[Stethoscope or staphyloscope?: Potential vector in nosocomial infections].

Healthcare-associated infections (HCAI) are a problem worldwide. In our country, the estimated incidence of HCAI is 70,000 per year. This results in an increase in the average length of hospital stay by 10 days per patient, an estimated annual cost of US $ 70 million and an overstay of 700 thousand bed days a year.

Improving appearance and microbiologic quality of broiler carcasses with an allostatic modulator.

An important priority of poultry producers is to guarantee animal welfare during animal production; however, broilers are exposed to unavoidable chronic stress (also known as allostasis) when they are captured, caged, and transported to the processing plant. This antemortem management causes allostatic load, animal injuries, and poor carcass quality. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of an allostatic modulator (AM) on antemortem stress by measuring the appearance and microbiological quality of broiler carcasses.

Absence of COCH mutations in patients with Meniere disease.

Missense mutations in the coagulation factor C homology (COCH) gene (14q12-q13) cause the autosomal dominant sensorineural hearing loss and vestibular disorder DFNA9 (OMIM 603196), and a high prevalence of symptoms of Meniere disease (MD) has been described in families with a mutation in the COCH gene. In this study, we search for mutations in the COCH gene in peripheral blood from patients with definite MD. DNA was extracted from peripheral blood cells of 30 individuals with MD and 30 controls.

Expression of A, B, C and DR antigens in definite Meniere's disease in a Spanish population.

To analyze the associations of HLA class I and II antigens in patients with Meniere's disease (MD) in southern Spain, 54 patients with definite MD according to the diagnostic scale of the AAO-HNS were compared with 534 normal controls in a prospective multicenter study. We performed a serological typing for A, B, C and DR specificities of the major histocompatibility complex and allele-specific amplification for HLA-DRB1. No differences were found in the distribution of class I antigens or DR antigens in patients with definite MD when they were compared with the control group.