Imipenem-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa: Risk Factors for Nosocomial Infections

The aim of this study was to determine the risk factors for nosocomial infections of imipenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (IRPA). A prospective case-control study was performed at a tertiary care hospital in Ankara from January to December 2004. The patients with nosocomial P. aeruginosa infection were included in the study. The features of the patients with IRPA infections were compared to those with imipenem-sensitive P. aeruginosa (ISPA) infections. Only the first isolation of P. aeruginosa was considered. Nosocomial infections were defined according to Center for Disease Control (CDC) criteria. IRPA was isolated from 75 (44.1%) patients, and ISPA was isolated from 95 (55.9%) patients during the study period. IRPA were most frequently isolated from endotracheal aspirate (19%) cultures (p=0.048), whereas ISPA were most frequently isolated from urine (28%) cultures (p=0.023). In multivariate analysis, a longer duration of hospital stay until P. aeruginosa isolation (odds ratio [OR], 1.027; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.002-1.054, p=0.034), arterial catheter administration (OR, 2.508; 95% CI, 1.062-5.920, p=0.036), vancomycin (OR, 2.882; 95% CI, 1.130-7.349, p=0.027), piperacillin-tazobactam (OR, 6.425; 95% CI, 2.187-18.875, p=0.001), and imipenem (OR, 3.580; 95% CI, 1.252-10.245, p=0.017) treatment within the 14 days before isolation of IRPA were independently associated with imipenem resistance. It was concluded that treatment with imipenem, vancomycin and piperacillin-tazobactam were major risk factors for IRPA infections in hospitalized patients. The nosocomial occurrence of IRPA was also strongly related to the duration of hospital stay, arterial catheter administration

Herpes Simplex Encephalitis: A Case Report

Herpes simplex virus (HSV) is the most important etiological agent of focal encephalitis. Mortality is more than 70% in the patients who are not treated with antiviral drugs. In this case report a patient diagnosed as herpes encephalitis by positive HSV-DNA in cerebrospinal fluid, and treated with acyclovir without any complication is presented

Preliminary Test Setup of the Metu Defocusing Beam Line, an Irradiation Test Facility in Turkey

METU-Defocusing Beam Line (METU-DBL) Project has been started in August 2015 and aims to construct a beam line at Turkish Atomic Energy Authority Sarayköy Nuclear Education and Research Center Proton Accelerator Facility to perform Single Event Effect (SEE) tests for the first time in Turkey. The METU-DBL is 8m-long and has quadrupole magnets to enlarge the beam size and collimators to reduce the flux. When complete the METU-DBL will provide a beam that is suitable according to ESA ESCC No. 25100 Single Event Effects Test Method and Guidelines standard. The METU-DBL beam size is 15.40cm x 21.55cm and the flux will be variable between 10⁵ p/cm²/s and 10¹⁰ p/cm²/s. The METU-DBL will serve space, particle, nuclear and medical physics communities starting from 2018 with performing irradiation tests. A preliminary test setup is being constructed towards first tests in March 2017. The beam size will be 6cm x 8cm and the flux will be 1.4x10⁹ p/cm²/s for preliminary test setup. The METU-DBL project construction status for the preliminary test setup is presented in this poster

Pretest Setup Installation of the METU-DBL Project to Perform Space Radiation Tests

Satellites and spacecrafts are exposed to space radiation environment during their mission. This environment consists of cosmic rays, solar particles and trapped particles. Cosmic rays are coming fromthe outside of our solar system. Solar particles are produced by the Sun. These particles can be trapped around the Earth's magnetic field lines when they approach the Earth's atmosphere. These particles can affect performance and robustness of electronic components or materials used in space and such effects can be classified as Total Ionising Dose (TID), Single Event Effect (SEE) and Displacement Damage (DD). To ensure the performance of innovative components or materials that will be used in space, they must be tested before they are launched to space. Currently, only TID tests can be realized in Turkey but others cannot be performed yet

Low energy radioactivity BG model in Super-Kamiokande detector from SK-IV data

n/

Follow-up of GWTC-2 gravitational wave events with neutrinos from the Super-Kamiokande detector

n/

Combined Pre-Supernova Alert System with Kamland and Super-Kamiokande

International audiencePreceding a core-collapse supernova, various processes produce an increasing amount of neutrinos of all flavors characterized by mounting energies from the interior of massive stars. Among them, the electron antineutrinos are potentially detectable by terrestrial neutrino experiments such as KamLAND and Super-Kamiokande via inverse beta decay interactions. Once these pre-supernova neutrinos are observed, an early warning of the upcoming core-collapse supernova can be provided. In light of this, KamLAND and Super-Kamiokande have been monitoring pre-supernova neutrinos since 2015 and 2021, respectively. Recently, we performed a joint study between KamLAND and Super-Kamiokande on pre-supernova neutrino detection. A pre-supernova alert system combining the KamLAND detector and the Super-Kamiokande detector is developed and put into operation, which can provide a supernova alert to the astrophysics community. Fully leveraging the complementary properties of these two detectors, the combined alert is expected to resolve a pre-supernova neutrino signal from a 15 M$_{\odot}$ star within 510 pc of the Earth, at a significance level corresponding to a false alarm rate of no more than 1 per century. For a Betelgeuse-like model with optimistic parameters, it can provide early warnings up to 12 hours in advance

Safety and efficacy of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs to reduce ileus after colorectal surgery

Background: Ileus is common after elective colorectal surgery, and is associated with increased adverse events and prolonged hospital stay. The aim was to assess the role of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for reducing ileus after surgery. Methods: A prospective multicentre cohort study was delivered by an international, student- and trainee-led collaborative group. Adult patients undergoing elective colorectal resection between January and April 2018 were included. The primary outcome was time to gastrointestinal recovery, measured using a composite measure of bowel function and tolerance to oral intake. The impact of NSAIDs was explored using Cox regression analyses, including the results of a centre-specific survey of compliance to enhanced recovery principles. Secondary safety outcomes included anastomotic leak rate and acute kidney injury. Results: A total of 4164 patients were included, with a median age of 68 (i.q.r. 57\u201375) years (54\ub79 per cent men). Some 1153 (27\ub77 per cent) received NSAIDs on postoperative days 1\u20133, of whom 1061 (92\ub70 per cent) received non-selective cyclo-oxygenase inhibitors. After adjustment for baseline differences, the mean time to gastrointestinal recovery did not differ significantly between patients who received NSAIDs and those who did not (4\ub76 versus 4\ub78 days; hazard ratio 1\ub704, 95 per cent c.i. 0\ub796 to 1\ub712; P = 0\ub7360). There were no significant differences in anastomotic leak rate (5\ub74 versus 4\ub76 per cent; P = 0\ub7349) or acute kidney injury (14\ub73 versus 13\ub78 per cent; P = 0\ub7666) between the groups. Significantly fewer patients receiving NSAIDs required strong opioid analgesia (35\ub73 versus 56\ub77 per cent; P < 0\ub7001). Conclusion: NSAIDs did not reduce the time for gastrointestinal recovery after colorectal surgery, but they were safe and associated with reduced postoperative opioid requirement