Paramedic utilization of Vision, Aphasia, Neglect (VAN) stroke severity scale in the prehospital setting predicts emergent large vessel occlusion stroke.

BACKGROUND: Numerous stroke severity scales have been published, but few have been studied with emergency medical services (EMS) in the prehospital setting. We studied the Vision, Aphasia, Neglect (VAN) stroke assessment scale in the prehospital setting for its simplicity to both teach and perform. This prospective prehospital cohort study was designed to validate the use and efficacy of VAN within our stroke systems of care, which includes multiple comprehensive stroke centers (CSCs) and EMS agencies. METHODS: The performances of VAN and the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) ≥6 for the presence of both emergent large vessel occlusion (ELVO) alone and ELVO or any intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) combined were reported with positive predictive value, sensitivity, negative predictive value, specificity, and overall accuracy. For subjects with intraparenchymal hemorrhage, volume was calculated based on the ABC/2 formula and the presence of intraventricular hemorrhage was recorded. RESULTS: Both VAN and NIHSS ≥6 were significantly associated with ELVO alone and with ELVO or any ICH combined using χ2 analysis. Overall, hospital NIHSS ≥6 performed better than prehospital VAN based on statistical measures. Of the 34 cases of intraparenchymal hemorrhage, mean±SD hemorrhage volumes were 2.5±4.0 mL for the five VAN-negative cases and 17.5±14.2 mL for the 29 VAN-positive cases. CONCLUSIONS: Our VAN study adds to the published evidence that prehospital EMS scales can be effectively taught and implemented in stroke systems with multiple EMS agencies and CSCs. In addition to ELVO, prehospital scales such as VAN may also serve as an effective ICH bypass tool.

Evaluation and Management of Kidney Calculi.

INTRODUCTION: The recent change in the view towards nephrolithiasis from a benign isolated disease to a disorder associated with numerous systemic and chronic conditions has added to the importance of a more thorough and timely diagnostic and therapeutic intervention. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Both original and review articles found via the PubMed search on recent evaluation and management strategies of urinary calculi were reviewed. These resources were integrated with the authors' knowledge of the field. RESULTS: The emerging evidence attests to the association of nephrolithiasis with many morbid and fatal diseases, such as coronary heart disease, ischemic stroke, hypertension, chronic kidney insufficiency, malignancies, and bone loss, as well as the economic burden of urinary calculus on health system and work force. CONCLUSIONS: Findings of this review justify a timely and comprehensive workup and dietary-therapeutic measures in order to prevent, treat, and control the associated complications of this condition.

Kidney Calculi: Pathophysiology and as a Systemic Disorder.

The pathophysiology of urinary stone formation is complex, involving a combination of metabolic, genetic, and environmental factors. Over the past decades, remarkable advances have been emerged in the understanding of the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of calcium kidney calculi. For this review, both original and review articles were found via PubMed search on pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management of urinary calculi. These resources were integrated with the authors' knowledge of the field. Nephrolithiasis is suggested to be associated with systemic disorders, including chronic kidney insufficiency, hematologic malignancies, endocrine disorders, autoimmune diseases, inflammatory bowel diseases, bone loss and fractures, hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome, and vascular diseases like coronary heart diseases and most recently ischemic strokes. This is changing the perspective of nephrolithiasis from an isolated disorder to a systemic disease that justifies further research in understanding the underlying mechanisms and elaborating diagnostic-therapeutic options.

Immunohistochemical study of p53, Ki-67, MMP-2 and MMP-9 expression at invasive front of squamous cell and verrucous carcinoma in oral cavity.

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the most common malignancy in the oral cavity. Verrucous carcinoma (VC) is a lower grade subtype of SCC with pathological similarities but different management. Tumor invasive front (TIF) is a dynamic location in the differentiation of malignancies. p53 is a tumor suppressor and Ki-67 a proliferation marker. Matrix metalloproteinases 2 and 9 are involved in the tumor invasiveness. We assessed these markers in TIF of oral SCC and VC to find more precise grading scales. We studied the expression of markers in the invasive front of 42 cases of SCC (21 high and 21 low grade), 20 cases of VC and 8 cases of normal oral mucosa using immunohistochemistry. There were significant differences among the study groups regarding the number of cells expressing p53, MMP-2 and 9. Except for Ki-67, other studied markers can be used for the histological grading of SCC and its differentiation from VC. MMP-9 is the most reliable one for invasive SCC grading. The extent of the expression of these markers is related to the infiltration pattern of SCC at the invasive front. The less invasive nature of VC can be associated with the expression pattern of these markers.