Predicting Outcomes in Frail Older Community-Dwellers in Western Australia: Results from the Community Assessment of Risk Screening and Treatment Strategies (CARTS) Programme.

Understanding risk factors for frailty, functional decline and incidence of adverse healthcare outcomes amongst community-dwelling older adults is important to plan population-level health and social care services. We examined variables associated with one-year risk of institutionalisation, hospitalisation and death among patients assessed in their own home by a community-based Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT) in Western Australia. Frailty and risk were measured using the Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS) and Risk Instrument for Screening in the Community (RISC), respectively. Predictive accuracy was measured from the area under the curve (AUC). Data from 417 patients, median 82 ± 10 years, were included. At 12-month follow-up, 22.5% (n = 94) were institutionalised, 44.6% (n = 186) were hospitalised at least once and 9.8% (n = 41) had died. Frailty was common, median CFS score 6/9 ± 1, and significantly associated with institutionalisation (p = 0.001), hospitalisation (p = 0.007) and death (p < 0.001). Impaired activities of daily living (ADL) measured on the RISC had moderate correlation with admission to long-term care (r = 0.51) and significantly predicted institutionalisation (p < 0.001) and death (p = 0.01). The RISC had the highest accuracy for institutionalisation (AUC 0.76). The CFS and RISC had fair to good accuracy for mortality (AUC of 0.69 and 0.74, respectively), but neither accurately predicted hospitalisation. Home assessment of community-dwelling older patients by an ACAT in Western Australia revealed high levels of frailty, ADL impairment and incident adverse outcomes, suggesting that anticipatory care planning is imperative for these patients.

The incidence of small for gestational age neonates in singleton IVF pregnancies.

INTRODUCTION: Various factors related to an "in vitro" fertilization (IVF) procedure may influence the rate of small for gestational age (SGA) newborns in such pregnancies. AIM: The aim of the study was to determine neonatal SGA incidence in singleton IVF pregnancies compared to spontaneous ones. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted both a prospective and a retrospective study within the period of January 2013-December 2017, which included 336 patients with a singleton IVF pregnancy at the time of delivery - the study group (SG), and 493 women with a spontaneous conception - the control group (CG). RESULTS: Neonatal SGA rate was significantly higher in the SG as compared to the CG, p < .05, as well as in case of multiple embryotransfer (ET), vanishing twin syndrome (VTS), fresh ET against frozen embryotransfer (FET), female infertility factor. CONCLUSION: Singleton pregnancies after an IVF technique show a higher neonatal SGA rate compared to spontaneous ones.

Determinant Formula for the Octagon Form Factor in N=4 Supersymmetric Yang-Mills Theory.

We present a closed expression for the octagon form factor which appears as a building block in a class of four-point correlation functions in N=4 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory considered recently by Coronado. The octagon form factor is expressed, to all loop orders, as the determinant of a semi-infinite matrix. We find that perturbatively at weak coupling the entries of this matrix are linear combinations of ladder functions with simple rational coefficients.

Modelling of a Hall Effect-Based Current Sensor with an Open Core Magnetic Concentrator.

The present paper deals with the modelling of a Hall effect current sensor with open core magnetic concentrator. 3D magnetic field modelling is carried out using the finite element method (FEM) and Comsol Multiphysics software. Two rectangular core constructions are considered. Different geometric parameters of the magnetic concentrator are varied and their influence on the sensor characteristic is studied, with the aim of reducing the dependence on the output signal on the distance to the conductor. Of the studied parameters, core window length leads to the most significant change in the sensor characteristic. Future work can include the optimization of the sensor construction.

Pharmacokinetic Interactions between Tafenoquine and Dihydroartemisinin-Piperaquine or Artemether-Lumefantrine in Healthy Adult Subjects.

Tafenoquine is in development as a single-dose treatment for relapse prevention in individuals with Plasmodium vivax malaria. Tafenoquine must be coadministered with a blood schizonticide, either chloroquine or artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT). This open-label, randomized, parallel-group study evaluated potential drug interactions between tafenoquine and two ACTs: dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine and artemether-lumefantrine. Healthy volunteers of either sex aged 18 to 65 years without glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency were randomized into five cohorts (n = 24 per cohort) to receive tafenoquine on day 1 (300 mg) plus once-daily dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine on days 1, 2, and 3 (120 mg/960 mg for 36 to <75 kg of body weight and 160 mg/1,280 mg for ≥75 to 100 kg of body weight), or plus artemether-lumefantrine (80 mg/480 mg) in two doses 8 h apart on day 1 and then twice daily on days 2 and 3, or each drug alone. The pharmacokinetic parameters of tafenoquine, piperaquine, lumefantrine, artemether, and dihydroartemisinin were determined by using noncompartmental methods. Point estimates and 90% confidence intervals were calculated for area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) and maximum observed plasma concentration (Cmax) comparisons of tafenoquine plus ACT versus tafenoquine or ACT. All subjects receiving dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine experienced QTc prolongation (a known risk with this drug), but tafenoquine coadministration had no clinically relevant additional effect. Tafenoquine coadministration had no clinically relevant effects on dihydroartemisinin, piperaquine, artemether, or lumefantrine pharmacokinetics. Dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine coadministration increased the tafenoquine Cmax by 38% (90% confidence interval, 25 to 52%), the AUC from time zero to infinity (AUC0-∞) by 12% (1 to 26%), and the half-life (t1/2) by 29% (19 to 40%), with no effect on the AUC from time zero to the time of the last nonzero concentration (AUC0-last). Artemether-lumefantrine coadministration had no effect on tafenoquine pharmacokinetics. Tafenoquine can be coadministered with dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine or artemether-lumefantrine without dose adjustment for any of these compounds. (This study has been registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under registration no. NCT02184637.).

Novel electrically conducting 2-hydroxyethylcellulose/polyaniline nanocomposite cryogels: Synthesis and application in tissue engineering.

Novel electrically conducting 2-hydroxyethylcellulose/polyaniline (HEC/PANI) nanocomposite cryogels were fabricated via the combination of cryogenic treatment and photochemical crosslinking. PANI nanofillers (one-dimentional tubes and three-dimentional particles) were synthesized via oxidative polymerization of aniline in aqueous media and, then, embedded in the HEC matrix. The effect of PANI content and morphology on the gel fraction yield and electrical conductivity of material was studied. Nanocomposite cryogels of high gel fraction yield (65-95%) and rather high electrical conductivity (0.02-0.1S/m) were obtained by using a relatively small amount (0.5-3wt.% to HEC) of pre-formed PANI nanofillers. The behavior of L929 cells adhered on HEC/PANI cryogels in the presence of electric field were also investigated. Cytotoxicity test showed very good survival and proliferation of cells on cryogels, while the electrical stimulation triggered changes in cell morphology as well as a specific alignment of cells in parallel to the electrical field.

Classical limit of the three-point function of n=4 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory from integrability.

We give an analytic expression for the correlation function of three large classical nonprotected operators in N=4 super-Yang-Mills theory at weak coupling. We restrict ourselves to operators belonging to an su(2) sector of the theory. In order to carry out the calculation, we derive, by unveiling a hidden factorization property, the thermodynamical limit of Slavnov's determinant.