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Purpose: In spine care, frailty is associated with poor outcomes. The aim of this study was to describe changes in frailty in spine care during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and their relation to surgical management and outcomes., Methods: Patients hospitalized for spine pathologies between January 1, 2019, and May 17, 2022, within a nationwide network of 76 hospitals in Germany were retrospectively included. Patient frailty, types of surgery, and in-hospital mortality rates were compared between pandemic and pre-pandemic periods., Results: Of the 223,418 included patients with spine pathologies, 151,766 were admitted during the pandemic and 71,652 during corresponding pre-pandemic periods in 2019. During the pandemic, the proportion of high-frailty patients increased from a range of 5.1-6.1% to 6.5-8.8% (p < 0.01), while the proportion of low frailty patients decreased from a range of 70.5-71.4% to 65.5-70.1% (p < 0.01). In most phases of the pandemic, the Elixhauser comorbidity index (ECI) showed larger increases among high compared to low frailty patients (by 0.2-1.8 vs. 0.2-0.8 [p < 0.01]). Changes in rates of spine surgery were associated with frailty, most clearly in rates of spine fusion, showing consistent increases among low frailty patients (by 2.2-2.5%) versus decreases (by 0.3-0.8%) among high-frailty patients (p < 0.02). Changes in rates of in-hospital mortality were not associated with frailty., Conclusions: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the proportion of high-frailty patients increased among those hospitalized for spine pathologies in Germany. Low frailty was associated with a rise in rates of spine surgery and high frailty with comparably larger increases in rates of comorbidities., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Background:  The full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on surgical spine care is difficult to assess due to a lack in nationwide evidence from more recent phases of the pandemic. We aimed to describe changes in in-hospital processes associated with spinal fusion procedures in the treatment of spinal infections (SI) during different phases of the pandemic., Methods:  In this retrospective observational study, we examined the in-hospital prevalence and outcomes of spinal fusion procedures for SI (along with patient characteristics, rates of transfer to intensive care units, and mortality rates) during the first four waves of the pandemic compared with the corresponding prepandemic periods in 2019. We used administrative data from a nationwide network of 76 hospitals managing 7% of all in-hospital cases in Germany., Results:  We observed no significant change in the prevalence of SI fusion procedures during the pandemic, neither in total numbers (349 vs. 373) nor for each wave separately. On a patient level, we found no differences in age, sex, and the prevalence of paresis, and no relevant differences in associated comorbidities. The rate of mechanical ventilation did not change during any of the examined pandemic waves: it ranged between 9.5 and 18.6% during the pandemic and 3.1 and 16.0% during the corresponding prepandemic control periods. The rate of transfer to intensive care changed only during wave 4 (from 70.4 to 54.8%; p  = 0.046) but not in any other pandemic phases. We observed no changes in in-hospital mortality rates (range: 2.9-9.7% vs. 6.2-11.3%) or in duration of hospital stay (range: 26.2-30.8 days vs. 20.8-29.2 days)., Conclusions:  The main finding of our study is that within this nationwide network of spine care centers in Germany, the delivery of surgical treatment of SI by means of spinal fusion procedures was maintained throughout the first four waves of the pandemic. Furthermore, there were no relevant changes in patient demographics, in-hospital processes, and mortality rates., Competing Interests: None declared., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)

Heterocycles containing an integrated 2-nitrobenzaldehyde imine moiety produce ions of m/z 134 with high abundance under electron impact. As shown by kinetic energy release measurements these ions have the same structure in all the cases studied, identical to m/z 134 formed from the reference compound 2-nitrobenzoylpiperidide. The mechanism of formation of m/z 134 most probably involves isomerization of its precursor ion to give a spiro intermediate, from which m/z 134 arises either synchronously or after a second isomerization. Both alternatives formally represent an oxygen transfer from the nitro group to the imino carbon via a 5-membered transition state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The syntheses of nineteen 3-carbamoyl-4-aryl-isoquinoline-1(2H)-ones are described. The compounds show anticonvulsant activity in maximal electroshock test (i.p. administration). A representative substance is 3-carbamoyl-2-isopropyl-4-(4-chlorophenyl)-isoquinoline-1(2H)-one, ED50 = 2.1 x 10(-4) mol/kg. This agent shows 20% of the activity of phenytoin (ED50 = 0.44 x 10(-4) mol/kg).

This article discusses the emergence of a discourse on 'political Islam' in the policy circles of European elites. It interprets this discourse on one hand as a manifestation of the further criminalization of Muslimness emanating from programs of countering 'extremism' and deradicalizing Muslim youth in the wake of the global war on terror. More specifically, the discourse on 'political Islam' is seen as an extension of countering violent extremism projects to counter an alleged non-violent 'extremism.' The article discusses three cases: Austria, Germany, and France to analyze what the fight against 'political Islam' (in Austria), 'legalistic Islamism' (in Germany), and 'Islamist separatism' (in France) respectively mean. These terminologies are analyzed as 'empty signifiers' and (Foucauldian) dispositifs that are used deliberately to legitimize state interventions to shape their respective societies. It is argued that the main shared idea is not that Muslims break the law or commit violence. Rather, the argument is that Muslims use the law to subvert their European nation-states. This aims at excluding Muslims from political life and not allowing them to shape the future of these countries. A simultaneous effort is the nurturing of an unpolitical, submissive Muslim that does not question hegemonial power structures, a project which is pursued by creating a domesticated or 'national Islam.' The article discusses these three terminologies' similarities and differences in the respective countries. In sum, the apparatus of 'political Islam' is interpreted as a means to 1) push back or exclude Muslims from the public sphere; 2) crackdown on organized Muslims; and 3) silence critical voices to these policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Materialwissenschaft und Werkstoffechnik is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Materialwissenschaft und Werkstoffechnik is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

A series of quinoxalinone derivatives were synthesized by the reaction of o‐phenylenediamine with oxalic acid to yield 1, 4‐dihydro quinoxaline‐2, 3‐dione (1) and then treated with thionyl chloride to yield 2, 3 dichloro quinoxaline (2). This was further reacted with hydrazine hydrate to produce 2, 3‐dihydrazinyl quinoxaline (3). This was finally reacted with substituted aromatic aldehydes to produce 2,3‐bis[2‐(sustituted benzylidine) hydrazinyl] quinoxalines (4). These quinoxalinone derivatives were characterized by infrared spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and MASS spectral data. All the synthesized compounds were evaluated for their antimicrobial activity. The results of the antimicrobial study revealed that compounds 4c, 4d, and 4i were active and exhibited better inhibitory activities as compared to standard drug ciprofloxacin. The results were further checked with protein legend interaction by using docking studies, and all the compounds exhibited good docking scores between −8.72 and −11.29 kcal/mol against dihydrofolate reductase protein fragment from Staphylococcus aureus (PDB ID‐4XE6). Among all compound, 4c has shown maximum docking score and found in agreement to in vitro studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New series of quinoxaline derivatives ( 4a-4h) were synthesized by treating 2-chloro-3-hydrazinyl quinoxalin ( 3) with various anilines. Compound 3 was obtained from the 2,3-dichloroquinoxaline 2 which was prepared from 4-dihydroquinoxaline-2,3-dione ( 1). All synthesized compounds ( 4a-4h) were characterized by various spectral techniques, that is, IR, 1H-NMR, mass spectroscopy, and elemental analysis and completion of reaction were confirmed by TLC. In vitro antimicrobial activity of synthesized compounds was evaluated using disc diffusion assay against gram-positive and gram-negative microbial strains, and then, the minimum inhibitory concentration and IC50 values of compounds were also determined. The results of antimicrobial study revealed that compounds 4e, 4g, and 4a were active and exhibited better inhibitory activities as compared with standard drug amoxicillin. Docking studies were performed by using Argus lab, and all the compounds exhibited good docking scores between −9.53 and −7.94 kcal/mol against dihydrofolate reductase protein fragment from Staphylococcus aureus (PDB ID-4XE6). Among all compounds, 4e has shown the maximum docking score and found in agreement to in vitro studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Decision-support system (DSS) IoFarm was developed to identify economically optimal fertilizer strategies on the farm level. The average cost savings are 66 EUR ha−1. This study aimed to determine whether this approach impacts yield, protein content, and market performance in crop production compared to usual farm-fertilization strategies. Few DSSs for fertilizer optimization consider multiple nutrients. DSSs with a clear focus on both fertilizer intensity and the least-cost combination of fertilizers are even rarer. To the best of our knowledge, there is no information in the literature on the impact of such DSSs on yield, protein content, and market performance for cereal–maize crop rotation. This study determines for the first time whether the financial benefits of using such an optimization tool are in conflict with important agronomic goals. In a three-year field trial, IoFarm was compared to standard farm-fertilization strategies. Results were evaluated with an analysis of variance followed by post hoc tests. No significant differences in yield, protein content, and market performance were found for comparable fertilization variants (with or without organic fertilization). However, differences exist in the selection of fertilizers and the timing of fertilization. Results show the agronomic comparability of IoFarm and usual farm-fertilizer strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]