Phantoms to accelerate technology development and standardization in Biophotonics

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In vivo Study of the Layered Structure on the Abdomen by Broadband Time-Domain Diffuse Optical Spectroscopy

We investigate the effect of depth heterogeneity in the abdomen by multidistance time-domain diffuse optical spectroscopy on 4 volunteers finding a higher water content in shallower regions, possibly due to fat heterogeneity and/or dermis contributions

Mortality from gastrointestinal congenital anomalies at 264 hospitals in 74 low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries: a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study

Summary Background Congenital anomalies are the fifth leading cause of mortality in children younger than 5 years globally. Many gastrointestinal congenital anomalies are fatal without timely access to neonatal surgical care, but few studies have been done on these conditions in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared outcomes of the seven most common gastrointestinal congenital anomalies in low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries globally, and identified factors associated with mortality. Methods We did a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of patients younger than 16 years, presenting to hospital for the first time with oesophageal atresia, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, intestinal atresia, gastroschisis, exomphalos, anorectal malformation, and Hirschsprung’s disease. Recruitment was of consecutive patients for a minimum of 1 month between October, 2018, and April, 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, clinical status, interventions, and outcomes using the REDCap platform. Patients were followed up for 30 days after primary intervention, or 30 days after admission if they did not receive an intervention. The primary outcome was all-cause, in-hospital mortality for all conditions combined and each condition individually, stratified by country income status. We did a complete case analysis. Findings We included 3849 patients with 3975 study conditions (560 with oesophageal atresia, 448 with congenital diaphragmatic hernia, 681 with intestinal atresia, 453 with gastroschisis, 325 with exomphalos, 991 with anorectal malformation, and 517 with Hirschsprung’s disease) from 264 hospitals (89 in high-income countries, 166 in middleincome countries, and nine in low-income countries) in 74 countries. Of the 3849 patients, 2231 (58·0%) were male. Median gestational age at birth was 38 weeks (IQR 36–39) and median bodyweight at presentation was 2·8 kg (2·3–3·3). Mortality among all patients was 37 (39·8%) of 93 in low-income countries, 583 (20·4%) of 2860 in middle-income countries, and 50 (5·6%) of 896 in high-income countries (p<0·0001 between all country income groups). Gastroschisis had the greatest difference in mortality between country income strata (nine [90·0%] of ten in lowincome countries, 97 [31·9%] of 304 in middle-income countries, and two [1·4%] of 139 in high-income countries; p≤0·0001 between all country income groups). Factors significantly associated with higher mortality for all patients combined included country income status (low-income vs high-income countries, risk ratio 2·78 [95% CI 1·88–4·11], p<0·0001; middle-income vs high-income countries, 2·11 [1·59–2·79], p<0·0001), sepsis at presentation (1·20 [1·04–1·40], p=0·016), higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score at primary intervention (ASA 4–5 vs ASA 1–2, 1·82 [1·40–2·35], p<0·0001; ASA 3 vs ASA 1–2, 1·58, [1·30–1·92], p<0·0001]), surgical safety checklist not used (1·39 [1·02–1·90], p=0·035), and ventilation or parenteral nutrition unavailable when needed (ventilation 1·96, [1·41–2·71], p=0·0001; parenteral nutrition 1·35, [1·05–1·74], p=0·018). Administration of parenteral nutrition (0·61, [0·47–0·79], p=0·0002) and use of a peripherally inserted central catheter (0·65 [0·50–0·86], p=0·0024) or percutaneous central line (0·69 [0·48–1·00], p=0·049) were associated with lower mortality. Interpretation Unacceptable differences in mortality exist for gastrointestinal congenital anomalies between lowincome, middle-income, and high-income countries. Improving access to quality neonatal surgical care in LMICs will be vital to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3.2 of ending preventable deaths in neonates and children younger than 5 years by 2030

Migration, housing & disaster: Risk reduction and creation in Southern Italy's Apennines

Outgoing migration flows can influence demand, availability, location and quality of housing in the areas from which they originate, through dynamics such as remittance transfer and investment, cultural change, demographic decline and loss of skilled work. These dynamics may have diverse implications on disaster risk, potentially affecting the occurrence or intensity of some hazardous events and determining the levels of exposure and vulnerability of people and assets. This paper retraces the evolution of the housing stock as a product of outmigration in San Mango sul Calore and Cavallerizzo di Cerzeto, two mountain villages in Italy’s Southern Apennines, in the decades preceding recent disasters. Over the second half of the 20th century, both municipalities witnessed intense outmigration, contributing to the expansion of their respective settlements’ housing stock and the abandonment of traditional land-use patterns and building practices. These processes shaped hazard exposure and disaster vulnerability of different people in each community, producing a diversity of risk reduction and risk creation outcomes. This paper analyses the context-specific migration trajectories and risk outcomes in the two study areas, framing them through the findings of the global literature on migration, development and DRR, to identify theoretical implications and operational approaches relevant to understanding and addressing migrationhousing- risk dynamics. Its insights can support risk reduction in places experiencing intense population outflows and related demographic and physical transformations

Urban Watershed Services For Improved Ecosystem Management and Risk Reduction, Assessment Methods and Policy Instruments: State of the Art

Under scenarios of increasing unplanned urban expansion, environmental degradation and hazard exposure, the vulnerability of urban populations, especially of their poorer segments, needs to be tackled through integrated economic, social and environmental solutions. Basing our analysis on the concept of ecosystem services, we suggest that urban areas would benefit from a shift in perspective towards a more regional approach, which recognizes them as one of many interconnected elements that interact at the watershed level. By integrating an ecosystem approach into the management of water-related services, urban management policies can take a first step towards fostering an improvement of the health of upstream and downstream areas of the watershed, activating environmentally sound practices which aim at guaranteeing the sustainable and cost effective supply of services. These strategies can for instance be supported by using payment schemes for ecosystem services or similar strategies, allowing for the redistribution of resources among communities in the watershed. From our analysis it results that, through the recognition of the primary role played by watershed ecosystems, cities can benefit from an enlarged set of policies, which can help strengthen the supply of essential environmental services, while reducing the vulnerability of its population and contributing to the maintenance of healthy ecosystems

Nuovo rettorato dell'Università della Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli"

Il tema è quello di recuperare un manufatto di scarso valore architettonico per trasformarlo in una sede istituzionale di alto prestigio: la sede del Rettorato e degli uffici amministrativi dell’Università della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”. Non potendo demolire i corpi esistenti e trovandoci al cospetto del recupero di quello che era il vecchio deposito delle Poste di Caserta edificato, negli anni Novanta del secolo scorso proprio all’estremità occidentale del viale Ellittico di Caserta si è deciso di proporre una operazione di riqualificazione edilizia e ambientale importante. La scelta progettuale verte su di una logica prudente ed incentrata sul tema della qualità architettonica come elemento guida dell’operazione di recupero. Non si è vuole procedere alla demolizione del volume esistente ma alla sua rimodellazione con un sostanziale riassetto delle facciate. La funzione a scopo didattico era già prevista già in un precedente progetto per un aulario universitario. Oggi, per subentrate necessità logistiche, si è pensato di trasformare l’edificio, a parità di volume, per farne la sede del nuovo Rettorato, di tutti gli uffici, dei servizi, di tre grandi aule didattiche per l’insegnamento di psicologia, di una mensa e di tutte le altre opere connesse alla funzione. Stante il vincolo paesaggistico esistente, si è inteso riformulare l’aspetto del modesto capannone. Attualmente intercetta solo in linea d’aria la visuale della Reggia e, a sua volta, dalla stessa Reggia, è praticamente invisibile in quanto coperto da costruzioni poste nel mezzo dei due edifici. Solo sollevandoci idealmente dal terrazzo del monumento vanvitelliano è possibile cogliere il collegamento tra i due manufatti. Pertanto si è voluto adottare una logica semplice e legata alla grande tradizione del moderno campano. Si è preferito ridurre impatto ecologico e ambientale riformulando una nuova sagoma che riprende il basamento del bellissimo Politecnico di Napoli realizzato da Luigi Cosenza. Per fare questo, le demolizioni dell’esistente sono state ridotte al minimo annullando praticamente il trasporto al rifiuto e concependo una sorta di packaging scenografico che nasconderà- all’interno- delle nuove quinte bianche, ottenute fasciando con nervometal ed elementi fonoassorbenti e termoresistenti i pannelli in graniglia esistente e che avrà l’ulteriore compito di celare la dimensione degli impianti previsti sulla copertura. Nel rispetto del vincolo esistente e nella coerenza stilistica con le emergenze architettoniche di Caserta, per l’involucro si pensa ad un’alternanza dei colori rosso, bianco e oro. La base sarà finita in smalto opaco a componente serica come omaggio alla tradizione leuciana in colore verde penicillina mentre una facciata /schermo principale sarà rivestita in Klinkerceramico dalle diverse sfumature smeraldine. Gli imbotti saranno rivestiti in vernice serica dorata come un broccato settecentesco e la sala conferenze dalla forma ogivale sarà anch’essa di colore chiaro e luminescente. L’esistente pensilina d’ingresso che, nel progetto originario, diveniva la copertura di una veranda, oggi resta pensilina esterna e copre la sala conferenze anche per movimentare l’architettura del prospetto principale. I materiali si ispirano al mediterraneo campano del tempo moderno così come le forme complessive dell’edificio sono immaginate per discostarsi dalla logica del capannone di servizio aspirando a divenire un polo istituzionale e culturale dal forte impatto civico. Le aree esterne saranno pavimentate in cemento spazzolato con additivi rossastri, le aiuole verdi completeranno i parcheggi a raso e le aree comuni incrementando la presenza vegetale della zona. Tutta la dotazione impiantistica è centrata sulla ricerca di un basso impatto ambientale, di un eccellente confort termico e su di un notevole risparmio energetico riducendo a zero le ripercussioni ambientali. La logica dell’intervento è quindi, innanzitutto, quella di un restauro paesaggistico e di una integrazione del volume nell’area restituendogli un ordine visivo che ben si accorda con la presenza del Palazzo Reale nel breve raggio