The crude diagnostic agreement was 93% with a kappa = 85% (agreement adjusted by chance) between methods. If a 10% increase in the relative volume difference between the arms was used as the diagnostic criterion, prevalence was 20% (9/46) and 22% (10/46), respectively. Conclusion There is good agreement between perometry and circumferential girth measurements when classifying patients as having a difference between arm volumes >200 mL or 10%, the most frequently used cutoffs to diagnose lymphedema.Background and Objectives Neighborhood environments may play a role in the development of child obesity by providing or limiting opportunities for children to be physically active and access healthy food near the home. This study quantifies associations between the neighborhood built and social environment and age- and sex- standardized body mass index (BMI) z-scores in a predominantly African American urban sample. Methods Electronic health record data from a pediatric integrated delivery system (N = 26,460 children, 6 to 19 years old in Philadelphia in 2014) were linked to eight built and social neighborhood environment characteristics. Generalized estimating equations were used to obtain adjusted associations between neighborhood features and age- and sex-adjusted BMI Z-score. Interactions between built and social exposures were examined, as well as effect modification by age, sex, neighborhood socioeconomic status, and population density. Results Of 26,460 children, 17% were overweight and 21% were obese. After adjustment for individual- and neighborhood-level confounders, higher neighborhood greenness and higher walkability were associated with lower BMI z-score [mean difference per standard deviation (SD) -0.069 (95% confidence interval [-0.108 to -0.031] and -0.051 [-0.085, -0.017], respectively)]. Higher levels of neighborhood food and physical activity resources were associated with higher BMI z-score [mean difference per SD 0.031 (0.012 and 0.050)]. We observed no interaction between the built and social neighborhood measures. Conclusion Policies to promote walkability and greening of urban neighborhoods may contribute to preventing obesity in children.Context During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, New York City's public hospitals experienced a significant increase in the number of critically ill patients, especially from minority populations. The palliative care consult service at Bellevue Hospital, therefore, adjusted rapidly to meet the increased needs of our patients and colleagues. Objectives To describe the dynamic palliative care needs during a public hospital's COVID-19 surge, including a process to utilize nonpalliative care trained volunteers to meet the increased demand for inpatient palliative care consults. Confronting the Challenge Given the flexibility needed during the surge response, the consult team focused on three key elements to meet the system's needs surge staffing, support, and scale. The consult service expanded into three individual teams to accommodate daily rounds with the medical intensive care and general medicine teams. Nonpalliative care trained community volunteers and internally redeployed providers receivVID-19 pandemic.
  To explore the primary indications, direct causes and graft survival of short-term repeat keratoplasty.
 
  An analytical cross-sectional study.
 
  The primary indications for keratoplasty were infectious keratitis (67.9%) and immune keratopathy (12.8%). The direct causes of graft failure were infectious ulcer (43.6%) and recurrence (30.8%). Pre-operative hypopyon (P = 0.017, HR = 1.757) and use of decellularized porcine corneas as grafts (P = 0.005, HR = 2.690) were independent risk factors for graft failure. The Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed that the 1-year survival rate of 88 repeat grafts was 85.2%, and the 5-year survival rate was 79.2%. The survival rates of the repeat grafts were significantly higher than those of the first grafts (P < 0.001).
 
  Infectious keratitis is the most common indication of short-term graft failure and is often failed by infectious ulcer and keratitis recurrence. While the decellularized porcine cornea is a promising application in developing countries, certain difficulties, such as graft melting, remain unresolved.
 Infectious keratitis is the most common indication of short-term graft failure and is often failed by infectious ulcer and keratitis recurrence. While the decellularized porcine cornea is a promising application in developing countries, certain difficulties, such as graft melting, remain unresolved.Inducible gene expression systems are valuable tools for studying biological processes. We previously developed an optogenetic gene expression system called TAEL that is optimized for use in zebrafish. When illuminated with blue light, TAEL transcription factors dimerize and activate gene expression downstream of the TAEL-responsive C120 promoter.  https://www.selleckchem.com/products/pt2385.html  By using light as the inducing agent, the TAEL/C120 system overcomes limitations of traditional inducible expression systems by enabling fine spatial and temporal regulation of gene expression. In this study, we describe ongoing efforts to improve the TAEL/C120 system. We made modifications to both the TAEL transcriptional activator and the C120 regulatory element, collectively referred to as TAEL 2.0. We demonstrate that TAEL 2.0 consistently induces higher levels of reporter gene expression and at a faster rate, but with comparable background and toxicity as the original TAEL system. With these improvements, we were able to create functional stable transgenic lines to express the TAEL 2.0 transcription factor either ubiquitously or with a tissue-specific promoter. We demonstrate that the ubiquitous line in particular can be used to induce expression at late embryonic and larval stages, addressing a major deficiency of the original TAEL system. This improved optogenetic expression system will be a broadly useful resource for the zebrafish community.Purpose To compare the effectiveness of topical surfactant and 3% sodium chloride (NaCl) in the treatment of corneal edema occurring after cataract surgery. Methods Ninety eyes of 90 patients with no corneal disease who underwent cataract surgery were included in the study. Thirty eyes without corneal edema comprised group 1. Patients with corneal edema were divided into two groups those treated with 3% NaCl (group 2, 30 eyes) and those treated with surfactant drop (group 3, 30 eyes). Results The mean age was 70.8 ± 6.6 years, with no significant age difference between the groups. Preoperatively, there was no significant difference in mean central corneal thickness (CCT) or mean endothelial cell count (ECC) among the groups (P = 0.999). On postoperative day 1, CCT was significantly lower in group 1 (P  0.05). Conclusion Topical pulmonary surfactant may be a more effective treatment option than 3% hypertonic NaCl for the treatment of corneal edema that develops after cataract surgery.