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Recent epidemiological studies have reported an association between the ABO blood group and the acquisition, symptom severity, and mortality rate of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, the association between the ABO blood group antigens and the type and severity of COVID-19 vaccine-related adverse reactions has not been elucidated. We conducted a cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study in Saudi Arabia from February to April 2022. The study cohort included adults who had received or were willing to receive at least two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine of any type. We used Chi-square test to assess the association between the ABO blood groups and vaccine-related adverse reactions. values of <0.05 were considered significant. Of the 1180 participants, approximately half were aged 18-30 years old, 69.2% were female, and 41.6% reported their blood group as O. The most frequent COVID-19 vaccine-related adverse reactions were fatigue (65%), pain at the injection site (56%), and headache (45.9%). These adverse reactions demonstrated significant correlations with the education level ( = 0.003) and nationality ( = 0.018) of the participants following the first dose, with gender ( < 0.001) following the second dose, and with the general health status ( < 0.001) after all the doses. Remarkably, no correlation was observed between the severity of the vaccine-related adverse reactions and ABO blood groups. Our findings do not support a correlation between the severity of COVID-19 vaccine-related adverse reactions and the ABO blood groups of the vaccinees. The creation of a national database is necessary to account for population differences.

Musculoskeletal spinal disorders significantly impact patient populations from everyday workers to military soldiers. Effective treatment is critical to minimize the time between injury and returning to work and daily activities. Injection of amniotic membrane/umbilical cord (AMUC) tissue has demonstrated great potential in reducing patients' pain and has become an increasingly popular treatment option for painful orthopedic disorders.

Tuberculosis is a real public health problem in developing countries. The aim of our article was to study the epidemiological, clinical, diagnostic characteristics of female genital tuberculosis in Togo. This was a descriptive and cross-sectional study on all cases concerning histologically diagnosed female genital tuberculosis in the department of pathological anatomy of Lomé in 1997-2018 (20 years). We collected 22 cases of women's Genital tuberculosis (GT), representing 2.2% (1008 cases) of extra-pulmonary tuberculosis. The mean age of the patients was 33.8 ± 0.2 years. Nine (9) patients had a history of treated GT. Depending on the location, the ovaries and fallopian tubes were the most affected (n=9 cases, 40.9%). Eighteen patients (81.8%) had at least one immunosuppression factor including HIV in 13 patients (72.2%). The reasons for consultation were metrorrhagia and pelvic pain with an associated mass in 7 women discovered on clinical examination and imaging. The macroscopic appearance of the specimens was suggestive of the diagnosis of genital tuberculosis in 12 cases (54.5%). Histology revealed caseous necrosis isolated in 3 patients (13.6%) and associated with gigantocellular epithelioid granulomas in 19 patients (86.4%). The patients received standard antibiotic treatment combining rifampicin, isoniazid, ethambutol and pyrazinamide. Genital tuberculosis is a rare extra-pulmonary location in Togo, often occurring in women with HIV, and the clinical polymorphism can lead to confusion with gynecological cancers.

There are abundant studies on headache and migraine in women but few or none about their occurrence during labor, delivery, and postpartum (2 hours after delivery) owing to the low incidence. A headache attack can be debilitating when a woman is trying to manage labor pain. Research at our Women's Headache Center within the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics has begun to shed light on this potential association.

The POINT project aims to provide evidence to optimise chronic pain management, prevent adverse consequences of opioids, and improve chronic pain patients' pain relief, functional capacity, and quality of life. We describe the outline of the project and its work packages. More specifically, we describe a cohort of persons with chronic pain and a cohort of long-term opioid users identified from a national registry linkage.

Temozolomide is an oral alkylating agent with moderate side effects compared to other agents. However, the development of secondary malignancies following temozolomide has been reported. We describe the first case of primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) occurrence following glioblastoma treatment. A 69-year-old male was admitted to our hospital with a chief complaint of headache and dysnomia for six months. A ring-enhanced mass of the left temporal lobe was observed and gross total removal was performed. The tumor was pathologically diagnosed as isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH)-wildtype glioblastoma and he received 60 Gy of local irradiation in 30 fractions, with concurrent temozolomide at a dose of 75 mg/m. Grade 2 lymphopenia was discovered during treatment. Within 6 months, the patient developed a right parietal intra-axial tumor without local recurrence and was given 150-200 mg/m oral temozolomide for five consecutive days of a 28-day cycle. Within five cycles of temozolomide, complete remission was observed; however, after the eighth cycle, a new lesion in the right temporal lobe was discovered. Surgical removal was performed and histological findings were consistent with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, and the final diagnosis of Epstein-Barr virus negative PCNSL was established.

Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome (HGPS) is a ultrarare, fatal autosomal dominant disorder. The pathogenesis of the disease is a mutation in , which leads to the accumulation of progerin in cells, impairing the normal physiological functions. Stroke and transient ischemic attack seriously affect the survival rate and quality of life of HGPS children, although the literature of this aspect is limited. This study summarizes the clinical manifestations and related imaging features of HGPS children with stroke to improve pediatric clinicians' understanding of this disease.

Studies investigating the association between functional capacity and quality of life (QoL) in individuals with chronic Chagas cardiomyopathy (CCC) usually do not include a gold-standard evaluation of functional capacity, limiting the validity and the interpretation of the results. The present study is a cross-section analysis aiming to evaluate the association between functional capacity (quantified by cardiopulmonary exercise test [CPET]) and QoL in individuals with CCC. QoL was assessed using the SF-36 questionnaire. Sociodemographic, anthropometric, clinical, cardiac function and maximal progressive CPET variables were obtained from PEACH study. Generalized linear models adjusted for age, sex, and left ventricular ejection fraction were performed to evaluate the association between CPET variables and QoL. After adjustments, VO2 peak and VO2 AT were both associated with physical functioning (β = +0.05 and β = +0.05, respectively) and physical component summary (β = +0.03 and β = +0.03, respectively). Double product was associated with physical functioning (β = +0.003), general health perceptions (β = +0.003), physical component summary (β = +0.002), and vitality (β = +0.004). HRR≤12bpm was associated with physical functioning (β = -0.32), role limitations due to physical problems (β = -0.87), bodily pain (β = -0.26), physical component summary (β = -0.21), vitality (β = -0.38), and mental health (β = -0.19). VE/VCO2 slope presented association with all mental scales of SF-36: vitality (β = -0.028), social functioning (β = -0.024), role limitations due to emotional problems (β = -0.06), mental health (β = -0.04), and mental component summary (β = -0.02). The associations between CPET variables and QoL demonstrate the importance of CPET inclusion for a more comprehensive evaluation of individuals with CCC. In this setting, intervention strategies aiming to improve functional capacity may also promote additional benefits on QoL and should be incorporated as a treatment strategy for patients with CCC.

We report a very rare case of referred pain associated with entrapment of the greater occipital nerve (GON) occurring not only in the ipsilateral hemiface but also in the ipsilateral limb. There is an extensive convergence of cutaneous, tooth pulp, visceral, neck, and muscle afferents onto nociceptive and nonnociceptive neurons in the trigeminal nucleus caudalis (medullary dorsal horn). In addition, nociceptive input from trigeminal, meningeal afferents projects into trigeminal nucleus caudalis and dorsal horn of C1 and C2. Together, they form a functional unit, the trigeminocervical complex (TCC). The nociceptive inflow from suboccipital and high cervical structures is mediated with small-diameter afferent fibers in the upper cervical roots terminating in the dorsal horn of the cervical cord extending from the C2 segment up to the medullary dorsal horn. The major afferent contribution is mediated by the spinal root C2 that is peripherally represented by the greater occipital nerve (GON). Convergence of afferent signals from the trigeminal nerve and the GON onto the TCC is regarded as an anatomical basis of pain referral in craniofacial pain and primary headache syndrome. Ipsilateral limb pain occurs long before the onset of the referred facial pain. The subsequent severe hemifacial pain suggested GON entrapment. The occipital nerve block provided temporary relief from facial and extremity pain. Imaging studies found a benign osteoma in the ipsilateral suboccipital bone, but no direct contact with GON was identified. During GON decompression, severe entrapment of the GON was observed by the tendinous aponeurotic edge of the trapezius muscle, but the osteoma had no contact with the nerve. Following GON decompression, the referred trigeminal and extremity pain completely disappeared. The pain referral from GON entrapment seems to be attributed to the sensitization and hypersensitivity of the trigeminocervical complex (TCC). The clinical manifestations of TCC hypersensitivity induced by chronic entrapment of GONs are diverse when considering the occurrence of extremity pain as well as facial pain.

The ability of non-invasive brain stimulation to induce neuroplasticity and cause long-lasting functional changes is of considerable interest for the reversal of chronic pain and disability. Stimulation of the primary motor cortex (M1) has provided some of the most encouraging after-effects for therapeutic purposes, but little is known about its underlying mechanisms. In this study we combined transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) and fMRI to measure changes in task-specific activity and interregional functional connectivity between M1 and the whole brain. Using a randomized counterbalanced sham-controlled design, we applied anodal and cathodal tDCS stimulation over the left M1. In agreement with previous studies, we demonstrate that tDCS applied to the target region induces task-specific facilitation of local brain activity after anodal tDCS, with the stimulation effects having a negative relationship to the resting motor threshold. Beyond the local effects, tDCS also induced changes in multiple downstream regions distinct from the motor system that may be important for therapeutic efficacy, including the operculo-insular and cingulate cortex. These results offer opportunities to improve outcomes of tDCS for the individual patient based on the degree of presumed neuroplasticity. Further research is still warranted to address the optimal stimulation targets and parameters for those with disease-specific symptoms of chronic pain.