The significance of seizures and other predictive factors during the acute illness for the long-term outcome after bacterial meningitis

SummaryBackgroundSeizures are important neurological complications of bacterial meningitis, but no information about its epidemiology and the outcomes of seizures after community-acquired bacterial meningitis (CABM) in an adult population have been reported.AimsTo determine the frequency, clinical relevance, subtypes of seizures during the acute phase of bacterial meningitis, and the long-term outcomes of seizure complicating adult CABM.MethodsIn this 12-year retrospective study, 117 adult patients were identified with culture-proven CABM. A comparison was made between the clinical data of the patients with and without seizures during hospitalization.ResultsThirty-one patients had seizures during CABM, accounting for 27% (31/117) of the episodes. The time interval between the onset of bacterial meningitis and the seizures was 1–21 days (mean, 4 days). Furthermore, 80% (25/31) of the episodes occurred within 24h of presentation. Ten patients who had seizures progressed to status epilepticus. At follow-up after completing treatment, 10 patients completely recovered and were seizure-free, 19 died of meningitis during the acute stage and the other two progressed to chronic epilepsy.ConclusionA log-rank test demonstrated that the long-term outcome of adult CABM with acute seizures produced worse outcomes than for those who had no seizures, though no difference was noted between focal and generalized seizures. None of our patients without seizures in the acute phase of bacterial meningitis developed late seizures during the follow-up periods. Poor outcome in this study may attribute to neurological complications such as seizure, hydrocephalus, infection itself, or a combination of complications

Surface scattering mechanisms of tantalum nitride thin film resistor

In this letter, we utilize an electrical analysis method to develop a TaN thin film resistor with a stricter spec and near-zero temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) for car-used electronic applications. Simultaneously, we also propose a physical mechanism mode to explain the origin of near-zero TCR for the TaN thin film resistor (TFR). Through current fitting, the carrier conduction mechanism of the TaN TFR changes from hopping to surface scattering and finally to ohmic conduction for different TaN TFRs with different TaN microstructures. Experimental data of current–voltage measurement under successive increasing temperature confirm the conduction mechanism transition. A model of TaN grain boundary isolation ability is eventually proposed to influence the carrier transport in the TaN thin film resistor, which causes different current conduction mechanisms

Bronchiolitis Obliterans Organizing Pneumonia in Swine Associated with Porcine Circovirus Type 2 Infection

Bronchiolitis obliterans organizing pneumonia (BOOP) is a chronic respiratory disease. Although the pathogenesis of BOOP is still incompletely understood, BOOP is responsive to steroids and has a good prognosis. In our five pigs with chronic postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS), typical BOOP lesions were revealed. All five porcine lungs showed typical intraluminal plugs, and porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) was identified. They also exhibited similar pathologic findings such as proliferation of type II pneumocytes and myofibroblasts (MFBs), extracellular collagen matrix (ECM) deposition, and fragmentation of elastic fibers. MFBs migration correlative molecules, for instance, gelatinase A, B and osteopontin, appeared strongly in the progressing marginal area of polypoid intraluminal plugs of fibrotic lesion. These molecules colocalized with the active MFBs. Both gelatinase activity and intercellular level of active MFBs were significantly increased (P < .05). Porcine chronic bronchopneumonia leads to BOOP and it is associated with PCV2 persistent infection. Swine BOOP demonstrates similar cellular constituents with human BOOP. Perhaps their molecular mechanisms of pathogenesis operate in a similar way. Thus we infer that the swine BOOP can be considered as a potential animal model for human BOOP associated with natural viral infection. Moreover, it is more convenient to obtain samples

Color-tunable mixed photoluminescence emission from Alq3 organic layer in metal-Alq3-metal surface plasmon structure

This work reports the color-tunable mixed photoluminescence (PL) emission from an Alq(3) organic layer in an Au-Alq(3)-Au plasmonic structure through the combination of organic fluorescence emission and another form of emission that is enabled by the surface plasmons in the plasmonic structure. The emission wavelength of the latter depends on the Alq(3) thickness and can be tuned within the Alq(3) fluorescent spectra. Therefore, a two-color broadband, color-tunable mixed PL structure was obtained. Obvious changes in the Commission Internationale d’Eclairage (CIE) coordinates and the corresponding emission colors of Au-Alq(3)-Au samples clearly varied with the Alq(3) thickness (90, 130, and 156 nm)

Association Between Net Vertebral Artery Flow Volume and Non-AF Stroke: A Retrospective 2-Year Analysis

Objectives: Association between net vertebral artery flow volume (NVAFV) and stroke types remains unclear. We hypothesize NVAFV is low in patients with posterior circulation infarction (PCI) and an ideal cut-off value for discriminating PCI from anterior circulation infarction (ACI) and controls may be present.Materials and Methods: As study candidates, we retrospectively enrolled hospitalized patients with first-time non-AF stroke within 2-years period. Consecutive non-AF, non-stroke subjects were enrolled as the control group. We compared NVAFV values among the PCI, ACI, and control groups.Results: Overall, 866 candidates—213, 418, and 235 candidates in the PCI, ACI, and control groups, respectively—were enrolled. NVAFV (mean ± SD) values were 134.8 ± 52.7, 152.3 ± 59.2, and 172.0 ± 54.7 mL/min in the PCI, ACI, and control groups, respectively. Statistics revealed significant difference (p &lt; 0.001) among three groups. To use NVAFV as a diagnostic parameter, the AUC of any two groups should be between 0.58 and 0.69. Most (93.6%) of the controls had NVAFV above 100 mL/min. The odds ratio of any non-AF stroke is 3.48 if the NVAFV is below 100 mL/min.Conclusions: NVAFV is lowest in non-AF PCI group. Low NVAFV is associated with both non-AF ACI and PCI. No ideal cut-off value is available to discriminate PCI from other two conditions. We agree that an NVAFV of 100 mL/min is the lower limit of a normal value. Any value below 100 mL/min indicates high stroke risk and implies diffuse cerebral atherosclerosis and impaired cerebral perfusion

Mutation and Lineage Analysis of DNMT3A in BCR-ABL1-negative Chronic Myeloproliferative Neoplasms

SummaryIn addition to the JAK2 V617F mutation, somatic mutation in DNMT3A has been described in BCL-ABL1-negative myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs). We have screened for DNMT3A exon 23 mutations in 130 adult Taiwanese patients with chronic phase myeloproliferative neoplasms. Only one somatic DNMT3A R882H mutation was identified in one JAK2 V617F mutation-positive essential thrombocythemia patient (1/91, 1%). Both mutations were detected in the CD34+-, CD19+-, peripheral blood mononuclear cell- and granulocyte-enriched fractions, but were not detected in the CD3+-enriched fraction by lineage analysis. Our findings suggest that DNMT3A mutation is not prevalent in MPNs, and further study is needed to clarify its role in the molecular pathogenesis of myeloproliferative neoplasms