396 research outputs found
A case report of iatrogenic gas gangrene post colonoscopy successfully treated with conservative management- is surgery always necessary?
Background: Colonoscopy is a routine procedure in diagnosis and treatment of colonic disease. While generally regarded as a safe procedure, potentially fatal complications can occur. Gas gangrene is one such complication, with very high mortality. There are few cases of gas gangrene occurring after colonoscopy, making it one of the rarer complications of this procedure. There have been no previously reported cases of a patient surviving such an infection and the optimal treatment strategy is contentious. This report describes a case of intramural gas gangrene of the colon, treated conservatively with antibiotic therapy in which the patient survived with full recovery.
Case presentation: A 71-year-old, previously healthy male presented 6 h post apparently uncomplicated colonoscopic polypectomy with rigors, nausea, vomiting and right upper quadrant pain. At presentation he was febrile at 40.1 °C but hemodynamically stable. Abdominal computed tomography revealed substantial colonic thickening and several focal intramural gas bubbles (pneumatosis intestinalis) surrounding the polypectomy site. Within 24 h post procedure he became hypotensive and was admitted to ICU in frank septic shock requiring inotropes, and with demonstrable septic myocardial depression. Bloods showed multi-organ derangement with leukocytosis, lactic acidosis, haemolytic anaemia and hyperbilirubinemia. A diagnosis of presumed Clostridial gas gangrene was made, and treatment was initiated with benzylpenicillin, clindamycin, metronidazole and vancomycin. After 4 days in ICU he was stepped down, and discharged after a further 10 days with no surgical or endoscopic interventions. At three-month review he reported being back to full health.
Conclusions: This case demonstrates that gas gangrene infection is a possible complication of colonoscopic polypectomy. This is a cause of rapid deterioration in post-colonoscopy patients and has been misdiagnosed as colonic perforation in previously reported cases of retroperitoneal gas gangrene. Such misdiagnosis delays antibiotic therapy, which likely plays a role in the high mortality of this condition. Early diagnosis and initiation of antibiotic therapy with benzylpenicillin and clindamycin as seen in this case is essential for patient survival. While surgery is typically performed, non-operative management of pneumatosis intestinalis, and potentially gas gangrene is becoming more common and was utilized effectively in this patient
Are Kaluza-Klein modes enhanced by parametric resonance?
We study parametric amplification of Kaluza-Klein (KK) modes in a higher
-dimensional generalized Kaluza-Klein theory, which was originally
considered by Mukohyama in the narrow resonance case. It was suggested that KK
modes can be enhanced by an oscillation of a scale of compactification by the
-dimensional sphere and by the direct product . We extend this past work to the more general case where
initial values of the scale of compactification and the quantum number of the
angular momentum of KK modes are not small. We perform analytic approaches
based on the Mathieu equation as well as numerical calculations, and find that
the expansion of the universe rapidly makes the KK field deviate from
instability bands. As a result, KK modes are not enhanced sufficiently in an
expanding universe in these two classes of models.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figure
Genetic Specificity of Hippocampal Subfield Volumes, Relative to Hippocampal Formation, Identified in 2148 Young Adult Twins and Siblings
The hippocampus is a complex brain structure with key roles in cognitive and emotional processing and with subregion abnormalities associated with a range of disorders and psychopathologies. Here we combine data from two large independent young adult twin/sibling cohorts to obtain the most accurate estimates to date of genetic covariation between hippocampal subfield volumes and the hippocampus as a single volume. The combined sample included 2148 individuals, comprising 1073 individuals from 627 families (mean age = 22.3 years) from the Queensland Twin IMaging (QTIM) Study, and 1075 individuals from 454 families (mean age = 28.8 years) from the Human Connectome Project (HCP). Hippocampal subfields were segmented using FreeSurfer version 6.0 (CA4 and dentate gyrus were phenotypically and genetically indistinguishable and were summed to a single volume). Multivariate twin modeling was conducted in OpenMx to decompose variance into genetic and environmental sources. Bivariate analyses of hippocampal formation and each subfield volume showed that 10%–72% of subfield genetic variance was independent of the hippocampal formation, with greatest specificity found for the smaller volumes; for example, CA2/3 with 42% of genetic variance being independent of the hippocampus; fissure (63%); fimbria (72%); hippocampus-amygdala transition area (41%); parasubiculum (62%). In terms of genetic influence, whole hippocampal volume is a good proxy for the largest hippocampal subfields, but a poor substitute for the smaller subfields. Additive genetic sources accounted for 49%–77% of total variance for each of the subfields in the combined sample multivariate analysis. In addition, the multivariate analyses were sufficiently powered to identify common environmental influences (replicated in QTIM and HCP for the molecular layer and CA4/dentate gyrus, and accounting for 7%–16% of total variance for 8 of 10 subfields in the combined sample). This provides the clearest indication yet from a twin study that factors such as home environment may influence hippocampal volumes (albeit, with caveats)
Inflation Dynamics and Reheating
We review the theory of inflation with single and multiple fields paying
particular attention to the dynamics of adiabatic and entropy/isocurvature
perturbations which provide the primary means of testing inflationary models.
We review the theory and phenomenology of reheating and preheating after
inflation providing a unified discussion of both the gravitational and
nongravitational features of multi-field inflation. In addition we cover
inflation in theories with extra dimensions and models such as the curvaton
scenario and modulated reheating which provide alternative ways of generating
large-scale density perturbations. Finally we discuss the interesting
observational implications that can result from adiabatic-isocurvature
correlations and non-Gaussianity.Comment: 51 pages, latex, 16 figures, version to appear in Reviews of Modern
Physic
Particle production in the oscillating inflation model
We investigate the particle production of a scalar field coupled to an
inflaton field () in the {\it oscillating inflation}
model, which was recently proposed by Damour and Mukhanov. Although the
fluctuation of the field can be effectively enhanced during a stage of
the oscillating inflation, the maximum fluctuation is suppressed as the
critical value which indicates the scale of the core part of the
inflaton potential decreases, in taking into account the back reaction effect
of created particles. As for the particle production, we find that
larger values of the coupling constant are required to lead to an efficient
parametric resonance with the decrease of , because an effective mass
of inflaton around the minimum of its potential becomes larger. However, it is
possible to generate the superheavy particle whose mass is greater than
GeV, which would result in an important consequence for the GUT
baryogenesis.Comment: 18 pages, 14 figure
Resonant particle production with non-minimally coupled scalar fields in preheating after inflation
We investigate a resonant particle production of a scalar field
coupled non-minimally to a spacetime curvature () as well as
to an inflaton field (). In the case of , effect assists -resonance in certain parameter regimes.
However, for , -resonance is not enhanced by
effect because of suppression effect as well as a back reaction effect.
If , the maximal fluctuation of produced -particle is
GeV for , which is larger than the minimally coupled case with .Comment: 33pages, 12figures. to appear in Physical Review
Equilibrium and dynamical properties of two dimensional self-gravitating systems
A system of N classical particles in a 2D periodic cell interacting via
long-range attractive potential is studied. For low energy density a
collapsed phase is identified, while in the high energy limit the particles are
homogeneously distributed. A phase transition from the collapsed to the
homogeneous state occurs at critical energy U_c. A theoretical analysis within
the canonical ensemble identifies such a transition as first order. But
microcanonical simulations reveal a negative specific heat regime near .
The dynamical behaviour of the system is affected by this transition : below
U_c anomalous diffusion is observed, while for U > U_c the motion of the
particles is almost ballistic. In the collapsed phase, finite -effects act
like a noise source of variance O(1/N), that restores normal diffusion on a
time scale diverging with N. As a consequence, the asymptotic diffusion
coefficient will also diverge algebraically with N and superdiffusion will be
observable at any time in the limit N \to \infty. A Lyapunov analysis reveals
that for U > U_c the maximal exponent \lambda decreases proportionally to
N^{-1/3} and vanishes in the mean-field limit. For sufficiently small energy,
in spite of a clear non ergodicity of the system, a common scaling law \lambda
\propto U^{1/2} is observed for any initial conditions.Comment: 17 pages, Revtex - 15 PS Figs - Subimitted to Physical Review E - Two
column version with included figures : less paper waste
Realising the right to data portability for the domestic Internet of Things
There is an increasing role for the IT design community to play in regulation
of emerging IT. Article 25 of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
2016 puts this on a strict legal basis by establishing the need for information
privacy by design and default (PbD) for personal data-driven technologies.
Against this backdrop, we examine legal, commercial and technical perspectives
around the newly created legal right to data portability (RTDP) in GDPR. We are
motivated by a pressing need to address regulatory challenges stemming from the
Internet of Things (IoT). We need to find channels to support the protection of
these new legal rights for users in practice. In Part I we introduce the
internet of things and information PbD in more detail. We briefly consider
regulatory challenges posed by the IoT and the nature and practical challenges
surrounding the regulatory response of information privacy by design. In Part
II, we look in depth at the legal nature of the RTDP, determining what it
requires from IT designers in practice but also limitations on the right and
how it relates to IoT. In Part III we focus on technical approaches that can
support the realisation of the right. We consider the state of the art in data
management architectures, tools and platforms that can provide portability,
increased transparency and user control over the data flows. In Part IV, we
bring our perspectives together to reflect on the technical, legal and business
barriers and opportunities that will shape the implementation of the RTDP in
practice, and how the relationships may shape emerging IoT innovation and
business models. We finish with brief conclusions about the future for the RTDP
and PbD in the IoT
Improving antibiotic prescribing for adults with community acquired pneumonia: Does a computerised decision support system achieve more than academic detailing alone? – a time series analysis
BACKGROUND: The ideal method to encourage uptake of clinical guidelines in hospitals is not known. Several strategies have been suggested. This study evaluates the impact of academic detailing and a computerised decision support system (CDSS) on clinicians' prescribing behaviour for patients with community acquired pneumonia (CAP). METHODS: The management of all patients presenting to the emergency department over three successive time periods was evaluated; the baseline, academic detailing and CDSS periods. The rate of empiric antibiotic prescribing that was concordant with recommendations was studied over time comparing pre and post periods and using an interrupted time series analysis. RESULTS: The odds ratio for concordant therapy in the academic detailing period, after adjustment for age, illness severity and suspicion of aspiration, compared with the baseline period was OR = 2.79 [1.88, 4.14], p < 0.01, and for the computerised decision support period compared to the academic detailing period was OR = 1.99 [1.07, 3.69], p = 0.02. During the first months of the computerised decision support period an improvement in the appropriateness of antibiotic prescribing was demonstrated, which was greater than that expected to have occurred with time and academic detailing alone, based on predictions from a binary logistic model. CONCLUSION: Deployment of a computerised decision support system was associated with an early improvement in antibiotic prescribing practices which was greater than the changes seen with academic detailing. The sustainability of this intervention requires further evaluation
Vocal Communications and the Maintenance of Population Specific Songs in a Contact Zone
Bird song has been hypothesized to play a role in several important aspects of the biology of songbirds, including the generation of taxonomic diversity by speciation; however, the role that song plays in speciation within this group may be dependent upon the ability of populations to maintain population specific songs or calls in the face of gene flow and external cultural influences. Here, in an exploratory study, we construct a spatially explicit model of population movement to examine the consequences of secondary contact of populations singing distinct songs. We concentrate on two broad questions: 1) will population specific songs be maintained in a contact zone or will they be replaced by shared song, and 2) what spatial patterns in the distribution of songs may result from contact? We examine the effects of multiple factors including song-based mating preferences and movement probabilities, oblique versus paternal learning of song, and both cultural and genetic mutations. We find a variety of conditions under which population specific songs can be maintained, particularly when females have preferences for their population specific songs, and we document many distinct patterns of song distribution within the contact zone, including clines, banding, and mosaics
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