Advanced Calciphylaxis in a Patient With End-Stage Renal Disease: A Case Report Highlighting Diagnostic and Therapeutic Challenges in Late-Stage Presentation.

Calciphylaxis, also known as calcific uremic arteriolopathy, is a rapidly progressive, rare, and severe condition characterized by vascular calcification and skin necrosis. The pathophysiology involves cutaneous arteriolar calcification followed by subsequent tissue ischemia and infarction, which eventually causes extremely painful skin lesions. The condition is associated with substantial morbidity due to severe pain, non-healing wounds, increased susceptibility to infections, and frequent hospitalizations.

Calyceal Rupture Secondary to Nephrolithiasis: A Case Report Emphasizing Early Diagnosis and Management.

Calyceal rupture, defined as the extravasation of urine from the renal calyces into the perinephric or paranephric spaces, typically results from increased intrapelvic pressure due to urinary tract obstruction. This condition can lead to the formation of a perinephric urinoma and severe complications, such as infection, abscess formation, and impaired renal function. Timely diagnosis and management are crucial to prevent these adverse outcomes.

Severe Pneumatosis Intestinalis and Hepatic Portal Venous Gas in a Patient With Methamphetamine Use: Early Recognition and Management.

Pneumatosis intestinalis (PI) and hepatic portal venous gas (HPVG) are rare but potentially life-threatening conditions characterized by the presence of gas within the bowel wall and portal venous system, respectively. This case report presents a 45-year-old male with a history of methamphetamine use who developed severe metabolic and hemodynamic instability, marked by altered mental status, metabolic acidosis, and ST elevations. Despite aggressive resuscitation and intensive care, the patient unfortunately succumbed to his condition, highlighting the gravity of these complications.

Complexities of Contact Potential Difference Measurements on Metal Halide Perovskite Surfaces.

Understanding the stability of metal halide perovskite (MHP) surfaces is of considerable interest for the development of devices based on these materials. We present here a vacuum-based study of the surface potential and response to illumination of two different types of perovskite films, methylammonium lead bromide (MAPbBr) and the 2D Ruddlesden-Popper phase butylammonium lead iodide (BAPbI, n = 1), using Kelvin probe-based contact potential difference and surface photovoltage measurements. We show that supraband gap light irradiation can induce the loss of halide species, which adsorb on the Kelvin probe tip, inducing quasi-irreversible changes of the MHP surface and tip work functions.

Mixed-Halide Perovskites with Stabilized Bandgaps.

One merit of organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites is their tunable bandgap by adjusting the halide stoichiometry, an aspect critical to their application in tandem solar cells, wavelength-tunable light emitting diodes (LEDs), and lasers. However, the phase separation of mixed-halide perovskites caused by light or applied bias results in undesirable recombination at iodide-rich domains, meaning open-circuit voltage (V) pinning in solar cells and infrared emission in LEDs. Here, we report an approach to suppress halide redistribution by self-assembled long-chain organic ammonium capping layers at nanometer-sized grain surfaces.

Valence and Conduction Band Densities of States of Metal Halide Perovskites: A Combined Experimental-Theoretical Study.

We report valence and conduction band densities of states measured via ultraviolet and inverse photoemission spectroscopies on three metal halide perovskites, specifically methylammonium lead iodide and bromide and cesium lead bromide (MAPbI3, MAPbBr3, CsPbBr3), grown at two different institutions on different substrates. These are compared with theoretical densities of states (DOS) calculated via density functional theory. The qualitative agreement achieved between experiment and theory leads to the identification of valence and conduction band spectral features, and allows a precise determination of the position of the band edges, ionization energy and electron affinity of the materials.

New drug therapies for the treatment of overweight and obese patients.

Background: Obesity is a serious and costly disease that is growing in epidemic proportions. Obesity-related hospitalizations have nearly tripled from 1996 to 2009. If the current trend in the growth of obesity continues, the total healthcare costs attributable to obesity could reach $861 billion to $957 billion by 2030.