Sex, Age, Education, Marital Status, Number of Children, and Employment – the Impact of Extralegal Factors on Sentencing Disparities

Countries that have judicial discretion in their legal system usually struggle with sentencing disparities. This is no different in Poland. The current study examined whether extralegal factors such as age, sex, education, marital status, number of children, and having a job impact sentencing disparities. We examined court files from 13 district courts in Poland for two offenses: drug possession and drunk driving. Our findings show that sex, age, and number of children have no or little effect on outcomes, whilst marital status and employment status have small to medium effects on sentencing. The clearest result pattern to emerge from our analyses is that defendants with tertiary education are treated more leniently than those with primary or lower secondary education.Peer reviewe

Dealing with polysemy in the Polish sign language using the OWL ontology

A common problem of natural language processing is synonymy, polysemy, and homonymy. In the paper, we propose to deal with polysemy in the Polish sign language using the knowledge included in the OWL2 ontology created for this purpose. The proposed approach aids the translation process of the Polish sign language into the Polish language by selection from the possible phrases, only those, with the reasonable meaning

Safety and the use of smart driver assistance systems

PURPOSE: The article discusses the safety systems implemented in road vehicles, their impact on the driving of a car by the driver as well as the related risks and problems.DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: The proper study was focused in the field of smart driver assistance systems. The article uses the methods of source analysis, descriptive analysis and the method of deduction.FINDINGS: The problem of accidents is not directly related to the safety systems used in vehicles, but can be solved by them. Vehicle-mounted solutions often save lives and reduce accidents. However, it should be remembered that they will not replace the driver in the decision-making process for now.PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The results of this study can be used as a starting point for further analysis in the area of the safety systems implemented in road vehicles, their impact on the driving of a car by the driver as well as the related risks and problems.ORIGINALITY/VALUE: From mid-2022, all brand new cars entering the EU market will have to be equipped with advanced safety systems. The authors of the article focus on the question of how the use of smart driver assistance systems improves the safety of all road users.peer-reviewe

Thyroid hormones as potential prognostic factors in sepsis

Background: Sepsis is a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host reaction to infection. There is an upward trend in sepsis prevalence and mortality worldwide. Sepsis causes hypoxia, which reduces the ability of cells to produce ATP. This process is also influenced by thyroid hormones. Some of the previous studies revealed association between the mortality rate in sepsis and thyroid hormone levels. We aimed to evaluate thyroid hormones’ predictive value in septic patients. Methods: Forty-nine adult patients with sepsis admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of Allergy and Immunology Department at the University Hospital in Krakow, Poland, between 2015 and 2017 were enrolled in the study. Blood samples were obtained from septic patients immediately after establishing the diagnosis, in order to measure free triiodothyronine (fT3), free thyroxine (fT4), and thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels. The primary endpoint was 30-day survival rate. The secondary endpoint was death anytime during intensive care unit (ICU) stay. Results: Patients who died within 30 days had significantly lower level of fT4 than survivors (9.8 vs. 12.7 pmol L-1; P = 0.033). There was no statistically significant difference between the groups in TSH and fT3 levels. As for the secondary endpoint, both fT3 (1.6 vs. 1.8 pmol L-1; P = 0.021) and fT4 (9.8 vs. 12.7 μIU mL-1; P = 0.019) levels were significantly lower among non-survivors compared to survivors, which was not the case for TSH. Conclusions: Thyroid hormone levels were significantly lower among patients who died during ICU stay. The results of the presented study suggest that fT3 and fT4 levels may be taken into consideration as potential new prognostic factors in sepsis

Temporal trends and patterns in percutaneous treatment of coronary artery disease in Poland in the years 2005–2011

Wstęp: Polska jest jednym z liderów kardiologii interwencyjnej w Europie w odniesieniu do liczby przezskórnych interwencji wieńcowych (PCI) na 1 milion mieszkańców wykonywanych w ostrym zawale serca. Cel: Celem pracy było zaprezentowanie zmian w epidemiologii, charakterystyce demograficznej, leczeniu i wynikach terapii pacjentów, u których wykonywano koronarografię i zabiegi angioplastyki wieńcowej w Polsce w latach 2005–2011 na podstawie Ogólnopolskiego Rejestru Procedur Kardiologii Inwazyjnej (ORPKI). Metody: Przeanalizowano dane kolejnych pacjentów poddanych angiografii wieńcowej (grupa ANGIO) oraz zabiegowi przezskórnej angioplastyki wieńcowej (grupa PCI), których włączono do prospektywnego rejestru ORPKI w Polsce. Wyniki: W latach 2005–2011 w grupie ANGIO zebrano dane o 935 429 pacjentach, natomiast w grupie PCI o 501 117 chorych. Liczba pracowni kardiologii inwazyjnej wzrosła z 75 do 137, a liczba angiografii wieńcowych wykonywanych rocznie z 99 195 do 180 935, natomiast liczba PCI odpowiednio z 50 297 do 99 614. Wewnątrzszpitalna śmiertelność okołozabiegowa i częstość udarów mózgu były podobne w ciągu lat u pacjentów, u których wykonywano koronarografię, natomiast zwiększyła się śmiertelność okołozabiegowa w grupie osób, u których przeprowadzono PCI. Użycie stentów uwalniających leki (DES) u chorych ze stabilną dławicą piersiową wzrosło z 32,8% do 55,3%, a stosowanie dostępu promieniowego z 26,8% do 39,1%. Wnioski: Stosowanie stentów typu DES, dostępu promieniowego i wykonywanie zabiegów inwazyjnych u chorych coraz większego ryzyka uległo istotnemu zwiększeniu w Polsce w latach 2005–2011. Zastosowanie się do idei programu “Stent for Life” zaowocowało zwiększającą się co roku liczbą procedur kardiologii inwazyjnej.Background: According to a recent survey, Poland is one of the leaders of interventional cardiology in Europe in terms of the number of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedures per million inhabitants. Aim: To present temporal trends in epidemiology, demographics, treatment, and periprocedural outcome of patients referred for percutaneous coronary angiography and angioplasty in Poland in 2005–2011, based on the Polish National PCI Registry. Methods: Patients who underwent percutaneous coronary angiography (ANGIO group) and/or angioplasty (PCI group) were included in the Polish National PCI Registry — a prospective observational registry study in Poland. Results: There were 935,429 patients in the ANGIO group and 501,117 in the PCI group in Poland in 2005–2011. The number of catheterisation labs increased from 75 to 137, angiography procedures rose from 99,195 to 180,935, and PCIs from 50,297 to 99,614. The procedural mortality and stroke rates for the ANGIO group have remained stable whereas for the PCI group procedural mortality has increased over the years. The use of drug eluting stents (DESs) rose from 32.8% to 55.3% in stable angina and the use of a radial approach from 26.8% to 39.1%. Conclusions: Use of modern attributes of interventional cardiology like DES stents, radial approach, and treatment of higher risk patients has increased in Poland in 2005–2011. The adoption of the “Stent for Life” initiative has resulted in an increasing number of percutaneous coronary procedures over the years

Comparative analysis of GOLPH3 expression in lymph node-positive prostate cancer: immunohistochemistry staining patterns and clinical significance

IntroductionProstate cancer (PCa) is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in men worldwide. Lymph node metastasis is a poor prognostic factor for PCa. Previous studies have found that Golgi phosphoprotein 3 (GOLPH3) is overexpressed in various cancers, including PCa. We examined GOLPH3 expression in PCa cells from primary tumor and, as the first, also in metastatic lymph nodes to assess its potential as a new risk factor for PCa progression.MethodsThe study included 78 patients diagnosed with lymph node-positive PCa confirmed in the postoperative material. All the patients underwent radical prostatectomy (RP) with extended lymphadenectomy. The clinical data of the patients were retrospectively analyzed, and their histopathological specimens were selected for further analysis. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining was performed and the expression of GOLPH3 was assessed by an experienced uropathologist using an immunoreactive scale (IRS). A correlational analysis of the obtained data with the clinicopathological data of patients was performed.ResultsA positive IHC reaction for GOLPH3 was observed in all samples. IRS score for GOLPH3 expression was higher in the metastatic lymph nodes than in the prostate (not statistically significant; p=0.056). Several significant correlations were identified in connection with GOLPH3 expression levels in the prostate and metastatic lymph node tissues. No significant correlations were found between GOLPH3 expression and patient characteristics (e.g. BMI, EAU risk group, or preoperative PSA level), pathological features, or postoperative outcomes. However, we found that lymphovascular invasion (LVI) tended to be more common in patients with a higher percentage of GOLPH3-positive cells (p=0.02). We also found a positive association between the intensity of GOLPH3 staining in metastatic lymph nodes and the EAU classification. Finally, we found a significant negative correlation between the GOLPH3 expression and the efficacy of RP – the higher the expression of GOLPH3, the lower the efficacy of RP was (p<0.05).ConclusionGOLPH3 is expressed in both prostate and metastatic lymph nodes, with higher expression in metastatic lymph nodes. High GOLPH3 expression was associated with the occurrence of LVI, higher-risk group in the EAU classification, and lower efficacy of the RP, but there was no significant correlation with other pathological features or postoperative outcomes

Stepwise relationship between delay to percutaneous coronary intervention and long-term mortality in patients with non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction

Background: Current guidelines recommend coronary catheterization in patients with non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) within 24 hours of hospital admission. However, whether there is a stepwise relationship between the time to percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and long-term mortality in patients with NSTEMI treated invasively within 24 hours of admission has not been established yet. Aims: The study aimed to evaluate the association between the door-to-PCI time and all-cause mortality at 12 and 36 months in patients with NSTEMI, presenting directly to the PCI-capable center, who underwent PCI within the first 24 hours of hospitalization. Methods: We analyzed data of patients hospitalized for NSTEMI between 2007–2019, included in the nationwide registry of acute coronary syndromes. Patients were stratified into twelve groups based on 2-hour intervals of door-to-PCI time. The mortality rates of patients within those groups were adjusted for 33 confounding variables by propensity score weighting method using overlap weights. Results: A total of 37 589 patients were included in the study. The median age of included patients was 66.7 (interquartile range [IQR], 59.0–75.8) years, 66.7% were male, and the median GRACE Score was 115 (98–133). There were increasing 12-month and 36-month mortality rates in consecutive groups of patients stratified by 2-hour door-to-PCI time intervals. After adjustment for patient characteristics, there was a significant positive correlation between the time to PCI and mortality rates (rs = 0.61; P = 0.04 and rs = 0.65; P = 0.02 for 12-month and  36-month mortality, respectively). Conclusions: The longer the door-to-PCI time, the higher were 12-month and 36-month all-cause mortality rates in NSTEMI patients