The impact of heat source and chemical reaction on MHD blood flow through permeable bifurcated arteries with tilted magnetic field in tumor treatments.

In this research work, we investigate the influence of heat source and chemical reaction on electro-magneto-hydrodynamic (EMHD) blood flow through bifurcated arteries with external tilted magnetic field for treating tumor. The potential electric field applied along the bifurcated arterial wall, accurately described the Poisson-Boltzmann equation. We modeled the EMHD blood flow to obtain the non-dimensionalized form of the equations. We converted the modeled equations to ordinary differential equations by the use of suitable variables. Exact solutions of the converted equations are calculated by the method of undetermined coefficients and the results obtained with the aid of Mathcad software were simulated and presented graphically. From the graphical representation of results, we observed that increase in Joule heating and Eckert number, increases the temperature distribution in the affected tumor cells which prevent high thermal radiation exposure from killing the healthy cells within the tumor region. The curves of the wall shear stress seem to be greater in the converging region in comparison to the diverging region, but when the strength of magnetic field and thermal radiation parameters increase the wall shear stress decreases at the bifurcated wall where blockage may likely occur due to the development of boundary layers on the inner walls of the bifurcated region. By increasing the heat radiation parameter, we observed that the curves representing both velocity and temperature profiles increase rapidly from the origin and the velocity of blood flow varies directly for the converging, diverging and the tumor regions of the bifurcated arteries. Thus, thermal radiation effect is a result of the higher rate of heat transfer at the vessel walls. Further, combining the electromagnetic field and the heat radiation together gives new insights of the physical properties of blood flow in the body system network which is essential for health practitioners and clinicians.

Safety and Efficacy of Convalescent Plasma for Severe COVID-19: Interim Report of a Multicenter Phase II Study from Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVE: To present the interim findings from a national study investigating the safety and efficacy of convalescent plasma (CP) containing detectable IgG antibodies as a treatment strategy for severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). TRIAL DESIGN AND PARTICIPANTS: An open label, two-arm, phase-II clinical trial conducted across 22 hospitals from Saudi Arabia. The intervention group included 40 adults (aged ≥18 years) with confirmed severe COVID-19 and the control group included 124 patients matched using propensity score for age, gender, intubation status, and history of diabetes and/or hypertension. Intervention group included those (a) with severe symptoms (dyspnea; respiratory rate, ≥30/min; SpO2, ≤93%, PaO2/FiO2 ratio, <300; and/or lung infiltrates >50% within 24-48 h), (b) requiring intensive care unit (ICU) care or (c) experiencing life-threatening conditions. The control group included confirmed severe COVID-19 patients of similar characteristics who did not consent for CP infusion or were not able to receive CP due to its nonavailability. INTERVENTIONS: The intervention group participants were infused 300 ml (200-400 ml/treatment dose) CP at least once, and if required, daily for up to 5 sessions, along with receiving the best standard of care. The control group only received the best standard of care. OUTCOMES: The primary endpoints were safety and ICU length of stay (LOS). The secondary endpoints included 30-day mortality, days on mechanical ventilation and days to clinical recovery. RESULTS: CP transfusion did not result in any adverse effects. There was no difference in the ICU LOS (median 8 days in both groups). The mortality risk was lower in the CP group: 13% absolute risk reduction (P = 0.147), hazard ratio (95% confidence interval): 0.554 (0.299-1.027; P = 0.061) by log-rank test. There was no significant difference in the days on mechanical ventilation and days to clinical recovery. CONCLUSION: CP containing detectable antibodies is a safe strategy and may result in a decrease in mortality in patients with severe COVID-19. The results of the completed trial with a larger study sample would provide more clarity if this difference in mortality is significant. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04347681; Saudi Clinical Trials Registry No.: 20041102.

Factors affecting cerebrospinal fluid shunt revision rate in children at King Khalid University Hospital.

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