1,721,063 research outputs found
La Tecnologia. Struttura economica e produttività
No full textIl capitolo indaga l'evoluzione della struttura produttiva in 24 paesi del mediterraneo dal 1980 al 2010 e valuta come il cambiamento strutturale è associato a variazioni della produttività nei diversi paesi e settori.The chapter offers and inquiry into the evolution of the economic structure of 24 Mediterranean countries from 1980 to 2010 and examines how structural change is associated to productivity growth in different sectors and countries
Evaluation of mean platelet volume with four hematological analyzers: harmonization is still an unresolved issue.
No full textThe clinical applications of mean platelet volume (MPV) have recently broadened far beyond the differential diagnosis of platelet (PLT) disorders to embrace diagnosis and prognostication of a variety of thrombotic conditions. As the potential usefulness of this simple and inexpensive parameter may be challenged by instrument heterogeneity, we investigated the degree of analytical quality and interinstrument comparability. One hundred consecutive inpatient samples were simultaneously assessed on Abbott Sapphire, Mindray BC6800, Siemens Advia 2120, and Sysmex XE5000. The within-run imprecision of the four hematological analyzers was also assessed according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute document EP5-A2. The imprecision of PLT count ranged between 1.4 and 4.3%, and hence was always within the desirable quality specifications. The within-run imprecision of MPV ranged between 1.1 and 3.8%, and hence was also within the desirable quality specifications. The optical and impedance measurements displayed excellent correlations. Overall, the PLT count exhibited a modest instrumental variation, with bias always within the desirable quality specifications. A large bias was instead recorded for MPV, with between-instrument variations exceeding the desirable quality specifications in five out of six interinstrumental comparisons. No significant correlation was also observed between PLT count and MPV with any of the instruments tested. These results attest that although there is an optimal degree of analytical quality and comparability for PLT counting among different hemocytometers, the harmonization of MPV is poor, thus making the adoption of universal cutoffs virtually impossible
Anemia and anysocytosis in the emergency department: a cross-sectional investigation.
No full textAnemia is a public healthcare problem, which is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Some studies assessed the frequency of anemia in pediatric emergency departments (EDs), but no such information is available in adult patients admitted to the ED. The study population consisted of adult patients admitted to the ED of the Academic Hospital of Parma during the year 2010 with the five most frequent acute pathologies (i.e., acute myocardial infarction, AMI), renal colics, pneumonia, pancreatitis and major trauma). Hospital records were extracted from informatics database according to ICD-9 code and related terms. Routine hematological testing was performed on the entire population with identical instrumentation. The study population consisted of 462 ED patients (cases; 262 renal colics, 62 pneumonia, 51 acute pancreatitis, 46 AMI and 41 major trauma) and 429 healthy blood donors (controls). The median hemoglobin value was significantly lower in all patients than in controls (137 versus 151 g/L; p<0.01), whereas the median RDW value was significantly higher (13.7 versus 13.4%; p<0.01). The frequency of anemia and anysocytosis was higher in patients than in controls (anemia: 23 versus 4%, p<0.01; anysocytosis: 25 versus 16%; p=0.03). Hemoglobin values of all subclassesof patients were significantly lower than those of the controls, while those of RDW were significantly increased in patients with AMI, pancreatitis and pneumonia. We found a high prevalence of anemia and anysocytosis in a population of ED patients, whose identification may be vital for appropriate therapy and subsequent management
Lack of harmonization of red blood cell distribution width (RDW). Evaluation of four hematological analyzers.
No full textOBJECTIVES: To assess analytical imprecision and comparability of red blood cell distribution width (RDW) on Abbott Sapphire, Mindray BC6800, Siemens Advia 2120 and Sysmex XE-5000.
DESIGN AND METHODS: Within-run imprecision was assessed on three pools and comparability using 132 inpatient samples.
RESULTS: The imprecision of RDW was comprised between 0.3 and 1.2%, but the values exhibited broad variation among different analyzers, with bias exceeding the desirable quality specifications.
CONCLUSIONS: Harmonization of RDW is still an unmet need
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe 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
What Do Hemolyzed Whole-Blood Specimens Look Like? Analysis with a CellaVision DM96 Automated Image Analysis System.
No full textWe planned an original study to investigate the morphological changes caused by spurious hemolysis of whole-blood samples, analyzed using an automated image analysis system. Seven whole-blood specimens anticoagulated with EDTA were pooled and divided in two aliquots. The former was left untreated, whereas the latter was subjected to mechanical hemolysis by forced aspiration with an insulin syringe. The complete blood cell count was performed on a Sysmex XE-2100, and the aliquots were then processed with CellaVision DM96. In spuriously hemolyzed samples, the main findings included a rarefaction of erythrocytes, the presence of a remarkable number of cellular debris, a greater degree of microcytosis and anisocytosis, the appearance of band neutrophils, a shift of values between lymphocytes and monocytes, and an increase in smudge cells, artifacts, and large platelets. The results of this study demonstrate for the first time that blood cell morphology may be consistently biased in spuriously hemolyzed whole blood and that the use of an automated image analysis system such as the CellaVision DM96 may be a suitable approach to identify spurious hemolysis in whole-blood specimens
Identification of spurious hemolysis in anticoagulated blood with Sysmex XE-2100 and Siemens Advia 2120.
No full textBackground: Various degrees of hemolysis might occur during collection, processing and storage of blood bags or blood tubes for hematological testing. In both circumstances, the identification of hemolysis is challenging since the centrifugation process is not required. The aim of this study was to identify simple hematological parameters that would help identify the presence of hemolysis in anticoagulated blood. Methods: Twenty tubes containing K 2EDTA anticoagulated blood were randomly selected from outpatient samples and divided in two aliquots. The former was immediately analyzed, whereas the latter was subjected to mechanical hemolysis by aspirating whole blood two times through a very fine needle to generate mechanical hemolysis. Both aliquots were tested on Advia 2120 and Sysmex XE-2100. Results: The double aspiration of the blood through the fine needle caused a remarkable hemolysis with significant decrease of red blood cell (RBC) count (-17 ±11%; p<0.01), hematocrit (-18 ±12%; p<0.01) and reticulocytes (-24 ±13%; p<0.01), but not of hemoglobin, white blood cell or platelet counts. A remarkable increase of immature platelet fraction (IPF) on XE-2100 and RBC ghosts on Advia 2120 was observed in the hemolyzed samples, whereas RBC fragments did not vary significantly. A significant correlation was also observed between hemolysis and reticulocyte count (r = 0.823; p<0.01), IPF (r = -0.502, p = 0.024) and RBC ghosts (r = -0.711; p<0.01). Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis demonstrated a good performance of both IPF and RBC ghosts (i.e., AUCs 0.91 and 0.96, respectively) for distinguishing non-hemolyzed from hemolyzed specimens. Conclusions: The absolute values of both IPF and RBC ghosts perform efficiently for distinguishing hemolyzed from non-hemolyzed specimens, although neither reached 100% sensitivity and specificity. Nevertheless, the demonstration that both parameters significantly increase after hemolysis can be reliably used to distinguish hemolyzed from non-hemolyzed blood
Influence of in vitro hemolysis on nucleated red blood cells and reticulocyte counts.
No full textINTRODUCTION: Nucleated red blood cells (NRBCs) and reticulocytes are early and important measures of red blood cells' (RBCs) turnover, but little is known on how spurious hemolysis may affect the reliability of these parameters.MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ten EDTA-anticoagulated samples were divided into three aliquots. The first was immediately tested, where;?>as the others (defined A and B) were mechanically hemolyzed by aspiration 5 and 10 times through a small-gauge needle. RBC, NRBC, and reticulocyte counts were performed on Sysmex XE-2100.RESULTS: An increasing amount of hemolysis was produced in hemolyzed aliquots A and B. The RBC and reticulocyte counts progressively decreased from the nonhemolyzed sample to hemolyzed aliquots 'A' and 'B'. The NRBC count increased in 3 of the 10 samples and decreased in the remaining seven.CONCLUSIONS: Hemolysis of venous blood samples may seriously jeopardize NRBC and reticulocyte counts
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