Support Systems of Clinical Decisions in the Triage of the Emergency Department Using Artificial Intelligence: The Efficiency to Support Triage.

Purpose: In the Emergency Departments (ED) the current triage systems that are been implemented are based completely on medical education and the perception of each health professional who is in charge. On the other hand, cutting-edge technology, Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be incorporated into healthcare systems, supporting the healthcare professionals' decisions, and augmenting the performance of triage systems. The aim of the study is to investigate the efficiency of AI to support triage in ED. Patients­Methods: The study included 332 patients from whom 23 different variables related to their condition were collected. From the processing of patient data for input variables, it emerged that the average age was 56.4 ± 21.1 years and 50.6% were male. The waiting time had an average of 59.7 ± 56.3 minutes while 3.9% ± 0.1% entered the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). In addition, qualitative variables related to the patient's history and admission clinics were used. As target variables were taken the days of stay in the hospital, which were on average 1.8 ± 5.9, and the Emergency Severity Index (ESI) for which the following distribution applies: ESI: 1, patients: 2; ESI: 2, patients: 18; ESI: 3, patients: 197; ESI: 4, patients: 73; ESI: 5, patients: 42. Results: To create an automatic patient screening classifier, a neural network was developed, which was trained based on the data, so that it could predict each patient's ESI based on input variables.The classifier achieved an overall accuracy (F1 score) of 72.2% even though there was an imbalance in the classes. Conclusions: The creation and implementation of an AI model for the automatic prediction of ESI, highlighted the possibility of systems capable of supporting healthcare professionals in the decision-making process. The accuracy of the classifier has not reached satisfactory levels of certainty, however, the performance of similar models can increase sharply with the collection of more data.

Drug-Induced Liver Injury in Hospitalized Patients during SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

In the last few years, the world has had to face the SARS-CoV-2 infection and its multiple effects. Even though COVID-19 was first considered to be a respiratory disease, it has an extended clinical spectrum with symptoms occurring in many tissues, and it is now identified as a systematic disease. Therefore, various drugs are used during the therapy of hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Studies have shown that many of these drugs could have adverse side-effects, including drug-induced liver injury-also known as DILI-which is the focus of our review. Despite the consistent findings, the pathophysiological mechanism behind DILI in COVID-19 disease is still complex, and there are a few risk factors related to it. However, when it comes to the diagnosis, there are specific algorithms (including the RUCAM algorithm) and biomarkers that can assist in identifying DILI and which we will analyze in our review. As indicated by the title, a variety of drugs are associated with this COVID-19-related complication, including systemic corticosteroids, drugs used for the therapy of uncontrolled cytokine storm, as well as antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and anticoagulant drugs. Bearing in mind that hepatotoxicity is very likely to occur during COVID-19, especially in patients treated with multiple medications, we will also refer to the use of other drugs used for DILI therapy in an effort to control and prevent a severe and long-term outcome.

Coagulation Profile of COVID-19 Patients.

Coronavirus disease is a viral infection that can affect multiple systems and be expressed with many-or no-symptoms. The viral infection begins when the virus binds to the host's receptor and from that point on, it is transmitted to the rest of the body, where it causes inflammatory reactions. Among other tissues and systems, SARS-CoV-2 impacts the coagulation system, where it triggers the immunothrombotic response. Its effects are rather intense and can lead to many complications. COVID-19-associated coagulopathy is frequently observed in hospitalized patients, especially ICU patients, and can be proven detrimental. It is usually accompanied by other complications, such as sepsis-induced coagulopathy, disseminated intravascular coagulation and venous thromboembolism. Since all these conditions lead to poor prognosis for severely ill patients, thromboprophylaxis and coagulopathy prognosis are just as important as the therapeutic handling of these patients. Since the beginning of the pandemic, many biomarkers have been considered useful when trying to assess the thrombotic risk of hospitalized patients or evaluate the severity of their situation. At the same time, many drugs have already been tested-while others are still being trialed-in order to find the optimal therapy for each urgent situation.

Renal function and mortality in patients with atrial fibrillation.

AIM: The aim of this study is to examine the association of the presence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) values with mortality in patients with atrial fibrillation. METHODS: This posthoc analysis of a randomized controlled trial consisted of hospitalized patients with atrial fibrillation who were followed up for a median of 2.7 years after discharge. Kaplan-Meier curves, multivariate Cox-regression and spline curves were utilized to assess the association of CKD, CKD stages 2-5 according to the KDOQI guidelines, and the continuum of eGFR values with the primary outcome of all-cause death, and the secondary outcome of cardiovascular mortality. RESULTS: Out of 1064 hospitalized patients with atrial fibrillation, 465 (43.7%) had comorbid CKD. The presence of CKD was associated with an increased risk for both all-cause and cardiovascular mortality following hospitalization [adjusted hazard ratio (aHR): 1.60; 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs): 1.25-2.05 and aHR: 1.74; 95% CI: 1.30-2.33, respectively]. The aHRs for all-cause mortality in CKD stages 2-5, as compared with CKD stage 1 were 2.18, 2.62, 4.20 and 3.38, respectively (all P < 0.05). In spline curve analyses, eGFR values lower than 50 ml/min/1.73 m2 were independent predictors of higher all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. CONCLUSION: In recently hospitalized patients with atrial fibrillation, the presence of CKD was independently associated with decreased survival, which was significant across CKD stages 2-5, as compared with CKD stage 1. Values of eGFR lower than 50 ml/min/1.73 m2 were incrementally associated with worse prognosis.

Laparoscopic resection of giant adrenal malignant tumors, a case series and review of the literature.

Laparoscopic approach for suspected adrenal malignancies remains a controversial issue and it gets more controversial, when managing giant adrenal malignant tumors. The aim of this paper is to present five cases of patients with giant adrenal malignant tumors that underwent laparoscopic transabdominal lateral adrenalectomy in our department between 2010 and 2017. Literature is also reviewed in order to investigate the feasibility of laparoscopic resection in these cases.

Pharmacologic and Non-Pharmacologic Interventions for HIV-Neuropathy Pain. A Systematic Review and a Meta-Analysis.

Background and Objectives: Among HIV infection symptoms, sensory neuropathy (HIV-SN) remains a main cause of suffering, with incidence varying from 13-50%. So far, numerous pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments have been tested, although few evidence-based analgesic options are available. We conducted an up-to-date systematic review and meta-analysis of the literature in order to evaluate the efficacy and safety of pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatments for pain control, in patients with HIV neuropathy. Materials and Methods: We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus/Elsevier, The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), USA Clinical Trials registry, and The International Web of Science up to April 2019. All randomized controlled trials evaluating efficacy and safety of non-pharmacologic and pharmacologic therapies were included. Efficacy was defined as pain reduction during the study period. Safety was estimated from adverse events. A meta-analysis was performed whenever possible. Results: 27 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included for analysis (7 evaluating non pharmacologic interventions, 20 pharmacologic therapies). Non-pharmacologic studies (n = 742) involved seven different therapeutic modalities. Only Acupuncture/Moxibustion showed pain reduction over placebo, Gracely Pain Scale Mean (SD): Acu/Moxa 0.85 (0.12), placebo 1.10 (0.09), p = 0.05. Pharmacologic studies, involving 2516 patients revealed efficacy for capsaicin 8% over placebo (mean difference -8.04 [95% CI: -14.92 -1.15], smoked cannabis (where pooling data for meta-analysis was not possible) and recombinant Nerve Growth Factor. Conclusion: Despite various modalities for pain control in HIV-SN, strongest evidence exists for capsaicin 8% and smoked cannabis, although of low methodological quality. Among non-pharmacologic modalities, only Acu/Moxa gave a marginal beneficial effect in one study, possibly limited by inherent methodological flaws.

Comparison between Magnification Techniques and Direct Vision in Thyroid Surgery: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background and Objectives: The most common complications after conventional thyroid surgery in adult patients are recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) injury and hypocalcemia. Magnification techniques (surgical loupes or surgical microscope) are used for identification of RLN and parathyroid glands to diminish these complications although more evidence is necessary to assess their safety and efficacy in comparison with direct vision. Methods and Materials: Electronic databases (Pubmed, Cochrane Library, Scopus) as well as gray literature sources were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing the frequency of transient/permanent RLN injury and hypocalcemia after thyroid surgery by using magnification techniques and direct vision for identification of RLN and parathyroid glands until October 17, 2019. The main outcomes were transient/permanent RLN injury and hypocalcemia. For all outcomes, 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were used. Statistical analysis was performed with RevMan 5.3. Results: Systematic review and meta-analysis included 3 RCTs with 437 patients overall. Magnification techniques did not significantly affect the risk of occurrence of transient RLN injury (OR = 0.38, 95% CI (0.11-1.35), I2 = 0%) and transient hypocalcemia (OR = 0.31, 95% CI (0.09-1.09), I2 = 23%) compared with direct vision. Included RCTs demonstrated only two patients with permanent hypocalcemia and another one with permanent RLN injury, who belonged to the direct vision group. Conclusion: The use of magnification techniques for identification of RLN and parathyroid glands seems to be as safe as direct vision. However, they do not decrease the risk of RLN injury and transient hypocalcemia after thyroid surgery compared with direct vision. Finally, further prospective research should be conducted as the sample among the studies was small.

Endobronchial removal of the high-risk osseous foreign bodies with evaluation and planning by virtual navigation system.

We report herein on two cases where high-risk osseous foreign bodies that incarcerated or penetrated the bronchial wall. The foreign bodies were unable to be removed via flexible bronchoscope (FB), with the foreign bodies close to the pulmonary artery and aortic artery. After preoperative evaluation and planning with the virtual bronchoscopic navigation (VBN) system, the airway foreign bodies were extracted effectively and safely using advanced therapeutic endoscopic technique by rigid bronchoscope (RB), thus avoiding the surgical thoracotomy.

Evaluating the use of elastography in endobronchial ultrasound technique as a diagnostic approach for mesothorax lymphadenopathy.

Introduction: Non-small cell lung cancer is still diagnosed at a late stage although we have new diagnostic equipment such the radial endobronchial ultrasound, convex probe endobronchial ultrasound, and electromagnetic navigation. The diagnostic techniques have been upgraded with rapid on-site evaluation (ROSE) and currently from 2014 real-time elastography is being evaluated as a ROSE technique.Areas covered: A thorough search was performed on PubMed and Scopus with the following key words: elastography, strain ratio, convex probe EBUS, endoscopic ultrasound (EUS), elastography. In the current mini review, we will focus on published data regarding elastography with the convex probe endobronchial ultrasound in two different systems and comment on this future ROSE technique. Elastography, strain ratio, and factors such as(I) margin (indistinct or distinct); (II) shape (oval or round); (III) short-axis size less or more than 1 cm; (IV) presence or absence of central hilar structure (CHS); (V) echogenicity (homogeneous or heterogeneous); and (VI) presence or absence of coagulation necrosis sign are presented in our review based on published literature.Expert opinion: Current data indicate that we can have up to 93% sensitivity and specificity of real-time elastography and strain ratio for the evaluation of benignancy and malignancy; however, sample biopsy is still necessary. For now, we can only reduce the number of punctures.

Intimal sarcoma of the pulmonary artery, a diagnostic enigma.

Heart malignancies are rare and difficult to diagnose at early stage. Usually they are discovered when they present disease symptoms. CT of the thorax with contrast, MRI of the thorax, endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) or echocardiography (transthoracic and/or transesophageal) and fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography-CT (FDG-PET-CT) can be used to diagnose this entity. We present a rare heart sarcoma and our diagnostic algorithm.

Endobronchial removal of a metallic needle using a flexible diagnostic bronchoscope and biopsy forceps. A case report from Djibouti.

Foreign body removal is a challenging procedure. Firstly we have to identify properly the foreign body and the position of the obstruction. Secondly we have to choose the proper removal equipment and finally the appropriate method of patient ventilation during the procedure. In our case report we present a challenging procedure with the removal of a metallic needle with minimum resources and equipment in a young girl in Djibouti, Africa.