Cholestasis in preterm infants: when is a yellow alert?

Preterm infants are particularly at risk for different degree of bile formation impairment because of metabolic demand that are not matched by functional maturation in the first weeks of life

A scoring system for biliary atresia: Is this the right one?

A clinical diagnostic score for biliary atresia in discusse

On the Beta Function in Supersymmetric Gauge Theories

We re-examine perturbative and nonperturbative aspects of the beta function in N=1 and N=2 supersymmetric gauge theories, make comments on the recent literature on the subject and discuss the exactness of several known results such as the NSVZ beta function.Comment: 11 pages, LaTeX2

Prima segnalazione di Algyroides Nigropunctatus nel parco naturale regionale "Costa Otranto-Leuca e bosco di Tricase"

Nell’ambito di un’escursione naturalistica, svolta 18 Aprile 2010, viene avvistato e fotografato un esemplare Algyroides igropunctatus (Duméril & Bibron, 1839). L’avvistamento avviene lungo una strada interpoderale che collega il Bosco delle Querce di Castro alla località Acquaviva di Marittima (frazione del comune di Diso); l’esemplare di Lacertidae si trova su di un tronco di ulivo secolare. Nei giorni successivi, in seguito ad interviste a giovani escursionisti si rilevano probabili ulteriori avvistamenti nella Pineta di Santa cesarea terme e in un giardino urbano di Castro. Nel 2012 uno degli autori rileva la presenza di Algyroides nigropunctatus lungo un percorso rurale sempre nel Parco “Costa Otranto Leuca e Bosco di Tricase” ma nell’area ricadente nel comune di Otranto.Algyroides nigropunctatus (Duméril & Bibron, 1839), segnalato in Italia nel Carso triestino (Atlante degli Anfibi e dei Rettili d’Italia, Societas Herpetologica Italica, 2006), è una specie a distribuzione dinarica, della Grecia nord occidentale e di alcune isole ioniche. È presente anche in Macedonia e in Albania, compresa l’isola di Saseno, proprio di fronte a Valona nel punto più vicino alle coste salentine

Frailty and Sarcopenia in Older Patients Receiving Kidney Transplantation

Kidney transplantation is the treatment of choice for most of the patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). It improves quality of life, life expectancy, and has a lower financial burden to the healthcare system in comparison to dialysis. Every year more and more older patients are included in the kidney transplant waitlist. Within this patient population, transplanted subjects have better survival and quality of life as compared to those on dialysis. It is therefore crucial to select older patients who may benefit from renal transplantation, as well as those particularly at risk for post-transplant complications. Sarcopenia and frailty are frequently neglected in the evaluation of kidney transplant candidates. Both conditions are interrelated complex geriatric syndromes that are linked to disability, aging, comorbidities, increased mortality, and graft failure post-transplantation. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) and more importantly ESRD are characterized by multiple metabolic complications that contribute for the development of sarcopenia and frailty. In particular, anorexia, metabolic acidosis and chronic low-grade inflammation are the main contributors to the development of sarcopenia, a key component in frail transplant candidates and recipients. Both frailty and sarcopenia are considered to be reversible. Frail patients respond well to multiprofessional interventions that focus on the patients' positive frailty criteria, while physical rehabilitation and oral supplementation may improve sarcopenia. Prospective studies are still needed to evaluate the utility of formally measuring frailty and sarcopenia in the older candidates to renal transplantation as part of the transplant evaluation process

High performance encapsulation and networking in Casanova 2

Encapsulation is a programming technique that helps developers keeping code readable and maintainable. However, encapsulation in modern object-oriented languages often causes significant runtime overhead. Developers must choose between clean encapsulated code or fast code. In the application domain of computer games, speed of execution is of utmost importance, which means that the choice between clean and fast usually is decided in favor of the latter. In this paper we discuss how encapsulation is embedded in the Casanova 2 game development language, and show how Casanova 2 allows developers to write encapsulated game code, which thanks to extensive optimization achieves at the same time high levels of performance. Furthermore, we show that the abstractions provided by Casanova so far cover no more than the tip of the iceberg: we document a further extension in the traditionally challenging domain of networking and show how the language can provide significant improvement in productivity

High performance encapsulation in Casanova 2

Encapsulation is a programming technique that helps developers keeping code readable and maintainable. However, encapsulation in modern object oriented languages often causes significant runtime overhead. Developers must choose between clean encapsulated code or fast code. In the application domain of computer games, speed of execution is of utmost importance, which means that the choice between clean and fast usually is decided in favor of the latter. In this paper we discuss how encapsulation is embedded in the Casanova 2 game development language, and show how Casanova 2 allows developers to write encapsulated game code which, thanks to extensive optimization, achieves at the same time high levels of performance

[Disglycemia in patients with acute kidney injury in the ICU]

Derangements of glucose metabolism are common among critically ill patients. Critical illness- associated hyperglycemia (CIAH) is characterized by raised blood glucose levels in association with an acute event that is reversible after resolution of the underlying disease. CIAH has many causes, such as changes in counter-regulatory hormone status, release of sepsis mediators, insulin resistance, drugs and nutritional factors. It is associated with increased mortality risk. This association appears to be strongly influenced by diabetes mellitus as a comorbidity, suggesting the need for an accurate individualization of glycemic targets according to baseline glycemic status. Hypoglycemia is also very common in this clinical context and it has a negative prognostic impact. Many studies based on intensive insulin treatment protocols targeting normal blood glucose values have in fact documented both an increased incidence of hypoglycemia and an increased mortality risk. Finally, glycemic control in the ICU is made even more complex in the presence of acute kidney injury. On one hand, there is in fact a reduction of both the renal clearance of insulin and of gluconeogenesis by the kidney. On the other hand, the frequent need for renal replacement therapy (dialysis / hemofiltration) may result in an energy intake excess, under the form of citrate, lactate and glucose in the dialysate/reinfusion fluids. With regard to the possible renal protective effects afforded by intensive glycemic control protocols, the presently available evidence does not support a reduction in the incidence of AKI and/or the need for RRT with this approach, when compared with standard glucose control. Thus, the most recent guidelines now suggest higher blood glucose targets (<180 mg/dl or 140-180 mg/dl) than in the past (80-110 mg/dl). Albeit with limited evidence, it seems reasonable to extend these indications also to patients with AKI in the intensive care unit. Further studies are needed in order to better ascertain the effects of dysglycemia on the outcome of patients with AKI