Determination of Burnout Syndrome among Middle and Senior Managers in Manufacturing Industry in Ciudad Juarez

AbstractBurnout syndrome is caused by chronic job stress and it is considered one of the main professional diseases of XXI Century. In developing countries like Mexico, occupations as middle and senior manager positions have not been sufficiently explored on this topic, especially in the industrial manufacturing sector. These personnel are fundamental for the growth of industries and usually must respond to high work demands, such as: short time decision making processes, extended working hours, personnel organization, production difficulties, among others. A sample of 361 participants was conformed; 34 were senior managers and 327 middle managers from several departments. The Maslach Burnout Inventory General-Survey (MBI-GS) was applied in six manufacturing companies in Ciudad Juarez. The Burnout was determined by grades and levels. Percentiles 33.3 and 66.6 were used as cut off points for each dimension: Emotional Exhaustion, Cynicism and Professional Effectiveness, five levels of Burnout were determined as none, low, middle, fairly and extreme. Results indicate a middle grade of Burnout for all three dimensions among senior and middle managers. By levels, 46.26% presents fairly and extreme level, 15.51% have a middle level and 38.23% presents none or low levels of Burnout. In conclusion, it is recommended that manufacturing industries take preventive actions that contribute to physical and mental health of their key workers

Impacto en la Usabilidad de un Sistema Web Académico desarrollado con Tecnología PHP y Framework Symfony2

En la presente investigación se realizó el análisis del uso del sistema académico web desarrollado para la "Academia Militar Tiwintsa" en la provincia Morona Santiago, el cual fue implementado utilizando la tecnología PHP con el framework Symfony2, con la finalidad de identificar el impacto del uso de estas tecnologías en la interfaz final del usuario. Para lo cual el sistema académico fue sometido a pruebas de calidad aplicando la norma ISO/IEC 9241-11, obteniendo como resultado en la métrica de efectividad un valor porcentual de 93,64 %; en la métrica de eficiencia un valor porcentual de 92,50%; y en la métrica de satisfacción un valor porcentual de 94,40%; resultados con los que se determinó que el uso de la tecnología PHP con el framework Symfony2 permite el desarrollo de un sistema intuitivo y amigable, motivando el uso diario del mismo para los diferentes procesos académicos y administrativos de la institución, pues ayuda a mejorar los tiempos de respuesta y en consecuencia la calidad de atención al client

Double degenerate mergers as progenitors of high-field magnetic white dwarfs

High-field magnetic white dwarfs have been long suspected to be the result of stellar mergers. However, the nature of the coalescing stars and the precise mechanism that produces the magnetic field are still unknown. Here, we show that the hot, convective, differentially rotating corona present in the outer layers of the remnant of the merger of two degenerate cores can produce magnetic fields of the required strength that do not decay for long timescales. Using a state-of-the-art Monte Carlo simulator, we also show that the expected number of high-field magnetic white dwarfs produced in this way is consistent with that found in the solar neighborhood.Instituto de Astrofísica de La PlataFacultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísica

Hypogonadism associated with muscle atrophy, physical inactivity and ESA hyporesponsiveness in men undergoing haemodialysis

AbstractBackgroundTestosterone deficiency (hypogonadism) is common among men undergoing haemodialysis, but its clinical implications are not well characterized. Testosterone is an anabolic hormone that induces erythrocytosis and muscle synthesis. We hypothesized that testosterone deficiency would be associated with low muscle mass, physical inactivity and higher dosages of erythropoietin-stimulating agents (ESA).MethodsSingle-center cross-sectional study of 57 male haemodialysis patients. None of the patients was undergoing testosterone replacement therapy. Total testosterone was measured in serum. Body composition (by bioelectrical impedance analysis) and physical activity (by the use of pedometers) were assessed. Patients with testosterone levels below the normal range were considered hypogonadal.ResultsMean testosterone level was 321±146ng/dL; 20 patients (35%) were hypogonadal. Hypogonadal patients were older and had lower mean arterial blood pressure, higher interleukin-6 levels, lower lean body mass and higher fat body mass. A negative association between testosterone and normalized ESA dose was found in uni- and multivariate regression analyses. Testosterone levels directly correlated with lean body mass regardless of confounders. Hypogonadal patients had lower physical activity than their counterparts [2753±1784 vs. 4291±3225steps/day (p=0.04)]. The relationship between testosterone and physical activity was independent of age, comorbidities and inflammatory markers, but dependent on the proportion of muscle mass.ConclusionHypogonadism is common in our male haemodialysis population and is associated with higher ESA doses, reduced muscle mass and lower physical activity. The link between low testosterone levels and physical inactivity may conceivably relate to reduced muscle mass due to inadequate muscle protein synthesis

On the origin of high-field magnetic white dwarfs

Every two years, white dwarf researchers and enthusiasts meet to exchange their knowledge and discuss recent developments in white dwarf theory and observations. These proceedings are from the 18th European White Dwarf Workshop held at Pedagogical University of Cracow (Krakow, Poland) on 13th - 17th August, 2012. The scientific topics discussed in this Workshop included: pulsating white dwarfs; luminosity function, mass distribution, and populations; white dwarf structure and evolution; white dwarf catalogs and surveys; central stars of planetary nebulae; supernova progenitors; white dwarfs in novae and cataclysmic variables; white dwarfs in detached binaries; physical processes in white dwarfs and magnetic white dwarfs; and discs, dust and planets around white dwarfs. The conference was organized by four institutions: the Polish Astronomical Society, the Astronomy Department of the Pedagogical University of Cracow, the Jagiellonian University Astronomical Observatory, and the Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences. Altogether, these proceedings include 87 talks and posters presented during the meeting.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Pharmaceutical and Botanical Management of Pain Associated with Psychopathology: A Narrative Review

Generally, pain can be described as an unpleasant sensory or emotional experience associated with tissue damage. Chronic pain has become a public health problem because among 35 and 75% of the world population has shown the symptom. In particular, neuropathic pain has shown high comorbidity disorders such as anxiety and depression. Conventional therapies for treating pain include nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), corticosteroids, tricyclic antidepressants, anticonvulsants, and opioids, which usually cause some side effects such as gastritis, headache, liver and kidney toxicity, and drug dependence. Conventional pharmaceuticals also tend to be expensive, and they cannot be easily afforded in developing countries, which have led to the use of natural products as an alternative treatment. In this chapter, we reviewed the current research of natural products for pain treatment. We also describe preclinical studies that assess the effect of some natural products on pain therapy, phytochemistry research, toxicity, adverse effects, and biosecurity. We also describe how conventional pain is managed and the possible use of compounds obtained from vegetable species for pain treatment

Double degenerate mergers as progenitors of high-field magnetic white dwarfs

High-field magnetic white dwarfs have been long suspected to be the result of stellar mergers. However, the nature of the coalescing stars and the precise mechanism that produces the magnetic field are still unknown. Here we show that the hot, convective, differentially rotating corona present in the outer layers of the remnant of the merger of two degenerate cores is able to produce magnetic fields of the required strength that do not decay for long timescales. We also show, using an state-of-the-art Monte Carlo simulator, that the expected number of high-field magnetic white dwarfs produced in this way is consistent with that found in the Solar neighborhood.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ Letter

Soluble inflammatory mediators of synoviocytes stimulated by monosodium urate crystals induce the production of oxidative stress, pain, and inflammation mediators in chondrocytes

Brief report[Abstract] We hypothesized that the secretion of inflammatory mediators from synoviocytes affects the chondrocyte homeostasis of articular cartilage. This study was a preliminary attempt to elucidate the molecular mechanisms by which soluble mediators obtained from activated synoviocytes induce oxidative stress and inflammation in chondrocytes. We measured the concentrations of interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), nerve growth factor (NGF), superoxide anion (O2•-), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and nitric oxide (NO•) from articular human cells. First, we created a conditional basal medium by exposing synoviocytes (HS) to monosodium urate crystals (CBM). The chondrocytes were exposed to either CBM (CCM), urate crystals directly (CMSU), or remained untreated (CC) as a negative control. Data were analyzed by ANOVA tests; Bonferroni test was performed for multiple comparisons between groups. Interestingly, we observed that mediators of inflammation and oxidative stress were significantly higher in CCM than CMSU and CC groups (P<0.01). The specific concentrations were as follows: 19.85 ng/mL of IL-6, 9.79 ng/mL of IL-8, 5.17 ng/mL of NGF, and 11.91 ng/mL of MCP-1. Of note, we observed the same trend for reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (P<0.001). Soluble mediators secreted by synoviocytes after being activated with MSU crystals (as observed in individuals who present gout attacks) trigger chondrocyte activation intensifying the articular inflammatory, oxidative, and pain states that damage cartilage in OA; this damage is more severe even when compared to HC directly exposed to monosodium urate crystals. Key Points • The molecular relation between MSU depositions and cartilage damage could be mediated by pro-inflammatory soluble mediators and oxidative molecules. • The secretion of pro-inflammatory mediators by activated synoviocytes is more harmful to chondrocytes than a direct activation in the chondrocyte culture. • Under this model, there is an important imbalance in the matrix homeostasis due to changes in several chemokines, cytokines, and other factors such as NGF, as well as oxidative mediators

Psicoterapia y problemas actuales. Debates y alternativas

Ante la proliferación de fenómenos psicosociales, como el suicidio, la violencia sexual, los trastornos del comportamiento alimenticio y las crisis de identidad, emerge esta obra, como una respuesta reflexiva que aborda desde una pluralidad de perspectivas el quehacer psicoterapéutico, para favorecer una comprensión amplia de estas situaciones problema y ofrecer, desde la experiencia de sus autores, alternativas de entendimiento y de desarrollo de tratamientos para la atención de quienes las viven. El objetivo es compartir una comprensión innovadora de la práctica del psicoterapeuta, desde una mirada caracterizada por el diálogo interdisciplinario. Ello a partir de la recuperación de las estrategias implementadas frente a distintas coyunturas, así como a través de la reflexión personal en torno a la formación y el ejercicio profesional del psicoterapeuta, que pueden favorecer la retroalimentación y la generación de formas de intervención más adecuadas a la realidad de algunos dilemas contemporáneos y de los entornos en que estos se desenvuelven. Un libro recomendable para estudiantes, docentes y profesionales en el campo de la psicoterapia y la salud psicosocial.ITESO. A.C