Feeding outcomes after paediatric cardiothoracic surgery: a retrospective review.

BACKGROUND: Feeding difficulty is a known complication of congenital heart surgery. Despite this, there is a relative sparsity in the available data regarding risk factors, incidence, associated symptoms, and outcomes. METHODS: In this retrospective chart review, patients aged 0-18 years who underwent congenital heart surgery at a single institution between January and December, 2017 were reviewed. Patients with feeding difficulties before surgery, multiple surgeries, and potentially abnormal recurrent laryngeal nerve anatomy were excluded. Data collected included patient demographics, feeding outcomes, post-operative symptoms, flexible nasolaryngoscopy findings, and rates of readmission within a 1-year follow-up period. Multivariable regression analyses were performed to evaluate the risk of an alternative feeding plan at discharge and length of stay. RESULTS: Three-hundred and twenty-six patients met the inclusion criteria for this study. Seventy-two (22.09%) were discharged with a feeding tube and 70 (97.22%) of this subgroup were younger than 12 months at the time of surgery. Variables that increased the risk of being discharged with a feeding tube included patient age, The Society of Thoracic Surgeons-European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery score, procedure group, aspiration, and reflux. Speech-language pathology was the most frequently utilised consulting service for patients discharged with feeding tubes (90.28%) while other services were not frequently consulted. The median length of stay was increased from 4 to 10 days for patients who required an enteral feeding tube at discharge. DISCUSSION: Multidisciplinary management protocol and interventions should be developed and standardised to improve feeding outcomes following congenital heart surgery.

Multifunctional Surface Manipulation Using Orthogonal Click Chemistry.

Polymer brushes are excellent substrates for the covalent immobilization of a wide variety of molecules due to their unique physicochemical properties and high functional group density. By using reactive microcapillary printing, poly(pentafluorophenyl acrylate) brushes with rapid kinetic rates toward aminolysis can be partially patterned with other click functionalities such as strained cyclooctyne derivatives and sulfonyl fluorides. This trireactive surface can then react locally and selectively in a one pot reaction via three orthogonal chemistries at room temperature: activated ester aminolysis, strain promoted azide-alkyne cycloaddition, and sulfur(VI) fluoride exchange, all of which are tolerant of ambient moisture and oxygen. Furthermore, we demonstrate that these reactions can also be used to create areas of morphologically distinct surface features on the nanoscale, by inducing buckling instabilities in the films and the grafting of nanoparticles. This approach is modular, and allows for the development of highly complex surface motifs patterned with different chemistry and morphology.

Identification of an atypical strain of toxoplasma gondii as the cause of a waterborne outbreak of toxoplasmosis in Santa Isabel do Ivai, Brazil.

Multilocus DNA sequencing has identified a nonarchetypal strain of Toxoplasma gondii as the causal agent of a waterborne outbreak in Brazil in 2001. The strain, isolated from a water supply epidemiologically linked to the outbreak, was virulent to mice, and it has previously been identified as BrI. Using a serologic assay that detects strain-specific antibodies, we found that 13 (65%) of 20 individuals who were immunoglobulin (Ig) M positive during the outbreak possessed the same serotype as mice infected with the purported epidemic strain. The remaining 7 individuals, plus additional IgM-negative, IgG-positive individuals, possessed 1 of 4 novel serotypes, the most common of which matched the serotype of mice infected with strains isolated from chickens foraging near the outbreak site. The latter strains likely reflect the genetic diversity of T. gondii circulating in highly endemic regions of Brazil. The serotyping assay proved a useful tool for identification of specific individuals infected with the outbreak agent.

Rhinoplasty for the Cleft Lip and Palate Patient.

Septorhinoplasties in cleft patients are challenging procedures to perform for even the most experienced surgeon. Unilateral cleft rhinoplasties present a unique challenge given that the tissue bed has had previous manipulation and scarring is found around the tissue matrix, making it typically necessary to place several sturdy cartilaginous grafts to provide structural support. Rib graft provides an abundance of cartilage that can be used for multiple areas. The ability to manipulate and adjust the thickness of the cartilage strut allows for improved integrity of the graft to resist deformation and warping from the formant scar tissue.

The SRS superfamily of Toxoplasma surface proteins.

The surface of the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii is coated with developmentally expressed, glycosylphosphatidylinositol-linked proteins structurally related to the highly immunogenic surface antigen SAG1. Collectively, these surface antigens are known as the SRS (SAG1-related sequences) superfamily of proteins. SRS proteins are thought to mediate attachment to host cells and activate host immunity to regulate the parasite's virulence. To better understand the number, evolution and developmental expression of SRS genes, this study has bioinformatically identified 161 unique SRS DNA sequences present in the T. gondii type II Me49 genome. The SRS superfamily of sequences phylogenetically bifurcates into two subfamilies, the prototypic members being SAG1 and SAG2A, respectively. Paralogous SRS sequences are 24-99% identical, are tandemly arrayed throughout the genome, and are present on most, if not all, chromosomes. All 11 SRS sequences on chromosomes Ia and Ib are clustered at sub-telomeric expression sites. Messenger RNA expression in the majority of SRS sequences for which multiple Expressed Sequence Tags exist is developmentally regulated. A consensus nucleotide sequence surrounding both the splice acceptor and donor sites was identified in those SRS sequences possessing an intron. Genotypic differences among SRS sequences are present at several loci (e.g. the absence of SAG5B, the truncation of SAG2D in Me49 compared with RH) indicating that different genotypes possess distinct sets of SRS sequences. Orthologous genes are restricted to tissue-dwelling coccidia (Neospora, Sarcocystis) with no related sequences present in other more distant apicomplexa such as Eimeria, Cryptosporidia, and Plasmodium spp.