Acute Kidney Injury Biomarkers: A Prospective Cohort Study In Urological Patients

Several recent studies have assessed the use of biomarkers of Acute Kidney Injury (AKI), but the information among patients with stone disease and those with obstructive uropathy is limited. For this reason, we conducted a prospective cohort study to determine the urinary levels of KIM-1, Total and Monomeric NGAL in patients with hydronephrosis secondary to renal stone disease, congenital ureteropelvic junction obstruction or ureteral stricture, and in a group of healthy controls in our health care center. Urinary biomarker concentrations were evaluated before and after surgical treatment. Patients with hydronephrosis showed significantly higher baseline levels of KIM-1 compared to those patients without hydronephrosis. KIM-1 was the only urinary biomarker significantly affected by the presence of hydronephrosis. Total and Monomeric NGAL correlated with the presence of leukocyturia. Our results show that KIM-1 is a promising biomarker of subclinical AKI associated with hydronephrosis in urological patients

Special Issue on “Machining Dynamics and Parameters Process Optimization”

In 1907, F.W Taylor—the father of production engineering—exposed the fundamentals of modern machining and defined chatter as the most obscure and delicate of all problems facing the machinist [...

Additively manufactured MEMS multiplexed coaxial electrospray sources for high-throughput, uniform generation of core–shell microparticles

his study reports the first MEMS multiplexed coaxial electrospray sources in the literature. Coaxial electrospraying is a microencapsulation technology based on electrohydrodynamic jetting of two immiscible liquids, which allows precise control with low size variation of the geometry of the core–shell particles it generates, which is of great importance in numerous biomedical and engineering applications, e.g., drug delivery and self-healing composites. By implementing monolithic planar arrays of miniaturized coaxial electrospray emitters that work uniformly in parallel, the throughput of the compound microdroplet source is greatly increased, making the microencapsulation technology compatible with low-cost commercial applications. Miniaturized core–shell particle generators with up to 25 coaxial electrospray emitters (25 emitters cm−2) were fabricated via stereolithography, which is an additive manufacturing process that can create complex microfluidic devices at a small fraction of the cost per device and fabrication time associated with silicon-based counterparts. The characterization of devices with the same emitter structure but different array sizes demonstrates uniform array operation. Moreover, the data demonstrate that the per-emitter current is approximately proportional to the square root of the flow rate of the driving liquid, and it is independent of the flow rate of the driven liquid, as predicted by the theory. The core/shell diameters and the size distribution of the generated compound microparticles can be modulated by controlling the flow rates fed to the emitters.Instituto Tecnologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterre

Improving Stability Prediction in Peripheral Milling of Al7075T6

Chatter is an old enemy to machinists but, even today, is far from being defeated. Current requirements around aerospace components call for stronger and thinner workpieces which are more prone to vibrations. This study presents the stability analysis for a single degree of freedom down-milling operation in a thin-walled workpiece. The stability charts were computed by means of the enhanced multistage homotopy perturbation (EMHP) method, which includes the helix angle but also, most importantly, the runout and cutting speed effects. Our experimental validation shows the importance of this kind of analysis through a comparison with a common analysis without them, especially when machining aluminum alloys. The proposed analysis demands more computation time, since it includes the calculation of cutting forces for each combination of axial depth of cut and spindle speed. This EMHP algorithm is compared with the semi-discretization, Chebyshev collocation, and full-discretization methods in terms of convergence and computation efficiency, and ultimately proves to be the most efficient method among the ones studied.The authors wish to acknowledge the financial support received from HAZITEK program, from the Department of Economic Development and Infrastructures of the Basque Government and from FEDER funds. Additional support was provided by the Tecnologico de Monterrey, through the Research Group in Nanomaterials and Devices Design

Economic Implications Associated with Pharmaceutical Technology Bans in U.S. Beef Production

Sustainability in agricultural production has become a large point of emphasis for consumers in the United States. Despite pharmaceutical technologies being used to increase production efficiency and cost effectiveness, their use remains questioned by the general public, particularly regarding antibiotics within the livestock sector. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to determine the economic effects of a removal of certain technologies from the U.S. beef cattle production system. A whole system structural econometric model was used to determine effects of: (1) a removal of feed-grade antibiotics as growth-promotant technologies, and (2) the removal of all growth enhancing technologies from the U.S. beef cattle industry as possible future policy. One year after implementation, the loss of feed grade antibiotics is predicted to reduce fed cattle inventories by 270,000 animals and reduce carcass beef by approximately 227.6 million lb. Additionally, beef production and consumption are estimated to decrease by approximately 1% five years post ban. The loss of all growth enhancing technologies predict much larger implications, with one-year post-ban reductions in fed cattle inventories estimated to be 3.1 million animals and a corresponding 2.2 billion lb reduction in carcass beef. At five years post ban, beef production and beef consumption are projected to decrease by 10.5% and 8.2%, respectively while beef imports are projected to increase by 9.1%. Additionally, an equilibrium displacement model was used to further investigate the effects of a removal of feed-grade antibiotics used to control liver abscesses in U.S. feedlot cattle. In this model the largest first year change, as expected, is within the slaughter cattle sector with a 4.45% reduction in quantities supplied and an 11.13% increase in slaughter cattle price. The 10-year net change for retail beef is estimated to be a 6.31% reduction in total quantity, and a corresponding 1.13 billion lb loss in total beef supplied at the retail level. The term “sustainability” in agricultural production is often interpreted to mean natural or free of certain technologies. This study has shown that the removal of technological advances poses a significant economic concern to beef producers and consumers alike

Statistical and Economic Implications Associated with Precision of Administering Weight-based Medication in Cattle

Metaphylactic treatment of incoming feedlot cattle is a common preventative action against bovine respiratory disease (BRD). Cattle are dosed based on estimated or actual lot average weights, rather than on an individual basis, to reduce initial processing time. There has been limited research conducted on the effects of accurate weight- based dosing in feedlot cattle. The objective of this study was to evaluate the economic effects of precision weight- based dosing of cattle as compared to dosing the lot average or lot averages plus 50 lb and minus 50 lb. An economic model was created and stochastic simulations performed to evaluate potential outcomes of different dosing scenarios. Economic analyses of the effects of precision weight-based dosing were conducted using SIMETAR© to determine the stochastic dominance and economic effects of different dosing regimens. Data were obtained from a commercial feedlot for different lots of cattle where individual animal weights were available; for this analysis the minimum lot size was 30 animals, and the maximum lot size was 126 animals. Within lots, individual weight deviations were calculated from the lot mean, the lot mean was rounded up to the nearest 50 lb increment or down to the nearest 50 lb increment to represent mild overestimation and mild underestimation, respectively. Tulathromycin (Draxxin®, Pfizer Animal Health, New York, NY), an antimicrobial commonly prescribed for treatment of bovine respiratory disease, was used to illustrate the impacts of uniform dosing versus exact dosing per body weight. Based on the dilution space method used to evaluate time of drug effectiveness, it was estimated that Draxxin® administered at the recommended dosage to cattle weighing between 500 and 1000 lb should be provided with 191 hours (7.96 days) of protection from pneumonia-causing bacteria. Due to the pharmacokinetic properties of Draxxin®, an animal that is administered half the recommended dose is only protected from pneumonia-causing bacteria for 8 hours, which is 4.2 percent of the coverage time of the proper dose. This limits the effectiveness of the prescribed treatment to fully administer therapeutic treatment. In all cases, the correct weight-based dosing strategy cost less than any other dosing technique. Overall, dosing all cattle at the lot average weight costs $6.04 per animal more than dosing at the exact, correct dose. Dosing all animals at the lot average weight plus 50 lb costs$6.24 per animal more; dosing all animals at lot average minus 50 lb costs $4.01 per animal more. The use of individual animal weights to determine per head dosing of Draxxin® is more cost effective than using lot averages. This concept would appear to extend to all weight-based pharmaceutical products in general, and should be considered a necessary management strategy

La modificación del bienestar de los habitantes de las colonias Ojo de agua y el Triángulo durante el desarrollo de línea 12 del sistema de transporte colectivo: estación terminal Tláhuac

117 páginas. Maestría en Diseño.Uno de los principales problemas durante la creación de una obra pública es la modificación del bienestar de los habitantes de las Colonias donde se instaura el nuevo equipamiento. La discusión de este documento va dirigida hacia el establecimiento de las relaciones entre el bienestar y una obra pública, a través de la modificación de ciertos funcionamientos o determinantes del bienestar. Este trabajo describe los factores por los cuales se ve modificado el bienestar de las personas, busca explicar la relación entre apreciaciones objetivas e interpretaciones subjetivas durante el desarrollo de una obra pública cuyo propósito es favorecer y satisfacer las necesidades de movilidad de los habitantes para promover su bienestar. El estudio de caso es la construcción de la línea de Metro 12, concretamente la Estación Terminal Tláhuac y de sus impactos sobre el bienestar de los habitantes de dos Colonias cercanas; la Colonia Ojo de Agua y el Triángulo pertenecientes a la Delegación Tláhuac.Los resultados muestran que durante el desarrollo de esta obra, el bienestar de los habitantes de dichas Colonias fue modificado en aspectos positivos y negativos, provocando desde mínimos cambios en sus necesidades para algunos como severos cambios en las necesidades para otros.One of the main problems during the establishment of a public work is the modification of the welfare of the inhabitants of the colonies which establishes the new equipment. Discussion of this paper is directed towards the establishment of relations between the determinants of welfare and public works, through the modification of certain runs or determinants of welfare This paper describes the factors which is modified the welfare of individuals, explains the relationship between objective and subjective interpretations findings for the development of public works whose purpose is to promote and meet the mobility needs of the inhabitants . The analysis of the case study of the construction of the subway line 12 in particular Estación Terminal Tláhuac and its impacts on the welfare of the residents of two nearby colonies , the Colony Ojo de Agua and Triángulo belonging to Delegación Tláhuac. The results show that during the development of this work, the welfare of the inhabitants of these colonies was modified in both positive and negative , resulting from small changes in their needs to some as severe changes in the needs for others

Análisis psicométrico de la Escala de Soledad de UCLA (Versión 3) en una muestra de guardias civiles

La soledad es un constructo psicológico complejo que influye en nuestra salud a través del estrés y el cortisol. En este estudio se analizó psicométricamente la traducción española de la UCLA Loneliness Scale (Versión 3) en una muestra de miembros de la Guardia Civil. Los resultados señalaron una fiabilidad adecuada (alfa de Cronbach 0,954) para fines de investigación y de evaluación de individuos concretos. Se calculó el índice KMO (0,969), la prueba de la esfericidad de Bartlett (χ2 (190)=14.406,221, ρ<0,000) y el determinante de la matriz de correlaciones (0,0000018), para estudiar la conveniencia de realizar un análisis factorial. Para dicho análisis se utilizó la matriz de correlaciones policóricas (explica el 81,49% de la varianza total), extrayendo dos componentes a través el método de Componentes Principales y la rotación Varimax (10.184 y 1.080). No parece necesario eliminar ni revisar ninguno de los ítems (correlación ítem-total 0,486-0,804). En consecuencia, se concluye que esta escala podría ser válida para estudiar cómo influye esta variable en el estado de salud de los miembros de este cuerpo de policía militarizado.Loneliness is a complex psychological construct that influences our health through stress and cortisol. In this study we examined psychometrically the Spanish translation of the UCLA Loneliness Scale (Version 3) in a sample of members of the Guardia Civil. The results showed adequate reliability (Cronbach’s alpha .954) for research and evaluation of specific individuals. KMO index was calculated (.969), the Bartlett’s test of sphericity (χ2 (190)=14406.221, ρ<.000) and the determinant of the correlation matrix (.0000018), to examine the appropriateness of analysis factorial. For this analysis we used the polychoric correlation matrix (explains 81.49 % of the total variance), extracting two components through the principal components analysis (PCA) and varimax rotation (10,184 and 1,080). On the other hand, does not seem necessary to delete or revise any items (item-total correlation .486-.804). Consequently, it is concluded that this scale might be valid to study how this variable influences the health of the members of this militarized police force

Click Surveillance of Your Partner! Digital Violence among University Students in England

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have given rise to new forms of contact as well as new forms of violence. This research analyses whether ICTs are the cause of a new form of digital violence and studies the prevalence of this digital violence exercised through screens among university couples. A quantitative and qualitative methodology was applied in this study: a non-probabilistic purposive or discretionary sample of 303 (Age = 22.79; SD = 47.32; 58.7% male), with the use of an ad hoc questionnaire, and two focus groups of students studying in the same country. The results reveal a prevalence of 51.04% in the perception of digital violence through electronic devices in dating relationships among young people; 15.84% in the prevalence of digital violence in young couples’ relationships; 9.36% in the prevalence of traditional violence; and 35.78% in the tolerance of digital violence among young people. The results highlight a slightly higher prevalence of women compared with men in digital violence. We conclude that there is a significant prevalence of digital violence among these young couples in the university context, which should be the subject of the creation of different awareness-raising, prevention and specific training programmes against it