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Background: Transient positivity for hepatitis B core antibody (Anti‐HBc) following intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) and subcutaneous immunoglobulin exposure is a well‐described phenomenon. The aim of this study was to retrospectively review Hepatitis B viral screening practices in IVIG recipients in a hematology specific cohort at a single center. Methods: Electronic databases were analyzed to identify all hematology patients who received IVIG from September 2022 to March 2022 at a single Irish center (n = 43). The proportion of patients that had a baseline anti‐HBc tested prior to IVIG receipt was assessed as well as the proportion of patients that developed a transiently positive anti‐HBc following IVIG exposure. Data were also collected relating to signal cut‐off ratios in patients with detectable anti‐HBc post‐IVIG. Results: 58.1% of patients had at least one serological hepatitis B viral test sent prior to IVIG exposure. Anti‐HBc was the least common serological investigation performed prior to IVIG exposure (21% of recipients). A positive or equivocal "low level antibody" was identified in 15% of recipients and this was proven to be transient in all cases. Conclusion: The minority of hematology patients had a baseline anti‐HBc assessed prior to IVIG exposure. All patients in this study had the potential to require further immunosuppressive therapies, which could be limited by a misleading anti‐HBc result. We therefore advocate for baseline anti‐HBc testing to be performed prior to IVIG exposure in hematology patients and for cautious interpretation of anti‐HBc results taking into account signal cut‐off ratios post‐IVIG exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article generates new insights into the changing profession of journalism. Empirically, we present the findings of 21 interviews with journalists working in the Irish and UK sports beats on their experiences of online abuse. Conceptually, we address the under-theorising of emotions in journalism by extending the utility and entanglement of emotion work and emotional labour. In doing so, we posit future lines of theoretical enquiry about individual and social regulation. Several key discoveries are presented. First, sports journalism is a distinctive profession because significant authentic emotional work is undertaken. This is only accentuated when online abuse occurs. Journalists are deeply affected by this abuse, personally and professionally. Second, online abuse towards sports journalists is now so ubiquitous as to be habitually accepted, and it has obscured the distinction between public and private spaces. Third, in response, sports journalists have been compelled to develop their own emotional strategies, including self-censorship, to cope with and manage online abuse. The findings presented here also pose practical and existential questions about the sustainability of the profession, especially in the absence of formal institutional supports or even an informal code of practice about how to cope with and respond to online abuse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Buildings account for 41% of energy consumption in the United States. Eighty-five percent of this energy comes from non-renewable fossil fuels. There are several ways to use energy more efficiently and produce energy using renewable energy sources. In this paper, we examine three types of solar technologies--photovoltaic (PV), solar water heaters, and transpired solar air collectors (TSAC)--and then focus on TSAC. TSAC is an energy-efficient air-heating technology utilizing existing ventilation systems that is extremely efficient (60% to 80%) and has a payback period of 2-8 years based on a variety of variables. While a relatively new technology and best installations are in areas with cool weather but significant sunshine, given the relatively quick payback and the aesthetically pleasing designs, building owners should evaluate whether a TSAC system is viable option. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Importance: There is a paucity of pediatric-specific comparative data to guide duration of therapy recommendations in children with urinary tract infection (UTI)., Objective: To compare the efficacy of standard-course and short-course therapy for children with UTI., Design, Setting, Participants: The Short Course Therapy for Urinary Tract Infections (SCOUT) randomized clinical noninferiority trial took place at outpatient clinics and emergency departments at 2 children's hospitals from May 2012, through, August 2019. Data were analyzed from January 2020, through, February 2023. Participants included children aged 2 months to 10 years with UTI exhibiting clinical improvement after 5 days of antimicrobials., Intervention: Another 5 days of antimicrobials (standard-course therapy) or 5 days of placebo (short-course therapy)., Main Outcome Measures: The primary outcome, treatment failure, was defined as symptomatic UTI at or before the first follow-up visit (day 11 to 14). Secondary outcomes included UTI after the first follow-up visit, asymptomatic bacteriuria, positive urine culture, and gastrointestinal colonization with resistant organisms., Results: Analysis for the primary outcome included 664 randomized children (639 female [96%]; median age, 4 years). Among children evaluable for the primary outcome, 2 of 328 assigned to standard-course (0.6%) and 14 of 336 assigned to short-course (4.2%) had a treatment failure (absolute difference of 3.6% with upper bound 95% CI of 5.5.%). Children receiving short-course therapy were more likely to have asymptomatic bacteriuria or a positive urine culture at or by the first follow-up visit. There were no differences between groups in rates of UTI after the first follow-up visit, incidence of adverse events, or incidence of gastrointestinal colonization with resistant organisms., Conclusions and Relevance: In this randomized clinical trial, children assigned to standard-course therapy had lower rates of treatment failure than children assigned to short-course therapy. However, the low failure rate of short-course therapy suggests that it could be considered as a reasonable option for children exhibiting clinical improvement after 5 days of antimicrobial treatment., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01595529.

A 49-year-old woman presented to the emergency department acutely unwell. Initial investigations revealed hyperglycaemia, ketosis and an acute kidney injury precipitated by urosepsis. She was found to have a new diagnosis of diabetes mellitus (type 2) with a glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) of 156 mmol/mol. CT imaging of the abdomen and pelvis revealed unilateral emphysematous pyelonephritis (EPN), radiologically classified as stage 3 severity with gas extending beyond the renal collecting system. Escherichia coli was grown on blood and urine cultures. This was sensitive to second-generation cephalosporin cefuroxime. The patient was managed with fluid resuscitation, intravenous antibiotics and renal system decompression with urinary catheter insertion. She was commenced on an intravenous insulin infusion for hyperglycaemic crisis. This case illustrates a rare presentation of hyperglycaemic crisis precipitated by EPN in a patient without a previously known diagnosis of diabetes, successfully treated with medical management alone. Close clinical and radiological follow-up was arranged to monitor the need for future nephrectomy., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2021. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

This modeling study investigates the functional role of pacemaker neurons in generating stable rhythms in the pre-Botzinger complex, a subcircuit of the respiratory pattern-generating circuitry in mammals. While the presence of pacemakers within the network is without doubt, the percentage and significance of such pacemakers is still unresolved. Here we revisited earlier network simulations by varying the fraction of pacemaker and non-pacemaker neurons within the network, and quantifying the robustness of the input parameter space and range of frequencies output by the network. Stable network rhythms were possible even with no pacemakers. However, we found that a network of at least 50% pacemakers produced the greatest range of output frequencies and had the more robust input space.