Clinical outcomes in patients with atrial fibrillation treated with DOACs in a specialized anticoagulation center: Critical appraisal of real-world data.

Aims: Direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC) are progressively replacing vitamin K antagonists in the prevention of thromboembolism in patients with atrial fibrillation. However, their real-world clinical outcomes appear to be contradictory, with some studies reporting fewer and others reporting higher complications than the pivotal randomized controlled trials. We present the results of a clinical model for the management of DOACs in real clinical practice and provide a review of the literature.

Activity and safety of topical pimecrolimus in patients with early stage mycosis fungoides (PimTo-MF): a single-arm, multicentre, phase 2 trial.

Background: The calcineurin pathway is often activated in mycosis fungoides. We aimed to assess the activity and safety of topical pimecrolimus, a calcineurin inhibitor, in patients with early mycosis fungoides.

Methods: PimTo-MF was a single-arm, multicentre, phase 2 trial done at six medical centres in Spain.

Helminth Egg Automatic Detector (HEAD): Improvements in development for digital identification and quantification of Helminth eggs and its application online.

Conventional analytical techniques for evaluating Helminth eggs are based on different steps to concentrate them in a pellet for direct observation and quantification under a light microscope, which can generate under-counts or over-counts and be time consuming. To enhance this process, a new approach via automatic identification was implemented in which various image processing detectors were developed and incorporated into a Helminth Egg Automatic Detector (HEAD) system. This allowed the identification and quantification of pathogenic eggs of global medical importance.

The removal of microorganisms and organic micropollutants from wastewater during infiltration to aquifers after irrigation of farmland in the Tula Valley, Mexico.

The Tula Valley receives untreated wastewater from Mexico City for agricultural irrigation, half of which infiltrates to aquifers from where drinking water is extracted. Samples of wastewater and infiltrated water from three areas of the valley were analyzed for microorganisms, organic micropollutants, and some basic parameters. Concentrations of microorganisms in the infiltrated water were generally very low but the incidence of fecal coliforms (present in 68% of samples), somatic bacteriophages (36%), Giardia spp.

Ultrasound-assisted emulsification-microextraction of fragrance allergens in water.

A method based on ultrasound-assisted emulsification-microextraction (USAEME) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) has been developed for the analysis of regulated fragrance allergens in water. Extraction conditions such as the type of solvent, extraction temperature, irradiation time, and salting-out effect were optimized using a multivariate approach. Compounds were extracted during 2 min in an acoustically emulsified media formed by 100 μL chloroform and 10 mL sample.

The analysis of a group of acidic pharmaceuticals, carbamazepine, and potential endocrine disrupting compounds in wastewater irrigated soils by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

The analysis of pharmaceuticals and potential endocrine disruptors in the environment has rightly concentrated on their presence in wastewaters and possible contamination of receiving bodies, such as groundwaters. However, wastewater is increasingly being reused for irrigation and in order to fully understand the environmental fate of these compounds, reliable methods for their analysis in soil are required, of which there are relatively few available. This article reports a method for a range of acidic pharmaceuticals, carbamazepine, and endocrine disrupting compounds in soils with final analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Determination of acidic pharmaceuticals and potential endocrine disrupting compounds in wastewaters and spring waters by selective elution and analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Although the trend in development of analytical methods for emerging contaminants is towards reduced sample preparation and increased detector selectivity, there are still benefits from removal of matrix material during sample preparation. This paper describes a simple method for acidic pharmaceuticals and a range of potential endocrine disrupting compounds in untreated wastewaters and spring waters. It is based on separation of the two classes during elution from the extraction cartridge with final analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

The effects of temperature, pH, and ammonia concentration on the inactivation of Ascaris eggs in sewage sludge.

The reported inactivation of Ascaris eggs during alkaline sludge stabilization is highly variable. The objective of our research was to better understand the sources of this variability by quantifying the effects of temperature, pH, and ammonia concentration on the inactivation of indigenous Ascaris eggs in wastewater sludge. Primary sludge was supplemented with ammonia (0, 1000, and 5000 mg/l NH(3)-N) and Ca(OH)(2) and incubated in sealed bottles across the range of temperatures (20, 30, 40, and 50 degrees C) and pH (7 and 12) that may be encountered during treatment.