Faculty, residents, fellows, and community physicians in General Internal Medicine and subspecialties.

Psoas Muscle Index is Associated with Native Heart Survival in Cardiogenic Shock Supported by Impella 5.5
Upon completion of this activity, participants should be able to:

• Develop evidence-based strategies to optimize recovery and preserve native heart survival in patients following Impella 5.5 support, based on observed trends in muscle mass and functional outcomes.
• Analyze changes in skeletal muscle mass using psoas muscle index (PMI) to evaluate the degree of deconditioning in cardiogenic shock patients supported by Impella 5.5.

The Kynurenine pathway and inflammation in pulmonary hypertension
Upon completion of this activity, participants should be able to:

• Analyze the role of inflammation-driven tryptophan metabolism through the kynurenine pathway in the pathobiology of pulmonary artery disease.
• Evaluate the impact of inflammation-driven tryptophan metabolism through the kynurenine pathway on the development and progression of pulmonary arterial hypertension.
• Integrate emerging data on kynurenine pathway metabolites into the interpretation of inflammatory mechanisms and assessment of disease severity in pulmonary hypertension.



Candida albicans in the respiratory tract induces lung injury in mice and predicts prolonged mechanical ventilation in humans
Upon completion of this activity, participants should be able to:

• Describe the impact of Candida albicans colonization on lung outcomes in critically ill patients.
• Assess how C. albicans hyphal formation and candidalysin contribute to lung epithelial injury and barrier disruption.

The Impact of Cardiovascular Health Scores and Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy on Cardiac Structure and Function 10 Years After Delivery

• Describe the impact of HDP and CVHS on cardiac structure and function
• Evaluate the effects of HDP on diverse cardiovascular outcomes 
• Implement strategies to improve patient outcomes by identifying those with HDP for aggressive HTN and weight control

Suggested Additional Reading:

• Yang, C., Liu, Y.-H. & Zheng, H.-K. Identification of metabolic biomarkers in idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension using targeted metabolomics and bioinformatics analysis. Sci Rep 14, 25283 (2024).
• Cai, Z. et al. IDO‐1 Promotes Pulmonary Vascular Remodeling Via Kynurenine Pathway in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension. JAHA 14, e040896 (2025).
• Nagy, B. M. et al. Importance of kynurenine in pulmonary hypertension. American Journal of Physiology-Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology 313, L741–L751 (2017).

AMA PRA Category 1 Credits^™.In support improving patient care, the University of Pittsburgh is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) and the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine designates this enduring material activity for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™. Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. This educational activity is approved for 1.0 contact hours.

Other health care professionals will receive a certificate of attendance confirming the number of contact hours commensurate with the extent of participation in this activity.