Mitral valve regurgitation and endocarditis triggered by a needle

Abstract Background Cardiac foreign bodies are extremely rare in clinical patients, especially when foreign bodies damage the internal structure of the heart coincidentally after they penetrate the heart. Case presentation Here, we report the case of a two-year-old girl whose heart was penetrated by a needle, which triggered mitral valve regurgitation and endocarditis. After a comprehensive inspection, accurate judgment and surgical preparation, we removed the needle and repaired her mitral valve. Fortunately, she recovered postoperatively. Conclusion From this case, we can know that when cardiac foreign bodies are suspected, ultrasound is an important inspection method. Moreover, the approaches for handling each such case are different depending on the associated injuries

Deaths and adverse events from adjuvant therapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors in solid malignant tumors: A systematic review and network meta‐analysis

Abstract Background By prolonging overall survival and reducing disease recurrence rates, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are an emerging adjuvant therapy option for patients with resectable malignant tumors. However, the safety profile (deaths and adverse events [AEs]) of adjuvant ICIs has not been fully described. Methods We searched the literature for phase III randomized clinical trials that compared PD‐1, PD‐L1, and CTLA‐4 inhibitors in solid malignant tumors. Incidences of death, discontinuation, AEs of any cause, treatment‐related adverse events (TRAEs), and immune‐related adverse events (IRAEs) were extracted for the network meta‐analysis. Network meta‐analyses with low incidence and poor convergence are reported as incidences with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs). Results Ten randomized clinical trials that included 9243 patients who received ICI adjuvant therapy were eligible. In total, 21 deaths due to TRAEs were recorded, with an overall incidence of 0.40% (95% CI: 0.26–0.61). The treatment‐related mortality rates for ipilimumab (0.76%, 95% CI: 0.31–1.55) and atezolizumab (0.56%, 95% CI: 0.18–1.31) were higher than for pembrolizumab (0.24%, 95% CI: 0.10–0.56) and nivolumab (0.30%, 95% CI: 0.08–0.77). The most frequent causes of death were associated with the gastrointestinal (0.10%, 95% CI: 0.04–0.24) and pulmonary (0.08%, 95% CI: 0.03–0.21) systems. Compared with the control arm, we found that nivolumab (odds ratio [OR]: 2.73, 95% CI: 0.49–15.85) and atezolizumab (OR: 12.43, 95% CI: 2.42–78.48) caused the fewest grade ≥3 TRAEs and IRAEs. Commonly reported IRAEs of special interest were analyzed, and two agents were found to have IRAEs with incidences >10%, i.e., hepatitis for atezolizumab (14.80%, 95% CI: 12.53–17.32) and hypophysitis for ipilimumab (13.53%, 95% CI: 11.38–15.90). Conclusions Ipilimumab and atezolizumab were correlated with higher treatment‐related death rates than pembrolizumab and nivolumab, in which the gastrointestinal and pulmonary systems were mostly involved. Regarding severe TRAEs and IRAEs, nivolumab and atezolizumab are likely to be the safest agent, respectively. This study will guide clinical practice for ICI adjuvant therapies

Flexible and Implantable Polyimide Aptamer-Field-Effect Transistor Biosensors

Monitoring neurochemical signaling across time scales is critical to understanding how brains encode and store information. Flexible (vs stiff) devices have been shown to improve in vivo monitoring, particularly over longer times, by reducing tissue damage and immunological responses. Here, we report our initial steps toward developing flexible and implantable neuroprobes with aptamer-field-effect transistor (FET) biosensors for neurotransmitter monitoring. A high-throughput process was developed to fabricate thin, flexible polyimide probes using microelectromechanical-system (MEMS) technologies, where 150 flexible probes were fabricated on each 4 in. Si wafer. Probes were 150 μm wide and 7 μm thick with two FETs per tip. The bending stiffness was 1.2 × 10-11 N·m2. Semiconductor thin films (3 nm In2O3) were functionalized with DNA aptamers for target recognition, which produces aptamer conformational rearrangements detected via changes in FET conductance. Flexible aptamer-FET neuroprobes detected serotonin at femtomolar concentrations in high-ionic strength artificial cerebrospinal fluid. A straightforward implantation process was developed, where microfabricated Si carrier devices assisted with implantation such that flexible neuroprobes detected physiological relevant serotonin in a tissue-hydrogel brain mimic

Impact of Derived Features from the Controlled Environment Agriculture Scenarios on Energy Consumption Prediction Model

The high energy consumption CEA building brings challenges to the management of the energy system. An accurate energy consumption prediction model is necessary. Although there are various prediction methods, the prediction method for the particularity of CEA buildings is still a gap. This study proposes some derived features based on the CEA scenarios to improve the accuracy of the model. The study mainly extracts the time series and logical features from the agricultural calendar, the botanical physiological state, building characteristics, and production management. The time series and logical features have the highest increase of 2.8% and 3.6%, respectively. In addition, four automatic feature construction methods are also used to achieve varying degrees of influence from −9% to 8%. Therefore, the multiple feature extraction and feature construction methods proposed in this paper can effectively improve the model performance

Single coronary ostium with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy treated using the Morrow procedure: a case report

Abstract Background Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a commonly inherited heart disease. In addition, single coronary artery (SCA) is a rare congenital anomaly of the coronary arteries. And SCA concomitant with severe hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM) has seldom been reported in the literature. However, such cases have not been reported to be treated with the Morrow procedure. Case presentation Herein, we presented a case of a 64-year-old female diagnosed with a single left coronary artery with severe HOCM. The HOCM was treated with the Morrow procedure. The patient was discharged on the seventh postoperative day and was asymptomatic during the follow-up. Conclusion To our knowledge, this is the first study reporting a single left coronary artery with severe HOCM treated with the Morrow procedure. In addition, myocardial protection by cardioplegia antegrade perfusion was safe for the patient with SCA and HOCM

Active Air-Source Heat Storage and Release System for Solar Greenhouses: Design and Performance

The temperature difference between day and night in a solar greenhouse is large. Heat in a greenhouse is typically in excess during the day while the temperature is low and the humidity is high at night. This study designs and tests an active heat storage and release air-source heat-pump system with a thermally insulated water tank as the energy storage body. By comparing air temperature and humidity in a test greenhouse with a control greenhouse in typical weather conditions, the power consumption and performance of the system are evaluated. The results show that compared with the control greenhouse, the average daytime temperature of the test greenhouse is lowered by about 3 °C during the operation of the system in typical weather conditions. At night, the average temperature is increased by about 4 °C, and the relative humidity is decreased by about 20%. When optimized, the maximum coefficient of performance (COP) of the system can reach 4.32 in heat storage mode. The nighttime heat release from the energy storage tank accounts for 26.9% to 51.2% of the nighttime energy consumption, and the energy utilization efficiency is 59.6% to 497.0%. This study provides a new way to control environmental parameters in solar greenhouses

Fabrication of High-Performance Ultrathin In2O3 Film Field-Effect Transistors and Biosensors Using Chemical Lift-Off Lithography.

We demonstrate straightforward fabrication of highly sensitive biosensor arrays based on field-effect transistors, using an efficient high-throughput, large-area patterning process. Chemical lift-off lithography is used to construct field-effect transistor arrays with high spatial precision suitable for the fabrication of both micrometer- and nanometer-scale devices. Sol-gel processing is used to deposit ultrathin (∼4 nm) In2O3 films as semiconducting channel layers. The aqueous sol-gel process produces uniform In2O3 coatings with thicknesses of a few nanometers over large areas through simple spin-coating, and only low-temperature thermal annealing of the coatings is required. The ultrathin In2O3 enables construction of highly sensitive and selective biosensors through immobilization of specific aptamers to the channel surface; the ability to detect subnanomolar concentrations of dopamine is demonstrated

Fabrication of High-Performance Ultrathin In2O3 Film Field-Effect Transistors and Biosensors Using Chemical Lift-Off Lithography.

We demonstrate straightforward fabrication of highly sensitive biosensor arrays based on field-effect transistors, using an efficient high-throughput, large-area patterning process. Chemical lift-off lithography is used to construct field-effect transistor arrays with high spatial precision suitable for the fabrication of both micrometer- and nanometer-scale devices. Sol-gel processing is used to deposit ultrathin (∼4 nm) In2O3 films as semiconducting channel layers. The aqueous sol-gel process produces uniform In2O3 coatings with thicknesses of a few nanometers over large areas through simple spin-coating, and only low-temperature thermal annealing of the coatings is required. The ultrathin In2O3 enables construction of highly sensitive and selective biosensors through immobilization of specific aptamers to the channel surface; the ability to detect subnanomolar concentrations of dopamine is demonstrated