miRNAs as biomarkers for diagnosis of type 2 diabetes: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: This systematic review summarizes results of studies that evaluated the expression of microRNAs (miRs) in prediabetes or type 2 diabetes (T2D). METHODS: The information was obtained from PubMed, EMBL-EBI, Wanfang, Trip Database, Lilacs, CINAHL, Human microRNA Disease Database (HMDD) v3.0, and Google. A qualitative synthesis of the results was performed and miRs frequency was graphically represented. From 1893 identified studies, only 55 fulfilled the inclusion criteria. These 55 studies analyzed miRs in T2D, and of them, 13 also described data of prediabetes. RESULTS: In diabetics, 122 miRs were reported and 35 miRs for prediabetics. However, we identified that five miRs (-122-5p, 144-3p, 210, 375, and -126b) were reported more often in diabetics and four (144-3p, -192, 29a, and -30d) in prediabetics. CONCLUSIONS: Circulating miRs could be used as biomarkers of T2D. However, it is necessary to validate these microRNAs in prospective and multicenter studies with different population subgroups, considering age, gender, and risk factors.

Validity and reliability of the Mexican resilience measurement scale in families of children with chronic conditions.

BACKGROUND: The resilience to face disease is a process of positive adaptation despite the loss of health. It involves developing vitality and skills to overcome the negative effects of adversity, risks, and vulnerability caused by disease. In Mexico, the Mexican Resilience Measurement Scale (RESI-M) has been validated with a general population and has a five-factor structure. However, this scale does not allow evaluation of resilience in specific subpopulations, such as caregivers. METHOD: This study investigated the psychometric properties of RESI-M in 446 family caregivers of children with chronic diseases. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed, internal consistency values were calculated using Cronbach's alpha coefficient, and mean comparisons were determined using t-tests. RESULTS: The expected five-factor model showed an adequate fit with the data based on a maximum likelihood test. The internal consistency for each factor ranged from .76 to .93, and the global internal consistency was .95. No average difference in RESI-M and its factors was found between women and men. CONCLUSION: The RESI-M showed internal consistency and its model of five correlated factors was valid among family caregivers of children with chronic diseases.

Archibald Cochrane: evidencia, efectividad y toma de decisiones en salud / Archibald Cochrane: evidence, effectiveness and decision-making in health

Resumen: Actualmente, la Medicina Basada en Evidencia tiene un papel fundamental en la toma de decisiones médicas, ya que intenta, a través de los métodos de la ciencia, justificar las diferentes alternativas que se le pueden ofrecer a un paciente. Para entender la evolución histórica de esta forma de practicar la medicina, es necesario revisar la contribución de uno de los principales participantes en este movimiento cultural: Archibald Leman Cochrane, quien ayudó a definir el marco teórico que ha permitido incorporar la ciencia a la práctica de la medicina. Su papel, al insistir en la necesidad de integrar la evidencia científica y conjuntarla con la experiencia clínica, constituyó un elemento fundamental y decisivo en el desarrollo de una nueva disciplina, la Medicina Basada en Evidencia.

Abstract: Nowadays, Evidence-Based Medicine plays a fundamental role while making medical decisions, considering that through the methods of science, it attempts to justify the variety of alternatives that may be offered to patients. In order to understand the historical evolution of this way of practicing medicine, it is necessary to review the contribution of one of the main participants in this cultural movement: Archibald Leman Cochrane, who helped to define the theoretical framework that has allowed the integration of science into the practice of medicine. Since he insisted in the need of integrating scientific evidence into clinical experience, his role became a fundamental and decisive element in the development of a new discipline: Evidence-Based Medicine.

[Archibald Cochrane: evidence, effectiveness and decision-making in health]. / Archibald Cochrane: evidencia, efectividad y toma de decisiones en salud.

Nowadays, Evidence-Based Medicine plays a fundamental role while making medical decisions, considering that through the methods of science, it attempts to justify the variety of alternatives that may be offered to patients. In order to understand the historical evolution of this way of practicing medicine, it is necessary to review the contribution of one of the main participants in this cultural movement: Archibald Leman Cochrane, who helped to define the theoretical framework that has allowed the integration of science into the practice of medicine. Since he insisted in the need of integrating scientific evidence into clinical experience, his role became a fundamental and decisive element in the development of a new discipline: Evidence-Based Medicine.

Identification and description of randomized controlled trials and systematic reviews on patient safety published in medical journals.

OBJECTIVE: To identify and describe randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and systematic reviews (SRs) on patient safety published from 1973 onward. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We handsearched a total of 12 medical journals published in English with contents related to patient safety to identify RCTs and SRs published between 1973 and the end of 2010. The results obtained from this search were complemented with an additional search in MEDLINE. The documents were classified by area of specialty or service in which the intervention was applied, level of preventive action, and type of patient safety incident, the latter in accordance with the International Classification for Patient Safety proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO). The main features of the identified studies are also described. RESULTS: A total of 787 issues of 12 journals published between 1973 and 2010 were handsearched. This procedure yielded 10,162 references, of which, 131 corresponded to RCTs and 127 to SRs. A parallel MEDLINE search identified only about two-thirds of these articles. Of all the studies identified, 83 RCTs and 64 SRs addressed interventions related to patient safety. The types of incident related to patient safety that were included most often in RCTs involved the clinical process, and for SRs, those related to resources/organizational management. On average, only 3.5 RCTs and 3.4 SRs were published per year, many of which had significant deficiencies in the reported information, such as, for instance, a lack of details on the methodology used. CONCLUSIONS: The number of RCTs and SRs on patient safety published in specialized journals is scarce. No studies on interventions to improve the safety of the handling of blood and derivatives, infections related to health care, nutrition, or infrastructure were identified as a result of our search. Handsearching plays a key role in the identification of all the clinical trials that could be included in SRs on patient safety interventions. Knowing the content of RCTs and SRs published on patient safety can better target future research.