Características epidemiológicas de los trastornos mentales tratados en la Cátedra de Psiquiatría del Hospital de Clínicas de la Facultad de Ciencias Médicas de Asunción

Los trastornos mentales constituyen un gran reto y una prioridad para la salud pública moderna, debido a su importante influencia en la producción de discapacidad. No obstante en el Paraguay existe muy poca, si no nula, información al respecto. El objetivo general de este trabajo fue determinar las características epidemiológicas de los diferentes trastornos mentales, ligadas a las diferentes variables, como ser el sexo y la edad. El paciente promedio del Cátedra de Psiquiátrica del Hospital de Clínicas, es de una edad de 39,01 ±18,52 años, entre ellos el 64,4% mujeres y el 35,6% hombres. Los diagnósticos más frecuentes fueron los trastornos neuróticos relacionados con el estrés y somatomorfos (Grupo 5 de la sub-clasificacion de los trastornos mentales según la OMS) con 32,34%. Entre los trastornos incluidos en este grupo, el más frecuente fue el trastorno de la ansiedad, con el 55,19% de los casos. Las mujeres presentaron mayormente de trastornos del humor o afectivos 37,41% mientras que los hombres mayor frecuencia de trastornos neuróticos 28,05%. Signos y síntomas frecuentes para los diferentes trastornos mentales fueron insomnio, angustia y tristeza. En conclusión los trastornos mentales están entre las diez primeras causas de discapacidad en el mundo y a pesar de ello existe una tasa muy baja de personas con trastornos mentales que recibe tratamiento adecuado, lo cual puede deberse a barreras como el estigma. Se requieren acciones comunitarias y gubernamentales para un mejor abordaje de los trastornos mentales

Changes in the Sodium Content of Foods Sold in Four Latin American Countries: 2015 to 2018

In 2015, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) published sodium targets for packaged foods, which included two distinct levels: one “regional” and one “lower” target. Changes to the sodium content of the food supply in Latin American Countries (LAC) has not been evaluated. A repeated cross-sectional study used food label data from 2015 (n = 3859) and 2018 (n = 5312) to determine changes in the proportion of packaged foods meeting the PAHO sodium targets and the distribution in the sodium content of foods in four LAC (Argentina, Costa Rica, Paraguay, Peru). Foods were classified into the 18 food categories in the PAHO targets. The proportion of foods meeting the regional targets increased from 82.9% to 89.3% between 2015 and 2018 (p < 0.001). Overall, 44.4% of categories had significant decreases in mean sodium content. Categories with a higher proportion of foods meeting the regional and lower targets in 2018 compared to 2015 (p < 0.05) were breaded meat and poultry, wet and dry soups, snacks, cakes, bread products, flavored cookies and crackers, and dry pasta and noodles. While positive progress has been made in reducing the sodium content of foods in LAC, sodium intakes in the region remain high. More stringent targets are required to support sodium reduction in LAC

Status and Trends of Physical Activity Surveillance, Policy, and Research in 164 Countries: Findings From the Global Observatory for Physical Activity—GoPA! 2015 and 2020 Surveys

Background: Physical activity (PA) surveillance, policy, and research efforts need to be periodically appraised to gain insight into national and global capacities for PA promotion. The aim of this paper was to assess the status and trends in PA surveillance, policy, and research in 164 countries. Methods: We used data from the Global Observatory for Physical Activity (GoPA!) 2015 and 2020 surveys. Comprehensive searches were performed for each country to determine the level of development of their PA surveillance, policy, and research, and the findings were verified by the GoPA! Country Contacts. Trends were analyzed based on the data available for both survey years. Results: The global 5-year progress in all 3 indicators was modest, with most countries either improving or staying at the same level. PA surveillance, policy, and research improved or remained at a high level in 48.1%, 40.6%, and 42.1% of the countries, respectively. PA surveillance, policy, and research scores decreased or remained at a low level in 8.3%, 15.8%, and 28.6% of the countries, respectively. The highest capacity for PA promotion was found in Europe, the lowest in Africa and low- and lower-middle-income countries. Although a large percentage of the world’s population benefit from at least some PA policy, surveillance, and research efforts in their countries, 49.6 million people are without PA surveillance, 629.4 million people are without PA policy, and 108.7 million live in countries without any PA research output. A total of 6.3 billion people or 88.2% of the world’s population live in countries where PA promotion capacity should be significantly improved. Conclusion: Despite PA is essential for health, there are large inequalities between countries and world regions in their capacity to promote PA. Coordinated efforts are needed to reduce the inequalities and improve the global capacity for PA promotion.</jats:p