In-Bag Morcellation as a Routine for Laparoscopic Hysterectomy

Tissue morcellation during laparoscopic hysterectomy carries the risk of spreading cells from unsuspected malignancy. Contained morcellation inside a bag is supposed to minimize this risk. The present study evaluated routine use of in-bag morcellation during laparoscopic hysterectomy in a consecutive patient cohort (n = 49). The system used wasMore-Cell-Safe (A. M. I. Austria). Median age was 47 (35 to 76) years and BMI 25.1 (18.8 to 39.8). Indications for hysterectomy were fibroids (71.4%), adenomyosis (16.3%), prolapse (8.2%), and bleeding disorders (4.1%). 48 (98%) patients underwent supracervical hysterectomy and 1 (2%) underwent total hysterectomy. No unsuspected malignancy occurred. Median weight of extirpated tissue was 195 g (18 to 1110). Residual tissue and/or fluid in the bag amounted to 29 g (0 to 291). Median overall duration of surgeries was 100.5 min, andmedian time associated with the use of the bag was 10 min (5 to 28), significantly correlated with uterine volume (p = 0.0094) and specimen weight (p = 0.0002), but not with patient's BMI (p = 0.6970). Technical success rate for contained morcellation was 93.9%. Peritoneal washings after contained morcellation were all negative for malignant or smooth muscle cells

Anthocyanins do not influence long-chain n-3 fatty acid status:Studies in cells, rodents and humans

Increased tissue status of the long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC n-3 PUFA), eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is associated with cardiovascular and cognitive benefits. Limited epidemiological and animal data suggest that flavonoids, and specifically anthocyanins, may increase EPA and DHA levels, potentially by increasing their synthesis from the shorter-chain n-3 PUFA, α-linolenic acid. Using complimentary cell, rodent and human studies we investigated the impact of anthocyanins and anthocyanin-rich foods/extracts on plasma and tissue EPA and DHA levels and on the expression of fatty acid desaturase 2 (FADS2), which represents the rate limiting enzymes in EPA and DHA synthesis. In experiment 1, rats were fed a standard diet containing either palm oil or rapeseed oil supplemented with pure anthocyanins for 8 weeks. Retrospective fatty acid analysis was conducted on plasma samples collected from a human randomized controlled trial where participants consumed an elderberry extract for 12 weeks (experiment 2). HepG2 cells were cultured with α-linolenic acid with or without select anthocyanins and their in vivo metabolites for 24 h and 48 h (experiment 3). The fatty acid composition of the cell membranes, plasma and liver tissues were analyzed by gas chromatography. Anthocyanins and anthocyanin-rich food intake had no significant impact on EPA or DHA status or FADS2 gene expression in any model system. These data indicate little impact of dietary anthocyanins on n-3 PUFA distribution and suggest that the increasingly recognized benefits of anthocyanins are unlikely to be the result of a beneficial impact on tissue fatty acid status

Urinary Taurine Excretion and Risk of Late Graft Failure in Renal Transplant Recipients

Taurine is a sulfur containing nutrient that has been shown to protect against oxidative stress, which has been implicated in the pathophysiology leading to late graft failure after renal transplantation. We prospectively investigated whether high urinary taurine excretion, reflecting high taurine intake, is associated with low risk for development of late graft failure in renal transplant recipients (RTR). Urinary taurine excretion was measured in a longitudinal cohort of 678 stable RTR. Prospective associations were assessed using Cox regression analyses. Graft failure was defined as the start of dialysis or re-transplantation. In RTR (58% male, 53 ± 13 years old, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) 45 ± 19 mL/min/1.73 m2), urinary taurine excretion (533 (210-946) µmol/24 h) was significantly associated with serum free sulfhydryl groups (β = 0.126; P = 0.001). During median follow-up for 5.3 (4.5-6.0) years, 83 (12%) patients developed graft failure. In Cox regression analyses, urinary taurine excretion was inversely associated with graft failure (hazard ratio: 0.74 (0.67-0.82); P < 0.001). This association remained significant independent of potential confounders. High urinary taurine excretion is associated with low risk of late graft failure in RTR. Therefore, increasing taurine intake may potentially support graft survival in RTR. Further studies are warranted to determine the underlying mechanisms and the potential of taurine supplementation

Cohort profile: the Food Chain Plus (FoCus) cohort

The Food Chain Plus (FoCus) cohort was launched in 2011 for population-based research related to metabolic inflammation. To characterize this novel pathology in a comprehensive manner, data collection included multiple omics layers such as phenomics, microbiomics, metabolomics, genomics, and metagenomics as well as nutrition profiling, taste perception phenotyping and social network analysis. The cohort was set-up to represent a Northern German population of the Kiel region. Two-step recruitment included the randomised enrolment of participants via residents' registration offices and via the Obesity Outpatient Centre of the University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein (UKSH). Hence, both a population- and metabolic inflammation- based cohort was created. In total, 1795 individuals were analysed at baseline. Baseline data collection took place between 2011 and 2014, including 63% females and 37% males with an age range of 18-83 years. The median age of all participants was 52.0 years [IQR: 42.5; 63.0 years] and the median baseline BMI in the study population was 27.7 kg/m2 [IQR: 23.7; 35.9 kg/m2]. In the baseline cohort, 14.1% of participants had type 2 diabetes mellitus, which was more prevalent in the subjects of the metabolic inflammation group (MIG; 31.8%). Follow-up for the assessment of disease progression, as well as the onset of new diseases with changes in subject's phenotype, diet or lifestyle factors is planned every 5 years. The first follow-up period was finished in 2020 and included 820 subjects

Радиографический метод контроля сварных швов трубопроводов

Обнаружение дефектов сварных соединений является одной из основных задач неразрушающего контроля, применяемого для диагностики технического состояния трубопроводов различного назначения. Среди методов неразрушающего контроля широкое распространение получил радиографический метод. Для обработки изображений, полученных радиографическим методом, и обнаружения дефектов сварки, используются различные алгоритмы. Одним из перспективных алгоритмов обработки изображений является алгоритм, основанный на методе нейронной сети.Detection of defects in welded joints is one of the main tasks of non-destructive testing used for diagnostics of the technical condition of pipelines for various purposes. Among the methods of nondestructive testing, the radiographic method is widely used. For processing images obtained by radiographic method, and the detection of welding defects, various algorithms are used. One of the promising algorithms for image processing is an algorithm based on the neural network method

Total energy expenditure is repeatable in adults but not associated with short-term changes in body composition

Low total energy expenditure (TEE, MJ/d) has been a hypothesized risk factor for weight gain, but repeatability of TEE, a critical variable in longitudinal studies of energy balance, is understudied. We examine repeated doubly labeled water (DLW) measurements of TEE in 348 adults and 47 children from the IAEA DLW Database (mean ± SD time interval: 1.9 ± 2.9 y) to assess repeatability of TEE, and to examine if TEE adjusted for age, sex, fat-free mass, and fat mass is associated with changes in weight or body composition. Here, we report that repeatability of TEE is high for adults, but not children. Bivariate Bayesian mixed models show no among or within-individual correlation between body composition (fat mass or percentage) and unadjusted TEE in adults. For adults aged 20-60 y (N = 267; time interval: 7.4 ± 12.2 weeks), increases in adjusted TEE are associated with weight gain but not with changes in body composition; results are similar for subjects with intervals >4 weeks (N = 53; 29.1 ± 12.8 weeks). This suggests low TEE is not a risk factor for, and high TEE is not protective against, weight or body fat gain over the time intervals tested

Paths to stability for matching markets with couples

Trabajo publicado como artículo en Games and Economic Behavior 58(1): 154-171 (2007).-- http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.geb.2006.03.002We study two-sided matching markets with couples and show that for a natural preference domain for couples, the domain of weakly responsive preferences, stable outcomes can always be reached by means of decentralized decision making. Starting from an arbitrary matching, we construct a path of matchings obtained from `satisfying' blocking coalitions that yields a stable matching. Hence, we establish a generalization of Roth and Vande Vate's (1990) result on path convergence to stability for decentralized singles markets. Furthermore, we show that when stable matchings exist, but preferences are not weakly responsive, for some initial matchings there may not exist any path obtained from `satisfying' blocking coalitions that yields a stable matching