What's known on the subject? and What does the study add? The curative treatment of prostate cancer includes surgery, external beam radiation or interstitial radiation. However, a high percentage of patients may develop recurrent disease, which is often localised. The possibilities of treatment in these cases, including surgery or adjuvant radiotherapy, are not well defined. Brachytherapy is a well established first-line treatment option. We review and update the use of brachytherapy in the treatment of recurrences post-radiotherapy, brachytherapy or radical prostatectomy as an alternative to surgery and radiotherapy, with a focus on functional and oncological outcomes. Salvage therapeutic options following radical prostatectomy or radiotherapy for patients with local relapse of prostate cancer include radical prostatectomy, radiotherapy, brachytherapy or cryotherapy. Salvage radical prostatectomy following radiotherapy failure is associated with a 5-year PSA relapse-free rate of 30-40%. Biochemical relapse-free survival rates after salvage radiotherapy following radical prostatectomy failure range from 10% to 77% after a follow-up of 22-60 months. A number of studies have evaluated salvage brachytherapy for radiotherapy failure and 5-year biochemical disease-free survival (bDFS) rate results reported are of the order of 20-87%; one study reported a 10-year bDFS rate of 54%. Fewer studies in small numbers of patients and with shorter follow-up have been conducted on brachytherapy for radical prostatectomy failure and bDFS rates reported include 25.8% at a median of 29 months to 70% at a median of 20 months. The side-effects were as expected for brachytherapy. A newer initiative conducted in Spain in a larger series of 42 patients with failure following radical prostatectomy involves brachytherapy with RAPID Strand™(125) I seeds and real-time placement. The 5-year bDFS rate was 88.6% and cancer-specific survival was 97%; complication rates were low. Optimization of salvage brachytherapy is under way and involves accurate placement of seeds, dose optimization and optimal patient selection.

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For the first time in Venezuela, a case of canine demodicosis apparently caused by a simultaneous infection with an unclassified Demodex and Demodex canis has been observed. The most severely affected area of the dog involved, a 3-month-old male Doberman Pinscher, was the head, particularly the peri-orbital skin. Skin samples of the affected areas were taken and evaluated by both light and scanning electron microscopy. The mites of the unclassified Demodex were smaller than those of D. canis and appeared relatively stout. In the skin scrapings, D. canis outnumbered the unclassified Demodex by a ratio of 30:1, making it unclear if the unclassified Demodex is pathogenic to dogs. A combination of superficial and deep skin scrapings, from a suspected case of demodicosis, may help to reveal other infestations of the unclassified Demodex that would otherwise be masked by concurrent infections with D. canis.

Un estudio del comportamiento materno-filial de ovejas y sus crías fue realizado a fin de identificar diferencias entre las actividades de aquellas de primer parto (P) y multíparas (M) y sus crías, durante el primer mes postparto, como variables que pueden afectar la sobrevivencia y crecimiento de los recién nacidos. el Laboratorio-Sección Ovinos de la Universidad Central de Venezuela, utilizando 12 ovejas (P, n=6 y M, n=6) , ubicadas en puestos individuales con sus crías. El estudio se inició a partir del momento del parto e incluyó observaciones focalizada en tres momentos del día (mañana, mediodía y tarde), apoyadas con videos de 24 horas que se tomaron a lo largo del experimento. Las actividades comportamentales fueron registradas por el mismo observador; además, se registraron los pesos vivos (PV) de las madres y sus crías semanalmente como variable productiva. El efecto del número de partos de la madre sobre el PV de la oveja y del cordero se analizó con medidas repetidas en el tiempo. Las ovejas M presentaron mayor PV que las P (P=0.0216), con pesos promedios de 41.1 y 33.3 kg, respectivamente. Las madres P balaron, descansaron, comieron, estaban de pie y rumiaron más que las M. Las actividades como balar, descansar, estar de pie, y caminar alrededor de la cría fueron realizadas en mayor proporción en horas de la mañana. En horas del mediodía estaban principalmente descansando, rumiando, lamiendo y olfateando a la cría. En la tarde las madres pasaron más tiempo comiendo y de pie. En general, la conducta y comportamiento productivo de las ovejas P fue satisfactorio, por no presentarse rechazos de sus crías. Las ovejas M resultaron más pesadas, a la vez que las P eran más activas, indicando su buena habilidad materna que las llevó a obtener corderos con tendencia a ser más pesados.

Evaluar la dinámica de parásitos gastrointestínales (PGI), hematocrfto (hto) y FAMACHA y la relación con variables climáticas en un rebaño de ovinos de pelo mestizos.