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Background and Aims: Small‐for‐gestational‐age (SGA) newborns have a higher risk of morbidity and mortality. Recognizing the risk factors for SGA helps raise early awareness of the issue and provides valuable insights for both healthcare providers and pregnant women. We aimed to identify determinants of SGA using population‐based databases in Taiwan. Methods: Data were retrieved from the National Health Insurance, Birth Reporting, and Maternal and Child Health databases for this nationwide case‐control study. Live births between 20 and 44 weeks of gestation from 2005 to 2014 were enrolled and linked to their mothers to determine maternal conditions during pregnancy. For every SGA newborn, four controls matched by gestational age and birth year were randomly selected. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify risk factors for SGA, with adjusted odds ratios (aORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) accounting for potential confounders and interaction terms. Results: A total of 158,405 live SGA births were identified, with 623,584 controls randomly selected. Independent risk factors for SGA included maternal age <20 years (aOR 1.68, 95% CI 1.62, 1.75); female sex in newborns (aOR 1.28, 95% CI 1.27, 1.30); socioeconomic deprivation (aOR 1.29, 95% CI 1.21, 1.38); hypertension (aOR 1.6, 95% CI 1.52, 1.67); kidney disorders (aOR 1.29, 95% CI 1.16, 1.44); thyroid disorders (aOR 1.13, 95% CI 1.09, 1.17); systemic lupus erythematosus (aOR 2.59, 95% CI 2.33, 2.89); antiphospholipid syndrome (aOR 2.08, 95% CI 1.64, 2.64); gestational hypertension (aOR 1.69, 95% CI 1.61, 1.76); pre‐eclampsia (aOR 3.12, 95% CI 3.01, 3.25); and antepartum hemorrhage (aOR 1.05, 95% CI 1.03, 1.07) after adjustment for other covariates. Conclusions: SGA was associated with younger maternal age, female newborns, underlying comorbidities, and obstetric conditions. Gestational hypertension and pre‐eclampsia were significant risk factors affecting infants of both sexes and all age groups and could mask the effects of maternal age and infant sex. Key points: What's knownMaternal medical history of hypertension, renal disease, autoimmune diseases, and obstetric conditions, including perinatal bleeding, placental abruption, and pre‐eclampsia, could be associated with small‐for‐gestational‐age (SGA). What's newInteraction analysis revealed that gestational hypertension and pre‐eclampsia are powerful factors with significant effects in all age groups and infants of both sexes. Meanwhile, age and sex may be risk factors for SGA only in a population without gestational hypertension or pre‐eclampsia. What the clinical implications of this study areThe results imply that gestational hypertension and pre‐eclampsia should be given higher priority when addressing the issue of SGA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ductus arteriosus closure may be delayed in preterm infants, and prostaglandin, a vasodilator, can affect ductal patency. Furosemide can increase renal prostaglandin synthesis, so its net effect on patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is uncertain. Our goal is to explore the relationship between furosemide and spontaneous ductal closure in very-low-birth-weight preterm infants. Our treatment for PDA involves fluid restriction initially and furosemide administration for hemodynamically significant PDA until closure is confirmed by the echocardiogram. We enrolled 105 infants from 1 January 2019 to 30 June 2022 and evaluated the impact of furosemide on ductal closure, including exposure duration and cumulative dose. There is no correlation between furosemide exposure and spontaneous ductal closure (p = 0.384). Furosemide exposure does not delay the postmenstrual age at which spontaneous ductal closure occurs (p = 0.558). The time for spontaneous ductal closure is positively associated with furosemide prescription days (coefficient value = 0.547, p = 0.026) and negatively with gestational age (coefficient value = −0.384, p = 0.062). The prescription of furosemide does not impact the probability or time duration of ductus arteriosus spontaneous closure. The cumulative dose of furosemide has minimal impact on ductal closure. The correlation between furosemide exposure duration and ductal patency duration is likely due to our treatment protocol, with gestational age being a significant factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the utilization of minimally invasive surfactant therapy (MIST) and Non-invasive ventilation (NIV) as the primary respiratory assistance has become increasingly prevalent among preterm infants with neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). This study aims to compare the outcomes between MIST administered with nasal continuous positive airway pressure (NCPAP) versus nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV), with the objective of exploring the respiratory therapeutic benefits of these two approaches. This retrospective study collected data from the neonatal intensive care unit of Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital spanning from January 2016 to June 2021. Infants were divided into two groups based on the type of NIV utilized. The NCPAP group comprised 32 infants, while the NIPPV group comprised 22 infants. Statistical analysis revealed significant differences: the NIPPV group had a smaller gestational age, lower birth weight, higher proportion of female infants, and earlier initiation of MIST. Additionally, the NIPPV group exhibited higher incidence rates of retinopathy of prematurity, longer respiratory support duration, prolonged hospitalization, and mortality. However, upon adjustment, these differences were not statistically significant. Analysis of venous blood gas and respiratory parameter changes indicated that both the NCPAP and NIPPV groups experienced improvements in oxygenation and ventilation following MIST. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nasal continuous positive airway pressure (NCPAP) is extensively used for preterm infants experiencing respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). Weaning from NCPAP includes direct weaning or gradually extending room air exposure. However, a high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) is an alternative weaning method. Therefore, this study evaluated the clinical outcomes of HFNC and progressively increasing room air duration as weaning strategies. This study enrolled 46 preterm infants with RDS receiving NCPAP support who underwent the cyclic use of NCPAP and HFNC weaning protocol as the HFNC group; a retrospective analysis included 87 preterm infants weaned from NCPAP by gradually extending room air duration as the room air group. Differences in clinical conditions, complications, and short-term outcomes between the weaning methods were compared. The mean post-menstrual age at initiating NCPAP weaning was lower in the room air group than in the HFNC group (mean ± SD, 35.2 ± 2.3 weeks vs. 33.2 ± 2.5 weeks, p < 0.001). Hospital stay duration and total respiratory therapy days were longer in the HFNC group (96 ± 38 days and 80 ± 37 days, respectively) than in the room air group (78 ± 28 days and 56 ± 25 days, respectively), with p-values of 0.006 and <0.001. In conclusion, employing HFNC for weaning from NCPAP resulted in longer hospital admissions and respiratory therapy days than the room air method. However, further studies with a larger sample size are warranted for a more comprehensive evaluation, given the limited number of enrolled patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Video-based automatic motion analysis has been employed to identify infant motor development delays. To overcome the limitations of lab-recorded images and training datasets, this study aimed to develop an artificial intelligence (AI) model using videos taken by mobile phone to assess infants' motor skills. Methods: A total of 270 videos of 41 high-risk infants were taken by parents using a mobile device. Based on the Pull to Sit (PTS) levels from the Hammersmith Motor Evaluation, we set motor skills assessments. The videos included 84 level 0, 106 level 1, and 80 level 3 recordings. We used whole-body pose estimation and three-dimensional transformation with a fuzzy-based approach to develop an AI model. The model was trained with two types of vectors: whole-body skeleton and key points with domain knowledge. Results: The average accuracies of the whole-body skeleton and key point models for level 0 were 77.667% and 88.062%, respectively. The Area Under the ROC curve (AUC) of the whole-body skeleton and key point models for level 3 were 96.049% and 94.333% respectively. Conclusions: An AI model with minimal environmental restrictions can provide a family-centered developmental delay screen and enable the remote monitoring of infants requiring intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Very low birth weight (VLBW) preterm infants universally experience anemia of prematurity (AOP) while growing up. The effects of reduced blood sample volume on AOP, packed red blood cell (PRBC) transfusion, and outcome in VLBW preterm infants were examined in this study. To reduce blood loss due to phlebotomy, we set up a small volume blood sampling procedure in VLBW infants. In this retrospective study, we compared the VLBW infants who had undergone standard blood sampling (control group, n = 20) with those who underwent small volume blood sampling (study group, n = 84), with both groups receiving PRBC transfusion under restrictive criteria. Blood loss from phlebotomy and PRBC transfusion volume over 30 days was significantly lower in the study group than in the control group. Compared to the control group, hematocrit, reticulocyte, and iron levels were significantly higher in the study group. There were no significant differences in the proportion of patent ductus arteriosus, severe intraventricular hemorrhage, retinopathy of prematurity, and bronchopulmonary dysplasia between the two groups. The small volume blood sampling resulted in lower PRBC transfusion volume, less severe anemia, and greater bone marrow function at 30 days of age. This strategy can reduce potential adverse effects of PRBC transfusion in VLBW preterm infants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Both air pollutant exposure and neonatal jaundice (NJ) have known effects on childhood asthma, but a higher total serum bilirubin (TSB) level has been associated with lung protection. This study aimed to assess whether prenatal/postnatal exposure to ambient air pollutants is related to the development of asthma in infants with NJ. Patients and Methods: A nested case–control retrospective study was performed using the data of infants with NJ in the Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital Research Database. Data on average ambient air pollution concentrations within six months, the first year and second year after birth, and in the first, second and third prenatal trimesters were collected. NJ was defined as TSB levels ≥ 2 mg/dl with the diagnosis less than one-month-old. Asthma was defined as a diagnosis with medication use. We constructed conditional logistic regression models to estimate adjusted odds ratios (aORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results: Exposure to NO and SO2 at all six time points in the study was significantly associated with an increased risk of preschool asthma in infants with NJ. The overall peak OR (95% CI) of SO2, PM2.5, PM10, NO, NO2, and NOX were 1.277 (1.129– 1.444), 1.057 (1.023– 1.092), 1.035 (1.011– 1.059), 1.272 (1.111– 1.455), 1.168 (1.083– 1.259) and 1.104 (1.051– 1.161), respectively. Fetuses in the first and second trimester were most vulnerable to ambient air pollutant exposure such as SO2 PM2.5, NO, NO2 and NOX during the prenatal period. Exposure to all six ambient air pollutants during the first and second years after birth significantly affected preschool asthma in NJ infants. Conclusion: In different time windows, prenatal and postnatal exposure to SO2, PM2.5, PM10, NO, NO2, and NOX were associated with preschool asthma in NJ infants. The relatively high impact of NO and SO2 exposure in infants with NJ requires further studies and prevention measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Location-based services (LBS) which bring so much convenience to our daily life have been intensively studied over the years. Generally, an LBS query processing can be categorized into snapshot and continuous queries which access user location information and return search results to the users. An LBS has full control of the location information, causing user privacy concerns. If an LBS provider has a malicious intention to breach the user privacy by tracking the users' routes to their destinations, it incurs a serious threat. Most existing techniques have addressed privacy protection mainly for snapshot queries. However, providing privacy protection for continuous queries is of importance, since a malicious LBS can easily obtain complete user privacy information by observing a sequence of successive query requests. In this paper, we propose a comprehensive trajectory privacy technique and combine ambient conditions to cloak location information based on the user privacy profile to avoid a malicious LBS reconstructing a user trajectory. We first propose an r -anonymity mechanism which preprocesses a set of similar trajectories R to blur the actual trajectory of a service user. We then combine k-anonymity with s road segments to protect the user's privacy. We introduce a novel time-obfuscated technique which breaks the sequence of the query issuing time for a service user to confuse the LBS so it does not know the user trajectory, by sending a query randomly from a set of locations residing at the different trajectories in R. Despite the randomness incurred from the obfuscation process for providing strong trajectory privacy protection, the experimental results show that our trajectory privacy technique maintains the correctness of the query results at a competitive computational cost. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Introduction: This cohort study aimed to explore the potential association between ambient air pollution and dementia incidence in adults who have experienced a stroke. Additionally, the study aimed to determine dysphagia as a predictive factor for the subsequent development of dementia in patients with stroke., Materials and Methods: This retrospective nested case-control study used data from the Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital Database in Taiwan. Data collected include average ambient air pollution concentrations within 3 months and 1 year after the index dysphagia date. The primary outcome includes incident dementia in patients with or without dysphagia. Logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the association between significant air pollution exposure and the risk of dementia while controlling for baseline demographic characteristics (age and sex), and comorbidities., Results: The univariable regression models revealed a higher likelihood of dementia diagnosis in patients with dysphagia (odds ratio = 1.493, 95% confidence interval = 1.000-2.228). The raw odds ratios indicated a potential link between air pollution exposure and elevated dementia risks in the overall study population and patients with stroke without dysphagia, except for O 3 . Particulate matter (PM)2.5 and nitrogen oxides (NOx) exhibited significant effects on the risk of dementia in the stepwise logistic regression models., Conclusion: The presence of dysphagia following a stroke may pose a risk of developing dementia. Additionally, PM2.5 and NOx exposure appears to elevate the risk of dementia in patients with stroke., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Lee, Chung, Hsieh, Tsao, Hung, Feng and Hung.)