Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on cardiometabolic patients without SARS CoV-2 infection in Latin America

A cross-sectional survey including 38 questions about demography, clinical condition, changes in health habits, and medical treatments for cardiometabolic patients in outpatient follow-up was conducted. From June 15 to July 15, 2020, a total of 13 Latin-American countries participated in enrolling patients. These countries were divided into 3 geographic regions: Region 1 including North, Central, and Caribbean Regions (NCCR), Region 2 including the Andean Region (AR), and Region 3 including the Southern Cone Region (SCR). 4.216 patients were analyzed, resulting in a coefficient of 33.82%, 32.23%, and 33.94% for NCCR, AR, and SCR, respectively. Significant differences were found between the AR, SCR, and NCCR regions. The analysis of habitual medication usage showed that discontinued use of medication was more present in AR, reaching almost 30% (p < 0.001). The main finding of this study was the negative impact that restrictive measures have on adherence to medications and physical activity: Rs = 0.84 (p = 0.0003) and Rs = 0.61 (p = 0.0032), respectively. AR was the most vulnerable region. Restrictive quarantine measures imposed by the different countries showed a positive correlation with medication discontinuation and a negative correlation with physical activity levels in patients analyzed. These findings characterize the impact of the consequences left by this pandemic. Undoubtedly, restrictive measures have been and will continue to have reverberating negative effects in most Latin-American countries.Fil: Camiletti, Jorge. Hospital Italiano de La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Renna, Nicolas Federico. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto de Medicina y Biología Experimental de Cuyo; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Médicas. Cátedra de Fisiología Patológica; Argentina. Hospital Español de Mendoza; ArgentinaFil: López Santi, Ricardo. Hospital Italiano de La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Erriest, Juan. Hospital Italiano de La Plata; ArgentinaFil: García-Bello, Eliomar. Centro de Diagnóstico Medicina Avanzada y Telemedicina; República DominicanaFil: Araujo, John. Centro Cardiovascular Somer Incare; ColombiaFil: Varleta-Olivares, Paola. Hospital Dipreca; ChileFil: Gómez-Díaz, Eduardo. Hospital Metropolitano del Norte; VenezuelaFil: Ramírez, Gisselle. Medicina Cardiovascular Asociada; República DominicanaFil: Berni Betancourt, Ana. Sociedad interamericana de Cardiología; México. Consejo Interamericano de Electrocardiográfica y Arritmias; México. Hospital Ángeles Pedregal; MéxicoFil: Escalada Lesme, Gustavo. Centro Médico Nacional-Hospital Nacional Itaguá; ParaguayFil: Campos Alcántara, Lourdes V.. Consultorio de Lourdes Victoria Campos Alcántara; PerúFil: Moya Loor, Leonardo. Hospital Santa Margarita; EcuadorFil: Rey Benavente, Claudio. Hospital Arroyabe Pichanal; ArgentinaFil: Almonte, Claudia. Medicina Cardiovascular Asociada; República DominicanaFil: Cortez Sandoval, Maicol. Hospital Nacional Edgardo Rebagliti Martins; PerúFil: Alvarado Cuadros, María. Department of Cardiology, Institution; EcuadorFil: Rosario, Monica I.. Centro de Diagnóstico Medicina Avanzada y Telemedicina; República DominicanaFil: Gupta, Shyla. Queen’s University; CanadáFil: Ibarrola, Martin. Cardiovascular Center BV; ArgentinaFil: Baranchuk, Adrián. Kingston Health Sciences Centre; Canad

Short-term response of soil respiration and soil enzymatic activities to biochar application in semiarid agricultural soils under a climate change scenario

The application of biochar is presumed to be a climate change mitigation strategy in agriculture. However, we still need to better understand the effects of biochar application on soil properties, particularly on soil microbial activity. This is because soil microorganisms play a key role in ecosystems functioning, as they have a central role in soil metabolic activity given that they are responsible for soil organic matter decomposition and nutrient cycling. Conversely, little is known about how climate change will affect the soil microbial activity. In a rainfed field experiment, we studied the effect of forecasted warming and rainfall reduction on soil respiration and soil enzymatic activities after 3 years of consecutive application of biochar at a rate of 20 t/ha on a barley-camelina-fallow rotation in a semiarid region in Central Spain. Soil respiration was not affected by the application of biochar or/and warming and rainfall reduction treatments in comparison to the control treatment (no amendment). However, biochar amended soils had lower temperature sensitivity of soil C mineralization in the first two years when soils were cultivated but higher temperature sensitivity of soil C mineralization in the third year during fallow treatment. Enzymes involved in the C and N cycles (dehydrogenase, \u3b2-glucosidase and urease) significantly increased their activity under warming and rainfall reduction treatments, albeit biochar application tended to decrease the enzymatic activity under those treatments

Soil respiration and soil organic matter pools in soils amended for 7 years with biochar combined with mineral and organic fertilizers

Biochar application is now considered to be one of the most promising agricultural practices to mitigate climate change. However, to fully assess the benefits of biochar, we still need to better understand its effects on soil properties, and particularly on native soil organic matter (SOM) dynamics. In this work, we investigated soil respiration and changes in SOM pools (mineral-free, intraaggregate, and mineral-associated SOM) as affected by the application of 20 t / ha per year of biochar alone or combined with mineral fertilizer, municipal solid waste compost, or sewage sludge. The experiment was run for 7 years in a semiarid agricultural soil. We found that biochar had no effect on soil respiration with respect to mineral fertilization and no amendment (control), and tended to decrease CO2 emissions from soils amended with municipal solid waste compost and sewage sludge. Biochar accumulated mainly in the mineral-free SOM fraction and its addition, especially in combination with municipal solid waste compost, promoted the amount of SOM occluded with aggregates and associated to mineral surfaces

Impacto de la pandemia COVID-19 en pacientes cardiometabólicos sin infección por SARS-CoV-2 en Latinoamérica

Antecedentes y Objetivos: Se realizó una encuesta transversal que incluyó 38 preguntas sobre demografía, estado clínico, cambio de hábitos de salud, tratamientos médicos a pacientes cardiometabólicos en seguimiento ambulatorio. Un total de 13 países latinoamericanos inscribieron pacientes del 15 de junio al 15 de julio de 2020. Método: Los países se dividieron en 3 regiones geográficas Región 1 (NCCR): Región Norte, Centro y Caribe; Región 2 (AR): Región Andina; Región 3 (SCR): Región Cono Sur. Las medidas de aislamiento se estimaron a partir de informes nacionales y se correlacionaron utilizando el coeficiente R de Spearman. Se analizaron 4.216 pacientes, NCCR (33.82%); AR (32.23%) SCR (33.94%). Resultados: Se encontraron diferencias significativas entre regiones. Este análisis de la medicación habitual mostró que la discontinuación de la medicación fue mayor en RA, llegando a casi el 30% (p < 0.001). El principal hallazgo de este estudio fue el impacto negativo que tienen las medidas restrictivas sobre la adherencia a la medicación y la actividad física, Rs = 0.84 (p = 0.0003) y Rs = 0.61 (p = 0.0032), respectivamente. Se encontraron diferencias significativas entre regiones. AR es la región más vulnerable. Conclusiones: Las medidas restrictivas impuestas por los diferentes países (cuarentena) mostraron una correlación positiva con la interrupción de la medicación y una correlación negativa con la cantidad de actividad física. El impacto de las consecuencias que deja esta pandemia será muy profundo en la mayoría de los países latinoamericanos