Minimal controller synthesis for a full-bridge buck inverter

The main objective of this research study is the control of a DC-AC full-bridge buck-based inverter through an extension of Model reference adaptive control (MRAC) strategy, in particular the Extended Minimal Controller Synthesis. This approach requires minimal knowledge of plant and disturbance parameters offering a good robustness even in presence of parameters variation, plant unmodeled nonlinearities and external disturbances. The rejection of undesirable effects of sudden load changes and the ability to recover regular operation with a low transient error, in a short number of periods and the high robustness guarantee that high performance is kept when the control signal is injected through a PWM generator switching at realistic frequency.Incomin

K-NN FOREST: a software for the non-parametric prediction and mapping of environmental variables by the k-Nearest Neighbors algorithm

In the last decades researchers investigated the possibility of extending the information collected in sampling units during a field survey to wider geographical areas through the use of remotely sensed images. One of the most widely adopted approaches is based on the non-parametric k-Nearest Neighbors (k-NN) algorithm. This contribution describes the software K-NN FOREST we developed to provide a complete tool for the implementation of the k-NN technique to generate spatially explicit estimations (maps) of a response variable acquired in the field by sampling units through the use of remotely sensed data or other ancillary variables. K-NN FOREST is designed to guide the user through a graphic user interface in the different phases of the process. K-NN FOREST is freely available for download and it is designed to run under Windows environment in conjunction with the GIS software IDRISI

K-NN FOREST: a software for the non-parametric prediction and mapping of environmental variables by the k-Nearest Neighbors algorithm

In the last decades researchers investigated the possibility of extending the information collected in sampling units during a field survey to wider geographical areas through the use of remotely sensed images. One of the most widely adopted approaches is based on the non-parametric k-Nearest Neighbors (k-NN) algorithm. This contribution describes the software K-NN FOREST we developed to provide a complete tool for the implementation of the k-NN technique to generate spatially explicit estimations (maps) of a response variable acquired in the field by sampling units through the use of remotely sensed data or other ancillary variables. K-NN FOREST is designed to guide the user through a graphic user interface in the different phases of the process. K-NN FOREST is freely available for download and it is designed to run under Windows environment in conjunction with the GIS software IDRISI

Adherence to riluzole in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: An observational study

Objective: Riluzole is the first drug approved to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Recently, an oral suspension (OS) of riluzole was made available. Thus, the aim of our study was to evaluate the adherence to 2 formulations of riluzole in patients with ALS. Patients and methods: We enrolled 45 consecutive patients with ALS. At disease diagnosis, riluzole was prescribed in 2 different formulations depending on the severity of dysphagia (27/45 patients received tablets and 18/45 patients received OS). Side effects (SEs) and treatment adherence were investigated using a clinical questionnaire including the ©Morisky 8-item Medication Adherence Questionnaire. Results: Gastroenteric complaints were the most frequent SEs (58% in the tablet group and 48% in the OS group), followed by those at the nervous system (29% and 40%, respectively). No serious SEs related to treatment were reported. The rate of adherence to riluzole was independent of the formulation of the drug and consistent with other medications assumed for comorbidities (p=0.004). In the tablet group, low adherence was caused by SEs in 55.6% and by dysphagia in 44.4% of patients. In the OS group, SEs caused low adherence in 75% of patients. Independently of the drug formulation, patients with high or medium adherence to riluzole had a higher progression rate (p=0.002 and p=0.009, respectively) and a shorter time to generalization (TTG; p=0.01), compared to those with low adherence. Conclusion: Gastroenteric symptoms were the most frequent SE related to tablet as well as OS. The rate of adherence was independent of the formulation of riluzole and the number of medications assumed for comorbidities, and it was consistent with the severity of the disease. The low adherence was caused by dysphagia and SEs in the tablet group, whereas it was caused prevalently by SEs in the OS group

Infected pancreatic necrosis: outcomes and clinical predictors of mortality. A post hoc analysis of the MANCTRA-1 international study

: The identification of high-risk patients in the early stages of infected pancreatic necrosis (IPN) is critical, because it could help the clinicians to adopt more effective management strategies. We conducted a post hoc analysis of the MANCTRA-1 international study to assess the association between clinical risk factors and mortality among adult patients with IPN. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression models were used to identify prognostic factors of mortality. We identified 247 consecutive patients with IPN hospitalised between January 2019 and December 2020. History of uncontrolled arterial hypertension (p = 0.032; 95% CI 1.135-15.882; aOR 4.245), qSOFA (p = 0.005; 95% CI 1.359-5.879; aOR 2.828), renal failure (p = 0.022; 95% CI 1.138-5.442; aOR 2.489), and haemodynamic failure (p = 0.018; 95% CI 1.184-5.978; aOR 2.661), were identified as independent predictors of mortality in IPN patients. Cholangitis (p = 0.003; 95% CI 1.598-9.930; aOR 3.983), abdominal compartment syndrome (p = 0.032; 95% CI 1.090-6.967; aOR 2.735), and gastrointestinal/intra-abdominal bleeding (p = 0.009; 95% CI 1.286-5.712; aOR 2.710) were independently associated with the risk of mortality. Upfront open surgical necrosectomy was strongly associated with the risk of mortality (p < 0.001; 95% CI 1.912-7.442; aOR 3.772), whereas endoscopic drainage of pancreatic necrosis (p = 0.018; 95% CI 0.138-0.834; aOR 0.339) and enteral nutrition (p = 0.003; 95% CI 0.143-0.716; aOR 0.320) were found as protective factors. Organ failure, acute cholangitis, and upfront open surgical necrosectomy were the most significant predictors of mortality. Our study confirmed that, even in a subgroup of particularly ill patients such as those with IPN, upfront open surgery should be avoided as much as possible. Study protocol registered in ClinicalTrials.Gov (I.D. Number NCT04747990)

Minimal controller synthesis for a full-bridge buck inverter

The main objective of this research study is the control of a DC-AC full-bridge buck-based inverter through an extension of Model reference adaptive control (MRAC) strategy, in particular the Extended Minimal Controller Synthesis. This approach requires minimal knowledge of plant and disturbance parameters offering a good robustness even in presence of parameters variation, plant unmodeled nonlinearities and external disturbances. The rejection of undesirable effects of sudden load changes and the ability to recover regular operation with a low transient error, in a short number of periods and the high robustness guarantee that high performance is kept when the control signal is injected through a PWM generator switching at realistic frequency.Incomin

Hemiparkinsonism due to frontal meningioma

We describe a case with right hemiparkinsonism due to a frontal meningioma with surrounding edema compressing the basal ganglia. The initial diagnosis of idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD) was made in another institution on the basis of the positive family history, the clinical symptoms and the asymmetric reduction of striatal tracer binding in a single photon emission computed tomography study for the dopamine transporter The symptoms of parkinsonism resolved completely shortly after surgery for removal of the tumor This case points to the significance of structural neuroimaging in the evaluation of parkinsonism even in cases that fulfill all the necessary clinical criteria for idiopathic PD

Perioperative handling of antiplatelet drugs. A critical appraisal

Because of more and more accurate cardiovascular prevention programs and the increasing mean age of the general population, the use of antiplatelet treatments is progressively increasing in the last years. Moreover, the wide-spread use of bare-metal stents (BMS) and drug-eluting stents (DES) significantly increased the number of subjects with the need of a combined antiplatelet treatment: Aspirin (ASA) and Clopidogrel (CLO. Within the first year after coronary stenting, approximately 5% of patients needs to undergo non-cardiac surgery interventions. In such patients, current guidelines suggest to stop antiplatelet agents 7-10 days before surgery to avoid the risk of increasing blood loss. On the other hand, it has been shown that the risk of surgical bleeding, if antiplatelet drugs are continued, is lower than that of coronary thrombosis if they are withdrawn. Thus, an accurate stratification of the population according to the thrombotic risk is needed and the bleeding and the thrombotic risk should be considered in parallel. Although a growing amount of recommendations have been released by several Societies, the perioperative handling of antiplatelet drugs still represents a major concern in clinical practice. In this review we report the major literature data about the perioperative handling of antiplatelet drugs. Moreover, in order to describe future treatment perspectives and to identify valuable alternatives to current antiplatelet agents in the perioperative period, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic characteristics of newer antiplatelet drugs are reported and analyzed