Production and Evaluation of Porous Photocatalyst Concrete Filter (deNOx PCF) for NOx Reduction

A porous photocatalyst concrete filter (deNOx PCF) is successfully manufactured to reduce NOx by mixing TiO2 photocatalyst with lightweight aerated concrete. From the results, 4% infusion rate of each foaming agent provided the smallest change of the height, and the optimal quality of the air bubbles can be produced by using foaming agent B with 4% of infusion rate. When 3% of TiO2 photocatalyst was mixed, less irregular and relatively homogeneous pores were formed on the surface with white color due to the proper amount of photocatalyst applied. For 3% of photocatalyst mixed with deNOx PCF, 1.03 μmol/hr of NO was reduced equivalent to 10.99% of NO reduction, suggesting that the TiO2 photocatalyst dispersed in the continuous and well-developed pores inside the specimen successfully performed the removal of NO flowing through deNOx PCF using synergistic effects of adsorption and photodegradation reaction. Finally, the specimen of porous deNOx PCF for reducing NOx developed in this study can be applied to various construction sites and the air quality can be solved by reducing NOx contributing to the formation of fine particles.

Norepinephrine in Goal-Directed Fluid Therapy during General Anesthesia in Elderly Patients Undergoing Spinal Operation: Determining Effective Infusion Rate to Enhance Postoperative Functions

Background and Objective: Intraoperative hypotension is a common complication in general anesthesia that could result in different serious complications particularly in elderly patients. This Randomized Clinical Trial (RCT) aims to determine effective continuous infusion rate of norepinephrine to prevent intraoperative hypotension during spinal surgery under general anesthesia in elderly patients. Methods: This RCT was conducted on elderly patients (n= 108) undergoing general anesthesia for posterior lumbar spinal fusion. The patients were randomly divided into 0.030, 0.060, and 0.090 μg.kg-1.min-1 groups of norepinephrine infusion rates. The outcomes were assessed at entrance to operation room (T0), 15 mins after anesthesia induction (T1), 60 mins following surgery (T2), and immediately after surgery (T3). The intraoperative and postoperative complications and rehabilitation outcomes were comparatively assessed. Results: All three groups significantly reduced the incidence of delayed wound healing (0.030 vs. 0.060 vs. 0.090 μg.kg-1.min-1; 33.3% vs. 10% vs. 10%, P=0.024) and wound infection (26.7% vs. 6.7% vs. 6.7%, P=0.031). Intraoperative total fluid volume and colloids volume in the 0.030 group were significantly higher than 0.060 and 0.090 groups (P=0.005, P=0.003, and P=0.01, respectively). The 0.060 and 0.090 groups significantly increased mean-arterial-pressure than the 0.030 group at T2 and T3. Both 0.060 and 0.090 infusion rates significantly reduced intraoperative hypotension than 0.030 dosage (P=0.01 and P=0.003, respectively). The bradycardia incidence in the 0.090 group was significantly higher than the 0.030 (P=0.026) and 0.060 groups (P=0.038). The 0.060 group decreased the first intake by 1.4 hours (P=0.008) and first flatus by 1.1 hours (P=0.004) and postoperative hospital stay by 1 day (P=0.066). Conclusion: The 0.060 µg·kg-1·min-1 norepinephrine infusion combined with goal-directed fluid therapy exhibited adequate intraoperative management and postoperative outcomes.

Safety of low-dose dobutamine stress test in coronary slow flow phenomenon

Purpose: To investigate the feasibility and safety of a low-dose dobutamine stress test in coronary slow flow phenomenon (CSFP) patients.Methods: One hundred and forty-two CSFP patients, and forty-four patients without CSFP or significant epicardial coronary stenosis who served as the control group, were retrospectively reviewed. All patients were infused intravenously with dobutamine at an initial infusion rate of 5 μg/kg/min which was then increased at 8-min intervals to 10, 15, and 20 μg/kg/min. Symptoms and echocardiography were monitored simultaneously.Results: Patient tolerance decreased as the doses of dobutamine increased. No termination of the test occurred without dobutamine or at the infusion rate of 5 μg/kg/min. Nonetheless, when the infusion rates were adjusted to 15 and 20 μg/kg/min, the incident of side effects reached up to 30.9 %, and a few patients experienced ST-segment depression in precordial electrocardiographic leads. There were no induced arrhythmias without dobutamine, while the incidence of arrhythmias was highest at the infusion rate of 20 μg/kg/min. Malignant arrhythmias such as ventricular fibrillation and sustained ventricular tachycardia, were not detected. No significant differences were showed in echocardiogram result for left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) between CSFP and control group (63.7±7.9 in the CSFP group, versus 64.3±7.2 in the control group; p = 0.63).Conclusion: A low-dose dobutamine stress test is safe and feasible in CSFP patients.

Drug Utilization Evaluation of Vancomycin among Patients in Jafar Ibn Auf Pediatric Hospital, 2018

Background: Vancomycin is an antibiotic of growing importance in the treatment of hospital-acquired infections; with a particular emphasis on its value in the fight against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Increasing reports of Vancomycin resistance have raised concerns about the effectiveness of this drug. Drug utilization evaluation has an important role in controlling rational use of antibiotics to prevent the emergence of resistance. Methods: We conducted a retrospective 6-months study at Jafar Ibn Auf pediatric hospital. Data including patient's demographics, diagnosis, Dosage regimen, and treatment duration were reviewed. The concordance of practice with the Hospital Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC) guidelines and principles of antibiotic therapy was assessed. Results: 127 medical records were reviewed in this study. Sepsis (29%) and Pneumonia (19.6%) were the most common indications. Culture test was requested in 20.5% of patients. Monitoring of serum creatinine was carried in 81.1% of patients. Based on HICPAC guidelines vancomycin was administered appropriately in 67.7% percent of cases. Considering the infusion rate, most of patients with specific order were received vancomycin in 1 hour. Conclusions: The results showed that vancomycin was used empirically without subsequent adjustment of the antimicrobial agent according to culture and sensitivity data and lack of paying enough attention to the infusion rate and serum creatinine monitoring.

A Novel Protocol for Rituximab Administration with Reduced Incidence of Severe Infusion-Related Adverse Reactions in Patients with B-Cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

Introduction: Rituximab is widely used as the standard treatment for most types of B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphomas (B-NHL). However, infusion-related reactions (IRRs), such as fever, chills, nausea, rashes, rigors, or hypotension, are a significant burden to patients and oncology practitioners. Thus, we developed a novel protocol on the rituximab administration to avoid severe IRRs during a short-time infusion in the outpatient chemotherapy center of Nihon University Itabashi Hospital. Methods: This observational study aimed to establish an effective dosing schedule for safely administering rituximab within a short time for patients with various B-NHL types. Rituximab was diluted to a concentration of 1 mg/mL and intravenously administered to patients at a dose of 375 mg/m 2. Before the rituximab administration, prophylactic premedications were given per guidelines. We stratified patients into low (n = 0), moderate (n = 1), or high risk (n = 2) groups according to the observed number of risk factors for IRRs identified in our previous study, i.e., indolent histology and presence of bulky disease (>10cm) (Hayama et al. 2017, PMID: 28144804). In the low- and moderate-risk groups, the infusion rate of rituximab was set at 25 mg/h (first 1h), 100 mg/h (next 1h), and a maximum of 200 mg/h thereafter (conventional infusion #1, approx. 4.3h). In the high-risk group, the infusion rate of rituximab was set at 25 mg/h (first 1h) and a maximum of 100 mg/h thereafter (long infusion, approx. 6.8h). The second infusion of rituximab was dependent on the occurrence of IRRs in the first cycle. If a patient in the low-risk group did not have IRRs in the first cycle, the infusion rate of rituximab in the second cycle was then started at 100 mg/h for the first 30min and increased by 100 mg/h every 30min to a maximum of 400 mg/h thereafter (short infusion, approx. 2.3h). Also, for a patient in the moderate-risk group without any grade of IRRs in the first cycle, the infusion rates of second rituximab was set at 100 mg/h (first 1h) and a maximum of 200 mg/h thereafter (conventional infusion #2, approx. 3.5h). Finally, a patient in the high-risk group without IRRs in the first cycle received the second rituximab as per the conventional infusion #1. If patients experienced any grades of IRR in the first cycle, the next rituximab was administered on the same schedule as the first cycle. The infusion procedure for the third cycle was at the discretion of attending physicians (Figure). The primary endpoint was the incidence of IRRs during the first and second doses of rituximab in each risk group. The secondary endpoints were; overall incidence of IRRs in the first and second doses of rituximab; infusion rates of rituximab at the IRRs; conversion rate of the short infusion at the third cycle in each group; overall conversion rate of the short infusion at the third cycle. Results: A total of 81 B-NHL patients treated with rituximab in 2018 and 2019 at Nihon University Itabashi Hospital was evaluated. The incidence of IRRs during the first and second cycles in each risk group was 31%, 20%, and 57% in the low- (n = 39), moderate- (n = 35), and high-risk (n = 7) groups, respectively, with no significant difference among the three risk groups (p = 0.1407). The overall incidence of IRRs was 28% without grade 3 or higher severity. The IRRs occurred most frequently at the infusion rate of 100 mg/h (n = 16). Conversion rates to the short infusion at the third cycle of rituximab were 82%, 29%, and 29%, in the low-, moderate-, and high-risk groups, respectively, with a significant imbalance between the groups (p <0.0001). The overall conversion rate of the short infusion in the third cycle was 54%, without any grades of IRRs (Table). Conclusions: Our step-by-step infusion protocol of rituximab provided a safe and comfortable drug administration for both patients and oncology practitioners. In addition, the protocol can reduce unexpected, severe adverse reactions to rituximab that typically require hospital admission and medical expenses (UMIN-CTR, UMIN000032309). Figure 1 Figure 1. Disclosures Miura: Chugai: Honoraria; Kyowa Kirin: Honoraria. Hatta: Pfizer Japan Inc.: Honoraria; Novartis KK: Honoraria; Bristol-Myers Squibb: Honoraria; Otsuka Pharmaceutical.: Honoraria.

Validation and Implementation of the Use of Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC) for the Administration of Peripheral Blood Stem Cells (PBSC): A Single-Institution Experience

Background: Infusion of peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) in patients undergoing autologous transplantation (ASCT) has been conventionally performed using central venous catheters (CVC) inserted through the subclavian or internal jugular vein. Peripheral inserted central catheters (PICC) are routinely used for infusion of blood products and medication, but its use for PBSC infusion has not been well established. Our study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and safety of using PICC to deliver PBSC for ASCT through an in-vitro lab-based validation process, followed by a clinical review. Methods: Lab based validation In vitro infusion of 6 cryopreserved PBSCs was performed, 3 infused PICC whist 3 via CVC. Each product was thawed for the same amount of time and drained by gravity. Pre-infusion and post-infusion total nucleated cell counts (TNC), CD34 counts and CD34 viability of the PBSCs were analysed by flow-cytometry and compared using paired T test. In vitro infusion rates were also compared between PICC and CVC groups. Clinical Outcome Analysis The clinical study included 31 patients (Lymphoma N=21, myeloma N=5, Others, N=4) who underwent ASCT at National University Cancer Institute, Singapore (NCIS) from September 2019 to July 2021. All patients had a 19G BARDS dual lumen PICC inserted in either the brachial or basilic veins and used for PBSC infusion. The PBSC infusion rate, infusion associated complications, time to absolute neutrophil count (ANC) >1, and platelet count engraftment >100K were analysed. Clinical outcomes in the lymphoma cohort, who received BEAM conditioning (N=17) were also compared with a control group, matched for conditioning, cell dose and age, who had PBSC infused via CVC. Results: In vitro findings: Overall flow rates for infusion through PICC was slower (mean 0.1mls/s vs 0.3mls/s, p < 0.05). However, there were no significant % differences in TNC counts (5% vs 9%, p=0.4), CD34 counts (17% vs 15%, p=0.9) and viability (4% vs 7%, p=0.2) between pre and post infusion samples for PICC and CVC.. Clinical findings: 30 patients (Lymphoma N=21, myeloma N=5, N=4) were included. 15 (50% of patients) had a for ASCT while 15 (50%) had an existing PICC. For patients with an existing PICC, the median duration of catheter in situ was 86 days. New lines were inserted 2-7 days prior to the PBSC infusion. The median age of the patients was 54 (20-71) with 19 males (63%). . There were 5 infusion related complications, 2 in an existing PICC and 3 in new PICCs. 4 were related to slow flow rate and 1 was related to sediments seen in the line. None led to a need for alternative line for infusion. The median time to ANC recovery was 10 (range 9-14), 10 (range 9-11) and 11 days (range 10-12), while the median time to platelet engraftment was 18 (range 10-195), 20 (range 15-55) and 22 (16-85 days) for the lymphoma BEAM conditioning (N=17), lymphoma Carmustine/ Thiotepa conditioning (N=4), and the myeloma (N=5) cohorts respectively. Clinical outcomes in the lymphoma cohort, who also compared with a control group matched for conditioning, cell dose and conditioning. The in-vivo infusion rate was slower in the PICC group, compared to the CVC group (3.1 mls/min vs 4.5mls/min, p<0.05).There was however no differences in engraftment with median time to ANC recovery 10 days (range 9-14) vs 11 days (range 9-13) (p>0.05) and median time to platelet engraftment 18 (range 14-195) vs 19 days (range 14 -57) (p>0.05) in the PICC vs CVC groups respectively. Conclusion: Our in-vitro and clinical findings confirmed that the use of PICC for PBSC infusion is safe and efficacious and reduces the need for CVC insertion. Our findings have led to change in clinical practice with utilization of PICCs for PBSC infusions for ASCT. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

The glucose infusion rate of parenteral nutrition in the first week of life in preterm infants: an observational study

Background Most preterm infants require a continuous glucose infusion in the early postnatal period due to the interruption of the transplacental glucose supply after birth to promote better neurodevelopmental outcomes. Aims To investigate the glucose infusion rate (GIR) on parenteral nutrition (PN) in the first week of life administered in preterm infants and its effect on neonatal morbidity and mortality. Methods This study included 97 infants aged < 37 gestational weeks and weighed < 2500 g at birth. Infants recruited in this study were classified into 3 groups based on the GIR usage in parenteral nutrition as follows: GIR usage of 5- < 7 g/kg/day (Group I), GIR usage of 7–13 g/kg/day (Group II), and GIR usage of > 13–15 g/kg/day (Group III). Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyzes were carried out to investigate whether the GIR usage in the three groups was associated with selected neonatal morbidities and mortality. Neonatal morbidities analyzed included respiratory distress syndrome (RDS), necrotizing enterocolitis, sepsis, retinopathy of prematurity, pulmonary hypertension, hypoglycemia, and hyperglycemia. Result Of 97 preterm infants included, 51.5% infants had a gestational age of 34- < 37 weeks, and 54.6% infants had a birth weight of 1500- < 2500 g. The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the GIR usage of 5- < 7 g/kg/day was an independent variable that significantly increased the risk of hypoglycemia (Adjusted Odds Ratio [AOR] = 4.000, 95% Confidence Interval [CI] = 1.384–11.565, P = 0.010) and reduced the risk of sepsis (AOR = 0.096, 95% CI = 0.012–0.757, P = 0.026). The GIR usage in all three groups did not increase the risk of mortality. For neonatal morbidity analyzed in this study, RDS (AOR = 5.404, 95%CI = 1.421–20.548, P = 0.013) was an independent risk factor of mortality. Conclusion The GIR usage of < 7 g/kg/day in PN in the first week of life administered to preterm infants was an independent variable in increasing hypoglycemia, but in contrast, reducing the risk of sepsis.

Why do Patients with Acute Pneumonia Receive Intravenous Infusions?

Currently, almost all urgently hospitalized patients immediately get access to the venous bed and begin to receive an infusion of solutions. This priority of this procedure is due not only to the need to have the most effective way of administering medications, but also to compensate for the loss of fluid, which in acute diseases has many reasons for this. Further recommendations for the correction of water-electrolyte and volume losses and the choice of the infusion rate are determined by the general criteria for their diagnosis in accordance with the parameters of the large circle of blood circulation. Considering AP, first of all, as a result of infection and not focusing on the localization of the process, modern medicine does not make exceptions in this therapeutic direction for patients with inflammation of the lung tissue.