Antirheumatic Agents ; therapeutic use ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; complications ; drug therapy ; Atlanto-Axial Joint ; injuries ; Humans ; Joint Dislocations ; etiology ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Syringomyelia ; diagnosis ; etiology ; physiopathology

As endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) equipment improves, the diagnostic and therapeutic applications of EUS in patients with portal hypertension (pHTN) have been increasingly explored. Various EUS-guided vascular interventions for pHTN have been evaluated in human or animal studies. EUS has been shown to be useful in variceal and perforating feeding veins identification, prediction of variceal recurrence/rebleeding, and assessment of response to pharmacological therapy for pHTN. When compared to conventional endoscopic therapies, EUS-guided therapy for varices and/or perforating feeding veins can ensure intra-variceal delivery of injection therapy, allow real-time monitoring of variceal obliteration, and provide injection therapy under pure EUS guidance when the target varix is endoscopically obscured. While the feasibility of EUS-guided assessment of portal hemodynamics and creation of intrahepatic portosystemic shunt has been evaluated, further studies would be needed to assess the long term outcomes before routine application.
Animals ; Hemodynamics ; Humans ; Hypertension, Portal* ; Portasystemic Shunt, Surgical ; Ultrasonography ; Varicose Veins ; Veins

Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS), with or without fine needle aspiration (FNA), has become an essential tool in the evaluation of pancreatobiliary diseases. Although conventional EUS is superior to multidetector computed tomography in tumor detection and staging, there are situations when characterization of various pancreatobiliary lesions remains difficult. Contrast-enhanced EUS (CE EUS) can further improve the detection and characterization of pancreatic solid lesions such as ductal adenocarcinoma, neuroendocrine tumor, or mass-forming autoimmune pancreatitis based on differences in the enhancement pattern of the target lesions. It is also useful in differentiating between mural nodules and mucous clots in pancreatic cystic neoplasms, and characterizing various lesions in the gallbladder and bile duct. CE EUS is complementary to FNA and has the potential to increase the diagnostic yield on the first FNA needle pass.
Adenocarcinoma ; Bile Ducts ; Biopsy, Fine-Needle ; Gallbladder ; Multidetector Computed Tomography ; Needles ; Neuroendocrine Tumors ; Pancreatic Cyst ; Pancreatitis ; Ultrasonography*

Pain management plays a fundamental role in enhanced recovery after surgery pathways. The concept of multimodal analgesia in providing a balanced and effective approach to perioperative pain management is widely accepted and practiced, with regional anesthesia playing a pivotal role. Nerve block techniques can be utilized to achieve the goals of enhanced recovery, whether it be the resolution of ileus or time to mobilization. However, the recent expansion in the number and types of nerve block approaches can be daunting for general anesthesiologists. Which is the most appropriate regional technique to choose, and what skills and infrastructure are required for its implementation? A multidisciplinary team-based approach for defining the goals is essential, based on each patient's needs, and incorporating patient, surgical, and social factors. This review provides a framework for a personalized approach to postoperative pain management with an emphasis on regional anesthesia techniques.

INTRODUCTIONPrevious studies on patient acceptance of medical student teaching were from Western populations and in one setting only. However, there has been no prospective study comparing patient acceptability before and after an actual experience. We studied patient acceptability of medical student teaching in private and public family practices and public hospital specialist outpatient clinics in Singapore, and before and after an actual medical student teaching consultation.

MATERIALS AND METHODSWe conducted an anonymous cross-sectional survey from March through October 2007 of Singaporean or permanent resident patients attending 76 teaching private family practices, 9 teaching public family practices and 8 specialty clinics in a teaching public hospital. We used pre-consultation cross-sectional patient surveys in all three settings. For private family practice setting only, post-consultation patient survey was conducted after an actual experience with medical student presence.

RESULTSOut of 5123 patients, 4142 participated in the cross-sectional survey (80.9%) and 1235 of 1519 patients in the prospective cohort study (81.3%). Eighty percent were comfortable with medical students present, 79% being interviewed and 60% being examined. Regarding being examined by medical students, parents of children were least comfortable while patients between 41 to 60 years were most comfortable (adjusted OR = 1.99 [1.55-2.57]). Females were less comfortable with medical student teaching than males. Chinese patients were the least comfortable about being interviewed or examined by medical students among the ethnic groups. Indians were most comfortable with being interviewed by medical students (adjusted OR = 1.38 [1.02-1.86]) but Malays were the most comfortable being examined by them (adjusted OR = 1.32 [1.07-1.62]). Family practice patients were more receptive to medical student teaching than the hospital's specialist outpatients. Common barriers to patient acceptance were lack of assurance of patient privacy, dignity and confidentiality. Actual exposure to medical student teaching did not change levels of patient acceptance.

CONCLUSIONSCompared to similar studies from Western countries, Asian patients appear to be less receptive to medical student teaching than Western patients. Family practice settings offer medical students a more receptive learning environment.

Adult ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Education, Medical, Undergraduate ; Family Practice ; Female ; Health Care Surveys ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Odds Ratio ; Outpatient Clinics, Hospital ; Patient Satisfaction ; Physician-Patient Relations ; Private Practice ; Students, Medical ; Young Adult

INTRODUCTION: Detection of neurological conditions is of high importance in the current context of increasingly ageing populations. Imaging of the retina and the optic nerve head represents a unique opportunity to detect brain diseases, but requires specific human expertise. We review the current outcomes of artificial intelligence (AI) methods applied to retinal imaging for the detection of neurological and neuro-ophthalmic conditions. METHOD: Current and emerging concepts related to the detection of neurological conditions, using AI-based investigations of the retina in patients with brain disease were examined and summarised. RESULTS: Papilloedema due to intracranial hypertension can be accurately identified with deep learning on standard retinal imaging at a human expert level. Emerging studies suggest that patients with Alzheimer's disease can be discriminated from cognitively normal individuals, using AI applied to retinal images. CONCLUSION Recent AI-based systems dedicated to scalable retinal imaging have opened new perspectives for the detection of brain conditions directly or indirectly affecting retinal structures. However, further validation and implementation studies are required to better understand their potential value in clinical practice.
Humans ; Artificial Intelligence ; Brain/diagnostic imaging* ; Retina ; Optic Disk ; Aging