Using Mobile Technology for Family-Based Prevention in Families with Low Incomes: Lessons from a Randomized Controlled Trial of a Childhood Obesity Prevention Program.

Researchers are increasingly using web-based technologies to deliver family-based, prevention programming. Few studies have examined the success of such approaches for families with low incomes. The purpose of this study was to describe the level of in-class and online engagement in a childhood obesity prevention program for parents with low incomes, to examine the demographic correlates of parent engagement, and to examine dosage effects on parental feeding outcomes as a function of online exposure. All participants attended in-class nutrition education classes (Eating Smart · Being Active) as part of the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) in Colorado and Washington State (classes were offered in English and Spanish). Participants in this analysis were 168 parents from a larger cluster randomized controlled trial who had been randomly assigned to also receive a newly developed, mobile-based version of an efficacious, feeding-focused, childhood obesity prevention program. Results showed that despite high levels of in-person attendance (70%), participants only accessed 47% of the videos (online content). Older parents and parents of girls showed higher levels of in-person attendance; currently employed parents showed lower levels. Online engagement varied as a function of ethnicity and acculturation: non-Hispanic parents accessed the most videos, low-acculturated Hispanic parents accessed the second most, and highly acculturated Hispanic parents accessed the least. In contrast, low-acculturated Hispanic parents showed the highest in-person attendance. For all but one outcome, significant online program effects were found only for parents who accessed at least half of the videos. Implications for mobile-based, family-based prevention programs for parents with low incomes are considered.ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03170700; Registration Date: March 08, 2017.

The cytoskeletal motor proteins Dynein and MyoV direct apical transport of Crumbs.

Crumbs (Crb in Drosophila; CRB1-3 in mammals) is a transmembrane determinant of epithelial cell polarity and a regulator of Hippo signalling. Crb is normally localized to apical cell-cell contacts, just above adherens junctions, but how apical trafficking of Crb is regulated in epithelial cells remains unclear. We use the Drosophila follicular epithelium to demonstrate that polarized trafficking of Crb is mediated by transport along microtubules by the motor protein Dynein and along actin filaments by the motor protein Myosin-V (MyoV). Blocking transport of Crb-containing vesicles by Dynein or MyoV leads to accumulation of Crb within Rab11 endosomes, rather than apical delivery. The final steps of Crb delivery and stabilisation at the plasma membrane requires the exocyst complex and three apical FERM domain proteins - Merlin, Moesin and Expanded - whose simultaneous loss disrupts apical localization of Crb. Accordingly, a knock-in deletion of the Crb FERM-binding motif (FBM) also impairs apical localization. Finally, overexpression of Crb challenges this system, creating a sensitized background to identify components involved in cytoskeletal polarization, apical membrane trafficking and stabilisation of Crb at the apical domain.

Incidence and Risk of Pneumococcal Pneumonia in Adults with Distinct Underlying Medical Conditions: A Population-Based Study.

PURPOSE: This study investigated the incidence of pneumococcal pneumonia requiring hospitalisation among middle-aged and older adults with and without specific underlying medical conditions, evaluating the influence of these conditions in the risk of developing pneumonia. METHODS: Population-based prospective cohort study included 2,025,730 individuals ≥ 50 years around Catalonia, Spain. The Catalonian information system for the development of research in primary care (SIDIAP) was used to establish baseline characteristics of the cohort (comorbidities and underlying medical conditions). Hospitalisations from pneumococcal pneumonia occurred among cohort members between 01/01/2015 and 31/12/2015 were collected from hospital discharge codes of 68 reference Catalonian hospitals. Cox regression was used to estimate the association between baseline conditions and the risk of developing pneumonia. RESULTS: Global incidence rate (IR) of hospitalised pneumococcal pneumonia was 82.8 cases per 100,000 persons-year. Maximum IRs (per 100,000 persons-year) emerged among persons with haematological neoplasia (837.4), immunodeficiency (709.2), HIV infection (474.7), severe renal disease (407.5) and chronic pulmonary disease (305.7). In the multivariable analyses, apart from increasing age, HIV infection (hazard ratio [HR] 6.78), haematological neoplasia (HR 6.30), prior all-cause pneumonia (HR 5.27), immunodeficiency (HR 4.57) and chronic pulmonary disease (HR 2.89) were the conditions most strongly associated with an increasing risk. Pneumococcal vaccination did not emerge associated with a reduced risk in our study population (nor PPsV23 neither PCV13). CONCLUSION: Old age, immunocompromising conditions and chronic pulmonary/respiratory disease are major risk factors for pneumococcal pneumonia in adults. Our data underline the need for better prevention strategies in these persons.

Measuring the Activity of Mental Health Services in England: Variation in Categorising Activity for Payment Purposes.

In the context of international interest in reforming mental health payment systems, national policy in England has sought to move towards an episodic funding approach. Patients are categorised into care clusters, and providers will be paid for episodes of care for patients within each cluster. For the payment system to work, clusters need to be appropriately homogenous in terms of financial resource use. We examine variation in costs and activity within clusters and across health care providers. We find that the large variation between providers with respect to costs within clusters mean that a cluster-based episodic payment system would have substantially different financial impacts across providers.

Effect of sexual steroids on boar kinematic sperm subpopulations.

Here, we show the effects of sexual steroids, progesterone, testosterone, or estradiol on motility parameters of boar sperm. Sixteen commercial seminal doses, four each of four adult boars, were analyzed using computer assisted sperm analysis (CASA). Mean values of motility parameters were analyzed by bivariate and multivariate statistics. Principal component analysis (PCA), followed by hierarchical clustering, was applied on data of motility parameters, provided automatically as intervals by the CASA system. Effects of sexual steroids were described in the kinematic subpopulations identified from multivariate statistics. Mean values of motility parameters were not significantly changed after addition of sexual steroids. Multivariate graphics showed that sperm subpopulations were not sensitive to the addition of either testosterone or estradiol, but sperm subpopulations responsive to progesterone were found. Distribution of motility parameters were wide in controls but sharpened at distinct concentrations of progesterone. We conclude that kinematic sperm subpopulations responsive to progesterone are present in boar semen, and these subpopulations are masked in evaluations of mean values of motility parameters. © 2017 International Society for Advancement of Cytometry.

Changes in the pneumococcal disease-related hospitalisations in Spain after the replacement of 7-valent by 13-valent conjugate vaccine.

In Spain, anti-pneumococcal vaccination is recommended for all children under 2 years old, high-risk groups and adults ≥65 years old. However, it is not funded in most autonomous communities. This study aims to compare pneumococcal disease hospitalisation rates between Period 1 (2007-2009), when 7-valent (PCV7) vaccine was available, and Period 2 (2011-2013), after the change to 13-valent (PCV13) vaccine in Spain. Data on hospitalisations were obtained from the National Registry of Hospitalisations. We calculated hospitalisation rates (HRs) and hospitalisation rate ratios (HRRs) among periods by age group and autonomous community, for all and by clinical presentation. From 138,361 patients hospitalised, 83,528 (60.4 %) were males. The median age was 73.8 years. The most common clinical presentation was pneumonia (133,204 hospitalisations; 96.3 %), followed by septicaemia (7053 hospitalisations; 5.1 %) and meningitis (3182 hospitalisations; 2.3 %). In Period 2, hospitalisations among children <5 years old decreased for pneumonia [HRR: 0.37; 95 % confidence interval (95 % CI): 0.35 to 0.39] and meningitis (HRR: 0.53; 95 % CI: 0.44 to 0.65). For adults ≥65 years old, pneumonia (HRR: 0.49; 95 % CI: 0.49 to 0.50) and peritonitis (HRR: 0.34; 95 % CI: 0.19 to 0.63) hospitalisations decreased and septicaemia hospitalisations (HRR: 1.27; 95 % CI: 1.18 to 1.36) increased. Significant changes in HRs for pneumococcal disease were observed even without an integrated and continuous vaccination programme after the introduction of PCV13, especially in children <5 years old and for pneumonia. The impact of the PCV13 adult vaccination new recommendations on the septicaemia increase reported should be evaluated in the future.

Erratum to: Changes in the pneumococcal disease-related hospitalisations in Spain after the replacement of 7-valent by 13-valent conjugate vaccine.

The original version of this article was published online with an incorrectly arranged Table 2. Also, Figs. 1 and 2 were missing the legends.

Prevalence of high, medium and low-risk medical conditions for pneumococcal vaccination in Catalonian middle-aged and older adults: a population-based study.

BACKGROUND: Updated population-based data on the frequency and distribution of risk factors for pneumococcal disease is scarce. This study investigated the prevalence of distinct comorbidities and underlying risk conditions related to an increasing risk of pneumococcal disease among Catalonian middle-aged and older adults. METHODS: Cross-sectional population-based study including 2,033,465 individuals aged 50 years or older registered at 01/01/2015 in the Catalonian Health Institute (Catalonia, Spain). The clinical research database of the Information System for the Development of Research in Primary Care (SIDIAP database) was used to identify high-risk (asplenia and/or immunocompromising conditions) and other increased-risk conditions (chronic pulmonary, cardiac or liver disease, diabetes mellitus, alcoholism and/or smoking) among study subjects. RESULTS: Globally, 980,310 (48.2%) of the 2,033,465 study population had at least one risk condition of suffering pneumococcal disease (55.4% in men vs 42.0% in women, p < 0.001; 41.7% in people 50-64 years vs 54.7% in persons 65 years or older, p < 0.001). An amount of 176,600 individuals (8.7%) had high-risk conditions (basically immunocompromising conditions). On the other hand, 803,710 persons (39.5%) had one or more other risk conditions. In fact, 212,255 (10.4%) had chronic pulmonary diseases, 248,377 (12.2%) cardiac disease, 41,734 (2.1%) liver disease, 341,535 (16.8%) diabetes mellitus, 58,781 (2.9%) alcoholism and 317,558 (15.6%) were smokers. CONCLUSION: In our setting, approximately 50 % of overall persons 50 years or older may be considered at-risk population for pneumococcal disease (almost 10 % have high-risk conditions and 40 % have other risk conditions).

Evaluation of remediation techniques in soils affected by residual contamination with heavy metals and arsenic.

Residual soil pollution from the Aznalcóllar mine spill is still a problem in some parts of the affected area, today converted in the Guadiamar Green Corridor. Dispersed spots of polluted soils, identified by the absence of vegetation, are characterized by soil acid pH and high concentrations of As, Pb, Cu and Zn. Ex situ remediation techniques were performed with unrecovered soil samples. Landfarming, Composting and Biopiles techniques were tested in order to immobilize pollutants, to improve soil properties and to promote vegetation recovery. The effectiveness of these techniques was assessed by toxicity bioassays: Lactuca sativa L. root elongation test, Vibrio fischeri bioluminescence reduction test, soil induced respiration test, and Eisenia andrei survival and metal bioaccumulation tests. Landfarming and Composting were not effective techniques, mainly due to the poor improvement of soil properties which maintained high soluble concentrations of Zn and Cu after treatments. Biopile technique, using adjacent recovered soils in the area, was the most effective action in the reduction of soil toxicity; the improvement of soil properties and the reduction in pollutants solubility were key to improve the response of the tested organisms. Therefore, the mixture of recovered soils with polluted soils in the areas affected by residual contamination is considered a more suitable technique to reduce the residual pollution and to promote the complete soil recovery in the Guadiamar Green Corridor.

Segmental arterial mediolysis: findings at computed tomography angiography. / Hallazgos de angiografía por tomografía computarizada de la mediólisis arterial segmentaria.

OBJECTIVE: To review the principal findings on computed tomography angiography for segmental arterial mediolysis, and to emphasize the points that help to differentiate it from other vasculopathies such as vasculitis. We also review the protocols for follow-up and the various treatment options. CONCLUSION: Segmental arterial mediolysis is a rare disease that is defined as a non-atherosclerotic, non-hereditary, and non-inflammatory vasculopathy characterized by lysis of the medial layer of the arterial wall. It should be suspected in middle-aged patients with aneurysms, dissections, or spontaneous ruptures of visceral arteries of unknown etiology who do not fulfill the clinical and laboratory criteria for vasculitis. The arteries of the abdominal organs are the most commonly affected, including the arteries of the celiac trunk and the superior and inferior mesenteric arteries. Radiologically, segmental arterial mediolysis can present as arterial dilation; single or multiple, saccular or fusiform aneurysms; stenoses; or dissections.

[Epidemiology of hospitalizations for tuberculosis in Spain: analysis of minimum data set 1999-2009]. / Epidemiología de las hospitalizaciones por tuberculosis en España: análisis del conjunto mínimo básico de datos 1999-2009.

INTRODUCTION: The National Hospital Discharge Registry is a clinical-administrative database on hospital discharges, which is very useful at a regional level as a complementary source for surveillance. There are few national studies on tuberculosis (TB) using the National Hospital Discharge Registry, thus it was considered of interest to study the characteristics and trends of hospital discharges for TB in Spain. METHODS: A descriptive study was performed using the main variables in the National Hospital Discharge Registry (sex, age, main diagnosis, type of discharge, length of stay), and trend analysis of hospitalization rates per 100,000 population, as well as primary diagnosis, by sex, age group, and type of TB (pulmonary [TBP]/extrapulmonary [TBEP]), for the period 1999-2009 in Spain. RESULTS: A total of 65,609 hospital discharges were included in the study (66% male, 66% TBP, and 52% between 15-44 years). The overall rate of TB for the entire hospitalization period was 13.93 per 100,000 inhabitants, being 18.83 in males and 9.18 in females. The hospitalization rates for TBP and TBEP decreased in the period 1999-2009 in both sexes (TBP in males, from 18 to 13, and in females, from 8 to 6; TBEP in males from 4 to 3, and from 3 to 2 in female hospitalizations/100,000 habitants). In TBP, children are those with a smallest decline, and in TBEP there is an increase in males in all age groups from 2005. CONCLUSIONS: The results are consistent with those from surveillance. The slow decline in rates in children and the increase in extrapulmonary forms in males may be related to immigration, so it is necessary to improve TB monitoring in these groups.

Increase of pertussis incidence in 2010 to 2012 after 12 years of low circulation in Spain.

In Spain, whole cell pertussis vaccination started in 1975, with three doses before the age of 6-7 months. Doses at 15-18 months and 4-6 years were introduced in 1996 and 2001, respectively. Spain switched to an acellular vaccine in 2005. From 1998 to 2009, pertussis incidence rates remained ≤1.5 cases/100,000 inhabitants but increased from 2010 to 7.5 cases/100,000 in 2012. Data from 1998 to 2012 were analysed to assess disease trends and susceptible populations. We defined four epidemic periods: 1998-2001 (reference), 2002-05, 2006-09 and 2010-12. In 2002-05, the incidence rate increased in individuals aged 15-49 years (IRR: 1.41 (95% CI: 1.11-1.78)) and ≥50 years (IRR: 2.78 (95% CI: 1.78-4.33)) and in 2006-09 increased also in infants aged <3 months (IRR: 1.83 (95% CI: 1.60-2.09)). In 2010-12, the incidence rate increased notably in all age groups, with IRRs ranging between 2.5 (95% CI: 2.3-2.8) in 5-9 year-olds and 36.0 (95% CI: 19.4-66.8) in 20-29 year-olds. These results, consistent with the country's vaccination history, suggest a progressive accumulation of susceptible individuals due to waning immunity after years of low incidence. Further vaccination strategies should be assessed and implemented to prevent pertussis in pre-vaccinated infants, in whom the disease is more severe.

Resuscitative goals and new strategies in severe trauma patient resuscitation.

Traumatic injuries represent a major health problem all over the world. In recent years we have witnessed profound changes in the paradigm of severe trauma patient resuscitation, new concepts regarding acute coagulopathy in trauma have been proposed, and there has been an expansion of specific commercial products related to hemostasis, among other aspects. New strategies in severe trauma management include the early identification of those injuries that are life threatening and require surgical hemostasis, tolerance of moderate hypotension, rational intravascular volume replacement, prevention of hypothermia, correction of acidosis, optimization of oxygen carriers, and identification of those factors required by the patient (fresh frozen plasma, platelets, tranexamic acid, fibrinogen, cryoprecipitates and prothrombin complex). However, despite such advances, further evidence is required to improve survival rates in severe trauma patients.

Parents Report Positive Changes in Parental Feeding Practices 12 Months After Intervention.

OBJECTIVE: Determine self-reported parental feeding behavior changes and perspectives on parental feeding intervention at 12-month follow-up. METHODS: Telephone focus groups using a 2 × 2 design (English/Spanish × in-class or online) with Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program participants (n = 37) with children 2-8 years and high exposure to the Food, Feeding, and Your Family intervention (7 lessons). Researchers (n = 3) independently identified themes. RESULTS: Parental behavior changes that (1) positively influenced children's diets, (2) involved children in food-related activities, (3) eased stressful situations around food, (4) led to healthier food choices, and (5) saved money when food shopping. Commonly implemented practices included establishing structured mealtime routines, introducing new foods multiple times, and encouraging children's eating competence. Online participants noted materials were easily accessible via text messages. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Incorporating parental feeding content (in-class or online) into nutrition education interventions, such as the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program, supports developing positive parental feeding behaviors in families with low income.

Assessing the Impact of Pomegranate Peel Extract Active Packaging and High Hydrostatic Pressure Processing on Color and Oxidative Stability in Sliced Nitrate/Nitrite-Reduced Iberian Dry-Cured Loins.

Our study aimed to assess the impact of active packaging with pomegranate peel extract (0.06 mg gallic acid eq./cm2) and/or high-pressure treatment (600 MPa, 7 min) on the instrumental color, lipid, and protein oxidation of Iberian dry loins formulated with reduced nitrate/nitrite levels (0, 37.5, and 150 mg/kg) during 100-day refrigerated storage (4 °C). CIE L*a*b* coordinates were measured, and malondialdehyde, carbonyls, and free thiol contents served as markers for lipid and protein oxidation. Active packaging lowered CIE L* (35.4 vs. 34.1) and a* (15.5 vs. 14.5) and increased yellowness (15.6 vs. 16.3) and hue (45.2 vs. 48.4), while pressurization increased CIE L* (33.1 vs. 36.3) and diminished a* values (16.1 vs. 13.9). Ongoing nitrate/nitrite amounts significantly influenced lipid peroxidation, protein carbonyl formation, and free thiol loss. Active packaging and high-pressure processing had varying effects on carbonyl and thiol contents. Neither pressurization nor active packaging impacted malondialdehyde formation. Pressurization enhanced the formation of 4-HNE (503 vs. 697 pg/g). Protein oxidation proved more sensitive to changes, with active packaging offering protection against protein carbonylation (15.4 vs. 14.7 nmol carbonyls/mg protein), while pressurization induced thiol loss (34.3 vs. 28.0 nmol Cys eq./mg protein). This comprehensive understanding provides essential insights for the meat industry, emphasizing the necessity for customized processing conditions to enhance color stability, lipid preservation, and protein integrity in dry-cured loin slices.

Short-Term Efficacy of a Childhood Obesity Prevention Program Designed to Pair Feeding Content With Nutrition Education.

Background: Family-based programs show considerable promise in preventing overweight and obesity in young children. However, dissemination is difficult because significant participant and staff involvement is required. This study examined the short-term efficacy of adding parental feeding content to a widely-used nutrition education curriculum for families in low-resourced communities comparing the influence of two delivery methods (in-class and online) on parents' feeding knowledge, practices, and styles. Methods: In this cluster randomized controlled trial, parents of 2- to 8-year-old children enrolled in the EFNEP (Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program) in Colorado and Washington were randomly assigned to: in-class nutrition education only, in-class nutrition education with in-class feeding content, or in-class nutrition education with online feeding content. Data from the 382 participants who completed both pretest and posttest assessments are reported in this study. Results: Multilevel analyses showed empirical support for the influence of the program on parents' feeding knowledge, practices, and styles. Online and in-class methods were equally effective in delivering feeding content in low-resourced communities. Consistent effects were seen across the two delivery methods for encouraging children to try new foods (p < 0.05), use of child-centered feeding practices (i.e., greater responsiveness, p < 0.05), child involvement in food preparation (p < 0.05), and understanding the number of presentations often necessary for child acceptance of a new food (p < 0.001). Location and language differences were seen across some constructs. Conclusions: This study demonstrates the efficacy of in-class and online approaches to feeding highlighting the program's positive effects on promoting healthy feeding behaviors for parents of children in low-resourced families. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03170700.

Background rates of 41 adverse events of special interest for COVID-19 vaccines in 10 European healthcare databases - an ACCESS cohort study.

BACKGROUND: In May 2020, the ACCESS (The vACCine covid-19 monitoring readinESS) project was launched to prepare real-world monitoring of COVID-19 vaccines. Within this project, this study aimed to generate background incidence rates of 41 adverse events of special interest (AESI) to contextualize potential safety signals detected following administration of COVID-19 vaccines. METHODS: A dynamic cohort study was conducted using a distributed data network of 10 healthcare databases from 7 European countries (Italy, Spain, Denmark, The Netherlands, Germany, France and United Kingdom) over the period 2017 to 2020. A common protocol (EUPAS37273), common data model, and common analytics programs were applied for syntactic, semantic and analytical harmonization. Incidence rates (IR) for each AESI and each database were calculated by age and sex by dividing the number of incident cases by the total person-time at risk. Age-standardized rates were pooled using random effect models according to the provenance of the events. FINDINGS: A total number of 63,456,074 individuals were included in the study, contributing to 211.7 million person-years. A clear age pattern was observed for most AESIs, rates also varied by provenance of disease diagnosis (primary care, specialist care). Thrombosis with thrombocytopenia rates were extremely low ranging from 0.06 to 4.53/100,000 person-years for cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) with thrombocytopenia (TP) and mixed venous and arterial thrombosis with TP, respectively. INTERPRETATION: Given the nature of the AESIs and the setting (general practitioners or hospital-based databases or both), background rates from databases that show the highest level of completeness (primary care and specialist care) should be preferred, others can be used for sensitivity. The study was designed to ensure representativeness to the European population and generalizability of the background incidence rates. FUNDING: The project has received support from the European Medicines Agency under the Framework service contract nr EMA/2018/28/PE.

Development of Reliable and Valid Questions to Assess Food Resource Management Behaviors in Adults With Limited Income.

OBJECTIVE: Develop reliable, valid questions to assess changes in food resource management (FRM) behaviors in adults with limited incomes. DESIGN: Questionnaire development using a mixed-methods approach: content validity (subject matter and curricula), face validity, temporal reliability (test-retest), sensitivity to change, and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). SETTING: Community settings in 12 states. PARTICIPANTS: Convenience samples of English-speaking Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) or EFNEP-eligible adults: 105 (cognitive interviews), 181 (test-retest), 185 (sensitivity), and 389 (EFA) adults. VARIABLES MEASURED: Behaviors related to FRM skills: planning, shopping, and budgeting. ANALYSIS: Consistency and agreement in cognitive interviews and temporal reliability; sensitivity at posttest (paired t tests, Wilcoxon signed-rank tests); internal consistency of scales identified in EFA (Cronbach α). P < 0.5. RESULTS: All questions had acceptable temporal reliability ranges for the intraclass correlation coefficient (0.48-0.74) and Spearman rank-order correlation (0.48-0.73). All questions were sensitive to change at posttest (P < 0.001). Planning and saving scales, revealed by EFA, demonstrated internal consistency (> 0.80 Cronbach α). CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: The 9 FRM behavior questions have acceptable temporal reliability and content and face validity and can be used nationally by EFNEP to assess participants' self-reported behavior changes. Other nutrition programs with similar audiences and content could use these questions to measure changes in FRM behaviors.

Ecotoxicological risk assessment in soils contaminated by Pb and As 20 years after a mining spill.

This study evaluates the potential toxicity of the soils of the Guadiamar Green Corridor (GGC) affected by the Aznalcóllar mine spill (Andalusia, Spain), one of the most important mining accidents in Europe in recent decades. Twenty years after the accident, although the area is considered to be recovered, residual contamination in soils persists, and the bioavailability of some contaminants, such as As, is showing trends of increasing. Therefore, the potential residual toxicity in 84 soil samples was evaluated by bioassays with lettuce (Latuca sativa L.), earthworms (Eisenia andrei) and determining the microbial activity by basal respiration and metabolic quotient. The selected soils sampled along the GGC were divided into 4 types according to their physicochemical properties. In the closest part of the mine two soil types appear (SS1 and SS2), originally decarbonated and loamy, with a reduction in lettuce root elongation of 57% and 34% compared to the control, as well as a the highest metabolic quotient (23.9 and 18.1 ng CcO2 µg Cmicrob-1 h-1, respectively) with the highest risk of Pb and As toxicity. While, located in the middle and final part of the affected area of the spill (SS3 and SS4), soils presented alkaline pH, finer textures and the lowest metabolic quotient (<9.5 ng CcO2 µg Cmicrob-1 h-1). In addition, due to Pb and As exceeded the Guideline values established in the studied area, the human toxicity risk was determined according to US-EPA methodology. Although the total contents were higher than the Guidelines established, the obtained hazard quotients for both contaminants were less than one, so the risk for human health was discarded. However, monitoring over time of the toxicity risks of the GGC soils would be advisable, especially due to the existence of areas where residual contamination persist, and soil hazard quotient obtained for As in children was higher and close to unity.