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Background: Delirium is thought to be common across various settings of care; however, still little research has been conducted in rehabilitation. Aim: We investigated the prevalence of delirium, its features and motor subtypes in older patients admitted to rehabilitation facilities during the three editions of the "Delirium Day project". Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study in which 1237 older patients (age ≥ 65 years old) admitted to 50 Italian rehabilitation wards during the three editions of the "Delirium Day project" (2015 to 2017) were included. Delirium was evaluated through the 4AT and its motor subtype with the Delirium Motor Subtype Scale. Results: Delirium was detected in 226 patients (18%), and the most recurrent motor subtype was mixed (37%), followed by hypoactive (26%), hyperactive (21%) and non-motor one (16%). In a multivariate Poisson regression model with robust variance, factors associated with delirium were: disability in basic (PR 1.48, 95%CI: 1.17–1.9, p value 0.001) and instrumental activities of daily living (PR 1.58, 95%CI: 1.08–2.32, p value 0.018), dementia (PR 2.10, 95%CI: 1.62–2.73, p value < 0.0001), typical antipsychotics (PR 1.47, 95%CI: 1.10–1.95, p value 0.008), antidepressants other than selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (PR 1.3, 95%CI: 1.02–1.66, p value 0.035), and physical restraints (PR 2.37, 95%CI: 1.68–3.36, p value < 0.0001). Conclusion: This multicenter study reports that 2 out 10 patients admitted to rehabilitations had delirium on the index day. Mixed delirium was the most prevalent subtype. Delirium was associated with unmodifiable (dementia, disability) and modifiable (physical restraints, medications) factors. Identification of these factors should prompt specific interventions aimed to prevent or mitigate delirium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Delirium and sarcopenia are common, although underdiagnosed, geriatric syndromes. Several pathological mechanisms can link delirium and low skeletal muscle mass, but few studies have investigated their association. We aimed to investigate (1) the association between delirium and low skeletal muscle mass and (2) the possible role of calf circumference mass in finding cases with delirium. Methods: The analyses were conducted employing the cross-sectional "Delirium Day" initiative, on patient 65 years and older admitted to acute hospital medical wards, emergency departments, rehabilitation wards, nursing homes and hospices in Italy in 2017. Delirium was diagnosed as a 4 + score at the 4-AT scale. Low skeletal muscle mass was operationally defined as calf circumference ≤ 34 cm in males and ≤ 33 cm in females. Logistic regression models were used to investigate the association between low skeletal muscle mass and delirium. The discriminative ability of calf circumference was evaluated using non-parametric ROC analyses. Results: A sample of 1675 patients was analyzed. In total, 73.6% of participants had low skeletal muscle mass and 24.1% exhibited delirium. Low skeletal muscle mass and delirium showed an independent association (OR: 1.50; 95% CI 1.09–2.08). In the subsample of patients without a diagnosis of dementia, the inclusion of calf circumference in a model based on age and sex significantly improved its discriminative accuracy [area under the curve (AUC) 0.69 vs 0.57, p < 0.001]. Discussion and conclusion: Low muscle mass is independently associated with delirium. In patients without a previous diagnosis of dementia, calf circumference may help to better identify those who develop delirium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and purpose: Head down tilt 15° (HDT15°), applied before recanalization, increases collateral flow and improves outcome in experimental ischemic stroke. For its simplicity and low cost, HDT15° holds considerable potential to be developed as an emergency treatment of acute stroke in the prehospital setting, where hemorrhagic stroke is the major mimic of ischemic stroke. In this study, we assessed safety of HDT15° in the acute phase of experimental intracerebral hemorrhage. Methods: Intracerebral hemorrhage was produced by stereotaxic injection of collagenase in Wistar rats. A randomized noninferiority trial design was used to assign rats to HDT15° or flat position (n = 64). HDT15° was applied for 1 h during the time window of hematoma expansion. The primary outcome was hematoma volume at 24 h. Secondary outcomes were mass effect, mortality, and functional deficit in the main study and acute changes of intracranial pressure, hematoma growth, and cardiorespiratory parameters in separate sets of randomized animals (n = 32). Results: HDT15° achieved the specified criteria of noninferiority for hematoma volume at 24 h. Mass effect, mortality, and functional deficit at 24 h showed no difference in the two groups. HDT15° induced a mild increase in intracranial pressure with respect to the pretreatment values (+2.91 ± 1.76 mmHg). HDT15° had a neutral effect on MRI‐based analysis of hematoma growth and cardiorespiratory parameters. Conclusions: Application of HDT15° in the hyperacute phase of experimental intracerebral hemorrhage does not worsen early outcome. Further research is needed to implement HDT15° as an emergency collateral therapeutic for acute stroke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents information on a study that investigated the magnetic field dependence of resonant modes in small inductance two-junction interferometers. Consideration of both symmetric and asymmetric configurations with equal and different junction size, respectively; Comparison of the experimental data with the theoretical dependence computed by a simple model of a single junction with a current density peaked at the edges.

Investigates the resonances in the current-voltage characteristics of interferometers with two niobium (Nb)-NbO[subx]-lead window junctions. Use of superconducting Josephson interferometers; Main features of the theory of resonances in two-junction interferometers; Occurrence of resonant steps in the current-voltage characteristic of the interferometer.

The ELI-NP facility, currently being built in Bucharest, Romania, will deliver an intense and almost monochromatic gamma beam with tunable energy between 0.2 and 20 MeV. The challenging energy bandwidth of ≤0.5% will be adjusted through the collimation system, while the main beam parameters will be measured through a devoted gamma-beam characterization system.1 The gamma-beam characterization system, designed by the EuroGammaS collaboration, consists of four elements: a Compton spectrometer that measures the gamma energy spectrum; a sampling calorimeter for a fast combined measurement of the beam average energy and its intensity, which will be used also as a monitor during machine commissioning and development; a nuclear resonant scattering system for absolute energy inter-calibration of the other detectors; and a gamma beam profile imager to be used for alignment and diagnostics purposes. The collimation and characterization system will be presented in this article. These systems have already been built and tested, while the delivery at ELI-NP facility and the final commissioning is scheduled by Fall 2018. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Squaraine dyes (SQs) represent a versatile class of functional molecules with strong absorption and emission features, widely used as near-infrared sensitizers in organic and hybrid photovoltaic devices. In this context, the photodynamics of such molecules has been seen to influence dramatically the efficiency of the photogeneration process. The most accepted interpretation of excited state deactivation in SQs is represented by a trans–cis photoisomerization around a CC double bond of the polymethinic-like bridge, although such scenario does not explain satisfyingly the decay route of SQs dyes in conformational constrained systems or in highly viscous environments. Here we combine steady-state and time-resolved spectroscopic techniques with high level ab initio calculations to shed light into the photophysics of cis-locked indolenine-based SQs. Our results point towards alternative deactivation routes, possibly involving a dark state in molecules lacking central substitution and the rotation of the central substituent in the core-functionalized ones. This study reveals, for the first time, the possible presence of dark electronic states in SQs, a scenario that can be further investigated in molecules exhibiting higher emission yields than cis-locked indolenine-based SQs. Furthermore, these novel results can suggest a synthetic rationale to design dyes that permit quantitative and effective charge generation/diffusion and collection in photovoltaic diodes and, thus, enhance their efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report a novel multi-step method for the preparation of ordered mesoporous titania scaffolds and show an illustrative example of their application to solar cells. The method is based on (monolayer) colloidal nanosphere lithography that makes use of polystyrene nanoparticles organised at a water–air interface and subsequently transferred onto a solid substrate. A titania precursor solution (titanium(iv) isopropoxide in ethanol) is then drop-cast onto the monolayer and left to “incubate” overnight. Surprisingly, instead of the expected inverse monolayer-structure, a subsequent calcination step of the precursor yields an ordered monolayer of hollow titania nanospheres with a wall thickness of ∼30–50 nm, and a slightly larger diameter than that of the starting spheres. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) characterization of such scaffolds confirm that they consist of nanocrystalline anatase titania, and that any polystyrene/carbon residues in the scaffolds are below the XPS detection level. As an illustrative application we prepared perovskite solar cells incorporating the templated-nanoparticle scaffolds displaying a respectable power conversion efficiency of ∼9%, twice as large as that of our unoptimized “reference” cells (i.e. incorporating conventional mesoporous or compact titania scaffolds), thereby also demonstrating that the process is relatively robust with respect to optimization of the process parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of supramolecular interactions and aggregation behaviour of functional materials is of great importance to tune and extend their spectral sensitivity and, hence, improve the optoelectronic response of related devices. In this study, we resolve spatially and spectrally the absorption and emission features of squaraine aggregates by means of confocal microscopy and absorption/photoluminescence spectroscopy. We observe that the aggregate affords both a broad absorption spectrum (centred at 1.85 eV and extending to 1.55 eV), likely originated by a dye configuration with allowed J- and H-arrangements, and a strong and relatively narrow emission in the near-infrared (NIR) part of the spectrum (centred at 1.59 eV), with a remarkable Stokes shift of 0.26 eV that is among the largest exhibited by squaraine dyes. These peculiarities would be beneficial for extending the spectral sensitivity of photovoltaic/light-emitting diodes and electrochemical cells, and extremely appealing for possible applications of these aggregates as NIR fluorescent probes in biomedical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Critical currents carried by sintered Y1Ba2Cu3O7 superconducting samples have been measured at different temperatures close to the critical temperature Tc. The effects of an applied magnetic field perpendicular to the current direction have been investigated. A strong reduction of the dc current for field values smaller than the lower critical field Bc1 has been observed. The magnetic field dependence is discussed in terms of weak coupling between grains. The experimental data show an excellent agreement, at low field values, with the theoretical dependence valid for an array of Josephson junctions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Correction for ‘Near-infrared emitting single squaraine dye aggregates with large Stokes shifts’ by G. M. Paternòet al., J. Mater. Chem. C, 2017, 5, 7732–7738. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aviation and space applications can benefit significantly from lightweight organic electronics, now spanning from displays to logics, because of the vital importance of minimising payload (size and mass). It is thus crucial to assess the damage caused to such materials by cosmic rays and neutrons, which pose a variety of hazards through atomic displacements following neutron-nucleus collisions. Here we report the first study of the neutron radiation tolerance of two poly(thiophene)s-based organic semiconductors: poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl), P3HT, and the liquid-crystalline poly(2,5-bis (3-tetradecylthiophen-2-yl)thieno[3,2-b]thiophene), PBTTT. We combine spectroscopic investigations with characterisation of intrinsic charge mobility to show that PBTTT exhibits significantly higher tolerance than P3HT. We explain this in terms of a superior chemical, structural and conformational stability of PBTTT, which can be ascribed to its higher crystallinity, in turn induced by a combination of molecular design features. Our approach can be used to develop design strategies for better neutron radiation-tolerant materials, thus paving the way for organic semiconductors to enter avionics and space applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In our response we would like to point out the fitting of the data has done to account for the shift of the maximum magnetic field dependence of the critical current. This shift on the order of 1 Gauss or less is gener ally observed in all our data and is attributable to the residual external field. Since we used a crude junction model, the self-field effects were not included. (AIP) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]