Rasch analysis of the forgotten joint score in patients with total hip arthroplasty.

Objective: To assess the internal construct validity, including local independence, unidimensionality, monotonicity, and invariance, reliability, and targeting of the Forgotten Joint Score within the Rasch Measurement Theory framework.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Patients: A total of 111 patients with total hip arthroplasty at least 3 months after surgery.

Psychometric properties of the Italian version of the Forgotten Joint Score in patients with total hip arthroplasty.

Total hip arthroplasty (THA) surgeries are increasing; to assess quality of life after THA, an instrument that considers patient's perspective on surgical outcomes is necessary. The objective of this study is to assess the psychometric properties of the Italian version of the Forgotten Joint Score (FJS-I) in patients with THA. The FJS-I was administered to 111 patients with THA, as well as the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities (WOMAC), Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NPRS), and the EuroQol 5D-5L (EQ-5D-5L).

Groundwater geochemistry and microbial community structure in the aquifer transition from volcanic to alluvial areas.

Groundwaters may act as sinks or sources of organic and inorganic solutes, depending on the relative magnitude of biochemical mobilizing processes and groundwater-surface water exchanges. The objective of this study was to link the lithological and hydrogeological gradients to the aquatic microbial community structure in the transition from aquifer recharge (volcanic formations) to discharge areas (alluvial deposits). A field-scale analysis was performed along a water table aquifer in which volcanic products decreased in thickness and areal extension, while alluvial deposits became increasingly important.

Altered phosphate metabolism in HIV-1-infected patients with metabolic syndrome.

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MS) represents a cluster of cardiovascular risk factors that has become a serious problem for HIV-1-infected patients. It has been proposed that disturbance of phosphate metabolism may represent a key feature of MS. Thus, we undertook the present study to investigate the relationship between phosphate levels and the presence of the characteristics of MS.

Long-term efficacy and safety of TDM-assisted combination of voriconazole plus efavirenz in an AIDS patient with cryptococcosis and liver cirrhosis.

Objective: To report the efficacy, tolerability, and pharmacokinetic effects of combined voriconazole and efavirenz treatment administered at therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM)-based adjusted doses to a patient with AIDS, cryptococcosis, and mild liver cirrhosis.

Case Summary: A 40-year-old man with AIDS (hemophiliac, antiretroviral-naïve, plasma HIV-RNA = 290,000 copies/mL, CD4+ lymphocytes = 0), hepatitis C virus-related liver cirrhosis (Child-Pugh class A), and cryptococcal meningitis was failing standard antifungal therapies. He received an antifungal-antiretroviral combination treatment based on the association of voriconazole plus efavirenz.