A proposition for the diagnosis and treatment of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease in children: A report from a working group on gastro-oesophageal reflux disease

In this paper, a Working Group on Gastro-Oesophageal Reflux discusses recommendations for the first line diagnostic and therapeutic approach of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease in infants and children. All members of the Working Group agreed that infants with uncomplicated gastro-oesophageal reflux can be safely treated before performing (expensive and often unnecessary) complementary investigations. However, the latter are mandatory if symptoms persist despite appropriate treatment. Oesophageal pH monitoring of long duration (18-24 h) is recommended as the investigation technique of choice in infants and children with atypical presentations of gastro-oesophageal reflux. Upper gastro-intestinal endoscopy in a specialised centre is the technique of choice in infants and children presenting with symptoms suggestive of peptic oesophagitis. Prokinetics, still a relatively new drug family, have already obtained a definitive place in the treatment of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease in infants and children, especially if "non-drug" treatment (positional therapy, dietary recommendations, etc.) was unsuccessful. It was the aim of the Working Group to help the paediatrician with this consensus statement and guide-lines to establish a standardised management of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease in infants and children

Risk profiles and one-year outcomes of patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation in India: Insights from the GARFIELD-AF Registry.

BACKGROUND: The Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF) is an ongoing prospective noninterventional registry, which is providing important information on the baseline characteristics, treatment patterns, and 1-year outcomes in patients with newly diagnosed non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). This report describes data from Indian patients recruited in this registry. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 52,014 patients with newly diagnosed AF were enrolled globally; of these, 1388 patients were recruited from 26 sites within India (2012-2016). In India, the mean age was 65.8 years at diagnosis of NVAF. Hypertension was the most prevalent risk factor for AF, present in 68.5% of patients from India and in 76.3% of patients globally (P < 0.001). Diabetes and coronary artery disease (CAD) were prevalent in 36.2% and 28.1% of patients as compared with global prevalence of 22.2% and 21.6%, respectively (P < 0.001 for both). Antiplatelet therapy was the most common antithrombotic treatment in India. With increasing stroke risk, however, patients were more likely to receive oral anticoagulant therapy [mainly vitamin K antagonist (VKA)], but average international normalized ratio (INR) was lower among Indian patients [median INR value 1.6 (interquartile range {IQR}: 1.3-2.3) versus 2.3 (IQR 1.8-2.8) (P < 0.001)]. Compared with other countries, patients from India had markedly higher rates of all-cause mortality [7.68 per 100 person-years (95% confidence interval 6.32-9.35) vs 4.34 (4.16-4.53), P < 0.0001], while rates of stroke/systemic embolism and major bleeding were lower after 1 year of follow-up. CONCLUSION: Compared to previously published registries from India, the GARFIELD-AF registry describes clinical profiles and outcomes in Indian patients with AF of a different etiology. The registry data show that compared to the rest of the world, Indian AF patients are younger in age and have more diabetes and CAD. Patients with a higher stroke risk are more likely to receive anticoagulation therapy with VKA but are underdosed compared with the global average in the GARFIELD-AF. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION-URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01090362

Shift in low-frequency vibrational spectra measured in-situ at 600 °C by Raman spectroscopy of zirconia developed on pure zirconium and Zr–1%Nb alloy

In this study displacement of monoclinic bands of zirconia were investigated in the function of oxidation time using the Raman spectroscopy technique. Oxidations were performed on pure zirconium and zirconium alloy in-situ at 600 °C for 6 h. Analysis of the absolute intensities as well as the positions of the characteristic for monoclinic and tetragonal phase Raman bands were performed. Reported results has highlighted that monoclinic phase of zirconia undergoes a continuous band displacement, individual for each Raman mode. Recorded shift of low frequency vibrational spectra of monoclinic phase was employed to study stress developed in zirconia during high temperature oxidation – herein called as growing stress. In addition, based on the Raman band intensity we discuss observed transition of the metastable tetragonal phase to stable monoclinic phase. Reported results, for the first time showed that studied metals (pure zirconium and its alloy) behave similarly in terms of band shift. However the resulting value of growing stress associated to the band displacement is slightly different in regards of individual band and studied sample. © 2016 Elsevier B.V

D* and D Meson Production in Muon Nucleon Interactions at 160 GeV/c

Adolph C, Alekseev MG, Alexakhin VY, et al. D* and D Meson Production in Muon Nucleon Interactions at 160 GeV/c. Eur.Phys.J. C. 2012;72(12): 2253.The production of D* and D mesons in inelastic scattering of 160 GeV/c muonsoff a ^6LiD target has been investigated with the COMPASS spectrometer at CERNfor 0.003 (GeV/c)^2 0.6