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The objective of this study was to assess the psychosocial distress and associated factors in advanced cancer patients consulting at the outpatient Palliative Care Unit at the National Cancer Institute in Mexico City.
Design
A retrospective study was conducted using electronic records (June 2015 to December 2016).
Sample
A total of 646 patients with advanced cancer during their first visit to the outpatient palliative care unit at the National Cancer Institute in Mexico were evaluated using the Distress Thermometer (DT) and ECOG performance status scores.
Findings
Overall, 62% were women, with a median age of 57 years, and married (54.8%). The most frequent diagnosis was gastrointestinal cancer (28.6%), and 38.9% had a functional performance status of ECOG 2. The median DT score was 4.0 (IQR = 2–6), with 56% reporting DT scores ≥4. The three most frequent problems ≥4 were sadness (82.6%), feeling weak (81.2%), worry (79.6%), and <4 were feeling weak (57.7%), fatigue (55.6%), and financial security (52.1%). The variables associated with distress according to the multiple logistic regression analysis were problems with housing (OR = 2.661, 95% CI = 1.538–4.602), sadness (OR = 2.533, 95% CI = 1.615–3.973), transportation (OR = 1.732, 95% CI = 1.157–2.591), eating (OR = 1.626, 95% CI = 1.093–2.417), nervousness (OR = 1.547, 95% CI = 1.014–2.360), and sleep (OR = 1.469, 95% CI = 1.980–2.203).
Conclusion
The principal factors were related to distress levels, housing problems, transportation issues, and emotional problems such as sadness, nervousness, lower functionality, and younger age. Therefore, psychosocial support is of considerable relevance in palliative care. These findings will help clinicians understand the distress of patients with advanced cancer in palliative care in Latin American countries.
Functional impairment is a defining feature of psychotic disorders. A range of factors has been shown to influence functioning, including negative symptoms, cognitive performance and cognitive reserve (CR). However, it is not clear how these variables may affect functioning in first-episode psychosis (FEP) patients. This 2-year follow-up study aimed to explore the possible mediating effects of CR on the relationship between cognitive performance or specific clinical symptoms and functional outcome.
Methods
A prospective study of non-affective FEP patients was performed (211 at baseline and 139 at follow-up). CR was entered in a path analysis model as potential mediators between cognitive domains or clinical symptoms and functioning.
Results
At baseline, the relationship between clinical variables or cognitive performance and functioning was not mediated by CR. At follow-up, the effect of attention (p = 0.003) and negative symptoms (p = 0.012) assessed at baseline on functioning was partially mediated by CR (p = 0.032 and 0.016), whereas the relationship between verbal memory (p = 0.057) and functioning was mediated by CR (p = 0.014). Verbal memory and positive and total subscales of PANSS assessed at follow-up were partially mediated by CR and the effect of working memory on functioning was totally mediated by CR.
Conclusions
Our results showed the influence of CR in mediating the relationship between cognitive domains or clinical symptoms and functioning in FEP. In particular, CR partially mediated the relationship between some cognitive domains or clinical symptoms and functioning at follow-up. Therefore, CR could improve our understanding of the long-term functioning of patients with a non-affective FEP.
The functional assessment of cancer therapy-bone marrow transplant (FACT-BMT) is a widely used instrument to assess quality of life (QOL) in hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) patients, but there is little evidence of its validity in Latin American populations. This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Spanish language version of the FACT-BMT in Mexican patients.
Method
First, the original version was piloted with 15 HSCT patients to obtain an adequate cultural version, resulting in the adaptation of one item. After that, the new version was completed by 139 HSCT patients.
Results
The results showed a FACT factor structure that explains 70.84% of the total variance, a factor structure similar to the original FACT structure, and with a high internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.867). For the BMT subscale, the best factor structure included 17 items which explain 61.65% of the total variance with an adequate internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.696).
Significance of the results
The FACT-BMT was found to be a valid and reliable instrument to evaluate QOL in Mexican patients. Our results constitute new FACT-BMT empirical evidence that supports its clinical and research uses.
Data from the Italian national point-prevalence survey (PPS) of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) were used to evaluate antimicrobial usage (AMU) in Italy and to identify targets for future interventions.
Methods:
The second Italian PPS was conducted in 2016 as part of the European PPS initiated by the ECDC. We compared these results with those of the first national survey, conducted in 2011.
Results:
An overall AMU prevalence of 44.5% (95% CI, 43.7–45.3) was estimated in 2016. No significant change in AMU prevalence was detected when comparing data with the first survey. In both surveys, the most prevalent indication for AMU was the treatment of infections. Considering all indications, penicillins plus β-lactamase inhibitors (BLIs) were the most commonly prescribed antimicrobial group in 2016; they were used significantly more than in 2011, and piperacillin plus BLI was the most frequently used agent. Broad-spectrum agents accounted for >60% of all antimicrobials for systemic use. No significant increase in the use of carbapenems occurred in 2016. Stable or decreasing carbapenem-resistance levels were identified in this study, although these levels remain alarmingly high for both Klebsiella pneumoniae (50%) and Acinetobacter baumannii (>75%).
Conclusions:
These results can be used to identify priorities and targets for interventions that promote more prudent use of antimicrobials, improve healthcare quality and patient safety, and combat the emergence and spread of antimicrobial-resistant pathogens.
In 1989 an ancient burial consisting of a skeleton and a few objects was discovered at the Monte dei Cappuccini Monastery, in Torino (Italy). Anthropological analysis of the skeleton revealed that it belonged to a young man, and the archaeometric characterization of the objects suggested that most of them are compatible with the Medieval period. As a proper archeological survey was not conducted at the time of the finding, due to the religious nature of the site, a high-precision radiocarbon (14C) dating has been performed. The samples were processed with three different methods: besides the ultrafiltration (UF) treatment, we applied the “collagen” (COL) and the Longin-base (LB) methods. While UF and COL treatments provided compatible results, LB method returned ages older with respect the UF one, with significant disagreements in some cases and this evidence is supported by several measurements on the same individual. Thanks to the reduction of the uncertainty with the high number of measured samples and the availability of historical evidence, the possible age of the burial has been limited to the time interval 1464–1515 cal AD.
Age-related hearing loss (ARHL) is a sensory impairment, with a dramatic increase in its incidence, which is caused by genetic and environmental factors such as noise and ototoxic drugs. Recent studies correlated ARHL to elevated plasma homocysteine (Hcy) by folate deficiency, suggesting that reduction of Hcy levels by folate supplementation could potentially ameliorate ARHL.
Hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy), a status that contributes to ARHL, may also arise from malfunction of Hcy remethylation by betaine homocysteine S-methyltransferases (BHMTs) and methionine synthase in the methionine cycle. The expression and/or activity of these enzymes may be altered by ototoxic drugs, including paracetamol (APAP).
Objective
To determine the effect of APAP in cochlear morphology and function of control and Bhmt-/- mice, and to analyze putative preventive effects of folic acid (FA) supplementation.
Materials and Methods
Two-month-old Bhmt-/- mice (n = 47), with greater dependence on folate metabolism for Hcy remethylation, and Bhmt + / + mice (n = 42) were fed control or FA supplemented diets for 30 days. The last day APAP (250 mg/kg) or placebo were injected intraperitoneally.
Hearing was evaluated by recording auditory brainstem responses (ABR) at the beginning of the experiment and after treatments. Picrosirius red staining was used for evaluation of the cochlear lateral wall cytoarchitecture. Plasma and hepatic metabolite levels were determined by HPLC or on Spinlab 100® autoanalyzer.
Results
Loss of Bhmt expression induced HHcy, but an impact on hearing acuity was not observed. Acute APAP administration did not induce ABR threshold shifts. However, following ototoxic treatment, changes of 5–17% in the areas of the stria vascularis and spiral ligament were detected between Bhmt-/- mice under different dietary treatments; cochlear structures of Bhmt-/- mice receiving APAP plus FA supplementation resemble those of the control group. APAP increases susceptibility to ototoxic damage in the presence of HHcy.
Discussion
BHMT plays a central role in cochlear methionine metabolism. FA supplementation modulates Hcy levels, contributing to a proper remethylation status that prevents ARHL.
Both transposition of the great arteries (TGA) previously submitted to a Senning/Mustard procedure and congenitally corrected TGA (cc-TGA) have the systemic circulation supported by the morphological right ventricle, thereby rendering these patients to heart failure events risk. The aim of this study was to evaluate cardiopulmonary exercise test parameters for stratifying the risk of heart failure events in TGA patients.
Methods:
Retrospective evaluation of adult TGA patients with systemic circulation supported by the morphological right ventricle submitted to cardiopulmonary exercise test in a tertiary centre. Patients were followed up for at least 1 year for the primary endpoint of cardiac death or heart failure hospitalisation. Several cardiopulmonary exercise test parameters were analysed as potential predictors of the combined endpoint and their predictive power were compared (area under the curve).
Results:
Cardiopulmonary exercise test was performed in 44 TGA patients (8 cc-TGA), with a mean age of 35.1 ± 8.4 years. The primary endpoint was reached by 10 (22.7%) patients, with a mean follow-up of 36.7 ± 26.8 months. Heart rate at anaerobic threshold had the highest area under the curve value (0.864), followed by peak oxygen consumption (pVO2) (0.838). Heart rate at anaerobic threshold ≤95 bpm and pVO2 ≤20 ml/kg/min had a sensitivity of 87.5 and 80.0% and a specificity of 82.4 and 76.5%, respectively, for the primary outcome.
Conclusion:
Heart rate at anaerobic threshold ≤95 bpm had the highest predictive power of all cardiopulmonary exercise test parameters analysed for heart failure events in TGA patients with systemic circulation supported by the morphological right ventricle.
It is likely that the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) may mitigate the adverse effects of obesity on the incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). We assessed this hypothesis in a cohort of 18 225 participants initially free of diabetes (mean age: 38 years, 61 % women). A validated semi-quantitative 136-item FFQ was used to assess dietary intake and to build a 0–9 score of adherence to MedDiet. After a median of 9·5-year follow-up, 136 incident cases of T2DM were confirmed during 173 591 person-years follow-up. When MedDiet adherence was low (≤4 points), the multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HR) were 4·07 (95 % CI 1·58, 10·50) for participants with BMI 25–29·99 kg/m2 and 17·70 (95 % CI 6·29, 49·78) kg/m2 for participants with BMI≥30 kg/m2, (v.<25 kg/m2). In the group with better adherence to the MedDiet (>4 points), these multivariable-adjusted HR were 3·13 (95 % CI 1·63, 6·01) and 10·70 (95 % CI 4·98, 22·99) for BMI 25–30 and ≥30 kg/m2, respectively. The P value for the interaction was statistically significant (P=0·002). When we assessed both variables (BMI and MedDiet) as continuous, the P value for their interaction product-term was marginally significant (P=0·051) in fully adjusted models. This effect modification was not explained by weight changes during follow-up. Our results suggest that the MedDiet may attenuate the adverse effects of obesity on the risk of T2DM.
Bicuspid aortic valve is the most common CHD. Its association with early valvular dysfunction, endocarditis, thoracic aorta dilatation, and aortic dissection is well established.
Objective
The aim of this study was to assess the incidence and predictors of cardiac events in adults with bicuspid aortic valve.
Methods
We carried out a retrospective analysis of cardiac outcomes in ambulatory adults with bicuspid aortic valve followed-up in a tertiary hospital centre. Outcomes were defined as follows: interventional – intervention on the aortic valve or thoracic aorta; medical – death, aortic dissection, aortic valve endocarditis, congestive heart failure, arrhythmias, or ischaemic heart disease requiring hospital admission; and a composite end point of both. Kaplan–Meier curves were generated to determine event rates, and predictors of cardiac events were determined by multivariate analysis.
Results
A total of 227 patients were followed-up over 13±9 years; 29% of patients developed severe aortic valve dysfunction and 12.3% reached ascending thoracic aorta dimensions above 45 mm. At least one cardiac outcome occurred in 38.8% of patients, with an incidence rate at 20 years of follow-up of 47±4%; 33% of patients were submitted to an aortic valve or thoracic aorta intervention. Survival 20 years after diagnosis was 94±2%. Independent predictors of the composite end point were baseline moderate–severe aortic valve dysfunction (hazard ratio, 3.19; 95% confidence interval, 1.35–7.54; p<0.01) and aortic valve leaflets calcification (hazard ratio, 4.72; 95% confidence interval, 1.91–11.64; p<0.005).
Conclusions
In this study of bicuspid aortic valve, the long-term survival was excellent but with occurrence of frequent cardiovascular events. Baseline aortic valve calcification and dysfunction were the only independent predictors of events.
One of the most severe extinction events in Earth history, the Triassic–Jurassic extinction, struck against a backdrop of radical increases in atmospheric CO2 and supercontinent breakup. This juxtaposition of first-order geophysical and biotic changes produced excellent case studies in Earth-Life Transitions. Recent recognition of a worldwide “carbonate gap” following the extinction has focused attention on causes, often invoked as eustacy or ocean acidification, but the ecology of the extinction aftermath remains poorly understood. Results from paleoecological studies on three separate Triassic–Jurassic records are presented and incorporated into regional depositional models. Examination of the Penarth Group of Great Britain reveals a widespread, laterally homogenous, level-bottom microbial stromatolite regime across the innermost ramp. The Sunrise Formation in Nevada, USA, was deposited during a biosiliceous (“glass”) regime dominated by demosponges across the inner ramp that lasted at least two million years. Investigations of the Pucará group in the central Andes of Peru revealed a demosponge-dominated level-bottom glass ramp with many similarities to the Nevada deposits, but offering broader regional extent and variation in recorded depositional settings. This suite of studies demonstrates state-shifts in marine ecological systems that also profoundly altered regional sedimentation regimes. The sponge-dominated systems produced glass ramp conditions instead of carbonate ramps, and indicate the importance of marine silica concentrations. The post-extinction changes in regional marine ecology demonstrate connectivity to changes in global climate and terrigenous weathering driven by global-scale geophysical processes.
We aimed to determine whether the results of surveillance cultures were associated with use of appropriate empirical antibiotic therapy among patients with carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii infections. We found that surveillance status was not associated with appropriate empirical antibiotic therapy (P=.36). There were significant delays to concordant therapy among surveillance-positive patients (P=.03).
Infect. Control Hosp. Epidemiol. 2015;36(12):1455–1457
C46 was a Commission of the Executive Committee of the IAU under Division XII (Union-Wide Activities), then after 2012 under Division C (Education, Outreach, and Heritage). It was the only commission dealing exclusively with astronomy education; a previous Commission 38 (Exchange of Astronomers), which allocated travel grants to astronomers who needed them, and a Working Group on the Worldwide Development of Astronomy, have been absorbed by Commission 46.
The estimation of age and growth of cephalopod stocks is a key issue for their sustainable management. Recently, several studies have successfully validated the daily deposition of growth rings in the vestigial shell or stylets of several octopus species. Octopus vulgaris eggs were incubated at two different temperatures, 18 and 22°C, until hatching to determine stylet size at hatching and assess the effect of temperature in the stylet dimensions. The 3-day-old hatchlings were sectioned transversally and 6 μm sections were stained to enhance the stylet position and visibility. The sections were observed under transmitted light microscopy at a magnification of 1000×, and the stylets identified as blue/green structures inside the mantle–funnel retractor muscle. The transversal sections of the whole paralarvae allowed the diameter of the embryonic stylet of an octopus species to be measured for the first time. The mean stylet diameter in 3-day-old paralarvae is 3.99 μm independently of the thermal conditions. Moreover, significant differences in stylet size between captive and wild paralarvae were observed; the latter showed significantly larger stylets, an indication that they are over 3 days old. Our results also indicate that the stylet nucleus is much smaller than previously thought based on measurements in stylets of juveniles and adults.
We aimed to determine the association between environmental exposure to carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii and the subsequent risk of acquiring this organism. Patients exposed to a contaminated hospital environment had 2.77 times the risk of acquiring carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii than did unexposed patients (relative risk, 2.77 [95% confidence interval, 1.50–5.13]; P = .002).
This study aimed to develop and test the in vitro and in vivo effectiveness of diminazene aceturate encapsulated into liposomes (L-DMZ) on Trypanosoma evansi. To validate the in vitro tests with L-DMZ, the efficacy of a commercial formulation of diminazene aceturate (C-DMZ) was also assessed. The tests were carried out in culture medium for T. evansi, at concentrations of 0·25, 0·5, 1, 2 and 3 μg mL−1 of L-DMZ and C-DMZ. A dose-dependent effect was observed for both formulations (L-DMZ and C-DMZ), with the highest dose-dependent mortality of trypomastigotes being observed at 1 and 3 h after the onset of tests with L-DMZ. The results of in vivo tests showed the same effects in the animals treated with L-DMZ and C-DMZ in single doses of 3·5 mg kg−1 and for 5 consecutive days (3·5 mg kg−1 day−1). It was possible to conclude that T. evansi showed greater in vitro susceptibility to L-DMZ when compared with C-DMZ. In vivo tests suggest that treatment with the L-DMZ and C-DMZ showed similar efficacy in vivo. The potential of the formulation developed in this study was clearly demonstrated, as it increased the efficacy of the treatment against trypanosomosis, but more studies are needed to increase the effectiveness in vivo.
The aim of this study was to investigate neurochemical and enzymatic changes in rats infected with Trypanosoma evansi, and their interference in the cognitive parameters. Behavioural assessment (assessment of cognitive performance), evaluation of cerebral L-[3H]glutamate uptake, acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity and Ca+2 and Na+, K+-ATPase activity were evaluated at 5 and 30 days post infection (dpi). This study demonstrates a cognitive impairment in rats infected with T. evansi. At 5 dpi memory deficit was demonstrated by an inhibitory avoidance test. With the chronicity of the disease (30 dpi) animals showed anxiety symptoms. It is possible the inhibition of cerebral Na+, K+-ATPase activity, AChE and synaptosomal glutamate uptake are involved in cognitive impairment in infected rats by T. evansi. The understanding of cerebral host–parasite relationship may shed some light on the cryptic symptoms of animals and possibly human infection where patients often present with other central nervous system (CNS) disorders.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-trypanosomal effect of treatment with 3′-deoxyadenosine (cordycepin) combined with deoxycoformycin (pentostatin: inhibitor of the enzyme adenosine deaminase) in vitro by using mice experimentally infected with Trypanosoma evansi. In vitro, a dose-dependent trypanocidal effect of cordycepin was observed against the parasite. In the in vivo trials, the two drugs were used individually and in combination of different doses. The drugs when used individually had no curative effect on infected mice. However, the combination of cordycepin (2 mg kg−1) and pentostatin (2 mg kg−1) was 100% effective in the T. evansi-infected groups. There was an increase in levels of some biochemical parameters, especially on liver enzymes, which were accompanied by histological lesions in the liver and kidneys. Based on these results we conclude that treatment using the combination of 3′-deoxyadenosine with deoxycoformycin has a curative effect on mice infected with T. evansi. However, the therapeutic protocol tested led to liver and kidney damage, manifested by hepatotoxicity and nephrotoxicity.
This study presents the morphological description and histochemical characterization of gill filaments of the Brazilian endemic bivalve Diplodon expansus, aiming to broaden the morphological knowledge of this species and establish the structure of the gills that will serve as control in histopathological studies applied to biomonitoring. The gill filaments are divided into three zones: frontal, intermediate, and abfrontal. In the center of the filament, haemocytes circulate through the haemolymph vessel, which is internally lined by endothelium. The frontal surface of the filament is covered with cilia, the lateral surface exhibits aquifer ducts, and the abfrontal surface presents ciliated and nonciliated cells. The epithelium of the filaments is composed of ciliated cells, nonciliated absorptive cells, and mucocytes. The support of the filaments is made by two specialized structures called skeletal rod and skeletal loop. Based on the obtained information, the gill filaments of the studied species present some peculiar characteristics that are not yet reported in detail in the literature such as the simultaneous presence of skeletal rod and skeletal loop. On the other hand, the general constitution of the filament is similar to that described for both marine and limnic bivalves and seems to be suitable for ecotoxicological studies.
Case studies contribute more focused analyses which, in the context of human loss and damage, demonstrate the effectiveness of response strategies and prevention measures and identify lessons about success in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. The case studies were chosen to complement and be consistent with the information in the preceding chapters, and to demonstrate aspects of the key messages in the Summary for Policymakers and the Hyogo Framework for Action Priorities.
The case studies were grouped to examine types of extreme events, vulnerable regions, and methodological approaches. For the extreme event examples, the first two case studies pertain to events of extreme temperature with moisture deficiencies in Europe and Australia and their impacts including on health. These are followed by case studies on drought in Syria and dzud, cold-dry conditions in Mongolia. Tropical cyclones in Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Mesoamerica, and then floods in Mozambique are discussed in the context of community actions. The last of the extreme events case studies is about disastrous epidemic disease, using the case of cholera in Zimbabwe, as the example.
The case studies chosen to reflect vulnerable regions demonstrate how a changing climate provides significant concerns for people, societies, and their infrastructure. These are: Mumbai as an example of a coastal megacity; the Republic of the Marshall Islands, as an example of small island developing states with special challenges for adaptation; and Canada's northern regions as an example of cold climate vulnerabilities focusing on infrastructures.
The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of a chronic oral γ-conglutin treatment in male Sprague–Dawley rats in which hyperglycaemia had been induced by supplying 10 % d-glucose in drinking-water. A γ-conglutin dosage of 28 mg/kg body weight was daily administered to animals for 21 d. Plasma glucose, insulin and glucose overloading were monitored. Chronic administration of glucose resulted in a statistically significant (P < 0·05) increase in fasting blood glucose (2·5-fold) and insulin (2·7-fold) v. the values recorded in control rats. Simultaneous treatment with γ-conglutin attenuated the rise in plasma glucose (1·9-fold) and insulin (1·8-fold) levels in the glucose-fed rats (P < 0·05). Fasting insulin and homeostasis model of insulin resistance were decreased by 34 and 48 % (P < 0·05), respectively, in the γ-conglutin-treated rats v. the values found in pair-fed animals. To confirm these results with a different approach, HepG2 cells, grown for 24 and 48 h in Dulbecco's minimum essential medium containing different glucose concentrations (5·5, 11·1 and 16·5 mmol/l), were exposed to 10 μmol/l γ-conglutin with or without 10 mmol/l metformin or 100 nmol/l insulin. γ-Conglutin increased glucose consumption (from 1·5- to 2·5-fold) in HepG2 cells, under all experimental conditions; this effect was more evident after 48 h incubation. Moreover, in this in vitro model, the addition of γ-conglutin potentiated the activity of insulin and metformin in cell glucose consumption. These findings extend the previous ones and suggest the potential use of lupin γ-conglutin in the control of glycaemia.