Epicardial adiposity as a predictor of COVID-19 severity in overweight and obese patients

Aim. To evaluate epicardial adiposity (EA), verified on the basis of epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) thickness according to echocardiography, as a possible predictor of the severity of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) course in overweight and obese patients in a retrospective analysis of data.Material and methods. We analyzed data on 165 patients (age, 45,2±4,7 years; men, 67,9%; body mass index, 31,4±3,5 kg/m2) who received outpatient or inpatient treatment for symptomatic COVID-19 in period from March 2020 to November 2021. Patients with diabetes, stage III-V chronic kidney disease and/ or cardiovascular disease were excluded from the analysis, with the exception of hypertension. EA was verified in the case of EAT thickness ≥4,8 mm for persons aged 35-45 years and ≥5,8 mm for persons 46-55 years old.Results. Patients with EA were characterized by higher hospitalization rates (52,2% vs 9,0%, p<0,01), moderate (56,5% vs 19,7%, p<0,01), high and very high severity (17,4% vs 3,3%, p<0,01) of disease course, lung injury of CT-1, CT-2 and CT-3 (32,6% vs 9,8% (p<0,01), 21,7% vs 7,4% (p<0,05), and 15,2% vs 2,5% (p<0,01), respectively), invasive ventilation (8,7% vs 0,8%, p<0,05) and C-reactive protein >10 mg/l (69,6% vs 21,3%, p<0,01). Predictors of hospitalization for symptomatic COVID-19 according to multivariate logistic regression analysis were age, fasting glycemia, systolic blood pressure, EAT thickness, which was characterized by the highest standardized regression coefficient among other predictors (0,384, p<0,001).Conclusion. EAT thickness may be one of the predictors of COVID-19 severity in overweight and obese patients. Persons with EA in the case of COVID-19 need more careful monitoring and measures to prevent severe course and complications

Violation of the skin barrier in patients with allergic dermatoses: causes, consequences, possibilities of correction

The article considers the topical dermatological issue concerning the breach of the integrity of the skin’s barrier in patients with allergic dermatosis. The horny layer of the skin in such patients can be broken as a result of numerous external causes: excoriations, injuries, allergens, irritants, etc. These factors, in turn, contribute to the activation of endogenous dermal proteases and decrease in the synthesis of epidermal lipids, which leads to reduced elasticity of corneocytes, increased intercellular spaces, and facilitates access for antigenic stimulants that promote the development of inflammation. The decrease in the skin’s barrier is accompanied by the development of immune inflammation, production of pro-inflammatory cytokines that inhibit the generation of antimicrobial factors, induce hyperplasia and apoptosis of keratinocytes. The integral approach plays a leading role in the treatment of the disease due to the specifics of the pathogenesis and course of allergic dermatoses. In the practice of a dermatologist, topical glucocorticosteroids occupy an important place. With their help, it is possible to quickly cope with the symptoms of inflammation in many dermatoses.The introduction presents current literature data on the role of skin ceramides in the restoration of the epidermal barrier. It is indicated that the epidermis of patients suffering from various dermatoses is characterized by a decrease in the production and dysfunction of physiological lipids, and, therefore, is prone to an increase in the incidence of pathological skin changes. Therefore, in allergic dermatoses, it is preferable to use products containing ceramides in their composition, which reduce transepidermal moisture loss, strengthen the structures of the epidermal barrier, and allow further elimination of relapses of the disease and improve the quality of life of patients

Laser-assisted fabrication and in vitro verification of functionalized surface for cells biointegration

The paper investigates how the surface relief of an implant affects cell behavior. Currently, most implant manufacturers claim the key impact biocompatibility factor to be surface micro-roughness. We suppose that the interaction between cells and implants also depends on such relief peculiarities as continuous or discontinuous topography, subcellular distance between peaks and presence of porous oxide layer. We have developed the laser processing conditions that provide three different reliefs: "open grooves", "grid" and "close grooves". Along with the micro-roughness characteristics the reliefs differ with their deepness and period of groove

Otogenic Sinus Thrombosis and Hemophilia: A Clinical Case

Background. Patients with hemophilia are protected from thrombosis by a deficiency of one of coagulation factors, therefore thrombotic complications are rare in them. Currently, few descriptions of spontaneous venous thrombosis in adult hemophiliacs can be found in the literature. Even fewer data of thromboembolic complications are reported in pediatric practice. At present, no clear recommendations are given for the management of thrombotic complications in children with hemophilia, which requires further study of this issue to develop prevention and treatment regimens, including otogenic sinus thrombosis in this category of patients.Case description. A 7-year-old boy was transferred from the Somatic Hospital to the Intensive Care Unit of Regional Clinical Hospital No. 2 in Tyumen (Russia) with an Otorhinolaryngology Unit. He was diagnosed with non-perforative form of acute right-sided suppurative otitis media, acute right-sided mastoiditis, thrombosis of the right sigmoid sinus. The anamnesis shows that the child is diagnosed with hemophilia A, of moderate severity (factor VIII level — 5%), for which he has been receiving factor VIII replacement therapy for the last year. Upon admission, a general blood test revealed no abnormalities, with a slight increase in acute-phase parameters: C-reactive protein, fibrinogen, signs of hypocoagulation. Due to negative dynamics, the child underwent anthromastoidotomy against the background of intensive replacement therapy. Surgery revealed the presence of granulation tissue with hemorrhagic thrombi in the antrum and aditus. In the postoperative period, replacement therapy was accompanied with antibacterial and anticoagulant therapy.Conclusion. The management of patients with otogenic sinus thrombosis against the background of hereditary factor VIII deficiency is a difficult task. On the one hand, it requires surgical intervention and anticoagulant therapy in order to prevent further thrombosis, on the other hand — intensive replacement therapy in order to reduce the risks of hemorrhagic complications. The described case demonstrates the need for an interdisciplinary approach to the diagnosis and treatment of a patient with otogenic thrombosis of lateral sinus against the background of hemophilia A. The approach is to minimize the risks of intraoperative complications and insure a favorable outcome

GROWTH AND CHARACTERIZATION OF BiTeX (X=I, Cl) 3D RASHBA MATERIALS

In this work, the surface structure and transport properties of BiTeCl and BiTeI 3D Rashba materials grown using the modified Bridgman method are studied in detail.The reported study was funded by RFBR, project number 19-29-12061

THE ERYTHROCYTE MEMBRANE ENDURANCE AGAINST TISSUE ISCHEMIA IN PATIENTS WITH HYPERTENSIVE DISEASE AND ISCHEMIC HEART DISEASE AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH ENDOGENOUS FACTORS

Aim. To find out the type of erythrocyte membrane endurance to local ischemia in patients with AH and AP including its relationship with endogenous factors. Material and methods. Totally 60 men included with stable form of angina pectoris and 50 men with hypertension of the age 40-55 y.o. To compare the relationships that were found with normal values the parameters studied also were measured in healthy men (n=20) at the age 27±2,5 y.o. The prominence of changes in erythrocyte membrane was evaluated by their comparison before and after local ischemia. In every patient the endurance index (index(m)) was calculated for the erythrocyte membrane. Then we studied endogenous factors that modified the shifts of erythrocyte membrane endurance in the patients studied.Results. During the study it was shown that the erythrocyte membrane endurance to tissue ischemia in AH and AP patients was significantly lower comparing to healthy males. Also in patients there was relation between shifts of membrane endurance and baseline level of various endogenous factors activity. In AP patients the endurance of membrane could be modified by five predictors: blood viscosity in moderate diameter vessels, ACE and less von Willebrand factor. In both groups the increase of baseline ACE and blood viscosity was followed by the decrease of membrane endurance. But if the ischemia developed at the background of weak ACE activity or low blood viscosity, then erythrocyte membrane was more endurable to this pathogen factor.Conclusion. The relationships found for endogenous factors and membrane endurance, it seems, shows differences in genesis of angina pectoris and hypertension. The relations require confirmation in other patients selections with the same pathology and only then can be used for the development of further findings of the main pathogenetic chains in the patients with AH and AP, as for additional treatment strategies development

Real‐Time SWMF at CCMC: Assessing the Dst Output From Continuous Operational Simulations

The ground‐based magnetometer index of Dst is a commonly used measure of near‐Earth current systems, in particular the storm time inner magnetospheric current systems. The ability of a large‐scale, physics‐based model to reproduce, or even predict, this index is therefore a tangible measure of the overall validity of the code for space weather research and space weather operational usage. Experimental real‐time simulations of the Space Weather Modeling Framework (SWMF) are conducted at the Community Coordinated Modeling Center (CCMC). Presently, two configurations of the SWMF are running in real time at CCMC, both focusing on the geospace modules, using the Block Adaptive Tree Solar wind‐type Roe Upwind Solver magnetohydrodynamic model, the Ridley Ionosphere Model, and with and without the Rice Convection Model. While both have been running for several years, nearly continuous results are available since April 2015. A 27‐month interval through July 2017 is used for a quantitative assessment of Dst from the model output compared against the Kyoto real‐time Dst. Quantitative measures are presented to assess the goodness of fit including contingency tables and a receiver operating characteristic curve. It is shown that the SWMF run with the inner magnetosphere model is much better at reproducing storm time values, with a correlation coefficient of 0.69, a prediction efficiency of 0.41, and Heidke skill score of 0.57 (for a −50‐nT threshold). A comparison of real‐time runs with and without the inner magnetospheric drift physics model reveals that nearly all of the storm time Dst signature is from current systems related to kinetic processes on closed magnetic field lines.Plain Language SummaryAs society becomes more dependent on technologies susceptible to adverse space weather, it is becoming increasingly critical to have numerical models capable of running in real time to nowcast/forecast the conditions in the near‐Earth space environment. One such model is available at the Community Coordinated Modeling Center and has been running for several years, allowing for an assessment of the quality of the result. Comparisons are made against globally compiled index of near‐Earth space storm activity, including numerous statistical quantities and tests. The skill of the model is remarkable, especially when a few hours after each of the cold restarts of the model are removed from the comparison. It is also shown that a global model alone is not that good at reproducing this storm index; a regional model for the inner part of geospace is necessary for good data‐model agreement.Key PointsThe SWMF model has been running in experimental real‐time mode at CCMC for several years, and all saved output is availableThe comparison against real‐time Dst is quite good, especially when a few hours after cold restarts are removed from the comparisonIt is necessary to include an inner magnetospheric drift physics model to reproduce Dst; a real‐time run without one does much worsePeer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/146631/1/swe20766.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/146631/2/swe20766_am.pd