Prinzmetal’s variant angina associated with severe heart rhythm disturbances and syncope: A therapeutic dilemma

Prinzmetal’s angina is a distinct syndrome characterized by episodes of chest pain and transient ST-segment elevation caused by coronary vasospasm. This variant form of angina is sometimes associated with complete atrioventricular block and ventricular arrhythmias. We report here a case of variant angina with documented severe heart rhythm disturbances and syncope in a 66 year-old woman. Due to recurrent episodes of high-degree atrioventricular block, a DDD pacemaker was implanted. No further symptoms of angina or cardiac arrhythmias were detected on optimal therapy

Whole-cell fungal transformation of precursors into dyes

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Chemical methods of producing dyes involve extreme temperatures and unsafe toxic compounds. Application of oxidizing enzymes obtained from fungal species, for example laccase, is an alternative to chemical synthesis of dyes. Laccase can be replaced by fungal biomass acting as a whole-cell biocatalyst with properties comparable to the isolated form of the enzyme. The application of the whole-cell system simplifies the transformation process and reduces the time required for its completion. In the present work, four fungal strains with a well-known ability to produce laccase were tested for oxidation of 17 phenolic and non-phenolic precursors into stable and non-toxic dyes.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>An agar-plate screening test of the organic precursors was carried out using four fungal strains: <it>Trametes versicolor</it>, <it>Fomes fomentarius</it>, <it>Abortiporus biennis</it>, and <it>Cerrena unicolor</it>. Out of 17 precursors, nine were transformed into coloured substances in the presence of actively growing fungal mycelium. The immobilized fungal biomass catalyzed the transformation of 1 mM benzene and naphthalene derivatives in liquid cultures yielding stable and non-toxic products with good dyeing properties. The type of fungal strain had a large influence on the absorbance of the coloured products obtained after 48-hour transformation of the selected precursors, and the most effective was <it>Fomes fomentarius </it>(<it>FF25</it>). Whole-cell transformation of AHBS (3-amino-4-hydroxybenzenesulfonic acid) into a phenoxazinone dye was carried out in four different systems: in aqueous media comprising low amounts of carbon and nitrogen source, in buffer, and in distilled water.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study demonstrated the ability of four fungal strains belonging to the ecological type of white rot fungi to transform precursors into dyes. This paper highlights the potential of fungal biomass for replacing isolated enzymes as a cheaper industrial-grade biocatalyst for the synthesis of dyes and other commercially important products. The use of immobilized fungal biomass limits free migration of cells and facilitates their reuse in a continuous system for precursor transformation.</p

ACL Strain During Single-Leg Jump Landing: An Experimental and Computational Investigation

The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is a commonly-injured ligament in the human knee joint. ACL injury repair is a costly procedure; however, left unrepaired, ACL injuries can lead to complications later in life. In order to understand ACL injury, metrics such as strain in the ACL are measured under various loading conditions. A motion which has potential to cause ACL injury, a single leg jump landing, was replicated and ACL strain was recorded. Two common approaches for this purpose are in-vitro studies involving cadavers, and finite element (FE) modelling of the knee joint. Once ACL strain during the potentially injurious motion is evaluated, it is easier to work towards potential improvements to protective or rehabilitative equipment, such as knee braces. The objective of the current study was to measure ACL strain during a single leg jump landing using two different methods: 1. In-vitro experiments involving cadavers: - ACL strain vs. time was measured with unbraced and braced cadaver knees. 2. Finite element modelling of the human knee: - The finite element model was assessed using the in-vitro experiments, and can potentially be used to evaluate braced knee conditions in the future. The inputs for the experiments and finite element model were taken from motion capture, which was done in-vivo on two participants in a previous study. The two participants provided input kinetics and kinematics of a single-leg jump landing. The kinematic and kinetic inputs were then applied to three cadaveric specimens using the dynamic knee simulator (DKS) at the University of Waterloo, and ACL strain relative to the beginning of the trial was measured. The cadaver knees were also tested wearing an Össur CTi Custom knee brace, and the effect of the knee brace on relative ACL strain was measured. A finite element model of the human knee joint was also investigated by extracting the right leg of an existing full human body model, the Global Human Body Model Consortium (GHBMC) average-sized male (M50) model, and updating some of the tissue mechanical properties. The same boundary conditions from the experimental iv study were applied to the GHBMC right leg model, and relative ACL strain was calculated and compared against the experimental data. The experimental maximum relative ACL strain for an unbraced full jump landing was 0.032 and 0.057 for participant #1 input and 0.062 for participant #2 input. The computational maximum relative ACL strain was 0.042 for participant #1 input and 0.139 for participant #2 input. The finite element model was able to replicate the experimental ACL strain vs. time curves reasonably well, with a mean squared error of less than 0.01 for all loading scenarios. The results of the unbraced vs. braced jump landing experiments showed that the knee brace had no effect on ACL strain. The mean squared error between unbraced and braced ACL strain vs. time curves was less than 0.0011 for all loading cases, which is a low error value when compared to strains in the range of 0.015- 0.089. The jump landing finite element model is an important first step in using finite elements to predict relative ACL strain during jump landing. Future research directions include study of factors affecting ACL strain, incorporating the knee brace into the finite element model to investigate possible improvements to the brace, and investigating the benefits of adopting a subject-specific geometry for the model

The Process of Human Aging and Involution Changes in the Brain

The aging process and systemic changes occurring in it have an impact on the brain. Commonly observed symptoms of an old age such as cognitive impairment and slowness of movement are the illustration of the changes in the brain. These changes are for brain structure, quantities of neurotransmitters and hormonal activity. We can partially modify the time and the dynamics of the development of evolutional changes through an appropriate preventive action.Proces starzenia i ogólnoustrojowe zmiany w nim zachodzące nie pozostają bez wpływu na mózgowie. Powszechnie obserwowane objawy starości takie jak zaburzenia poznawcze, czy spowolnienie ruchowe są odzwierciedleniem zmian w mózgu. Zmiany te dotyczą struktury mózgu, ilości neurotransmitterów czy aktywności hormonalnej. Częściowo możemy modyfikować czas i dynamikę rozwoju zmian inwolucyjnych, poprzez właściwe działania profilaktyczne

Wisdom of the elderly

In the studies on wisdom of the elderly, there are two kinds of wisdom: pragmatic and transcendent (spiritual), which is a general respond to the world and is associated with the level of personality development. Through its specific context, old age creates conditions for achieving wisdom. The fact whether these opportunities will be used and lead to the development of human personality in old age depends on the individuals.W badaniach nad mądrością osób starszych wyróżnia się dwa rodzaje mądrości: pragmatyczną i transcendentną (ducho-wą), która jest ogólnym ustosunkowaniem do świata i zwią-zana jest z poziomem rozwoju osobowości. Przez swój specyficzny kontekst, starość stwarza warunki do osiągania mądrości. Tylko od konkretnych jednostek zależy czy wykorzystają te możliwości i doprowadzą do rozwoju osobo-wości człowieka w okresie starości

NURSE’S ROLE IN TAKING CARE OF A PATIENT WITH ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE

Along with the development of medicine, the duration of human life lengthened. Thus, the number of people that live to a great age has increased. One of the main health issues concerning people in old age is dementia. The most common cause of dementia that occurs after 65 years of age is Alzheimer’s disease. The course of the disease is progressive and it gradually leads to the situation when a patient is dependent on others. In most cases, the burden of care of a person with Alzheimer’s disease falls on the family members and friends. It is not an easy task. Often the family is not able to provide a proper patient care and therefore, it requires comprehensive medical, social, educational and financial help. The present study describes an important role of nurses, who not only accompany patients and their caregivers, but also educate and support them.Wraz z postępem medycyny wydłużyło się trwanie życia ludzkiego. Zwiększa się więc liczba osób dożywających wieku sędziwego. Jednym z największych problemów zdrowotnych osób w podeszłym wieku jest otępienie. Najczęstszą z przyczyn otępienia występującego po 65 roku życia jest choroba Alzheimera. Przebieg schorzenia jest postępujący i stopniowo prowadzi do uzależnienia chorego od innych. Przeważnie ciężar opieki nad człowiekiem z chorobą Alzheimera spada na osoby najbliższe. Nie jest to łatwe zadanie. Często rodzina nie jest w stanie zapewnić odpowiedniej opieki choremu, dlatego wymaga wszechstronnej pomocy medycznej, społecznej, edukacyjnej i finansowej. W niniejszej pracy opisano bardzo ważną rolę pielęgniarek, które towarzyszą chorym i ich opiekunom, edukują i wspierają ich

Empirical modeling of the sodium channel inhibition caused by drugs

The aim of this work was to create extended QSAR model of the relationship between sodium channel blocking activity of the particular compound and its chemical structure together with the in vitro assay conditions. Artificial neural networks (ANNs) were chosen as modeling tools. Chemoinformatics software was used for calculation of the molecular descriptors describing the structure of the interest. Drug concentration causing 50% of the channel inhibition (IC50) was used as the modeling endpoint. The data was based on the literature search and consisted of 38 drugs and 108 records. Initial number of inputs was 110 and during the sensitivity analysis was reduced to 20. ANNs models were optimized in the extended 10-fold cross-validation scheme yielding RMSE = 0.68, NRMSE = 20.7% and R2= 0.35. Best models were ANNs ensembles combining three ANNs with their outputs averaged as a collective output of the system

Evaluation of the Healing Progress of Pressure Ulcers Treated with Cathodal High-Voltage Monophasic Pulsed Current: Results of a Prospective, Double-blind, Randomized Clinical Trial

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effectiveness of high-voltage monophasic pulsed current (HVMPC) as an adjunct to a standard wound care for the treatment of Stage II and III pressure ulcers (PrUs). DESIGN: Prospective, randomized, double-blind, controlled clinical study. SETTING: Two nursing and care centers. PATIENTS: Patients with PrUs that did not respond to previous treatment for at least 4 weeks were randomly assigned to the electrical stimulation (ES) group (25 patients; mean age of 79.92 ± 8.50 years; mean wound surface area [WSA] of 10.58 ± 10.57 cm2) or to the control group (24 patients; mean age of 76.33 ± 12.74 years; mean WSA of 9.71 ± 6.70 cm2). INTERVENTIONS: Both the ES and control groups received standard wound care and respectively, cathodal HVMPC (154 microseconds; 100 pulses per second; 0.24 A; 250 μ/s) applied continuously for 50 minutes once a day, 5 times a week, or sham HVMPC. MAIN OUTCOME: Percentage area reduction over 6 weeks of intervention. MAIN RESULTS: In the ES group, there was a statistically significant decrease in WSA after 1 week of treatment (35% ± 30.5%) compared with 17.07% ± 34.13% in the control group (P = .032). After treatment, at week 6, percentage area reduction in the ES group was 80.31% ± 29.02% versus 54.65% ± 42.65% in the control group (P = .046). CONCLUSIONS: Cathodal HVMPC reduces the WSA of Stage II and III PrUs. The results are consistent with the results of other researchers who used HVMPC to treat PrUs

Nonlinear finite element analysis of punching shear strength of reinforced concrete slabs supported on L-shaped columns

Most current concrete design codes include provisions for punching shear of reinforced concrete slabs supported on columns with L, T, and cruciform shapes. Reference studies verifying the accuracy of these code provisions are typically not provided. Empirical data of punching failures of slabs supported on columns with L, T, and cruciform shapes are limited due to the cost and time required to test specimens with slab thicknesses and column sizes commonly used in practice. In this paper, the punching shear behaviour of five interior L-shaped slab-column connections, one without a slab opening and four with slab openings, subjected to static concentric loading are analyzed using a plasticity-based nonlinear finite element model (FEM) in ABAQUS. The FEM is similar to models previously calibrated at the University of Waterloo and are calibrated considering nine slabs that are tested to study the impact of column rectangularity on the punching shear behaviour of reinforced concrete slabs. The finite element analysis results indicate that shear stresses primarily concentrate around the ends of the L, and that current code predictions from ACI 318-19 and Eurocode 2 may be unconservative due to the assumed critical perimeters around L-shaped columns.Most current concrete design codes include provisions for punching shear of reinforced concrete slabs supported on columns with L, T, and cruciform shapes. Reference studies verifying the accuracy of these code provisions are typically not provided. Empirical data of punching failures of slabs supported on columns with L, T, and cruciform shapes are limited due to the cost and time required to test specimens with slab thicknesses and column sizes commonly used in practice. In this paper, the punching shear behaviour of five interior L-shaped slab-column connections, one without a slab opening and four with slab openings, subjected to static concentric loading are analyzed using a plasticity-based nonlinear finite element model (FEM) in ABAQUS. The FEM is similar to models previously calibrated at the University of Waterloo and are calibrated considering nine slabs that are tested to study the impact of column rectangularity on the punching shear behaviour of reinforced concrete slabs. The finite element analysis results indicate that shear stresses primarily concentrate around the ends of the L, and that current code predictions from ACI 318-19 and Eurocode 2 may be unconservative due to the assumed critical perimeters around L-shaped columns