Factores asociados al intento suicida e ideación suicida persistente en un Centro de Atención Primaria. Bogotá, 2004-2006

Objective: Characterising patients attempting suicide who were evaluated by psychiatry at the Primary Care Unit (PCU) 'La Estrella' from October/2004 to October/2005 and determining persistent suicidal ideation and associated factors. Methods: An initial description of attempted suicide patients (n=156). A subsequent case control study (n=77) determined persistent suicidal ideation cases (n=27). A multivariate model was used for determining the remaining factors associated with persistent suicide ideation. Results: Cases increased from 6 in October/2004 to 10 in October/2005, average 12 ± 3,6 cases monthly. 80 % were aged 30 or younger, 66,7 % were female, 24,4 % were students and 20,5 % were unemployed. 35,2 % suffered family dysfunction and 35.2% had conflicts between couples as precipitant factors. 49 % had consumed alcohol prior to the suicide attempt. Persistent suicidal ideation was associated with being 31 years old or older, being unemployed and having a higher number of previous suicide attempts, unresolved conflicts and family dysfunction. Logistical regression revealed unresolved conflicts (OR=106.7; 6,8; 1 668,4 95 % CI) and family dysfunction (OR=11.05; 1,7; 71,2 95 % CI) as predictor variables for persistent suicidal ideation. Conclusion Unresolved conflicts and family dysfunction were found to be predictor factors for persistent suicidal ideation in subjects who had attempted suicide. Consuming alcohol and other associated factors should be controlled by mental health prevention and promotion programmes

Plasma cytokines as potential biomarkers of kidney damage in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus

Background: Systemic lupus erythematosus is a heterogeneous chronic inflammatory autoimmune disorder characterized by an exacerbated expression of cytokines and chemokines in different tissues and organs. Renal involvement is a significant contributor to the morbidity and mortality of systemic lupus erythematosus, and its diagnosis is based on renal biopsy, an invasive procedure with a high risk of complications. Therefore, the development of alternative, non-invasive diagnostic tests for kidney disease in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus is a priority. Aim: To evaluate the plasma levels of a panel of cytokines and chemokines using multiplex xMAP technology in a cohort of Colombian patients with active and inactive systemic lupus erythematosus, and to evaluate their potential as biomarkers of renal involvement. Results: Plasma from 40 systemic lupus erythematosus non-nephritis patients and 80 lupus nephritis patients with different levels of renal involvement were analyzed for 39 cytokines using Luminex xMAP technology. Lupus nephritis patients had significantly increased plasma eotaxin, TNF-a, interleukin-17-a, interleukin-10, and interleukin-15 as compared to the systemic lupus erythematosus non-nephritis group. Macrophage-derived chemokine, growth regulated oncogene alpha, and epidermal growth factor were significantly elevated in systemic lupus erythematosus non-nephritis patients when compared to lupus nephritis individuals. Plasma eotaxin levels allowed a discrimination between systemic lupus erythematosus non-nephritis and lupus nephritis patients, for which we performed a receiver operating characteristic curve to confirm. We observed a correlation of eotaxin levels with active nephritis (Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index). Our data indicate that circulating cytokines and chemokines could be considered good predictors of renal involvement in individuals with systemic lupus erythematosus

Reconstruction of inclined air showers detected with the Pierre Auger Observatory

We describe the method devised to reconstruct inclined cosmic-ray air showers with zenith angles greater than $60^\circ$ detected with the surface array of the Pierre Auger Observatory. The measured signals at the ground level are fitted to muon density distributions predicted with atmospheric cascade models to obtain the relative shower size as an overall normalization parameter. The method is evaluated using simulated showers to test its performance. The energy of the cosmic rays is calibrated using a sub-sample of events reconstructed with both the fluorescence and surface array techniques. The reconstruction method described here provides the basis of complementary analyses including an independent measurement of the energy spectrum of ultra-high energy cosmic rays using very inclined events collected by the Pierre Auger Observatory.Comment: 27 pages, 19 figures, accepted for publication in Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics (JCAP

The exposure of the hybrid detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory

The Pierre Auger Observatory is a detector for ultra-high energy cosmic rays. It consists of a surface array to measure secondary particles at ground level and a fluorescence detector to measure the development of air showers in the atmosphere above the array. The "hybrid" detection mode combines the information from the two subsystems. We describe the determination of the hybrid exposure for events observed by the fluorescence telescopes in coincidence with at least one water-Cherenkov detector of the surface array. A detailed knowledge of the time dependence of the detection operations is crucial for an accurate evaluation of the exposure. We discuss the relevance of monitoring data collected during operations, such as the status of the fluorescence detector, background light and atmospheric conditions, that are used in both simulation and reconstruction.Comment: Paper accepted by Astroparticle Physic

Measurement of the Depth of Maximum of Extensive Air Showers above 10^18 eV

We describe the measurement of the depth of maximum, Xmax, of the longitudinal development of air showers induced by cosmic rays. Almost four thousand events above 10^18 eV observed by the fluorescence detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory in coincidence with at least one surface detector station are selected for the analysis. The average shower maximum was found to evolve with energy at a rate of (106 +35/-21) g/cm^2/decade below 10^(18.24 +/- 0.05) eV and (24 +/- 3) g/cm^2/decade above this energy. The measured shower-to-shower fluctuations decrease from about 55 to 26 g/cm^2. The interpretation of these results in terms of the cosmic ray mass composition is briefly discussed.Comment: Accepted for publication by PR

The Pierre Auger Observatory III: Other Astrophysical Observations

Astrophysical observations of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays with the Pierre Auger ObservatoryComment: Contributions to the 32nd International Cosmic Ray Conference, Beijing, China, August 201

Marco activo de recursos de innovación docente: Madrid

Una guía de espacios e instituciones para actividades educativas complementarias en enseñanza secundaria y Formación Profesional

The Pierre Auger Observatory II: Studies of Cosmic Ray Composition and Hadronic Interaction models

Studies of the composition of the highest energy cosmic rays with the Pierre Auger Observatory, including examination of hadronic physics effects on the structure of extensive air showers.Comment: Contributions to the 32nd International Cosmic Ray Conference, Beijing, China, August 201

The Pierre Auger Observatory IV: Operation and Monitoring

Technical reports on operations and monitoring of the Pierre Auger ObservatoryComment: Constributions to 32nd International Cosmic Ray Conference, Beijing, China, August 201