Caustic esophageal lesions in children

Les lésions caustiques oesophagiennes de l'enfant sont en majorité accidentelles. Les bases et les acides forts provoquent les lésions les plus sévères, surtout sous forme liquide plutôt que cristalline. Les brûlures thermiques et consécutives à la déglutition de batteries sont une cause plus rare de lésions sévères. Quelle que soit la symptomatologie clinique, chaque enfant suspecté d'ingestion de caustique doit être hospitalisé et soumis à un examen endoscopique. En l'absence de lésion ou en présence de lésions de grade I, aucun traitement n'est indiqué. Jusqu'à présent, le bénéfice des stéroïdes, même à forte dose, et des antibiotiques, n'a clairement démontré. En cas de lésions de grade II ou III, la mise en place de prothèse peut éventuellement prévenir la formation de sténose. La sévérité des lésions initiales plutôt que le mode de traitement détermine l'éventuelle formation des rétrécissements. Leur dilatation reste le traitement de choix. En cas d'échec, le remplacement de l'oesophage peut être envisagé. La dégénérescence maligne est une complication tardive fréquente même après remplacement oesophagien, si une partie de l'oesophage a été laissée en place. La prévention reste le seul traitement efficace de ces lésions éventuellement destructrice

Signal Processing for Radio Astronomy

Radio astronomy is known for its very large telescope dishes but is currently making a transition towards the use of a large number of small antennas. For example, the Low Frequency Array, commissioned in 2010, uses about 50 stations each consisting of 96 low band antennas and 768 or 1536 high band antennas. The low-frequency receiving system for the future Square Kilometre Array is envisaged to initially consist of over 131,000 receiving elements and to be expanded later. These instruments pose interesting array signal processing challenges. To present some aspects, we start by describing how the measured correlation data is traditionally converted into an image, and translate this into an array signal processing framework. This paves the way to describe self-calibration and image reconstruction as estimation problems. Self-calibration of the instrument is required to handle instrumental effects such as the unknown, possibly direction dependent, response of the receiving elements, as well a unknown propagation conditions through the Earth’s troposphere and ionosphere. Array signal processing techniques seem well suited to handle these challenges. Interestingly, image reconstruction, calibration and interference mitigation are often intertwined in radio astronomy, turning this into an area with very challenging signal processing problems

A proposition for the diagnosis and treatment of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease in children: A report from a working group on gastro-oesophageal reflux disease

In this paper, a Working Group on Gastro-Oesophageal Reflux discusses recommendations for the first line diagnostic and therapeutic approach of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease in infants and children. All members of the Working Group agreed that infants with uncomplicated gastro-oesophageal reflux can be safely treated before performing (expensive and often unnecessary) complementary investigations. However, the latter are mandatory if symptoms persist despite appropriate treatment. Oesophageal pH monitoring of long duration (18-24 h) is recommended as the investigation technique of choice in infants and children with atypical presentations of gastro-oesophageal reflux. Upper gastro-intestinal endoscopy in a specialised centre is the technique of choice in infants and children presenting with symptoms suggestive of peptic oesophagitis. Prokinetics, still a relatively new drug family, have already obtained a definitive place in the treatment of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease in infants and children, especially if "non-drug" treatment (positional therapy, dietary recommendations, etc.) was unsuccessful. It was the aim of the Working Group to help the paediatrician with this consensus statement and guide-lines to establish a standardised management of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease in infants and children. © 1993 Springer-Verlag.SCOPUS: re.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe