Angiographic maximal luminal diameter and appropriate deployment of the everolimus-eluting bioresorbable vascular scaffold as assessed by optical coherence tomography: an ABSORB cohort B trial sub-study

Bioresorbable vascular scaffolds (BVS) present different mechanical properties as compared to metallic platform stents. Therefore, the standard procedural technique to achieve appropriate deployment may differ.

Effect of acute hypoxia on maximal oxygen uptake and maximal performance during leg and upper-body exercise in Nordic combined skiers

We examined the effect of normobaric hypoxia (3200 m) on maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) and maximal power output (Pmax) during leg and upper-body exercise to identify functional and structural correlates of the variability in the decrement of VO2max (DeltaVO2max) and of maximal power output (DeltaPmax). Seven well trained male Nordic combined skiers performed incremental exercise tests to exhaustion on a cycle ergometer (leg exercise) and on a custom built doublepoling ergometer for cross-country skiing (upper-body exercise). Tests were carried out in normoxia (560 m) and normobaric hypoxia (3200 m); biopsies were taken from m. deltoideus. DeltaVO2max was not significantly different between leg (-9.1+/-4.9%) and upper-body exercise (-7.9+/-5.8%). By contrast, Pmax was significantly more reduced during leg exercise (-17.3+/-3.3%) than during upper-body exercise (-9.6+/-6.4%, p<0.05). Correlation analysis did not reveal any significant relationship between leg and upper-body exercise neither for DeltaVO2max nor for DeltaPmax. Furthermore, no relationship was observed between individual DeltaVO2max and DeltaPmax. Analysis of structural data of m. deltoideus revealed a significant correlation between capillary density and DeltaPmax (R=-0.80, p=0.03), as well as between volume density of mitochondria and DeltaPmax (R=-0.75, p=0.05). In conclusion, it seems that VO2max and Pmax are differently affected by hypoxia. The ability to tolerate hypoxia is a characteristic of the individual depending in part on the exercise mode. We present evidence that athletes with a high capillarity and a high muscular oxidative capacity are more sensitive to hypoxia.

Diastolic dysfunction of the cardiac allograft and maximal exercise capacity

BACKGROUND: Peak oxygen uptake (peak Vo(2)) is an established integrative measurement of maximal exercise capacity in cardiovascular disease. After heart transplantation (HTx) peak Vo(2) remains reduced despite normal systolic left ventricular function, which highlights the relevance of diastolic function. In this study we aim to characterize the predictive significance of cardiac allograft diastolic function for peak Vo(2). METHODS: Peak Vo(2) was measured using a ramp protocol on a bicycle ergometer. Left ventricular (LV) diastolic function was assessed with tissue Doppler imaging sizing the velocity of the early (Ea) and late (Aa) apical movement of the mitral annulus, and conventional Doppler measuring early (E) and late (A) diastolic transmitral flow propagation. Correlation coefficients were calculated and linear regression models fitted. RESULTS: The post-transplant time interval of the 39 HTxs ranged from 0.4 to 20.1 years. The mean age of the recipients was 55 +/- 14 years and body mass index (BMI) was 25.4 +/- 3.9 kg/m(2). Mean LV ejection fraction was 62 +/- 4%, mean LV mass index 108 +/- 22 g/m(2) and mean peak Vo(2) 20.1 +/- 6.3 ml/kg/min. Peak Vo(2) was reduced in patients with more severe diastolic dysfunction (pseudonormal or restrictive transmitral inflow pattern), or when E/Ea was > or =10. Peak Vo(2) correlated with recipient age (r = -0.643, p < 0.001), peak heart rate (r = 0.616, p < 0.001) and BMI (r = -0.417, p = 0.008). Of all echocardiographic measurements, Ea (r = 0.561, p < 0.001) and Ea/Aa (r = 0.495, p = 0.002) correlated best. Multivariate analysis identified age, heart rate, BMI and Ea/Aa as independent predictors of peak Vo(2). CONCLUSIONS: Diastolic dysfunction is relevant for the limitation of maximal exercise capacity after HTx.

On new maximal supergravity and its BPS domain-walls

We revise the SU(3)-invariant sector of N  = 8 supergravity with dyonic SO(8) gaugings. By using the embedding tensor formalism, analytic expressions for the scalar potential, superpotential(s) and fermion mass terms are obtained as a function of the electromagnetic phase ω and the scalars in the theory. Equipped with these results, we explore non-supersymmetric AdS critical points at ω ≠ 0 for which perturbative stability could not be analysed before. The ω-dependent superpotential is then used to derive first-order flow equations and obtain new BPS domain-wall solutions at ω ≠ 0. We numerically look at steepest-descent paths motivated by the (conjectured) RG flows.

The SU(3)-invariant sector of new maximal supergravity

We investigate the SU(3)-invariant sector of the one-parameter family of SO(8) gauged maximal supergravities that has been recently discovered. To this end, we construct the N=2 truncation of this theory and analyse its full vacuum structure. The number of critical point is doubled and includes new N=0 and N=1 branches. We numerically exhibit the parameter dependence of the location and cosmological constant of all extrema. Moreover, we provide their analytic expressions for cases of special interest. Finally, while the mass spectra are found to be parameter independent in most cases, we show that the novel non-supersymmetric branch with SU(3) invariance provides the first counterexample to this.

Influence of directionality and maximal power output on speech understanding with bone anchored hearing implants in single sided deafness

Bone-anchored hearing implants (BAHI) are routinely used to alleviate the effects of the acoustic head shadow in single-sided sensorineural deafness (SSD). In this study, the influence of the directional microphone setting and the maximum power output of the BAHI sound processor on speech understanding in noise in a laboratory setting were investigated. Eight adult BAHI users with SSD participated in this pilot study. Speech understanding in noise was measured using a new Slovak speech-in-noise test in two different spatial settings, either with noise coming from the front and noise from the side of the BAHI (S90N0) or vice versa (S0N90). In both spatial settings, speech understanding was measured without a BAHI, with a Baha BP100 in omnidirectional mode, with a BP100 in directional mode, with a BP110 power in omnidirectional and with a BP110 power in directional mode. In spatial setting S90N0, speech understanding in noise with either sound processor and in either directional mode was improved by 2.2-2.8 dB (p = 0.004-0.016). In spatial setting S0N90, speech understanding in noise was reduced by either BAHI, but was significantly better by 1.0-1.8 dB, if the directional microphone system was activated (p = 0.046), when compared to the omnidirectional setting. With the limited number of subjects in this study, no statistically significant differences were found between the two sound processors.