End of Life Cost Savings in the Palliative Care Unit Compared to Other Services.

Context Hospital deaths carry a significant healthcare cost that has been confirmed to be lower when palliative care units (PCUs) are available. Objectives To compare the last admission hospital health care cost of dying in a first-level hospital between the PCU and the rest of the hospital services. Methods A retrospective, comparative, observational study evaluating costs from the payer perspective on treatments and diagnostic-therapeutic tests performed on patients who die in first-level hospital, comparing whether they were treated by the PCU or another unit (Non-PCU). Patients with a mortality risk >2 were included according to the Severity of Illness Index (SOI) and Risk of Mortality (MOR). All cost express in €, median per patient and interquartile range (IQR). Results From 1,833 patients who died, 1,389 were included, 442 (31.1%) treated by PCU and 928 (68.9%) Non-PCU. Statistical differences were found for the last admission total cost (€262.8 (€470.1) for PCU versus €515.3 (€980.48) in Non-PCU), daily total cost (€74.27 (€127.4) vs €115.8 (€142.4) Non-PCU). Savings were maintained when the sample was broken down by diagnosis-related group (DRG) and a multivariate analysis was performed to determine how the different patients baseline characteristics between PCU and Non-PCU patients influenced the results obtained. Conclusions Data from this study show that cost is significantly lower when the patients are treated by a PCU during their last hospital stay when they pass away.post-print159 K

Intangibles factors and quality assessment of the service received in travel agencies

La adaptación de las agencias de viajes a los patrones de la Nueva Economía nos conduce a una tendencia hacia la reestructuración del sector, centrada en la búsqueda de nuevas estrategias competitivas. La creciente importancia de los activos intangibles para la consecución de dichas estrategias ha motivado este estudio, que trata de identificar aquellos factores intangibles, presentes en la prestación de este servicio, y que están directamente relacionados con la percepción, por parte del cliente, de una diferenciación en el servicio recibido.Adaptation of travel agencies to the standards of the New Economy is leading to a trend towards restructuring the sector aimed at finding new competitive strategies. The growing importance of intangible assets in achieving such strategies has motivated this study, which has tried to identify those intangible factors, present in the provision of the service, that have a direct relationship with the client´s perception of a differentiation in the service received

Measures to evaluate quality of care in head and neck cancer: Results of a Delphi study.

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A survey of deep learning models in medical therapeutic areas.

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Electronic Noses and Tongues in Wine Industry

Producción CientíficaThe quality of wines is usually evaluated by a sensory panel formed of trained experts or traditional chemical analysis. Over the last few decades, electronic noses (e-noses) and electronic tongues have been developed to determine the quality of foods and beverages. They consist of arrays of sensors with cross-sensitivity, combined with pattern recognition software, which provide a fingerprint of the samples that can be used to discriminate or classify the samples. This holistic approach is inspired by the method used in mammals to recognize food through their senses. They have been widely applied to the analysis of wines, including quality control, aging control, or the detection of fraudulence, among others. In this paper, the current status of research and development in the field of e-noses and tongues applied to the analysis of wines is reviewed. Their potential applications in the wine industry are described. The review ends with a final comment about expected future developments.CM-P agradece a la Universidad de Valladolid por su beca PIF-UVa y CG-H por su contrato pre-doctoral JCYL (BOCYL-D-24112015-9).Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad – FEDER (Grant AGL2015-67482-R)Junta de Castilla y León (programa de apoyo a proyectos de investigación - Ref. VA-032U13

Economic Evaluation of Fluticasone Propionate/ Formoterol (Flutiform ) vs. Fluticasone/Salmeterol and Budesonide/Formoterol in Spain.

Introduction: The aim of this economic evaluation was to estimate the cost-effectiveness of fluticasone propionate/formoterol (FP/FORM; Flutiform ) and compare it to those of fluticasone/ salmeterol (FS) and budesonide/formoterol (BF) when used in the treatment of adult patients with moderate-to-severe asthma. Methods: A Markov model was developed with five asthma health states: successful control, suboptimal control, outpatient-managed exacerbation, inpatient-managed exacerbation, and death. The time horizon was set at 12 months. Transition probabilities and indirect resource utilization were derived from previous international and Spanish publications. Univariate and probabilistic sensitivity analyses (SAs) were applied. Results: FP/FORM was less expensive to acquire than FS or BF (20% lower than FS and 30% lower than BF), while the quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) of the three options compared were very similar. Cost per patient in the FP/FORM cohort was 9326€/year, making it the cheapest option, 1.5% cheaper than FS and 2.6% cheaper than BF. The suboptimal control health state dominated the costs (80% of the total cost) in each of the analyzed options and scenarios. The results of the SAs verified the data obtained from the base case scenario. Conclusions: From a Spanish societal perspective, in 2014, FP/FORM produced a similar gain in QALYs but at a lower cost when compared to FS and BF in a highly meaningful number of replications and scenarios. FP/FORM can therefore be considered a cost-effective option in the treatment of moderate-to-severe asthma in Spain. The cost savings were mainly due to the significantly lower acquisition cost of FP/FORM than the other two options.post-print872 K

Subphthalocyanines as electron mediators in biosensors based on phenol oxidases

The electron mediator properties of three subphthalocyanines (SubPcs) [hexa-chloro boron subphthalocyanine (ClSubPc), tri-tert-butyl boron subphthalocyanine (t-BuSubPc) and hexa-phenoxy boron subphthalocyanine (PhOSubPc)] in Tyrosinase and Laccase biosensors (deposited on ITO glass) for the detection of catechol and hydroquinone were evidenced. A particularly remarkable performance was observed in the PhOSubPc-Tyr sensor, which takes account of the π-π interactions between subphthalocyanine rings and the active sites of the enzymes. Mediated electron transfer between redox enzymes and the ITO electrode improved the limits of detection by one order of magnitude, reaching 10−7 mol·L−1 values. Studies at increasing scan rates confirmed the improvement of the charge transfer rates caused by the presence of the SubPcs. A bioelectronic tongue formed by an array of the SubPc based biosensors has been able to discriminate red wines according to their Total Polyphenol Index.2020-07-102020-07-1

Effect of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the control and severity of pediatric asthma.

Background: The novel disease caused by the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has caused an unprecedented global pandemic. Care providers of asthmatic children are increasingly con-cerned; as viral infections are one of the primary triggers of asthma flare-up. However, the effect of SARS-CoV-2 as well as the generated worldwide lockdown on asthmatic children is unknown. Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of pandemic SARS-CoV-2 in pediat-ric asthma control. Material and Methods: A retrospective, open, transversal study was performed at five ter-tiary hospitals. Recruited patients were aged <18 years and had physician-diagnosed asthma. Information regarding the 2019 and 2020 seasons were provided. Results: Data were collected from 107 children (age range: 3–18 years, mean age: 12 years). Well-controlled asthma was observed in 58 (54.2%) patients in 2020 versus 30 (28%) in 2019, and 15 (14%) patients had poorly controlled asthma in 2020 versus 28 (26.2%) in 2019. In 2020, a decrease in exacerbations caused by allergies to pollen, dust mites, molds, and through other causes not related to SARS-CoV-2 infection was observed. An increase in exacerbations was observed due to animal dander, stress, physical exercise, and SARSCoV- 2 infectionpost-print362 K

Evaluación del estado nutricional al ingreso y evolución tras siete días de hospitalización en un hospital de segundo nivel de Madrid.

Introducción: la desnutrición hospitalaria es un problema de alta prevalencia y continúa siendo a día de hoy una asignatura pendiente, ya que a menudo pasa desapercibida para el personal sanitario, con las consiguientes repercusiones clínicas negativas que esto conlleva. Objetivos: a) evaluar el estado nutricional al ingreso; b) conocer la evolución tras una semana de hospitalización; c) analizar la relación entre el estado nutricional y distintas variables clínicas (especialidades, edad, pérdida de peso corporal, estancia media, reingresos e interconsultas al servicio de endocrinología-nutrición). Métodos: estudio observacional, prospectivo, analítico y aleatorio de 260 pacientes de servicios médicos y quirúrgicos, evaluados nutricionalmente al ingreso y tras siete días de hospitalización mediante la VGS y la NRS-2002. Resultados: la prevalencia al ingreso según la VGS fue del 48 % y según la NRS-2002 del 38,5 %. Tras una semana de hospitalización, la prevalencia aumentó al 72,5 % y el 58,8 %, respectivamente. Tras siete días, en el 2-7,8 % mejoró el estado nutricional; en cambio, en el 16-27,5 % empeoró. La desnutrición al ingreso se asoció con estancias más prolongadas (6 días los normonutridos frente a 8 días los desnutridos); con una mayor edad (64 años los normonutridos frente a 71 años los desnutridos); con las especialidades médicas más que con las quirúrgicas (44-53 % vs. 20-32 %); con la pérdida de peso (al ingresar habían perdido 2,1 kg de media respecto al peso habitual y 0,9 kg tras siete días de hospitalización); y con los reingresos prematuros (8-11 % los normonutridos frente a 27 % los desnutridos), entre otros. Conclusiones: los resultados hallados nos ofrecen una panorámica de la desnutrición hospitalaria, mostrando cómo evolucionan nutricionalmente los pacientes durante los ingresos y cuáles son los momentos cruciales de actuación. Es sumamente importante que el personal sanitario se conciencie y tome medidas.post-print791 K

Nuevas Raíces

Treballs de l'alumnat del Grau de Comunicació Audiovisual, Facultat de Biblioteconomia i Documentació, Universitat de Barcelona, [Projectes II - Grup7]. Curs: 2016-2017, Tutor: Ricard Belis i Garcia.Directora: Ariadna Pividal Valero; Cap de Producció: Anaís Tabueña Puente; Productora executiva: Cristina Pérez Campos; Documentació: Ariadna Pividal Valero, Beatriz Villa Antón; Directora de fotografia: Ionela Diana Modrogan; Càmera: Ionela Diana Modrogan; Il·luminadora: Laura Rodríguez Campos; Atrezzista: Laura Rodríguez Campos; Direcció artística: Laura Rodríguez Campos; Direcció de so: Julia Pomodoro Laffite; Muntatge: Beatriz Villa Antón; Música: Jordi Tena Mellado; Equip artístic: Ángeles Rodríguez, Manolo Pérez, Hipólita de la Fuente, Carmen Venteo.Nuevas Raíces mostra la vida de quatre persones que van haver d'emigrar del poble a la ciutat per millorar les seves condicions de vida. Els testimonis ens expliquen, d'una manera íntima, perquè van haver de marxar, com es van sentir, com van viure aquest canvi i com es troben en l'actualitat fora del seu lloc de procedència