Diagnostic of early-onset neonatal infection (EONI) remains an emergency. Recent studies underline the potential benefit of using Procalcitonin (PCT) in early diagnosis of bacterial infections in ...neonates. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic value of an umbilical blood cord PCT based algorithm in newborns suspected of EONI. The diagnostic value of the PCT based algorithm was compared to the French one currently in use by analyzing an 18-months database of newborns suspected of EONI in University Hospital of Nantes from March 2011 to September 2012. Among the 2,408 (40.8 %) newborns suspected of infection during this period, 2,366 were included in the study. The incidence of EONI was 3.4‰ (
n
= 20). There was no significant difference between the sensibilities of the PCT based algorithm and the current algorithm (90 %, respectively, 95%CI 76.9–100 versus 85.4–100;
p
= 0.90) and between their specificities (respectively 91.7 % (90.6–92.8) versus 87.4 % (86–88.7);
p
= 0.25). The antibiotic treatment rate would be significantly reduced with the PCT based algorithm 211 i.e. 8.9 % (7.8–10) versus 314 i.e. 13.3 % (11.9–14.7) in the current algorithm;
p
< 0.005 and less biological analysis would be performed 301 i.e. 12.7 % (11.4–14) versus 937 i.e. 39.6 % (37.6–41.6);
p
< 0.005. Blood cord PCT seems to be a new and efficient marker to guide neonatologists taking care of newborns suspected of EONI. The PCT algorithm seems to be a safe alternative in diagnosis of EONI, allowing detection of EONI significantly as well as the current algorithm, without resulting in a substantially higher number of missed infections. These results have to be confirmed by a multicentric validation study.
During summer and fall 2004, the response of a full slice of the ATLAS barrel detector to different particles was studied in controlled beam. One module of the ATLAS liquid argon barrel ...calorimeter—identical to the production modules and read out by the final front-end and back-end electronics—was used for electromagnetic calorimetry. This paper presents and discusses the electron performance of the LAr barrel calorimeter, including linearity, uniformity, and resolution with different amounts of material upstream the calorimeter and energies ranging from 1 to 250
GeV.
We describe the electric circuits (electrodes) which polarize and read out the lead–liquid argon electromagnetic calorimeter for the ATLAS detector. The paper covers design and material choices of ...the circuits as well as their production in industry. We also show how the electrodes integrate into the calorimeter and conclude with results from groups of electrodes making up calorimeter modules.
The construction of the ATLAS electromagnetic calorimeter is finished. The barrel calorimeter is undergoing a cooling test. One end cap is already inserted in its cryostat and awaiting its cooling ...test and the second one will be inserted soon. The key parameters and qualification tests are summarized and the most important test beam results are given.
A study of the decays B0→μ+μ− and B0s→μ+μ− has been performed using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 25 fb−1 of 7 TeV and 8 TeV proton--proton collisions collected with the ATLAS ...detector during the LHC Run 1. For B0, an upper limit on the branching fraction is set at B(B0→μ+μ−)<4.2×10−10 at 95% confidence level. For B0s, the branching fraction B(B0s→μ+μ−)=(0.9+1.1−0.8)×10−9 is measured. The results are consistent with the Standard Model expectation with a p-value of 4.8%, corresponding to 2.0 standard deviations.
The results of a search for charged Higgs bosons are presented. The analysis is based on 4.6/fb of proton-proton collision data at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV collected by the ATLAS experiment at the Large ...Hadron Collider, using top quark pair events with a tau lepton in the final state. The data are consistent with the expected background from Standard Model processes. Assuming that the branching ratio of the charged Higgs boson to a tau lepton and a neutrino is 100%, this leads to upper limits on the branching ratio of top quark decays to a b quark and a charged Higgs boson between 5% and 1% for charged Higgs boson masses ranging from 90 GeV to 160 GeV, respectively. In the context of the mh-max scenario of the MSSM, tan(beta) above 12-26, as well as between 1 and 2-6, can be excluded for charged Higgs boson masses between 90 GeV and 150 GeV.
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