Which non-fibrous carbohydrates: neutral detergent fiber ratio optimizes the use of cactus cladodes in diets of growing heifers?

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of different non-fibrous carbohydrate (NFC):neutral detergent fiber (NDF) ratios (0.70:1, 0.90:1, 1.14:1, 1.42:1, and 1.85:1) in diets containing cactus cladodes on intake, digestibility, ruminal parameters, ingestive behavior, and microbial protein of growing heifers. Five rumen-cannulated heifers (194 ± 70 kg of body weight) were distributed in a Latin square design (5 x 5). There was a quadratic effect on the intake of dry matter (DM) (Kg day-1 and %BW) and crude protein (CP) with the increase in non-fibrous carbohydrate (NFC): neutral detergent fiber (NDF) ratio, with maximum values of 7.07 kg day-1, 2.86%, and 0.949 kg day-1, estimated for 1.37:1, 1.39:1, and 1.27:1 ratios. When the intake of NDF decreased, in turn, the intakes of NFC and TDN increased. The NDF digestibility decreased with increasing NFC levels in diets. The other nutrients were not influenced. The ruminal pH showed the lowest values at 4 hours after feeding, mainly for animals fed the 1.85:1 ratio. There was a quadratic effect for rumination time with maximum values estimated for an NFC:NDF ratio of 0.88:1. The time spent idle increased linearly, while total chewing time and feeding efficiency of NDF decreased. The urinary volume increased linearly. However, microbial protein synthesis and the efficiency of the synthesis were not influenced. The number of protozoa increased by 64.5% with the elevation of the NFC:NDF ratio. We recommend a NFC:NDF ratio of 1.37:1 in diets containing cactus cladodes, to improve the use of nutrients, without negatively affecting ruminal parameters.

Assessment of small-intestine permeability in healthy Nigerian children is altered by urinary volume and voiding status

Objective This study aimed to uncover the effect of voided urinary volume on small intestine permeability ratios in healthy children. Methods We assessed small intestine permeability in 155 apparently healthy children, aged 3–5 years old, without any visible symptoms of disease, in a rural, malaria-endemic setting in Nigeria, using a multi-sugar test solution, comprising lactulose, sucrose, mannitol, and rhamnose. Children were categorized into low urinary volume (LV) and high urinary volume (HV), based on the volume of urine voided per kg body weight per hour. LV children voided less than 25th percentile of the total population, while HV children voided greater than 75th percentile of the total population. Urinary volume excreted over a 90-minute period after administration of the test solution was measured, and differences in sugar ratios were compared between children with high (HV) and low urinary volumes (LV), as well as between children who voided (VC) or who were not able to void (NVC) before administration of the test solution. Results Urinary mannitol and rhamnose recovery were 44% (p = 0.002) and 77% (p<0.001) higher in HV children compared to LV children respectively, while urinary lactulose recovery was 34% lower (p = 0.071). There was no difference in urinary sucrose recovery between groups (p = 0.74). Lactulose-mannitol ratio, lactulose-rhamnose ratio and sucrose-rhamnose ratio were all significantly higher in children in the LV group compared to children in the HV group (p<0.001). In a multiple regression analysis, urinary volume and voiding status combined, explained 13%, 23% and 7% of the variation observed in lactulose-mannitol, lactulose-rhamnose and sucrose-rhamnose ratios, respectively. Conclusion Sugar permeability ratios vary significantly with total urinary volume in multi-sugar small-intestine permeability tests. Voiding status before sugar administration appears to influence lactulose recovery, lactulose-rhamnose and sucrose-rhamnose ratios independently of total urinary volume. Evidence from this study suggests the need to take urinary volume into account when conducting multi-sugar small-intestine permeability tests.

Feeding Strategies to Increase Nitrogen Retention and Improve Rumen Fermentation and Rumen Microbial Population in Beef Steers Fed with Tropical Forages

The effect of the inclusion of Leucaena leucocephala and Tithonia diversifolia in Zebu steers receiving a diet based on improved pastures such as Brachiaria decumbens and Brachiaria hybrid cv Cayman on nitrogen (N) excretion, urinary volume and rumen microbial population was evaluated. To determine the dry matter intake and nutrient excretion, eight steers were used in a 4 × 4 Latin square design consisting of four periods and four diets. Four of them were cannulated for ruminal fluid extraction and quantification of ruminal microorganisms in three times of grazing (T0, T7 and T15). Forage intake was calculated through the external marker titanium dioxide. Diet including forages with superior protein content generated an increase in the gene copy numbers of Prevotella ruminicola and total bacteria on 15 sampling day (p < 0.001). Animals receiving diets with the dietary inclusion of Leucaena and Tithonia had daily N intakes of 228 and 113.5g N intake d−1, of which they excreted 42% and 61%, respectively. Inclusion of both protein forages increased daily urinary volume (9% and 7% d−1), with respect to the pasture-based diet. This study revealed that the inclusion of 18% Leucaena in a pasture-based diet improves the dry matter intake and N retention in Zebu steers under tropical conditions.

Tonsillectomy in IgA Nephropathy - Clinical Case

This article presents the clinical case of IgA nephropathy of a patient hospitalized in order to investigate a nephritic syndrome, apparently with acute onset, discovered in the following circumstances: recurrent macroscopic hematuria, decreased urinary volume, the first episode occurring about a month ago in the context of an acute infection of upper airways, remitted under antibiotic therapy, with reappearance every 2 weeks, also accompanied by odynophagia and decreased urinary volume.

Prolonged Diuretic and Renoprotective Effects of a Xanthone Obtained from Garcinia achachairu Rusby in Normotensive and Hypertensive Rats

The previous study showed that 1,5,8-trihydroxy-4′,5′-dimethyl-2H-pyrano(2,3 : 3,2)-4-(3-methylbut-2-enyl) xanthone (TDP) obtained from Garcinia achachairu Rusby (Clusiaceae) branches induces acute diuresis in normotensive (NTR) and spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) after 8 h of the experiment. In complementarity, the present study evaluated the prolonged diuretic and renoprotective effects of TDP in both NTR and SHR. The animals received, once a day, oral treatment with TDP (0.1 mg/kg), hydrochlorothiazide (10 mg/kg), or vehicle (VEH; 10 mL/kg). At the end of 7 days, the urine, blood, and kidney samples were collected for biochemical and histological analyzes. The urinary volume of both NTR and SHR after 7 days of treatment with the TDP was significantly increased, associated with augmented urinary electrolyte excretion levels. The treatments did not modify the urinary pH values nor the parameters analyzed in plasma (Na+, K+, Cl−, and Ca2+). Concerning the renal analyzes, when compared with the VEH-treated NTR group, while the activity of the enzymes catalase (CAT) and N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase (NAG), as well as nitrite levels, were increased, the generation of lipid hydroperoxides and the activity of the enzyme myeloperoxidase (MPO) were unaltered. On the other hand, the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) and the levels of reduced glutathione (GSH) in kidney homogenates of the SHR group were decreased. However, TDP augmented the levels of GSH and GST activities and reduced the levels of nitrite and the activities of CAT and MPO, when compared with VEH-treated only SHR. Besides, the treatment with TDP alleviated the morphological changes of the renal corpuscle region of SHR. Together, these results revealed the prolonged diuretic effect of TDP and their renal protective effect by improving the antioxidative capacity.

False elevations in urinary metanephrines: under-recognised pitfall with 24-hour urinary volume collection

One pitfall in 24-hour urine collection is the input of incorrect urinary volume by the reference laboratory. This may lead to an incorrect diagnosis of pheochromocytoma or paraganglioma. A 48-year-old African-American woman was seen in the clinic for an elevated 24-hour urine metanephrine screen during workup for secondary hypertension. Urine volume was found to be incorrectly inputted by the lab as 9750 mL rather than 975 mL. The urinary metanephrines were then recalculated and the 24-hour urinary metanephrines resulted within normal limits. This case highlights this unique and potentially under-recognised error in testing with 24-hour urine volume collection.

Incidence of urinary retention and relations between patient's complaint, physical examination, and bladder ultrasound

ABSTRACT Objective To describe the frequency of urinary complaints, bladder globe, and need for bladder relief catheterization according to ultrasound; to investigate the relationship between the urinary volume estimated by ultrasound and the one drained in catheterization; and to describe the relationship of patient's complaints and detection of bladder globe with the diagnosis of urinary retention. Method A cross-sectional study with clinical patients with suspected urinary retention in a tertiary hospital, conducted from February to September 2018. Urinary volume ≥500 mL in ultrasound was considered urinary retention. Results Two hundred and five evaluations were performed in 44 patients. Urinary retention was detected by ultrasound in 33.2% of the evaluations. There was a strong correlation between ultrasound and bladder catheterization. There was a higher frequency of identification of bladder globe in urinary volumes ≥300 mL. Conclusion The incidence of urinary retention was higher when ultrasound was used for the diagnosis, when compared to patient's complaint and physical examination. Ultrasound showed to be accurate in establishing urinary volume.

The Impact of Daily Urinary Volume Variations and Prostate Volume on Prostate Position During Radiotherapy

BackgroundDaily variations in bladder volumes are thought to be a major cause of prostate position changes during radiotherapy, however, the impact of such changes on prostate position is not fully established. We hypothesized that prostate volume (PV) could also be related to the susceptibility of prostate movement to changes in urinary volume (UV). The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of daily UV variations and PV on the prostate position during radiotherapy.MethodsA total of 268 treatment sessions in 12 consecutive prostate cancer patients who were treated with proton beam therapy in our hospital were retrospectively analyzed. All patients were instructed to void urine and feces one hour before the treatment and the UV was measured by a portable ultrasound device just before the treatment. After the positional registration based on bone structure, the prostate positional difference from the planned position was measured using fiducial markers in the prostate and a real-time tumor tracking system. The measurements were for the differences in the left-right (LR), cranial-caudal (CC), and anterior-posterior (AP) directions. The PV was measured by ultrasound imaging before every treatment. The impact of the UV variations on the prostate position was evaluated by the linear mixed effect model, and including PV (<20ml and ≥20ml) as covariates. ResultsThere was significant movement of the prostate in the posterior direction with increasing UV in patients with PV ≥ 20 ml (p=0.04, estimated coefficient of regression -0.436 mm/100ml, 95% CI from -0.854 to -0.018). However, there was no significant correlation between UV changes and movement of the prostate in either of the LR, CC, or AP directions in all cases and patients with PV < 20 ml.ConclusionsOur results suggest that the increase of UV could result in posterior prostate movement in patients with prostatic hyperplasia, however, the clinical impact is thought to be small. There is however a need for further research to identify other factors that could affect the daily changes in prostate position as well as a need for a more ideal preparation protocol to improve the reproducibility of the treatment-planning CT.