Enhancing translation of science into non-English languages.

Translating scientific findings from English to other native languages is essential to make sure that they can be integrated into timely and informed dialogue with policymakers and a diverse range of audiences who are affected by the science. Here, we present innovative approaches how to enhance access to scientific knowledge in non-English languages.

Oxygen debt repayment in the early phase of veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation: a cluster analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Early oxygen debt repayment is predictive of successful weaning from veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (V-A ECMO). However, studies are limited by the patient cohort's heterogeneity. This study aimed to understand the early state of oxygen debt repayment and its association with end-organ failure and 30-day survival using cluster analysis. METHODS: A retrospective, single-center study was conducted on 153V-A ECMO patients. Patients were clustered using a two-step cluster analysis based on oxygen debt and its repayment during the first 24 h of ECMO. Primary outcomes were end-organ failure and 30-day survival. RESULTS: The overall mortality was 69.3%. For cluster analysis, 137 patients were included, due to an incomplete data set. The mortality rate in this subset was 67.9%. Three clusters were generated, representing increasing levels of total oxygen debt from cluster 1 to cluster 3. Thirty-day survival between clusters was significantly different (cluster 1: 46.9%, cluster 2: 23.4%, and cluster 3: 4.8%, p = 0.001). Patients in cluster 3 showed less decrement in liver enzymes, creatinine, and urea blood levels. There were significant differences in the baseline oxygen debt and the need for continuous veno-venous hemofiltration (CVVH) between survivors and non-survivors (p < 0.05). Forty-seven patients (34.3%) migrated between clusters within the first 24 h of support. Among these patients, 43.4% required CVVH. Notably, patients requiring CVVH and who migrated to a cluster with a higher oxygen debt repayment showed better survival rates compared to those who migrated to a cluster with a lower oxygen debt repayment. CONCLUSIONS: Oxygen debt repayment during the first 24 h of V-A ECMO shows to correspond with survival, where the baseline oxygen debt value and the necessity for continuous kidney replacement therapy appear to be influential.

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest: the prospect of E-CPR in the Maastricht region.

AIM: The current outcome of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients in the Maastricht region was analysed with the prospect of implementing extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (E-CPR). METHODS: A retrospective analysis of adult patients who were resuscitated for OHCA during a 24-month period was performed. RESULTS: 195 patients (age 66 [57-75] years, 82 % male) were resuscitated for OHCA by the emergency medical services and survived to admission at the emergency department. Survival to hospital discharge was 46.2 %. Notable differences between non-survivors and survivors were observed and included: age (70 [58-79] years) vs. (63 [55-72] years, p = 0.01), chronic heart failure (18 vs. 7 %, p = 0.02), shockable rhythm (67 vs. 99 %, p < 0.01), and return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) at departure from the site of the arrest (46 vs. 99 %, p < 0.01) and on arrival to the emergency department (43 vs. 98 %, p < 0.01), respectively. Acute coronary syndrome was diagnosed in 32 % of non-survivors vs. 59 % among survivors, p < 0.01. Therapeutic hypothermia was provided in non-survivors (20 %) vs. survivors (43 %), p < 0.01. Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) was performed in 14 % of non-survivors while 52 % of survivors received PCI (p < 0.01). No statistical significance was observed in terms of gender, witnessed arrest, bystander CPR, or automated external defibrillator deployed among the cohort. At hospital discharge, moderately severe neurological disability was present in six survivors. CONCLUSION: These observations are compatible with the notion that a shockable rhythm, ROSC, and post-arrest care improve survival outcome. Potentially, initiating E-CPR in the resuscitation phase in patients with a shockable rhythm and no ROSC might serve as a bridge to definite treatment and improve survival outcome.

Towards a proactive therapy utilizing the modern spectrum of extracorporeal life support: a single-centre experience.

BACKGROUND: We describe a single-centre experience of extracorporeal life support (ELS) for patients with severe and refractory cardiogenic shock, refractory cardiac arrest and severe respiratory failure. METHODS: Between September 2007 and September 2012, 56 intra-hospital and 10 inter-hospital adult patients were supported. RESULTS: The median ELS duration was 3 (0.9 - 6) days in venoarterial and 9.2 (7.4 - 24.4) days in venovenous supported patients. At hospital discharge and follow-up (12 and 40 months), survival among the respiratory (venovenous) patients and cardiac (venoarterial) patients was 84% and 38%, respectively. Survival in severe refractory cardiogenic shock patients was related to early initiation of ELS (<8 hours of onset of failure). A delay in initiating venoarterial ELS (>8 hours) and increased pre-ELS pH and lactate levels were associated with death in all cardiomyopathy patients, independent of infarct size. CONCLUSIONS: Our results exemplify the benefits of ELS as a bridge to initial stabilization of critically ill patients. Potentially, the early application of ELS technology can lower mortality and morbidity in patients with a regressive pathology.

An arterio-venous bridge for gradual weaning from adult veno-arterial extracorporeal life support.

PURPOSE: Weaning from extracorporeal life support (ELS) is particularly challenging when cardiac recovery is slow, largely incomplete and hard to predict. Therefore, we describe an individualized gradual weaning strategy using an arterio-venous (AV) bridge incorporated into the circuit to facilitate weaning. METHODS: Thirty adult patients weaned from veno-arterial ELS using an AV bridge were retrospectively analyzed. Serial echocardiography and hemodynamic monitoring were used to assess cardiac recovery and load responsiveness. Upon early signs of myocardial recovery, an AV bridge with an Hoffman clamp was added to the circuit and weaning was initiated. Support flow was reduced stepwise by 10-15% every 2 to 8 hours while the circuit flow was maintained at 3.5-4.5 L/min. RESULTS: The AV bridge facilitated gradual weaning in all 30 patients (median age: 66 [53-71] years; 21 males) over a median period of 25 [8-32] hours, with a median support duration of 96 [31-181] hours. During weaning, the median left ventricular ejection fraction was 25% [15-32] and the median velocity time integral of the aortic valve was 16 cm [10-23]. Through the weaning period, the mean arterial blood pressure was maintained at 70 mmHg and the activated partial thromboplastin time was 60 ± 10 seconds without additional systemic heparinization. Neither macroscopic thrombus formation in the ELS circuit during and after weaning nor clinically relevant thromboembolism was observed. CONCLUSION: Incorporation of an AV bridge for weaning from veno-arterial ELS is safe and feasible to gradually wean patients with functional cardiac recovery without compromising the circuit integrity.

Scaling and interaction of self-similar modes in models of high Reynolds number wall turbulence.

Previous work has established the usefulness of the resolvent operator that maps the terms nonlinear in the turbulent fluctuations to the fluctuations themselves. Further work has described the self-similarity of the resolvent arising from that of the mean velocity profile. The orthogonal modes provided by the resolvent analysis describe the wall-normal coherence of the motions and inherit that self-similarity. In this contribution, we present the implications of this similarity for the nonlinear interaction between modes with different scales and wall-normal locations. By considering the nonlinear interactions between modes, it is shown that much of the turbulence scaling behaviour in the logarithmic region can be determined from a single arbitrarily chosen reference plane. Thus, the geometric scaling of the modes is impressed upon the nonlinear interaction between modes. Implications of these observations on the self-sustaining mechanisms of wall turbulence, modelling and simulation are outlined.This article is part of the themed issue 'Toward the development of high-fidelity models of wall turbulence at large Reynolds number'.

Venovenous Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation in Intractable Pulmonary Insufficiency: Practical Issues and Future Directions.

Venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (vv-ECMO) is a highly invasive method for organ support that is gaining in popularity due to recent technical advances and its successful application in the recent H1N1 epidemic. Although running a vv-ECMO program is potentially feasible for many hospitals, there are many theoretical concepts and practical issues that merit attention and require expertise. In this review, we focus on indications for vv-ECMO, components of the circuit, and management of patients on vv-ECMO. Concepts regarding oxygenation and decarboxylation and how they can be influenced are discussed. Day-to-day management, weaning, and most frequent complications are covered in light of the recent literature.

Carbon dioxide dialysis in a swine model utilizing systemic and regional anticoagulation.

BACKGROUND: Extracorporeal carbon dioxide removal (ECCO2R) has been gaining interest to potentially facilitate gas transfer and equilibrate mild to moderate hypercapnic acidosis, when standard therapy with non-invasive ventilation is deemed refractory. However, concern regarding the effectiveness of low-flow CO2 removal remains. Additionally, the prospect to steadily reduce hypercapnia via low-flow ECCO2R technique is limited, especially with regional anticoagulation which potentially reduces the risk of bleeding. Therefore, an in vivo study was conducted to determine the efficacy of CO2 removal through a modified renal dialysis unit during the carbon dioxide dialysis study using systemic and regional anticoagulation. METHODS: The acute study was conducted for 14 h in landrace pigs (51 ± 3 kg). CO2 removal using a diffusion membrane oxygenator substituting the hemoconcentrator was provided for 6 h. Blood and gas (100 % O2) flows were set at 200 and 5 L/min, respectively. Anticoagulation was achieved by systemic heparinization (n = 7) or regional trisodium citrate 4 % (n = 7). RESULTS: The CO2 transfer was highest during the initial hour and ranged from 45 to 35 mL/min, achieving near eucapnic values. Regional and systemic anticoagulation were both effective in decreasing arterial pCO2 (from 8.9 ± 1.3 kPa to 5.6 ± 0.8 kPa and from 8.6 ± 1.0 kPa to 6.3 ± 0.7 kPa, p < 0.05 for both groups, respectively). Furthermore, pH improved (from 7.32 ± 0.08 to 7.47 ± 0.07 and from 7.37 ± 0.04 to 7.49 ± 0.01, p < 0.05) for both regional and systemic anticoagulation groups, respectively. Upon ceasing CO2 dialysis, hypercapnia ensued. The liver and kidney function test results were normal, and scanning electron microscopy analysis revealed only some cellular and fibrin adhesion on the oxygenator fibre in the heparin group. CONCLUSIONS: CO2 dialysis utilizing either regional or systemic anticoagulation showed to be safe and effective in steady transfer of CO2 and consequently optimizing pH.

Mouse bone-marrow response to low doses of whole-body gamma irradiation: induction of micronuclei.

The induction of micronuclei in mouse bone marrow was studied after whole-body exposure to low doses of gamma radiation, ranging from 5 to 75 cGy. Micronuclei were scored at 10 and 30 h after irradiation. A linear dose response was obtained at both postirradiation times. However, the number of micronuclei per 100 nuclei was lower at 30 h than at 10 h, and the dose-response curve for the former had a shallower slope. When fitted to the alpha D + beta D2 model, a negative beta value was obtained. This could be due to division delay, combined with elimination of damaged cells by death at higher doses.

Antibacterial and antifungal activity of liriodenine and related oxoaporphine alkaloids.

Liriodenine was evaluated for its antibacterial and antifungal activity against several microorganisms. Other related oxoaporphine alkaloids also were evaluated. Attempts to prepare oxoaporphine alkaloids from N-acetylnoraporphines were unsuccessful, but an unexpected phenanthrene alkaloid was obtained. A novel N-demethylation reaction was noted when oxogaucine methiodide and liriodenine methiodide were treated with alumina.

Modeling substorm dynamics of the magnetosphere: from self-organization and self-organized criticality to nonequilibrium phase transitions.

Earth's magnetosphere during substorms exhibits a number of characteristic features such as the signatures of low effective dimension, hysteresis, and power-law spectra of fluctuations on different scales. The largest substorm phenomena are in reasonable agreement with low-dimensional magnetospheric models and in particular those of inverse bifurcation. However, deviations from the low-dimensional picture are also quite considerable, making the nonequilibrium phase transition more appropriate as a dynamical analog of the substorm activity. On the other hand, the multiscale magnetospheric dynamics cannot be limited to the features of self-organized criticality (SOC), which is based on a class of mathematical analogs of sandpiles. Like real sandpiles, during substorms the magnetosphere demonstrates features, that are distinct from SOC and are closer to those of conventional phase transitions. While the multiscale substorm activity resembles second-order phase transitions, the largest substorm avalanches are shown to reveal the features of first-order nonequilibrium transitions including hysteresis phenomena and a global structure of the type of a temperature-pressure-density diagram. Moreover, this diagram allows one to find a critical exponent, that reflects the multiscale aspect of the substorm activity, different from the power-law frequency and scale spectra of autonomous systems, although quite consistent with second-order phase transitions. In contrast to SOC exponents, this exponent relates input and output parameters of the magnetosphere. Using an analogy to the dynamical Ising model in the mean-field approximation, we show the connection between the data-derived exponent of nonequilibrium transitions in the magnetosphere and the standard critical exponent beta of equilibrium second-order phase transitions.