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Background: Implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICD) prevent sudden cardiac death (SCD). Patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) requiring dialysis are at a very high risk of infection from cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) implantation as well as mortality. In the present study, we compared the long-term complications and outcomes between subcutaneous ICD (S-ICD) and transvenous ICD (TV-ICD) recipients. Methods: In this retrospective analysis, we analyzed a total of 43 patients with ESRD requiring dialysis who received either a prophylactic S-ICD (26 patients) or a single right ventricular lead TV-ICD (17 patients) at seven experienced centers in Germany. Follow-up was performed bi-annually, at the end of which the data concerning comorbidities and, if applicable, reason for death were checked and confirmed with patients' general practitioner, nephrologist and cardiologist. Results: The median follow up duration was 95.6 months (range 42.8–126.3 months). Baseline characteristics were without noteworthy significant differences between groups. During follow-up (FU), there were significantly more device-associated infections (HR 8.72, 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.18 to 12.85, p < 0.05) and device-associated hospitalizations (HR 10.20, 95% CI 1.22 to 84.61, p < 0.001), as well as a higher cardiovascular mortality (HR 9.17, 95% CI 1.12 to 8.33, p < 0.05), in the TV-ICD group. The number of patients requiring hospitalization for any reason was significantly higher in the TV-ICD group (HR 2.59, 95% CI 1.12 to 6.41, p < 0.05). There was no significant difference in overall mortality (HR 1.92, 95% CI 0.96 to 6.15, p = 0.274). Conclusions: Our data suggest that, in this extended follow-up in seriously compromised renal patients on dialysis, the S-ICD patients have statistically fewer device infections and hospitalizations as well as lower cardiac mortality compared with the TV-ICD cohort. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluated the impact of an interdisciplinary care teams (IDCT) care management program on cost and quality outcomes using a novel algorithm to identify 400 high-risk patients out of 48,235 Medicare Advantage (MA) beneficiaries. Of the 400, 252 were enrolled in the IDCT care management intervention program, while the remaining 148 were not enrolled. A second comparison group consisted of 660 who were referred to the IDCT program but not selected by the algorithm. The program's effectiveness was evaluated 1-year postintervention. Analyses found that health care costs for members enrolled in the IDCT program were reduced by US$1,121.76 and US$1,625.61 per member per month, respectively, relative to those not enrolled and those enrolled by referral. The cost reduction from the program generated a net savings of US$1.9MM, covering the program's cost. Findings suggest IDCTs can cost-effectively manage populations of high-risk patients with better selection and fostering greater interdependence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High overpressure is a critical drilling issue in the Lower Kutai Basin. Typical pore pressure prediction approaches involve an empirical relationship, such as Eaton's method using sonic log data. In areas with high geothermal gradients, such as the Lower Kutai Basin, there is evidence for additional overpressure from gas generation such that sediment unloading must be considered to interpret pore pressure correctly. In this paper a repeatable deterministic model is presented for pore pressure from sonic data and, using selected wells from the Lower Kutai Basin, also the use of the resistivity log in a similar model. In the Lower Kutai Basin, sonic logs are often absent from the logging suite or otherwise running over limited intervals, making an alternative log-based prediction method particularly valuable. As a caveat, shallow freshwater encroachment is reported in the Lower Kutai Basin, means the shallow resistivity data can be problematic to use to define both top of overpressure and a normal compaction trend. Care must therefore be taken if resistivity is to be used for the interpretation of unloaded pore pressure, and chiefly applied and this likely to be more successful where encroachment is less pronounced, such as pro-delta shales. Assuming the additional care needed in using resistivity data, this paper suggests that resistivity can be a useful tool for pore pressure prediction in unloaded shale at elevated temperatures within the Lower Kutai Basin. At present the technique has been applied to only a limited dataset due to data availability limitations, but it is hoped with further refinement it will form a helpful additional approach in the pore pressure prediction toolkit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soft X‐ray tomography (SXT) is an imaging technique to visualise whole cells without fixation, staining, and sectioning. For SXT imaging, cells are cryopreserved and imaged at cryogenic conditions. Such 'near‐to‐native' state imaging is in high demand and initiated the development of the laboratory table‐top SXT microscope. As many laboratories do not have access to cryogenic equipment, we asked ourselves whether SXT imaging is feasible on dry specimens. This paper shows how the dehydration of cells can be used as an alternative sample preparation to obtain ultrastructure information. We compare different dehydration processes on mouse embryonic fibroblasts in terms of ultrastructural preservation and shrinkage. Based on this analysis, we chose critical point (CPD) dried cells for SXT imaging. In comparison to cryopreserved and air‐dried cells, CPD dehydrated cells show high structural integrity although with about 3–7 times higher X‐ray absorption for cellular organelles. As the difference in X‐ray absorption values between organelles is preserved, 3D anatomy of CPD‐dried cells can be segmented and analysed, demonstrating the applicability of CPD‐dried sample preparation for SXT imaging. LAY DESCRIPTION: Soft X‐ray tomography (SXT) is an imaging technique that allows to see the internal structures of cells without the need for special treatments like fixation or staining. Typically, SXT imaging involves freezing and imaging cells at very low temperatures. However, since many labs lack the necessary equipment, we explored whether SXT imaging could be done on dry samples instead. We compared different dehydration methods and found that critical point drying (CPD) was the most promising for SXT imaging. CPD‐dried cells showed high structural integrity, although they absorbed more X‐rays than hydrated cells, demonstrating that CPD‐dried sample preparation is a viable alternative for SXT imaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]