Dietary Intake of Nutrients Involved in Serotonin and Melatonin Synthesis and Prenatal Maternal Sleep Quality and Affective Symptoms.

Poor sleep quality and psychological distress in pregnancy are important health concerns. Serotonin and melatonin levels may underlie variation in these adverse outcomes. In this study, we examined dietary nutrients involved in serotonin and melatonin synthesis in relation to maternal sleep quality and affective symptoms during pregnancy. Pregnant women at no greater than normal medical risk at enrollment completed 24-hour dietary recalls in mid-late pregnancy. Usual intakes of vitamin B6, vitamin D, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) + docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and tryptophan were estimated from dietary intake of foods and supplements using the National Cancer Institute (NCI) method. Sleep quality, depression, and anxiety were measured using validated questionnaires. Associations between nutrient intakes, sleep quality, and affective symptoms were estimated using generalized estimating equation models adjusting for potential confounding factors. In minimally adjusted models, EPA + DHA and tryptophan intakes were associated with a lower score indicating better sleep quality (b: -1.07, 95% CI: -2.09, -0.05) and (b: -12.40, 95% CI: -24.60, -0.21), respectively. EPA + DHA and tryptophan intakes were also associated with a lower odds of shorter sleep duration and sleep disturbances. In addition, tryptophan was associated with a lower odds of higher sleep latency. However, associations were attenuated and nonsignificant after adjustment for demographic and lifestyle factors. In conclusion, intakes of EPA + DHA and tryptophan were associated with improved sleep quality, but these associations were confounded by maternal demographic and lifestyle characteristics. This study highlights the need to consider dietary intake and pregnancy health in the context of demographic characteristics and lifestyle behaviors.

Validation of the Weight-Related Eating Questionnaire in pregnancy.

The Weight-Related Eating Questionnaire (WREQ), designed for assessing distinct constructs of dietary restraint and disinhibition-related eating behaviors, has not been validated in pregnancy. This secondary data analysis aimed to evaluate the WREQ's psychometrics in a diverse sample of pregnant women from the eMoms randomized controlled trial (N = 1399), randomly split for exploratory (EFA, n = 691) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA, n = 708). Cronbach's alpha and corrected item-total correlation was used to examine internal consistency reliability. Sequential multiple regression analyses were used to assess criterion validity. EFA revealed three factors - dietary restraint, susceptibility to external cues, and emotional eating - accounting for 65.6 % of total variances. Parallel analysis confirmed a combination of two restraint subtypes (routine restraint and compensatory restraint). CFA showed that item 3 for assessing routine restraint had the lowest squared multiple correlation (0.22). The overall Cronbach's alpha of 0.87 demonstrated good internal consistency. Dietary restraint was negatively associated with the intake of energy (p = .03) and carbohydrates (p = .02), whereas susceptibility to external cues was positively associated with the intake of energy (p < .001), carbohydrates (p < .001), and total fat (p = .003). Additionally, emotional eating was positively associated with early-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) after adjustment for covariates (p < .001). These findings confirmed the reliability of the WREQ, the construct validity for susceptibility to external cues and emotional eating, and demonstrated its criterion validity regarding nutritional intake in pregnant women.

Solid-state continuous time crystal in a polariton condensate with a built-in mechanical clock.

Time crystals (TCs) are many-body systems that display spontaneous breaking of time translation symmetry. We demonstrate a TC by using driven-dissipative condensates of microcavity exciton-polaritons, spontaneously formed from an incoherent particle bath. The TC phases are controlled by the power of a continuous-wave nonresonant optical drive exciting the condensate and the interaction with cavity phonons. Those phases are, for increasing power, Larmor-like precession of the condensate pseudo-spins-a signature of continuous TC; locking of the frequency of precession to self-sustained coherent phonons-stabilized TC; and doubling of TC's period by phonons-a discrete TC with continuous excitation. These results establish microcavity polaritons as a platform for the investigation of time-broken symmetry in nonhermitian systems.

Manual scoring of periodic limb movements in children: is it still necessary?

OBJECTIVE: Although manual scoring has been classically considered the gold standard to identify periodic leg movements (PLM), it is a very time consuming and expensive process, also subject to variability in interpretation. In the last decades, different authors have observed reasonably good agreement between automated PSG scoring algorithms and manual scoring in adults, according to established criteria. We aim to compare the automatic software analysis of our polysomnogram with the manual staging in children with sleep-disordered breathing. METHODS: We performed a semiautomatic method, in which an experienced technician watched the video recording and removed from the automatic analysis those movements that did not correspond to true candidate leg movement (LM). RESULTS: A total of 131 PSGs were studied; applying the established criteria, 65 children were diagnosed of obstructive sleep apnea, and 66 presented snoring but with no sleep apnea. The mean age was 6.7 years (±1.7) and twenty-five children (19.08 %) had a PLMI >5/h. Statistical differences were found not only for PLMI (manual: 2.20 (0.7, 4.1) vs automatic (6.4 (3.85,9.5); p < 0.001), but for almost of all indexes assessed between the automatic and the manual scoring analysis. The level of concordance was only moderate for PLM index (0.63 [0.51-0.72]); showing that, unlike the articles published in the adult population, automatic analysis is not accurate in children and, manually or semi-automatically analysis as ours need to be done. CONCLUSION: It seems that PLM detection algorithm might work accurately but, the real need would be a true LM detection algorithm.

Improving early cholecystectomy rate in acute cholecystitis with an evidence-based local multidisciplinary protocol and a surgical audit: single-center experience through an Acute Care Surgery Division.

PURPOSE: To analyze if, after implementation of an evidence-based local multidisciplinary protocol for acute cholecystitis (AC), an intermediate surgical audit could improve early cholecystectomy (EC) rate and other therapeutic indicators. METHODS: Longitudinal cohort study at a tertiary center. The local protocol, promoted, created, and periodically revised by the Acute Care Surgery Unit (ACSu) was updated and approved on March 2019. A specific registry was prospectively fulfilled with demographics, comorbidity, type of presentation, diagnostic items, therapeutic decision, and clinical course, considering both non-operative management (NOM) or cholecystectomy, early and delayed (EC and DC). Phase 1: April 2019-April 2021. A critical analysis and a surgical audit with the participation of all the involved Departments were then performed, especially focusing on improving global EC rate, considered primary outcome. Phase 2: May 2021-May 2023. Software SPSS 23.0 was used to compare data between phases. RESULTS: Initial EC rate was significantly higher on Phase 2 (39.3%vs52.5%, p < 0.004), as a significantly inferior rate of patients were initially bailed out from EC to NOM because of comorbidity (14.4%vs8%, p < 0.02) and grade II with severe inflammatory signs (7%vs3%, p < 0.04). A higher percentage of patients was recovered for EC after an initial decision of NOM on Phase 2, but without reaching statistical significance (21.8%vs29.2%, n.s.). Global EC rate significantly increased between phases (52.5%vs66.3%, p < 0.002) without increasing morbidity and mortality. A significant minor percentage of elective cholecystectomies after AC episodes had to be performed on Phase 2 (14%vs6.7%, p < 0.009). Complex EC and those indicated after readmission or NOM failure were usually performed by the ACSu staff. CONCLUSION: To adequately follow up the implementation of a local protocol for AC healthcare, registering and periodically analyzing data allow to perform intermediate surgical audits, useful to improve therapeutic indicators, especially EC rate. AC constitutes an ideal model to work with an ACSu.

Identification of Cryptosporidium parvum and Blastocystis hominis subtype ST3 in Cholga mussel and treated sewage: Preliminary evidence of fecal contamination in harvesting area.

Cryptosporidium parvum and Blastocystis hominis are foodborne parasites known for causing diarrhea. They accumulate in mussels grown on contaminated water bodies, due to the discharge of treated sewage from sewage treatment plants (STP). Despite this, some countries like Chile do not include these parasites in the control or monitoring of sewage water. The objective of this research was to evaluate the contamination of C. parvum. and B. hominis from treated sewage (disinfected by chlorination) and Cholga mussels in a touristic rural cove from the bay of Concepción. Cholga mussels from commercial stores and a treated sewage sample were analyzed. Cryptosporidium spp. was identified by Ziehl-Neelsen-Staining (ZNS) and C. parvum by direct-immunofluorescence assay (IFA) from ZNS-positive samples. Blastocystis hominis was identified by PCR using locus SSU rDNA. C. parvum and B. hominis subtype ST3 were found in 40% and 45% of Cholga mussel samples, respectively, and both parasites were identified in the treated sewage. Blastocystis hominis SSU rDNA gene alignment from Cholga mussels and treated sewage showed 89% of similarity, indicating that could be the same parasite in both samples. We describe the first evidence of possible contamination with these parasites from treated sewage to Cholga mussel suggesting an environmental contamination with high human risk. Based on these results, further studies will consider all the rural coves and STP from the bay to prevent possible contamination of these parasites.

Epidemiological, clinical, and prognostic analysis of oral squamous cell carcinoma diagnosed and treated in a single hospital in Galicia (Spain): a retrospective study with 5-year follow-up.

BACKGROUND: Oral cancer is a common neoplasm worldwide, mostly corresponding to squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Unfortunately, its overall prognosis remains poor, with no improvement in recent decades. In this study, we have analysed the epidemiological, clinical, and prognostic characteristics of OSCC on patients of a specific Spanish region (Galicia), in order to improve its prognosis and apply effective preventive and early diagnosis measures. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We retrospectively analysed 243 cases of OSCC, diagnosed and treated in a single hospital centre in Galicia between 2010 and 2015 (minimum of 5 years of evolution). Overall and specific survival were calculated (Kaplan-Meier) and associated variables were identified (log rank test and Cox regression). RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 67 years, with the majority being male (69.5%), smokers (45.9%) and alcohol consumers (58.6%), who lived in non-urban areas (79.4%). Cases diagnosed at advanced stages entailed the 48.1% of the sample, and 38.7% of cases relapsed. The 5-year overall and disease-specific survival rates were 39.9% and 46.1%, respectively. Patients who consumed tobacco and alcohol had a worse prognosis. OSCC cases referred to hospital by specialist dentists had a better prognosis, as those who were previously diagnosed with an oral potentially malignant oral disorder (OPMD) or received dental care during OSCC treatment. CONCLUSIONS: In view of these findings, we conclude that OSCC in Galicia (Spain) still has a very poor overall prognosis, which is mainly related to the advanced age of the patients and the late diagnosis. Our study highlights the better survival of OSCC in relation to the referring health professional, the presence of a previous OPMD and the dental care after diagnosis. This demonstrates the importance of dentistry as a health profession involved in the early diagnosis and multidisciplinary management of this malignant neoplasm.

Scabies in Spain: Trends in Public Interest and Ectoparasiticide Use. / Escabiosis en España: tendencias del interés público y consumo de ectoparasiticidas.

Scabies is an ectoparasitic dermatosis caused by the Sarcoptes scabiei var. hominis mite, which lives and reproduces in humans. Its incidence in Spain has increased in recent years. The aim of this study was to complement existing evidence on the increasing number of scabies cases in our country by analyzing changes in ectoparasiticide prescriptions and Internet searches for scabies infestations measured by Google Trends. We also examined correlations between these two variables. Our results show that public interest in scabies has increased in recent years and is positively and significantly correlated with an increasing use of ectoparasiticides. We believe that Google Trends should be considered as a complementary tool for monitoring real-time trends in scabies infestations in Spain.

[Translated article] Scabies in Spain: Trends in Public Interest and Ectoparasiticide Use.

Scabies is an ectoparasitic dermatosis caused by the Sarcoptes scabiei var. hominis mite, which lives and reproduces in humans. Its incidence in Spain has increased in recent years. The aim of this study was to complement existing evidence on the increasing number of scabies cases in our country by analyzing changes in ectoparasiticide prescriptions and Internet searches for scabies infestations measured by Google Trends. We also examined correlations between these two variables. Our results show that public interest in scabies has increased in recent years and is positively and significantly correlated with an increasing use of ectoparasiticides. We believe that Google Trends should be considered as a complementary tool for monitoring real-time trends in scabies infestations in Spain.

Assessment of Risk for Ventricular Tachycardia based on Extensive Electrophysiology Simulations.

Patients that have suffered a myocardial infarction are at high risk of developing ventricular tachycardia. Patient stratification is often determined by characterization of the underlying myocardial substrate by cardiac imaging methods. In this study, we show that computer modeling of cardiac electrophysiology based on personalized fast 3D simulations can help to assess patient risk to arrhythmia. We perform a large simulation study on 21 patient digital twins and reproduce successfully the clinical outcomes. In addition, we provide the sites which are prone to sustain ventricular tachycardias, i.e, onset sites around the scar region, and validate if they colocalize with exit sites from slow conduction channels.Clinical relevance- Fast electrophysiological simulations can provide advanced patient stratification indices and predict arrhythmic susceptibility to suffer from ventricular tachycardia in patients that have suffered a myocardial infarction.

Cohort study to assess the prevalence of prolonged QT and arrhythmias in critically ill patients during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.

INTRODUCTION: Patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection may present cardiovascular involvement including myocarditis, arrhythmias and QT interval prolongation. Our objective was to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 and its treatment on ventricular repolarization and development of arrhythmias in critically ill patients. METHODS: Retrospective cohort study of critically ill COVID-19 patients during a 3-month period in whom at least one ECG was available. Relevant clinical data and specific treatment administered for COVID-19 were recorded. Prolonged QTc was considered prolonged when it measured ≥ 460 ms in women and ≥450 ms in men. The incidence and type of arrhythmias during the same period were recorded. RESULTS: A total of 77 patients with a mean age of 62 ±â€¯13 years, 20 women and 57 men, were evaluated. Sixty percent of the patients were hypertensive, 52% had a BMI > 30, and 70% developed acute renal failure during admission. Some 56% of the patients presented QTc prolongation. Forty-four percent presented some type of arrhythmia during their stay in the ICU, 21% of which were atrial arrhythmias. Overall mortality was 53%, with no differences between patients with or without prolonged QTc. CONCLUSIONS: In our series, a high proportion of critical patients with COVID-19 presented prolonged QTc and arrhythmias. The factors involved have been related to the elevation of cardiac biomarkers, the myocardial involvement of the virus and concomitant medication received in the ICU.

A step forward in sustainable pesticide production from Amphidinium carterae biomass via photobioreactor cultivation with urea as a nitrogen source.

This study addresses the problem of replacing nitrate and ammonium with urea as a greener nitrogen source in the mass cultivation of the microalga Amphidinium carterae for the development of amphidinol-based phytosanitary products. To solve this problem, a nuclear magnetic resonance assisted investigation evaluated the effect of nitrogen sources on growth and metabolic profiles in photobioreactors. Urea-fed cultures exhibited growth kinetics comparable to nitrate-fed cultures (µmax = 0.30 day-1, Pbmax = 43 mgL-1day-1). Urea-fed cultures had protein, lipid, and carbohydrate contents of 39.5%, 14.5%, and 42.4%, respectively, while nitrate-fed cultures had 27.9 %, 17.5% and 48.1%, respectively. Metabolomics revealed nitrogen source-dependent metabotypes and a correlation between amphidinols and polyunsaturated fatty acids. The amphidinol-to-nitrogen yield coefficient in urea-fed cultures (135 mg/g) was approximately 2.5 times higher than in nitrate-fed cultures. The potent antiphytopathogenic activity exhibited by extracts from urea-fed cultures underscores the potential of urea as a sustainable nitrogen source in microalgae-based biorefineries.

Subretinal abscess due to nocardia in an immunosuppressed patient: a case report.

Systemic nocardiosis is a rarely occurring pathology, but its hematogenous spread across the eye is even less likely to occur, with only a few recorded cases. Therefore, it is not usually taken into account when a subretinal abscess is being considered for a diagnosis. However, when confronting a case with a history of immunosupression and pulmonary disease, the examination of the ocular fundus may be a very successful approach. With such aim we introduce the case of a 45-year-old immunosupressed male, without a history of pulmonary disease, whose subretinal mass evolution is accordant with an abscess. In the end, being etiologically diagnosed by means of a vitrectomy, it was concluded that the abscess was due to an infection of nocardia cyriacigeorgica, an emergent pathogen. Thus the aforementioned case is to be considered in the present study, along others, in order to shed more light on a disease which may not be readily diagnosed on account of its infrequency.

A Novel, Precise and High-Throughput Technology for Viroid Detection in Cannabis (MFDetectTM).

Hop latent viroid (HLVd) is a severe disease of cannabis, causing substantial economic losses in plant yield and crop value for growers worldwide. The best way to control the disease is early detection to limit the spread of the viroid in grow facilities. This study describes MFDetectTM as a rapid, highly sensitive, and high-throughput tool for detecting HLVd in the early stages of plant development. Furthermore, in the largest research study conducted so far for HLVd detection in cannabis, we compared MFDetectTM with quantitative RT-PCR in a time course experiment using different plant tissues, leaves, petioles, and roots at different plant developmental stages to demonstrate both technologies are comparable. Our study found leaf tissue is a suitable plant material for HLVd detection, with the viroid titer increasing in the infected leaf tissue with the age of plants. The study showed that other tissue types, including petiole and roots, were equally sensitive to detection via MFDetectTM. The assay developed in this research allows the screening of thousands of plants in a week. The assay can be scaled easily to provide growers with a quick turnaround and a cost-effective diagnostic tool for screening many plants and tissue types at different stages of development.

Thermally induced sideband generation in silicon-on-insulator cladding modulated Bragg notch filters.

We investigate and experimentally demonstrate a cladding modulated Bragg grating superstructure as a dynamically tunable and reconfigurable multi-wavelength notch filter. A non-uniform heater element was implemented to periodically modulate the effective index of the grating. The Bragg grating bandwidth is controlled by judiciously positioning loading segments away from the waveguide core, resulting in a formation of periodically spaced reflection sidebands. The thermal modulation of a periodically configured heater elements modifies the waveguide effective index, where an applied current controls the number and intensity of the secondary peaks. The device was designed to operate in TM polarization near the central wavelength of 1550 nm and was fabricated on a 220-nm silicon-on-insulator platform, using titanium-tungsten heating elements and aluminum interconnects. We experimentally demonstrate that the Bragg grating self-coupling coefficient can be effectively controlled in a range from 7 mm-1 to 110 mm-1 by thermal tuning, with a measured bandgap and sideband separation of 1 nm and 3 nm, respectively. The experimental results are in excellent agreement with simulations.

Sexual education for university students and the community in a european project: study protocol.

BACKGROUND: The World Health Organisation (WHO) calls on stakeholders to give Higher Education a key educational importance for the future of Europe. Within the content of the training programmes at university, sexuality emerges as a relevant topic in the nursing degree, to promote integral health from a holistic perspective. However, research on the presence of sexuality at the curricular level in Higher Education suggests that it is incomplete and underdeveloped. METHODS: This is a protocol for a long-term, multi-centre, exploratory, descriptive, and cross-sectional study with a quantitative and qualitative approach lasting two years. The research will be carried out in the educational community, including, on the one hand, students, and professors and health professionals of nursing programmes from five universities in different parts of the world (Portugal, Spain, Italy, and the United States), and on the other hand, women, young people, and immigrants from these communities. The study will have several target populations. Firstly, the target is nursing students, with whom the aim is to define their perspective on the sexuality content taught at the university, and their level of knowledge. Secondly university professors and health professionals, with whom we will check their perspective on sexuality in the classroom, as well as their level of knowledge in this field. And finally, we will work with the community (women, young people, and immigrants) to whom we will try to bring sexuality from a useful and enjoyable perspective. In order to measure these variables in the protocol, instruments such as questionnaires and semi-structured interviews will be used. During data collection, ethical principles will be guaranteed and informed consent will be requested from the participants. DISCUSSION: The results of the research will have a high curricular impact on the educational community, and will last over time, since the tools generated in the project will be included as part of nursing training programmes. In addition, participation in the project will improve health education for health professionals and at the community level on sexuality in both urban and rural populations.