Hyperphosphatemia-a predictor of poor prognosis among patients with sepsis or septic shock

Background: Sepsis is a life-threatening organ dysfunction resulting from dysregulated host responses to infection. Serum phosphorus level was closely related to the occurrence and prognosis of kidney disease and cardiovascular disease. It is of vital importance to re-evaluate the association between serum Phosphorus level and mortality in patients with sepsis and different septic subgroups. This study aims to examine the association of serum phosphorous levels with clinical outcomes among patients with sepsis. Methods: This study included 100 cases and was conducted at KIMS hospital Bangalore. Patients were included in the study as per inclusion criteria. SOFA scoring and APACHE-II scoring was done on first day of admission and serum phosphorus levels were sent. Patients were categorised according to phosphorous levels normal range (2.5-4.5mg/dl).  Patients were followed up till primary and secondary outcome. Results: Of the 100 patients in this study 53 patients had normophosphatemia, 17 patients had hypophosphatemia, 30 patients had hyperphosphatemia. Comparison of mean APACHE-II scores, mean length of ICU stay (in days), mean length of hospital stay (in days), serum creatinine levels, between 3 groups was statistically significant.  Conclusions: Hyperphosphatemia on first ICU admission day indicates poor clinical outcome among patients with sepsis or septic shock. Therefore, when patients are on ICU admission and under treatment, clinicians should pay more attention to the change of serum phosphate

Prevalence of splenomegaly and factors contributing to splenomegaly among pancytopenia patients: a facility-based cross-sectional study

Background: The spleen is an organ that cannot be clinically felt in a normal individual. Splenomegaly is a significant diagnostic indicator of the presence of underlying pathology. It is associated with a number of diseases like hematological, infectious, portal hypertension and immunological problems. However, it’s unclear what exactly causes hypersplenism. The objective was to assess the prevalence of splenomegaly in people with pancytopenia and the contributing factors. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among adult patients diagnosed with pancytopenia in a tertiary care hospital in Bengaluru, Karnataka. We have considered only inpatients who accessed care at the facility over a period of 12 months from Aug 2021 to July 2022 among those who have given written informed consent. Socio-demographic details, smoking status, alcohol consumption history, existing comorbidities, and other biological parameters were assessed by accessing the medical records. The abdominal ultrasound of the admitted patients was used to diagnose splenomegaly. Results: Splenomegaly was present in 25 (56.8%) of patients out of 44 we enrolled. Among those patients, 17 (38.6%) had mild, while 4 (9.1%) had moderate and massive splenomegaly respectively. The majority were females (28 versus 16 males) and the mean age was 44.84 years (±15.45 SD). The age ranges from 24-80 years. We observed that patients aged 36-50 years and comorbidities like hypertension and hypothyroidism were the associated factors for splenomegaly. Conclusions: The prevalence of splenomegaly among pancytopenia patients is high. This is a significant clinical indication that requires careful investigation. Ageing, hypertension, and hypothyroidism are contributory factors for splenomegaly in patients with pancytopenia

Recent developments in photoelectrochemical water-splitting using WO3/BiVO4 heterojunction photoanode: A review

Pairing tungsten oxide (WO3) and bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) to form heterojunction photoanode is a very promising strategy to attain the enhanced photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting efficiency. In fact, the PEC efficiency of WO3/BiVO4 heterojunction photoanode performs significantly better than either of the individual materials due to their well-matched band edge positions, efficient charge separation, and light harvesting abilities. In WO3/BiVO4 heterojunction, BiVO4 serves as an excellent visible-light absorber (∼30% sunlight) and WO3 functions as an active electron conductor. Therefore, the optimization of the ratio and structure of WO3 and BiVO4 becomes very crucial to produce maximum PEC efficiency. In this review, the significant efforts and remarkable milestones achieved using WO3/BiVO4 heterojunction photoanode in PEC water splitting is summarized. The various factors that influence the PEC activity of WO3/BiVO4 heterojunction include the nanostructure morphology, charge carrier’s dynamics, layers of WO3 and BiVO4, use of catalysts and doping, etc. With WO3/BiVO4 heterojunction photoanode, outstanding PEC performance equal to the theoretical efficiency values (WO3 and BiVO4) has been achieved. The highest photocurrent value of about 6.72 mA cm−2 (at 1.23 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE)) with an incident photon to current efficiency of 90% (at 1.23 V vs. RHE) has been reached. Finally, the future research work direction for designing the high efficiency heterojunction photoanodes using WO3 and BiVO4 is discussed. Keywords: Tungsten, Bismuth, Heterojunction, Efficiency, Photoanode

Prevalence of splenomegaly and factors contributing to splenomegaly among pancytopenia patients: a facility-based cross-sectional study

Background: The spleen is an organ that cannot be clinically felt in a normal individual. Splenomegaly is a significant diagnostic indicator of the presence of underlying pathology. It is associated with a number of diseases like hematological, infectious, portal hypertension and immunological problems. However, it’s unclear what exactly causes hypersplenism. The objective was to assess the prevalence of splenomegaly in people with pancytopenia and the contributing factors. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among adult patients diagnosed with pancytopenia in a tertiary care hospital in Bengaluru, Karnataka. We have considered only inpatients who accessed care at the facility over a period of 12 months from Aug 2021 to July 2022 among those who have given written informed consent. Socio-demographic details, smoking status, alcohol consumption history, existing comorbidities, and other biological parameters were assessed by accessing the medical records. The abdominal ultrasound of the admitted patients was used to diagnose splenomegaly. Results: Splenomegaly was present in 25 (56.8%) of patients out of 44 we enrolled. Among those patients, 17 (38.6%) had mild, while 4 (9.1%) had moderate and massive splenomegaly respectively. The majority were females (28 versus 16 males) and the mean age was 44.84 years (±15.45 SD). The age ranges from 24-80 years. We observed that patients aged 36-50 years and comorbidities like hypertension and hypothyroidism were the associated factors for splenomegaly. Conclusions: The prevalence of splenomegaly among pancytopenia patients is high. This is a significant clinical indication that requires careful investigation. Ageing, hypertension, and hypothyroidism are contributory factors for splenomegaly in patients with pancytopenia.</jats:p