Measurement of the Λ_{c}^{+} Lifetime

An absolute measurement of the Λ_{c}^{+} lifetime is reported using Λ_{c}^{+}→pK^{-}π^{+} decays in events reconstructed from data collected by the Belle II experiment at the SuperKEKB asymmetric-energy electron-positron collider. The total integrated luminosity of the data sample, which was collected at center-of-mass energies at or near the ϒ(4S) resonance, is 207.2  fb^{-1}. The result, τ(Λ_{c}^{+})=203.20±0.89±0.77  fs, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second systematic, is the most precise measurement to date and is consistent with previous determinations.

Search for a Dark Photon and an Invisible Dark Higgs Boson in μ^{+}μ^{-} and Missing Energy Final States with the Belle II Experiment

The dark photon A^{'} and the dark Higgs boson h^{'} are hypothetical particles predicted in many dark sector models. We search for the simultaneous production of A^{'} and h^{'} in the dark Higgsstrahlung process e^{+}e^{-}→A^{'}h^{'} with A^{'}→μ^{+}μ^{-} and h^{'} invisible in electron-positron collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 10.58 GeV in data collected by the Belle II experiment in 2019. With an integrated luminosity of 8.34  fb^{-1}, we observe no evidence for signal. We obtain exclusion limits at 90% Bayesian credibility in the range of 1.7-5.0 fb on the cross section and in the range of 1.7×10^{-8}-200×10^{-8} on the effective coupling ϵ^{2}×α_{D} for the A^{'} mass in the range of 4.0  GeV/c^{2}<M_{A^{'}}<9.7  GeV/c^{2} and for the h^{'} mass M_{h^{'}}<M_{A^{'}}, where ϵ is the mixing strength between the standard model and the dark photon and α_{D} is the coupling of the dark photon to the dark Higgs boson. Our limits are the first in this mass range.

Keys for successful publication in Eur Ann Otorhinolaryngol Head Neck Dis: A STROBE analysis of peer reviews of articles submitted in 2020-2021

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate reviewing and editorial decision for articles submitted to the European Annals of Otorhinolaryngology Head & Neck Diseases.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A retrospective analysis was made of reviewers' comments on 1,133 scientific articles (700 original articles, 96 literature reviews, and 337 case reports), originating from 69 countries, consecutively submitted on-line between January 1st, 2020 and December 31st, 2021. The main objective was to document the acceptance rate and decision time. Accessory objectives were to synthesize the main comments and to screen for correlations between acceptance and the main characteristics of first authors, articles and reviewers' comments.

RESULTS

In total, 4.1% of submitted articles were accepted. Median decision time differed significantly (P<0.0001), at 1 month in case of refusal and 4 months in case of acceptance. Reviewers mentioned failure to adhere to the journal's authors' guide, to use the appropriate EQUATOR guidelines and to adopt the recommended P<0.005 significance threshold in 94.8%, 54.2%, and 39.9% of cases, respectively. On multivariate analysis, 3 variables significantly impacted acceptance, which increased from 1.3% to 44.6% (P<0.0001) when an appropriate EQUATOR guideline was used and from 0.3% to 57.4% (P<0.0001) when the significance threshold was set at P<0.005, and decreased from 10.5% to 1.1% (P=0.0001) when the article did not originate from a French-speaking country (member of the Francophonie organization).

CONCLUSION

Adhesion to modern scientific medical writing rules increased acceptance rates for articles in the European Annals of Otorhinolaryngology Head & Neck Diseases. Teaching modern scientific medical writing needs to be enhanced in otorhinolaryngology.

Short run "rebound effect" of COVID on the transport carbon footprint

The COVID-19 pandemic completely transformed the mobility of cities. The restrictions on movement led to "empty cities" throughout the world, with some environmental effects in terms of clean air and the reduction of CO₂ emissions. This research considers how COVID-19 mobility restrictions have affected the carbon footprint of four medium-sized Chilean cities (Coronel, Temuco, Valdivia, and Osorno) that have environmental problems and are highly dependent on motorized systems. The study uses data from 2400 household surveys at three distinct times: pre-pandemic - T0 (winter 2019), the time of implementation of restrictive mobility policies to contain the pandemic - T1 (winter 2020), and six months later when those restrictions were gradually lifted - T2 (summer 2021). The analysis suggests that CO₂ emissions actually went up, declining in the winter 2020, but then increasing with the greater use of cars in the summer 2021 due to the temporary effects of commuting to work, ultimately reaching levels higher than the pre-pandemic values, known as the "rebound effect."

Orbital in juries in wartime: Historical study from Paul Tessier's work in Iran

INTRODUCTION

Paul Tessier was a leading French oculoplastic surgeon who took part in several surgical missions in Iran to manage victims of the Iraq-Iran conflict in the late 1980's and early 1990's.

METHODS

We collected the records of 322 patients who underwent surgical procedures for the management of wartime injuries by Paul Tessier's team in Iran from 1990 to 1993. We also report one of the most representative cases of orbital reconstruction performed by Tessier.

RESULTS

Mean age at the time of trauma was 20.65±7.04 years (range: 2--62). Craniofacial CT-scans were available for 54 patients. The bones of the upper third of the face and the orbital contents were affected in 124/322 patients (38.50%). Soft-tissue lesions of the upper third included 13 frontal lacerations (4.04%), 60 orbital injuries (18.63%) and 95 uni- or bilateral enucleations (29.50%). Thirty-nine uni- or bilateral lid injuries (12.11%) and 8 tear duct injuries (2.48%) were reported. A specific case of orbital reconstruction using antero-internal and posterior iliac bone grafts was reported as a representative example of Tessier's techniques.

CONCLUSION

This study highlights the challenges of orbital reconstruction in wartime injuries and provides insights on the work of one of the most renowned surgeons in this field.

Measurement of Differential Branching Fractions of Inclusive B→X_{u}ℓ^{+}ν_{ℓ} Decays

The first measurements of differential branching fractions of inclusive semileptonic B→X_{u}ℓ^{+}ν_{ℓ} decays are performed using the full Belle data set of 711  fb^{-1} of integrated luminosity at the ϒ(4S) resonance and for ℓ=e, μ. With the availability of these measurements, new avenues for future shape-function model-independent determinations of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix element |V_{ub}| can be pursued to gain new insights in the existing tension with respect to exclusive determinations. The differential branching fractions are reported as a function of the lepton energy, the four-momentum-transfer squared, light-cone momenta, the hadronic mass, and the hadronic mass squared. They are obtained by subtracting the backgrounds from semileptonic B→X_{c}ℓ^{+}ν_{ℓ} decays and other processes, and corrected for resolution and acceptance effects.

Precise Measurement of the D^{0} and D^{+} Lifetimes at Belle II

We report a measurement of the D^{0} and D^{+} lifetimes using D^{0}→K^{-}π^{+} and D^{+}→K^{-}π^{+}π^{+} decays reconstructed in e^{+}e^{-}→cc[over ¯] data recorded by the Belle II experiment at the SuperKEKB asymmetric-energy e^{+}e^{-} collider. The data, collected at center-of-mass energies at or near the ϒ(4S) resonance, correspond to an integrated luminosity of 72  fb^{-1}. The results, τ(D^{0})=410.5±1.1(stat)±0.8(syst)  fs and τ(D^{+})=1030.4±4.7(stat)±3.1(syst)  fs, are the most precise to date and are consistent with previous determinations.

Search for B^{+}→K^{+}νν[over ¯] Decays Using an Inclusive Tagging Method at Belle II

A search for the flavor-changing neutral-current decay B^{+}→K^{+}νν[over ¯] is performed at the Belle II experiment at the SuperKEKB asymmetric energy electron-positron collider. The data sample corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 63  fb^{-1} collected at the ϒ(4S) resonance and a sample of 9  fb^{-1} collected at an energy 60 MeV below the resonance. Because the measurable decay signature involves only a single charged kaon, a novel measurement approach is used that exploits not only the properties of the B^{+}→K^{+}νν[over ¯] decay, but also the inclusive properties of the other B meson in the ϒ(4S)→BB[over ¯] event, to suppress the background from other B meson decays and light-quark pair production. This inclusive tagging approach offers a higher signal efficiency compared to previous searches. No significant signal is observed. An upper limit on the branching fraction of B^{+}→K^{+}νν[over ¯] of 4.1×10^{-5} is set at the 90% confidence level.

789 New Minor Surgical Set as A Way to Improve Surgical Efficiency During COVID-19 Pandemic

Introduction

Large number of paediatric plastic surgical procedures were identified in Evelina Hospital during COVID-19 pandemic as not requiring large conventional surgical operative sets that can contain at average 35 instruments. Large sets are more expensive, take longer preparation time due to instrument counting and as a consequence take more total operating time. Furthermore, more instruments need to be unnecessarily purchased, stored and cleaned post procedure. Simple paediatric plastic surgery procedures including nailbed repair or laceration repair require limited and largely replicating operative instrument set. We have therefore introduced Small Minor Plastic Surgical set (MS) containing only 10 instruments. We audited its effectiveness and introduced a revised version of the set as per feedback, permanently arranged into theatre operative set collection.

Method

MS set was introduced to Evelina Theatres and used at senior surgeons’ discursion for paediatric plastic surgical procedures. Feedback was gathered from the surgeon and scrub nurse via specially designed questionnaire at post operation and theatre team debrief. Suggested alterations were implemented and New Minor Surgical (NMS) set was introduced and re-audited using revised questionnaire.

Results

61% of surgeons and 89% of scrub personnel thought MS set contained everything that was needed for the case. Following revision 91% of surgeons and 95% of scrub nurses thought NMS set contained all necessary equipment for the operation.

Conclusions

NMS set introduced into daily surgical practice in Evelina Hospital theatres improved overall staff satisfaction when considering both surgeon and nursing staff. It provided cost- and time-effective operative set now vastly used across surgical specialities.

Erratum: Azimuthal Anisotropy at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider: The First and Fourth Harmonics [Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 062301 (2004)]

This corrects the article DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.92.062301.

Association Between Laryngopharyngeal Reflux and Media Otitis: A Systematic Review

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the relationship between laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) and recurrent (ROM) or chronic otitis media with effusion (COME).

DATABASES

PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane Library.

METHODS

Three authors searched articles published between January 1980 and September 2020 about the association between LPR and the development of recurrent or chronic otitis media. Inclusion, exclusion, diagnostic criteria, and clinical outcome evaluation of included studies were analyzed using PRISMA criteria. The bias analysis of included studies was evaluated with the Tool to assess Risk of Bias of the CLARITY group.

RESULTS

Twenty-six clinical and three experimental articles met our inclusion criteria, accounting for 1,624 children and 144 adults with COME or ROM. According to the pH study type, the prevalence of LPR and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in OM patients were 28.7% (range, 8-100%) and 40.7 (range, 18-64%), respectively. The majority of studies identified pepsin or pepsinogen in middle ear effusion, with a range of mean concentrations depending on the technique used to measure pepsin. There was an important heterogeneity between studies regarding definition of COME, ROM, and LPR, exclusion criteria, methods used to measure pepsin/pepsinogen in middle ear secretions and outcome assessments.

CONCLUSION

The association between LPR and OM is still unclear. Future clinical and experimental studies are needed to investigate the association between LPR and OM in both children and adults through extensive gastric content analysis in middle ear suppurations and impedance-pH monitoring considering acid, weakly acid, and alkaline reflux events.

[Diagnostic issues of Whipple's disease during chronic inflammatory rheumatism: About three cases]

INTRODUCTION

Whipple's disease (WD) can mimic chronic inflammatory rheumatism leading to incorrect prescription of tumor necrosis factor inhibitors (TNFI). Several complicated cases of WD have been reported during TNFI treatment which is strongly suspected to modify the host-pathogen relationship. Tropheryma whipplei asymptomatic carriage is high in the general population, making the diagnosis of WD more difficult face to unexplained arthritis.

OBSERVATIONS

We report three observations that illustrate situations for which the detection of T. whipplei might be valuable to investigate the differential diagnosis of inflammatory rheumatism.

CONCLUSION

The decision to check for T. whipplei infection should rely on individual clinical assessment. It should be considered in the absence of clinical response or in case of worsening of an inflammatory rheumatism under TNFI treatment, especially in front of atypical features. A systematic screening for T. whipplei before anti-TNF treatment seems unjustified since asymptomatic carriers are frequent.

Initial clinical experience with VersaCross transseptal system for transcatheter mitral valve repair

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study is to describe the initial experience with versacross transseptal (TS) system for transseptal puncture for the transcatheter mitral valve repair using the MitraClip device.

BACKGROUND

Transeptal puncture is a key step in transcatheter mitral valve repair (MVR) and the use of the VersaCross system comprised of a sheath, a dilator and a radiofrequency wire has not been previously described.

METHODS

Prospective single center study of consecutive patients undergoing transcatheter mitral valve repair with the MitraClip device were included. Targeted TS puncture was performed under transesophageal echocardiographic (TEE) guidance. Baseline demographics, procedural characteristics, and major adverse procedural events were collected.

RESULTS

Twenty-five consecutive patients underwent transseptal puncture using the VersaCross TS system. Transseptal puncture was successful in 100% of patients. The mean time for TS puncture was 3 3 ± 1.6 min with no major adverse procedural events. The mean time from insertion of the VersaCross system to insertion of the MitraClip guide catheter was 3.8 ± 3.0 minutes.

CONCLUSION

The VersaCross TS system was successful in all patients for MitraClip procedure with no adverse procedural events and may be associated with increased procedural efficiency.

[Ethical considerations in ENT during the COVID-19 pandemic: Qualitative analysis of open-ended questions]

Introduction

La pandémie au coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 a profondément impacté la pratique des soignants. L’objectif est d’analyser les questionnements éthiques soulevés par la communauté ORL française pendant la première vague d’infections au COVID-19.

Méthodes

Un appel à témoignage a été lancé à propos des questionnements éthiques en ORL au mois d’avril 2020, avec quatre questions ouvertes standardisées : (i) les difficultés de prise en charge pour les patients COVID-19 positifs ; (ii) le retentissement de la crise sanitaire sur les patients COVID-19 négatifs ; (iii) la communication avec les équipes soignantes et/ou le personnel de consultation et de bloc ; et (iv) le traitement des informations par la presse et les instances nationales de l’ORL. Une analyse thématique de contenu a été effectuée en croisant avec les données épidémiologiques de chaque répondant.

Résultats

Trente et un réponses provenant de 13 départements français différents, dont 21 hospitaliers et 10 libéraux, âge médian de 45 ans et 17 hommes pour 14 femmes, ont été analysées. Les questionnements éthiques concernaient la prise en charge par les ORL des patients COVID-19 positifs, la modification des pratiques en consultation et au bloc opératoire, la crainte de perte de chance pour les patients COVID-19 négatifs, l’usage approprié des téléconsultations et du télétravail et les conséquences délétères des fausses informations pour le grand public.

Conclusion

En préparation de possibles futures pandémies, les aspects éthiques clés sont d’adapter la prise en charge des patients aux ressources et à la prévalence locale, et de diffuser des recommandations institutionnelles claires.