International nosocomial infection control consortium (INICC) report, data summary of 36 countries, for 2004-2009

The results of a surveillance study conducted by the International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortium (INICC) from January 2004 through December 2009 in 422 intensive care units (ICUs) of 36 countries in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe are reported. During the 6-year study period, using Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN; formerly the National Nosocomial Infection Surveillance system [NNIS]) definitions for device-associated health care-associated infections, we gathered prospective data from 313,008 patients hospitalized in the consortium's ICUs for an aggregate of 2,194,897 ICU bed-days. Despite the fact that the use of devices in the developing countries' ICUs was remarkably similar to that reported in US ICUs in the CDC's NHSN, rates of device-associated nosocomial infection were significantly higher in the ICUs of the INICC hospitals; the pooled rate of central line-associated bloodstream infection in the INICC ICUs of 6.8 per 1,000 central line-days was more than 3-fold higher than the 2.0 per 1,000 central line-days reported in comparable US ICUs. The overall rate of ventilator-associated pneumonia also was far higher (15.8 vs 3.3 per 1,000 ventilator-days), as was the rate of catheter-associated urinary tract infection (6.3 vs. 3.3 per 1,000 catheter-days). Notably, the frequencies of resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates to imipenem (47.2% vs 23.0%), Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates to ceftazidime (76.3% vs 27.1%), Escherichia coli isolates to ceftazidime (66.7% vs 8.1%), Staphylococcus aureus isolates to methicillin (84.4% vs 56.8%), were also higher in the consortium's ICUs, and the crude unadjusted excess mortalities of device-related infections ranged from 7.3% (for catheter-associated urinary tract infection) to 15.2% (for ventilator-associated pneumonia). Copyright © 2012 by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

A Semantic and Parametric Method for 3D Models used in 3D Cognitive-Information System

The paper presents an innovative semantic and parametric method to build 3D models to be used in cognitive-information systems. We integrated structured geometrical and documentary information resulting from multiple sources with the aim to enhance the knowledge of those sites within the frame of their historical evolution and their institutional management in a 3D GIS/DB. The developed applications were designed for different types of users, with a largely scalable interface, able to support different output devices and to work at different levels of iconicity. The system allows a full comprehension of the buildings in their own context, permitting to discover unknown relationships, to evaluate their architectural occupancy and to quickly access a complex system of information

Research activity 1990-92 at the L.T.N. - Oikos Bologna: Europan and barrier-free bathrooms

During the three year period 1990-1992, the research activity carried out in the Typological Laboratory has been focused on two specific themes: flexibility and typological innovation in dwelling-areas and features of the bathroom for disabled users. These themes reflect two among the chief subjects calling the attention of the Residential Building Committee of the Ministry of Public Works to which - as everybody knows - the Laboratory is subordinated. Both themes have been approached through specific application pro rams which took as reference points, respectively, the Programm of EUROPAN Competitions and the proposals for bringing up to date

An Integrated 3D Geodatabase for Palladio\u27s Work

The paper presents a novel digital 3D GIS web-based system entirely founded on Google Earth, built to offer a deep insight into Palladio's opera for restitution of its architectural surveys, reconstruction for historical reasons, analysis for structural and other options, and assembly and presentation of all certified Palladian documentation.The development of the application follows the philosophy of visual computing and it is based on an architectural knowledge representation.The information system is conceived as a typical Rich Internet Application and it is based on the digitalization of the complete Palladian corpus documentation implemented by the Centro Internazionale di Studi di Architettura Andrea Palladio (CISAAP).The 3D geodatabase system is, actually, in use at the Centro as the Palladian information system for researchers and in two expositions at Barbaran da Porto Palace in Vicenza, and at Villa Poiana at Poiana Maggiore, where is widely used by tourists for virtual visits to Palladian buildings

The italian full-scale model laboratory: considerations about some tools for architectural experimentation

The Italian simulation laboratory carries out most of its activity within the experimental programmes promoted by the Ministry of Works. Within this context, we conducted studies based on the topics of EUROPAN competitions for young architects, built models based on EUROREX programme's projects and analyzed experimental projects directly financed by the Ministry (mainly restoration projects)