The exploitation of animal resources in Șoimuș-La Avicola (Ferma 2) settlement (Romania)

The aim of this paper is to present an interesting archaeological assemblage discovered during archaeological research at the settlement of Șoimuș-La Avicola (Ferma 2) (Romania). So far, this is the only example of a Turdaș culture osseous assemblage published. It is numerically representative, with 901 pieces, of which 796 are bone, 94 antler, 8 tooth and 3 valve. Among the bone pieces, a high standardisation in the selection of blanks is noticeable, with Bos taurus ribs being prevalent. At the same time, the techniques and procedures vary only a little within the groups, which allows for the identification of typological series. The recovery of all the products and sub-products resulting from the operational sequences of raw material transformation and the analysis of the wear and technological traces led us to try to reconstruct a behavioural model of the ways raw material was acquired, processing techniques and activities developed with them, or in other words to outline the economic and cultural features of the Șoimuș-La Avicola (Ferma 2) community.Namen članka je predstaviti zanimiv arheološki zbir, ki smo ga odkrili pri arheološkem raziskovanju naselbine Șoimuș-La Avicola (Ferma 2) v Romuniji. To je edini primer objavljenega kostnega zbira kulture Turdaș. Zbir sestavlja 901 kosov, od tega 796 kosti, 94 ostankov rogovja, 8 zob in 3 lupine školjk. Pri izbiri kosti prepoznamo visoko stopnjo standardizacije, prevladujejo pa rebra vrsta Bos taurus. Poleg tega je le malo variacij znotraj skupin pri izbiri tehnike in postopkih izdelave orodij, kar omogoča prepoznavanje tipoloških serij. S pomočjo analize vseh izdelkov in pod-izdelkov iz analize operacijske sekvence spremembe naravnih surovin in analize uporabe ter tehnoloških sledov lahko poskušamo rekonstruirati načine, kako so v preteklosti pridobivali surovine, kakšne so bile tehnike izdelave in druge aktivnosti povezane z obdelavo kosti; z drugimi besedami, lažje zaobjamemo gospodarske in kulturne značilnosti skupnosti na najdišču Șoimuș-La Avicola (Ferma 2)

Acute Achilles tendon rupture: percutaneous tenorrhaphy

Introduction. Acute injury of Achilles tendon represents 20% from large tendon ruptures and the incidence is 11-37 per 100 thousand people (by Park et al. 2020). Case presentation. A 43-year-old man, after a sprint, heard a crack and a sharp pain in his right ankle, on the posterior part a day ago. He went directly to the Clinical Hospital of Traumatology and Orthopedics. He was clinically examined where it was determined swelling of the ankle region and 1/3 of the lower back of the right leg, erasing the Achilian contour, the foot is moved sideways. Palpation of the Achilles tendon diastase. Thomson sign - positive on the right. The sonographic examination determined the Achilles tendon tears with a diastase of 4 cm. The patient was recommended surgery to repair the rupture of the Achilles tendon by percutaneous tenorrhaphy. An informed agreement was obtained after explication of the risks and benefits of the surgical treatment. Surgery was made with spinal anesthesia and fixing sterile zone, the distal and proximal ends of the Achilles tendon were drawn with a sterile marker from the visually determined and palpable injury on the skin. Percutaneous sutures were applied after Cuneo in two rows at the proximal end and one row at the distal end, through two mini-incisions, the opposite ends were adapted on the lateral and medial edge, the foot in the equine (hyperflexion), thus the final ligation of the threads was achieved. Applying the dressing. The final step is followed by the application of the leg immobilization with the foot in the equine on the right. Simple evolution of the postoperative period. After 6 weeks of immobilization, the patient starts rehabilitation. Discussion. Fresh Achilles tendon injury needs to be diagnosed primarily as early as possible, with the use of sonographic examination to confirm the clinical diagnosis allowing us to perform minimally invasive treatment such as percutaneous tenorrhaphy. Conclusion. Achilles tendon is the largest and strongest tendon of the human body and its usual injury is caused by recreational activity. Early establishing the diagnosis of Achilles tendon injury permitted primary repairing this anatomical structure by minimally invasive technique

The Bronze Age mounds from Aliman (Constanţa County, Romania)

During a rescue excavation in 2019 two Bronze Age mounds were investigated in Aliman (Constanţa County). One of them was 28×21 m in diameter, ca. 1 m in height and contained two graves (T3). The other one was 22 m in diameter, ca. 1.40 m in height with a circular ditch and contained four graves (T4). At a distance of ca. 25 m south-east of the first mound (T3), an isolated grave was discovered. The earliest burial dates from the last third of the 4th millennium BC, several others from different phases of the first half of the 3rd millennium BC and, finally, the last one was added in the 2nd millennium BC. In this article – taking as a starting point the archaeological, bio-anthropological and radiocarbon research of the graves – we discuss the absolute chronology of more than one and a half millennia of burial mounds use in Dobroudja and the transformation of burial practices in this interval. Our results correlate with finds from burial mounds investigated in eastern and southern Romania but also the wider steppe-like regions of Hungary, Bulgaria and Serbia.Peer reviewe

Implantation of a Dual-Chamber Automatic Cardioverter Defibrillator in a Patient with Persistent Left Superior Vena Cava: Case Report and Brief Literature Review

Persistence of the left superior vena cava (PLSVC) is a congenital anomaly reported in 0.3–0.5% of patients. Due to the multiple and complex anatomical variations, transvenous lead placement can become challenging. We report the case of a 47-year-old patient diagnosed with non-ischemic dilated cardiomyopathy with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF—27%), who was referred to our clinic for implantation of a dual-chamber cardioverter defibrillator for primary prevention of sudden cardiac death. During the procedure we encountered an abnormal guidewire trajectory and after venographic examination we established the diagnosis of persistent left superior vena cava. After difficult implantation of a 7F defibrillation lead through the coronary sinus, we managed to place the atrial lead through a narrow brachiocephalic vein into the right atrial appendage. In this paper, we aim to illustrate the medical and technical implications of implanting a cardioverter defibrillator in patients with PLSVC, highlighting the benefit of identifying and utilizing both the innominate vein, and the left superior vena cava and coronary sinus for placement of multiple leads, which would otherwise have been impossible

A Rare Entity–Percutaneous Lead Extraction in a Very Late Onset Pacemaker Endocarditis: Case Report and Review of Literature

The number of infections related to cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) has increased as the number of devices implanted around the world has grown exponentially in recent years. CIED complications can sometimes be difficult to diagnose and manage, as in the case of lead-related infective endocarditis. We present the case of a 48-year-old male diagnosed with Staphylococcus aureus device-related infective endocarditis, 12 years after the implant of a single chamber pacemaker. A recent history of the patient includes two urinary catheterizations due to obstructive uropathy in the context of a prostatic adenoma, 2 months previously, both without antibiotic prophylaxis; no other possible entry sites were found and no history of other invasive procedures. After initiation of antibiotic therapy according to antibiotic susceptibility testing, we decided to remove the right ventricular passive fixation lead along with the vegetation and pacemaker generator; because of severe lead adhesions in the costoclavicular region, and especially in the right ventricle, we needed mechanical sheaths to remove the abundant fibrous tissue that encompassed the lead. After a difficult, but successful, lead extraction along with a large vegetation and 6 weeks’ antibiotic therapy, the clinical and biological evolution was favorable, without reappearance of symptoms. While very late lead endocarditis is a rarity, late lead-related infective endocarditis (more than 12 months elapsed since implant) is not an exception; this is why we find that endocarditis prophylaxis should be reconsidered in certain patient categories, our patient being proof that procedures with neglectable endocarditis risk according to the guidelines can lead to bacterial endocarditis

A Comparative Loading and Release Study of Vancomycin from a Green Mesoporous Silica

Since its first use as a drug delivery system, mesoporous silica has proven to be a surprisingly efficient vehicle due to its porous structure. Unfortunately, most synthesis methods are based on using large amounts of surfactants, which are then removed by solvent extraction or heat treatment, leading to an undesired environmental impact because of the generated by-products. Hence, in the present study, we followed the synthesis of a silica material with a wormhole-like pore arrangement, using two FDA-approved substances as templates, namely Tween-20 and starch. As far as we know, it is the first study using the Tween-20/starch combo as a template for mesoporous silica synthesis. Furthermore, we investigated whether the obtained material using this novel synthesis had any potential in using it as a DDS. The material was further analyzed by XRD, TEM, FT-IR, N2 adsorption/desorption, and DLS to investigate its physicochemical features. Vancomycin was selected as the active molecule based on the extensive research engaged towards improving its bioavailability for oral delivery. The drug was loaded onto the material by using three different approaches, assuming its full retention in the final system. Thermal analysis confirmed the successful loading of vancomycin by all means, and pore volume significantly decreased upon loading, especially in the case of the vacuum-assisted method. All methods showed a slower release rate compared to the same amount of the pure drug. Loadings by physical mixing and solvent evaporation released the whole amount of the drug in 140 min, and the material loaded by the vacuum-assisted method released only 68.2% over the same period of time, leading us to conclude that vancomycin was adsorbed deeper inside the pores. The kinetic release of the three systems followed the Higuchi model for the samples loaded by physical mixing and vacuum-assisted procedures, while the solvent evaporation loading method was in compliance with the first-order model