Estrés laboral en trabajadores con alto riesgo intralaboral en una institución hospitalaria nivel 3 de Buga, Colombia

Objective: To determine the prevalence of stress in workers of a Level 3 Health Services Institution, previously identified as a high-risk population. Methodology: Descriptive, correlational, cross-sectional study carried out on 65 workers from the medical and administrative areas in a third-level health company in Buga, Colombia. A questionnaire validated by the Colombian government was applied to assess stress for this purpose. The correlation between stress and intraworking factors associated with high risk and stress was explored. Results: High physiological levels of stress were identified in 10.5% of professional and technical managers; however, low and very low risk levels predominated when specifically evaluating behavioral, intellectual, or psycho-emotional symptoms. Among auxiliaries and operators, 15.2% showed physiological symptoms associated with high risk, reaching 2.2% a very high level. Regarding risk factors due to intra-occupational psychosocial factors, all the participants had been classified as high risk according to a study carried out by IPS in 2012. Conclusions: The results of this study do not show significant binding or causal trends, indicating that high psychosocial risk factors are not determinants of a high prevalence of stress in these workers.Objetivo: Determinar la prevalencia del estrés en trabajadores de una Institución Prestadora de Servicios de Salud nivel 3, identificados previamente como población en alto riesgo. Metodología: Estudio descriptivo, correlacional, de corte transversal, realizado en 65 trabajadores de las áreas médica y administrativa en una empresa de salud de tercer nivel de Buga, Colombia. Se aplicó un cuestionario validado por el gobierno colombiano para la evaluación del estrés para tal fin. Se exploró la correlación entre el estrés y factores intralaborales asociados con riesgo alto y estrés. Resultados: Se identificaron altos niveles fisiológicos de estrés en el 10,5% de los jefes profesionales y técnicos; no obstante, predominaron los niveles de riesgo bajos y muy bajos al evaluar específicamente síntomas comportamentales, intelectuales o psicoemocionales. Entre auxiliares y operarios, el 15,2% mostró síntomas fisiológicos asociados con riesgo alto, alcanzando en un 2,2% un nivel muy alto. Con respecto a los factores de riesgo debidos a factores psicosociales intralaborales, la totalidad de los participantes habían sido clasificados como en alto riesgo según un estudio realizado por la IPS en el año 2012. Conclusiones: Los resultados de este estudio no muestran tendencias significativas vinculantes o causales, indicando que los factores de alto riesgo psicosocial no son determinantes de una alta prevalencia de estrés en estos trabajadores

Tratamiento por fermentación anaerobia de las vinazas producidas en la fabricación de alcohol

Con el fin de disminuir su carga contaminante, las vinazas se sometieron a tratamiento en cuatro reactores tipo filtro anaerobio de flujo ascendente, los cuales se evaluaron bajo diferentes condiciones de tiempo de retención hidráulico TRH y de carga orgánica. Para una Demanda Química de Oxígeno DQO, afluente de 5000 a 30000 mg/1 y TRH de 3.0 días o más, se obtuvieron eficiencias de remoción superiores a 90% en términos de DQO. Para una DQO afluente constante de 20000 mg/1 y TRH de 1.3 días, se alcanzaron eficiencias entre 75-80%

Evidence of traffic-generated air pollution in Havana

In Havana, transport is blamed as a likely source of pollution issues, which is usually supported on arguments referring to a vehicle fleet mainly made of old cars (i.e., most models are American from the 1950s or Russian from the 1980s) with poor technical conditions. Most of the existing studies are based on measurements from passive samplers collected for 24 h, which may not be representative of conditions where pollutant concentrations (particles or gases) fluctuate or are not homogeneous, such as transport-related pollution. The goal of this paper is to explore the transport-generated pollution by examining short-time correlations between traffic flows, pollutant concentrations and meteorological parameters. To do that, statistical relationships among all variables were analyzed, which revealed that PM10, NO2 and SO2 concentration levels are influenced by vehicular traffic, mainly with low-speed winds blowing perpendicular to the street axis. Furthermore, southeast and northeast winds force drag pollution from sources other than traffic. These conclusions depend on the specific conditions of the summer season at the measurement area. A more complete analysis could be conducted when more data becomes available for each season

Near-infrared spectroscopy applications for high-throughput phenotyping for cassava and yam: a review

Open Access Article; Published online: 12 Aug 2020The review aimed to identify the different high‐throughput phenotyping (HTP) techniques that used for quality evaluation in cassava and yam breeding programmes, and this has provided insights towards the development of metrics and their application in cassava and yam improvements. A systematic review of the published research articles involved the use of NIRS in analysing the quality traits of cassava and yam was carried out, and Scopus, Science Direct, Web of Sciences and Google Scholar were searched. The results of the review established that NIRS could be used in understanding the chemical constituents (carbohydrate, protein, vitamins, minerals, carotenoids, moisture, starch, etc.) for high‐throughput phenotyping. This study provides preliminary evidence of the application of NIRS as an efficient and affordable procedure for HTP. However, the feasibility of using mid‐infrared spectroscopy (MIRS) and hyperspectral imaging (HSI) in combination with the NIRS could be further studied for quality traits phenotyping

Hypofibrinolysis in diabetes: a therapeutic target for the reduction of cardiovascular risk

An enhanced thrombotic environment and premature atherosclerosis are key factors for the increased cardiovascular risk in diabetes. The occlusive vascular thrombus, formed secondary to interactions between platelets and coagulation proteins, is composed of a skeleton of fibrin fibres with cellular elements embedded in this network. Diabetes is characterised by quantitative and qualitative changes in coagulation proteins, which collectively increase resistance to fibrinolysis, consequently augmenting thrombosis risk. Current long-term therapies to prevent arterial occlusion in diabetes are focussed on anti-platelet agents, a strategy that fails to address the contribution of coagulation proteins to the enhanced thrombotic milieu. Moreover, antiplatelet treatment is associated with bleeding complications, particularly with newer agents and more aggressive combination therapies, questioning the safety of this approach. Therefore, to safely control thrombosis risk in diabetes, an alternative approach is required with the fibrin network representing a credible therapeutic target. In the current review, we address diabetes-specific mechanistic pathways responsible for hypofibrinolysis including the role of clot structure, defects in the fibrinolytic system and increased incorporation of anti-fibrinolytic proteins into the clot. Future anti-thrombotic therapeutic options are discussed with special emphasis on the potential advantages of modulating incorporation of the anti-fibrinolytic proteins into fibrin networks. This latter approach carries theoretical advantages, including specificity for diabetes, ability to target a particular protein with a possible favourable risk of bleeding. The development of alternative treatment strategies to better control residual thrombosis risk in diabetes will help to reduce vascular events, which remain the main cause of mortality in this condition

Gene therapy for monogenic liver diseases: clinical successes, current challenges and future prospects

Over the last decade, pioneering liver-directed gene therapy trials for haemophilia B have achieved sustained clinical improvement after a single systemic injection of adeno-associated virus (AAV) derived vectors encoding the human factor IX cDNA. These trials demonstrate the potential of AAV technology to provide long-lasting clinical benefit in the treatment of monogenic liver disorders. Indeed, with more than ten ongoing or planned clinical trials for haemophilia A and B and dozens of trials planned for other inherited genetic/metabolic liver diseases, clinical translation is expanding rapidly. Gene therapy is likely to become an option for routine care of a subset of severe inherited genetic/metabolic liver diseases in the relatively near term. In this review, we aim to summarise the milestones in the development of gene therapy, present the different vector tools and their clinical applications for liver-directed gene therapy. AAV-derived vectors are emerging as the leading candidates for clinical translation of gene delivery to the liver. Therefore, we focus on clinical applications of AAV vectors in providing the most recent update on clinical outcomes of completed and ongoing gene therapy trials and comment on the current challenges that the field is facing for large-scale clinical translation. There is clearly an urgent need for more efficient therapies in many severe monogenic liver disorders, which will require careful risk-benefit analysis for each indication, especially in paediatrics