Helicobacter pylori and cardiovascular risk: Only a dead Helicobacter is a good Helicobacter?

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Helicobacter pylori and cardiovascular risk: Only a dead Helicobacter is a good Helicobacter? via Helicobacter Abstract Objectives Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) and cardiovascular (CV) disease share common symptoms and underlie many general medical complaints. Preliminary studies suggest an association between H. pylori positivity and CV risk, and gastroenterological guidelines recommend eradication of H. pylori in patients with manifest atherosclerosis. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the reciprocal association of H. pylori positivity and CV risk for their independence of shared risk factors. Methods We included 3284 asymptomatic participants of a colorectal cancer screening cohort who were offered and underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. We calculated the 10-year risk for a CV event using the novel SCORE2 for each patient. We evaluated the association between H. pylori positivity and CV risk assessed by SCORE2 using both multilevel logistic and linear regression. We adjusted for age, sex and the concomitant diagnosis of metabolic syndrome. Lastly, we assessed the association between H. pylori status and mortality using proportional hazard Cox regression. Results In total, 2659 patients were H. pylori negative and 625 H. pylori positive. Helicobacter pylori positivity was associated with SCORE2 and remained so (r = .33; 95% CI 0.09–0.57; p = .006) after adjustment for age, sex, and the diagnosis of metabolic syndrome. Also, SCORE2 was associated with higher odds for H. pylori positivity (aOR 1.03 95% CI 1.01–1.05; p = .02) even after multivariable adjustment. Helicobacter pylori positivity was associated with neither CV (HR 0.60 95% CI 0.14–2.63; p = .50) nor all-cause (HR 1.20 95% CI 0.77–1.87; p = .43) mortality during a median follow-up of 9 years. Conclusions In our study, H. pylori positivity and CV risk were independently associated. This did not translate into a dissimilar CV mortality between H. pylori positive and H. pylori negative patients. However, the overwhelming majority of our patients underwent H. pylori eradication. We, therefore, think that H. pylori eradication is at least safe from a cardiovascular perspective and warranted from gastrointestinal standpoint. View on Web

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Temperature-Controlled Radiofrequency Device Treatment of the Nasal Valve for Nasal Airway Obstruction

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Temperature-Controlled Radiofrequency Device Treatment of the Nasal Valve for Nasal Airway Obstruction via JAMA Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery Online First This follow-up of a cohort of a randomized clinical trial assesses if nasal valve treatment with a temperature-controlled radiofrequency device is associated with improvement in symptoms of nasal airway obstruction through 12 months. View on Web

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Climate Change and the Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Climate Change and the Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases in the United States via Clinical Infectious Diseases Advance Access ABSTRACT The earth is rapidly warming, driven by increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide and other gases resulting primarily from fossil fuel combustion. In addition to causing arctic ice melting and extreme weather events, climatologic factors are linked strongly to the transmission of many infectious diseases. Changes in the prevalence of infectious diseases not only reflect the impacts of temperature, humidity, and other weather-related phenomena on pathogens, vectors, and animal hosts, but is also part of a complex of social and environmental factors which will be affected by climate change, including land use, migration, and vector control. Vector- and water-borne diseases and coccidioidomycosis are all likely to be affected by a warming planet; there is also potential for climate-driven impacts on emerging infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance. Additional resources for surveillance and public health activities are urgently needed, as well a s systematic education of clinicians on the health impacts of climate change. View on Web

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Disease Burden, Risk Factors, and Trends of Primary Central Nervous System (CNS) Cancer: a global study of registries data

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Disease Burden, Risk Factors, and Trends of Primary Central Nervous System (CNS) Cancer: a global study of registries data via Neuro-Oncology Advance Access Abstract Background This study aimed to evaluate the global incidence, mortality, associated risk factors, and temporal trends of central nervous system (CNS) cancer by sex, age, and country. Methods We extracted incidence and mortality of CNS cancer from the GLOBOCAN (2020), Cancer Incidence in Five Continents series I-X, WHO mortality database, the Nordic Cancer Registries, and the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program. We searched the Global Health data exchanges for the prevalence of its associated risk factors. We tested the trends by Average Annual Percentage Change (AAPC) from Joinpoint regression analysis with 95% confidence intervals in different age groups. Results The age-standardized rates (ASRs) of CNS cancer incidence and mortality were 3.5 and 2.8 per 100,000 globally. Southern Europe (ASR=6.0) and Western Asia (ASR=4.2) had the highest incidence and mortality, respectively. The incidence was associated with Human Development Index, Gross Domestics Products per capita, prevalence of traumatic brain injuries, occupational carcinogens exposure, and mobile phone use at the country level. There was an overall stable and mixed trend in the CNS cancer burden. However, increasing incidence was observed in younger male population from five countries, with Slovakia (AAPC=5.40; 95% CI=1.88, 9.04; p=0.007) reporting the largest increase. Conclusions While the overall global trends of cancer have been largely stable, significant increasing trends were found in the younger male population. The presence of some higher-HDI countries with increasing mortality suggested an ample scope for further research and exploration of the reasons behind these epidemiological trends. View on Web

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VG161 activates systemic anti‐tumor immunity in pancreatic cancer models as a novel oncolytic herpesvirus expressing multiple immunomodulatory transgenes

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader VG161 activates systemic anti‐tumor immunity in pancreatic cancer models as a novel oncolytic herpesvirus expressing multiple immunomodulatory transgenes via Journal of Medical Virology Abstract The VG161 represents the first recombinant oncolytic herpes simplex virus type 1 carrying multiple synergistic anti-tumor immuno-modulating factors. Here, we report its anti-tumor mechanisms and thus provide firm theoretical foundation for the upcoming clinical application in pancreatic cancer. Generally, the VG161-mediated anti-tumor outcomes were analyzed by a collaboration of techniques, namely the single cell sequencing, airflow-assisted desorption electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry imaging (AFADSI-MSI) and Nanostring techniques. In vitro, the efficacy of VG161 together with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has been successfully shown to grant a long-term anti-tumor effect by altering tumor immunity and remodeling tumor microenvironment (TME) metabolisms. Cellular functional pathways and cell subtypes detected from patient samples before and after the treatment had undergone distinctive changes including upregulated CD8+ T and NK cells. More importantly, significant antitumor signals have emerged since the administration of VG161 injection. In conclusion, VG161 can systematically activate acquired and innate immunity in pancreatic models, as well as improve the tumor immune microenvironment, indicative of strong anti-tumor potential. The more robusting anti-tumor outcome for VG161 monotherapy or in combination with other therapies on pancreatic cancer is worth of being explored in further clinical trials. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. View on Web

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Virome analysis provides new insights into the association between viruses and Parkinson's disease

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Virome analysis provides new insights into the association between viruses and Parkinson's disease via Journal of Medical Virology Abstract Parkinson's disease (PD) is a kind of neurodegenerative disease that causes a huge burden to society. Previous studies have suggested the association between PD and multiple viruses. However, there is still a lack of a virome study about PD. This study systematically identified viruses from the public RNA-Seq data of more than 700 samples from both PD patients and the control group (most were healthy people). Only nine viruses such as Human betaherpesvirus 5 and Merkel cell polyomavirus have been detected in several human brain tissues of the central nervous system, the appendix, and blood of PD patients, and all of these viruses were also detected in the control group. Most viruses were observed to have low abundance in no more than three tissues. No statistically significant differences were observed between the virus abundance in the PD patients and the control group for all viruses. The positive rates of most viruses in PD patients were higher or similar to that in the control group, although those were less than 5% for most viruses. Overall, this is the first study to systematically investigate the virome in PD patients, and provides new insights into the association between viruses and PD. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. View on Web

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Longitudinal Analysis of Swallowing Displacement Kinematics After Oropharyngeal Cancer Treatment

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Longitudinal Analysis of Swallowing Displacement Kinematics After Oropharyngeal Cancer Treatment via The Laryngoscope We aimed to longitudinally assess quantitative swallowing displacement kinematic measurements and correlate them with functional swallowing outcomes. Quantitative swallowing kinematic measures can effectively track changes in swallowing physiology. Increased posterior pharyngeal wall thickness and restricted hyolaryngeal movement were seen in patients with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma after treatment and correlated with change in swallowing outcome, emphasizing the need for serial videofluoroscopic swallow studies monitoring and targeted intervention. Background/Objective Quantitative swallowing displacement kinematics evolve in patients treated for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC). We aimed to longitudinally assess these measurements and correlate them with functional swallowing outcomes. Method A retrospective review was conducted on patients with OPSCC treated with definitive (chemo)radiation ([C]RT) or surgery with adjuvant (chemo)radiation (S-[C]RT) who completed at least two videofluoroscopic swallow studies (VFSS). Longitudinal analysis was accomplished via mixed-effects logistic regression for the Functional Oral Intake Scale (FOIS), and Penetration Aspiration Scale (PAS), and mixed-effects linear regression for kinematic measures. Spearman's correlation was conducted between changes in FOIS/PAS and kinematic measures. Results Ninety-seven patients (76 males; mean age 61) completed 245 VFSS studies. A total of 94% had human papillomavirus (HPV)/p16 positive OPSCC and 74% were T0–T2. Sixty-four patients underwent [C]RT while 33 patients underwent S-[C]RT. After treatment, posterior pharyngeal wall at hold (PPWhold) increased 3.2 standard deviation (SD) between 0 and 6 months (p < 0.001), then decreased 2.2 SD between 6 and 12 months (p < 0.001) and did not return to baseline. Hyoid-to-larynx (HL) (p = 0.046) and maximal hyoid displacement (Hmax) + HL (p = 0.042) increased between 6 and 12 months. Hmax (p = 0.020) and Hmax + HL (p < 0.001) decreased between 12–24 months beyond baseline values. The decrease in HL and increase in PPWhold (p < 0.05) correlated with an increase in PAS. From baseline, increased pharyngeal constriction ratio correlated with decreased FOIS and PPWhold (< i>p < 0.05). Conclusions Quantitative swallowing kinematic measures can effectively track changes in swallowing physiology. Increased PPWhold and restricted hyolaryngeal movement were seen in patients with OPSCC after treatment and correlated with a change in swallowing outcome, emphasizing the need for serial VFSS monitoring and targeted intervention. Level of Evidence 3 Laryngoscope, 2022 View on Web

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Oral Premalignant and Malignant Lesions in Fanconi Anemia Patients

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Oral Premalignant and Malignant Lesions in Fanconi Anemia Patients via The Laryngoscope Objective There is a lack of data supporting cancer surveillance in pediatric Fanconi Anemia patients. We sought to describe the rates of upper aerodigestive lesions and malignancy in this population to augment current management guidelines. Methods A retrospective cohort study of patients with Fanconi Anemia from a quaternary referral center between 2007–2021 was completed for head and neck cancer risk. Results One hundred and five FA patients were reviewed. Average age at presentation was 11.3 years old and 90.5% of patients underwent hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). A total of 8.6% of patients had leukoplakia or erythroplakia and 3.8% developed malignancy. The standardized incidence ratio of head and neck malignancy was 483.8. Patients presented with leukoplakia and malignancy at an average age of 14.6 and 25.1 years old, respectively. Malignancies were aggressive and marked by recurrence. There were no premalignant or malignant lesions found on flexible laryngoscopy. This series represents the largest longitudinal series of pediatric FA head and neck lesions. Conclusions Fanconi Anemia patients should begin screening for head and neck cancer at age 10 or after HSCT. Level of Evidence Level 4 Laryngoscope, 2022 View on Web

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Endoscopic pituitary surgery: A national database review

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Endoscopic pituitary surgery: A national database review via Head & Neck Abstract Background Pituitary tumors surgery is increasingly performed via endoscopic transsphenoidal approach (TSP). This study describes outcomes of TSP surgery in the United States. Methods A retrospective cross-sectional analysis of adult patients with pituitary adenoma was performed using the Nationwide Readmissions Database, 2010–2015. Results A total of 5891 patients were identified. The average age was 51.29 ± 0.29 years. The risk of postoperative epistaxis, diabetes insipidus, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leak, and other general postoperative complications was 0.71%, 10.20%, 8.35%, and 2.37%, respectively. Independent risk factors of CSF leak included: age <65-year, male, body mass index ≥25, and multiple comorbidities (p < 0.001 each). The prevalence of CSF leak was not associated with hospital TSP volume and teaching status. Conclusion This study provides a national epidemiological perspective on TSP in the United States. The risk of postoperative CSF leak appears to be associated with intrinsic patient factors rather than resource and expertise availability. View on Web

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Effect of Helicobacter pylori on immunotherapy is gaining more attention

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Effect of Helicobacter pylori on immunotherapy is gaining more attention via Helicobacter Abstract Background Immunotherapy, especially immune checkpoint inhibitors, has been widely used in tumor therapy and have shown ideal clinical efficacy. However, some cancers still do not respond to PD-1/PD-L1 blockade therapy effectively. Helicobacter pylori infection might affect the curative effect of immunotherapy while it is rarely reported. We aimed to visualize the research hotspots and trends of H. pylori and immunotherapy using a bibliometric analysis to help understand the future development of basic and clinical research. Methods The relevant publications on H. pylori and immunotherapy were searched on April 20, 2022, in the Web of Science Core Collection Database (WOSCC). The document types were limited to articles and reviews. The VOSviewer 1.6.16 software was used to assess the co-authorship, co-occurrence, citation of countries, institutions, authors, journals, and hotspot keywords. The research status and trend change of H. pylori and immunotherapy were analyzed by bibliometric analysis. Results A total of 95 studies authored by 561 researchers were eventually included in this study. The majority of the retrieved studies were 55 (58%) original research articles. China conducted the greatest number of studies, followed by USA and Italy. The related topics included the following three aspects: the relationship between microorganisms and cancer, the relationship between gastric cancer and immunity, and the relationship between H. pylori and immunotherapy, including purified/cloned components of H. pylori acting as efficient adjuvant to boost tumor responses and H. pylori infection which modulate host immune responses and impact on the efficacy of antitumor immunity initiated by immune checkpoint inhibitors. The timing diagram revealed that the current research hotspots focused on effects of microorganisms on immunotherapy. Conclusion The effect of H. pylori on cancer immunotherapy is getting more and more attention in these years. It still remains uncertain, and more studies are needed in the future. View on Web

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