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Abstract A severely immune-suppressed AIDS patient was suspected of suffering from BK virus (BKV) meningoencephalitis, after being studied for common causes of neurological complications of co-infectious origin. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequence analysis of cerebrospinal fluid and brain samples, confirmed the presence of BKV. His clinical condition improved along with the regression of brain lesions, after modifications on his antiretroviral regime. Five months after discharge, the patient was readmitted because of frequent headaches, and a marked inflammatory reaction was evidenced by a new magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The symptoms paralleled a rising CD4+ lymphocyte count, and immune reconstitution syndrome was suspected. This is the first non-postmortem report of BKV meningoencephalitis in an AIDS patient, showing clinical and radiographic improvement solely under HAART.

Background: Isometric training is used in sport, conventional physical activity and rehabilitation. Understandably, there is a great deal of research related to its effect on performance. It is known that the length of the muscle at the moment of contraction is a determinant of strength levels. In the literature we find research on isometric training in short muscle lengths, although it has not been studied in maximally shortened positions or the acute effects that occur after its application. Ballistic stretching (BS) is also popular in sport. Their execution involves actively reaching maximally shortened muscle positions. So far, isometric training has not been compared with protocols involving ballistic stretching. Considering the above, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of BS and voluntary isometric contraction at maximal shortening (VICAMS) on range of motion, strength and vertical jump. Methods: The study involved 60 healthy, physically active individuals (40 and 52 years old) who were randomly assigned to three groups: BS, VICAMS and a control group (CG). To assess acute effects, before and after the intervention, active range of motion (AROM), maximal voluntary isometric force (MVIF) and countermovement jump height (CMJ) were determined. Results: Time main effects and time*group interactions were found for all variables (p < 0.001). Between-group differences were shown for the VICAMS group after the intervention, with statistically significant higher AROM values compared to the other groups. MVIF values were also higher in the VICAMS group. Intra-group differences were observed for the VICAMS and Ballistic groups, as values on all variables increased from baseline. For the CMJ, intra-group differences showed that both the VICAMS and BS groups improved values compared to baseline values. Conclusions: The application of VICAMS induced acute improvements over BS in AROM, MVIF and CMJ. These results are important for coaches seeking immediate performance improvement and offer an optimal solution to the warm-up protocol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pediatricians are often the first point of contact for children in Primary Care (PC), but still perceive gaps in their allergy knowledge. We investigated self‐perceived knowledge gaps and educational needs in pediatricians across healthcare systems in Europe so that future educational initiatives may better support the delivery of allergy services in PC. Method: A multinational survey was circulated to pediatricians who care for children and adolescents with allergy problems in PC by the EAACI Allergy Educational Needs in Primary Care Pediatricians Task Force from February to March 2023. A 5‐point Likert scale was used to assess the level of agreement with questionnaire statements. Thirty surveys per country were the cut‐off for inclusion and statistical analysis. Results: In this study, 1991 respondents were obtained from 56 countries across Europe and 210 responses were from countries with a cut‐off below 30 participants per country. Primary care pediatricians (PCPs) comprised 74.4% of the respondents. The majority (65.3%) were contracted to state or district health services. 61.7% had awareness of guidelines for onward allergy referral in their countries but only 22.3% were aware of the EAACI competencies document for allied health professionals for allergy. Total sample respondents versus PCPs showed 52% and 47% of them have access to allergy investigations in their PC facility (mainly specific IgE and skin prick tests); 67.6% and 58.9% have access to immunotherapy, respectively. The main barrier to referral to a specialist was a consideration that the patient's condition could be diagnosed and treated in this PC facility, (57.8% and 63.6% respectively). The main reasons for referral were the need for hospital assessment, and partial response to first‐line treatment (55.4% and 59.2%, 47% and 50.7%, respectively). Learning and assessment methods preference was fairly equally divided between Traditional methods (45.7% and 50.1% respectively) and e‐learning 45.5% and 44.9%, respectively. Generalist physicians (GPs) have the poorest access to allergy investigations (32.7%, p =.000). The majority of the total sample (91.9%) assess patients with allergic pathology. 868 (43.6%) and 1117 (46.1%), received allergy training as undergraduates and postgraduates respectively [these proportions in PCPs were higher (45% and 59%), respectively]. PCPs with a special interest in allergology experienced greater exposure to allergy teaching as postgraduates. GPs received the largest amount of allergy teaching as undergraduates. Identifying allergic disease based on clinical presentation, respondents felt most confident in the management of eczema/atopic dermatitis (87.4%) and rhinitis/asthma (86.2%), and least confident in allergen immunotherapy (36.9%) and latex allergy (30.8%). Conclusion: This study exploring the confidence of PCPs to diagnose, manage, and refer patients with allergies, demonstrated knowledge gaps and educational needs for allergy clinical practice. It detects areas in need of urgent improvement especially in latex and allergen immunotherapy. It is important to ensure the dissemination of allergy guidelines and supporting EAACI documents since the majority of PCPs lack awareness of them. This survey has enabled us to identify what the educational priorities of PCPs are and how they would like to have them met. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A coupled numerical model of flow through porous media, formulated in terms of the fluid displacements and changing the impermeability boundary conditions, is applied to calculate the free surface in unconfined, steady-seepage problems. In this new methodology, the domain of computation is kept constant, and the free surface is iteratively obtained by imposing impermeability conditions at the free boundaries, which are updated at the end of each iteration, aiming to simulate the physics of the problem. By doing so, a line of pore-water pressure equal to zero (free surface) is obtained in a few iterations, usually two or three. The results obtained with the proposed method have been successfully compared to analytical and numerical solutions in several examples to show the usefulness of the method in practical seepage problems. Key words: free surface, coupled models, steady flow, porous media. Un modele numerique couple d'ecoulement a travers un medium poreux, formule selon les deplacements des fluides et en changeant les conditions frontieres d'impermeabilite, est applique pour calculer la surface libre dans le cas de problemes de percolation stable et non confinee. Dans cette nouvelle technologie, le domaine de calcul demeure constant, et la surface libre est obtenue par iteration en imposant des conditions d'impermeabilite aux frontieres libres, qui sont mises a jour a la fin de chaque iteration simulant la physique du probleme. De cette facon, une ligne de pression interstitielle egale a zero (surface libre) est obtenue en quelques iterations, normalement deux ou trois. Les resultats obtenus avec la methode proposee ont ete compares avec succes a des solutions analytiques et numeriques provenant de plusieurs exemples afin de demontrer son utilite pour des problemes pratiques de percolation. Mots-cles: surface libre, modeles couples, ecoulement stable, medium poreux. [Traduit par la Redaction], Introduction For determining the free surface in unconfined flow through porous media, it is general practice to assume totally dry or saturated soil conditions. Following this line of thought, the [...]

Abstract Elenoside is a cytotoxic arylnapthalene lignan (NSC 644013-W/1) derived from Justicia hyssopifolia (Family: Acanthaceae). The neuropharmacological activity of this lignan, a β-D-glucoside was studied. The L[D.sub.50] (24h) of elenoside [...]

Traumatic brain injury is one of the most important causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. One of its presentations includes traumatic brain contusions. Brain contusions are cortical lesions of necrotic tissue and multiple petechial haemorrhages, initially perivascular, that predominantly affect the crests of the convolutions, but that can extend through the cortex and reach the subcortical white matter. These result from a collision of the brain with the adjacent inner table of the skull, without proper treatment these can evolve and cause a rapid deterioration of clinical and neurological status. The classification includes mild, moderate, and severe TBI depending on the nature of the injury and the impact on the patient's clinical status. For the initial evaluation, computed tomography is usually used, although the magnetic resonance has greater sensitivity for the detection in these patients. Treatment is guided at preventing the progression of the lesion or the development of a secondary lesion, avoiding hypotension and hypoxia and maintaining adequate cerebral perfusion. Surgery is frequently needed in severe cases to remove intracranial hematomas, provide space for the brain to swell, or place monitors to track intracranial pressure and brain oxygenation. The aim of this article is to review the most important aspects to know about brain contusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The V3 domain of the HIV-1 gp120 envelope protein is necessary for the virus to infect intestinal cells. This allows the virus to use the CXCR4 receptor to enter the cells.

The article discusses research methods used to study the nonrotating molecules and their unimolecular dissociation.

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