Preoperative and mid-term right ventricular systolic function assessment, at rest and during exercise, with speckle-tracking echocardiography after left ventricular assist device implantation.

Objectives: The study aimed to compare pre- and postoperative resting as well as postprocedural resting and exertional right ventricular speckle-tracking echocardiographic parameters at a mid-term follow-up after left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation.

Methods: Patients with implanted third-generation LVADs with hydrodynamic bearings were prospectively enrolled (NCT05063006). Myocardial deformation was evaluated before pump implantation and at least three months after the procedure, both at rest and during exercise.

Echo-guided left ventricular assist device speed optimisation for exercise maximisation.

Objective: Current generation left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) operate with a fixed rotation speed and no automated speed adjustment function. This study evaluates the concept of physiological pump speed optimisation based on aortic valve opening (AVO) imaging during a cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET).

Methods: This prospective crossover study (NCT05063006) enrolled patients with implanted third-generation LVADs with hydrodynamic bearing.

Colour-Based Binary Discrimination of Scarified Quercus robur Acorns under Varying Illumination.

Efforts to predict the germination ability of acorns using their shape, length, diameter and density are reported in the literature. These methods, however, are not efficient enough. As such, a visual assessment of the viability of seeds based on the appearance of cross-sections of seeds following their scarification is used.

An automated method for fibrin clot permeability assessment.

The fibrin clot permeability coefficient (Ks) is a useful measure of porosity of the fibrin network, which is determined by a number of genetic and environmental factors. Currently available methods to evaluate Ks are time-consuming, require constant supervision and provide only one parameter. We present an automated method in which drops are weighed individually, buffer is dosed by the pump and well defined clot washing is controlled by the software.