Quality of life and functional capacity in patients after cardiac surgery intensive care unit.

Coronary heart disease and aortic stenosis are prevalent cardiovascular diseases worldwide, leading to morbidity and mortality. Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) have therapeutic benefits, including improved postoperative quality of life (QoL) and enhanced patient functional capacity which are key indicators of cardiac surgery outcome. In this article, we review the latest studies of QoL outcomes and functional capacity in patients who underwent cardiac surgery.

At the Limit of Interfacial Sharpness in Nanowire Axial Heterostructures.

As semiconductor devices approach dimensions at the atomic scale, controlling the compositional grading across heterointerfaces becomes paramount. Particularly in nanowire axial heterostructures, which are promising for a broad spectrum of nanotechnology applications, the achievement of sharp heterointerfaces has been challenging owing to peculiarities of the commonly used vapor-liquid-solid growth mode. Here, the grading of Al across GaAs/AlGaAs/GaAs heterostructures in self-catalyzed nanowires is studied, aiming at finding the limits of the interfacial sharpness for this technologically versatile material system.

The Diagnostic Accuracy of Procalcitonin and Its Combination with Other Biomarkers for Candidemia in Critically Ill Patients.

The aim of this study was to investigate the usefulness of serum procalcitonin (PCT), C-reactive protein (CRP), neutrophil to lymphocyte count ratio (NLR), and their combination, in distinguishing candidemia from bacteremia in intensive care unit (ICU) patients. This is a retrospective study in ICU patients with documented bloodstream infections (BSIs) and with both serum PCT and CRP measurements on the day of the positive blood sample. Illness severity was assessed by sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score on both admission and BSI day.