the specificity (P < 0.05) and accuracy (P < 0.001) of PET and PET/CT for precise characterization of suspected lesions. For the patient-based analysis, PET had a sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 93%, 50%, and 86%, respectively, as compared with PET/CT with values of 93%, 67%, and 89%, respectively (P = not significant). PET/CT was the single modality that directed further management and treatment planning in 12 patients (33%). CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate that PET/CT may improve the accuracy of occult cancer detection and further lead to management changes in patients with increasing levels of tumor markers as the sole suspicion of recurrent malignancy.