25 research outputs found
Simulation of interannual circulation and stratification around Placentia Bay
In this thesis, an application of a three-dimensional, full-prognostic and baroclinic model based on FVCOM is developed to simulate the interannual variability of circulation, sea surface temperature and stratification over Placentia Bay. The model is forced by NARR winds and heat fluxes on the surface and by tides, non-tidal sea level, temperature and salinity on the open boundary. Overall, the model solution compares well with the observed monthly mean water levels, surface currents and SST except for the surface currents at a location near the head of the bay. The circulation patterns in the outer bay area for December 2011 and 2012 showed that the general monthly-mean circulation in the upper ocean were positively correlated with the intensities of the remote westward water inflow from the inshore branch of Labrador Current under geostrophic assumption, which resulted in larger current amplitudes of the cyclonic gyre for December 2012. Over the inner bay, currents in the upper ocean were much weaker due to the reduced effect of the inshore branch of Labrador Current. When the amplitude of the monthly-mean local wind forcing was relatively strong for several months such as October 2010, the wind effect could be as important as the effect of the remote water inflow on the surface circulation. The monthly-mean surface temperature distributions for August 2010 and 2014 showed distinct spatial and interannual variations positively correlated with the observed air temperature, the net heat flux on the sea surface and the water inflow advected from the inshore branch of the Labrador Current. The depth-averaged (0-50m) buoyancy frequency (N²), Richardson Number (Ri) and the mixed layer depth at Buoy-Mouth and Buoy-Red Island also showed interannual variability that may be positively correlated with the interannual variations of some variables, such as wind intensity, air temperature, and net heat flux
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Alternative Methods for Therapeutic Drug Monitoring and Dose Adjustment of Tuberculosis Treatment in Clinical Settings: A Systematic Review
Background and objectiveQuantifying exposure to drugs for personalized dose adjustment is of critical importance in patients with tuberculosis who may be at risk of treatment failure or toxicity due to individual variability in pharmacokinetics. Traditionally, serum or plasma samples have been used for drug monitoring, which only poses collection and logistical challenges in high-tuberculosis burden/low-resourced areas. Less invasive and lower cost tests using alternative biomatrices other than serum or plasma may improve the feasibility of therapeutic drug monitoring.MethodsA systematic review was conducted to include studies reporting anti-tuberculosis drug concentration measurements in dried blood spots, urine, saliva, and hair. Reports were screened to include study design, population, analytical methods, relevant pharmacokinetic parameters, and risk of bias.ResultsA total of 75 reports encompassing all four biomatrices were included. Dried blood spots reduced the sample volume requirement and cut shipping costs whereas simpler laboratory methods to test the presence of drug in urine can allow point-of-care testing in high-burden settings. Minimal pre-processing requirements with saliva samples may further increase acceptability for laboratory staff. Multi-analyte panels have been tested in hair with the capacity to test a wide range of drugs and some of their metabolites.ConclusionsReported data were mostly from small-scale studies and alternative biomatrices need to be qualified in large and diverse populations for the demonstration of feasibility in operational settings. High-quality interventional studies will improve the uptake of alternative biomatrices in guidelines and accelerate implementation in programmatic tuberculosis treatment