Computed tomography findings associated with bacteremia in adult patients with a urinary tract infection.

The use of computed tomography (CT) in the diagnosis of urinary tract infection (UTI) has rapidly increased recently at acute stage, but the CT findings associated with bacteremia in UTI patients are unknown. 189 UTI patients were enrolled who underwent a CT scan within 24 h after hospital admission. We classified CT findings into eight types: a focal or multifocal wedge-shaped area of hypoperfusion, enlarged kidneys, perinephric fat stranding, ureteritis or pyelitis, complicated renal cyst, renal papillary necrosis, hydronephrosis, and renal and perirenal abscess. A retrospective analysis was conducted to evaluate the CT findings associated with bacteremia. The mean age of these patients was 60 ± 17.2 years, and 93.1 % were women. Concurrent bacteremia was noted in 40.2 % of the patients. Abnormal CT findings were noted in 96.3 % of the patients and 62.4 % had two or more abnormal findings. The most frequent abnormal CT finding was a focal or multifocal wedge-shaped area of hypoperfusion (77.2 %), followed by perinephric fat stranding (29.1 %). Perinephric fat stranding, hydronephrosis, and the presence of two or more abnormal CT findings were significantly associated with bacteremia in patients with community-acquired UTI. In the multivariate logistic regression analysis, age [odds ratio (OR) 1.03; 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.009-1.062], two or more abnormal CT findings (OR 3.163; 95 % CI 1.334-7.498), and hydronephrosis (OR 13.160; 95 % CI 1.048-165.282) were significantly associated with bacteremia. Physicians should be aware that appropriate early management is necessary to prevent fatality in patients with these CT findings.

Effects of soy sauce on physicochemical and textural properties of tumbled chicken breast.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of soy sauce on the physicochemical and textural properties of tumbled chicken breasts. Chicken breasts marinated with distilled water (Con), 4% NaCl solution, 4% NaCl and lactic acid solution (pH 4.9), and soy sauce solution (4% salt concentration and pH 4.9) were vacuum tumbled at 3°C for 60 min. The chicken breast marinated with soy sauce solution showed lower lightness and higher redness and yellowness due to the color of the soy sauce. The acidic marinades led to a decrease in pH value of tumbled chicken breast. The acidic marinades increased collagen solubility of sample compared with 4% NaCl solution, resulting in decreased shear force. Water-holding capacity, marination and cooking yields, and solubility of myofibrillar proteins were mainly affected by the presence of salt in the marinade, rather than by pH alternation. Our results suggested that soy sauce marination can improve the tenderness of tumbled chicken breast.

Evaluation of the antioxidant effect of ganghwayakssuk (Artemisia princeps Pamp.) extract alone and in combination with ascorbic acid in raw chicken patties.

We investigated the inhibition of lipid oxidation of raw chicken patties by the antioxidants ascorbic acid (Aa), ganghwayakssuk extracts (GE), and their combination (Aa + GE). All antioxidant combinations were effective at delaying lipid oxidation compared with the control or Aa. A combination of Aa + GE (0.05% Aa + 0.2% GE) was the most effective for delaying lipid oxidation (TBA reactive substances, conjugated dienes, and peroxide formation). The color values of all samples were significantly affected by adding GE. Additionally, the redness, color difference, and hue values of all treatments, except for Aa, were lower than those of the control as the amount of GE increased. The total viable bacterial counts of samples with GE 0.2 and Aa + GE 0.2 were significantly affected during storage (P < 0.05). The results suggest that adding an antioxidant combination reduced the oxidative stress and microbial growth of raw chicken patties stored for 12 d under normal refrigeration temperature, which may extend the shelf life of chicken patties.

Effects of rigor state, thawing temperature, and processing on the physicochemical properties of frozen duck breast muscle.

The objectives of this study were to evaluate effects of rigor state, thawing temperature, and processing on the physicochemical properties of intact frozen duck breast muscle and homogenates prepared with the frozen-thawed muscles. Prerigor breast muscle was frozen at -25°C and thawed at 4 and 15°C, and the physicochemical properties of duck breast frozen prerigor compared with those in frozen postrigor and 4°C chilled postrigor muscles. The homogenates prepared with duck breast frozen prerigor showed similar physicochemical properties as the frozen-thawed postrigor muscle homogenate. The thawing temperature did not affect the physicochemical properties of homogenates prepared with duck breast muscle frozen prerigor. Also, no significant differences (P > 0.05) in the ultimate pH value and color parameters were observed among the frozen-thawed treatments despite the differences in rigor state and thawing temperature. However, a higher thawing temperature of the intact frozen prerigor muscle resulted in an increase in thawing loss and shear force due to excessive muscle shortening. In this study, the intact duck breast that has undergone thaw-rigor showed main problems associated with thaw-rigor, such as higher thawing loss and shear force, regardless of thawing temperature. However, the processing (grinding and salting) decreased the difference in physicochemical properties due to rigor state before freezing and thawing temperature. Therefore, the frozen-thawed duck breast muscle used to manufacture ground-type meat product may be frozen before rigor onset.