Bronchiectasis Exacerbations: Definitions, Causes, and Acute Management

AbstractPulmonary exacerbations (PExs) are events in the course of bronchiectasis which are defined as an increase in disease symptoms lasting a period of a few days. It is established that the tendency toward having PEx is stable throughout the course of the disease. Certain conditions were found to be associated with an increased risk of developing a PEx. Among these are chronic airway infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa or Aspergillus species, concomitant airway diseases (asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and chronic rhinosinusitis), genetic factors such as primary ciliary dyskinesia, and nutritional factors. The immediate events underlying the onset of a PEx are less clearly determined. Although acute changes in bacterial airway composition have been the paradigm for decades, recent microbiome-focused research has not uniformly established such acute changes at the onset of PEx. Other acute changes such as air pollution, viral infection, and changes in bacterial metabolic activity have also been implicated as causes of a PEx. Despite these gaps in our knowledge of the biology of PEx, antimicrobial therapy directed against the identified pathogens in sputum is currently the recommended therapeutic strategy. Various long-term therapies, including antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory strategies, have been proven effective in reducing the frequency of PEx, leading to a recommendation for the use of these strategies in people with frequent PEx.</jats:p

Cardio-toxicity among patients with sarcoma: A Cardio-Oncology Registry.

e22530 Background: Chemotherapy induced cardio-toxicity has been recognized as a serious side effect since the first introduction to anthracycline (ANT). Cardio-toxicity among patients with breast cancer is well studied but the impact on patients with sarcoma is limited, even though they are exposed to higher ANT doses. The commonly used term for cardio-toxicity is cancer therapeutic related cardiac dysfunction (CTRCD), defined as a left ventricular ejection fraction (EF) reduction of &gt; 10%, to a value below 53%. Our objective was to estimate the prevalence of CTRCD among patients with sarcoma, to evaluate echocardiography parameters associated with its development and whether CTRCD is associated with mortality. Methods: Data were collected as part of the International Cardio-Oncology Registry (ICOR), enrolling all patients who were evaluated in the cardio-oncology clinic at our institution. All sarcoma patients were enrolled and divided into two groups - CTRCD group vs. "Preserved EF" group. Results: Among 43 consecutive patients, 6 (14%) developed CTRCD. Elevated left ventricular end systolic diameter (p = 0.007) and a trend of reduced Global Longitudinal Strain (p = 0.092) were observed among the CTRCD group. During follow-up, 2 (33%) patients died in the CTRCD group vs. 3 (8.1%) patients in the "Preserved EF" group. In a multivariate analysis, adjusted to age and EF, CTRCD remained a significant predictor for mortality (p = 0.039). Conclusions: CTRCD is an important concern among patients with sarcoma, regardless of baseline risk factors, and is associated with mortality. Echocardiography parameters may provide an early diagnosis of cardio-toxicity. </jats:p

Physics teachers’ professional development on measurement uncertainty: A commognitive approach

In this paper, we demonstrate the fruitfulness of a theoretical framework called Commognition, developed in the context of mathematics education research, for conceptualizing and analyzing a professional development (PD) process on measurement uncertainty for secondary physics teachers. Evaluating measurement uncertainty is an important learning goal in the physics lab and is key to determining the validity of an experiment. While research has mapped difficulties students face and teaching strategies to support them, teacher PD still requires attention, both in capturing teachers’ existing perceptions and in designing PD activities that address these perceptions and support teachers in adopting a more scientifically aligned discourse on measurement uncertainty. Commognition perceives learning as becoming a participant in the discourse of a specific professional community. A discourse consists of keywords, visual mediators, narratives, and routines—and metarules that govern their use. The appropriation of a new discourse involves reconciling conflicts between the metarules of learners’ existing discourse and the new discourse (i.e., commognitive conflicts). We adopted the commognitive framework in all phases of our PD design. First, we mapped the canonical discourse we intended our teachers to adopt versus the prevailing discourse of physics teachers in our national context. Following this mapping, we designed PD tasks intended to lead participants to acknowledge the limitations of their existing discourse on measurement uncertainty as a precursor to internalizing the canonical discourse. Finally, the commognitive framework served as an analytical lens to detect commognitive conflicts involved in collaborative sensemaking among the teachers and between them and the PD facilitators. We demonstrate this type of analysis in a case study, in which learners who hold different discursive metarules encounter implicit commognitive conflicts and discuss implications and untapped opportunities for physics teachers’ PD process on measurement uncertainty

Re-introducing immunotherapy in patients surviving immune checkpoint inhibitors-mediated myocarditis.

e15228 Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) have transformed the standard care in cancer treatment. Recent case reports describe ICI-mediated myocarditis with an atypical presentation and fatal potential which lead to permanent interruption of immunotherapy. We aim to characterize ICI-mediated myocarditis and re-introduction to immunotherapy. Methods: We retrospectively evaluated the presentation, severity, and prognosis of patients diagnosed with ICI-mediated myocarditis during 2019, and presented the clinical course and outcomes of patients that were chosen for re-introduction. Results: Among seven patients, only one patient had a history of cardiac disease. The majority were diagnosed with lung adenocarcinoma and treated with anti-programmed death-1 antibody (57%). All patients were treated with single agent ICI. Most patients presented with cardiac symptoms, elevated troponin and typical magnetic resonance imaging; however only 43% had reduced ejection fraction. Five patients were defined as grade I-II and two as grade III-IV. Overall, three patients were chosen for re-introduction with concomitant low dose steroids and weekly troponin follow-up. Two patients diagnosed with grade I/II renewed therapy successfully with no recurrence of symptoms and improvement in disease burden, while the one patient diagnosed with grade III developed worsening of cardiac symptoms after the 1st cycle and therefore therapy was interrupted permanently. Overall, survival was higher among the re-introduction patients (67% vs. 25%). Conclusions: ICI-mediated myocarditis is potentially fatal and leads to permanent interruption of life saving cancer therapy. We imply that re-introduction may be considered in low grade patients; however, better definition of the diagnosis and grading is needed. </jats:p

Thoracentesis under clopidogrel is not associated with excessive bleeding events: a cohort study

Abstract Background Thoracentesis is a low-risk procedure for bleeding (approx. 2%). Data regarding safety of thoracentesis under treatment with clopidogrel is scarce, and current guidelines are not evidence based. We performed a retrospective study to evaluate the rate of bleeding complications of thoracentesis under clopidogrel in hospitalized patients. Methods Retrospective chart review of hospitalized patients undergoing thoracentesis with or without clopidogrel treatment. Demographic and clinical data, diagnostic ICD9 codes, and use of ultrasound were extracted. Bleeding endpoints were defined as hemothorax, drop of &gt; 2 g/dL hemoglobin, or need for packed red cell transfusion. Results The study group comprised of 88 cases and 169 controls. Four bleeding complications were noted in the cases group, versus 5 in the control group (RR 1.53, 95% CI 0.4–5.5). Conclusion Thoracentesis may be performed safely in patients receiving clopidogrel. Bleeding event rates are consistent with previous reports of thoracentesis in general. </jats:sec

Presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA on playground surfaces and water fountains

Abstract The possibility of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) transmission by fomites or environmental surfaces has been suggested. It is unclear if SARS-CoV-2 can be detected in outdoor public areas. The objective of the current study was to assess the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in environmental samples collected at public playgrounds and water fountains, in a country with high disease prevalence. Environmental samples were collected from six cities in central Israel. Samples were collected from drinking fountains and high-touch recreational equipment at playgrounds. Sterile pre-moistened swabs were used to collect the samples, put in viral transfer media and transferred to the laboratory. Viral detection was achieved by real-time reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction, targeting four genes. Forty-three samples were collected from playground equipment and 25 samples from water fountains. Two of the 43 (4.6%) samples from playground equipment and one (4%) sample from a drinking fountain tested positive. It is unclear whether the recovery of viral RNA on outdoor surfaces also indicates the possibility of acquiring the virus. Adherence to environmental and personal hygiene in urban settings seems prudent.</jats:p

Cardio-toxicity among patients with sarcoma: a cardio-oncology registry

Abstract Background Chemotherapy induced cardio-toxicity has been recognized as a serious side effect since the first introduction to anthracyclines (ANT). Cardio-toxicity among patients with breast cancer is well studied but the impact on patients with sarcoma is limited, even though they are exposed to higher ANT doses. The commonly used term for cardio-toxicity is cancer therapeutics related cardiac dysfunction (CTRCD), defined as a left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) reduction of &gt; 10%, to a value below 53%. The aim of our study was to estimate the prevalence of CTRCD in patients diagnosed with sarcoma and to describe the baseline risk factors and echocardiography parameters among that population. Methods Data were collected as part of the Israel Cardio-Oncology Registry (ICOR), enrolling all patients evaluated in the cardio-oncology clinic at our institution. The registry was approved by the local ethics committee and is registered in clinicaltrials.gov (Identifier: NCT02818517). All sarcoma patients were enrolled and divided into two groups - CTRCD group vs. non-CTRCD group. Results Among 43 consecutive patients, 6 (14%) developed CTRCD. Baseline cardiac risk factors were more frequent among the non-CTRCD group. Elevated left ventricular end systolic diameter and reduced Global Longitudinal Strain were observed among the CTRCD group. During follow-up, 2 (33%) patients died in the CTRCD group vs. 3 (8.1%) patients in the non-CTRCD group. Conclusions CTRCD is an important concern among patients with sarcoma, regardless of baseline risk factors. Echocardiography parameters may provide an early diagnosis of cardio-toxicity. </jats:sec