Conclusion: Extreme values of UPC ratio <= 0.08 or >= 1.19 have favorable predictive values, which could enable the rapid diagnosis of preeclampsia without a 24-h urine collection.”
“OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the performance of the QuantiFERON (R)-TB Gold
(QFT-G) test for screening tuberculosis (TB) contacts and estimating their risk of progressing PHA-848125 concentration to active TB disease.
METHODS: Data on clinical progression to active disease were collected from public health centres 2 years after close contacts of TB cases had been QFT-G-tested.
RESULTS: Among 3102 contacts observed, 419 were QFT-G-positive, and isoniazid (INH) treatment was initiated in 323. Twenty (4.8%) of these 419 developed TB disease. Among 2683 QFT-G-negative persons, 19 were diagnosed with TB (0.7%) during the average follow-up period of 1.6 years. The estimated sensitivity of QFT-G in detecting contacts who would
progress to active TB was 51%, or 64% allowing for the effects of INN treatment. Among the QFT-G-negative contacts, all those who developed TB disease were contacts of highly infectious cases. Large-scale tuberculin skin testing was not available.
CONCLUSIONS: TB incidence among QFT-G-positive contacts was higher than among QFT-G-negative contacts, but the number of TB cases among QFT-G-negative contacts is non-negligible, especially among contacts of highly infectious cases.”
“Objective: To determine whether a rule-based system for fetal heart rate interpretation can result in reduced Bucladesine inhibitor metabolic acidemia without increasing obstetrical intervention. Methods: Rates of
vacuum-assisted delivery and Cesarean sections, and umbilical artery pH and base excess values were determined over a 5-year period in a single hospital with 3907 deliveries in Japan. Results were compared selleck chemicals for 2 years before and 2 years after a 6-month training period in rule-based fetal heart rate interpretation. Results: The pre-and post-training rates of unscheduled Cesarean deliveries (4.8% vs. 6.0%) and vacuum deliveries (21.2% vs. 18.1%) did not differ significantly. The rates of umbilical arterial pH <7.15 (1.51% vs. 0.18%, p < 0.05) and base excess <-12 mEq/L (1.76% vs. 0.25%, p < 0.05) were significantly lower after training. Conclusion: A standardized fetal heart rate pattern management system was associated with a 7-fold reduction of newborn metabolic acidemia with no change in operative intervention.”
“BACKGROUND: Interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) release assays (IGRAs), such as the QuantiFERON (R)-TB Gold In-Tube test (QFT-GIT), are becoming a preferred method for diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB) infection in many industrialised countries. However, data on the effectiveness of IGRAs in high TB-HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) endemic and resource-limited settings, such as Zambia, are limited.
OBJECTIVE: To determine the intra-assay reliability and robustness of QFT-GIT in a field setting in Zambia.