Chemsex in Barcelona: A qualitative study of factors associated with the practice, the perception of the impact on health and prevention needs. / Chemsex en Barcelona: Estudio cualitativo sobre factores asociados a la práctica, percepción del impacto en salud y necesidades de prevención.

Chemsex is defined as use of psychoactive drugs with the aim of having sexual relations between gay men, bisexuals and men who have sex with men for a long period of time. To study this phenomenon, this qualitative descriptive study was proposed with the objective of describing the practice of chemsex from the perspective of users, to determine the main factors associated with its practice, the perception of the impact on their health and to establish prevention needs. Data were obtained using conversational techniques: 12 semi-structured interviews and 3 focus groups. The purposive sample was made up of GBMSM with a mean age of 40.1 years, 78% born in Spain, and 68% with completed university studies. The qualitative analysis focused on three thematic areas: factors associated with the practice of chemsex, the impact of chemsex on health, and prevention and risk reduction needs. It is concluded that the practice of chemsex should be understood as multifactorial and multicausal, associated with the sociocultural context. Sexual satisfaction, increased libido and the search for more intense pleasure are identified as key factors among people who practice it. These men are still scared of being judged, even by specialists who may lack knowledge or training. A reanalysis and rethinking of the interventions and policies directed towards this population is necessary, putting the focus of action on shared decision-making, self-care, cultural competence and the humanization of care.

El chemsex se define como el uso de drogas psicoactivas con el objetivo de mantener relaciones sexuales entre hombres gay, bisexuales y otros hombres que tienen sexo con hombres (GBHSH), por un largo periodo de tiempo. El objetivo de este estudio cualitativo exploratorio es describir la práctica del chemsex desde la perspectiva de los usuarios, determinar los principales factores asociados a su práctica, la percepción del impacto en su salud y establecer necesidades de prevención. Se obtuvieron los datos mediante técnicas conversacionales: 12 entrevistas semiestructuradas y 3 grupos focales. El análisis cualitativo se centró en tres áreas temáticas: factores asociados a la práctica de chemsex, impacto del chemsex en la salud y necesidades prevención y reducción de riesgos. La muestra intencionada fue conformada por hombres GBHSH con una edad media de 40,1 años, 78% nacidos en España, y 68% con estudios universitarios finalizados. Los resultados del estudio ponen de manifiesto que la práctica de chemsex debe comprenderse como multifactorial y multicausal, y asociada al contexto sociocultural. La satisfacción sexual, del aumento de la libido y de la búsqueda de placer más intenso se identifican como factores clave entre las personas que lo practican. Sigue existiendo miedo en estos hombres a ser juzgados, incluso por los especialistas que pueden carecer de conocimiento o formación. Es necesario un reanálisis y replanteamiento de las intervenciones y políticas dirigidas hacia esta población, poniendo el foco de acción en la toma de decisiones compartidas, el autocuidado, la competencia cultural y la humanización del cuidado.

Spinal Cord Stimulator Implant Infection Rates and Risk Factors: A Multicenter Retrospective Study.

OBJECTIVES: Spinal cord stimulation is an evidence-based treatment for a number of chronic pain conditions. While this therapy offers improvement in pain and function it is not without potential complications. These complications include device failure, migration, loss of therapeutic paresthesia, and infection. This article looked to establish a modern infection rate for spinal cord stimulators, assess the impact of known risk factors for surgical site infections and to determine the impact of certain preventative measures on the rate of infection. METHODS: After institutional review board approval, a multisite, retrospective review was conducted on 2737 unique implants or revisions of SCS systems. Patient demographics, risk factors including diabetes, tobacco use, obesity, revision surgery, trial length, implant location, implant type, surgeon background, prophylactic antibiotic use, utilization of a occlusive dressing, and post-operative antibiotic use were recorded and analyzed. RESULTS: The overall infection rate was 2.45% (n = 67). Diabetes, tobacco use, and obesity did not independently increase the rate of infection. Revision surgeries had a trend toward higher infection rate; however, this did not meet statistical significance. There was no difference in the rate of infection between implants performed by physicians of different base specialties, cylinder leads vs. paddle leads, or between different prophylactic antibiotics. Implants performed at academic centers had a higher rate of infection when compared to implants performed in nonacademic settings. When patients received an occlusive dressing or post-operative antibiotics they had a lower rate of infection. CONCLUSIONS: The infection rate (2.45%) reported in this study is lower than the previously reported rates (3-6%) and are on par with other surgical specialties. This study did not show an increased rate of infection for patients that used tobacco, had diabetes or were obese. It's possible that given the low overall infection rate a larger study is needed to establish the true impact of these factors on infection. In addition, this study did not address the impact of poorly controlled diabetes mellitus (elevated hemoglobin A1c) vs. well-controlled diabetes. It can be concluded from this study that utilizing an occlusive dressing over the incision in the post-operative period decreases the rate of infection and should become the standard of care. This study also demonstrated the positive impact of post-operative antibiotics in decreasing the rate of infection. Studies in other surgical specialties have not shown this impact which would suggest that further research is needed.

Spinal Cord Stimulator Related Infections: Findings From a Multicenter Retrospective Analysis of 2737 Implants.

INTRODUCTION: Surgical site infection is a potential complication of spinal cord stimulator (SCS) implantation. Current understanding of the epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment of these infections is based largely on small clinical studies, many of which are outdated. Evidence-based guidelines for management of SCS-related infections thus rely instead on expert opinion, case reports, and case series. In this study, we aim to provide a large scale retrospective study of infection management techniques specifically for SCS implantation. METHODS: A multicenter retrospective study of SCS implants performed over a seven-year period at 11 unique academic and non-academic institutions in the United States. All infections and related complications in this cohort were analyzed. RESULTS: Within our study of 2737 SCS implant procedures, we identified all procedures complicated by infection (2.45%). Localized incisional pain and wound erythema were the most common presenting signs. Laboratory studies were performed in the majority of patients, but an imaging study was performed in less than half of these patients. The most common causative organism was Staphylococcus aureus and the IPG pocket was the most common site of an SCS-related infection. Explantation was ultimately performed in 52 of the 67 patients (77.6%). Non-explantation salvage therapy was attempted in 24 patients and was successful in resolving the infection in 15 patients without removal of SCS hardware components. DISCUSSION: This study provides current data regarding SCS related infections, including incidence, diagnosis, and treatment.

Removal of ligand-bound liposomes from cell surfaces by microbubbles exposed to ultrasound.

Gas-filled microbubbles attached to cell surfaces can interact with focused ultrasound to create microstreaming of nearby fluid. We directly observed the ultrasound/microbubble interaction and documented that under certain conditions fluorescent particles that were attached to the surface of live cells could be removed. Fluorescently labeled liposomes that were larger than 500 nm in diameter were attached to the surface of endothelial cells using cRGD targeting to αvß3 integrin. Microbubbles were attached to the surface of the cells through electrostatic interactions. Images taken before and after the ultrasound exposure were compared to document the effects on the liposomes. When exposed to ultrasound with peak negative pressure of 0.8 MPa, single microbubbles and groups of isolated microbubbles were observed to remove targeted liposomes from the cell surface. Liposomes were removed from a region on the cell surface that averaged 33.1 µm in diameter. The maximum distance between a single microbubble and a detached liposome was 34.5 µm. Single microbubbles were shown to be able to remove liposomes from over half the surface of a cell. The distance over which liposomes were removed was significantly dependent on the resting diameter of the microbubble. Clusters of adjoining microbubbles were not seen to remove liposomes. These observations demonstrate that the fluid shear forces generated by the ultrasound/microbubble interaction can remove liposomes from the surfaces of cells over distances that are greater than the diameter of the microbubble.

Cryptococcal Meningitis in an Apparent Immunocompetent Host.

Cryptococcal meningitis is a severe fungal infection that primarily affects individuals with compromised immune systems, such as those with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or those undergoing immunosuppressive therapies after organ transplantation. In rare cases, immunocompetent individuals may also be affected by this life-threatening condition. We present the case of a 64-year-old male patient with no known underlying immune deficiency diagnosed with cryptococcal meningitis, who presented with persistent headaches and subjective fevers. Due to the absence of apparent immunosuppressive conditions or identifiable risk factors during evaluation, our suspicion for fungal meningitis was low. However, the diagnosis was confirmed through CSF fluid analysis, leading to the immediate initiation of guideline-directed treatment with amphotericin and fluconazole. This case highlights the importance of considering cryptococcal meningitis in the differential diagnosis of persistent headaches, even in patients without known immune compromise. Early recognition and appropriate management are essential to preventing complications and delays in management and guaranteeing optimal outcomes for all our patients.

Self-sampling monkeypox virus testing in high-risk populations, asymptomatic or with unrecognized Mpox, in Spain.

The recent monkeypox virus (MPXV) outbreak was of global concern and has mainly affected gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM). Here we assess prevalence of MPXV in high-risk populations of GBMSM, trans women (TW) and non-binary people without symptoms or with unrecognized monkeypox (Mpox) symptoms, using a self-sampling strategy. Anal and pharyngeal swabs are tested by MPXV real-time PCR and positive samples are tested for cytopathic effect (CPE) in cell culture. 113 individuals participated in the study, 89 (78.76%) were cis men, 17 (15.04%) were TW. The median age was 35.0 years (IQR: 30.0-43.0), 96 (85.02%) individuals were gay or bisexual and 72 (63.72%) were migrants. Seven participants were MPXV positive (6.19% (95% CI: 1.75%-10.64%)). Five tested positive in pharyngeal swabs, one in anal swab and one in both. Six did not present symptoms recognized as MPXV infection. Three samples were positive for CPE, and showed anti-vaccinia pAb staining by FACS and confocal microscopy. This suggests that unrecognized Mpox cases can shed infectious virus. Restricting testing to individuals reporting Mpox symptoms may not be sufficient to contain outbreaks.

By Toutatis! Trainee Teachers' Motivation When Using Comics to Learn History.

The main goal of this research was to analyse the perception of trainee primary education teachers regarding motivation when using comics as a resource to teach and learn history. To achieve this objective, a history education programme was designed based on the use of comics and the outcomes evaluated via a mixed qualitative-quantitative post-test questionnaire (Likert scale 1-5). Two hundred twenty-one trainee primary teachers from the University of Alicante, Spain participated in the study during the 2020/2021 academic year. Data were collected using the IBM SPSS v.24 statistical package and AQUAD 7. The results showed that the majority of future teachers felt highly motivated when using comic resources to learn history instead of textbooks (90.5% of participants); trainee teachers recognise that the use of comics improves their capacity to be more creative and that they feel able to design and use their own comic resources to teach history in the future.

TAL Effector Repertoires of Strains of Xanthomonas phaseoli pv. manihotis in Commercial Cassava Crops Reveal High Diversity at the Country Scale.

Transcription activator-like effectors (TALEs) play a significant role for pathogenesis in several xanthomonad pathosystems. Xanthomonas phaseoli pv. manihotis (Xpm), the causal agent of Cassava Bacterial Blight (CBB), uses TALEs to manipulate host metabolism. Information about Xpm TALEs and their target genes in cassava is scarce, but has been growing in the last few years. We aimed to characterize the TALE diversity in Colombian strains of Xpm and to screen for TALE-targeted gene candidates. We selected eighteen Xpm strains based on neutral genetic diversity at a country scale to depict the TALE diversity among isolates from cassava productive regions. RFLP analysis showed that Xpm strains carry TALomes with a bimodal size distribution, and affinity-based clustering of the sequenced TALEs condensed this variability mainly into five clusters. We report on the identification of 13 novel variants of TALEs in Xpm, as well as a functional variant with 22 repeats that activates the susceptibility gene MeSWEET10a, a previously reported target of TAL20Xam668. Transcriptomics and EBE prediction analyses resulted in the selection of several TALE-targeted candidate genes and two potential cases of functional convergence. This study provides new bases for assessing novel potential TALE targets in the Xpm-cassava interaction, which could be important factors that define the fate of the infection.

Management protocol for surgical patients and COVID-19. / Protocolo de manejo de pacientes quirúrgicos y COVID-19.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by SARS-CoV-2 virus, poses a huge challenge to all healthcare teams. The surgical personnel must deal with surgical cases in patients who have acquired SARS-CoV-2 infection. This document includes the strategies that have to be implemented, in order to reduce the risk of contagion to surgical personnel and ordinary patients not infected with SARS-CoV-2.

La pandemia de la enfermedad por coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19), causada por el virus SARS-CoV-2, les impone un reto enorme a todos los equipos sanitarios. El grupo quirúrgico debe hacer frente a casos quirúrgicos de pacientes contagiados con SARS-CoV-2. En el presente documento se contemplan las estrategias que hay que implementar, a fin de disminuir el riesgo de contagio al personal quirúrgico y a pacientes ordinarios no infectados con el SARS-CoV-2.

Actitudes de los docentes de secundaria frente a la educación sexual de los adolescentes / Attitudes of secondary school teachers towards sex education of adolescents / Atitudes dos professores de ensino médio frente à educação sexual dos adolescentes

Resumen La educación sexual (ES) desde la escolaridad ha sido un tema de intereses con diversas variaciones ante posturas biologicistas, moralistas, preventivas, además de aquellas con un eje integrador y de derechos. La actitud de los educadores frente a la sexualidad representa un componente que puede influir en la enseñanza de la ES, por lo cual se planteó como objetivo: describir la evidencia científica respecto a las actitudes relacionadas con la educación sexual (ES) en docentes de instituciones educativas de secundaria. Materiales y métodos: se realizó una revisión sistemática exploratoria de la literatura científica publicada en el mundo, utilizando las palabras clave school teacher, sex education y attitude; en los idiomas inglés, portugués y español; de los años 2003 a 2019, mediante búsqueda en las bases de datos SciELO, Scopus, Cinhal, Ovid y BVSL y en artículos de referencias. Fueron evaluadas por dos autores de manera independiente empleando herramientas de Joanna Briggs Institute. Se estableció como medida de rigor el cumplimiento del 70 % de los criterios a evaluar. Resultados: 13 artículos superaron la valoración de rigor, ocho de tipo cualitativo y seis de cuantitativo, de Europa [1], Sudeste Asiático [3], Sudáfrica [6], Norteamérica [1], Suramérica [1] y Australia [1]. Los estudios muestran que aspectos como cultura, género, conocimiento, metodologías, valores y prejuicios del docente se constituyen en condicionantes de las actitudes del docente frente a la ES. Conclusiones: se evidencia que la clave de una mejor ES, son buenas capacitaciones docentes y el entendimiento de todos los actores de la comunidad para evitar mitos y demás.

Abstract Sex education (SE) since schooling has been a topic of interests with diverse variations before biological, moralistic and preventive positions, in addition to those with an integrative and rights axis. The attitude of educators towards sexuality represents a component that can influence the teaching of SE, reason why the objective of this research was to describe the scientific evidence regarding attitudes related to SE in teachers of secondary education institutions. Materials and Method: An exploratory systematic review of the scientific literature published in the world was carried out, using the keywords school teacher, sex education and attitudes in English, Portuguese and Spanish from 2003 to 2019, through a search in the SciELO, Scopus, Cinhal, Ovid and BVSL databases and in reference articles. They were evaluated by two authors independently using tools from the Joanna Briggs Institute. Compliance with 70% of the criteria to be evaluated was established as a measure of rigor. Results: A total of 13 articles passed the rigor assessment, eight qualitative and six quantitative, from Europe [1], Southeast Asia [3], South Africa [6], North America [1], South America [1] and Australia [1]. The studies show that aspects such as culture, gender, knowledge, methodologies, values and prejudices of the teacher constitute conditioning factors of the attitudes of teachers towards SE. Conclusions: it is evident that the key to a better SE is good teacher training and the understanding of all the actors in the community to avoid myths and others.

Resumo A educação sexual (ES) desde a escolaridade tem sido um tema de interesses com diversas variações perante posturas biologistas, moralistas, preventivas, além de aquelas com um eixo integrador e de direitos. A atitude dos professores frente à sexualidade representa um componente que pode influir no ensino da ES, pelo qual se estabeleceu como objetivo: descrever a evidencia científica respeito às atitudes relacionadas com a educação sexual (ES) em professores de instituições educativas de ensino médio. Materiais e métodos: Se fez uma revisão sistemática exploratória da literatura científica publicada no mundo, utilizando as palavras chave school teacher, sex education e attitude; nos idiomas inglês, português e espanhol; dos anos 2003 a 2019, mediante busca nas bases de dados SciELO, Scopus, Cinhal, Ovid y BVSL e em artigos de referências. Foram avaliadas por dois autores de maneira independente utilizando ferramentas de Joanna Briggs Institute. Estabeleceu-se como medida de rigor o cumprimento do 70 % dos critérios a avaliar. Resultados: 13 artigos superaram a valoração de rigor, oito de tipo qualitativo e seis de quantitativo, da Europa [1], Sudeste Asiático [3], Sul África [6], Norte América [1], Sul América [1] e Australia [1]. Os estudos amostram que aspeitos como cultura, gênero, conhecimento, metodologias, valores e prejuízos do professor se constituem em condicionantes das atitudes do professor frente à ES. Conclusões: evidencia-se que a chave de uma melhor ES, são boas capacitações aos professores e o entendimento de todos os atores da comunidade para evitar mitos e outras coisas.

Uso de PET-CT en el delineado de volumen en la planificación del tratamiento con radiación / Use of PET-CT in the one delineated of volume in the planning of the one radiant treatment

El tratamiento con radioterapia, consiste en irradiar de forma homogénea el tumor, evitando irradiar los órganos cercanos. El desarrollo de la tecnología en el campo de la medicina, ha permitido que se cumpla este principio, con buenos resultados de respuesta objetiva, que se traduce en el control de la enfermedad de los pacientes con cáncer. La Tomografía axial computarizada por emisión de positrones (PET-CT) consigue una mayor precisión en el delineado del volumen blanco o tumoral. El propósito de este estudio fue analizar la influencia del uso del PET-CT en el delineado de volúmenes a tratar en la planificación del tratamiento con radiaciones.Se diseñó un estudio piloto con dos pacientes preparados para radioterapia por neoplasias malignas, a los cuáles se les realizó un TAC simple y un PET-CT y observadores independientes realizaron la delimitación del tumor. Se examinó la consistencia entre los observadores y las mediciones en las imágenes.El uso del PET-CT favoreció la delimitación del volumen a irradiar lo que disminuye el riesgo para los órganos vecinos.

The treatment with radiotherapy consists on irradiating in a homogeneous way the tumor, avoiding to irradiate the near organs. The development of the technology in the field of the medicine, it has allowed that this principle is completed, with good results of objective answer what allows the control of the illness of the patients with cancer. The computerized axial tomography by positrons emission (PET-CT) it gets a bigger precision in the one delineated of the white volume or tumoral. The purpose of this study was to analyze the influence of the use of the PET-CT in the one delineated of volumes to try in the planning of the treatment with radiations.A study pilot was designed with two prepared patients for radiotherapy for malignant diseases, to those which they were carried out a simple TAC and a PET-CT and independent observers carried out the delimitation of the tumor. The consistency was examined between the observers and the mensuration in the images.The use of the PET-CT favors the delimitation of the volume to irradiate what diminishes the risk for the neighboring organs.

Uso de nimotuzumab en paciente con astrocitoma anaplásico / Nimotuzumab in the treatment of a patient with anaplastic astrocytoma

Introducción: Nimotuzumab es una inmunoglobina de isotipo IgG1, obtenido por tecnología de ADN recombinante. La expectativa de vida de niños con tumores cerebrales recurrentes, refractarios a tratamientos a la cirugía, la radioterapia y la quimioterapia es de un mes aproximadamente. Con este tratamiento la supervivencia alcanza 44,5 meses. Objetivos: Presentar el caso clínico de un paciente con diagnóstico de Astrocitoma anaplásico que recibió tratamiento oncoespecífico concurrente con Nimotuzumab. Presentación de caso: Se realizó la descripción del diagnóstico, tratamiento y evolución de un paciente de 31 años de edad que fue diagnosticado con una neoplasia del sistema nervioso central. (Astrocitoma anaplásico). Recibió la combinación terapéutica de cirugía, radioterapia y anticuerpos monoclonales, lográndose una sobrevida de 39 meses. Conclusiones: La adición del anticuerpo monoclonal al tratamiento estándar de los tumores cerebrales aumentó la sobrevida del paciente, convirtiéndose en una alternativa terapéutica segura, ventajosa y factible como parte del tratamiento convencional en las condiciones asistenciales(AU)

Introduction: Nimotuzumab is an IgG1 isotype immunoglobin, obtained by recombinant DNA technology. Life expectancy is approximately one month in children with recurrent brain tumors, refractory to treatments to surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Survival reaches 44.5 months when using Nimotuzumab. Objectives: To report the clinical case of a patient diagnosed with anaplastic astrocytoma who received concurrent oncospecific treatment with Nimotuzumab. Case report: This paper describes the diagnosis, treatment and evolution of a 31-year-old male patient with neoplasm of the central nervous system (Anaplastic astrocytoma). He received the therapeutic combination of surgery, radiotherapy and monoclonal antibodies, achieving a survival of 39 months. Conclusions: The adding the monoclonal antibody to the standard treatment of brain tumors increased patient survival, making it a safe, advantageous and feasible therapeutic alternative as part of conventional treatment in healthcare conditions(AU)

Conservation of the Cassava Diversity in The Traditional Cultivation Systems of the Amazon / Conservación de la diversidad de yuca en los sistemas tradicionales de cultivo de la amazonia

RESUMEN La yuca es determinante para la seguridad alimentaria de cientos de millones de personas alrededor del mundo. A pesar de que el principal medio de propagación del cultivo es a través de semilla asexual por estacas (tallos maduros) se ha revelado una relativamente alta diversidad intraespecífica, principalmente en los sistemas de cultivo de manejo tradicional. En esta revisión se documentan algunos estudios realizados sobre la diversidad de la yuca, tanto por marcadores moleculares como morfológicos, centrándose en aquellos realizados en el Amazonas. También se exponen los principales factores que han determinado el aprovechamiento y conservación de esta diversidad, tales como la aparición espontánea de semillas de origen sexual, el sistema de chagras indígenas, la memoria biocultural y la facilidad de intercambio de semilla entre comunidades. Finalmente, se pone de manifiesto que en los sistemas de manejo tradicional la conservación y uso de la diversidad intraespecífica se constituye en un elemento prioritario que se ha perdido en los sistemas de cultivo a gran escala. En los sistemas de manejo tradicional existe un vínculo etnobotánico que pervive e invita a buscar prácticas alternativas que aseguran un mantenimiento de la diversidad, permitiendo una productividad eficiente e incluso se hace un mejor manejo para disminuir los riesgos de incidencia de algunas plagas y enfermedades.

ABSTRACT Cassava is crucial for the food security of hundreds ofmillions of people around the world. Even though the main source of propagation of the crop is through asexual seed by stakes (stems-cuttings) a relative high intraspecific diversity has been identified, mainly in the traditionally managed cultivation systems. Some studies on the diversity of cassava, based on molecular and morphological markers, are documented focusing on those made in the Amazon in this review. Also, the main factors that have determined the use and conservation of this diversity are exposed, such as the spontaneous appearance of seeds of sexual origin, the system of indigenous chagras, the biocultural memory and the ease of seed exchange between communities. From this perspective, it is evident that in traditional management systems the conservation and use of intraspecific diversity is a priority element that has been lost in large-scale farming systems. In traditional management systems, there is an ethnobotanical link that survives and invites us to seek alternative practices that ensure the maintenance of diversity, allowing efficient productivity and even better management to reduce the risk of incidence of some pests and diseases.

Characterization and optimization of mTHPP nanoparticles for photodynamic therapy of head and neck cancer.

OBJECTIVES: To characterize the properties of polymeric micelles containing different loading percentages of mTHPP, a photosensitizer for photodynamic therapy (PDT), with respect to fluorescence, singlet oxygen ((1)O(2)) yield, and in vitro cytotoxicity in head and neck cancer cells. STUDY DESIGN: Laboratory study. SETTING: Polymer chemistry laboratory. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Absorption and emission spectroscopy was used to characterize the mTHPP-loaded micelles. The (1)O(2) yield was measured to determine the efficiency of reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. In vitro studies were conducted using the HN5 cells and confirmed with H2009 cells to determine the photodynamic efficacy. DNA assay and confocal microscopy was used to measure intracellular fluorescence. RESULTS: The mTHPP micelles demonstrated the highest fluorescence intensity at 0.5% loading. The (1)O(2) generation of the micelles in solution peaked at 2% loading. Phototoxicity and dark toxicity experiments in HN5 and H2009 cells demonstrated that the best therapeutic index was achieved with the 2% loaded micelles with 100% cell cytotoxicity at a micelle concentration of 10 µg/mL and less than 10% dark cytotoxicity. In comparison, 10% loaded micelles demonstrated 100% cell cytotoxicity at a concentration of 20 µg/mL under both light and dark conditions. Confocal microscopy demonstrated increasing intracellular fluorescence with higher loading. CONCLUSIONS: The 2% mTHPP-loaded micelles generated greater (1)O(2), and 0.5% loading led to the most efficient generation of fluorescence in solution. Higher mTHPP loading density led to increased cellular fluorescence and dark cytotoxicity. Overall, 2% mTHPP-loaded micelles provided the optimal composition for photodynamic therapy with the largest therapeutic window.

Utilidad de la elastografía en cáncer de mama a propósito de dos casos / Elastography Usefulness in Breast Cancer In Relation To Two Cases

La ecografía es una técnica fundamental en el estudio morfológico y anatómico de la mama. En los últimos años, se ha visto complementada desde un punto de vista más funcional con la elastografía. Esta modalidad diagnóstica añade información estructural a las propiedades morfológicas que muestra la ecografía y permite alcanzar mejores resultados de especificidad, pues las lesiones malignas muestran dureza significativamente superiores a las lesiones benignas. La elastografía ha venido a fortalecer el diagnóstico en etapas tempranas de las neoplasias malignas. Este hecho repercute en un incremento notable en el índice de curación y en el decrecimiento de la mortalidad por esta causa. El objetivo es mostrar el valor de la elastografía en el diagnóstico de la neoplasia de mama, al ser una nueva herramienta que permite discriminar o corroborar el diagnóstico ecográfico, y evitar al paciente la biopsia innecesaria(AU)

Ultrasound is a fundamental technique in breast morphological and anatomical study. In recent years, elastography has supplemented it from a functional point of view. This diagnostic modality adds structural information to the morphological properties that ultrasound shows and it allows us to achieve better results of specificity, since malignant lesions show significantly higher hardness than benign lesions. Elastography has come to strengthen the diagnosis in early stages of malignancy. This fact that affects a significant increase in the cure rate and the decrease in mortality from this cause. The purpose is to show the value of elastography in breast neoplasia diagnosis, being a new tool to discriminate or confirm the ultrasound diagnosis, and avoid unnecessary biopsy(AU)