A faulty control arm makes a new trial for tricuspid valve regurgitation intervention seem positive. But in reality, the results probably aren’t.

The mass in the young child’s head was a “malformed monochorionic diamniotic twin,” which means that the fetuses shared the same placenta but had separate amniotic sacs in the womb. The phenomenon of one fetus becoming enveloped by another is known as “fetus in fetu” (“parasitic twin”), and it occurs in approximately 1 in 500,000 live births. The malformed fetus usually appears as a mass in the abdomen of the other fetus, wedged behind the abdominal wall tissues. In this case, however, the mass appeared in the “host” fetus’s head and most likely arose very early in development.

Thirty-three studies comprised of 2,384 participants in various populations, including community dwellers, nursing home residents, and those with chronic disease, were identified. Hatha yoga was the foundation of most yoga styles, and Iyengar or chair-based methods were frequently used. Measures of gait speed, handgrip strength, balance, lower-extremity strength and endurance, and multicomponent physical performance were used as single-item frailty markers; no studies included a validated definition of frailty.

The Abbott Alinity I TBI test is a laboratory-based test that measures ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase L1 (UCH-L1) and glial fibrillary acidic protein, two biomarkers in the blood that have been linked to brain injury when present in high concentrations. The test has a sensitivity of 96.7% and a negative predictive value of 99.4%. The availability of a blood test provides clinicians with an objective method to quickly evaluate patients with mTBIs while eliminating the need for a head CT scan, potentially reducing health care costs and minimizing emergency department wait times.

Top-line data from an open-label Phase 2 study of 216 people with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer’s disease treated with simufilam tablets at 100 mg twice daily for a year revealed a minimal decline in cognitive ability overall, as measured by the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Subscale (ADAS-Cog-11). Simufilam was found to be safe and well tolerated, and it alleviated depression and dementia-related behaviors in patients, which were two exploratory trial goals.

An appeals court determined that in this instance, Dr. K had a physician-patient relationship with the patient, based on the phone call between Dr. K and the patient’s doctor. “A doctor who gives an informal opinion at the request of a treating physician does not owe a duty of care to the patient whose case was discussed.” The court held that wasn’t the case in this instance. See why in the linked article.