In respiratory infections, anemia is both a consequence of acute inflammation and a predictor of poor clinical outcomes. There are few studies investigating the role of anemia in COVID-19, suggesting ...a potential role in predicting disease severity. In this study, we aimed to assess the association between the presence of anemia at admission and incidence of severe disease and death in patients hospitalized for COVID-19. Data from all adult patients admitted for COVID-19 in University Hospital "P. Giaccone" Palermo, and University Hospital of Bari, Italy, were retrospectively collected from 1st of September 2020 to 31 August 2022. The association between anemia (defined as Hb < 13 g/dl and < 12 g/dl in males and females, respectively), in-hospital mortality and severe COVID-19 was tested using a Cox's regression analysis. Severe COVID-19 forms were defined as admission to intensive or sub-intensive care unit or a qSOFAscore ≥ 2 or CURB65scores ≥ 3. p values were calculated using the Student's t test for continuous variables and the Mantel-Haenszel Chi-square test for categorical ones. The association between anemia and the mortality was made using a Cox's regression analysis, adjusted, in two models, for the potential confounders and using a propensity score. Among the 1562 patients included in the analysis, prevalence of anemia was 45.1% (95% CI 43-48%). Patients with anemia were significantly older (p < 0.0001), reported more co-morbidities, and presented higher baseline levels of procalcitonin, CRP, ferritin and IL-6. Overall, the crude incidence of mortality was about four times higher in patients with anemia compared to those without. After adjusting for 17 potential confounders, the presence of anemia significantly increased the risk of death (HR = 2.68; 95% CI: 1.59-4.52) and of risk of severe COVID-19 (OR = 2.31; 95% CI: 1.65-3.24). The propensity score analysis substantially confirmed these analyses. Our study provides evidence that, in patients hospitalized for COVID-19, anemia is both associated with a more pronounced baseline pro-inflammatory profile and higher incidence of in-hospital mortality and severe disease.
Abstract
The Gas Pixel Detector is a gas detector, sensitive to the polarization of X-rays, currently flying onboard the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE)—the first observatory dedicated to ...X-ray polarimetry. It detects X-rays and their polarization by imaging the ionization tracks generated by photoelectrons absorbed in the sensitive volume, and then reconstructing the initial direction of the photoelectrons. The primary ionization charge is multiplied and ultimately collected on a finely pixellated ASIC specifically developed for X-ray polarimetry. The signal of individual pixels is processed independently and gain variations can be substantial, of the order of 20%. Such variations need to be equalized to correctly reconstruct the track shape, and therefore its polarization direction. The method to do such equalization is presented here and is based on the comparison between the mean charge of a pixel with respect to the other pixels for equivalent events. The method is shown to finely equalize the response of the detectors onboard IXPE, allowing a better track reconstruction and energy resolution, and can in principle be applied to any imaging detector based on tracks.
This article is an investigation on the analysis and performance of the passive soft-switching snubber inverter (PSSSI). The efficiency of the power cable and electric motor used in industrial ...electric drive applications is also taken into consideration. As reported in the literature, the PSSSI is used to reduce the overvoltage on the motor side when both voltage source inverters are equipped with high-speed semiconductor devices and a long power cable is used. The PSSSI configuration derives from the conventional two-level inverter by adding a diode-capacitor snubber for each switching power device. Furthermore, an additional circuit is used to recover energy from the snubber capacitors. The three-phase PSSSI is carefully designed taking into account several system parameters, such as the dV/dt, the length of the power cable between the motor and the inverter, the gate resistance of the switches, the dead-time, the snubber capacitors' value, and the switching frequency. Experimental results show a good efficiency performance of the entire electric drive as well as a reduced dV/dt at the electric motor terminals when the PSSSI is used compared to when the two-level three-phase inverter is adopted.
This paper proposes a Design Space Exploration for Edge machine learning through the utilization of the novel MathWorks FPGA Deep Learning Processor IP, featured in the HDL Deep Learning toolbox. ...With the ever-increasing demand for real-time machine learning applications, there is a critical need for efficient and low-latency hardware solutions that can operate at the edge of the network, in close proximity to the data source. The HDL Deep Learning toolbox provides a flexible and customizable platform for deploying deep learning models on FPGAs, enabling effective inference acceleration for embedded IoT applications. In this study, our primary focus lies in investigating the impact of parallel processing elements on the performance and resource utilization of the FPGA-based processor. By analyzing the trade-offs between accuracy, speed, energy efficiency, and hardware resource utilization, we aim to gain valuable insights into making optimal design choices for FPGA-based implementations. Our evaluation is conducted on the AMD-Xilinx ZC706 development board, which serves as the target device for our experiments. We consider all the compatible Convolutional Neural Networks available within the HDL Deep Learning toolbox to comprehensively assess the performances.
Background & Aims In a recent randomized international clinical trial (RCT) in high-risk cirrhotic patients with acute variceal bleeding, the early use of transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic ...shunt (TIPS) was associated with marked and significant reductions in both treatment failure and mortality. The aim of this study was to confirm these results in clinical practice in the same centers of the RCT study. Methods We retrospectively reviewed patients admitted for acute variceal bleeding and high risk of treatment failure (Child C <14 or Child B plus active bleeding), treated with early-TIPS (n = 45) or drugs + endoscopic therapy (ET) (n = 30). Results Patients treated with early-TIPS had a much lower incidence of failure to control bleeding or rebleeding than patients receiving drug + ET (3 vs. 15; p <0.001). The 1-year actuarial probability of remaining free of this composite end point was 93% vs. 53% ( p <0.001). The same was observed in mortality (1-year actuarial survival was 86% vs. 70% respectively; p = 0.056). Actuarial curves of failure to control bleeding + rebleeding and of survival were well within the confidence intervals of those observed in the RCT. Conclusions This study supports the early use of TIPS in patients with cirrhosis and a high-risk variceal bleeding.
In this work hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), removal in aqueous solution by olive stones coated by zero-valent iron and magnetite nanoparticles was investigated. The Cr(VI) removal test results showed ...that the coated biomass adsorption capacity significantly increased (2.54 and 4.11 mg Cr g−1) when compared to the uncoated one (1.48 mg Cr g−1). Optimal removal conditions were reached by fixing the operating parameter values for pH, mass concentration and contact time equal to 3, 2.5 g L−1 and 120 min for the uncoated and equal to 2, 1.5 g L−1 and 120 min for the coated biomasses, respectively. Both Cr(VI) and Cr(III) recovery, after 5 cycles of use, was investigated using different solvents and operative conditions (with and without sonication), showing that remarkable Cr recovery was possible using the more environmentally friendly washing procedure. A possible Cr(VI) removal mechanism will be here proposed and discussed, considering both reduction and adsorption contribution towards Cr(VI) removal in aqueous medium and capable to justify the obtained results.
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•nZVI and nMG were used to modify the surface of olive stones particles.•Coated materials show noticeable Cr(VI) removal capacity at concentration = 1.5 g L−1.•DW + sonication allowed to recover 82% Cr and to preserve adsorbent surface activity.•The Cr(VI) removal mechanism comprised both adsorption and reduction processes.•The adsorbent Cr(VI) removal efficiency decreased of 30% after 5 cycles of reuse.
Visual hallucinations (VH) are commonly found in the course of synucleinopathies like Parkinson's disease and dementia with Lewy bodies. The incidence of VH in these conditions is so high that the ...absence of VH in the course of the disease should raise questions about the diagnosis. VH may take the form of early and simple phenomena or appear with late and complex presentations that include hallucinatory production and delusions. VH are an unmet treatment need. The review analyzes the past and recent hypotheses that are related to the underlying mechanisms of VH and then discusses their pharmacological modulation. Recent models for VH have been centered on the role played by the decoupling of the default mode network (DMN) when is released from the control of the fronto-parietal and salience networks. According to the proposed model, the process results in the perception of priors that are stored in the unconscious memory and the uncontrolled emergence of intrinsic narrative produced by the DMN. This DMN activity is triggered by the altered functioning of the thalamus and involves the dysregulated activity of the brain neurotransmitters. Historically, dopamine has been indicated as a major driver for the production of VH in synucleinopathies. In that context, nigrostriatal dysfunctions have been associated with the VH onset. The efficacy of antipsychotic compounds in VH treatment has further supported the notion of major involvement of dopamine in the production of the hallucinatory phenomena. However, more recent studies and growing evidence are also pointing toward an important role played by serotonergic and cholinergic dysfunctions. In that respect,
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studies have now proved that serotonergic impairment is often an early event in synucleinopathies. The prominent cholinergic impairment in DLB is also well established. Finally, glutamatergic and gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA)ergic modulations and changes in the overall balance between excitatory and inhibitory signaling are also contributing factors. The review provides an extensive overview of the pharmacology of VH and offers an up to date analysis of treatment options.
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