Monitoring of tidal ventilation by electrical impedance tomography in anaesthetised horses

BACKGROUND

Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a method to measure regional impedance changes within the thorax. The total tidal impedance variation has been used to measure changes in tidal volumes in pigs, dogs and men.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the ability of EIT to quantify changes in tidal volume in anaesthetised mechanically ventilated horses.

STUDY DESIGN

In vivo experimental study.

METHODS

Six horses (mean ± s.d.: age 11.5 ± 7.5 years and body weight 491 ± 40 kg) were anaesthetised using isoflurane in oxygen. The lungs were mechanically ventilated using a volume-controlled mode. With an end-tidal carbon dioxide tension in the physiological range, and a set tidal volume (VT_vent ) of 11-16 mL/kg (baseline volume), EIT data and VT measured by conventional spirometry were collected over 1 min. Thereafter, VT_vent was changed in 1 L steps until reaching 10 L. After, VT_vent was reduced to 1 L below the baseline volume and then further reduced in 1 L steps until 4 L. On each VT step data were recorded for 1 min after allowing 1 min of stabilisation. Impedance changes within the predefined two lung regions of interest (EIT_ROI ) and the whole image (EIT_thorax ) were calculated. Linear regression analysis was used to assess the relationship between spirometry data and EIT_ROI and EIT_thorax for individual horses and pooled data.

RESULTS

Both EIT_ROI and EIT_thorax significantly predicted spirometry data for individual horses with R² ranging from 0.937 to 0.999 and from 0.954 to 0.997 respectively. This was similar for pooled data from all six horses with EIT_ROI (R² = 0.799; P<0.001) and EIT_thorax (R² = 0.841; P<0.001).

MAIN LIMITATIONS

The method was only tested in healthy mechanically ventilated horses.

CONCLUSIONS

The EIT can be used to quantify changes in tidal volume.

First Results from CUORE: A Search for Lepton Number Violation via 0νββ Decay of ^{130}Te

The CUORE experiment, a ton-scale cryogenic bolometer array, recently began operation at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso in Italy. The array represents a significant advancement in this technology, and in this work we apply it for the first time to a high-sensitivity search for a lepton-number-violating process: ^{130}Te neutrinoless double-beta decay. Examining a total TeO_{2} exposure of 86.3 kg yr, characterized by an effective energy resolution of (7.7±0.5)  keV FWHM and a background in the region of interest of (0.014±0.002)  counts/(keV kg yr), we find no evidence for neutrinoless double-beta decay. Including systematic uncertainties, we place a lower limit on the decay half-life of T_{1/2}^{0ν}(^{130}Te)>1.3×10^{25}  yr (90% C.L.); the median statistical sensitivity of this search is 7.0×10^{24}  yr. Combining this result with those of two earlier experiments, Cuoricino and CUORE-0, we find T_{1/2}^{0ν}(^{130}Te)>1.5×10^{25}  yr (90% C.L.), which is the most stringent limit to date on this decay. Interpreting this result as a limit on the effective Majorana neutrino mass, we find m_{ββ}<(110-520)  meV, where the range reflects the nuclear matrix element estimates employed.

ZrO2-SBA-15 catalysts for the one-pot cascade synthesis of GVL from furfural

Controlling the zirconia coating thickness in ZrO₂-SBA-15 materials allows tuning their catalytic performance in the one-pot transformation of furfural into GVL.

United Kingdom national paediatric bilateral project: Results of professional rating scales and parent questionnaires

OBJECTIVES

This fourteen-centre project used professional rating scales and parent questionnaires to assess longitudinal outcomes in a large non-selected population of children receiving simultaneous and sequential bilateral cochlear implants.

METHODS

This was an observational non-randomized service evaluation. Data were collected at four time points: before bilateral cochlear implants or before the sequential implant, one year, two years, and three years after. The measures reported are Categories of Auditory Performance II (CAPII), Speech Intelligibility Rating (SIR), Bilateral Listening Skills Profile (BLSP) and Parent Outcome Profile (POP).

RESULTS

Thousand and one children aged from 8 months to almost 18 years were involved, although there were many missing data. In children receiving simultaneous implants after one, two, and three years respectively, median CAP scores were 4, 5, and 6; median SIR were 1, 2, and 3. Three years after receiving simultaneous bilateral cochlear implants, 61% of children were reported to understand conversation without lip-reading and 66% had intelligible speech if the listener concentrated hard. Auditory performance and speech intelligibility were significantly better in female children than males. Parents of children using sequential implants were generally positive about their child's well-being and behaviour since receiving the second device; those who were less positive about well-being changes also generally reported their children less willing to wear the second device.

CONCLUSION

Data from 78% of paediatric cochlear implant centres in the United Kingdom provide a real-world picture of outcomes of children with bilateral implants in the UK. This large reference data set can be used to identify children in the lower quartile for targeted intervention.

United Kingdom national paediatric bilateral project: Demographics and results of localization and speech perception testing

OBJECTIVES

To assess longitudinal outcomes in a large and varied population of children receiving bilateral cochlear implants both simultaneously and sequentially.

METHODS

This observational non-randomized service evaluation collected localization and speech recognition in noise data from simultaneously and sequentially implanted children at four time points: before bilateral cochlear implants or before the sequential implant, 1 year, 2 years, and 3 years after bilateral implants. No inclusion criteria were applied, so children with additional difficulties, cochleovestibular anomalies, varying educational placements, 23 different home languages, a full range of outcomes and varying device use were included.

RESULTS

1001 children were included: 465 implanted simultaneously and 536 sequentially, representing just over 50% of children receiving bilateral implants in the UK in this period. In simultaneously implanted children the median age at implant was 2.1 years; 7% were implanted at less than 1 year of age. In sequentially implanted children the interval between implants ranged from 0.1 to 14.5 years. Children with simultaneous bilateral implants localized better than those with one implant. On average children receiving a second (sequential) cochlear implant showed improvement in localization and listening in background noise after 1 year of bilateral listening. The interval between sequential implants had no effect on localization improvement although a smaller interval gave more improvement in speech recognition in noise. Children with sequential implants on average were able to use their second device to obtain spatial release from masking after 2 years of bilateral listening. Although ranges were large, bilateral cochlear implants on average offered an improvement in localization and speech perception in noise over unilateral implants.

CONCLUSION

These data represent the diverse population of children with bilateral cochlear implants in the UK from 2010 to 2012. Predictions of outcomes for individual patients are not possible from these data. However, there are no indications to preclude children with long inter-implant interval having the chance of a second cochlear implant.

Is Heliothis viriplaca (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) a long-distance migrant?

Heliothis viriplaca (Hüfnagel) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is an important polyphagous pest of beans, cotton, maize, and alfalfa worldwide. H. viriplaca is a long-distance migrant, and if so, what pattern of seasonal migration this species exhibits in northern China remains unknown. In this study, in order to determine the seasonal migration of H. viriplaca in northern China, the combination of searchlight trapping and ovarian dissection was carried out on an isolated small island in the center of the Bohai Strait during 2003-2014. The results confirmed that H. viriplaca undertakes long-distance migration on the prevailing winds of the East Asian monsoon airflows. This species exhibited a regular pattern of seasonal migration across the sea from May to October, but there was considerable yearly and monthly variation in the trapped numbers, with the majority being trapped in summer (67.99 ± 6.54%). The mean period when migration was detectable at the island was 116.5 ± 5.6 days from 2003 to 2014, with the shortest time span of 74 days in 2013 and the longest of 144 days in 2005. Trapped females in May and June showed a relatively higher mating rates and some degree of ovarian development when compared with July, August and September, suggesting the migration of this species is not completely bound by the 'oogenesis-flight syndrome'. These findings will be helpful to improve the forecasting system and managing strategies of H. viriplaca.

Essential competencies in prescribing: A first european cross-sectional study among 895 final-year medical students

European medical students should have acquired adequate prescribing competencies before graduation, but it is not known whether this is the case. In this international multicenter study, we evaluated the essential knowledge, skills, and attitudes in clinical pharmacology and therapeutics (CPT) of final‐year medical students across Europe. In a cross‐sectional design, 26 medical schools from 17 European countries were asked to administer a standardized assessment and questionnaire to 50 final‐year students. Although there were differences between schools, our results show an overall lack of essential prescribing competencies among final‐year students in Europe. Students had a poor knowledge of drug interactions and contraindications, and chose inappropriate therapies for common diseases or made prescribing errors. Our results suggest that undergraduate teaching in CPT is inadequate in many European schools, leading to incompetent prescribers and potentially unsafe patient care. A European core curriculum with clear learning outcomes and assessments should be urgently developed.