Longitudinal evaluation of hemorheological markers in acute inflammatory diseases

Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de Mestre em Genética Molecular e BiomedicinaAcute myocardial infarction (AMI), sepsis and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are part of the inflammatory diseases’ group. Every year millions of people are affected and die because of them, all around the globe. In the past years our knowledge of these diseases has increased and a light on their pathophysiology has been shed, but there is still much more to be discovered. Biological markers that would make pre-disease diagnosis possible would change many of the outcomes for patients suffering from them. The aim of this study was to access the evolution of four hemorheological markers (erythrocyte deformability, erythrocyte aggregation, nitric oxide – NO and S-nitrosoglutathione – GSNO) in order to understand their behaviour in three types of inflammatory diseases. Four study groups were created: ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) group (15 patients), RA (25 patients), sepsis (14 patients) and the control group (CTR; 15 healthy volunteers). In STEMI group two different measurements were taken, one at time of hospital admission and the other after a month. In the sepsis group four measurements were taken throughout the internment in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU): admission, 24 hours, 72 hours after and discharge. Significant difference was observed in the 10s erythrocyte aggregation marker between the STEMI patients at hospital admission and CTR group. Significant differences of deformability, aggregation and GSNO were obtained upon comparison of sepsis patients (at all time-points) and CTR. In addition to this, the longitudinal changes of GSNO erythrocyte concentrations were significant. In conclusion, abnormal values for some of the studied hemorheological parameters were verified in inflammatory diseases, namely myocardial infarction (STEMI), sepsis and rheumatoid arthritis. The results seem to point out to a relation between inflammation and the hemorheological alterations

The Potential of Clinical Decision Support Systems for Prevention, Diagnosis, and Monitoring of Allergic Diseases

Clinical decision support systems (CDSS) aid health care professionals (HCP) in evaluating large sets of information and taking informed decisions during their clinical routine. CDSS are becoming particularly important in the perspective of precision medicine, when HCP need to consider growing amounts of data to create precise patient profiles for personalized diagnosis, treatment and outcome monitoring. In allergy care, several CDSS are being developed and investigated, mainly for respiratory allergic diseases. Although the proposed solutions address different stakeholders, the majority aims at facilitating evidence-based and shared decision-making, incorporating guidelines, and real-time clinical data. We offer here an overview on existing tools, new developments and novel concepts and discuss the potential of digital CDSS in improving prevention, diagnosis and monitoring of allergic diseases

Digital allergology: Towards a clinical decision support system for allergen immunotherapy

Mobile health is the "medical and public health practice supported by mobile devices, such as mobile phones, patient monitoring devices, personal digital assistants, and other wireless devices." For example, mobile apps (such as MASK-Air, Allergy.Monitor, Pollen, and others) have proven useful in the management of patients with allergic rhinitis. These apps can be used in the context of broader clinical decision support systems (CDSS) for enhancing allergy-related decisions and actions with pertinent, organized clinical knowledge and patient information to improve allergy care. A CDSS targeted to control rhinitis with drugs and other interventions guiding the patient in his/her self- and doctor-driven management is currently being produced and investigated by the MACVIA network. Another one, called @IT-2020, is targeted to support etiologic diagnostics and allergen immunotherapy (AIT) prescriptions for patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis. Intensive investigation is necessary to better define the advantages and limitations of mobile-health technology in allergology and establish guidelines for their proper use in daily practice in the context of a rapidly evolving European regulatory environment

Features of chemical-mineralogical composition and processing properties for medium-ferrous bauxites

The features of chemical-mineralogical composition and processing properties of bauxites from Iksinsk and Severoonezhsk deposits are investigated in the paper. It is found that the studied bauxites are coarsely dispersed and low-dispersive, high-alumina clay raw materials with a high content of colouring oxides. According to their mineralogical composition, Iksinsk and Severoonezhsk bauxites are boehmitehydrargillite-kaolinite clay bauxites. Moreover, Iksinsk bauxite samples are characterized by the total absence of quartz impurities. The samples of plastic molding based on Iksinsk bauxites are fully sintered at 1500 °С with the formation of strong structures with a compressive strength of 70- 120 MPa (depending on the variety of bauxites). The samples based on Severoonezhsk bauxites are fully sintered at 1450 °С, and they are characterized by a compressive strength to 70 MPa in the sintered state

Features of chemical-mineralogical composition and processing properties for medium-ferrous bauxites

The features of chemical-mineralogical composition and processing properties of bauxites from Iksinsk and Severoonezhsk deposits are investigated in the paper. It is found that the studied bauxites are coarsely dispersed and low-dispersive, high-alumina clay raw materials with a high content of colouring oxides. According to their mineralogical composition, Iksinsk and Severoonezhsk bauxites are boehmitehydrargillite-kaolinite clay bauxites. Moreover, Iksinsk bauxite samples are characterized by the total absence of quartz impurities. The samples of plastic molding based on Iksinsk bauxites are fully sintered at 1500 °С with the formation of strong structures with a compressive strength of 70- 120 MPa (depending on the variety of bauxites). The samples based on Severoonezhsk bauxites are fully sintered at 1450 °С, and they are characterized by a compressive strength to 70 MPa in the sintered state