Odor emission assessment of different WWTPs with Extended Aeration Activated Sludge and Rotating Biological Contactor technologies in the province of Cordoba (Spain).

In this study, five urban WWTPs (Wastewater Treatment Plant) with different biological treatment (Extended Aeration Activated Sludge - EAAS; Rotating Biological Contactor - RBC), wastewater type (Urban; Industrial) and size, were jointly evaluated. The aim was twofold: (1) to analyze and compare their odor emissions, and (2) to identify the main causes of its generation from the relationships between physico-chemical, respirometric and olfactometric variables. The results showed that facilities with EAAS technology were more efficient than RBC, with elimination yields of organic matter higher than 90%. In olfactometric terms, sludge managements facilities (SMFs) were found to be the critical odor source in all WWTPs compared to the Inlet point (I) or Post primary treatment (PP), and for seasonal periods with ambient temperature higher than 25 °C. Moreover, the global odor emissions quantified in all SMFs revealed that facilities with EAAS (C-WWTP, V-WWTP and Z-WWTP) had a lower odor contribution (19,345, 14,800 and 11,029 ouE/s·m2, respectively) than for those with RBC technology (P-WWTP and NC-WWTP) which accounted for 19,747 ouE/s·m2 and 80,061 ouE/s·m2, respectively. In addition, chemometric analysis helped to find groupings and differences between the WWTPs considering the wastewater (71.27% of total variance explained) and sludge management (64.52% of total variance explained) lines independently. Finally, odor emissions were adequately predicted from the physico-chemical and respirometric variables in the wastewater (r2 = 0.8738) and sludge (r2 = 0.9373) lines, being pH, volatile acidity and temperature (wastewater line), and pH, moisture, temperature, SOUR (Specific Oxygen Uptake Rate) and OD20 (Cumulative Oxygen Demand at 20 h) (sludge line) the most influential variables.

Decreased rotational flow and circumferential wall shear stress as early markers of descending aorta dilation in Marfan syndrome: a 4D flow CMR study.

BACKGROUND: Diseases of the descending aorta have emerged as a clinical issue in Marfan syndrome following improvements in proximal aorta surgical treatment and the consequent increase in life expectancy. Although a role for hemodynamic alterations in the etiology of descending aorta disease in Marfan patients has been suggested, whether flow characteristics may be useful as early markers remains to be determined. METHODS: Seventy-five Marfan patients and 48 healthy subjects were prospectively enrolled. In- and through-plane vortexes were computed by 4D flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) in the thoracic aorta through the quantification of in-plane rotational flow and systolic flow reversal ratio, respectively. Regional pulse wave velocity and axial and circumferential wall shear stress maps were also computed. RESULTS: In-plane rotational flow and circumferential wall shear stress were reduced in Marfan patients in the distal ascending aorta and in proximal descending aorta, even in the 20 patients free of aortic dilation. Multivariate analysis showed reduced in-plane rotational flow to be independently related to descending aorta pulse wave velocity. Conversely, systolic flow reversal ratio and axial wall shear stress were altered in unselected Marfan patients but not in the subgroup without dilation. In multivariate regression analysis proximal descending aorta axial (p = 0.014) and circumferential (p = 0.034) wall shear stress were independently related to local diameter. CONCLUSIONS: Reduced rotational flow is present in the aorta of Marfan patients even in the absence of dilation, is related to aortic stiffness and drives abnormal circumferential wall shear stress. Axial and circumferential wall shear stress are independently related to proximal descending aorta dilation beyond clinical factors. In-plane rotational flow and circumferential wall shear stress may be considered as an early marker of descending aorta dilation in Marfan patients.

Nivel de autoestima y correlación con comportamientos de riesgo en alumnos de la Universidad de Almería / Self-esteem level and correlation to risk behaviour of students at the University of Almería (Spain)

Objetivo. Evaluar el nivel de autoestima de universitarios almerienses y su posible relación con comportamientos de riesgo, concretamente el consumo de drogas y comportamiento sexual. Método. Diseño prolectivo, transversal, descriptivo, observacional, en el que se ha utilizado un cuestionario autocumplimentado para recoger los datos. Se han estudiado alumnos frecuentadores de determinados servicios universitarios de la Universidad de Almería, seleccionados mediante muestreo no probabilístico. Para medir la autoestima se ha utilizado la escala de Cooersmith. Resultados. El 7,9% de los 123 alumnos estudiados presentaba autoestima significativamente baja, el 29,3% media-baja, el12,2% media, el 46,3% media-alta y el 4,9% significativamente alta, sin diferencias estadísticamente significativas entre ambos sexos. No se observa significación en la correlación entre comportamiento sexual y nivel de autoestima. Se encuentra un mayor consumo de alcohol, cannabis, cocaína, drogas de diseño y anfetaminas en los grupos de mayor autoestima. Conclusiones. La autoestima es importante en todos los aspectos de la vida, y se puede considerar una necesidad básica humana, aumenta el nivel de seguridad personal y se ha descrito como factor protector ante comportamientos de riesgo. Sin embargo, nuestros datos apuntan a un consumo de drogas más elevado en los grupos de jóvenes con mayor autoestima. Dada la importancia del tema y lo novedoso de los resultados, en estudios sucesivos consideramos ampliar la muestra y realizar un muestreo probabilístico estratificado para poder extrapolar los resultados al conjunto de la población de la Universidad de Almería (AU)

Objectives. To evaluate self-esteem levels in college students at the University of Almería (Spain) and their possible correlation with risk behaviors, specifically, drug use and sexual behavior. Method. We performed an observational, descriptive, cross-sectional, prolective study. A self-completed questionnaire was used togather data. Students attending specific university services of the University of Almería were selected by non-probabilistic sampling. Self-esteem was measured using Cooersmith’s scale. Results. In the 123 students studied, self-esteem was very low in 7.9%, medium-low in 29.3%, medium in 12.2 %, medium-highin 46.3% and very high in 4.9 %. No significant differences were found between the sexes. No significant correlation was found between sexual behavior and level of self-esteem. Consumption of alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, designer drugs, and amphetamines was higher in groups with higher self-esteem. Conclusions. Self-esteem is important in every sphere of life and can be considered a basic human need. Self-esteem increases the level of personal security and has been described as a protective factor against risk behaviors. However, our data indicate increased drug consumption among young people with higher self-esteem. Given the importance of the topic and the novelty of our results, in future studies we intend to broaden the sample and perform probabilistic stratified sampling in order to extrapolate the results to the entire population of the University of Almería (AU)