Toxicity of hyaluronan-based drug nanocarriers on zebrafish embryos

Traballo fin de mestrado (UDC.CIE). Bioloxía molecular, celular e xenética. Curso 2013/201

Satisfaction perceived by users and relatives of a maintenance electroconvulsive therapy program

Traballo Fin de Grao en Medicina. Curso 2020-2021La terapia electroconvulsiva nació en el año 1938 de la mano de Lucio Bini y Ugo Cerletti. Desde aquel momento ha ido evolucionando y perfeccionándose para conseguir mejores resultados con los menores efectos secundarios, sin embargo , el cine y los medios de comunicación siguen difundiendo una imagen anticuada de este tratamiento. Se trata de un procedimiento médico en el que mediante el empleo de descargas eléctricas se pretende lograr inducir una convulsión en el paciente. Todo el proceso se lleva a cabo con el empleo de anestesia y relajación muscular para aumentar su seguridad. El mecanismo mediante el cual ejerce su efecto terapéutico no está demostrado con certeza. Se está investigando la capacidad que posee en la regulación de algunos neurotransmisores, así como de favorecer cambios morfológicos en estructuras cerebrales como el hipocampo. Los últimos estudios revelan que también puede jugar un papel en la neuroplasticidad. Los efectos secundarios que antiguamente eran graves y frecuentes como las roturas óseas y musculares, hoy en día son anecdóticos y se han sustituido por las náuseas y el dolor de cabeza. Las pérdidas de memoria siguen siendo la principal preocupación de los pacientes, pero mediante el desarrollo de nuevas técnicas como las descargas ultrabreves unilaterales derechas, se pueden reducir en pacientes predispuestos. La terapia electroconvulsiva ha demostrado su efectividad en múltiples patologías como la depresión mayor, la catatonía, incluso obteniendo mejores resultados que los tratamientos farmacológicos. A pesar de ello, sigue estando infrautilizada en la práctica médica. Los pacientes y sus familiares, una vez han finalizado su tratamiento con la terapia electroconvulsiva, se sienten satisfechos con los resultados y la atención recibida e incluso refieren que repetirían el tratamiento si fuera necesarioA terapia electroconvulsiva naceu no ano 1938 da man de Lucio Bini e Ugo Cerletti. Dende aquel momento desenvolveuse e perfeccionouse para acadar mellores resultados cos menores efectos secundarios posibles. Sen embargo, o cine e os medios de comunicación seguen difundindo unha imaxe anticuada deste tratamento. Trátase dun procedemento médico no que mediante o emprego de descargas eléctricas, preténdese inducir unha convulsión no paciente. Todo o proceso lévase a cabo mediante o emprego de anestesia e relaxación muscular para aumentar a súa seguridade. O mecanismo mediante o cal exerce o seu efecto terapéutico non está demostrado con certeza. Estase a investigar a capacidade que ten na regulación dalgúns neurotransmisores, así como de favorecer os cambios morfolóxicos en estructuras cerebrais coma o hipocampo. Os derradeiros estudos revelan que tamén pode xogar un papel na neuroplasticidade. Os efectos secundarios que antigamente eran graves e frecuentes como as roturas óseas e musculares, hoxe en día son anecdóticos e sustituíronse polas náuseas e a dor de cabeza. As pérdidas de memoria seguen sendo a principal preocupación dos pacientes, pero mediante o desenvolvemento de novas técnicas coma as descargas ultrabreves unilaterais dereitas, pódense disminuir nos pacientes predispostos. A terapia electroconvulsiva demostrou a sua efectividade en múltiples patoloxías como a depresión maior, a catatonía e incluso obtendo mellores resultados ca os tratamentos farmacolóxicos. A pesar disto, segue estando infrautilizada na práctica médica. Os pacientes e os seus familiares, unha vez finalizou o seu tratamento coa terapia electroconvulsiva, séntense satisfeitos cos resultados e a atención recibida, e incluso contan que repetirían o tratamento se fora precisoThe electroconvulsive therapy was born in the year 1938 by the hand of Lucio Bini and Ugo Cerletti. Since that moment, it has been developed and improved in order to achieve better results with the fewer side effects. However, the cinema and the media continue to share an outdated image of the electroconvulsive therapy. It is a medical procedure in which, through the use of electric shocks, it is intended to induce a seizure in the patient. The whole process is carried out with the use of anesthesia and muscle relaxation to improve safety. The mechanism by which it makes its therapeutic effect has not been proven with certainty. The ability to regulate some neurotransmitters is being investigated, as well as to promote morphological changes in brain structures such as the hippocampus. The latest studies reveal that it may also play a role in the neuroplasticity. The side effects that were once serious and frequent such as bone and muscle breaks, today are anecdotal and have been replaced by nausea and headache. Memory losses remain the main concern of patients, but through the development of new techniques such as right unilateral ultra-brief pulse, they can be reduced in predisposed patients. Electroconvulsive therapy has proven its effectiveness in multiple pathologies such as major depression, catatonia, even obtaining better results than pharmacological treatments. Despite this, it is still underused in medical practice. Patients and their families, once they have finished their treatment with electroconvulsive therapy, feel satisfied with the results and the care received and even report that they would repeat the treatment if necessar

Comparative study of silicone-hydrogel contact lenses surfaces before and after wear using atomic force microscopy

Purpose: The aim of this study was to analyze surface changes of three silicone-hydrogel contact lenses after daily wear. The lenses used in this study were balafilcon A, lotrafilcon B (both surface-treated), and galyfilcon A (non surface-treated). Methods: To understand how and where proteins, lipids, and other contaminants change contact lenses, surface roughness was assessed through Atomic Force Microscopy Tapping ModeTM. Roughness parameters were Mean Surface roughness (Ra), Mean-square-roughness (Rq), and Maximum roughness (Rmax). The surface topography of unworn and worn lenses was also mapped in great detail. Results: Contact lenses roughness parameters exhibited different values before and after wear and the surface appearance also changed. After wear, balafilcon A and galyfilcon A showed a significant increase on surface roughness parameters, being this increase more accentuated to galyfilcon A. In lotrafilcon B materials no significant changes were observed with wear. Conclusions: The present study suggests that surface treatment of silicone-hydrogel contact lenses can play a role in the prevention of a significant increase in roughness, and contribute to the better clinical tolerance of these lenses.University of PortoIBM

The effect of lens wear on refractive index of conventional hydrogel and silicone-hydrogel contact lenses: a comparative study

Purpose: The purpose of this work was to evaluate the ability of four silicone-hydrogel contact lenses (galyfilcon A, balafilcon A, lotrafilcon A and lotrafilcon B) to retain their equilibrium water content before and after wear, through measurements of refractive index and compare with that of a conventional disposable hydrogel contact lens (etafilcon A). Methods: The refractive indices of 115 contact lenses were measured using an automated refractometer (CLR 12-70, Index Instruments, Cambridge, U.K.) before and after a schedule of daily wear by 58 patients for 30 days in the case of silicone-hydrogel lenses and 15 days for the conventional contact lenses. Results: In the silicone-hydrogel contact lenses the changes on the refractive indices were not statistically significant, however after being worn the refractive index of the conventional etalfilcon A hydrogel contact lens increased significantly ( p < 0.001). Conclusion: The results presented here show that after being worn the silicone-hydrogel contact lens, show more capacity to retain or to reach their initial equilibrium water content than conventional hydrogel contact lenses. This suggests that the silicone-hydrogel contact lenses are less susceptible to spoilation over time maintaining its biocompatibility and contributing to the clinical success of lens performance.Vision and Johnson & Johnson.Bausch & Lom

The effect of silicone-hydrogel and conventional hydrogel contact lenses wear on the tear film: a comparison between de lenses

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of one conventional hydrogel and four silicone-hydrogel contact lenses of 6-months daily wear on the quantity and stability of the tear film. The tests were performed with a group of patients with no previous contact lenses experience before and after wear on 96 eyes. Methods: The contact lenses tested were: 19 Galyfilcon A (Acuvue® Advance™), 15 Balafilcon A (PureVision™), 20 Lotrafilcon A (Focus® Night & Day™), 14 Lotrafilcon B (O2Optix™) and 28 Etalfilcon A (Acuvue®). Each silicone-hydrogel contact lens was used for 1 month and the conventional hydrogel for 15 days. Every patient used a different lens in each eye. Tear film stability was monitored by tear Break-up-time (BUT) and Non Invasive Break Up Time (NiBUT) and tear volume was measured by the Total Tear Meniscus Height and the Red Phenol Test. Results: The following tables summarize the difference between the measurements obtained in the first and in the last day of wear of each contact lens brand and the results were analyzed comparing the conventional hydrogel and the siliconehydrogel contact lenses (Table 1, 2, and 3), the lenses belonging to the first generation of silicone-hydrogel contact lenses (table 4) and the lenses belonging to the second generation of silicone-hydrogel (Table 5). The significance (p value) of 0.05 is considered statistically significant. Conclusions: Although there are some differences between the lenses, there are no statistically significant differences between the lenses and measurements obtained before and after contact lenses wear on the tear film tests.Objectivo: Avaliar o efeito de 6 meses de uso diário de uma lente de contacto de hidrogel convencional e quatro lentes de contacto de silicone-hidrogel na qualidade e estabilidade do filme lacrimal. Os testes foram realizados num grupo de pacientes (96 olhos) sem experiência prévia de uso de lentes de contacto, antes e depois do período de uso das lentes. Material e Métodos: As lentes de contacto estudadas foram: 19 Galyfilcon A (Acuvue® Advance™), 15 Balafilcon A (PureVision™), 20 Lotrafilcon A (Focus® Night & Day™), 14 Lotrafilcon B (O2Optix™) e 28 Etalfilcon A (Acuvue®). Cada lente de silicone-hidrogel foi usada durante 1 mês e a lente de hidrogel convencional durante 15 dias. Todos os pacientes usaram uma lente diferente em cada olho. A estabilidade do filme lacrimal foi avaliada pelo teste de ruptura lacrimal (BUT) e pelo teste de ruptura lacrimal não invasivo (NIBUT). O volume lacrimal foi medido pala altura total do menisco lacrimal e pelo teste vermelho fenol (Red Phenol Test) Resultados: Nas tabelas seguintes apresenta-se a diferença entre as medidas obtidas no 1º e último dia de uso para cada marca de lente de contacto e os resultados foram analisados comparando a lente de contacto hidrogel convencional com as lentes de silicone-hidrogel (Tabela 1, 2 e 3), as lentes pertencentes à 1ª geração de lentes de silicone-hidrogel (Tabela 4) e as lentes que pertencem à 2ª geração das lentes de silicone-hidrogel (Tabela 5). O valor da significância (p) é considerada estatisticamente significativa quando ≤0.05. Conclusões: Embora existam algumas diferenças entre as lentes de contacto estudadas, não há diferenças estatisticamente significativas entre os valores obtidos nos testes de avaliação do filme lacrimal antes e depois do uso das lentes de contacto

Symptoms in a population of contact lens and noncontact lens wearers under different environmental conditions

None of the authors has a commercial or financial interest in the instruments or materials used in the study. The authors wish to thank the assistance of AP Almeida, AP Costa, A, Fernandes, A Teixeira, C Marques, C Pinho and J Matos for their assistance in data acquisition, and Dr. Ana Costa from the program of Support to the Edition of Scientific Papers at the University of Minho for help with English editing of the manuscript.PURPOSE: To investigate ocular symptoms related to dryness in an adult population of contact lens (CL) and non contact lens wearers (n-CL) using video display terminals (VDT) for different periods of time under different indoor conditions related to air conditioning (AC) and heating units (HU) exposure. METHODS: A questionnaire was distributed to 334 people within a university population of which 258 were part of the n-CL group and 76 of the CL wearers to assess symptoms of ocular discomfort potentially related to dryness. Only soft contact lens (SCL) wearers (n = 71) were included for further statistical analysis because of the reduced number of people wearing other lens types. A 2:1 match by gender group of 142 subjects in the n-CL group was used as a control sample. RESULTS: There was a marked difference between the prevalence of symptoms and the way they are reported by CL and n-CL wearers. Red eye, itching, and scratchiness are more common among CL wearers, but the difference is statistically significant only for scratchiness (p < 0.01, chi(2)). The vast majority of subjects who reported symptoms often and at the end of the day are significantly more prevalent among CL wearers (p < 0.01, chi(2)). Gender differences were also encountered. Female CL wearers reported more scratchiness than males in the n-CL wearing group (p = 0.029, chi(2)) and in the CL group (p < 0.008, chi(2)). Females wearing CL reported symptoms of red eye (p = 0.043, chi(2)) and scratchiness (p < 0.001, chi(2)) more significantly than those in the n-CL group. Within the CL group, the prevalence of symptoms occurring sometimes or often and at the end of the day was higher among females (p < 0.001, chi(2)). The use of VDT was associated with a higher level of scratchiness among CL wearers (p < 0.05, chi(2)). The number of hours working with VDTs seemed to be associated with an increase in the prevalence of burning sensation in the CL group (p < 0.01, chi(2)), whereas symptoms like red eye and scratchiness also increased significantly among n-CL wearers. Compared to n-CL wearers, all symptoms increase in CL wearers in environments with AC and HU, except excessive tearing. However, these differences are only statistically significant for scratchiness. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that people who wear soft CL and work with VDTs for longer periods of time are more likely to develop symptoms like eye burning and scratchiness than n-CL wearers. This risk could be higher for women than men. Scratchiness and the appearance of symptoms near the end of the day are typically associated with ocular discomfort during CL wear in this sample, and clinicians should question their patients about these symptoms to anticipate serious discomfort.This study was partially supported by a grant from the Science and Technology Foundation (FCT) - Ministry of Science and Superior Education (MCES) under contract 8281/2002 from the European Social Funding granted to JMG-M

Statistical Comparison of Classifiers Applied to the Interferential Tear Film Lipid Layer Automatic Classification

The tear film lipid layer is heterogeneous among the population. Its classification depends on its thickness and can be done using the interference pattern categories proposed by Guillon. The interference phenomena can be characterised as a colour texture pattern, which can be automatically classified into one of these categories. From a photography of the eye, a region of interest is detected and its low-level features are extracted, generating a feature vector that describes it, to be finally classified in one of the target categories. This paper presents an exhaustive study about the problem at hand using different texture analysis methods in three colour spaces and different machine learning algorithms. All these methods and classifiers have been tested on a dataset composed of 105 images from healthy subjects and the results have been statistically analysed. As a result, the manual process done by experts can be automated with the benefits of being faster and unaffected by subjective factors, with maximum accuracy over 95%

Correlation between tear osmolarity and tear meniscus

Purpose. To examine the relationship between tear meniscus height (TMH) and subjective meniscus grading (subjective TM) with tear osmolarity. Methods. Tear osmolarity measurements (using TearLab) and digital images of the tear meniscus were obtained in 177 consecutive patients undergoing an eye examination at our optometry clinic (Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Spain) who fulfilled the study's inclusion criteria. Participants were also administered the McMonnies and Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) questionnaires for the detection of dry eye disease. The lower tear meniscus was videotaped by a digital camera attached to a slit lamp in its central portion without fluorescein instillation. After the study, a masked observer extracted an image from each video, and measured the TMH using open source software (NIH ImageJ). Subsequently, the masked observer subjectively graded the appearance of each meniscus. For statistical analysis, subjects were stratified by age and by dry eye symptoms as indicated by their scores in the two questionnaires. Results. In the whole study population, a significant relationship was observed between osmolarity and TMH (-0.41, p<0.001) and osmolarity and subjective TM (r = 0.35, p<0.001). A cluster analysis revealed similar correlations when subjects were stratified by age or dry eye symptoms, these correlations being more pronounced in older and more symptomatic individuals. Objective TMH measurements and subjective meniscus quality were also correlated (r=-0.75, p<0.001). Conclusions. Osmolarity and both objective TMH measurements and subjective interpretation of the meniscus showed high correlation, especially in older symptomatic subjects.Estudio patrocinado por el Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia y el Instituto de Salud Carlos III a través del proyecto PI10/01098.S

Alterações na transmitância UV-Visível induzidas pelo uso de lentes de contacto de silicone-hidrogel

Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) through Centro de Física da U