PURPOSE In mechanically ventilated patients, the endotracheal tube is an essential interface between the patient and ventilator, but inadvertently, it also facilitates the development of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) by subverting pulmonary host defenses. A number of investigations suggest that bacteria colonizing the oral cavity may be important in the etiology of VAP. The present stud...

Plantlets grown in conventional tissue culture systems usually encounter physiological and anatomical abnormalities including inability to photosynthesize, low chlorophyll content, open stomata, lack of a cuticle layer in the leaf, abnormal xylem parenchyma etc. Photoautotrophic and photomixotrophic systems could diminish these problems. The purpose of this study was to increase the chlorophyll...

Using multiphase computational simulations based on the Navier-Stokes equations, we examine the internal gaseous flows of artificially ventilated supercavities. These simulations indicate that air shear layers that develop on the cavity-wall (the air-liquid interface surrounding the cavity) are an important mechanism of air entrainment. This corroborates previous theory developed for toroidal c...

INTRODUCTION The aim of this study was to assess the volume of gas being poorly ventilated or non-ventilated within the lungs of patients treated with mechanical ventilation and suffering from acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). METHODS A prospective, descriptive study was performed of 25 sedated and paralysed ARDS patients, mechanically ventilated with a positive end-expiratory press...

Background: The purpose of our study was to evaluate an inexpensive and available method to reduce mucous impactions in mechanically ventilated patients.Methods: This randomized clinical trial was conducted on 40 mechanically ventilated patients aged 15-90 years. The patients were randomly allocated into two arms; 20 cases and 20 controls. The cases received N-acetylcysteine via their nebulizer...

Abstract The HTR-PM600 high-temperature gas-cooled reactor nuclear power plant is based on the technology of pebble-bed module (HTR-PM) demonstration project. It utilizes proven HTR-PM and steam generator modules with a thermal 250 MW th generation approximately 100 e per module. Six in parallel, connected to turbine, form 600-MW plant. In addition, its system configuration island identical tha...

Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is a common cause of morbidity, antibiotic use, increased length of stay and, possibly, increased mortality in ICU patients. Colonization of the oropharyngeal cavity with potentially pathogenic micro-organisms is instrumental in the pathogenesis of VAP, and selective oropharyngeal decontamination (SOD) with antibiotics (AB-SOD) or antiseptics, such as chlor...

This study used a decerebrate and artificially-ventilated preparation to examine the roles of various afferent inputs in breathing pattern formation in the tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum). Three general breathing patterns were observed: (1) regular breathing; (2) frequency cycling and (3) episodic breathing. Under normoxic, normocapnic conditions, 50% of control fish exhibited regular continuou...