[Ischemic stroke and vascular risk factors in young and older adults. Community-based retrospective study (2011-2020)]. / Ictus isquémico y factores de riesgo vascular en el adulto joven y el adulto mayor. Estudio retrospectivo de base comunitaria (2011-2020).

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the presence of vascular risk factors (VRF) among young adult and older adult patients with ischemic stroke, with and without follow-up in primary care after hospital discharge. DESIGN: Observational, retrospective, multicenter study. SETTING: Primary care health centers and Hospital Verge de la Cinta, Tortosa, Spain. PARTICIPANTS: Patients with ischemic stroke of two age groups (≤55 and ≥65years) distributed in two groups (GroupA: without follow-up in primary care; and GroupB: with follow-up in primary care), between 2011-2020. MAIN MEASUREMENTS: Sociodemographic, clinical, and VRF data coded according to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10). Descriptive, and inferential statistics. RESULTS: Data from 2054 participants were analyzed. In the young adult group, 94.9% of the participants in groupA had between 1-2VRFs, compared to 60% in groupB. In the older adult group, 84.4% of groupA had between 1-2VRFs, compared to 43,9% of groupB. The most frequent VRFs among younger and older adult patients with ischemic stroke were hypertension and dyslipidemia in both follow-up groups. There were no records of obesity, smoking, or alcohol consumption in groupA. There was a significant association between being followed up in primary care after stroke and being a young adult and presenting between 3-4 VRFs (P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The results reinforce the need for continuity of care and follow-up in people with acute stroke in primary care and the need to improve the quality of registries.

Differences in the Immune Response of the Nonmetastatic Axillary Lymph Nodes between Triple-Negative and Luminal A Breast Cancer Surrogate Subtypes.

Breast cancer (BC) comprises four immunohistochemical surrogate subtypes of which triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has the highest risk of mortality. Axillary lymph nodes (ALNs) are the regions where BC cells first establish before distant metastasis, and the presence of tumor cells in the ALN causes an immune tolerance profile that contrasts with that of the nonmetastatic ALN (ALN-). However, few studies have compared the immune components of the ALNs- in BC subtypes. The present study aimed to determine whether differences between immune populations in the primary tumor and ALNs- were associated with the luminal A or TNBC subtype. We evaluated a retrospective cohort of 144 patients using paraffin-embedded biopsies. The TNBC samples tended to have a higher histologic grade and proliferation index and had higher levels of immune markers compared with luminal A in primary tumors and ALNs-. Two methods for validating the multivariate analysis found that histologic grade, intratumoral S100 dendritic cells, and CD8 T lymphocytes and CD57 natural killer cells in the ALNs- were factors associated with TNBC, whereas CD83 dendritic cells in the ALNs- were associated with the luminal A subtype. In conclusion, we found that intratumoral regions and ALNs- of TNBC contained higher concentrations of markers related to immune tolerance than luminal A. This finding partially explains the worse prognosis of patients with TNBC.

[Impact on weight loss and body composition of a food education intervention associated with Liraglutide treatment to address obesity]. / Impacto en la pérdida de peso y la composición corporal de una intervención de educación alimentaria asociada al tratamiento con liraglutida para el abordaje de la obesidad.

Introduction: Introduction: clinical practice guidelines recommend considering pharmacological treatment of obesity only as a complement to lifestyle modification. Drugs alone are usually ineffective in the long term after discontinuation, so pharmacological weight loss strategies should always be accompanied by lifestyle modifications. Objective: to analyze the changes in weight, body mass index and body composition by means of electrical bioimpedance after a 32-week treatment with liraglutide in patients with obesity, associated or not with a food education program. Materials and methods: the study involved 68 patients who were randomly divided into 2 groups. One group received treatment with liraglutide 3.0 mg/day along with individual dietary education, and the other group was treated with liraglutide 3.0 mg/day and standard medical follow-up for 32 weeks. The data collected were weight (kg), height (m) (Seca® brand), body mass index (kg/m2) and body composition using multifrequency bioimpedance (SECA 112® brand). The variables were analyzed at the beginning and at the end of the treatment. Results: after 32 weeks of treatment, both study groups lost weight significantly. The group treated with liraglutide and individual dietary education had a reduction of 8.77 kg (9.08 %) (p < 0.001) and the group treated with liraglutide without education had a reduction of 3.55 kg (3.45 %) (p < 0.001). The BMI of the participants treated with liraglutide and education decreased by -4,04 kg/m2 (10.35 %) (p < 0.001) and in the group without education it decreased by -3.22 kg/m2 (8.30 %) (p = 0.003). In the educated group, fat mass decreased by -7.65 kg (15.89 %) (p < 0.001), although skeletal muscle mass also decreased by -1.62 kg (6.8 %) (p < 0.001). In those treated with liraglutide without education, a reduction in fat mass and skeletal muscle mass was also observed - fat mass by -4.72 kg (9.43 %) (p < 0.001) and skeletal muscle mass by -0.17 kg (0.70 %) (p < 0.001). Differences were also observed between groups, observing a greater reduction in weight, BMI, fat mass and skeletal muscle mass in the group with liraglutide and education compared to the group without education, although these differences were not statistically significant. Conclusions: dietary education associated with liraglutide treatment may contribute to increasing weight and fat mass losses. However, it was also associated with an unwanted loss of skeletal muscle mass, probably related to the greater intensity of weight loss, which will have to be reversed in future therapeutic approaches. Habit modification through multidisciplinary treatment, including nutritional education, combined strength and resistance exercise, and cognitive-behavioral therapy, could be an effective way to treat obesity and maintain weight, body composition, and adherence to a lifestyle.

Introducción: Introducción: las guías de práctica clínica recomiendan considerar el tratamiento farmacológico de la obesidad únicamente como complemento de la modificación del estilo de vida. Objetivo: analizar los cambios sobre el peso, el índice de masa corporal y la composición corporal mediante bioimpedancia eléctrica tras un tratamiento de 32 semanas con liraglutida en pacientes con obesidad, asociado o no a un programa de educación alimentaria. Materiales y métodos: participaron 68 pacientes que fueron divididos aleatoriamente en 2 grupos. Uno recibió tratamiento con liraglutida 3,0 mg/día junto con educación alimentaria individual y el otro fue tratado con liraglutida 3,0 mg/día y seguimiento médico estándar durante 32 semanas.Datos recogidos:l peso, talla, IMCl y composición corporal mediante bioimpedancia multifrecuencia. Se analizaron las variables al inicio y al final del tratamiento. Resultados: tras 32 semanas de tratamiento, los dos grupos de estudio redujeron el peso de manera significativa. El grupo tratado con liraglutida y educación alimentaria individual tuvo una reducción de 8,77 kg (9,08 %) (p < 0,001) y el grupo tratado con liraglutida sin educación tuvo una reducción de 3,55 kg (3,45 %) (p < 0,001). El IMC de los participantes tratados con liraglutida y educación disminuyó en -4,04 kg/m2 (10,35 %) (p < 0,001) y en el grupo sin educación se redujo en -3,22 kg/m2 (8,30 %) (p = 0,003). En el grupo con educación disminuyó la masa grasa en -7,65 kg (15,89 %) (p < 0,001), aunque también la masa muscular esquelética en -1,62 kg (6,8 %) (p < 0,001). En los tratados con liraglutida sin educación también se observó una reducción de la masa grasa y masa muscular esquelética: la masa grasa en -4,72 kg (9,43 %) (p < 0,001) y la masa muscular esquelética en -0,17 kg (0,70 %) (p < 0,001). También se observaron diferencias entre grupos, observándose mayor reducción del peso, del IMC, de lamasa grasa y de la masa muscular esquelética en el grupo con liraglutida y educación con respecto al grupo sin educación, aunque estas diferencias no llegaron a ser estadísticamente significativas. Conclusiones: la educación alimentaria asociada al tratamiento con liraglutida puede contribuir a incrementar la pérdida de peso y de la masa grasa. Sin embargo, llevó también asociada una pérdida no deseada de masa muscular esquelética, probablemente relacionada con la mayor intensidad de pérdida de peso, que habrá que revertir en futuras aproximaciones terapéuticas.

Stressor Factors for Spanish Nursing Students in a Pandemic Context: An Observational Pilot Survey.

BACKGROUND: The context of the pandemic in Spain meant a high demand for care. The purpose of this pilot work was to determine the stress factors, conducted on final-year nursing students at a Spanish university, who volunteered to carry out healthcare tasks, in pandemic and post-pandemic contexts. METHODS: An observational prospective cohort pilot survey was conducted with an intentional sampling of the forty-seven students. We collected sociodemographic and stressor data using the validated KEZKAK questionnaire. The STROBE checklist was used to evaluate the study. RESULTS: The median scores obtained from nursing students incorporated as auxiliary health workers are lower than those who were not incorporated, and statistically significant differences were found: lack of skills and abilities (p = 0.016); relationship with tutors and colleagues (p = 0.004); impotence and uncertainty (p = 0.011); inability to manage the relationship with the patient (p = 0.009); emotional involvement (p = 0.032); distress caused by the relationship with patients and item overload (p = 0.039); and overload items (p = 0.011). The post-pandemic only maintained "lack of skill and abilities" (p = 0.048), from nursing students incorporated as auxiliary health workers. CONCLUSION: This pilot study showed that nursing students who joined as auxiliary health personnel presented less perceived stress than non-incorporated nursing students. Still, more prospectively designed clinical research is needed.

Vascular Risk Factors in Ischemic Stroke Survivors: A Retrospective Study in Catalonia, Spain.

Background: The distribution of vascular risk factors (VRFs) and stroke management vary by geographic area. Our aim was to examine the percentage of the VRFs according to age and sex in ischemic stroke survivors in a geographical area on the Mediterranean coast of Southern Catalonia, Spain. Methods: This was a multicenter, observational, retrospective, community-based study of a cohort, the data of which we obtained from digital clinical records of the Catalan Institute of Health. The study included all patients with a confirmed diagnosis of ischemic stroke who were treated between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2020. Patients met the following inclusion criteria: residing in the study area, age ≥ 18 years, and presenting ≥1 modifiable vascular risk factor. The exclusion criteria were as follows: death patients (non-survivors) and patients without modifiable VRFs. We collected the demographic, clinical, and VRF variables of the total of 2054 cases included, and we analyzed the data according to age groups, sex, and number of VRFs. Results: Most of the patients included were in the 55−80 age group (n = 1139; 55.45%). Of the patients, 56.48% (n = 1160) presented ≤ 2 modifiable VRFs, and the age group <55 years old (67.01%) presented more VRFs. Hypertension and (>80 years old (38.82%)) and dyslipidemia (<55 years (28.33%)) were the most prevalent VRFs. In the age group 55−80 (69.59% men), the prevalence of VRFs was higher ((3−4 VRF (42.76%) and >4 VRF (5.35%)). Conclusions: These results suggest the presence of many VRFs in people diagnosed with ischemic stroke­although with a lower percentage compared to other studies­and the need for specific individualized interventions for the control of modifiable RFs related to primary and secondary prevention of stroke.

CD68 and CD83 immune populations in non-metastatic axillary lymph nodes are of prognostic value for the survival and relapse of breast cancer patients.

BACKGROUND: The foremost cause of death of breast cancer (BC) patients is metastasis, and the first site to which BC predominantly metastasizes is the axillary lymph node (ALN). Thus, ALN status is a key prognostic indicator at diagnosis. The immune system has an essential role in cancer progression and dissemination, so its evaluation in ALNs could have significant applications. In the present study we aimed to investigate the association of clinical-pathological and immune variables in the primary tumour and non-metastatic ALNs (ALNs-) of a cohort of luminal A and triple-negative BC (TNBC) patients with cancer-specific survival (CSS) and time to progression (TTP). METHODS: We analysed the differences in the variables between patients with different outcomes, created univariate and multivariate Cox regression models, validated them by bootstrapping and multiple imputation of missing data techniques, and used Kaplan-Meier survival curves for a 10-years follow-up. RESULTS: We found some clinical-pathological variables at diagnosis (tumour diameter, TNBC molecular profile and presence of ALN metastasis), and the levels of several immune markers in the two studied sites, to be associated with worse CSS and TTP. Nevertheless, only CD68 and CD83 in ALNs- were confirmed as independent prognostic factors for TTP. CONCLUSIONS: The study identified the importance of macrophage and dendritic cell markers as prognostic factors of relapse for BC. We highlight the importance of studying the immune response in ALNs-, which could be relevant to the prediction of BC patients' outcome.

Psychological Well-Being in Nursing Students: A Multicentric, Cross-Sectional Study.

In addition to complying with strict academic standards, nursing students must acquire relevant knowledge and skills, and learn how to carry themselves in different and often stressful professional settings. These obligations could severely affect their mental health. The purpose of this study was to examine the mental health status of undergraduate nursing students and related factors. A total of 1368 nursing students from different universities in Spain and Chile were included in this study, which took place over the 2018-2019 academic year. We assessed their levels of stress related to specific learning methodologies and determined their mental health status using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28). The results revealed that the more advanced the course was, the lower the total GHQ-28 score. The stress generated by different types of training activities had a significant effect on the total GHQ-28 score. These results suggest that nursing education could act as a protective factor against mental health disorders. Although a heavy academic workload could lead to higher levels of stress, overall, it seems that mental health is better in more advanced courses than in initial academic years.

Influence of Pain and Discomfort in Stroke Patients on Coping Strategies and Changes in Behavior and Lifestyle.

The implementation of prevention strategies can reduce the risk of having a stroke. This prospective, longitudinal, multicenter observational study of 82 patients describes health habits, quality of life, coping strategies, and physical and neurological status at 3 months and 1 year after stroke. The EuroQoL-5D quality of life scale (EQ-5D) and the coping strategy measurement scale (COPE-28) were used to assess pain and discomfort, and behavioral and lifestyle changes. Significant differences were observed in the pain or discomfort levels of those patients with behavioral and lifestyle changes. Correlation was also found between pain or discomfort and the coping strategies associated with active emotional support at 1 year after stroke. The results of the pain or discomfort dimension were not, however, associated with better adherence to treatment. Pain and discomfort could have a predictive value in changes in lifestyles and behaviors but not for treatment adherence in patients who have had a stroke, which is significant at 1 year. In addition to important active coping strategies such as social support, these changes in behavior and lifestyle following a stroke are long-term and should therefore be assessed during the initial examination.

Coping Strategies, Quality of Life, and Neurological Outcome in Patients Treated with Mechanical Thrombectomy after an Acute Ischemic Stroke.

New reperfusion therapies have improved the clinical recovery rates of acute ischemic stroke patients (AISP), but it is not known whether other factors, such as the ability to cope, might also have an effect. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of endovascular treatment (EVT) on coping strategies, quality of life, and neurological and functional outcomes in AISP at 3 months and 1 year post-stroke. A multicenter, prospective, longitudinal, and comparative study of a sub-study of the participants in the Endovascular Revascularization with Solitaire Device versus Best Medical Therapy in Anterior Circulation Stroke within 8 Hours (REVASCAT) clinical trial was conducted after recruiting from two stroke centers in Catalonia, Spain. The cohort consisted of 82 ischemic stroke patients (n = 42 undergoing EVT and n = 40 undergoing standard best medical treatment (BMT) as a control group), enrolled between 2013-2015. We assessed the coping strategies using the Brief Coping Questionnaire (Brief-COPE-28), the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) with the EQ-5D questionnaire, and the neurological and functional status using the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), Barthel Index (BI), modified Rankin Scale (mRS), and Stroke Impact Scale-16 (SIS-16). Bivariate analyses and multivariate linear regression models were used. EVT patients were the ones that showed better neurological and functional outcomes, and more patients presented reporting no pain/discomfort at 3 months; paradoxically, problem-focused coping strategies were found to be significantly higher in patients treated with BMT at 1 year.