Dual therapy based on raltegravir and boosted protease inhibitors : the experience of Polish centers

Introduction: The aim of the study was to present the experience of Polish centers regarding dual therapy based on the integrase inhibitor raltegravir (RAL) and ritonavir-boosted protease inhibitors (PI/r) for treating treatment-naïve and -experienced HIV-infected patients. Material and methods: The paper concerns a retrospective multicenter study. The medical databases of six main Polish HIV centers from January 2009 to December 2014 were analyzed for the use of combined antiretroviral treatment consisting of RAL + PI/r. This study included 126 HIV-infected patients receiving RAL + PI/r therapy, of whom 17 patients were treatment-naive and 109 patients were treatment-experienced. Results: In treatment-experienced patients, the most common reasons for the introduction of a RAL + PI/r regimen were virologic failure and impaired renal function (45 of 109 patients). In the treatment-naïve group kidney disease was the cause of the RAL + PI/r regimen in 3 of 17 participants. In treatment-experienced patients, 80% of individuals still were on RAL + PI/r treatment after 12 months, 65% after 24 months and 53% of subjects after 60 months. In both groups, the simplification of the antiretroviral regimen was the most common reason for discontinuation of RAL + PI/r based therapy. Conclusions: In antiretroviral-experienced patients the dual therapy based on RAL + PI/s is safe and effective. In antiretroviral-naïve patients the RAL + PI/r regimen is rarely used in Poland

Meeting the WHO 90% target : antiretroviral treatment efficacy in Poland is associated with baseline clinical patient characteristics

Introduction: Modern combined antiretroviral therapies (cART) allow to effectively suppress HIV-1 viral load, with the 90% virologic success rate, meeting the WHO target in most clinical settings. The aim of this study was to analyse antiretroviral treatment efficacy in Poland and to identify variables associated with virologic suppression. Methods: Cross-sectional data on 5152 (56.92% of the countrywide treated at the time-point of analysis) patients on cART for more than six months with at least one HIV-RNA measurement in 2016 were collected from 14 Polish centres. Patients’ characteristics and treatment type-based outcomes were analysed for the virologic suppression thresholds of <50 and <200 HIV-RNA copies/ml. CART was categorized into two nucleos(t)ide (2NRTI) plus non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase (NNRTI) inhibitors, 2NRTI plus protease (PI) inhibitor, 2NRTI plus integrase (InI) inhibitor, nucleos(t)ide sparing PI/r+InI and three drug class regimens. For statistics Chi-square and U-Mann Whitney tests and adjusted multivariate logistic regression models were used. Results: Virologic suppression rates of <50 copies/mL were observed in 4672 (90.68%) and <200 copies/mL in 4934 (95.77%) individuals. In univariate analyses, for the suppression threshold <50 copies/mL higher efficacy was noted for 2NRTI+NNRTI-based combinations (94.73%) compared to 2NRTI+PI (89.93%), 2NRTI+InI (90.61%), nucleos(t)ide sparing PI/r+InI (82.02%) and three drug class regimens (74.49%) (p < 0.0001), with less pronounced but significant differences for the threshold of 200 copies/mL [2NRTI+NNRTI-97.61%, 2NRTI+PI-95.27%, 2NRTI+InI-96.61%, PI/r+InI- 95.51% and 86.22% for three drug class cART) (p < 0.0001). However, in multivariate model, virologic efficacy for viral load <50 copies/mL was similar across treatment groups with significant influence by history of AIDS [OR:1.48 (95%CI:1.01–2.17) if AIDS diagnosed, p = 0.046], viral load < 5 log copies/mL at care entry [OR:1.47 (95%CI:1.08–2.01), p = 0.016], baseline lymphocyte CD4 count ≥200 cells/µL [OR:1.72 (95%CI:1.04–2.78), p = 0.034] and negative HCV serology [OR:1.97 (95%CI:1.29–2.94), p = 0.002]. For viral load threshold <200 copies/mL higher likelihood of virologic success was only associated with baseline lymphocyte CD4 count ≥200 cells/µL [OR:2.08 (95%CI:1.01–4.35), p = 0.049] and negative HCV status [OR:2.84 (95%CI:1.52–5.26), p = 0.001]. Conclusions: Proportion of virologically suppressed patients is in line with WHO treatment target confirming successful application of antiretroviral treatment strategy in Poland. Virological suppression rates depend on baseline patient characteristics, which should guide individualized antiretroviral tre0atment decisions

Indentation Induced Mechanical Behavior of Spark Plasma Sintered WC-Co Cemented Carbides Alloyed with Cr3C2, TaC-NbC, TiC, and VC

The focus of this paper is on examining the mechanical behavior of spark plasma sintered WC-Co based composites doped with Cr3C2, TaC-NbC, TiC, and VC, as well as defining some parameters characterizing deformation and fracture processes during hardness measurement. The calculated microhardness of WC-Co cemented carbides for all the studied compositions is found to be higher than the results obtained during hardness testing. Therefore, the ratio of the experimental and calculated values of microhardness is shown to be an approximate indication of WC-Co cemented carbide sensitivity to damage processes during indentation. Some parameters characterizing the microstructure&ndash;microhardness relationship are defined, and the nanomechanical properties of WC-Co cemented carbide phases are examined in order to separate the deformation and fracture processes during the indentation process. Strain gradient linear function parameters are calculated for 10-cycle nanoindentation. It was found that the nanoindentation curve after 10 cycles shows anomalous behavior of the WC grains, which indicates their fracture processes

STUDY OF THE EFFECT OF THE ELECTROLESS Ni-P COATING THICKNESS APPLIED ON AW-7075 ALUMINUM ALLOY ON ITS MECHANICAL PROPERTIES

The paper presents the results of examination of microhardness of chemical coatings Ni-P, applied on samples of aluminium alloy for plastic processing AW-7075. The examinations have been performed on samples with three different thicknesses of the Ni-P coatings; next the influence of their thickness on the depth of material penetration by the indenter under load, as well as its influence on creep, increase of Martens hardness and on the Young’s modulus of the system of the coating with the substrate material. Hardness measurements have been performed with the use of PICODENTOR HM500 nanohardness tester (Vickers). The purpose of the examination of Ni-P coating deformation without dispersion phases is analysis of their mechanical properties in respect of the possibility of technical applications on the aluminium alloy AW-7075 (among others, by the selection of optimum thicknesses on hard aluminium alloy), as well as the determination of the possibility of applying dispersion phases in order to improve their properties

Tribological properties evaluation of Ni-P coating manufactured with electroless plating on aluminum alloy substrate

Results of tribological tests of Ni-P coating were presented in following paper. Tests were conducted with tribotester device using linear reciprocating wear test. Tribological wear test conditions, especially speed, load and sample geometry were described. Characteristics of coefficient of friction variation during wear testes were recorded. Conclusions included results interpretation especially focusing on influence of coating thickness in its properties

Tribological properties evaluation of Ni-P coating manufactured with electroless plating on aluminum alloy substrate

Results of tribological tests of Ni-P coating were presented in following paper. Tests were conducted with tribotester device using linear reciprocating wear test. Tribological wear test conditions, especially speed, load and sample geometry were described. Characteristics of coefficient of friction variation during wear testes were recorded. Conclusions included results interpretation especially focusing on influence of coating thickness in its properties

INFLUENCE OF THE THICKNESS OF Ni-P COATING APPLIED ON 7075 ALUMINUM ALLOY ON ITS HARDNESS

The paper presents the results of hardness tests of aluminum alloy AW-7075 (for plastic processing) and Ni-P chemical coatings (nickel-phosphorus) which had been applied by the no-current method. Coatings of various thickness have been made and their influence on the increase of the top layer hardness has been determined, as well as the increase of the hardness of the coating and substrate system after puncturing the coating with an indenter. The purpose of the investigation was to determine the possibility of applying the Ni-P coating for selected technical applications, among others, by the selection of its optimum thickness on the hard aluminum alloy and by the determination of the deformation resistance of the top layer if the given coating

Titanium Plasma-Sprayed Coatings on Polymers for Hard Tissue Applications

The paper presents the results of titanium plasma spraying (TPS) on polymer substrates. Polyethylene (PE300), polyamide PA6, and fiber glass-reinforced polyamide (PA6.6-GF30) were used as substrates. The PE300 and PA6.6-GF30 substrates exhibited appropriate behavior during the TPS process, whereas the PA6 substrate did not &#8220;accept&#8222; Ti during plasma spraying, and the coating did not form. The TPS coatings exhibited low porosity and high homogeneity, and they had a typical multilayer structure composed of Ti and its oxides. The nanoindentation test showed good mechanical properties of the coatings and demonstrated a hardness and a Young&#8217;s modulus of approximately 400 HV and 200 GPa, respectively. The bending test confirmed the good adhesion of the titanium coatings to the polymer substrates. The Ti coatings did not fall off the substrate after its significant bending deformation

Preparation and Properties of Bulk and Porous Ti-Ta-Ag Biomedical Alloys

The paper presents the results of the preparation of bulk and porous Ti-Ta-Ag alloys. The first step of this study was the preparation of the powder alloys using mechanical alloying (MA). The second was hot-pressing consolidation and sintering with a space holder, which resulted in high-density and high-porosity (approximately 70%) samples, respectively. Porosity, morphology, mechanical properties, biocompatibility, and antibacterial behavior were investigated and related to the preparation procedures. The authors found that Ta and Ag heavily influence the microstructure and determine other biomaterial-related properties. These new materials showed positive behavior in the MTT assay, and antibacterial properties. Such materials could find applications in the production of hard tissue implants