Multiple Ion Charge Extraction (MICE) for High-Throughput Charge Detection Mass Spectrometry.

Charge detection mass spectrometry (CD-MS) is a single-particle technique, where the masses of individual ions are determined from simultaneous measurements of their mass-to-charge ratio (/) and charge. The ions are trapped in an electrostatic linear ion trap (ELIT) and oscillate back and forth through a conducting cylinder connected to a charge-sensitive amplifier. The oscillating ions generate a periodic signal that is processed with fast Fourier transforms (FFTs) to obtain the oscillation frequency (which is related to /) and magnitude (which is proportional to the charge).

Severe pulmonary hypertension-interstitial lung disease presenting as right ventricular failure: stabilisation with intravenous prostacyclin and maintenance with inhaled prostacyclin.

Background: Pulmonary hypertension (PH) leads to increased morbidity and mortality in interstitial lung disease (ILD). While the INCREASE trial highlighted the use of inhaled prostacyclin in PH-ILD patients, such therapy may be inadequate when right ventricular failure (RVF) is also present. In this study, we report the use of intravenous prostacyclin in three PH-ILD patients to stabilise right ventricular (RV) function, with a subsequent transition to maintenance therapy with inhaled prostacyclin.

Should Virtual Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) Teaching Replace or Complement Face-to-Face Teaching in the Post-COVID-19 Educational Environment: An Evaluation of an Innovative National COVID-19 Teaching Programme.

Background The COVID-19 pandemic brought about drastic changes to medical education and examinations, with a shift to online lectures and webinars. Additionally, social restrictions in the United Kingdom (UK) inhibited students' ability to practice for objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) with their peers. Methods The Virtual OSCE buddy scheme (VOBS) provided a means to practice OSCE skills virtually by linking groups of 2-6 final-year medical students with a junior doctor who had recently passed their exams.

Assessing the optimal MAP target in pre-capillary PH patients with RV failure: A retrospective analysis.

Right ventricular failure (RVF) in pre-capillary pulmonary hypertension (PH) is associated with high morbidity and mortality. While mean arterial pressure (MAP) goals have been well established in critical care literature, the optimal MAP target for patients with RVF secondary to pre-capillary PH remains unknown. The objective of this study was to evaluate the difference in outcomes between patients who were managed with different MAP targets.

The PH-ILD Detection tool: External validation and use in patients with ILD.

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) results in increased morbidity and mortality in patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD). Early recognition of PH in this population is essential for planning diagnostic testing, initiating therapy, and evaluating for lung transplantation. The previously developed PH-ILD Detection tool has significant potential in the evaluation and treatment of ILD patients; the aim of this study was to validate the tool in an independent, multicenter cohort of patients.

Pulmonary hypertension in patients with interstitial lung disease: a tool for early detection.

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) complicates the treatment of interstitial lung disease (ILD) patients resulting in poor functional status and worse outcomes. Early recognition of PH in ILD is important for initiating therapy and considering lung transplantation. However, no standard exists regarding which patients to screen for PH-ILD or the optimal method to do so.

Epoprostenol-associated ascites in pulmonary arterial hypertension.

The development of ascites in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in the absence of pre-existing hepatic dysfunction is usually associated with decompensated right heart failure or cardiac cirrhosis. Ascites in PAH has rarely been associated with intravenous epoprostenol, a synthetic form of the prostaglandin PGI.

COVID-19: A Curious Abettor in the Occurrence of Stevens-Johnson Syndrome.

Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (SJS) and Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN) are immune-mediated life-threatening skin diseases. The condition is known to be caused by various infections, drugs (mainly antibiotics), or can be idiopathic. Amidst the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, there is an increasing number of SJS/TEN cases being reported.

Exploring Machine Teaching with Children.

Iteratively building and testing machine learning models can help children develop creativity, flexibility, and comfort with machine learning and artificial intelligence. We explore how children use machine teaching interfaces with a team of 14 children (aged 7-13 years) and adult co-designers. Children trained image classifiers and tested each other's models for robustness.

Predictors to forgo resuscitative effort during Covid-19 critical illness at the height of the pandemic : A retrospective cohort study.

Background: Early in the Covid-19 pandemic, there was uncertainty regarding critical illness prognosis and challenges to traditional face-to-face family meetings. Ethnic minority populations have suffered disproportionately worse outcomes during the pandemic, which may in part relate to differences in end-of-life decision-making.

Aim: Characterize patterns of and factors associated with decisions to forgo resuscitative efforts, as measured by do-not-resuscitate orders, during critical illness with Covid-19.

Assessing the Respiratory Effects of Air Pollution from Biomass Cookstoves on Pregnant Women in Rural India.

Background: In India, biomass fuel is burned in many homes under inefficient conditions, leading to a complex milieu of particulate matter and environmental toxins known as household air pollution (HAP). Pregnant women are particularly vulnerable as they and their fetus may suffer from adverse consequences of HAP. Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) is a noninvasive, underutilized tool that can serve as a surrogate for airway inflammation.

E-cigarette, or vaping, product use-associated lung injury: a review.

Background: E-cigarette, or Vaping, Product Use-Associated Lung Injury (EVALI) is a disease entity related to the use of battery-operated or superheating devices that create an aerosolized form of nicotine and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and/or other substances for inhalation.

Methods: We performed a literature review to document epidemiology, pathogenesis and risk factors, diagnosis, clinical presentation, evaluation and management of EVALI.

Results: In the summer of 2019, an outbreak of EVALI cases brought this disease entity into the national spotlight.

Use of ultrasound-measured internal jugular vein collapsibility index to determine static intracardiac pressures in patients with presumed pulmonary hypertension.

Background: Bedside ultrasound helps to estimate volume status in critically ill patients and has traditionally relied on diameter, respiratory variation, and collapsibility of the inferior vena cava (IVC) to reflect fluid status. We evaluated collapsibility of the internal jugular vein (IJ) with ultrasound and correlated it with concomitant right heart catheterization (RHC) measurements in patients with presumed pulmonary hypertension.

Methods And Results: We studied 71 patients undergoing RHC for evaluation of pulmonary hypertension.

Barriers to frostbite treatment at an academic medical center.

The treatment of frostbite injuries has undergone a radical change over the past decade with a shift from supportive therapy and observation towards early and aggressive medical intervention with thrombolytics and vasodilators. Institutions that have implemented evidence-based protocols have significantly decreased their amputation rates (Bruen et al., 2007; Lindford et al.

Increased mortality from complications of pulmonary hypertension in patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve replacement.

Aortic stenosis (AS) leads to pulmonary hypertension (PH) and right ventricle (RV) failure. Our goal was to describe mortality related to postoperative complications in PH patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). Ninety-three TAVR patients were analyzed (controls, sPAP < 50 mmHg; cases, sPAP ≥ 50 mmHg).

COPD exacerbation care bundle improves standard of care, length of stay, and readmission rates.

Introduction: COPD is the third leading cause of death in the world. Utilizing care bundles during acute COPD exacerbations results in fewer complications and lower costs. Our aim was to construct a COPD exacerbation care bundle and evaluate the effects on patient care.

Angina pectoris: current therapy and future treatment options.

Angina pectoris is the consequence of an inequality between the demand and supply of blood to the heart. Angina manifests itself as chest pain or discomfort and is a common complaint of patients in the hospital and in the clinic. There are, in fact, roughly half a million new cases of angina per year.

A review of current therapies used in the treatment of congestive heart failure.

Congestive heart failure is the leading cause of hospitalizations for patients older than 65 years. There are almost 700,000 new cases of heart failure annually and re-hospitalization rates are as high as 50% within the first few months of initial discharge. These statistics translate to healthcare costs that nearly reached US$40 billion in 2010.