Background and Clinical Significance: Human Herpesvirus 8-associated multicentric Castleman disease is a rare, lymphoproliferative disorder characterized by recurrent episodes of systemic inflammation. The disease is predominantly observed in human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients, but there is evidence of its occurrence in negative individuals. Its pathogenesis is driven by dysregulated cytokine activity, particularly interleukin 6. Additionally, these individuals have an increased risk of developing Kaposi Sarcoma, which may present simultaneously. Case Presentation: The current paper presents a case of a 58-year-old male patient admitted to the Hematology Department of the Emergency City Hospital in Timisoara, Romania, in October 2024, accusing fever, night sweats, palpitations, weight loss and general deterioration, approximately three months prior, with gradual progression. Clinical examination revealed bilateral lymphadenopathy in the cervical and inguinal regions. No cutaneous lesions were observed initially. Laboratory tests showed elevated inflammatory markers, pancytopenia, hypergammaglobulinemia and hyponatremia. HIV serology had negative results. CT imaging revealed extensive lymphadenopathy and splenomegaly. Further excisional biopsy of the inguinal and cervical lymphadenopathies was performed. Following the microscopic examination, the final diagnosis of Human Herpesvirus 8-associated multicentric Castleman disease concurrent with Kaposi Sarcoma was established. Conclusions: Human Herpesvirus 8-associated multicentric Castleman disease is predominantly observed in HIV-positive patients, but there is evidence of its occurrence in human immunodeficiency virus-negative individuals, presenting distinct epidemiological and pathological characteristics. Early and precise diagnosis is essential, as the disease can progress rapidly and may lead to severe or fatal outcomes.
The public is said to be misled by Internet fakery amplified by social media, which contributes to conspiracy belief among those on the political right who feel dispossessed and powerless. In fact, conspiracy belief is difficult to attribute to any one political complexion or social stratum. Uncritical social surveys, especially if taken too literally, easily misrepresent conservative respondents, and the consequent negativity towards them is often exaggerated. Those accusing others of conspiracy belief are at least equally susceptible to the alleged predisposing factor of motivated reasoning.
There are two main ways in which a mandatory vaccination policy is often defended-by accusing vaccine refusers of 'free riding', or by appealing to the 'harm principle'. In their recent book, Roland Pierik and Marcel Verweij take the latter approach-an attractive option, as they note, due to the wide acceptance of the harm principle. But in arguing that vaccine refusal should indeed be thought to constitute harm, they end up endorsing a very controversial version of the harm principle, which we should not automatically expect to secure widespread support. Steven Smith suggests that this (common) argumentative strategy amounts to free riding on the reputation of the harm principle, and is an inevitable consequence of invoking the principle as the foundation of an argument. In its most basic form, the principle is hard to resist. But in order to use it to justify a policy, you need to make some assumptions about what constitutes harm, which will lose you supporters along the way. In appealing to the wide appeal of the harm principle, Pierik and Verweij do not adequately recognise the controversial nature of their claims, and thus the need for stronger and more elaborate arguments in their support.
The rapid integration of generative artificial intelligence (AI) into scientific writing has ignited intense debate across biomedical publishing, with journals adopting divergent and often contradictory policies ranging from outright prohibition to conditional acceptance with disclosure. In this Perspective, we examine the ethical and practical implications of AI‑assisted authorship specifically as they relate to Head & Neck Pathology and Springer Nature publishing policies. We examine whether AI‑assisted writing truly represents an ethical threat to scientific integrity, or whether the current controversy reflects a misplaced focus on the mechanics of writing rather than on scientific substance. We argue that efforts to regulate AI use are fundamentally undermined by the inability to reliably detect AI‑generated text and by the growing convergence between human and machine writing styles. More importantly, we contend that authorship should remain grounded in intellectual contribution, intent, and responsibility for scientific claims and not in the tools used to draft prose. By contextualizing generative AI as a natural extension of long‑accepted assistive technologies, we highlight the ethical risks of over‑enforcement, including false accusations and barriers to dissemination of valid science. Ultimately, we call for a recalibration of editorial priorities toward scientific rigor, accountability, and public benefit, rather than fixation on the provenance of text.
Miscarriages of justice-such as wrongful conviction, false accusation, and investigation-have serious psychological and social impacts. While most research in this area originates in the US and UK, little is known about outcomes in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. This study examined the mental health and social experiences of people who have experienced miscarriages of justice in these countries, and compared these results with larger-scale studies from the US and UK. Respondents completed measures of PTSD, depression, anxiety, stress, social support, and posttraumatic cognitions. Our results revealed worryingly high rates of mental health problems: more than half (54.55%) reported clinically significant PTSD symptoms, and many (45.45%) also reported clinically significant depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms. These rates were also comparable to US exonerees and victims of the United Kingdom Post Office Scandal. These findings highlight the severe, multifaceted effects of miscarriages of justice and underscore the need for improved mental health support, compensation, reintegration services, and systemic reform. What is already known about this topic: Miscarriages of justice – including wrongful conviction, false accusation, and flawed investigations – carry profound psychological, social, and economic harm.Exonerees in the United States show high rates of PTSD and depression, though protective factors such as social support, positive cognitions, and stable employment can buffer some of these effects.Research from the United Kingdom’s Post Office Scandal demonstrates that false accusations can be just as damaging as wrongful convictions, highlighting that legal status does not necessarily determine the severity of harm. What this topic adds: People who experienced miscarriages of justice in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand face extremely high rates of PTSD, depression, anxiety, and stress – well above those seen in the general population and even higher than many other high-risk groups such as firefighters and military veterans.The mental health profiles of victims of miscarriages of justice in Australia and Aotearoa are similar to US exonerees, showing that the harms of miscarriages of justice are consistent across countries and legal systems.These results highlight the need for timely support and compensation to prevent long-term psychological harm.
Dementia is an escalating public health concern in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where over 60% of the global dementia burden is projected by 2050. Despite this, SSA remains underrepresented in dementia research, especially regarding stigma and cultural beliefs that shape the lives of people living with dementia and their caregivers. This scoping review systematically maps existing evidence on dementia-related stigma and cultural beliefs in SSA. The review followed the Arksey and O'Malley framework as refined by the Joanna Briggs Institute and adhered to PRISMA-ScR guidelines. A comprehensive search of PubMed, Scopus, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and African Journals Online (AJOL) was conducted for studies published between 2000 and 2025. Eligibility was guided by the Population-Concept-Context (PCC) framework, focusing on studies addressing dementia stigma and cultural beliefs in SSA. Data were charted using a template informed by the Integrated Framework for Normative Influence on Stigma (IFNIS) and synthesised thematically. Twenty-four studies from nine SSA countries were included. Most were qualitative, with few quantitative or intervention studies. Stigma was largely rooted in cultural beliefs linking dementia to witchcraft, curses, or ancestral punishment, leading to social exclusion, neglect, dispossession, and violence, especially targeting older women. Public stigma was reflected in negative stereotypes, discriminatory language, rejection, and avoidance. Structural stigma encompassed untrained health professionals, absent policies, and fragmented care pathways. Caregivers experienced courtesy stigma, isolation, and accusations of abuse. Direct perspectives from people living with dementia were limited. Evidence on stigma-reduction interventions was scarce. Dementia stigma in SSA is a complex cultural, social, and structural phenomenon. There is urgent need for stigma-informed policy, culturally sensitive education, caregiver support, health system strengthening, and robust intervention research.
Machine learning models used in algorithmic content moderation in online discussions play an increasingly important role in detecting high-quality (e.g., constructive or engaging) and uncivil (e.g., toxic, hateful, or abusive) comments. Trained on human decisions, these models risk reproducing annotator bias, particularly when the perception of such nuanced categories is influenced by social backgrounds and training data lacks sufficient representational diversity. This study investigates the potential impact of annotators' formal education on the classification of high-quality and uncivil user comments in online discussions. Using a dataset of 13,677 German user comments annotated by crowd workers with low, medium, and high formal education, we investigate divergences in classification outcomes when classifiers are trained on data annotated by different educational groups. In addition, we assessed statistical associations between fine-grained comment features and the annotations provided by each subgroup. Our results indicate that classifiers for high-quality and uncivil comments yield significantly different results when trained on data labeled by annotators with varying educational backgrounds. Furthermore, comment features used in traditional operationalizations of deliberative quality (e.g., solution proposals, additional knowledge) and incivility (e.g., vulgarity, accusation of lying) are more strongly associated with annotations by crowd annotators with medium and high formal education. We argue that such group-specific differences should be considered when developing machine learning models in both practice and research to reflect a more inclusive understanding of valuable and norm-violating user contributions to online discussions.
Informal pharmaceutical markets have become an issue of major concern for international agencies and national governments, including in Nigeria, due to reports about 'fake drugs'. These concerns have at times fostered severe regulatory responses, including violent crackdowns on informal markets. This study reimagines the regulation of informal pharmaceutical markets in ways that could promote drug quality and equitable access to drugs, drawing on the concepts of improvisation and pragmatic expertise, as well as on long-term ethnographic and interview-based research in two of South-Western Nigeria's major informal pharmaceutical markets (n = 82). Our data reveals conflicts between regulatory agencies (dominated by trained pharmacists) and informal market actors, characterised by attempts to control informal markets through re-spatialisation. Data also shows how claims about fake drugs in informal markets help to frame the key problematic of pharmaceutical markets as that of drug quality, thus upholding the role and powers of regulators and expert pharmacists. Informal market actors challenged accusations of fake drugs, emphasising the availability and affordability of essential drugs through their markets and self-regulation efforts, including through informal collaborations with state regulators. In contrast to recent policy initiatives and recent research, our findings show how institutional prioritisation of drug quality may unintentionally undermine other important health objectives, such as access to essential drugs, through regulatory processes that seek to contain informal markets within narrow institutional agendas. Our study reimagines the regulation of informal pharmaceutical markets by highlighting the importance of improvisation in regulatory approaches and the role of pragmatic expertise shared among regulators and informal market actors.
divorce is a global issue affecting communities worldwide and is linked to adverse social outcomes such as school dropouts and an increase in street children. This study aimed to examine socio-demographic and interpersonal factors associated with divorce among women of reproductive age in Tanzania. a cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data from the 2015-16 Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey and Malaria Indicator Survey (TDHS-MIS), a nationally representative survey. The study population included women aged 15-49 years who had ever been married or cohabited. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with divorce. a total of 9,443 women were included, with a mean age of 31.5 ± 8.7 years; 13.3% were divorced or separated. Early sexual debut, particularly before age 15, was associated with higher odds of divorce (AOR 1.52, 95% CI: 1.20-1.91, p<0.001). Employment increased the likelihood of divorce across all occupational categories compared with domestic work. Other socio-demographic factors linked to divorce included urban residence (AOR 1.32, 95% CI: 1.06-1.63), mobile phone ownership (AOR 1.73, 95% CI: 1.45-2.08), and having a partner who consumed alcohol (AOR 1.46, 95% CI: 1.24-1.71). Interpersonal factors such as fear of the husband, accusations of infidelity, and restrictions on social or family contacts also increased the odds of divorce.Conclusion: divorce among women of reproductive age in Tanzania is influenced by multiple factors. Interventions such as family life education and premarital counseling are recommended to promote harmonious relationships and reduce the risk of divorce.
Wrongful convictions represent a profound failure of criminal justice systems with severe individual and societal consequences such as, undermining public trust in the justice system, allowing true perpetrators to remain free, and inflicting lasting harm on exonerees and their families. Despite growing international attention to this issue, systematic empirical data on wrongful convictions in Europe remains limited. This article presents a descriptive analysis of the 144 exoneration cases documented in the European Registry of Exonerations (EUREX) as of May 2026. The dataset includes exoneration cases from across Europe, with Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Spain most represented. Findings show that the majority of exonerees were male, with most initial convictions relating to homicide. On average, individuals spent around 6 years and 5 months wrongfully imprisoned, collectively representing 927 lost years, while the average time from conviction to exoneration was nearly 12 years. False confessions, and false accusation or perjury emerged as the leading contributing factors, frequently occurring in combination with other factors. DNA evidence played a role in only a minority of exonerations These findings are consistent with North American findings and underscore the need for structured case review mechanisms and continued cross-national research into the causes and prevention of wrongful convictions.
BACKGROUND: While most of the population was vaccinated against COVID-19, ongoing vaccine hesitancy led to a substantial proportion of the population remaining unvaccinated. Unvaccinated people were accused of spreading COVID-19 and morally condemned. Recently, it has been shown that vaccinated people attribute increased responsibility for illness and infecting others toward unvaccinated individuals, which elicits negative attitudes toward them. Based on Weiner’s attribution theory we predicted that the belief in COVID-19 vaccine efficacy of vaccinated “observers” moderates their attribution of responsibility toward vaccinated vs. unvaccinated “actors”. Accordingly, vaccinated observers who believe in the vaccine’s efficacy will assign increased responsibility to unvaccinated actors and associated negative attitudes. METHODS: An online survey was administered in January 2022. The sample included 368 vaccinated Israelis ranging in age from 19 to 75 (M = 33.95, SD = 12.13). We conducted 2 × 2 mixed ANOVA models for general attribution of responsibility (i.e., responsibility for the actor’s illness and for spreading SARS-CoV-2), with observer belief in COVID-19 vaccine efficacy (yes/no) as the between-subjects factor and actor vaccination status (vaccinated/unvaccinated) as the within-subjects factor. Also, we conducted a mediation model for character evaluation. RESULTS: Observers attributed more responsibility to unvaccinated actors. Also, observers who believed in COVID-19 vaccine efficacy attributed greater responsibility to unvaccinated actors compared to observers who were vaccinated for other reasons. Conversely, observers who believed in COVID-19 vaccine efficacy attributed less responsibility to vaccinated actors compared to observers who were vaccinated for other reasons. Also, general attribution of responsibility partially mediates the relationship between belief in COVID-19 vaccine efficacy and character evaluation. CONCLUSION: In accordance with previous findings, our results suggest that unvaccinated individuals are perceived as more responsible for their illness and for spreading COVID-19. Additionally, a higher attribution of responsibility elicits a more negative character evaluation. Nevertheless, belief in COVID-19 vaccine efficacy moderates the attribution of responsibility. Our results broaden our understanding of the mechanisms that promote negative attitudes toward unvaccinated people.
Aim: To investigate approaches to the criminal legal qualification of collaborationism in the field of healthcare, taking into account the norms of international humanitarian law. Materials and Methods: The research methodology involves an analysis of current legislative documents on the qualification of criminal liability for collaborative activities, as well as regulatory legal acts in the healthcare field, and documents of international humanitarian law. The data analysis was conducted using open sources, mainly for the period 2013-2025, with an emphasis on the period of the active phase of the war in Ukraine. The main search keywords were "human rights", "collaborationism", "criminal liability", "crimes against the foundations of national security", "medical immunity in international humanitarian law", and "healthcare". The initial database consisted of 70 sources, of which 34 were included in the final analysis. The materials of the publication form the basis for the systematization of criminal legislation on the problems of protecting the rights of persons accused of collaborative activities in the field of healthcare, the key ones being the Constitution of Ukraine, the Criminal Code of Ukraine, and the European Convention on Human Rights. Conclusions: The study emphasizes the need to improve the approach to the criminal legal qualification of collaborationism in the health sector, which covers both legal and organizational components, as well as mandatory compliance with the norms of international humanitarian law. The social danger of this phenomenon lies not only in the fact that it encroaches on the defense capability and foundations of national security, but also in the fact that it poses a threat to other objects of criminal law protection.
Allegations of child sexual abuse (CSA) in family law cases, such as child custody, child visitation, and child protection proceedings, present complex and sensitive challenges for legal and psychological decision-making. This scoping review synthesizes key findings from 47 empirical studies examining the prevalence, substantiation, and legal consequences of CSA allegations as well as typical case characteristics in this context. The empirical literature falls into three main clusters: Canadian studies using large national datasets from the late 1990s and 2000s; Australian court-based studies primarily from the 2010s; and U.S. research spanning several decades with diverse methodologies. Overall, we found a mean CSA allegation prevalence of 8.9%, and indications that CSA allegations occur less frequently than allegations of other maltreatment types. Substantiation rates vary across studies but average around 43%, with only marginal evidence suggesting slightly lower substantiation when only custody and visitation disputes were analyzed. Deliberate false allegations are seemingly rare; most unsubstantiated claims appear to arise from genuine but mistaken concerns. Limited findings on legal consequences indicate that substantiated allegations usually lead to suspended contact between the accused parent and child. When allegations lack sufficient clarity, courts respond more variably, sometimes restricting contact despite non-substantiation. Significant research gaps remain, particularly regarding the timing and context of allegations, the association of substantiation with legal outcomes, and specific allegation constellations within families. Further empirical research, especially from European and non-Western jurisdictions, is essential to informing evidence-based, child-centered practice.
Exposure to intimate partner violence (EIPV) in childhood can result in adverse outcomes. The objective was to determine if children exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV) have worse educational, judicial, or social outcomes compared to peers without EIPV. This retrospective, population-based cohort study of children (<18 years old) in Manitoba, Canada longitudinally followed children between three and twenty-two years. Children (n = 10,731) exposed to IPV between 2002 and 2019 were identified from population-based administrative data and matched to five randomly selected children without EIPV (n = 53,655). Social, educational, and judicial outcomes were extracted and hazard rates or risk rates were calculated. Children exposed to IPV were at increased risk of not meeting Grade 7 math expectations (RR: 1.26; 95% CI: 1.21, 1.31), Grade 8 reading and writing expectations (RR: 1.26; 95% CI: 1.12, 1.32) and withdrawing from high school (RR: 1.32: 95%CI: 1.24, 1.40) compared to children with no EIPV. EIPV increased the risk of being a victim (HR: 1.93; 95%CI: 1.82, 2.05), accused (HR: 1.49; 95%CI: 1.40, 1.59), or a witness of a crime (HR: 1.79; 95%CI: 1.65, 1.93) as young adults. EIPV increased the risk of being involved with Child and Family Services (HR: 4.50; 95%CI: 4.28, 4.73). Female children exposed to IPV had an increased the risk of having a teenaged pregnancy (HR: 1.59; 95% CI: 1.43, 1.76). Children exposed to IPV are at risk for adverse outcomes and require increased supports and social programming. Interventions to prevent IPV and to reduce negative outcomes are needed.
This study sought to understand the lived experiences and perspectives of men who inflict violence on their female intimate partners, given the nuances of Nigeria's individual, interpersonal, community, and societal factors. Eligible participants were male residents of Lagos State, Nigeria: (1) accused by their partner of perpetrating physical domestic violence (DV), (2) at least 21 years old, and (3) married. Nine men participated in the study and were purposively recruited from a governmental agency that provides on-site counseling and support to DV survivors and perpetrators. A semi-structured interview guide was used for data collection. The interview guide was designed to elicit information on perceptions of DV lived experiences, factors that increase the risk of DV perpetration, sources of help, and factors that can improve help-seeking behaviors among DV survivors/perpetrators. Four major themes were identified from the data and included values, premarital and marital expectations, DV definition and perception, and DV experiences. DV perpetuation was deeply rooted in men's childhood experiences of their fathers abusing their mothers and/or being exposed to other forms of violence early in life, sociocultural norms, economic pressures, and psychological factors. The findings from this study have implications for the development of DV interventions that are culturally tailored to address the unique challenges faced by families in Nigeria. Programs should focus on reshaping harmful gender norms, addressing economic/financial stressors, promoting healthy relationship dynamics, and early childhood DV prevention interventions. Campaigns that engage men while emphasizing the negative impacts of DV on families and communities could be instrumental in reducing victimization. Addressing modifiable risk factors earlier in the trajectory is critical in reducing the long-term incidence of DV. Our findings also underscore the importance of consistent enforcement of existing laws, such as the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, across Nigeria.
In December 2024, Luigi Mangione was arrested in connection with the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Rather than condemning the accused, large numbers of Reddit users celebrated him as a folk hero. This study examines how that construction emerged and what it reveals about public attitudes towards institutional trust and retributive justice online. A total of 6,466 comments across 38 threads from 14 subreddits, including r/politics, r/antiwork, r/WorkReform, and r/Fauxmoi, were collected between December 2024 and April 2025. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Five themes emerged: folk hero glorification and moral inversion; distrust in institutions and folk justice; systemic injustice, moral outrage, and catharsis; digital protest and anti-corporate activism; and the spectacle and aesthetic of resistance. These themes show how digital communities construct alternative moral orders that invert formal notions of justice and elevate grassroots counter-narratives. Drawing on digital populism, moral disengagement theory, and spectacle culture, the study explains how Reddit's affordances, including anonymity, algorithmic amplification, and weak content moderation, intersect with healthcare injustice, class resentment, and institutional distrust. The findings are relevant for researchers, policymakers, and platform designers seeking to understand how retributive discourse circulates under conditions of eroded institutional trust.
Bacterial infection in root canals often persist despite thorough chemomechanical preparation. Conventional irrigants and medicaments reduce biofilms but have been accused of weakening dentin. Amorphous calcium phosphate nanoparticles showed promising results in enhancing dentin hardness, but the formula's anticmicrobial effect is yet to be evaluated in endodontic contexts. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of using 20% amorphous calcium phosphate nanoparticles loaded in chlorhexidine as an antibacterial intracanal medicament in endodontics. Forty four root dentin discs were prepared from human extracted teeth, sterilized and inoculated with E. faecalis to establish a 3-week-old standard monospecies bacterial biofilm model. After confirming biofilm establishment, forty specimens were randomly divided into four groups (n = 10) according to the medicament used: 20% amorphous calcium phosphate nanoparticles loaded in 2% chlorhexidine (NACP + CHX), 2% chlorhexidine (CHX), calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2), and a positive control group. After incubation, the specimens were stained and evaluated under the confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM). Images were analyzed with Zen imaging software to quantify the percentage of live/dead bacterial cells. For multiple group comparisons, a one-way ANOVA was employed, and for pairwise comparisons, the Tukey post hoc test was used. Statistical significance was determined by a p-value < 0.05. All test groups showed a statistically significant bacterial reduction, ranging from 36.81% to 59.19% (p ≤ 0.001). CLSM analysis showed that NACP + CHX and CHX had the highest antibacterial effect without a significant difference between them (p ≈ 0.9). Ca(OH)2 demonstrated the least antibacterial effect amongst the test groups (p ≈ 0.01 × 10-6). The findings suggest that NACP + CHX when used as an intracanal medicament, demonstrates antibiofilm efficacy against E. faecalis biofilm.
This cross-sectional study investigates the size of financial penalties levied by the US government against pharmaceutical companies accused of violating the Anti-Kickback Statute.