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Background and Objectives: Squamous cell carcinoma (SQCC) represents a significant proportion of human malignancies affecting various anatomical sites, including the lung. Understanding the prognostic factors is crucial for establishing effective risk stratification in these patients, as multiple critical aspects significantly impact overall survival. Materials and Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on 99 patients with operable lung SQCC treated at a tertiary center. The exclusion criteria included patients under 18, those with in situ or metastatic SQCC, and those who received neoadjuvant therapy. The surgical specimens were re-analyzed, and data were collected on multiple variables, including pTNM staging, tumor characteristics, and overall survival (OS). The Kaplan–Meier survival analysis and Cox regression models were used to identify significant prognostic factors. Results: The Kaplan–Meier analysis showed a median survival of 36 months with a 65.65% mortality rate. Significant factors influencing survival included keratinization, histological grading, tumor size and stage, pleural invasion, tumor cell arrangement, tumor budding, spread through air space (STAS), and mitotic index. A multiple Cox regression highlighted the nonkeratinizing tumors, advanced pT stages, single-cell invasion, and high mitotic index as key predictors of poorer outcomes. The nonkeratinizing tumors showed higher mortality and shorter median survival rates compared to keratinizing tumors. The tumor staging, cell arrangement, and tumor budding significantly impacted the survival curves. Conclusions: The study underscores the importance of detailed histopathological evaluations in lung SQCC. The nonkeratinizing tumors, advanced pT stage, single-cell invasion, and high mitotic index were associated with higher hazard rates, emphasizing the need for a comprehensive grading system incorporating these factors to improve prognostic accuracy and guide treatment strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Pulmonary oncological issues are a significant public health concern, often complicated by the presence of other pulmonary conditions, which can complicate diagnosis, staging, and treatment decisions. To explore this complexity, we conducted a retrospective study at the Marius Nasta Institute of Pneumophthisiology in Bucharest, Romania, focusing on patients diagnosed with carcinoid and/or non-small-cell lung carcinoma and coexisting pathologies. Patients with both malignant and nonmalignant lesions shared similar demographic and exposure profiles with those presenting only malignant lesions. Synchronous coexisting lesions may complicate the diagnosis and staging of lung cancer. Pulmonary oncological pathologies are an important public health problem and the association with other pulmonary lesions may pose difficulties in diagnosis and staging or require different treatment options. To address this complexity, we conducted a retrospective observational study at the Marius Nasta Institute of Pneumophthisiology, Bucharest, Romania. Our study focused on patients admitted in 2019 with non-small-cell lung carcinoma and associated pulmonary lesions identified through surgical resection specimens. Among the 314 included patients, multiple pulmonary nodules were observed on macroscopic examination, with 12% (N = 37) exhibiting nonmalignant etiologies upon microscopic examination. These findings underscore the challenge of preoperative staging. Patients with coexisting nonmalignant lesions were similar in age, smoking habits, and professional or environmental exposure by comparison with those who presented only malignant lesions. The presentation of coexisting malignant and nonmalignant lesions may pose difficulties in diagnosing and staging pulmonary cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prevalence of diet-related diseases underscores the imperative for innovative management approaches. The deployment of smart solutions signifies a paradigmatic evolution, capitalising on advanced technologies to enhance precision and efficacy. This paper aims to present and explore smart solutions for the management of diet-related diseases, focusing on leveraging advanced technologies, such as connected care, the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), and remote health monitoring systems (RHMS), to address the rising prevalence of diet-related diseases. This transformative approach is exemplified in case studies focusing on tailored RHMS capabilities. This paper aims to showcase the potential of three RHMS in introducing a novel evaluation method and their customisation for proactive management of conditions influenced by dietary habits. The RO-SmartAgeing System uniquely addresses age-related aspects, providing an integrated approach that considers the long-term impact of dietary choices on ageing, marking an advanced perspective in healthcare. The NeuroPredict Platform, leveraging complex neuroinformatics, enhances the understanding of connections between brain health, nutrition, and overall well-being, contributing novel insights to healthcare assessments. Focused on liver health monitoring, the HepatoConect system delivers real-time data for personalized dietary recommendations, offering a distinctive approach to disease management. By integrating cutting-edge technologies, these smart solutions transcend traditional healthcare boundaries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Farmacia is the property of Societatea de Stiinte Farmaceutice Romania and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Farmacia is the property of Societatea de Stiinte Farmaceutice Romania and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Farmacia is the property of Societatea de Stiinte Farmaceutice Romania and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction. Pregnancy is characterized by specific cardiovascular changes which begin in the early weeks of gestation. There are multiple means of monitoring hemodynamics, and cardiac impedance proved its applicability in obstetrics in recent years. Material and methods. We performed a prospective study in ”Bucur” Maternity, which involved assessing the hemodynamic profile of pregnant women with single fetus in the first trimester of pregnancy compared to a control group of non-pregnant women. We used the technique of impedance cardiography. Results. This study involved 86 pregnant women in the first trimester compared to 20 non-pregnant women. Using the impedance cardiography technique we found that base impedance in women with single fetus (56.47 Ohm) is increased compared with non-pregnant women (26.14 Ohm), U=51,000, Z=-6.535, p<0.0001. Pregnancy influences heart rates values, which has higher values (85.6 b/min) compared with non-pregnant women (74.3 b/min). Electromechanical systole in the first trimester of pregnancy in women with single fetus (399.73 ms) registered increased values than the control group (393.36 ms), p=0.030. The duration of ventricular is significantly increased in pregnant women (281.7 ms) compared to non-pregnant women (277.39 ms). Conclusions. Impedance cardiography provides the hemodynamic profile of pregnant women and the variation of cardiovascular parameter is detected from the first trimester of pregnancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Internal Medicine / Medicină Internă is the property of Sciendo and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The abdominal wall innervation has a great clinical significance in the anesthetic approach of the distribution territories of the subcostal nerve, iliohypogastric nerve and the ilioinguinal nerve; it can ensure comfort after surgery and better recovery of the patients who have undergone surgery. We aimed to identify the origin and the path of the three nerves and describe their anastomotic variants that may have clinical implications in achieving the regional anaesthetic nerve blocks. We dissected a total of two corpses one male and one female and watched the nerves path from emergence to their terminal distribution level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The abdominal wall innervation has a great clinical significance in the anesthetic approach of the distribution territories of the subcostal nerve, iliohypogastric nerve and the ilioinguinal nerve; it can ensure comfort after surgery and better recovery of the patients who have undergone surgery. We aimed to identify the origin and the path of the three nerves and describe their anastomotic variants that may have clinical implications in achieving the regional anaesthetic nerve blocks. We dissected a total of two corpses one male and one female and watched the nerves path from emergence to their terminal distribution level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aim. Our aim is to examine the relationship between several factors (such as personal, tumoral or therapeutic) and the outcome of the patients. We analyzed a cohort of patients with early and locally advanced breast cancer (BC) using the restricted mean survival time (RMST). This value summarizes the treatment efficacy in terms of event­free time over a fixed period. Materials and method. We evaluated the prognostic values in 143 patients treated for early BC at the “Elias” University Emergency Hospital, Bucharest, Romania, and followed­up for a maximum of 36 months. The protocol was amended to include the personal factors, the levels of education and background, the clinical stage, the tumor aspects (grading, histology type or immunohistochemistry characteristics) and some aspects related to the treatment received. The methodology consisted of Kaplan­Meier analysis and RMST for the entire sample. The main endpoints of the study were overall survival (OS) and progression­free survival (PFS). Using “backward selection”, we analyzed only the variables that were statistically significant and influenced the prognostic of the patients. Results. The levels of education impacted both RMST OS (35.30 versus 26.70) and death HR (hazard ratio) in the group of patients with low educational levels. The clinically staged lymph node influenced both OS (p=0.05) and PFS (p=0.0006) for the patients with palpable or imaging proof of lymph node involvement of station 2 or 3. Both lower Ki67 and low tumor grade were associated with better prognosis in terms of OS and PFS for our patients’ cohort. Conclusions. RMST provides an intuitive and explicit way to express the effect of risk factors on OS and PFS in a cohort of non­metastatic BC patients. Independent predictors for the OS were the education level, with a 10.2­fold HR increase, and triple­negative breast cancer (TNBC), with a 6­fold HR increase, regardless of education level. Independent predictors for PFS were clinical tumor stage N2, N3, Ki67 value, high tumor grade and the basic level of CA15­3 marker. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction. Impedance cardiography (ICG) technique measures the variation in impedance that appears in thorax due to the physical contractile activity of the heart. Twin pregnancy is characterized by greater maternal hemodynamic changes than singleton pregnancy. Materials and method. We evaluated pregnant women in the last trimester of pregnancy using impedance cardiography technique. There were measured: the stroke volume (SV), the heart rate (HR), the cardiac output (CO), the ventricular ejection time (VET), the left ventricular ejection time (LVET), the thoracic impedance (Z0), and the systemic vascular resistance (SVR). Results. Our study included a number of 40 pregnant women divided equally between twin and singleton pregnancies. Heart rate values in women with single fetus (median: 85 beats/min) was reduced significantly compared with twins (median: 100 beats/min), p=0.021. SV values in women with singleton (median: 64 ml) differed significantly versus twin pregnancy (median: 83 ml), p=0.010. Cardiac output in women with singleton was lower than in twin pregnancies (p<0.0001). The systemic vascular resistance was decreased in twin pregnancies compared to singleton pregnancies (p=0.023). Conclusions. Using ICG technique in the third trimester of pregnancy, we observed that SV, HR and CO were increased in twin pregnancy compared with singleton pregnancy, whereas systemic vascular resistance was decreased in twin pregnancies. Impedance cardiography can be a reliable technique to evaluate maternal hearth changes in twin pregnancy, but longitudinal studies are required to validate the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introducere. Sarcina este caracterizată de modificări cardiovasculare specifice, care debutează din primele săptămâni de gestație. Există multiple mijloace de monitorizare ale hemodinamicii, iar impedanța cardiacă și-a dovedit aplicabilitatea în obstetrică în ultimii ani. Material și metodă. Am realizat un studiu prospectiv la Maternitatea „Bucur”, care a presupus evaluarea profilului hemodinamic al gravidelor cu făt unic în primul trimestru de sarcină, utilizând tehnica impedanței cardiace prin comparație cu un lot martor de femei negravide. Rezultate. Acest studiu a analizat 86 de gravide în primul trimestru de sarcină în comparație cu 20 de femei negravide. Prin utilizarea impedanței cardiace am constatat că valorile impedanței la gravidele cu făt unic (56,47 Ohm) sunt crescute comparativ cu femeile negravide (26,14 Ohm) U = 51.000, Z = -6.535, p<0,0001. Sarcina influențează valorile frecvenței cardiace, aceasta având valori superioare (85,6 b/min) comparativ cu femeile negravide (74,3 b/min). Sistola electromecanică în trimestrul I de sarcină la gravidele cu făt unic (399,73 ms) a înregistrat valori mai mari comparativ cu lotul martor normotensiv (393,36 ms) p = 0,030. Durata perioadei de preejecție ventriculară este crescută semnificativ la gravidele din trimestrul I (281,7 ms) de sarcină comparativ cu persoanele negravide (277,39 ms). Concluzii. Impedanța cardiacă oferă profilul hemodinamic al gravidelor, cu detectarea variațiilor parametrilor cardiovasculari din primul trimestru de sarcină. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The blood-brain barrier is a mostly impermeable structure separating the blood from the central nervous system. Its existence has been deduced by scientists in the 19th century, but technological progress allowed viewing the constituency of the blood-brain barrier only in the mid-20th century. The study of the blood-brain barrier continues even today, because all the roles of its components are not fully understood, as new information is uncovered by exploring it in both physiological and pathological situations, in-vivo and in-vitro. The endothelial cells with their tight junctions, the basal lamina, the astrocyte feet, the pericytes and other structural parts of the blood-brain barrier all contribute towards its complex degree of impermeability due to mechanical, electrical, chemical and immune factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute postoperative pain is a personal unpleasant sensory and emotional experience with negative physiological and psychological effects. Severe acute pain may increase postoperative morbidity and mortality and it is a risk factor for chronic pain incidence. We evaluate the pain intensity using pain scales. Pain management includes preventive analgesia who interacts and modulates central sensitization response and multimodal analgesia, which uses two or more different analgesic mechanisms agents for a superior analgesic effect. Effective pain management provides early postoperative recovery and decreases the incidence of chronic pain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims: Our aim is to examine the relationship between the level of education, background, tumor size and lymph node status on the treatment outcome in a group of patients with early and locally advanced breast cancer (BC) by using the restricted mean survival time (RMST), which summarizes treatment effects in terms of event-free time over a fixed period of time., Methods: We evaluated the prognostic values in 143 patients treated for early BC at Elias University Emergency Hospital, Bucharest, Romania and followed up for a maximum of 36 months. The protocol was amended to include the levels of education (gymnasium, high school, or university), the background (urban or rural) and the clinical stage (primary tumor (T) and regional nodes (N)). The methodology consisted in using a Kaplan-Meier analysis and RMST for the entire sample and Cox regression, for the variables with statistical influence. The principal endpoints of the study were overall survival (OS) and progression free survival (PFS)., Results: The level of education had impact both on RMST OS (35.30 vs. 26.70) and death HR (hazard ratio) in the group of patients with general school level, compared with those with graduated university. In this study, the urban or rural background did not impact the outcome, probably because in this study we included predominantly patients from urban areas (83%). Although clinical tumor size measurements did not impact the outcome, the clinical staged lymph node influenced both OS (p=0.0500) and PFS (p=0.0006) for the patients with palpable or imaging proof of lymph node involvement of station 2 or 3., Conclusions: RMST provides an intuitive and explicit way to express the effect of those risk factors on OS and PFS in a cohort of early breast cancer patients. Low level of education and high-grade clinical lymph node status negatively influences the outcome of this cohort of BC patients.

Contemplation of non-genetic risk factors that are influencing the onset and development of diabetic nephropathy (diabetic kidney disease--DKD) is very important. This article is integrative, assessing the existent data about several possible risk factors for DKD. Because the age of onset and postpubertal duration of diabetes seems to be strongly correlated with DKD, it is feasible for puberty to be another independent risk factor. Data analysis regarding puberty and possible explanatory mechanisms to link it with DKD, as the connection with DKD of other situations, with special hormonal status (like pregnancy), is also part of this article. Summing up the data about hormonal status, we can conclude that ANF levels are a risk factor for diabetic nephropathy because they are implicated in diminution of urinary Na elimination and hypertension and subsequent urinary albumin excretion (UAE) in case of inadequate glycaemic control. The evidences regarding GH are indicating that it is a risk factor for DKD and that he is probably implicated in glomerular hypertrophy onset at puberty. The urinary elimination levels of GH are very strong correlated with UAE being putative early marker for DKD. Also the GH deficiency seems to be a protective mechanism for DKD apparition. GH is strongly correlated with IGF-1 that has very high urinary levels in microalbuminuric patients. These levels are very well related to UAE, kidney volume--important markers for glomerular hypertrophy. The evidences accumulated until now regarding the role of masculine gender, testosterone and estrogens in DKD are inarticulate.