Vascularization of the brain with special attention to meningeal vessels

PòsterJun

Quantitative, Multi-institutional Evaluation of MR Thermometry Accuracy for Deep-Pelvic MR-Hyperthermia Systems Operating in Multi-vendor MR-systems Using a New Anthropomorphic Phantom

Clinical outcome of hyperthermia depends on the achieved target temperature, therefore target conformal heating is essential. Currently, invasive temperature probe measurements are the gold standard for temperature monitoring, however, they only provide limited sparse data. In contrast, magnetic resonance thermometry (MRT) provides unique capabilities to non-invasively measure the 3D-temperature. This study investigates MRT accuracy for MR-hyperthermia hybrid systems located at five European institutions while heating a centric or eccentric target in anthropomorphic phantoms with pelvic and spine structures. Scatter plots, root mean square error (RMSE) and Bland–Altman analysis were used to quantify accuracy of MRT compared to high resistance thermistor probe measurements. For all institutions, a linear relation between MRT and thermistor probes measurements was found with R2 (mean ± standard deviation) of 0.97 ± 0.03 and 0.97 ± 0.02, respectively for centric and eccentric heating targets. The RMSE was found to be 0.52 ± 0.31 °C and 0.30 ± 0.20 °C, respectively. The Bland-Altman evaluation showed a mean difference of 0.46 ± 0.20 °C and 0.13 ± 0.08 °C, respectively. This first multi-institutional evaluation of MR-hyperthermia hybrid systems indicates comparable device performance and good agreement between MRT and thermistor probes measurements. This forms the basis to standardize treatments in multi-institution studies of MR-guided hyperthermia and to elucidate thermal dose-effect relations

Nosocomial outbreak of neonatal Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis meningitis in a rural hospital in northern Tanzania

BACKGROUND: Clinicians at Haydom Lutheran Hospital, a rural hospital in northern Tanzania noted an unusually high case-fatality rate of pediatric meningitis and suspected an outbreak of an unknown agent or an organism resistant to the empirical therapy. METHODS: We established a provisional microbiology laboratory to investigate the suspected outbreak. Blood and spinal fluid specimens were taken from children below the age of seven years with suspected meningitis. The blood and spinal fluid specimens were inoculated in commercial blood culture bottles and locally prepared Thayer-Martin medium in slanted tubes, respectively. The bacterial isolates were sent to Norway for further investigation, including susceptibility testing and pulsed-field gel-electrophoresis (PFGE). RESULTS: Among 24 children with suspected meningitis and/or septicemia, five neonates had meningitis caused by Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis, all of whom died. Two children had S. Enteritidis septicemia without meningitis and both survived. Genotyping with PFGE suggested a clonal outbreak. The salmonella strain was resistant to ampicillin and sensitive to gentamicin, the two drugs commonly used to treat neonatal meningitis at the hospital. CONCLUSION: The investigation reminds us that nontyphoidal salmonellae can cause meningitis associated with very high case-fatality rates. Resistance to multiple antimicrobial agents increases the risk of treatment failure and may have contributed to the fatal outcome in all of the five patients with salmonella meningitis. The investigation indicated that the outbreak was nosocomial and the outbreak subsided after hygienic measures were instituted. Establishing a provisional microbiological laboratory is a valuable and affordable tool to investigate and control outbreaks even in remote rural areas

Quantitative, Multi-institutional Evaluation of MR Thermometry Accuracy for Deep-Pelvic MR-Hyperthermia Systems Operating in Multi-vendor MR-systems Using a New Anthropomorphic Phantom

Clinical outcome of hyperthermia depends on the achieved target temperature, therefore target conformal heating is essential. Currently, invasive temperature probe measurements are the gold standard for temperature monitoring, however, they only provide limited sparse data. In contrast, magnetic resonance thermometry (MRT) provides unique capabilities to non-invasively measure the 3D-temperature. This study investigates MRT accuracy for MR-hyperthermia hybrid systems located at five European institutions while heating a centric or eccentric target in anthropomorphic phantoms with pelvic and spine structures. Scatter plots, root mean square error (RMSE) and Bland–Altman analysis were used to quantify accuracy of MRT compared to high resistance thermistor probe measurements. For all institutions, a linear relation between MRT and thermistor probes measurements was found with R 2 (mean ± standard deviation) of 0.97 ± 0.03 and 0.97 ± 0.02, respectively for centric and eccentric heating targets. The RMSE was found to be 0.52 ± 0.31 ◦C and 0.30 ± 0.20 ◦C, respectively. The Bland-Altman evaluation showed a mean difference of 0.46 ± 0.20 ◦C and 0.13 ± 0.08 ◦C, respectively. This first multi-institutional evaluation of MR-hyperthermia hybrid systems indicates comparable device performance and good agreement between MRT and thermistor probes measurements. This forms the basis to standardize treatments in multi-institution studies of MR-guided hyperthermia and to elucidate thermal dose-effect relations

Desmoplastic small round cell tumors: Multimodality treatment and new risk factors

BACKGROUND: To evaluate optimal therapy and potential risk factors. METHODS: Data of DSRCT patients <40 years treated in prospective CWS trials 1997-2015 were analyzed. RESULTS: Median age of 60 patients was 14.5 years. Male:female ratio was 4:1. Tumors were abdominal/retroperitoneal in 56/60 (93%). 6/60 (10%) presented with a localized mass, 16/60 (27%) regionally disseminated nodes, and 38/60 (63%) with extraperitoneal metastases. At diagnosis, 23/60 (38%) patients had effusions, 4/60 (7%) a thrombosis, and 37/54 (69%) elevated CRP. 40/60 (67%) patients underwent tumor resection, 21/60 (35%) macroscopically complete. 37/60 (62%) received chemotherapy according to CEVAIE (ifosfamide, vincristine, actinomycin D, carboplatin, epirubicin, etoposide), 15/60 (25%) VAIA (ifosfamide, vincristine, adriamycin, actinomycin D) and, 5/60 (8%) P6 (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, ifosfamide, etoposide). Nine received high-dose chemotherapy, 6 received regional hyperthermia, and 20 received radiotherapy. Among 25 patients achieving complete remission, 18 (72%) received metronomic therapies. Three-year event-free (EFS) and overall survival (OS) were 11% (±8 confidence interval [CI] 95%) and 30% (±12 CI 95%), respectively, for all patients and 26.7% (±18.0 CI 95%) and 56.9% (±20.4 CI 95%) for 25 patients achieving remission. Extra-abdominal site, localized disease, no effusion or ascites only, absence of thrombosis, normal CRP, complete tumor resection, and chemotherapy with VAIA correlated with EFS in univariate analysis. In multivariate analysis, significant factors were no thrombosis and chemotherapy with VAIA. In patients achieving complete remission, metronomic therapy with cyclophosphamide/vinblastine correlated with prolonged time to relapse. CONCLUSION: Pleural effusions, venous thrombosis, and CRP elevation were identified as potential risk factors. The VAIA scheme showed best outcome. Maintenance therapy should be investigated further

A multi-institution study: comparison of the heating patterns of five different MR-guided deep hyperthermia systems using an anthropomorphic phantom

Introduction Within the hyperthermia community, consensus exists that clinical outcome of the treatment radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy plus hyperthermia (i.e. elevating tumor temperature to 40 − 44 °C) is related to the applied thermal dose; hence, treatment quality is crucial for the success of prospective multi-institution clinical trials. Currently, applicator quality assurance (QA) measurements are implemented independently at each institution using basic cylindrical phantoms. A multi-institution comparison of heating quality using magnetic resonance thermometry (MRT) and anatomical representative anthropomorphic phantoms provides a unique opportunity to obtain novel QA insights to f

OParl. Umsetzung einer offenen Schnittstelle für Ratsinformationssysteme am Beispiel der Städte Ulm und Berlin

In dieser Arbeit wird die Notwendigkeit offener Ratsinformationssysteme (RIS) und geeigneter Schnittstellen für die Nachnutzung durch Dritte erörtert. Klassischerweise werden die darin enthaltenen Informationen über das Amtsblatt veröffentlicht. Diese Veröffentlichungsform birgt Nachteile und Probleme für interessierte und beteiligungswillige BürgerInnen. In der Arbeit werden Ansätze aufgezeigt, wie diese Informationen schon jetzt durch Ratsinformationssysteme online explorierbar sind. Weiter wird aufgezeigt, wo die Probleme und Fallstricke bestehender RISe liegen und wie diese behoben werden können. Weiter wird gezeigt, welche Ansätze zur automatisierten Nachnutzung von RIS-Daten auf Basis von APIs existieren. Existierende Standards werden verglichen und im Rahmen eines ExpertInneninterviews erfragt, welche Wünsche an ein solches System bestehen. Eine Beispielimplementation rundet die Exploration ab

From Feminist Servers to Feminist Federation

Situated within the technofeminist care practices of feminist servers, this text explores the possibilities of feminist federation. Speaking from our collective practice of system administration, we start by introducing Systerserver, laying out the feminist pedagogies that inform our practice of learning and doing together with technologies and the politics of maintenance and care. We then revisit the identity politics of feminist servers as more than safe/r spaces in the cis-male-dominated domain of free/libre and open source software communities. Finally, we reflect on our experiences of building and federating a feminist video platform with the PeerTube software on Systerserver. Facing the techno-social challenges around the protocol of federation and adapting the software alongside our federating practice, we focus on sustainable and care-oriented alternatives to ‘scaling up’ the affective infrastructures of our feminist servers

Technopolitiken der Sorge

Technopolitiken der Sorge wenden sich sorgetragenden Praktiken zu, die mit und durch Technologien hindurch Teil sozialer Bewegungen werden. Dabei bezeichnen Technopolitiken das Politisch-Werden von Technologien ebenso wie das Technologisch-Werden von Politik. Das Buch versammelt Beiträge zu Projekten und Initiativen, für die Sorge in ihrer technopolitischen Verfasstheit zum Ausgangspunkt eines (techno-) kollektiven Widerstands wird: Sorge für akut krisenhafte Gegenwarten, für die gewaltvollen Dispositive der Vergangenheit, für eine bessere Zukunft. Ausgehend von der diskriminierungsreichen Vorgeschichte technologischer Entwicklungen, rücken die versammelten Perspektiven das emanzipatorische und reparative Potenzial von Technologien ins Zentrum ihrer Auseinandersetzungen. Entlang der thematischen Schwerpunkte Infrastrukturen, Ästhetiken und Kollektivität interveniert der Band in Debatten einer algorithmisierten Gegenwart und stellt alternative Formen zunehmend translokal vernetzter Sorgepraktiken in den Vordergrund