Superficial femoral artery catheterisation with two parallel guidewires after femoris profunda artery cannulation in antegrade percutaneous femoral access

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Coil embolization as an alternative endovascular approach for ruptured superficial femoral artery aneurysms

Purpose: True aneurysms of the superficial femoral artery (SFAA) are rare and, the endovascular approach using covered stents has gained more popularity. We report an endovascular alternative using embolization coils for treatment of a ruptured SFAA. Case description: An 88-old male admitted for a ruptured true SFAA (67×52mm in diameter and 70mm in length) presenting with painful mass pulsating in the proximal third of the left thigh. His surgical history consisted of an infrarenal abdominal aneurysm treated by open surgery and an ipsilateral popliteal aneurysm treated with prosthetic bypass by a medial approach; this was revealed to be occluded at the CT scan evaluation. The patient was asymptomatic for limb ischaemia, therefore we decided to perform embolization of the SFA with coils (MReye®Embolization Coil, Cook Medical, Bloomington,USA). Under local anaesthesia, via a 5-Fr sheath and an antegrade approach, coils were deployed first at the distal neck of the SFAA and then to its proximal neck. On the angiogram, complete aneurysm sac thrombosis with no leaks was achieved. At 6-month follow-up, the SFAA remained occluded, and the patient had not developed any sign of limb ischaemia. Conclusion: Coil embolization of SFAA in selected cases represents a feasible and safe endovascular alternative

Acompanhamento de safras de cana-de-açúcar por meio de técnicas de agrupamento em séries temporais de NDVI.

Este artigo propõe o uso da técnica de agrupamento de dados (clustering) para auxiliar no acompanhamento de safras de cana-de-açúcar a partir de séries temporais de NDVI obtidas do satélite AVHRR/NOAA para o estado de São Paulo, Brasil. Os experimentos realizados em uma região do estado que concentra áreas com produção alta de cana mostraram que é possível acompanhar a evolução da cultura ao longo da safra identificando regiões com padrões semelhantes. Além disso, pode-se obter uma classificação mensal dos valores de NDVI por região, o que pode servir de subsídio para pesquisas futuras. O restante desse artigo descreve a Metodologia do Trabalho na Seção 2, discute os Resultados na Seção 3 e apresenta as Conclusões na Seção 4.SBSR 2011

SARS-COV-2 Pandemic for Patients with Chronic Obstructive Peripheral Arterial Disease: Impact of Interruption to Access According to Gender in a Single Center Experience

Background: This retrospective study aims to evaluate the impact of interrupted services for peripheral arterial disease (PAD) patients and especially women in a single north-eastern Italian center over a period of 3 months prior to the pandemic, during the first (2020) and the second (2021) wave of contagion in northern Italy. Methods: Patients with PAD at Rutherford stages 3 to 6 that required revascularization between March 2019 and March 2021 were classified into 3 groups, according to the period of treatment: the prepandemic period, the pandemic-20 period, and the pandemic-21 period. Results: Twenty-eight patients were treated in the prepandemic period, 21 in the pandemic-20 period, and 39 in the pandemic-21 period. It was observed that in the both pandemic periods patients presented with more severe stages of limb ischemia, Rutherford 5 and 6 stages. During pandemic-20, patients underwent mostly open surgery, followed by hybrid procedures. No differences were observed between the 3 groups in major amputations, length of hospital stay, type of discharge, limb salvage and mortality. During long-term follow-up, limb salvage appeared to be significantly better in the pandemic-21 group. The gender analysis revealed a significantly reduced female proportion of overall treated patients in 2020 and 2021 compared to the prepandemic period. In the pandemic-20 this difference appears even more evident since treatments on females represented 19% of the total while in the same period of the previous year the male/female percentage was comparable (54% vs. 46%). The women admitted presented higher stages of disease and tended to have a longer hospital stay than men. At 12-month follow-up, limb salvage was similar between the 2 genders but was slightly worse in women. Conclusions: An efficient reorganization of the vascular surgery services during the pandemic period guaranteed the quality and standard of treatment offered in the preceding periods. Among patients suffering from PAD the impact of the pandemic was greater for the female gender. It is therefore important that in addition to a reorganization of hospital services to provide adequate care for patients with ACOP in the pandemic period, greater information and awareness of women

Nanodiamonds-induced effects on neuronal firing of mouse hippocampal microcircuits

Fluorescent nanodiamonds (FND) are carbon-based nanomaterials that can efficiently incorporate optically active photoluminescent centers such as the nitrogen-vacancy complex, thus making them promising candidates as optical biolabels and drug-delivery agents. FNDs exhibit bright fluorescence without photobleaching combined with high uptake rate and low cytotoxicity. Focusing on FNDs interference with neuronal function, here we examined their effect on cultured hippocampal neurons, monitoring the whole network development as well as the electrophysiological properties of single neurons. We observed that FNDs drastically decreased the frequency of inhibitory (from 1.81 Hz to 0.86 Hz) and excitatory (from 1.61 Hz to 0.68 Hz) miniature postsynaptic currents, and consistently reduced action potential (AP) firing frequency (by 36%), as measured by microelectrode arrays. On the contrary, bursts synchronization was preserved, as well as the amplitude of spontaneous inhibitory and excitatory events. Current-clamp recordings revealed that the ratio of neurons responding with AP trains of high-frequency (fast-spiking) versus neurons responding with trains of low-frequency (slow-spiking) was unaltered, suggesting that FNDs exerted a comparable action on neuronal subpopulations. At the single cell level, rapid onset of the somatic AP ("kink") was drastically reduced in FND-treated neurons, suggesting a reduced contribution of axonal and dendritic components while preserving neuronal excitability.Comment: 34 pages, 9 figure

Análise temporal de municípios produtores de cana-de-açúcar no estado de São Paulo por meio de agrupamento do NDVI (AVHRR/NOAA) e dados de produtividade e área.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi detectar municípios produtores de cana-de-açúcar no estado de São Paulo, similares, pelo método de agrupamento, analisando variáveis espectrais (NDVI), área plantada e produtividade no período de 2001 a 2009. O resultado dessa análise exploratória dos dados mostrou que a técnica é apropriada para a determinação de grupos de municípios com características semelhantes o que permite classificar as regiões automaticamente.SBSR 2011

Lower All-Cause Mortality Risk in Females and Males with Peripheral Artery Disease following Pain-Free Home-Based Exercise: A 7-Year Observational Study

We evaluated the sex-specific difference in response upon participation in an exercise program with respect to the risk of adverse clinical outcomes among patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD) and claudication. The records of 400 PAD patients were assessed between 2012 and 2015. Two hundred of them were addressed to a walking program prescribed at the hospital and executed at home at symptom-free walking speed (Ex), while the remaining 200 acted as a control group (Co). The number and date of deaths, all-cause hospitalizations, and amputations for a 7-year period were collected from the regional registry. At baseline, no differences were observed (MEX n = 138; FEX n = 62; MCO n = 149; FCO n = 51). The 7-year survival rate was significantly higher in FEX (90%) than in MEX (82% hazard ratio, HR: 0.542 95% CI 0.331–0.885), FCO (45%, HR: 0.164 95% CI 0.088–0.305), and MCO (44%; HR: 0.157 95% CI 0.096–0.256). A significantly lower rate of hospitalization (p < 0.001) and amputations (p = 0.016) was observed for the Ex group compared to the Co group, without differences by sex. In conclusion, in PAD patients, active participation in a home-based pain-free exercise program was associated with a lower rate of death and better long-term clinical outcomes, particularly among women

Survival and clinical outcomes of diabetic peripheral artery disease patients following a pain-free homebased walking program

Aim: We retrospectively examined the impact on the rate of survival of pain-free home-based exercise in diabetic peripheral artery disease patients compared to patients receiving usual care. Methods: In total, 202 patients at Fontaine's Stage II with diabetes were studied. Half were enrolled in a structured home-based exercise program (E), whereas the other half received walking advice as the active control group (C). Long-term clinical outcomes at five years were gathered from the Emilia-Romagna Health Service Registry, with survival probability selected as the primary outcome. Results: At baseline, the two groups did not differ for any demographic or clinical characteristics. High adherence to the program was recorded in Group E (88% of home-walking sessions executed, with an average distance walked during the program of 174 km). After five years, a survival rate of 90% for Group E and 60% for Group C was observed, with a significantly (P < 0.001) higher mortality risk for Group C [Hazard ratio (HR) = 3.92]. Additionally, among secondary outcomes, Group E showed a significantly (P = 0.048) lower rate of peripheral revascularizations than Group C (15% vs. 24%, respectively; HR = 1.91), all-cause hospitalizations (P = 0.007; 61% vs. 80%, HR = 1.58), and amputations (P = 0.049; 6% vs. 13%, HR = 2.47). In a Cox multivariate-proportional regression model of the entire population, the predictors of survival probability were age (HR = 1.05), Charlson index (HR = 1.24), lower ankle-brachial index (HR = 6.66), and control group (HR = 4.99). Conclusion: A simple sustainable program aimed at improving mobility of diabetic patients with claudication at high cardiovascular risk was associated with better survival and long-term clinical outcomes

Análise e mineração de dados de sensores orbitais para acompanhamento de safras de cana-de-açúcar.

Resumo. O impacto causado por eventos climáticos extremos em todo o mundo tem motivado pesquisas para redução de gases de efeito estufa. No Brasil, a cana-de-açúcar é a principal fonte para produção de etanol, como alternativa a combustíveis fósseis. Nesse contexto, dados de sensoriamento remoto têm sido utilizados para monitorar safras de cana-de-açúcar e apoiar pesquisas científicas. Neste trabalho, é proposta uma metodologia baseada em agrupamento de dados para analisar séries temporais de NDVI obtidas de satélites AVHRR/NOAA. Os experimentos mostram que a abordagem proposta permite identificar áreas com padrões de desenvolvimento similares, considerando também os diferentes ciclos de vida da cultura.WCAMA 2011