Rejected

Common treatment for chronic migraine headaches include injection of corticosteroid and anesthetic agents at local trigger sites. However, the effects of therapy are short-term and lifelong treatment is often necessary. In contrast, surgical decompression of migraine trigger sites accomplishes the same goal yet demonstrates successful long-term elimination of chronic migraines.

Chronic migraine is a primary headache disorder affecting approximately 3-7 million individuals in the United States. This condition is associated with significant individual and societal consequences, causing impaired function and high levels of health care utilization.

Endometriosis is a common gynaecological condition characterized by severe pelvic pain and/or infertility. The combination of nonspecific symptoms and invasive laparoscopic diagnostics have prompted researchers to evaluate potential biomarkers that would enable a non-invasive diagnosis of endometriosis. Endometriosis is an inflammatory disease thus different cytokines represent potential diagnostic biomarkers. As panels of biomarkers are expected to enable better separation between patients and controls we evaluated 40 different cytokines in plasma samples of 210 patients (116 patients with endometriosis; 94 controls) from two medical centres (Slovenian, Austrian). Results of the univariate statistical analysis showed no differences in concentrations of the measured cytokines between patients and controls, confirmed by principal component analysis showing no clear separation amongst these two groups. In order to validate the hypothesis of a more profound (non-linear) differentiating dependency between features, machine learning methods were used. We trained four common machine learning algorithms (decision tree, linear model, k-nearest neighbour, random forest) on data from plasma levels of proteins and patients' clinical data. The constructed models, however, did not separate patients with endometriosis from the controls with sufficient sensitivity and specificity. This study thus indicates that plasma levels of the selected cytokines have limited potential for diagnosis of endometriosis.

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported that there has been a mistake regarding the unit of duration of surgery, consciousness recovery time, and extubation time in Table 1; the correct unit is minute.

This article presents updated information on kratom (Mitragyna speciosa), a natural opioid with stimulant properties that is currently sold in the United States without a prescription.

A novel strategy for management of acute pain associated with sickle cell disease (SCD), referred to as the oral tier approach, is described.

Tanaka is a traditional medicine for treating coughs, dyspepsia, diabetes, asthma, neuralgia, and inflammatory disorders, and is distributed in Asia, especially in Korea, Japan, and China. This study aimed to use bioactivity-guided fractionation to find therapeutic phytochemicals from seeds, which can attenuate inflammatory responses. Nine coumarins (-) were isolated from the methanolic extract of seed shells and the inhibitory effects against inflammatory mediators were investigated using murine macrophages. Among the coumarins, compound , isogosferol (ISO), more potently attenuated the production of nitric oxide (NO) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW 264.7 cells. ISO also inhibited the expression of inducible nitric oxide (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in LPS-stimulated macrophages. Additionally, the phosphorylation of extracellular-regulated kinases (pERK)1/2 was reduced by ISO. We confirmed that ISO attenuated the release of interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), which is a central mediator of the inflammatory response. These results demonstrate that ISO from seed shells may be a potent therapeutic candidate for the treatment of inflammatory diseases.

To observe the correlation between referred pain distribution and acupoint sensitization in patients with intestinal diseases.

To explore the clinical therapeutic effect and mechanism of acupuncture on headache in the recovery phase of ischemic stroke.

Recent advances in neural engineering have restored mobility to people with paralysis, relieved symptoms of movement disorders, reduced chronic pain, restored the sense of hearing, and provided sensory perception to individuals with sensory deficits. This progress was enabled by the team-based, interdisciplinary approaches used by neural engineers. Neural engineers have advanced clinical frontiers by leveraging tools and discoveries in quantitative and biological sciences and through collaborations between engineering, science, and medicine. The movement toward bioelectronic medicines, where neuromodulation aims to supplement or replace pharmaceuticals to treat chronic medical conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and psychiatric disorders is a prime example of a new frontier made possible by neural engineering. Although one of the major goals in neural engineering is to develop technology for clinical applications, this technology may also offer unique opportunities to gain insight into how biological systems operate. Despite significant technological progress, a number of ethical and strategic questions remain unexplored. Addressing these questions will accelerate technology development to address unmet needs. The future of these devices extends far beyond treatment of neurological impairments, including potential human augmentation applications. Our task, as neural engineers, is to push technology forward at the intersection of disciplines, while responsibly considering the readiness to transition this technology outside of the laboratory to consumer products. This article aims to highlight the current state of the neural engineering field, its links with other engineering and science disciplines, and the challenges and opportunities ahead. The goal of this article is to foster new ideas for innovative applications in neurotechnology.