Phacoemulsification of the crystalline lens and implantation of an intraocular lens for the correction of moderate and high myopia: Four-year follow-up

Purpose: To assess the safety of lens extraction and intraocular lens (IOL) implantation in patients with high myopia treated for initial lens opacity and/or refractive indications. Setting: Instituto de Microcirugfa Ocular de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain. Methods: This retrospective nonrandomized case series study comprised 44 eyes of 30 consecutive myopic patients who had surgery because of initial lens opacity and/or refractive indications during a 2-year period. In each case, phacoemulsification was performed using an ultrasonic technique and an IOL was implanted in the capsular bag. The patients were seen preoperatively to evaluate retinal pathology. They also had a complete ophthalmologic evaluation that included detailed indirect ophthalmoscopy. All patients were followed at regular intervals. The main outcome measures were preoperative and postoperative-spherical equivalent (SE), the incidence of posterior capsule opacification (PCO) and the need for capsulotomy, and the incidence of retinal complications. Results: In all eyes, the surgery was uneventful. The mean patient age at surgery was 42.83 years; the mean preoperative SE was -15.77 diopters (D) and the mean postoperative SE, -1.05 D. No eye required preoperative peripheral retinal photocoagulation. Twenty-five eyes (56.8%) had PCO and had a neodymium:YAG laser capsulotomy. One eye had a retinal tear 14 months after surgery and was treated with focal photocoagulation. The mean endothelial cell loss was 2.1% during the first postoperative year. Two eyes had an immediate postoperative intraocular pressure (IOP)rise, 1 with an inflammatory membrane and the other with corneal edema; both resolved with topical treatment. One eye with elevated IOP and a bad response to medical treatment had argon laser trabeculoplasty. No eye had a retinal detachment during the follow-up. Conclusion: With a thorough preoperative ophthalmologic evaluation and uneventful surgery, patients who have phacoemulsification and IOL implantation for the correction of myopia have a satisfactory chance of obtaining good visual results with few complications. ©2003 ASCRS and ESCRS

Innovación agrícola pro-pobre para la seguridad y soberanía alimentaria en la región andina: el caso IssAndes en Ecuador.

El proyecto "Innovación para la seguridad y la soberanía alimentaria en la región andina"- IssAndes, se inició en marzo del 2011 y culminó en marzo del 2015. El proyecto fue ejecutado en Bolivia, Ecuador, Perú y Colombia, con socios de agricultura, salud y educación en cada país. Fue coordinado por el Centro Internacional de la Papa (CIP) y financiado por la Unión Europea a través del Fondo Internacional de Desarrollo Agrícola (FIDA). El objetivo de IssAndes fue fortalecer la innovación para la seguridad alimentaria a diferentes niveles territoriales (local, nacional y regional) en la región andina, en respuesta a las necesidades de los grupos rurales vulnerables y así contribuir a la reducción de la desnutrición de niño/as menores de tres años mediante mejoras en la alimentación y nutrición de las familias. En el Ecuador, el proyecto se implementó en las provincias de Chimborazo, Tungurahua y Cotopaxi, en un total de 10 cantones y 17 parroquias, llegando a 44 comunidades con 1135 familias vinculadas al rubro papa. El proyecto tuvo un total de siete socios a nivel nacional (Instituto Nacional Autónomo de Investigaciones Agropecuarias - INIAP, Escuela Superior Politécnica de Chimborazo - ESPOCH, Visión Mundial, Estrategia Acción Nutrición - EAN, Oficina para Estudios del Agro - OfiAgro, Centro Latinoamericano para el Desarrollo Rural-RIMISP y la Fundación Minga para la Acción Rural y la Cooperación - MARCO) y dos socios a nivel regional (CIP y el Instituto de Investigación Nutricional - IIN). IssAndes estructuró sus acciones de investigación y desarrollo en cuatro componentes: i) Contribución de la papa a la nutrición y salud; ii) Mejoras en los sistemas de producción basados en papa; iii) Educación nutricional para el cambio de comportamiento; e iv) Incidencia pública y política

A flexible framework for real-time thermal-aware schedulers using timed continuous petri nets

This work presents TCPN-ThermalSim, a software tool for testing Real-Time Thermal-Aware Schedulers1. This framework consists of four main modules. The first one helps the user to define the problem: Task set with periods, deadlines and worst case execution times in CPU cycles, along with the CPU characteristics, temperature and energy consumption. The second module is the Kernel simulation, which builds up a global simulation model according to the configuration module. In the third module, the user selects the scheduler algorithm. Finally the last module allows the execution of the simulation and present the results. The framework encompasses two modes: Manual and automatic. In manual mode the simulator uses the task set data provided in the first section. In automatic mode the task set is generated by parameterizing the integrated UUniFast algorithm

Evaluation of polyherbal methionine and choline in feedlot rations for lambs

Requirements of lambs for choline and methionine have not been clearly established, but because of their metabolic relationship, the availability of these two nutrients may affect protein synthesis and energy balance. Therefore, a trial was carried out to evaluate the effect on productive performance and blood metabolites of including methionine and choline from polyherbal mixtures in finishing lamb diets. Forty Hampshire x Suffolk lambs weighing 26.9 ± 2.8 kg were used for a 45-day experiment. The treatments were arranged as a 2x2 factorial, in which the factors were dietary supplementation with herbal methionine and choline at two levels (0% and 0.4% of dry matter (DM)). The treatments had no effects on the lambs’ productive variables (daily feed intake, average daily gain, and feed to gain ratio), carcass characteristics and lipid metabolites (P >0.05). The results indicated that the inclusion of polyherbal mixtures containing methionine, choline and their combination at 0.4% of DM in finishing lamb diets showed no benefits in productive response or in blood metabolites related to lipid metabolism. Keywords: amino acid, lipid metabolites, productive performance, ruminally protected, vitami

Reusing intravaginal progesterone releasing devices for oestrous synchoronization in ewes

In this study, the second use of an intravaginal progesterone-releasing device or controlled intravaginal drug release device (CIDR) was evaluated. After a first use of 11 days, the CIDR was again used for either nine or 12 days with 200 or 300 IU equine chorionic gonadotrophin (eCG) being injected on its removal. Sixty-four ewes were randomly distributed to four treatments (n=16/group): CIDR9+eCG200, CIDR9+eCG300, CIDR12+eCG200, and CIDR12+eCG300. The eCG was administered intramuscularly on withdrawal of the device. Thus, the experiment was a completely randomized design with a 2×2 factorial arrangement of treatments. Oestrus presentation did not differ between treatments (P =0.29). However, with the dose of 200 IU of eCG, oestrus presentation tended to increase (P =0.08). The onset and duration of oestrus, percentage of gestation, and return to oestrus did not differ between treatments (P >0.05). Progesterone concentration in serum was greater (P < 0.05) in ewes treated with CIDR12+eCG300. Prolificacy was greatest (1.44) with the CIDR12+eCG300 treatment and was different (P = 0.001) from the treatments CIDR9+eCG200 (1.21) and CIDR9+eCG300 (1.20), but not from the CIDR12+eCG200 treated ewes (1.31). The CIDR12+eCG300 treatement produced the highest percentage of twin births (45.8%) (P =0.001). Leaving the device in place for 12 days increased (P =0.001) the incidence of twin births. Use of the CIDR for a second time synchronized oestrus in ewes successfully with better fertility being obtained when the device was left in place for 12 days, and 300 IU of eCG was injected on its removal. Key words: gonadotropin, progesterone device, synchronizatio

Thermal-aware real-time scheduling using timed continuous Petri Nets

We present a thermal-aware, hard real-time (HRT) global scheduler for a multiprocessor system designed upon three novel techinques. First, we present a modeling methodology based on Timed Continuous Petri nets (TCPN) that yields a complete state variable model, including job arrivals, CPU usage, power, and thermal behavior. The model is accurate and avoids the calibration stage of RC thermal models. Second, based on this model, a linear programming problem (LPP) determines the existence of a feasible HRT thermal-aware schedule. Last, a sliding-mode controller and an online discretization algorithm implement the global HRT scheduler, which is capable of managing thermal constraints, context switching, migrations, and disturbances