Basiliximab vs. No Induction Therapy in Kidney Transplant Recipients with a Low Immunological Risk Profile Receiving Tacrolimus/Mycophenolate/Steroids Maintenance Immunosuppression.

: Induction therapy with basiliximab is recommended in kidney transplant (KT) recipients with a low immunological risk (LIR) profile. Whether basiliximab is associated with a decreased risk of acute rejection (AR) and graft loss is controversial. : In our institution, LIR patients (absence of anti-HLA antibodies before KT) are inducted with basiliximab in case of living-donor KT, while deceased-donor KT recipients receive no induction.

Potential for recovery after extremely prolonged VV-ECMO support in well-selected severe COVID-19 patients: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: VenoVenous ExtraCorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (VV-ECMO) has been widely used as supportive therapy for severe respiratory failure related to Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) due to coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19). Only a few data describe the maximum time under VV-ECMO during which pulmonary recovery remains possible. The main objective of this study is to describe the outcomes of prolonged VV-ECMO in patients with COVID-19-related ARDS.

Prevalence and Impact of Atrial Fibrillation on Intra-Hospital Mortality in Patients Aged ≥75 Years.

It is unclear whether the association between atrial fibrillation (AF) and intra-hospital mortality in patients aged 75 years and older is causal or not. This study aims (1) to describe the prevalence and clinical characteristics of AF in ≥75-year-old inpatients and (2) to study the association between AF and length of stay (LOS) and intra-hospital mortality. This retrospective cohort study includes consecutive patients aged ≥75 years admitted between January 2017 and December 2019 to a Belgian secondary hospital.

Association between atrial fibrillation, frailty, and geriatric syndromes in the late elderly in a south Belgian outpatient and inpatient setting.

Study Objective: This study aims to analyze the relationship between AF, frailty, and geriatric syndromes in elderly patients in an outpatient and inpatient setting in a South Belgian hospital.

Participants Design And Setting: This is a single center case-control retrospective study including 207 patients enrolled from an outpatient and inpatient setting of the Department of Geriatrics, Jolimont Hospital Group. Frailty was assessed using a complete geriatric assessment and Rockwoods Clinical Frailty Scale.

Mortality Rate and Predictors Among Patients with COVID-19 Related Acute Respiratory Failure Requiring Mechanical Ventilation: a Retrospective Single Centre Study.

Aim: The objective of the study was to assess mortality rates in COVID-19 patients suffering from acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) who also requiring mechanical ventilation. The predictors of mortality in this cohort were analysed, and the clinical characteristics recorded.

Material And Method: A single centre retrospective study was conducted on all COVID-19 patients admitted to the intensive care unit of the Epicura Hospital Center, Province of Hainaut, Belgium, between March 1st and April 30th 2020.

Pseudo-acute kidney injury after minor trauma: A case report and review of literature.

Acute kidney injury (AKI), a common diagnosis in the emergency department, is defined as a reduction in renal filtration function, with decrease in urine output, increase in serum creatinine, or both. However, a rise in serum creatinine can occur without AKI: the principal cause of a pseudo-AKI is urinary ascites, caused by urinary tract rupture, followed by reverse intraperitoneal dialysis and resorption of creatinine. The intraperitoneal leak of free urine is mainly traumatic, and half of the cases are iatrogenic.

Performance of Different Low-Flow Oxygen Delivery Systems.

Background: The delivery of a high and consistent [Formula: see text] is imperative to treat acute hypoxemia. The objective of this study was to analyze the effective inspired oxygen concentration delivered by different low-flow oxygen therapy systems challenged with different oxygen flows and respiratory patterns in an experimental lung model.

Methods: An adult lung model ventilated in volume control mode simulated different respiratory patterns to obtain mean inspiratory flow of 22.

Exposure to SARS-CoV-2 in Hospital Environment: Working in a COVID-19 Ward Is a Risk Factor for Infection.

Health care workers (HCWs) are at risk of acquiring the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection (SARS-CoV-2). The aim of the study is to determine the SARS-CoV-2 positivity rates during the first epidemiologic peak among HCWs of a south Belgian hospital and to identify risks factors for infection. All hospital staff who worked during the first epidemiological peak were asked to answer a questionnaire regarding demographical data, function, type of working unit, type of contact with patients, eventual symptomatology, and the positivity of reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing or immunoassay.

Epidemiological, otolaryngological, olfactory and gustatory outcomes according to the severity of COVID-19: a study of 2579 patients.

Objective: To investigate prevalence and epidemiological and clinical factors associated with olfactory dysfunction (OD) and gustatory dysfunction (GD) in COVID-19 patients according to the disease severity.

Study Design: Cross-sectional study.

Methods: A total of 2579 patients with a positive diagnosis of COVID-19 were identified between March 22 and June 3, 2020 from 18 European hospitals.

Predictive Accuracy of COVID-19 World Health Organization (WHO) Severity Classification and Comparison with a Bayesian-Method-Based Severity Score (EPI-SCORE).

Assess the predictive accuracy of the WHO COVID-19 severity classification on COVID-19 hospitalized patients. The secondary aim was to compare its predictive power with a new prediction model, named COVID-19 EPI-SCORE, based on a Bayesian network analysis. : We retrospectively analyzed a population of 295 COVID-19 RT-PCR positive patients hospitalized at Epicura Hospital Center, Belgium, admitted between March 1st and April 30th, 2020.

Real world data on non-complex catheter ablations performed on zero fluoroscopy in a secondary centre in the south of Belgium.

Objective: We have designed a study, whose aim was to confirm the feasibility and safety of the zero fluoroscopy approach in the treatment of supraventricular tachycardias (SVT) and premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) originating in the right ventricle in a secondary centre located in the south of Belgium.

Methods: We included in our retrospective analysis patients with a clinical history and/or electrocardiographic documentation of SVT or frequent symptomatic monomorphic PVCs referred to our centre from November 2019 to March 2020 for catheter ablation.

Results: A total of 49 patients were considered eligible for potential enrolment in the study, 3 were excluded because of presence of a manifest left sided atrio-ventricular accessory pathway, 5 because of left ventricular PVCs and 4 because of left atrial tachycardia.

Objective Olfactory Findings in Hospitalized Severe COVID-19 Patients.

Objective: We investigate the prevalence of the self-reported and objective sudden loss of smell (SLS) in patients with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Methods: Severe COVID-19 patients with self-reported SLS were recruited at hospitalization discharge. Epidemiological and clinical data were collected.