Background: Deceased donor liver transplantation (DDLT) and living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) are employed to address highly urgent patients, including those with acute liver failure (ALF), acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF), or critical cirrhosis. This study compares outcomes between LDLT and DDLT patients with ALF, ACLF, or critical cirrhosis in highly urgent LDLT (HU-LDLT) applications. Methods: This study conducted a retrospective analysis of the Korean Network for Organ Sharing (KONOS) data, which included 391 consecutive HU-LDLT applications from 2017 to 2021. Results: The proportion of DDLT was 15.1% (n=59) within the cohort of HU-LDLT applications. The prevalence of hepatorenal syndrome, duration of pre-transplant intensive care unit (ICU) care, incidence of pre-transplant continuous renal replacement therapy, and median model for end-stage liver disease scores were significantly greater and prolonged in DDLT patients compared to LDLT patients. Statistical analysis revealed no significant differences in postoperative complications or overall survival between the two groups. In the multivariate analysis, only pre-transplant ventilator care emerged as a significant predisposing factor for mortality. Conclusion The present study indicates that LDLT is a viable option, yielding comparable perioperative and long-term outcomes to DDLT for HU patients, which can encourage living liver donation to overcome organ shortages in HU patients.

Objective: This study evaluated the relationship between IVD degeneration and the vertebral body FSF in dogs and compared these factors between chondrodystrophic (CD) and nonchondrodystrophic (NCD) dogs. Methods: IVD degeneration in dogs was classified morphologically using the Pfirrmann grade, and the vertebral body FSF was evaluated quantitatively. Results: The vertebral body FSF showed a statistically significant difference among the age groups. The vertebral body FSF was significantly higher in Pfirrmann grades 3–5 than in grades 1 and 2. The mean Pfirrmann grade of CD dogs was higher than that of NCD dogs in the four-to-six-year-old group. The mean vertebral body FSF of CD dogs was higher than that of NCD dogs in the group of seven years and above. Conclusions and Relevance: In dogs, the vertebral body FSF increased significantly with age and Pfirrmann grade. The CD dogs showed a higher degree of IVD degeneration at a younger age than the NCD dogs. CD dogs appeared to experience more severe fat deposition of the vertebral body in old age than NCD dogs. MRI examinations are helpful for evaluating IVD degeneration and vertebral body fat deposition.

Objective: This study evaluated the relationship between IVD degeneration and the vertebral body FSF in dogs and compared these factors between chondrodystrophic (CD) and nonchondrodystrophic (NCD) dogs. Methods: IVD degeneration in dogs was classified morphologically using the Pfirrmann grade, and the vertebral body FSF was evaluated quantitatively. Results: The vertebral body FSF showed a statistically significant difference among the age groups. The vertebral body FSF was significantly higher in Pfirrmann grades 3–5 than in grades 1 and 2. The mean Pfirrmann grade of CD dogs was higher than that of NCD dogs in the four-to-six-year-old group. The mean vertebral body FSF of CD dogs was higher than that of NCD dogs in the group of seven years and above. Conclusions and Relevance: In dogs, the vertebral body FSF increased significantly with age and Pfirrmann grade. The CD dogs showed a higher degree of IVD degeneration at a younger age than the NCD dogs. CD dogs appeared to experience more severe fat deposition of the vertebral body in old age than NCD dogs. MRI examinations are helpful for evaluating IVD degeneration and vertebral body fat deposition.

Objective: This study evaluated the relationship between IVD degeneration and the vertebral body FSF in dogs and compared these factors between chondrodystrophic (CD) and nonchondrodystrophic (NCD) dogs. Methods: IVD degeneration in dogs was classified morphologically using the Pfirrmann grade, and the vertebral body FSF was evaluated quantitatively. Results: The vertebral body FSF showed a statistically significant difference among the age groups. The vertebral body FSF was significantly higher in Pfirrmann grades 3–5 than in grades 1 and 2. The mean Pfirrmann grade of CD dogs was higher than that of NCD dogs in the four-to-six-year-old group. The mean vertebral body FSF of CD dogs was higher than that of NCD dogs in the group of seven years and above. Conclusions and Relevance: In dogs, the vertebral body FSF increased significantly with age and Pfirrmann grade. The CD dogs showed a higher degree of IVD degeneration at a younger age than the NCD dogs. CD dogs appeared to experience more severe fat deposition of the vertebral body in old age than NCD dogs. MRI examinations are helpful for evaluating IVD degeneration and vertebral body fat deposition.

Objective: This study evaluated the relationship between IVD degeneration and the vertebral body FSF in dogs and compared these factors between chondrodystrophic (CD) and nonchondrodystrophic (NCD) dogs. Methods: IVD degeneration in dogs was classified morphologically using the Pfirrmann grade, and the vertebral body FSF was evaluated quantitatively. Results: The vertebral body FSF showed a statistically significant difference among the age groups. The vertebral body FSF was significantly higher in Pfirrmann grades 3–5 than in grades 1 and 2. The mean Pfirrmann grade of CD dogs was higher than that of NCD dogs in the four-to-six-year-old group. The mean vertebral body FSF of CD dogs was higher than that of NCD dogs in the group of seven years and above. Conclusions and Relevance: In dogs, the vertebral body FSF increased significantly with age and Pfirrmann grade. The CD dogs showed a higher degree of IVD degeneration at a younger age than the NCD dogs. CD dogs appeared to experience more severe fat deposition of the vertebral body in old age than NCD dogs. MRI examinations are helpful for evaluating IVD degeneration and vertebral body fat deposition.

Objective: This study aimed to establish normal reference values for PV indices (PV/Ao ratio and PV diameter) in cats and determine the usefulness of these for predicting symptomatic EHPSS. Methods: This study included 95 dogs and 114 cats that underwent abdominal CT. The canine normal (CN) group included dogs without EHPSS. The cats were classified into feline normal (FN, 88/114), feline asymptomatic (FA, 16/114), and feline symptomatic (FS, 10/114) groups.The PV and Ao diameters were measured in axial cross-sections. Results: The group FN had a higher PV/Ao ratio than the group CN (p < 0.001). Within the feline groups, the PV indices were in the order FN > FA > FS (both p < 0.001). The mean PV diameter and PV/Ao ratio for group FN were 5.23 ± 0.77 mm and 1.46 ± 0.19, respectively. The cutoff values between groups FN and FS were 4.115 mm for PV diameter (sensitivity, 100%; specificity, 97.7%) and 1.170 for PV/Ao ratio (90%, 92.1%). The cutoff values between group FA and FS were 3.835 mm (90%, 93.8%) and 1.010 (70%, 100%), respectively. Conclusions and Relevance: The results demonstrated significant differences in PV indices between dogs and cats. In cats, the PV/Ao ratio demonstrated high diagnostic performance for symptomatic EHPSS. The PV diameter also performed well, in contrast to dogs.

Subgaleal hematomas are accumulation of blood between periosteum and galea aponeurosis. A 2-year-old male Chihuahua was presented with a severe head swelling after trauma. Radiography and computed tomography (CT) showed a massive swelling encircling the entire calvarial vault, extending toward the cervical neck and crossing the suture line. It was heterogeneously, mild hyperdense fluid to soft tissue attenuating with contrast enhancement on CT images. On day 4, physical and imaging examination showed resolution of the calvarial swelling. Subgaleal hematoma should be considered as a differential diagnosis when there is a massive soft tissue swelling over the skull on physical and imaging examinations.

Most influenza vaccines currently in use target the highly variable hemagglutinin protein to induce neutralizing antibodies and therefore require yearly reformulation. T cell-based universal influenza vaccines focus on eliciting broadly cross-reactive T-cell responses, especially the tissue-resident memory T cell (TRM ) population in the respiratory tract, providing superior protection to circulating memory T cells. This study demonstrated that intramuscular (i.m.) administration of the adenovirus-based vaccine expressing influenza virus nucleoprotein (rAd/NP) elicited weak CD8 TRM responses in the lungs and airways, and yielded poor protection against lethal influenza virus challenge. However, a novel “prime-and-deploy” strategy that combines i.m. vaccination of rAd/NP with subsequent intranasal administration of an empty adenovector induced strong NP-specific CD8+ TRM cells and provided complete protection against influenza virus challenge. Overall, our results demonstrate that this “prime-and-deploy” vaccination strategy is potentially applicable to the development of universal influenza vaccines.

Background: This study aimed to establish an image evaluation grading criteria for experimental stifle joint osteoar‑ thritis (OA) in anterior cruciate ligament transection induced OA beagle dog models. The severity of OA was assessed using X-ray and computed tomography (CT) imaging. Results: A total of 32 dogs (8 controls and 24 OA-induced dogs) were included in the study. The OA-induced group showed significantly higher manual joint palpation, gait analysis, and OA severity scores than the control group. Based on these two results, we calculated correlation coefficients. There was a strong positive correlation between manual joint palpation scores and OA severity on diagnostic imaging and between gait analysis scores and OA severity. Conclusions The developed grading criteria based on radiographic evaluation correlated with clinical assessments. The study also employed CT imaging to enhance the accuracy and sensitivity of early-stage OA change detec‑ tion in the stifle joint. However, further studies with larger sample sizes and multiple evaluators are recommended for the validation and generalizability of this grading system. These established image evaluation grading criteria can help evaluate and monitor the efficacy of interventions and changes in OA lesions in canine models.

Although the prevalence of hereditary hemolytic anemia (HHA) is relatively low in Korea, it has been gradually increasing in recent decades due to increment in the proportions of hemoglobinopathies from immigrants of South East Asia, raising awareness of the disease among clinicians, and advances in diagnostic technology. As such, the red blood cell (RBC) Disorder Working Party (WP), previously called HHA WP, of the Korean Society of Hematology (KSH) developed the Korean Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the diagnosis of HHA in 2007. These SOPs have been continuously revised and updated following advances in diagnostic technology [e.g., flow cytometric osmotic fragility test (FOFT) and eosin-5-maleimide (EMA) binding test], current methods for membrane protein or enzyme analysis [e.g., liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS), high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)], and molecular genetic tests using next-generation sequencing (NGS). However, the diagnosis and treatment of HHA remain challenging as they require considerable experience and understanding of the disease. Therefore, in this new Korean Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Diagnosis of HHA, on behalf of the RBC Disorder WP of KSH, updated guidelines to approach patients suspected of HHA are summarized. NGS is proposed to perform prior to membrane protein or enzyme analysis by LC-MS/MS, UPLC-MS/MS or HPLC techniques due to the availability of gene testing in more laboratories in Korea. We hope that this guideline will be helpful for clinicians in making diagnostic decisions for patients with HHA in Korea.