La aplicación combinada de abonos orgánicos mejora las propiedades físicas del suelo asociado al cultivo de quinua (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.)

The reduced acceleration of the organic matter in the soil has been affecting its properties, making it necessary to repeat the use and management of organic fertilizers. The objective of research was to evaluate the effect of two fertilizers application, Island Guano (IG) and sheep manure (SM), on the following three physical properties of the soil: bulk density, water-stable aggregates and penetration resistance, under quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd) cultivation, Hualhuas variety. These properties were determined by beveled cylinder, Yoder wet-sieving and dynamic cone penetrometer methods and under a completely randomized block design, with factorial arrangement of two factors (IG and SM) and three levels per factor (0; 0.5 and 1 t*ha-1 for IG and 0; 2.5 and 5 t*ha-1 for SM), nine treatments were evaluated, with three repetitions, so 27 total experimental units. Results showed that combined application of different doses of IG and SM does not influence bulk density, but with doses IG 0,5 t*ha-1 with SM 5 t*ha-1 and IG 1 t*ha-1 with SM 5 t*ha-1 water-stable aggregates and penetration resistance improved significantly.La acelerada disminución de la materia orgánica del suelo viene afectando sus propiedades, siendo necesario reincidir en el uso y manejo de abonos orgánicos. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue evaluar el efecto de la aplicación de dos abonos orgánicos combinados, Guano de las Islas (GI) y estiércol de ovino (EO), sobre las siguientes tres propiedades físicas del suelo: densidad aparente, estabilidad de agregados y resistencia mecánica a la penetración, bajo el cultivo de quinua (Chenopodium quinoa Willd) variedad Hualhuas. Estas propiedades se determinaron mediante los métodos de cilindro biselado, Yoder y del penetrómetro dinámico y bajo un diseño en bloques completamente al azar, con arreglo factorial de dos factores (GI y EO) y tres niveles por factor (0; 0,5 y 1 t/hapara GI y 0; 2,5 y 5 t/hapara EO). Los resultados demostraron que la aplicación combinada de las diferentes dosis en estudio no influye sobre la densidad aparente del suelo, pero la aplicación combinada de 0,5 t/ha de GI con 5 t/ha de EO y 1 t/ha de GI con 5 t/hade EO disminuyen significativamente la resistencia mecánica del suelo a la penetración e incrementan la estabilidad de agregados

Quality improvement in ammonium nitrate production using Six Sigma methodology

Six sigma has been used in different industries to reach operational excellence. However, in the chemical industry, the application of this methodology is limited. This research presents an implementation of the six sigma method for ammonium nitrate (AN) content optimization in condensate production for a fertilizer company in Colombia. The paper aims to determine the levels for input variables in the process, to meet desirable standards for condensate quality in terms of ammonium nitrate content. Based on the DMAIC steps implementation, it was possible to establish the main variables affecting the condensate quality and their optimal levels to reach an ammonium nitrate content below 15,000 ppm. These results demonstrate the impact that a six sigma project may have on operational effectiveness and quality improvement for meeting the customer requirements

Community participation for reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health: insights from the design and implementation of the BornFyne-prenatal management system digital platform in Cameroon

IntroductionAcross communities in low-middle income countries, digital health is currently revolutionizing the delivery of health services, particularly in the field of reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health (RMNCH) services. While studies have shown the effectiveness of mHealth in delivering RMNCH services, there is little information about factors that enhance mHealth services utilization in low-cost settings including stakeholders’ level of influence on the implementation of digital health intervention in sub–Saharan Africa. This paper seeks to describe important lessons on the levels of stakeholders’ direct or indirect influence on the design and implementation of the BornFyne-PNMS digital health platform to support RMNCH services.MethodsA participatory research (PR) design approach was employed to explore stakeholders’ perspectives of a new initiative, through direct engagement of local priorities and perspectives. The process of introducing the digital application called the BornFyne-PNMS for district health delivery system and the community, and integrating it within the district health delivery system was guided by research-to-action, consistent with the PR approach. To explore stakeholders’ perspectives through a PR approach, we conducted a series of stakeholder meetings fashioned after focus group discussions.ResultsIssues around male involvement in the program, sensitization and equity concerns arose. Emergent challenges and proposed strategies for implementation from diverse stakeholders evidently enriched the design and implementation process of the project intervention. Stakeholder meetings informed the addition of variables on the mobile application that were otherwise initially omitted, which will further enhance the RMNCH electronic data collection for health information systems strengthening in Cameroon.DiscussionThis study charts a direction that is critical in digital health delivery of RMNCH in a rural and low-income community and describes the important iterative stakeholder input throughout the study. The strategy of stakeholders’ involvement in the BornFyne PNMS implementation charts a direction for ownership and sustainability in the strengthening of Cameroon's health information system

The management of acute venous thromboembolism in clinical practice. Results from the European PREFER in VTE Registry

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in Europe. Data from real-world registries are necessary, as clinical trials do not represent the full spectrum of VTE patients seen in clinical practice. We aimed to document the epidemiology, management and outcomes of VTE using data from a large, observational database. PREFER in VTE was an international, non-interventional disease registry conducted between January 2013 and July 2015 in primary and secondary care across seven European countries. Consecutive patients with acute VTE were documented and followed up over 12 months. PREFER in VTE included 3,455 patients with a mean age of 60.8 ± 17.0 years. Overall, 53.0 % were male. The majority of patients were assessed in the hospital setting as inpatients or outpatients (78.5 %). The diagnosis was deep-vein thrombosis (DVT) in 59.5 % and pulmonary embolism (PE) in 40.5 %. The most common comorbidities were the various types of cardiovascular disease (excluding hypertension; 45.5 %), hypertension (42.3 %) and dyslipidaemia (21.1 %). Following the index VTE, a large proportion of patients received initial therapy with heparin (73.2 %), almost half received a vitamin K antagonist (48.7 %) and nearly a quarter received a DOAC (24.5 %). Almost a quarter of all presentations were for recurrent VTE, with >80 % of previous episodes having occurred more than 12 months prior to baseline. In conclusion, PREFER in VTE has provided contemporary insights into VTE patients and their real-world management, including their baseline characteristics, risk factors, disease history, symptoms and signs, initial therapy and outcomes

Monitoring of pesticides in surface water:off-line SPE followed by HPLC with UV detection and confirmatory analysis by mass spectrometry.

The presence of 16 of the most widely used pesticides in southern Italy(plus atrazine, the use of which is currently restricted in Europe) has been monitored in ten surface waters of the Calabria Region. The analytes were extracted from water by off-line solid-phase extraction with a Carbograph cartridge. Base-neutral, and acid pesticides were then isolated by differential elution. Analyte fractionation and quantification were performed by liquid chromatography (HPLC) with UV detection. Recoveries of analytes from 0.5 L river water (200 ng L-1 spike level) were greater than or equal to 84%. Confirmatory analysis was performed by HPLC coupled with ion-spray mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS)

The combined application of organic fertilizers improves the physical properties of soil associated to quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) cultivation

La acelerada disminución de la materia orgánica del suelo viene afectando sus propiedades, siendo necesario reincidir en el uso y manejo de abonos orgánicos. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue evaluar el efecto de la aplicación de dos abonos orgánicos combinados, Guano de las Islas (GI) y estiércol de ovino (EO), sobre las siguientes tres propiedades físicas del suelo: densidad aparente, estabilidad de agregados y resistencia mecánica a la penetración, bajo el cultivo de quinua (Chenopodium quinoa Willd) variedad Hualhuas. Estas propiedades se determinaron mediante los métodos de cilindro biselado, Yoder y del penetrómetro dinámico y bajo un diseño en bloques completamente al azar, con arreglo factorial de dos factores (GI y EO) y tres niveles por factor (0; 0,5 y 1 t/hapara GI y 0; 2,5 y 5 t/hapara EO). Los resultados demostraron que la aplicación combinada de las diferentes dosis en estudio no influye sobre la densidad aparente del suelo, pero la aplicación combinada de 0,5 t/ha de GI con 5 t/ha de EO y 1 t/ha de GI con 5 t/hade EO disminuyen significativamente la resistencia mecánica del suelo a la penetración e incrementan la estabilidad de agregados