bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Organ preservation in rectal cancer: review of contemporary management
Authors: Fleming Christina , Vendrely Véronique , Rullier Eric , Denost Quentin
Published: April 2022

Background

Organ preservation as a successful management for rectal cancer is an evolving field. Refinement of neoadjuvant therapies and extended interval to response assessment has improved tumour downstaging and cCR rates.

Methods

This was a narrative review of the current evidence for all aspects of organ preservation in rectal cancer management, together with a review of the future direction of this field.

Results

Patients can be selected for organ preservation opportunistically, based on an unexpectedly good tumour response, or selectively, based on baseline tumour characteristics that predict organ preservation as a viable treatment strategy. Escalation in oncological therapy and increasing the time interval from completion of neaodjuvant therapy to tumour assessment may further increase tumour downstaging and complete response rates. The addition of local excision to oncological therapy can further improve organ preservation rates. Cancer outcomes in organ preservation are comparable to those of total mesorectal excision, with low regrowth rates reported in patients who achieve a complete response to neoadjuvant therapy. Successful organ preservation aims to achieve non-inferior oncological outcomes together with improved functionality and survivorship. Future research should establish consensus of follow-up protocols, and define criteria for oncological and functional success to facilitate patient-centred decision-making.

Conclusion

Modern neoadjuvant therapy for rectal cancer and increasing the interval to tumour response increases the number of patients who can be managed successfully with organ preservation in rectal cancer, both as an opportunistic event and as a planned treatment strategy.
Tailoring diagnosis and treatment in symptomatic gallstone disease
Authors: Latenstein Carmen S S , de Reuver Philip R
Published: April 2022

Background

There is a lack of consensus in selecting patients who do or do not benefit from surgery when patients present with abdominal pain and gallbladder stones are present. This review aimed to give an overview of results from recent trials and available literature to improve treatment decisions in patients with uncomplicated cholecystolithiasis.

Methods

First, an overview of different symptom criteria for laparoscopic cholecystectomy in patients with uncomplicated cholecystolithiasis is given, based on national and international guidelines. Second, treatment outcomes (absence of biliary colic, pain-free state, biliary and surgical complications) are summarized, with data from three clinical trials. Finally, personal advice for treatment decisions in patients with uncomplicated cholecystolithiasis is provided, based on recent trials, the available literature, and expert opinion.

Results

This review describes different guidelines and criteria sets for uncomplicated cholecystolithiasis, provides an overview of outcomes after cholecystectomy, and advises on treatment decisions in patients with abdominal pain and gallbladder stones. After cholecystectomy, biliary colic is resolved in 95 per cent of patients. However, non-specific abdominal pain persists in 40 per cent. Irritable bowel syndrome and functional dyspepsia significantly increase the risk of persistent pain. Age, previous abdominal surgery, baseline pain score on a visual analogue scale, pain characteristics, nausea, and heartburn are part of the SUCCESS criteria, and are associated with clinically relevant pain reduction after gallbladder removal.

Conclusion

The surgical community can now give more personalized advice on surgery to improve care for patients with abdominal pain and uncomplicated cholecystolithiasis.
The regulatory role of eosinophils in viral, bacterial, and fungal infections
Authors: Gaur Pratibha , Zaffran Ilan , George Tresa , Rahimli Alekberli Fidan , Ben-Zimra Micha , Levi-Schaffer Francesca
Published: April 2022

Eosinophils are innate immune cells typically associated with allergic and parasitic diseases. However, in recent years, eosinophils have also been ascribed a role in keeping homeostasis and in fighting several infectious diseases. Indeed, these cells circulate as mature cells in the blood and can be quickly recruited to the infected tissue. Moreover, eosinophils have all the necessary cellular equipment such as pattern recognition receptors (PRRs), pro-inflammatory cytokines, anti-bacterial proteins, and DNA traps to fight pathogens and promote an efficient immune response. This review summarizes some of the updated information on the role of eosinophils’ direct and indirect mediated interactions with pathogens.
The Impact of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Pandemic on Substance Use in the United States
Authors: Ross Jennifer A , Malone Patrice K , Levy Sharon
Published: April 2022

The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has been associated with dramatic increases in substance use, as marked by increased alcohol, nicotine, and cannabis sales. Lethal opioid overdoses also increased dramatically, especially during the initial phases of the epidemic when lockdowns and social isolation combined with increasing fentanyl contamination of the illicit drug supply resulted in more overdoses and fewer opportunities for rescue. Substance use, and especially inhalational drug use, increases the likelihood of both transmission and severe infection. Youth are especially vulnerable to substance use and have increased risk of long-term problems. These outcomes highlight the need for greater access to substance use treatment. Virtual treatment, which emerged as a promising format during the pandemic, may reduce access barriers. This article reviews trends in substance use during the pandemic, explores root causes of increased use and overdose, and examines the potential to increase treatment through virtual care, especially during future periods of disruption.
39: TREATMENT OF ANASTOMOTIC LEAKAGE AFTER ESOPHAGECTOMY (TENTACLE—ESOPHAGUS) STUDY: EFFICACY OF DIFFERENT INITIAL TREATMENT STRATEGIES FOR ANASTOMOTIC LEAKAGE
Authors: Ubels S , Verstegen M , Bouwense S , Hannink G , Siersema P , Klarenbeek B , Van Workum F , Rosman C
Published: April 2022

Background and aim

Anastomotic leakage (AL) is a common and severe complication after esophagectomy. It is largely unknown which primary treatments are most effective for which type of leak. We aimed to investigate the effectiveness of different primary treatments of AL after esophagectomy.

Methods

The TENTACLE—Esophagus study is an international retrospective cohort study, in which 1509 patients with AL after esophagectomy between 2011 and 2019 were included. Detailed data were collected regarding case mix, resection (e.g. minimally invasive resection), leakage characteristics (e.g. organ failure, leak circumference, intrathoracic contamination) and leakage treatment (e.g. hours from diagnosis to treatment, primary and secondary treatment modalities such as endoscopic, radiologic and surgical treatment). An elaborate data quality validation and data accuracy assessment were performed. Primary outcome was 90-day mortality and secondary outcomes included length of stay and leak healing time. Regression analysis will be used to analyze the effectiveness of primary treatments after correction for patient-, surgery-, and leakage characteristics, and leakage severity. Different clinically relevant leakage groups have been defined. Efficacy of different treatment strategies adjusted for leakage severity will be analyzed in these clinical groups. The full study protocol is accessible at www.tentaclestudy.com.

Results

Detailed data of 1509 patients with AL was collected from 71 centers in 20 countries. Data accuracy was 96.5%. Preliminary results showed that the overall 90-day mortality was 11.7%. The analysis of TENTACLE—Esophagus data is currently being performed and efficacy of different leakage treatment strategies is being assessed. The efficacy of initial leakage treatment strategies will be ready to be presented at the ESDE meeting.

Conclusion

This is the largest study on effectiveness of AL treatments. The final results on efficacy of primary leak treatments, which will be available for presentation at the ESDE meeting, could provide an evidence-based basis that can be used by clinicians to determine the preferred primary treatment strategy in patients with a given type of anastomotic leakage after esophagectomy.
56: EXTERNAL VALIDATION OF PET-BASED RADIOMIC MODELS TO IDENTIFY PATIENTS WITH RESIDUAL ESOPHAGEAL CANCER AFTER NEOADJUVANT CHEMORADIOTHERAPY
Authors: Valkema M , Beukinga J , Chatterjee A , Woodruff H , Lambin P , Bennink R , Schreurs W , Roef M , Valkema R , Lagarde S , Wijnhoven B , Plukker J , Van Lanschot J
Published: April 2022

Background and aim

High-throughput quantitative imaging (‘radiomics’) has been proposed to predict tumor response in various types of cancer. Internally validated radiomic models based on post-treatment PET features plus cT-stage have been developed (Beukinga et al. 2018) to detect residual tumor after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy for esophageal cancer. The aim of the present study was to externally validate the published models.

Methods

The external validation cohort comprised esophageal cancer patients who underwent chemoradiotherapy according to the CROSS regimen followed by immediate resection in four Dutch institutes between 2013–2019. Outcome was tumor regression grade (TRG) 1 (0% residual vital tumor) versus TRG-2-3-4 (≥ 1% tumor). Preoperative FDG-PET/CT was performed 6–12 weeks after nCRT. Gross tumor volumes on CT were transposed to post-treatment PET scans and were manually adapted in consensus by two investigators. Radiomic features were extracted using the open-source software ‘Pyradiomics’, with settings similar to the published models. Discrimination and calibration were assessed for the 6 internally validated models with optimism-corrected AUCs>0.77.

Results

Some 189 patients were included in the external validation cohort. Baseline characteristics and outcome (TRG-1: 40/189 patients (21%); TRG2–3-4: 149/189 patients (79%)) were comparable to the derivation sample. Since features were dependent on different scanner manufacturers (data not shown), the cohort was reduced with only scans from Siemens scanners (n = 130), similar to the derivation sample. The model including cT-stage and the grey-level-co-occurrence-matrix feature ‘Joint Energy’ had highest AUC of 0.71 (95% CI 0.60–0.81), and a calibration slope and intercept of −0.19 and 2.83 respectively. At a probability threshold of 0.5, sensitivity was 81%, specificity 31% and balanced accuracy 56%.

Conclusion

The predictive performance of the previously developed radiomic models could not be replicated in the present multicenter external validation cohort. The decreased overall performance indicates overfitting of the models to the derivation sample. Possible causes are unintentional dependency of radiomic features on scanner types, scanning protocols, tumor delineation methods and timing of post-treatment FDG-PET/CT. We aim at improving the generalizability of the models, to enable future application in clinical decision-making for individual patients.
88: BRAIN METASTASIS INCIDENCE IN GASTRO-ESOPHAGEAL CANCER: A META-ANALYSIS
Authors: Sleiman M , Abbassi Z , Jung M , Toso C , Chevallay M , Mönig S
Published: April 2022

Background and aim

Upper gastrointestinal cancers (UGC) are a leading cause of cancer related deaths. Brain metastases (BM) from gastric and esophageal cancer are rare and associated with a poor survival time. In order to establish the most accurate incidence and characteristics of BM in UGC, we decide to review all studies and series published in the last years.

Methods

We searched the keywords ‘Gastric cancer OR Oesophageal Cancer + Cerebral Metastasis’ in Pubmed, EMBASE, Cochrane Library. Inclusion criteria were all studies treating with BM from UGC cancer. When inclusion criteria were met, we extracted the following endpoints for each study: author, year of publication, country of population, tumor localization, tumor histology, number of BM, synchronous or metachronous BM, other localization of metastases, surgical treatment of the primary tumor, different modality of BM treatment (surgery, steatosic radiosurgery, whole brain radiation, gamma knife surgery), survival and follow-up.

Results

In the final analysis, we included 52 studies. The number of patients with oesophageal tumor were described in 30 studies with 41636 patients from which 1234 patients (2.9%) had BM. 526 patients (63%) had an adenocarcinoma, 287 (34%) had a SCC and 17 (3%) other histology. BM was unique in 288 patients (50%) and multiples in 282 patients (50%). Combined radiotherapy and surgery was performed in 129 patients (17.9%). Surgical metastasectomy was performed in 172 patients (24.25%). Stereotaxic radiotherapy was delivered in 60 patients (8.5%). Whole brain radiotherapy was performed in 265 patients (35.9%), gamma knife surgery in 43 patients (5.9%), chemotherapy in 10 patients (1.6%) and no treatment in 43 patients (5.9%). Median survival was reported from 3 to 24 months. We identified 12 articles which matched criteria for gastric cancer with a total of 73.781 primary gastric tumors where 645 presented BM (0.87%). We could identify 159 patients with single BM (42.3%) compared to 217 patients with multiple BM (57.7%). We identified 434 adenocarcinoma which represent 81.1% of BM. Median survival was from 1.3 to 27 months with a median survival of 4.2 months.

Conclusion

BM from UGC are rare but with a low survival. Multimodal treatment is the most described treatment strategy.
118: PROGNOSTIC SIGNIFICANCE OF EXTRACAPSULAR LYMPH NODE INVOLVEMENT AFTER GASTRECTOMY FOR GASTRIC ADENOCARCINOMA
Authors: Prasad P , Chmelo J , Wahed S , Navidi M , Phillips A
Published: April 2022

Background and aim

Lymph node involvement is a key prognostic indicator in gastric adenocarcinoma. Little is known of the impact of extracapsular lymph node involvement (LNI) upon the prognosis of patients undergoing curative resection of gastric cancer. The aim of this study was to assess the incidence and prognostic significance of extracapsular LNI in patients undergoing a gastrectomy for gastric adenocarcinoma.

Methods

Consecutive patients who underwent a subtotal or total gastrectomy with curative intent for adenocarcinoma of the stomach or gastro-oesophageal junction in a single, high-volume U.K. centre between 2010 and 2018 were identified from contemporaneously maintained database. Patients with a pN0 status on final histology and those who died in-hospital were excluded from analysis. Factors associated with survival were studied with univariable and multivariable cox regression analysis. A P value of <0.05 was deemed significant.

Results

The study included 235 patients. A median (IQR) of 32 (24–43) lymph nodes were resected and median (IQR) 4 (1–9) lymph nodes were positive. Of them, extracapsular LNI was identified in 123 (52%) of patients. Factors associated with survival on univariable analysis were R1 resection (P = 0.001), p/ypT stage (P < 0.001), p/ypN stage (P < 0.001) and extracapsular LNI (P = 0.001). Median survival among patients who had extracapsular LNI was 19 months versus 49 months among patients who did not (P < 0.001). Extracapsular LNI was not an independent predictor of survival on multivariable analysis (P = 0.535).

Conclusion

Extracapsular LNI is associated with poor prognosis among patients undergoing a curative gastrectomy. However, it is not an independent predictor of survival among this patient cohort.
119: METASTASECTOMY OR STEREOTACTIC BODY RADIATION THERAPY FOR OLIGOMETASTATIC ESOPHAGOGASTRIC CANCER: A NATIONWIDE POPULATION-BASED COHORT STUDY
Authors: Kroese T , Jorritsma N , Haj Mohammad N , Mook S , Ruurda J , Verhoeven R , Van Rossum P , Van Laarhoven H , Van Hillegersberg R
Published: April 2022

Background and aim

This nationwide population-based study analyzed the outcome of local treatment for oligometastatic esophagogastric cancer in The Netherlands.

Methods

Patients with synchronous or metachronous oligometastasis (i.e. distant metastasis in 1 organ/extra-regional lymph node station) from esophagogastric cancer were eligible for inclusion from Netherlands Cancer Registry. Patients who underwent local treatment (i.e. metastasectomy or stereotactic body radiation therapy [SBRT]) for oligometastasis were included. The overall survival (OS) after diagnosing oligometastasis was determined. Independent prognostic factors for OS were analyzed using a multivariable Cox proportional hazard model.

Results

Between 2015–2016, some 2,336 eligible patients with oligometastasis were identified of whom 103 (4%) underwent local treatment for oligometastasis. This portion was higher in academic hospitals (10%) compared to non-academic hospitals with esophagogastric resections (5%) or without esophagogastric resections (3%, P < 0.001). The 103 included patients were predominantly diagnosed with esophageal cancer (85%) with adenocarcinoma histology (80%) and with metachronous oligometastasis (59%). The oligometastasis were located in a distant organ (79%), an extra-regional lymph node station (12%), or the peritoneum (9%). Treatment for oligometastasis included metastasectomy (45%), SBRT (40%), or both (15%), and 21% of patients received additional systemic therapy. Median OS was 18.1 months (95% confidence interval [CI]: 13.9–22.7). The OS rate at 2-year was 36% and at 3-year 23%. Improved OS was independently associated with additional systemic therapy (hazard ratio [HR] 0.47, 95% CI: 0.23–0.96) and better performance scores (HR 0.55, 95% CI: 0.29–0.92).

Conclusion

A minority of patients underwent local treatment for oligometastatic esophagogastric cancer, which was dependent on the type of hospital of diagnosis. Local treatment for oligometastasis resulted in a median OS of 1.5 years. Systemic therapy combined with local treatment for oligometastasis improved OS.
131: THE EFFECT OF PANCREATIC ENZYME REPLACEMENT THERAPY ON COMPLAINTS OF MALABSORPTION AFTER ESOPHAGECTOMY FOR CANCER
Authors: Blonk L , Zwolsman M , Wierdsma N , Van Der Peet D , Straatman J
Published: April 2022

Background and aim

Pancreatic enzymes are often prescribed in clinical practice to treat complaints of maldigestion and malabsorption after esophagectomy for cancer, but knowledge regarding the effect of this treatment on malabsorption related complaints is lacking. Aim of this study is to evaluate the presence of malabsorption related complaints after esophagectomy and to determine whether treatment with pancreatic enzymes is effective.

Methods

This single-center, retrospective cohort study included patients after esophagectomy for cancer between 2014 and 2019 at Amsterdam UMC location VU medical center. Medical charts of patients with a postoperative follow-up period of at least 6 months were screened. Endpoints of this study were (1) patient reported signs of malabsorption, defined as; steatorrhea or diarrhea alone, or in combination with weight loss, abdominal pain, flatulence or abdominal bloating, and (2) the effect of treatment with pancreatic enzymes on these complaints.

Results

This cohort included 184 patients. Median postoperative follow-up was 24 months (range 6–78 months). Complaints of postoperative malabsorption were present in 38.6%. Of all patients suffering from malabsorption related complaints, 59.2% received an empirical trial with pancreatic enzymes. The majority of patients (85.7%) reported a positive effect of treatment with pancreatic enzymes, varying from a complete resolution, to a mild reduction of symptoms. Median period between surgery and starting pancreatic enzymes was 7 months (range 0–53 months).

Conclusion

Based on these data, pancreatic enzymes seem to be effective in the treatment of malabsorption related complaints after esophagectomy for cancer and should therefore be considered in postoperative patients reporting malabsorption related complaints.
170: SHORT AND LONG TERM OUTCOMES IN ELDERLY PATIENTS WITH ESOPHAGEAL CANCER: UPFRONT ESOPHAGECTOMY COMPARED TO SURGERY AFTER NEOADJUVANT TREATMENTS
Authors: Moletta L , Capovilla G , Pierobon E S , Carrillo L , Ciccioli E , Zanchettin G , Provenzano L , Salvador R , Costantini M , Merigliano S , Valmasoni M
Published: April 2022

Background and aim

The current standard of care in treating locally-advanced esophageal cancer has been established after the publication of the landmark CROSS trial and several others, which demonstrated an overall survival benefit from preoperative chemoradiation prior to esophagectomy in this setting. However, elderly patients have been generally excluded from randomized study protocols, so literature regarding the choice of the best treatment approach for resectable esophageal cancer in patients older than 75 years old is limited. The aim of this study was to characterize outcomes associated with neoadjuvant chemoradiation prior to esophagectomy, compared to esophagectomy alone, in older patients with esophageal cancer.

Methods

We conducted a retrospective study in patients ≥75 years with locally-advanced esophageal cancer (both adenocarcinoma -EAC and squamous cell carcinoma -SCC) undergoing esophagectomy ± neoadjuvant chemoradiation at our Center between 2000 and 2020.

Results

A total of 141 patients were included in the study. Patients were subcategorized into two groups: patients undergoing upfront surgery (SURG, n = 97) and patients undergoing neoadjuvant therapy before surgery (NAT, n = 44). Patients in the NAT group experienced a significantly higher postoperative morbidity when compared to the SURG group. Overall survival (21 months and 25 months, p = 0.8883) and cancer-related survival (20 and 25 months, p 0.8052) were not statistically different between the SURG and the NAT group. When looking to the histology, OS for EAC and for SCC did not significantly differ between the 2 groups. We subcategorized patients according to their final pathological stage into patients with pTNM stage I and II, and patients with stage III and IV. Among patients with EACs stage III-IV, the NAT group experienced a significant benefit in OS when compared to the SURG group. Univariate analysis for risk factors for postoperative morbidity showed a significant association between NAT and postoperative complications (p 0,0336). Multivariate analysis confirmed neoadjuvant therapy as an independent prognostic factor for morbidity (P 0,0226).

Conclusion

In our study, patients undergoing NAT before surgery experienced a higher postoperative morbidity when compared to patients undergoing upfront esophagectomy. Further studies are needed to identify which older patients are most suitable for neoadjuvant therapy before esophagectomy.
213: IMPACT OF ROUTINE FEEDING VIA JEJUNOSTOMY AFTER OESOPHAGECTOMY
Authors: Khaw R A , Macdonald J , Munro S , Phillips A W
Published: April 2022

Background and aim

Oesophageal cancer is the 8th most common cancer worldwide, with oesophagectomy remaining the mainstay curative treatment, despite significant associated morbidity and mortality. Postoperative weight loss remains a significant problem and is directly correlated to poor prognosis. Measures such as the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) programme and intraoperative jejunostomy feed placement have looked to tackle this. Our aim was to investigate the impact of supplemental jejunostomy feed in practice on mortality, length of hospital stays and postoperative weight loss in a high-volume regional centre.

Methods

Patients undergoing oesophagectomy between January 2012–December 2014 and January 2016–December 2019 in a national tertiary oesophagogastric unit were included retrospectively. Variables measured included comorbidities, operation, histopathology, weights (pre- and post-operatively), length of hospital stay, postoperative complications and mortality. Survival data were analysed using R Studio, Inc.

Results

566 patients were included. Median age at diagnosis was 66 years (30–85). Majority of cases were adenocarcinoma (72.6%), or squamous cell carcinoma (22.3%). Severe weight loss >10% of pre-operative weight was seen in 38.6% and 47.6% of patients discharged without jejunostomy feed, and 4.87% and 0.64% of those discharged with jejunostomy feeds at 3- and 6-months respectively. Median length of stay was 15 days (7–92) and 12 days (6–338) for patients discharged without and with jejunostomy feeds, respectively. Overall median survival in patients discharged without jejunostomy was 52 months (P = 0.035), and in those discharged with jejunostomy, 48 months (P = 0.044).

Conclusion

Postoperative malnutrition has associated poor outcomes. Perioperative nutritional support, to include postoperative jejunal feeding post-discharge can reduce weight loss, and influence survival as well as length of hospital stay. Further randomised trials are needed in order to optimise recovery and morbidity in patients post-oesophagectomy.
Multi-level correlates of received social support among heart transplant recipients in the international BRIGHT Study: a secondary analysis
Authors: Abshire Saylor Martha , Denhaerynck Kris , Mielke Juliane , Davidson Patricia M , Dobbels Fabienne , Russell Cynthia L , De Geest Sabina
Published: April 2022

Aims

Social support is critical in follow-up of patients after heart transplant (HTx) and positively influences well-being and clinical outcomes such as medication adherence. The purpose of this study was to (i) explore received social support variation (emotional and practical) in HTx recipients at country and centre level and (ii) to assess multi-level correlates.

Methods and results

Secondary data analysis of the multi-level cross-sectional BRIGHT study was conducted in 36 HTx centres in 11 countries. Received social support related to medication adherence was measured with emotional and practical sub-scales. The Conceptual Model of Social Networks and Health guided selection of patient, micro (interpersonal and psychosocial), meso (HTx centre) and macro-level (country health system) factors. Descriptive statistics, intraclass correlations, and sequential multiple ordinal mixed logistic regression analysis were used. A total of 1379 adult HTx recipients were included. Patient level correlates (female sex, living alone, and fewer depressive symptoms) and micro-level correlates (higher level of chronic disease management and trust in the healthcare team) were associated with better emotional social support. Similarly, patient level (living alone, younger age, and male sex), micro-level and meso-level (patient and clinician-rated higher level of chronic disease management) were associated with better practical social support. Social support varied at country and centre levels for emotional and practical dimensions.

Conclusions

Social support in HTx recipients varies by country, centre, and was associated with multi-level correlates. Qualitative and longitudinal studies are needed to understand influencing factors of social support for intervention development, improvement of social support, and clinical outcomes.
Protection by Vaccines and Previous Infection Against the Omicron Variant of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2
Authors: Šmíd Martin , Berec Luděk , Přibylová Lenka , Májek Ondřej , Pavlík Tomáš , Jarkovský Jiří , Weiner Jakub , Barusová Tamara , Trnka Jan
Published: April 2022

Background

The Omicron variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) evades immunity conferred by vaccines and previous infections.

Methods

We used a Cox proportional hazards model and a logistic regression on individual-level population-wide data from the Czech Republic to estimate risks of infection and hospitalization, including severe states.

Results

A recent (≤2 months) full vaccination reached vaccine effectiveness (VE) of 43% (95% confidence interval [CI], 42%–44%) against infection by Omicron compared to 73% (95% CI, 72%–74%) against Delta. A recent booster increased VE to 56% (95% CI, 55%–56%) against Omicron infection compared to 90% (95% CI, 90%–91%) for Delta. The VE against Omicron hospitalization of a recent full vaccination was 45% (95% 95% CI, 29%–57%), with a recent booster 87% (95% CI, 84%–88%). The VE against the need for oxygen therapy due to Omicron was 57% (95% CI, 32%–72%) for recent vaccination, 90% (95% CI, 87%–92%) for a recent booster. Postinfection protection against Omicron hospitalization declined from 68% (95% CI, 68%–69%) at ≤6 months to 13% (95% CI, 11%–14%) at >6 months after a previous infection. The odds ratios for Omicron relative to Delta were 0.36 (95% CI, .34–.38) for hospitalization, 0.24 (95% CI, .22–.26) for oxygen, and 0.24 (95% CI, .21–.28) for intensive care unit admission.

Conclusions

Recent vaccination still brings substantial protection against severe outcome for Omicron.
A transfer learning-based particle swarm optimization algorithm for travelling salesman problem
Authors: Zheng Rui-zhao , Zhang Yong , Yang Kang
Published: April 2022

To solve travelling salesman problems (TSPs), most existing evolutionary algorithms search for optimal solutions from zero initial information without taking advantage of the historical information of solving similar problems. This paper studies a transfer learning-based particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm, where the optimal information of historical problems is used to guide the swarm to find optimal paths quickly. To begin with, all cities in the new and historical TSP problems are clustered into multiple city subsets, respectively, and a city topology matching strategy based on geometric similarity is proposed to match each new city subset to a historical city subset. Then, on the basis of the above-matched results, a hierarchical generation strategy of the feasible path (HGT) is proposed to initialize the swarm to improve the performance of PSO. Moreover, a problem-specific update strategy, i.e. the particle update strategy with adaptive crossover and clustering-guided mutation, is introduced to enhance the search capability of the proposed algorithm. Finally, the proposed algorithm is applied to 20 typical TSP problems and compared with 12 state-of-the-art algorithms. Experimental results show that the transfer learning mechanism can accelerate the search efficiency of PSO and make the proposed algorithm achieve better optimal paths.
Hip arthroscopic management for treating a rhythmic gymnast with a large bone cyst at the femoral head in the setting of hip dysplasia—a case report
Authors: Fujiike Akira , Murata Yoichi , Hatakeyama Akihisa , Takada Shinichiro , Sakai Akinori , Uchida Soshi
Published: April 2022

Recent literature lacks a clear understanding of how to manage bone cysts associated with hip dysplasia. This article aimed to report a case of hip dysplasia in a rhythmic gymnast surgically managed with arthroscopic retrograde bone grafting, labral repair, cam osteoplasty, double shoelace capsular closure and endoscopic shelf acetabuloplasty. A 20-year-old female college rhythmic gymnast presented complaining of right hip pain and discomfort for the past 2 months. This case report describes the use of the CROSSTRAC guide system to perform retrograde bone grafting to treat the bone cyst at the femoral head arthroscopically. Hip arthroscopic retrograde bone grafting, labral repair, cam osteoplasty, double shoelace capsular closure and endoscopic shelf acetabuloplasty are less invasive and beneficial for the treatment of bone cysts of the femoral head associated with hip dysplasia in symptomatic rhythmic gymnasts.
Identifying an Optimal Screen Mesh to Enable Augmentorium-Based Enhanced Biological Control of the Olive Fruit FlyBactrocera oleae(Diptera: Tephritidae) and the Mediterranean Fruit FlyCeratitis capitata(Diptera: Tephritidae)
Authors: Desurmont G A , Tannières M , Roche M , Blanchet A , Manoukis N C
Published: April 2022

The augmentorium is a cost-effective screened enclosure designed to receive fruits infested with insect pests, retain the pests inside but let their natural enemies escape to enhance biological control of pest populations. Screen selection is critical to ensure that an augmentorium is effective for a particular system. Here we tested five types of screens with a mini-augmentorium design and measured the escape of four insect species under laboratory conditions: the pests olive fruit fly Bactocera oleae (Rossi) (Diptera: Tephritidae) and Mediterranean fruit fly Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Tephritidae), and the parasitoids Psyttalia lounsburyi (Silvestri) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) and Psyttalia ponerophaga (Silvestri) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae). The sex ratio of insects that escaped the screens was compared to the sex ratio of insects that could not escape. Results showed that one screen type (‘crystal mesh’) was the best for the purpose of designing a functional augmentorium: it retained 90% of B. oleae adults and 100% of C. capitata adults while letting 72% of Psyttalia lounsburyi adults and 94% of P. ponerophaga adults escape. The other screen types tested were suboptimal, either because they let too many flies freely escape or because they retained too many parasitoids. Sex ratio was almost always similar for insects that managed to escape the screens and insects that were retained, except for P. ponerophaga and the screen type ‘light mesh’. These results are promising for the development of a functional augmentorium against the olive fruit fly and further implementation against Mediterranean fruit fly.
Realization and optimization of a binary cycle power generating system using a low-grade heat source
Authors: Yang Wun-Hao , Hou Pin-Cheng , Shih Wei-Hung , Hsu Sung-Wei , Chen Yu-Bin
Published: April 2022

The low-grade heat source thermoelectric system generates electricity using a working fluid at temperature lower than 100°C or gas at temperature lower than 250°C. The system is usually composed of binary (1 + 0.5 × 2) cycles. Positive net output power or high efficiency of the system can only be feasible after optimization. Most works focused on the cycle of working fluid and treated the power consumptions of the other cycles as constants. However, both cycles should be comprehensively considered in optimization, especially when power consumptions vary with working conditions. This research selected an organic Rankine cycle thermoelectric system for demonstration. A thermodynamic model conforming to the target system was built. The temperature of the heat source and the pressure at expander inlet were tailored using the genetic algorithm. The best efficiency is 1.89%, and the largest net output power is 5.80 kW. Both results are better than those (efficiency = 1.59% and net output power = 5.34 kW) from benchmarks under the highest temperature of heat source and inlet pressure among possible working conditions. Experimental results are provided for both validation of the model and confirmation of the superiority of optimization results.
Investigation of the value of precipitins in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) patients with a positive marker for Aspergillus species
Authors: Bellanger A P , Lallemand S , Tumasyan Horikian A , Navellou J C , Barrera C , Rouzet A , Scherer E , Reboux G , Piton G , Millon L
Published: April 2022

Although a high prevalence of COVID-19-associated pulmonary aspergillosis has been reported, it is still difficult to distinguish between colonization with Aspergillus fumigatus and infection. Concomitantly, similarities between severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and hypersensitivity pneumonitis were suggested. The objective of this study was to investigate retrospectively if precipitin assays targeting A. fumigatus could have been useful in the management of SARS-CoV-2 patients hospitalized in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in 2020. SARS-CoV-2 ICU patients were screened for Aspergillus co-infection using biomarkers (galactomannan antigen, qPCR) and culture of respiratory samples (tracheal aspirates and bronchoalveolar lavage). For all these patients, clinical data, ICU characteristics and microbial results were collected. Electrosyneresis assays were performed using commercial A. fumigatus somatic and metabolic antigens. ELISA were performed using in-house A. fumigatus purified antigen and recombinant antigens.

Our study population consisted of 65 predominantly male patients, with a median ICU stay of 22 days, and a global survival rate of 62%. Thirty-five patients had at least one positive marker for Aspergillus species detection. The number of arcs obtained by electrosyneresis using the somatic A. fumigatus antigen was significantly higher for these 35 SARS-CoV-2 ICU patients (P 0.01, Welch's t-test). Our study showed that SARS-CoV-2 ICU patients with a positive marker for Aspergillus species detection more often presented precipitins towards A. fumigatus. Serology assays could be an additional tool to assess the clinical relevance of the Aspergillus species in respiratory samples of SARS-CoV-2 ICU patients.

Lay Summary

This study showed retrospectively that precipitin assays, such as electrosyneresis, could be helpful to distinguish between colonization and infection with Aspergillus fumigatus during the management of severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS CoV-2) patients in an intensive care unit.
The physical connection between central stellar surface density and stellar spin in SAMI and MaNGA nearby galaxies
Authors: Cortese L , Fraser-McKelvie A , Woo J , Catinella B , Harborne K E , van de Sande J , Bland-Hawthorn J , Brough S , Bryant J J , Croom S , Sweet S
Published: April 2022

The stellar surface density within the inner 1 kpc (Σ1) has become a popular tool for understanding the growth of galaxies and its connection with the quenching of star formation. The emerging picture suggests that building a central dense core is a necessary condition for quenching. However, it is not clear whether changes in Σ1 trace changes in stellar kinematics and the growth of dispersion-dominated bulges. In this paper, we combine imaging from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey with stellar kinematics from the Sydney-AAO Multi-object Integral-field unit and Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory surveys to quantify the correlation between Σ1 and the proxy for stellar spin parameter within one effective radius (λre) for 1599 nearby galaxies. We show that, on the star-forming main sequence and at fixed stellar mass, changes in Σ1 are mirrored by changes in λre. While forming stars, main-sequence galaxies remain rotationally-dominated systems, with their Σ1 increasing but their stellar spin staying either constant or slightly increasing. The picture changes below the main sequence, where Σ1 and λre are no longer correlated. Passive systems show a narrower range of Σ1, but a wider range of λre compared to star-forming galaxies. Our results indicate that, from a structural point of view, passive galaxies are a more heterogeneous population than star-forming systems, and may have followed a variety of evolutionary paths. This also suggests that, if dispersion-dominated bulges still grow significantly at z ∼ 0, this generally takes place during, or after, the quenching phase.
SHARP – VIII. J0924+0219 lens mass distribution and time-delay prediction through adaptive-optics imaging
Authors: Chen Geoff C-F , Fassnacht Christopher D , Suyu Sherry H , Koopmans Léon V E , Lagattuta David J , McKean John P , Auger Matt W , Vegetti Simona , Treu Tommaso
Published: April 2022

Strongly lensed quasars can provide measurements of the Hubble constant (H0) independent of any other methods. One of the key ingredients is exquisite high-resolution imaging data, such as Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging and adaptive-optics (AO) imaging from ground-based telescopes, which provide strong constraints on the mass distribution of the lensing galaxy. In this work, we expand on the previous analysis of three time-delay lenses with AO imaging (RX J1131−1231, HE 0435−1223, and PG 1115+080), and perform a joint analysis of J0924+0219 by using AO imaging from the Keck telescope, obtained as part of the Strong lensing at High Angular Resolution Program (SHARP) AO effort, with HST imaging to constrain the mass distribution of the lensing galaxy. Under the assumption of a flat Λ cold dark matter (ΛCDM) model with fixed Ωm = 0.3, we show that by marginalizing over two different kinds of mass models (power-law and composite models) and their transformed mass profiles via a mass-sheet transformation, we obtain $\Delta t_{\rm BA}=6.89\substack{+0.8\\-0.7}\, h^{-1}\hat{\sigma }_{v}^{2}$ d, $\Delta t_{\rm CA}=10.7\substack{+1.6\\-1.2}\, h^{-1}\hat{\sigma }_{v}^{2}$ d, and $\Delta t_{\rm DA}=7.70\substack{+1.0\\-0.9}\, h^{-1}\hat{\sigma }_{v}^{2}$ d, where $h=H_{0}/100\,\rm km\, s^{-1}\, Mpc^{-1}$ is the dimensionless Hubble constant and $\hat{\sigma }_{v}=\sigma ^{\rm ob}_{v}/(280\,\rm km\, s^{-1})$ is the scaled dimensionless velocity dispersion. Future measurements of time delays with 10 per cent uncertainty and velocity dispersion with 5 per cent uncertainty would yield a H0 constraint of ∼15 per cent precision.
Multi-mask least-squares deconvolution: extracting RVs using tailored masks
Authors: Lienhard F , Mortier A , Buchhave L , Collier Cameron A , López-Morales M , Sozzetti A , Watson C A , Cosentino R
Published: April 2022

To push the radial velocity (RV) exoplanet detection threshold, it is crucial to find more reliable RV extraction methods. The least-squares deconvolution (LSD) technique has been used to infer the stellar magnetic flux from spectropolarimetric data for the past two decades. It relies on the assumption that stellar absorption lines are similar in shape. Although this assumption is simplistic, LSD provides a good model for intensity spectra and likewise an estimate for their Doppler shift. We present the multi-mask least-squares deconvolution (MM-LSD) RV extraction pipeline that extracts the RV from two-dimensional echelle-order spectra using LSD with multiple tailored masks after continuum normalization and telluric absorption line correction. The flexibility of LSD allows to exclude spectral lines or pixels at will, providing a means to exclude variable lines or pixels affected by instrumental problems. The MM-LSD pipeline was tested on HARPS-N data for the Sun and selected well-observed stars with 5.7 < Vmag < 12.6. For FGK-type stars with median signal-to-noise ratio above 100, the pipeline delivered RV time series with on average 12 per cent lower scatter as compared to the HARPS-N RV extraction pipeline based on the cross-correlation function technique. The MM-LSD pipeline may be used as a standalone RV code, or modified and extended to extract a proxy for the magnetic field strength.
The SUNBIRD survey: the K-band luminosity functions of young massive clusters in intensely star-forming galaxies
Authors: Randriamanakoto Z , Väisänen P , Ranaivomanana P , Ramphul R , Kankare E , Mattila S , Ryder S D , Kotilainen J
Published: April 2022

Strongly star-forming galaxies are prolific in producing the young and most massive star clusters still forming today. This work investigates the star cluster luminosity functions (CLFs, dN/dL ∝ L−α) of 26 starburst and luminous infrared galaxies taken from the SUNBIRD survey. The targets were imaged using near-infrared K-band adaptive optics systems. Single power-law fits of the derived CLFs result in a slope α ranging between 1.53 and 2.41, with the median and average of 1.87 ± 0.23 and 1.93 ± 0.23, respectively. Possible biases such as blending effects and the choice of binning should only flatten the slope by no more than ∼0.15, especially for cases where the luminosity distance of the host galaxy is below 100 Mpc. Results from this follow-up study strengthen the conclusion from our previous work: the CLF slopes are shallower for strongly star-forming galaxies in comparison to those with less intense star formation activity. There is also a (mild) correlation between α and both the host galaxy’s star formation rate (SFR) and SFR density (ΣSFR), i.e. the CLF flattens with an increasing SFR and ΣSFR. Finally, we also find that CLFs on subgalactic scales associated with the nuclear regions of cluster-rich targets (N ≈ 300) have typically shallower slopes than the ones of the outer field by ∼0.5. Our analyses suggest that the extreme environments of strongly star-forming galaxies are likely to influence the cluster formation mechanisms and ultimately their physical properties.
Plasma maser in the plasmasphere of HD 189733b
Authors: Zaitsev V V , Shaposhnikov V E
Published: April 2022

On the example of the hot Jupiter HD 189733b, in whose magnetosphere the conditions for the ’operation’ of an electron–cyclotron maser are not fulfilled, an analysis of the plasma mechanism of radio emission generation is carried out. The purpose of the analysis is to highlight the range of parameters at which the realization of a plasma maser is possible, as well as to determine the frequency range of generated radio emission. The conditions under which the plasma maser is efficient enough to generate radiation with the intensity accessible for observation by the existing radio telescopes are also defined.
Cross-correlations between mm-wave line-intensity mapping and weak-lensing surveys: preliminary consideration of long-term prospects
Authors: Chung Dongwoo T
Published: April 2022

The field of millimetre-wave line-intensity mapping (LIM) is seeing increased experimental activity with pathfinder surveys already deployed or deploying in the next few years, making spectroscopic measurements of unresolved atomic and molecular line emission tracing the large-scale structure of the Universe. The next decade will also see the Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) undertake a photometric galaxy survey programme of unprecedented scope, including measurements of cosmic shear exploiting weak gravitational lensing (WL) of background galaxies to map projected large-scale structure. We consider prospects for detecting angular cross-power spectra between non-tomographic cosmic shear and mm-wave LIM surveys that measure emission from CO lines at z = 0.5–1. We forecast that once the LSST Year 10 WL data set is available, a future LIM experiment, conceivably deployed in the next 10–15 yr, would enable such a cross-correlation detection with an overall signal-to-noise ratio of 50, although the current pathfinder generation of CO/[C ii] surveys are more likely to achieve a marginal 2σ detection against an earlier-stage LSST WL data set. The signal has modest astrophysical constraining power yielding competitive constraints on cosmic molecular gas density at z ≲ 1, and degeneracies between astrophysical parameters and the intrinsic alignment amplitude mean that external information on either one could allow the cross-correlation analysis to significantly improve its constraints on the other.
On the relative importance of AGN winds for the evolution of exoplanet atmospheres
Authors: Heinz Sebastian
Published: April 2022

Recent work investigating the impact of winds and outflows from active galactic nuclei (AGNs) on the habitability of exoplanets suggests that such activity could be deleterious for the long-term survival of planetary atmospheres and the habitability of planets subject to such winds. Here, we discuss the relative importance of the effect of AGN winds compared to stellar winds and the effect of the planet’s magnetosphere and stellar irradiation and conclude that AGN winds are not likely to play a significant role in the evolution of atmospheric conditions in planets under conditions otherwise favourable for habitability.