Incidence of surgical site infections in multicenter study : implications for surveillance practice and organization

Introduction: WHO core components of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) prevention and control include their surveillance system. In Poland, there are no widespread multi-center infection surveillance networks based on continuous, targeted, active methodology. One of the most important form of HAIs are surgical site infections (SSIs). The aim of this study was to analyze the incidence of SSIs, in the context of seasonal differentiation. Seasonal differentiation could be connected with weather conditions, but it also can be affected by personnel absence due to holidays and furlough. The second aspect may influence organization of work and increased absenteeism may contribute to lowering the quality of patient care. Healthcare associated infections are the phenomenon which can be especially affected by such factors. Methods: The data used originate from the targeted, active surveillance reports obtained from the six years period, based on the ECDC recommendations. Results: Highest incidence rates of SSIs were found after operations performed in June and August, equal to 1.8% and 1.5% respectively and the lowest in October was 0.8%. These differences were statistically significant: for June incidence: OR 1.6, 95% CI 1.03–2.5, p = 0.015. Another approach showed a significant difference between the level of incidence in the period from November to January together with from June to August (1.35%), comparing to the rest of the year (1.05%). Also the rates of enterococcal and Enterobacterales infections were significantly higher for the period comprising months from November till January and from June to August. In Poland these are periods of increased number of absences associated with summer, national and religious holidays. Conclusions: Our results show that the short-term surveillance data limited to several days or months are not sufficient to obtain a valuable description of the epidemiological situation due to HAI. Efforts should be undertaken in order to implement wide net of hospital acquired infections, including SSI on the country level

Effects of disorder on the magnetic properties of the Heusler alloy V2_{2}FeAl

Magnetic properties of multicomponent alloys depend sensitively on the degree of atomic order on the different crystallographic sites. In this work we demonstrate the magnetic contrast between bulk and thin-film samples of the Heusler alloy V$_{2}$FeAl. Arc-melted bulk ingots show practically no site preference of the elements (A2 structure), whereas magnetron-sputtered thin-film samples display a higher degree of atomic ordering with a tendency towards XA-type order. Electronic structure calculations favour ferrimagnetic XA-type ordering, and the effect of different pairwise atomic disorder on the element specific and net magnetic moments are evaluated to reproduce experimental observations. XA-type thin-films with iron moment of 1.24 $\mu_{\mathrm{B}}$ determined by X-ray magnetic circular dichroism are in agreement with calculation, but the measured net moment of 1.0 $\mu_{\mathrm{B}}$ per formula unit and average vanadium moment are smaller than expected from calculations. The measured Curie temperature is approximately 500 K. Films with a higher degree of disorder have a T$_{\mathrm{C}}$ close to 300 K with a net moment of 0.1 $\mu_{\mathrm{B}}$ at low temperature. The large calculated vanadium moments are destroyed by partial disorder on $4d$ vanadium sites. By contrast, the arc-melted and annealed bulk alloy with a fully-disordered A2 structure shows no spontaneous magnetization; it is a Pauli paramagnet with dimensionless susceptibility $\chi_{\mathrm{v}}=-2.95\times10^{-4}$.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figure

Xanthine Oxidoreductase Reference Values in Platelet-Poor Plasma and Platelets in Healthy Volunteers

Introduction. Xanthine oxidoreductase (XOR) is an enzyme belonging to the class of hydroxylases. XOR is stated, inter alia, in the kidneys, liver, and small intestine as well as in leukocytes and platelets and endothelial cells of capillaries. Its main role is to participate in the conversion of hypoxanthine to xanthine and the uric acid. It occurs in two isoforms: dehydrogenase (XD) and oxidase (XO), which is considered one of the sources of reactive oxygen species. Aim of the Study. Determination of reference values of xanthine oxidoreductase activity in PPP and platelets. Materials and Methods. Study group consisted of 70 healthy volunteers. The isoform activities of xanthine oxidoreductase were determined by kinetic spectrophotometry. Results. A statistically significant difference between the activity of the XOR in PPP and platelets (P<0.001). The highest activity of XO was found in both PPP and blood platelets. Significant differences between the activity of the various isoforms in PPP (P=0.0032) and platelets (P<0.001) were also found. Conclusions. The healthy volunteers showed the highest activity XO (prooxidant) and the lowest XD (antioxidant), which indicates a slight oxidative stress and confirmed physiological effects of XOR

Step bunching with both directions of the current: Vicinal W(110) surfaces versus atomistic scale model

We report for the first time the observation of bunching of monoatomic steps on vicinal W(110) surfaces induced by step up or step down currents across the steps. Measurements reveal that the size scaling exponent {\gamma}, connecting the maximal slope of a bunch with its height, differs depending on the current direction. We provide a numerical perspective by using an atomistic scale model with a conserved surface flux to mimic experimental conditions, and also for the first time show that there is an interval of parameters in which the vicinal surface is unstable against step bunching for both directions of the adatom drift.Comment: 17 pages, 10 figure

Program leczenia zaburzeń odżywiania w oddziale psychiatrycznym dla młodzieży – refleksje i dylematy po 20 latach doświadczeń

Artykuł jest prezentacją programu leczenia zaburzeń jedzenia w Klinice Psychiatrii Dzieci i Młodzieży IPiN w Warszawie. Na wstępie omówione zostały historia leczenia zaburzeń jedzenia, dylematy związane z koniecznością ograniczania praw pacjentów przy stosowaniu programów behawioralnych, których wprowadzenie doprowadziło do spadku śmiertelności w grupie pacjentek z anoreksją, oraz rozwój programów terapeutycznych od ściśle behawioralnych w kierunku łagodniejszych i bardziej elastycznych. Następnie autorzy przedstawiają własne, kilkunastoletnie doświadczenia w leczeniu zaburzeń jedzenia w Klinice Psychiatrii Dzieci i Młodzieży. Omawiają proces tworzenia i doskonalenia programu terapeutycznego, obejmującego program behawioralny, farmakoterapię i szeroko pojęte oddziaływania psychoterapeutyczne. Wskazują na znaczenie współdziałania całego zespołu terapeutycznego (psychiatrów, psychologów, pielęgniarek i wychowawców), konieczność konsekwencji w realizowaniu programu oraz znaczenie zaangażowania pacjentów w proces leczenia (np. poprzez uzyskiwanie ich pisemnej akceptacji oraz konsultowanie z nimi proponowanych zmian w programie). Omawiane jest znaczenie współpracy z rodzinami pacjentów realizowanej między innymi poprzez systemowe konsultacje rodzinne. Prezentowane są najczęściej pojawiające się problemy w realizacji programu związane np. z brakiem oczekiwanego przyrostu masy ciała, z rozbieżnością między tempem przyrostu masy ciała a zmianami w psychice pacjentek lub z leczeniem pacjentek deklarujących wegetarianizm. Wspomniano również o próbach dostosowania programów behawioralnych do coraz częściej występujących atypowych postaci zaburzeń jedzenia

Program for eating disorders treatment in the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry – comments and dilemmas after 20 years of experience

This article presents the program for eating disorders treatment in the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. At the beginning there is a description of history of eating disorders treatment, the dilemmas connected with the need of restricting patients’ rights by introducing behavioural programs, which have led to the decrease of the number of deaths in a group of patients with anorexia, as well as the development of therapeutic programs, from the strictly behavioural to milder and more flexible ones. The authors present their own experiences of almost 20 years of treating eating disorders in the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. They describe the establishment and the improvements of the therapy program, which includes behavioural program, pharmacotherapy and broadly meaning psychotherapeutic treatment. They point out the importance of consistent effort taken by the entire therapeutic team (psychiatrists, nurses, psychologists, and teachers), the need of being strict and absolutely consistent throughout the entire program, and the meaning of patients’ engagement (for example by getting their written agreement and consulting with them the mięplanned changes to the program). The authors talk about the role of cooperating with the patients’ families and present the most common problems appearing during the program like the lack of the expected weight gain, the divergence between the weight gain and the patients’ psychological changes, or treating patients claiming to be vegetarians. Finally the authors also mention attempts to adapt the behavioural programs to the increasing number of uncommon eating disorders cases.Artykuł jest prezentacją programu leczenia zaburzeń jedzenia w Klinice Psychiatrii Dzieci i Młodzieży IPiN w Warszawie. Na wstępie omówione zostały historia leczenia zaburzeń jedzenia, dylematy związane z koniecznością ograniczania praw pacjentów przy stosowaniu programów behawioralnych, których wprowadzenie doprowadziło do spadku śmiertelności w grupie pacjentek z anoreksją, oraz rozwój programów terapeutycznych od ściśle behawioralnych w kierunku łagodniejszych i bardziej elastycznych. Następnie autorzy przedstawiają własne, kilkunastoletnie doświadczenia w leczeniu zaburzeń jedzenia w Klinice Psychiatrii Dzieci i Młodzieży. Omawiają proces tworzenia i doskonalenia programu terapeutycznego, obejmującego program behawioralny, farmakoterapię i szeroko pojęte oddziaływania psychoterapeutyczne. Wskazują na znaczenie współdziałania całego zespołu terapeutycznego (psychiatrów, psychologów, pielęgniarek i wychowawców), konieczność konsekwencji w realizowaniu programu oraz znaczenie zaangażowania pacjentów w proces leczenia (np. poprzez uzyskiwanie ich pisemnej akceptacji oraz konsultowanie z nimi proponowanych zmian w programie). Omawiane jest znaczenie współpracy z rodzinami pacjentów realizowanej między innymi poprzez systemowe konsultacje rodzinne. Prezentowane są najczęściej pojawiające się problemy w realizacji programu związane np. z brakiem oczekiwanego przyrostu masy ciała, z rozbieżnością między tempem przyrostu masy ciała a zmianami w psychice pacjentek lub z leczeniem pacjentek deklarujących wegetarianizm. Wspomniano również o próbach dostosowania programów behawioralnych do coraz częściej występujących atypowych postaci zaburzeń jedzenia

Physical Fitness of School-Age Children after Cancer Treatment

The aim of the study was to assess physical fitness of school-age children after cancer treatment. The study was comprised of one hundred and fifty six children&#8212;children after cancer treatment (n = 71, mean age 11.22 &#177; 3.11 years) vs. healthy children previously untreated for cancer (n = 85, mean age 10.71 &#177; 1.22 years). Physical fitness was assessed indirectly based on a ball throw (assessment of strength, coordination, and upper limb speed), long jump (assessment of jumping ability, speed, and coordination), and a 60 m run (assessment of speed). The analysis was performed based on the Student&#8217;s t-test for independent samples and the analysis of variance and the post-hoc least significant difference test (LSD test). Children from the study group threw the ball closer and had shorter long jump performance compared to the control group, i.e., 12.93 [m] vs. 19.79 [m], respectively (p &lt; 0.001) and 2.46 [m] vs. 2.70 [m], respectively (p = 0.02). However, their mean running time was longer, i.e., 13.33 [s] vs. 11.73 [s], respectively (p = 0.01). Division according to sex showed additionally significantly shorter ball throw distance in the study group in both girls (p = 0.001) and boys (p &lt; 0.001), significantly shorter jump length in the group of girls (p = 0.01), and significantly longer running time in the group of boys (p = 0.04). Children treated for cancer are characterized by decreased physical fitness, and motor ability is sex-dependent. Both groups showed decreased strength, coordination, and upper limb speed. Additionally, worse jumping ability was found in girls whereas decreased speed was observed in boys

The Influence of Physical Training on the Immune System of Rats during N-methyl-N-nitrosourea-Induced Carcinogenesis

Aim: To assess the effect of physical training on the selected parameters of the immune system regarding CD3, CD4, CD8, CD11, CD161, CD45A cell counts in rats treated with N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU). Material and Methods: Thirty-eight female Sprague-Dawley rats were injected intraperitoneally with MNU and were divided into three groups, i.e., sedentary control (SC), the group of moderate-intensity training (MIT) and the group of high-intensity training (HIT). Physical training was supervised immediately after MNU administration and was conducted 5 days per week for 12 weeks on a three-position treadmill. Results: A significant difference was found between SC and training groups in terms of the number of induced tumors per rat (1.57 vs. 0.4, p = 0.05) and in the following lymphocyte subpopulations: CD4+/CD8+ (p = 0.01), CD3&minus;/CD11b+ (p = 0.02), CD3&minus;/CD161+ (p = 0.002), CD3&minus;/CD161&minus; (p = 0.002), CD3+/CD45RA+ (p = 0.003) and CD3&minus;/CD45RA+ (p = 0.005). In terms of the intensity of physical training, the highest efficacy was found for MIT and the following lymphocyte subpopulations: CD3&minus;/CD11b+ (SC vs. MIT, p &lt; 0.001), CD3&minus;/CD161+ (SC vs. MIT, p = 0.002), CD3&minus;/CD161&minus; (SC vs. MIT, p = 0.002), CD3+/CD45RA+ (SC vs. MIT, p = 0.02) and CD3&minus;/CD45RA+ (SC vs. MIT, p &lt; 0.001, MIT vs. HIT, p = 0.02). Furthermore, negative correlations were found between the number of apoptotic cells and CD3&minus;/CD11b (r = &minus;0.76, p = 0.01) in SC and between the number of induced tumors and CD3+/CD8+ (r = &minus;0.61, p = 0.02) and between their volume and CD+/CD8+ (r = &minus;0.56, p = 0.03) in the group of rats undergoing training. Conclusions: Physical training, particularly MIT, affected immune cell function and an altered immune response can be considered a mechanism underlying the effect of exercise on breast cancer development

Anomalous magnetism in epitaxial Mn₂Ru_xGa thin films

Thin films of Mn2RuxGa grown by sputtering at low temperature, Tsub = 225◦C, are nearly defect free and have in-plane grain size exceeding 180 nm. A higher T sub of 425◦C leads to an increased density of defects and reduced in-plane coherence. The near-perfect films grown at low temperature exhibit a pinched wasp-waist magnetic hysteresis that is a consequence of the frustration induced by exchange interaction and site-specific anisotropy. At higher temperatures, the long-range crystalline order is broken by the presence of defects and simpler square hysteresis loops are recovered