Dental Treatment under General Anesthesia in Healthy and Medically Compromised/Developmentally Disabled Children: A Comparative Study

Aim: To compare the type, number of procedures and working time of dental treatment provided under dental general anesthesia (DGA) in healthy and medically compromised/developmentally disabled children (MCDD children). Design: This cross-sectional prospective study involved 80 children divided into two groups of 40 children each. Group 1 consisted of healthy and Group 2 consisted of MCDD children. Results: Healthy children needed more working time than MCDD children, the means being 161±7.9 and 84±5.7 minutes, respectively (P= 0.0001). Operative dentistry and endodontic treatments showed a significant statistical difference (P= 0.0001). The means of procedures were 17±5.0 for healthy children and 11±4.8 for MCDD children (P= 0.0001). Conclusions: Healthy children needed more extensive dental treatment than MCDD children under DGA. The information from this sample of Mexican children could be used as reference for determining trends both within a facility as well as in comparing facilities in cross-population studies

Twisted Nano-optics: Manipulating Light at the Nanoscale with Twisted Phonon Polaritonic Slabs

Recent discoveries have shown that when two layers of van der Waals (vdW) materials are superimposed with a relative twist angle between their respective in-plane principal axes, the electronic properties of the coupled system can be dramatically altered. Here, we demonstrate that a similar concept can be extended to the optics realm, particularly to propagating polaritons, hybrid light-matter interactions. To do this, we fabricate stacks composed of two twisted slabs of a polar vdW crystal (MoO3) supporting low-loss anisotropic phonon polaritons (PhPs), and image the propagation of the latter when launched by localized sources (metal antennas). Our images reveal that under a critical angle the PhPs isofrequency curve (determining the PhPs momentum at a fixed frequency) undergoes a topological transition. Remarkably, at this angle, the propagation of PhPs is strongly guided along predetermined directions (canalization regime) with no geometrical spreading (diffraction-less). These results demonstrate a new degree of freedom (twist angle) for controlling the propagation of polaritons at the nanoscale with potential for nano-imaging, (bio)-sensing, quantum applications and heat management

Arithmetic on Your Phone: A Large Scale Investigation of Simple Additions and Multiplications

We present the results of a gamified mobile device arithmetic application which allowed us to collect vast amount of data in simple arithmetic operations. Our results confirm and replicate, on a large sample, six of the main principles derived in a long tradition of investigation: size effect, tie effect, size-tie interaction effect, five-effect, RTs and error rates correlation effect, and most common error effect. Our dataset allowed us to perform a robust analysis of order effects for each individual problem, for which there is controversy both in experimental findings and in the predictions of theoretical models. For addition problems, the order effect was dominated by a max-then-min structure (i.e 7+4 is easier than 4+7). This result is predicted by models in which additions are performed as a translation starting from the first addend, with a distance given by the second addend. In multiplication, we observed a dominance of two effects: (1) a max-then-min pattern that can be accounted by the fact that it is easier to perform fewer additions of the largest number (i.e. 8�3 is easier to compute as 8+8+8 than as 3+3+⋯+3) and (2) a phonological effect by which problems for which there is a rhyme (i.e. "seis por cuatro es veinticuatro") are performed faster. Above and beyond these results, our study bares an important practical conclusion, as proof of concept, that participants can be motivated to perform substantial arithmetic training simply by presenting it in a gamified format.Fil: Zimmerman, Federico Guido. Universidad de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Universidad Torcuato Di Tella; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Shalóm, Diego Edgar. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Física; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Física de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Física de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Gonzalez, Pablo A.. No especifíca;Fil: Garrido, Juan Manuel. No especifíca;Fil: Alvarez Heduan, Facundo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Dehaene, Stanislas. Inserm; FranciaFil: Sigman, Mariano. Universidad Torcuato Di Tella; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Rieznik, Andrés Anibal. Universidad Torcuato Di Tella; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

A BK (Slo1) channel journey from molecule to physiology

Calcium and voltage-activated potassium (BK) channels are key actors in cell physiology, both in neuronal and non-neuronal cells and tissues. Through negative feedback between intracellular Ca2+ and membrane voltage, BK channels provide a damping mechanism for excitatory signals. Molecular modulation of these channels by alternative splicing, auxiliary subunits and post-translational modifications showed that these channels are subjected to many mechanisms that add diversity to the BK channel ́ subunit gene. This complexity of interactions modulates BK channel gating, modifying the energetic barrier of voltage sensor domain activation and channel opening. Regions for voltage as well as Ca2+ sensitivity have been identified, and the crystal structure generated by the 2 RCK domains contained in the C-terminal of the channel has been described. The linkage of these channels to many intracellular metabolites and pathways, as well as their modulation by extracellular natural agents, has been found to be relevant in many physiological processes. This review includes the hallmarks of BK channel biophysics and its physiological impact on specific cells and tissues, highlighting its relationship with auxiliary subunit expression.Facultad de Ciencias Exacta

Impact of COVID19 pandemic on patients with rare diseases in Spain, with a special focus on inherited metabolic diseases

Inherited metabolic disease; Quality of life; Rare diseasesEnfermedad metabólica hereditaria; Calidad de vida; Enfermedades rarasMalaltia metabòlica hereditària; Qualitat de vida; Malalties raresIntroduction The Covid-19 pandemic soon became an international health emergency raising concern about its impact not only on physical health but also on quality of life and mental health. Rare diseases are chronically debilitating conditions with challenging patient care needs. We aimed to assess the quality of life and mental health of patients with rare diseases in Spain, with a special focus on inherited metabolic disorders (IMD). Methods A prospective case-control study was designed, comparing 459 patients suffering from a rare disease (including 53 patients with IMD) and 446 healthy controls. Quality of life (QoL) and mental health were assessed using validated scales according to age: KINDL-R and the Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC) for children and the WhoQoL-Bref questionnaire, GAD and PHQ-9 in adults. Results First, children and adults (but not adolescents) with IMD showed greater psychological effects than controls (p = 0.022, p = 0.026 respectively). Second, when comparing QoL, only adult patients with IMD showed worse score than controls (66/100 vs 74,6/100 respectively, p = 0.017). Finally, IMD had better quality of life than other rare neurological and genetic diseases (p = 0.008) or other rare diseases (p < 0.001 respectively) but similar alteration of the mental status. Conclusions Our data show that the pandemic had a negative impact on mental health that is more evident in the group of patients with IMD. Young age would behave as a protective factor on the perception of QoL. Furthermore, patients with IMD show a better QoL than other rare diseases

Hydrogeological research in the Machu Picchu Peruvian Antarctic Scientific Station: preliminary results

Machu Picchu Peruvian Antarctic scientific station is a research installation on King George Island, South Shetland Islands (Antarctic Peninsula), was founded in 1988, as temporal scientific base, and it‘s open in austral summer. In January and February 2014, INGEMMET hydrogeological preliminary studies conducted around the Peruvian base to identify an aquifer. Our work was focused to perform a hydrogeological classification of materials by surface mapping, make subsurface explorations (through four piezometers) and take underground and surface water samples, for identify a potential aquifer body. This year during the ANTAR XXIII expedition, we start the Project: ―Hydrogeology of Machu Picchu aquifer, hydroclimatic implications‖. These studies pretend know the characteristics of the aquifer, hydrochemical and isotopic characteristics of groundwater and new prospects for improvement and implementation of the project for the next two years. With the certainty that there is groundwater, we perform the following activities: clean and deeper the old piezometers, install temperature senSørs within these piezometers, and collect water samples. Machu Picchu aquifer is a detrital aquifer. Superficially, it is composed of glacial, alluvial, marine, fluvial, alluvial fluvial and alluvial glacial deposits. Preliminary studies show three horizons. The Horizon 1 (more superficial) consists of cover material with sandy gravel with blocks of different sizes, from 0.05 m in alluvial-fluvial deposits to 1 m in glacial deposits. The Horizon 2 (intermediate) presents silty sandy gravel, silty gravel and sandy silty gravel with thickness of 0.16 m to 0.95 m. The Horizon 3 consists in sandy gravel interbeded with fine levels up to coarse sand lenses, this horizon is wet, saturated and stores groundwater. Our wells have not reached the base level of 3th horizon. In the last expedition groundwater was confirmed in 6 installed piezometers. These level is not static, along the ANTAR XXII expedition level fell between 0.01 and 0.10 m per day, because there extraction of groundwater by rustic well for use in the Peruvian station. Also the data shows the direction of groundwater flow, which is generally from south to north (Ng, 2014). The chemical characteristics of groundwater, show that these Na-Ca-SO4, Ca-SO4 and Na-Cl, with smaller conductivities than 550.0 μS/cm. Machu Picchu aquifer consists of a permeable material, is semi-confined aquifer and stores groundwater, and that by a controlled appropriate exploitation can supply to the Machu Picchu Peruvian station