VALUATION OF CROP AND LIVESTOCK REPORTS: METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES AND QUESTIONS

Demand and Price Analysis,

Impact of an interdisciplinary strategy on antibiotic use: a prospective controlled study in three hospitals

Objectives: Evaluation of the impact of the implementation of practice guidelines, with or without their reinforcement by a pharmacist, on the intra-hospital use of antibiotics. Materials and methods: The duration of antibiotic treatment, their cost, and the length of patient stay were compared in three secondary-care hospitals, before and after interventions that were designed to promote rational antibiotic use. After randomization, hospital A received no intervention (control), local practice guidelines were implemented in hospital B (low grade intervention), and these guidelines were reinforced by a clinical pharmacist in hospital C (high grade intervention). Adherence to the guidelines was measured in hospitals B and C. Multivariable statistical analyses were carried out to adjust for confounding factors. Results: None of the outcomes measured in the 1200 included patients decreased between the two study periods in any hospital. Hospital A was significantly and independently associated with an increase in the duration of antibiotic treatments, the cost of antibiotics (acquisition and global costs), and the length of stay. Although these differences were not statistically significant, increases in hospital B were higher than in hospital C. Adherence to guidelines was significantly higher in hospital C. Conclusions: Even though interdisciplinary interventions aiming at rationalizing antibiotic use could not diminish the duration of treatments, their costs or the length of stay, they proved useful to control the progression of these parameter

Structural and Optothermal Properties of Iron Ditelluride Layered Structures in the Framework of the Lattice Compatibility Theory

This study concerns structural and optothermal properties of iron ditelluride layered structures which were fabricated via a low-cost protocol. The main precursors were FeCl3 · 6H2O and Fe2O3. After a heat treatment within a tellurium-rich medium at various temperatures (470°C, 500°C, and 530°C) during 24 h, classical analyses have been applied to the iron ditelluride layered structures. A good crystalline state with a preferential orientation of the crystallites along (111) direction has been recorded. Moreover, additional opto-thermal investigation and analyses within the framework of the Lattice Compatibility Theory gave plausible explanation for prompt temperature-dependent incorporation of tellurium element inside hematite elaborated matrices

Inhibitory effect of Teucrium ramosissimum extracts on aflatoxin B1, benzo[a]pyrene, 4-nitro-o-phenylenediamine and sodium azide induced mutagenicity: Correlation with antioxidant activity

AbstractThe mutagenic potential of total oligomers flavonoids (TOF), ethyl acetate (EA) and petroleum ether (PE) extracts from aerial parts of Teucrium ramosissimum was assessed using Ames Salmonella tester strains TA98, TA100 and TA1535 with and without metabolic activation (S9). None of the different extracts produced a mutagenic effect. Likewise, the antimutagenicity of the same extracts was tested using the “Ames test”. Our results showed that T. ramosissimum extracts possess antimutagenic activity against all the tested genotoxicants (aflatoxin B1, benzo[a]pyrene, 4-nitro-o-phenylenediamine and sodium azide) in the Salmonella assay systems used in this study. In addition, all extracts showed important free radical scavenging activity toward the radicals DPPH and ABTS except the PE extract

Abces amibien cerebral: a propos de trois cas avec revue de la litterature

Introduction L’abcès amibien cérébral est une infection rare mais mortelle. Depuis son identification en 1965, peu de cas ont été observés dans le monde entier.Matériel et méthode Les objectifs de cette étude étaient de caractériser les aspects cliniques, radiologiques, histologique, pronostic ainsi que thérapeutique de cette pathologie avec une revue de la littérature. Nous rapportons trois cas d’abcès amibien cérébral qui ont été admis dans notre service entre 2010 et 2013.Résultats Il s’agit de deux hommes et une femme, âgés respectivement de 33, 43 et 56 ans qui ont été opérés. Le diagnostic a été confirmé par les examens histologique et sérologique. Nous n’avons observé aucune mortalité.Conclusion Il s’agit d’une atteinte sporadique mais représente un problème de santé publique et dont le pronostic est habituellement sombre.Mots clés : amibiase; abcès cérébral; IRM ; TDM; examen histologiqu

Mid-gut ACTH-secreting neuroendocrine tumor unmasked with (18)F-dihydroxyphenylalanine-positron emission tomography.

Ectopic ACTH Cushing's syndrome (EAS) is often caused by neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) of lungs, pancreas, thymus, and other less frequent locations. Localizing the source of ACTH can be challenging. A 64-year-old man presented with rapidly progressing fatigue, muscular weakness, and dyspnea. He was in poor condition and showed facial redness, proximal amyotrophy, and bruises. Laboratory disclosed hypokalemia, metabolic alkalosis, and markedly elevated ACTH and cortisol levels. Pituitary was normal on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and bilateral inferior petrosal sinus blood sampling with corticotropin-releasing hormone stimulation showed no significant central-to-periphery gradient of ACTH. Head and neck, thoracic and abdominal computerized tomography (CT), MRI, somatostatin receptor scintigraphy (SSRS), and (18)F-deoxyglucose-positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) failed to identify the primary tumor. (18)F-dihydroxyphenylalanine (F-DOPA)-PET/CT unveiled a 20-mm nodule in the jejunum and a metastatic lymph node. Segmental jejunum resection showed two adjacent NETs, measuring 2.0 and 0.5 cm with a peritoneal metastasis. The largest tumor expressed ACTH in 30% of cells. Following surgery, after a transient adrenal insufficiency, ACTH and cortisol levels returned to normal values and remain normal over a follow-up of 26 months. Small mid-gut NETs are difficult to localize on CT or MRI, and require metabolic imaging. Owing to low mitotic activity, NETs are generally poor candidates for FDG-PET, whereas SSRS shows poor sensitivity in EAS due to intrinsically low tumor concentration of type-2 somatostatin receptors (SST2) or to receptor down regulation by excess cortisol. However, F-DOPA-PET, which is related to amine precursor uptake by NETs, has been reported to have high positive predictive value for occult EAS despite low sensitivity, and constitutes a useful alternative to more conventional methods of tumor localization. LEARNING POINTS: Uncontrolled high cortisol levels in EAS can be lethal if untreated.Surgical excision is the keystone of NETs treatment, thus tumor localization is crucial.Most cases of EAS are caused by NETs, which are located mainly in the lungs. However, small gut NETs are elusive to conventional imaging and require metabolic imaging for detection.FDG-PET, based on tumor high metabolic rate, may not detect NETs that have low mitotic activity. SSRS may also fail, due to absent or low concentration of SST2, which may be down regulated by excess cortisol.F-DOPA-PET, based on amine-precursor uptake, can be a useful method to localize the occult source of ACTH in EAS when other methods have failed

Fermat-linked relations for the Boubaker polynomial sequences via Riordan matrices analysis

The Boubaker polynomials are investigated in this paper. Using Riordan matrices analysis, a sequence of relations outlining the relations with Chebyshev and Fermat polynomials have been obtained. The obtained expressions are a meaningful supply to recent applied physics studies using the Boubaker polynomials expansion scheme (BPES).Comment: 12 pages, LaTe

Unusual presentations of functional parathyroid cysts: a case series and review of the literature.

Cysts of parathyroid origin are sometimes encountered and can easily be mistaken as thyroidal cysts. Functional parathyroid cysts, with symptoms and signs of hyperparathyroidism, are rare and may be a diagnostic challenge to clinicians. We report here on three cases of functional parathyroid cysts that illustrate diagnosis difficulties related to unusual clinical presentations in three Caucasian women, including negative parathyroid scintigraphy. Patient 1, an 87-year-old Caucasian woman presented with confusion and dysphagia. She had hypercalcemia and elevated parathyroid hormone levels suggesting primary hyperparathyroidism. Parathyroid scintigraphy did not reveal any focal uptake, but a computed tomography scan of her neck identified a large cyst in the upper right thyroid region. At cervicotomy, a parathyroid cystic adenoma was removed. Patient 2, a 31-year-old Caucasian woman was investigated after a hypertensive crisis related to primary hyperparathyroidism. Cervical ultrasound identified a large cystic lesion in the lower left thyroid lobe that was removed by minimally invasive cervicotomy. Patient 3, a 34-year-old Caucasian woman presented with an indolent growing mass of the neck and a past medical history of kidney stones. Primary hyperparathyroidism was diagnosed. Ultrasound showed a cystic mass, but parathyroid scintigraphy was negative. Cervical exploration revealed a large cystic adenoma, containing high parathyroid hormone levels. Diagnosis of functional parathyroid cysts can be challenging due to various clinical presentations and negative parathyroid scintigraphy. Surgery, but not fine-needle sclerotherapy, appears to be the safest treatment option. Despite its rarity, differential diagnosis of cystic lesion of the neck should include primary hyperparathyroidism due to functional parathyroid cysts

Hyperlactatemia and Antiretroviral Therapy: The Swiss HIV Cohort Study

The prevalence, clinical presentation, and risk factors for hyperlactatemia among patients receiving antiretroviral therapy was determined during a 1-month period for patients in the Swiss HIV Cohort Study. Overall, 73 (8.3%) of 880 patients presented an increase in serum lactate of >1.1 times the upper normal limit (UNL). For 9 patients (1%), lactate elevation was moderate or severe (>2.2 times the UNL). Patients who presented with hyperlactatemia were more likely to be receiving stavudine with or without didanosine (odds ratio, 2.7; 95% confidence interval, 1.5-4.8), as compared with patients who received zidovudine-based regimens. The risk increased with increasing time receiving stavudine with or without didanosine. The association between hyperlactatemia and stavudine with or without didanosine was not biased by these medications being more recently available and, therefore, being given preferentially to patients who had prolonged use of nucleoside analog reverse-transcriptase inhibitors. Hyperlactatemia was associated with lipoatrophy, hyperlipidemia, and hyperglycemia. Age, sex, or stage of infection with human immunodeficiency virus were not predictive of hyperlactatemia. Determination of lactate levels may prove useful in the screening for mitochondrial toxicit