Control Methods for Single-phase Voltage Supply with VSCs to Feed Nonlinear Loads in Rural Areas

Este artículo aborda el problema de la generación de voltaje sinusoidal en cargas lineales utilizando un inversor de fuente de voltaje (VSI). La estructura port-Hamiltoniana en lazo abierto se utiliza para diseñar un controlador basado en pasividad con ganancias proporcionales-integrales (PI-PBC) con el fin de desarrollar la estrategia de control. La principal ventaja de utilizar controladores basados en pasividad corresponde a la posibilidad de garantizar la estabilidad asintótica transformando el problema de seguimiento de trayectoria en uno de control de regulación. Además del PI-PBC, se emplea un estimador de carga lineal basado en una formulación integral para determinar el valor de la conductancia equivalente en la carga, lo que reduce el número de sensores de corriente. Las validaciones numéricas demuestran que el voltaje sinusoidal proporcionado por el VSI a la carga tiene un error de seguimiento menor a 1 %, con distorsiones armónicas menores a 2.6 %, tanto para voltaje como para corrientes en la carga. Todas las simulaciones se realizaron en MATLAB/Simulink utilizando la biblioteca SimPowerSystems versión 2017 a.This paper addresses the problem of sinusoidal voltage generation in linear loads using a voltage source inverter (VSI). The port-Hamiltonian structure in open-loop is used to design a passivity-based controller with proportional-integral gains (PI-PBC) in order to develop the control strategy. The main advantage of using passivity-based controllers corresponds to the possibility of guaranteeing asymptotic stability by transforming the trajectory tracking problem into a regulation control one. In addition to the PI-PBC, a linear load estimator is employed based on an integral formulation to determine the value of the equivalent conductance in the load, which reduces the number of current sensors. Numerical validations demonstrate that the sinusoidal voltage provided by the VSI to the load has a tracking error lower than 1 %, with harmonic distortions lower than 2.6 %, both for voltage and currents in the load. All the simulations were conducted in MATLAB/Simulink using the SimPowerSystems library version 2017a.Fil: Gil Gonzalez, Walter Julián. Institución Universitaria Pascual Bravo; ColombiaFil: Bocanegra, Sara Yulieth. Universidad Tecnológica de Pereira; ColombiaFil: Serra, Federico Martin. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Luis. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Química, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Ingeniería y Ciencias Agropecuarias. Laboratorio de Control Automático; ArgentinaFil: Bueno López, Maximiliano. Universidad del Cauca; ColombiaFil: Magaldi, Guillermo Luciano. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Ingeniería y Ciencias Agropecuarias. Laboratorio de Control Automático; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - San Luis. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química. Universidad Nacional de San Luis. Facultad de Química, Bioquímica y Farmacia. Instituto de Investigaciones en Tecnología Química; Argentin

Control Methods for Single-phase Voltage Supply with VSCs to Feed Nonlinear Loads in Rural Areas

This paper addresses the problem of sinusoidal voltage generation in linear loads using a voltage source inverter (VSI). The port-Hamiltonian structure in open-loop is used to design a passivity-based controller with proportional-integral gains (PI-PBC) in order to develop the control strategy. The main advantage of using passivity-based controllers corresponds to the possibility of guaranteeing asymptotic stability by transforming the trajectory tracking problem into a regulation control one. In addition to the PI-PBC, a linear load estimator is employed based on an integral formulation to determine the value of the equivalent conductance in the load, which reduces the number of current sensors. Numerical validations demonstrate that the sinusoidal voltage provided by the VSI to the load has a tracking error lower than $1~\%$, with harmonic distortions lower than $2.6~\%$, both for voltage and currents in the load. All the simulations were conducted in MATLAB/Simulink using the SimPowerSystems library version 2017a

Assessing care-related regret among nurses specialized in multiple sclerosis: A psychometric analysis of a new assessment battery

Multiple sclerosis; Nurses; Psychometric methodsEsclerosis múltiple; Enfermeras; Métodos psicométricosEsclerosi múltiple; Infermeres; Mètodes psicomètricsExperiences of regret associated with caring for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) can affect medical decisions. A non-interventional study was conducted to assess the dimensionality and item characteristics of a battery including the Regret Intensity Scale (RIS-10) and 15 items evaluating common situations experienced by nurses in MS care. A total of 97 nurses were included. The RIS-10 showed good internal reliability and a unidimensional structure according to Mokken analysis. All-item homogeneity coefficients exceeded 0.30, whereas scalability for the overall RIS-10 was 0.66, indicating a strong scale. This battery showed adequate psychometric properties to evaluate regret among MS nurses.The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study was funded by the Medical Department of Roche Farma Spain (SL42129)

Regret and Therapeutic Decisions in Multiple Sclerosis Care: Literature Review and Research Protocol

Decision making; Multiple sclerosis; NeurologistsToma de decisiones; Esclerosis múltiple; NeurólogosPresa de decisions; Esclerosi múltiple; NeuròlegsBackground: Decisions based on erroneous assessments may result in unrealistic patient and family expectations, suboptimal advice, incorrect treatment, or costly medical errors. Regret is a common emotion in daily life that involves counterfactual thinking when considering alternative choices. Limited information is available on care-related regret affecting healthcare professionals managing patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). Methods: We reviewed identified gaps in the literature by searching for the combination of the following keywords in Pubmed: “regret and decision,” “regret and physicians,” and “regret and nurses.” An expert panel of neurologists, a nurse, a psychiatrist, a pharmacist, and a psychometrics specialist participated in the study design. Care-related regret will be assessed by a behavioral battery including the standardized questionnaire Regret Intensity Scale (RIS-10) and 15 new specific items. Six items will evaluate regret in the most common social domains affecting individuals (financial, driving, sports—recreation, work, own health, and confidence in people). Another nine items will explore past and recent regret experiences in common situations experienced by healthcare professionals caring for patients with MS. We will also assess concomitant behavioral characteristics of healthcare professionals that could be associated with regret: coping strategies, life satisfaction, mood, positive social behaviors, occupational burnout, and tolerance to uncertainty. Planned Outcomes: This is the first comprehensive and standardized protocol to assess care-related regret and associated behavioral factors among healthcare professionals managing MS. These results will allow to understand and ameliorate regret in healthcare professionals.This study protocol was funded by the Medical Department of Roche Farma Spain (SL42129)

Assessing care-related regret among nurses specialized in multiple sclerosis: A psychometric analysis of a new assessment battery

Experiences of regret associated with caring for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) can affect medical decisions. A non-interventional study was conducted to assess the dimensionality and item characteristics of a battery including the Regret Intensity Scale (RIS-10) and 15 items evaluating common situations experienced by nurses in MS care. A total of 97 nurses were included. The RIS-10 showed good internal reliability and a unidimensional structure according to Mokken analysis. All-item homogeneity coefficients exceeded 0.30, whereas scalability for the overall RIS-10 was 0.66, indicating a strong scale. This battery showed adequate psychometric properties to evaluate regret among MS nurseThe author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study was funded by the Medical Department of Roche Farma Spain (SL42129)

Covid-19 Confinement and Sexual Activity in Spain: A Cross Sectional Study

Restrictions of free movement have been proven effective in tackling the spread of COVID-19 disease. However, sensitive populations submitted to longer periods of restrictions may experience detrimental effects in significant areas of their lifestyle, such as sexual activity. This study examines sexual activity during the COVID-19 confinement in Spain. A survey distributed through an institutional social media profile served to collect data, whereas chi-squared tests, t-tests, analyses of variance, and multiple logistic regression analysis were used to assess differences among sample subgroups. A total of 71.3% adults (N = 536) (72.8% female) reported engaging in sexual activity with a weekly average of 2.39 times (SD = 1.80), with significant differences favoring males, middle age, married/in a domestic relationship (p < 0.001), employed (p < 0.005), medium–high annual household income, living outside the Iberian Peninsula, and smoking and alcohol consumption. Analyses adjusted for the complete set of control variables showed significant odds for a lower prevalence of weekly sexual activity in women (OR = 0.44, 95% CI 0.27–0.72). Interventions to promote sexual activity in confined Spanish adults may focus on groups with lower sexual activity

Regret and Therapeutic Decisions in Multiple Sclerosis Care: Literature Review and Research Protocol

Background: Decisions based on erroneous assessments may result in unrealistic patient and family expectations, suboptimal advice, incorrect treatment, or costly medical errors. Regret is a common emotion in daily life that involves counterfactual thinking when considering alternative choices. Limited information is available on care-related regret affecting healthcare professionals managing patients with multiple sclerosis (MS).Methods: We reviewed identified gaps in the literature by searching for the combination of the following keywords in Pubmed: “regret and decision,” “regret and physicians,” and “regret and nurses.” An expert panel of neurologists, a nurse, a psychiatrist, a pharmacist, and a psychometrics specialist participated in the study design. Care-related regret will be assessed by a behavioral battery including the standardized questionnaire Regret Intensity Scale (RIS-10) and 15 new specific items. Six items will evaluate regret in the most common social domains affecting individuals (financial, driving, sports—recreation, work, own health, and confidence in people). Another nine items will explore past and recent regret experiences in common situations experienced by healthcare professionals caring for patients with MS. We will also assess concomitant behavioral characteristics of healthcare professionals that could be associated with regret: coping strategies, life satisfaction, mood, positive social behaviors, occupational burnout, and tolerance to uncertainty.Planned Outcomes: This is the first comprehensive and standardized protocol to assess care-related regret and associated behavioral factors among healthcare professionals managing MS. These results will allow to understand and ameliorate regret in healthcare professionals.Spanish National Register (SL42129-20/598-E)

Thirty-day outcomes in frail older patients discharged home from the emergency department with acute heart failure: effects of high-risk criteria identified by the DEED FRAIL-AHF trial

Objectives: To study the effect of high-risk criteria on 30-day outcomes in frail older patients with acute heart failure (AHF) discharged from an emergency department (ED) or an ED's observation and short-stay areas. Material and methods: Secondary analysis of discharge records in the Older AHF Key Data registry. We selected frail patients (aged > 70 years) discharged with AHF from EDs. Risk factors were categorized as modifiable or nonmodifiable. The outcomes were a composite endpoint for a cardiovascular event (revisits for AHF, hospitalization for AHF, or cardiovascular death) and the number of days alive out-of-hospital (DAOH) within 30 days of discharge. Results: We included 380 patients with a mean (SD) age of 86 (5.5) years (61.2% women). Modifiable risk factors were identified in 65.1%, nonmodifiable ones in 47.8%, and both types in 81.6%. The 30-day cardiovascular composite endpoint occurred in 83 patients (21.8%). The mean 30-day DAOH observed was 27.6 (6.1) days. Highrisk factors were present more often in patients who developed the cardiovascular event composite endpoint: the rates for patients with modifiable, nonmodifiable, or both types of risk were, respectively, as follows in comparison with patients not at high risk: 25.0% vs 17.2%, P = .092; 27.6% vs 16.7%, P = .010; and 24.7% vs 15.2%, P = .098). The 30-day DAOH outcome was also lower for at-risk patients, according to type of risk factor present: modifiable, 26.9 (7.0) vs 28.4 (4.4) days, P = .011; nonmodifiable, 27.1 (7.0) vs 28.0 (5.0) days, P = .127; and both, 27.1 (6.7) vs 28.8 (3.4) days, P = .005). After multivariate analysis, modifiable risk remained independently associated with fewer days alive (adjusted absolute difference in 30-day DAOH, -1.3 days (95% CI, -2.7 to -0.1 days). Nonmodifiable factors were associated with increased risk for the 30-day cardiovascular composite endpoint (adjusted absolute difference, 10.4%; 95% CI, -2.1% to 18.7%). Conclusion: Risk factors are common in frail elderly patients with AHF discharged home from hospital ED areas. Their presence is associated with a worse 30-day prognosis

Associations between Physical Activity, Sitting Time, and Time Spent Outdoors with Mental Health during the First COVID-19 Lock Down in Austria.

Measures implemented to reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2 have resulted in a decrease in physical activity (PA) while sedentary behaviour increased. The aim of the present study was to explore associations between PA and mental health in Austria during COVID-19 social restrictions. In this web-based cross-sectional study (April-May 2020) moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), sitting time, and time spent outdoors were self-reported before and during self-isolation. Mental well-being was assessed with the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale, and the Beck depression and anxiety inventories. The majority of the participants (n = 652) were female (72.4%), with a mean age of 36.0 years and a standard deviation (SD) of 14.4. Moreover, 76.5% took part in ≥30 min/day of MVPA, 53.5% sat ≥10 h/day, and 66.1% spent ≥60 min/day outdoors during self-isolation. Thirty-eight point five percent reported high mental well-being, 40.5% reported depressive symptoms, and 33.9% anxiety symptoms. Participating in higher levels of MVPA was associated with higher mental well-being (odds ratio = OR: 3.92; 95% confidence interval = 95%CI: 1.51-10.15), less depressive symptoms (OR: 0.44; 95%CI: 0.29-0.66) and anxiety symptoms (OR = 0.62; 95%CI: 0.41-0.94), and less loneliness (OR: 0.46; 95%CI: 0.31-0.69). Participants sitting <10 h/day had higher odds of mental well-being (OR: 3.58; 95%CI: 1.13-11.35). Comparable results were found for spending ≥60 min/day outdoors. Maintaining one's MVPA levels was associated with higher mental well-being (OR = 8.61, 95%CI: 2.68-27.62). In conclusion, results show a positive association between PA, time spent outdoors and mental well-being during COVID-19 social restrictions. Interventions aiming to increase PA might mitigate negative effects of such restrictions

Epidemiologic Features and Control Measures during Monkeypox Outbreak, Spain, June 2022

During June 2022, Spain was one of the countries most affected worldwide by a multicountry monkeypox outbreak with chains of transmission without identified links to disease-endemic countries. We provide epidemiologic features of cases reported in Spain and the coordinated measures taken to respond to this outbreak.S