Root caries analysis in working population of 35-44 years of age (Spain)

Background: The aim of this study was to analyse the influence of socio-demographic variables, toothbrushing frequency, frequency of snacking between meals, and tobacco and alcohol consumption, in root caries in the Spanish working population of Valencia and Murcia regions. Material and Methods: Cross sectional study of 458 workers 35-44 years of age, who underwent a routine work-related check-up, from June 2009 to April 2010, and were also examined, following the WHO methodology, by a calibrated dentist. Stratified random sampling. Participants fulfilled a questionnaire comprising demographic data, toothbrushing frequency, snacking frequency and tobacco and alcohol consumption. Results: The DFS index (root caries) in the employed population of 35-44 years was 0.45 ± 1.3, with a root caries prevalence of 18.6% and an active root caries prevalence of 13.5%. Higher root caries prevalence and active root caries prevalence were associated with male gender, manual occupations, foreign country of origin, lower levels of education and income, lower brushing frequency and higher frequency of snacking between meals. The DFS index was associated with all studied socio-demographic variables, but gender, and it was also associated with brushing frequency. The mean number of root decayed teeth was associated with all socio-demographic variables, but country of origin, and it was also associated with brushing frequency. Conclusions: Adult workers 35-44 years of age showed worse root condition in regard to caries than general population of this age cohort. In this study, the frequency of toothbrushing and snacking between meals were the variables that influenced more in root caries. Key words:Root caries, working population, epidemiological studies, toothbrushing, snacking

Delamination Study in Edge Trimming of Basalt Fiber Reinforced Plastics (BFRP)

[EN] Although there are many machining studies of carbon and glass fiber reinforced plastics, delamination and tool wear of basalt fiber reinforced plastics (BFRP) in edge trimming has not yet studied. This paper presents an end milling study of BFRP fabricated by resin transfer molding (RTM), to evaluate delamination types at the top layer of the machined edge with different cutting conditions (cutting speed, feed rate and depth of cut) and fiber volume fraction (40% and 60%). This work quantifies delamination types, using a parameter Sd/L, that evaluates the delamination area (Sd) and the length (L), taking into account tool position in the yarn and movement of yarns during RTM process, which show the random nature of delamination. Delamination was present in all materials with 60% of fiber volume. High values of tool wear did not permit to machine the material due to an excessive delamination. Type II delamination was the most usual delamination type and depth of cut has influence on this type of delamination.The authors gratefully acknowledge the funding by the Ministerio de Educacion y Ciencia of the Spanish government under grant DPI2013-44903-R-AR.Navarro-Mas, M.; García Manrique, JA.; Meseguer, MD.; Ordeig Fernández, IN.; Sánchez Galdón, AI. (2018). Delamination Study in Edge Trimming of Basalt Fiber Reinforced Plastics (BFRP). Materials. 11(8). doi:10.3390/ma1108141811

Is bipolar disorder an endocrine condition? Glucose abnormalities in bipolar disorder

The World Health Organisation placed bipolar disorder at the top ten causes of disability worldwide, due not only to its functional impairment but also to its increased medical morbidity and mortality. An increased suicide rate, poor healthcare access, poor health habits, and medication side‐effects contribute to the increased morbidity and mortality. However, the leading contributors to the excess of mortality are cardiovascular pathologies 1, a finding already highlighted by Derby in 1933 in a cohort of manic‐depressive patients admitted to a general hospital. Cardiovascular risk factors, such as obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) 2, and lipid disturbances, are highly increased in bipolar disorder. In between those, glycemic abnormalities are the most repeated finding, taking into account that since the onset of the 20th century, several authors had raised the attention toward an unexpected relationship between manic‐depressive illness and glucose metabolism 3. In addition, the prevalence of T2DM in bipolar disorders ranges from 8% to 17% a threefold increase compared with the general population and bipolar patients with comorbid T2DM may have a more severe course of the psychiatric illness (greater number of depressive and manic episodes, more hospitalizations, and suicidality) and refractoriness to treatment. In addition, studies regarding metabolic disturbances in relatives of bipolar disorder and non‐affective psychosis have described an increased risk of developing glucose abnormalities, adding more scientific background to the unexpected relationship. However, pharmacological treatment, including both antipsychotic agents, antidepressants and mood stabilizers, may have confounded this relationship

Usefulness of bone turnover markers as predictors of mortality risk, disease progression and skeletal-related events appearance in patients with prostate cancer with bone metastases following treatment with zoledronic acid: TUGAMO study

Owing to the limited validity of clinical data on the treatment of prostate cancer (PCa) and bone metastases, biochemical markers are a promising tool for predicting survival, disease progression and skeletal-related events (SREs) in these patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the predictive capacity of biochemical markers of bone turnover for mortality risk, disease progression and SREs in patients with PCa and bone metastases undergoing treatment with zoledronic acid (ZA). Methods: This was an observational, prospective and multicenter study in which ninety-eight patients were included. Patients were treated with ZA (4mg every 4 weeks for 18 months). Data were collected at baseline and 3, 6, 9, 12, 15 and 18 months after the beginning of treatment. Serum levels of bone alkaline phosphtase (BALP), aminoterminal propeptide of procollagen type I (P1NP) and beta-isomer of carboxiterminal telopeptide of collagen I (b-CTX) were analysed at all points in the study. Data on disease progression, SREs development and survival were recorded. Results: Cox regression models with clinical data and bone markers showed that the levels of the three markers studied were predictive of survival time, with b-CTX being especially powerful, in which a lack of normalisation in visit 1 (3 months after the beginning of treatment) showed a 6.3-times more risk for death than in normalised patients. Levels of these markers were also predictive for SREs, although in this case BALP and P1NP proved to be better predictors. We did not find any relationship between bone markers and disease progression. Conclusion: In patients with PCa and bone metastases treated with ZA, b-CTX and P1NP can be considered suitable predictors for mortality risk, while BALP and P1NP are appropriate for SREs. The levels of these biomarkers 3 months after the beginning of treatment are especially importantThis study was supported by Novartis Oncology Spai

Opposite cannabis-cognition associations in psychotic patients depending on family history

The objective of this study is to investigate cognitive performance in a first-episode psychosis sample, when stratifying the interaction by cannabis use and familial or non-familial psychosis. Hierarchical-regression models were used to analyse this association in a sample of 268 first-episode psychosis patients and 237 controls. We found that cannabis use was associated with worse working memory, regardless of family history. However, cannabis use was clearly associated with worse cognitive performance in patients with no family history of psychosis, in cognitive domains including verbal memory, executive function and global cognitive index, whereas cannabis users with a family history of psychosis performed better in these domains. The main finding of the study is that there is an interaction between cannabis use and a family history of psychosis in the areas of verbal memory, executive function and global cognition: that is, cannabis use is associated with a better performance in patients with a family history of psychosis and a worse performance in those with no family history of psychosis. In order to confirm this hypothesis, future research should explore the actual expression of the endocannabinoid system in patients with and without a family history of psychosis

Impact of interstitial lung disease on the survival of systemic sclerosis with pulmonary arterial hypertension

To assess severity markers and outcomes of patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) with or without pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH-SSc/non-PAH-SSc), and the impact of interstitial lung disease (ILD) on PAH-SSc. Non-PAH-SSc patients from the Spanish SSc registry and PAH-SSc patients from the Spanish PAH registry were included. A total of 364 PAH-SSc and 1589 non-PAH-SSc patients were included. PAH-SSc patients had worse NYHA-functional class (NYHA-FC), worse forced vital capacity (FVC) (81.2 ± 20.6% vs 93.6 ± 20.6%, P < 0.001), worse tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) (17.4 ± 5.2 mm vs 19.9 ± 6.7 mm, P < 0.001), higher incidence of pericardial effusion (30% vs 5.2%, P < 0.001) and similar prevalence of ILD (41.8% vs. 44.9%). In individuals with PAH-SSc, ILD was associated with worse hemodynamics and pulmonary function tests (PFT). Up-front combination therapy was used in 59.8% and 61.7% of patients with and without ILD, respectively. Five-year transplant-free survival rate was 41.1% in PAH-SSc patients and 93.9% in non-PAH-SSc patients (P < 0.001). Global survival of PAH-SSc patients was not affected by ILD regardless its severity. The multivariate survival analysis in PAH-SSc patients confirmed age at diagnosis, worse NYHA-FC, increased PVR, reduced DLCO, and lower management with up-front combination therapy as major risk factors. In conclusion, in PAH-SSc cohort risk of death was greatly increased by clinical, PFT, and hemodynamic factors, whereas it was decreased by up-front combination therapy. Concomitant ILD worsened hemodynamics and PFT in PAH-SSc but not survival regardless of FVC impairment

Impact of interstitial lung disease on the survival of systemic sclerosis with pulmonary arterial hypertension

To assess severity markers and outcomes of patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) with or without pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH-SSc/non-PAH-SSc), and the impact of interstitial lung disease (ILD) on PAH-SSc. Non-PAH-SSc patients from the Spanish SSc registry and PAH-SSc patients from the Spanish PAH registry were included. A total of 364 PAH-SSc and 1589 non-PAH-SSc patients were included. PAH-SSc patients had worse NYHA-functional class (NYHA-FC), worse forced vital capacity (FVC) (81.2 +/- 20.6% vs 93.6 +/- 20.6%, P < 0.001), worse tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) (17.4 +/- 5.2 mm vs 19.9 +/- 6.7 mm, P < 0.001), higher incidence of pericardial effusion (30% vs 5.2%, P < 0.001) and similar prevalence of ILD (41.8% vs. 44.9%). In individuals with PAH-SSc, ILD was associated with worse hemodynamics and pulmonary function tests (PFT). Up-front combination therapy was used in 59.8% and 61.7% of patients with and without ILD, respectively. Five-year transplant-free survival rate was 41.1% in PAH-SSc patients and 93.9% in non-PAH-SSc patients (P < 0.001). Global survival of PAH-SSc patients was not affected by ILD regardless its severity. The multivariate survival analysis in PAH-SSc patients confirmed age at diagnosis, worse NYHA-FC, increased PVR, reduced DLCO, and lower management with up-front combination therapy as major risk factors. In conclusion, in PAH-SSc cohort risk of death was greatly increased by clinical, PFT, and hemodynamic factors, whereas it was decreased by up-front combination therapy. Concomitant ILD worsened hemodynamics and PFT in PAH-SSc but not survival regardless of FVC impairment