Bedside risk-scoring model for predicting 6-week mortality in cirrhotic patients undergoing endoscopic band ligation for acute variceal bleeding.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Acute variceal bleeding (AVB) is a fatal adverse event of cirrhosis, and endoscopic band ligation (EBL) is the standard treatment for AVB. We developed a novel bedside risk-scoring model to predict the 6-week mortality in cirrhotic patients undergoing EBL for AVB. METHODS: Cox regression analysis was used to assess the relationship of clinical, biological, and endoscopic variables with the 6-week mortality risk after EBL in a derivation cohort (n = 1373). The primary outcome was the predictive accuracy of the new model for the 6-week mortality in the validation cohort. Moreover, we tested the adequacy of the mortality risk-based stratification and the discriminative performance of our new model in comparison with the Child-Turcotte-Pugh (CTP) and the model for end-stage liver disease scores in the validation cohort (n = 200). RESULTS: On multivariate Cox regression analysis, five objective variables (use of beta-blockers, hepatocellular carcinoma, CTP class C, hypovolemic shock at initial presentation, and history of hepatic encephalopathy) were scored to generate a 12-point risk-prediction model. The model stratified the 6-week mortality risk in patients as low (3.5%), intermediate (21.1%), and high (53.4%) (P < 0.001). Time-dependent area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for 6-week mortality showed that this model was a better prognostic indicator than the CTP class alone in the derivation (P < 0.001) and validation (P < 0.001) cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: A simplified scoring model with high potential for generalization refines the prediction of 6-week mortality in high-risk cirrhotic patients, thereby aiding the targeting and individualization of treatment strategies for decreasing the mortality rate.

Titanium dioxide thin films deposited by plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition for OLED passivation.

Plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) of titanium dioxide thin films was conducted using Tetrakis dimethylamino titanium (TDMATi) and an oxygen plasma on a polyethersulfon (PES) substrate at a deposition temperature of 90 degrees C. The effects of the induced plasma power on passivation properties were investigated according to film thickness. The growth rate of the titanium dioxide film was 0.8 A/cycle, and the water vapor transmission rate (WTVR) for a 80 nm titanium dioxide film was 0.023 g/m2 day. The passivation performance of the titanium dioxide film was investigated using an organic light-emitting diode (OLED). The coated OLED lifetime was 90 h, 15 times longer than that of an uncoated sample.