FDG-PET/CT in infections: the imaging method of choice?

[No abstract available

Twelve-month observational study of children with cancer in 41 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction Childhood cancer is a leading cause of death. It is unclear whether the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted childhood cancer mortality. In this study, we aimed to establish all-cause mortality rates for childhood cancers during the COVID-19 pandemic and determine the factors associated with mortality. Methods Prospective cohort study in 109 institutions in 41 countries. Inclusion criteria: children <18 years who were newly diagnosed with or undergoing active treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, retinoblastoma, Wilms tumour, glioma, osteosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, medulloblastoma and neuroblastoma. Of 2327 cases, 2118 patients were included in the study. The primary outcome measure was all-cause mortality at 30 days, 90 days and 12 months. Results All-cause mortality was 3.4% (n=71/2084) at 30-day follow-up, 5.7% (n=113/1969) at 90-day follow-up and 13.0% (n=206/1581) at 12-month follow-up. The median time from diagnosis to multidisciplinary team (MDT) plan was longest in low-income countries (7 days, IQR 3-11). Multivariable analysis revealed several factors associated with 12-month mortality, including low-income (OR 6.99 (95% CI 2.49 to 19.68); p<0.001), lower middle income (OR 3.32 (95% CI 1.96 to 5.61); p<0.001) and upper middle income (OR 3.49 (95% CI 2.02 to 6.03); p<0.001) country status and chemotherapy (OR 0.55 (95% CI 0.36 to 0.86); p=0.008) and immunotherapy (OR 0.27 (95% CI 0.08 to 0.91); p=0.035) within 30 days from MDT plan. Multivariable analysis revealed laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection (OR 5.33 (95% CI 1.19 to 23.84); p=0.029) was associated with 30-day mortality. Conclusions Children with cancer are more likely to die within 30 days if infected with SARS-CoV-2. However, timely treatment reduced odds of death. This report provides crucial information to balance the benefits of providing anticancer therapy against the risks of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children with cancer

Thermal behaviour of five different date palm residues of algeria by thermogravimetric analysis

Renewable energy has become more important globally especially with the current fuel and economic crisis. Date palm biomasses are highly potential materials for energy resources. The fact that they are renewable and abundantly available are amongst the attractive reasons of employing them as the major source for renewable energy. The purpose of this research was to investigate the thermal behavior of date palm biomass in order to evaluate their usefulness for energy production. In microparticular scale, the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) is one of the techniques used to determine the thermal properties of five different date palm residues that were studied: (date palm rachis (DPR), date palm trunk (DPT), leaf base (Petiole) (LB), fruitstalk prunings (FP) and liff (LP)). The TGA technique consists to record the lost weight during the increase in temperature from 20°C until 600°C with a 10°C/min heating rate. The thermograms presented a departure phase of free water (from room temperature to 110°C) before the degradation process of the lignocellulosic constituents. The lignin and hemicellulose play an important role on the degradation of lignocellulosic materials at the temperature under 250°C. The degradation of cellulose begins at 250°C and overlaps to that of lignin until 450°

Imaging ‘the lost tribe’: a review of adolescent cancer imaging. Part 1

Although a small proportion of all cancer registrations, malignancy in adolescence and young adulthood remains the most common natural cause of death in this age group. Advances in the management and outcomes of childhood cancer have not been matched within the adolescent population, with increasing incidence and poorer survival seen amongst teenagers with cancer compared with other populations. There have been increasing moves towards specific adolescent oncology centres, with the aim of centralising expertise, however, ‘adolescent imaging’ does not exist as a speciality in the same way that paediatric imaging does, with responsibility for imaging adolescent patients sometimes falling to paediatric radiologists and sometimes to ‘adult’ radiologists, usually with a specific interest in a tumour type or body system. In this article, imaging of the more common malignancies, encountered in adolescent patients is reviewed. Complications of treatment are reviewed in another article to give an overview of adolescent oncology imaging practice

Effects of corona discharge treatment on the mechanical properties of biocomposites from polylactic acid and Algerian date palm fibres

In this paper, biocomposites materials based on date palm fibres (untreated or treated with corona discharge) as reinforcing elements and polylactic acid matrices were prepared and characterized. The objective of this study was to evaluate the mechanical properties of these biocomposites by modification of date palm fiber by using corona discharge treatment which results in a surface oxidation. The morphology of processed biocomposites was studied by scanning electron microscopy. It was found that treated fibers of the reinforced composite showed superior mechanical properties as compared with untreated fiber reinforced composites due to the enhanced adhesion between the treated date palm fiber and the polylactic acid matrix. Changes in the surface chemistry were investigated with Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy. Moreover, morphological studies by scanning electron microscopy demonstrated that better adhesion between the treated fiber and the matrix was achieved. Such studies are of great interest in the development of environmentally friendly composites from biodegradable polymer

Particleboards production from date palm biomass

Date palm biomass is a renewable natural resource that has not widely been utilized in industry. The objective of this study was to examine some chemical properties of date palm trunk and rachis (holocellulose, cellulose, lignin and extractives) and to evaluate their suitability to produce composite panels. Particleboards were produced using trunk and rachis as an alternative raw material for forest products industry in the presence of two types of polycondensation resins (phenol–formaldehyde and melamine urea–formaldehyde) which were selected as binding agents. The panels were tested for their physical (water absorption and thickness swelling) and mechanical (modulus of rupture, modulus of elasticity and internal bond strength) properties. The internal bond strength of date palm trunk and date palm rachis based boards met the requirements of the general purpose product standards (EN 312) at 0.70 g/cm3 density. The panels made with phenol–formaldehyde resin showed better performance with respect to the panels made with melamine urea–formaldehyde. In addition, the particleboard made with date palm trunk particles had better quality compared to the particleboard made from date palm rachis particles. Based on preliminary results of this work, raw materials from date palm trunks and rachis can have a promising potential in the manufacture of particleboards and as a substitute for wood in board productio