Vaccines for immunological defense against traumatic brain injury.

Unlabelled: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) and subsequent neurodegeneration is partially driven by chronic inflammation both locally and systemically. Yet, current clinical intervention strategies do not mitigate inflammation sequalae necessitating the development of innovative approaches to reduce inflammation and minimize deleterious effects of TBI. Herein, a subcutaneous formulation based on polymer of alpha-ketoglutarate (paKG) delivering glycolytic inhibitor PFK15 (PFKFB3 inhibitor, a rate limiting step in glycolysis), alpha-ketoglutarate (to fuel Krebs cycle) and peptide antigen from myelin proteolipid protein (PLP139-151) was utilized as the prophylactic immunosuppressive formulation in a mouse model of TBI.

Thoracic Epithelioid Hemangioendothelioma: clinical demonstration and therapeutic procedures.

Epithelioid hemangioendotheliomais a low to intermediate grade malignant vascular tumors that can involve any organ. About 60-80%of patients are women, patient ages range 7 to 81 years, with a median age of 38 years. Four cases of thoracic epithelioid hemangioendotheliomas with different clinical presentation and disease progression are reported.

Socioeconomic Deprivation: An Important, Largely Unrecognized Risk Factor in Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease.

Background: Socioeconomic deprivation is associated with higher cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Whether deprivation status should be incorporated in more cardiovascular risk estimation scores remains unclear. This study evaluates how socioeconomic deprivation status affects the performance of 3 primary prevention cardiovascular risk scores.

THE MALIGNANCY OF A BENIGN TUMOR.

A 67-year-old man with fatigue and dyspnea, in NYHA class IV, was admitted to our hospital. His evaluation, physical examination, and other investigations were carried out. An atypical finding was found and he was referred for cardiac surgery.

A DOUBLE DOSE OF AORTIC STENOSIS: AN UNUSUAL CASE.

Supravalvular aortic stenosis is a rare congenital anomaly (less than 0.05% of all congenital heart defects). This aortic root anomaly consists in a narrow aortic lumen immediately above the aortic valve and represents the least common form of left ventricular outflow tract obstruction.

Long-Term Clinical and Hemodynamic Outcomes after Heart Transplantation in Patients Pre-Treated with Sildenafil.

Background: Elevated pulmonary vascular resistance remains a major problem for heart transplant (HT) candidate selection.

Objective: This study sought at assess the effect of pre-HT sildenafil administration in patients with fixed pulmonary hypertension.

Methods: This retrospective, single-center study included 300 consecutive, HT candidates treated between 2003 and 2013, in which 95 patients had fixed PH, and of these, 30 patients were treated with sildenafil and eventually received a transplant, forming Group A.

Quadricuspid aortic valve with a hidden left ostium: Case report and literature review.

Quadricuspid aortic valve (QAV) is a rare congenital condition that frequently progresses to aortic regurgitation with clinical impact in adulthood. Surgical treatment is required in the fifth to sixth decade of life in about one fifth of patients. We describe the case of a 64-year-old woman with regular cardiological follow-up for severe aortic valve regurgitation who had suffered recent clinical and echocardiographic deterioration.

Cardiac allograft vasculopathy: Incidence and predictors in a single-center cohort.

Introduction And Aims: Cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) is one of the most significant complications after orthotopic heart transplantation. We aimed to investigate the incidence and predictors of CAV in a large cohort of orthotopic heart transplantation patients.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis on a prospective cohort of 233 patients who underwent transplantation between November 2003 and May 2014.

Improving the odds of drug development success through human genomics: modelling study.

Lack of efficacy in the intended disease indication is the major cause of clinical phase drug development failure. Explanations could include the poor external validity of pre-clinical (cell, tissue, and animal) models of human disease and the high false discovery rate (FDR) in preclinical science. FDR is related to the proportion of true relationships available for discovery (γ), and the type 1 (false-positive) and type 2 (false negative) error rates of the experiments designed to uncover them.

Primary graft failure after cardiac transplantation: prevalence, prognosis and risk factors.

Objectives: Primary graft failure (PGF) is a common and devastating complication, despite the advances in perioperative treatment. We aim to evaluate the prevalence of PGF and its impact on survival and to explore associated risk factors.

Methods: From November 2003 through December 2015, 290 patients submitted to cardiac transplantation were classified into non-PGF (243; 84%) and PGF (47; 16%) groups.

Coronary Allograft Vasculopathy after Cardiac Transplantation: Prevalence, Prognostic and Risk Factors.

Introduction: Coronary allograft vasculopathy (CAV) is still a serious long-term complication after cardiac transplantation.

Purpose: To evaluate the prevalence of CAV in a single institution, its impact on survival and to explore associated risk factors.

Methods: From November-2003 through June-2016, 316 patients were submitted to cardiac transplantation.

Heart transplantation: Early Results of Two Different Regimes of Immnunosuppression.

Introduction: The management of induction and maintenance immunosuppression therapy after heart transplantation (HT) remains a controversial issue. The dosage and the timing has been a changing target. We aimed at evaluate the incidence of acute cellular rejection (ACR) [≥1R grade], major infection and survival in first year after HT in patients receiving two different induction immunosuppression regimes and with a reduction in intensity of triple maintenance immunosuppression dose.

Heart transplantation for Chagas cardiomyopathy.

Chagas disease is an endemic disease in Latin America that is increasingly found in non-endemic areas all over the world due to the flow of migrants from Central and South America. We present the case of a Brazilian immigrant in Portugal who underwent orthotopic heart transplantation for end-stage Chagas cardiomyopathy. Immunosuppressive therapy included prednisone, mycophenolate mofetil and tacrolimus.

Model-based performance and energy analyses of reverse osmosis to reuse wastewater in a PVC production site.

A pilot-scale reverse osmosis (RO) followed behind a membrane bioreactor (MBR) was developed for the desalination to reuse wastewater in a PVC production site. The solution-diffusion-film model (SDFM) based on the solution-diffusion model (SDM) and the film theory was proposed to describe rejections of electrolyte mixtures in the MBR effluent which consists of dominant ions (Na and Cl) and several trace ions (Ca, Mg, K and SO). The universal global optimisation method was used to estimate the ion permeability coefficients (B) and mass transfer coefficients (K) in SDFM.

Assessing demineralization treatments for PVC effluent reuse in the resin polymerization step.

To reduce fresh water consumption in a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plant, the effluent from a biological treatment must be demineralized to be re-used in the resin polymerization process. Demineralization is a critical process, since the quality and the stability of the PVC resins are highly influenced by the water quality used in the process. The main target values for water parameters are the following: conductivity <10 μScm, TOC < 10 mg L, and Al < 0.

Tranexamic acid in bleeding trauma patients: an exploration of benefits and harms.

Background: The CRASH-2 trial showed that tranexamic acid (TXA) administration reduces mortality in bleeding trauma patients. However, the effect appeared to depend on how soon after injury TXA treatment was started. Treatment within 3 h reduced bleeding deaths whereas treatment after 3 h increased the risk.

Coronary artery bypass surgery without cardioplegia: hospital results in 8515 patients†.

Objectives: Cardioplegic myocardial protection is used in most cardiac surgical procedures. However, other alternatives have proved useful. We analysed the perioperative results in a large series of patients undergoing coronary artery bypass (CABG) using cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and non-cardioplegic methods.

A decade of cardiac transplantation in Coimbra: the value of experience.

Introduction And Objectives: To analyze the experience gained in 10 years of the heart transplantation program of the University Hospital of Coimbra.

Methods: Between November 2003 and December 2013, 258 patients with a mean age of 53.0±12.

Heart Transplantation in Patients Older than 65 Years: Worthwhile or Wastage of Organs?

Background: Patients older than 65 years have traditionally not been considered candidates for heart transplantation. However, recent studies have shown similar survival. We evaluated immediate and medium-term results in patients older than 65 years compared with younger patients.

Results of heart transplantation in the urgent recipient--who should be transplanted?

Objective: To evaluate immediate and long-term results of cardiac transplantation at two different levels of urgency.

Methods: From November 2003 to December 2012, 228 patients underwent cardiac transplantation. Children and patients in cardiogenic shock were excluded from the study.

Gender mismatch between donor and recipient is a factor of morbidity but does not condition survival after cardiac transplantation.

We intended to evaluate the influence of sex mismatch between donor and recipient, which is still under much debate, on survival and comorbidities after cardiac transplantation. From November 2003 to December 2013, a total of 258 patients were transplanted in our center. From these, 200 receptors were male (77.

Outcome after heart transplantation from older donor age: expanding the donor pool.

Objectives: There has been a progressive expansion of heart donor selection criteria, including higher age limit. We analysed the impact of using hearts from older age donors (>50 years).

Methods: Between November 2003 and December 2012, 228 heart transplantations were performed.