169,766 research outputs found
Bariatric surgery evolution in Romania. Results during first year after a variety of bariatric procedures
No full textObesity is a worldwide public health problem (both in developed and developing countries), the most frequent nutritional disease in the world, with considerable morbidity-mortality and high costs for the public healthcare systems. Bariatric surgery has been found to be the only method capable of maintaining proper and long-lasting weight loss for morbid obesity. Laparoscopy is the gold standard for bariatric procedures. We studied a group of 341 patients who underwent different types of laparoscopic bariatric surgical procedures: laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB), laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG), laparoscopic gastric bypass (LGB) and laparoscopic bilio-pancreatic diversion (LBPD). They were evaluated preoperative (weight, BMI, co-morbidities) and followed-up for 1 year: 238 patients LAGB, 46 LSG, 49 LGB and 8 LBPD. Mortality and conversion rate were nil for all groups. A significant reduction in patients' weight was shown at 12 months postoperatively. BMI decreased from 45.6 kg/m 2 to 37.9 for LAGB, from 54.12 to 40.8 kg/m 2 for LGB and from 49.1 to 31.2 kg/m 2 for LSG. The excess weight loss for LBPD was 63%. A significant improvement of co-morbidities was noticed; all patients with type 2 diabetes have normal serum glucose levels at 1 year after surgery. Bariatric surgery is safe with a low complication rate and the outcome was similar to literature data. Although we do not benefit of a long time follow-up, the favorable results allow us to state that minimally invasive surgical techniques deserve an important place in the efforts of struggling against obesity and its consequences
Platelet-rich plasma PRP vs. absorbable mesh as cruroplasty reinforcement: a study on an animal model
No full textBackground: Reinforcement of posterior cruroplasty has been proposed to minimize the failure of hiatal hernia repair (HHR). The applications of autologous platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and absorbable mesh are barely reported in this area. Aims: To analyze local macroscopic and microscopic changes induced by mesh vs. PRP as reinforcement of HHR, using a reliable laparoscopic experimental porcine model. Material and methods: This prospective, comparative pilot study was conducted on 14 female pigs, aged four to six months. An iatrogenic hiatal defect was laparoscopically simulated and repaired, reinforced with Bio-A® mesh (group A) or PRP (group B). Specimen retrieval was performed after seven months for histopathological (HP) examination. Results: No local or general complications were registered, with complete resorption of reinforcements, that determined inflammatory infiltrates with local collagen production and tissue neo-vascularization. Group A had an increased mean chronic inflammation score (p =.3061), showing significant sclerotic collagenizing process. PRP enhanced angiogenesis, collagenizing, myofibroblast recruitment and tissue ingrowth. Conclusions: No residual materials or evidence of anatomical distortion were found. Animal model was safe and reliable. This is the first report of complete absorption of Bio-A® positioned on crural area. HP results suggest the clinical application of PRP in HHR as a promising co-adjuvant to local remodeling and healing. Abbreviations: ASA: American Society of Anesthesiologists; AB: Alcian Blue; PAS: Periodic Acid-Schiff; CP: platelet concentrate; fPC: filtered plasma concentrate; GERD: gastro-esophageal reflux disease; HSA: hiatal surface area; HHR: hiatal hernia repair; HP: histopathological; HH: hiatal hernia; HE: hematoxylin and eosin; HR: hiatus repair alone; HRM: hiatus repair and acellular dermal matrix; NM: Nicolae Manolesccu; LNF: laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication; PC: posterior cruroplasty; PPP: platelet-poor plasma; RP: platelet-rich plasma
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
No full textThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Acute complications after laparoscopic bariatric procedures: update for the general surgeon
No full textBACKGROUND:
Development and widespread use of laparoscopic bariatric surgery exposes emergency room physicians and general surgeons to face acute or chronic surgical complications of bariatric surgery.
METHODS:
The most common surgical emergencies after bariatric surgery are examined based on an extensive review of bariatric surgery literature and on the personal experience of the authors' practice in four high-volume bariatric surgery centers.
RESULTS:
An orderly stepwise approach to the bariatric patient with an emergency condition is advisable. Resuscitation should follow the same protocol adopted for the non-bariatric patients. Consultation with the bariatric surgeon should be obtained early, and referral to the bariatric center should be considered whenever possible. The identification of the surgical procedure to which the patient was submitted will orient in the diagnosis of the acute condition. Procedure-specific complication should always be taken into consideration in the differential diagnosis. Acute slippage is the most frequent complication that needs emergency treatment in a laparoscopic gastric banding. Sleeve gastrectomy and gastric bypasses may present with life-threatening suture leaks or suture line bleeding. Gastric greater curvature plication (investigational restrictive procedure) can present early complications related to prolonged postoperative vomiting. Both gastric bypass and bilio-pancreatic diversion may cause anastomotic marginal ulcer, bleeding, or rarely perforation and severe stenosis, while small bowel obstruction due to internal hernia represents a surgical emergency, also caused by trocar site hernia, intussusceptions, adhesions, strictures, kinking, or blood clots. Rapid weight loss after bariatric surgery can cause cholecystitis or choledocholithiasis, which are difficult to treat after bypass procedures
Mitomycin C in highly myopic eyes - Author reply
No full textOphthalmology. 2005 Feb;112(2):208-18; discussion 219.
Mitomycin C modulation of corneal wound healing after photorefractive keratectomy in highly myopic eyes.
Gambato C, Ghirlando A, Moretto E, Busato F, Midena E.
SourceRefractive Surgery Service and Antimetabolite Therapy Research Unit, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
Abstract
PURPOSE: To evaluate the role of topical mitomycin C in corneal wound healing (CWH) after photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) in highly myopic eyes.
DESIGN: Prospective, double-masked, randomized clinical trial.
PARTICIPANTS: Seventy-two eyes of 36 patients affected by high (>7 diopters) myopia.
METHODS: In each patient, one eye was randomly assigned to PRK with intraoperative topical 0.02% mitomycin C application, and the fellow eye was treated with a placebo. Postoperatively, mitomycin C-treated eyes received artificial tears (3 times daily, tapered in 3 months), whereas the fellow eye was treated with fluorometholone sodium 2% and artificial tears (3 times daily, tapered in 3 months).
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Uncorrected visual acuity (UCVA) and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), contrast sensitivity, manifest refraction, and biomicroscopy. Contrast sensitivity was determined using the Pelli-Robson chart. Corneal confocal microscopy documented CWH.
RESULTS: Mean follow-up was 18 months (range, 12-36). No side effects or toxic effects were documented. At 12-month follow-up examination, UCVAs (logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution) were 0.4+/-0.48 and 0.5+/-0.53 (P = .03) in mitomycin C-treated eyes and corticosteroid-treated eyes, respectively. At 1 year, corneal haze developed in 20% of corticosteroid-treated eyes, versus 0% of mitomycin C-treated eyes. At 12, 24, and 36 months, corneal confocal microscopy showed activated keratocytes and extracellular matrix significantly more evident in untreated eyes (Ps = 0.004, 0.024, and 0.046, respectively).
CONCLUSION: Topical intraoperative application of 0.02% mitomycin C can reduce haze formation in highly myopic eyes undergoing PRK.
Comment in
Ophthalmology. 2006 Feb;113(2):357; author reply 357-8
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
No full textWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
A Multi-Language Comparison of Influences on Author Verification using Character N-Grams
No full textWe create a new multi-language corpus for author verification based on Wikipedia talkpages, and evaluate the influence that differences in topic and time have on character n-gram author profiles. Topic alignment between two texts is found to increase author verification precision, and an authors writing style is found to change over time, but not more significantly after 3 years than after 1 year.Information ArchitectureWISElectrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Scienc
A 0.12mm<sup>2</sup> Wien-Bridge Temperature Sensor with 0.1°C (3σ) Inaccuracy from -40°C to 180°C
No full text Resistor-based temperature sensors can achieve much higher resolution and energy efficiency than conventional BJT-based sensors [1], but they typically occupy more area (> 0.25 mm 2 ) and have lower operating temperatures (le 125 {circ} {C}) [2]-[4]. This work describes a 0.12mm 2 resistor-based sensor that uses a Wien-bridge (WB) filter to achieve 0.1 {circ} {C} (3 sigma) inaccuracy from - 40 {circ} {C} to 180 {circ} {C}. Compared to a state-of-the-art WB sensor [4], it occupies 6 × less area and achieves comparable relative accuracy over a 76% wider operating range. Session 10.3 Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Electronic InstrumentationMicroelectronic
A ±25A Versatile Shunt-Based Current Sensor with 10kHz Bandwidth and ±0.25% Gain Error from -40°C to 85°C Using 2-Current Calibration
No full textAccurate current sensing is critical in many industrial applications, such as battery management and motor control. Precise shunt-based current sensors have been reported with gain errors of less than 1% over the industrial temperature range (-40°C to 85°C) [1]–[4]. However, since they are intended for coulomb counting, their bandwidth is limited to a few tens of Hz, making them unsuitable for battery impedance or motor-current sensing. This paper presents a current sensor with a wide (10kHz) bandwidth and a tunable temperature compensation scheme (TCS), which allows it to be flexibly used with different types of shunts while maintaining high accuracy. A low-cost room-temperature calibration scheme is proposed to optimize gain flatness over temperature by exploiting the shunt's self-heating at large currents. Over the industrial temperature range and a ±25A current range, it achieves state-of-the-art gain error (±0.25%) with both low-cost PCB and stable metal-alloy shunts.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository 'You share, we take care!' - Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Electronic InstrumentationMicroelectronic
An Article About Albertus C. Van Raalte, Author Unknown, Except for Parts Taken from an Article by Anna C. Post
No full textAn article about Albertus C. Van Raalte, author unknown, except for parts taken from an article by Anna C. Post. The author knew first generation persons in the Holland settlement and therefore, the article has some value.https://digitalcommons.hope.edu/vrp_1890s/1012/thumbnail.jp
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