Adherencia y satisfacción del paciente con enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva crónica desde la farmacia comunitaria

Introducción: Numerosos estudios demuestran que actualmente la enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva crónica (EPOC) está mal controlada e infradiagnosticada en numerosos pacientes debido a la utilización inadecuada de la farmacoterapia. El conocimiento de los pacientes sobre los complejos medicamentos que manejan puede no ser suficiente, y es aquí donde la dispensación activa del farmacéutico comunitario juega un papel esencial. Los objetivos de este artículo son medir la adherencia al tratamiento y el grado de satisfacción con la intervención del farmacéutico de los pacientes que utilizan inhaladores.  Método: Se ha realizado un estudio observacional transversal en 105 pacientes diagnosticados de enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva crónica (EPOC) tratados con inhaladores y que acuden a la farmacia comunitaria. A todos los pacientes se les realizó el test de Morisky-Green de adherencia al tratamiento y un test para valorar el grado de satisfacción de los pacientes que utilizan inhaladores con la intervención del farmacéutico.  Resultados: Presentan adherencia al tratamiento el 60% de los pacientes. La adherencia al tratamiento es superior en mujeres que en hombres, y mayor en pacientes de edad igual o superior a 65 años. Respecto al grado de satisfacción con el farmacéutico se observa que el 52,4 % de los pacientes considera adecuada la intervención llevada a cabo por el farmacéutico y el 43,8 % totalmente adecuada. Conclusiones: Los pacientes con EPOC tienen una adherencia al tratamiento bastante mejorable y están satisfechos con la intervención del farmacéutico en la mejora de la utilización de los inhaladores

Adherencia y satisfacción del paciente con enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva crónica desde la farmacia comunitaria

Introducción: Numerosos estudios demuestran que actualmente la enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva crónica (EPOC) está mal controlada e infradiagnosticada en numerosos pacientes debido a la utilización inadecuada de la farmacoterapia. El conocimiento de los pacientes sobre los complejos medicamentos que manejan puede no ser suficiente, y es aquí donde la dispensación activa del farmacéutico comunitario juega un papel esencial. Los objetivos de este artículo son medir la adherencia al tratamiento y el grado de satisfacción con la intervención del farmacéutico de los pacientes que utilizan inhaladores.  Método: Se ha realizado un estudio observacional transversal en 105 pacientes diagnosticados de enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva crónica (EPOC) tratados con inhaladores y que acuden a la farmacia comunitaria. A todos los pacientes se les realizó el test de Morisky-Green de adherencia al tratamiento y un test para valorar el grado de satisfacción de los pacientes que utilizan inhaladores con la intervención del farmacéutico.  Resultados: Presentan adherencia al tratamiento el 60% de los pacientes. La adherencia al tratamiento es superior en mujeres que en hombres, y mayor en pacientes de edad igual o superior a 65 años. Respecto al grado de satisfacción con el farmacéutico se observa que el 52,4 % de los pacientes considera adecuada la intervención llevada a cabo por el farmacéutico y el 43,8 % totalmente adecuada. Conclusiones: Los pacientes con EPOC tienen una adherencia al tratamiento bastante mejorable y están satisfechos con la intervención del farmacéutico en la mejora de la utilización de los inhaladores

Porous Cr2O3@C composite derived from metal organic framework in efficient semi-liquid lithium-sulfur battery

A carbon composite including Cr2O3 (Cr2O3@C) and benefitting of a metal organic framework (MOF) precursor is herein synthesized, and originally employed in a semi-liquid lithium-sulfur cell using a catholyte solution formed by Li2S8 polysulfide, conducting lithium salt and film forming additive dissolved in diethylene glycol dimethyl ether (DEGDME). The adopted cell configuration may actually allow the porous structure of the MOF derivative to efficiently enable the lithium/sulfur electrochemical process. Thus, structure, chemical composition, morphology and porosity of the composite are investigated by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and N2 adsorption/desorption isotherms, respectively. The data reveal a mesoporous material consisting of aggregated nanometric particles (<100 nm) with relatively high BET surface area (170 m2 g−1), uniform element distribution, and a carbon content of about 13 wt%. Cyclic voltammetry of the Cr2O3@C in semi-liquid lithium sulfur cell using the catholyte solution shows a reversible reaction with fast kinetics and Li-diffusion coefficient ranging from about 3 × 10−8 cm2 s−1 at 2.4 V vs. Li+/Li, to 1 × 10−8 cm2 s−1 at 2 V vs. Li+/Li. Furthermore, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy reveals a very stable interphase with an impedance below 5 Ω after an activation process promoted by cycling. The semi-liquid Li/S cell operates with remarkable stability and efficiency approaching 100%, delivers a capacity ranging from 900 mAh g−1 at C/10 rate to 780 mAh g−1 at C/3 rate, and performs over 100 charge/discharge cycles with very modest capacity decay

Lithium-Oxygen Battery Exploiting Highly Concentrated Glyme-Based Electrolytes

Concentrated solutions of lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (LiTFSI) and lithium nitrate (LiNO3) salts in either diethylene-glycol dimethyl-ether (DEGDME) or triethylene-glycol dimethyl-ether (TREGDME) are herein characterized in terms of chemical and electrochemical properties in view of possible applications as the electrolyte in lithium-oxygen batteries. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy at the lithium metal surface upon prolonged storage in lithium cells reveals the complex composition and nature of the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) formed through the reduction of the solutions, while thermogravimetric analysis shows a stability depending on the glyme chain length. The applicability of the solutions in the lithium metal cell is investigated by means of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), chronoamperometry, galvanostatic cycling, and voltammetry, which reveal high conductivity and lithium transference number as well as a wide electrochemical stability window of both electrolytes. However, a challenging issue ascribed to the more pronounced evaporation of the electrolyte based on DEGDME with respect to TREGDME actually limits the application of the former in the Li/O2 battery. Hence, EIS measurements reveal a very fast increase in the impedance of cells using the DEGDME-based electrolyte upon prolonged exposure to the oxygen atmosphere, which leads to a performance decay of the corresponding Li/O2 battery. Instead, cells using the TREGDME-based electrolyte reveal remarkable interphase stability and much more enhanced response with specific capacity ranging from 500 to 1000 mA h g-1 referred to the carbon mass in the positive electrode, with an associated maximum practical energy density of 450 W h kg-1. These results suggest the glyme volatility as a determining factor for allowing the use of the electrolyte media in a Li/O2 cell. Therefore, electrolytes using a glyme with sufficiently high boiling point, such as TREGDME, which is further increased by the relevant presence of salts including a lithium protecting sacrificial one (LiNO3), can allow the application of the solutions in a safe and high-performance lithium-oxygen battery

Alternative lithium-ion battery using biomass-derived carbons as environmentally sustainable anode

Disordered carbons derived from biomass are herein efficiently used as an alternative anode in lithium-ion battery. Carbon precursor obtained from cherry pit is activated by using either KOH or H3PO4, to increase the specific surface area and enable porosity. Structure, morphology and chemical characteristics of the activated carbons are investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermogravimetry (TG), Raman spectroscopy, nitrogen and mercury porosimetry. The electrodes are studied in lithium half-cell by galvanostatic cycling, cyclic voltammetry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The study evidences substantial effect of chemical activation on the carbon morphology, electrode resistance, and electrochemical performance. The materials reveal the typical profile of disordered carbon with initial irreversibility vanishing during cycles. Carbons activated by H3PO4 show higher capacity at the lower C-rates, while those activated by KOH reveal improved reversible capacity at the high currents, with efficiency approaching 100% upon initial cycles, and reversible capacity exceeding 175 mAh g−1. Therefore, the carbons and LiFePO4 cathode are combined in lithium-ion cells delivering 160 mAh g−1 at 2.8 V, with a retention exceeding 95% upon 200 cycles at C/3 rate. Hence, the carbons are suggested as environmentally sustainable anode for Li-ion battery

A Stable High-Capacity Lithium-Ion Battery Using a Biomass-Derived Sulfur-Carbon Cathode and Lithiated Silicon Anode

A full lithium-ion-sulfur cell with a remarkable cycle life was achieved by combining an environmentally sustainable biomass-derived sulfur-carbon cathode and a pre-lithiated silicon oxide anode. X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, and thermogravimetry of the cathode evidenced the disordered nature of the carbon matrix in which sulfur was uniformly distributed with a weight content as high as 75 %, while scanning and transmission electron microscopy revealed the micrometric morphology of the composite. The sulfur-carbon electrode in the lithium half-cell exhibited a maximum capacity higher than 1200 mAh gS−1, reversible electrochemical process, limited electrode/electrolyte interphase resistance, and a rate capability up to C/2. The material showed a capacity decay of about 40 % with respect to the steady-state value over 100 cycles, likely due to the reaction with the lithium metal of dissolved polysulfides or impurities including P detected in the carbon precursor. Therefore, the replacement of the lithium metal with a less challenging anode was suggested, and the sulfur-carbon composite was subsequently investigated in the full lithium-ion-sulfur battery employing a Li-alloying silicon oxide anode. The full-cell revealed an initial capacity as high as 1200 mAh gS−1, a retention increased to more than 79 % for 100 galvanostatic cycles, and 56 % over 500 cycles. The data reported herein well indicated the reliability of energy storage devices with extended cycle life employing high-energy, green, and safe electrode materials

Arsenic exposure and human blood DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation profiles in two diverse populations from Bangladesh and Spain

This work was supported by the Strategic Action for Research in Health sciences (PI15/00071) and CIBERCV, which are initiatives from Instituto de Salud Carlos III and the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation and co-funded with European Funds for Regional Development (FEDER) , and the United States National Institute of Health (grants R01 CA133595, P30 ES009089, T32 ES007322, P42 ES010349, and F31 ES029019) . MTP was supported by the Third AstraZeneca Award for Spanish Young Researchers. ADR received the support of a fellowship from "la Caixa" Foundation (ID 100010434, fellowship code "LCF/BQ/DR19/11740016") .Domingo-Relloso, A.; Bozack, A.; Kiihl, S.; Rodriguez-Hernandez, Z.; Rentero-Garrido, P.; Casasnovas, JA.; Leon-Latre, M.... (2022). Arsenic exposure and human blood DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation profiles in two diverse populations from Bangladesh and Spain. Environmental Research. 204:1-12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2021.11202111220