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To obtain valid inference following stratified randomisation, treatment effects should be estimated with adjustment for stratification variables. Stratification sometimes requires categorisation of a continuous prognostic variable (eg, age), which raises the question: should adjustment be based on randomisation categories or underlying continuous values? In practice, adjustment for randomisation categories is more common. We reviewed trials published in general medical journals and found none of the 32 trials that stratified randomisation based on a continuous variable adjusted for continuous values in the primary analysis. Using data simulation, this article evaluates the performance of different adjustment strategies for continuous and binary outcomes where the covariate‐outcome relationship (via the link function) was either linear or non‐linear. Given the utility of covariate adjustment for addressing missing data, we also considered settings with complete or missing outcome data. Analysis methods included linear or logistic regression with no adjustment for the stratification variable, adjustment for randomisation categories, or adjustment for continuous values assuming a linear covariate‐outcome relationship or allowing for non‐linearity using fractional polynomials or restricted cubic splines. Unadjusted analysis performed poorly throughout. Adjustment approaches that misspecified the underlying covariate‐outcome relationship were less powerful and, alarmingly, biased in settings where the stratification variable predicted missing outcome data. Adjustment for randomisation categories tends to involve the highest degree of misspecification, and so should be avoided in practice. To guard against misspecification, we recommend use of flexible approaches such as fractional polynomials and restricted cubic splines when adjusting for continuous stratification variables in randomised trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on reflecting on past biases and injustices perpetuated by the Journal, particularly during the 1960s and 1970s, amidst societal demands for egalitarian reform, including in the medical field. It discusses the journal's role in opening its pages to advocates of medical civil rights activism, highlighting the ongoing struggle against racial segregation in U.S. hospitals and the complexities of reform within the medical profession.

The article offers information on the social and racial reforms within American medicine during the 1960s and 1970s. Topics include the persistence of racial segregation in U.S. hospitals into the 1960s; the efforts of physician-activists and federal policies; and the impact of President Lyndon Johnson's Great Society programs.

In recent years, the use of the intranasal route has been actively explored as a possible drug delivery method in the palliative patient population. There are reports demonstrating the effectiveness of nasally administered medications that are routinely used in patients at the end of life. The subject of this study is the intranasal drug administration among palliative patients. The aim is to summarize currently used intranasal therapies among palliative patients, determine the benefits and difficulties, and identify potential areas for future research. A review of available medical literature published between 2013 and 2023 was performed using online scientific databases. The following descriptors were used when searching for articles: "palliative", "intranasal", "nasal", "end-of-life care", "intranasal drug delivery" and "nasal drug delivery". Out of 774 articles, 55 directly related to the topic were finally selected and thoroughly analyzed. Based on the bibliographic analysis, it was shown that drugs administered intranasally may be a good, effective, and convenient form of treatment for patients receiving palliative care, in both children and adults. This topic requires further, high-quality clinical research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: Adherence to pharmacological interventions in clinical trials is crucial for accurate identification of beneficial and adverse outcomes. The ways in which adherence to interventions should be reported in trial publications are described in the Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR), a 12‐item extension of the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials reporting guidelines. The objective of this study was to assess compliance with TIDieR Items 11 and 12 of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of interventions in SARS‐CoV‐2 infection published in 5 selected journals during 2021. Methods: We assessed pharmacological interventions for SARS‐CoV‐2 infection reported in RCTs published in 2021 in the Annals of Internal Medicine, The BMJ, JAMA, The Lancet and The New England Journal for Medicine for compliance with TIDieR items addressing intervention adherence (Items 11 and 12). We calculated proportional adherence for pharmacological and comparator interventions where available. Results: We found 75 eligible RCTs. Twenty‐eight (37%) reported results of SARS‐CoV‐2 vaccinations. Compliance with Items 11 and 12 could be assessed in 71 of these 75. Of the 71 RCTs, 37 (52%) reported how adherence was assessed (Item 11), and 70 reported adherence rates (Item 12). Only 1 of the 71 RCTs (1.4%, 0–7.6%) fully complied with TIDieR Items 11 and 12. Conclusion: Half of RCTs of SARS‐CoV‐2 pharmacological interventions published in leading medical journals in 2021 complied with reporting of how adherence assessments were made and almost none complied with both TIDieR Items 11 and 12. The implications for interpretation, application and replication of findings based on these publications warrant consideration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As global warming became a cause of concern in the 1980s, researchers and climate activists initially paid little attention to the possible health effects of a warmer world. This changed quickly between 1985 and 1989, when scientists working on contracts with the US Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency extrapolated from existing knowledge about the impact of weather on health to speculate about how global warming would impact health. However, they downplayed the impact of their contributions by highlighting the uncertainty in their models and the adaptability of human societies. Since that time, physicians and other health scientists have maintained a steady drumbeat of warnings about the health effects of global warming. They have published widely in the medical literature and participated actively in international scientific collaborations. Their research has significantly increased the breadth and depth of climate-health science and shown that measurable impacts of global warming have already begun. But as the many climate crises of 2023 show, action against global warming remains inadequate. Is it still reasonable to hope that health advocacy will incite communities and politicians to act? The history of climate and health advocacy reveals many obstacles that must be overcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fetal inguinal hernia (FIH) is a rare event and only few cases were published in the medical literature. In the present study, we aimed to characterize the sonographic features, clinical presentation, management, outcomes, and differential diagnoses of FIH. Accordingly, we reviewed all 17 cases of FIH published in the medical literature, including one new case evaluated by our group. All 17 cases (100%) were male, and FIH is presented as a scrotal mass with a mean diameter of 38 ± 9.5 mm. The right side was dominant (62%). Peristalsis was reported in 80% of the cases, and blood flow was reported in two-thirds. Most cases were diagnosed in the third trimester (88%) at a mean gestational age (GA) of 33.1 ± 5.2 weeks. 60% of the cases had isolated FIH, and 40% had another sonographic or genetic abnormality. Three cases (18%) were syndromic with multiple malformations: trisomy 18, skeletal anomalies due to Jarcho-Levin syndrome, and undefined multiple joint contractures. Two cases (12%) had copathologies in the gastrointestinal tract: one had an echogenic bowel due to homozygosity for cystic fibrosis, and the other had low anorectal malformation. Bowel loop dilatation was observed prenatally in both cases and in another one isolated case (18%). GA at delivery was 38 ± 1.8 weeks, and the median time between diagnosis and delivery was 3 weeks. All three cases of neonatal death occurred in syndromic fetuses. All patients with nonsyndromic inguinal hernias underwent definitive surgical repair at a median of 13 days postpartum. No signs of strangulation and only one case of edematous bowel without necrosis have been reported. In conclusion, FIH should be suspected in male fetuses when an intrascrotal mass with peristalsis is diagnosed during the third trimester. Close follow-up until term in the absence of signs of bowel obstruction is reasonable, and in isolated FIH, the prognosis is favorable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The past century, especially the past decade, has seen re-examination and evolution in our views about sex, gender, race, and ethnicity. The British Journal of Anaesthesia is part of an ongoing effort in research and medical publishing, and in health and education more generally, to improve diversity, inclusion, and equity. This editorial highlights the contributions and evolution of the Journal in these areas from its origin until today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fact that Worcester Infirmary provided the location for the founding of the Provincial (later British) Medical Association has long been commemorated as a highlight of the city's history. This paper seeks to extend our understanding of the significance of this event by placing it in the broader historical context of the campaign for medical reform. In doing so, the paper links together the origins and early activities of the Association with the emergence and consolidation of Worcester as arguably the leading centre for medical publishing in England, outside of London, during the period 1828 to 1854. Hence, in charting the significant part played by Worcester's doctors in driving the process of medical advancement and reform, the paper also gives due credit to the supporting role played by the city's leading newspaper publisher during these years, namely the firm of H.B. Tymbs and H. Deighton, particularly through its collaboration in the ground-breaking launch of the Midland Medical and Surgical Reporter in 1828. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medical journal publishing has changed dramatically over the past decade. The shift from print to electronic distribution altered the industry's economic model. This was followed by open access mandates from funding organizations and the subsequent imposition of article processing charges on authors. The medical publishing industry is large and while there is variation across journals, it is overall highly profitable. As journals have moved to digital dissemination, advertising revenues decreased and publishers shifted some of the losses onto authors by way of article processing charges. The number of open access journals has increased substantially in recent years. The open access model presents an equity paradox; while it liberates scientific knowledge for the consumer, it presents barriers to those who produce research. This emerging "pay-to-publish" system offers advantages to authors who work in countries and at institutes with more resources. Finally, the medical publishing industry represents an unusual business model; the people who provide both the content and the external peer review receive no payment from the publisher, who generates revenue from the content. The very unusual economic model of this industry makes it vulnerable to disruptive change. The economic model of medical publishing is rapidly evolving and this will lead to disruption of the industry. These changes will accelerate dissemination of science and may lead to a shift away from lower-impact journals towards pre-print servers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several medical organisations have developed evidence‐based guidelines for the diagnosis, management, and follow‐up of testicular cancer. This article aimed to review, compare, and summarise the most updated international guidelines and surveillance protocols for clinical stage 1 (CS1) testicular cancer. We reviewed a total of 46 articles on proposed follow‐up strategies for testicular cancer, and six clinical practice guidelines including four guidelines published by urological scientific associations and two guidelines published by medical oncology associations. Most of these guidelines have been developed by panels of experts with different backgrounds in clinical training, and geographic practise patterns, which explains the considerable variability between published schedules, and recommended follow‐up intensity. We present you with a comprehensive review of the most important clinical practice guidelines and propose unifying recommendations based on the most up to date evidence to help standardise follow‐up schedules based on patterns and risk of disease relapse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aimed to perform a bibliometric analysis of the abstracts and keywords in articles published in the Cukurova Medical Journal from 2011 to 2022. Materials and Methods: We compiled and analyzed all articles published in the Cukurova Medical Journal between 2011 and 2022, totaling 1734 articles, using VOSviewer software (version 1.6.19). This analysis focused on the terms in the abstracts and the keywords of these articles. Results: The study identified 27,409 unique terms and 4,040 unique keywords in the abstracts of the 1734 articles. The most common terms were 'surgery' (333 occurrences), 'pain' (263), 'infection' (201), 'measurement' (192), 'rat' (185), 'tumor' (177), 'covid' (157), 'pregnancy' (148), 'questionnaire' (144), and 'drug' (142). The top keywords were 'children' (43 occurrences), 'quality of life' (37), 'covid-19' (34), 'nursing' (32), 'pregnancy' (28), 'depression' (27), 'mortality' (26), 'anxiety' (24), 'child' (22), and 'obesity' (17). Conclusion: This is the first bibliometric analysis of keywords and terms used in the Cukurova Medical Journal, offering insights into the evolving topics of interest in the journal's publications. It also provides valuable information for researchers looking to submit articles to the journal, highlighting prevalent themes and content areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The management of breast cancer during pregnancy (PrBC) is a relatively rare indication and an area where no or little evidence is available since randomized controlled trials cannot be conducted. In general, advances related to breast cancer (BC) treatment outside pregnancy cannot always be translated to PrBC, because both the interests of the mother and of the unborn should be considered. Evidence remains limited and/or conflicting in some specific areas where the optimal approach remains controversial. In 2022, the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) held a virtual consensus-building process on this topic to gain insights from a multidisciplinary group of experts and develop statements on controversial topics that cannot be adequately addressed in the current evidence-based ESMO Clinical Practice Guideline. The aim of this consensus-building process was to discuss controversial issues relating to the management of patients with PrBC. The virtual meeting included a multidisciplinary panel of 24 leading experts from 13 countries and was chaired by S. Loibl and F. Amant. All experts were allocated to one of four different working groups. Each working group covered a specific subject area with two chairs appointed: 1. PrBC: incidence, epidemiology, biology and pathology, diagnostic work-up, staging and risk assessment, prognosis (Chairs: Vincent Vandecaveye, Fedro Peccatori). 2. Clinical pharmacology of systemic agents during pregnancy: management of localized disease and (neo) adjuvant therapies, management of systemic disease (Chairs: Giuseppe Curigliano, Peter Schmid). 3. Obstetric care and fetal/newborn follow-up and outcomes: metastases to fetus, management of pregnancy during anticancer therapy, lactation, psychological support (Chairs: Elyce Cardonick, Mathilde van Gerwen). Planning, preparation and execution of the consensus process was conducted according to the ESMO standard operating procedures. • This consensus statement updates recommendations on PrBC to adequately address current based ESMO Clinical Practice Guideline. • The overall lack of high-level evidence around this topic underscores the expert opinion level of the statements. • Therefore, it is even more important to include the patients and their partners' preference in the clinical decision making. • The recommendations include critical updates and reflections on recently emerged date published in the medical literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Women are generally under-represented as authors of publications, and especially as last authors, but this under-representation may not be uniformly distributed across countries. We aimed to document by country and region the proportion of female authors (PFA) in high-impact general medical journals. Methods: We used PyMed, a Python library that provides access to PubMed, to retrieve all PubMed articles published between January 2012 and December 2021 in the fifty general internal medicine journals with the highest 2020 impact factor according to Journal Citation Reports. We extracted first/last authors' main country of affiliation for all these articles using regular expressions and manual search, and grouped the countries into eight regions (North/Latin America, Western/Eastern Europe, Asia, Pacific, Middle East, and Africa). We used NamSor to determine first/last authors' gender and computed the PFA for each country/region. Results: We retrieved 163,537 publications for first authors and 135,392 for last authors. Gender could be determined for 160,891 and 133,373 publications, respectively. The PFA was 41% for first authors and 33% for last authors, but it varied widely by country (first authors: >50% for eight countries, maximum = 63% in Romania, minimum = 19% in Japan; last authors: >50% for two countries, maximum = 53% in Romania, minimum = 9% in Japan). The PFA also varied by region. It was highest for Eastern Europe (first authors = 53%, last authors = 40%), and lowest for Asia (36% and 29%) and the Middle East (35% and 27%). Conclusion: We found that the PFA varied widely by country and region, and was lowest in Asia, particularly Japan, and the Middle East. The under-representation of women as authors of publications, especially in these two regions, needs to be addressed and correcting persistent gender discrimination in research should be a top priority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: It is essential that academic publishing complies with the highest standards in terms of ethics, research conduct and manuscript preparation. This protects the rights and welfare of research participants, ensures the integrity of study results and aids the communication and dissemination of novel findings into clinical practice. This position statement outlines the current policies and practices of the Editors of Anaesthesia and Anaesthesia Reports in relation to academic medical publishing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: An association between certain immunomodulatory therapies (rituximab, ipilimumab, and other immune checkpoint inhibitors) and inflammatory (non-ischemic and non-infectious) colitis in oncologic and non-oncologic patient populations is well documented in the medical literature. Objective: The purpose of this case series is to describe adverse event reports of new onset, inflammatory colitis in association with ocrelizumab in patients with multiple sclerosis submitted to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or published in the medical literature. Methods: The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) and medical literature were searched. Results: A review of postmarketing cases from FAERS and published medical literature identified 38 cases consistent with inflammatory, non-ischemic, and non-infectious colitis in association with ocrelizumab. The median time-to-onset was 8 months. Cases were reported using the following diagnostic terms: Crohn's disease (13), unspecified colitis (11), microscopic colitis (5), ulcerative colitis (5), medication-induced colitis (3), and autoimmune colitis (2). Conclusions: This case series highlights ocrelizumab induced immune-mediated colitis that can be clinically severe and potentially life-threatening. Based on the findings of this review, the ocrelizumab Prescribing Information was amended to include immune-mediated colitis in the Warnings and Precautions section. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using databases such as PubMed and Google Scholar with the keywords "Chess" and "ADHD", this study was conducted to review the literature on the usefulness of chess in patients with ADHD. The most relevant articles were searched using the following criteria: English language, and all types of studies published in a medical journal. A total 12 articles were identified. Of a total of 12 articles, 4 met the inclusion criteria and were subsequently reviewed. The results of the review showed that chess therapy/training is effective in the management of ADHD patients in terms of reducing symptoms and severity. Due to its effectiveness, playful nature, high adherence and low cost, it can be used as a therapeutic tool in multimodal management to improve ADHD symptoms. Considering the limited number of published studies in this field, our findings need to be confirmed by further controlled, randomized and extended studies. In our investigation, we found no study evaluating the effectiveness of chess in the adult subgroup of the ADHD population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graduate medical education (GME) in the USA is an increasingly organized and formalized process overseen by regulatory bodies, notably the American Council of Graduate Medical Education (ACGME), and associated specialty-specific Residency Review Committees (RRCs) to ensure that trainees, including residents and fellows, receive comprehensive, high-quality didactic education, clinical training, and research experience. Among the required elements of GME, performance of independent research is emphasized less than clinical and didactic education. In general, there are no ACGME requirements that trainees successfully publish papers in the peer reviewed. Indeed, unlike as is the case with procedure case logs, there are no minimum thresholds for specific numbers of abstracts presented, posters accepted, or manuscripts published. As such, while residencies and fellowships in certain disciplines or institutions may require considerable, documented research activity, others may not. Since future attending physicians are expected to be experts in their fields, able to digest relevant medical knowledge, critically evaluate emerging findings in the literature, and lead multi-professional healthcare teams, they must have a level of facility with the medical literature than can only be acquired by having performed research and having published papers themselves. Publishing one paper during training is easily attainable for all trainees. Having this be an ACGME requirement will necessitate protected time, research methods education, and mentorship for trainees. This can be accomplished without disrupting the other elements of resident and fellow training. From an ACGME perspective, required scholarly activity will support the competencies of practice-based learning and improvement as well as professionalism. In lay terms, benefits will be a higher level of education and attainment for trainees, and a potentially higher standard of health care for our patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence (AI) software developed by OpenAI, is a powerful language model. ChatGPT is expected to perform a variety of tasks in the field of medical writing and publishing, including writing drafts, extracting article abstracts, and embellishing language. At the same time, ChatGPT has technical shortcomings and ethical challenges that have raised concerns. This review summarizes the issues faced by ChatGPT in the field of medical writing and publishing, and provides a reference for the development of standards and systems for the use of AI products such as ChatGPT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute diverticulitis of the colon is a disease with increasing frequency, encountered by general practitioners and gastroenterologists, and also by surgeons under circumstances of emergency, not only in Western countries, but also in Bulgaria. An international multidisciplinary team of experts, according to their shared experience and the results of studies published in the medical literature, updated the consensus guidelines on diagnosis and behavior in respect of the various manifestations of acute diverticulitis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Korea, many editors of medical journal are also publishers; therefore, they need to not only manage peer review, but also understand current trends and policies in journal publishing and editing. This article aims to highlight some of these policies with examples. First, the use of artificial intelligence tools in journal publishing has increased, including for manuscript editing and plagiarism detection. Second, preprint publications, which have not been peer-reviewed, are becoming more common. During the COVID-19 pandemic, medical journals have been more willing to accept preprints to adjust rapidly changing pandemic health issues, leading to a significant increase in their use. Third, open peer review with reviewer comments is becoming more widespread, including the mandatory publication of peer-reviewed manuscripts with comments. Fourth, model text recycling policies provide guidelines for researchers and editors on how to appropriately recycle text, for example, in the background section of the Introduction or the Methods section. Fifth, journals should take into account the recently updated 4th version of the Principles of Transparency and Best Practice in Scholarly Publishing, released in 2022. This version includes more detailed guidelines on journal websites, peer review processes, advisory boards, and author fees. Finally, it recommends that titles of human studies include country names to clarify the cultural context of the research. Each editor must decide whether to adopt these six policies for their journals. Editor-publishers of society journals are encouraged to familiarize themselves with these policies so that they can implement them in their journals as appropriate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy (CADASIL) is a genetic small vessel disease responsible for recurrent ischemic strokes, often with a progressive course leading to dementia and disability. On MRI, lacunes, microbleeds, and severe white matter alterations are typical features of the disease. In case of acute stroke, because of the bleeding risk associated with the disease and the doubtful efficacy of fibrinolytic treatment in a disease with poor evidence of thrombosis, the efficacy of intravenous thrombolysis remains unproven. Nevertheless, stroke is a frequent occurrence in CADASIL patients, and clinicians not unlikely may face in the emergency room the situation of a CADASIL patient with an acute stroke within the time window for thrombolysis. Objective: We report on two CADASIL patients treated with intravenous alteplase for acute ischemic stroke, and we present a review of literature aimed to report epidemiological data, efficacy and safety of intravenous thrombolysis in CADASIL patients. Methods: We performed a systematic review of medical literature published until August 2, 2022. Case reports and series in English language reporting on CADASIL patients and acute stroke were included. Results: Both patients were treated with intravenous thrombolysis without complications and had a good clinical outcome. The systematic review identified three case reports of CADASIL patients who were treated with intravenous alteplase for acute ischemic stroke; no bleedings complications were described. Conclusions: Available data on intravenous thrombolysis in CADASIL patients are scarce but suggest that this treatment can be taken into consideration for these patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pediatric neurobrucellosis represents a common anthropozoonosis in endemic areas but only anecdotal reports are available till date. Using appropriate search terms in the database platforms of MEDLINE, SCOPUS and Web of Sciences, we performed a systematic review of all the cases of pediatric neurobrucellosis published in the medical literature till date, in the light of a case report. The protocol was registered under PROSPERO (CRD42022333907). Our search strategy yielded 187 citations of which 51 citations were included. A total of 119 cases were reviewed. Of these cases, eight of them had insufficient data. The most common presentation was meningitis with or without encephalitis (n  = 79, 71.2%). A high prevalence of cranial neuropathies (n  = 22, 20.7%) was observed in the pediatric population in which abducens palsy was the most common (n  = 9, 8.1%). Diagnosis was based on multimodal investigations including standard agglutination test (n  = 44, 39.6%), Rose Bengal test (n  = 37, 33.3%), blood culture (n  = 23, 20.7%), serology (n  = 20, 18.0%) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) culture (n  = 11, 9.9%). Rifampicin-based triple drug regimen was the most commonly employed (83/102, 81.4%). Pediatric neurobrucellosis was associated with greater frequency of sequalae (5.4%), deafness (2.7%) and mortality (2.7%), when compared to that of general population. Neurobrucellosis mimics neuro-tuberculosis in various aspects. The review highlights several unique aspects of this entity in children. A high index of suspicion can ensure prompt diagnosis, timely initiation of management and favorable outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acquired hemophilia A (AHA), a rare but life-threatening disorder, most commonly occurs in older people and during pregnancy. During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination campaign, an unexpected number of newly diagnosed AHA patients have been identified in clinical practice that were temporally related to COVID-19 vaccination. We present the result of a signal detection analysis aimed at exploring a possible association between COVID-19 immunization and occurrence of AHA. A disproportionality analysis on the World Health Organization (WHO) database was performed to investigate the presence of a signal of risk for AHA associated with COVID-19 vaccines. Reports of AHA associated with any COVID-19 vaccine included in the WHO database were then integrated with those available on the Food and Drug Administration Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System and those published in the medical literature. The WHO database included 146 reports of AHA. The information component (IC) was significant for the association of AHA with all COVID-19 vaccines (IC025: 1.1) and with the vaccine product BNT162b2 (IC025: 1.6). After duplicate exclusion, 96 unique cases of AHA following COVID-19 vaccines have been reviewed. Median time to diagnosis was 18 days and 40% of cases documented the occurrence after the second dose. Overall, in 57% of the investigated cases, a preexisting condition predisposing to AHA was excluded. About 22% of cases occurred in subjects with age ≤65 years and there was no case associated with pregnancy. Mortality was 11%. Although we cannot exclude that the unexpected frequency of AHA diagnosis can be explained by a detection bias, the signal for COVID-19 vaccine-related AHA is robust and deserves further investigations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Reporting quality is a critical issue in health sciences. Adopting the reporting guidelines has been approved to be an effective way of enhancing the reporting quality and transparency of clinical research. In 2012, we found that only 7 (7/1221, 0.6%) journals adopted the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) statement in China. The aim of the study was to know the implementation status of CONSORT and other reporting guidelines about clinical studies in China. Methods: A cross-sectional bibliometric study was conducted. Eight medical databases were systematically searched, and 1039 medical journals published in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan were included. The basic characteristics, including subject, language, publication place, journal-indexed databases, and journal impact factors were extracted. The endorsement of reporting guidelines was assessed by a modified 5-level evaluation tool, namely i) positive active, ii) positive weak, iii) passive moderate, iv) passive weak and v) none. Results: Among included journals, 24.1% endorsed CONSORT, and 0.8% endorsed CONSORT extensions. For STROBE (STrengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology), PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses), STARD (An Updated List of Essential Items for Reporting Diagnostic Accuracy Studies), CARE (CAse REport guidelines), the endorsement proportion were 17.2, 16.6, 16.4, and 14.8% respectively. The endorsement proportion for SPIRIT (Standard Protocol Items: Recommendations for Interventional Trials), TRIPOD (Transparent Reporting of a Multivariable Prediction Model for Individual Prognosis or Diagnosis), AGREE (Appraisal of Guidelines, Research, and Evaluation), and RIGHT (Reporting Items for Practice Guidelines in Healthcare) were below 0.7%. Conclusions: Our results showed that the implementation of reporting guidelines was low. We suggest the following initiatives including i) enhancing the level of journal endorsement for reporting guidelines; ii) strengthening the collaboration among authors, reviewers, editors, and other stakeholders; iii) providing training courses for stakeholders; iv) establishing bases for reporting guidelines network in China; v) adopting the endorsement of reporting guidelines in the policies of the China Periodicals Association (CPA); vi) promoting Chinese medical journals into the international evaluation system and publish in English. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: facial deformities are a set of residual volumetric alterations of genetic malformations, traumas and postoncologic scars considered as a devastating disease. Their reconstruction is a challenge for the plastic surgery specialist due to the complexity of facial aesthetics in which a set of structures that guarantee the psychosocial integrity of the patient and his validism are harmonized. Lipotransfer is presented as a treatment alternative, which has evolved with the purpose of adjusting to the needs of usefulness and feasibility Objective: to analyze the scientific-social impact of lipotransfer in the treatment of facial deformities as an example of scientific progress in Plastic Surgery in Villa Clara Province. Method: the medical literature published in Spanish and English languages was reviewed, Google Scholar and PubMed search engines were used, SciELO and Oxford digital libraries and Medline database were consulted and appropriate key words were used. Conclusions: lipotransfer with platelet-rich plasma in the treatment of facial deformities constitutes a viable, safe, economical treatment alternative with satisfactory results that satisfies the patient and restores the anatomical and functional integrity of the damaged structures, which allows its validation and is an example of scientific progress in plastic surgery in the province. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key points: Editors of 10 North American Family Medicine journals simultaneously published a Joint Call for Action to address systemic racism and encourage diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility/antiracism (DEIA) initiatives in medicine and medical publishing in January 2021.The efforts of the journals since publication of the joint editorial are summarized and include working to diversify editorial teams, editorial boards and authors; enhanced content about DEIA topics; mentoring of authors who are underrepresented in medicine (URM); and presenting content related to DEIA in Family Medicine publishing at national meetings.Editors had a follow up meeting in November 2022 to continue working toward a common goal of reducing racism and increasing DEIA initiatives in Family Medicine publications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in the workforce are paramount for the betterment of the scientific endeavor. Colombia is a country with great scientific potential, but also multiple long-lasting socioeconomical difficulties. Here, we provide a quantitative analysis of the temporal trajectories of gender parity in scientific publishing in Colombia. Data was dissected based on education level, researcher's rank and research area, in order to elucidate differential patterns of scientific publishing. We controlled for gender-based differences in number of researchers by quantifying per capita scientific productivity. Our results show widespread gender disparity in scientific publishing persistent across time. Gender-based differences in per capita scientific publishing indicate that gender disparity persists even after controlling for differences in the number of researchers. Temporal trajectories revealed a decrease in women publishing in the medical sciences and a widening of the per capita publishing gender gap. Women senior researchers and women researchers with doctoral degrees had the lowest publishing participation within their group, suggesting access to postgraduate education or entering the workforce in themselves do not prevent women from being underrepresented. We highlight the need to understand the problem of underrepresentation in science and possible ways to address it beyond increasing the number of women researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article describes the life and work of the Egyptological scholar Wolfhart Westendorf. Westendorf was an expert in the Egyptian language and script and contributed to the professionalization of the field. He played a significant role in the research of Egyptian medicine and published a grammar of medical texts. Westendorf had a successful career as a professor of Egyptology at the universities of Munich and Göttingen. He founded the journal "Göttinger Miszellen" and was known for the "Lexikon der Ägyptologie" (Lexicon of Egyptology). Westendorf passed away at the age of 93. [Extracted from the article]

This study describes and characterizes a narrow, hollow tubular structure, termed as duct-like diverticulum (DV), found specifically at the basal midline of papillary craniopharyngiomas (PCPs) located within the third ventricle (3V). The presence of this structure was systematically investigated on autopsy studies and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of 3536 craniopharyngioma (CP) cases published in the medical literature from 1911 to 2021, as well as in other twelve 3V tumor categories (n = 1470 cases). A basal DV was observed in a total of 50 PCPs, including two of our own cases. This DV corresponds to a tubular-shaped recess invaginated at the midline bottom of the tumor, following the same angled trajectory as the pituitary stalk. It can be easily seen as a hypointense linear structure on T1- and T2-weighted MRI scans, with two main length types: long DVs (74%), which reach the tumor center, and short DVs (26%), which penetrate the tumor only a few millimeters. The DV sign identifies the papillary CP type with a specificity of 100% and a sensitivity of 33% in the overall CP population. This finding also serves to establish the strictly intra-3V location of the lesion with a 95% specificity and 42% sensitivity among papillary CPs. No similar basal DV was found in adamantinomatous CPs nor among other categories of strictly 3V tumors. Consequently, the presence of a diverticulum in a 3V tumor represents a morphological signature pathognomonic of the papillary type and a valuable sign to reliably define the strictly 3V topography. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Declaration of Helsinki (DoH), the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) recommendations, and the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines outline the basic principles for ethical conduct and publication of human-subject research, most notably informed consent (IC) and research ethics committee (REC) approval. This retrospective observational study was a first study to investigate the quality of reporting of these protections in a selected sample of medical papers published in Turkey. A total of 573 research articles published in the official journals of six leading Turkish medical schools between January 2018 and December 2020 were searched for information on obtaining (i) REC approval, (ii) written IC from research subjects or their legal guardians/representatives, and (iii) an REC-granted IC waiver when it was found, as stated in the DoH, "impossible or impracticable to obtain consent" from research subjects. Similarly, a total of 166 case reports were searched for a statement about publication-specific IC, as was recommended by COPE. Despite a statistically significant improvement over the years, the overall rates were found to be unsatisfactory. The protections were particularly misused or underused in retrospective research, where the rates of reporting written IC (15.41% vs. 48.61%) and REC approval with date and reference number information (45.38% vs. 61.11%) were significantly lower than in prospective research (p <.05). Both the practices of seeking and granting an IC waiver when no IC was obtained were extremely rare (n = 3). It was also found that the requirement of structured ethical information in research papers was associated with higher levels of ethics compliance, and that medical publishing in Turkey needed specific improvements, including better implementation of the protections already adopted in principle, clearer instructions for authors, more rigorous editorial scrutiny, and greater commitment to rejecting substandard submissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the discussion on marking 35 years of excellence in publishing academic military medical textbooks in the year 2022. Topics include promoting excellence through the development and publication of military medical scholarship making a reality and the Center being aligned under the Office of The Surgeon General (OTSG); and history of military medicine as well as updating military medicine practices.

The article discusses the need for ethical analysis in the field of medical ethics. The author, who is the Editor-in-Chief of Clinical Ethics, notes that many submissions to the journal focus solely on describing ethical considerations without providing a substantive ethical, legal, or policy analysis. The author emphasizes that ethics is a normative discipline and that providing action guidance and justification requires the use of reasons. The article also discusses the challenges and approaches to ethical analysis, particularly within the framework of principlism. The author advises researchers to consider the submission guidelines of journals and ensure that their manuscripts fulfill the functions of ethics as a normative discipline. [Extracted from the article]

This study assesses data sharing status and lifting of embargoes in randomized clinical trials from top medical journals 3 to 5 years after publication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The advent of the era of big data promotes the further development of medicine, and data release is an important step in it. The existing medical data release methods mostly use the k-anonymity model as the basis for data protection. With the advancement of technology, anonymous models are progressively less resistant to consistency attacks and background knowledge attacks. In order to better protect the private information of patients, this paper makes two major contributions: (1) The method of calculating the correlation between attributes is used to ensure the validity of the data after the data is released; (2) On the basis of the previous step, combined with the difference privacy-preserving model and tree model, this paper proposes an attribute association-based differential privacy classification tree data publishing method (ACDP-Tree). In this paper, simulation experiments are carried out on real medical data sets. The experimental results show that the algorithm ensures the validity and availability of the data to a certain extent while ensuring that the patient's privacy is not leaked. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

RAD Croatian Academy Sciences and Arts (RAD CASA) is one of the oldest Croatian scientific journals, published in continuity from 1867. In this paper, we will present the historical context relevant to the establishment of the first Croatian scientific journals and explore their importance for Croatia’s nation-building process. Our emphasis will be on medical journals, among which an important place belongs to RAD CASA – Medical Sciences. "is journal, which was established as a separate series within RAD CASA in 1951, had issues with continuity until 2006, when new editorial board was elected. Since then, the journal has been included as an open access journal on HRČAK, the portal of Croatian scientific and professional journals, and is being published in English, which contributes to its international visibility and availability. Since 2019 the journal is being published in two double issues per year and has an expanded number of different sections and an increasing number of contributions. In the journal’s 70-year history, RAD CASA – Medical Sciences published 582 articles authored by 1012 researchers and occupying 8010 pages. During this time, nine members of the Academy’s Department of Medical Sciences served as editors of the journal. At the end of 2022, RAD CASA – Medical Sciences has more than 500.000 visits on the HRČAK portal, and its international visibility is also rising, especially on Google Scholar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eight acupuncture clinical trials on knee osteoarthritis published in top medical journals are reviewed. The inherent ambiguity of publishing four positive and four negative trial results is discussed and analyzed. The reanalysis and updated definition of acupuncture points will lead to the conclusion that acupuncture is an effective medical modality to treat knee osteoarthritis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online resources are increasingly being utilised by patients to guide their clinical decision making, as an alternative or supplement to the traditional clinical-patient relationship. YouTube is an online repository of user and community generated videos, which is one of the most popular websites globally. We undertook a study to examine the quality of information presented in YouTube videos related to tonsillectomy. We completed a systematic search of YouTube in May 2023 and identified 88 videos for inclusion in our study. Videos were published in the English language, focussing on tonsillectomy and tonsillectomy recovery, and were greater than 2 min in length. We recorded video quality metrics and two authors independently analysed the quality of information using three validated quality assessment tools described in the literature including the modified DISCERN, Global Quality Score, and the JAMA Benchmark Criteria. The overall quality of the information was low with mean quality scores of Modified DISCERN (1.8 ± 1.3), GQS (2.6 ± 1.2), and JAMA Benchmark Criteria (1.6 ± 0.7). Information published by medical sources including medical professionals, healthcare organisations, and medical education channels scored significantly higher compared to non-medical sources across all quality measures and were of moderate overall quality and usefulness: Modified DISCERN (2.5 ± 1.1 vs 0.8 ± 0.9, z = −6.0, p < 0.001), GQS (3.2 ± 1.0 vs 1.7 ± 0.9, z = −5.7, p < 0.001), and JAMA (1.9 ± 0.8 vs 1.1 ± 0.3, z = −5.2, p < 0.001). Videos published during or after 2018 scored higher on Modified DISCERN (z = −3.2,p = 0.001) but not on GQS or JAMA. Video quality metrics such as total view count, likes, and comments, and channel subscriber count, did not correlate with higher video quality. However, amongst videos published by authoritative medical sources, total view count correlated positively with higher Modified DISCERN quality scores (p = 0.037). The overall quality and usefulness of YouTube videos on tonsillectomy is of low quality, but information published by authoritative medical sources score significantly higher. Clinicians should be mindful of increasing use of online information sources such as YouTube when counselling patients. Further research is needed in the medical community to create engaging, high-quality content to provide guidance for patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Orbital compartment syndrome (OCS) is an emergency that complicates intra-orbital, retrobulbar hemorrhage in most cases. Bony orbital decompression is an effective treatment for OCS, and displaced orbital fractures are protective. Nevertheless, in rare cases, OCS occurs despite a displaced orbital fracture. The aim of the current review is to present its pathophysiology and management based on what is published in the medical literature, and our center's experience. A systematic review of literature was conducted through PubMed, Medline, Embase, and Cochrane from inception through February 2021. The following search query was used: "orbital fracture" and "trauma" and "orbital compartment syndrome." Studies tackling the pathophysiology and management of concurrent displaced orbital fracture with OCS were included and a cohort of patients was constituted. A cohort of 18 cases reported in the literature were included (49.3 ± 30.6 years, 50% M). Given that OCS occurs with or without orbital fracture, pathophysiology of OCS is mostly explained by the division of the orbital fat into many compartments, due to the presence of Koorneef's fibrous septa. Management of OCS in such circumstances consisted of inferior-lateral canthotomy and cantholysis in 50% of cases, subperiosteal drainage with myringotomy in 22.2% of cases, subperiosteal drainage in 16.7% of cases, and complete lateral cantholysis in 16.7% of cases. Two cases who presented to our tertiary care center were also added to this review. Physicians should be aware that OCS can occur even with displaced fractures of the orbital cavity. When clinical suspicion is present, an emergent management is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the medical device and pharmaceutical industries are related, they are governed by distinct regulatory systems. Despite the similarities, the inherent diferences between medical devices and drugs have implications for clinical research and medical writing. There has been a recent move to adopt more stringent regulatory requirements for the medical device industry, bringing the environment closer to what we have come to expect from the highly regulated pharmaceutical industry. The present article is a follow-up to a previous article published in Medical Writing in 2017, which introduced writing for medical devices and the challenges for medical writers coming from a pharmaceutical regulatory environment. In this article, we present our current knowledge about authoring documents for medical devices, the parallels with the pharmaceutical regulatory system, and the essential guidance documents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serologic tests are important for conducting seroepidemiologic and prevalence studies. However, the tests used are typically imperfect and produce false-positive and false-negative results. This is why the seropositive rate (apparent prevalence) does not typically reflect the true prevalence of the disease or condition of interest. Herein, we discuss the way the true prevalence could be derived from the apparent prevalence and test sensitivity and specificity. A computer simulation based on the Monte-Carlo algorithm was also used to further examine a situation where the measured test sensitivity and specificity are also uncertain. We then complete our review with a real example. The apparent prevalence observed in many prevalence studies published in medical literature is a biased estimation and cannot be interpreted correctly unless we correct the value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to reveal a symbol – "however" that authors are very interested in, but few research studies pay attention to the existing literature. The authors aim to further insight its function. Design/methodology/approach: In this research, the authors selected 3,329 valid comments on articles published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) from 2015 to 2020 as the research objects. The authors showed the length distribution of reviewers' comments. In what follows, the authors analyzed the general distribution of words in comments and reviewer comments' position to understand reviewers' comments qualitatively in word dimension. Specially, the authors analyzed functions of "however" and "but", words that authors are most concerned with. In addition, the authors also discussed some factors, which may be related to "however," that reflect reviewers' praise through regression analysis. Findings: The authors found that there are marked differences in the length of reviewers' comments under different review rounds. By mapping the reviewers' comments to different sections, the authors found that reviewers are deeply concerned to methods section. Adjectives and adverbs in comments written in different sections of the manuscripts also have different characteristics. The authors tried to interpret the turning function of "however" in scientific communication. Its frequency of use is related to reviewers' identities, specifically academic status. More precisely, junior researchers use "however" in praise more frequently than senior researchers do. Research limitations/implications: The linguistic feature and function of "however" and "but" in the reviewers' comments of the rejected manuscripts may be different from accepted papers and also worth exploring. Regrettably, the authors cannot obtain the peer review comments of rejected manuscripts. This point may limit the conclusion of the investigation of this article. Originality/value: Overall, the survey results revealed some language features of reviewers' comments, which could provide a basis of future endeavors for many reviewers in open peer review (OPR) field. Specially, the authors also put forward an interesting symbol to examine the review comments, "however", for the first time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Over the last years, the number of systematic reviews published is steadily increasing due to the global interest in this type of evidence synthesis. However, little is known about the characteristics of this research published in Portuguese medical journals. This study aims to evaluate the publication trends and overall quality of these systematic reviews.Material and Methods: This was a methodological study. We aimed the most visible Portuguese medical journals indexed in MEDLINE. Systematic reviews were identified through an electronic search (through PUBMED). We included systematic reviews published up to August 2020. Systematic reviews selection and data extraction were done independently by three authors. The overall quality critical appraisal using the A MeaSurement Tool to Assess systematic Reviews (AMSTAR-2) was independently assessed by three authors. Disagreements were solved by consensus.Results: Sixty-six systematic reviews published in 5 Portuguese medical journals were included. Most (n = 53; 80.3%) were systematic reviews without meta-analysis. Up to 2010 there was a steady increase in the number of systematic reviews published, followed by a period of great variability of publication, ranging from 1 to 10 in a given year. According to the systematic reviews' typology, most have been predominantly conducted to assess the effectiveness/efficacy of health interventions (n = 27; 40.9%). General and Internal Medicine (n = 20; 30.3%) was the most addressed field. Most systematic reviews (n = 46; 69.7%) were rated as being of "critically low-quality".Conclusions: There were consistent flaws in the methodological quality report of the systematic reviews included, particularly in establishing a prior protocol and not assessing the potential impact of the risk of bias on the results. Through the years, the number of systematic reviews published increased, yet their quality is suboptimal. There is a need to improve the reporting of systematic reviews in Portuguese medical journals, which can be achieved by better adherence to quality checklists/tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the Bletchley Declaration, a document that aims to strengthen global collaboration on the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in medical science publishing. The declaration, endorsed by 28 countries and the European Union, emphasizes the importance of international cooperation and responsible use of AI in medical research and publishing. The article highlights the potential benefits of AI in enhancing data analysis, accelerating research dissemination, and improving accessibility in the field of medicine. However, it also acknowledges the risks and challenges associated with AI, such as misinformation and safety concerns. The article calls for global cooperation, transparency, and the development of safety testing and policies to ensure the responsible and ethical use of AI in medical publishing. [Extracted from the article]

This document is a correction notice for an article titled "Polygenic risk for triglyceride levels in the presence of a high impact rare variant" published in BMC Medical Genomics. The authors reported errors in Table 1 of the original article, specifically in the heading which should read "Continuous variables" instead of "Categorical variables." The correct table is provided in this correction article. The original article has been corrected. The document also includes a table showing lipid and other phenotypic/clinical variables in adults with a 22q11.2 microdeletion. The authors of the original article are listed as Shengjie Ying, Tracy Heung, Bhooma Thiruvahindrapuram, Worrawat Engchuan, Yue Yin, Christina Blagojevic, Zhaolei Zhang, Robert A. Hegele, Ryan K. C. Yuen, and Anne S. Bassett. [Extracted from the article]

This article discusses the adherence of published pharmacoeconomic studies to the Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards (CHEERS) guidelines. The study evaluated 64 pharmacoeconomic studies published in PubMed-indexed medical journals from October 2021 to October 2022. The results showed that only 17.18% of the studies adhered to the CHEERS guidelines, with only 18.18% adhering to the updated CHEERS 2022 statement. The majority of the studies were published in nonhealth economic journals, and there was no significant difference in adherence based on the nature of the journal. The article emphasizes the importance of adhering to the CHEERS guidelines to ensure the quality and transparency of health economic evaluations. [Extracted from the article]