Vapor-deposited glasses of methyl-m-toluate: How uniform is stable glass transformation?

AC chip nanocalorimetry is used to characterize vapor-deposited glasses of methyl-m-toluate (MMT). Physical vapor deposition can prepare MMT glasses that have lower heat capacity and significantly higher kinetic stability compared to liquid-cooled glasses. When heated, highly stable MMT glasses transform into the supercooled liquid via propagating fronts.

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation: current trends and future directions.

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has been increasingly utilized for the treatment of severe symptomatic aortic stenosis in inoperable and high surgical risk patients. Recent advances in valve technology include repositionable scaffolds and smaller delivery systems, as well as improvement in periprocedural imaging. These advances have resulted in reduction of vascular complications, rates of paravalvular aortic regurgitation and periprocedural stroke and improved overall outcomes.

Factors Contributing to Acute Kidney Injury and the Impact on Mortality in Patients Undergoing Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement.

Background: Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) patients are at a high risk of acute kidney injury (AKI). This study aimed to investigate AKI and the relationship with iodinated contrast media (ICM), whether there are significant pre- or peri- procedural variables predicting AKI, and whether AKI impacts on hospital length of stay and mortality.

Methods: Serum creatinine (SC) levels pre- and post- (peak) TAVR were recorded in 209 consecutive TAVR patients.

The Earnings and Employment Outcomes of the 2005 Cohort of Canadian Postsecondary Graduates with Disabilities.

Canada's fear of future skill and labor shortages has brought youth with disabilities to the forefront of public policy. Many universities are now reporting that an increased proportion of their graduating students identify as having a disability, and as a result, educational achievement-based programs designed to accommodate students' needs are growing across campuses. Despite recent attention by policymakers on improving accessibility standards and increasing employer incentives, young Canadians with disabilities continue to face barriers in their transitions to the workforce.

A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Low-Risk Deliveries: A Comparison of Midwives, Family Physicians and Obstetricians.

Objective: To investigate the cost-effectiveness of in-hospital obstetrical care by obstetricians (OBs), family physicians (FPs) and midwives (MWs) for delivery of low-risk obstetrical patients.

Methods: Cost-effectiveness analysis from the Ministry of Health perspective using a retrospective cohort study. The time horizon was from hospital admission of a low-risk pregnant patient to the discharge of the mother and infant.

Retrospective Study of First-Generation Drug-Eluting Stents, Second-Generation Drug-Eluting Stents and Non-Drug Eluting Stent Methods in the Treatment of Native Vessel In-Stent Restenosis in Real-World Clinical Practice.

Background: The efficacy of second-generation drug-eluting stents (DES) in treating in-stent restenosis (ISR) compared to first-generation DES and non-DES treatment methods in real-world cohorts has not yet been adequately addressed. This research intends to examine optimum treatment of in-stent restenosis, considering first-generation DES, second-generation DES and non-DES treatment methods in a real-world cohort.

Methods: Retrospective analysis was performed on 114 patients treated for native-vessel BMS or DES ISR.

The MitraClip Asia-Pacific registry: Differences in outcomes between functional and degenerative mitral regurgitation.

Objectives: The objective of this study is to describe and compare the use of the MitraClip therapy in mitral regurgitation (MR) patients with degenerative MR (DMR) and functional MR (FMR).

Introduction: Percutaneous edge-to-edge repair of severe MR using the MitraClip device is approved for use in the USA for high risk DMR while European guidelines include its use in FMR patients as well.

Methods: The MitraClip in the Asia-Pacific Registry (MARS) is a multicenter retrospective registry, involving eight sites in five Asia-Pacific countries.

Paternal long-term exercise programs offspring for low energy expenditure and increased risk for obesity in mice.

Obesity has more than doubled in children and tripled in adolescents in the past 30 yr. The association between metabolic disorders in offspring of obese mothers with diabetes has long been known; however, a growing body of research indicates that fathers play a significant role through presently unknown mechanisms. Recent observations have shown that changes in paternal diet may result in transgenerational inheritance of the insulin-resistant phenotype.

Outcomes of transcatheter aortic valve implantation in high surgical risk and inoperable patients with aortic stenosis: a single Australian Centre experience.

Background: Degenerative aortic stenosis is the most common valvular heart disease in the elderly, and many patients are not suitable for aortic valve replacement surgery. Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is a new therapeutic option for selected patients at high risk for surgery.

Aim: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of TAVI in Australian patients.

A Long Gastrojejunostomy Is Associated With Decreased Incidence and Severity of Delayed Gastric Emptying After Pancreaticoduodenectomy.

Objectives: Delayed gastric emptying (DGE) after pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) is associated with increased hospital length of stay (LOS) and health care costs. We hypothesized that a long gastrojejunostomy for PD (LGPD) is associated with decreased incidence of DGE.

Methods: Data were reviewed from patients who underwent standard PD (SPD), pylorus-preserving PD (PPPD), or LGPD with a 9-cm-long anastomosis between August 2000 and July 2010.

Paclitaxel-eluting balloon and everolimus-eluting stent for provisional stenting of coronary bifurcations: 12-month results of the multicenter BIOLUX-I study.

Background: Several studies investigated the combination of bare metal stents in the main branch and drug-eluting balloons in the side branch in bifurcation lesions, but data on the combination of drug-eluting stents and drug-eluting balloons are scarce. We aim to assess the feasibility of provisional stenting with an everolimus-eluting stent in the main branch and a paclitaxel-eluting balloon in the side branch.

Methods: In this prospective, multi-center study conducted in 5 Australian sites, 35 patients with bifurcation lesions were enrolled.

Orientational anisotropy in simulated vapor-deposited molecular glasses.

Enhanced kinetic stability of vapor-deposited glasses has been established for a variety of glass organic formers. Several recent reports indicate that vapor-deposited glasses can be orientationally anisotropic. In this work, we present results of extensive molecular simulations that mimic a number of features of the experimental vapor deposition process.

Quantitation of mitral regurgitation after percutaneous MitraClip repair: comparison of Doppler echocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging.

Objective: Percutaneous valve intervention for severe mitral regurgitation (MR) using the MitraClip is a novel technology. Quantitative assessment of residual MR by transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) is challenging, with multiple eccentric jets and artifact from the clips. Cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) is the reference standard for left and right ventricular volumetric assessment.

Mercury and selenium accumulation in the Colorado River food web, Grand Canyon, USA.

Mercury (Hg) and selenium (Se) biomagnify in aquatic food webs and are toxic to fish and wildlife. The authors measured Hg and Se in organic matter, invertebrates, and fishes in the Colorado River food web at sites spanning 387 river km downstream of Glen Canyon Dam (AZ, USA). Concentrations were relatively high among sites compared with other large rivers (mean wet wt for 6 fishes was 0.

Palliative embolisation for intrapulmonary shunting in lepidic predominant adenocarcinoma of the lung.

Lepidic predominant adenocarcinoma (LPA) (formerly known as bronchioalveolar carcinoma) has rarely been reported to cause refractory hypoxia with intrapulmonary shunting [1-7]. We describe a case who underwent the palliative strategy of intravascular right lower pulmonary artery embolisation with an 18 mm Amplatzer II vascular plug to reduce intrapulmonary shunting. This is the first report we are aware of using this minimally invasive procedure to treat this condition.

Disease recurrence and survival in patients with multifocal breast cancer: a follow-up study with 7-year results.

Background: Few studies have shown that multifocal breast cancer (MBC) has poorer outcomes compared with unifocal breast cancer (UBC). Currently, there is no long-term data on disease recurrence and survival in patients with MBC. The aim of this study is to evaluate whether patients with MBC have worse outcomes compared with UBC in respect to disease recurrence and survival.

Methylmercury Bioaccumulation in Stream Food Webs Declines with Increasing Primary Production.

Opposing hypotheses posit that increasing primary productivity should result in either greater or lesser contaminant accumulation in stream food webs. We conducted an experiment to evaluate primary productivity effects on MeHg accumulation in stream consumers. We varied light for 16 artificial streams creating a productivity gradient (oxygen production =0.

Next generation TAVI with the Lotus Valve System: a repositionable and fully retrievable transcatheter aortic valve prosthesis.

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is the new standard of care for selected patients with severe symptomatic aortic stenosis who are at high risk for surgical aortic valve replacement (AVR), or are inoperable. Multicentre randomised controlled trials have demonstrated equivalent or superior clinical outcomes for TAVI compared to AVR in carefully selected patient cohorts. A number of important limitations were observed with early generation TAVI valves and their delivery systems, and rapid evolution of the technology continues.

Antipsychotics inhibit glucose transport: Determination of olanzapine binding site in Staphylococcus epidermidis glucose/H(+) symporter.

The antipsychotic drug olanzapine is widely prescribed to treat schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders. However, it often causes unwanted side effects, including diabetes, due to disruption of insulin-dependant glucose metabolism through a mechanism yet to be elucidated. To determine if olanzapine can affect the first step in glucose metabolism - glucose transport inside cells - we investigated the effect of this drug on the transport activity of a model glucose transporter.

Formation of a Stable Complex, RuCl2(S2CPPh3)(PPh3)2, Containing an Unstable Zwitterion from the Reaction of RuCl2(PPh3)3 with Carbon Disulfide.

New insight into the complexity of the reaction of the prominent catalyst RuCl2(PPh3)3 with carbon disulfide has been obtained from a combination of X-ray diffraction and (31)P NMR studies. The red-violet compound originally formulated as a cationic π-CS2 complex, [RuCl(π-CS2)(PPh3)3]Cl, has been identified as a neutral molecule, RuCl2(S2CPPh3)(PPh3)2, which contains the unstable zwitterion S2CPPh3. In the absence of RuCl2(PPh3)3, there is no sign of a reaction between triphenylphosphine and carbon disulfide, although more basic trialkylphosphines form red adducts, S2CPR3.