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Journal de Mycologie Medicale Nov 2023The therapeutic management of invasive aspergillosis should be guided by antifungal susceptibility testing (AFST). The disk diffusion (DD) method due to its simplicity... (Review)
Review
The therapeutic management of invasive aspergillosis should be guided by antifungal susceptibility testing (AFST). The disk diffusion (DD) method due to its simplicity and low cost could be an appropriate alternative to the reference methods (CLSI, EUCAST) which are not suitable for AFST in routine clinical microbiology laboratories, particularly in resource-constrained settings. This review summarizes the available data on the performance of the DD method in determining triazole susceptibility profile of Aspergillus species. The published articles on the performance of DD method for determining triazole susceptibility of Aspergillus spp. were systematically searched on major medical databases and Google Scholar. We identified 2725 articles of which 13 met the inclusion criteria. The overall average agreement value obtained between DD and CLSI broth microdilution (CLSI-BMD) methods for the itraconazole 10 µg disk (70.75%) was low especially when the medium used was not Mueller-Hinton (MH) agar. In contrast average agreement for the voriconazole 1 µg disk and the posaconazole 5 µg disk were > 94% regardless of media used. The correlation coefficient values between the DD and CLSI-BMD methods on MH agar were acceptable (≥ 0.71) for the itraconazole 10 µg disk and posaconazole 5 µg disk and good (≥ 0.80) for the voriconazole 1 and 10 µg disk. The reproducibility of the DD method regardless to the medium used was ≥ 82%. This systematic review shows that the disk diffusion method could be a real alternative for triazole antifungals susceptibility testing of Aspergillus spp.
Topics: Voriconazole; Itraconazole; Agar; Reproducibility of Results; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Antifungal Agents; Triazoles; Aspergillus
PubMed: 37603962
DOI: 10.1016/j.mycmed.2023.101413 -
International Journal of General... 2022Calcium-pyrophosphate-dihydrate-disease (CPPD) is a crystal-induced arthropathy. The lumbar-spinal involvement is rare and often under-diagnosed. This study aimed to... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Calcium-pyrophosphate-dihydrate-disease (CPPD) is a crystal-induced arthropathy. The lumbar-spinal involvement is rare and often under-diagnosed. This study aimed to report the case of a lumbar spine CPPD involvement and to perform a systematic review of clinical, imaging features of lumbar involvement in CPPD patients, and treatments that have been implemented.
METHODS
This systematic review was conducted in accordance with the Preferred-Reporting-Items-for-Systematic-Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines.
RESULTS
One hundred and sixty-seven articles met the search criteria using electronic databases searches. We retained 28 articles (20 case reports, 2 case series, 1 family survey, 4 retrospective studies, and 1 prospective study) involving a total of 62 patients. The age ranged between 39 and 89 years old. Among patients with lumbar spine CPPD, 32 were women. The duration of symptoms varied between one day and 8 years. The affection has been discovered during back pain in most cases. In 5 studies, the diagnosis was made on histological specimens of patients operated on for another pathology. X-ray showed calcifications in 2 cases. CT-scan detected calcium deposit in 7 cases. MRI showed lesions going from the increased signal of the disk, to calcified or not-cystic lesion of the facet joints, an intramedullary mass mimicking a schwannoma. Histological examination established the diagnosis of CPPD in 21 patients in all studies. Medical treatment included NSAIDs, Colchicine, Interleukin-1-receptor-antagonist, and antibiotics. Surgery was performed on 13 patients and allowed to establish the histological diagnosis.
CONCLUSION
In the case of inflammatory back pain in elderly subjects, without an infectious gateway, diagnosis of CPPD should be considered, especially for patients with a history of spinal surgery or degenerative radiography changes. CT scan is more sensitive than conventional radiographs. The discovertebral biopsy is the Gold-Standard and should be performed whenever the diagnosis was uncertain. Treatment includes the medical and surgical components.
PubMed: 36226310
DOI: 10.2147/IJGM.S360714 -
Rhinology Apr 2024Chemosensory dysfunction has been reported to be involved in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Compared with olfaction, gustatory dysfunction in AD... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
BACKGROUND
Chemosensory dysfunction has been reported to be involved in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Compared with olfaction, gustatory dysfunction in AD has not been evaluated in depth. We reviewed previously published studies regarding gustatory dysfunction in patients with AD compared with healthy controls.
METHODS
A systematic review was conducted by searching the MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Embase, and PubMed databases covering publications from January 2000 to February 2023. The search was performed using the keyword "Alzheimer* AND (gustatory OR taste OR gustation)." Only studies that performed gustatory function testing and compared the results between patients with AD and healthy controls were included. A random-effects meta-analysis was performed.
RESULTS
Twelve articles were finally included, and various gustatory tests including taste strips, the taste disk test, taste solutions, and subjective questionnaires were applied. Overall gustatory function based on the taste strip test was significantly decreased in patients with AD compared with controls in two out of three papers. The overall gustatory function of patients with AD was significantly decreased in all studies based on the taste disk and taste solution tests. We also found that the sweet taste test showed low heterogeneity across all the included studies, and there was low publication bias. In studies using subjective questionnaires, gustatory function was not significantly different between patients with AD and healthy controls in the meta-analysis.
CONCLUSIONS
Based on these studies, gustatory dysfunction diagnosed by gustatory function testing was closely related to AD. However, the results of subjective questionnaires were not significantly different between patients with AD and healthy controls in the current meta-analysis. As the number of studies and enrolled subjects was limited and unified gustatory function testing was lacking, further studies are needed to confirm this relationship.
Topics: Humans; Taste; Alzheimer Disease; Taste Disorders; Dysgeusia; Smell; Olfaction Disorders
PubMed: 37943054
DOI: 10.4193/Rhin23.235 -
Neuro-Chirurgie Sep 2023Back pain is a very widespread disease pattern and is one of the most frequent causes for consultation of a physician in general. In most cases, discogenic changes are... (Review)
Review
OBJECTIVE
Back pain is a very widespread disease pattern and is one of the most frequent causes for consultation of a physician in general. In most cases, discogenic changes are the pathomorphological correlate of back pain. Numerous risk factors have been identified for these degenerative changes, but the influence and significance of the risk factors remain unclear, which was the aim of this systematic review.
METHODS
A systematic literature search of the commonly used Pubmed database was performed using specific MESH terms. Further selection of the included studies was performed according to the PRISMA scheme, taking into account scientific merit as well as the relation to the research question.
RESULTS
A total of 111 studies out of 1035 found were finally included in the literature search. 134 risk factors for disc degeneration and disc herniation were identified. These were divided into (1) patient-specific risk factors (n░=░34), (2) radiological risk factors (n░=░31), (3) lifestyle risk factors (n░=░6), (4) workplace-related risk factors (n░=░12), (5) genetic risk factors (n░=░50), and (6) other risk factors (n░=░1). Non-adjustable risk factors were age >50 years (OR 1.7/year), female gender (OR 1.41), family disposition (OR 4.0), comorbidities like atherosclerosis (OR 2.24), arthritic changes in other joints (OR 3.1) and history of injuries of the back (OR 3.1). Adjustable factors were elevated BMI (OR 2.77), comorbidities like hypertension (OR 1.25), dyslipidemia (OR 1.26) and diabetes mellitus (OR 6.8), as well as lifestyle habits like smoking (OR 3.8).
DISCUSSION
In summary, intervertebral disc degenerations and herniations represent multifactorial events whose risk factors can be partly influenced and partly not influenced. This systematic review highlights the current state of knowledge as a basis for creating patient-specific algorithms to calculate risk for the development or progression of degenerative disc changes and disc herniations.
Topics: Humans; Female; Middle Aged; Intervertebral Disc Degeneration; Low Back Pain; Intervertebral Disc Displacement; Risk Factors; Life Style; Lumbar Vertebrae
PubMed: 37586480
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuchi.2023.101482 -
Life (Basel, Switzerland) Jun 2022(1) Background: This study aimed to perform a literature review related to disk displacement (DD) in class II malocclusion or cervical vertebrae position alterations and... (Review)
Review
Temporomandibular Joint Disk Displacements in Class II Malocclusion and Cervical Spine Alterations: Systematic Review and Report of a Hypodivergent Case with MRI Bone and Soft Tissue Changes.
(1) Background: This study aimed to perform a literature review related to disk displacement (DD) in class II malocclusion or cervical vertebrae position alterations and to report a hypodivergent case with cervical pain and right anterolateral DD with reduction, left anterolateral DD with reduction, and left joint effusion. (2) Methods: A structured electronic search was conducted between March 2022 and April 2022, without time limits, following PRISMA guidelines, in the following databases: PubMed, Scopus, Embase and Cochrane; the terms "disc displacement", "disk displacement", "temporomandibular joint", "class II malocclusion" and "cervical vertebrae" are searched. (3) Results: the following thirteen publications are included in this review: two prospective studies and eleven cross-sectional studies; for evaluating disk position, eight included publications used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), whilst six studies used lateral cephalogram to determine craniofacial morphology and relationships between the cranial base, vertical skeletal pattern, maxilla and mandible. (4) Conclusions: although the literature still shows contradictory opinions, a relationship between temporomandibular disorders and cervical posture has been shown in the presented case as well as in the literature review.
PubMed: 35743939
DOI: 10.3390/life12060908 -
Clinical Spine Surgery Nov 2023Systemic review.
STUDY DESIGN
Systemic review.
OBJECTIVE
To understand the role of cervical disk arthroplasty in the treatment of cervical myelopathy.
SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA
The surgical management of degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM) most frequently involves decompression and fusion, but stiffness introduced by the fusion and adjacent segment degeneration remain problems that can result in significant morbidity. Cervical disk arthroplasty (CDA) is a newer procedure that has been demonstrated to be safe and effective for the management of cervical spine degenerative disk disease, but it has not been traditionally considered as a treatment option for DCM and the use for this indication has not been extensively studied.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A systematic review was undertaken using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines using a search strategy to query all relevant articles on the use of cervical disk arthroplasty in the setting of cervical myelopathy over a 20-year period (2004-2023). This review examines the literature to assess our current understanding of the appropriateness, safety, and value of CDA in the treatment of DCM.
RESULTS
A total of 844 patients received CDA across the 14 studies that met inclusion criteria, with an average of 60.3±40.4 patients per study (range: 11-152 subjects). Featured studies included 5 (35.7%) prospective studies, of which 2 were randomized. All studies had primary outcome measures of disability and/or pain scores, with the Japanese Orthopedic Association myelopathy score and neck disability index as the most commonly assessed. Four (26.7%) studies compared arthroplasty with arthrodesis. Safety of CDA for DCM was found in all studies with improvement in clinical outcome measurements.
CONCLUSION
Cervical disk arthroplasty appears to be a safe and effective surgical option in the management of degenerative cervical myelopathy. Further study is needed to assess if arthroplasty provides clinical improvement in DCM of comparable magnitude and durability as traditional fusion strategies.
Topics: Humans; Arthroplasty; Cervical Vertebrae; Intervertebral Disc Degeneration; Prospective Studies; Spinal Cord Diseases; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 37684716
DOI: 10.1097/BSD.0000000000001528 -
Clinical Oral Investigations Apr 2022This systematic review compared minimally and invasive surgical procedures to manage arthrogenous temporomandibular joint (TMJ). (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
Invasive surgical procedures for the management of internal derangement of the temporomandibular joint: a systematic review and meta-analysis regarding the effects on pain and jaw mobility.
OBJECTIVES
This systematic review compared minimally and invasive surgical procedures to manage arthrogenous temporomandibular joint (TMJ).
MATERIALS AND METHODS
The review included clinical trials assessing surgical procedures of arthrogenous temporomandibular disorder (TMD) management by carrying out comparisons within the same surgical procedure (pre- and post-treatment) as well as between different surgical procedures. Meta-analyses were conducted only for similar comparison reporting the same outcome measures, visual analog scale (VAS) values to evaluate pain and maximum incisal opening (MIO) values.
RESULTS
Of the 1,015 studies identified by the search strategy, 26 were selected for full-text reading, and 19 were included in the review. Of these, 16 studies were included in the meta-analysis and 3 in the qualitative analysis. The VAS scores showed significantly lower values after discectomies (p < 0.001) and discoplasties (p < 0.001) in the within-group comparison. Moreover, significantly lower VAS scores and higher MIO values were observed after discectomy compared to arthroscopy, eminectomy, and discoplasty (p < 0.05).
CONCLUSION
The findings of this systematic review suggest that although significantly lower VAS scores and higher MIO values were observed after discectomy, the currently available scientific evidence is unclear, and the use of invasive surgical procedures should not be implemented as an efficient first-line treatment option for arthrogenous TMD management.
CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE
VAS and MIO outcomes could be insufficient to describe the success or failure of open surgical procedures like discectomy and discoplasty.
Topics: Arthroscopy; Humans; Pain; Range of Motion, Articular; Retrospective Studies; Temporomandibular Joint; Temporomandibular Joint Disorders; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 35291030
DOI: 10.1007/s00784-022-04428-7 -
Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection... Jun 2021Vancomycin‑resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA) is a serious public health challenging concern worldwide. (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
BACKGROUND
Vancomycin‑resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA) is a serious public health challenging concern worldwide.
OBJECTIVES
Therefore, the objective of present study of 62 published studies was to evaluate the prevalence of VRSA based on different years, areas, isolate source, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, and the genetic determinants.
METHODS
We searched the relevant articles that focused on the prevalence rates of VRSA in PubMed, Scopus, Embase, and Web of Science from 2000 to 2019. Statistical analyses were conducted using STATA software (version 14.0).
RESULTS
The prevalence of VRSA was 2% before 2006, 5% in 2006-2014, and 7% in 2015-2020 that showed a 3.5-fold increase in the frequency of VRSA between before 2006 and 2020 years. The prevalence of VRSA was 5% in Asia, 1% in Europe, 4% in America, 3% in South America, and 16% in Africa. The frequencies of VRSA isolated from clinical, non-clinical, and mixed samples were 6%, 7%, and 14%, respectively. The prevalence of VRSA was 12% using disk diffusion agar method, 7% using MIC-base methods, and 4% using mixed-methods. The prevalence of vanA, vanB, and vanC1 positive were 71%, 26%, and 4% among VRSA strains. The most prevalent genotype was staphylococcal cassette chromosomemec (SCCmec) II, which accounted for 57% of VRSA. The most prevalent staphylococcal protein A (spa) types were t002, t030, and t037.
CONCLUSION
The prevalence of VRSA has been increasing in recent years particularly in Africa/Asia than Europe/America. The most prevalent of genetic determinants associated with VRSA were vanA and SCCmec II. This study clarifies that the rigorous monitoring of definite antibiotic policy, regular surveillance/control of nosocomial-associated infections and intensive surveillance of vancomycin-resistance are required for preventing emergence and further spreading of VRSA.
Topics: Africa; Asia; Europe; Humans; Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus; North America; Prevalence; South America; Staphylococcal Infections; Vancomycin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus
PubMed: 34193295
DOI: 10.1186/s13756-021-00967-y -
Clinical Spine Surgery Jul 2024A meta-analysis. (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
STUDY DESIGN
A meta-analysis.
OBJECTIVE
This study aimed to analyze the incidence of spontaneous resorption of lumbar disk herniation (LDH) after conservative treatment.
SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA
The resorption of intervertebral disks has been more frequently reported, but there is a lack of reference to the probability of resorption.
METHODS
We strictly refer to the standard established in the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis) statement, comprehensively searched electronic databases using the terms related to the spontaneous resorption of LDH. Two reviewers independently evaluated the potential studies, extracted, and analyzed the enrolled data.
RESULTS
Thirty-one studies with 2233 patients who received conservative treatment were included for this analysis. We found that the pooled overall incidence of disk resorption was 70.39%, 87.77% for disk sequestration, 66.91% for disk extrusion, 37.53% for disk protrusion, and 13.33% for disk bugle, respectively. The resorption incidence in of 25%≤ reduction of disk herniation (RDH) 50%, RDH≥50%, and RDH=100% were 40.19%, 43.62, and 36.89%. The resorption incidence was 66.98% in Japan, 61.66% in the United States, 83.52% in Korea, 60.68% in China, 78.30% in the UK, 56.70% in Italy, and 83.68% in Turkey, respectively. Subgroup analysis showed that there was no significant difference in resorption incidence among prospective, retrospective studies and randomized controlled trials ( P =0.77), and there was no significant difference in evaluation method among qualitative and quantitative studies ( P =0.05).
CONCLUSIONS
The existing evidence shows that the overall resorption incidence of LDH was 70.39%, the resorption incidence of ruptured LDH is higher than that of contained LDH. There are significant differences in the resorption incidence among countries. The resorption process mainly occurred within 6 months of conservative treatment.
Topics: Humans; Intervertebral Disc Displacement; Incidence; Lumbar Vertebrae
PubMed: 37559207
DOI: 10.1097/BSD.0000000000001490 -
Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery and... Nov 2023To compare the efficacy and safety of unilateral biportal endoscopic transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (BE-TLIF) and minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
Comparing the efficacy of unilateral biportal endoscopic transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion and minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion in lumbar degenerative diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
OBJECTIVE
To compare the efficacy and safety of unilateral biportal endoscopic transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (BE-TLIF) and minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS-TLIF) in lumbar degenerative diseases.
METHODS
This study was registered on International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) (ID: CRD42023432460). We searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wan Fang Database, and Wei Pu Database by computer to collect controlled clinical studies on the efficacy and safety of unilateral BE-TLIF and MIS-TLIF in lumbar degenerative diseases from database establishment to May 2023. Two researchers screened the literature, extracted data and evaluated the risk of bias of the included studies, recorded the authors, and sample size, and extracted the intraoperative blood loss, operation time, postoperative drainage, Oswestry disability index, Visual analogue scale, lumbar lordosis, disk height, hospital length stay, fusion rate, and complications in each study. Meta-analysis was performed using Revman 5.4 software provided by Cochrane Library.
RESULTS
A total of 14 cohort studies with a total of 1007 patients were included in this study, including 472 patients in the BE-TLIF group and 535 patients in the MIS-TLIF group. The BE-TLIF group had lower intraoperative blood loss than the MIS-TLIF group [mean difference (MD) = - 78.72, 95% CI (- 98.47, - 58.97), P < 0.00001] and significantly reduced postoperative drainage than the MIS-TLIF group [MD = - 43.20, 95% CI (- 56.57, - 29.83), P < 0.00001], and the operation time was longer than that of the MIS-TLIF group [MD = 22.68, 95% CI (12.03, 33.33), P < 0.0001]. Hospital length stay in BE-TLIF group was significantly less than that in MIS-TLIF group [MD = - 1.20, 95% CI (- 1.82, - 0.57), P = 0.0002].
CONCLUSION
Compared with MIS-TLIF, BE-TLIF for lumbar degenerative diseases has the advantages of less intraoperative blood loss, less early postoperative low back and leg pain, shorter postoperative hospital length stay, and faster early functional recovery.
Topics: Humans; Lumbar Vertebrae; Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures; Blood Loss, Surgical; Treatment Outcome; Spinal Fusion; Retrospective Studies
PubMed: 37993948
DOI: 10.1186/s13018-023-04393-1