Improvement of Early Outcomes in Type A Acute Aortic Syndrome After an Aorta Code Implementation.

Background: Reduction of variability through process reengineering can improve surgical results for patients with type A acute aortic syndrome. We compare short-term results before and after implementation of an Aorta Code for patients with type A acute aortic syndrome who underwent surgery.

Methods: The Aorta Code was implemented in a 5-hospital healthcare network in 2019.

Inappropriate sinus tachycardia in post-COVID-19 syndrome.

Inappropriate sinus tachycardia (IST) is a common observation in patients with post-COVID-19 syndrome (PCS) but has not yet been fully described to date. To investigate the prevalence and the mechanisms underlying IST in a prospective population of PCS patients. Consecutive patients admitted to the PCS Unit between June and December 2020 with a resting sinus rhythm rate ≥ 100 bpm were prospectively enrolled in this study and further examined by an orthostatic test, 2D echocardiography, 24-h ECG monitoring (heart rate variability was a surrogate for cardiac autonomic activity), quality-of-life and exercise capacity testing, and blood sampling.

Effect of high low dose of dexamethasone on clinical worsening in patients hospitalised with moderate or severe COVID-19 pneumonia: an open-label, randomised clinical trial.

Background: Low-dose dexamethasone demonstrated clinical improvement in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) needing oxygen therapy; however, evidence on the efficacy of high-dose dexamethasone is limited.

Methods: We performed a randomised, open-label, controlled trial involving hospitalised patients with confirmed COVID-19 pneumonia needing oxygen therapy. Patients were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive low-dose dexamethasone (6 mg once daily for 10 days) or high-dose dexamethasone (20 mg once daily for 5 days, followed by 10 mg once daily for an additional 5 days).

A case-control analysis of stroke in COVID-19 patients: Results of unusual manifestations of COVID-19-study 11.

Objective: We investigated the incidence, predictor variables, clinical characteristics, and stroke outcomes in patients with COVID-19 seen in emergency departments (EDs) before hospitalization.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed all COVID-19 patients diagnosed with stroke during the COVID-19 outbreak in 62 Spanish EDs. We formed two control groups: COVID-19 patients without stroke (control A) and non-COVID-19 patients with stroke (control B).

A case-control emergency department-based analysis of acute pancreatitis in Covid-19: Results of the UMC-19-S.

Background/purpose: We investigated the incidence, risk factors, clinical characteristics and outcomes of acute pancreatitis (AP) in patients with COVID-19 attending the emergency department (ED), before hospitalization.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed all COVID patients diagnosed with AP in 62 Spanish EDs (20% of Spanish EDs, COVID-AP) during the COVID outbreak. We formed two control groups: COVID patients without AP (COVID-non-AP) and non-COVID patients with AP (non-COVID-AP).

Advantages and limitations of 18-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography in the diagnosis of infective endocarditis.

Introduction: The early diagnosis of infective endocarditis (IE) is a medical challenge and a multidisciplinary approach is essential to improve its frequently fatal prognosis. Our goal was to evaluate the usefulness of [F]2-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose positron emission tomography (F-FDG PET) in the diagnosis of this disease.

Materials And Methods: We prospectively assessed 43 patients (five female and 38 male) with clinical suspicion of IE between 2014 and 2017.

Sleeve Gastrectomy Outcomes in Patients with BMI Between 30 and 35-3 Years of Follow-Up.

Introduction And Purpose: Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) in patients with a BMI between 30 and 35 kg/m plus comorbidities has shown to be safe and effective. The purpose of this study is to describe our outcomes in this group of patients after 3 years of follow-up.

Materials And Methods: Retrospective descriptive analysis of patients with initial BMI between 30 and 35 kg/m plus comorbidities were submitted to LSG between 2006 and 2013.

Microalgae as a safe food source for animals: nutritional characteristics of the acidophilic microalga .

Background: Edible microalgae are marine or fresh water mesophilic species. Although the harvesting of microalgae offers an abundance of opportunities to the food and pharmaceutical industries, the possibility to use extremophilic microalgae as a food source for animals is not well-documented.

Objective: We studied the effects of dietary supplementation of a powdered form of the acidophilic microalga on growth and health parameters of laboratory rats.

Dried human amniotic membrane as an antiadherent layer for intraperitoneal placing of polypropylene mesh in rats.

Background: Intraabdominal peritoneal onlay polypropylene (PP) mesh repair of incisional hernia has the potential risk of adhesions, bowel obstructions, and intestinal fistulae. Fresh or cryopreserved human amniotic membrane (HAM) has been tested as an antiadherent layer in animals, with excellent outcomes. However, it has disadvantages: it is difficult to handle, and it is expensive to store.

Study of antiviral and virucidal activities of aqueous extract of Baccharis articulata against Herpes suis virus.

Baccharis articulata is native of América and traditionally used for the treatment of digestive disorders and urinary infections. Cytotoxicity of aqueous extracts of B. articulata was investigated in Vero cells.

[Enlarged vestibular aqueduct syndrome. A review of 55 paediatric patients].

Introduction: Enlarged vestibular aqueduct (EVA) is the commonest congenital anomaly found with imaging techniques in paediatric sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). Our aim was to describe clinical and audiological findings in paediatric hearing loss associated to EVA.

Methods: Retrospective review of 55 children with imaging-technique EVA findings from 2000 to 2009.

[Clinical observations on propranolol use for paediatric airway hemangiomas].

Treatment of subglottic hemangiomas in children has traditionally been characterized as a challenging situation with multiple therapeutic options without consensus as to which one is the best and with risks of severe side effects. Recent reports on the experience of propranolol use in the treatment of paediatric airway hemangiomas suggest favourable reasons for this use due to the rapid improvement and its lack of severe side effects. In this paper we report the experience with 6 children having symptomatic airway hemangiomas treated with propranolol.

Reports of clinical benefit of plitidepsin (Aplidine), a new marine-derived anticancer agent, in patients with advanced medullary thyroid carcinoma.

Objectives: To assess clinical benefit of plitidepsin (Aplidine) in patients with advanced medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC).

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively reported the outcome of 10 patients with advanced MTC among 215 patients who have entered the phase I program with plitidepsin.

Results: Median number of cycles was 5.

Association of metabolic syndrome and blood pressure nondipping profile in untreated hypertension.

Background: There is a marked association between metabolic syndrome (MS) and increased cardiovascular risk. Moreover, nondipping (patients with <10% decline in the asleep relative to the awake blood pressure (BP) mean) has also been associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.

Methods: We investigated the association between MS and impaired nocturnal BP decline in 1,770 nondiabetic, untreated hypertensive patients (824 men and 946 women), 48.

Comparison of the effects on ambulatory blood pressure of awakening versus bedtime administration of torasemide in essential hypertension.

Torasemide is a high-ceiling loop diuretic frequently used in the treatment of congestive heart failure, renal failure, and hypertension. Low doses of torasemide (2.5 to 5 mg/day) do not elevate 24 h natriuresis, and they constitute effective monotherapy for mild-to-moderate uncomplicated essential hypertension according to results based on clinic blood pressure (BP).

Design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of phosphoramide derivatives as urease inhibitors.

The design, synthesis, and biological evaluation of phosphoramide derivatives as urease inhibitors to reduce the loss of ammonia has been carried out. Forty phosphorus derivatives were synthesized and their inhibitory activities evaluated against that of jack bean urease. In addition, in vivo assays have been carried out.

Cardiac contusion following blunt chest trauma.

Cardiac contusion following blunt chest trauma is not rare, and the works in the literature report incidence rates between 5 and 50%. Traffic accidents are the most frequent cause of cardiac contusion followed by violent fall impacts, aggressions and the practice of risky sports. The spectrum of post-traumatic cardiac lesions varies greatly, ranging from no symptoms to decrease in cardiac function.

[Legionnaires' disease and HIV infection: an opportunistic infection?].

Background And Objective: Legionella infections are not frequent in HIV-infected patients, although clinical manifestations and outcome are particularly severe in this subset. This manuscript analyzes the clinical features and immunological situation of HIV-infected patients with Legionnaires' disease (LD).

Patients And Method: The clinical files of HIV-infected patients diagnosed with LD from 1983 to December 2003 were reviewed.

Administration-time-dependent effects of doxazosin GITS on ambulatory blood pressure of hypertensive subjects.

Previous studies have shown that a single nighttime dose of standard doxazosin, an alpha-adrenergic antagonist, reduces blood pressure (BP) throughout the 24 h. We investigated the administration-time-dependent effects of the new doxazosin gastrointestinal therapeutic system (GITS) formulation. We studied 91 subjects (49 men and 42 women), 56.

Gastric rupture from blunt abdominal trauma.

Gastric rupture following blunt abdominal trauma is rare, with a reported incidence of 0.02-1.7%.

Risk factors of invasive aspergillosis after heart transplantation: protective role of oral itraconazole prophylaxis.

The study was designed to identify a subset of heart transplant (HT) recipients who could benefit from the administration of targeted antifungal prophylaxis and to evaluate the efficacy of oral itraconazole as the preventive drug. We have analyzed the risk factors for invasive aspergillosis (IA) in our entire population of HT recipients (1988-2002) and also the role of oral itraconazole prophylaxis that was provided to all patients since 1995 [400 mg q.d.

The 'ABPM effect' gradually decreases but does not disappear in successive sessions of ambulatory monitoring.

Objectives: Previous results have indicated that ambulatory monitoring provides a pressor effect on patients using the device for the first time, but not on successive sessions of monitoring. Our objective was to validate and quantify the extent and duration of this pressor effect in hypertensive patients repeatedly evaluated every few months.

Methods: We studied 823 mild-to-moderate hypertensive subjects (347 men), 53.

Seasonal variation of fibrinogen in dipper and nondipper hypertensive patients.

Background: A seasonal variation with higher values in winter has been previously reported in plasma fibrinogen, a recognized marker of the potential risk of myocardial infarction and stroke. The lack of nocturnal decline in blood pressure has also been associated with an increase in cardiovascular events. Accordingly, we have compared the yearly variation of plasma fibrinogen in dipper and nondipper hypertensive patients.