Recent Publications
Yosefa Birati, Enav Yefet, Yuri Perlitz, Naim Shehadeh, Sivan Spitzer: Cultural and Digital Health Literacy Appropriateness of App- and Web-Based Systems Designed for Pregnant Women With Gestational Diabetes Mellitus: Scoping Review (J Med Internet Res .)
The prevalence of women diagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is increasing dramatically. Mobile technologies to enhance patient self-management offer many advantages for women diagnosed with GDM. However, to our knowledge, although mobile health (mHealth) and telemedicine systems for GDM management exist, evidence on their cultural and digital health literacy appropriateness levels is limited. Objective: This review aimed to search and assess the literature on mHealth and telemedicine systems designed for women diagnosed with GDM. Our assessment of these technologies focused on their cultural and digital health literacy appropriateness as well as the systems' effectiveness in improving glycemic control and maternal and infant outcomes.
Khalaf Kridin: Therapeutic effects of Fc gamma RIV inhibition are mediated by selectively blocking immune complex-induced neutrophil activation in epidermolysis bullosa acquisita (Front Immunol . )
Epidermolysis bullosa acquisita (EBA) is a subepidermal autoimmune bullous disease caused by autoantibodies targeting type VII collagen (COL7). It is characterized by inflammation and subepidermal blistering mainly through immune complex (IC)-mediated activation of neutrophils. In experimental EBA, binding of neutrophils to ICs in the skin and induction of clinical disease depends on the expression of the Fc gamma receptor (FcγR) IV. As activating FcγR mediate both neutrophil extravasation and activation, we used multiphoton imaging to obtain further insights into the mechanistic contribution of FcγRIV in the pathogenesis of EBA.
Khalaf Kridin, Daniel Goral, Erez Onn: Vitiligo and Crohn's disease form an autoimmune cluster: insights from a population-based study (Scand J Gastroenterol . )
While the coexistence of vitiligo and Crohn's disease (CD) has been reported in individual patients, the epidemiological association between these autoimmune conditions remains inconclusive. Objective: To assess the bidirectional association between vitiligo and CD.
Khalaf Kridin: Evaluation of clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients with cutaneous sarcoidosis: A single-center retrospective cohort study (Front Med (Lausanne) . )
Cutaneous sarcoidosis is a relatively rare disease whose clinical manifestations include red-brown macules, plaques, papules and subcutaneous nodules. The skin changes may also be restricted to pre-existing scars. Cutaneous sarcoidosis can be associated with systemic organ involvement. Objectives: Aim of this retrospective study was to longitudinally investigate clinical and laboratory findings in patients with cutaneous sarcoidosis.
Cytokine Patterns in COVID-19 Patients: Which Cytokines Predict Mortality and Which Protect Against? (Curr Issues Mol Biol . )
People infected with SARS-CoV-2 may develop COVID-19 in a wide range of clinical severity. Pulmonary fibrosis is characterized by several grades of chronic inflammation and collagen deposition in the interalveolar space. SARS-CoV-2 infection has been demonstrated to cause lung fibrosis without a currently elucidated mechanism. Some studies emphasize the role of proinflammatory cytokines. This research studies the correlation of the released cytokines with mortality or lung injury in COVID-19 patients.
(Maamoun Basheer, Elias Saad, Majd Kananeh, Layyous Asad, Osama Khayat, Anan Badarne, Zaki Abdo, Nada Arraf, Faris Milhem, Tamara Bassal, Mariana Boulos, Nimer Assy)
Avi Benov: Blast Injury Patterns Among Israel Defense Forces Fatalities (Mil Med . )
The incidence of blast injuries on the battlefield has risen over the last several decades. In order to improve prevention and treatment, it is essential to understand the severity and bodily distribution of these injuries. This study aims to characterize blast injury patterns among IDF fatalities.
Inass Kayyal-Tarabeia, Michael Blank, Keren Agay-Shay: Residence near industrial complex and cancer incidence: A registry-based cohort of 1,022,637 participants with a follow-up of 21 years, Israel (Environ Res .)
Industrial complex (IC) residence is associated with higher cancer incidence in adults and children. However, the effect on young adults and the residence duration are not well described. Since the beginning of the 20th century, the Haifa bay area (HBA) has a major IC area with petrochemical industry complex and many other industries. The objectives of the current study were to estimate the association between IC residence and cancer incidence and to evaluate the effect of the residence duration.
Limor Meoded Danon: Opportunities and challenges with the German act for the protection of children with variations of sex development (Int J Impot Res . )
In May 2021, the German parliament passed a long-debated law to protect children with variations of sex development/sex characteristics from medically unnecessary surgeries until they are old enough to decide for themselves. This law joins similar laws passed in other countries in recent years and recognizes the rights of people with variations of sex development to self-determination and bodily autonomy. In this article, we discuss the notion of bodily autonomy and examine details of the German legislation in the context of psychosocial care. We focus on the following questions: (1) How may the law help to preserve the genital integrity and future bodily autonomy of newborns with variations of sex development (VSD)? (2) What are the opportunities and challenges of this law? (3) What strategies are needed to implement the law in ways that include medical professionals' knowledge and skills, parental cooperation, and protection for the genital integrity as well as the future genital autonomy of newborns with VSD?
Chovav Handler: High rates of recurrence of gallstone associated episodes following acute cholecystitis during long term follow-up: a retrospective comparative study of patients who did not receive surgery (Eur J Trauma Emerg Surg . )
Patients who are admitted with acute cholecystitis (AC) and do not undergo urgent cholecystectomy, are usually referred for interval cholecystectomy. Many do not have surgery for various reasons, and some of those do not suffer from any recurrent symptoms. The primary objective of this study was to assess the rate and nature of recurrent gallstone-related events in this population over a long period, and its association with demographic and clinical parameters. A secondary objective was to assess the reasons for not undergoing surgery.
David Karasik: Both indirect maternal and direct fetal genetic effects reflect the observational relationship between higher birth weight and lower adult bone mass (BMC Med .)
Birth weight is considered not only to undermine future growth, but also to induce lifelong diseases; the aim of this study is to explore the relationship between birth weight and adult bone mass.
Ory Wiesel: Thoracic surgery in Israel (J Thorac Dis . )
During the past 74 years since its establishment, Israel has evolved into a modernized country with well-established and effective public health care system. Thoracic surgeons in Israel play a central role in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with diseases of the chest wall, diaphragm, mediastinum, airways, Lung, and esophagus as well are taking part in designated trauma teams....
Ory Wiesel: Perspective and practice patterns of mediastinal staging among thoracic surgeons (J Thorac Dis . )
Accurate mediastinal staging of lung cancer patients is critical for determining appropriate treatment. Mediastinoscopy and endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS)-guided transbronchial needle aspiration are the most commonly utilized techniques. Limited data exist on training and practice trends among thoracic surgeons. We aimed to determine training and practice patterns and find whether there is a paradigm shift in mediastinal staging after the introduction of EBUS into practice among thoracic surgeons in the United States.
Haneen Jabaly-Habib: Ocular manifestations in systemic diseases (Harefuah .)
Uveitis and neuro-ophthalmic manifestations may indicate an underlying systemic and/or neurologic condition. A systematic approach to patients in the form of comprehensive anamnesis and thorough ocular and physical examination helps to reveal an undiagnosed condition or an evolving illness. Prompt diagnosis is of utmost importance in such cases because of potential sight-threatening and life-threatening nature of such conditions. Both subspecialties of neuro-ophthalmology and uveitis require, in many instances, a multidisciplinary approach, as emphasized in this special issue.
Khalaf Kridin: Atypical clinical manifestation and protracted latency are observed in the emerging variant of checkpoint inhibitor-associated bullous pemphigoid (Br J Dermatol . )
The last two decades have witnessed a substantial increase in the incidence of bullous pemphigoid (BP) worldwide. One of the most compelling interpretations accounting for this epidemiological observation is the growing exposure to novel drug classes that might be implicated in eliciting the disease. Multiple lines of evidence have recently accumulated to suggest that exposure to dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP4) inhibitors and checkpoint inhibitors (CPIs) is associated with an elevated risk of BP. As these drugs were introduced only in the past two decades, their rising utilization underlies, at least in part, the growing incidence of BP.
Doron Sagi, Mary Catharine Joy Rudolf, Sivan Spitzer: A social ecological approach to promote learning health disparities in the clinical years: impact of a home-visiting educational program for medical students (BMC Med Educ . )
There is consensus that medical schools have a duty to educate students about social determinants of health (SDOH) and equip them with skills required to ameliorate health disparities. Although the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) urged the development of experiential long term programs, teaching is usually conducted in the pre-clinical years or as voluntary courses. ETGAR a required health disparities course, based on the social ecological model, was initiated to answer the NAM call. This study aimed to ascertain the course impact on students learning of SDOH and health disparities.