Motivación para el cambio como predictor de la adherencia terapéutica en el dolor crónico

Los tratamientos psicológicos que enfatizan la autogestión han resultado comúnmente apropiados como alternativas a la intervención médica en el dolor crónico. Desafortunadamente esta aproximación a menudo falla en comprometer a una porción significativa de individuos hacia los tratamientos y considerables índices de abandono y de recaída. El objetivo de este estudio fue comprobar la validez predictiva del modelo de estadíos de cambio en el dolor crónico a través del Pain States of Change Questionnaire (PSOCQ) sobre la adherencia y los resultados terapéuticos. La muestra se compuso de 48 pacientes de dolor crónico, concretamente con trastorno de fibromialgia, reclutados en una unidad de dolor de un hospital público de Sevilla. La mitad de ellos siguió una intervención cognitivo-conductual, y la otra mitad un programa de autogestión guiado por pacientes entrenados. Los resultados avalan la capacidad predictiva del PSOCQ, en tanto en cuanto: a) se constató una probabilidad estadísticamente significativa de no completar el tratamiento cuanto menor fue la motivación para el cambio; b) la motivación para el cambio de los pacientes que completaron el tratamiento se incrementó de forma estadísticamente significativa; y, c) una menor motivación para el cambio tras el tratamiento se asoció a una mayor gravedad del trastorno. La discusión se centra en el interés de manejar la motivación para el cambio para mejorar la eficiencia terapéutica.Psychological treatments that emphasize the auto-management have turned out to be commonly adapted like alternative to the medical intervention in the chronic pain. Unfortunately this approximation often fails in compromising to a significant portion of individuals towards treatments and many abandons and relapses. The aim of this study was to verify the predictive validity of States of Change Model in chronic pain using the Pain States of Change Questionnaire (PSOCQ) to predict adherence and therapeutic results. The sampled consisted of 48 patients of chronic pains-fibromyalgia recruited in a public pain clinic of Seville (Spain). The half of them followed a cognitive-behavioral intervention, and another half a program of auto-management guided by expert patients. The results support the predictive validity of the PSOCQ, while in all that: a) patient with less change motivation had less probability of completing the treatment; b) change motivation increased as effect of the treatment; and c) a less change motivation was associated to more gravity of the disorder. The discussion centers of the interest of considering change motivation to improve therapeutic efficiency.Consejería de Salud de la Junta de Andalucí

Identification of evidence by engineering undergraduates and pre-service science teachers in an argumentation activity

Scientific argumentation is considered as one of the general competencies that engineering students must achieve. This paper analyses the capacity to identify evidence in an argumentation activity on characteristics of materials, developed with 46 engineering undergraduates of the second year of the Degree in Industrial Technologies Engineering and 81 pre-service science teachers of the University of Malaga (Malaga, Spain). These pre-service science teachers studied a Master's Degree in Secondary Education and were classified for this study in two groups depending on whether or not their previous degree was related to the knowledge necessary to solve the activity. The activity proposes to argue the choice of a bicycle according to the material of manufacture (steel or aluminium), focusing this paper on the analysis of the evidence shown in their arguments. A number of evidence, their type, their quality in terms of the level of adequacy and precision, and the inclusion or not of personal ideas, were considered as dimensions. The results show that engineering undergraduates are capable of offering arguments with a greater number of evidence and of different types (economic, physical-chemical and mechanical) as opposed to pre-service science teachers. On the contrary, pre-service teachers offer arguments with a better quality of evidence than undergraduates. Pre-service science teachers from degrees unrelated to the activity used a great number of personal ideas when arguing. These results highlight the need to continue training both undergraduates and pre-service teachers so that they can argue in their profession in the best possible way.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Evidence for an arginine-dependent route for the synthesis of NO in the model filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans

Nitric oxide (NO) is a signalling molecule in eukaryotic and prokaryotic organisms. NO levels transiently boost upon induction of conidiation in Aspergillus nidulans. Only one pathway for NO synthesis involving nitrate reductase has been reported in filamentous fungi so far, but this does not satisfy all the NO produced in fungal cells. Here we provide evidence for at least one additional biosynthetic pathway in A. nidulans involving l-arginine or an intermediate metabolite as a substrate. Under certain growth conditions, the addition of l-arginine to liquid media elicited a burst of NO that was not dependent on any of the urea cycle genes. The NO levels were controlled by the metabolically available arginine, which was regulated by mobilization from the vacuoles and during development. In vitro assays with protein extracts and amino acid profiling strongly suggested the existence of an arginine-dependent NO pathway analogous to the mammalian NO synthase. Addition of polyamines induced NO synthesis, and mutations in the polyamine synthesis genes puA and spdA reduced the production of NO. In conclusion, here we report an additional pathway for the synthesis of NO in A. nidulans using urea cycle intermediates.Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research P 3279

Physical exercise and myokines

Among the types of muscles present in the body is skeletal muscle, which is the one that allows the development of physical activity thanks to the contractile activity of its muscle cells. It is known that physical exercise involves the release of plasma, by the skeletal muscle, of molecules called myokines as a result of muscle contraction. These myokines seem to be at the base of the beneficial effect of physical exercise on health. For this reason, this article reviews the characteristics and properties of the most important myokines and how they can contribute to a healthier aging

Integrating Corubric with Gamification of Resources in Science Education.

This paper shows an example of integrating the CoRubric assessment tool in an experience of designing gamified resources in science education with 43 pre-service science teachers from the University of Malaga (Spain). Participants had to design a gamified resource to teach science to secondary school students and explain it at a science fair. In addition, they had to design an e-rubric to evaluate the gamified resources made by their peers. Participants could improve their e-rubric design throughout the experience; on the one hand, by comparing it with that of their peers and, on the other hand, after attending the explanation of the different resources. This work analyses the participants' perceptions of the design and use of e-rubrics, finding significant progress in their design and gamified resources. Also, emotions of interest and concentration emerged during the experience.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Elementos químicos en el esqueleto.

Material elaborado para acercar la conexión de la química con la vida diaria. La actividad consiste en formar el nombre de los huesos del esqueleto a partir de varios símbolos químicos, cuyos nombres se ofrecen en un listado

Geografía con los elementos químicos.

Material elaborado para acercar la química de manera divertida. La actividad consiste en formar el nombre de las 52 provincias españolas a partir de símbolos químicos, cuyos nombres se ofrecen en un listado

Promoting critical thinking skills through debates in engineering education. A case study on manufacturing.

Argumentation and decision-making are fundamental in the training of industrial engineers to effectively develop their critical thinking skills. Despite this, engineering education focuses on technical aspects that hardly promote the development of these skills in the classroom. To promote them, a specific training programme in critical thinking for industrial engineers was proposed, which, among other activities, included short debates on socio-scientific problems. This paper presents the impact of a debate on manual versus mass production on 30 students of the Degree in Industrial Technologies Engineering at the University of Malaga (Spain) acting as listeners. To assess this impact, we analyse the argued decisions made by the listeners about the problem before and after the activity, finding that the initial position of the majority was manual manufacturing based on social evidence, and the final position was mass production based on scientific-technical evidence such as economic aspects or the quality of the manufactured product. The arguments used by the debaters were scientifically vague but had an essential effect on changing decisions, especially the evidence used, which the listeners made their ownUniversidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Secuencia de actividades de argumentación para estudiantes de ingenierías industriales.

Preprint; copyright de los autores https://www.grao.com/libros/ensenanza-de-las-ciencias-y-problemas-relevantes-de-la-ciudadania-41515La argumentación científica se considera una competencia general que un ingeniero debe alcanzar y constituye asimismo una dificultad recurrente en la literatura según la cual los ingenieros presentan deficiencias en sus habilidades comunicativas cuando intentan expresar razonamientos formales sobre la solución de un problema. Con idea de favorecer el desarrollo de esta competencia en estudiantes de ingeniería, se presenta una secuencia de actividades sobre argumentación científica-tecnológica implementadas como estudio piloto con 58 estudiantes del Grado en Ingeniería en Tecnologías Industriales de la Universidad de Málaga. La secuencia plantea actividades encaminadas a la iniciación en la argumentación e introducción al empleo de rúbricas para evaluar argumentos, la elaboración y el análisis de argumentos completos, y la construcción de contraargumentos. Estas actividades se plantean tanto en contextos cotidianos relacionados con la ingeniería tales como la elección de un cuadro de una bicicleta, soldar una tubería en casa o la fabricación de una escoba o un destornillador, y en situaciones reales como futuros profesionales tales como en la inspección técnica de una estructura metálica en una obra o la toma de decisión sobre la implantación de una central, eléctrica o salina, que sea más respetuosa con el medio ambiente