Clalit, (Hebrew: שירותי בריאות כללית, General Health Services; previously – קופת חולים כללית, General Sick Fund), is the largest of Israel's four state-mandated health service organizations, charged with administering health care services and funding for its members (all Israeli citizens resident in the country must be a member of one of the four providers).Widely known as Kupat Holim Clalit, it was established in 1911 as a mutual aid society. When the State of Israel was founded in 1948, Clalit was instrumental in providing medical care for the massive influx of new immigrants. Today, it is the largest provider of public and semi-private health services in Israel. Under Israeli law, it is run as a not-for-profit entity.
The 11th Cardiovascular Outcome Trial (CVOT) Summit: Congress on Cardiovascular, Kidney, and Metabolic Outcomes was held virtually on November 20-21, 2025. The Summit provided a multidisciplinary forum to review and discuss recent outcome trials investigating emerging pharmacological therapies targeting diseases of the cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic (CKM) continuum. This report highlights the unique developments of 2025 discussed during the Summit, including the first head-to-head CVOT (SURPASS-CVOT), the growing evidence base for combination therapies across the disease spectrum, new insights into the inflammatory component of the CKM syndrome, and relevant policy developments. The first part of this report summarizes pioneering clinical trials addressing combination therapy with finerenone and empagliflozin (CONFIDENCE), the oral glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists orforglipron (ATTAIN-1), and the aldosterone synthase inhibitor (ASI) baxdrostat (BaxHTN). The second part presents recent guideline and policy developments discussed by experts in endocrinology, diabetology, cardiology, nephrology, hepatology, and general practice. In addition, advances in medical technology, particularly in continuous glucose and ketone monitoring, are highlighted, as well as emerging therapies for diseases of the CKM continuum. These include pharmacological agents for a broad spectrum of metabolic disorders such as metabolic liver disease and type 1 Diabetes (T1D) alongside emphasis on the importance of early detection and innovative treatment strategies. The 12th Cardiovascular Outcome Trial Summit will be held virtually on 19-20 November 2026 (http://www.cvot.org).
Gallstones (cholelithiasis) are common, with a significant portion of affected individuals developing acute cholecystitis, which can lead to severe complications. While ultrasound (US) is typically the first imaging method used, multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) may be better at detecting more complex scenarios. This study aimed to compare the detection of imaging features and complications of acute cholecystitis between US and MDCT in a cohort of confirmed cases, and to evaluate their complementary roles in clinical practice. A retrospective study was conducted including 134 adults with clinically suspected acute cholecystitis who underwent same-day US and MDCT, with subsequent confirmation by pathology or intervention. Two radiologists independently reviewed all imaging studies, and the detection of imaging features and complications was compared. US showed significantly higher detection rates than MDCT for gallbladder wall thickening (98.5
Abstract Background Healthcare teams encounter adverse events and medical errors, and inadequate awareness and support can leave these teams vulnerable as “second victims” (SV). The objectives of our study were to assess healthcare professionals’ understanding of the SV concept, evaluate the existing support systems in place, and identify the types of support mechanisms they consider most desirable. Methods In February 2024, the SV Experience and Support online survey was administered to healthcare workers in hospitals owned by Clalit Health Services, Israel. The survey focused on emotional responses following involvement in medical errors, perceived support from supervisors, and the availability of organizational resources. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS statistical software. A Likert scale was used, where 1 represented “strongly disagree” and 6 represented “strongly agree.” Results The survey was sent to 6,645 physicians and 11,855 nurses. A total of 483 physicians and 1,359 nurses participated in the survey (7.2% and 11.4% response rate, respectively). Both physicians and nurses reported high emotional stress (Mean scores: 4.89 ± 1.17 and 5.16 ± 1.06, respectively, p < 0.001) and embarrassment (Mean scores: 4.76 ± 1.16 and 4.94 ± 1.22, respectively, p < 0.001) following errors, with a notable desire for peer support (51.6%). Sleep disturbances also highlighted the adverse events’ somatic burden and impact (Mean scores: 3.96 ± 1.49 and 4.22 ± 1.50, respectively, p = 0.002). The most desired support path was having a colleague to discuss the event (p < 0.001). Conclusions Healthcare workers face a significant risk of becoming SV after unexpected medical events, and peer support is preferred. Program directors should therefore prioritize structured peer support initiatives, alongside robust formal systems and open communication, in accordance with workers’ preferences. Addressing gaps in resource awareness and refining managerial approaches is essential.
Biological field-effect transistor (bioFET) holds a great promise for future point-of-care and homecare medical diagnostics. Still, the unmediated detection of biological events in unprocessed physiological solutions is a great challenge due to high ionic concentrations with Debye length < 1 nm, rendering bioFET insensitive to electrostatic events beyond Debye distance away from the sensing area. This observation entirely removes the possibility of antibody-based recognition layers due to the massive dimension of antibodies, and triggered a vivid pursue for short receptors in order bring the interaction closer to the sensing area. On the other hand, recent reports do demonstrate that adsorbed antibodies are strongly tiled towards the surface, suggesting that binding events occur at a much greater proximity to the sensing area as previously suggested. Herein, the Meta-Nano-Channel (MNC) bioFET is demonstrated for specific, label-free, quantitative and real-time sensing of C-reactive protein (CRP), an important biomarker of inflammation and tissue damage, in unprocessed 0.5 mu l blood and sweat samples with Debye lengths of 0.7 nm and 2.3 nm, respectively. The recognition layer is composed of anti-CRP antibodies. Limit-of-detection of 100 fg/ml and 10 fg/ml are recorded for blood and sweat samples, respectively. A dynamic range of 8 orders of magnitude and with excellent sensitivity and linearity are extracted for both blood and sweat. Hence, high-end sensing in physiological samples is possible with bioFETs provided these are specifically designed to address challenges associated with molecular sensing. These challenges and solutions are discussed in the study.
BACKGROUND/AIMS:Reports have suggested that treatment with systemic β-adrenoceptor antagonists (β-blockers) may increase the risk of developing Parkinson's disease (PD). The objective of this study was to assess the association between the use of topical β-blockers and PD. METHODS:A retrospective cohort study. All newly diagnosed glaucoma patients between 2000 and 2020 were recruited from the anonymised electronic medical records of a large healthcare provider. Patients were followed until December 2021 for the occurrence of PD. The patients were divided into two groups according to topical β-blocker use. Cox proportional-hazards models were used, and HRs with 95% CIs were calculated. RESULTS:The cohort included 13 381 glaucoma patients, of whom 10 075 used topical β-blockers (βB group) and 3306 did not (no-βB group). Demographic characteristics were similar between groups. Mean follow-up time and mean number of filled prescriptions for anti-glaucoma medication (total and annually) were significantly greater in the βB group (p<0.0001). During follow-up, 175 patients (1.31%) were diagnosed with PD, 145 in the βB group and 30 in the no-βB group. The HR for PD among topical β-blocker users compared with non-users was 1.16 (95% CI 0.78 to 1.72, p=0.47). Kaplan-Meier analysis showed no significant difference in PD-free survival between the groups (p=0.47). CONCLUSIONS:Topical β-blocker use was not associated with an increased risk of PD. These findings suggest that topical β-blockers are a safe therapeutic option, even for patients at potential risk for PD.
