Reduction of ureteral stent encrustation by modulating the urine pH and inhibiting the crystal film with a new oral composition: a multicenter, placebo controlled, double blind, randomized clinical trial

Background: Encrustation of ureteral double J stents is a common complication that may affect its removal. The aim of the proposed study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a new oral composition to prevent double J stent encrustation in indwelling times up to 8 weeks. Methods: A double-blinded, multicenter, placebo-controlled trial was conducted with 105 patients with indwelling double J stents enrolled across 9 public hospitals in Spain. The patients were randomly assigned (1:1) into intervention (53 patients) or placebo (52 patients) groups for 3 to 8 weeks and both groups self-monitored daily their morning urine pH levels. The primary outcome of analysis was the degree of stent ends encrustation, defined by a 4-point score (0 - none; 3 - global encrustation) using macroscopic and electron microscopy analysis of crystals, after 3 to 8-w indwelling period. Score was exponentially transformed according to calcium levels. Secondary endpoints included urine pH decrease, stent removal, and incidence of adverse events. Results: The intervention group benefits from a lower global encrustation rate of stent ends than placebo group (1% vs 8.2%; p < 0.018). Mean encrustation score was 85.12 (274.5) in the placebo group and 18.91 (102.27) in the intervention group (p < 0.025). Considering the secondary end points, treated patients reported greater urine pH decreases (p = 0.002). No differences in the incidence of adverse events were identified between the groups. Conclusions: Our data suggest that the use of this new oral composition is beneficial in the context of ureteral double J indwelling by decreasing mean, as well as global encrustation

Economic Impacts of Biofuels Deployment in Andalusia

This paper aims to estimate the economic impacts of increasing the production capacity of the installed biofuel plants in Andalusia (southern Spain). A computable general equilibrium (CGE) approach is used to calculate the changes in the economic sectors' activity, in employment as well as in GDP and other macroeconomic variables relevant to biofuel plants in Andalusia under two distinct scenarios (i) based on an operating biodiesel plant (with 90 ktoe/year of installed capacity); (ii) upgrading to 2174 ktoe by 2013 in compliance with the regional ‘Plan Andaluz de Sostenibilidad Energética (PASENER) 2007–2013'. Results show that compliance with the PASENER goal would increase the activity level of the economic sectors considered by 3.04%, the total induced employment generated would reach 167,975 equivalent full-time jobs lasting one year and the GDP would increase by 9.82%

Reduction of ureteral stent encrustation by modulating the urine pH and inhibiting the crystal film with a new oral composition: a multicenter, placebo controlled, double blind, randomized clinical trial.

Encrustation of ureteral double J stents is a common complication that may affect its removal. The aim of the proposed study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a new oral composition to prevent double J stent encrustation in indwelling times up to 8 weeks. A double-blinded, multicenter, placebo-controlled trial was conducted with 105 patients with indwelling double J stents enrolled across 9 public hospitals in Spain. The patients were randomly assigned (1:1) into intervention (53 patients) or placebo (52 patients) groups for 3 to 8 weeks and both groups self-monitored daily their morning urine pH levels. The primary outcome of analysis was the degree of stent ends encrustation, defined by a 4-point score (0 - none; 3 - global encrustation) using macroscopic and electron microscopy analysis of crystals, after 3 to 8-w indwelling period. Score was exponentially transformed according to calcium levels. Secondary endpoints included urine pH decrease, stent removal, and incidence of adverse events. The intervention group benefits from a lower global encrustation rate of stent ends than placebo group (1% vs 8.2%; p  Our data suggest that the use of this new oral composition is beneficial in the context of ureteral double J indwelling by decreasing mean, as well as global encrustation. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov under the name "Combined Use of a Medical Device and a Dietary Complement in Patient Urinary pH Control in Patients With an Implanted Double J Stent" with date 2nd November 2017, code NCT03343275, and URL

Multi-institutional study of symptomatic deep venous thrombosis and pulmonary embolism in prostate cancer patients undergoing laparoscopic or robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy.

The true incidence of symptomatic deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) in patients undergoing laparoscopic radical prostatectomy is unknown. Our aim was to determine the incidence of symptomatic DVT and PE and the risk factors for these complications.Comparative StudyJournal ArticleMulticenter StudySCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Guía de Terapéutica Antimicrobiana del Área Aljarafe, 3ª edición

Coordinadora: Rocío Fernández Urrusuno. Co-coordinadora: Carmen Serrano Martino.YesEstas guías son un recurso indispensable en los Programas de Optimización de Antibióticos (PROA). No sólo constituyen una herramienta de ayuda para la toma de decisiones en los principales síndromes infecciosos, proporcionando recomendaciones para el abordaje empírico de dichos procesos, sino que son el patrón/estándar de referencia que permitirá determinar la calidad o adecuación de los tratamientos realizados. Las guías pueden ser utilizadas, además, como herramienta de base para la formación y actualización en antibioterapia, ya que permiten mantener actualizados los conocimientos sobre las nuevas evidencias en el abordaje de las infecciones. Por último, deberían incorporar herramientas que faciliten el proceso de toma de decisiones compartidas con el paciente. El objetivo de esta guía es proporcionar recomendaciones para el abordaje de las enfermedades infecciosas más prevalentes en la comunidad, basadas en las últimas evidencias disponibles y los datos de resistencias de los principales patógenos que contribuyan a mejorar la calidad de la prescripción de antimicrobianos