"University students' economic situation during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study in Germany".

The COVID-19 pandemic caused a major economic downturn that disproportionally affected university students. This empirical research investigated effects and risk factors of the pandemic on students' economic situation with focus on financial distress and financial limitations. Data was collected using an online survey in May and June 2020 from students (n = 917) enrolled at universities in Germany. 80.6% were enrolled in bachelor programs (n = 738), the mean semester was 3.8 (standard deviation (SD = 2.0) and students' mean age was 23.1 years (SD = 4.1). 51.8% (n = 472) were female and 47.4% (n = 432) male. 56.7% (n = 506) of students worked before the pandemic. More than one third reported a decrease in income (36.5%; n = 334) and an increase in financial constraints (38.7%; n = 354). A multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that students with regular income were less likely to experience financial distress compared to those without (odds ratio (OR) = 0.456; p = 0.014). Furthermore, working part-time as associated with a higher financial distress compared to those without part-time employment (OR = 1.811; p = 0.003). Students who worked part-time before the pandemic also had a higher probability of increased financial restriction (or constraint) compared to those who did not work part-time (OR = 2.094; p < 0.001). University students were disproportionally affected by the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, which increased students' economic uncertainty. To offset such problems, financial aid schemes for students need to be made available to alleviate distress and to allow students to focus on their studies but should not compound problems by leading to financial hardship at a later point in time.

"Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on university students' physical health, mental health and learning, a cross-sectional study including 917 students from eight universities in Germany".

The COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected physical and mental health. Since its commencement in 2020, social distancing has become the "new normal". Temporary lockdowns and distance learning have disproportionately affected young adults, including university students. To identify effects of the pandemic on university students' physical and mental health and learning, this empirical study included eight universities in Heidelberg, Mannheim and Ludwigshafen. Data was collected in May and June 2020. The self-administered survey was filled by 1,246 university students. 917 students completed the survey in full. 80.6% were bachelor students (n = 738), the mean semester was 3.8 and mean age was 23.1 years. 51.8% (n = 472) were female students and 47.4% (n = 432) male students. 38.5% (n = 352) stated a deterioration in physical health and 53.1% (n = 485) in mental health. From 0 to 10, students rated mean levels of stress highest due to social distancing (5.6), spending most time at home (5.0) and e-learning (4.5). Compared to male students, female students' mental health worsened significantly (58.7% vs. 46.8%). A logistic regression analysis identified gender having a significant effect on university students' stress levels: males seemed to have a lower risk of moderate to high levels of stress compared to females (odds ratio = 0.698; 95% CI = 0.515 to 0.945). Age, city of university and semester did not show a significant effect. The results are important to both regional and international audiences as university students face similar physical and mental health challenges due to the pandemic and its public health measures. Low-threshold initiatives are needed to mitigate the effects of the pandemic. These may include measures to reinforce students' locus of control, sense of belonging, relaxation and mindfulness as well as (online) counselling services. Gender-specific differences must be taken into account.

The effect of warm and humidified gas insufflation in gynecological laparoscopy on maintenance of body temperature: a prospective randomized controlled multi-arm trial.

BACKGROUND: Hypothermia is defined as a decrease in body core temperature to below 36 °C. If intraoperative heat-preserving measures are omitted, a patient's temperature will fall by 1 - 2 °C. Even mild forms of intraoperative hypothermia can lead to a marked increase in morbidity and mortality. Using warm and humidified gas insufflation in laparoscopy may help in the maintenance of intraoperative body temperature. METHODS: In this prospective randomized controlled study, we investigated effects of temperature and humidity of the insufflation gas on intra- and postoperative temperature management. 150 patients undergoing gynecologic laparoscopic surgery were randomly assigned to either insufflation with non-warmed, non-humidified CO2 with forced air warming blanket (AIR), humidified warm gas without forced air warming blanket (HUMI) or humidified warm gas combined with forced air warming blanket (HUMI+). We hypothesized that the use of warmed laparoscopic gas would have benefits in the maintenance of body temperature and reduce the occurrence of hypothermia. RESULTS: The use of warm and humidified gas insufflation alone led to more hypothermia episodes with longer duration and longer recovery times as well as significantly lower core body temperature compared to the other two groups. In the comparison of the AIR group and HUMI + group, HUMI + patients had a significantly higher body temperature at arrival at the PACU (Post Anaesthesia Care Unit), had the least occurrence of hypothermia and suffered from less shivering. CONCLUSION: The use of warm and humidified gas insufflation alone does not sufficiently warm the patients. The optimal temperature management is achieved in the combination of external forced air warming and insufflation of warm and humidified laparoscopy gas.

Warm and humidified insufflation gas during gynecologic laparoscopic surgery reduces postoperative pain in predisposed patients-a randomized, controlled multi-arm trial.

BACKGROUND: Postoperative pain remains a common problem in gynecologic laparoscopy, especially in head zone-related regions, triggered by intra-abdominal pressure during capnoperitoneum. Humidified and prewarmed insufflation gas may ameliorate pain and be beneficial. METHODS: This prospective randomized controlled parallel group multi-arm single-center study investigated the effects of temperature and humidity of insufflation gas on postoperative pain during gynecologic laparoscopy with a duration ≥ 60 min. Female participants (18-70 years) were blinded and randomly assigned-computer generated-to either insufflation with dry cold CO2 with forced air warming blanket ("AIR"), humidified warm gas without forced air warming blanket ("HUMI"), or humidified warm gas with forced air warming blanket ("HUMI +"). We hypothesized that using humidified warm gas resulted in lower pain scores and less analgesic consumption. The primary endpoint postoperative pain was assessed for different pain localizations every 12 h during 7 days after surgery. Secondary endpoints were demand for painkillers and epidural anesthetics, length of stay in recovery room, and hospital stay. (Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02781194-completed). RESULTS: 150 participants were randomized. Compared to group "AIR" (n = 48), there was significantly less pain in group "HUMI +" (n = 48) in the recovery room (- 1.068; 95% CI - 2.08 to - 0.061), as well as significantly less ibuprofen use at day two (- 0.5871 g ± 0.258; p-value = 0.0471). Other variables did not change significantly. Stratification for presence of endometriosis or non-previous abdominal surgery in patient history revealed significantly less pain in both groups "HUMI" (n = 50) and "HUMI +" versus group "AIR." Related side effects were not noted. CONCLUSION: In the overall population, the use of warm, humidified insufflation gas did not yield clinically relevant effects; however, in predisposed patients with endometriosis and who could otherwise expect high pain levels, warm and humidified gas may be beneficial.

Seeding of picosecond and femtosecond optical parametric amplifiers by weak single mode continuous lasers.

Optical parametric amplifiers are typically seeded with either parametric superfluorescence or broadband continuum pulses. We show both with picosecond and femtosecond pump pulses, that single longitudinal mode cw lasers with mW power can be well used to generate nearly Fourier-transform-limited output pulses. The 532 nm pumped picosecond system is seeded in the near infrared and fully tunable from 1260 to 1630 nm. The femtosecond system operates stable with just hundreds of seed photons. The output spectral width matches closely to the width of individual spectral features found in single shot spectra of parametric superfluorescence. Both systems provide interesting radiation sources for nonlinear optics experiments that need highly controlled and clean excitation.

Brewster-angled chirped mirrors for broadband pulse compression without dispersion oscillations.

We use Brewster-angled chirped mirrors for dispersion compensation of a noncollinear optical parametric amplifier. This novel mirror design virtually eliminates spurious surface reflections and resultant dispersion ripple. The absence of compression artifacts is demonstrated by the generation of clean 5.6 fs pulses, with what is believed to be an unprecedented low ripple-induced satellite content for a nonadaptive scheme. In addition, the 270 THz spectral coverage allows generation of widely tunable visible pulses of 8 to 15 fs duration.

Estudo e classificaçäo das membranas neovasculares subretinianas na degeneraçäo macular relacionada à idade pela angiografia digital com indocianina verde / Study and classification of subretinal neovascularization in age-related macular degeneration by digital angiography with indocyanine green

Objetivo: analisar por meio da angiografia digital com indocianina verde (ICV) casos de membrana neovascular subretiniana (MNSR) oculta ou mal definida, diagnosticada pela angiofluoresceinografia (AF) em degeneraçäo macular relacionada à idade. Material e método: pacientes com MNSR oculta ou mal definida, diagnosticada pela AF foram analisados por meio do ICV, excluindo-se olhos com tratamento prévio com raio laser ou outra doença ocular. Resultados: trinta e quatro olhos foram estudados. Foi encontrada placa com hiperfluorescência difusa em 18 olhos (52,9 por cento) em 11 olhos (32,3 por cento) a existência de um ponto focal hiperfluorescente, sendo que estas alteraçöes näo foram detectadas pela angiofluoresceinografia. Conclusäo: a ICV em alguns casos detecta a presença de membrana neovascular subretiniana presumível näo-evidenciada ao exame