Differential clinical characteristics and prognosis of intraventricular conduction defects in patients with chronic heart failure

Intraventricular conduction defects (IVCDs) can impair prognosis of heart failure (HF), but their specific impact is not well established. This study aimed to analyse the clinical profile and outcomes of HF patients with LBBB, right bundle branch block (RBBB), left anterior fascicular block (LAFB), and no IVCDs. Clinical variables and outcomes after a median follow-up of 21 months were analysed in 1762 patients with chronic HF and LBBB (n = 532), RBBB (n = 134), LAFB (n = 154), and no IVCDs (n = 942). LBBB was associated with more marked LV dilation, depressed LVEF, and mitral valve regurgitation. Patients with RBBB presented overt signs of congestive HF and depressed right ventricular motion. The LAFB group presented intermediate clinical characteristics, and patients with no IVCDs were more often women with less enlarged left ventricles and less depressed LVEF. Death occurred in 332 patients (interannual mortality = 10.8%): cardiovascular in 257, extravascular in 61, and of unknown origin in 14 patients. Cardiac death occurred in 230 (pump failure in 171 and sudden death in 59). An adjusted Cox model showed higher risk of cardiac death and pump failure death in the LBBB and RBBB than in the LAFB and the no IVCD groups. LBBB and RBBB are associated with different clinical profiles and both are independent predictors of increased risk of cardiac death in patients with HF. A more favourable prognosis was observed in patients with LAFB and in those free of IVCDs. Further research in HF patients with RBBB is warranted

Análisis coste-efectividad en procesos que requieren ventilación mecánica: estudio de los GRD 475 y 483

Objetivo. Evaluar la relación coste-efectividad del tratamiento en procesos complejos predefinidos que precisan ventilación mecánica (VM). Diseño. Estudio de cohorte retrospectivo con análisis coste-efectividad y estimación del porcentaje de pacientes sometidos a cuidados potencialmente ineficientes (CPI). Ámbito. Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos (UCI) de un hospital general. Pacientes. Pacientes ingresados entre los años 1997 y 2001, asignados al alta hospitalaria a los GRD 475 (diagnósticos del sistema respiratorio con ventilación asistida) y 483 (traqueostomía excepto trastornos de la boca, laringe o faringe). Intervenciones. Ninguna. Variables de interés principales. Edad, sexo, gravedad (mediante APACHE II), estado crónico de salud, grupo patológico de base, estancia en UCI, estancia hospitalaria, duración de la VM, mortalidad hospitalaria predicha y observada. Estimación del coste-efectividad mediante cociente entre costes totales hospitalarios y años de vida ganados (avg). Porcentaje de pacientes sometidos a CPI, definido como pacientes con costes totales superiores al percentil 90 y destino exitus. Resultados. Se estudiaron 247 pacientes, 142 del GRD 475 y 105 del GRD 483. Los dos grupos poseían características similares, salvo mayor predominio de pacientes médicos, menor estancia y duración de VM en el GRD 475. El coste-efectividad fue favorable en todos los subgrupos estudiados, y mostró un incremento en ambos grupos de GRD según aumentaba la edad, la gravedad y la duración de la VM. La distribución del coste-efectividad por estado crónico de salud no mostró diferencias en el GRD 475, mientras que en el GRD 483 se producía un incremento del mismo según empeoraba el estado de salud. En el GRD 483 y grupo patológico de base cardiológico, se observaron los peores valores de coste-efectividad. El porcentaje de CPI fue del 7,0% en GRD 475 y del 5,4% en GRD 483. Conclusiones. El tratamiento de los pacientes críticos agrupables a los GRD 475 y 483, se ha mostrado coste-efectivo de forma global y en todos los subgrupos analizados. La estimación del coste-efectividad y del porcentaje de pacientes sometidos a CPI, en procesos con similar complejidad de la casuística, ofrece información médica y económica del funcionamiento de una UCI

Absceso prostático como causa poco frecuente de shock séptico

El absceso prostático es una enfermedad poco frecuente, asociada generalmente a prostatitis, y cuyo diagnóstico puede retrasarse por lo inespecífico de la clínica. Es aún más raro que aparezcan complicaciones graves sistémicas. Será preciso un alto nivel de sospecha y la realización de técnicas de imagen para llegar a un diagnóstico de certeza. Presentamos el caso de un paciente en situación de shock séptico secundario a un absceso de próstata. Tras revisar la bibliografía comprobamos que son escasos los casos documentados de complicaciones sistémicas graves de este tipo de pacientes

Spatio-temporal patterns of genetic variation in Arbacia lixula, a thermophilous sea urchin in expansion in the Mediterranean

The genetic structure of 13 populations of the amphiatlantic sea urchin Arbacia lixula, as well as temporal genetic changes in three of these localities, were assessed using ten hypervariable microsatellite loci. This thermophilous sea urchin is an important engineer species triggering the formation of barren grounds through its grazing activity. Its abundance seems to be increasing in most parts of the Mediterranean, probably favoured by warming conditions. Significant genetic differentiation was found both spatially and temporally. The main break corresponded to the separation of western Atlantic populations from those in eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea. A less marked, but significant differentiation was also found between Macaronesia (eastern Atlantic) and the Mediterranean. In the latter area, a signal of differentiation between the transitional area (Alboran Sea) and the rest of the Mediterranean was detected. However, no genetic structure is found within the Mediterranean (excluding Alboran) across the Siculo-Tunisian Strait, resulting from either enough gene flow to homogenize distance areas or/and a recent evolutionary history marked by demographic expansion in this basin. Genetic temporal variation at the Alboran Sea is as important as spatial variation, suggesting that temporal changes in hydrological features can affect the genetic composition of the populations. A picture of genetic homogeneity in the Mediterranean emerges, implying that the potential expansion of this keystone species will not be limited by intraspecific genetic features and/or potential impact of postulated barriers to gene flow in the region.</p

Time and space: genetic structure of the common sea urchin paracentrotus lividus in the south-eastern iberian coast

Spatio-temporal variability in settlement and recruitment, high mortality during the first life-history stages, and selection may determine the genetic structure of cohorts of long-lived marine invertebrates at small scales. We conducted a spatial and temporal analysis of the common Mediterranean Sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus to determine the genetic structure of cohorts at different scales. In Tossa de Mar (NW Mediterranean), recruitment was followed over 5 consecutive springs (2006-2010). In spring 2008, recruits and two-year-old individuals were collected at 6 locations along East and South Iberian coasts separated from 200 to over 1,100 km. All cohorts presented a high genetic diversity based on a fragment of mtCOI. Our results showed a marked genetic homogeneity in the temporal monitoring and a low degree of spatial structure in 2006. In 2008, coupled with an abnormality in the usual circulation patterns in the area, the genetic structure of the southern populations studied changed markedly, with arrival of many private haplotypes. This fact highlights the importance of point events in renewing the genetic makeup of populations, which can only be detected through analysis of the cohort structure coupling temporal and spatial perspectives

Virological outcome among HIV infected patients transferred from pediatric care to adult units in Madrid, Spain (1997–2017)

The aim of this transversal study was to describe the virological and immunological features of HIV-infected youths transferred from pediatric to adult care units since 1997 vs. the non-transferred patients from the Madrid Cohort of HIV-infected children and adolescents in Spain. We included 106 non-transferred and 184 transferred patients under clinical follow-up in 17 public hospitals in Madrid by the end of December 2017. Virological and immunological outcomes were compared in transferred vs. non-transferred patients. ART drug resistance mutations and HIV-variants were analyzed in all subjects with available resistance pol genotypes and/or genotypic resistance profiles. Among the study cohort, 133 (72.3%) of 184 transferred and 75 (70.7%) of 106 non-transferred patients had available resistance genotypes. Most (88.9%) of transferred had ART experience at sampling. A third (33.3%) had had a triple-class experience. Acquired drug resistance (ADR) prevalence was significantly higher in pretreated transferred than non-transferred patients (71.8% vs. 44%; p = 0.0009), mainly to NRTI (72.8% vs. 31.1%; p < 0.0001) and PI (29.1% vs. 12%; p = 0.0262). HIV-1 non-B variants were less frequent in transferred vs. non-transferred (6.9% vs. 32%; p < 0.0001). In conclusion, the frequent resistant genotypes found in transferred youths justifies the reinforcement of HIV resistance monitoring after the transition to avoid future therapeutic failures

Differential clinical characteristics and prognosis of intraventricular conduction defects in patients with chronic heart failure

Intraventricular conduction defects (IVCDs) can impair prognosis of heart failure (HF), but their specific impact is not well established. This study aimed to analyse the clinical profile and outcomes of HF patients with LBBB, right bundle branch block (RBBB), left anterior fascicular block (LAFB), and no IVCDs. Clinical variables and outcomes after a median follow-up of 21 months were analysed in 1762 patients with chronic HF and LBBB (n = 532), RBBB (n = 134), LAFB (n = 154), and no IVCDs (n = 942). LBBB was associated with more marked LV dilation, depressed LVEF, and mitral valve regurgitation. Patients with RBBB presented overt signs of congestive HF and depressed right ventricular motion. The LAFB group presented intermediate clinical characteristics, and patients with no IVCDs were more often women with less enlarged left ventricles and less depressed LVEF. Death occurred in 332 patients (interannual mortality = 10.8%): cardiovascular in 257, extravascular in 61, and of unknown origin in 14 patients. Cardiac death occurred in 230 (pump failure in 171 and sudden death in 59). An adjusted Cox model showed higher risk of cardiac death and pump failure death in the LBBB and RBBB than in the LAFB and the no IVCD groups. LBBB and RBBB are associated with different clinical profiles and both are independent predictors of increased risk of cardiac death in patients with HF. A more favourable prognosis was observed in patients with LAFB and in those free of IVCDs. Further research in HF patients with RBBB is warranted