Acute Colchicine-induced Neuromyopathy in a Patient Treated With Atorvastatin and Clarithromycin

Neuromyopathy is a rare side effect of chronic colchicine therapy, especially without renal impairment. Drugs interacting with colchicine metabolism through CYP3A4 can accelerate accumulation and toxicity. We describe a case of an interaction between atorvastatin, clarithromycin and colchicine resulting in acute neuromyopathy. Learning points: Colchicine has a narrow therapeutic window, and therefore, often produces side effects.Special caution should be adopted if patients with renal disease and concomitant medications are given colchicine.Before prescribing colchicine, the clinical history, including previous medications and conditions, should be carefully considered

Radiation damping for rigid foundations. Approximate expressions

The dynamic response of machine foundations was one of the first problems studied in soil dynamics with results going back to the 1930s. A number of approximations and graphical results were proposed in the 60s. In this paper we present a series of approximate expressions for the natural frequencies and effective damping of rigid masses on the surface of an elastic half space subjected to both vertical and coupled horizontal-rocking harmonic excitations. The formulas are obtained using the approximate expressions for the dynamic stiffness of circular foundations suggested by Veletsos et al [1, 2] for two different values of Poisson’s ratio of the soil. For the vertical case the expressions are only a function of the mass ratio (ratio of the mass of the foundation to an effective mass of soil) and of Poisson’s ratio. For the horizontal-rocking case they depend also on the ratio of the height of the foundation to its equivalent radius (a slenderness ratio)

Response of a high-speed train travelling over a long and high-pier viaduct during moderate earthquakes

This contribution presents the results of numerical simulations in which a high-pier viaduct under lateral and vertical non-stationary spatially variable seismic ground motions is crossed by an articulated high-speed train at several speeds. The spectral representation method is employed to generate the required number of acceleration time-history series at each support location of the railway viaduct studied. Wave passage, local soil conditions and loss of coherency effects have been accounted for in the simulated ground-motion time histories, with several peak ground accelerations. Train and bridge responses have been obtained by means of a non-linear dynamic interaction multibody and finite element model. An analysis of train running safety indices has been carried out. The properties of earthquakes and train speeds which may cause problems to traffic safety are detailed, as is the train derailment probability. The numerical simulation outcomes show that it is not safe for the train to travel over the studied viaduct in earthquakes with peak ground acceleration equal to 0.03 g and for train speeds above 280 km/h.Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature. The first author would like to acknowledge the support for this study provided by European Erasmus + project: 2020-1-ES01-KA203-083262 “Building BIM digital competences for Tertiary VET in the designing and management of construction projects”. www.BIMVET3.eu. This project is co-funded by the Erasmus + Programme of the European Union

Optimización numérica en el diseño de tableros de puentes de vigas artesa de hormigón pretensado: un trabajo de investigación

Esta publicación recoge un trabajo de investigación que realizó el autor en el marco del programa de doctorado Análisis y Diseño Avanzado de Estructuras de la UPCT en el bienio 2006-2008. En él se aplica la técnica de optimización numérica conocida como programación cuadrática sucesiva para obtener diseños óptimos de un tablero de puente de vigas artesa de hormigón pretensado, siendo la función objetivo el coste de ejecución del tablero, y las restricciones del problema las comprobaciones de los estados límites últimos y de servicio del mismo. El diseño actual de estructuras de hormigón está fundamentalmente basado en la experiencia de los ingenieros estructurales. La mayor parte de los procedimientos adoptan secciones cuyas dimensiones, pretensado y tipo de hormigón están sancionados por la práctica de diseños anteriores. Una vez que la estructura está definida, se procede al análisis de envolvente de esfuerzos y al cálculo de las armaduras pasivas que satisfagan los estados límites prescritos por la normativa de hormigón estructural. En el caso de que las dimensiones, pretensado, o los tipos de hormigón sean insuficientes, se redefine la estructura mediante un proceso de prueba y error. Tales métodos conducen a diseños seguros estructuralmente, pero la economía de los diseños estructurales queda, por tanto, muy ligada a la experiencia previa del ingeniero estructural. En los últimos años, han proliferado las soluciones de este tipo de tableros – biapoyados o con pretensado de continuidad - para puentes de carretera y ferrocarril. Esto se ha debido al desarrollo de los medios auxiliares de transporte y montaje de estas vigas y de la prefabricación. Podemos encontrar estos tableros sobre todo en pasos superiores de autovía, en pasos inferiores, en puentes de carretera o ferrocarril, en ramales de enlace donde no hay sitio para el terraplén de gran altura, etc. De esta proliferación viene el interés de este trabajo. En este trabajo se ha elaborado un código propio de análisis, dimensionamiento y optimización económica de estos tableros de puente en función de las variables de diseño, como son, el número de vigas, el canto de las vigas, espesores de hormigón en almas y losas, la cantidad y distribución del acero pasivo y activo de las vigas, etc. Este código se ha implementado con algoritmos de optimización cuadrática y está escrito en el lenguaje de programación MatLab. Tanto la formulación del problema como la estructura del programa desarrollado y el código escrito están recogidos en esta publicación

Paternalism vs. autonomy: are they alternative types of formal care?

This study has been supported by MINECO Project: PSI2014-52464-P-ICESE

Revisión de la evidencia científica sobre uso clínico del Trabecular Bone Score (TBS). Posiciones oficiales de la SEIOMM (2018)

La incorporación de nuevas aplicaciones tecnológicas en el campo médico conlleva un prolongado periodo de valoración de la evidencia científica que se va generando en el proceso de validación clínica. En los últimos 5 años se han generado múltiples publicaciones, comunicaciones en congresos y reuniones de sociedades científicas. La aplicación del Trabecular Bone Score (TBS) ha recibido también la atención de la Sociedad Internacional de Densitometría Clínica (The International Society for Clinical Densitometry -ISCD-) que la ha incorporado a sus posiciones oficiales

Electrosynthesis of inorganic compounds: Chloro-Alcali industry

La electrosíntesis se define como la obtención de sustancias químicas con la ayuda de una celda electroquímica mediante reacciones redox. Muchísimos procesos electrosintéticos acaban aplicándose para usos industriales. Distinguimos dos tipos de procesos electrosintéticos: inorgánicos y orgánicos. En los inorgánicos se obtiene directamente la sustancia deseada en el electrodo de trabajo, además de otros posibles subproductos. Los principales productos obtenidos por la electrosíntesis inorgánica son: flúor, aluminio, cloro y sosa.Electrosynthesis is the obtaining of chemical compounds. We use a electrochemistry cell with electrochemistry reactions. Electrochemistry processes have industrial uses. We have two types of electrochemistry processes: inorganic and organic. At inorganic process we obtain directy the product in the work electrode and other possible derivates. The main products obtained by inorganic methods are: fluorine, aluminunm, chlorine and caustic soda. These methods can be very useful for get these substance

Osteochemonecrosis of the jaws due to bisphosphonate treatments : update

Bisphosphonates (BP),were initially used in industry and later as a drug due to their great affinity to osseous tissue, because of their powerful antiresorptive effect as a treatment in various osteopathies, such as osteoporosis, Paget disease or hypercalcemia associated with some malignant tumors, as myeloma or breast cancer. They are administered orally or intravenously, and although well tolerated, the most frequent side effects are gastrointestinal, in addition to osteonecrosis when they are administered via endovenous. The aim of this work has been to evaluate the existing publications in accredited scientific literature on biphosphonates and their action mechanism and the relationship with the appearance of osteonecrosis of the jaws. Although the mechanism by which osteonecrosis of the jaws develops is not known exactly, there seems to be influence by osteoclast inhibiton, antiangiogenic action, an inhibitory effect on the cellular cycle by the keratinocytes, as well as, reinforcement of the chemiotoxic action in oncological patients treated with other drugs. Clinically, it ranges from a non-specificity of symptoms to lesions such as osteomyelitis with necrosis and osseous sequesters that may be accompanied by fetor ex oris, with the appearance of many Actinomyces contaminated lesions. As for published antecedents on osteonecrosis due to bisphosphonate treatment found until 2006: 46.5% had a previous diagnosis of multiple myeloma; 38.8% were patients with metastatic breast cancer; 6.2% patients of metastatic prostate cancer; 4.1% suffered from osteoporosis; 3.5% from other metastatic diseases and 0.8% had Paget disease. The drugs that seem to have the highest incidence of osteochemionecrosis are: zoledronate, pamidronate, alendronate, risendronate and ibandronate, from the greatest to the least. Additionally, the risk of osteonecrosis being produced is accumulative and may reach 21% in the third year of intravenous bisphosphonate use

High-entropy alloys fabricated via powder metallurgy. A critical review

High-entropy alloys (HEAs) have attracted a great deal of interest over the last 14 years. One reason for this level of interest is related to these alloys breaking the alloying principles that have been applied for many centuries. Thus, HEAs usually possess a single phase (contrary to expectations according to the composition of the alloy) and exhibit a high level of performance in different properties related to many developing areas in industry. Despite this significant interest, most HEAs have been developed via ingot metallurgy. More recently, powder metallurgy (PM) has appeared as an interesting alternative for further developing this family of alloys to possibly widen the field of nanostructures in HEAs and improve some capabilities of these alloys. In this paper, PM methods applied to HEAs are reviewed, and some possible ways to develop the use of powders as raw materials are introduced