Cognitive Fusion Mediates the Relationship between Dispositional Mindfulness and Negative Affects: A Study in a Sample of Spanish Children and Adolescent School Students

Nowadays, mindfulness-based interventions (MBI) have experienced a remarkable development of studies among childhood and adolescent interventions. For this reason, dispositional mindfulness (DM) measures for children and adolescents have been developed to determine the e ectiveness of MBI at this age stage. However, little is known about how key elements of DM (for example, cognitive de/fusion or experiential avoidance that both confirm psychological inflexibility) are involved in the mechanisms of the children and adolescents’ mental health outcomes. This research examined the mediating e ect of cognitive fusion between DM and anxiety and other negative emotional states in a sample of 318 Spanish primary-school students (aged between 8 and 16 years, M = 11.24, SD = 2.19, 50.8% males). Participants completed the AFQ-Y (Avoidance and Fusion Questionnaire for youth), which is a measure of psychological inflexibility that encompasses cognitive defusion and experiential avoidance; CAMM (DM for children and adolescents), PANAS-N (positive and negative a ect measure for children, Spanish version of PANASC), and STAIC (an anxiety measure for children). The study accomplished ethical standards. As MBI relevant literature has suggested, cognitive defusion was a significant mediator betweenDMand symptoms of both negative emotions and anxiety in children and adolescents. However, experiential avoidance did not show any significant mediating relationship. Probably, an improvement of the assessment of experiential avoidance is needed. MBI programs for children and adolescents may include more activities for reducing e ects of the cognitive defusion on their emotional distress

La restauración de la villa romana de La Ontavia (Terrinches, Ciudad Real)

En el mes de julio de 2010 se iniciaron las labores de conservación y restauración en el yacimiento romano de La Ontavia (Terrinches, Ciudad Real). Durante cuatro meses se han simultaneado estos trabajos con la excavación arqueológica, en la que han colaborado once alumnos de la Escuela Superior de Conservación y Restauración de Bienes Culturales de la Comunidad de Madrid, bajo la dirección del equipo técnico, realizando prácticas para completar su formación. La intervención llevada a cabo ha estado enfocada a minimizar el efecto de los agentes de deterioro a los que se halla expuesto el yacimiento, que se encuentra al aire libre. El presente artículo tiene como finalidad la difusión de los trabajos de conservación y restauración realizados durante esta campaña, prestando especial atención a la metodología y a los materiales utilizadosIn July 2010 conservation and restoration work began at the Roman site of La Ontavia (Terrinches, Ciudad Real). For four months, the work was carried out alongside the archaeological excavation, involving eleven students from the Madrid School of Cultural Asset Conservation and Restoration, doing work experience under the guidance of a technical team to complete their training. The intervention focused on minimising the effect of the deterioration factors that this open-air site has been exposed to. This article aims to provide a report of the conservation and restoration work carried out in this campaign, paying special attention to the methodology and materials use

Profibrotic role of inducible heat shock protein 90α isoform in systemic sclerosis

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is an autoimmune disease that affects skin and multiple internal organs. TGF-β, a central trigger of cutaneous fibrosis, activates fibroblasts with the involvement of the stress-inducible chaperone heat shock protein 90 isoform α (Hsp90α). Available evidence supports overexpression and secretion of Hsp90α as a feature in profibrotic pathological conditions. The aim of this work is to investigate the expression and function of Hsp90α in experimental models of skin fibrosis such as human fibroblasts, C57BL/6 mice, and in human SSc. For this purpose, we generated a new experimental model based on doxorubicin administration with improved characteristics with respect to the bleomycin model. We visualized disease progression in vivo by fluorescence imaging. In this work, we obtained Hsp90α mRNA overexpression in human skin fibroblasts, in bleomycin- and doxorubicin-induced mouse fibrotic skin, and in lungs of bleomycin- and doxorubicin-treated mice. Hsp90α-deficient mice showed significantly decreased skin thickness compared with wild-type mice in both animal models. In SSc patients, serum Hsp90α levels were increased in patients with lung involvement and in patients with the diffuse form of SSc (dSSc) compared with patients with the limited form of SSc. The serum Hsp90α levels of patients dSSc were correlated with the Rodnan score and the forced vital capacity variable. These results provide new supportive evidence of the contribution of the Hsp90α isoform in the development of skin fibrosis. In SSc, these results indicated that higher serum levels were associated with dSSc and lung fibrosis.This work was supported by Spanish Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad, Gobierno de España Grant RTI2018-095214-B-I00, as well as by the Instituto de Formación e Investigación Marqués de Valdecilla IDIVAL (InnVal 17/22; InnVal 20/34), 2020UCI22-PUB-0003 Gobierno de Cantabria (to A.V.V.), SAF2016-75195-R (to J.M.), SAF2017-82905-R (to R.M.), and (NextVal 18/14) to A.P

Electromagnetic assessment of UHF-RFID devices in healthcare environment

In this work, the evaluation of electromagnetic effect of Ultra High Frequency Radio Frequency Identification (UHF-RFID) passive tags used in the healthcare environment is presented. In order to evaluate exposure levels caused by EM field (865–868 MHz) of UHF-RFID readers, EM measurements in an anechoic chamber and in a real medical environment (Hospital Universitario de Canarias), as well as simulations by 3D Ray Launching algorithm, and of biophysical exposure effects in human models are presented. The results obtained show that the EM exposure is localized, in close vicinity of RFID reader and inversely proportional to its reading range. The EM exposure levels detected are sufficient to cause EM immunity effects in electronic devices (malfunctions in medical equipment or implants). Moreover, more than negligible direct effects in humans (exceeding relevant SAR values) were found only next to the reader, up to approximately 30% of the reading range. As a consequence, the EM risk could be firstly evaluated based on RFID parameters, but should include an in situ exposure assessment. It requires attention and additional studies, as increased applications of monitoring systems are observed in the healthcare sector—specifically when any system is located close to the workplace that is permanently occupied.This work was supported by Instituto de Salud Carlos III project “Electromagnetic Characterization in Smart Environments of Healthcare, and their involvement in Personal, Occupational, and Environmental Health” (PI14CIII/00056), and project (PI19CIII/00033) TMPY 508/19 “Metrics development for electromagnetic safety assessment in healthcare centers in the context of 5G“ from Sub-Directorate-General for Research Assessment and Promotion. The results of a research task (II.PB.15) carried out within the National Programme “Improvement of safety and working conditions” partly supported in Poland in 2020–2022—within the scope of research and development—by the National Centre for Research and Development were also included

Prevalencia y factores de riesgo asociados a infección por virus SARS-CoV-2 en trabajadores del Instituto Nacional de Salud del Niño de Perú, abril 2020 a marzo 2021

Objective: To determine the prevalence and risk factors associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection among workers of Instituto Nacional de Salud del Niño (INSN) from April 2020 to March 2021. Materials and methods: A non-experimental, descriptive, cross-sectional study. The sample consisted of 608 workers who tested positive for COVID-19 using a rapid antigen test. The COVID-19 clinical-epidemiological research sheets prepared bythe Ministry of Health of Peru and self-administered by the workers were reviewed. The INSN Department of Epidemiology staff verified the completion of the sheets. The data was entered into a database, which was used for the respective statistical analysis. The study was approved by the INSN Institutional Research Ethics Committee (registration code: PI-17/21). Results: COVID-19 prevalence among INSN workers was 7.24 % from April 2020 to March 2021. Out of the workers with COVID-19 71.4 % were women; 83.4 % were in the 30 to 59 age range with an average age of 44.71 years; 65.6 % were healthcare workers, most of whom were nursing technicians; and 56.9 % experienced symptoms, mainly fever/chills (12.2 %), cough (8.9 %), malaise (7.7 %), sore throat (6.7 %), stuffy nose (2.5 %) and headache (1.3 %). Most workers lived in Lima Centro districts (33.2 %). A significant association between sex, age groups, worker type and worker profile was found. Conclusions: COVID-19 prevalence among INSN workers was 7.24 %; the most frequent characteristics, which showed significant differences with the rest of the factors, were being a woman, healthcare worker and nursing technician. A total of 56.9 % of the workers experienced symptoms, only 20.9 % developed clinical signs and 10.9 % had comorbidities.Objetivo: Determinar la prevalencia y factores de riesgo asociados a la infección por virus SARS-CoV-2 en trabajadores del Instituto Nacional de Salud del Niño (INSN), en el periodo de abril 2020 a marzo 2021.Materiales y métodos: Estudio no experimental, descriptivo, transversal. La muestra corresponde a 608 trabajadores de salud que resultaron positivos a la prueba serológica rápida. Se revisaron las fichas de investigación clínica epidemiológica COVID-19elaboradas por el Ministerio de Salud de Perú, que fueron autoadministradas por los trabajadores de salud, y el personal de Epidemiología del INSN verificó el llenado de la ficha. Los datos se introdujeron en una base de datos que sirvió para el análisisestadístico respectivo. El estudio fue aprobado por el Comité Institucional de Ética en Investigación del INSN (código de registro: PI-17/21). Resultados: La prevalencia fue de 7,24 % de COVID-19 en trabajadores del INSN entre abril del 2020 y marzo del 2021. El 71,4 % fueron mujeres, los participantes presentaron una media de edad de 44,71 años, mayoritariamente en el rango de los 30 a 59 años(83,4 %); el 65,6 % fueron asistenciales, de los cuales la mayoría fueron técnicos en enfermería. El 56,9 % de los trabajadores presentaron síntomas, principalmente fiebre/escalofríos (12,2 %), tos (8,9 %), malestar general (7,7 %), dolor de garganta (6,7 %),congestión nasal (2,5 %) y cefalea (1,3 %) . La mayoría de trabajadores residían en los distritos de Lima . Se encontró asociación significativa por sexo y grupos de edad, tipo de trabajador y perfil del trabajador. Conclusiones: La prevalencia de COVID-19 entre los trabajadores del INSN fue del 7,24 %; las características más frecuentes que mostraron diferencias significativas con el resto de los factores fueron el ser mujer, trabajador asistencial y técnica deenfermería. El 56,9 % de los trabajadores presentó síntomas, solo el 20,9 %, signos clínicos y el 10,9 % tuvo comorbilidades

Staging Parkinson’s Disease According to the MNCD (Motor/Non-motor/Cognition/Dependency) Classification Correlates with Disease Severity and Quality of Life

Background: Recently, a novel simple classification called MNCD, based on 4 axes (Motor; Non-motor; Cognition; Dependency) and 5 stages, has been proposed to classify Parkinson's disease (PD). Objective: Our aim was to apply the MNCD classification in a cohort of PD patients for the first time and also to analyze the correlation with quality of life (QoL) and disease severity. Methods: Data from the baseline visit of PD patients recruited from 35 centers in Spain from the COPPADIS cohort from January 2016 to November 2017 were used to apply the MNCD classification. Three instruments were used to assess QoL: 1) the 39-item Parkinson's disease Questionnaire [PDQ-39]); PQ-10; the EUROHIS-QOL 8-item index (EUROHIS-QOL8). Results: Four hundred and thirty-nine PD patients (62.05 +/- 7.84 years old; 59% males) were included. MNCD stage was: stage 1, 8.4% (N = 37); stage 2, 62% (N = 272); stage 3, 28.2% (N = 124); stage 4-5, 1.4% (N = 6). A more advanced MNCD stage was associated with a higher score on the PDQ39SI (p < 0.0001) and a lower score on the PQ-10 (p < 0.0001) and EUROHIS-QOL8 (p < 0.0001). In many other aspects of the disease, such as disease duration, levodopa equivalent daily dose, motor symptoms, non-motor symptoms, and autonomy for activities of daily living, an association between the stage and severity was observed, with data indicating a progressive worsening related to disease progression throughout the proposed stages. Conclusion: Staging PD according to the MNCD classification correlated with QoL and disease severity. The MNCD could be a proper tool to monitor the progression of PD

Bladder cancer index: cross-cultural adaptation into Spanish and psychometric evaluation

BACKGROUND: The Bladder Cancer Index (BCI) is so far the only instrument applicable across all bladder cancer patients, independent of tumor infiltration or treatment applied. We developed a Spanish version of the BCI, and assessed its acceptability and metric properties. METHODS: For the adaptation into Spanish we used the forward and back-translation method, expert panels, and cognitive debriefing patient interviews. For the assessment of metric properties we used data from 197 bladder cancer patients from a multi-center prospective study. The Spanish BCI and the SF-36 Health Survey were self-administered before and 12 months after treatment. Reliability was estimated by Cronbach's alpha. Construct validity was assessed through the multi-trait multi-method matrix. The magnitude of change was quantified by effect sizes to assess responsiveness. RESULTS: Reliability coefficients ranged 0.75-0.97. The validity analysis confirmed moderate associations between the BCI function and bother subscales for urinary (r = 0.61) and bowel (r = 0.53) domains; conceptual independence among all BCI domains (r ≤ 0.3); and low correlation coefficients with the SF-36 scores, ranging 0.14-0.48. Among patients reporting global improvement at follow-up, pre-post treatment changes were statistically significant for the urinary domain and urinary bother subscale, with effect sizes of 0.38 and 0.53. CONCLUSIONS: The Spanish BCI is well accepted, reliable, valid, responsive, and similar in performance compared to the original instrument. These findings support its use, both in Spanish and international studies, as a valuable and comprehensive tool for assessing quality of life across a wide range of bladder cancer patients

Prognostic implications of comorbidity patterns in critically ill COVID-19 patients: A multicenter, observational study

Background The clinical heterogeneity of COVID-19 suggests the existence of different phenotypes with prognostic implications. We aimed to analyze comorbidity patterns in critically ill COVID-19 patients and assess their impact on in-hospital outcomes, response to treatment and sequelae. Methods Multicenter prospective/retrospective observational study in intensive care units of 55 Spanish hospitals. 5866 PCR-confirmed COVID-19 patients had comorbidities recorded at hospital admission; clinical and biological parameters, in-hospital procedures and complications throughout the stay; and, clinical complications, persistent symptoms and sequelae at 3 and 6 months. Findings Latent class analysis identified 3 phenotypes using training and test subcohorts: low-morbidity (n=3385; 58%), younger and with few comorbidities; high-morbidity (n=2074; 35%), with high comorbid burden; and renal-morbidity (n=407; 7%), with chronic kidney disease (CKD), high comorbidity burden and the worst oxygenation profile. Renal-morbidity and high-morbidity had more in-hospital complications and higher mortality risk than low-morbidity (adjusted HR (95% CI): 1.57 (1.34-1.84) and 1.16 (1.05-1.28), respectively). Corticosteroids, but not tocilizumab, were associated with lower mortality risk (HR (95% CI) 0.76 (0.63-0.93)), especially in renal-morbidity and high-morbidity. Renal-morbidity and high-morbidity showed the worst lung function throughout the follow-up, with renal-morbidity having the highest risk of infectious complications (6%), emergency visits (29%) or hospital readmissions (14%) at 6 months (p<0.01). Interpretation Comorbidity-based phenotypes were identified and associated with different expression of in-hospital complications, mortality, treatment response, and sequelae, with CKD playing a major role. This could help clinicians in day-to-day decision making including the management of post-discharge COVID-19 sequelae. Copyright (C) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd

The Variant rs1867277 in FOXE1 Gene Confers Thyroid Cancer Susceptibility through the Recruitment of USF1/USF2 Transcription Factors

In order to identify genetic factors related to thyroid cancer susceptibility, we adopted a candidate gene approach. We studied tag- and putative functional SNPs in genes involved in thyroid cell differentiation and proliferation, and in genes found to be differentially expressed in thyroid carcinoma. A total of 768 SNPs in 97 genes were genotyped in a Spanish series of 615 cases and 525 controls, the former comprising the largest collection of patients with this pathology from a single population studied to date. SNPs in an LD block spanning the entire FOXE1 gene showed the strongest evidence of association with papillary thyroid carcinoma susceptibility. This association was validated in a second stage of the study that included an independent Italian series of 482 patients and 532 controls. The strongest association results were observed for rs1867277 (OR[per-allele] = 1.49; 95%CI = 1.30–1.70; P = 5.9×10−9). Functional assays of rs1867277 (NM_004473.3:c.−283G>A) within the FOXE1 5′ UTR suggested that this variant affects FOXE1 transcription. DNA-binding assays demonstrated that, exclusively, the sequence containing the A allele recruited the USF1/USF2 transcription factors, while both alleles formed a complex in which DREAM/CREB/αCREM participated. Transfection studies showed an allele-dependent transcriptional regulation of FOXE1. We propose a FOXE1 regulation model dependent on the rs1867277 genotype, indicating that this SNP is a causal variant in thyroid cancer susceptibility. Our results constitute the first functional explanation for an association identified by a GWAS and thereby elucidate a mechanism of thyroid cancer susceptibility. They also attest to the efficacy of candidate gene approaches in the GWAS era