Operative

BACKGROUND: There is lack of recent multicenter epidemiological data on invasive aspergillosis (IA) among solid organ transplant recipient (SOTr) in the mold-acting antifungal era. We describe the epidemiology and outcomes of IA in a contemporary cohort of SOTr using the Swiss Transplant Cohort Study. METHODS: All consecutive SOTr with proven or probable IA between 01.05.2008 and 31.12.2014 were included. A case-control study to identify IA predictors was performed: 1-case was matched with 3-controls based on SOT type, transplant center, and time post-SOT...

Resolving the temporal dynamics of cell signaling pathways is essential for regulating numerous downstream functions, from gene expression to cellular responses. Mapping these signaling pathways requires the exposure of cells to time-varying chemical signals; these are difficult to generate and control over a wide temporal range. Herein, we present an acoustofluidic chemical signal generator based on a sharp-edge-based micromixing strategy. The device, simply by modulating the driving signals of an acoustic transducer including the ON/OFF switching frequency, actuation time and duty cycle, is capable of generating both single-pulse and periodic chemical signals that are temporally controllable in terms of stimulation period, stimulation duration and duty cycle...

A series of zerovalent group VI metal complexes of tris(diisopropylphosphinomethyl)phenylborate ([PhB(CH2PiPr2)3]-, PhBPiPr3), including [PPN][M(CO)3(PhBPiPr3)] (M = Cr, Mo, W) and the first bimetallics in which PhBPiPr3 serves as a bridging ligand via binding M(CO)3 units at the three phosphorus atoms and the borate phenyl substituent, have been synthesized and fully characterized. Two new tris(phosphinomethyl)borates featuring 3,5-dimethylphenyl and 3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl borate substituents were prepared as crystallographically characterized thallium salts, and metallated giving their inaugural transition metal complexes [PPN][M(CO)3(((3,5-Me)C6H3)BPPh3)] and [PPN][M(CO)3(((3,5-CF3)C6H3)BPPh3)]...

Background An emergency thoracotomy can be performed either immediately at the site of trauma or in the emergency department or operating room for resuscitation of patients in extremis or life-saving treatment for patients with thoracic injury. It remains a procedure associated with high mortality rates, and there is a paucity of data from Asia. This study analyzed our six-year experience of emergency trauma thoracotomy in an acute general hospital in Singapore. Methods This retrospective analysis was based on experience in a single institution with all emergency trauma thoracotomies performed by general surgeons...

Background Better selection of patients with intermediate and high-risk stage I endometrial carcinoma (EC) for lymphadenectomy has an important effect on the prognosis. Purpose To investigate the role of apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) measurements in the assessment of stage I EC patients based on three risk categories. Material and Methods We retrospectively studied 80 patients with EC and 28 cervical cancer patients with normal endometrium. 1.5-T conventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) (b = 0, 1000 s/mm2 ) were performed, and ADC values were calculated...

Introduction Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a complex disease that is associated with significant mortality and an increased risk of hospitalization. Several validated instruments are available to measure disease activity in SLE patients. However, these instruments were not designed to screen for SLE patients at an increased risk of hospitalization. These instruments also fail to incorporate some data that are easily obtainable from electronic health records, such as the frequency of missed outpatient appointments...

A tear glucose (TG) sensor with an integrated tear sampler can provide a noninvasive method for calibrating the continuous TG contact lens and monitoring glucose. Expanding from previous work, an improved TG sensor that implements dried reagents, genetically modified glucose dehydrogenase (GDH), and a tear sampler was developed and compared against the TG sensor prepared with commercial GDH. It was found that neither sensor was affected by the tear interferents: ascorbic acid, acetaminophen, and uric acid. The sensor prepared with commercial GDH generated higher current...

We report the serendipitous discovery of an optical mercury sensor while trying to develop a water-soluble manganese probe. The sensor is based on a pentaaza macrocycle conjugated to a hemicyanine dye. The pentaaza macrocycle earlier designed in our group was used to develop photoinduced electron transfer (PET)-based "turn-on" fluorescent sensors for manganese. (1) In an attempt to increase the water-solubility of the manganese sensors we changed the dye from BODIPY to hemicyanine. The resultant molecule qHCM afforded a distinct reversible change in the absorption features and a concomitant visible color change upon binding to Hg2+ ions, leading to a highly water-soluble mercury sensor with a 10 ppb detection limit...

Frailty is associated with increased mortality among lung transplant candidates. We sought to determine the association between frailty, as measured by the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) and mortality after lung transplantation. In a multicenter prospective cohort study of adults who underwent lung transplantation, pre-operative frailty was assessed with the SPPB (n=318) and, in a secondary analysis, the Fried Frailty Phenotype (FFP; n=299). We tested the association between pre-operative frailty and mortality following lung transplantation with propensity score adjusted Cox models...

Voltage-gated ion channels were believed to be the only voltage-sensitive proteins in excitable (and some non-excitable) cells for a long time. Emerging evidence indicates that the voltage-operated model is shared by some other transmembrane proteins expressed in both excitable and non-excitable cells. In this review, we summarize current knowledge about voltage-operated proteins, which are not classic voltage-gated ion channels as well as the voltage-dependent processes in cells for which single voltage-sensitive proteins have yet to be identified...

BACKGROUND: Gastric cancer (GC) is a disease associated with a higher incidence and mortality, and some host genetic polymorphisms have been reported as potential factors contributing to the development of GC. In view of this, the study was conducted to investigate the effects of HLA-DQB1 gene polymorphisms and perioperative blood transfusion on prognosis of patients with gastric cancer (GC). METHODS: A total of 142 patients with GC (case group) and 150 healthy controls (control group) were enrolled...

BACKGROUND: Topical photodynamic therapy is an established treatment modality for various dermatological conditions, including actinic keratosis. In Europe, the approved protocols for photodynamic therapy of actinic keratosis involve irradiation with either an Aktilite CL 128 lamp or daylight, whereas irradiation with the Blu-U illuminator is approved in the United States. Many other protocols using irradiation by a variety of light sources are also clinically efficient. OBJECTIVES: This paper aims to compare 10 different protocols with clinically proven efficacy for photodynamic therapy of actinic keratosis and the available spectral irradiance of the light source...

Prostate cancer (PCa) is one of the most common cancers among men globally. The authors aimed to evaluate the ability of the Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System version 2 (PI-RADS v2) to classify men with PCa, clinically significant PCa (CSPCa), or no PCa, especially among those with serum total prostate-specific antigen (tPSA) levels in the "gray zone" (4-10 ng ml-1 ). A total of 308 patients (355 lesions) were enrolled in this study. Diagnostic efficiency was determined. Univariate and multivariate analyses, receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, and decision curve analysis were performed to determine and compare the predictors of PCa and CSPCa...

Blunt abdominal trauma following gunshot wound. Case report and literature review Introduction: Similarly to blast weapons, every firearm produces explosion at the moment of shooting, which can cause injuries in every region of the body. The aim of this paper is to present the mechanism of blunt abdominal injury following gunshot wounds, bringing this uncommon disease to the clinicians' attention and to review the literature available. CASE REPORT: A patient developed a delayed bowel perforation following a gunshot injury of the abdomen without breaking of the peritoneum...

Most existing signal timing models are aimed to minimize the total delay and stops at intersections, without considering environmental factors. This paper analyzes the trade-off between vehicle emission and traffic efficiencies on the basis of the field data. First, considering the different operating modes of cruising, acceleration, deceleration, and idling, the field data of emissions and GPS are collected to estimate emission rates for the heavy-duty and light-duty vehicles. Second, multi-objective signal timing optimization model is established based on a genetic algorithm to minimize delay, stops, and emissions...

BACKGROUND: Impaired healing of the uterine scar after cesarean has been associated with adverse gynecological and obstetric outcomes. Although a large number of studies have been conducted on the events leading to this, information obtained from prospective randomized studies examining the role of suture material in the formation of cesarean scar defect (CSD) is lacking. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of synthetic suture materials on CSD formation. STUDY DESIGN: We performed a two-arm 1:1 randomized study in women with singleton pregnancies undergoing elective primary cesarean delivery after the 38th week of gestation...

64Cu is a cyclotron-produced radionuclide which offers, due to its characteristic decay scheme the possibility to combine PET investigations with radiotherapy. We evaluated the Alceo sys-tem from Comecer SpA to automatically produce 64Cu for radiolabelling purposes. We established a 64Cu production routine with high yields and radionuclide purity in combination with excellent operator radiation protection. The carbonic anhydrase XII targeting 6A10 antibody fab fragment was successfully radiolabelled with the produced 64Cu and proof of principle small animal PET experiments on mice bearing glioma xenografts were performed...

Adjuvant chemotherapy is recommended for patients with resected high-risk adult granulosa cell tumors (GCT), although strong data to support this are lacking. The objective of this study was to assess the outcomes of GCT patients, with the specific focus on patients that received adjuvant chemotherapy with curative intent (stage I-III), reported in a large national cancer registry. Data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database between 2000 and 2013 were used for analysis. Patient and disease characteristics were extracted and analyzed for association with administration of chemotherapy...

Glossolaryngectomy is a major operation with significant biopsychosocial implications. Outcome data in the literature is limited. This study reports the overall survival rate (68% at 1 year) and functional outcomes. Despite the significant psychological impact of the lack of speech, all interviewed patients were glad they had had the operation. We argue based on these results that glossolaryngectomy remains an important option for certain motivated patients with limited treatment alternatives. This article is protected by copyright...

Recent progress in deep learning extends the capability of artificial intelligence to various practical tasks, making the deep neural network (DNN) an extremely versatile hypothesis. While such DNN is virtually built on contemporary data centers of the von Neumann architecture, physical (in part) DNN of non-von Neumann architecture, also known as neuromorphic computing, can remarkably improve learning and inference efficiency. Particularly, resistance-based nonvolatile random access memory (NVRAM) highlights its handy and efficient application to the multiply-accumulate (MAC) operation in an analog manner...