Cefazolin plus ertapenem and heart transplantation as salvage therapy for refractory LVAD infection due to methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus: A case series.

The use of left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) is increasingly more common as the availability of donor organs in relation to failing hearts is outstandingly limited. Infections are the most common complications in LVAD recipients, particularly those caused by Staphylococcus spp. Refractory LVAD-related infections are not uncommon as achieving adequate source control is often not feasible before heart transplantation. Evidence suggest that cefazolin plus ertapenem is effective in refractory methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) bacteremia, but this approach has not been described in LVAD recipients. In this article, we report two cases of refractory MSSA bacteremia in LVAD recipients that were successfully treated with salvage therapy with cefazolin plus ertapenem and subsequent heart transplantation. This treatment strategy should be considered in patients with refractory LVAD-associated infection due to MSSA that are not responding to standard treatment.

Evaluation of angiogenesis, inflammation, and healing on irradiated skin graft with low-level laser therapy in rats (Rattus norvegicus albinus wistar).

The reconstructive techniques have been widely used in Veterinary Medicine. The post-operative adjuvants therapies like the low-level laser therapy (LLLT) are used to decrease inherent complications to reconstructive surgeries. This article purposed to define the LLLT effects on the healing, inflammation, and vascularization of the skin grafts in applicable time intervals to veterinary surgical routine. Forty rats (Rattus norvegicus albinus wistar) were used and each one was submitted to autogenous cutaneous mesh grafting in the interescapular region. The rats were randomly distributed in five groups (G1, G2, G3, G4, and G5) in accordance with the 6 J/cm2 or 10 J/cm2 dose every 3 or 5 days. These treatments were applied on the skin graft for 15 days. The histochemical evaluation with Picrosirius showed greater expression of collagen type 1 - red in grafts of G5 (p < 0.05), while in G1 did not; the expression of collagen type III - green was not induced by LLLT. The histochemical evaluation with hematoxylin-eosin showed greater numbers of fibroblasts in grafts of G4 (p < 0.05) and less hemorrhage in grafts of G5 (p < 0.05). There was modulation of the inflammatory response in irradiated skin grafts. It is concluded the exhibition of the skin grafts to 6 J/cm2 or 10 J/cm2 dose every 5 days improved the healing and the modulation of the local inflammation.

Advantages of ion-based mole fractions for describing phase equilibria in ionic liquids: application to gas solubility.

Despite the obvious ionic character of ionic liquids (ILs), previous studies of phase equilibria in these media were formulated implicitly assuming a "molecular" behavior of the ionic solvent. In this work, a more appropriate thermodynamic treatment is applied to describe the solubility of gases in ILs. According to our results, if the concentration is expressed on an ionic basis, solutions of simple gases in ILs display rather small deviations from ideal behavior in wide composition ranges, whereas deviations are larger when the solvent is considered as an anion-cation pair. The present thermodynamic formulation also accounts for the observed solid-liquid phase equilibria of molecular and IL binary mixtures.

Prueba de Estimulacion por Frio como Metodo Predictivo del Comportamiento Tensional Perioperatorio en Pacientes Hipertensos / Col stimulation test as a predictive method of perioperative blood pressure behaviours in hypertensive patients

Se estudiaron 77 pacientes hipertensos pendientes de cirugia mayor electiva, a los cuales se les realizo prueba de estimulacion por frio, 72 horas antes de la intervencion para precisar la sensibilidad y especificidad de esta prueba en la prediccion del comportamiento tensional perioperatorio en estos pacientes, asi como precisar el punto de corte optimo para el diagnostico positivo de la prueba. Se encontro una correlacion adecuada entre el comportamiento tensional perioperatorio y los resultados de la prueba. Su sensibilidad fue del 95,7 pr ciento y la especificidad del 98,1 por ciento: el punto de corte optimo se correspondio con el planteado en la literatura revisada

Prueba de Estimulación por Frío como Método Predictivo del Comportamiento Tensional Perioperatorio en Pacientes Hipertensos / Col stimulation test as a predictive method of perioperative blood pressure behaviours in hypertensive patients

Se estudiaron 77 pacientes hipertensos pendientes de cirugía mayor electiva, a los cuales se les realizó prueba de estimulación por frío, 72 horas antes de la intervención para precisar la sensibilidad y especificidad de esta prueba en la predicción del comportamiento tensional perioperatorio en estos pacientes, así como precisar el punto de corte óptimo para el diagnóstico positivo de la prueba. Se encontró una correlación adecuada entre el comportamiento tensional perioperatorio y los resultados de la prueba. Su sensibilidad fue del 95,7 pr ciento y la especificidad del 98,1 por ciento: el punto de corte óptimo se correspondió con el planteado en la literatura revisada (AU)

Hepatitis reactiva por giardia lamblia. Aspectos diferenciales con las hepatitis virales / m

Se estudiaron 25 pacientes con trastornos digestivos de la esfera hepatobiliar y niveles de alaninoaminotransferasa elevados, donde el único factor causal fue el parasitismo a Giardia lamblia. En 22 de estos casos existian lesiones hísticas compatibles con hepatitis reactiva. Fueron seguidos durante 3 meses y se normalizaron las alteraciones humorales e histicas después del tratamiento antiparasitario. Se compararon los resultados de las variables humorales con los de 30 pacientes con hepatitis viral tipo A y B y se apreciaron diferencias significativas (p < 0,01) con los del grupo de estudio. La regresión de las lesiones hísticas del higado en breve tiempo sólo con el tratamiento antiparasitario, permite relacionarlas con el parasitismo a Giardia lamblia (AU)