65,190 research outputs found
Infections in patients with chronic kidney disease : patterns, outcomes and the role of vitamin D for future prevention
No full textBackground: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is increasingly recognized as a global public health problem. Patients with CKD are at high risk of infections. Frequent episodes of infections with greater use of antibiotics might put this population at risk of infections caused by resistant organisms. Thus, infection issues in patients with CKD could be related to another public health problem - antibiotic resistance.Aim: To investigate the antibiotic resistant patterns of pathogens responsible for infections, ascertain short-term and long-term patient outcomes during and after hospitalizations with infections and explore the role of vitamin D for infection prevention in patients with CKD.Methods: The thesis consists of two observational studies (Paper I & II), one cohort study (Paper III) and one systematic review and meta-analysis (Paper IV). Paper I, II & III explored the association between kidney function (defined as estimated glomerular filtration rate, eGFR) and various outcomes. These outcomes included microbial pattern (Paper I), prevalence of infections with multi-drug resistant organisms (MDROs) in the first positive microbial cultures (Paper I), intensive care unit admission (Paper II), length of hospital stay (Paper II), medical expense (Paper II), and mortality (Paper II & III). These were assessed in patients hospitalized with infections, using electronic medical records from four hospitals from 2012 to 2015 in China. Paper IV obtained data from existing literature to explore the association of infections with vitamin D status or use of vitamin D in patients treated with long-term dialysis.Results: In adult patients hospitalized with infections, the proportion of Gram-negative bacteria decreased while the proportion of Gram-positive bacteria increased across eGFR strata. Compared with the reference eGFR, lower eGFR was associated with: higher odds of infections by MDROs (19% and 41% higher in those with eGFR between 30-59 ml/min/1.73 m2 and eGFR Conclusions: CKD patients hospitalized with infections have a higher risk of infections by MDROs, poorer in-hospital outcomes resulting in higher medical costs and increased risk of cardiovascular mortality in the long-run. Use of vitamin D to achieve high/normal serum levels of 25(OH)-vitamin D might help lowering the risk of infections in maintenance dialysis patients. Further research is needed to investigate the potential role of vitamin D therapy in infection prevention among non-dialysis dependent CKD patients.List of scientific papersI. Guobin Su, Hong Xu, Emilia Riggi, Zhiren He, Liming Lu, Bengt Lindholm, Gaetano Marrone, Zehuai Wen, Xusheng Liu, David W Johnson, Juan Jesus Carrero, Cecilia Stålsby Lundborg. Association of Kidney Function with Infections by Multidrug-Resistant Organisms: An Electronic Medical Record Analysis. Scientific Reports. 2018, 8(1):13372. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-31612-1 II. Guobin Su, Hong Xu, Gaetano Marrone, Bengt Lindholm, Zehuai Wen, Xusheng Liu, Juan Jesus Carrero, Cecilia Stålsby Lundborg. Chronic kidney disease is associated with poorer in-hospital outcomes in patients hospitalized with infections: Electronic record analysis from China. Scientific Reports. 2017, 7(1):11530. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-11861-2 III. Guobin Su, Yanjun Xu, Xiaojun Xu, Hong Xu, Liming Lu, Gaetano Marrone, Bengt Lindholm, Zehuai Wen, Xusheng Liu, David W Johnson, Juan Jesus Carrero, Cecilia Stålsby Lundborg. Association between reduced renal function and cardiovascular mortality in patients hospitalized with infection: A multi-center cohort study. European Journal of Internal Medicine. 2018, 57:32-38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejim.2018.06.017 IV. Guobin Su, Zhuangzhu Liu, Xindong Qin, Hong Xu, Xusheng Liu, Zehuai Wen, Bengt Lindholm, Juan Jesus Carrero, David W Johnson, Nele Brusselaers, Cecilia Stålsby Lundborg. Vitamin D deficiency and treatment versus risk of infection in end-stage renal disease patients under dialysis: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation. 2019, 34(1):146-156. https://doi.org/10.1093/ndt/gfy216 </p
FERMI BUBBLES INFLATED BY WINDS LAUNCHED FROM THE HOT ACCRETION FLOW IN SGR A*
No full textNatural Science Foundation of China [11103061, 11133005, 11121062, 11103059]; National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program) [2014CB845800]; Strategic Priority Research Program "The Emergence of Cosmological Structures" of the Chinese Academy of Sciences [XDB09000000]; China Scholarship Council [[2013] 3009]; NASA through Einstein Postdoctoral Fellowship by the Chandra X-ray Center [PF2-130102]; NASA [NAS8-03060]A pair of giant gamma-ray Bubbles has been revealed by Fermi-LAT. In this paper we investigate their formation mechanism. Observations have indicated that the activity of the supermassive black hole located at the Galactic center, Sgr A*, was much stronger than at the present time. Specifically, one possibility is that while Sgr A* was also in the hot accretion regime, the accretion rate should be 10(3)-10(4) times higher during the past similar to 10(7) yr. On the other hand, recent magnetohydrodynamic numerical simulations of hot accretion flows have unambiguously shown the existence and obtained the properties of strong winds. Based on this knowledge, by performing three-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations, we show in this paper that the Fermi Bubbles could be inflated by winds launched from the "past" hot accretion flow in Sgr A*. In our model, the active phase of Sgr A* is required to last for about 10 million years and it was quenched no more than 0.2 million years ago. The central molecular zone (CMZ) is included and it collimates the wind orientation toward the Galactic poles. Viscosity suppresses the Rayleigh-Taylor and Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities and results in the smoothness of the Bubbles edge. The main observational features of the Bubbles can be well explained. Specifically, the ROSAT X-ray features are interpreted by the shocked interstellar medium and the interaction region between the wind and CMZ gas. The thermal pressure and temperature obtained in our model are consistent with recent Suzaku observations
Energy-Efficient Train Operation: Conclusions and Future Work
No full textThis chapter gives the basic conclusions about energy-efficient train operation covering energy-efficient train driving, energy-efficient train timetabling, regenerative braking, energy storage systems and power supply networks. Future work that will develop energy-efficient train operation further include the interaction of connected driver advisory systems (C-DAS) and automatic train operation (ATO) with railway traffic management systems, cooperative train control in platoons of virtually coupled trains, digital twin technology and particularly its application to power supply systems, and the interaction between the railway network with the electrical power grid and renewable energy generation.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.Transport and Plannin
Relating Research and Teaching: comparing experiences and beliefs
No full textThe relationship between research and teaching has possible benefits and inherent tensions. It is a recurrent topic of discussion by faculty including engineering educators. Exploring a potentially beneficial relationship and is of interest and possible value to engineering faculty, our students, and our stakeholders. Institutions and departments have developed a range of approaches including research-led, research informed, or just plain scholarly. This paper examines the relationship between research and teaching in the undergraduate curriculum. It compares and contrasts evidence of the beliefs and experiences of the engineering faculty and the engineering student. It presents and analyses the result of surveys which gathered qualitative and qualitative data to explore the inter-relationship of research and teaching; in the curriculum; and as it is delivered and experienced in the lab, seminar room and lecture hall. This research builds on existing work developed in a preliminary study which examined ways in which synergies between research and teaching could be achieved, particularly in the ‘hard/applied’ areas of the curriculum. It analyses data from the ‘research-intensive’ and the ‘teaching-intensive’ perspective
Education for Cataloging in Spanish Universities: A Descriptive and Critical Study
No full textObjective: This is a critical descriptive study of the situation of cataloging as an academic discipline within Library and Information Science studies in Spain. Material and methods: The descriptive analysis of the sectional contents of the general and specific guidelines of the degrees of Diplomado (three-year degree) and Licenciado (fiveyear degree) in LIS and the curricular programs of the Spanish university schools or departments. Variables analyzed: The denomination and content descriptors of the course offerings and credit hours. The test-retest method was used, with a qualitative processing of data. Results: General data is given about the studies in LIS: their introduction, the universities that offer them, and the degrees awarded. Cataloging is considered an obligatory core subject matter, and is represented by several courses that present important differences insofar as their denominations, their credits, and their character from one curricular program to the next. The average credit requisite for obligatory courses in cataloging in Spain is 14 (1 credit = 10 class hours), and 19.7 if electives are also considered. At present, this discipline is undergoing a reform that will produce important changes as a result of the adaptation of university studies to the common framework of the European Union
Introduction to Energy-Efficient Train Operation
No full textRailway, as one of the most energy-efficient transport, plays an essential role in improving the world’s energy and environmental sustainability. Statistics about rail share of transport activities and the corresponding energy consumption will demonstrate the energy efficiency of railway and indicate the potential of developing railway transport. Therefore, this chapter will provide an overview of the railway's energy consumption and traffic volume shares. Statistics presented in this chapter show that railway energy consumption decreased in these decades while its transport volume kept stable, and the traffic volume share of the railway is extremely large in urban transport. To achieve the goal of carbon neutralization, the European Union and many countries have conducted research projects on railway energy conservation. The technologies developed in these projects include energy-efficient train driving, integrated timetabling, using regenerative braking energy, etc. A summary of these technologies is also given, along with their potential energy savings, which range from 1 to 25%. This book will analyse and illustrate the whole systems processes of train operation with optimisation solutions. The structure of the following chapters will be presented at the end.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.Transport and Plannin
A Chinese lecturer in an English university: an unfinished journey
No full textThis chapter portraits a learning journey of an academic. The narrative chapter points a way forward to new modes of inter-cultural understanding of learners. The author of this chapter invites the readers to become fellow travellers to gain from his unique learning journeys an understanding of what is common to all learning. The chapter indicates that learning is often transformative, indeterminate and unfinished. The author invites readers to consider following questions: what do they tell us about learning itself? About what it means to be a learner in the first quarter of the 21st Century? What do we learn about the experience of learning
Dietary Phosphorus, Its Sources, and Mortality in Adults on Haemodialysis: The DIET-HD Study
No full textDietary phosphorus restrictions are usually recommended for people on haemodialysis, although its impact on patient-relevant outcomes is uncertain. We aimed to evaluate the association between total phosphorus intake and its sources with mortality in haemodialysis. Phosphorus intake was ascertained within the DIET-HD study in 8110 adults on haemodialysis. Adjusted Cox regression analyses were conducted to evaluate the association between the total and source-specific phosphorus (plant-, animal-, or processed and other sources) with mortality. During a median 3.8 years of follow-up, there were 2953 deaths, 1160 cardiovascular-related. The median phosphorus intake was 1388 mg/day. Every standard deviation (SD) (896 mg/day) increase in total phosphorus was associated with higher all-cause mortality [hazard ratio (HR), 1.16; 95% confidence intervals (CI), 1.06–1.26] and cardiovascular mortality (HR, 1.18; 95% CI, 1.03–1.36). Every SD (17%) increase in the proportion of phosphorus from plant sources was associated with lower all-cause mortality (HR, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.90–0.99). Every SD (9%) increase in the proportion of phosphorus from the processed and other sources was associated with higher all-cause mortality (HR, 1.06; 95% CI, 1.02–1.10). A higher total phosphorus intake was associated with increased all-cause and cardiovascular death. This association is driven largely by the phosphorus intake from processed food. Plant based phosphorus was associated with lower all-cause mortality
Lifestyle interventions for preventing and ameliorating CKD in primary and secondary care
No full textPURPOSE OF REVIEW: Despite the growth in chronic kidney disease (CKD) epidemics, evidence-based lifestyle recommendations for primary prevention of CKD are limited by reliance on observational studies and predominantly pilot clinical trials. RECENT FINDINGS: Emerging data have shown lifestyle modification strategies for primary CKD prevention with the most evidence favoring a healthy dietary pattern (rich in fruit, vegetables, potassium and have a higher plant-based to animal protein ratio), and diet low in sodium, being physically active, avoiding tobacco smoking, moderating alcohol consumption and maintaining a healthy body weight. The way these behavioral interventions can be implemented in practice should consider their synergistic benefit as well as mechanisms to facilitate long-term behavior change. Sustaining long-term behavior change remains a challenge in practice, particularly due to a lack of healthcare resources and behavior relapse. Some suggestions to mitigate this include ensuring adequate time is spent in intervention codesign and planning, utilizing adaptive trial/intervention designs with regular intervention tailoring for intervention dose, intensity, duration, and modality. SUMMARY: A number of modifiable lifestyle behaviors consistently associate with developing CKD in the community. The current evidence base, despite its inherent limitations, may inform both public health recommendations and clinical practice.No Full Tex
El uso del software HistCite para identificar artículos significativos en búsquedas por materias en la Web of Science
No full textHistCiteTM is a large-scale computer tool for mapping science. Its power of visualization combines
the production of historiographs on the basis of the analysis of co-citations of documents, with the
use of bibliometrics specific indicators. The objective of this article is, to present the advantages of
the new bibliometrics configuration of HistCiteTM (2004) when identifying articles to analyze the
histograms that produces HistCiteTM, in terms of cumulative advantage and aging of the citations
to do a comparative study of the results of HistCiteTM, in its indicators of amplitude and recognition.
Also is examined its treatment of the sampling problems, by formalizing the question of
Kendall
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