Dental student readiness to treat special care patients upon graduation.

Introduction: There has been a global increase in patients with special needs. Undergraduate dental curricula need to adjust to meet the needs of these patients. This study aimed to identify how confident final year dental students felt about treating patients with special needs upon graduation and evaluate the influence that the curriculum had on their preparedness based on competencies outlined by the International Association for Disability and Oral Health (iADH).

Implementation of second-tier tests in newborn screening for the detection of vitamin B related acquired and genetic disorders: results on 258,637 newborns.

Background: Alteration of vitamin B metabolism can be genetic or acquired, and can result in anemia, failure to thrive, developmental regression and even irreversible neurologic damage. Therefore, early diagnosis and intervention is critical. Most of the neonatal cases with acquired vitamin B deficiency have been detected by clinical symptoms and only few of them trough NBS programs.

Biochemical assessment of metabolic associated fatty liver disease.

Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is defined as fat accumulation in the liver in the presence of metabolic alterations. This disorder is generally asymptomatic and may progress to severe liver disease, which are linked to inflammation and/or fibrosis. MAFLD has a high prevalence (26%) and therefore a considerable number of patients are at high risk of having advanced liver disease.

Analytical performance specifications based on the state-of-the-art for the newborn screening.

Introduction: For the measurands of the newborn screening (NBS), there are no analytical performance specifications (APS) available based on the Milan consensus Models. The objective is to provide total error (TE) APS based on the state-of-the-art (SOTA) for the NBS.

Material And Methods: 23,662 results were collected from the Spanish NBS EQA scheme between May 2015 and September 2018.

Newborn screening for homocystinurias: Recent recommendations versus current practice.

Purpose: To assess how the current practice of newborn screening (NBS) for homocystinurias compares with published recommendations.

Methods: Twenty-two of 32 NBS programmes from 18 countries screened for at least one form of homocystinuria. Centres provided pseudonymised NBS data from patients with cystathionine beta-synthase deficiency (CBSD, n = 19), methionine adenosyltransferase I/III deficiency (MATI/IIID, n = 28), combined remethylation disorder (cRMD, n = 56) and isolated remethylation disorder (iRMD), including methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase deficiency (MTHFRD) (n = 8).

Analysis of hepatitis B virus preS1 variability and prevalence of the rs2296651 polymorphism in a Spanish population.

Aim: To determine the variability/conservation of the domain of hepatitis B virus (HBV) preS1 region that interacts with sodium-taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (hereafter, NTCP-interacting domain) and the prevalence of the rs2296651 polymorphism (S267F, NTCP variant) in a Spanish population.

Methods: Serum samples from 246 individuals were included and divided into 3 groups: patients with chronic HBV infection (CHB) ( = 41, 73% Caucasians), patients with resolved HBV infection ( = 100, 100% Caucasians) and an HBV-uninfected control group ( = 105, 100% Caucasians). Variability/conservation of the amino acid (aa) sequences of the NTCP-interacting domain, (aa 2-48 in viral genotype D) and a highly conserved preS1 domain associated with virion morphogenesis (aa 92-103 in viral genotype D) were analyzed by next-generation sequencing and compared in 18 CHB patients with viremia > 4 log IU/mL.

Neonatal Screening for Inherited Metabolic Diseases in 2016.

The scope of newborn screening (NBS) programs is continuously expanding. NBS programs are secondary prevention interventions widely recognized internationally in the "field of Public Health." These interventions are aimed at early detection of asymptomatic children affected by certain diseases, with the objective to establish a definitive diagnosis and apply the proper treatment to prevent further complications and sequelae and ensure a better quality of life.

Darunavir and ritonavir total and unbound plasmatic concentrations in HIV-HCV-coinfected patients with hepatic cirrhosis compared to those in HIV-monoinfected patients.

Our objective was to describe the pharmacokinetic (PK) parameters of total and unbound darunavir and ritonavir concentrations in HIV-hepatitis C virus (HCV)-coinfected patients with cirrhosis, as ritonavir-boosted darunavir is mainly metabolized in the liver, and hepatic cirrhosis might modify darunavir-ritonavir concentrations. This was a prospective, case-control, and unicenter study. HIV-HCV-coinfected patients with compensated cirrhosis (cases) and HIV-monoinfected patients with normal liver function (controls) were included.

Comparison between amine fluoride and chlorhexidine with institutionalized elders: a pilot study.

Objective: Compare the efficacy of amine fluoride toothpaste and gel with chlorhexidine spray in an institutionalised population.

Background: People who live in nursing homes have poorer oral hygiene because of their dependency for the basic activities of daily living as they rely on caregivers.

Methods: Twenty-six people over 65 years old who had at least four teeth and living in a nursing home.

Recommendations of the Spanish Societies of Radiation Oncology (SEOR), Nuclear Medicine & Molecular Imaging (SEMNiM), and Medical Physics (SEFM) on (18)F-FDG PET-CT for radiotherapy treatment planning.

Positron emission tomography (PET) with (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) is a valuable tool for diagnosing and staging malignant lesions. The fusion of PET and computed tomography (CT) yields images that contain both metabolic and morphological information, which, taken together, have improved the diagnostic precision of PET in oncology. The main imaging modality for planning radiotherapy treatment is CT.

Results of a sector-wide quality improvement initiative for substance-abuse care: an uncontrolled before-after study in Catalonia, Spain.

Background: The Health Department of the Regional Government of Catalonia, Spain, issued a quality plan for substance abuse centers. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the impact of a multidimensional quality improvement initiative in the field of substance abuse care and to discuss potentials and limitations for further quality improvement.

Methods: The study uses an uncontrolled, sector-wide pre-post design.

Efficacy, safety and pharmacokinetics of 900/100 mg of darunavir/ritonavir once daily in treatment-experienced patients.

Objectives: To evaluate the virological efficacy, safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of a regimen containing 900/100 mg of ritonavir-boosted darunavir once daily in patients with antiretroviral experience but no darunavir resistance.

Patients And Methods: An observational, prospective, multicentre study was conducted. Patients were included if 900/100 mg of darunavir/ritonavir once daily and at least one other active drug had been started due to virological failure, simplification or toxicity.

Preliminary report: hyperhomocysteinemia in patients with acute intermittent porphyria.

Homocysteine is an intermediate of methionine metabolism, and its elevation in tissues is correlated with an increased risk for vascular diseases. We measured homocysteine in plasma of 24 patients with acute intermittent porphyria (AIP) and long-term high excretion of heme precursors. Fifteen (62.

Pharmacokinetic interaction between rifampicin and the once-daily combination of saquinavir and low-dose ritonavir in HIV-infected patients with tuberculosis.

Objectives: To assess plasma steady-state pharmacokinetics (PK) of rifampicin, isoniazid, saquinavir and ritonavir in HIV and tuberculosis (TB) co-infected patients, and investigate potential interactions between TB drugs and protease inhibitors (PIs).

Methods: Open-label, single-arm, sequential PK study including 22 patients with HIV infection and TB. During the first 2 months, patients received rifampicin, isoniazid and pyrazinamide, with or without ethambutol (first PK study, n = 22).

Atazanavir and lopinavir/ritonavir: pharmacokinetics, safety and efficacy of a promising double-boosted protease inhibitor regimen.

Objective: To assess the pharmacokinetics and tolerability of lopinavir (LPV), ritonavir (RTV) and atazanavir (ATV) as a double-boosted protease inhibitor regimen in HIV-infected adults.

Methods: Sixteen patients who started LPV/RTV (400/100 mg b.i.

Hematocrit influences immunoassay performance for the measurement of tacrolimus in whole blood.

The comparison between the MEIA II and the EMIT assays for tacrolimus measurement and the interference by the hematocrit were evaluated in 93 samples from routine therapeutic monitoring at tacrolimus concentrations less than 9 microg/L (group A). Additionally, the incidence of false-positive results were determined in samples (n=46) from patients who were not receiving the drug (group B). In group A, no statistical differences were observed between the mean+/-SD values obtained by MEIA II (5.

Once-daily regimen of saquinavir, ritonavir, didanosine, and lamivudine in HIV-infected patients with standard tuberculosis therapy (TBQD Study).

Objectives: To assess the efficacy and safety of a once-daily regimen with didanosine, lamivudine, saquinavir, and low-dose ritonavir in antiretroviral (ARV)-naive patients with tuberculosis treated with rifampin and the influence of rifampin on plasma trough concentration (Ctrough) of saquinavir.

Methods: Single-arm, prospective, multicenter, open-label pilot study, including 32 adult ARV-naive subjects with HIV infection and tuberculosis under standard treatment that included rifampin (600 mg q.d.

[Efavirenz and nevirapine plasma levels in HIV-infected patients with hemophilia].

The aim of this study was to evaluate efavirenz and nevirapine plasma levels in HIV-infected hemophilic patients seen in two hospitals in Barcelona. Plasma levels of these drugs were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) at four-month intervals, together with viral load and CD4 cell count. Nineteen patients treated with efavirenz and 8 with nevirapine were included, and 68 efavirenz and 31 nevirapine determinations were performed.

Steady-state pharmacokinetics of a double-boosting regimen of saquinavir soft gel plus lopinavir plus minidose ritonavir in human immunodeficiency virus-infected adults.

Management of treatment-experienced human immunodeficiency virus patients has become complex, and therapy may need to include two protease inhibitors at therapeutic doses. The objective of this study was to characterize the pharmacokinetics in serum of saquinavir (1,000 mg twice daily [b.i.