Analysis of Experiences in Preventing COVID-19 in Hemodialysis Centers of the North of Poland before the Era of Vaccination

Background: The appearance of very contagious SARS-CoV-2 variants and waning vaccine immunity may indicate the need to return to using universal methods of preventing the spread of COVID-19. Methods: We performed a multicenter retrospective cohort survey study to describe the methods used in dialysis units to prevent and control the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and also the association between these methods and the incidence of COVID-19 among hemodialyzed (HD) patients before the era of vaccination. The study population included all maintenance HD patients (n = 1569) in 14 dialysis units in the Pomeranian Voivodeship. Results: The group of 352 patients (199 men, 153 female) were confirmed for COVID-19. The absolute cumulative incidence in the studied period was 22.4%. It varied widely by dialysis units, ranging from 9.4% to 36.9%. Universal preventive methods were applied by all units. Different additional methods were implemented in some stations with varying frequency (36–86%). In order to quantify the scale of the applied additional preventive methods, we calculated a summary prevention index (PI), i.e., one point for one additional method. Lower incidence was found in centers applying dialysis in isolation of patients hospitalized due to diseases requiring hospitalization (17.42% ± 6.89 vs. 26.54 ± 6.34; p = 0.028) and higher incidence in medium-size dialysis centers (ANOVA F: p = 0.017). Significant inverse correlation between PI and incidence was demonstrated as well (r = −0.759; p = 0.002). Conclusions: The higher the number of implemented preventive measures, the lower the risk of COVID-19 infection in HD patients. Among applied procedures the isolation of hospitalized patients is of significant importance. The measures proved to be effective in prevention before the vaccination era should be continued, as the threat of SARS-CoV-2 still exists.

The role of optical coherence tomography in the diagnosis of the leukemic infiltration of the optic nerve and retina

Even though there are multiple diseases of the optic nerve and the retina in patients with hemoblastosis, their ophthalmoscopic picture is similar in many respects. The purpose of this study is to determine the role of optical coherence tomography (OCT) in the differential diagnosis of various manifestations of hemoblastosis in the fundus. Material and methods. From Jan. 2015 to Jan. 2019, 9 patients (5 men and 4 women aged 29 to 72) with hemoblastosis and lesions of the optic nerve and retina were examined. Results. 5 patients were diagnosed with leukemic infiltration of the optic nerve. The remaining 4 patients had, congestive optic discs (1), occlusion of the central retinal vein (1), anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (1), and bilateral occlusion of the central retinal artery with leukemic infiltration of eye membranes (1). The article describes the ophthalmoscopic pictures and OCT data for the specific diseases. Unlike other diseases of the optic nerve and retina, leukemic infiltration is characterized by a pronounced dense edema in the inner layers of the retina with shielding of the underlying outer layers of the retina. Conclusion. OCT is an important additional method for differential diagnosis of leukemic infiltration and other diseases of the optic nerve and retina in patients with hemoblastosis.

Experience in the use of tissue flossing for the prevention and treatment of muscle cramps

Introduction. Cramps are sudden, involuntary, painful tonic muscle spasms of individual muscles or muscle groups lasting from several seconds to several minutes. It occurs in patients of different age categories with a frequency of up to 37 %. Tissue flossing (flossing, voodoo flossing) is an effect on the musculature, tendons, fascia (myofascial structures) of the extremities with the help of a special elastic band circularly wound on the limb, and subsequent physical exercises in this condition in order to improve blood circulation in the limb segment, increase tissue mobility, elasticity and extensibility of muscle-fascial structures. Tissue flossing can help to increase the volume of movements in the joints, reduce pain and increase flexibility.The aim to study the effects of tissue flossing on the frequency and intensity of manifestations of cramps. Materials and methods. The publication was based on the materials obtained during the observation of 7 patients with cramps. The aggressive nature of the muscle spasms forced them to seek medical help. In order to assess the effect on the frequency and intensity of cramps, patients underwent circular winding of an elastic band on a limb segment (tissue flossing) in which cramps occurred, followed by physical exercises (mainly flexion and extension at a pace of one movement per second) without additional load (with their weight) for 1 minute. Then the elastic band was removed and the patient continued to perform the same movements also for a minute with a frequency of one movement per second. Patients performed exercises 1-2 times a day for 5-14 days.Results. In five out of seven patients, cramps did not resume after the first use of tissue flossing. In two of the seven patients, cramps stopped after 7 days of exercise use. At follow-up in one (out of seven) patients, cramps resumed 2 months after the use of tissue flossing, but with a lower intensity. In the other six (out of seven) patients in the subsequent follow-up period (from 14 days to 6 months), cramps did not resume.Conclusion. According to the preliminary results of observations, it can be assumed that the tissue flossing method is effective for preventing cramps of various genesis as an independent and additional method of treatment.

Use of botulinum toxin type A in rheumatic diseases

The article presents an analysis of modern data on the antinociceptive effectiveness of botulinum toxin type A (BTA) in rheumatic diseases (RD). The prospects for the use of BTA in the treatment of pain in different RDs are discussed. We searched for publications in the Medline, Pubmed, Cochrane Library databases. Analysis of literature data has shown that BTA can become an additional method of pain management in many RDs.

Implementing fingerprint authentication in computer-based tests

The use of computers to conduct examinations is more effective than traditional paper-based examinations in terms of immediate availability of results and long term cost effectiveness. This however is faced with identifying and authenticating the real identities of the examinees so as to reduce impersonation. The study examined the existing authentication method available on the Computer-based test system of Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT), Kaduna, Nigeria and proposed the fingerprint biometric technique as an additional method to authenticate the examinees. The fingerprint biometric authentication was developed using FlexCode SDK and implemented on DigitalPersona 4500 fingerprint reader – the recommended scanner by JAMB for fingerprint enrollment. The system was developed using PHP scripting language on XAMPP local server and MySQL database system. The results obtained showed that there is no need for a middleware to link the authentication module with the CBT because of the Single Sign-On technique implemented. This result thus improved the level of authentication and access to the CBT. This will therefore reduce impersonation and increase the level of awareness of CBT by academic stakeholders.

Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection (UMAP) Reveals Composite Patterns and Resolves Visualization Artifacts in Microbiome Data

UMAP provides an additional method to visualize microbiome data. The method is extensible to any beta diversity metric used with PCoA, and our results demonstrate that UMAP can indeed improve visualization quality and correspondence with biological and technical variables of interest.

Rating of Perceived Exertion as a Method to Determine Training Loads in Strength Training in Elderly Women: A Randomized Controlled Study

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the effects of training using loads from a repetition maximum value (%1RM) and rating of perceived exertion (RPE) in elderly women. Methods: Twenty-five elderly women (60–75 years old) were randomly assigned to a group that trained using loads determined by 1RM test (G%; n = 12) or to a group that trained using loads determined by RPE (GPE; n = 13). Elderly women trained for 12 weeks using five exercises performed with 2–3 sets of 8–15 repetitions. Loads progressed from 45% to 75% of 1RM (G%) and from 13 to 18 from Rating Perceived Exertion of Borg Scale (GPE). The outcome measures, 1RM and maximum repetitions (RMs with 70% 1RM), were assessed before, between and after training programs. Results: Increased 1RM value and RMs were observed in both groups (20–42%, p < 0.001 and 56–76%, p < 0.001, respectively, for %G; and 17–56%, p < 0.001 and 47–106%, p < 0.001, respectively, for GPE), without differences between them. Conclusions: Prescribing loads using the RPE and 1RM might be similarly effective for training elderly women in order to promote strength gains. As a practical application, RPE could be an additional method to determine training loads. In spite of the promising results of the present study, it is not possible to state that the use of RPE is effective in monitoring loads during sub maximal strength training in elderly and more research must be carried out to confirm it.

Morphological basis for possibility of applying electrochemical method with use of nanotechnological biosensors in diagnosis of colorectal cancer

Objective. To assess the efficacy of electrochemical method using biosensors for studying the activity of alkaline phosphatase as a marker of functional atypism in the fresh and formalin-fixed biopsies of the colorectal cancer by means of comparing with the results of morphological study. Materials and methods. Electrochemical method was used to study the fragments of tumors (adenocarcinomas) of the colon and colon mucosa from 78 patients who underwent endoscopic study of the colon. The results of electrochemical and morphological studied were assessed and compared. Results. In the material from 70 patients, a mean value of the current strength, obtained while studying the tumor fragments, was 49.2 (95 % CI 41.3 88.9) nA and 33.1 (95 % CI 9.5 44.2) nA in case of fresh and formalin-fixed biopsies, respectively. A mean value of the current strength, obtained while studying mucosa fragments, was 119.7 (95 % CI 96.8 167.1) nА and 59.6 (95 % CI 48.3 71) nA in case of fresh and formalin-fixed biopsies, respectively. While conducting immunohistochemical study, in the tumor tissue a low expression of alkaline phosphatase compared to unchanged mucosa was detected. Conclusions. Electrochemical method applying nanotechnological biosensors was shown to be used for a rapid, direct estimation of alkaline phosphatase content in the biopsies of the colorectal carcinoma. The obtained results allow considering electrochemical method as an additional method for assessment of functional atypism of tumor cells.

An analysis of geochemical features of crystallization of emeralds as an approach to determine the deposit of them

Relevance. It is known that minerals differ in morphology, features of the internal structure of crystals, chemical composition, etc., depending on the conditions of their formation and existence. These geochemical features of the gems crystallization are an important criterion for determining their deposit. In this paper, the impurity composition of the samples of emeralds from the deposits of Brazil, China, Zambia, Russia, Afghanistan, Colombia, and Tanzania was investigated by X-ray fluorescent analysis. The study of the impurity composition of emeralds by a non-destructive method and the construction of analytical dependences can be used as an additional way for determining the deposit of emeralds. Purpose of the work is the study of chemical composition of emeralds by X-ray fluorescent analysis to establish the relationship between the content of the main impurity elements and the deposit. Results. The data on the impurity composition of emeralds obtained by X-ray fluorescent analysis show that the content of impurities of Na, K, Rb, Cs, Mg, Fe, V, Cr differs from one deposit to another. The content of impurities of alkali metals and magnesium is higher in the samples from the shale-type deposits compared to the samples from deposits of the Colombian type. Thus, at the first stage, the type of deposit can be assumed. Further, the dependences plotted in the coordinate planes {Cr, V}, {Cs, Cr}, {Fe, Cr} show separate areas, delimited by the impurity ratios, which are typical for the samples from deposits in China, Colombia, Zambia, Afghanistan, and Tanzania. Conclusion. X-ray fluorescent analysis, as a non-destructive method for studying emeralds, is considered to be a promising approach to identifying their deposit, but as an additional method.

Epipleural surgical block and ultrasound-guided erector spinae plane block for analgesia in VATS

Thoracic surgery is still associated with severe postoperative pain. In this video tutorial, we present 2 techniques that could be used as an additional method in a multimodal postoperative analgesia strategy for video-assisted thoracic surgery. We present the combination of an epipleural surgical infiltration of a local anesthetic with an ultrasound-guided erector spinae plane block.