0000000000738088
AUTHOR
A Parisi
Safety and efficacy of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs to reduce ileus after colorectal surgery
Ileus is common after elective colorectal surgery, and is associated with increased adverse events and prolonged hospital stay. The aim was to assess the role of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) for reducing ileus after surgery.A prospective multicentre cohort study was delivered by an international, student- and trainee-led collaborative group. Adult patients undergoing elective colorectal resection between January and April 2018 were included. The primary outcome was time to gastrointestinal recovery, measured using a composite measure of bowel function and tolerance to oral intake. The impact of NSAIDs was explored using Cox regression analyses, including the results of a c…
Photovoltaic characterization of organic solar cells
In recent years organic solar cells (SCs) have reached power conversion efficiencies above 10% [1]. Organic photovoltaics is indeed an intensively pursued research field because it promises high efficiency and low cost SCs. Organic materials have unique and useful optoelectronic properties, their chemical synthesis can be cheap and easy, and can be deposited in the form of thin films even on flexible plastic substrates by simple deposition techniques such as spinning, ink-jet printing and high vacuum thermal evaporation. Here we report results of the photovoltaic characterization of organic SCs having the donor (D)/acceptor (A) heterojunction structure [2]. The SCs, fabricated by vacuum the…
Safety of hospital discharge before return of bowel function after elective colorectal surgery
Ileus is common after colorectal surgery and is associated with an increased risk of postoperative complications. Identifying features of normal bowel recovery and the appropriateness for hospital discharge is challenging. This study explored the safety of hospital discharge before the return of bowel function.A prospective, multicentre cohort study was undertaken across an international collaborative network. Adult patients undergoing elective colorectal resection between January and April 2018 were included. The main outcome of interest was readmission to hospital within 30 days of surgery. The impact of discharge timing according to the return of bowel function was explored using multiva…
Measurements of cardiac Pre-Ejection period using a combo PPG-ECG system
The extraction of biomedical parameters, for early disease detection, is assuming today an ever increasing and fundamental importance. In particular, in the cardiologic field, the preejection period (PEP) is the duration of the iso-volumetric left ventricle contraction until the aortic valve opening. This parameter is a non-constant additive delay, which rapidly changes in response to stress, emotion and physical effort. To estimate this period, several wearable electronics devices have been developed in literature, and among them the Impedance Cardiogram equipment is the most used. However, these systems are often expensive and bulky. In this paper, we propose a cost-effective and easy to …
Exome sequencing of a family with lone, autosomal dominant atrial flutter identifies a rare variation in ABCB4 significantly enriched in cases
Background Lone atrial flutter (AFL) and atrial fibrillation (AF) are common and sometimes consequential cardiac conduction disorders with a strong heritability, as underlined by recent genome-wide association studies that identified genetic modifiers. Follow-up family-based genetic analysis also identified Mendelian transmission of disease alleles. Three affected members were exome-sequenced for the identification of potential causative mutations, which were subsequently validated by direct sequencing in the other 3 affected members. Taqman assay was then used to confirm the role of any mutation in an independent population of sporadic lone AFL/AF cases. Results The family cluster analysis…
Evaluation of appendicitis risk prediction models in adults with suspected appendicitis.
Background Appendicitis is the most common general surgical emergency worldwide, but its diagnosis remains challenging. The aim of this study was to determine whether existing risk prediction models can reliably identify patients presenting to hospital in the UK with acute right iliac fossa (RIF) pain who are at low risk of appendicitis. Methods A systematic search was completed to identify all existing appendicitis risk prediction models. Models were validated using UK data from an international prospective cohort study that captured consecutive patients aged 16–45 years presenting to hospital with acute RIF in March to June 2017. The main outcome was best achievable model specificity (pro…