SARS-CoV-2 Seropositivity and HIV Viral Load Among Mozambican Pregnant Women.

Introduction: Prevalence estimates of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Africa are limited, particularly among pregnant women and in those living with HIV. This study assessed the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among Mozambican HIV-infected pregnant women during the first year of the pandemic, before COVID-19 vaccines were deployed in the country.

Setting: The study was conducted in Manhiça district, a semirural area in southern Mozambique.

Optimization of dialysate bicarbonate in patients treated with online haemodiafiltration.

Background: Metabolic acidosis is a common problem in haemodialysis patients, but acidosis overcorrection has been associated with higher mortality. There is no clear definition of the optimal serum bicarbonate target or dialysate bicarbonate. This study analysed the impact of reducing dialysate bicarbonate from 35 to 32 mEq/L on plasma bicarbonate levels in a cohort of patients treated with online haemodiafiltration (OL-HDF).

Analytical performance assessment and improvement by means of the Failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA).

Introduction: Laboratories minimize risks through quality control but analytical errors still occur. Risk management can improve the quality of processes and increase patient safety. This study aims to use the failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) to assess the analytical performance and measure the effectiveness of the risk mitigation actions implemented.

Performance evaluation of Siemens Atellica enhanced estradiol assay.

Background: Serum estradiol (E2) levels may be used in the diagnostic and/or monitoring of a broad variety of clinical conditions. The aims of this study were to evaluate the Siemens enhanced estradiol assay (eE2) on Atellica IM 1600 (Siemens Healthineers) and to perform a sample comparison with the Siemens ADVIA Centaur XP (Siemens Healthineers).

Methods: Within-day and between-day coefficient of variation (CV) were determined using serum sample pools and quality control materials.

Study of the analytical performance at different concentrations of hematological parameters using Spanish EQAS data.

Background External quality assessment programs are one of the currently available tools to evaluate the analytical performance of clinical laboratories, where the measurement error (ME) obtained can be compared with quality specifications to evaluate possible deviations. The objective of this work was to analyze the ME behavior over the analytical range to assess the need to establish concentration-dependent specifications. Methods A total of 389,000 results from 585 laboratories and 2628 analyzers were collected from the Spanish external quality assessment schemes (EQAS) in hematology during the years 2015-2016.

Prevalence and risk factors of mild chronic renal failure in HIV-infected patients: influence of female gender and antiretroviral therapy.

Background: In people living with HIV, much is known about chronic kidney disease, defined as a glomerular filtration rate under 60mL/min. However, there is scarce data about prevalence and risk factors for milder impairment (60-89mL/min).

Objective: The present study aims to assess the influence of sex, antiretroviral therapy, and classical risk factors on the occurrence of mild decreased renal function in a large Spanish cohort of HIV-infected patients.

Analytical verification and method comparison of the ADVIA Centaur® Intact Parathyroid Hormone assay.

Objectives: This study is the first verification of the novel iPTH Siemens ADVIA Centaur® Intact Parathyroid Hormone (iPTHm) chemiluminescence immunoassay based on monoclonal antibodies. We also compared the iPTH results obtained using this assay with the previous ADVIA Centaur® Parathyroid Hormone assay (iPTHp) based on polyclonal antibodies.

Design And Methods: The analytical performance study of iPTHm assay included LoD, LoQ, intra- and inter-assay reproducibility, and linearity.

Improvement in the stability of serum samples stored in an automated refrigerated module.

Objectives: In clinical laboratories it is necessary to know for how long the analytes are stable in the samples with specific storage conditions. Our laboratory has implemented the new Aptio Automation System (AAS) (Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics) where the analyzed samples are stored in a refrigerated storage module (RSM) after being sealed. The aim of the study was to evaluate the stability of serum samples with the AAS and comparing the results with a previous study using a conventional refrigerated system.

Evaluation of a portable hemoglobinometer (HemoCue) to control anemia in hepatitis C liver transplant recipients undergoing antiviral therapy.

Background: Monitoring of anemia, the most frequent side-effect of antiviral therapy in hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected liver transplant recipients, requires frequent blood tests and medical visits.

Aims: The primary aim of this study was to assess the usefulness and the accuracy of a portable hemoglobinometer (HemoCue) in patients receiving antiviral therapy after liver transplantation due to severe hepatitis C recurrence in the graft. The secondary aim was to evaluate the usefulness of this device in terms of cost-saving and time-saving benefits.

Impact of ultrasensitive cardiac troponin I dynamic changes in the new universal definition of myocardial infarction.

We evaluated the impact of using the new universal definition of myocardial infarction (MI) criteria implemented with a 20% increment between 2 cardiac troponin I (cTnI) measurements. The study included 284 consecutive episodes of patients admitted to the emergency department with suspected acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and an initial cTnI measurement of 0.10 ng/mL (0.

Evaluation of a new ultrasensitive assay for cardiac troponin I.

Objectives: We evaluated the analytical and clinical performance of a new ultrasensitive cardiac troponin I assay (cTnI) on the ADVIA Centaur system (TnI-Ultra).

Design And Methods: The evaluation included the determination of detection limit, within-assay and between-assay variation and comparison with two other non-ultrasensitive methods. Moreover, cTnI was determined in 120 patients with acute chest pain with three methods.

[Forearm ischemic exercise test. Standardization and diagnostic value in the identification of McArdle disease].

Background And Objective: The forearm ischemic exercise test (FIET) with serial lactate determinations is used worldwide for the screening of McArdle's disease and other glucogenosis. Yet there is no uniformity with regard to the intensity of the work and the ischemia time. The aim of this study was to standardize the test conditions in normal people and to check its efficacy in our population.