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Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is responsible for non-shivering thermogenesis and is an attractive therapeutic target for combating obesity and related diseases. Human BAT activity has been evaluated by 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography (18FDG-PET/CT) under acute cold exposure, but the method has some serious limitations, including radiation exposure. Infrared thermography (IRT) may be a simple and less-invasive alternative to evaluate BAT activity. In the present study, to establish an optimal condition for IRT, using a thermal imaging camera, skin temperature was measured in the supraclavicular region close to BAT depots (Tscv) and the control chest region (Tc) in 24 young healthy volunteers. Their BAT activity was assessed as the maximal standardized uptake value (SUVmax) by 18FDG-PET/CT. Under a warm condition at 24–27°C, no significant correlation was found between the IRT parameters (Tscv, Tc,, and the difference between Tscv and Tc,, Δtemp) and SUVmax, but 30–120 min after cold exposure at 19°C, Tscv and Δtemp were significantly correlated with SUVmax (r = 0.40–0.48 and r = 0.68–0.76). Δtemp after cold exposure was not affected by mean body temperature, body fatness, and skin blood flow. A lower correlation (r = 0.43) of Δtemp with SUVmax was also obtained when the participant’s hands were immersed in water at 18°C for 5 min. Receiver operating characteristic analysis revealed that Δtemp after 30–60 min cold exposure can be used as an index for BAT evaluation with 74% sensitivity, 92% specificity, and 79% diagnostic accuracy. Thus, IRT may be useful as a simple and less-invasive method for evaluating BAT, particularly for large-scale screening and longitudinal repeat studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurological disease with heavy economic and social burdens resulting in significant disability. Objective: This study aims to (1) measure the cost of health resources utilization by MS patients and (2) to examine the difference in utilization and its attributed costs amongst patients who may have a different course of MS and expanded disability status scale (EDSS) scores. Methods: A cross-sectional study using Kuwait National MS registry was conducted to estimate the costs of utilization of resources from 2011 to 2015. Results: Between the period 2011–2015, 1344 MS patients were included in the registry. The average annual cost per MS patient has increased from $10,271 in 2011 to $17,296 in 2015. Utilization of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) was the main driver of costs reaching 89.9% in 2015. Throughout the five-year period, the occurrence of relapses decreased from 21.8% to 12.2% (p <0.0001). During this same period, ambulatory relapse treatment increased by 5.8% while hospitalizations decreased by 2.6%. Patients with a moderate EDSS score (3.5–6) had the highest average cost (p<0.0001) compared to mild and severe EDSS scores. Conclusions: Multiple sclerosis has been a significant economic burden on the Kuwait healthcare system. DMTs are the main driver of cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background & aims: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) manifests as chronic abdominal pain. One pathophysiological theory states that the brain–gut axis is responsible for pain control in the intestine. Although several studies have discussed the structural changes in the brain of IBS patients, most of these studies have been conducted in Western populations. Different cultures and sexes experience different pain sensations and have different pain responses. Accordingly, we aimed to identify the specific changes in the cortical thickness of Asian women with IBS and to compare these data to those of non-Asian women with IBS. Methods: Thirty Asian female IBS patients (IBS group) and 39 healthy individuals (control group) were included in this study. Brain structural magnetic resonance imaging was performed. We used FreeSurfer to analyze the differences in the cortical thickness and their correlations with patient characteristics. Results: The left cuneus, left rostral middle frontal cortex, left supramarginal cortex, right caudal anterior cingulate cortex, and bilateral insula exhibited cortical thinning in the IBS group compared with those in the controls. Furthermore, the brain cortical thickness correlated negatively the severity as well as duration of abdominal pain. Conclusions: Some of our findings differ from those of Western studies. In our study, all of the significant brain regions in the IBS group exhibited cortical thinning compared with those in the controls. The differences in cortical thickness between the IBS patients and controls may provide useful information to facilitate regulating abdominal pain in IBS patients. These findings offer insights into the association of different cultures and sexes with differences in cortical thinning in patients with IBS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]