GLOBAL ECONOMIC CRISIS AS A DIVINE BLESSING

The article substantiates the hypothesis according to which economic crises, representing generally positive events, are destined not to correct market imperfections, but to prepare the conditions for transition to a qualitatively new generation of machines and technologies. Nanotechnology is the driving force of the real leap forward that world economy is now preparing to make. Economic scientists can facilitate economic recovery, amplifying people’s positive expectations related to the outcome of the crisis.business fluctuations, technology, macroeconomic policy, positive expectations.

Beton cu pulberi reactive armate cu fibre din oţel

Ultra High Strength and Performance Concrete development is a relatively new industry. The last 150 years have shown that despite of a constant increasing resistance for the concrete, the practical applications were often behind to these innovations in materials science. This appears to be due to increased costs as the resistance increases per unit volume and a caution restraint to use new materials in practical applications. This paper is intended to be as an encouragement to present a practical structural applications of Ultra High Performance Concrete (BUIP) or reactive powder concrete (BPR), first developed in Romania, by using locally available materials, including waste reusing and thereby making an ecological green concrete. This concrete has a viscous consistency but a slump flow similar to the self compacting concrete (SCC), and compressive strength values exceed 150 MPa (150 ÷ 200 MPa)

Assessment of inhibitory antibodies in patients with hereditary angioedema treated with plasma-derived C1 inhibitor

Background Limited data are available regarding C1 inhibitor (C1-INH) administration and anti–C1-INH antibodies. Objective To assess the incidence of antibody formation during treatment with pasteurized, nanofiltered plasma-derived C1-INH (pnfC1-INH) in patients with hereditary angioedema with C1-INH deficiency (C1-INH-HAE) and the comparative efficacy of pnfC1-INH in patients with and without antibodies. Methods In this multicenter, open-label study, patients with C1-INH-HAE (≥12 years of age) were given 20 IU/kg of pnfC1-INH per HAE attack that required treatment and followed up for 9 months. Blood samples were taken at baseline (day of first attack) and months 3, 6, and 9 and analyzed for inhibitory anti–C1-INH antibody (iC1-INH-Ab) and noninhibitory anti–C1-INH antibodies (niC1-INH-Abs). Results The study included 46 patients (69.6% female; mean age, 38.9 years; all white) who received 221 on-site pnfC1-INH infusions; most patients received 6 or fewer infusions. No patient tested positive (titer ≥1:50) for iC1-INH-Ab at any time during the study. Thirteen patients (28.2%) had detectable niC1-INH-Abs in 1 or more samples. Nine patients (19.6%) had detectable niC1-INH-Abs at baseline; 3 of these had no detectable antibodies after baseline. Of 10 patients (21.7%) with 1 or more detectable result for niC1-INH-Abs after baseline, 6 had detectable niC1-INH-Abs at baseline. Mean times to symptom relief onset and complete symptom resolution per patient were similar for those with or without anti–niC1-INH-Abs. Conclusion Administration of pnfC1-INH was not associated with iC1-INH-Ab formation in this population. Noninhibitory antibodies were detected in some patients but fluctuated during the study independently of pnfC1-INH administration and appeared to have no effect on pnfC1-INH efficacy

Recombinant Human-C1 inhibitor is effective and safe for repeat hereditary angioedema attacks

BackgroundHereditary angioedema (HAE) caused by a deficiency in functional C1 esterase inhibitor (C1INH) is characterized by recurrent episodes of cutaneous and/or mucosal/submucosal tissue swelling affecting multiple anatomic locations. Previous studies demonstrated efficacy of recombinant human C1INH (rhC1INH) for acute HAE attacks.ObjectiveThis study evaluated the efficacy and safety of rhC1INH (50 IU/kg) for the treatment of multiple HAE attacks in an open-label extension study.MethodsTime to onset of symptom relief and time to minimal symptoms were assessed using a Treatment Effect Questionnaire (TEQ), a visual analog scale, and a 6-point ordinal scale Investigator Score.ResultsForty-four patients received rhC1INH, and a single dose was administered for 215 of 224 (96%) attacks. Median time to beginning of symptom relief based on TEQ for the first 5 attacks was 75.0 (95% CI, 69-89) minutes, ranging from 62.5 (95% CI, 48-90) to 134.0 (95% CI, 32-119) minutes. Median time to minimal symptoms using TEQ for the first 3 attacks was 303.0 (95% CI, 211-367) minutes. rhC1INH was well tolerated. There were no discontinuations due to adverse events. No thrombotic or anaphylactic events were reported, and repeat rhC1INH treatments were not associated with neutralizing anti-C1INH antibodies.ConclusionsA single 50-IU/kg dose rhC1INH was effective for improving symptoms of an HAE attack with sustained efficacy for treatment of subsequent attacks. rhC1INH had a positive safety profile throughout the study. This study supports repeated use of rhC1INH over time in patients with HAE attacks

The international WAO/EAACI guideline for the management of hereditary angioedema – the 2017 revision and update

Abstract Hereditary Angioedema (HAE) is a rare and disabling disease. Early diagnosis and appropriate therapy are essential. This update and revision of the global guideline for HAE provides up-to-date consensus recommendations for the management of HAE. In the development of this update and revision of the guideline, an international expert panel reviewed the existing evidence and developed 20 recommendations that were discussed, finalized and consented during the guideline consensus conference in June 2016 in Vienna. The final version of this update and revision of the guideline incorporates the contributions of a board of expert reviewers and the endorsing societies. The goal of this guideline update and revision is to provide clinicians and their patients with guidance that will assist them in making rational decisions in the management of HAE with deficient C1-inhibitor (type 1) and HAE with dysfunctional C1-inhibitor (type 2). The key clinical questions covered by these recommendations are: 1) How should HAE-1/2 be defined and classified?, 2) How should HAE-1/2 be diagnosed?, 3) Should HAE-1/2 patients receive prophylactic and/or on-demand treatment and what treatment options should be used?, 4) Should HAE-1/2 management be different for special HAE-1/2 patient groups such as pregnant/lactating women or children?, and 5) Should HAE-1/2 management incorporate self-administration of therapies and patient support measures? This article is co-published with permission in Allergy and the World Allergy Organization Journal

Hereditary Angioedema: a Challenging Diagnosis for the Gastroenterologist

Hereditary angioedema (HAE) caused by a deficiency of C1 esterase inhibitor enzyme (C1-INH) is a very rare, autosomal dominantly inherited genetic disorder, characterized by recurrent peripheral angioedema, painful abdominal attacks and episodes of laryngeal edema. Abdominal attacks are frequent symptoms in adult HAE patients, occurring in more than 90% of the cases. Angioedema in the bowel or abdomen can occur in the absence of cutaneous manifestations and may be easily misdiagnosed unless the clinician has a high degree of awareness to include HAE in the differential diagnosis. Misdiagnosis is associated with inadequate treatments, including unnecessary surgical procedures. Any patient who presents recurrent episodes of swelling should be evaluated for HAE caused by C1-INH deficiency. New therapies could save lives and dramatically improve their quality of life

Thermodynamics and Mechanism of Metalothermic Reduction of Molten Salts

The objective of this paper is to present the differences which appear in terms of thermodynamics and structure in the elaboration process of two composite materials produced through an aluminothermic reduction of molten salts. There were conducted two sets of experiments of reduction of liquid Potassium Fluoroborate (KBF 4 ) and the mix of salts (KBF 4 The in-situ composites occured in the mid '80s, offers a termodynamic stability to fine and dispersed particles into the metal matrix due to the growth and germination of the reinforcement particles which takes place into the matrix alloy, assuring a strong link at the particle -matrix interface A1-B System It is agreed that an eutectic exists at low boron contents, and that boron has a low solubility (< 100 ppm) in the solid. However, there is disagreement on the boron solubility in the liquid. The older data, when extrapolated to 660 °C give an eutectic composition of 0.09 wt The boron composition of the hypoeutectic liquid is given by the relation Equation [1] Ti-B system There is a disagreement about the congruent melting temperature of TiB 2 . These data are listed in table 1. The highest reported congruent temperature 3498 K is chosen in the assessed phase diagram as reported in Experimental part There were produced two aluminium metal matrix composites by using pure aluminium and also aluminium alloys (6xxx and 5xxx series) as matrix. In order to obtain the composite materials reinforced with TiB 2 and AlB 2 particles there were used the following salts: Potassium Hexafluorotitanate (K 2 TiF 6 with the melting point of 780°C and molecular mass of 240.09 g/ mol) and Potassium Fluoroborate (KBF 4 with the melting point of 530°C and molecular mass of 125.91g/mol). Also cryolite (Na 3 AlF 6 with the melting temperature at 1027 °C and molecular mass 209.94 g/mol) was used for the metal bath protection and disolution of the formed oxides The two types of composites have been produced in an electric furnace in a graphite crucible, with mechanical stirring at a speed of 200 rot./min

Consequences of Misdiagnosed and Mismanaged Hereditary Angioedema Laryngeal Attacks: An Overview of Cases from the Romanian Registry

Emergency department (ED) physicians frequently encounter patients presenting with angioedema. Most of these involve histamine-mediated angioedema; however, less common forms of angioedema (bradykinin-mediated) also occur. It is vital physicians correctly recognize and treat this; particularly since bradykinin-mediated angioedema does not respond to antihistamines, corticosteroids or epinephrine and hereditary angioedema (HAE) laryngeal attacks can be fatal. Here we present four case reports illustrating how failures in recognizing, managing, and treating laryngeal edema due to HAE led to asphyxiation and death of the patient. Recognition of the specific type of angioedema is critical for rapid and effective treatment of HAE attacks. Bradykinin-mediated angioedema should be efficiently differentiated from the most common histamine-mediated form. Improved awareness of HAE and the associated risk of life-threatening laryngeal edema among emergency physicians, patients, and relatives and clear ED treatment protocols are warranted. Moreover, appropriate treatments should be readily available to reduce fatalities associated with laryngeal edema