OBJECTIVE: Parkinson\'s disease (PD) is the one of the most common neurodegenerative diseases. Many investigators have confirmed the possibility of using circulating miRNAs to diagnose PD. However, the results were inconsistent. Therefore, the aim of this meta-analysis was to systematically evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of circulating miRNAs in the diagnosis of PD.
METHODS: We carefully searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Wanfang database and China National Knowledge Infrastructure for relevant studies (up to January 1, 2022) based on PRISMA statement. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (PLR), negative likelihood ratio (NLR), the diagnostic odds ratio (DOR), and area under the curve (AUC) were calculated to test the diagnostic accuracy. Furthermore, subgroup analyses were performed to identify the potential sources of heterogeneity, and the Deeks\' funnel plot asymmetry test was used to evaluate the potential publication bias.
RESULTS: Forty-four eligible studies from 16 articles (3298 PD patients and 2529 healthy controls) were included in the current meta-analysis. The pooled sensitivity was 0.79 (95% CI: 0.76-0.81), specificity was 0.82 (95% CI: 0.78-0.84), PLR was 4.3 (95% CI: 3.6-5.0), NLR was 0.26 (95% CI: 0.23-0.30), DOR was 16 (95% CI: 13-21), and AUC was 0.87 (95% CI: 0.84-0.90). Subgroup analysis suggested that miRNA cluster showed a better diagnostic accuracy than miRNA simple. Moreover, there was no significant publication bias.
CONCLUSIONS: Circulating miRNAs have great potential as novel non-invasive biomarkers for PD diagnosis.

OBJECTIVE: Sex differences among patients with acute myocardial infarctions remain a matter of debate. Inequalities in presentation, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis are frequently observed, contributing to a worse prognosis in women. The aim of this study was to investigate sex-related differences in Portuguese ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients.
METHODS: The authors conducted a retrospective analysis of STEMI patients included in the Portuguese Registry on Acute Coronary Syndromes, between October 2010 and 2022. The two co-primary endpoints were in-hospital and one-year mortality.
RESULTS: A total of 14470 STEMI patients were studied. Women were underrepresented with 3721 individuals (25.7%). They were significantly older (70 vs. 62 years, p<0.001), with higher prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors, and underwent less frequently coronary angiography (84.4% vs. 88.5%, p<0.001) and guideline-directed medical therapy (e.g., aspirin 92.5% vs. 95.4%, beta blockers 79.2% vs. 83%, p<0.001. Furthermore, they experienced more complications, such as congestive heart failure (23.4% vs. 14.6%), ischemic stroke (47 vs. 40%), and in-hospital mortality (8.5% vs. 4.1%) (p<0.001 for all comparisons). Similarly, they presented higher one-year mortality (11.5% vs. 6.3, p<0.001). However, after a multivariate analysis testing significant clinical variables, female sex remained an independent predictor for in-hospital (odds ratio=1.633; CI 95% [1.065-2.504]; p=0.025), but not for one-year mortality.
CONCLUSIONS: This analysis reveals sex-related disparities in Portuguese STEMI patients. Despite limitations inherent to registry-based analysis, women were significantly older, with increased cardiovascular risk, less treated, and with higher in-hospital mortality. These disparities should be a concern for clinicians to further improve outcomes and move toward equitable medical care.

BACKGROUND: We analysed the frequency of atrial fibrillation (AF) delayed diagnosis and the factors associated with it in newly diagnosed patients.
METHODS: This was a descriptive, cross-sectional, multicentre study. Data were collected from newly diagnosed patients with AF through medical records review and interviews during cardiology, internal medicine, primary care and emergency department consultations in Spain.
RESULTS: A total of 201 physicians participated in the study (64.2% cardiologists, 21.4% internists). 948 patients (58% men; mean age 72.8 years) were included. In 41.8% of patients, AF was classified as paroxysmal at diagnosis, 30.9% as persistent and 27.3% as permanent. The diagnosis was coincidental in 37%. It was considered that a delayed diagnosis occurred in 49.3% of patients. This delay was associated with the presence of permanent or persistent AF, older age or valvular disease. 74.8% of patients had some contact with the healthcare system in the preceding year. The diagnosis could have been established between 1 and 6 months earlier in 50.7% of cases and more than six months earlier in 20.1%. 54.4% of the patients had experienced AF compatible symptomatology previously. Of these, 32.6% had a consultation without a diagnosis.
CONCLUSIONS: In a significant proportion of AF cases, there is a diagnostic delay. Many people with compatible symptoms neither seek consultations nor contact the healthcare system facilities. Consequently, the opportunity for early diagnosis is lost.

Background: the aim of this study is to understand the diagnostic process undertaken by psychiatrists and psychologists regarding adjustment disorder (AD) in their clinical practice and how they differentiate it from major depressive episode (MDE).Methods: A hermeneutic study using grounded theory techniques was carried out. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with twelve psychiatrists and eight psychologists in Colombia, and transcribed verbatim. Initial line-by-line coding was performed, followed by focused and axial coding to construct categories explaining the professionals\' reasoning process.Results: The clinical reasoning of professionals regarding AD was understood through four major categories. (1) Difficulty in addressing the experience of stressful events, as there is a risk of pathologizing and medicalizing them. (2) Mental health diagnoses are necessary but not apodictic. (3) The diagnostic category of AD allows for the description of a fluctuating depressive and anxious syndrome occurring in reaction to a stressful event, whose abnormality criteria are based on intersubjective knowledge of the patient\'s life history and consequential reasoning regarding the need for professional support. (4) The AD label could potentially protect against overdiagnosis of MDE and overuse of antidepressants. Many clinicians in their practice thus subordinate the diagnosis of MDE to ensuring it is not AD, contrary to what is outlined in diagnostic manuals.Conclusion: This study allowed us to understand the clinical reasoning of psychiatrists and psychologists about AD as a diagnosis that inherently indicates the need to work on coping and intervene in the stressor and should be considered as a diagnostic possibility in the same hierarchy as MDE in reactive syndromes, rather than a residual category.
Clinicians use consequential and intersubjective reasoning to diagnose Adjustment Disorder (AD).Systemic pressures lead to overdiagnosis of Major Depressive Episode (MDE) and excessive antidepressant use.AD should be recognized as a valid non-residual diagnostic category.

Pneumonia continues to be one of the most frequent infectious syndromes and a relevant cause of death and health resources utilization. The OPENIN (\"Optimización de procesos clínicos para el diagnóstico y tratamiento de infecciones\") Group is composed of Infectious Diseases specialists and Microbiologists and aims at generating recommendations that can contribute to improve the approach to processes with high impact on the health system. Such task relies on a critical review of the available scientific evidence. The first Group meeting (held in October 2023) aimed at answering the following questions: Can we optimize the syndromic and microbiological diagnosis of pneumonia? Is it feasible to safely shorten the length of antibiotic therapy? And, is there any role for the immunomodulatory strategies based on the adjuvant use of steroids, macrolides or immunoglobulins? The present review summarizes the literature reviewed for that meeting and offers a series of expert recommendations.

The management of urinary tract infection (UTI) in infants and children has changed significantly over the past few decades based on scientific evidence that questioned the efficacy of strategies used to prevent kidney injury and subsequent progression to chronic kidney disease, which is very unlikely in most paediatric cases. However, there is still substantial heterogeneity in its management and uncertainty regarding the diagnosis, indication of imaging tests, treatment or follow-up in these patients. The Spanish clinical practice guideline has been updated through the review of the literature published since 2009 and a rigorous evaluation of current clinical practice aspects, taking into account the evidence on the benefits of each intervention in addition to its risks and drawbacks to attempt to provide more precise recommendations.

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is the alternative to surgical valve replacement, expanding its indications in the latest guidelines. Multimodal CT (MDCT) is essential in patient selection and detection of complications. Vascular complications are frequent, so it is important to analyse the anatomy of the vessels before the procedure. Regarding annular ruptures and ventricular perforations, the volume and distribution of calcium and the ventricular diameter play an important role. Finally, valve migration is a rare complication that can occur both during and after TAVI. Proper planning of the MDCT procedure reduces the risk of complications and gives the interventional cardiologist security both before and during the procedure.

OBJECTIVE: Elastofibroma dorsi (ED) is a rare benign tumor located in the subscapular region. The aim of this study was to evaluate our clinical findings, surgical approach, and management of ED patients based on single-center data with the relevant literature.
METHODS: A retrospective evaluation was conducted on 20 patients who were operated on for ED.
RESULTS: Of the 16 (80%) female patients and 4 (20%) male patients, the main complaint was swelling (80%), and 10 cases (50%) had unilateral involvement. All patients were operated on using standard surgical procedures. Despite a long follow-up period (6-53 months, mean of 26.6 months), no recurrences were observed. Two patients (10%) required simple needle aspiration due to post-operative seroma, and one patient, due to infection, required evacuation (5%).
CONCLUSIONS: Although rare, ED should not be overlooked in patients with swelling in the back region. Our data suggests that surgery can be safely performed in such patients after a clinical and radiological diagnosis of ED has been established.
OBJECTIVE: Evaluar los hallazgos clínicos, el enfoque quirúrgico y el manejo de los pacientes con urgencias a partir de los datos de un solo centro y la literatura relevante.
UNASSIGNED: Se realizó una evaluación retrospectiva de 20 pacientes que fueron operados de ED.
RESULTS: En los 16 (80%), pacientes del sexo femenino y cuatro (20%) del sexo masculino, la queja principal fue la tumefacción (80%) y 10 casos (50%) tuvieron afectación unilateral. Todos los pacientes fueron operados utilizando procedimientos quirúrgicos estándar. Con un largo periodo de seguimiento (6-53 meses, media de 26.6 meses), no se observaron recurrencias. Dos pacientes (10%) requirieron aspiración con aguja simple por seroma posoperatorio y un paciente (5%) requirió evacuación por infección.
CONCLUSIONS: Aunque es raro, el ED no debe pasarse por alto en pacientes con hinchazón en la región de la espalda. Nuestros datos sugieren que la cirugía se puede realizar de manera segura en estos pacientes después de haber establecido el diagnóstico clínico y radiológico de ED.

Chronic kidney disease-associated pruritus (CKD-aP) is one of the most common and disabling comorbidities in patients with advanced CKD. In addition, it is associated with an increased risk of mortality, poorer quality of life, sleep disorders, mental health disorders, and increased use of health care resources. The clinical presentation of CKD-aP is very heterogeneous, making it difficult to diagnose and treat. Currently, there are no national guidelines on the management of CKD-aP. The aim of this document is to provide national consensus recommendations for the diagnostic and therapeutic management of CKD-aP. The document was prepared in three phases: a diagnostic and therapeutic management algorithm was proposed by a small group of nephrology specialists; the proposal was validated by a larger group of nephrologists; and a second validation by a multidisciplinary group that also included dermatology specialists. The diagnostic and therapeutic management algorithm attempts to cover the current need of a lack of specific guidelines for the adequate management of CKD-aP. At the same time, it introduces the use of difelikefalin, the first and only drug specifically approved for CKD-aP, with a good safety and efficacy profile.

This year marks 100 years since the death of Franz Kafka. Often in general medicine, and internal medicine in particular, doctors face situations in which they position themselves as the only guarantor of the patient in relation to society and how it conceives the disease. Many times, patients come to us without a diagnosis or with the fear of it; sometimes also rejected by their environment. This short text addresses this current topic, paying tribute to the brilliant writer and his best-known work, Metamorphosis.