Llorenç Badiella

Objective: To demonstrate that a single dose of enflicoxib is noninferior to daily carprofen for the control of pain and inflammation in dogs undergoing soft tissue surgery. Methods: A prospective, multisite, blinded, randomized, controlled, parallel-group, noninferiority field study was performed to assess the efficacy and safety of enflicoxib in the control of pain and inflammation associated with soft tissue surgery. Two hundred fifteen dogs were randomized to receive 8 mg/kg of enflicoxib PO the day before surgery or 4 mg/kg of carprofen SC at induction and PO daily for 5 days. Veterinarians assessed efficacy with the short form of the Glasgow Composite Pain Scale (SF-GCPS) at 2, 5, 8, and 24 hours and 2, 3, and 5 days after surgery. The visual analog scale was used to assess inflammation. Demeanor, analgesia, and mobility were assessed daily by the owners. Results: Enflicoxib was noninferior to carprofen in the SF-GCPS area under the curve for the first 48 hours. Inflammation and SF-GCPS total scores were within the clinically relevant margin at each time point. No differences were observed in inflammation or in the owner assessment. Conclusions: Enflicoxib administered 24 hours before surgery is safe and efficacious for the control of postoperative pain associated with soft tissue surgery. Clinical Relevance: A single preoperative dose of enflicoxib is an alternative for postoperative management in dogs undergoing soft tissue surgery, offering a simplified treatment regimen without compromising outcomes.

Background: This prospective, multisite, blinded, randomized, non-inferiority clinical study aimed to confirm the efficacy and safety of enflicoxib in the treatment of pain and inflammation associated with canine osteoarthritis. A total of 180 dogs were randomized to receive enflicoxib (n = 78), mavacoxib (n = 80) or placebo (n = 22). Dogs underwent veterinary assessments from day 0 to day 42 using a clinical sum score (CSS). Efficacy was also assessed by the owners using the Canine Brief Pain Inventory (CBPI). The primary efficacy endpoint was the overall CSS from day 0 to day 42. Results: The overall CSS expressed as area under the curve demonstrated non-inferiority of enflicoxib compared to mavacoxib, and both showed superiority over placebo. At the end of the study, average CSS, and the percentage of CSS responders for enflicoxib (3.64 and 74%) and mavacoxib (4.49 and 68%), was superior to placebo (7.15 and 29%). A faster onset of action was observed for enflicoxib as superiority over placebo was evidenced from the first efficacy assessment (day 7) onwards for both parameters, whereas mavacoxib was only significantly different from day 14 onwards. According to the owner assessment, the percentage of CBPI responders was 90%, 79%, and 43% for dogs treated with enflicoxib, mavacoxib and placebo, respectively, and superiority over placebo was demonstrated for both active treatments. In all secondary parameters, non-inferiority of enflicoxib versus mavacoxib was confirmed. The dog’s quality of life improved in all groups, but only enflicoxib showed superiority versus placebo. When assessing severely affected dogs only, results were similar, thus confirming the efficacy of enflicoxib in all stages of canine OA. There were no differences between groups in the frequency of adverse events, which were most frequently mild affecting the gastrointestinal tract and recovered without treatment. Conclusions: Enflicoxib is efficacious and safe for the treatment of pain and inflammation in any stage of canine osteoarthritis with a faster onset of action compared to mavacoxib.

The aim of the current study is to analyze the effects of red and yellow cards on the scoring rate in elite soccer. The sample was composed of 1826 matches in the top five European leagues. All events were structured in 5-min intervals and were analyzed by means of a Generalized Linear Mixed Model with Poisson distribution, considering the presence of correlated data, where the dependent variable is represented by scoring rate. Team strength and home advantage were considered implicitly by means of a transformation of the betting odds for each game. The model also took into account the goal difference and time evolution. Overall, we found that after a sending off, each team’s scoring rate changes significantly, damaging the penalised team and favouring its opponent. When the player who is sent off belongs to the Away team, the impact of a red card is more or less maintained over time intervals. The red card effect, on the other hand, tends to fade over time when the affected team is stronger. The relative difference in scoring rates is also affected by the goal difference and the difference in booked players, being slightly lower for the team going ahead if it has more booked players. Our approach allows estimating the expected cumulative soring rate through time for various red card scenarios. Particularly if a red card is given with 30 min of remaining time, the expected impact is 0.39 goals if the guilty player is on the visiting team and 0.50 if he plays for the home team. Coaches and analysts could use this information to establish objectives for players and teams in training and matches and to be prepared for these very different scenarios of numerical superiority or inferiority.

Minimum water potential (Ψ_min) is a key variable to characterize dehydration tolerance and hydraulic safety margins (HSM) in plants. Ψ_min is usually estimated as the absolute minimum tissue Ψ experienced by a species, but this is problematic because sample extremes are affected by sample size and by the underlying probability distribution. We compare alternative approaches to estimate Ψ_min and assess the corresponding uncertainties and biases; propose statistically robust estimation methods based on extreme value theory (EVT); and assess the implications of our results for the characterization of hydraulic risk. Our results show that current estimates of Ψ_min and HSM are biased, as they are strongly affected by sample size. Because sampling effort is generally higher for species living in dry environments, the differences in current Ψ_min estimates between these species and those living under milder conditions are partly artifactual. When this bias is corrected using EVT methods, resulting HSM tend to increase substantially with resistance to embolism across species. Although data availability and representativeness remain the main challenges for proper determination of Ψ_min, a closer look at Ψ distributions and the use of statistically robust methods to estimate Ψ_min opens new ground for characterizing plant hydraulic risks.

Background: Radiography is useful to determine left atrial (LA) size when echocardiography is not available. Recently, the authors have described Radiographic Left Atrial Dimension (RLAD) as a new radiographic measurement to assess LA size. The objective of this study was to assess the clinical usefulness of 2 new radiographic measurements to detect and quantify left atrial enlargement (LAE) compared to RLAD and using left atrium to aortic root (LA/Ao) ratio as gold standard. These new measurements, bronchus-to-spine (Br-Spine) and RLAD-to-spine (RLAD-Spine) may be more precise in cases were LA boundaries are not well defined. Fifty dogs, 25 with and 25 without LAE were recruited. Reference LA/Ao ratio was assessed by 2D echocardiography and LAE was considered if LA/Ao > 1.6. Br-spine was measured as a straight vertical line from the main stem bronchus to the ventral border of the vertebra situated immediately dorsal to the heart base. RLAD-Spine was measured from RLAD endpoint perpendicularly to spine. The correlation of RLAD, Br-Spine and RLAD-Spine methods with LA/Ao and their sensitivity and specificity for detecting LAE were calculated. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves were used to estimate the optimal cut-off for each method. Results: Correlations between Br-Spine, RLAD-Spine, RLAD and LA/Ao ratio were − 0.66, − 0.76 and 0.89 respectively (P < 0.001). Sensitivity at the optimal cut-off values for detecting LAE were 32.0, 64.0 and 96.0%, respectively. Specificity was 96.0% in all cases. Conclusion: Br-Spine and RLAD-Spine were less sensitive radiographic measurements than RLAD in detecting LAE in dogs. Both Br-Spine and RLAD-Spine may not be good alternatives to RLAD.

Numerous studies show the benefits that contact with the natural environment have for human health, but there are few studies on the role of Protected Natural Areas (PNAs), either from the preventive point of view or on their potential benefits, on individuals with health problems. A study was made of the relationship between the visitation of Montseny Natural Park and Biosphere Reserve and health, from the perspective of a population group with different diseases. A total of 250 patients resident in the areas near the park were surveyed, recording their beliefs about the benefits of nature, as well as the reasons for visiting and the activities associated with health that they carried out in the park. The pure air is the most valued benefit (27.2%), particularly for those with allergies. The majority (57%) visit the park for health reasons. High levels (82%) of exercise are recorded, especially by patients with heart diseases (85%), and 65% exercised in the park. More physical activity is mentioned among those that visit the park most often, particularly among those that carried it out for health reasons. Plants were collected for medicinal use by 39.6%. The study confirmed the significant role of the Montseny Natural Park and Biosphere Reserve as a health resource for individuals with diseases that live near it. It also corroborates the beneficial effects that the PNA provide in human health.