813 research outputs found
Evaluation of heart failure prognostic factors in patients referred for heart transplantation
OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the survival of patients with heart failure submitted to cardiac transplantation screening as well as identify poor prognostic factors using a risk score to identify patients with higher death risk. METHODS: 330 male and female patients aged 12 to 74 years old, referred for heart transplantation from January 1986 to November 2001 were evaluated. Clinical, laboratory, electrocardiographic, Holter monitoring, echocardiographic and radionuclide ventriculography data were analyzed. RESULTS: The median follow up period was 5 years; patients' survival rate was 84.5% in the first year, 74.3% in the second year, 68.9% in the third year and 60.5% in the fifth year. The prognostic variables selected through the univariate analysis were: age, Chagas' disease etiology for cardiomyopathy, NYHA functional classes III and IV, orthopnea, systolic blood pressure, mean blood pressure, pulse pressure, plasma urea, sodium, glucose, albumin, bilirubin, hemoglobin, and mean heart rate. The prognostic variables at the multivariate analysis were: ejection fraction, blood urea, and hemoglobin. The risk score: RR=exp[(-0.0942401 x ejection fraction) + (0.0105207 x blood urea) + (-0.2974991 x hemoglobin) + (-0.0132898 x age) + (-0.0099115 x blood glucose)] discriminated the population with a higher death risk. CONCLUSION: Patients' survival was satisfactory despite heart failure severity, suggesting they can be maintained on optimized clinical treatment until persistent clinical deterioration takes place. Ejection fraction, ventricular diameters, and clinical functional class alone should not be used as an indication for heart transplantation. The risk score could help discriminate the population with the poorest prognosis.OBJETIVOS: Avaliar a sobrevida dos pacientes com insuficiência cardíaca encaminhados para transplante cardíaco, e identificar os fatores de pior prognóstico a fim de estabelecer um escore para reconhecer os pacientes de maior risco de óbito. MÉTODOS: Foram avaliados 330 pacientes de ambos os sexos, com idade entre 12 e 74 anos, encaminhados para transplante cardíaco no período de janeiro de 1986 a novembro de 2001. Foi feita análise de variáveis clínicas e laboratoriais, e de dados de eletrocardiografia, Holter, ecocardiografia e ventriculografia radioisotópica. RESULTADOS: O período mediano de acompanhamento foi de cinco anos e a sobrevida dos pacientes no primeiro ano foi de 84,5%, no segundo ano foi de 74,3%, no terceiro ano foi de 68,9%, no quarto ano foi de 64,8% e, no quinto ano, foi de 60,5%. As variáveis prognósticas selecionadas na análise univariada, estatisticamente significantes, foram: idade, etiologia chagásica, classes funcionais III e IV, ortopnéia, pressão arterial sistólica, pressão arterial média, pressão de pulso, uréia plasmática, sódio plasmático, glicemia, albumina, bilirrubina, hemoglobina e freqüência cardíaca média. As variáveis prognósticas na análise multivariada estatisticamente significantes foram: fração de ejeção, uréia e hemoglobina. O escore de risco foi calculado de acordo com a fórmula: RR = exp[(-0,0942401 x fração de ejeção) + (0,0105207 x uréia) + (-0,2974991 x hemoglobina) + (-0,0132898 x idade) + (-0,0099115 x glicemia)], discriminando a população com maior probabilidade de óbito. CONCLUSÃO: Apesar da sobrevida satisfatória, trata-se de amostra de pacientes com insuficiência cardíaca grave, sugerindo que esses pacientes podem ser mantidos em tratamento clínico otimizado até que apresentem deterioração clínica persistente. A fração de ejeção, os diâmetros ventriculares e a classe funcional não devem ser usados de forma isolada para indicação de transplante cardíaco. O escore de risco pode ser útil para discriminar a população com pior prognóstico.Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Escola Paulista de MedicinaUNIFESP, EPMSciEL
Association between sleep-disordered breathing and breast cancer aggressiveness
Background
Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) has been associated with cancer aggressiveness, but studies focused on specific tumors are lacking. In this pilot study we investigated whether SDB is associated with breast cancer (BC) aggressiveness.
Methods
83 consecutive women <65 years diagnosed with primary BC underwent a home respiratory polygraphy. Markers of SDB severity included the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) and the 4% oxygen desaturation index (ODI4). The Ki67 proliferation index, lack of hormone receptors (HR-), Nottingham Histological Grade (NHG), and tumor stage were used as markers of BC aggressiveness. The association between SDB and molecular subtypes of BC was also assessed.
Results
The mean (SD) age was 48.8 (8.8) years and body mass index was 27.4 (5.4) Kg/m2. 42 women (50.6%) were post-menopausal. The median (IQR) AHI was 5.1 (2–9.4), and ODI4 was 1.5 (0.5–5.8). The median (IQR) AHI did not differ between the groups with Ki67>28% and Ki6728% and Ki67<29% (51.2% vs 52.3%, p = 0.90), HR- and HR+ (58.3% vs 49.1%, p = 0.47), NHG categories (p = 0.89), different tumor stages (p = 0.71), or molecular subtypes (p = 0.73). These results did not change when the ODI4 was used instead of the AHI.
Conclusion
Our results do not support an association between the presence or severity of SDB and BC aggressiveness.Asociación de Neumología y Cirugía Torácica del Sur (NEUMOSUR) 1/201
Stopping power of Au for silver ions at low velocities
Energy loss measurements for the slowing down of Ag ions in Au, in the velocity range 1:6v0 < v < 4:4v0, where v0 is the Bohr velocity, are presented. The measurements were performed using the Doppler shift technique and also with a new method, where a secondary beam of low velocity heavy ions is produced by elastic scattering of the accelerated beam. The results are compared to the SRIM2000 calculations (www.srim.org) and to recent measurements in this velocity region
Revisão externa das Diretrizes da SBC segundo a ferramenta AGREE II - Precisamos rever nossas Diretrizes?
INTRODUÇÃO: Diretrizes Clínicas devem ser documentos elaborados de forma sistemática que visam em primeiro lugar apoiar com a melhor informação médica disponível a decisão de um paciente e de um profissional de saúde. Adicionalmente também podem ser utilizadas pelo gestor para a formulação de políticas públicas. OBJETIVO: Avaliar a qualidade metodológica de 3 Diretrizes Clínicas da Sociedade Brasileira de Cardiologia (SBC) segundo uma ferramenta aceita internacionalmente para esta finalidade, e sugerir melhorias na elaboração deste tipo de documento. MÉTODOS: 12 avaliadores independentes (4 por documento) utilizaram a ferramenta AGREE II para avaliar metodologicamente três Diretrizes Clínicas da SBC que abordam assuntos de extrema importância e prevalência na população mundial: Hipertensão Arterial, Diabetes e Dislipidemia. RESULTADOS: Segundo a avaliação das 3 Diretrizes, pelos baixos escores recebidos principalmente nos domínios de Envolvimento das Partes Interessadas, Aplicabilidade da Diretriz e em especial no Rigor do Desenvolvimento, 2 delas foram consideradas com uma metodologia de elaboração insatisfatória. CONCLUSÃO: A qualidade metodológica das Diretrizes Clínicas da SBC foi considerada insatisfatória. Sugerimos neste artigo estratégias para aprimorar o processo de elaboração de futuros documentos
The age again in the eye of the COVID-19 storm: evidence-based decision making
Background: One hundred fifty million contagions, more than 3 million deaths and little more than 1 year of COVID-19 have changed our lives and our health management systems forever. Ageing is known to be one of the significant determinants for COVID-19 severity. Two main reasons underlie this: immunosenescence and age correlation with main COVID-19 comorbidities such as hypertension or dyslipidaemia. This study has two aims. The first is to obtain cut-off points for laboratory parameters that can help us in clinical decision-making. The second one is to analyse the effect of pandemic lockdown on epidemiological, clinical, and laboratory parameters concerning the severity of the COVID-19. For these purposes, 257 of SARSCoV2 inpatients during pandemic confinement were included in this study. Moreover, 584 case records from a previously analysed series, were compared with the present study data.
Results: Concerning the characteristics of lockdown series, mild cases accounted for 14.4, 54.1% were moderate and 31.5%, severe. There were 32.5% of home contagions, 26.3% community transmissions, 22.5% nursing home contagions, and 8.8% corresponding to frontline worker contagions regarding epidemiological features. Age > 60 and male sex are hereby confirmed as severity determinants. Equally, higher severity was significantly associated with higher IL6, CRP, ferritin, LDH, and leukocyte counts, and a lower percentage of lymphocyte, CD4 and CD8 count. Comparing this cohort with a previous 584-cases series, mild cases were less than those analysed in the first moment of the pandemic and dyslipidaemia became more frequent than before. IL-6, CRP and LDH values above 69 pg/mL, 97 mg/L and 328 U/L respectively, as well as a CD4 T-cell count below 535 cells/?L, were the best cut-offs predicting severity since these parameters offered reliable areas under the curve.
Conclusion: Age and sex together with selected laboratory parameters on admission can help us predict COVID-19 severity and, therefore, make clinical and resource management decisions. Demographic features associated with lockdown might affect the homogeneity of the data and the robustness of the results
Prognostic impact of a suboptimal number of analyzed metaphases in normal karyotype lower-risk MDS
Conventional karyotype is one of the most relevant prognostic factors in MDS. However, about 50% of patients with MDS have a normal karyotype. Usually, 20-25 normal metaphases (nMP) are considered to be optimal to exclude small abnormal clones which might be associated with poor prognosis. This study evaluated the impact of examining a suboptimal number of metaphases in patients recruited to the EUMDS Registry with low and intermediate-1 risk according to IPSS. Only 179/1049 (17%) of patients with a normal karyotype had a suboptimal number of nMP, defined as less than 20 metaphases analyzed. The outcome (overall survival and progression-free survival) of patients with suboptimal nMP was not inferior to those with higher numbers of analyzed MP both in univariate and multivariate analyses. For patients with an abnormal karyotype, 224/649 (35%) had a suboptimal number of MP assessed, but this did not impact on outcome. For patients with a normal karyotype and suboptimal numbers of analyzable metaphases standard evaluation might be acceptable for general practice, but we recommend additional FISH-analyses or molecular techniques, especially in candidates for intensive interventions
Measurement of the cosmic ray spectrum above eV using inclined events detected with the Pierre Auger Observatory
A measurement of the cosmic-ray spectrum for energies exceeding
eV is presented, which is based on the analysis of showers
with zenith angles greater than detected with the Pierre Auger
Observatory between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2013. The measured spectrum
confirms a flux suppression at the highest energies. Above
eV, the "ankle", the flux can be described by a power law with
index followed by
a smooth suppression region. For the energy () at which the
spectral flux has fallen to one-half of its extrapolated value in the absence
of suppression, we find
eV.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO
Energy Estimation of Cosmic Rays with the Engineering Radio Array of the Pierre Auger Observatory
The Auger Engineering Radio Array (AERA) is part of the Pierre Auger
Observatory and is used to detect the radio emission of cosmic-ray air showers.
These observations are compared to the data of the surface detector stations of
the Observatory, which provide well-calibrated information on the cosmic-ray
energies and arrival directions. The response of the radio stations in the 30
to 80 MHz regime has been thoroughly calibrated to enable the reconstruction of
the incoming electric field. For the latter, the energy deposit per area is
determined from the radio pulses at each observer position and is interpolated
using a two-dimensional function that takes into account signal asymmetries due
to interference between the geomagnetic and charge-excess emission components.
The spatial integral over the signal distribution gives a direct measurement of
the energy transferred from the primary cosmic ray into radio emission in the
AERA frequency range. We measure 15.8 MeV of radiation energy for a 1 EeV air
shower arriving perpendicularly to the geomagnetic field. This radiation energy
-- corrected for geometrical effects -- is used as a cosmic-ray energy
estimator. Performing an absolute energy calibration against the
surface-detector information, we observe that this radio-energy estimator
scales quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy as expected for coherent
emission. We find an energy resolution of the radio reconstruction of 22% for
the data set and 17% for a high-quality subset containing only events with at
least five radio stations with signal.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO
Measurement of the Radiation Energy in the Radio Signal of Extensive Air Showers as a Universal Estimator of Cosmic-Ray Energy
We measure the energy emitted by extensive air showers in the form of radio
emission in the frequency range from 30 to 80 MHz. Exploiting the accurate
energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory, we obtain a radiation energy of
15.8 \pm 0.7 (stat) \pm 6.7 (sys) MeV for cosmic rays with an energy of 1 EeV
arriving perpendicularly to a geomagnetic field of 0.24 G, scaling
quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy. A comparison with predictions from
state-of-the-art first-principle calculations shows agreement with our
measurement. The radiation energy provides direct access to the calorimetric
energy in the electromagnetic cascade of extensive air showers. Comparison with
our result thus allows the direct calibration of any cosmic-ray radio detector
against the well-established energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DOI.
Supplemental material in the ancillary file
- …