RESUMEN
La meningitis bacteriana aguda es una emergencia infectológica ya que puede ocasionar secuelas graves o incluso la muerte. Es rara la presentación de este cuadro con sordera súbita y ataxia. Se presenta el caso de una adolescente del sexo femenino de 14 años, que presentó meningitis bacteriana por meningococo serogrupo C con ataxia vestibular y sordera súbita, que fue tratada con corticoides y pentoxifilina, además de antibióticos para la infección de base. La recuperación de la audición no fue adecuada y persistió con sordera e hipoacusia severa unilateral y ataxia vestibular persistente e inhabilitante.
Acute bacterial meningitis is an infectious emergency as it can lead to serious sequelae or even death. The presentation of this condition with sudden deafness and ataxia is rare. We present the case of a 14-year old female adolescent, who presented with vestibular ataxia and sudden deafness and was subsequently diagnosed with bacterial meningitis due to serogroup C meningococcus. She was treated with corticosteroids and pentoxifylline, in addition to antibiotics, for the baseline infection. Hearing recovery was not adequate; she persisted with severe deafness, unilateral hearing loss and persistent and disabling vestibular ataxia.
RESUMEN
A major challenge in developing countries concerning domestic wastewaters is to decrease their treatment costs. In the present study, a new cost-effective reactor called gradual concentric chambers (GCC) was designed and evaluated at lab-scale. The effluent quality of the GCC reactor was compared with that of an upflow anaerobic sludge bed (UASB) reactor. Both reactors showed organic matter removal efficiencies of 90 percent; however, the elimination of nitrogen was higher in the GCC reactor. The amount of biogas recovered in the GCC and the UASB systems was 50 percent and 75 percent of the theoretical amount expected, respectively, and both reactors showed a slightly higher methane production when the feed was supplemented with an additive based on vitamins and minerals. Overall, the economical analysis, the simplicity of design and the performance results revealed that the GCC technology can be of particular interest for sewage treatment in developing countries.