[Intermediate Care Units dependent on Internal Medicine in a hospital without an Intensive Care Unit]. / Unidad de Cuidados Intermedios dependiente de Medicina Interna en un hospital sin Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos.

Intermediate care units are considered a solution for care of patients who require superior care than those in a normal hospitalization ward but are not amenable to intensive therapy. We present our experience with an open model, with a responsible person of the ward appointed to the Internal Medicine Department, that could be assumed in other hospitals without Intensive Care Unit in which these units would also avoid unnecessary transfers or make it possible to optimize them so that these are done under better conditions.

[Detection of HIV antibodies in saliva using a rapid diagnostic immunoenzyme assay]. / Detección de anticuerpos anti-VIH en saliva con un enzimoinmunoensayo de diagnóstico rápido.

The usefulness of an enzyme-immunoassay (EIA) monotest (TESTPACK HIV-1/HIV-2, ABBOTT) was evaluated in the rapid diagnosis of anti-HIV antibodies in whole saliva in an intravenous drug abuser population (IVDA). Anti-HIV antibodies were simultaneous and prospectively measured in serum and whole saliva from 70 IVDA patients. To improve the sensitivity of the test 100 microliters of saliva were added instead of the recommended serum volume. In the 35 seropositive subjects saliva yielded a distinct positive result (Sensitivity=1), and in the 35 seronegative subjects a negative result (Specificity = 1). A statistically significant association between serum and saliva antibody levels was observed. These findings show the usefulness of a EIA monotest with whole saliva as an alternative sample to serum in the measurement of HIV-antibodies in high-risk patients.