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Plain Language Summary What is this summary about? This is a summary of an article describing a clinical study that was originally published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. The study looked at whether a booster dose of VLA15, a vaccine being developed to provide protection against Lyme disease, could be a safe strategy for raising antibody levels before the next tick season. Adult participants first received intramuscular (into a muscle) injections of 135 or 180 micrograms VLA15 or placebo at Months 0, 2, and 6. Based on the results following these vaccinations, participants who received 180 micrograms VLA15 then received a booster dose of either VLA15 or placebo at Month 18. Safety and antibody responses were evaluated through Month 30. This study was blinded throughout, meaning that study researchers, staff, and participants did not know which treatment each participant received. What were the results? Initial results showed that a 180-microgram dose level of VLA15 given at Months 0, 2, and 6 was safe, well tolerated, and led to the highest antibody levels compared with the 135-microgram dose in this study or other combinations of dose levels and vaccination schedules tested in another study. Peak antibody levels increased during the first 3 doses and were highest after the Month 18 booster dose. Participants had similar side effects after each dose, and vaccination did not raise any safety concerns. What do the results mean? A Month 18 booster dose of 180 micrograms VLA15 after a 3-dose schedule at Months 0, 2, and 6 results in high antibody levels without raising any safety concerns up to the 1-year mark at Month 30. How to say (download PDF and double click sound icon to play sound)… Antibody: AN-tee-bod-ee Borrelia : baw-REH-lee-uh Lyme borreliosis: LYME baw-REH-lee-OH-sis Placebo: pluh-SEE-boh Boosting/booster dose: Giving an additional vaccine dose, called a booster dose, after one or more earlier doses to help the body produce more antibodies. VLA15: The vaccine being developed to provide protection against Lyme disease that was tested in this study. Vaccine: A medicine designed to help the body make antibodies against specific bacteria, viruses or anything else that might cause an infection. Antibody: A substance the body produces to fight off an infection. Placebo: Something that looks like the vaccine being studied but doesn’t contain any medicine. Antibody response: The amount of antibodies the body produces after vaccination. Blinded/blinding: A clinical study method in which study researchers, staff, and participants do not know which treatment each participant received. Side effect: A change in the participant’s body or health after vaccination. Side effects can be: local, occurring at or near the site of vaccination (for example, pain where the vaccine was given), or, systemic, affecting other parts of the body (for example, fever). This is an abstract of the Plain Language Summary of Publication article. View the full Plain Language Summary PDF of this article to read the full-text Link to original article here

Full PDF Issue 17(4) 2025

Background: With the growing use of generative AI in scientific writing, distinguishing between AI-generated and human-authored content has become a pressing challenge. It remains unclear whether ChatGPT (OpenAI, San Francisco, CA) can accurately and consistently recognize its own output.Methods: We randomly selected 100 research articles published in 2000, before the advent of generative AI, from 10 high-impact internal medicine journals. For each article, a structured abstract was generated using ChatGPT-4.0 based on the full PDF. The original and AI-generated abstracts (n = 200) were then evaluated twice by ChatGPT-4.0, which was asked to rate the likelihood of authorship on a 0-10 scale (0 = definitely human, 10 = definitely ChatGPT, 5 = undetermined). Classifications of 0-4 were considered human, and 6-10 were considered AI generated.Results: Misclassification rates were high in both rounds (49% and 47.5%). No abstract received a score of 5. Score distributions overlapped substantially between groups, with no statistically significant difference (Wilcoxon p-value = 0.93 and 0.21). Cohen’s kappa for binary classification was 0.33 (95% CI: 0.19-0.46) and weighted kappa on the 0-10 scale was 0.24 (95% CI: 0.15-0.34), both reflecting poor agreement.Conclusion: ChatGPT-4.0 cannot reliably identify whether a scientific abstract was written by itself or by humans. More robust external tools are needed to ensure transparency in academic authorship.

Plain Language Summary What is this summary about? This meta-analysis looked at the safety of empagliflozin, by looking at the number of side effects in a broad range of participants who were taking empagliflozin for type 2 diabetes, heart failure, or chronic (long-term) kidney disease across 4 large studies (20,933 participants in total). Researchers looked at the number of side effects in participants who took empagliflozin compared to those who took a placebo (a pill that looked like empagliflozin but contained no medicine). For the main results of the 4 individual trials, please see the “Where can readers find out more information about these studies?” section at the end of this article to find out more. What are the key takeaways? The number of side effects reported was similar in participants who took the placebo and in participants who took empagliflozin. The number of participants with a serious (life-threatening, requiring hospitalization, or caused people to die) urinary tract infection, including serious kidney infections, was similar in participants who took the placebo or empagliflozin. However, the number of serious urinary tract infections was higher in women taking empagliflozin compared with women taking the placebo. The number of serious urinary tract infections was similar in people with or without diabetes, or who had or did not have chronic kidney disease. The numbers of participants with a serious infection of the outer reproductive organs (genital infection) was similar in participants who took the placebo or empagliflozin. Ketoacidosis was a very rare side effect but was slightly more frequent in participants taking empagliflozin. The number of participants with a serious reduction in blood volume was slightly higher in participants taking empagliflozin. The number of participants with serious kidney injury was lower in participants taking empagliflozin. The numbers of participants with severe low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), break or crack in the bone (bone fractures), or amputation of the leg or part of the leg were similar in participants who took the empagliflozin or placebo. What are the main conclusions reported by the researchers? This study reported similar side effects of empagliflozin as reported in previous studies in a broad range of participants with type 2 diabetes, heart failure, or chronic kidney disease. How to say (download PDF and double click sound icon to play sound)… Cardiovascular disease: car-dee-yoh-VAH-skyoo-luhr dih-ZEEZ Diabetes: dye-uh-BEE-teez Empagliflozin: EM-pah-glih-FLOW-zin Hypoglycemia: HY-poh-gly-SEE-mee-uh Ketoacidosis: KEE-tow-ah-sih-DOW-sus Pyelonephritis: pai-uh-low-nuh-FRAI-tus Urosepsis: YUH-row-sehp-sus Ventricle: ven-TRI-kul Ketoacidosis: Acidic blood when there are high levels of substances called ketones in the blood. Ketones are made by the body when fat is degraded. Ketones can be used as an energy source by the body. This is an abstract of the Plain Language Summary of Publication article. View the full Plain Language Summary PDF of this article to read the full-text Link to original article here

Plain Language Summary What is this summary about? This plain language summary reports results from the LIBERTY 1, LIBERTY 2, and LIBERTY Long-Term Extension clinical studies, looking specifically at outcomes in Black/African American women, as these individuals have uterine fibroids more frequently and more severe disease. These studies examined the effect of relugolix combination therapy (relugolix plus estradiol and norethindrone acetate), a medication used in women with uterine fibroids and heavy menstrual bleeding. The main aim of these studies was to investigate how well relugolix combination therapy worked in reducing menstrual blood loss in women with uterine fibroids. What were the results? In total, 70 Black/African American women received daily relugolix combination therapy for up to 1 year. Over 8 out of 10 women responded to the treatment, meaning that relugolix combination therapy decreased menstrual blood loss. In around two-thirds of women, treatment led to no menstrual periods, or little blood loss. In the blood, hemoglobin carries oxygen and anemia is associated with haemoglobin levels less than 10.5 g/dL. Around 60% of women who had anemia at the beginning of the study experienced substantial improvements in their hemoglobin (increase of more than 2 g/dL). Women also experienced improvements in their quality of life. The most common adverse events in Black/African American women were hot flushes, hypertension (which is high blood pressure), and headache. Bone loss was minimal. What do the results mean? Relugolix combination therapy is as effective in Black/African American women as the overall LIBERTY study population despite Black/African American women typically having more severe fibroid disease. How to say Uterine fibroid (YOU-Tuh-Ryne FY-Broyd) Relugolix (Reh-LU-Go-LIX) Leiomyomas (lie-o-my-O-muhs) Norethindrone acetate (NAWR-Eth-in-Drone As-Uh-Tate) This is an abstract of the Plain Language Summary of Publication article. View the full Plain Language Summary PDF of this article to read the full-text Link to original article here

Plain Language Summary What is this plain language summary about? For this study, a Delphi panel of 10 experts discussed and agreed upon recommendations for doctors and other healthcare providers about considerations to make when providing care for people who are very sleepy during the day (that is, the patients have excessive daytime sleepiness) and have sleep apnea. How to say (download PDF and double click sound icon to play sound)… Apnea: AP-nee-uh Consensus: kuhn-SEN-suhs Delphi: DEL-fie What are the key takeaways? The panel reached consensus on 32 statements. The Delphi panel agreed that excessive daytime sleepiness is when a patient says they have trouble staying alert while they are awake. Healthcare providers should use appropriate tests to check for this symptom when a patient is first tested for sleep apnea, from 6 weeks to 3 months after starting a new treatment for sleep apnea, and otherwise at least once per year along with regular follow-up visits after the patient has started treatment for sleep apnea. The panel also agreed that even after ensuring patients use their treatment for sleep apnea as prescribed for 3 to 6 months, some patients still feel sleepy during the day. In these cases, healthcare providers should think about other potential causes of the sleepiness and consider other diagnostic tests or using medicine to help these patients stay alert during the day. These recommendations may improve the care of patients by assisting healthcare providers in diagnosing patients, making decisions about treatments, and explaining the benefits of treatment to patients. Delphi panel: A group of experts on a certain topic with the goal of reaching a consensus on answers to questions related to the topic. Consensus: A majority agreement between the experts. This is an abstract of the Plain Language Summary of Publication article. View the full Plain Language Summary PDF of this article to read the full-text Link to original article here

Plain Language Summary What is this summary about? Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease. This means that the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the beta cells, the type of cell that makes the hormone insulin, in the pancreas. Insulin allows a person to use energy from food and controls blood sugar levels. Unless type 1 diabetes is found early and treated, it can cause serious symptoms and life-threatening complications, such as diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), which is when acid builds up in the blood. DKA happens when there is not enough insulin in the body, and if not caught early, it can potentially cause coma and death. Type 1 diabetes can happen at any age, and currently, there is no cure. The reason why people get type 1 diabetes is not fully understood, but it seems to be partly due to genetics. The chance of getting type 1 diabetes is higher if another family member has it. However, most people diagnosed don’t have a family member with type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes progresses silently for months, years, or even decades before symptoms develop, such as increased thirst, frequent urination (going to the bathroom a lot), and unintended weight loss. Doctors and nurses can now screen and identify people who are at early stages of type 1 diabetes (without symptoms) with blood tests that measure diabetes-related autoantibodies. Early detection through screening allows people to 1) learn about the disease before symptoms start and before they need insulin to survive; 2) receive treatments that delay type 1 diabetes getting worse, if indicated; 3) take part in research trials, if desired; and 4) not be as ill when the need for insulin happens. By finding type 1 diabetes early, people can connect with the right care team and develop the skills needed to manage later stage type 1 diabetes when insulin needs to be given. Early detection can help people avoid hospital visits and prevent life-threatening conditions. Screening for type 1 diabetes will help people get the help they need to delay type 1 diabetes onset while preparing for diabetes care. How to say (double click sound icon to play sound)… Autoantibody: aw-toh-AN-ti-bod-ee Autoimmune: aw-tuh-ih-MYOO-n Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA): dye-uh-BET-ik KEE-toe-ass-ih-DOH-sis Glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c): gly-ko-SIH-lay-tid hee-muh-GLOH-bin Immune therapy: ih-MYOON THER-uh-pee Immune system: The immune system is the body's natural defense system that helps protect against infections and diseases caused by bacteria and viruses. Diabetes-related autoantibody: A diabetes-related autoantibody is a marker that appears in the blood when an attack on the beta cells in the pancreas occurs. This is an abstract of the Plain Language Summary of Publication article. View the full Plain Language Summary PDF of this article to read the full-text Link to original article here

No abstract available.

Background: The Ministry of Health revealed that in 2023, stroke cases will increase, and funding for stroke will be very large, causing other diseases. Therefore, patients must carry out the cylindrical grip method independently without large costs. ] This study aims to assess the effectiveness of applying Range of Motion (ROM) exercises using the Cylindrical Grip method to enhance upper extremity muscle strength in non-hemorrhagic stroke patients. Methods: A literature review was carried out using PRISMA flow diagrams. The journal databases used are Google Scholar and Scopus. Inclusion criteria include articles that focus on the effect of the cylindrical grip method on non-hemorrhagic stroke patients, journals for the last 5 years, full pdf access, the exclusion criteria are research articles of the review type. Results: The search results obtained 10 journals by searching two databases: Google Scholar and Scopus Conclusion: The cylindrical grip method significantly increases muscle strength in non- hemorrhagic stroke patients and can be used as a gradual mobilization method that can be carried out at home independently by the patient.

Plain Language Summary What is this plain language summary about? The T2NOW study was a clinical trial which tested the use of two different blood sugar-reducing drugs (dapagliflozin or saxagliptin) in young people aged between 10 and 17 years with type 2 diabetes. Each drug was compared with a placebo to see to what extent the treatment can control blood sugar levels, and to observe any side effects. Type 2 diabetes is a chronic condition affecting how the body processes sugar, resulting in high levels of sugar in the blood. Over time, high blood sugar levels can cause damage to certain parts of the body such as the cardiovascular system, the kidneys, nerves, and eyes, often resulting in serious health problems. Once considered a disease of middle-age or older-age, it is becoming more common in younger people, in part because of an increase in childhood obesity. This is concerning, as when diabetes starts at a young age it can progress quickly and lead to these serious health problems earlier in life. Improvements in diet and exercise are important elements for everyone with type 2 diabetes. However, there are currently very few other treatments available for children and adolescents. What are the key takeaways? When compared to a group of participants receiving placebo in the study, participants receiving dapagliflozin had significantly improved blood sugar control but participants receiving saxagliptin did not. Both the dapagliflozin and saxagliptin treatments were generally well tolerated by participants, with similar proportions in each group experiencing side effects. Only one participant in each group stopped treatment because of side effects. Similar proportions of participants in all groups–including the placebo group–had hypoglycemia, suggesting that neither dapagliflozin nor saxagliptin affected the likelihood of experiencing this important side effect. What are the main conclusions reported by the researchers? The T2NOW study showed that dapagliflozin could be an addition to treatment options for young people with type 2 diabetes as it helped to control blood sugar levels and did not raise any safety concerns. In contrast, although there were no safety concerns related to use of saxagliptin, it did not significantly help to control blood sugar levels in this study. This is an abstract of the Plain Language Summary of Publication article. View the full Plain Language Summary PDF of this article to read the full-text Link to original article here

Plain Language Summary What is this summary about? This article summarizes an economic evaluation of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), a treatment for severe symptomatic aortic stenosis (SSAS). SSAS occurs when the aortic valve, which allows blood to leave the heart, becomes very narrow. This reduces blood flow to the body, causing symptoms like tiredness, chest pain, dizziness, or fainting. Treating SSAS requires replacing the valve. Untreated SSAS results in heart failure and death. Before TAVR, SSAS patients had two options, medical management and surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR). Medical management helps with symptoms but does not replace the valve, leading patients to eventually die from SSAS. SAVR replaces the valve through open-heart surgery, which is invasive, involving making a large cut through the chest bone. Concerns about this invasiveness led many patients to avoid SAVR, leaving their SSAS untreated. TAVR was introduced in 2010. It is less invasive than SAVR, involving inserting a new valve through a small cut in the leg. TAVR has become popular and twice as many patients now undergo TAVR compared to SAVR. We measure TAVR’s net benefits as the value of its health benefits minus its healthcare costs. We measure these net benefits in three patient groups aged 65 and above in the United States. Group 1 patients are ineligible for SAVR, so TAVR is their only treatment option. Group 2 patients would have received SAVR if TAVR were not available. Group 3 patients are eligible for SAVR but concerned about its invasiveness, and so would have stayed untreated without TAVR. Economic evaluation: A type of study that measures the benefits and costs of a treatment like TAVR and judges whether the benefits are sufficiently large to justify the costs (or put another way, whether the technology represents good value-for-money). Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR): Replacement of the aortic valve in SSAS patients using a thin tube called a catheter that enters the body through a small cut near the leg and delivers and installs a valve replacement. New treatment option for SSAS from 2010 onwards. A minimally invasive treatment. Aortic stenosis (AS): A heart condition where a heart valve called the aortic valve becomes very narrow, forcing the heart to work harder and limiting blood flow to the rest of the body. Severe Symptomatic Aortic Stenosis (SSAS): Severe form of AS when the narrowing of the aortic valve is significant and accompanied by symptoms like fatigue, chest pain, shortness of breath, dizziness, or fainting. What were the key takeaways? Net benefits per patient are significant in all groups, roughly equal in groups 1 and 2, and over six times larger in group 3. When net benefits are added up across patients, group 3’s total net benefit is 30 times larger than that of groups 1 and 2 combined. What are the main conclusions? Past studies ignored TAVR’s value in helping treat patients who might go untreated because of concerns over SAVR’s invasiveness. But this is TAVR’s largest value to SSAS patients. Our findings support continuing and increasing access to TAVR among SSAS patients, especially those who may go untreated because of concerns about invasive treatment. Aortic valve: One of the four heart valves. It connects the left side of the heart with the aorta, which is the large artery carrying oxygen-rich blood to the body. The aortic valve controls blood flow into the aorta, ensuring it moves in one direction. Medical management (MM): Involves medication and monitoring of SSAS patients but no treatment in the form of valve replacement. Associated with high risk of death. Surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR): Replacement of the aortic valve in SSAS patients through open heart surgery. The sole treatment option for SSAS before 2010. A highly invasive treatment given its use of open-heart surgery. This is an abstract of the Plain Language Summary of Publication article. View the full Plain Language Summary PDF of this article to read the full-text Link to original article here

Plain Language Summary What is this summary about? This is a plain language summary of an article originally published in Patient Preference and Adherence. This study aimed to identify the notable symptoms and impacts of sickle cell disease from the point of view of individuals living with sickle cell disease and their caregivers. The study also sought to understand the factors involved in individuals living with sickle cell disease’ and caregivers’ decisions and preferences if and when they seek care during a pain crisis. This summary describes: the symptoms experienced by adolescents and adults living with sickle cell disease and their severity; the treatments they and their caregivers prefer to use when they are experiencing a pain crisis; and the factors that go into deciding when and whether individuals living with sickle cell disease and their caregivers should seek outside help -- to go to a hospital, for example - during a pain crisis. What were the results? Individuals living with sickle cell disease undergoing an acute pain crisis and their caregivers consider many factors when deciding whether to seek care at a medical facility. These include: The intensity of their symptoms If the facility has a treatment plan for them already in place If the facility has long wait times If the facility has an understanding and compassionate staff The individual's age and ability to manage their daily responsibilities Racial bias, shown in the actions and lack of empathy of Emergency Department staff toward individuals living with sickle cell disease, frequently factored into the individuals' and caregivers’ decision-making and hinders their ability to get the treatment needed during a pain crisis. What do the results mean? There is a need for a unified care team at medical facilities that treats all individuals living with sickle cell disease with the same high level of empathy and treatment quality and for a strong support system for individuals living with sickle cell disease outside of the hospital or clinic. This is an abstract of the Plain Language Summary of Publication article. View the full Plain Language Summary PDF of this article to read the full-text Link to original article here

Abstract: "LuminousBookWeb" is a groundbreaking library management system designed for an enhanced user experience. The system features a dynamic online catalog with keyword search, providing detailed book information, abstracts, and full PDF access. A streamlined booking system generates QR codes for physical library transition, integrating with a smart almirah that guides users to booked books using responsive lighting. This project redefines library interactions by seamlessly blending digital cataloging with a novel wayfinding mechanism, simplifying material retrieval, and offering an interactive and user-friendly library experience.

Abstract Previous studies that inferred the observation error statistics from the innovation statistics can only provide the second moment of the error probability density function (pdf). However, the observation errors are sometimes non‐Gaussian, for example, for observation operators with unknown representation errors, or for bounded observations. In this study, we propose a new method, the Deconvolution‐based Observation Error Estimation (DOEE), to infer the full observation error pdf. DOEE does not rely on linear assumptions on the observation operator, the optimality of the data assimilation algorithm, or implicit Gaussian assumptions on the error pdf. The main assumption of DOEE is the availability of an ensemble of background forecasts following the independent and identically distributed (i.i.d.) assumption. We conduct idealized experiments to demonstrate the ability of the DOEE to accurately retrieve a non‐Gaussian (bimodal, skewed, or bounded) observation error pdf. We then apply the DOEE to construct a state‐dependent observation error model for satellite radiances by stratifying the observation errors based on cloud amount. In general, we find that the observation error pdfs in many categories are skewed. By adding a new predictor, total column water vapor (TCWV), into the state‐dependent model, we find that for cloudy pixels, when TCWV is small, the observation error pdfs are quite similar and Gaussian‐like, whereas when TCWV is large, the observation error pdfs differ for different cloud amount, while all of them are positively biased. This result suggests that exploring other predictors, like cloud type, might improve the stratification of the observation error model. We also discuss ways to include a non‐parametric observation error pdf into modern data assimilation schemes, including a consideration of the strong‐constraint 4D‐Var perspective, as well as the implications for other observation types including observations with bounded range.

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