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Effects of dietary LL-carnitine were studied in juvenile black sea bream (Sparus macrocephalus). The semipurified basal diet [crude protein 450 g kg )1 dry matter (DM); crude lipid 126 g kg )1 DM] was formulated to choose white fishmeal as the protein source and fish oil plus corn oil (1 : 1) as the lipid source. Six diets (control + diets 1-5) containing 0.1, 0.12, 0.16, 0.24, 0.39 and 1.1 g of L L-carnitine kg )1 diet were fed to triplicate groups of black sea bream (initial weight 13.10 ± 0.05 g) for 8 weeks. At the end of the feeding trial, growth performance, body composition and antioxidant status were determined. The results showed that relative growth rate (RGR) was significantly improved by the elevation of dietary L L-carnitine level from 0.1 to 0.24 g kg )1 , but decreased with further increment (P < 0.05). Lipid content decreased significantly (P < 0.05) in the dorsal muscle whereas increased (P < 0.05) in the liver with the addition of dietary L L-carnitine. Dietary

ObjectiveThere are limited antiretroviral options for use in the treatment of HIV infection during pregnancy. The purpose of this study was to assess the safety, efficacy and appropriate dosing regimen for ritonavir (RTV)-boosted atazanavir in HIV-1-infected pregnant women. MethodsIn this nonrandomized, open-label study, HIV-infected pregnant women were dosed with either 300/ 100 mg (n 5 20) or 400/100 mg (n 5 21) atazanavir/RTV once-daily (qd) in combination with zidovudine (300 mg) and lamivudine (150 mg) twice daily in the third trimester. Pharmacokinetic parameters [maximum observed plasma concentration (C max ), trough observed plasma concentration 24 hour post dose (C min ) and area under concentration-time curve in one dosing interval (AUC t )] were determined and compared with historical values (300/100 mg atazanavir/RTV) for HIV-infected nonpregnant adults (n 5 23). ResultsAt or before delivery, all mothers achieved HIV RNA o50 HIV-1 RNA copies/mL and all infants were HIV DNA negative at 6 months of age. The third trimester AUC t for atazanavir/RTV 300/100 mg was 21% lower than historical data, but the C min values were comparable. The C min value for atazanavir/RTV 400/100 mg was 39% higher than the C min for atazanavir/RTV 300/100 mg in historical controls, but the AUC t values were comparable. Twice as many patients in the 400/100 mg group (62%) had an increase in total bilirubin (42.5 times the upper limit of normal) as in the 300/100 mg group (30%). Atazanavir (ATV) was well tolerated with no unanticipated adverse events. ConclusionsIn this study, use of atazanavir/RTV 300/100 mg qd produced C min comparable to historical data in nonpregnant HIV-infected adults. When used in combination with zidovudine/lamivudine, it suppressed HIV RNA in all mothers and prevented mother-to-child transmission of HIV-1 infection. During pregnancy, the pharmacokinetics, safety and efficacy demonstrated that a dose adjustment is not required for ATV.Keywords: atazanavir, HIV, pregnancy, prevention of mother-to-child transmission, protease inhibitor IntroductionTreatment guidelines for HIV-1 infection in pregnant women recommend highly active antiretroviral (ARV) therapy (HAART) with two nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (zidovudine and lamivudine) plus the nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor nevirapine [1][2][3]. Some guidelines also recommend the ritonavir (RTV)-boosted protease inhibitor lopinavir as an optional third agent [1], although others recommend several boosted protease inhibitors as optional agents [2]. All other ARV DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-1293.2011.00927.x HIV Medicine (2011 r 2011 British HIV Association 570 drugs are alternative agents or for use in special circumstances [1,4]. However, there are questions and concerns regarding the two most frequently recommended third agents: treatment initiation with nevirapine is associated with an increased risk of symptomatic liver toxicity, often accompanied by a rash, which is potentially fatal [1,5]. Concerns with RTV-boosted lopinavir inclu...

BackgroundSeveral randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies have compared the efficacy of digital chest drainage system versus traditional chest drainage system. However, the results were inconsistent.MethodsWe searched the Web of Science and Pubmed for observational studies and RCTs that compared the effect of digital chest drainage system with traditional chest drainage system after pulmonary resection. Eight studies (5 randomized control trails and 3 observational studies) comprising 1487 patients met the eligibility criteria.ResultsCompared with the traditional chest drainage system, digital chest drainage system reduced the risk of prolonged air leak (PAL) (RR = 0.54, 95%CI 0.40–0.73, p < 0.0001), and shortened the duration of chest drainage (SMD = − 0.35, 95%CI -0.60 - -0.09, p = 0.008) and length of hospital stay (SMD = − 0.35, 95%CI -0.61 - -0.09, p = 0.007) in patients after pulmonary resection.ConclusionsDigital chest drainage system is expected to benefit patients to attain faster recovery and higher life quality as well as to reduce the risk of postoperative complications. Further RCTs with larger sample size are still needed to more clearly elucidate the advantages of digital chest drainage system.

BackgroundRetrograde type A aortic dissection (RTAD) is a rare but life-threatening complication after thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) for type B aortic dissection (TBAD). A graft inversion technique was applied to distal anastomosis in total arch replacement for this complicated dissection. We reviewed our results of the processing for this serious complication. The aim is to evaluate the feasibility of this technology.MethodsFrom January 2013 to December 2017, 20 patients (80% male, mean age 50.9 ± 9.5 years) with retrograde type A aortic dissection after thoracic endovascular aortic repair for type B aortic dissection were scheduled for surgical treatment at our center. All patients underwent an ascending aorta and total aortic arch replacement procedure. The 20 patients were divided into two groups, 1 group involved 9 patients underwent surgery using stepwise technique; the graft inversion technique was performed in the other group containing the remaining 11 patients. The postoperative variables, including cardiopulmonary bypass time, the circulatory arrest time, the aortic cross clamp time, were analyzed. Meanwhile we also analyzed the postoperative mortality and complications to evaluate the early and mid-term outcomes of surgical treatment for RTAD after TEVAR.ResultsIn-hospital mortality was 10% (2 of 20 patients). No patient developed postoperative paraplegia, renal failure, stroke, or distal anastomotic bleeding. Two patients developed renal insufficiency, one developed neurologic insufficiency, and one developed pulmonary infection, all of which were managed accordingly. Cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) time, and circulatory arrest time were significantly shorter in the graft inversion group than in the stepwise group (165.8 ± 37.9 min versus 206.1 ± 46.8 min, p<0.05; 34.5 ± 5.6 min versus 42.4 ± 9.5 min, p<0.05, respectively). The 18 survivors had a mean follow-up of 25.8 ± 18.2 months, and all patients remained alive and well.ConclusionGraft inversion can enable a secure distal anastomosis under good surgical exposure, resulting in reduced durations of CPB, and circulatory arrest for RTAD after TEVAR. Surgical treatment could be a safe alternative for treatment of this patients.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13019-019-0851-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.