COVID-19 pandemic on coronary artery and cerebrovascular diseases in Southern Spain: interrupted time series analysis

Objective: Healthcare systems have been put under intense pressure by the COVID-19 pandemic, although some studies have shown a decline in hospital admissions for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases during the first and second wave of the pandemic. In addition, studies analyzing gender and procedural differences are scarce. The present study aimed to determine the impact of the pandemic on hospital admissions for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and cerebrovascular disease (CVD) in Andalusia (Spain) and analyzed differences by gender and by percutaneous coronary interventions performed. Patients and methods: An interrupted time series analysis of AMI and CVD hospital admissions in Andalusia (Spain) was carried out to measure the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak. AMI and CVD cases admitted daily in public hospitals of Andalusia between January 2018 and December 2020 were included. Results: During the pandemic, significant reductions in AMI [-19%; 95% confidence interval (CI): (-29%, -9%), p<0.001] and CVD [-17%; 95% CI: (-26%, -9%); p<0.01] in daily hospital admissions were observed. Differences were also produced according to the diagnosis (ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction, Non-ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction, other AMI and stroke), with a greater reduction in females for AMI and in males for CVD. Although there were more percutaneous coronary interventions during the pandemic, no significant reductions were observed. Conclusions: A decline in AMI and CVD daily hospital admissions during the first and second wave of COVID-19 pandemic was noted. Gender differences were observed, but no clear impact was observed in percutaneous interventions

Role of the employment status and education of mothers in the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections in Mexican rural schoolchildren

<p><b>Background:</b> Intestinal parasitic infections are a public health problem in developing countries such as Mexico. As a result, two governmental programmes have been implemented: a) "National Deworming Campaign" and b) "Opportunities" aimed at maternal care. However, both programmes are developed separately and their impact is still unknown. We independently investigated whether a variety of socio-economic factors, including maternal education and employment levels, were associated with intestinal parasite infection in rural school children.</p> <p><b>Methods:</b> This cross-sectional study was conducted in 12 rural communities in two Mexican states. The study sites and populations were selected on the basis of the following traits: a) presence of activities by the national administration of albendazole, b) high rates of intestinal parasitism, c) little access to medical examination, and d) a population having less than 2,500 inhabitants. A total of 507 schoolchildren (mean age 8.2 years) were recruited and 1,521 stool samples collected (3 per child). Socio-economic information was obtained by an oral questionnaire. Regression modelling was used to determine the association of socio-economic indicators and intestinal parasitism.</p> <p><b>Results:</b> More than half of the schoolchildren showed poliparasitism (52%) and protozoan infections (65%). The prevalence of helminth infections was higher in children from Oaxaca (53%) than in those from Sinaloa (33%) (p < 0.0001). Giardia duodenalis and Hymenolepis nana showed a high prevalence in both states. Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura and Entamoeba hystolitica/dispar showed low prevalence. Children from lower-income families and with unemployed and less educated mothers showed higher risk of intestinal parasitism (odds ratio (OR) 6.0, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.6–22.6; OR 4.5, 95% CI 2.5–8.2; OR 3.3, 95% CI 1.5–7.4 respectively). Defecation in open areas was also a high risk factor for infection (OR 2.4, 95% CI 2.0–3.0).</p> <p><b>Conclusion:</b> Intestinal parasitism remains an important public health problem in Sinaloa (north-western Mexico) and Oaxaca (south-eastern Mexico). Lower income, defecation in open areas, employment status and a lower education level of mothers were the significant factors related to these infections. We conclude that mothers should be involved in health initiatives to control intestinal parasitism in Mexico.</p&gt

The Intermediate Scale MSSM, the Higgs Mass and F-theory Unification

Even if SUSY is not present at the Electro-Weak scale, string theory suggests its presence at some scale M_{SS} below the string scale M_s to guarantee the absence of tachyons. We explore the possible value of M_{SS} consistent with gauge coupling unification and known sources of SUSY breaking in string theory. Within F-theory SU(5) unification these two requirements fix M_{SS} ~ 5 x 10^{10} GeV at an intermediate scale and a unification scale M_c ~ 3 x 10^{14} GeV. As a direct consequence one also predicts the vanishing of the quartic Higgs SM self-coupling at M_{SS} ~10^{11} GeV. This is tantalizingly consistent with recent LHC hints of a Higgs mass in the region 124-126 GeV. With such a low unification scale M_c ~ 3 x 10^{14} GeV one may worry about too fast proton decay via dimension 6 operators. However in the F-theory GUT context SU(5) is broken to the SM via hypercharge flux. We show that this hypercharge flux deforms the SM fermion wave functions leading to a suppression, avoiding in this way the strong experimental proton decay constraints. In these constructions there is generically an axion with a scale of size f_a ~ M_c/(4\pi)^2 ~ 10^{12} GeV which could solve the strong CP problem and provide for the observed dark matter. The prize to pay for these attractive features is to assume that the hierarchy problem is solved due to anthropic selection in a string landscape.Comment: 48 pages, 8 figures. v3: further minor correction

Visualization of elusive structures using intracardiac echocardiography: Insights from electrophysiology

Electrophysiological mapping and ablation techniques are increasingly used to diagnose and treat many types of supraventricular and ventricular tachycardias. These procedures require an intimate knowledge of intracardiac anatomy and their use has led to a renewed interest in visualization of specific structures. This has required collaborative efforts from imaging as well as electrophysiology experts. Classical imaging techniques may be unable to visualize structures involved in arrhythmia mechanisms and therapy. Novel methods, such as intracardiac echocardiography and three-dimensional echocardiography, have been refined and these technological improvements have opened new perspectives for more effective and accurate imaging during electrophysiology procedures. Concurrently, visualization of these structures noticeably improved our ability to identify intracardiac structures. The aim of this review is to provide electrophysiologists with an overview of recent insights into the structure of the heart obtained with intracardiac echocardiography and to indicate to the echo-specialist which structures are potentially important for the electrophysiologist

Inference of Antibiotic Resistance and Virulence among Diverse Group A Streptococcus Strains Using emm Sequencing and Multilocus Genotyping Methods

typing (direct sequencing of the genomic segment coding for the antigenic portion of the M protein) or by multilocus genotyping methods. Phenotype analysis, including critical AbR typing, is generally achieved by much slower and more laborious direct culture-based methods. type and the associated AbR and virulence phenotypes. types

Double Diffraction Dissociation at the Fermilab Tevatron Collider

We present results from a measurement of double diffraction dissociation in $\bar pp$ collisions at the Fermilab Tevatron collider. The production cross section for events with a central pseudorapidity gap of width $\Delta\eta^0>3$ (overlapping $\eta=0$) is found to be $4.43\pm 0.02{(stat)}{\pm 1.18}{(syst) mb}$ [$3.42\pm 0.01{(stat)}{\pm 1.09}{(syst) mb}$] at $\sqrt{s}=1800$ [630] GeV. Our results are compared with previous measurements and with predictions based on Regge theory and factorization.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, using RevTeX. Submitted to Physical Review Letter

Search for Gluinos and Scalar Quarks in ppˉp\bar{p} Collisions at s=1.8\sqrt{s}=1.8 TeV using the Missing Energy plus Multijets Signature

We have performed a search for gluinos (\gls) and squarks (\sq) in a data sample of 84 pb$^{-1}$ of \ppb collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 1.8 TeV, recorded by the Collider Detector at Fermilab, by investigating the final state of large missing transverse energy and 3 or more jets, a characteristic signature in R-parity-conserving supersymmetric models. The analysis has been performed `blind', in that the inspection of the signal region is made only after the predictions from Standard Model backgrounds have been calculated. Comparing the data with predictions of constrained supersymmetric models, we exclude gluino masses below 195 \gev (95% C.L.), independent of the squark mass. For the case \msq \approx \mgls, gluino masses below 300 \gev are excluded.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figure

Measurement of the Dipion Mass Spectrum in X(3872) -> J/Psi Pi+ Pi- Decays

We measure the dipion mass spectrum in X(3872)--> J/Psi Pi+ Pi- decays using 360 pb-1 of pbar-p collisions at 1.96 TeV collected with the CDF II detector. The spectrum is fit with predictions for odd C-parity (3S1, 1P1, and 3DJ) charmonia decaying to J/Psi Pi+ Pi-, as well as even C-parity states in which the pions are from Rho0 decay. The latter case also encompasses exotic interpretations, such as a D0-D*0Bar molecule. Only the 3S1 and J/Psi Rho hypotheses are compatible with our data. Since 3S1 is untenable on other grounds, decay via J/Psi Rho is favored, which implies C=+1 for the X(3872). Models for different J/Psi-Rho angular momenta L are considered. Flexibility in the models, especially the introduction of Rho-Omega interference, enable good descriptions of our data for both L=0 and 1.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures -- Submitted to Phys. Rev. Let