Significance of anti-HB levels below 10 IU/L after vaccination against hepatitis B in infancy or adolescence: an update in relation to sex

Hepatitis B vaccination (three-dose series) induces long-term immunity, but it is not uncommon to find antibody levels below 10 IU/L long after vaccination. However, the majority of the subjects with low antibody levels have a prompt response to a booster dose. A population of 10,294 students at Padua University Medical School, who were subjected to hepatitis B vaccination during infancy or adolescence according to the law, was tested for the presence of anti-HBs, usually during the first year of matriculation. Among the students offered a booster dose, 1,030 were vaccinated, and the antibody titre was re-tested. The present research provides further evidence from a larger number of students (1,030) that an anti-HB level higher than 2 IU/L is predictive of a prompt response to a booster. There are also differences related to sex. The results clearly confirm that an antibody titre equal to or greater than 2 IU/L is enough to prompt a response after a booster dose, even several years after the initial vaccination cycle, and to predict effective immune protection. The length of the interval between the booster/post-booster analyses increases the probability of finding a low response to the booster; furthermore, females show a more rapid response to the booster than males. The importance for healthcare workers of measuring the antibody titre four weeks after a booster is highlighted, and the results suggest that females have a better response than males to booster vaccination

Analysis of the medical waste production rate in a teaching hospital

Objective: To identify the medical waste production rates (kg.bed-1.day-1) for the waste groups A, B, D (including recyclables) and E, and to verify seasonal influence in the generation of waste. Methods: Data were collected by weighing the waste, during seven consecutive days for four weeks, with each week corresponding to a season. Results: The waste production rate presented the following values in kg.bed-1.day-1 for each group: A: 0.831, B: 0.088, D: 2,607, D-Recyclable: 0.525 and E: 0.102. Based on the analysis of variance (ANOVA) test, it was not found evidence that seasonality influences with the generation of the waste. Conclusion: Hospitals with similar numbers of beds have divergent values for the waste production rates, therefore it was not possible to use a reference rate for comparison with other hospitals. Finally, the ANOVA test did not found evidence that seasonality influences the generation of the waste

Análise da taxa de geração de resíduos de serviços de saúde em um hospital universitário Analysis of the medical waste production rate in a teaching hospital

Objetivo: identificar as taxas de geração de resíduos do serviço de saúde (kg.leito-1.dia-1) para os grupos de resíduos A, B, D (incluindo os recicláveis) e E,  verificar a influência da sazonalidade na geração de resíduos. Metodologia: os dados foram coletados através de pesagens desses resíduos, durante sete dias consecutivos, em quatro semanas, sendo que cada semana contemplou uma estação do ano. Resultados: a taxa de geração de resíduos apresentou os seguintes valores em kg.leito-1.dia-1 para cada grupo: A: 0,831, B: 0,088, D: 2,607, D-Recicláveis: 0,525 e E: 0,102. Através do teste ANOVA nã5o foram encontradas evidências de que haja influência da sazonalidade na geração dos resíduos. Conclusões: hospitais com número de leitos semelhantes apresentam taxas de geração de resíduos diferentes, portanto não foi possível utilizar uma taxa de geração de referência para comparação com outros hospitais. Ainda, o teste ANOVA não indicou que a sazonalidade influencia a geração de resíduos

Análise da taxa de geração de resíduos de serviços de saúde em um hospital universitário Analysis of the medical waste production rate in a teaching hospital

Objetivo: identificar as taxas de geração de resíduos do serviço de saúde (kg.leito-1.dia-1) para os grupos de resíduos A, B, D (incluindo os recicláveis) e E,  verificar a influência da sazonalidade na geração de resíduos. Metodologia: os dados foram coletados através de pesagens desses resíduos, durante sete dias consecutivos, em quatro semanas, sendo que cada semana contemplou uma estação do ano. Resultados: a taxa de geração de resíduos apresentou os seguintes valores em kg.leito-1.dia-1 para cada grupo: A: 0,831, B: 0,088, D: 2,607, D-Recicláveis: 0,525 e E: 0,102. Através do teste ANOVA nã5o foram encontradas evidências de que haja influência da sazonalidade na geração dos resíduos. Conclusões: hospitais com número de leitos semelhantes apresentam taxas de geração de resíduos diferentes, portanto não foi possível utilizar uma taxa de geração de referência para comparação com outros hospitais. Ainda, o teste ANOVA não indicou que a sazonalidade influencia a geração de resíduos

Canagliflozin and renal outcomes in type 2 diabetes and nephropathy

BACKGROUND Type 2 diabetes mellitus is the leading cause of kidney failure worldwide, but few effective long-term treatments are available. In cardiovascular trials of inhibitors of sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2), exploratory results have suggested that such drugs may improve renal outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes. METHODS In this double-blind, randomized trial, we assigned patients with type 2 diabetes and albuminuric chronic kidney disease to receive canagliflozin, an oral SGLT2 inhibitor, at a dose of 100 mg daily or placebo. All the patients had an estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) of 30 to <90 ml per minute per 1.73 m2 of body-surface area and albuminuria (ratio of albumin [mg] to creatinine [g], >300 to 5000) and were treated with renin–angiotensin system blockade. The primary outcome was a composite of end-stage kidney disease (dialysis, transplantation, or a sustained estimated GFR of <15 ml per minute per 1.73 m2), a doubling of the serum creatinine level, or death from renal or cardiovascular causes. Prespecified secondary outcomes were tested hierarchically. RESULTS The trial was stopped early after a planned interim analysis on the recommendation of the data and safety monitoring committee. At that time, 4401 patients had undergone randomization, with a median follow-up of 2.62 years. The relative risk of the primary outcome was 30% lower in the canagliflozin group than in the placebo group, with event rates of 43.2 and 61.2 per 1000 patient-years, respectively (hazard ratio, 0.70; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.59 to 0.82; P=0.00001). The relative risk of the renal-specific composite of end-stage kidney disease, a doubling of the creatinine level, or death from renal causes was lower by 34% (hazard ratio, 0.66; 95% CI, 0.53 to 0.81; P<0.001), and the relative risk of end-stage kidney disease was lower by 32% (hazard ratio, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.54 to 0.86; P=0.002). The canagliflozin group also had a lower risk of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke (hazard ratio, 0.80; 95% CI, 0.67 to 0.95; P=0.01) and hospitalization for heart failure (hazard ratio, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.47 to 0.80; P<0.001). There were no significant differences in rates of amputation or fracture. CONCLUSIONS In patients with type 2 diabetes and kidney disease, the risk of kidney failure and cardiovascular events was lower in the canagliflozin group than in the placebo group at a median follow-up of 2.62 years

Design and baseline characteristics of the finerenone in reducing cardiovascular mortality and morbidity in diabetic kidney disease trial

Background: Among people with diabetes, those with kidney disease have exceptionally high rates of cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality and progression of their underlying kidney disease. Finerenone is a novel, nonsteroidal, selective mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist that has shown to reduce albuminuria in type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) while revealing only a low risk of hyperkalemia. However, the effect of finerenone on CV and renal outcomes has not yet been investigated in long-term trials. Patients and Methods: The Finerenone in Reducing CV Mortality and Morbidity in Diabetic Kidney Disease (FIGARO-DKD) trial aims to assess the efficacy and safety of finerenone compared to placebo at reducing clinically important CV and renal outcomes in T2D patients with CKD. FIGARO-DKD is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, event-driven trial running in 47 countries with an expected duration of approximately 6 years. FIGARO-DKD randomized 7,437 patients with an estimated glomerular filtration rate >= 25 mL/min/1.73 m(2) and albuminuria (urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio >= 30 to <= 5,000 mg/g). The study has at least 90% power to detect a 20% reduction in the risk of the primary outcome (overall two-sided significance level alpha = 0.05), the composite of time to first occurrence of CV death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or hospitalization for heart failure. Conclusions: FIGARO-DKD will determine whether an optimally treated cohort of T2D patients with CKD at high risk of CV and renal events will experience cardiorenal benefits with the addition of finerenone to their treatment regimen. Trial Registration: EudraCT number: 2015-000950-39; ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02545049