COL4A1-related brain small-vessel disease, Intracranial Cortical Calcifications

What is COL4A1 disease?
COL4A1-related brain small-vessel disease is characterized by weakening of the blood vessels in the brain. Stroke is often the first symptom of this condition, typically occurring in mid-adulthood.

What is the COL4A1 gene?
The COL4A1 gene provides instructions for making one component of type IV collagen, which is a flexible protein important in the structure of many tissues throughout the body. Specifically, this gene makes the alpha1(IV) chain of type IV collagen.

Patients with chronic parathyroid dysfunction often have intracranial calcification in deep gray matter (GM) and subcortical white matter

What are the symptoms of brain calcification?
Muscle cramping (dystonia), uncontrollable spasmodic irregular movements (chorea), and seizures can also occur. Occasional symptoms include sensory changes, headaches and urinary incontinence. Associated symptoms include loss of contact with reality (psychosis), mood swings and loss of acquired motor skills.

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Medicine by Alexandros G. Sfakianakis,Anapafseos 5 Agios Nikolaos 72100 Crete Greece,00302841026182,00306932607174,alsfakia@gmail.com,

Assessment of periodontitis grade in epidemiological studies using interdental attachment loss instead of radiographic bone loss

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Assessment of periodontitis grade in epidemiological studies using interdental attachment loss instead of radiographic bone loss via Journal of Clinical Periodontology Abstract Objective Comparison of grading according to radiographic bone loss (BL) or according to interdental clinical attachment loss (CAL). Methods In 100 periodontitis patients of the Department of Periodontology of Goethe-University Frankfurt, Germany periodontitis grade was assigned by i) indirect evidence using BL at the most affected tooth divided by root length and ii) CAL at the most affected tooth divided by root length of the respective tooth type according to root length in German and Swedish cohorts. Resulting quotients were divided by age. Results Patients (age: 53.5±10.4 years; 57 females; 16 smokers; no diabetes; stage 78 III, 22 IV) were by either method assigned to grade B or C (BL: 35 B, 65 C; CAL [German]: 23 B, 77 C; [Swedish]: 29 B, 71 C). Using root length (German cohort), agreement was 76% (kappa: 0.427; fair to good /moderate agreement) and 72% (Swedish cohort; kappa: 0.359; poor agreement/fair). Molars were most frequently chosen (BL: 64%; CAL: 71%). Conclusions Assignment of periodontitis grade by indirect evidence using BL or CAL using standard root length of the German cohort showed fair to good/moderate agreement. Thus, grade assignment by CAL may be used in epidemiologic studies where radiographs are not available. View on Web

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Effects of Artificial Intelligence (AI)‐Assisted Dental Monitoring Intervention in Patients with Periodontitis: A Randomized Controlled Trial

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Effects of Artificial Intelligence (AI)‐Assisted Dental Monitoring Intervention in Patients with Periodontitis: A Randomized Controlled Trial via Journal of Clinical Periodontology Abstract Aim To evaluate the effects of an at-home AI-assisted dental monitoring application on treatment outcomes in patients with periodontitis. Materials and methods Participants with periodontitis were recruited and randomly assigned into an AI (AI; n = 16), AI and human counseling (AIHC; n = 17), or control (CG; n = 20) group. All participants received nonsurgical periodontal treatment. We employed an AI-assisted tool called DENTAL MONITORING® (DM) intervention, a new technological AI monitoring product that utilizes smartphone cameras for intraoral scanning and assessment. Patients in the AI and AIHC groups respectively received additional (a) DM or (b) DM with real-person counseling over three months. Periodontal parameters were collected at baseline and follow-ups. A mixed-design model analyzed the follow-up effects over time. Results The AI and AIHC groups respectively exhibited greater improvement in probing pocket depth [Mean diff = −0.9±0.4 and −1.4±0.3, effect size (ES) = 0.76 and 1.98], clinical attachment level (Mean diff = −0.8±0.3 and −1.4±0.3, ES = 0.84 and 1.77) and plaque index (Mean diff = −0.5±0.2 and −0.7±0.2, ES = 0.93 and 1.81) at 3-month follow-up than the CG did. The AIHC group had a greater reduction in probing pocket depth (ES = 0.46) and clinical attachment level (ES = 0.64) at the 3-month follow-up compared with the AI group. Conclusion Using AI monitoring at home had a positive effect on treatment outcomes for patients with periodontitis. Patients with AI-assisted health counseling exhibited better treatment outcomes than did patients who used AI monitoring alone. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. View on Web

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Soft and hard tissue changes after immediate implant placement with or without a sub‐epithelial connective tissue graft: results from a 6‐months pilot randomized controlled clinical trial

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Soft and hard tissue changes after immediate implant placement with or without a sub‐epithelial connective tissue graft: results from a 6‐months pilot randomized controlled clinical trial via Journal of Clinical Periodontology Abstract Aim The present pilot RCT aimed to investigate the influence of a connective tissue graft (CTG) in combination with the immediate implant placement (IIP) on hard and soft tissues healing, without a bone replacement graft in the gap between the implant and the socket walls. Material and Methods Thirty patients requiring extraction of one anterior tooth (from premolar to premolar) were randomly assigned to one of the two treatment groups (test: IIP+CTG; control: IIP). Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) and optically scans were performed before tooth extraction and at 6-months follow-up. Then, DICOM files were superimposed in order to allow the evaluation of osseous ridge and buccal bone changes, while the superimposition of DICOM and STL (Standard Tessellation Language) files allowed for evaluating of soft tissue contour. For testing the differences between the two groups, the non-parametric test as Wilcoxon rank-sum test, was used. Results Twenty-six out of the thirty enrolled patients, attended the 6-month follow-up visit. The 4 patients of control group that were lost to follow-up, were analyzed under the intention-to-treat principle. No statistically significant differences between the groups were observed for the vertical buccal bone resorption (p=0.90), as well as for the horizontal buccal bone resorption at all measured levels. Significant differences were found between test and control groups in the horizontal dimensional changes of osseous ridge at the most coronal aspect (p=0.0003 and p=0.02). Changes of tissue contour ranged between -0.32 and -0.04 mm in the test group, and between -1.94 and -1.08 mm in the control group, while changes of soft tissue thickness varied between 1.33 and 2.42 mm in the test group, and between -0.16 and 0.88 mm in the control group, with statistically significant differences for both variables at all measured levels. At 6 months, the mean volume inc rease was 6.76±8.94 mm3 and 0.16±0.42 mm3 in the test and control groups, respectively, with statistically significant difference. Conclusions The findings of the present study indicate that the adjunct of a connective tissue graft at the time of immediate implant placement, without bone grafting, does not influence vertical bone resorption. Within the limits of the present study, it can be suggested that the adjunct of a connective tissue graft at the time of immediate implant placement, without bone grafting, reduces the horizontal changes of the alveolar ridge. Moreover, it allows maintenance of the tissue contour due to an increase in soft tissue thickness. View on Web

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Lingual Frenectomy Criteria

The term free-tongue is defined as the length of tongue from the insertion of the lingual frenum into the base of the tongue to the tip of the tongue. Clinically acceptable, normal range of free tongue is greater than 16 mm. 

The ankyloglossia can be classified into 4 classes based on Kotlow's assessment as follows; 

Class I: Mild ankyloglossia: 12 to 16 mm, 

Class II: Moderate ankyloglossia: 8 to 11 mm, 

Class III: Severe ankyloglossia: 3 to 7 mm, 

Class IV: Complete ankyloglossia: Less than 3 mm.2 

Class III and IV tongue-tie category should be given special consideration because they severely restrict the tongue's movement. A normal range of motion of the tongue is indicated by the following criteria: The tip of the tongue should be able to protrude outside the mouth; without clefting, the tip of the tongue should be able to sweep the upper and lower lips easily; without straining, when the tongue is retruded, it should not blanch the tissues lingual to the anterior teeth; and the lingual frenum should not create a diastema between the mandibular central incisors.

Ankyloglossia was also found associated in cases with some rare syndromes such as X-linked cleft palate syndrome, Kindler syndrome, van der Woude syndrome, and Opitz syndrome.Nevertheless, most ankyloglossias are observed in persons without any other congenital anomalies or diseases.

The difficulties in articulation are evident for consonants and sounds like "s, z, t, d, l, j, zh, ch, th, dg" and it is especially difficult to roll an "r".

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Medicine by Alexandros G. Sfakianakis,Anapafseos 5 Agios Nikolaos 72100 Crete Greece,00302841026182,00306932607174,alsfakia@gmail.com,

Effect of new biological patch in repairing intrauterine adhesion and improving clinical pregnancy outcome in infertile women: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Effect of new biological patch in repairing intrauterine adhesion and improving clinical pregnancy outcome in infertile women: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial via Trials - Latest Articles Endometrial fibrosis caused by intrauterine adhesion (IUA) can lead to hypomenorrhea, amenorrhea, and even infertility and abortion. The postoperative recurrence rate of severe IUA remains high, giving rise to... View on Web

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COVID-19 Severity among Women of Reproductive Age with Symptomatic Laboratory-Confirmed SARS-CoV-2 by Pregnancy Status – United States, Jan 1, 2020 – Dec 25, 2021

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader COVID-19 Severity among Women of Reproductive Age with Symptomatic Laboratory-Confirmed SARS-CoV-2 by Pregnancy Status – United States, Jan 1, 2020 – Dec 25, 2021 via Clinical Infectious Diseases Advance Access Abstract Background Information on the severity of COVID-19 attributable to the Delta variant in the United States among pregnant people is limited. We assessed the risk for severe COVID-19 by pregnancy status in the period of Delta variant predominance compared with the pre-Delta period. Methods Laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infections among symptomatic women of reproductive age (WRA) were assessed. We calculated adjusted risk ratios for severe disease includi ng intensive care unit (ICU) admission, receipt of invasive ventilation or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), and death comparing the pre-Delta period (January 1, 2020 – June 26, 2021) and the Delta period (June 27, 2021 – December 25, 2021) for pregnant and nonpregnant WRA. Results Compared with the pre-Delta period, the risk of ICU admission during the Delta period was 41% higher (adjusted risk ratio [aRR] 1.41; 95% CI, 1.17-1.69) for pregnant WRA and 9% higher (aRR 1.09; 95% CI, 1.00-1.18) for nonpregnant WRA. The risk of invasive ventilation or ECMO was higher for pregnant (aRR 1.83; 95% CI, 1.26-2.65) and nonpregnant WRA (aRR 1.34; 95% CI, 1.17-1.54) in the Delta period. During the Delta period, the risk of death was 3.33 (95% CI, 2.48-4.46) times the risk in the pre-Delta period among pregnant WRA and 1.62 (95% CI, 1.49-1.77) among nonpregnant WRA. Conclusions Compared with the pre-Delta period, pregnant and nonpregnant WRA were at increased risk for severe COVID-19 in the Delta period. View on Web

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Vaccine effectiveness of CanSino (Adv5-nCoV) COVID-19 vaccine among childcare workers – Mexico, March–December 2021

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Vaccine effectiveness of CanSino (Adv5-nCoV) COVID-19 vaccine among childcare workers – Mexico, March–December 2021 via Clinical Infectious Diseases Advance Access Abstract Background Beginning in March 2021, Mexico vaccinated childcare workers with a single-dose CanSino Biologics (Adv5-nCoV) COVID-19 vaccine. Although CanSino is currently approved for use in 10 Latin American, Asian, and European countries, little information is available about its vaccine effectiveness (VE). Methods We evaluated CanSino VE within a childcare worker cohort that included 1,408 childcare facilities. Participants were followed during March–December 2021 and tested through SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR or rapid antigen test if they developed any symptom compatible with COVID-19. Vaccination status was obtained through worker registries. VE was calculated as 100% × (1−hazard ratio for SARS-CoV-2 infection in fully vaccinated vs. unvaccinated participants), using an Andersen-Gill model adjusted for age, sex, state, and local viral circulation. Results The cohort included 43,925 persons who were mostly (96%) femal e with a median age of 32 years; 37,646 (86%) were vaccinated with CanSino. During March–December 2021, 2,250 (5%) participants had laboratory-confirmed COVID-19, of whom 25 were hospitalized and 6 died. Adjusted VE was 20% (95% CI = 10–29%) against illness, 76% (42–90%) against hospitalization, and 94% (66–99%) against death. VE against illness declined from 48% (95% CI = 33–61) after 14–60 days following full vaccination to 20% (95% CI = 9–31) after 61–120 days. Conclusions CanSino vaccine was effective at preventing COVID-19 illness and highly effective at preventing hospitalization and death. It will be useful to further evaluate duration of protection and assess the value of booster doses to prevent COVID-19 and severe outcomes. View on Web

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The Staphylococcus aureus Network Adaptive Platform Trial protocol: New tools for an old foe

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader The Staphylococcus aureus Network Adaptive Platform Trial protocol: New tools for an old foe via Clinical Infectious Diseases Advance Access Abstract Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream (SAB) infection is a common and severe infectious disease, with a 90-day mortality of 15-30%. Despite this, fewer than 3000 people have been randomised into clinical trials of treatments for SAB infection. The limited evidence base partly results from clinical trials for SAB infections being difficult to complete at scale using traditional clinical trial methods. Here we provide the rationale and framework for an adaptive platform trial applied to SAB infections. We detail the design features of the Staphylococcus aureus Network Adaptive Platform (SNAP) trial that will enable multiple questions to be answered as efficiently as possible. The SNAP trial will commence enrolling patients across multiple countries in 2022 with an estimated target sample size of 7000 participants. This approach may serve as an exemplar to increase efficienc y of clinical trials for other infectious diseases syndromes. View on Web

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Joint analysis of functionally related genes yields further candidates associated with Tetralogy of Fallot

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Joint analysis of functionally related genes yields further candidates associated with Tetralogy of Fallot via Journal of Human Genetics - Issue - nature.com science feeds View on Web

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Population immunity to pre-Omicron and Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variants in US states and counties through December 1, 2021

alexandrossfakianakis shared this article with you from Inoreader Population immunity to pre-Omicron and Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variants in US states and counties through December 1, 2021 via Clinical Infectious Diseases Advance Access Abstract Background Both SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 vaccination contribute to population-level immunity against SARS-CoV-2. This study estimates the immunological exposure and effective protection against future SARS-CoV-2 infection in each US state and county over 2020-2021, and how this changed with the introduction of the Omicron variant. Methods We used a Bayesian model to synthesize estimates of daily SARS-CoV-2 infections, vaccination data and estimates of the relative rates of vaccination conditional on infection status to estimate the fraction of the population with (i) immunological exposure to SARS-CoV-2 (ever infected with SARS-CoV-2 and/or received one or more doses of a COVID-19 vaccine), (ii) effective protection against infection, and (iii) effective protection against severe disease, for each US state and county from January 1, 2020, to December 1, 2021. Results The estimated percentage of the US populati on with a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection or vaccination as of December 1, 2021, was 88.2% (95% Credible Interval (CrI): 83.6%-93.5%). Accounting for waning and immune escape, effective protection against the Omicron variant on December 1, 2021, was 21.8% (95%CrI: 20.7%-23.4%) nationally and ranged between 14.4% (95%CrI: 13.2%-15.8%, West Virginia) to 26.4% (95%CrI: 25.3%-27.8%, Colorado). Effective protection against severe disease from Omicron was 61.2% (95%CrI: 59.1%-64.0%) nationally and ranged between 53.0% (95%CrI: 47.3%-60.0%, Vermont) and 65.8% (95%CrI: 64.9%-66.7%, Colorado). Conclusions While over four-fifths of the US population had prior immunological exposure to SARS-CoV-2 via vaccination or infection on December 1, 2021, only a fifth of the population was estimated to have effective protection against infection with the immune-evading Omicron variant. View on Web

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