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Le botryomycome encore appelé granulome pyogénique ou hémangiome capillaire lobulé est une tumeur vasculaire bénigne du derme superficiel. Son siège de prédilection se situe au niveau des doigts, des orteils et à moindre fréquence la bouche et l'estomac. Nous rapportons une observation particulière de botryomycome de l'oreille mimant une chondrite. Il s'agit d'un homme de 55 ans, sans antécédents particuliers, hospitalisé pour suspicion de chondrite de l'oreille gauche. Son histoire de la maladie remonte à 1 an avant son hospitalisation marquée par l'apparition d'une lésion ulcérée au niveau du pavillon de l'oreille gauche non améliorée sous antibiothérapie générale avec de l'azote liquide en traitement local. L'évolution était marquée par l'apparition d'une toux sèche avec fièvre. Le patient nous a été adressé pour suspicion de maladie systémique. À l'examen, on notait une tuméfaction rouge, ferme, dure et douloureuse à la palpation sans chaleur locale au niveau de l'anthélix de l'oreille gauche épargnant l'hélix et le lobule de l'oreille. Le cartilage du pavillon de l'oreille était de coloration normale, indolore, non tuméfié. Le reste de l'examen somatique était normal avec notamment l'absence de manifestations ORL. La biologie était également sans anomalies. Un scanner des rochers objectivait une lésion tissulaire de l'auricule de l'oreille gauche mesurant 36 × 22 mm dans le plan axial d'aspect hétérogène comportant des calcifications, se rehaussant de façon hétérogène après injection de produit de contraste sans lyse osseuse en regard ni inflammation cartilagineuse. Les ANCA, les anticorps antinucléaires (AAN) et l'enquête tuberculeuse comportant la recherche de BK dans les crachats et les urines, le dosage du quantiféron était négatif. La radiographie thoracique était normale. Une biopsie de la lésion montrait un granulome pyogénique type hémangiome ou botryomycome de l'oreille gauche. Le diagnostic de botryomycome de l'oreille gauche était retenu et le patient était adressé au service d'ORL pour résection de la tumeur. Le botryomycome est une tumeur vasculaire bénigne dont la présentation clinique habituelle est celle d'une tumeur bourgeonnante unique de petite taille, friable, de localisation préférentielle sur les extrémités. Notre observation porte sur un botryomycome prouvé histologiquement ayant un siège insolite au niveau du lobule de l'oreille et une présentation particulière mimant une chondrite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

L'utilisation accrue du smartphone peut être responsable de la sévérité de la névralgie cervico-brachiale. Notre étude a pour objectif d'étudier la relation entre l'utilisation du smartphone avec la névralgie cervico-brachiale. Il s'agit d'une étude transversale menée au sein du service de rhumatologie, portant sur des patients suivis pour névralgie cervico-brachiale (NCB). Des données sociodémographiques et cliniques ont été recueillies. Les patients ont été interrogé sur l'utilisation du smartphone à l'aide d'un questionnaire « Smartphone Addiction Scale–short version » (SAS-SV). Ce questionnaire permet d'évaluer le degré de dépendance au smartphone. Il comprend 10 items, avec des réponses notées sur une échelle de 6 points allant de 1 (fortement en désaccord) à 6 (fortement d'accord). Un score total a été calculé en additionnant les points obtenus. Un score entre 10 et 29 indique une utilisation contrôlée du smartphone, un score entre 30 et 44 reflète une utilisation fréquente mais modérée, tandis qu'un score supérieur à 45 suggère une dépendance accrue au smartphone. Nous avons ensuite étudié la corrélation entre le score d'addiction au smartphone et la sévérité de la NCB. Notre étude a inclus 30 patients, dont 27 femmes et 3 hommes, avec un âge moyen de 50,5 ans [22–75 ans]. La durée moyenne d'évolution de la névralgie cervico-brachiale (NCB) était de 4,3 ans. 90 % des patients souffraient d'une NCB chronique. L'intensité moyenne de la douleur, évaluée par l'EVA pour la cervicalgie et la radiculalgie était de 5,8. Une raideur cervicale était présente chez 83,3 % des patients. Concernant l'évolution clinique, 76,7 % des patients avaient une amélioration, 10 % sont restés stables, et 13,3 % ont présenté une recrudescence des symptômes. L'utilisation du smartphone a été observée dans 93,3 % des cas, avec une utilisation moyenne de 2,39 heures par jour [1–6 heures]. Parmi ces patients, 96,4 % utilisaient leur smartphone quotidiennement, tandis que 3,6 % l'utilisaient moins de trois fois par semaine. Les principales raisons d'utilisation étaient les réseaux sociaux (57,1 %) et les appels (42,9 %). Le temps privilégié d'utilisation du smartphone était la nuit pour 57,1 % des patients. Concernant la position du téléphone, 70 % des patients le tenaient près des yeux, 20 % près de la poitrine, et 3,3 % entre les genoux. La majorité (85,7 %) l'utilisaient en position assise. L'utilisation du smartphone aggravait la NCB chez 46,4 % des patients. Le score moyen d'addiction au smartphone, évalué par la SAS-SV, était de 15,14 [10–32]. Parmi les patients, 92,9 % avaient un usage contrôlé et 7,1 % présentaient une utilisation fréquente mais modérée. Une corrélation a été trouvée entre le score d'addiction et la recrudescence des douleurs (p < 0,01). Cependant, aucune corrélation n'a été observée entre le score d'addiction et l'EVA de la douleur, la raideur cervicale ou la douleur neuropathique. L'utilisation accrue du smartphone peut avoir un impact sur la sévérité de NCB. Notre étude a montré une corrélation entre le score d'addiction et la recrudescence des NCB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sarcoidosis is a multi-system granulomatosis of unknown etiology, defined by the presence of epithelioid and gigantocellular granulomas, without caseous necrosis. Ocular sarcoidosis manifests mainly as bilateral granulomatous anterior uveitis. Occlusion of the central retinal vein in sarcoidosis is a rare manifestation, which is the particularity of our observation.

Introduction: Paget's disease is a chronic bone disorder, that is characterized by increased and disorganized bone remodelling, which can lead to bone pain, bone complications such as deformities and fractures, neurological and cardiovascular complications. This physical impact can alter patients 'mental health and lead to anxiety or depression. Objectives: This study aimed to assess the mental health in patients diagnosed with paget's bone disease Methods: Paget's disease patients were assessed by The Mental Health Continuum Short Form (MHC-SF) score. It consists of 14 items that were selected to represent each fact of well-being: 3 emotional well-being items (reflects hedonic well-being), 6 psychological well-being items, and 5 social well-being items (when combined, reflects eudemonic well-being). Items scores are summed, yielding a total score ranging from 0 to 70. Higher scores indicate greater levels of positive well-being. Results: Thirty patients were included. 60% were men and 40% were women. The average age was 65 years. Socio-economic level was low in 3.3%, average in 86.7%, good in 10% of cases. 93.3% were married and 6.7% were single. For the medical history, 80% had a previous history and 20% did not. Clinically, 83.3% had pain and 16.7% had no pain. Concerning the disease location, 4 had involvement of the skull, 15 of the spine, 13 of the sacrum, 13 of the femur, 1 of the tibia, 1 of the calcaneus and 3 of the humerus. As for complications, 36.7% had no complications, 56.7% had osteoarticular complications, 3.3% had neurological complications and 3.3% had cardio-vascular complications. Concerning treatment, 90% received bisphosphonate and 10% did not. For the mental health questionnaire, the mean score was 36.4. 53.3% of patients had poor mental health, 43.3% were moderately healthy and 3.3% were thriving. No significant associations were noted between level of mental health and age, pain level, complications, location of the disease, alkaline phosphatase and treatment p>0.05. Conclusions: The impact of paget's disease is not only physical but also psychological. The MHC-SF is useful to detect the mental illness. Disclosure of Interest: None Declared [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of novel antimicrobial molecules in bone cement can improve efficiency of recuperation after arthroplasty or joint replacement surgeries, avoiding the risks associated with antibiotic resistant antimicrobial agents. Nanomaterials particularly dendrimers are particularly useful for making broad spectrum killing agents owing to their large surface areas and functionalities. Therefore, we have synthesized generation 1 quaternary ammonium dendrimer of tripropylene glycol diacrylate (TPGDA) using octyl iodide (OI) [TPGDA G1.0 (=) quaternary octyl iodide (QOI)] and capitalized on their capabilities of contact killing based mechanism. We formulated different TPGDA G1.0 (=) QOI antimicrobial agent loaded liquid component composed of methyl methacrylate monomer and N, N-dimethyl- p-toluidine coinitiator. Different polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) based experimental bone cement formulations were made and dendrimer concentration was optimized. Mechanical strength and compressive modulus of modified bone cement decreased on increasing concentrations and 10% was optimized for further analysis. The mechanical strength of bone cement yield the similar trend in wet conditions bone cement immersed in artificially created stimulated body fluids. Ten percent TPGDA G1.0 (=) QOI in bone cement was sufficient to kill gram positive and negative bacteria and its property is retained even after a period of 30 days. Thus novel dendritic structures show promise for clinical antimicrobial activity while retaining mechanical properties of bone cements. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 105B: 521-530, 2017. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tuberculosis is a global health emergency. WHO has predicted Pakistan to be at 8th position out of the 22 countries having highest burden of Tuberculosis in the world. At present this disease has a prevalence of >1% in our country. Inn this study we evaluated the prevalence of positive montoux tests in the province of Sindh It is a descriptive, one time observational study carried out at various branches of Diagnostic Et Research Laboratory LUMHS in Sindh from January 2017 to September 2017. Mantoux test is done by injecting a regular dose of 5 Tuberculin units (0.1ml) into the skin intradermally. e results are to be read between 48-72 hours aer the dose is given and the indurated area is measured in millimeters. A total of 3121 patients were included. e average time of life of the study population was 14.6 years with range from one year to 95 years old. ere were 1614 (51.7%) males and 1507 (48.3%) female patients in the study sample. From total 3121 patients 2805 (89.9%) were negative and 316 (10.1%) were positive, from 316 positive patients 185 were females and 131 male patients and mostly belonged to big cities from Hyderabad and Jamshoro were 223, Mithi 62, Sukkur 14, Mirpurkhas 4 and othr cities. Scientic research on the MT has revealed that a diagnosis of active case of tuberculosis is never made exclusively on the results of this test so it was stated that MT has minimum part in the diagnosis of active tuberculosis

The two main classification systems, International Classification of disease (ICD) and diagnostic and statistical manual (DSM) have recently been revised. The revision of DSM-IV by the American Psychiatric Association is complete and DSM-5 has already arrived. The draft ICD-11 diagnostic guidelines for mental disorders are nearly complete and will soon be published as ICD-11. In this article we will briefly discuss the challenges in classifying psychotic disorders, the revised classification of these disorders in ICD-11 and how this differs from ICD-10 and DSM-5. Several changes to the classification of schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders have been made to increase the reliability, clinical use and validity of the diagnostic classification which are considered here.

Introduction. The Candida albicans complex is formed by Candida albicans, Candida dubliniensis, and a biovar of C. albicans named Candida africana. These yeasts are recognized as globally distributed clinical pathogens and share most phenotypic characteristics, which makes their discrimination by conventional methods difficult. Aim. To evaluate the efficacy of different brands of cigarettes in the preparation of tobacco agar, for the differentiation of these related yeasts. Methodology. Tobacco agar was prepared using six brands and four varieties of cigarettes, and 125 clinical isolates previously identified by PCR and Maldi-Tof were used. To determine whether the results of the microbiological tests were associated with similarities in the chemical components of cigarettes, thin-layer chromatography was performed. Results. Candida dubliniensis colonies presented hue differences according to the incubation temperature and the brand or variety of cigarette used, except in the tobacco agar produced with Marlboro Xpress cigarette, where its differentiation was not possible. The chromatograms showed few differences among apolar and medium polarity extract components. Conclusions. Tobacco agar is a low-cost tool used for the differentiation of Candida dubliniensis; however, incubation temperature and cigarette brand affect the performance of the media. No relationship was found between the microbiological results and the chemical similarity of the extracts of the cigarettes by chromatography.

In order to study the effect of convection-radiation coupling occurring in the air gap of a solar thermal collector, numerical simulations were conducted for various thicknesses of the air gap with and without radiation. The studied geometry is a closed cavity which represents the confined space between the absorber and the glass. The cavity is inclined at an angle equal to 45 ° and is uniformly heated from below. The flow is three-dimensional and in unsteady state. First, the simulations were conducted considering only convection in the air gap, in this case the radiation is neglected and in a second time, the coupling between convection and radiation was taken onto account. In the first case the results show that the increase of the air-gap thickness leads to an intensification of the natural convection which develops from laminar, chaotic to turbulent regime. When the radiation is taken into account, the results show that the flow regimes are substantially modified, the convection-radiation coupling reduces the temperature of the hot wall, which contributes to the reduction of the intensity of natural convection in the cavity. This observation is verified by the evolution of the temperature field at the absorber and the heat exchange coefficient. So in conclusion, this study allowed us to see the evolution of heat transfer in the air layer between the glass and the absorber, in the absence and in the presence of radiation. Taking into account the radiation in the cavity is essential for the modeling of flows in a cavity (which is often neglected).

Objective: This research explored the experiences and perspectives of patients declining hospital transportation after receiving prehospital emergency care using advanced computational techniques., Method: Between 15th June and 1st August 2023, 210 patients in Qatar, treated by Hamad Medical Corporation Ambulance Service (HMCAS) but refusing transportation to hospital, were interviewed. Key outcome variables stratified by demographics included "reasons for refusing transport," "satisfaction with HMCAS service," and "postrefusal actions." Responses underwent sentiment analysis and topic modeling using latent Dirichlet allocation. Machine learning models, such as Naïve Bayes, K-nearest neighboring, random forest, and support vector machine, were used to predict patients' subsequent actions., Results: Participants had an average age of 38.61 ± 19.91 years. The chief complaints were primarily chest and abdominal pains (18.49%; n = 39). Sentiment Analysis revealed a generally favorable perception of HMCAS-provided service. Latent Dirichlet allocation identified two main topics pertaining to refusal reasons and service satisfaction. Naïve Bayes and support vector machine algorithms were most effective in predicting postrefusal actions with an accuracy rate of 81.58%., Conclusions: This study highlighted the utility of Natural Language Processing and ML in enhancing our understanding of patient behaviors and sentiments in prehospital settings. These advanced computational methodologies allowed for a nuanced exploration of patient demographics and sentiments, providing insights for Quality Improvement initiatives. The study also advocates for continuously integrating automated feedback mechanisms to improve patient-centered care in the prehospital context. Continuous integration of automated feedback systems is recommended to improve prehospital patient-centered care., Competing Interests: The authors disclose no conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of foot involvement in psoriatic arthritis and to describe its different clinical and radiological features., Patients and Methods: We conducted a cross sectional study including 40 patients with psoriatic arthritis over a period of 12 months. Anamnesis, clinical examination of feet, podoscopic examination, X-rays of feet and heels, and ultrasound in B mode and power Doppler mode were done for each patient., Results: Foot involvement was found in 95% of cases. It was symptomatic in 70% and inaugural of the disease in 20% of cases. The hindfoot and the forefoot were the sites most affected (77.5% and 47.5% respectively). The involvement of the midfoot was rarer (25%). Dactylitis was found in 17.5% and deformities of forefoot were found in 22.5% of cases. Antalgic gait was noted in 17.5% and static disorders of foot at podoscopic examination were identified in 35% of cases. Feet dermatological manifestations were found in 45% of cases. Diagnosis of different rheumatological manifestations was based on clinical findings and caracteristic radiological images on X-rays. We demonstrate he sensitivity of ultrasound in the detection and the diagnosis of different foot lesions including enthesitis, synovitis and tenosynovitis, dactylitis, bone erosions and psoriatic nail dystrophy., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors whose names are listed certify that they have no affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest or non-financial interest in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript., (Copyright © 2024 European Foot and Ankle Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Introduction and Aim: Simultaneous positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance imaging (PET-MRI) combines the high sensitivity of PET with the high specificity of MRI and is a tool for the assessment of gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine neoplasms (G-NENs). However, it remains poorly evaluated with no clear recommendations in current guidelines. Thus, we evaluated the prognostic impact of PET-MRI in G-NEN patients., Methods: From June 2017 to December 2021, 71 G-NEN patients underwent whole-body PET-MRI for staging and/or follow-up purposes. A whole-body emission scan with 18 F-6-fluoro-L-dihydroxyphenylalanine ( 18 FDOPA, n = 30), 18 F-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose ( 18 FDG, n = 21), or 68 Ga-(DOTA(0)-Phe(1)-Tyr(3))-octreotide ( 68 Ga-DOTATOC, n = 20) with the simultaneous acquisition of a T1-Dixon sequence and diffusion-weighed imaging (DWI), followed by a dedicated step of MRI sequences with a Gadolinium contrast was performed. The patients underwent PET-MRI every 6-12 months during the follow-up period until death. Over this period, 50 patients with two or more PET-MRI were evaluated., Results: The mean age was 61 [extremes, 31-92] years. At the baseline, PET-MRI provided new information in 12 cases (17%) as compared to conventional imaging: there were more metastases in eight, an undescribed location (myocardia) in two, and an unknown primary location in two cases. G grading at the baseline influenced overall survival. During the follow-up (7-381 months, mean 194), clinical and therapy managements were influenced by PET-MRI in three (6%) patients due to new metastases findings when neither overall, nor disease-free survivals in these two subgroups ( n = 12 vs. n = 59), were different., Conclusion: Our study suggests that using PET/MRI with the appropriate radiotracer improves the diagnostic performance with no benefit on survival. Further studies are warranted to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of this procedure.

Background: The global evolution of pre-hospital care systems faces dynamic challenges, particularly in multinational settings. Machine learning (ML) techniques enable the exploration of deeply embedded data patterns for improved patient care and resource optimisation. This study's objective was to accurately predict cases that necessitated transportation versus those that did not, using ML techniques, thereby facilitating efficient resource allocation., Methods: ML algorithms were utilised to predict patient transport decisions in a Middle Eastern national pre-hospital emergency medical care provider. A comprehensive dataset comprising 93,712 emergency calls from the 999-call centre was analysed using R programming language. Demographic and clinical variables were incorporated to enhance predictive accuracy. Random Forest (RF), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost), and Adaptive Boosting (AdaBoost) algorithms were trained and validated., Results: All the trained algorithm models, particularly XGBoost (Accuracy = 83.1%), correctly predicted patients' transportation decisions. Further, they indicated statistically significant patterns that could be leveraged for targeted resource deployment. Moreover, the specificity rates were high; 97.96% in RF and 95.39% in XGBoost, minimising the incidence of incorrectly identified "Transported" cases (False Positive)., Conclusion: The study identified the transformative potential of ML algorithms in enhancing the quality of pre-hospital care in Qatar. The high predictive accuracy of the employed models suggested actionable avenues for day and time-specific resource planning and patient triaging, thereby having potential to contribute to pre-hospital quality, safety, and value improvement. These findings pave the way for more nuanced, data-driven quality improvement interventions with significant implications for future operational strategies., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Farhat et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: Efficient resource distribution is important. Despite extensive research on response timings within ambulance services, nuances of time from unit dispatch to becoming available still need to be explored. This study aimed to identify the determinants of the duration between ambulance dispatch and readiness to respond to the next case according to the patients' transport decisions., Methods: Time from ambulance dispatch to availability (TDA) analysis according to the patients' transport decision (Transport versus Non-Transport) was conducted using R-Studio™ for a data set of 93,712 emergency calls managed by a Middle Eastern ambulance service from January to May 2023. Log-transformed Hazard Ratios (HR) were examined across diverse parameters. A Cox regression model was utilised to determine the influence of variables on TDA. Kaplan-Meier curves discerned potential variances in the time elapsed for both cohorts based on demographics and clinical indicators. A competing risk analysis assessed the probabilities of distinct outcomes occurring., Results: The median duration of elapsed TDA was 173 min for the transported patients and 73 min for those not transported. The HR unveiled Significant associations in various demographic variables. The Kaplan-Meier curves revealed variances in TDA across different nationalities and age categories. In the competing risk analysis, the 'Not Transported' group demonstrated a higher incidence of prolonged TDA than the 'Transported' group at specified time points., Conclusions: Exploring TDA offers a novel perspective on ambulance services' efficiency. Though promising, the findings necessitate further exploration across diverse settings, ensuring broader applicability. Future research should consider a comprehensive range of variables to fully harness the utility of this period as a metric for healthcare excellence., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background and Aim: Though emergency medical services (EMS) respond to all types of emergency calls, they do not always result in the patient being transported to the hospital. This study aimed to explore the determinants influencing emergency call-response-based conveyance decisions in a Middle Eastern ambulance service., Methods: This retrospective quantitative analysis of 93,712 emergency calls to the Hamad Medical Corporation Ambulance Service (HMCAS) between January 1 and May 31, 2023, obtained from the HMCAS electronic system, was analyzed to determine pertinent variables. Sociodemographic, emergency dispatch-related, clinical, and miscellaneous predictors were analyzed. Descriptive, bivariate, ridge logistic regression, and combination analyses were evaluated., Results: 23.95% ( N  = 21,194) and 76.05% ( N  = 67,285) resulted in patient nontransport and transportation, respectively. Sociodemographic analysis revealed that males predominantly activated EMS resources, and 60% of males ( n  = 12,687) were not transported, whilst 65% of females ( n  = 44,053) were transported. South Asians represented a significant proportion of the transported patients (36%, n  = 24,007). "Home" emerged as the primary emergency location (56%, n  = 37,725). Bivariate analysis revealed significant associations across several variables, though multicollinearity was identified as a challenge. Ridge regression analysis underscored the role of certain predictors, such as missing provisional diagnoses, in transportation decisions. The upset plot shows that hypertension and diabetes mellitus were the most common combinations in both groups., Conclusions: This study highlights the nuanced complexities governing conveyance decisions. By unveiling patterns such as male predominance, which reflects Qatar's expatriate population, and specific temporal EMS activity peaks, this study accentuates the importance of holistic patient assessment that transcends medical histories., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2024 The Authors. Health Science Reports published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Background: The increasing prevalence of comorbidities worldwide has spurred the need for time-effective pre-hospital emergency medical services (EMS). Some pre-hospital emergency calls requesting EMS result in patient non-conveyance. Decisions for non-conveyance are sometimes driven by the patient or the clinician, which may jeopardize the patients' healthcare outcomes. This study aimed to explore the distribution and determinants of patient non-conveyance to hospitals in a Middle Eastern national Ambulance Service that promotes the transportation of all emergency call patients and does not adopt clinician-based non-conveyance decision., Methods: Using R Language, descriptive, bivariate, and binary logistic regression analyses were conducted for 334,392 multi-national patient non-conveyance emergency calls from June 2018 to July 2022, from a total of 1,030,228 calls to which a response unit was dispatched., Results: After data pre-processing, 237,862 cases of patient non-conveyance to hospital were retained, with a monthly average of 41.96% ( n = 8799) of the emergency service demands and a standard deviation of 5.49% ( n = 2040.63). They predominantly involved South Asians (29.36%, n = 69,849); 64.50% ( n = 153,427) were of the age category from 14 to 44 years; 61.22% ( n = 145,610) were male; 74.59% ( n = 177,424) from the urban setting; and 71.28% ( n = 169,552) had received on-scene treatment. Binary logistic regression with full variables and backward methods identified the final models of the determinants of patient non-conveyance decisions with an Akaike information criterion prediction estimator, respectively, of (250,200) and (250,169), indicating no significant difference between both models (Chi-square test; p -value = 0.63)., Conclusions: Despite exercising a cautious protocol by encouraging patient transportation to hospital, patient non-conveyance seems to be a problem in the healthcare system that strains the pre-hospital medical response teams' resources. Policies and regulations should be adopted to encourage individuals to access other primary care centers when required rather than draining emergency services for non-emergency situations.

Key Clinical Message: Hydatidosis is a parasitic infection caused by the larval form of "Echinococcus granulosis." Bone localization is rare even in endemic areas. We report an unusual case of an extensive hydatidosis of the right sacrum and femur with muscle involvement., Abstract: We report the case of a man, with a history of visceral hydatidosis, who developed after 14 years an extensive hydatidosis of the sacrum and femur with muscle involvement. The treatment of visceral hydatidosis was chemotherapy with albendazole for a long term. Conservative surgical treatment is considered for bone locations., Competing Interests: The authors declared no conflict of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this article., (© 2023 The Authors. Clinical Case Reports published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

This study presents an experimental and numerical investigation into the efficiency of a two-stage heat recovery-storage system for reducing the thermal energy losses in the industry. The system is designed to recover and store waste thermal energy from residual fluids using heat pipes for recovery and an environmentally friendly phase change material for heat storage. Experimental investigation was conducted using water as the primary agent and varying the temperature between 60 °C, 65 °C, and 70 °C at a constant flow rate of 24 L/min. The secondary agent, also water, was used at an initial temperature of 10 °C and the flow rate was varied between 1 L/min, 2 L/min, and 3 L/min. The results show that the system had a peak efficiency of 78.1% and was able to recover a significant amount of thermal energy. This study demonstrates the potential of this system to reduce the thermal energy losses in the industry and highlight the importance of further research and development in this field, as the industry is responsible for approximately 14% of the total thermal energy losses and finding efficient ways to recover and store waste thermal energy is crucial to achieving sustainable energy consumption.

The aim of the study is to develop a system for converting, accumulating, and delivering solar energy that is based on the development of an innovative solar panel with heat pipes and a heat storage wall, for the construction of passive structures. The novel aspect of this experiment is the utilization of concrete walls that have different recyclable materials added to their structure in various proportions. The solar energy from the sunny façades is transformed by this system into thermal energy, which is then transferred by integrated heat pipes in a massive element with high thermal inertia. Using insulated shutters, thermal energy can be stored during the day and released at night to keep the room at a comfortable temperature. In order to integrate the modules into the solar recovery system, four concrete samples were cast with a blend of standard and waste aggregates. Four heat fluxes of 100 W/m 2 , 150 W/m 2 , 200 W/m 2 , and 250 W/m 2 were applied to each global system. Thermal imaging data and numerical simulations both supported the findings of temperature sensors. The most effective mixture, fly ash and chopped PET, delivered temperatures that were, on average, 3.3% higher at the end of the charging cycle than those measured for the control sample. The discharging cycle of the concrete block with fly ash and sawdust was the most effective, with an average temperature loss of 5.0 °C as compared to 5.5 °C for the control sample, on average.

The beneficial effect of compost and compost tea on plant growth and protection is mainly associated with the microbial diversity and the presence of bacteria with plant growth-promoting effect. PGPR are considered as eco-friendly bio-fertilizers that may reduce the use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Three composts (AT, A10, and A30) were previously prepared from industrial wastes (olive mill wastewater, olive pomace, coffee ground, and phosphogypsum). In the present study, we isolated three bacterial strains from the compost teas. The phylogenetic identification of these bacterial strains (B.AT, B.A10, and B.A30) showed that they correspond to Serratia liquefaciens (B.AT and B.A10) and Achromobacter spanius (B.A30) species. A further characterization of the PGPR traits of these bacteria showed that they produce siderophore, exopolysaccharides, and IAA. Their effect on potato plant growth, yields, and tuber quality was performed under field culture conditions. Results showed that these strains can be characterized as PGPR, the best effect on potato plant growth was observed with Serratia liquefaciens (B.AT), the best yield and tuber quality was observed with Serratia liquefaciens (B.A10) while bacterial treatment with Achromobacter spanius (B.A30) is a Cd-tolerant PGPR., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

The continuous growth of the concrete industry requires an increased quantity of cement and natural aggregates year after year, and it is responsible for a major part of the global CO 2 emissions. These aspects led to rigorous research for suitable raw materials. Taking into account that these raw materials must have a sustainable character and also a low impact on environmental pollution, the replacement of the conventional components of concrete by residual waste can lead to these targets. This paper's aim is to analyze the density, compressive strength and the thermal conductivity of nine concrete compositions with various rates of waste: four mixes with 10%, 20%, 40% and 60% chopped PET bottles aggregates and 10% fly ash as cement partial substitution; a mix with 60% waste polystyrene of 4-8 mm and 10% fly ash; a mix with 20% waste polystyrene of 4-8 mm, 10% waste polystyrene of 0-4 mm and 10% fly ash; a mix with 50% waste polystyrene of 4-8 mm, 20% waste polystyrene of 0-4 mm and 20% fly ash two mixes with 10% fly ash and 10% and 40% waste sawdust, respectively. Using 60% PET aggregates, 60% polystyrene granules of 4-8 mm, or 20% polystyrene of 0-4 mm together with 50% polystyrene of 4-8 mm led to the obtainment of lightweight concrete, with a density lower than 2000 kg/m 3 . These mixes also registered the best results from a thermal conductivity point of view, after the concrete mix with 40% saw dust. Regarding compressive strength, the mix with 10% PET obtained a result very close to the reference mix, while those with 20% PET, 40% PET, 30% polystyrene, and 10% saw dust, respectively, registered values between 22 MPa and 25 MPa, values appropriate for structural uses.

Aims: The present study investigates the effectiveness of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) gel without adjunct to induce cartilage regeneration in large osteochondral defects in a rabbit model., Methods: A bilateral osteochondral defect was created in the femoral trochlear groove of 14 New Zealand white rabbits. The right knees were filled with PRP gel and the contralateral knees remained untreated and served as control sides. Some animals were killed at week 3 and others at week 12 postoperatively. The joints were harvested and assessed by Magnetic Resonance Observation of Cartilage Repair Tissue (MOCART) MRI scoring system, and examined using the International Cartilage Repair Society (ICRS) macroscopic and ICRS histological scoring systems. Additionally, the collagen type II content was evaluated by the immunohistochemical staining., Results: After 12 weeks post-surgery, the defects of the PRP group were repaired by hyaline cartilage-like tissue. However, incomplete cartilage regeneration was observed in the PRP group for three weeks. The control groups showed fibrocartilaginous or fibrous tissue, respectively, at each timepoint., Conclusion: Our study proved that the use of PRP gel without any adjuncts could successfully produce a good healing response and resurface the osteochondral defect with a better quality of cartilage in a rabbit model. Cite this article: Bone Joint Res  2021;10(3):192-202.