Vermiproductivity, maturation and microbiological changes derived from the use of liquid anaerobic digestate during the vermicomposting of market waste.

Recently, it has been suggested that the liquid fraction of anaerobic digestate, derived from the treatment of wastewater and solid wastes, could be used in vermicomposting as a solution to its disposal, and even for its valorization. Nevertheless, the literature does not provide enough information about its impact on the process of vermicomposting itself and on the final quality of the end-product. In this study, the effect of different doses of digestate in the vermicomposting process treating market waste is assessed measuring earthworm population dynamics, the bacterial community succession present in the vermibeds, as well as maturation and the end-quality of the vermicompost. Our results show that the addition of liquid digestate to the vermibeds increased the earthworms biomass, i.e. 71%, 94% and 168% in control, and vermibeds with 30% and 60% digestate, respectively. Further, the increase in the amount of N in the vermicompost decreased as the digestate addition increased, i.e. 75%, 8%, 3%. The maturity achieved was high in all treatments as shown by the C/N ratio, 7.98, 7.40 and 10.20, and the high seed germination rate, above 90%. Finally, the succession of the microbial community was not disturbed and compositional stabilization was reached after 92 days.

Factors Associated with Oral Health-Related Quality of Life in Preschoolers of Concepción, Chile: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract Objective: To identify the factors associated with Oral Health-Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) in preschool children of Concepción, Chile. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in a sample of enrolled preschoolers who attend public schools in Concepción, Chile. To measure OHRQoL, the chilean version of the Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale (ECOHIS) was used; sociodemographic variables of the children and their parents were also recorded, as well as variables regarding the last visit to the dentist. To determine differences in the ECOHIS score for categorical variables, ANOVA and t-test were used, while Pearson's r was used to correlate ECOHIS with quantitative variables (p<0.05). Results: A total of 175 children were surveyed, with a distribution of 89 boys and 86 girls aged 56-to-79 months. The total score of the ECOHIS had a mean of 4.48 ±5.96, with a score between 0-38. Statistically significant associations were with parent's educational attainment (r=−0.159), dmft (r=0.380), OHI-S debris (r=0.174) and reason for the last visit to the dentist, the highest average in the ECOHIS scores was registered in the urgency reason. Conclusion: Oral health status, dental service utilization and educational level are associated with the OHRQoL of preschoolers of Concepción (AU).