Las “cabezas cortadas” del poblado ibérico del Puig Castellar (Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Barcelona). Datos para una reinterpretación

The severed heads first discovered in 1904 in the Iberian oppidum of El Puig Castellar, in Santa Coloma de Gramenet (Barcelona), were assumed to be trophies of war, but until now only a few of them received brief publication.This paper presents the results of an anthropological study based on their description, determination of age and sex, signs of pathology, and cut marks.These results serve to raise the number of individuals from the initial count of five to twelve. The find consists of two nailed skulls, three with signs of skinning, and several skull and jaw fragments with signs of stab wounds.Finally, an appraisal is made of how the skulls were prepared for display. Significant new results are presented that help define the physical characteristic of the hitherto little known Iberian population.Objections are made to the theory , based on episodes in the Celtic domain described in Greek and Latin written sources (e.g., Posidonius of Apamea), that the severed heads belonged exclusively to warriors defeated in battle.En 1904 se realizaron los primeros hallazgos de “cabezas cortadas” en el oppidum ibérico de El Puig Castellar de Santa Coloma de Gramenet (Barcelona) y se interpretaron como trofeos bélicos, sin embargo, solo una mínima parte de los mismos había sido dada a conocer sucintamente hasta ahora. Este estudio presenta los resultados del estudio antropológico basado en su descripción, determinación de edad y sexo, estudio patológico y de marcas. Los resultados amplían el número de individuos inicial de 5 a 12. Se trata de dos cráneos enclavados, tres con signos de desollamiento y diversos fragmentos craneales y mandibulares con evidencias de lesiones por arma blanca. Finalmente se valora el tratamiento que sufrieron dichos cráneos para su exhibición aportando nuevos resultados significativos que contribuyen a caracterizar, desde el punto de vista físico, a las tan desconocidas poblaciones iberas, además se cuestiona la teoría que asigna las “cabezas cortadas” exclusivamente a guerreros vencidos en batalla sobre la base de episodios del ámbito céltico descritos por las fuentes escritas grecolatinas (Posidonio de Apamea)

Is availability of artesunate associated with the prognosis of imported malaria in Spain?

Although there is a lot of aspects we stil need to understand about treatment with artemisinins[1], there is no doubt about their efficacy in treating malaria. Artesunate (AS) has demonstrated its superiority against quinine for treatment of severe malaria in terms of reduction of mortality in different randomized clinical trials performed in endemic countries and subsequent meta-analysis[2-4]. Despite having been established as the first line treatment by WHO and several national guidelines[5,6], its full implementation in non-endemic countries has not been completed

Relevance of screening for Chagas and viral hepatitis in Bolivian migrants

© 2020 Elsevier España, S.L.U. Objectives: Given the scarcity of data regarding prevalence of various infectious diseases in Latin-American countries, our study aims to assess the burden of T. cruzi, S. stercoralis, HIV and viral hepatitis in Latin-American migrants, with a focus on Bolivian migrants. Methods: We performed a retrospective observational study of 565 screening evaluations in adults (≥18 years) carried out at our International Healthcare referral service in Barcelona. We reviewed structured clinical records and microbiological results of patients attended between February 2012 and April 2015. Results: The median age was 35 years and 74% were women. Of the population screened, 87% were of Bolivian origin. We found a 48% prevalence of T. cruzi, 16% of S. stercoralis, 0.2% of HIV, 0.2% HBV and 0.2% HCV. Conclusions: These results support the relevance of screening for T. cruzi and S. stercoralis in Bolivian migrants but challenge the pertinence of systematic screening for HBV in this population

Lack of efficacy of standard doses of ivermectin in severe COVID-19 patients

Ivermectin has recently shown efficacy against SARS-CoV-2 in-vitro. We retrospectively reviewed severe COVID-19 patients receiving standard doses of ivermectin and we compared clinical and microbiological outcomes with a similar group of patients not receiving ivermectin. No differences were found between groups. We recommend the evaluation of high-doses of ivermectin in randomized trials against SARS-CoV-2

Mirroring the Zika epidemics in Cuba: The view from a European imported diseases clinic

Dear Editor, the changing epidemiology of Zika virus infection has been described before and in this letter we would like to show how the local epidemiology of Zika in Cuba is reflected in imported cases in returning travellers to Barcelona. The spread of the 2015 Zika epidemic was mostly reported in South America and the Caribbean. While increasing numbers of cases raised in South-America, Cuba was still free of cases. On 2nd March 2016 the first imported case from Cuba (Artemisa province) was reported. The first autochthonous case was reported on 16th March 2016 in La Habana. Onwards, cases were reported in Camagüey, Cienfuegos, Guantánamo, Havana and Santiago. During 2017 transmission has been reported in municipalities of Arroyo Naranjo and Regla in the province of Havana

High prevalence of strongyloidiasis in spain : A hospital-based study

Strongyloidiasis is a prevailing helminth infection ubiquitous in tropical and subtropical areas, however, seroprevalence data are scarce in migrant populations, particularly for those coming for Asia. This study aims at evaluating the prevalence of S. stercoralis at the hospital level in migrant populations or long term travellers being attended in out-patient and in-patient units as part of a systematic screening implemented in six Spanish hospitals. A cross-sectional study was conducted and systematic screening for S. stercoralis infection using serological tests was offered to all eligible participants. The overall seroprevalence of S. stercoralis was 9.04% (95%CI 7.76-10.31). The seroprevalence of people with a risk of infection acquired in Africa and Latin America was 9.35% (95%CI 7.01-11.69), 9.22% (7.5-10.93), respectively. The number of individuals coming from Asian countries was significantly smaller and the overall prevalence in these countries was 2.9% (95%CI −0.3-6.2). The seroprevalence in units attending potentially immunosuppressed patients was significantly lower (5.64%) compared with other units of the hospital (10.20%) or Tropical diseases units (13.33%) (p < 0.001). We report a hospital-based strongyloidiasis seroprevalence of almost 10% in a mobile population coming from endemic areas suggesting the need of implementing strongyloidiasis screening in hospitalized patients coming from endemic areas, particularly if they are at risk of immunosuppression

La importancia de la voz y el canto en la vida cotidiana . Apuntes sobre el enfoque terapéutico de la voz desde un contexto no-verbal

For the old schools of Tibet, India, Greece, Egypt and other centres of learning, the knowledge of sound represented a very important science. lt was based on the understanding of vibration as the principal generating force of the universe. The masters of these schools became also aware of the capacity of sound for preventing, treating and curing diseases. Starting out from these studies a majar part of all vibrational therapies was developped, among these the therapeutic work with the voice. These civilizations carne to the conclusion that, singing, man creates a clear path of connection between the earth and the spiritual spheres.En las antiguas escuelas del Tíbet, India , Grecia, Egipto y otros centros de aprendizaje, el conocimiento del sonido representa una ciencia de gran importancia. Está basado en la comprensión de que la vibración es el principal generador de fuerza del universo. Los maestros de estas escuelas conocen asimismo la capacidad del sonido para prevenir, tratar y curar enfermedades. A partir de estos estudios se han desarrollado la mayor parte de terapias vibracionales, y también este trabajo del uso terapéutico de la voz. Estas civilizaciones llegaron a la conclusión de que cantando, el hombre crea un nexo entre el corazón y las esferas espirituales

Addressing the neglect: Chagas disease in London, UK

Chagas disease is an emerging but still largely unrecognised infectious parasitic disease in European countries.1 It has important public health implications because, although the classic vector-borne route of transmission only occurs in endemic areas of Latin America, the less common transmission routes—blood transfusion, transplantation, and vertical transmission from mother to child—have been shown in Europe.2 Therefore, providing policy makers with accurate estimates of country-specific prevalence of Chagas disease should inform the design and implementation of the most cost-effective health interventions

Addressing the neglect: Chagas disease in London, UK

Chagas disease is an emerging but still largely unrecognised infectious parasitic disease in European countries.1 It has important public health implications because, although the classic vector-borne route of transmission only occurs in endemic areas of Latin America, the less common transmission routes—blood transfusion, transplantation, and vertical transmission from mother to child—have been shown in Europe.2 Therefore, providing policy makers with accurate estimates of country-specific prevalence of Chagas disease should inform the design and implementation of the most cost-effective health interventions