Reacción de los mercados accionarios latinoamericanos a los anuncios macroeconómicos

Se presenta evidencia empírica sobre el efecto de los anuncios macroeconómicos de la inflación y el PIB en rendimientos y volatilidad diarios de los mercados accionarios de seis países latinoamericanos, empleando modelos de series de tiempo univariadas. Los efectos hallados de los anuncios sobre los rendimientos sólo son significativos y en la dirección esperada en inflación para Colombia y Perú, y en PIB, para Chile. Sin embargo, también se encuentran efectos en días anteriores y posteriores a los anuncios, contradiciendo la hipótesis de eficiencia de mercado. Además, los días de anuncios de la inflación están asociados a mayor volatilidad, pero los del PIB a menor.This paper shows empirical evidence of the effect of macroeconomic announcements (inflation and GDP) on returns, volatility and trading activity for the stock markets of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, using daily univariate time series models. Significant contemporaneous effects were found only for Colombia and Peru during inflation announcements and for Chile during GDP announcements. On the other hand, lagged and lead effects from announcements were found in most of the cases, contradicting market efficiency. Besides, inflation announcements are associated to higher volatility whereas those of GDP are to lower volatility for most of the countries

The invisible enemy : Understanding bird-window strikes through citizen science in a focal city

Bird-window collisions have been estimated to be among the most important sources of bird death. Despite increasing knowledge in Latin America, our understanding of this phenomenon is still incipient, with research performed in Mexico limited to a handful of studies. Here, we present the results of a citizen science effort focused on bird-window collisions at seven buildings in the university campus of the National School of Higher Studies (ENES) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, located in the city of Leon (central Mexico). Our main goal was to describe seasonal patterns of bird-window collisions and their relationship with building traits (i.e., building height, window area) through citizen science monitoring strategies. Our results showed that collisions were higher in two of the seven studied buildings, with two bird species recording almost half of the total collisions: Clay-colored Sparrow (Spizella pallida) and Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea). Seasonally, April was the only month to differ from the rest of the studied months, showing significantly higher rate of bird-window collision. Regarding building traits, only building height was related to the number of recorded bird-window collisions. In sum, our study provides findings from an understudied area, showing the value of citizen science approaches to generate knowledge on a deadly phenomenon. Notably, besides the potential drawbacks and importance of generating this kind of information, our project raised awareness on the topic across the entire campus community, from the students and academics to the administration, highlighting the potential for social impact with these kinds of projects.Peer reviewe

The effect of perceived discrimination on the health of immigrant workers in Spain

Background: Discrimination is an important determinant of health inequalities, and immigrants may be more vulnerable to certain types of discrimination than the native-born. This study analyses the relationship between immigrants' perceived discrimination and various self-reported health indicators. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted (2008) amongst a non-random sample of 2434 immigrants from Ecuador, Morocco, Romania and Colombia in four Spanish cities: Barcelona, Huelva, Madrid and Valencia. A factorial analysis of variables revealed three dimensions of perceived discrimination (due to immigrant status, due to physical appearance, and workplace-related). The association of these dimensions with self-rated health, mental health (GHQ-12), change in self-rated health between origin and host country, and other self-reported health outcomes was analysed. Logistic regression was used adjusting for potential confounders (aOR-95%CI). Subjects with worsening self-reported health status potentially attributable to perceived discrimination was estimated (population attributable proportion, PAP %). Results: 73.3% of men and 69.3% of women immigrants reported discrimination due to immigrant status. Moroccans showed the highest prevalence of perceived discrimination. Immigrants reporting discrimination were at significantly higher risk of reporting health problems than those not reporting discrimination. Workplace-related discrimination was associated with poor mental health (aOR 2.97 95%CI 2.45-3.60), and the worsening of self-rated health (aOR 2.20 95%CI 1.73- 2.80). 40% (95% CI 24-53) PAP of those reporting worse self-rated health could be attributable to discrimination due to immigrant status. Conclusions: Discrimination may constitute a risk factor for health in immigrant workers in Spain and could explain some health inequalities among immigrant populations in Spanish society.This work was supported by the following sources: Carolina Foundation (Spain), Healthcare Research Fund of the Spanish Ministry of Health and Consumption (references PI050497, PI052202, PI052334, PI061701, and PI0790470

Clonal chromosomal mosaicism and loss of chromosome Y in elderly men increase vulnerability for SARS-CoV-2

The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19) had an estimated overall case fatality ratio of 1.38% (pre-vaccination), being 53% higher in males and increasing exponentially with age. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, we found 133 cases (1.42%) with detectable clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations (mCA) and 226 males (5.08%) with acquired loss of chromosome Y (LOY). Individuals with clonal mosaic events (mCA and/or LOY) showed a 54% increase in the risk of COVID-19 lethality. LOY is associated with transcriptomic biomarkers of immune dysfunction, pro-coagulation activity and cardiovascular risk. Interferon-induced genes involved in the initial immune response to SARS-CoV-2 are also down-regulated in LOY. Thus, mCA and LOY underlie at least part of the sex-biased severity and mortality of COVID-19 in aging patients. Given its potential therapeutic and prognostic relevance, evaluation of clonal mosaicism should be implemented as biomarker of COVID-19 severity in elderly people. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, individuals with clonal mosaic events (clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations and/or loss of chromosome Y) showed an increased risk of COVID-19 lethality

International nosocomial infection control consortium (INICC) report, data summary of 36 countries, for 2004-2009

The results of a surveillance study conducted by the International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortium (INICC) from January 2004 through December 2009 in 422 intensive care units (ICUs) of 36 countries in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe are reported. During the 6-year study period, using Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN; formerly the National Nosocomial Infection Surveillance system [NNIS]) definitions for device-associated health care-associated infections, we gathered prospective data from 313,008 patients hospitalized in the consortium's ICUs for an aggregate of 2,194,897 ICU bed-days. Despite the fact that the use of devices in the developing countries' ICUs was remarkably similar to that reported in US ICUs in the CDC's NHSN, rates of device-associated nosocomial infection were significantly higher in the ICUs of the INICC hospitals; the pooled rate of central line-associated bloodstream infection in the INICC ICUs of 6.8 per 1,000 central line-days was more than 3-fold higher than the 2.0 per 1,000 central line-days reported in comparable US ICUs. The overall rate of ventilator-associated pneumonia also was far higher (15.8 vs 3.3 per 1,000 ventilator-days), as was the rate of catheter-associated urinary tract infection (6.3 vs. 3.3 per 1,000 catheter-days). Notably, the frequencies of resistance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates to imipenem (47.2% vs 23.0%), Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates to ceftazidime (76.3% vs 27.1%), Escherichia coli isolates to ceftazidime (66.7% vs 8.1%), Staphylococcus aureus isolates to methicillin (84.4% vs 56.8%), were also higher in the consortium's ICUs, and the crude unadjusted excess mortalities of device-related infections ranged from 7.3% (for catheter-associated urinary tract infection) to 15.2% (for ventilator-associated pneumonia). Copyright © 2012 by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Modelación de una situación empresarial para la enseñanza de simulación discreta

La simulación discreta es una de las herramientas que se utilizan para modelar sistemas reales y sobre el modelo construido evaluar el impacto que tendrían ciertas decisiones, mejorando así la toma de decisiones sobre el sistema real -- Actualmente, el tema de simulación discreta es impartido en la asignatura de Simulación de la especialización de Dirección de Operaciones y Logística, que pertenece al departamento de Ingeniería de Producción de la Universidad EAFIT -- Sin embargo, esta asignatura sólo cuenta con ejercicios académicos para los procesos de modelación -- Esto motivó la realización de un proyecto para documentar una situación empresarial, con base en la cual los estudiantes puedan construir una simulación apoyada en una situación real -- Esto permitiría a los estudiantes un acercamiento a la modelación de problemas reales de la industria -- Se eligió como situación empresarial, el análisis de la productividad de una la línea de producción de la empresa panificadora Novapan de la ciudad de Medellín -- La modelación del sistema se hizo por medio del software de simulación discreta Promodel® -- Este trabajo presenta los aspectos principales de la situación empresarial analizada, la metodología de trabajo, el modelo de simulación discreta, algunos resultados de la simulación, la propuesta pedagógica y algunas lecciones aprendidas en el desarrollo de esta investigaciónDiscrete simulation is one of the tools that are used for modeling real systems and for evaluating the impact of certain decisions using the resulting model, improving with this the decisions making on the real system -- Discrete simulation has been taught in the simulation course of the Operations Management and Logistics program at EAFIT University -- However this course only has academic exercises for the modeling processes -- This motivated to the realization of a project for documenting a business scenario on which students can build a simulation supported on a real situation -- This would allow students an approach to the modeling of real industry problems -- The productivity analysis of a production line of the Bakery Company Novapan in Medellin city was elected as the business scenario -- The simulation was made through the discreet simulation software Promodel ® -- This Paper presents the main aspects of the analyzed business scenario, the methodology, the discrete simulation model, some simulation results, the educational proposal and some learned lessons during the development of this researchLa simulación discreta es una de las herramientas que se utilizan para modelar sistemas reales y sobre el modelo construido evaluar el impacto que tendrían ciertas decisiones, mejorando así la toma de decisiones sobre el sistema real -- Actualmente, el tema de simulación discreta es impartido en la asignatura de Simulación de la especialización de Dirección de Operaciones y Logística, que pertenece al departamento de Ingeniería de Producción de la Universidad EAFIT -- Sin embargo, esta asignatura sólo cuenta con ejercicios académicos para los procesos de modelación -- Esto motivó la realización de un proyecto para documentar una situación empresarial, con base en la cual los estudiantes puedan construir una simulación apoyada en una situación real -- Esto permitiría a los estudiantes un acercamiento a la modelación de problemas reales de la industria -- Se eligió como situación empresarial, el análisis de la productividad de una la línea de producción de la empresa panificadora Novapan de la ciudad de Medellín -- La modelación del sistema se hizo por medio del software de simulación discreta Promodel® -- Este trabajo presenta los aspectos principales de la situación empresarial analizada, la metodología de trabajo, el modelo de simulación discreta, algunos resultados de la simulación, la propuesta pedagógica y algunas lecciones aprendidas en el desarrollo de esta investigació

Efectividad analgésica de clonidina vs. morfina como coadyuvantes de la anestesia espinal con bupivacaína hiperbárica en pacientes sometidas a cesárea

Introduction: The main adjuvants of bupivacaine are opioids and clonidine; the first opioid used by the epidural route was morphine, which since 1979 has demonstrated benefit of its intrathecal and extradural use, for the management of chronic and postoperative pain. Objective: Determine the analgesic effectiveness of morphine vs. clonidine added to spinal anesthesia with hyperbaric bupivacaine in patients undergoing cesarean section. Method: A quasi-experimental correlational clinical trial. 60 parturients, carrying a singleton fetus at term, scheduled to undergo cesarean section under spinal anesthesia were randomized in one of the two groups. Group BC (n = 30) received 10 mg hyperbaric bupivacaine and 75 μg clonidine; Group BM (n = 30) 10 mg hyperbaric bupivacaine and 100 μg morphine. Results: Statistically significant difference, p = 0.02, were found between the time of 14.5 ± 2.1 hours since the administration of anesthesia to the application of the first dose of additional analgesia in morphine group vs. clonidine group 8.18 ± 2.91 hours. Pain at the time of the application of postoperative analgesia was superior in clonidine group with 6.4 ± 1.0 points in AVE vs. morphine with 0.93 ± 2.4 points. p = 0.001. AVE values were also significantly higher for clonidine in relation to morphine at 6, 12 and 18 hours. No significant hemodynamic and respiratory changes occurred in either group. For morphine the most frequent side effect was itching in 66.7 % of patients. The level of sedation was the same for clonidine and morphine in all the patients. Conclusions: Add 100 μg of morphine to hyperbaric bupivacaine for spinal anesthesia prolongs the time and significantly improves quality of the postoperative analgesic period greater than 75 μg of clonidine. The most common side effect is itching.Introducción: Los principales adyuvantes de la bupivacaína son los opioides y la clonidina; el primer opioide usado por vía epidural fue la morfina, que desde 1979 se ha demostrado el beneficio de su uso tanto por vía intratecal como extradural, para el manejo de dolor crónico y postoperatorio. Objetivo: Determinar la efectividad analgésica de clonidina vs. morfina como coadyuvantes de la anestesia espinal con bupivacaína hiperbárica en pacientes sometidas a cesárea. Método: Ensayo clínico correlacional cuasi experimental de campo. 60 pacientes con embarazo a término y feto único programadas para cesárea, con anestesia espinal, distribuidas en dos grupos. Grupo BC (n = 30): bupivacaína hiperbárica 10 mg más clonidina 75 µg; grupo BM (n = 30): bupivacaína hiperbárica 10 mg más morfina 100 µg. Resultados: Se evidencian diferencias estadísticamente significativas, p = 0,02, entre el tiempo de 14,5 ± 2,1 horas desde la administración de la anestesia hasta la solicitud de la primera dosis de analgesia adicional en el grupo morfina vs. clonidina con 8,18 ± 2,91 horas. El dolor en el momento de la solicitud de analgesia fue superior para clonidina con 6,4 ± 1,0 puntos de EVA con relación a la morfina con 0,93 ± 2,4 puntos, p = 0,001. Los valores de EVA también fueron significativamente mayores para clonidina con relación a la morfina a las 6, 12 y 18 horas. No se presentaron cambios hemodinámicos ni respiratorios significativos en ninguno de los dos grupos. Para la morfina el efecto adverso más frecuente fue prurito en 66,7 % de las pacientes. El nivel de sedación fue el mismo para clonidina y morfina en la totalidad de las pacientes. Conclusiones: Adicionar 100 μg de morfina a la bupivacaína hiperbárica en anestesia espinal, prolonga y mejora significativamente el tiempo y la calidad analgésica en el periodo postquirúrgico en mayor grado que 75 μg de clonidina. El efecto secundario más frecuente es el prurito

Descripción de un dispositivo destinado al análisis de la marcha en dos dimensiones, CineMED

Este artículo presenta un dispositivo para el análisis cinemático de la marcha humana. El dispositivo propuesto se basa en el uso de técnicas de videogrametría y procesamiento de imágenes para registrar el movimiento humano. Con este fin, se utilizó una cámara de video digital, ubicada a 4 metros del paciente, capturando su marcha en el plano sagital. También se desarrolló un modelo cinemático de los miembros inferiores que, a partir del desplazamiento de cierto número de puntos anatómicos, determina los ángulos articulares de la cadera, rodilla y tobillo, además de la inclinación de la pelvis durante un ciclo completo de la marcha. La identificación de dichos puntos fue facilitada mediante el uso de marcadores reflectivos, ubicados en siete posiciones anatómicas diferentes. Después, se diseñó y desarrolló un programa para el registro y procesamiento de los datos obtenidos, por medio de la cámara en el lenguaje de programación C# .NET. La aplicación desarrollada captura y preprocesa el video, detecta cada uno de los marcadores en la imagen, aplica el modelo cinemático y visualiza a modo de gráfica el valor de los ángulos articulares de los miembros inferiores, a lo largo del ciclo de la marcha. Por fin, se diseñó un protocolo y se realizó una prueba experimental con un sujeto, para comparar las curvas entregadas por el software y las curvas teóricas encontradas en la literatura. A pesar de las limitaciones del sistema referentes al análisis bidimensional de la marcha, se lograron obtener curvas articulares muy similares a las teóricas, obtenidas con métodos comerciales para el análisis del movimiento tridimensional.This paper introduces a device for the gait kinematic analysis. It is based on videogrametry methods and image processing in order to record the human movement. It was used a digital camcorder, located to a distance of four meters from the person, capturing its gait in the sagital plane. Also, a kinematic model was developed of lower limbs; this model takes the position data of the bony landmarks and calculates the joint angle of the hip, knee and ankle, besides the pelvic tilt during gait. The identification and tracking of the points was carried out by a special reflective coated in the superficial markers. Later, it was designed and developed an algorithm in order to record and process the data gathered, through of the camcorder in the develop language C# .NET. The application developed captures and processes the video, tracking every marker in the frame, applies the kinematic model and shows the graph of the joint angle during gait. Finally, a protocol was designed and a test was carried out with a person in order to compare the data gathered for the software and the theoretical data described in the literature. In spite of the limitations of the system related to gait bidimensional analysis, articular curves very similar to those theoretical were obtained with commercial methods for the tridimensional movement analysis

Descripción de un dispositivo destinado al análisis de la marcha en dos dimensiones, CineMED

Este artículo presenta un dispositivo para el análisis cinemático de la marcha humana. El dispositivo propuesto se basa en el uso de técnicas de videogrametría y procesamiento de imágenes para registrar el movimiento humano. Con este fin, se utilizó una cámara de video digital, ubicada a 4 metros del paciente, capturando su marcha en el plano sagital. También se desarrolló un modelo cinemático de los miembros inferiores que, a partir del desplazamiento de cierto número de puntos anatómicos, determina los ángulos articulares de la cadera, rodilla y tobillo, además de la inclinación de la pelvis durante un ciclo completo de la marcha. La identificación de dichos puntos fue facilitada mediante el uso de marcadores reflectivos, ubicados en siete posiciones anatómicas diferentes. Después, se diseñó y desarrolló un programa para el registro y procesamiento de los datos obtenidos, por medio de la cámara en el lenguaje de programación C# .NET. La aplicación desarrollada captura y preprocesa el video, detecta cada uno de los marcadores en la imagen, aplica el modelo cinemático y visualiza a modo de gráfica el valor de los ángulos articulares de los miembros inferiores, a lo largo del ciclo de la marcha. Por fin, se diseñó un protocolo y se realizó una prueba experimental con un sujeto, para comparar las curvas entregadas por el software y las curvas teóricas encontradas en la literatura. A pesar de las limitaciones del sistema referentes al análisis bidimensional de la marcha, se lograron obtener curvas articulares muy similares a las teóricas, obtenidas con métodos comerciales para el análisis del movimiento tridimensional.This paper introduces a device for the gait kinematic analysis. It is based on videogrametry methods and image processing in order to record the human movement. It was used a digital camcorder, located to a distance of four meters from the person, capturing its gait in the sagital plane. Also, a kinematic model was developed of lower limbs; this model takes the position data of the bony landmarks and calculates the joint angle of the hip, knee and ankle, besides the pelvic tilt during gait. The identification and tracking of the points was carried out by a special reflective coated in the superficial markers. Later, it was designed and developed an algorithm in order to record and process the data gathered, through of the camcorder in the develop language C# .NET. The application developed captures and processes the video, tracking every marker in the frame, applies the kinematic model and shows the graph of the joint angle during gait. Finally, a protocol was designed and a test was carried out with a person in order to compare the data gathered for the software and the theoretical data described in the literature. In spite of the limitations of the system related to gait bidimensional analysis, articular curves very similar to those theoretical were obtained with commercial methods for the tridimensional movement analysis