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Rossella Siligato,1,2 Guido Gembillo,2,3 Alfredo De Giorgi,4 Alessio Di Maria,1 Laura Maria Scichilone,1 Matteo Capone,1,5 Francesca Maria Vinci,1,5 Simone Nicoletti,1 Marta Bondanelli,5 Cristina Malaventura,5 Alda Storari,1,5 Domenico Santoro,3 Sara Dionisi,6 Fabio Fabbian1,5 1Nephrology Unit, University Hospital of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy; 2Department of Biomedical, Dental, Morphological and Functional Imaging Sciences, University of Messina, Messina, Italy; 3Unit of Nephrology and Dialysis, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Messina, Messina, Italy; 4Internal Medicine, University Hospital of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy; 5Department of Medical Sciences, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy; 6Nursing, Technical and Rehabilitation, Department DATeR Azienda Unità Sanitaria Locale Di Bologna, Bologna, ItalyCorrespondence: Fabio Fabbian, Department of Medical Sciences, via Luigi Borsari, 46, Ferrara, Italy, I-44124, Tel +39 0532 239385, Email f.fabbian@ospfe.itPurpose: Social determinants of health have been related with kidney diseases and their outcomes. Financial toxicity (FT) refers to the negative impact of health care costs on clinical conditions. This scoping review aimed to evaluate the literature linking FT with renal diseases.Patients and Methods: We Included all studies analyzing FT and renal disease recorded in PubMed, Embase and Google Scholar between 2013 and 2023. The research question was formulated with reference to the acronym PCC (Problem, Concept and Contest). For each included study, we considered the study design, the population and main results from different populations with distinct renal conditions and the results were summarized in four tables.Results: Socioeconomic deprivation was the main cause of FT, and the majority of studies on the relationship between FT and chronic kidney disease (CKD) were conducted in the USA (4 studies evaluated the pediatric population and 6 studies included adults). Three studies reported the impact of FT on nephrolithiasis, and 3 studies analyzed the link between FT and renal tumors. The methods used for detecting FT differed and were based on consultations, questionnaires, expenditures and database records analysis. The COmprehensive Score for financial Toxicity (COST) questionnaire was used in 7 studies (43%), and the prevalence of FT was reported to be high in children and adults.Conclusion: Although the quality of the selected study is limited, due to different populations investigated and heterogeneity in detecting FT, the latter seems to be a frequent finding in people with renal disease. Health care professionals should recognize socioeconomic deprivation as the major cause of FT. Detecting FT could help in prioritizing patient-centered care in populations with renal diseases through the development of strategies aimed at improving care for people with kidney diseases.Plain Language Summary: Social determinants of health, especially poverty, social environmental stressors and psychological factors, are increasingly recognized as significant determinants of kidney diseases and their outcomes. Financial toxicity (FT) refers to the negative impact of health care costs on clinical conditions. The relationship between FT and renal disease is not completely understood. With this scoping review, we evaluated all published papers between 2013 and 2023 on this item. We analyzed 16 studies and found that FT is common in pediatric and adult CKD patients and in patients with nephrolithiasis and renal tumors. For patients with kidney disease, FT represents a significant burden, both through the direct costs of disease management and treatment and through indirect costs such as the loss of income due to missed work and expenses for transportation and accommodations near outpatient clinics. Finally, it should be noted that in different countries, it is difficult for people with kidney disease to obtain health insurance coverage. Health care professionals need to improve their knowledge about the relationship between FT and renal disease; there is a paucity of data regarding the effects of FT on different outcomes, although this nonmedical risk factor can negatively influence kidney health and quality of life. Further studies involving different professionals able to consider environmental, physical and emotional risk factors are needed. Keywords: financial toxicity, financial burden, financial hardship, renal disease, chronic kidney disease

Asymmetrically biased Josephson vortex flow transistors (JVFT) were developed using high- and low-temperature superconductor junctions. The high temperature YBaCuO grain boundary junctions were fabricated on MgO 24-degree tilted bicrystals while the low-temperature shunted Nb/AlOx-Al/Nb tunnel junctions were deposited on sapphire. Results show that high-temperature JVFTs may be used as alternatives to SQUID or FET amplifiers in such applications as infrared imaging, NMR and electromagnetic compatibility.

The material flow process in the dashboard area and the mechanic area of an automated automobile assembly facility was characterized as part of a cost benefit analysis of several dynamic dispatching rules. Consequently, simulation experiments under varying production conditions were performed using WITNESS. The results demonstrated the superiority of the matching rule over the push rule with respect to work-in-process minimization.

Extraordinary magnetoresistance (EMR) devices have been fabricated and characterized at various magnetic fields, operating temperatures, and current excitations. These devices are comprised of nonmagnetic high mobility semiconductors and low resistance metallic contacts and shunts. The resistance of the device is modulated by magnetic fields due to the Lorentz force steering an electron current between the high resistance semiconductor and the low resistance metallic shunt. The EMR devices were tested between 300 K and 5 K in magnetic fields up to 2 T perpendicular to the 2DEG plane and excitation currents up to 100 [micro]A. Magnetoresistance increases as temperature decreases, potentially indicating that EMR persists even as dimensions approach the electron mean free path. Index Terms--Electromagnetic devices, extraordinary magnetoresistance, magnetic sensors, semiconductor devices, semiconductor heterojunctions.

Laser induced crystallization of hydrogenated amorphous silicon carbon alloy (a-Si1-xCx:H) films has been investigated by means of synchrotron x-ray diffraction. The a-Si1-xCx:H films were deposited on (100) silicon wafers by very high frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition at 100 MHz in hydrogen diluted silane-methane gas mixtures. The substrate was kept at 250 °C or 350 °C and the stoichiometry was changed from x=0.20 to 0.63. The structural characterization of the as-grown films has been carried out by Rutherford backscattering (hydrogen concentration) and infrared spectroscopy (film ordering). The films were irradiated by a KrF excimer laser (248 nm) with varying energy density and number of pulses. After irradiation, the formation of SiC crystallites has been revealed by synchrotron x-ray diffraction. Besides SiC nanocrystals, the formation of crystalline Si and graphite is observed for under-(x < 0.50) and over-stoichiometdc (x>0.50) samples, respectively. The essential role played by hydrogen concentration and hydrogen bonding configuration in determining the melting threshold and the consequent SiC grain formation is highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]