Long-Term Survival and Predictors of Failure of Opening Wedge High Tibial Osteotomy

Objective: High tibial valgus osteotomy (HTO) is a widely accepted procedure indicated for varus knee with symptomatic osteoarthritis of the medial compartment. However, there is a lack of studies evaluating long term results of this procedure. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the long-term survival of opening wedge high tibial osteotomy (HTO) for isolated osteoarthritis in the medial compartment of the knee. The secondary objective was to identify independent predictors of conversion to total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Methods: This is a long term retrospective study of 296 cases of open wedge HTOs performed at a single center (level of evidence IV) between January 2005 and August 2015. Opening wedge medial HTO was always performed after diagnostic arthroscopy. Eighty-three percent of the population (233 patients, 247 procedures) was followed up at a mean 11.6 years (6-17) by telephone interview, to evaluate the possible conversion to TKA. Mean age at the index operation was 42.8 years (range 15-70) and most patients were male (70%). Associated procedures (e.g., platelet rich plasma supplementation, microfractures, meniscectomy, etc.) were carried out at the time of the HTO in 80 (32%) cases. Survival of HTO and its association with age, sex, body mass index, smoking habit, preoperative severity of varus deformity, cartilage status at surgery, and associated procedures were evaluated. Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analyses were performed. Results: Thirty-three of the 247 HTOs (13.4%) were converted to knee replacement, with 86.6% of the original procedures surviving at a mean 12-year follow-up. Kaplan-Meier survival estimates at 17 years for HTO were 75.5% (95% confidence interval [CI] 66.7-84.3). There was significant difference (P < 0.001) in the 17-year survival rate between obese (55.5%; 95% CI 35.3-75.6) and non-obese (79.7%; 95% CI 70.1-89.2) patients. The determinants of conversion to knee arthroplasty detected at multivariate Cox regression analysis were body mass index, severity of cartilage degeneration in the medial compartment (Outerbridge grade), and age. Conclusion: The long-term survival of open wedge HTO for osteoarthritis in the medial compartment of the knee is satisfactory. The risk of conversion to TKA is significantly increased in obese patients. Advanced age and severity of pre-existing cartilage damage may also contribute to the risk of conversion to TKA

DPU_ASW Configuration Control Issues

This document is a printed version of the configuration control (CC) of the DPU_ASW. For CC the Jira tool was used, with a repository provided by INFN. The tool provides a web interface at the following link: https://issues.infn.it/jira/browse/EUNIDPUASW/?selectedTab=com.atlassian.jira.jira-projects-plugin:summary-panel, to access INFN credential are need. The webpage as well as this document are organized by sections, corresponding to each release of the DPU_ASW versions. Starting in section 4 are listed the differences with respect to the previous release. The first release under CC is DPU-ASW version v0.0 (delta-CDR). For each CC entry, an identification code is automatically generated, and a title is assigned e.g. [EUNIDPUASW-72] ICU counter test. Here the entry title (listed in the table of contents) is a hyperlink to the webpage of the corresponding entry in at Jira on-line documentation. Each entry is classified according to its type: New Feature or Bug, and a priority is assigned: Trivial, Minor or Major. The status is specified in the field Resolution: all Done. In the on-line version of the documentation, entries can be sort according any of these criteria; and ancillary attached files quoted in the entries can be downloaded from the on-line version of the document (here are included only plots and pictures). DPU-ASW versioning is fully documented in RD-8

IoT Systems for Healthy and Safe Life Environments

The past two years have been sadly marked by the worldwide spread of the SARS-Cov-19 pandemic. The first line of defense against this and other pandemic threats is to respect interpersonal distances, use masks, and sanitize hands, air, and objects. Some of these countermeasures are becoming part of our daily lives, as they are now considered good practices to reduce the risk of infection and contagion. In this context, we present \emph{Safe Place}, a modular system enabled by \gls{iot} that is designed to improve the safety and healthiness of living environments. %\textcolor{blue}{ This system combines several sensors and actuators produced by different vendors with self-regulating procedures and \gls{ai} algorithms to limit the spread of viruses and other pathogens, and increase the quality and comfort offered to people while minimizing the energy consumption.%} We discuss the main objectives of the system and its implementation, showing preliminary results that assess its potentials in enhancing the conditions of living and working spaces

TRABALHANDO COM FAMÍLIAS: UMA PROPOSTA DE EXTENSÃO NA UNIDADE DE TERAPIA NEONATAL E PEDIÁTRICA DA UFTM

O curso de Serviço Social da Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro- UFTM, em parceria com o setor de Serviço Social do Hospital de Clínicas da UFTM realiza o projeto de extensão junto às famílias de usuários da unidade de terapia intensiva neonatal e pediátrica. Este projeto objetiva ampliar a qualidade do atendimento prestado aos usuários e suas famílias, promover ações focadas na humanização da atenção em saúde e possibilitar a aproximação dos discentes à realidade da atenção em saúde. A metodologia utilizada baseou-se em encontros e reuniões sistematizados, estudos teóricos, atendimento às famílias, aplicação de instrumentos para caracterização sócio familiar e sala de espera com veiculação de informações sobre os direitos sociais. A partir da implantação do projeto foram realizados atendimentos a 20 famílias dos pacientes internados naquela unidade semanalmente. A realização de projeto de extensão na UTI possibilitou a ampliação da qualidade do atendimento prestado às famílias aliado ao aprofundamento da fundamentação teórico-metodológica e técnico-operativa dos acadêmicos do curso, fortalecendo a articulação entre o ensino e a realidade hospitalar. Esta atividade contribuiu para o aprofundamento da relação dialógica entre os profissionais da saúde, discentes e docentes do curso de Serviço Social, bem como com a comunidade atendida

DPU-ASW Management of the DCU ERROR REG content with possible off-line recovery actions

A new strategy is defined for the management of the errors in the DCU science interface dedicated to the scientific data acquisitio

Critical COVID-19 Patients Through First, Second And Third Wave: Retrospective Observational Study Comparing Outcomes In ICU.

Introduction- The time-course of the COVID-19 pandemic was characterized by subsequent waves identified by peaks of Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission rates. During these periods, progressive knowledge of the disease led to the development of specific therapeutic strategies. This retrospective study investigates whether this led to improvement in outcomes of COVID-19 patients admitted to ICU. Methods- Outcomes were evaluated in consecutive adult COVID19 patients admitted to our ICU, divided into three waves based on the admission period: the first wave from February 25th, 2020, to July 6th, 2020; the second wave from September 20th, 2020, to February 13th, 2021; the third wave from February 14th, 2021 to April 30th, 2021. Differences were assessed comparing outcomes and by using different multivariable Cox models adjusted for variables related to outcome. Further sensitivity analysis was performed in patients undergoing invasive mechanical ventilation. Results- Overall, 428 patients were included in the analysis: 102, 169 and 157 patients in the first, second and third wave. The ICU and in-hospital crude mortalities were lower by 7% and 10% in the third wave compared to the other 2 waves (p&gt;0.05). A higher number of ICU and hospital free days at day 90 was found in the third wave when compared to the other 2 waves (p=0.001). Overall, 62.6% underwent invasive ventilation, with decreasing requirement during the waves (p=0.002). The adjusted Cox model showed no difference in the Hazard Ratio for mortality among the waves. In the propensity-matched analysis the hospital mortality rate was reduced by 11% in the third wave (p=0.044). Conclusions - With application of best practice as known by the time of the first three waves of the pandemic, our study failed to identify a significant improvement in mortality rate when comparing the different waves of the COVID-19 pandemic, notwithstanding, the sub-analyses showed a trend in mortality reduction in the third wave. Rather, our study identified a possible positive effect of dexamethasone on mortality rate reduction and the increased risk of death related to bacterial infections in the three waves

Cytomegalovirus blood reactivation in COVID-19 critically ill patients: risk factors and impact on mortality.

Purpose: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) reactivation in immunocompetent critically ill patients is common and relates to a worsening outcome. In this large observational study, we evaluated the incidence and the risk factors associated with CMV reactivation and its effects on mortality in a large cohort of COVID-19 patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). Methods: Consecutive patients with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection and acute respiratory distress syndrome admitted to three ICUs from February 2020 to July 2021 were included. The patients were screened at ICU admission and once or twice per week for quantitative CMV-DNAemia in the blood. The risk factors associated with CMV blood reactivation and its association with mortality were estimated by adjusted Cox proportional hazards regression models. Results: CMV blood reactivation was observed in 88 patients (20,4%) of the 431 patients studied. SAPS II score (HR 1,031, 95% CI 1,010-1,053, p=0,006), platelet count (HR 0,0996, 95% CI 0,993-0,999, p=0,004), invasive mechanical ventilation (HR 2,611, 95% CI 1,223-5,571, p=0,013) and secondary bacterial infection (HR 5,041; 95% CI 2,852-8,911, p&lt;0,0001) during ICU stay were related to CMV reactivation. Hospital mortality was higher in patients with (67,0%) than in patients without (24,5%) CMV reactivation but the adjusted analysis did not confirm this association (HR 1,141, 95% CI 0,757-1,721, p=0,528). Conclusion: The severity of illness and the occurrence of secondary bacterial infections were associated with an increased risk of CMV blood reactivation, which, however, does not seem to influence the outcome of COVID-19 ICU patients independently

Test Report of NISP dedicated test activities during the CSL campaign - DCU-SCE Communication issue

A complete analysis of the communication issue in the science interface observed during the NISP CSL test campaig

First detection of X-ray polarization from the accreting neutron star 4U 1820-303

This paper reports the first detection of polarization in the X-rays for atoll-source 4U 1820-303, obtained with the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) at 99.999% confidence level (CL). Simultaneous polarimetric measurements were also performed in the radio with the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA). The IXPE observations of 4U 1820-303 were coordinated with Swift-XRT, NICER, and NuSTAR aiming to obtain an accurate X-ray spectral model covering a broad energy interval. The source shows a significant polarization above 4 keV, with a polarization degree of 2.0(0.5)% and a polarization angle of -55(7) deg in the 4-7 keV energy range, and a polarization degree of 10(2)% and a polarization angle of -67(7) deg in the 7-8 keV energy bin. This polarization also shows a clear energy trend with polarization degree increasing with energy and a hint for a position-angle change of about 90 deg at 96% CL around 4 keV. The spectro-polarimetric fit indicates that the accretion disk is polarized orthogonally to the hard spectral component, which is presumably produced in the boundary/spreading layer. We do not detect linear polarization from the radio counterpart, with a 99.97% upper limit of 50% at 7.25 GHz

Local IPOs, local delistings, and the firm location premium

Borrowing a measure from ecology, we introduce a spatial dispersion index to quantify the firm traits related to firm geographic location and investigate firm exposure to local home bias and local investor risk tolerance as determinants of corporate market value. Consistent with the investor preference for local stocks, we find listed firms benefit from a location premium that increases with firm isolation and local investor wealth. IPOs and delistings are found to affect the market value of neighboring listed firms: isolated firms decrease in value when they cluster due to local IPOs while clustered firms increase in value as they become more isolated due to local delistings. Local firm clustering and risk tolerance also affect IPO underpricing. Empirical findings depict a framework where IPOs and delistings are locally jointly determined