Elective cancer surgery in COVID-19-free surgical pathways during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: An international, multicenter, comparative cohort study

PURPOSE As cancer surgery restarts after the first COVID-19 wave, health care providers urgently require data to determine where elective surgery is best performed. This study aimed to determine whether COVID-19–free surgical pathways were associated with lower postoperative pulmonary complication rates compared with hospitals with no defined pathway. PATIENTS AND METHODS This international, multicenter cohort study included patients who underwent elective surgery for 10 solid cancer types without preoperative suspicion of SARS-CoV-2. Participating hospitals included patients from local emergence of SARS-CoV-2 until April 19, 2020. At the time of surgery, hospitals were defined as having a COVID-19–free surgical pathway (complete segregation of the operating theater, critical care, and inpatient ward areas) or no defined pathway (incomplete or no segregation, areas shared with patients with COVID-19). The primary outcome was 30-day postoperative pulmonary complications (pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, unexpected ventilation). RESULTS Of 9,171 patients from 447 hospitals in 55 countries, 2,481 were operated on in COVID-19–free surgical pathways. Patients who underwent surgery within COVID-19–free surgical pathways were younger with fewer comorbidities than those in hospitals with no defined pathway but with similar proportions of major surgery. After adjustment, pulmonary complication rates were lower with COVID-19–free surgical pathways (2.2% v 4.9%; adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.62; 95% CI, 0.44 to 0.86). This was consistent in sensitivity analyses for low-risk patients (American Society of Anesthesiologists grade 1/2), propensity score–matched models, and patients with negative SARS-CoV-2 preoperative tests. The postoperative SARS-CoV-2 infection rate was also lower in COVID-19–free surgical pathways (2.1% v 3.6%; aOR, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.36 to 0.76). CONCLUSION Within available resources, dedicated COVID-19–free surgical pathways should be established to provide safe elective cancer surgery during current and before future SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks

Elective Cancer Surgery in COVID-19-Free Surgical Pathways During the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: An International, Multicenter, Comparative Cohort Study.

PURPOSE: As cancer surgery restarts after the first COVID-19 wave, health care providers urgently require data to determine where elective surgery is best performed. This study aimed to determine whether COVID-19-free surgical pathways were associated with lower postoperative pulmonary complication rates compared with hospitals with no defined pathway. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This international, multicenter cohort study included patients who underwent elective surgery for 10 solid cancer types without preoperative suspicion of SARS-CoV-2. Participating hospitals included patients from local emergence of SARS-CoV-2 until April 19, 2020. At the time of surgery, hospitals were defined as having a COVID-19-free surgical pathway (complete segregation of the operating theater, critical care, and inpatient ward areas) or no defined pathway (incomplete or no segregation, areas shared with patients with COVID-19). The primary outcome was 30-day postoperative pulmonary complications (pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, unexpected ventilation). RESULTS: Of 9,171 patients from 447 hospitals in 55 countries, 2,481 were operated on in COVID-19-free surgical pathways. Patients who underwent surgery within COVID-19-free surgical pathways were younger with fewer comorbidities than those in hospitals with no defined pathway but with similar proportions of major surgery. After adjustment, pulmonary complication rates were lower with COVID-19-free surgical pathways (2.2% v 4.9%; adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.62; 95% CI, 0.44 to 0.86). This was consistent in sensitivity analyses for low-risk patients (American Society of Anesthesiologists grade 1/2), propensity score-matched models, and patients with negative SARS-CoV-2 preoperative tests. The postoperative SARS-CoV-2 infection rate was also lower in COVID-19-free surgical pathways (2.1% v 3.6%; aOR, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.36 to 0.76). CONCLUSION: Within available resources, dedicated COVID-19-free surgical pathways should be established to provide safe elective cancer surgery during current and before future SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks

Institutional Cooperation Between Central Banks and the Statistical Offices for Producing Macroeconomic Statistics

1. This paper discusses different purposes and forms of collaboration between central banks and national statistical agencies in the area of macroeconomic statistics. Cooperation agreements may serve to clarity a division of labor in producing data. Alternatively, agreements may concern the provision of specialized data to the central bank for policy purposes. Cooperation may also be motivated to help national statistical agencies develop statistical capacity, particularly in countries with relatively weak national statistical agencies. In many countries, cooperation between central banks and statistical offices has evolved from informal to more formal arrangements. The paper illustrates formalized cooperation agreements. Reasons for formal cooperation and sources of information 2. Formal cooperation between central banks and national statistical offices can have different purposes. Table 1 presents an overview of various types of contracts and their main features. The information included in this table builds on a larger study (Dziobek and Tanase, 2007 forthcoming), which brings together results of a survey and experiences from the Fund’s technical assistance work with member countries. The larger study presents country case studies of the various types of cooperation shown in this table. 3. When both central banks and national statistical agencies play a role in producing certain statistics, as is often the case for external sector statistics, cooperation agreements can serve to clarify the division of labor. An example of this is the memorandum of understanding between the European Central Bank and Eurostat. Generally, the aim is to specify what data are to be made available by each party and on what schedule, thus contributing to a smoother work process. They take on an added dimension when a country i

Charge transport in disordered organic field-effect transistors

The transport properties of poly(2,5-thienylene vinylene) (PTV) field-effect transistors (FET) have been investigated as a function of temperature under controlled atmosphere. In a disordered semiconductor as PTV the charge carrier mobility, dominated by hopping between localized states, is dependent on the charge carrier density. The transfer characteristics of PTV FET have been modeled considering the distribution of charge carriers and mobility over the accumulation channel. Good agreement with the experimental data is obtained

Drying activity of oxovanadium(IV) 2-ethylhexanoate in solvent-borne alkyd paints

Oxovanadium(IV) 2-ethylhexanoate was established as a new primary drier for alkyd-based paints. A series of experiments has demonstrated an excellent drying activity toward solvent-borne alkyd resins of different oil length at considerably lower metal concentration than optimal for commercial cobalt(II) 2-ethylhexanoate. The behavior in real paint was simulated on formulations bearing inhibitor of autooxidation. The detailed studies of the drying process have shown that the relatively slow initial step of autooxidation reaction, when compared with cobalt compounds, is compensated for by the absence of the induction times. Furthermore, the active oxovanadium(IV) species are not consumed during the drying processes as evidenced by EPR spectroscopic measurements.2-ethylhexanoatu oxovanadičitý vykazuje vlastnosti typické pro primární sikativy. Uvedené experimenty ukazují výbonou sikativační aktivitu vůči alkydovým pryskyřicím různé olejové délky při výrazně nižších koncentracích než je běžné u komerčních 2-ethylhexanoatu kobaltnatého. Chování v reáné formulaci bylo simulováno na sysytémech s inhibitory autooxidace