Inferior intravitreal injection site associated with a higher incidence of post-injection endophthalmitis / 国际眼科杂志(Guoji Yanke Zazhi)

?AlM:To determine whether inferior injections had a higher incidence of post-injection endophthalmitis than superior injections. The incidence of endophthalmitis is higher for inferior than superior trabeculectomy filtering blebs, possibly due to bacteria pooling in the inferior tear lake. ? METHODS: A practice - wide database of endophthalmitis cases identified 5 occurring during the two-year study period. A retrospective review of 8 672 injections in 1 121 eyes of 909 patients treated during the same two-year study period was performed in order to assess the injection site location. ?RESULTS: Five eyes developed presumed infectious endophthalmitis. Eighty percent of endophthalmitis cases were injected inferiorly, even though 84. 6% of the total cohort was injected superiorly. The odds ratio of infection associated with inferior injection location is 22. 1 (P=0. 006). ? CONCLUSlON: Endophthalmitis after intravitreal injection is rare, occurring in only 0. 025% of injections overall. Avoiding intravitreal injections in the inferior quadrants may further reduce the rate of endophthalmitis.

Multiscale structures of lipids in foods as parameters affecting fatty acid bioavailability and lipid metabolism.

On a nutritional standpoint, lipids are now being studied beyond their energy content and fatty acid (FA) profiles. Dietary FA are building blocks of a huge diversity of more complex molecules such as triacylglycerols (TAG) and phospholipids (PL), themselves organised in supramolecular structures presenting different thermal behaviours. They are generally embedded in complex food matrixes. Recent reports have revealed that molecular and supramolecular structures of lipids and their liquid or solid state at the body temperature influence both the digestibility and metabolism of dietary FA. The aim of the present review is to highlight recent knowledge on the impact on FA digestion, absorption and metabolism of: (i) the intramolecular structure of TAG; (ii) the nature of the lipid molecules carrying FA; (iii) the supramolecular organization and physical state of lipids in native and formulated food products and (iv) the food matrix. Further work should be accomplished now to obtain a more reliable body of evidence and integrate these data in future dietary recommendations. Additionally, innovative lipid formulations in which the health beneficial effects of either native or recomposed structures of lipids will be taken into account can be foreseen.

Thermal properties and granulometry of dried powders strongly influence the effectiveness of heat treatment for microbial destruction.

The thermal treatment of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells, which were homogeneously incorporated into dried wheat flour particles, was performed for various particle radii (0.8 to 1.6, 1.6 to 2.8, 2.8 to 3.2, and 5 mm) and for an initial water activity of 0.20. A new high-temperature short-time process developed by our laboratory for powder decontamination was used at 150, 200, and 250 degrees C for 5 to 30 s, and significant destruction of up to a 6.7-log reduction, depending on treatment conditions and granule size, was achieved. This study confirms the strong influence of granulometry on the microbial destruction of homogeneously contaminated powdered products. Moreover, a thermal model was developed that takes into account the thermal properties of each component, the variations during heat treatment, and the energy required for phase change. This model provides a tool for predicting yeast destruction.

Water activity affects heat resistance of microorganisms in food powders.

To study the factors and mechanisms involved in microorganisms' death or resistance to temperature in low-water-activity environments, a previous work dealt with the viability of dried microorganisms immobilized in thin-layer on glass beads. This work is intended to check the efficiency of a rapid heating-cooling treatment to destroy microorganisms that were dried after mixing with wheat flour or skim milk. The thermoresistance of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the bacterium Lactobacillus plantarum were studied. Heat stress was applied at two temperatures (150 or 200 degrees C) for treatments of one of four durations (5, 10, 20, or 30 s) and at seven levels of initial water activity (a(w)) in the range 0.10 to 0.70. This new treatment achieved a microbial destruction of eight log reductions. A specific initial water activity was defined for each strain at which it was most resistant to heat treatments. On wheat flour, this initial a(w) value was in the range 0.30-0.50, with maximal viability value at a(w)=0.35 for L. plantarum, whatever the temperature studied, and 0.40 for S. cerevisiae. For skim milk, a variation in microbial viability was observed, with optimal resistance in the range 0.30-0.50 for S. cerevisiae and 0.20-0.50 for L. plantarum, with minimal destruction at a(w)=0.30 whatever the heating temperature is.

Efficiency of pulsed UV light for microbial decontamination of food powders.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of pulsed light on the destruction of dried microorganisms on fluidized glass beads and to determine treatment parameters (energy level, water activity, final product quality) for process optimization. The applied drying method allowed microorganisms to remain viable on glass beads or dried powdered products with viability yields approaching 100%. The pulsed UV light system enabled an efficient fluidization of food powders, even for granular products (up to 5 mm diameter) and avoided shadowed areas. For Saccharomyces cerevisiae decontamination, the dose effect of UV rays was preponderant with glass beads and quartz plate, and in this case, 58 J/cm2 were required to decrease the microbial population by 7 log. For colored food powders (black pepper and wheat flour), the thermal effect of pulsed light dominated the UV effect.