Assessment of LGBTQ+ Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Subspecialty Surgery Literature: A Scoping Review.

OBJECTIVE: To identify LGBTQ+ diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) publications and contextualize the current frequency of the literature across subspecialty surgical fields. METHODS: A PRISMA systematic review using PubMed, MEDLINE, and Web of Science was conducted in April 2024. The main inclusion criterion was intrafield DEI content for defined subspecialties; exclusion criteria were foreign language, poor methodology, and duplicates. The primary endpoint was the number of publications across subspecialties. Secondary endpoints included publication dates, study design, and sample size. RESULTS: Of the 702 articles identified, 27 were included in the analysis. Neurologic surgery had 2 studies; plastic surgery, 11 studies; orthopedic surgery, 7 studies; otolaryngology, 5 studies; and thoracic surgery, 2 studies. There was a statistically significant different frequency of publications across subspecialties (P = 0.031). Post hoc residual analysis indicated that neurosurgery and thoracic surgery had statistically fewer publications, while plastic surgery had statistically more publications (P = 0.04, 0.002, 0.21, 0.42, and 0.04 for neurologic surgery, plastic surgery, orthopedic surgery, otolaryngology, and thoracic surgery, respectively). Secondary outcomes found a majority of publications between 2022 and 2024. Study methodologies involved cross-sectional studies, editorials, and retrospective reviews (14, 11, and 3 respectively) and had a median sample size of 248.5. CONCLUSIONS: This systematic review provides objective data to contextualize DEI literature across surgical subspecialties. Overall, this review highlights the lack of LGBTQ+ DEI literature in neurosurgery and advocates for correcting this gap for the benefit of both surgeons and patients. Understanding the current numbers and evaluating progress in other surgical fields might provide solutions.

A Bibliometric and Visual Analysis of the Most Cited Articles on Disc Arthroplasty.

STUDY DESIGN: Bibliometric literature review. OBJECTIVE: Total disc arthroplasty (TDA) is an evolving technique used by surgeons to preserve neural elements and range of motion in patients with degenerative disc disease, spondylosis and more. In comparison to discectomy, disc arthroplasty has been shown to decrease morbidity, reduce adjacent-level disease, and preserve pre-operative range of motion. The objective of this manuscript is to provide a bibliometric analysis of the use of disc arthroplasty in scientific literature and highlight the main contributing authors and their publication characteristics. METHODS: The Scopus database was used to perform a title-specific, keyword-based search for all publications until June 2022. The keyword "total disc arthroplasty" was used. The most-cited 100 articles were selected for analysis. Parameters included the following: title, citation count, citations per year, authors, specialty first author, institution, country of origin, publishing journal, Source Normalized, Impact Per Paper (SNIP), and Hirsch index. RESULTS: Our search on disc arthroplasty yielded 580 articles that were published, with the first publication on the topic found in 1966. The most cited 100 articles received a total of 8694 citations, with an average of 86.94 citations per article. After assessing countries with the greatest contributions, United States, China, and Germany were top 3 with 54, 14, and 7 articles, respectively. CONCLUSION: The bibliometric analysis provides an overview of how medical research is analyzed in academic medicine. In the present study, we evaluated the global trends in disc arthroplasty for the treatment of degenerative disc disease.

Transcranial near-infrared light in treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

Light is a natural agent consisting of a range of visible and invisible electromagnetic spectrum travels in waves. Near-infrared (NIR) light refers to wavelengths from 800 to 2,500 nm. It is an invisible spectrum to naked eyes and can penetrate through soft and hard tissues into deep structures of the human body at specific wavelengths. NIR light may carry different energy levels depending on the intensity of emitted light and therapeutic spectrum (wavelength). Stimulation with NIR light can activate intracellular cascades of biochemical reactions with local short- and long-term positive effects. These properties of NIR light are employed in photobiomodulation (PBM) therapy, have been linked to treating several brain pathologies, and are attracting more scientific attention in biomedicine. Transcranial brain stimulations with NIR light PBM in recent animal and human studies revealed a positive impact of treatment on the progression and improvement of neurodegenerative processes, management of brain energy metabolism, and regulation of chronic brain inflammation associated with various conditions, including traumatic brain injury. This scientific overview incorporates the most recent cellular and functional findings in PBM with NIR light in treating neurodegenerative diseases, presents the discussion of the proposed mechanisms of action, and describes the benefits of this treatment in neuroprotection, cell preservation/detoxification, anti-inflammatory properties, and regulation of brain energy metabolism. This review will also discuss the novel aspects and pathophysiological role of the glymphatic and brain lymphatics system in treating neurodegenerative diseases with NIR light stimulations. Scientific evidence presented in this overview will support a combined effort in the scientific community to increase attention to the understudied NIR light area of research as a natural agent in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases to promote more research and raise awareness of PBM in the treatment of brain disorders.

Temporal trends of gestational malaria in the United States.

BACKGROUND: Although regarded as rare in the United States (US), increased global traffic and importation of malaria from endemic countries may lead to a rise in gestational malaria in the US. METHODS: This multi-year retrospective study analyzed trends in diagnosed cases of gestational malaria from 2002 to 2017 using joinpoint regression models. We also assessed the association between gestational malaria and selected maternal-fetal adverse outcomes. RESULTS: Mothers diagnosed with gestational malaria tended to be older, and the majority of diagnosed cases (52.9%) were among Non-Hispanic (NH) Blacks. Diagnosed cases of gestational malaria are on the rise in the US. Mothers diagnosed with gestational malaria were 5 times as likely (OR = 5.05, 95% CI: 4.05-6.29) to be anemic as compared to those without malaria. Compared to NH-Whites, NH-Black mothers were twice as likely to experience stillbirth, had nearly 50% greater adjusted odds of severe preeclampsia, and had about 30% elevated likelihood for preterm labor. CONCLUSIONS: There is a need to dedicate appropriate resources to identify women that are at risk for gestational malaria in order to prevent related pregnancy complications.