Background: Arterial and venous thromboses associated with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have been well described. These events are caused by a hypercoagulable state due to endotheliopathy and infection-driven coagulopathy. There has been an ever-increasing number of documented cases of aortic thrombosis (AoT) in COVID-19 patients. We conducted a systematic review of current scientific literature to identify and consolidate evidence of AoT in COVID-19 patients. Methods: A systematic review of literature was conducted between March 15, 2020, and May 1, 2021, on PubMed and Cochrane databases. Additionally, a case from our facility was included. Results: A total of 38 studies (12 case series and 26 case reports) and a case from our facility describing AoT in 56 COVID-19 patients were included. Patients were aged 64.8 ± 10.5 years, were predominantly male (75%), and had several comorbidities. AoT was symptomatic in 82,14% of patients; however, when D dimers were reported, they were significantly elevated even in otherwise asymptomatic patients. Most patients had no previous history of aortic disease. Thrombosis was described in all parts of the aorta, with several cases reporting multiple locations. The median reported time until development of AoT was 10 days. Peripheral thrombosis occurred in 73.21% of cases, most commonly causing lower limb ischemia. Mortality rate was 30.4%. Conclusions: AoT can occur with no clinical symptoms or as a primary symptom in otherwise asymptomatic COVID-19 patients. D dimers are a highly sensitive diagnostic tool. Diagnosis of this condition prior to development of complications could be instrumental in saving many lives.

Thesis (M. Tech.) -- Central University of Technology, Free State, 2007 / Cerebrovascular disease and coronary heart disease (CHD) are of the most important causes of morbidity and mortality amongst South Africans. The risk factor prevalence for stroke and CHD becomes altered by changes in lifestyle, including diet. In general it is suggested that lifestyle management should be the first choice when having to treat patients with increased cardiovascular risk. The prudent low-fat, high-fibre diet is regarded as an apparently healthy diet. It is suspected that this diet is effective for the control of known coronary risk factors as well as raised clotting factors. Research studies have shown the addition of dietary fibre to the diet as a promising therapeutic agent for the limited control of known coronary risk factors. The physiological effects of dietary fibre in humans are significantly influenced by the degree to which fibre is fermented in the colon. Fermentation results in the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs); acetate, propionate and butyrate. The aim of this study was to examine the possible effects of different combinations of short-chain fatty acids on some metabolic risk markers. In this study a group of westernised African male volunteers was recruited and randomly assigned to three groups. Group one received a placebo. Group two received a supplement containing 50% acetate and 50% propionate. Group three received a SCFA supplement in the ratio of 70% acetate, 15% propionate and 15% butyrate. Supplementation was sustained for a period of six weeks. Blood samples were drawn during the different visits. At baseline the study group represented a group of black African men without any apparent metabolic or physical abnormalities. All measured variables fell within the normal range. In the placebo group, there was a statistically significant decrease in plasma fibrinogen levels from baseline to the end of supplementation. In the acetatepropionate supplement study group a statistically significant decrease in factor VIII (from 91.1 ± 11.2 to 90.9 ± 8.3%, respectively), and ATIII (from 114.3 ± 13.1 to 108.34 ± 9.5%), as well as a statistically significant decrease in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) from 3.10 ± 0.79 to 2.64 ± 0.73 mmol/L. The significant increase in %HDL-C from 26.3 ± 6.5 to 30.2 ± 9.3% should also be noted. Both triglycerides (8%) and plasma fibrinogen (2%) showed a statistically significant increase. However, these changes are of no clinical significance. For the high-acetate supplement study group (with the addition of butyrate), a statistically significant decrease in factor VII (from 102.5 ± 13.7 to 101.1 ± 6.4%), VIII (from 92.6 ± 12.8 to 87.6 ± 6.0%), ATIII (from 109.2 ± 16.0 to 103.0 ± 9.9%) as well as fibrin monomer concentration (from 13.9 ± 2.2 to 12.1 ± 3.6 mg/L), were measured. Fibrin network compaction increased significantly from 14.2 ± 4.6 to 13.7 ± 4.0%. Other changes include a statistically significant increase in the serum-TC of 4.2%. From the results it is evident that the acetate-propionate supplement, with exclusion of butyrate, has a beneficial effect on metabolic parameters when compared to a highacetate- propionate supplement. The results do provide evidence of a possible therapeutic application for the propionate-acetate containing supplement. The specific mechanism should, however, still be investigated. It can be concluded from this study that acetate, propionate and butyrate each have different effects on human metabolism. It is evident that the use of a mixture of acetate and propionate may have a beneficial effect on patients at risk of developing CVD. Further studies that investigate the optimum ratio of these two products may lead to the development of a naturally derived therapeutic product for the prevention or treatment of CVD in black African men, as well as the population at large.

L’accident thromboembolique veineux, tel que la thrombose veineuse profonde (TVP) ou thrombophlébite des membres inférieurs, est une pathologie vasculaire caractérisée par la formation d’un caillot sanguin causant une obstruction partielle ou totale de la lumière sanguine. Les embolies pulmonaires sont une complication mortelle des TVP qui surviennent lorsque le caillot se détache, circule dans le sang et produit une obstruction de la ramification artérielle irriguant les poumons. La combinaison d’outils et de techniques d’imagerie cliniques tels que les règles de prédiction cliniques (signes et symptômes) et les tests sanguins (D-dimères) complémentés par un examen ultrasonographique veineux (test de compression, écho-Doppler), permet de diagnostiquer les premiers épisodes de TVP. Cependant, la performance de ces outils diagnostiques reste très faible pour la détection de TVP récurrentes. Afin de diriger le patient vers une thérapie optimale, la problématique n’est plus basée sur la détection de la thrombose mais plutôt sur l’évaluation de la maturité et de l’âge du thrombus, paramètres qui sont directement corrélées à ses propriétés mécaniques (e.g. élasticité, viscosité). L’élastographie dynamique (ED) a récemment été proposée comme une nouvelle modalité d’imagerie non-invasive capable de caractériser quantitativement les propriétés mécaniques de tissus. L’ED est basée sur l’analyse des paramètres acoustiques (i.e. vitesse, atténuation, pattern de distribution) d’ondes de cisaillement basses fréquences (10-7000 Hz) se propageant dans le milieu sondé. Ces ondes de cisaillement générées par vibration externe, ou par source interne à l’aide de la focalisation de faisceaux ultrasonores (force de radiation), sont mesurées par imagerie ultrasonore ultra-rapide ou par résonance magnétique. Une méthode basée sur l’ED adaptée à la caractérisation mécanique de thromboses veineuses permettrait de quantifier la sévérité de cette pathologie à des fins d’amélioration diagnostique. Cette thèse présente un ensemble de travaux reliés au développement et à la validation complète et rigoureuse d’une nouvelle technique d’imagerie non-invasive élastographique pour la mesure quantitative des propriétés mécaniques de thromboses veineuses. L’atteinte de cet objectif principal nécessite une première étape visant à améliorer les connaissances sur le comportement mécanique du caillot sanguin (sang coagulé) soumis à une sollicitation dynamique telle qu’en ED. Les modules de conservation (comportement élastique, G’) et de perte (comportement visqueux, G’’) en cisaillement de caillots sanguins porcins sont mesurés par ED lors de la cascade de coagulation (à 70 Hz), et après coagulation complète (entre 50 Hz et 160 Hz). Ces résultats constituent les toutes premières mesures du comportement dynamique de caillots sanguins dans une gamme fréquentielle aussi étendue. L’étape subséquente consiste à mettre en place un instrument innovant de référence (« gold standard »), appelé RheoSpectris, dédié à la mesure de la viscoélasticité hyper-fréquence (entre 10 Hz et 1000 Hz) des matériaux et biomatériaux. Cet outil est indispensable pour valider et calibrer toute nouvelle technique d’élastographie dynamique. Une étude comparative entre RheoSpectris et la rhéométrie classique est réalisée afin de valider des mesures faites sur différents matériaux (silicone, thermoplastique, biomatériaux, gel). L’excellente concordance entre les deux technologies permet de conclure que RheoSpectris est un instrument fiable pour la mesure mécanique à des fréquences difficilement accessibles par les outils actuels. Les bases théoriques d’une nouvelle modalité d’imagerie élastographique, nommée SWIRE (« shear wave induced resonance dynamic elastography »), sont présentées et validées sur des fantômes vasculaires. Cette approche permet de caractériser les propriétés mécaniques d’une inclusion confinée (e.g. caillot sanguin) à partir de sa résonance (amplification du déplacement) produite par la propagation d’ondes de cisaillement judicieusement orientées. SWIRE a également l’avantage d’amplifier l’amplitude de vibration à l’intérieur de l’hétérogénéité afin de faciliter sa détection et sa segmentation. Finalement, la méthode DVT-SWIRE (« Deep venous thrombosis – SWIRE ») est adaptée à la caractérisation de l’élasticité quantitative de thromboses veineuses pour une utilisation en clinique. Cette méthode exploite la première fréquence de résonance mesurée dans la thrombose lors de la propagation d’ondes de cisaillement planes (vibration d’une plaque externe) ou cylindriques (simulation de la force de radiation par génération supersonique). DVT-SWIRE est appliquée sur des fantômes simulant une TVP et les résultats sont comparés à ceux donnés par l’instrument de référence RheoSpectris. Cette méthode est également utilisée avec succès dans une étude ex vivo pour l’évaluation de l’élasticité de thromboses porcines explantées après avoir été induites in vivo par chirurgie. / The venous thromboembolism such as the lower limb deep venous thrombosis (DVT) is a vascular pathology characterized by a blood clot formation that induces partial or total vessel lumen occlusion. Pulmonary embolism is a fatal complication of DVT where the clot detaches from the wall, circulates in the blood flow, and produces an obstruction of pulmonary arterial branches. The combination of clinical prediction rules (signs or symptoms) and blood tests (D-dimer testing) coupled to venous ultrasonography (i.e. compression ultrasonography, color Doppler) allows an accurate diagnosis of first DVT. Nevertheless, such clinical tools present poor results to detect recurrent thrombotic events. Then, in order to guide patients towards optimal therapy, the problem is no more to detect the presence of thrombus, but to evaluate its maturity and its age, which are correlated to their mechanical properties (e.g. elasticity, viscosity). The dynamic elastography (DE) has been recently proposed as a novel non-invasive imaging modality capable to characterize the quantitative mechanical properties of tissues. The DE is based on the analysis of acoustical parameters (i.e. velocity, attenuation, wave pattern) of low frequency (10-7000 Hz) shear waves propagating within the probed medium. Such shear waves generated by external vibration, or remotely using ultrasound beam focalisation (radiation force), were tracked using ultra-fast ultrasound or magnetic resonance imaging. A method based on DE and adapted to mechanical characterization of venous thrombosis may allow the quantification of diseases severity in order to improve the final diagnosis. This thesis presents the works related to the development and complete validation of a novel non-invasive elastography imaging method for the quantitative and reliable estimation of mechanical properties of venous thrombosis. In order to fulfil the main objective, it is first necessary to improve knowledge about mechanical behaviours of blood clot (coagulated blood) subjected to a dynamic solicitation similar to DE. The shear storage (elastic behaviour, G’) and loss (viscous behavior, G’’) moduli of porcine blood clots are measured by DE during the blood coagulation kinetics (at 70 Hz) and after completely coagulation (between 50 Hz and 160 Hz). These results are the first dynamic behaviour measurements of blood clots in such wide frequency range. The subsequent step consists in introducing an innovative reference instrument (« gold standard »), called RheoSpectris, dedicated to measure the hyper-frequency viscoelasticity (between 10 Hz and 1000 Hz) of materials and biomaterials. This tool is indispensable to validate new dynamic elastography techniques. A comparative study between RheoSpectris and classical rheometry is performed to validate the measurements on different materials (silicon, thermoplastic, biomaterials, gel). The excellent agreement between both technologies allows to conclude that RheoSpectris is a reliable instrument for mechanical measurements at high frequencies, which is not always possible with current tools. The theoretical basis of a novel elastographic imaging modality, labelled SWIRE (« shear wave induced resonance dynamic elastography ») is presented and validated on vascular phantoms. Such approach allows the characterization of mechanical properties of a confined inclusion (e.g. blood clot) from its resonance (displacement amplification) due to the propagation of judiciously oriented shear waves. SWIRE has also the advantage to amplify the vibration amplitude within the heterogeneity to help for its detection and segmentation. Finally, the method DVT-SWIRE ((« Deep venous thrombosis – SWIRE ») is adapted to the quantitative elasticity estimation of venous thrombosis in the context of clinical use. DVT-SWIRE exploits the first resonance frequency measured within the thrombosis during the plane (vibration of rigid plate) or cylindrical (simulating supersonic radiation force generation) shear waves propagation. The technique is applied on DVT phantoms and the results are compared to those given by the RheoSpectris reference instrument. This method is also used successfully in an ex vivo study for the elasticity assessment of explanted porcine thrombosis surgically induced in vivo.

<p>Uvod: Sepsa je jedan od vodećih uzroka smrtnosti u jedinicama intenzivnog lečenja i van njih uprkos implementaciji novih dijagnostičkih i terapijskih protokola &scaron;irom sveta. Multiorganska disfunkcija (MODS), koja predstavlja najtežu formu nepovoljnog toka sepse, je u osnovi svojih patofiziolo&scaron;kih de&scaron;avanja obeležena promenama, koje se de&scaron;avaju na nivou kapilara, pre svega u endotelu. Poremećaji koagulacije koji se javljaju kao posledica ovih promena u endotelu su prepoznati kao jedan od dijagnostičkih kriterijuma prema najnovijim smernicama za dijagnostiku i lečenje sepse, međutim njihov značaj u predviđanju toka i ishoda ovog oboljenja jo&scaron; uvek nije precizno definisan. Cilj istraživanja: Odrediti koncentraciju markera endotelne aktivacije, aktivacije koagulacije, aktivnost prirodnih inhibitora koagulacije i funkcionalnost fibrinolize kod obolelih od sepse u odnosu na njihove vrednosti u zdravoj populaciji. Ispitati mogućnost upotrebe markera endotelne disfunkcije i pokazatelja poremećaja mehanizma hemostaze za postavljanje dijagnoze sepse i predikciju pojave komplikacija. Ispitati mogućnost upotrebe markera endotelne disfunkcije i pokazatelja poremećaja mehanizma hemostaze za procenu ishoda kod obolelih od sepse. Materijal i metode: Istraživanje je sprovedeno analitičkom metodom u formi studije preseka, a obuhvatilo je pacijente lečene na Odeljenju anestezije i reanimacije Urgentnog centra Kliničkog centra Vojvodine i na Klinici za infektivne bolesti Kliničkog centra Vojvodine, u Novom Sadu. Istraživanje je sprovođeno tokom 2012. i 2013. godine u trajanju od dve godine. U studiju je bilo uključeno 180 ispitanika od kojih je 150 imalo postavljenu dijagnozu sepse,a 30 ispitanika su činili kontrolnu grupu su klinički i biohemijski zdravih ispitanika, dobrovoljni davaoci krvi. Ispitanici su kategorisani u četiri grupe u odnosu na kliničko stanje i laboratorijske nalaze unutar prvih 24 časa od prijema: bolesnici sa sepsom, te&scaron;kom sepsom, septičkim &scaron;okom i multiorganskom disfunkcijom na prijemu. Nakon kategorizacije ispitanika, izračunati su APACHE II i SOFA numerički pokazatelji procene težine bolesti ispitanika. U roku 24 časa od trenutka postavljanja dijagnoze sepse, iz uzoraka krvi ispitanika, izvr&scaron;ene su predviđene laboratorijske analize u cilju praćenja endotelne aktivacije, aktivacije koagulacije i inhibicije antikoagulantnih mehanizama. U toku 48 časova od prijema, bolesnici koji nisu imali MODS na prijemu su intenzivno praćeni u cilju evidentiranja razvoja multiorganske disfunkcije, dok su bolesnici koji su imali MODS praćeni radi evidentiranja perzistiranja ili eventualne rezolucije MODS-a. Zdravstveno stanje bolesnika je praćeno tokom 28 dana od trenutka uključivanja u studiju i nakon tog perioda je evidentiran ishod lečenja u smislu preživljavanja ili smrtnog ishoda. Statistička analiza je izvr&scaron;ena pomoću statističkog paketa IBM SPSS 20 Statistics. Podaci su predstavljeni tabelarno i grafički, a statistička značajnost određivana je na nivou p&lt; 0,05. Rezultati: Vrednosti biolo&scaron;kih markera endotelne aktivacije i aktivacije koagulacije su statistički značajno povi&scaron;ene kod obolelih od sepse u odnosu na njihove vrednosti u zdravoj populaciji, dok su vrednosti prirodnih inhibitora koagulacije statistički značajno snižene kod obolelih od sepse u odnosu na njihove vrednosti u zdravoj populaciji. Vrednosti APTT-a, PT-a, D-dimera, fibrinogena, prirodnih inhibitora koagulacije i markera endotelne aktivacije (endokan i vWF antigena i aktivnosti) imaju značajan i veoma visok dijagnostički potencijal. Vrednosti biomarkera endotelne disfunkcije i pokazatelja poremećaja hemostaznog mehanizma su značajni prediktori komplikacija kod bolesnika sa sepsom. APTT, PT, D-dimer, broj trombocita, vrednosti priorodnih inhibitora koagulacije, trombomodulina, endokana i ETP-a su jednako validni u inicijalnoj proceni toka kliničke slike sepse kao i prediktivni APACHE II i SOFA skorovi. Koncentracija trombomodulina, D-dimera, ETP-a i PC su dobri prediktori nastanka MODS-a u prvih 48 časova u toku sepse. Endokan, PT, APTT, koncentracija fibrinogena, prirodnih inhibitora koagulacije i vrednosti ETP-a su značajni u predikciji mortaliteta kod bolesnika sa sepsom. Zaključci: Ukoliko bi pokazatelji aktivacije endotela i mehanizma hemostaze bili inkorporirani u određeni sistem skorovanja u cilju procene težine bolesti u smislu ishoda kod bolesnika sa sepsom, to bi moglo doneti doprinos boljoj klasifikaciji bolesnika, te primeni pravovremene i adekvatne terapije u cilju postizanja pozitivnog ishoda kod bolesnika sa sepsom. Prilikom interpretacije pokazatelja inflamacije i koagulacije neophodno je steći uvid u celokupnu sliku pro-i antikoagulantnih de&scaron;avanja koja se odvijaju tokom sepse, odnosno adekvatno proceniti pravac toka disbalansa mehanizma hemostaze da bi se eventualnim terapijskim merama mogao postići pozitivan učinak.</p> / <p>Introduction: Sepsis is one of the main causes of death in intensive care units and other hospital wards in spite of implementation of new sepsis treatment guidelines in everyday hospital practice worldwide. Changes that occur in the microvasculature, affecting primarily endothelial cell, are the basis of the pathophysiology of multiorgan dysfunction (MODS) in sepsis. Coagulation abnormalities which occur as a consequence of endothelial changes are recognized as diagnostic criteria for sepsis, but significance of these changes in the outcome prognosis and prediction of the course of sepsis is still not accurately defined. Aims: Evaluation of hemostasis related parameters and endothelial activation biomarkers values in patients with sepsis and healthy volunteers. Determination whether the levels of hemostasis-related parameters and biomarkers of endothelial activation have diagnostic significance and are they associated with MODS development and persistence in the first 48 hours of hospitalization and 28-day mortality in patients with sepsis. Material and methods: This is cross-sectional study conducted in 2012 and 2013 in the Department of Anesthesia and Reanimation at the Emergency Center of the Clinical Center of Vojvodina and in the Clinic of Infectious Disease at the Clinical Center of Vojvodina. 150 patients who fulfilled criteria for diagnosis of sepsis were included in the study. Patients were divided into 4 groups: sepsis, severe sepsis, septic shock and MODS. 30 healthy volunteers, blood donors were the control group. After the categorization of patients, during the first 24 hours of hospitalization, predictive APACHE II and SOFA scores were calculated. Hemostasis related parameters and endothelial activation biomarkers concentrations were determined within the first 24 hours of the onset of the disease. To assess the development of complication of the disease, patients were monitored for 48 hours for MODS development and persistence or resolution and for 28 days from the onset of sepsis for outcome assessment. Data were analyzed using SPSS 20.0 software and are presented in tables and graphs, statistical significance was set at p&lt; 0,05. Results: Biomarkers of endothelial and coagulation activation are significantly higher in patients with sepsis in comparison to their values in healthy volunteers, while concentrations of natural anticoagulants are significantly lower in patients with sepsis than in healthy volunteers. APTT, PT, D-dimer, fibrinogen, natural anticoagulants and biomarkers od endothelial activation (endocan and vWF antigen and activity) have diagnostic significance in patients with sepsis. Hemostasis related parameters and endothelial activation biomarkers are good prognostic factors for complication development in patients with sepsis. APTT, PT, D-dimer, platelet count, natural anticoagulants, thrombomodulin, endocan and ETP are equally valuable in early prediction of sepsis development as APACHE II and SOFA scores. Thrombomodulin, D-dimer, ETP and PC are good predictors of MODS development during the first 48 hours from sepsis onset. Endocan, PT, APTT, fibrinogen concentration, values of natural anticoagulants and ETP values are significant in 28-day mortality prediction in patients with sepsis. Conclusion: A combination of markers of endothelial dysfunction with widely used ICU scores and organ failure assessment could contribute to an early recognition of complication development and consequent death in patients with sepsis. It is necessary to obtain the full insight in pro-and anticoagulant dynamic evaluation while interpreting coagulation and inflammation processes in sepsis development, in order to accurately lead early resuscitation therapy.</p>

Introdução: A doença tromboembólica é um distúrbio complexo multicausal com sinais e sintomas inespecíficos, confundindo-se com outras enfermidades. Devido à sua gravidade buscam-se estratégias objetivando obter um diagnóstico precoce. O teste de dosagem do dímero - D plasmático parece ser uma alternativa para exclusão do diagnóstico de tromboembolismo venoso agudo. Objetivo: Avaliar o valor do teste de dosagem de dímero - D plasmático, utilizando o método Enzyme Linked Fluorescent Assay (ELFA), na rotina diagnóstica de tromboembolismo venoso agudo. Métodos: Em 89 pacientes com sinais e sintomas sugestivos de tromboembolismo pulmonar e/ou trombose venosa profunda foram realizadas dosagens do dímero - D pela técnica ELFA no equipamento VIDAS® - BioMérieux. Foram calculados os valores da sensibilidade, especificidade, valores preditivos positivo e negativo e acurácia do teste, bem como a curva ROC da amostra estudada. Todos os pacientes foram submetidos a exame por imagem para confirmação do evento tromboembólico agudo. Foi calculado o índice kappa para analisar o resultado do teste dímero - D versus resultados de exames por imagem. Resultados: Entre os 89 pacientes estudados (média de idade 54,3 anos; 51 mulheres), 36 (40,4%) apresentaram TEV e 53 não apresentaram trombose aguda (59,6%). Entre os pacientes sem trombose aguda 15 (28,3%) apresentaram resultado de dímero - D negativo. Todos pacientes com trombose apresentaram resultado de dímero - D positivo. O teste apresentou sensibilidade de 100%; especificidade de 28,3%; valor preditivo positivo de 48,6%; valor preditivo negativo de 100% e exatidão de 57,3%. A ASC para a amostra total estudada foi igual a 0,734, indicando que o teste é um bom preditor de trombose aguda. O valor do índice kappa para a amostra total foi igual a 0,24 (p<0,001), indicando uma concordância fraca entre dímero - D e diagnóstico confirmatório de trombose. Conclusão: A dosagem do dímero - D pelo método ELFA foi capaz de excluir o diagnóstico de tromboembolismo venoso agudo nessa amostra estudada. Os resultados obtidos nessa amostra estudada permitiram concluir que o uso do teste dímero - D em pacientes com suspeita de tromboembolismo venoso revelou alta sensibilidade no diagnóstico dessa enfermidade. / Introduction: The thromboembolic disease is a multicausal complex disturb with signals and symptoms that confusing itself with other diseases. Because its gravity strategies search objecting to get a faster diagnosis. The measure plasmatic D dimer test seems to be an alternative for exclusion of the diagnostic of acute venous thromboembolism. Objectives: To evaluate the value of the measure plasmatic D dimer test, using the method Enzyme Linked Fluorescent Assay (ELFA), in the diagnostic of acute venous thromboembolism. Methods: In 89 patients with signals and symptoms suggestive of pulmonary thromboembolism and/or deep vein thrombosis had been carried through measure D dimer by technique ELFA equipment VIDAS® - BioMérieux. The values of sensibility, accuracy specificity, predictive values positive and negative and of the test had been calculated, as well as curve ROC of the sample studied. All the patients had been submitted the image exams for the confirmation of the acute thromboembolism event. It was calculated kappa ratio to compare D dimer test results with image exams results. Results: Between 89 studied patients (mean of age 54.3 years; 51 women), 36 (40.4%) they had presented and 53 had not presented acute thrombosis (59.6%). It enters the patients without acute thromboembolism 15 (28.3%) had presented resulted negative of D dimer. All patients with thrombosis had presented resulted positive of D dimer. The test presented 100% sensibility; 28.3% of specificity; positive predictive value was 48.6%; 100% of negative predictive value and accuracy value was 57.3%. The area under the curve (AUC) to total sample studied was 0.734, it was showed that the test have a good prediction to acute thrombosis. The kappa ratio value was 0.24 (p<0.001) showing a bad concordat n to thrombosis diagnostic. Conclusion: The measure of D dimer by method ELFA was able to exclude the diagnostic of acute venous thromboembolism in this sample studied. The results obtained in this sample studied let to conclude that the D dimer test in patients with suspected of acute thromboembolism presented high sensibility to diagnostic of this disease.

La thèse est consacrée à la modélisation discrète et continue des écoulements sanguins et des phénomènes connexes tels que la coagulation du sang et l'athérosclérose. Ce travail comprend l'élaboration des modèles mathématiques et numériques de la coagulation du sang, des simulations numériques et l'analyse mathématique d'un modèle d'inflammation chronique au cours d'athérosclérose. Une partie importante de la thèse est liée à la programmation, la mise en œuvre et l'optimisation des codes numériques. La partie principale de la thèse concerne la modélisation de la coagulation du sang in vivo tenant compte des écoulements sanguins, les réactions biochimiques dans le plasma et l'agrégation de plaquettes. La nouveauté principale de ce travail est l'élaboration d'un modèle hybride (discret-continu) de la coagulation du sang et de la formation de caillot sanguin dans le flux. La partie théorique de la thèse est consacrée à l'analyse mathématique d'un modèle d'inflammation chronique liée à l'athérosclérose. Les simulations numériques réalisées dans le cadre de cette thèse impliquent l'élaboration des algorithmes numériques pour les modèles mathématiques et le d´développement des logiciels. Vu le fait que les simulations numériques ont été coûteuse en temps de calcul, des efforts considérables ont été consacrés à la parallélisation des logiciels et à leur optimisation / The thesis is devoted to discrete and continuous modelling of blood flows and related phenomena such as blood coagulation and atherosclerosis. It includes the development of mathematical and numerical models of blood coagulation, numerical simulations and the mathematical analysis of a model problem of chronic inflammation during atherosclerosis. The main part of the thesis concerns modelling of blood coagulation in vivo which takes into account blood flows, biochemical reactions in plasma and platelet aggregation. The main novelty of this work is the development of a hybrid (discrete-continuous) model of blood coagulation and clot formation in flow. The model is used to study several aspects of blood coagulation in flow : platelet aggregation and its interaction with coagulation pathways, influence of the flow speed on the clot development, a possible mechanism by which clot stops growing. The theoretical part of the thesis is devoted to the mathematical analysis of a model of chronic inflammation related to atherosclerosis. In this thesis we study a model problem which describes the propagation of a reaction-diffusion wave in the 2D case with non-linear boundary conditions. For that we use the Leray-Schauder method and a priori estimates of solutions in order to prove the existence of waves in the bistable case. Numerical simulations carried out in the framework of this thesis were based on the numerical implementation of the corresponding models and on the software development. Since the numerical simulations were computationally expensive, a substantial effort was directed to software parallelization and optimization

Orientador: Raghuvir Krishnaswamy Arni / Banca: Adélia Cristina Oliveira Cintra / Banca: Patrick Jack Spencer / Abstract: Toxins isolated from vemos have been used as molecular tools to understand many physiological processes. The enzymes isolated from the venoms of Crotalus and Bothrops species interfere with the control and balance of the hemostatic system (PEREZ et al., 1996) and thus, the determination of their structures is potentially very important. These enzymes are serine proteinases that are similar to tyrpsin in their specificity but are generally referred to as thrombin-like enzymes due to their ability to cleave fibrinogen. The principal aim of this project was to isolate and characterize snake venom poteins that inetefere with the control and regulation of the hemostatic system in quantities and purity required for structural studies. Gel filtration, ion-exchange and HPLC chromatographic techniques were used to isolate convulxin, crotoxin, giroxin and crotamine, the principle components from the venoms of Crotalus durissus collineatus and Crotalus durissus terrificus and the serine and metalo proteinases from the venom of Bothrops jararaca. The purity of the samples was evaluated by SDS-PAGE and the specific activity of the samples was determined. Crystallization experiments were then carried out. / Mestre

Introdução: Considerando que uma melhor vigilância do estado hemostático dos doentes antes, durante e após o ato cirúrgico pode ter impacto significativo na sua evolução, e sabendo que os testes clássicos da coagulação têm limitações para avaliar a hemóstase na globalidade, e presumindo-se que o ROTEM seja um teste que permite efetuar esta avaliação da coagulação, fizemos hipótese de que este método seria uma ferramenta que teria a habilidade de prever sangramento em cirurgia cardíaca valvar. Objetivos: 1) Verificar se o ROTEM (Tromboelastometria Rotacional) ao analisar o estado da coagulação sanguínea de pacientes submetidos à cirurgia cardíaca valvar tem a capacidade de prever maior risco de sangramento com suas consequentes complicações; 2) Correlacionar comorbidades e história clinica pré-existentes à cirurgia cardíaca valvar com o nível de sangramento apresentado. Métodos: Foram incluídos 100 pacientes consecutivos submetidos à cirurgia cardíaca valvar com circulação extracorpórea (CEC) nos seguintes procedimentos: cirurgia cardíaca valvar em uma ou mais valvas, incluindo reoperações e cirurgias combinadas, realizadas no Instituto do Coração (INCOR) do Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo. Estudo prospectivo que buscou avaliar a eficácia do uso da tromboelastometria rotacional na previsão de sangramento em cirurgia cardíaca valvar. Após a indução anestésica foram coletados: Tromboelastometria, coagulograma, fibrinogênio, dímero D e contagem de plaquetas; com a finalidade de verificar potencial risco de sangramento neste paciente. Correspondente ao tempo - 0 (T0). Estes mesmos exames foram recoletados na admissão na Unidade de Terapia Intensiva Cirúrgica (UTIC), onde o paciente foi recebido após o procedimento cirúrgico cardíaco valvar. Correspondente ao tempo - 1 (T1). Optou-se pela coleta de T1 na UTI, pois a CEC já terá sido descontinuada e a heparina revertida com a administração da protamina. Resultados: Os pacientes fora subdivididos em quartis de acordo com o sangramento, configurando um total (n) de 100 pacientes com uma média de sangramento (débitos dos drenos) de 492,95 mL, apresentando um desvio padrão de 388,14 mL e 2260 mL. Não foi encontrada nenhuma variável estatisticamente significante entre os grupos, comparando-se exames laboratoriais pré-operatórios, tempo de CEC, tempo de pinçamento e uso de drogas vaso ativas. Porém, ocorreu diferença significativa (p = 0,015) nos níveis transfusionais de hemocomponentes entre os quartis. Ocorreu uma relação significante (p =0,014) entre o nível adequado de calcemia e tendência a menor sangramento nos grupos estudados. Os resultados do ROTEM - INTEM, ROTEM - EXTEM e ROTEM - FIBTEM não demonstraram diferença estatística significante entre os grupos estudados. Considerando-se os desfechos, baixo débito, choque cardiogênico, arritmia, AVC, insuficiência renal aguda, óbito e reoperação, apenas a reoperação apresentou resultados com diferença significante entre os grupos (p =0,024). Conclusões: 1- O ROTEM não demonstrou a capacidade de prever sangramento em cirurgia cardíaca valvar. 2 - Não houve correlação do sangramento apresentado com as comorbidades pré-existentes / INTRODUCTION: Considering that better monitoring of the haemostatic status of patients before, during and after the surgical procedure can have a significant impact on their evolution, and knowing that classical coagulation tests have limitations in assessing hemostasis overall, and assuming that ROTEM is a test that allows to perform this evaluation, we hypothesized that this method would be a tool that would have the ability to predict bleeding in valve heart surgery. OBJECTIVES: 1) To verify if the ROTEM (Rotational Thromboelastometry) when analyzing the blood coagulation status of patients submitted to valve heart surgery has the capacity to predict a greater risk of bleeding with its consequent complications; 2) To correlate pre-existing comorbidities and clinical history with valve heart surgery with the level of bleeding presented. METHODS: We included 100 consecutive patients submitted to cardiac valve surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) in the following procedures: valvular heart surgery in one or more valves, including reoperations and combined surgeries performed at the Heart Institute of the University of São Paulo. It is a prospective study aimed at evaluating the efficacy of rotational thromboelastometry in the prediction of bleeding in valve heart surgery. After the anesthetic induction were collected: thromboelastometry, coagulogram, fibrinogen, D-dimer and platelet count, with the purpose of verifying potential risk of bleeding in this patient. These samples were defined as time - 0 (T0). These same exams were collected on admission to the Intensive Care Unit. These samples were defined as time - 1(T1 We chose to collect T1 in the ICU, because at this moment it is expected that the total reversal of anticoagulation has already occurred .. RESULTS: Patients were subdivided into quartiles according to bleeding, with a total of 100 patients with a mean bleed (drainage rates) of 492.95 mL. No statistically significant variables were found between the groups, comparing preoperative laboratory tests, CPB time, clamping time and use of vasoactive drugs. However, there was a significant difference (p = 0.015) in transfusion levels of blood components between the quartiles. There Abstract was a significant relationship (p = 0.014) between the adequate level of calcemia and tendency to less bleeding in the groups studied. The results of ROTEM - INTEM, ROTEM - EXTEM and ROTEM - FIBTEM did not show a statistically significant difference between the groups studied. Considering the outcomes, low rate, cardiogenic shock, arrhythmia, stroke, acute renal failure, death and reoperation, only reoperation presented results with significant difference between the groups (p = 0.024). CONCLUSIONS: 1 - ROTEM did not demonstrate the ability to predict bleeding in valvular heart surgery. 2 - There was no correlation of bleeding presented with pre-existing comorbidities

L’accident thromboembolique veineux, tel que la thrombose veineuse profonde (TVP) ou thrombophlébite des membres inférieurs, est une pathologie vasculaire caractérisée par la formation d’un caillot sanguin causant une obstruction partielle ou totale de la lumière sanguine. Les embolies pulmonaires sont une complication mortelle des TVP qui surviennent lorsque le caillot se détache, circule dans le sang et produit une obstruction de la ramification artérielle irriguant les poumons. La combinaison d’outils et de techniques d’imagerie cliniques tels que les règles de prédiction cliniques (signes et symptômes) et les tests sanguins (D-dimères) complémentés par un examen ultrasonographique veineux (test de compression, écho-Doppler), permet de diagnostiquer les premiers épisodes de TVP. Cependant, la performance de ces outils diagnostiques reste très faible pour la détection de TVP récurrentes. Afin de diriger le patient vers une thérapie optimale, la problématique n’est plus basée sur la détection de la thrombose mais plutôt sur l’évaluation de la maturité et de l’âge du thrombus, paramètres qui sont directement corrélées à ses propriétés mécaniques (e.g. élasticité, viscosité). L’élastographie dynamique (ED) a récemment été proposée comme une nouvelle modalité d’imagerie non-invasive capable de caractériser quantitativement les propriétés mécaniques de tissus. L’ED est basée sur l’analyse des paramètres acoustiques (i.e. vitesse, atténuation, pattern de distribution) d’ondes de cisaillement basses fréquences (10-7000 Hz) se propageant dans le milieu sondé. Ces ondes de cisaillement générées par vibration externe, ou par source interne à l’aide de la focalisation de faisceaux ultrasonores (force de radiation), sont mesurées par imagerie ultrasonore ultra-rapide ou par résonance magnétique. Une méthode basée sur l’ED adaptée à la caractérisation mécanique de thromboses veineuses permettrait de quantifier la sévérité de cette pathologie à des fins d’amélioration diagnostique. Cette thèse présente un ensemble de travaux reliés au développement et à la validation complète et rigoureuse d’une nouvelle technique d’imagerie non-invasive élastographique pour la mesure quantitative des propriétés mécaniques de thromboses veineuses. L’atteinte de cet objectif principal nécessite une première étape visant à améliorer les connaissances sur le comportement mécanique du caillot sanguin (sang coagulé) soumis à une sollicitation dynamique telle qu’en ED. Les modules de conservation (comportement élastique, G’) et de perte (comportement visqueux, G’’) en cisaillement de caillots sanguins porcins sont mesurés par ED lors de la cascade de coagulation (à 70 Hz), et après coagulation complète (entre 50 Hz et 160 Hz). Ces résultats constituent les toutes premières mesures du comportement dynamique de caillots sanguins dans une gamme fréquentielle aussi étendue. L’étape subséquente consiste à mettre en place un instrument innovant de référence (« gold standard »), appelé RheoSpectris, dédié à la mesure de la viscoélasticité hyper-fréquence (entre 10 Hz et 1000 Hz) des matériaux et biomatériaux. Cet outil est indispensable pour valider et calibrer toute nouvelle technique d’élastographie dynamique. Une étude comparative entre RheoSpectris et la rhéométrie classique est réalisée afin de valider des mesures faites sur différents matériaux (silicone, thermoplastique, biomatériaux, gel). L’excellente concordance entre les deux technologies permet de conclure que RheoSpectris est un instrument fiable pour la mesure mécanique à des fréquences difficilement accessibles par les outils actuels. Les bases théoriques d’une nouvelle modalité d’imagerie élastographique, nommée SWIRE (« shear wave induced resonance dynamic elastography »), sont présentées et validées sur des fantômes vasculaires. Cette approche permet de caractériser les propriétés mécaniques d’une inclusion confinée (e.g. caillot sanguin) à partir de sa résonance (amplification du déplacement) produite par la propagation d’ondes de cisaillement judicieusement orientées. SWIRE a également l’avantage d’amplifier l’amplitude de vibration à l’intérieur de l’hétérogénéité afin de faciliter sa détection et sa segmentation. Finalement, la méthode DVT-SWIRE (« Deep venous thrombosis – SWIRE ») est adaptée à la caractérisation de l’élasticité quantitative de thromboses veineuses pour une utilisation en clinique. Cette méthode exploite la première fréquence de résonance mesurée dans la thrombose lors de la propagation d’ondes de cisaillement planes (vibration d’une plaque externe) ou cylindriques (simulation de la force de radiation par génération supersonique). DVT-SWIRE est appliquée sur des fantômes simulant une TVP et les résultats sont comparés à ceux donnés par l’instrument de référence RheoSpectris. Cette méthode est également utilisée avec succès dans une étude ex vivo pour l’évaluation de l’élasticité de thromboses porcines explantées après avoir été induites in vivo par chirurgie. / The venous thromboembolism such as the lower limb deep venous thrombosis (DVT) is a vascular pathology characterized by a blood clot formation that induces partial or total vessel lumen occlusion. Pulmonary embolism is a fatal complication of DVT where the clot detaches from the wall, circulates in the blood flow, and produces an obstruction of pulmonary arterial branches. The combination of clinical prediction rules (signs or symptoms) and blood tests (D-dimer testing) coupled to venous ultrasonography (i.e. compression ultrasonography, color Doppler) allows an accurate diagnosis of first DVT. Nevertheless, such clinical tools present poor results to detect recurrent thrombotic events. Then, in order to guide patients towards optimal therapy, the problem is no more to detect the presence of thrombus, but to evaluate its maturity and its age, which are correlated to their mechanical properties (e.g. elasticity, viscosity). The dynamic elastography (DE) has been recently proposed as a novel non-invasive imaging modality capable to characterize the quantitative mechanical properties of tissues. The DE is based on the analysis of acoustical parameters (i.e. velocity, attenuation, wave pattern) of low frequency (10-7000 Hz) shear waves propagating within the probed medium. Such shear waves generated by external vibration, or remotely using ultrasound beam focalisation (radiation force), were tracked using ultra-fast ultrasound or magnetic resonance imaging. A method based on DE and adapted to mechanical characterization of venous thrombosis may allow the quantification of diseases severity in order to improve the final diagnosis. This thesis presents the works related to the development and complete validation of a novel non-invasive elastography imaging method for the quantitative and reliable estimation of mechanical properties of venous thrombosis. In order to fulfil the main objective, it is first necessary to improve knowledge about mechanical behaviours of blood clot (coagulated blood) subjected to a dynamic solicitation similar to DE. The shear storage (elastic behaviour, G’) and loss (viscous behavior, G’’) moduli of porcine blood clots are measured by DE during the blood coagulation kinetics (at 70 Hz) and after completely coagulation (between 50 Hz and 160 Hz). These results are the first dynamic behaviour measurements of blood clots in such wide frequency range. The subsequent step consists in introducing an innovative reference instrument (« gold standard »), called RheoSpectris, dedicated to measure the hyper-frequency viscoelasticity (between 10 Hz and 1000 Hz) of materials and biomaterials. This tool is indispensable to validate new dynamic elastography techniques. A comparative study between RheoSpectris and classical rheometry is performed to validate the measurements on different materials (silicon, thermoplastic, biomaterials, gel). The excellent agreement between both technologies allows to conclude that RheoSpectris is a reliable instrument for mechanical measurements at high frequencies, which is not always possible with current tools. The theoretical basis of a novel elastographic imaging modality, labelled SWIRE (« shear wave induced resonance dynamic elastography ») is presented and validated on vascular phantoms. Such approach allows the characterization of mechanical properties of a confined inclusion (e.g. blood clot) from its resonance (displacement amplification) due to the propagation of judiciously oriented shear waves. SWIRE has also the advantage to amplify the vibration amplitude within the heterogeneity to help for its detection and segmentation. Finally, the method DVT-SWIRE ((« Deep venous thrombosis – SWIRE ») is adapted to the quantitative elasticity estimation of venous thrombosis in the context of clinical use. DVT-SWIRE exploits the first resonance frequency measured within the thrombosis during the plane (vibration of rigid plate) or cylindrical (simulating supersonic radiation force generation) shear waves propagation. The technique is applied on DVT phantoms and the results are compared to those given by the RheoSpectris reference instrument. This method is also used successfully in an ex vivo study for the elasticity assessment of explanted porcine thrombosis surgically induced in vivo.

In the framework of this thesis was performed genotyping of 46 specimens of the breed Czech red cattle from the University farm in Czech Budejovice, which monitored the incidence of autosomal recessive genetic disorders, specifically bovine citrullinemia (BC) in exon 5 and deficiency of blood coagulation factor XI (FXI) in exon 9 and 12. Genotyping for BC was done using PCR/RFLP methods and for the disorder FXI in both exons genotypes were determined on the basis of different length of fragments using PCR technology and horizontal agarose electrophoresis. The presence of mutant allele was detected only in the locus for BC and that is in 7 heterozygous carriers, who produced three bands with a length of 185 bp fragments, 103 bp and 82 bp. The frequency of mutant allele and the frequency of heterozygous carriers to 7.6% and 15.2%. Results of the study show that the presence of mutant allele for BC in our tested panel of animals is relatively high. In the future it will be necessary to adopt measures that will lead to the elimination of this allele. Otherwise, its further dissemination would have a negative impact on the health of the population and there might occur complications in the regeneration of Czech red cattle, which is one of our farm animal genetic resources. The literature review deals with the problems of congenital disorders and discusses the importance of health heredity and understanding of the genomic information of cattle.