11 research outputs found

    How to use venous oxygen saturations and lactate in critically ill patients

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    Mixed venous oxygen saturation (SvO2) and central venous oxygen saturation (ScvO2) contain much information of the (patho-) physiologic balance between a patient’s oxygen delivery and oxygen consumption. Also, they are influenced by many factors, which makes them as appealing as complex: in contrast to low values, which may always be considered pathological, normal values may leave the clinician clueless. In critically ill patients the agreement between ScvO2 and SvO2 is unacceptably wide, but this does not mean that both should be abandoned from our clinical tool set. This is completely different for femoral venous oxygen saturation (SfvO2), which should not be used as surrogate for ScvO2 or SvO2. Furthermore there is no place for SfvO2 in (goal-directed) care of critically ill patients. Besides venous oxygen saturations as surrogates for global tissue hypoxia, blood lactate levels give important information too. In prehospital settings, i.e. ambulance services, hyperlactatemia may serve as an early warning sign for severe illness. In the intensive care unit (ICU), ongoing hyperlactatemia should encourage the clinician to reflect the adequacy of the current therapeutic regime

    Rigid ION and Shell Model Calculations of IR Spectra of Zeolitic Silica Polymorphs

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    Rigid ion and Shell model calculations of the frequencies and intensities of the infrared active modes of aluminiumfree sodalite and faujasite are presented. Results of Shell model calculations agree better with experiment than those of Rigid ion calculations. A good agreement of the frequencies in the bending and torsional mode regions is found. One concludes from comparing experimental and calculated frequencies in the stretching modes region that the short range potential for the Si-O stretch frequency is too weak. The improvement of the Shell model versus the Rigid ion model results can be ascribed to screening of the long range electrostatic interactions by polarization of the O2--anions

    Predictive Performance of Cardiovascular Disease Risk Prediction Algorithms in People Living With HIV

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    Immunogenetics and cellular immunology of bacterial infectious disease

    High treatment uptake in human immunodeficiency virus/ hepatitis C virus-coinfected patients after unrestricted access to direct-acting antivirals in the Netherlands

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    Background The Netherlands has provided unrestricted access to direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) since November 2015. We analyzed the nationwide hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment uptake among patients coinfected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and HCV. Methods Data were obtained from the ATHENA HIV observational cohort in which >98% of HIV-infected patients ever registered since 1998 are included. Patients were included if they ever had 1 positive HCV RNA result, did not have spontaneous clearance, and were known to still be in care. Treatment uptake and outcome were assessed. When patients were treated more than once, data were included from only the most recent treatment episode. Data were updated until February 2017. In addition, each treatment center was queried in April 2017 for a data update on DAA treatment and achieved sustained virological response. Results Of 23574 HIV-infected patients ever linked to care, 1471 HCV-coinfected patients (69% men who have sex with men, 15% persons who [formerly] injected drugs, and 15% with another HIV transmission route) fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Of these, 87% (1284 of 1471) had ever initiated HCV treatment between 2000 and 2017, 76% (1124 of 1471) had their HCV infection cured; DAA treatment results were pending in 6% (92 of 1471). Among men who have sex with men, 83% (844 of 1022) had their HCV infection cured, and DAA treatment results were pending in 6% (66 of 1022). Overall, 187 patients had never initiated treatment, DAAs had failed in 14, and a pegylated interferon-alfa–based regimen had failed in 54. Conclusions Fifteen months after unrestricted DAA availability the majority of HIV/HCV-coinfected patients in the Netherlands have their HCV infection cured (76%) or are awaiting DAA treatment results (6%). This rapid treatment scale-up may contribute to future HCV elimination among these patients

    A highly virulent variant of HIV-1 circulating in the Netherlands.

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    We discovered a highly virulent variant of subtype-B HIV-1 in the Netherlands. One hundred nine individuals with this variant had a 0.54 to 0.74 log <sub>10</sub> increase (i.e., a ~3.5-fold to 5.5-fold increase) in viral load compared with, and exhibited CD4 cell decline twice as fast as, 6604 individuals with other subtype-B strains. Without treatment, advanced HIV-CD4 cell counts below 350 cells per cubic millimeter, with long-term clinical consequences-is expected to be reached, on average, 9 months after diagnosis for individuals in their thirties with this variant. Age, sex, suspected mode of transmission, and place of birth for the aforementioned 109 individuals were typical for HIV-positive people in the Netherlands, which suggests that the increased virulence is attributable to the viral strain. Genetic sequence analysis suggests that this variant arose in the 1990s from de novo mutation, not recombination, with increased transmissibility and an unfamiliar molecular mechanism of virulence

    Human immunodeficiency virus continuum of care in 11 european union countries at the end of 2016 overall and by key population: Have we made progress?

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    Background. High uptake of antiretroviral treatment (ART) is essential to reduce human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission and related mortality; however, gaps in care exist. We aimed to construct the continuum of HIV care (CoC) in 2016 in 11 European Union (EU) countries, overall and by key population and sex. To estimate progress toward the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) 90-90-90 target, we compared 2016 to 2013 estimates for the same countries, representing 73% of the population in the region. Methods. A CoC with the following 4 stages was constructed: number of people living with HIV (PLHIV); proportion of PLHIV diagnosed; proportion of those diagnosed who ever initiated ART; and proportion of those ever treated who achieved viral suppression at their last visit. Results. We estimated that 87% of PLHIV were diagnosed; 92% of those diagnosed had ever initiated ART; and 91% of those ever on ART, or 73% of all PLHIV, were virally suppressed. Corresponding figures for men having sex with men were: 86%, 93%, 93%, 74%; for people who inject drugs: 94%, 88%, 85%, 70%; and for heterosexuals: 86%, 92%, 91%, 72%. The proportion suppressed of all PLHIV ranged from 59% to 86% across countries. Conclusions. The EU is close to the 90-90-90 target and achieved the UNAIDS target of 73% of all PLHIV virally suppressed, significant progress since 2013 when 60% of all PLHIV were virally suppressed. Strengthening of testing programs and treatment support, along with prevention interventions, are needed to achieve HIV epidemic control

    Plant functional trait change across a warming tundra biome

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    Altres ajuts europeus: P.A.W. was additionally supported by the European Union Fourth Environment and Climate Framework Programme (Project Number ENV4-CT970586)P.A.W. was additionally supported by the European Union Fourth Environment and Climate Framework Programme (Project Number ENV4-CT970586).The tundra is warming more rapidly than any other biome on Earth, and the potential ramifications are far-reaching because of global feedback effects between vegetation and climate. A better understanding of how environmental factors shape plant structure and function is crucial for predicting the consequences of environmental change for ecosystem functioning. Here we explore the biome-wide relationships between temperature, moisture and seven key plant functional traits both across space and over three decades of warming at 117 tundra locations. Spatial temperature-trait relationships were generally strong but soil moisture had a marked influence on the strength and direction of these relationships, highlighting the potentially important influence of changes in water availability on future trait shifts in tundra plant communities. Community height increased with warming across all sites over the past three decades, but other traits lagged far behind predicted rates of change. Our findings highlight the challenge of using space-for-time substitution to predict the functional consequences of future warming and suggest that functions that are tied closely to plant height will experience the most rapid change. They also reveal the strength with which environmental factors shape biotic communities at the coldest extremes of the planet and will help to improve projections of functional changes in tundra ecosystems with climate warming
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