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/Purposes: Studies have indicated that salivary molecules from patients with periodontitis and diabetes are confounded with pathological conditions associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. The study aimed to address whether the abundance of Porphyromonas gingivalis which causes periodontitis, differed compared with that of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans (used as control) and to analyze the correlation of periodontitis with the expression levels of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 receptor (ACE2) and periodontitis inflammatory markers (TLR-2/TLR-4, TNFα, and miR-155).

A saliva sample (5 mL) was obtained from 23 hospitalized patients with COVID-19, categorized into two groups: diabetic (G1, n = 10) and non-diabetic (G2, n = 13). Saliva from patients with periodontitis without diabetes and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19; n = 6) were included as control. The quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction measured the levels of P. gingivalis and A. actinomycetemcomitans, as well as periodontitis markers in saliva. The obtained data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA and the Spearman correlation test.

The abundance of P. gingivalis was observed to be higher (p < 0.05) in saliva of patients with diabetes (G1) than in those without diabetes (G2). A contradictory trend was observed for A. actinomycetemcomitans. The transcription level of ACE2 was comparable in all groups tested, while the expression of periodontitis markers varied. The relationships and sensitivity/specificity among P. gingivalis infection ACE2 expression, and inflammatory markers were also evaluated.

This study showed that the association between P. gingivalis infection and ACE2 expression might reflect the characteristics of saliva in COVID-19 patients with and without diabetes. However, the relationships between TLR-4 and miR-155 are more specific in discriminating against COVID-19 patients with and without diabetes.

Background: Classifying the severity of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) by continuous numerical variables would facilitate follow-up of disease progression and quantified analysis of disease determinants. Objectives: To non-invasively measure oxygenation impairment in BPD by the degree of right-to-left shunt, right shift of the oxyhaemoglobin dissociation curve and ventilation/perfusion (V_A/Q) inequality and to explore their relation with clinical parameters. Methods: Prospective cohort study of 24 infants with a median (interquartile range, IQR) gestation of 25 weeks (24-27) and a birth weight of 0.70 kg (0.63-0.93), studied at 36 days (30-66), at a postmenstrual age (PMA) of 33 weeks (29-36). Inspired oxygen (F_IO₂) was varied to obtain three to five transcutaneous oxygen saturation (SpO₂) values between 85 and 96%. Values of shunt, shift and V_A/Q were obtained by plotting the paired data of SpO₂ against F_IO₂ for each infant using a unique program. Right-to-left shunt, right shift of the oxyhaemoglobin dissociation curve and V_A/Q were measured in infants born <32 weeks PMA receiving oxygen at 28 days. <b>Results: The median (IQR) shunt was 8% (0.3-16.5), shift 14.5 kPa (10.9-19.4) and V_A/Q 0.40 (0.30-0.48). Shunt, shift and V_A/Q were significantly related to gestational age (GA) at birth, PMA at study, weight at study and weight gain per week. Conclusions: Severity of pulmonary oxygenation impairment in BPD can be quantified at the cot-side by non-invasive measurement of shunt, shift and V_A/Q. Low GA at birth, low weight at birth and at the time of study and impaired weight gain are significantly associated with the severity of oxygen-exchange impairment in infants with BPD.

This article focuses on the case of a newborn infant boy with bilateral choanal atresia, tracheoesophageal fistula, and bilateral fifth-finger clinodactyly. This infant had been exposed to carbimazole in utero during the treatment of maternal Graves disease. Teratogenic defects caused by carbimazole were recently recognized, and their phenotypes have been defined. Choanal atresia, esophageal atresia, athelia or hypothelia, developmental delay, hearing loss, and dysmorphic facial features have all been reported. To our knowledge, this is the first documented case of tracheoesophageal fistula without esophageal atresia (H type). Knowledge of the teratogenic potential of carbimazole is important when managing Graves disease in women of childbearing age.