OBJECTIVE

Natriuretic peptides are increasingly used in clinical practice to diagnose myocardial dysfunction in heart failure (HF) with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Recent studies indicate that plasma brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) may have a role in the diagnosis and management of HF. However, there is marked heterogeneity in BNP levels among subjects with HFpEF, which is only partially explained by differences in left ventricular (LV) dimensions or systolic function. This study aims to investigate if N-terminal proBNP (NT-proBNP) can be a useful tool to guide management in patients with HFpEF when echocardiography is not easily accessible.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

N-terminal proBNP in patients admitted in Chong Hua Hospital from July 2019 to July 2020 was collected from the hospital laboratory. Data of patients with HF symptoms with preserved LV systolic function and other echocardiographic parameters were collected from the hospital records. The correlation between the different echocardiographic parameters and NT-proBNP was determined.

RESULTS

The NT-proBNP levels increased significantly in HFpEF as the values of left atrial volume index (P < 0.001), E/A ratio (P = 0.042), E/e′ (P < 0.001), and tricuspid regurgitation velocity (P < 0.001) increased. The mean NT-proBNP level was 5588 pg/mL. Highest levels were seen predominantly in diastolic dysfunction grade II.

CONCLUSION

Our findings indicate that NT-proBNP is positively correlated to echocardiographic parameters, namely, left atrial volume index, E/A ratio, E/e′, and tricuspid regurgitation velocity in patients with preserved LV systolic function.

Humans ; Rectal Neoplasms/surgery* ; Anastomosis, Surgical ; Anal Canal/surgery* ; Treatment Outcome

Objective: This study aims to determine the clinical profile and course on follow-up of newborns delivered to a SARS-CoV-2 positive mother from two private tertiary hospitals. Methodology: This is a retrospective, cross-sectional study. A chart review of all neonates delivered to SARS-CoV-2 positive mothers was conducted. Subsequent interview was done to determine their clinical course and neurologic status at 3-, 6-, 9-, 12-, and 15-month-old. Data collected was presented as frequencies, percentages, or proportions. Results: Out of the 67 newborns born to SARS-CoV-2 positive mothers, three neonates tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. All three were delivered to mothers with mild symptoms, were full term, with good APGAR score and appropriate for gestational age. One was eventually intubated and managed as COVID-19 confirmed critical. Among the SARS-CoV-2 negative newborns, majority had an unremarkable neonatal outcome. Thirty-six neonates were available for follow-up: 1 expired due to aspiration pneumonia at 2 months of age, 4 were readmitted for pneumonia, UTI, acute gastroenteritis, and cow’s milk allergy. Twenty-one had infection at one point prior to this study follow-up but were all mild not requiring admission. Two had abnormal head size, while 2 had developmental delay, these 4 infants with neurological findings on follow-up were all RT-PCR negative at birth. Conclusion Maternal COVID-19 infection does not necessarily result to a neonatal infection. For those neonate swith mild symptoms, SARS-CoV-2 causality could not be established. On follow-up, there were a few who developed significant problems that have long-term implications in the overall growth and development of the child.
SARS-CoV-2

INTRODUCTIONThe 2005 American Association for Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) diagnostic criteria allow non-invasive diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) based on their enhancement pattern but we have observed a high incidence of atypical enhancement characteristics in HCC associated with portal vein thrombosis. This study seeks to examine the radiological features of this particular subgroup.

MATERIALS AND METHODSPatients with HCC and portal vein thrombosis who underwent pre-treatment multiphasic CT imaging were drawn from a surgical database. The arterial, portal venous and delayed phase images were assessed qualitatively and quantitatively (with region of interest [ROI] analysis) for lesion hypervascularity and washout. The background enhancement of the left and right lobes of the liver was also quantifi ed by ROI analysis.

RESULTSTwenty-fi ve lesions in 25 patients were selected for analysis. Qualitative analysis showed that 10/25 (40%) lesions demonstrated arterial hypervascularity while 16/25 (64%) lesions showed washout. Ten out of 25 (40%) lesions demonstrated both arterial hypervascularity and washout. Quantitative analysis showed that the average absolute lesion enhancement from precontrast to arterial phases was 49.1 (± 17.1) HU for hypervascular lesions compared to 23.8 (± 16.6) HU for non-hypervascular lesions (P <0.01). The mean absolute enhancement of the background liver parenchyma in the arterial phase was 13.79 (± 7.9) HU for hypervascular lesions compared to 36.6 (± 30.6) HU for non-hypervascular lesions (P = 0.03).

CONCLUSIONA large proportion of HCC with portal vein thrombosis lack characteristic arterial hypervascularity, which may be secondary to compensatory increased arterial supply to the background liver. This is a potential pitfall when applying imaging criteria for diagnosis of HCC.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; complications ; diagnostic imaging ; Female ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; complications ; diagnostic imaging ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pattern Recognition, Automated ; Portal Vein ; diagnostic imaging ; physiopathology ; Retrospective Studies ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; methods ; Venous Thrombosis ; diagnostic imaging ; etiology

Introduction: Sepsis has been redefined as a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection. The quick sepsis-related organ failure assessment (qSOFA) is a simple tool developed to prompt clinicians to consider patients at high risk for poor outcome. Studies have compared its utility with National Early Warning Score (NEWS) and the systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) criteria. These scoring systems may be utilized to prognosticate illness severity among patients with suspected infection and may be relevant in low- and middle-income settings where laboratory data are not readily available. Objective: To determine and compare the accuracy of qSOFA, NEWS, and SIRS criteria in predicting in-hospital mortality in patients suspected to have infection presenting at the emergency department (ED) Methods: This is a prospective cohort study. Patients ≥18 years old with suspected infection admitted to the ED between June 2018 to July 2018 were included in the study. SIRS, NEWS, and qSOFA scores were collected at presentation and patients were followed up until expired or discharged. Results: A final population of 213 were included in the study with a mean age of 47 years (SD 21.2) and 124 (58.2%) females. The most common site of infection was respiratory (33.8%). Twelve patients (5.6%) died in-hospital. Among patients with qSOFA≥2, mortality rate was at 38% vs 3.5% for qSOFA<2. Specificity for mortality was highest for qSOFA (96%). Sensitivity was highest for SIRS (75%). SIRS, qSOFA, and NEWS had no significant difference in predicting in-hospital mortality with an area under the receiver operating curve of 0.659, 0.711, 0.711 respectively. Conclusion SIRS, qSOFA, and NEWS have similar prognostic accuracy to predict mortality but have limited use when applied individually which brings into question the sole utility of qSOFA despite its high specificity. It is reasonable to further validate or develop new scoring systems with higher predictive accuracy appropriate across different populations.
Sepsis ; News

Androgen insensitivity syndrome is an X-linked recessive condition resulting in a failure of normal masculinization of the external genitalia in a chromosomally male individual. We describe two phenotypically female siblings aged 27 and 18 years, who presented with primary amenorrhea. The older sibling first consulted because of her desire to be pregnant while her younger sibling consulted upon the physician’s advice. Clinical presentation, physical examination, hormonal and imaging studies and a male (46XY) karyotype confirmed the diagnosis of Complete Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome (AIS) in both individuals. Both of them underwent exploratory laparotomy with histopathology confirming presence of immature testicular tissue. Hormone replacement therapy was then started. Both were advised to undergo psychosocial counseling and both chose to be women. This case report is significant since there are only a few local case reports about siblings presenting with this condition.
Androgen-Insensitivity Syndrome ; Karyotyping

No abstract available.
Cohort Studies* ; Ectodermal Dysplasia 1, Anhidrotic* ; Hispanic Americans* ; Humans

INTRODUCTIONThis study aims to determine if the quantitative method of region-of-interest (ROI) analysis of lesion attenuation on CT may be a useful adjunct to the conventional approach of diagnosis by visual assessment in assessing tracer wash-out in hepatocellular carcinomas.

MATERIALS AND METHODSFrom a surgical database of 289 patients from 2 institutions, all patients with complete surgical, pathological and preoperative multiphasic CT scans available for review were selected. For each phase of scanning, HU readings of lesion obtained (Lesion(arterial), Lesion(PV) and Lesion(equilibrium)) were analysed using receiver operating curves (ROC) to determine the optimal method and cut-off value for quantitative assessment of tumour wash-out (Lesion(arterial - equilibrium), Lesion(PV - equilibrium) or Lesion(peak - equilibrium)).

RESULTSNinety-four patients with one lesion each met the inclusion criteria. The area under the curve (AUC) values for Lesion(arterial - equilibrium) (0.941) was higher than the AUC for Lesion(pv - equilibrium) (0.484) and for Lesion(peak - equilibrium) (0.667). Based on ROC analysis, a cut-off of 10HU value for Lesion(arterial - equilibrium) would yield sensitivity and specificity of 91.5% and 80.9%, respectively. ROI analysis detected 9/21 (42.9%) of lesions missed by visual analysis. Combined ROI and visual analysis yields a sensitivity of 82/94 (87.2%) compared to 73/94 (77.7%) for visual analysis alone.

CONCLUSIONUsing a cut-off of 10 HU attenuation difference between the arterial and equilibrium phases is a simple and objective method that can be included as an adjunct to visual assessment to improve sensitivity for determining lesion wash-out on CT.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; diagnosis ; pathology ; surgery ; Confidence Intervals ; Databases, Factual ; Female ; Humans ; Liver ; pathology ; Liver Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; pathology ; surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Preoperative Period ; ROC Curve ; Retrospective Studies ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; instrumentation ; Young Adult

COVID-19 ; Retinopathy of Prematurity ; Choroid

Background: The benefits of infant massage in hospital and community settings have been documented in literature: better weight gain of preterm and low birthweight infants, shortened hospital stay, slightly better scores on developmental tests, fewer postnatal complications, and effects on physical and mental health. Objectives: This study described the perceptions and experiences of infant massage among caregivers of infants 2-6 months old consulting in two public health centers in Quezon City before and after infant massage training. Methods: This qualitative study assessed perceptions and experiences at baseline and after infant massage training of mothers and caregivers taking care of infants 2-6 months old. Pre-training interviews were conducted, as well as immediately after, and seven days after training on infant massage delivered by the Philippine League of Government and Private Midwives, Inc. (PLGPMI). Training consisted of lectures and demonstrations, after which mothers/caregivers gave their babies the massage under the trainer's supervision. Post-training interviews were conducted immediately after the training and seven days after. Responses to the interviews were transcribed. The transcripts and interview notes were analyzed independently by two research team members. Qualitative Content Analysis (QCA) was done. Disagreements were settled by discussion. Results: The infant’s mother was identified as the best person to perform infant massage. Infant massage was a new concept to many participants before the training. In general, the perception was positive. It was believed to promote the baby's physical development and bonding with the mother/caregiver. These same benefits were reported after the training. Post-training, all 11 participants who returned for follow-up interviews reported having massaged their babies at home. They were also able to describe the process and timing of massage as taught to them. The participants’ responses centered on seven (7) identified themes, identified at baseline and after training: 1) general concepts of infant massage, 2) benefits of infant massage, 3) methodologies, materials, and considerations, 4) persons credible to perform infant massage, 5) application/performance of infant massage, 6) intentions and 7) infant massage as a public health measure. Conclusion There was a positive perception of infant massage among mothers and caregivers of infants 2-6 months old, whether or not they had prior knowledge. The sharing of information and the training given enhanced this. Participants showed good reception and retention of infant massage's basic concepts and process and improved their confidence in handling their babies and massaging them.
Mother-Child Relations ; Caregivers ; Health Education ; Community Health Centers