Liver Impairment-The Potential Application of Volatile Organic Compounds in Hepatology.

Liver diseases are currently diagnosed through liver biopsy. Its invasiveness, costs, and relatively low diagnostic accuracy require new techniques to be sought. Analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in human bio-matrices has received a lot of attention.

Identification of recent HIV-1 infection among newly diagnosed cases in Catalonia, Spain (2006-08).

Background: Quantification and description of patients recently infected by HIV can provide an accurate estimate of the dynamics of HIV transmission. Between 2006 and 2008 in Catalonia, we estimated the prevalence of recent HIV infection among newly diagnosed cases, described the epidemiological characteristics of the infection according to whether it was recent, long-standing or advanced, and identified factors associated with recent infection.

Methods: A Test for Recent Infection (TRI) was performed in serum samples from patients newly diagnosed with HIV.

Prevalence of transmitted antiretroviral resistance and distribution of HIV-1 subtypes among patients with recent infection in Catalonia (Spain) between 2003 and 2005.

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to assess the prevalence of transmitted HIV-1 drug resistances (TDR) and HIV-1 subtypes in recently infected patients in Catalonia between 2003 and 2005 and to describe the characteristics of these patients according to the presence or absence of TDR and HIV-1 subtype.

Methods: After application of the Serological Testing Algorithm for Recent HIV Seroconversion (STARHS), residual aliquots of serum samples from recently infected antiretroviral-naïve individuals were genotyped. FASTA sequences were analyzed using the HIVDB Program.