Protective and curative effects of foliar-spray Fenton solutions against cucumber (Cucumis sativus, L.) powdery mildew.

Various Fenton solutions have been developed for advanced oxidation processes in wastewater treatment. In this study, conventional Fenton solutions such as hydrogen peroxide (HOOH) + Fe(2+) (Mix 1) or HOOH + Fe(3+) (Mix 2), and a new type of solution, HOOH + Fe(3+) + oxalic acid (Mix 3), were used as foliar sprays against powdery mildew on cucumber caused by Sphaerotheca fuliginea. Three Fenton solutions, plus a fungicide, fenarimol, were used to cure and/or protect the plant from powdery mildew under greenhouse conditions. Determination of the ·OH photoformation rate of these Fenton solutions revealed that Mix 3 had a photoformation rate 3.6 - 4.3 times higher than those of Mix 1 and 2. Application of fenarimol and Mix 3 to each plant once a week for three weeks resulted in high curative effects for already-diseased plants. Double spraying with fenarimol and the Mix 3 solutions 1-7 days before S. fuliginea inoculation resulted in the protective effects continuing for up to 20 days after spraying. When the disease reemerged at 20 days post inoculation, one reapplication of the spray suppressed the disease for another 7 days. Overall, fenarimol and Mix 3 were most effective for both the protection and suppression of the disease. These results implied that Mix 3 had fungicidal effects similar to fenarimol; therefore, the use of a Fenton solution such as Mix 3 may offer new possibilities for disease control.

Risk factors, predictions, and progression of acute kidney injury in hospitalized COVID-19 patients: An observational retrospective cohort study.

OBJECTIVES: Studies have shown that acute kidney injury (AKI) occurrence post SARS-CoV-2 infection is complex and has a poor prognosis. Therefore, more studies are needed to understand the rate and the predications of AKI involvement among hospitalized COVID-19 patients and AKI's impact on prognosis while under different types of medications. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This study is a retrospective observational cohort study conducted at Bahrain Defence Force (BDF) Royal Medical Services. Medical records of COVID-19 patients admitted to BDF hospital, treated, and followed up from April 2020 to October 2020 were retrieved. Data were analyzed using univariate and multivariate logistic regression with covariate adjustment, and the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence (95% CI) interval were reported. RESULTS: Among 353 patients admitted with COVID-19, 47.6% developed AKI. Overall, 51.8% of patients with AKI died compared to 2.2% of patients who did not develop AKI (p< 0.001 with OR 48.6 and 95% CI 17.2-136.9). Besides, deaths in patients classified with AKI staging were positively correlated and multivariate regression analysis revealed that moderate to severe hypoalbuminemia (<32 g/L) was independently correlated to death in AKI patients with an OR of 10.99 (CI 95% 4.1-29.3, p<0.001). In addition, 78.2% of the dead patients were on mechanical ventilation. Besides age as a predictor of AKI development, diabetes and hypertension were the major risk factors of AKI development (OR 2.04, p<0.01, and 0.05 for diabetes and hypertension, respectively). Also, two or more comorbidities substantially increased the risk of AKI development in COVID-19 patients. Furthermore, high levels upon hospital admission of D-Dimer, Troponin I, and ProBNP and low serum albumin were associated with AKI development. Lastly, patients taking ACEI/ARBs had less chance to develop AKI stage II/III with OR of 0.19-0.27 (p<0.05-0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of AKI in hospitalized COVID-19 patients and the mortality rate among AKI patients were high and correlated with AKI staging. Furthermore, laboratory testing for serum albumin, hypercoagulability and cardiac injury markers maybe indicative for AKI development. Therefore, clinicians should be mandated to perform such tests on admission and follow-up in hospitalized patients.

Establishing a 130-Bed Field Intensive Care Unit to Prepare for COVID-19 in 7 Days in Bahrain Military Hospital.

This article reports the establishment of an isolated, fully functional field intensive care unit (FICU) unit equipped with all necessary critical care facilities as a part of the national pre-emptive preparedness to treat an unexpected surge outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients in Bahrain. One floor of an existing car parking structure was converted into a 130-bed FICU set-up by the in-house project implementation team comprised of multidisciplinary departments. The setting was a military hospital in the Kingdom of Bahrain, and the car park was on the hospital premises. The FICU contained a 112-bed fully equipped ICU and an 18-bed step-down ICU, and was built in 7 d to cater to the intensive care of COVID-19 patients in Bahrain.