Non-traumatic Acute Subdural Hematoma in a Patient With Scleroderma Complicated by Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension: A Case Report.

Non-traumatic acute subdural hematoma (SDH) in patients with scleroderma is infrequently described in literature reviewing the neurologic disorders in scleroderma. We report a case of a patient with scleroderma complicated by severe pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), and a history of pulmonary embolism on warfarin who developed an SDH, requiring hemicraniectomy after initiating therapy with IV epoprostenol. The proposed mechanisms for SDH development and management strategy are discussed.

Sepsis as the primary admitting diagnosis of transferred patients who died within 48 hours of arrival at a Central Texas hospital.

Interhospital transfers are independently associated with inpatient mortality, and transferred patients have worse outcomes. The aim of this study was to retrospectively assess the 48-hour mortality rate in interhospital transfer cohorts of all transfers to a Central Texas teaching hospital and to identify a primary admitting diagnosis for potential intervention. A total of 15,435 patients with 19,161 transfers over the course of the study were retrospectively reviewed and placed in 18 different categories based upon the primary admitting diagnosis.

Physicochemical properties of aqueous core hydrogel capsules.

Capsules having a thin alginate hydrogel membrane and an aqueous core can be obtained by a process that involves a co-extrusion step in air followed by a sol-gel transition of the shell after immersion into a gelling bath. The possibility to encapsulate cells that further grow in these biocompatible compartments, and thus offer a versatile tool for cell culture, led us to investigate the physicochemical properties of the capsules. A cut-off pore size of the semi-permeable membrane is extrapolated from the release of polymers out of the capsule.

Evaluation of transdermal delivery of nanoemulsions in ex vivo porcine skin using two-photon microscopy and confocal laser-scanning microscopy.

This study experimentally evaluates the self-targeting ability of asiaticoside-loaded nanoemulsions compared with nontargeted nanoemulsions in ex vivo experiments with porcine skin samples. Homebuilt two-photon and confocal laser-scanning microscopes were employed to noninvasively examine the transdermal delivery of two distinct nanoemulsions. Prior to the application of nanoemulsions, we noninvasively observed the morphology of porcine skin using two-photon microscopy.

Quantitative analysis of ligand effects on bioefficacy of nanoemulsion encapsulating depigmenting active.

Efficient skin delivery of active molecules is the main challenge to overcome in order to achieve significant therapeutic efficiency of cosmetics or dermo-pharmaceutical products. Nanocarriers such as nanoemulsions have been envisaged to overcome main challenges of active solubilization, protection and transport to their site of biological action. Nonetheless, their skin permeation is still limited and a new approach is required to significantly improve bioavailability.

Anxiodepressive disorders and chronic psychological stress are associated with Tako-Tsubo cardiomyopathy- New Physiopathological Hypothesis.

Background: Recent retrospective studies suggest that psychiatric disorders could be a predisposing risk factor for Tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy (TTC). The aim of the present study was to characterize the prevalence of anxiodepressive disorders (ADD) and chronic psychological stress (CPS) in patients with TTC or acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

Methods And Results: Between January 2010 and December 2011, 45 consecutive patients with TTC were prospectively screened by systematic interview with the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview.

An association between occupancy rates in the emergency department and rates of violence toward staff.

Background: Studies have explored possible causes of violent acts in the emergency department (ED), however, the association of violence with ED crowding has not been studied. Although the total number of violent acts would be expected to increase, it is not clear if the rate of violent acts also increases as occupancy levels rise.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine if there is an association between occupancy rates in the ED and rates of violence toward staff.

Lipidots: competitive organic alternative to quantum dots for in vivo fluorescence imaging.

The use of fluorescent nanostructures can bring several benefits on the signal to background ratio for in vitro microscopy, in vivo small animal imaging, and image-guided surgery. Fluorescent quantum dots (QDs) display outstanding optical properties, with high brightness and low photobleaching rate. However, because of their toxic element core composition and their potential long term retention in reticulo-endothelial organs such as liver, their in vivo human applications seem compromised.

Preparation and characterization of highly stable lipid nanoparticles with amorphous core of tuneable viscosity.

Lipid nanoparticles (LNP) have been designed based on low cost and human-use approved excipients, and manufactured by an easy, robust, and up-scalable process. Fluid colloidal dispersions or gel viscous formulations of highly stable nanoparticles (more than 12 month stability is achieved for some formulations) can be obtained. Their physicochemical properties are studied by Dynamic Light Scattering, Differential Scanning Calorimetry, and NMR.

How to prepare and stabilize very small nanoemulsions.

Practical and theoretical considerations that apply when aiming to formulate by ultrasonication very small nanoemulsions (particle diameter up to 150 nm) with very high stability are presented and discussed. The droplet size evolution during sonication can be described by a monoexponential function of the sonication time, the characteristic time scale depending essentially on the applied power. A unique master curve is obtained when plotting the mean diameter size evolution as a function of sonication energy.

Cyclosporine A--protection against microvascular hyperpermeability is calcineurin independent.

Background: Mitochondria-mediated apoptotic signaling contributes to microvascular hyperpermeability. We hypothesized that cyclosporine A (CsA), which protects mitochondrial transition pores, would attenuate hyperpermeability independent of its calcineurin inhibitory property.

Methods: Hyperpermeability was induced in microvascular endothelial cell monolayers using proapoptotic BAK or active caspase-3 after CsA or a specific calcineurin inhibitor, calcineurin autoinhibitory peptide (CIP), treatment.