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Urban areas are facing challenges for the provision of public services, with water scarcity arising as one of the main problems. A twin track approach of supply and demand management is essential, and water-loss management contributes to reducing water demand. However, small municipalities from developing countries have technical, information, and financial limitations to locate and monitor water losses. This paper presents the estimation of real and apparent losses in a small municipality from a developing country in a data-scarce situation. For this, several tools were used, allowing data integration that resulted in a water balance, from which water losses were estimated at 46%, and four alternatives for water-loss reduction were developed. A cost-benefit analysis and financial indicators were estimated for the proposed alternatives, resulting in a water savings of 19%, a payback period of 3 years and an internal rate of return of 39%. The proposed strategies have potential to improve water quantity and quality, the technical stability of the system, utility performance, and water security.

Our aim was to identify the potential risk factors for developing post-traumatic endophthalmitis (PTE) and the possible measures of prevention. Retrospective case-control study, with 15 cases of PTE and 2 matched controls. We reviewed the medical records of the cases and their respective controls during the period 1996-2008 at a Spanish Hospital. We collected demographic data and information about the type of trauma, the potential risk factors, comorbidities, microbial isolations, antimicrobial susceptibility, administered treatments, and the visual outcome. The independent predictor factors identified for PTE were intraocular foreign body (IOFB) (OR 5.48; CI 95 % 1.05-28.7), dirty wound (OR 4.91; CI 95 % 0.96-25.3), and wound closure delays of 24 h or more (OR 5.48; CI 95 % 1.05-28.7). The probability of endophthalmitis in patients without these risk factors was 5.9 %, but ascended to 65.3 % and 90.3 %, in those patients with two and three risk factors, respectively. Infected patients presented a complication rate of 80 %, with an evisceration rate of 53 %; both were significantly associated with infection. The visual outcome was poor and related to the presence of IOFB and virulent microorganisms (Bacillus sp., filamentous fungus), visual acuity at presentation, and retinal detachment. Patients who presented an IOFB, dirty wound, and delayed wound closure were 15 times more likely to develop infection, and when infected, patients fared much worse than those non-infected. We thus recommend aggressive prophylactic measures in patients with these risk factors, adding antifungal prophylaxis when the injury is contaminated with vegetable matter.

While they account for one-fifth of new cancer cases, rare cancers are difficult to study. A higher than average degree of uncertainty should be accommodated for clinical as well as for population-based decision making. Rules of rational decision making in conditions of uncertainty should be rigorously followed and would need widely informative clinical trials. In principle, any piece of new evidence would need to be exploited in rare cancers. Methodologies to explicitly weigh and combine all the available evidence should be refined, and the Bayesian logic can be instrumental to this end. Likewise, Bayesian-design trials may help optimize the low number of patients liable to be enrolled in clinical studies on rare cancers, as well as adaptive trials in general, with their inherent potential of flexibility when properly applied. While clinical studies are the mainstay to test hypotheses, the potential of electronic patient records should be exploited to generate new hypotheses, to create external controls for future studies (when internal controls are unpractical), to study effectiveness of new treatments in real conditions. Framework study protocols in specific rare cancers to stepwisely test sets of new agents, as from the early post-phase I development stage, should be encouraged. Also the compassionate and the off-label settings should be exploited to generate new evidence, and flexible regulatory innovations such as adaptive licensing could convey new agents early to rare cancer patients, while generating evidence. Though validation of surrogate end points is problematic in rare cancers, the use of an updated notion of tumor response may be of great value in the single patient to optimize the use of therapies, all the more the new ones. Disease-based communities, involving clinicians and patients, should be regularly consulted by regulatory bodies when setting their policies on drug approval and reimbursement in specific rare cancers ., While they account for one-fifth of new cancer cases, rare cancers are difficult to study. A higher than average degree of uncertainty should be accommodated for clinical as well as for population-based decision making. Rules of rational decision making in conditions of uncertainty should be rigorously followed and would need widely informative clinical trials. In principle, any piece of new evidence would need to be exploited in rare cancers. Methodologies to explicitly weigh and combine all the available evidence should be refined, and the Bayesian logic can be instrumental to this end. Likewise, Bayesian-design trials may help optimize the low number of patients liable to be enrolled in clinical studies on rare cancers, as well as adaptive trials in general, with their inherent potential of flexibility when properly applied. While clinical studies are the mainstay to test hypotheses, the potential of electronic patient records should be exploited to generate new hypotheses, to create external controls for future studies (when internal controls are unpractical), to study effectiveness of new treatments in real conditions. Framework study protocols in specific rare cancers to sequentially test sets of new agents, as from the early post-phase I development stage, should be encouraged. Also the compassionate and the off-label settings should be exploited to generate new evidence, and flexible regulatory innovations such as adaptive licensing could convey new agents early to rare cancer patients, while generating evidence. Though validation of surrogate end points is problematic in rare cancers, the use of an updated notion of tumor response may be of great value in the single patient to optimize the use of therapies, all the more the new ones. Disease-based communities, involving clinicians and patients, should be regularly consulted by regulatory bodies when setting their policies on drug approval and reimbursement in specific rare cancers.

Background and Objectives: Endoscopic ultraendosonography (UES) is a sensitive technique for the diagnosis of choledocholithiasis. Our study aimed to determine the positive predictive value (PPV) of UES for the detection of choledocholithiasis. Methods: We performed a descriptive, retrospective, prospective observational, analytical study, with 150 patients who met the inclusion criteria. Endosonography and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) were performed in the Union of Surgeons Clinical Presentation of the city of Manizales; statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS version 21 program. Results: Fifty-five patients (36.7%) were male and 95 (63.3%) were female. Of the 150 patients positive for choledocholithiasis by UES, 29 of them (19.3%) had images compatible with the presence of bile clay, with 28 patients corroborated in ERCP, with a PPV of 96.6%. As for choledocholithiasis, it was corroborated in 139 patients in ERCP for a PPV of 92.7%. Conclusion: Endosonography has a high valor preditivo positivo for the detection of calculi and mud in the bile duct, being useful in the diagnosis of choledocholithiasis, due to its sensitivity for the detection of microlithiasis (

Our objectives are to describe the microbial spectrum and antimicrobial susceptibility of isolates from patients with culture-proven endophthalmitis.Retrospective study of patients with microbiological diagnosis of endophthalmitis treated at the Ophthalmology Department of the General Hospital La Mancha Centro in the period 1996-2008. The identification of isolates was performed using the automated VITEK-2® and Api galleries (bioMérieux, Spain SA). The antimicrobial susceptibility was performed by the VITEK-2® system (bioMérieux, Spain SA), E-test strips (MIC Test Strip, Liofilchem, Italy) and Sensititre® YeastOne trading system (Trek Diagnostic Systems, Ohio, USA) for Candida species.Forty four (70%) of 63 cases of endophthalmitis were culture positive. Gram-positive bacteria were much more common than gram-negative bacteria in both postoperative endophthalmitis (POE) and post-traumatic endophthalmitis (PTE). Staphylococcus epidermidis was predominant in POE, while Bacillus sp. predominated in the PTE; furthermore, the 75% of total fungal isolates corresponded to postraumatic cases. The isolated strains showed 100% susceptibility to vancomycin, ceftazidime and amikacin, while resistance to ciprofloxacin was greater than 15%. The empirical antifungal therapy failed in 50% of cases. The visual prognosis was significantly less favorable in the PTE.Based on the susceptibility of our isolates, vancomycin, ceftazidime and amikacin are good choices for empirical treatment of endophthalmitis, unlike ciprofloxacin. We recommend conducting antifungal prophylaxis after penetrating ocular trauma in a rural environment.

The search for techniques that allow a more efficient use of water is a global task, since this resource is increasingly scarce and its quality is constantly deteriorating. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of applying coconut fiber CF on physical-hydric parameters of the soil and its water use efficiency (WUE). The effects of coconut fiber (CF) were assessed on water consumption, water use efficiency and aerial and root biomass of Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorumL.). In addition, it was also evaluated whether CF causes toxic effects on lettuce seeds (Lactuca sativaL.). Treatments were established according to the proportion of CF and soil in g g-1soil CF: T1 = 1:80, T2 = 1:40 and T3 = 1:20, and a control treatment (T0 = no substrate). Additionally, 3 charges of water (100, 75, 50 % of field capacity) were established. Results showed that the best treatment for water consumption was T3-50 (377.8 ml), for WUE the best treatment was T3-100 (8.52 kg DM m-3), for aerial biomass it was T3-100 (4.59 g MS) and in the case of root biomass the best treatment was T3-100 (1.92 g MS). It was concluded that the addition of coconut fiber substrate to the mix improves the physical and hydrological characteristics of degraded soil. There were no toxic effects on lettuce among the applied rates of CF. The germination index (IG) ranged from 124.82 to 156.03 % and the best treatments were T3 and T2. &nbsp, La búsqueda de alternativas que permitan un uso más eficiente del agua es una tarea mundial, puesto que este recurso es cada vez más escaso y su calidad se deteriora. De ahí que la presente investigación tuvo como objetivo determinar el efecto de la aplicación de fibra de coco (FC) sobre parámetros físico-hídricos del suelo y su eficiencia en el uso del agua (EUA). Se probaron los efectos de la FC sobre el gasto de agua, sobre la EUA, biomasa aérea y radical en ballica italiana (Lolium multiflorumL.). Además se evaluó si la FC presenta efectos tóxicos sobre las semillas de lechuga (Lactuca sativaL.). Los tratamientos fueron establecidos de acuerdo a la proporción de FC y suelo, en gramos FC g-1suelo: T1 = 1:80, T2 = 1:40 y T3 = 1:20, y un testigo (T0 = Sin sustrato). Adicionalmente, se establecieron 3 cargas de agua (100, 75, 50 % de capacidad de campo). Los resultados muestran que el menor consumo de agua se dio en el tratamiento T3-50 (377,8 ml), para la EUA el mejor tratamiento fue T3-100 (8,52 kg MS m-3), para biomasa aérea, el mejor fue el tratamiento T3-100 (4,59 g MS) y en el caso de la biomasa radical su mejor tratamiento fue el T3-100 (1,92 g MS). Por lo tanto, al adicionar el sustrato de fibra de coco en la mezcla, este permite un mejoramiento en las características físico-hídricas del suelo degradado. Las pruebas con lechuga indicaron que no existen efectos tóxicos entre las dosis aplicadas de FC. Los índices de germinación (IG) variaron entre 124,82 a 156,03 % y los mejores tratamientos fueron para T3 y T2. &nbsp

Poster presented at the Fourth International Conference from Nanoparticles and Nanomaterials to Nanodevices and Nanosystems that took place in Corfu Island (Greece) during 16-20th June 2013., This study [1] addresses the growth dynamics of nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films deposited by hot-filament chemical vapor deposition (HFCVD). It is based on the statistical analysis of the evolution of the surface morphology of the films at the mesoscale using atomic force microscopy (AFM). Concepts of the Dynamic Scaling Theory are used focusing on the changes of the growing surface roughness and its lateral correlations with time. In conclusion, the NCD growth dynamics displays two growth regimes., JGB would like to thank the Executive Research Agency of the EU for funding under Marie Curie grant 272448 support by Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid (S2009/PPQ-1642) and Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (FIS2012-38866-C05-05).

Ni-TiO2nanocomposites coatings with a layer thickness of 21 μm have been obtained by electrocodeposition. Incorporation in nickel matrix of TiO2nanoparticles (10 nm), affects the morphology of the nickel matrix as indicated from scanning electron microscope (SEM) and atomic force microscope (AFM) results. The chemical composition was studied by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Analysis by X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed the inclusion of nickel particles in the matrix and their effect on nickel matrix crystal size changes., This work was financially supported by the research Project IFA-CEA C2-02/01/03/2012.

Even though concentrations of most chemical elements in Antarctic ecosystems are very low as compared to other world's areas, their increasing time trends, as a consequence of the strong population growth and industrial development in countries of the Southern Hemisphere, could be affecting some vulnerable endemic species such as penguins. Concentrations (dry weight) of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg) and lead (Pb) and porphyrins (copro-, uro- and proto-) were determined in feces of Gentoo penguins (Pygoscelis papua), collected at two locations of the Antarctic Peninsula (O'Higgins and Videla). We found higher (p< 0.05) levels of Hg in excreta of penguin colonies at O'Higgins (7.55 ± 1.28 μg g-1), whereas penguins at Videla showed the highest concentrations of Cd (1.68 ± 0.71 μg g-1). Gentoo penguins from O'Higgins site showed higher levels of copro- (1.81 ± 0.61 nmol g-1), uro- (1.74 ± 0.72 nmol g-1) and protoporphyrins (1.24 ± 0.46 nmol g-1), directly related to higher levels of Hg and Pb measured. These findings imply that some Gentoo penguin colonies of the Antarctic Peninsula are likely to develop some biochemical effects through trace metal contamination at some level. These preliminary results raise concerns about anthropogenic pollutants in Antarctica. Aunque las concentraciones de la mayoría de los elementos químicos en la Antártica son bajas en comparación con otras áreas del planeta, éstas se han ido incrementando con el tiempo debido al gran crecimiento de la población y desarrollo industrial de los países del Hemisferio Sur, lo cual podría estar afectando a especies vulnerables como los pingüinos. Se determinaron las concentraciones (peso seco) de arsénico (As), cadmio (Cd), mercurio (Hg) y plomo (Pb) y porfirinas (copro-, uro- y proto-) en heces de colonias de pingüinos Papua (Pygoscelis papua), colectadas en dos lugares de la península Antártica (O'Higgins y Videla). Se encontraron mayores (P < 0,05) niveles de Hg (7,55 ± 1,28 μg g-1) en las heces de colonias de pingüinos en O'Higgins, mientras que las colonias de pingüinos en Videla exhibieron mayores concentraciones de Cd (1,68 ± 0,71 μg g-1). Los pingüinos Papua de O'Higgins mostraron mayores (P < 0,05) niveles de copro- (1,81 ± 0,61 nmol g-1), uro- (1,74 ± 0,72 nmol g-1) y protoporfirinas (1,24 ± 0,46 nmol g-1), en directa relación con los mayores niveles de Hg y Pb medidos. Esto podría implicar que algunas colonias de pingüinos Papua de la península Antártica están propensas a desarrollar algunos efectos bioquímicos asociados a contaminación por metales traza. Estos resultados preliminares levantan inquietantes interrogantes acerca de la contaminación de origen antropogénico que estaría afectando áreas tan remotas como la Antártica.

The biocompatible metals made available for powder injection moulding (PIM) are increasing, and as a result, the PIM process is becoming attractive for manufacturers of medical implants and surgical instruments. In addition, friction and wear properties play an important role in biomaterial applications. This study aimed to systematically investigate the fretting wear properties of 316L stainless steel parts produced by PIM under dry contact conditions. The fretting experiments were performed under gross-slip regime. The influence of a number of fretting test parameters on the friction and wear behaviour was investigated, as the contact frequency, the normal load, and number of reciprocating sliding cycles. Fretting tests were performed against corundum counter bodies. After the tests, the wear scars were examined by laser surface profilometry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis. The results indicate that wear occurred predominantly by abrasion, plastic deformation, and cracking.

OBJETIVO: Determinar la frecuencia de litiasis vesicular en pacientes post-operados con gastrectomía por adenocarcinoma gástrico, determinar el tiempo de aparición de litiasis vesicular en pacientes gastrectomizados por Adenocarcinoma Gástrico. MÉTODOS: Se realizo un estudio observacional, descriptivo retrospectivo. Se revisó un total de 148 historias clínicas de pacientes sometidos a gastrectomía por adenocarcinoma gástrico en el Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Neoplásicas en el periodo de 1990 al 2000. RESULTADOS: De los 148 casos de pacientes post gastrectomizados por adenocarcinoma gástrico que fueron enrolados, 29(19.6%) presentaron litiasis vesicular versus 119(80.9%) que no presentaron litiasis vesicular como complicación post gastrectomía. La media de edad de 29 pacientes con litiasis vesicular post gastrectomía por adenocarcinoma gástrico fue de 59.9años (min. 39años máx.74años). La distribución de la litiasis vesicular en relación al sexo fue, femenino 18(62.1%) casos y masculino 11(37.9%) casos. La media del tiempo de aparición de la litiasis vesicular post gastrectomía fue de 3.1 años, para el sexo masculino 2.7años y para el sexo femenino de 3.3 años .Según el tipo de cirugía se presento litiasis vesicular en 14 pacientes que fueron sometidos a Gastrectomía Subtotal Distal y a 15 pacientes a los que se les practicó Gastrectomía Total. CONCLUSIONES: la Frecuencia de litiasis vesicular post gastrectomía fue de 19.6% . El periodo de aparición de colelitiasis fue de 3.1 años. La colecistectomía podría ser una toma de decisión importante en pacientes con alto riesgo de litiasis y cáncer vesicular post gastrectomía. El presente trabajo de investigación invita a realizar otros estudios de tipo cohorte en el cual se determine el factor de riesgo principal para la aparición de esta complicación. SUBJECT: To determinate the frecuency and the time of development of the gallbladder stones in gastrectomy post-operated patients with stomach adenocarcinoma at The National Cancer Institute in Lima, Peru. METHODS: In an observational, descriptive and retrospective case series design, 148 patiens' files who underwent gastrectomy for stomach adenocarcinoma in the National Cancer Institue of Lima during 1990 and 2000, have been reviewed looking for the development. RESULTS: A total de 148 patients were involved in this study. 29 of them (19.6%) develop gallbladder stones during the (x years of) follow up vs 119 (80.9%). The mean age ot the 29 patients with gallbladder stones were 59.9 years ans 18 of them were female and 11 male.\The mean time of develop gallbladder stones was 3.1 years. According to the type of surgery, 14 patient wiht gallbladder stones underwent to subtotal gastrectomy and 15 to total gastrectomy. CONCLUSIONS The frecuency of gallbladder stones post gastrectomy in this study was 19.6%. The mean time of the develop and diagnosis of litiasis was 3.1 years. To perform the colecistectomy at the same time of the gastrectomy could be an important decision in patients with high risk of gallstones and gallbladder cancer. We need furthermore studies to have conclusions about the risk factors.

Even though titanium (Ti) has the ability to develop a highly stable passive oxide layer (TiO2) that provides an excellent corrosion resistance; it’s not inert to corrosive attack. Under in vivo conditions, such as in orthopedic and dental implants, a tribological contact may be formed in association with a chemical aggressive environment. Consequently, wear debris and corrosion products or ions can lead to inflammatory reactions, such as osteolysis (bone resorption), provoking peri-prosthetic bone loss and subsequent loosening of the implant/prosthesis [1]. The microbial effect on the corrosion of metallic biomaterials remains unknown. Chang et al. [2] reported an increase on the corrosion behaviour of dental metallic materials in the presence of Streptococcus mutans and its growth byproducts. Moreover, brushing can lead to the production of wear debris, which together with the attachment of microbes can disturb the passivity of the metal oxide. In addition, the organic acids produced by bacteria may reduce the pH, favoring the corrosion and tribocorrosion of implants. The aim of this work was to study the influence of mixed biofilms on the biotribocorrosion behaviour of commercially pure (cp) Ti for dental implants, and the consequent effect of fluoride.