Enhancing groundwater vulnerability assessment for improved environmental management: addressing a critical environmental concern.

Groundwater serves as a primary water source for various purposes. Therefore, aquifer pollution poses a critical threat to human health and the environment. Identifying the aquifer's highly vulnerable areas to pollution is necessary to implement appropriate remedial measures, thus ensuring groundwater sustainability. This paper aims to enhance groundwater vulnerability assessment (GWVA) to manage aquifer quality effectively. The study focuses on the El Orjane Aquifer in the Moulouya basin, Morocco, which is facing significant degradation due to olive mill wastewater. Groundwater vulnerability maps (GVMs) were generated using the DRASTIC, Pesticide DRASTIC, SINTACS, and SI methods. To assess the effectiveness of the proposed improvements, 24 piezometers were installed to measure nitrate concentrations, a common indicator of groundwater contamination. This study aimed to enhance GWVA by incorporating new layers, such as land use, and adjusting parameter rates based on a comprehensive sensitivity analysis. The results demonstrate a significant increase in Pearson correlation values (PCV) between the produced GVMs and measured nitrate concentrations. For instance, the PCV for the DRASTIC method improved from 0.42 to 0.75 after adding the land use layer and adjusting parameter rates using the Wilcoxon method. These findings offer valuable insights for accurately assessing groundwater vulnerability in areas with similar hazards and hydrological conditions, particularly in semi-arid and arid regions. They contribute to improving groundwater and environmental management practices, ensuring the long-term sustainability of aquifers.

A Case Report and Literature Review of Pseudo-TORCH Syndrome Type 2 (PTORCH2).

A pseudo-TORCH syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive disease characterized by intracranial calcification and microcephaly, leading to spasticity and seizures, but the serology of TORCH infection is negative. We present a 4-day-old female patient with jaundice, abnormal movement, and convulsions who was found to be homozygous for the missense USP18 gene mutation that causes pseudo-TORCH syndrome 2 (PTORCH2). The patient was managed with conservative measures.

Fatal acute purulent pericarditis in a patient with renal transplant: a case report.

OBJECTIVES: Acute purulent pericarditis is a lifethreatening disease, although it is becoming uncommon in the era of antibiotics. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We present a case of fatal acute massive purulent pericarditis in a kidney transplant recipient. RESULTS: A 46-year-old woman had an unrelated commercial renal transplant in 2003. She had a history of diabetes mellitus and hepatitis C infection. Kaposi sarcoma developed in the posttransplant period. Her last admission was prompted by the development of acute rejection confirmed by transplant biopsy, and she was treated with intravenous methylprednisolone. Three days before her death, thrombophlebitis of the right forearm was noted. We postulate that this could have been the source of the fulminant purulent pericarditis, as the organism in the pericardial fluid was Staphylococcus aureus, a common pathogen in thrombophlebitis. She was initially resuscitated after cardiac arrest but died shortly after. CONCLUSIONS: Severe purulent pericarditis in the immunocompromised patient can occur abruptly. The source of infection may show minimal signs and symptoms. Thrombophlebitis and other apparently minor infections should not be overlooked in such patients.