Early psychological care of the French victims of the Costa Concordia shipwreck

Most of the French passengers who survived the shipwreck of the cruise ship Costa Concordia were repatriatedfrom Italy to Marseille, one of the stopovers of the cruise. The shipwreck happened during the nightof 13th–14th January 2012 and entailed the forced evacuation of 4195 passengers and crewmembers.Thirty-two persons died and 2 others are still reported missing. The massive and unexpected inflow of402 French citizens in the port of Marseille required the quick setting up of welcome facilities, not only tosolve logistical problems, but also to address psychological and sometimes even medical problems. ThePrehospital Psychological Emergency Service (CUMP) and the Prehospital Emergency Medical Service(SAMU) of Marseille examined 196 persons in total, and were able to avoid a great number of emergencyadmissions deemed necessary because of difficult psychological situations (death, missing or lost persons,acute stress). The objective of this report is to rapidly present the emergency committee as a whole andto describe in more detail the work that the CUMP accomplished during the 36 hours necessary to takecharge of the majority of the French passengers of the Costa Concordia.Most of the French passengers who survived the shipwreck of the cruise ship Costa Concordia were repatriatedfrom Italy to Marseille, one of the stopovers of the cruise. The shipwreck happened during the nightof 13th–14th January 2012 and entailed the forced evacuation of 4195 passengers and crewmembers.Thirty-two persons died and 2 others are still reported missing. The massive and unexpected inflow of402 French citizens in the port of Marseille required the quick setting up of welcome facilities, not only tosolve logistical problems, but also to address psychological and sometimes even medical problems. ThePrehospital Psychological Emergency Service (CUMP) and the Prehospital Emergency Medical Service(SAMU) of Marseille examined 196 persons in total, and were able to avoid a great number of emergencyadmissions deemed necessary because of difficult psychological situations (death, missing or lost persons,acute stress). The objective of this report is to rapidly present the emergency committee as a whole andto describe in more detail the work that the CUMP accomplished during the 36 hours necessary to takecharge of the majority of the French passengers of the Costa Concordia

Incidence rates of in-hospital carpal tunnel syndrome in the general population and possible associations with marital status

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a socially relevant condition associated with biomechanical risk factors. We evaluated age-sex-specific incidence rates of in-hospital cases of CTS in central/northern Italy and explored relations with marital status.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Seven regions were considered (overall population, 14.9 million) over 3–6-year periods between 1997 and 2002 (when out-of-hospital CTS surgery was extremely rare). Incidence rates of in-hospital cases of CTS were estimated based on 1) codified demographic, diagnostic and intervention data in obligatory discharge records from all Italian public/private hospitals, archived (according to residence) on regional databases; 2) demographic general population data for each region. We compared (using the χ_scoretest) age-sex-specific rates between married, unmarried, divorced and widowed subsets of the general population. We calculated standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) for married/unmarried men and women.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Age-standardized incidence rates (per 100,000 person-years) of in-hospital cases of CTS were 166 in women and 44 in men (106 overall). Married subjects of both sexes showed higher age-specific rates with respect to unmarried men/women. SIRs were calculated comparing married vs unmarried rates of both sexes: 1.59 (95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.57–1.60) in women, and 1.42 (95% CI, 1.40–1.45) in men. As compared with married women/men, widows/widowers both showed 2–3-fold higher incidence peaks during the fourth decade of life (beyond 50 years of age, widowed subjects showed similar trends to unmarried counterparts).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This large population-based study illustrates distinct age-related trends in men and women, and also raises the question whether marital status could be associated with CTS in the general population.</p

VgrG and PAAR Proteins Define Distinct Versions of a Functional Type VI Secretion System

The Type VI secretion system (T6SS) is widespread among bacterial pathogens and acts as an effective weapon against competitor bacteria and eukaryotic hosts by delivering toxic effector proteins directly into target cells. The T6SS utilises a bacteriophage-like contractile machinery to expel a puncturing device based on a tube of Hcp topped with a VgrG spike, which can be extended by a final tip from a PAAR domain-containing protein. Effector proteins are believed to be delivered by specifically associating with particular Hcp, VgrG or PAAR proteins, either covalently ('specialised') or non-covalently ('cargo' effectors). Here we used the T6SS of the opportunistic pathogen Serratia marcescens, together with integratecd genetic, proteomic and biochemical approaches, to elucidate the role of specific VgrG and PAAR homologues in T6SS function and effector specificity, revealing new aspects and unexpected subtleties in effector delivery by the T6SS. We identified effectors, both cargo and specialised, absolutely dependent on a particular VgrG for delivery to target cells, and discovered that other cargo effectors can show a preference for a particular VgrG. The presence of at least one PAAR protein was found to be essential for T6SS function, consistent with designation as a 'core' T6SS component. We showed that specific VgrG-PAAR combinations are required to assemble a functional T6SS and that the three distinct VgrG-PAAR assemblies in S. marcescens exhibit distinct effector specificity and efficiency. Unexpectedly, we discovered that two different PAAR-containing Rhs proteins can functionally pair with the same VgrG protein. Showing that accessory EagR proteins are involved in these interactions, native VgrG-Rhs-EagR complexes were isolated and specific interactions between EagR and cognate Rhs proteins identified. This study defines an essential yet flexible role for PAAR proteins in the T6SS and highlights the existence of distinct versions of the machinery with differential effector specificity and efficiency of target cell delivery

Cryptic Transcription Mediates Repression of Subtelomeric Metal Homeostasis Genes

Nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD) prevents the accumulation of transcripts bearing premature termination codons. Here we show that Saccharomyces cerevisiae NMD mutants accumulate 5′–extended RNAs (CD-CUTs) of many subtelomeric genes. Using the subtelomeric ZRT1 and FIT3 genes activated in response to zinc and iron deficiency, respectively, we show that transcription of these CD-CUTs mediates repression at the bona fide promoters, by preventing premature binding of RNA polymerase II in conditions of metal repletion. Expression of the main ZRT1 CD-CUT is controlled by the histone deacetylase Rpd3p, showing that histone deacetylases can regulate expression of genes through modulation of the level of CD-CUTs. Analysis of binding of the transcriptional activator Zap1p and insertion of transcriptional terminators upstream from the Zap1p binding sites show that CD-CUT transcription or accumulation also interferes with binding of the transcriptional activator Zap1p. Consistent with this model, overexpressing Zap1p or using a constitutively active version of the Aft1p transcriptional activator rescues the induction defect of ZRT1 and FIT3 in NMD mutants. These results show that cryptic upstream sense transcription resulting in unstable transcripts degraded by NMD controls repression of a large number of genes located in subtelomeric regions, and in particular of many metal homeostasis genes

Oncoplastic Breast Consortium consensus conference on nipple-sparing mastectomy.

Purpose Indications for nipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM) have broadened to include the risk reducing setting and locally advanced tumors, which resulted in a dramatic increase in the use of NSM. The Oncoplastic Breast Consortium consensus conference on NSM and immediate reconstruction was held to address a variety of questions in clinical practice and research based on published evidence and expert panel opinion. Methods The panel consisted of 44 breast surgeons from 14 countries across four continents with a background in gynecology, general or reconstructive surgery and a practice dedicated to breast cancer, as well as a patient advocate. Panelists presented evidence summaries relating to each topic for debate during the in-person consensus conference. The iterative process in question development, voting, and wording of the recommendations followed the modified Delphi methodology. Results Consensus recommendations were reached in 35, majority recommendations in 24, and no recommendations in the remaining 12 questions. The panel acknowledged the need for standardization of various aspects of NSM and immediate reconstruction. It endorsed several oncological contraindications to the preservation of the skin and nipple. Furthermore, it recommended inclusion of patients in prospective registries and routine assessment of patient-reported outcomes. Considerable heterogeneity in breast reconstruction practice became obvious during the conference. Conclusions In case of conflicting or missing evidence to guide treatment, the consensus conference revealed substantial disagreement in expert panel opinion, which, among others, supports the need for a randomized trial to evaluate the safest and most efficacious reconstruction techniques