2011-2013 El islamismo libanés en la encrucijada

El efecto dominó que desató la revolución tunecina en todo el oriente medio no alcanzó al Líbano en primera instancia. Sin embargo, casi tres años después del inicio de las revueltas, las convulsiones regionales están introduciendo cambios importantes en el paisaje islamista libanés. La deriva que ha seguido región en desde 2011, ha colocado al islamismo suní libanés ante una oportunidad de ascenso político sin precedentes, y ha consolidado el declive de la elite suní tradicional. Por el contrario, para Hezbolá, desde el estallido de la crisis siria la Primavera Árabe ha supuesto todo un desafío. Los procesos revolucionarios no se han cerrado por lo que sería prematuro determinar el alcance y la dirección exacta de esos cambios. De lo que sí estamos seguros es que cuando la situación regional se estabilice, el Líbano no será el mismoThe effects of the Tunisian revolution did not reach Lebanon in the first place. Nevertheless, almost 3 years later, the spillover effects of the regional events have transformed the islamist landscape in the country. The Lebanese Sunni Islamism is driven into an upward trend, while the traditional Sunni leadership is falling apart. In instead, since the onset of the Syrian conflict the so-called Arab Spring has been a real challenge for Hezbollah. The revolutionary processes are not yet over, so it is still too soon to know the exact extent of these changes. What we know already is that once the regional situation stabilizes again Lebanon will not be the sam

El sector bancario libanés y su papel en el diseño y reproducción del orden social, político y económico del Líbano contemporáneo

Tesis doctoral inédita leída en la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Departamento de Estudios Arabes e Islámicos y Estudios Orientales. Fecha de lectura: 04 de febrero de 201

El Islam político en el Mediterráneo : radiografía de una evolución

Este libro se ha realizado en el marco de los proyectos de investigación financiados por el Institut Català Internacional per la Pau (ICIP) «Factor religiós i conflictes violents al Nord d'Àfrica, Orient Mitjà i Turquia: Presencia i visibilitat a Catalunya des d'una perspectiva comparada» (2011 RICIP00011) y «Les revoltes àrabs. De la Violència unilateral a la guerra: Participació i impacte de l'Islam polític» (2011 RICIP00011); y el proyecto financiado por el Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad «Revueltas populares del Mediterráneo a Asia central: genealogía histórica, fracturas de poder y factores identitarios» (HAR2012-34053

Role of age and comorbidities in mortality of patients with infective endocarditis

[Purpose]: The aim of this study was to analyse the characteristics of patients with IE in three groups of age and to assess the ability of age and the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) to predict mortality. [Methods]: Prospective cohort study of all patients with IE included in the GAMES Spanish database between 2008 and 2015.Patients were stratified into three age groups:<65 years,65 to 80 years,and ≥ 80 years.The area under the receiver-operating characteristic (AUROC) curve was calculated to quantify the diagnostic accuracy of the CCI to predict mortality risk. [Results]: A total of 3120 patients with IE (1327 < 65 years;1291 65-80 years;502 ≥ 80 years) were enrolled.Fever and heart failure were the most common presentations of IE, with no differences among age groups.Patients ≥80 years who underwent surgery were significantly lower compared with other age groups (14.3%,65 years; 20.5%,65-79 years; 31.3%,≥80 years). In-hospital mortality was lower in the <65-year group (20.3%,<65 years;30.1%,65-79 years;34.7%,≥80 years;p < 0.001) as well as 1-year mortality (3.2%, <65 years; 5.5%, 65-80 years;7.6%,≥80 years; p = 0.003).Independent predictors of mortality were age ≥ 80 years (hazard ratio [HR]:2.78;95% confidence interval [CI]:2.32–3.34), CCI ≥ 3 (HR:1.62; 95% CI:1.39–1.88),and non-performed surgery (HR:1.64;95% CI:11.16–1.58).When the three age groups were compared,the AUROC curve for CCI was significantly larger for patients aged <65 years(p < 0.001) for both in-hospital and 1-year mortality. [Conclusion]: There were no differences in the clinical presentation of IE between the groups. Age ≥ 80 years, high comorbidity (measured by CCI),and non-performance of surgery were independent predictors of mortality in patients with IE.CCI could help to identify those patients with IE and surgical indication who present a lower risk of in-hospital and 1-year mortality after surgery, especially in the <65-year group

Spain’s Commitment to Lebanon: a New Role for Spain in the Near East?

In summer 2006, Lebanon suffered the consequences of the open warfare between Israel and the Shi’ite organisation Hezbollah. Within this context, the Spanish government, together with the governments of some of its neighbouring countries, made an attempt to resolve the conflict. This commitment also became consolidated during the monthsfollowing the period of military conflict, and through three lines of action: a large-scale military contribution in the context of the UN Security Council’s Resolution 1701, the sending of economic aid to help rebuild the country and, finally, by intensifying politicalrelations with Lebanon. This shift in policy is significant if we bear in mind the previous weakness of relations between the two countries; however, we can see that this deployment of resources did not have so much to do with Lebanon itself as it did with Spain’s owninterests. In this sense, we can understand that the crisis has been turned into a platform for the practical application of the main lines that determine the socialist government’s external action

Contemporary use of cefazolin for MSSA infective endocarditis: analysis of a national prospective cohort

Objectives: This study aimed to assess the real use of cefazolin for methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) infective endocarditis (IE) in the Spanish National Endocarditis Database (GAMES) and to compare it with antistaphylococcal penicillin (ASP). Methods: Prospective cohort study with retrospective analysis of a cohort of MSSA IE treated with cloxacillin and/or cefazolin. Outcomes assessed were relapse; intra-hospital, overall, and endocarditis-related mortality; and adverse events. Risk of renal toxicity with each treatment was evaluated separately. Results: We included 631 IE episodes caused by MSSA treated with cloxacillin and/or cefazolin. Antibiotic treatment was cloxacillin, cefazolin, or both in 537 (85%), 57 (9%), and 37 (6%) episodes, respectively. Patients treated with cefazolin had significantly higher rates of comorbidities (median Charlson Index 7, P <0.01) and previous renal failure (57.9%, P <0.01). Patients treated with cloxacillin presented higher rates of septic shock (25%, P = 0.033) and new-onset or worsening renal failure (47.3%, P = 0.024) with significantly higher rates of in-hospital mortality (38.5%, P = 0.017). One-year IE-related mortality and rate of relapses were similar between treatment groups. None of the treatments were identified as risk or protective factors. Conclusion: Our results suggest that cefazolin is a valuable option for the treatment of MSSA IE, without differences in 1-year mortality or relapses compared with cloxacillin, and might be considered equally effective