July 2021
30 ArticlesNo Section
An elderly man with a locked jaw
An 86-year-old man with diabetes mellitus presented to our hospital with a 3-day history of difficulty opening his mouth. He reported that he had injured his right index finger while farming 15 days... more
Painless ulcer on the dorsal aspect of hand
A previously healthy 47-year-old man presented a 3-month history of progressive proliferative plaque and ulcer on the dorsal aspect of the right hand. Initially, the patient was bitten by an... more
Spirometry: A practical lifespan predictor of global health and chronic respiratory and non-respiratory diseases
We propose that spirometry, a practical and validated marker of respiratory function, is also an overlooked marker of global human health throughout a person’s life span, from infancy to old age,... more
The importance of recognizing cerebral venous thrombosis following anti-COVID-19 vaccination
In March 2021, the reporting of cases of thrombosis post-COVID-19 vaccine AstraZeneca raised safety concerns and determined the temporary suspension of vaccinations in some countries in Europe [1].... more
Integrated approach to bronchoalveolar lavage cytology to distinguish interstitial lung diseases
Broncho-alveolar lavage (BAL) is a safe diagnostic procedure, useful for differentiating fibrotic lung disorders and for excluding malignancy and infection [1–5]. Together with chest high resolution... more
The efficacies of entecavir and tenofovir in terms of enhancing prognosis after curative treatment of hepatitis B virus–related hepatocellular carcinoma
Whether entecavir (ETV) or tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) affords the better prognosis after curative treatment of hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains unclear... more
Clinical Insights
Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome associated with viral vector COVID-19 vaccines
On March 11 2021, the European Medical Agency highlighted two relevant issues, after the decision by the Danish Health Authority to temporarily suspend its vaccination campaign with Vaxzevria (the... more
SARS-CoV-2 vaccine-induced cerebral venous thrombosis
Cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) is a rare cause of stroke and intracranial hypertension syndrome. Compared to arterial stroke, CVT affects younger people, predominantly women, has a different risk... more
Commentary
Antiviral therapy after curative treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with chronic hepatitis B infection: Is tenofovir or entecavir preferred?
Hepatitis B remains a major health problem. Globally, approximately 240 million persons are chronically infected (HBsAg positive). Prevalence is decreasing in highly endemic countries due to better... more
Editorial
Myocardial infarction in giant cell arteritis: It is all a matter of balance.
Patients with giant cell arteritis (GCA) represent an extremely fragile population. This frailty arises from the combination of a chronic, highly inflammatory disease affecting patients invariably... more
D-dimer testing after anticoagulant discontinuation to predict recurrent venous thromboembolism
The duration of anticoagulant treatment after a first venous thromboembolism (VTE) depends on the risk of a VTE recurrence, which is mostly determined by the presence, type, persistence, and severity... more
Internal Medicine Flashcard
Woman with seizures
A 66-year-old woman with a history of hyperlipidemia presented to the emergency department after a epileptic seizure episode for nearly 1 min. She had a normal temperature, pulse rate was 77 beats/... more
Recurrent facial palsy and fissured tongue
A 28-year old Chinese man presented with right facial paralysis for 8 days. He felt that for first 3-days, his right face was swollen that subsided after starting oral valaciclovir and prednisolone... more
Letter to the Editor
Type of anticoagulation therapy in oldest old, frail people with atrial fibrillation: Prescription modification over time. Authors' Reply
We would like to thank you for the opportunity to address the issues raised by A.Watanabe in his Letter to the Editor [1] and to clarify some methodological and analytical aspects of our study, while... more
Type of anticoagulation therapy in oldest old, frail people with atrial fibrillation
Calsolaro V and colleagues indicated significant benefits of oral anticoagulants (OAC) in oldest-old patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) in the previously published article, entitled “Long-term... more
Direct oral anticoagulants versus enoxaparin in patients with atrial fibrillation and active cancer
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most prevalent sustained arrhythmia. Benefits of anticoagulation therapy in reducing the risk of ischemic stroke in the majority of patients with AF are well-... more
Validation of the AF-ESUS score to identify patients with embolic stroke of undetermined source and low risk of device-detected atrial fibrillation
During the recent years, the term ESUS (embolic stroke of undetermined source) is used to describe patients with ischemic stroke for whom the source of embolism remains undetected despite recommended... more
Convalescent plasma in the management of COVID-19 pneumonia
Few therapeutic agents have been proven to be effective in the management of COVID-19 pneumonia in randomized trials, thus the treatment options for this condition remain limited [1,2]. Convalescent... more
Healthcare students: should they be prioritized for COVID-19 vaccination?
Not requested.
Impact of rate control in hospitalized patients with atrial fibrillation and sepsis
Sepsis is defined as a dysregulated host response to several types of infections [1], still representing a challenging issue in Medicine. Atrial Fibrillation (AF) frequently occurs in patients with... more
Iron deficiency in chronic myocarditis: Assessment and prognostic significance
Iron deficiency (ID) and associated anemia (IDA) represent major comorbidities in chronic diseases [1]. However, their prevalence and prognostic significance have never been investigated in... more
Prevalence of proximal deep vein thrombosis in hospitalized COVID-19 patients
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2(SARS-COV-2) is a novel virus that has spread worldwide since the end of 2019. Although a proportion of patients remains asymptomatic, the virus may be... more
Original Article
kinetics of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies over time. Results of 10 month follow up in over 300 seropositive Health Care Workers
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has led to an unprecedented health emergency, causing over 125 million... more
Diagnostic accuracy of D-Dimer testing for recurrent venous thromboembolism: A systematic review with meta-analysis.
With an annual incidence of 1-2 per 1,000 individuals, venous thromboembolism (VTE) is the third leading vascular diagnosis after heart attack and stroke [1,2]. VTE encompasses two interrelated... more
Serum uric acid and outcomes in patients with chronic heart failure through the whole spectrum of ejection fraction phenotypes: Analysis of the ESC-EORP Heart Failure Long-Term (HF LT) Registry
Heart failure (HF) is a heterogeneous clinical syndrome, associated with a spectrum of metabolic disorders. Serum uric acid (sUA), the end-product of purine degradation, has shown prognostic value in... more
Joint effect of heart failure and coronary artery disease on the risk of death during hospitalization for COVID-19
Since the initial coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) outbreak in the province of Wuhan, China, more than 50 million people have been infected so far, causing unnerving impact on routine patient care and... more
Adiponectin involved in portal flow hepatic extraction of 13C-methacetin in obesity and non-alcoholic fatty liver
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common cause of chronic liver disease with a worldwide prevalence of about 30% [1]. NAFLD frequently occurs in overweight and obese individuals [... more
Myocardial infarction during giant cell arteritis: A cohort study
Giant cell arteritis (GCA) is the most frequent vasculitis in adults over 50 years. It is a granulomatous large-vessel vasculitis mainly involving the aorta and cranial arteries [1–3]. Clinical signs... more
Research paper
SARS-CoV-2 antibody kinetics eight months from COVID-19 onset: Persistence of spike antibodies but loss of neutralizing antibodies in 24% of convalescent plasma donors
The duration of antibody responses against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is an area of extensive research in light of the new approvals of vaccines against SARS-CoV-2... more
Review Article
“Is medical cannabis safe for my patients?” A practical review of cannabis safety considerations
The use of cannabis for medical purposes is increasing worldwide [5,32]. With the changing public and political opinion, more countries are implementing medical cannabis legalization. Although... more