Has COVID-19 Changed the Lifestyle and Dietary Habits in the Spanish Population after Confinement?

Since 2020, the world has been immersed in a change in lifestyle (social, lifestyle, nutri-tion and physical activity patterns), due to the appearance of COVID-19 and the strict mobility measures which were implemented to prevent its spread. All these changes had a nutritional impact on people, modifying their dietary guidelines. This cross-sectional study was carried out to assess whether dietary habits, lifestyle, and adherence to the Mediterranean diet among the Spanish adult population (25-65 years old) during confinement was modified during the post-confinement period, using an e-survey through social networks, involving 510 subjects. A decrease in the intake of ultra-processed products, with a correlation between weekly food delivery orders at home and the consumption of salty snacks, sugary drinks, and processed pastries was also recorded. Most of the subjects performed physical exercise on a regular basis, maintaining the body weight in half of the participants. During the post-confinement period a substantial proportion of the population had healthy lifestyle and dietary habits, including the adequate consumption of fruits, vegetables and legumes; adequate time was spent preparing meals and the population did not regularly order food at home, which in the long term, reduced the risk of several diseases.

Evaluation of the role of thyroid scintigraphy in the differential diagnosis of thyrotoxicosis.

OBJECTIVE: A differential diagnosis of thyrotoxicosis is crucial as the treatment of the main causes of this condition can vary significantly. Recently published diagnostic guidelines on thyrotoxicosis embrace the presence of thyrotropin receptor (TSH-R) antibodies (TRAb) as the primary and most important diagnostic step. The application of diagnostic algorithms to aid in the treatment of hyperthyroidism supports using thyroid radionuclide scintigraphy (TRSt) in baffling clinical scenarios, when TRAb are absent or when third-generation TRAb are not available. First-generation TRAb measurement may have limitations. Consequently, patients with thyrotoxicosis and first-generation TRAb results may be misdiagnosed and consequently improperly treated. Our purpose was to compare first-generation TRAb values to TRSt in the differential diagnosis of hyperthyroidism. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study of 201 untreated outpatients with overt or subclinical hyperthyroidism on whom first-generation TRAb and TRSt had been performed at the time of diagnosis. Histological specimens were analysed in patients who had previously undergone thyroid surgery at our centre. SPSS 20.0 was used in statistical analysis. RESULTS: Seventy-three out of 201 (36.3%) patients had positive TRAb. A diffuse uptake was present in 83.5% (61/73), whereas 13.7% (10/73) had a heterogeneous uptake and 2.7% (2/73) had an absent uptake. Thirty out of 91 (33%) patients with diffuse uptake were negative for positive TRAb and were diagnosed with Graves' disease. Analysis of 37 histological specimens indicated that TRSt had greater accuracy (81% vs 75.7%) and specificity (79.2% vs 57.1%) when compared to TRAb in the differential diagnosis of thyrotoxicosis. However, TRSt sensitivity was inferior to TRAb (84.6% vs 92.3%). CONCLUSIONS: Our study endorses that initial differential diagnosis of thyrotoxicosis should not be based solely on first-generation TRAb as this approach may leave nearly 20% of the patients misdiagnosed and, consequently, improperly treated. Our results underscore that thyroid scintigraphy should also be performed when only first-generation TRAb assays are available during the initial differential diagnosis of thyrotoxicosis.

Relevance of Leptin and Other Adipokines in Obesity-Associated Cardiovascular Risk.

Obesity, which is a worldwide epidemic, confers increased risk for multiple serious conditions including type 2 diabetes, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and cardiovascular diseases. Adipose tissue is considered one of the largest endocrine organs in the body as well as an active tissue for cellular reactions and metabolic homeostasis rather than an inert tissue only for energy storage. The functional pleiotropism of adipose tissue relies on its ability to synthesize and release a large number of hormones, cytokines, extracellular matrix proteins, and growth and vasoactive factors, which are collectively called adipokines known to influence a variety of physiological and pathophysiological processes. In the obese state, excessive visceral fat accumulation causes adipose tissue dysfunctionality that strongly contributes to the onset of obesity-related comorbidities. The mechanisms underlying adipose tissue dysfunction include adipocyte hypertrophy and hyperplasia, increased inflammation, impaired extracellular matrix remodeling, and fibrosis together with an altered secretion of adipokines. This review describes the relevance of specific adipokines in the obesity-associated cardiovascular disease.

GLP-1 Limits Adipocyte Inflammation and Its Low Circulating Pre-Operative Concentrations Predict Worse Type 2 Diabetes Remission after Bariatric Surgery in Obese Patients.

OBJECTIVE: Glucagon-like peptide (GLP)-1 has been proposed as a key candidate in glucose improvements after bariatric surgery. Our aim was to explore the role of GLP-1 in surgically-induced type 2 diabetes (T2D) improvement and its capacity to regulate human adipocyte inflammation. METHODS: Basal circulating concentrations of GLP-1 as well as during an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) were measured in lean and obese volunteers with and without T2D (n = 93). In addition, GLP-1 levels were determined before and after weight loss achieved by Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) (n = 77). The impact of GLP-1 on inflammation signalling pathways was also evaluated. RESULTS: We show that the reduced (p < 0.05) circulating levels of GLP-1 in obese T2D patients increased (p < 0.05) after RYGB. The area under the curve was significantly lower in obese patients with (p < 0.01) and without (p < 0.05) T2D compared to lean volunteers while obese patients with T2D exhibited decreased GLP-1 levels at baseline (p < 0.05) and 120 min (p < 0.01) after the OGTT. Importantly, higher (p < 0.05) pre-operative GLP-1 concentrations were found in patients with T2D remission after RYGB. We also revealed that exendin-4, a GLP-1 agonist, downregulated the expression of inflammation-related genes (IL1B, IL6, IL8, TNF) and, conversely, upregulated the mRNA levels of ADIPOQ in human visceral adipocytes. Furthermore, exendin-4 blocked (p < 0.05) LPS-induced inflammation in human adipocytes via downregulating the expression and secretion of key inflammatory markers. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that GLP-1 may contribute to glycemic control and exert a role in T2D remission after RYGB. GLP-1 is also involved in limiting inflammation in human visceral adipocytes.

Comparison between a multiple daily insulin injection regimen (basal once-daily glargine plus mealtime lispro) and continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (lispro) using continuous glucose monitoring in metabolically optimized type 1 diabetes patients: A randomized open-labelled parallel study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Advantages of continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) over multiple daily injections with glargine (MDI/G) are still uncertain. We compared CSII vs. MDI/G therapy in unselected patients with type 1 diabetes using continuous glucose monitoring (CGSM). The primary end-points were glycaemic control and quality of life (QOL). METHODS: A total of 45 patients with long-term diabetes and mean HbA1c values of 8.6±1.8% (70.5±15.4mmol/mol), previously treated with MDI/NPH, were switched to MDI/G for 6 months and then, unfulfilling therapy CSII indication, were randomly assigned to CSII or MDI/G for another six months. We evaluated QOL (EsDqol) and glycaemic control by measuring HbA1c levels, rate of hypoglycaemia, ketoacidosis and CGSM data. RESULTS: After the first phase (MDI/NPH to MDI/G) there was a significant improvement in total EsDQOL (99.72±18.38 vs. 92.07±17.65; p<0.028), a 0.5% decrease in HbA1c values (8.4±1.2 vs. 7.9±0.7% [68±9.7 vs. 63±5.5mmol/mol]; p<0.032), an improvement in glycaemic variability (standard deviation 66.9±14 vs. 59.4±16mg/dl; p<0.05), a decrease in insulin requirements (0.87±0.29 vs. 0.80±0.25U/kg; p<0.049), a decrease in number of severe hypoglycaemia episodes (0.44±0.9 vs. 0.05±0.2; p<0.014), and an increase in periods of normoglycaemia measured with CGSM (15.8±10.9% vs. 23±18.4%; p<0.003). Six months after randomization, significant improvements were seen in the HbA1c (7.9±0.7 vs. 7±0.6% [63±5.5 vs. 53±4.5mmol/mol]; p<0.001) and EsQOL (91.66±22 vs. 84.53±1.63; p<0.045) only in the CSII group. The HbA1c value was significantly lower when compared with the MDI/G group (CSII 7±0.6% [53±4.5mmol/mol] vs. MDI/G 7.6±0.9% [59.6±7.7mmol/mol]; p<0.03). CONCLUSIONS: Intensive insulin therapy with CSII vs. MDI/G was associated with better levels of HbA1c in patients with long-term type 1 diabetes.

Does Preincisional Infiltration with Bupivacaine Reduce Postoperative Pain in Laparoscopic Bariatric Surgery?

BACKGROUND: Current evidence suggests that local anesthetic wound infiltration should be employed as part of multimodal postoperative pain management. There is scarce data concerning the benefits of this anesthetic modality in laparoscopic weight loss surgery. Therefore, we analyzed the influence of trocar site infiltration with bupivacaine on the management of postoperative pain in laparoscopic bariatric surgery. METHODS: This retrospective randomized study included 47 patients undergoing primary obesity surgery between January and September 2014. Laparoscopic gastric bypass was performed in 39 cases and sleeve gastrectomy in 8 cases. Patients were stratified into two groups depending on whether preincisional infiltration with bupivacaine and epinephrine was performed (study group, 27 patients) or not (control group, 20 patients). Visual analogue scale (VAS), International Pain Outcomes questionnaire, and rescue medication records were reviewed to assess postoperative pain. RESULTS: VAS scores in the study group and sleeve gastrectomy group were lower than those in the control and gastric bypass groups in the first 4 h postoperatively without reaching statistical significance (p > 0.05). VAS scores did not differ in any other period of time. No statistically significant differences in pain perception were registered according to the patient's pain outcomes questionnaire or the need for rescue medication. CONCLUSIONS: The present study did not conclusively prove the efficacy of bupivacaine infiltration by any of the three evaluation methods analyzed. Nevertheless, preincisional infiltration provides good level of comfort in the immediate postoperative period when analgesia is most urgent.

The contribution of serum osteoprotegerin to bone mass and vertebral fractures in postmenopausal women.

Regulation of osteoclastic activity is critical for understanding bone loss associated with the postmenopausal period. In vitro and animal studies have revealed the role of OPG as a decoy receptor that neutralizes the effect of RANKL on the differentiation and activation of osteoclasts. However, the role of the OPG-RANKL system in postmenopausal osteoporosis is controversial. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the relationship among circulating levels of OPG, RANKL, bone turnover markers (BTM), bone mineral density (BMD) and vertebral fractures in postmenopausal women. We determined anthropometric parameters, circulating OPG and RANKL, BTM, estradiol, BMD by dual X-ray absorptiometry at the lumbar spine (LS) and femoral neck (FN), and pre-existing vertebral fractures in 206 ambulatory postmenopausal women of a mean age of 62 years (SD 7). Circulating OPG was significantly related to age (r =0.158; P =0.023), years since menopause (r =0.167; P =0.016) and BMD (LS Z-score: r =0.240; P =0.001, FN Z-score: r =0.156; P =0.025). Over half of the women had undetectable RANKL (n =113; 54.9%). There were no significant differences in clinical variables, BTM or BMD among women with detectable vs. undetectable RANKL. OPG was found to be independently associated with osteoporosis (OR: 2.9, 1.4-5.9) and prevalent vertebral fractures (OR: 2.5, 1.2-5.4). We conclude that serum OPG levels are independently associated with bone mass and prevalent vertebral fractures in postmenopausal women.

Nutrient intake adequacy in schoolchildren from a Mediterranean area (southern Spain). Influence of the use of the school canteen.

The aim of the present study was to compare dietary adequacy in 521 schoolchildren in Granada (Spain) with national recommendations and to determine possible differences regarding gender or the use of the school canteen. A food record was used for four consecutive days to evaluate the intake of nutrients and foods. With regard to boys' and girls' intake of the main groups of foods, we observed a tendency for the boys to consume greater quantities of dairy products, cereals, potatoes, and fruit, although the differences were not statistically significant. The children who lunched at school consumed fish, eggs, dairy products, vegetables, and cereals more frequently than those who did so at home. The mean daily intake of energy and nutrients indicates that the studied population exceeded the recommended limits in the proportion of energy derived from protein and fat, while carbohydrate intake was slightly deficient. The children who lunched at school showed a more favorable profile for energy and nutrient intake, with a significantly higher intake of energy, carbohydrates, total fat, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA), vitamins B, and E, and calcium, with respect to the children who had lunch at home.