El lenguaje corporal como herramienta de comunicación en las relaciones públicas de un hotel

El sector hotelero está en constante evolución debido a la necesidad de adaptarse a las exigencias de los huéspedes. Con este objetivo se ha creado la figura del Guest Experience, un profesional dedicado completamente al cliente y su experiencia. Esta investigación plantea la necesidad de conocer, valorar y utilizar el lenguaje corporal como herramienta en el proceso de comunicación con los huéspedes. Para ello, se ha desarrollado una revisión bibliográfica que pretende demostrar la importancia que tiene el lenguaje corporal en la comunicación y, además, se han realizado entrevistas a profesionales del sector para esclarecer en qué medida conocen, valoran y utilizan esta herramienta. Los resultados subrayan la falta de formaciones específicas, además de la escasez de conocimientos y uso, por parte de los profesionales del sector, del lenguaje corporal.Grado en Publicidad y Relaciones Pública

Removal of NO at low concentration from air in urban built environments by activated miscanthus biochar

This work presents an innovative and sustainable approach to remove NO emissions from urban ambient air in confined areas (underground parking areas or tunnels) using low-cost activated carbons obtained from Miscanthus biochar (MSP700) by physical activation (with CO2 or steam) at temperatures ranging from 800 to 900 °C. The NO removal capacity of the activated biochars was evaluated under different conditions (temperature, humidity and oxygen concentration) and compared against a commercial activated carbon. This last material showed a clear dependence on oxygen concentration and temperature, exhibiting a maximum capacity of 72.6% in air at 20 °C, whilst, its capacity notably decreased at higher temperatures, revealing that physical NO adsorption is the limiting step for the commercial sample that presents limited oxygen surface functionalities. In contrast, MSP700-activated biochars reached nearly complete NO removal (99.9%) at all tested temperatures in air ambient. Those MSP700-derived carbons only required low oxygen concentration (4 vol%) in the gas stream to achieve the full NO removal at 20 °C. Moreover, they also showed an excellent performance in the presence of H2O, reaching NO removal higher than 96%. This remarkable activity results from the abundance of basic oxygenated surface groups, which act as active sites for NO/O2 adsorption, along with the presence of a homogeneous microporosity of 6 Å, which enables intimate contact between NO and O2. These features promote the oxidation of NO to NO2, which is further retained over the carbon surface. Therefore, the activated biochars studied here could be considered promising materials for the efficient removal of NO at low concentrations from air at moderate temperatures, thus closely approaching real-life conditions in confined spaces.J. Fermoso gratefully acknowledges the financial support from the Comunidad de Madrid through the Talent Attraction Programme (2018-T1/AMB-10023)

Prevalence and clinical impact of endoscopic pseudomembranes in patients with inflammatory bowel disease and Clostridium difficile infection

Background and aim: Limited data suggests that pseudomembranes are uncommon in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and C. difficile associated disease (CDAD), but the reason for this is unknown. We aimed to evaluate the rate of pseudomembranes in this population, identify predictive factors for pseudomembranes' presence and assess its clinical impact. Methods: This was a sub-study of a retrospective European Crohn's & Colitis Organization (ECCO) multi-center study on the outcome of hospitalized IBD patients with C. difficile. The present study included only patients who underwent lower endoscopy during hospitalization, and compared demographic and clinical parameters in the group of patients with discernable pseudomembranes versus those without. Results: Out of 155 patients in the original cohort, 93 patients underwent lower endoscopy and constituted the study population. Endoscopic pseudomembranes were found in 12 (13%) of these patients. Patients with pseudomembranes presented more commonly with fever (p=0.02) compared to patients without pseudomembranes. No difference between the two groups was found with respect to the use of immunosuppressant drugs, background demographics or disease characteristics. Neither was there a difference between the group with or without pseudomembranes in the frequency of severe adverse clinical outcome or in the duration of hospitalization. On multi-variate analysis the presence of fever remained independently associated with the finding of pseudomembranes (OR 6, 95% CI 1.2–32, p=0.03). Conclusions: This study documents that hospitalized IBD patients with CDAD have low rate of endoscopic pseudomembranes, which is not accounted for by the use of immunosuppressant drugs. IBD patients with CDAD and discernable pseudomembranes more commonly present with fever, but their clinical outcome is similar to patients without pseudomembranes. © 2009 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of European Crohn's and Colitis Organisation

Combination Immunomodulator and Antibiotic Treatment in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Clostridium difficile Infection

International audienceBACKGROUND & AIMS: Management of Clostridium difficile infection in patients with flaring inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has not been optimized. We investigated the effects of combination therapy with antibiotics and immunomodulators in patients with IBD and C difficile infection. METHODS: We analyzed data from 155 patients (59% with ulcerative colitis [UC]) from a retrospective, European Crohn's and Colitis organization, multi-center study comparing outcome of hospitalized IBD patients with C difficile infection who were treated with antibiotics (n = 51) or antibiotics and immunomodulators (n = 104). The primary composite outcome was death or colectomy within 3 months of admission, in-hospital megacolon, bowel perforation, hemodynamic shock, or respiratory failure. RESULTS: The primary outcome occurred in 12% of patients given the combination treatment vs none of the patients given antibiotics alone (P = .01). UC, abdominal tenderness, or severe bloody diarrhea was more common among patients that received the combined therapy. However, multivariate analysis revealed that only the combination therapy maintained a trend for an independent association with the primary outcome (likelihood ratio = 11.9; CI, 0.9-157; P = .06). Treatment with 2 or 3 immunomodulators was correlated with the primary outcome, independent of disease severity at presentation (odds ratio [OR] = 17; CI, 3.2-91; P < .01). Acid-suppressing medications increased the risk of C difficile relapse (OR = 3.8; CI, 1.1-12.9; P = .03), whereas recent hospitalization correlated with increased rate of C difficile persistence (OR = 8; CI, 2.1-29; P = .002). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with IBD that also have C difficile infection are frequently treated with a combination of antibiotics and immunomodulators. However, this combination tends to associate with a worse outcome than antibiotic therapy alone. Prospective controlled trials are urgently needed to optimize the management of these challenging patients