Evolución de la discapacidad y la dependencia. Una mirada internacional

ResumenLa capacidad de vivir de forma autónoma constituye un objetivo prioritario de salud pública en las sociedades con un alto envejecimiento poblacional. Se examinan estudios poblacionales recientes que exploran una posible reducción de la prevalencia de discapacidad, y se presenta información sobre las necesidades no cubiertas de las personas en situaciones de dependencia. Durante las últimas décadas se ha observado una disminución de la discapacidad y de las limitaciones de movilidad en las personas mayores de muchos países de altos ingresos, entre ellos España. La disminución es clara en las edades inferiores a 85 años. Las tendencias de discapacidad en los mayores de 85 años son difíciles de estudiar por falta de información. Las tendencias de discapacidad dependen del aumento de la educación de la población, de la reducción de las desigualdades sociales y de género, y de la adopción de estilos de vida saludables. La reducción de la discapacidad también depende de la transformación del entorno físico y social para permitir un envejecimiento activo. Las ganancias de salud de la generación entre 40 y 65 años de edad no parecen muy altas. Se concluye que las reducciones de discapacidad en los próximos 25 años no serán tan grandes como las observadas desde 1990 hasta la fecha, exceptuando la posible reducción de la discapacidad en las mujeres debida a la disminución de los roles de género. La dependencia de ayuda de terceras personas tenderá a disminuir, excepto en el caso de la demencia. El recurso a las ayudas técnicas está aumentando y continuará haciéndolo.AbstractIn societies with a high level of population aging, the ability to live autonomously is a major goal of public health. The present article examines recent population-based studies analyzing a possible reduction in the prevalence of disability and provides evidence on the unmet needs of dependent individuals.In the last few decades, disability and reduced mobility have decreased in elderly persons living in high-income countries, including Spain. This decrease is clear in persons aged less than 85 years old but the trends in persons older than 85 years are difficult to study due to the lack of information. These trends depend on greater education among the population, a reduction in social and gender inequalities and the adoption of healthy lifestyle habits. A reduction in dependency also depends on changes in the physical and social environment to encourage active aging. The health gains in the generation aged between 40 and 65 years do not seem high. The reductions in disability in the next 25 years will not be as great as those observed between 1990 and the present time, except for a possible reduction in disability in women due to a decrease in gender roles. Dependence on help from third persons will tend to decrease, except in dementia. Use of technical aids is increasing and will continue to do so

Long-term hydrological changes over a seventeen-year period in temporary ponds of the Doñana N. P. (SW Spain)

Hydrological changes of 6 temporary ponds in the Doñana National Park were monitored over 17 years (from 1st October 1989 through 30th September 2006) by recording the shallow water-table (in 1 to 8 week intervals) and the duration of pond wet phase (or hydroperiod) during each hydrological cycle. The annual average rainfall was 559 mm during the 17 years of the study, which included six wet, six moderate, and five dry cycles, all in a seemingly random sequence. The average wet period extended from October until the end of March, (both inclusive), while the dry season occupied the rest of the year. The water-table in the ponds oscillated each year following this alternation of rainy and dry seasons, but this oscillation was minimal during dry years, and even failed to occur at some ponds. Since 1998/99 onward, the average hydroperiod has shortened by three months in Charco del Toro pond, and by almost two months in El Brezo pond. On the other hand, the rest of the ponds studied, situated at more than 1 km from Matalascañas, barely exhibited a reduction in their hydroperiod. These results suggest that groundwater supply to these ponds ponds has been probably reduced by the pumping subterranean water to the Matalascañas tourist resort, whose pumping stations are located less than 1 km away from the two most affected ponds (Charco del Toro and Brezo). It is necessary for these pumping stations to be relocated at a greater distance to avoid any further impact to the ponds inside the Doñana Biological Reserve, and a specific management plan needs to be developed for those ponds. The monitoring of changes in the vegetation around the Doñana ponds can be a useful tool to detect even subtle hydrologic variations. Tamarix canariensis coverage has increased since established on the northern side of Taraje pond during the dry season of 1988/89. Even though this pond has not shown a significant reduction in its hydroperiod since 1998/99 onward, average minimum and maximum water-table levels have decreased when compared to other pondSe ha realizado un seguimiento de los cambios hidrológicos en 6 lagunas temporales del P. N. Doñana a lo largo de 17 años (desde el 1 octubre de 1989 hasta el 30 septiembre de 2006) mediante la determinación de la profundidad de su nivel freático (en intervalos de 1 a 8 semanas) y la duración de su fase acuática (o hidroperíodo) en cada uno de los ciclos hidrológicos estudiados. La media anual de precipitación fue 559 mm en el conjunto de los 17 años estudiados que agruparon 6 ciclos muy húmedos, otros 6 moderados y 5 ciclos secos, todos ellos sin una secuencia claramente definida. La duración media del periodo más húmedo comprendió desde octubre hasta marzo (ambos inclusive), mientras que el periodo de estiaje ocupó el resto del año. El nivel freático en las lagunas osciló cada año siguiendo esta alternancia de periodos húmedos y secos, pero esta oscilación fue mínima durante años secos e, incluso, dejó de ocurrir en algunas lagunas. Desde el ciclo 1998/99 en adelante, la duración media del hidroperíodo se ha reducido en 3 meses en la laguna del Charco del Toro y en casi 2 meses en la de El Brezo. En cambio, el resto de lagunas estudiadas, situadas a más de 1 km de Matalascañas, apenas han sufrido una reducción en su hidroperíodo medio. Estos resultados sugieren que la alimentación freática a estas lagunas ha sido probablemente dañada por el efecto de los bombeos de agua subterr'anea en la población turística de Matalascañas, cuyas estaciones de bombeo se encuentran a menos de 1 km de las dos lagunas más afectadas (Charco del Toro y Brezo). Es necesario que estas estaciones de bombeo se reubiquen a mayor distancia para impedir que continúen afectando a las lagunas del interior de la Reserva Biológica de Doñana y que se desarrolle un plan de manejo específico para esos cuerpos de agua. El seguimiento de los cambios en la vegetación que rodea las lagunas puede servir para detectar, incluso, pequeñas variaciones hidrológicas. La cobertura de Tamarix canariensis ha ido aumentando desde que se estableció en la zona norte de la laguna de Taraje en el estiaje de 1988/89. A pesar de que esta laguna no ha sufrido una reducción apreciable de su hidroperíodo desde 1998/99 en adelante, los niveles freáticos mínimos y máximos han disminuido de media desde esta fecha en comparación con otras lagunas

Una figura señera en el campo de la música tradicional española en el primer tercio del siglo XX : el polifacético músico alemán Kurt Schnidler (1882-1935)

[ES]A través de diversas fuentes bibliográficas se realiza una semblanza del músico y etnomusicólogo alemán Kurt Schindler (1882-1935). Realizándose también un estudio somero de su disperso archivo personal (localización de los materiales, tipología documental, cuadro de clasificación y tratamiento documental) y se hace una propuesta de organización para dar visibilidad a este fondo documental, dada su importancia para la Musicología española

Spatial and seasonal patterns of water use in Mediterranean coastal dune vegetation

Aims: This paper examines the water dynamics of a coastal dune plant community, addressing spatial and seasonal variations. We aimed to detect the patterns of water use by plants at the community level according to their distribution across a coastal dune gradient from beach to inland. Methods: Five sites were established: upper beach, embryo-dune, slack, foredune, and inland. Eight perennial species were collected seasonally to analyse the isotopic composition and water potential. Soil water samples at 3 depths, groundwater, and atmosphere, were obtained to determine plant water sources. Results: The species from Inland and foredune plant communities, Retama, Juniperus, and Helichrysum, showed the most stable isotopic signal throughout the year. On the contrary, the species most abundant on the upper beach, embryo-dune, and slack (Ammophila, Achillea, and Polygonum) showed the highest variability. Water deficit decreased the dependence on shallow and mid-soil layers along the beach-inland gradient. Beach and embryo-dune sites showed less negative leaf water potential values than the other positions in the dune gradient. Conclusions: Three factors mark the proportion of water sources used for vegetation in coastal vegetation: community composition, distance to the sea, and seasonality. Coastal dune vegetation exhibited a species-specific response in water uptake that was modified by its location on the gradient. From upper beach to inland, the plant communities showed a slight progressive increase in the use of water from deeper layers. This pattern was similar and overlapped with the wet to dry seasonal pattern.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad CGL2009‐1057

Physiological responses to water stress and stress memory in Argania spinosa

Drought stress is one of the major abiotic stress factors shifting the physiology and metabolism of the plants. In semiarid areas, drought stress events are often recurrent, and plants have developed strategies to remember a first so-called priming stress to eventually respond more effectively to a second triggering stress. In this study, we tested several physiological and morphological variables in Argania spinosa (L.) Skeels plants, growing in greenhouse conditions under a drought treatment induced by water withholding. Two sequential one-month periods of water stress were imposed to understand the stress memory events in this species The plants were divided into two groups depending on the treatment applied (irrigated and stressed) which later, after one month of a recuperation phase, were divided again into two more groups (having a total of four at the end of the study). Leaf samples were periodically taken and relative water content, gas exchange, chlorophyll content and other variables were measured, analysed and compared between those groups. Plants, which have suffered the two sequential water stress periods, were more affected according to several variables than plants subjected to only one stress treatment, so we finally conclude that this species does not seem to have any drought stress memory mechanisms for the studied variables, under the conditions of this experiment

The hemiparasitic shrub Osyris lanceolata (Santalaceae) does not disturb the ecophysiology of its hosts

Osyris lanceolata is a hemiparasitic dioecious shrub species growing on stabilised dunes. This study aimed to determine the spatial structure of O. lanceolata and its hosts, to understand the ecophysiological mechanisms involved in water and nutrient transfer, and quantify the physiological stress on its hosts. In the Asperillo stabilised dunes (Doñana, Spain) we selected one mixed plot (50 m × 50 m) with Pinus pinea and Juniperus phoenicea in which the coordinates of every individual, the hosts and the hemiparasitic species, were recorded. Additionally, we selected two study areas in which O. lanceolata was well represented, one dominated by P. pinea and the other by J. phoenicea. We marked 60 plants: 20 O. lanceolata with their respective hosts (10 Pinus and 10 Juniperus) and 20 free host plants. In all the marked plants we measured: leaf water potential, gas exchange, photochemical efficiency, morpho-anatomical leaf traits, pigments, and proline content. Our results evidenced that O. lanceolata is spatially associated with its hosts. Midday leaf water potential values were always between 1.5 to 3 times more negative and transpiration rates were 6-fold higher for the hemiparasite than for the hosts. Additionally, O. lanceolata plants showed a high accumulation of proline in leaves and haustorium. Although the hemiparasitic species maintains an active photosynthetic canopy, its rates of CO2 assimilation were 35–48% lower than in the hosts, which caused a 10-fold lower instantaneous water use efficiency. Through these mechanisms, the hemiparasitic plant can absorb water and nutrients from the host species. Despite this parasitic relationship, there were no significant differences in the physiological performance of the hosts in comparison to the parasite-free plants. We conclude that O. lanceolata presents a specific strategy to absorb water in this dry ecosystem, without exerting negative effects on the plant community, which might indicate that there is an equilibrium in the tradeoffs between parasitism and mutualism in the interaction between species

Reply to: Integral management of COVID-19 in Madrid: Turning things around during the second wave

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Request for articles on the effects of the Great Recession and the austerity policies on the health of the Spanish population

Han transcurrido 10 años desde que se inició la Gran Recesión y se adoptaron políticas de austeridad que han precipitado a las clases sociales desfavorecidas a condiciones de vida todavía peores, y han provocado un deslizamiento de las clases medias hacia la fragilidad económica. En consecuencia, la vulnerabilidad económica y social se ha extendido a grandes capas de la sociedad

Reliance on deep soil water in the tree species Argania spinosa

In South-western Morocco, water scarcity and high temperature are the main factors determining species survival. Argania spinosa (L.) Skeels is a tree species, endemic to Morocco, which is suffering from ongoing habitat shrinkage. Argan trees play essential local ecological and economic roles: protecting soils from erosion, shading different types of crops, helping maintain soil fertility and, even more importantly, its seeds are used by the local population for oil production, with valuable nutritional, medicinal and cosmetic purposes. The main objective of this study was to identify the sources of water used by this species and to assess the effect of water availability on the photosynthetic rate and stem water potential in two populations: one growing on the coast and a second one 10 km inland. Stem water potential, photosynthetic rate and xylem water isotopic composition (δ18O) were seasonally monitored during 2 years. Trees from both populations showed a similar strategy in the use of the available water sources, which was strongly dependent on deep soil water throughout the year. Nevertheless, during the wet season or under low precipitation a more complex water uptake pattern was found with a mixture of water sources, including precipitation and soil at different depths. No evidence was found of the use of either groundwater or atmospheric water in this species. Despite the similar water-use strategy, the results indicate that Argania trees from the inland population explored deeper layers than coastal ones as suggested by more depleted δ18O values recorded in the inland trees and better photosynthetic performance, hence suggesting that the coastal population of A. spinosa could be subjected to higher stress