The utilization of antidepressants and benzodiazepines among people with major depression in Canada

Objective: Although clinical guidelines recommend monotherapy with antidepressants (ADs) for major depression, polypharmacy with benzodiazepines (BDZs) remains an issue. Risks associated with such treatments include tolerance and dependence, among others. We assessed the prevalence and determinants of AD and BDZ utilization among Canadians who experienced a major depressive episode (MDE) in the previous 12 months, and determined the association of seeing a psychiatrist on the utilization of ADs and BDZs. Method: Data were drawn from the 2002 Canadian Community Health Survey: Health and Well-Being, a nationally representative sample of Canadians aged 15 years and older. Descriptive statistics quantified utilization, while logistic regression identified factors associated with utilization, such as sociodemographic characteristics or type of physician seen. Sampling weights and bootstrap variance estimations were used for all analysis. Results: The overall prevalence of AD and BDZ utilization was 49.3% of respondents who experienced an MDE in the past 12 months and reported AD use. Key determinants of utilization were younger age and unemployment in the past week (OR 2.6; P < 0.001). Being seen by a psychiatrist increased utilization (OR 2.5; P < 0.001), possibly because psychiatrists were seeing patients with severe depression. Conclusion: A large proportion of people with past-year MDEs utilized ADs and BDZs. It is unclear how much of this is appropriate given that evidence-based clinical guidelines recommend monotherapy with ADs in the treatment of major depression

Use of a handheld terahertz pulsed imaging device to differentiate benign and malignant breast tissue

Since nearly 20% of breast-conserving surgeries (BCS) require re-operation, there is a clear need for developing new techniques to more accurately assess tumor resection margins intraoperatively. This study evaluates the diagnostic accuracy of a handheld terahertz pulsed imaging (TPI) system to discriminate benign from malignant breast tissue ex vivo. Forty six freshly excised breast cancer samples were scanned with a TPI handheld probe system, and histology was obtained for comparison. The image pixels on TPI were classified using (1) parameters in combination with support vector machine (SVM) and (2) Gaussian wavelet deconvolution in combination with Bayesian classification. The results were an accuracy, sensitivity, specificity of 75%, 86%, 66% for method 1, and 69%, 87%, 54% for method 2 respectively. This demonstrates the probe can discriminate invasive breast cancer from benign breast tissue with an encouraging degree of accuracy, warranting further study

Nanoparticles as multimodal photon transducers of ionizing radiation

In biomedical imaging, nanoparticles combined with radionuclides that generate Cerenkov luminescence are used in diagnostic imaging, photon-induced therapies, and as activatable probes. In these applications, the nanoparticle is often viewed as a carrier inert to ionizing radiation from the radionuclide. However, certain phenomena such as enhanced nanoparticle luminescence and generation of reactive oxygen species cannot be explained by only Cerenkov luminescence interactions with nanoparticles. Herein, we report methods to examine the mechanisms of nanoparticle excitation by radionuclides, including interactions with Cerenkov luminescence, β particles, and γ radiation. We demonstrate that β scintillation contributes appreciably to excitation and reactivity in certain nanoparticle systems and that excitation of nanoparticles composed of large atomic number atoms by radionuclides generates X-rays, enabling multiplexed imaging through single photon emission computed tomography. These findings demonstrate practical optical imaging and therapy using radionuclides with emission energies below the Cerenkov threshold, thereby expanding the list of applicable radionuclides

Practical aspects of oxygen transport: conclusions and recommendations of the Roundtable Conference

Consensus Panelinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

From interventionist imaging to intraoperative guidance: New perspectives by combining advanced tools and navigation with radio-guided surgery.

The integration of medical imaging technologies into diagnostic and therapeutic approaches can pro-vide a preoperative insight into both anatomical (e.g. using computed tomography, magnetic resonanceimaging, or ultrasound), as well as functional aspects (e.g. using single photon emission computedtomography, positron emission tomography, lymphoscintigraphy, or optical imaging). Moreover, someimaging modalities are also used in an interventional setting (e.g. computed tomography, ultrasound,gamma or optical imaging) where they provide the surgeon with real-time information during theprocedure. Various tools and approaches for image-guided navigation in cancer surgery are becoming feasibletoday. With the development of new tracers and portable imaging devices, these advances will reinforcethe role of interventional molecular imaging.</p

From interventionist imaging to intraoperative guidance: New perspectives by combining advanced tools and navigation with radio-guided surgery.

The integration of medical imaging technologies into diagnostic and therapeutic approaches can pro-vide a preoperative insight into both anatomical (e.g. using computed tomography, magnetic resonanceimaging, or ultrasound), as well as functional aspects (e.g. using single photon emission computedtomography, positron emission tomography, lymphoscintigraphy, or optical imaging). Moreover, someimaging modalities are also used in an interventional setting (e.g. computed tomography, ultrasound,gamma or optical imaging) where they provide the surgeon with real-time information during theprocedure. Various tools and approaches for image-guided navigation in cancer surgery are becoming feasibletoday. With the development of new tracers and portable imaging devices, these advances will reinforcethe role of interventional molecular imaging.</p