Biomedica : revista del Instituto Nacional de Salud最新文献

Introduction. Some studies have indicated that loneliness may be associated with an increased risk of mortality in cancer patients, as it can weaken treatment response and the immune system, and promote harmful behaviors, worsening the prognosis and increasing the likelihood of death. Addressing loneliness in public health is essential to provide social support and improve outcomes in cancer patients.Objective. To obtain an estimator of the unwanted loneliness-mortality association.Materials and methods. We followed a prospective cohort of 400 patients for two years (exposure=loneliness levels; outcome=mortality; sociodemographic and clinical control variables were included). A parametric survival model (log normal) was used.Results. The cohort had a median survival of 20.2 months and a mortality rate of 3.2 deaths/100 patient-months (95% CI: 2.8 to 3.7). The survival model found the following time ratios (TR): moderate level/low level: TR=0.55; 95% CI: 0.39 to 0.77; moderately high level/low level: TR=0.62; 95% CI: 0.41 to 0.93; high level/low level: TR=1.17; 95% CI: 0.31 to 4.42.Conclusion. Compared to patients with low levels of loneliness, patients with moderate or moderately high levels reach death more quickly (statistically significant TRs, adjusted for the effect of other variables in the model); this highlights the need for interventions to mitigate loneliness and promote social support in patients having cancer.

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus is one of the most common diseases worldwide, with a high morbidity and mortality rate. Its prevalence has been increasing, as well as its acute complications, such as hyperglycemic crises. Hyperglycemic crises can present with combined features of diabetic ketoacidosis and hyperosmolar state. However, their implications are not fully understood.

Objective: To describe the characteristics, outcomes, and complications of the diabetic population with hyperglycemic crises and to value the combined state in the Latin American population.

Materials and methods: Retrospective observational study of all hyperglycemic crises treated in the intensive care unit of the Fundación Valle del Lili between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2020. Descriptive analysis and prevalence ratio estimation for deaths were performed using the robust Poisson regression method.

Results: There were 317 patients with confirmed hyperglycemic crises, 43 (13.56%) with diabetic ketoacidosis, 9 (2.83%) in hyperosmolar state, and 265 (83.59%) with combined diabetic ketoacidosis and hyperosmolar state. Infection was the most frequent triggering cause (52.52%). Fatalities due to ketoacidosis occurred in four patients (9.30%) and combined diabetic ketoacidosis/hyperosmolar state in 22 patients (8.30%); no patient had a hyperosmolar state. Mechanical ventilation was associated with death occurrence (adjusted PR = 1.15; 95 % CI 95 = 1.06 - 1.24).

Conclusions: The combined state was the most prevalent presentation of the hyperglycemic crisis, with a mortality rate similar to diabetic ketoacidosis. Invasive mechanical ventilation was associated with a higher occurrence of death.

Introduction: Diabetes and stress hyperglycemia have been related with poorer clinical outcomes in patients infected by SARS-CoV-2 and at risk for severe disease.

Objective: To evaluate clinical outcomes in three groups of patients (with diabetes, without diabetes and with stress hyperglycemia) with SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Materials and methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted in Cali (Colombia). We included patients 18 years old or older with a diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection, managed in the emergency room, hospitalization, or intensive care unit between March 2020 and December 2021. Immunocompromised patients and pregnant women were excluded. Patients were classified into three groups: without diabetes, with diabetes, and with stress hyperglycemia. A comparison between the groups was performed.

Results: A total of 945 patients were included (59.6% without diabetes, 27% with diabetes, and 13.4% with stress hyperglycemia). Fifty-five-point three percent required intensive care unit management, with a higher need in patients with stress hyperglycemia (89.8%) and diabetes (67.1%), with no difference between these groups (p = 0.249). We identified a higher probability of death in the group with stress hyperglycemia versus the one without diabetes (adjusted OR = 8.12; 95% CI: 5.12-12.88; p < 0.01). Frequency of acute respiratory distress syndrome, need for invasive mechanical ventilation, use of vasopressors and inotropes, need for de novo renal replacement therapy, and mortality was higher in patients with metabolic alterations (diabetes and stress hyperglycemia).

Conclusions: Diabetes and stress hyperglycemia were associated with worse clinical outcomes and mortality in patients with COVID-19. These patients should be identified early and considered them high risk at the COVID-19 diagnosis to mitigate adverse outcomes.

Introduction. Altered serum zinc levels, lower and higher than values in healthy controls, have been observed in individuals affected by non-communicable chronic diseases. However, to date, studies describing potential determinants of zinc levels in general populations free of chronic diseases appear to be limited.Objective. To evaluate whether nutrient intake, biochemical and clinical measures, lifestyle, and family history of cardio-metabolic diseases are independently associated with zinc levels in apparently healthy individuals.Materials and methods. We evaluated 239 healthy subjects. Serum zinc was measured via flame atomic absorption spectrometry, and the remaining biochemical markers were assessed using enzymatic colorimetric methods. Standard techniques were employed to quantify waist circumference, height, and weight. Body fat was measured via bioimpedance, and blood pressure was measured using digital sphygmomanometers. We applied a survey to record the personal and family history of non-communicable chronic diseases, and nutrient intake was estimated using the 24-hour recall method.Results. Women had lower serum zinc levels than men. In multivariate analyzes, total fat intake (β = -0.15; standard error = 0.03; p < 0.001), plasma log-triglycerides (β = -10.18; standard error = 3.9; p = 0.010), and female gender (β = -6.81; standard error = 3.3; p = 0.043) were significant predictors for serum zinc levels. Zinc intake was not significantly related to serum zinc in univariate and multivariate analyses.Conclusions. Variables related to cardiometabolic risk, such as plasma triglyceride levels and total fat intake, were associated with serum zinc levels in individuals without a diagnosis of chronic or infectious/inflammatory diseases. Further studies are required to confirm our findings and to evaluate possible biological mechanisms for these relationships.

Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause of dementia worldwide and a critical public health problem. While deaths from cardiovascular diseases have decreased, those attributed to Alzheimer’s disease have increased in recent years with no curative treatment to date. In this context, effective treatment development has become a global priority. Aducanumab is a human anti-amyloid β monoclonal antibody approved by the FDA in June 2021 for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease but failed to show the expected clinical efficacy in phase III trials.This review analyzes the history of its controversial acceptance, implications, and prospects for future treatment.

Introduction. Type 1 diabetes mellitus is considered one of the most common chronic diseases of childhood. It is a high-risk factor for developing early cardiovascular disease and it also affects bone health.Objective. To describe demographic characteristics and biochemical parameters of a population of children with type 1 diabetes, evaluated in the pediatric diabetes unit of a tertiary Spanish hospital.Materials and methods. In this retrospective study, we determined metabolic, lipid, and bone parameters in 124 children with type 1 diabetes who were monitored in the pediatric diabetes unit of the Hospital Universitario Miguel Servet in Zaragoza (Spain) from May 2020 to July 2021.Results. Children with type 1 diabetes have worse metabolic control of the disease at puberty, but their lipid control is considered acceptable. We found an inverse correlation between bone formation markers and disease duration, as well as with metabolic control.Conclusion. Bone formation markers are inversely correlated with the percentage of glycated hemoglobin and diabetes evolution time. Patients’ lipid and bone profiles are more favorable when metabolic control of the disease is achieved.

Introduction: Low-cost, accurate high-risk HPV tests are needed for cervical cancer screening in limited-resource settings.

Objective: To compare the performance of the low-cost Hybribio-H13 test with the Hybrid Capture® 2 to detect cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 or 3 (CIN2 and CIN3).

Materials and methods: Archived baseline samples tested by the Hybrid Capture® 2 from women of the ASCUS-COL trial, aged 20 to 69 years, with biopsy-colposcopy directed diagnosis of CIN2+ (n = 143), CIN3+ (n = 51), and < CIN2 (n = 632) were blindly tested by the Hybribio-H13 test.

Results: The relative sensitivity of the Hybribio-H13 test versus the Hybrid Capture® 2 for detecting CIN2+ was 0.89 (90% CI = 0,80-0,98; NIT = 0,66), and for CIN3+ was 0,92 (90% CI = 0,85-0,98; NIT = 0,35). Relative specificity was 1.19 (90% CI = 1.05-1.33; NIT <0.00001). In the analysis restricted to women older than 30 years, the relative sensitivity of the Hybribio-H13 for CIN3+ was marginally below unity (ratio = 0.97; 90% CI = 0.95-0.99), and the specificity remained higher than the Hybrid Capture® 2 test.

Conclusion: The Hybribio-H13 test was as specific as the Hybrid Capture® 2 for detecting CIN2+ or CIN3+ but less sensitive. Considering these results and the young age of the population recruited for screening because of ASCUS cytology, we suggest our results warrant the evaluation of the Hybribio-H13 for screening cervical cancer, especially in the evaluated population.

Introduction: In recent decades, new non-invasive brain stimulation techniques and protocols have been developed, such as transcranial magnetic stimulation and transcranial direct current stimulation.

Objective: To identify and visualize the intellectual structure of non-invasive brain stimulation through document co-citation analysis.

Materials and methods: We analyzed 30,854 Web of Science-indexed manuscripts and their 1,615,692 references regarding non-invasive brain stimulation, all published from 1988 to 2022. We drew a document co-citation network map using CiteSpace software.

Results: The most productive journal was Clinical Neurophysiology. The most published institution was the University College London, and the country with the most reports was the USA. The most productive author was Alvaro Pascual-Leone and the most cited author in the non-invasive brain stimulation field was J. C. Rothwell. In addition, the most cited study was that of Rossi et al. (2009). The safe application of non-invasive brain stimulation techniques and their effects on motor or executive functions is an emerging trend in this research area.

Conclusions: The current investigation displayed a quantitative scientometric approach and delved into the advancement of non-invasive brain stimulation research by examining the references published in this domain. These findings can be valuable for professionals to picture the patterns of recognition and emerging directions in the field.

Introduction. The international consensus and the American Society of Hematology guidelines from 2019 established thrombopoietin analogues as the second-line therapy for primary immune thrombocytopenia cases.Objectives. To describe romiplostim usefulness in patients with immune thrombocytopenia in a third-level hospital in Cuenca, Ecuador.Materials and methods. We conducted a descriptive and retrospective study in patients with immune thrombocytopenia treated with romiplostim. We evaluated the following variables: age, gender, previous therapies to romiplostim, dose, frequency, complications, change of thrombopoietin analogue, and treatment discontinuation.Results. We included 21 patients with immune thrombocytopenia treated with romiplostim, with a median age of 49 years. All patients received corticosteroids as first-line treatment. Three patients required longer administration intervals (over a week), with weekly doses lower than those recommended (< 1 μg/kg). Due to lack of efficacy, six patients replaced elthrombopag with romiplostim. Of the total, three suffered thrombotic complications: two had portal venous thrombosis, and one had pulmonary thromboembolism; five of the patients discontinued romiplostim scheme without resuming it.Conclusions. Romiplostim constitutes a convenient second-line therapy in immune thrombocytopenia. Despite the small sample size, romiplostim early use can minimize toxicities and infectious risks.

Introduction: Stroke in young individuals is becoming increasingly prevalent worldwide. Its causes can vary widely, so a thorough investigation by a multidisciplinary team is needed. Pinpointing the precise underlying pathology responsible for the stroke yields benefits for patients, particularly in recurrent events.

Case presentation: A 38-year-old man presented to the emergency department with symptoms suggestive of stroke, including right hemiparesis, dysarthria, ataxic gait, and right central facial palsy. The brain magnetic resonance image revealed an ischemic lesion located in the left basal ganglia and near the corona radiata. Following an extensive workup, a diagnosis of nephrotic was reached. Histopathology and the exclusion of secondary causes confirmed primary membranous nephropathy as the underlying condition. The patient underwent treatment tailored to address the specific glomerulopathy, along with anticoagulation therapy and immunosuppression as per current guidelines. Subsequent assessments showed stabilization of renal function, resolution of the edema, and the absence of new thromboembolic events during follow-up.

Conclusion: The nephrotic syndrome should be recognized as a potential underlying cause of stroke in young patients and, therefore, it should be included in the differential diagnosis during the evaluation of patients with coagulopathies. Nephrotic syndrome screening may be done by conducting a simple urinalysis readily available in most healthcare facilities. This underlines the importance of considering renal pathology in the assessment of stroke etiologies, especially when coagulation abnormalities are present.