Using a new prototype of a photoacoustic imaging system with a wide field of view developed by a Japanese research group, high-resolution three-dimensional structural information of the vasculatures was successfully obtained over a large area in both healthy and lymphedematous extremities. Anatomical information on the lymphatic vessels and adjacent veins provided by photoacoustic lymphangiography is helpful for the management of lymphedema. In particular, such knowledge will facilitate the planning of microsurgical lymphaticovenular anastomoses to bypass the excess fluid component by joining with the circulatory system peripherally. Although challenges remain to establish its implementation in clinical practice, photoacoustic lymphangiography may contribute to improved treatments for lymphedema patients in the near future.

Smoking is an important risk factor of plaque erosion. Selleck Raf inhibitor This study aimed to investigate the predictors of plaque erosion in current and non-current smokers presenting with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).Methods and ResultsA total of 1,320 STEMI patients with culprit plaque rupture or plaque erosion detected by pre-intervention optical coherence tomography were divided into a current smoking group (n=715) and non-current smoking group (n=605). Plaque erosion accounted for 30.8% (220/715) of culprit lesions in the current smokers and 21.2% (128/605) in the non-current smokers. Multivariable analysis showed age <50 years, single-vessel disease and the absence of dyslipidemia were independently associated with plaque erosion rather than plaque rupture, regardless of smoking status. In current smokers, diabetes mellitus (odds ratio [OR] 0.29; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.10-0.83; P=0.021) was negatively associated with plaque erosion as compared with plaque rupture. In non-current smokers, minimal lumen area (MLA, OR 1.37; 95% CI 1.16-1.62; P<0.001) and nearby bifurcation (OR 3.20; 95% CI 1.98-5.16; P<0.001) were positively related to plaque erosion, but not plaque rupture.

In patients with STEMI, the presence of diabetes mellitus significantly increased the risk of rupture-based STEMI but may not have reduced the risk of plaque erosion-based STEMI in current smokers. Nearby bifurcation and larger MLA were associated with plaque erosion in non-current smokers.

In patients with STEMI, the presence of diabetes mellitus significantly increased the risk of rupture-based STEMI but may not have reduced the risk of plaque erosion-based STEMI in current smokers. Nearby bifurcation and larger MLA were associated with plaque erosion in non-current smokers.

The incremental predictive value of the coronary artery calcium score (CACS) for risk stratification of coronary revascularization in patients with normal or mildly abnormal nuclear myocardial perfusion single photon emission computed tomography (MPS) scores is unknown.Methods and ResultsWe analyzed 528 patients in whom CACS was calculated and who underwent stress MPS within 3 months. Patients with known coronary artery disease, prior coronary revascularization, and those undergoing hemodialysis were excluded. Patients were followed-up with coronary revascularization based on the evidence of physiological ischemia defined by fractional flow reserve or severe coronary stenosis (≥90%). CACS was significantly associated with the summed stress score (SSS) from MPS assessment. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that high CACS (≥300; odds ratio [OR] 5.44, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.28-13.0) and SSS (OR 1.29, 95% CI 1.18-1.40) were significant (P<0.001) predictors of future coronary revascularization. The log-rank test showed that high CACS stratified coronary revascularization in normal SSS (0-3; P<0.001) or mildly abnormal SSS (4-8; P=0.028) groups, whereas high CACS did not significantly stratify coronary revascularization in moderate to severe SSS (≥9; P=0.757).

Risk stratification using CACS with a cut-off value 300 may have incremental predictive value for revascularization in patients with normal or mildly abnormal MPS.

Risk stratification using CACS with a cut-off value 300 may have incremental predictive value for revascularization in patients with normal or mildly abnormal MPS.This study evaluated the impact of hydrothermal pretreatment on thickened waste activated sludge (TWAS) for solubilization enhancement and biomethane production improvement through the mesophilic anaerobic digestion process. In order to assess the effect of temperature, retention time and severity index (SI) of the hydrothermal pretreatment, TWAS was exposed to fifteen different pretreatment conditions within a combination of 10 different pretreatment temperature range (150-240 °C), five different retention times (5-30 min) and five different severity indexes (SI = 3, 3.5, 4, 4.5 and 5). The solubilization enhancement was observed in all hydrothermally pretreated samples with the highest solubilization efficiency of 49% in pretreatment conditions of 200 °C and 10 min retention time within the corresponding SI = 4. Biomethane production was not improved in all fifteen pretreatment conditions, pretreatment with SI beyond 4 decreased the biodegradability of TWAS. The highest biomethane production was observed in the pretreatment condition of 170 °C and 10 min with a 40% increase compared to non-pretreated TWAS.To accurately forecast the seasonal fluctuations of dissolved oxygen (DO) and pH in Huaihe River, a grey seasonal model with fractional order accumulation is proposed, optimized by particle swarm optimization (PSO-FGSM(1,1)). We use this new model to carry out an empirical analysis based on the DO and pH data from 2014 to 2018 from Huaibin, Bengbu, Chuzhou monitoring points. The comparison results show that the PSO-FGSM(1,1) model accuracy is significantly higher than the Holt-Winters model with grey wolf optimization (GWO-Holt-Winters). The prediction results indicated that the pollution of the Huaihe River has regional characteristics. The Huaibin and Chuzhou sections of the Huaihe River are slightly polluted, and the Bengbu section is seriously polluted.