Polarized blazar X-rays imply particle acceleration in shocks.

Most of the light from blazars, active galactic nuclei with jets of magnetized plasma that point nearly along the line of sight, is produced by high-energy particles, up to around 1 TeV. Although the jets are known to be ultimately powered by a supermassive black hole, how the particles are accelerated to such high energies has been an unanswered question. The process must be related to the magnetic field, which can be probed by observations of the polarization of light from the jets. Measurements of the radio to optical polarization-the only range available until now-probe extended regions of the jet containing particles that left the acceleration site days to years earlier1-3, and hence do not directly explore the acceleration mechanism, as could X-ray measurements. Here we report the detection of X-ray polarization from the blazar Markarian 501 (Mrk 501). We measure an X-ray linear polarization degree ΠX of around 10%, which is a factor of around 2 higher than the value at optical wavelengths, with a polarization angle parallel to the radio jet. This points to a shock front as the source of particle acceleration and also implies that the plasma becomes increasingly turbulent with distance from the shock.

Virtual Reality and Serious Videogame-Based Instruments for Assessing Spatial Navigation in Alzheimer's Disease: A Systematic Review of Psychometric Properties.

Over the past decade, research using virtual reality and serious game-based instruments for assessing spatial navigation and spatial memory in at-risk and AD populations has risen. We systematically reviewed the literature since 2012 to identify and evaluate the methodological quality and risk of bias in the analyses of the psychometric properties of VRSG-based instruments. The search was conducted primarily in July-December 2022 and updated in November 2023 in eight major databases. The quality of instrument development and study design were analyzed in all studies. Measurement properties were defined and analyzed according to COSMIN guidelines. A total of 1078 unique records were screened, and following selection criteria, thirty-seven studies were analyzed. From these studies, 30 instruments were identified. Construct and criterion validity were the most reported measurement properties, while structural validity and internal consistency evidence were the least reported. Nineteen studies were deemed very good in construct validity, whereas 11 studies reporting diagnostic accuracy were deemed very good in quality. Limitations regarding theoretical framework and research design requirements were found in most of the studies. VRSG-based instruments are valuable additions to the current diagnostic toolkit for AD. Further research is required to establish the psychometric performance and clinical utility of VRSG-based instruments, particularly the instrument development, content validity, and diagnostic accuracy for preclinical AD screening scenarios. This review provides a straightforward synthesis of the state of the art of VRSG-based instruments and suggests future directions for research.

Cardiovascular risk of metabolically healthy obesity in two european populations: Prevention potential from a metabolomic study.

BACKGROUND: A new definition of metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) has recently been proposed to stratify the heterogeneous mortality risk of obesity. Metabolomic profiling provides clues to metabolic alterations beyond clinical definition. We aimed to evaluate the association between MHO and cardiovascular events and assess its metabolomic pattern. METHODS: This prospective study included Europeans from two population-based studies, the FLEMENGHO and the Hortega study. A total of 2339 participants with follow-up were analyzed, including 2218 with metabolomic profiling. Metabolic health was developed from the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and the UK biobank cohorts and defined as systolic blood pressure < 130 mmHg, no antihypertensive drugs, waist-to-hip ratio < 0.95 for women or 1.03 for men, and the absence of diabetes. BMI categories included normal weight, overweight, and obesity (BMI < 25, 25-30, ≥ 30 kg/m2). Participants were classified into six subgroups according to BMI category and metabolic healthy status. Outcomes were fatal and nonfatal composited cardiovascular events. RESULTS: Of 2339 participants, the mean age was 51 years, 1161 (49.6%) were women, 434 (18.6%) had obesity, 117 (5.0%) were classified as MHO, and both cohorts had similar characteristics. Over a median of 9.2-year (3.7-13.0) follow-up, 245 cardiovascular events occurred. Compared to those with metabolically healthy normal weight, individuals with metabolic unhealthy status had a higher risk of cardiovascular events, regardless of BMI category (adjusted HR: 3.30 [95% CI: 1.73-6.28] for normal weight, 2.50 [95% CI: 1.34-4.66] for overweight, and 3.42 [95% CI: 1.81-6.44] for obesity), whereas those with MHO were not at increased risk of cardiovascular events (HR: 1.11 [95% CI: 0.36-3.45]). Factor analysis identified a metabolomic factor mainly associated with glucose regulation, which was associated with cardiovascular events (HR: 1.22 [95% CI: 1.10-1.36]). Individuals with MHO tended to present a higher metabolomic factor score than those with metabolically healthy normal weight (0.175 vs. -0.057, P = 0.019), and the score was comparable to metabolically unhealthy obesity (0.175 vs. -0.080, P = 0.91). CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with MHO may not present higher short-term cardiovascular risk but tend to have a metabolomic pattern associated with higher cardiovascular risk, emphasizing a need for early intervention.

Healthy lifestyle, metabolomics and incident type 2 diabetes in a population-based cohort from Spain.

BACKGROUND: The contribution of metabolomic factors to the association of healthy lifestyle with type 2 diabetes risk is unknown. We assessed the association of a composite measure of lifestyle with plasma metabolite profiles and incident type 2 diabetes, and whether relevant metabolites can explain the prospective association between healthy lifestyle and incident type 2 diabetes. METHODS: A Healthy Lifestyle Score (HLS) (5-point scale including diet, physical activity, smoking status, alcohol consumption and BMI) was estimated in 1016 Hortega Study participants, who had targeted plasma metabolomic determinations at baseline examination in 2001-2003, and were followed-up to 2015 to ascertain incident type 2 diabetes. RESULTS: The HLS was cross-sectionally associated with 32 (out of 49) plasma metabolites (2.5% false discovery rate). In the subset of 830 participants without prevalent type 2 diabetes, the rate ratio (RR) and rate difference (RD) of incident type 2 diabetes (n cases = 51) per one-point increase in HLS was, respectively, 0.69 (95% CI, 0.51, 0.93), and - 8.23 (95% CI, - 16.34, - 0.13)/10,000 person-years. In single-metabolite models, most of the HLS-related metabolites were prospectively associated with incident type 2 diabetes. In probit Bayesian Kernel Machine Regression, these prospective associations were mostly driven by medium HDL particle concentration and phenylpropionate, followed by small LDL particle concentration, which jointly accounted for ~ 50% of the HLS-related decrease in incident type 2 diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: The HLS showed a strong inverse association with incident type 2 diabetes, which was largely explained by plasma metabolites measured years before the clinical diagnosis.

Circles Are Detected Faster Than Downward-Pointing Triangles in a Speeded Response Task.

Simple geometric shapes are associated with facial emotional expressions. According to previous research, a downward-pointing triangle conveys the threatening perception of an angry facial expression, and a circle conveys the pleasant perception of a happy facial expression. Some studies showed that downward-pointing triangles have the advantage to capture attention faster than circles. Other studies proposed that curvature enhances visual detection and guides attention. We tested a downward-pointing triangle and a circle as target stimuli for a speeded response task. The distractors were two stimuli that resulted from the mixture of both targets to control for low-level features' balanced presentation. We used 3 × 3, 4 × 4, and 5 × 5 matrices to test whether these shapes led attention to an efficient response. In Experiment 1, participants responded faster to the circle than to the downward-pointing triangle. They also responded slower to both targets as the number of distractors increased. In Experiment 2, we replicated the main findings of Experiment 1. Overall, the circle was detected faster than the downward-pointing triangle with small matrices, but this difference decreased as the matrix size increased. We suggest that circles capture attention faster because of the influence of low-level features, that is, curvature in this case.

Evaluation and characterization of multimorbidity profiles, resource consumption and healthcare needs in extremely elderly people.

OBJECTIVES: Spanish population lifespan is one of the longest in the world. Moreover, it is known that elderly people have less chronic illnesses associated with aging. Our aims were to determine how Clinical Risk Group (CRG) predicts future use of healthcare resources in extremely elderly people without diabetes (T2DM) and to explore CRG correlation with health conditions. DESIGN: Prospective cross-sectional study. SETTING: Rio Hortega University Hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Hospitalized patients >80 years old without T2DM, during 2017. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Mental status was evaluated using Pfeiffer test (SPMQS), Basic Activities of Daily Living (BADLs) and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs) were estimated using the Older Americans Resources and Services questionnaire. Comorbidity was evaluated using Charlson index (CI) and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) with EuroQoL (EQ5D3L). CRG classification system was obtained from electronic clinical records. Data were analyzed using SPSS v.15.0. RESULTS: In total, 305 patients were identified (59% women), mean age 88 ± 5 and 38% were aged >90. Estimated HRQoL was 0.43 ± 0.33 for EQ5D3L-index-value. Mean dependence level was 6.2 ± 5 for BADLs and 9.2 ± 5 for IADLs. In total, 31.6% of patients had severe cognitive impairment with a mean score of 5.4 ± 3.6 in SPMQS. In total, 30.2% of patients were categorized as G3, and presented high comorbidity more frequently than the rest. Corrected CI mean score was 6.2 ± 1.7. Significant relationship was founded in survival time, number of admissions and CI score. CONCLUSIONS: Using predictive risk models like CRG is supposed to assess the complexity of morbidity but in our extremely elderly population partially fail in stratify and predict health resource consumption.

Immune-unreactive urinary albumin as a predictor of cardiovascular events: the Hortega Study.

BACKGROUND: We aimed to determine if immune-unreactive albumin excretion (IURAE) is associated with cardiovascular (CV) events in a representative sample of a general population from Spain. METHODS: We included 1297 subjects (mean age ± standard error 48.0 ± 0.2 years, 48% females), who participated in the Hortega Follow-Up Study. The primary endpoint was incidence of fatal and non-fatal CV events. Urinary albumin excretion (UAE) was measured in spot voided urine, frozen at -80°C, by immunonephelometry [immune-reactive albumin excretion (IRAE)] and by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) [total albumin excretion (AE)]. IURAE was calculated as the difference between HPLC measurements and IRAE. We estimated fully adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) of CV incidence by Cox regression for IRAE, IURAE and total AE. RESULTS: After an average at-risk follow-up of 13 years, we observed 172 CV events. urinary albumin to creatinine ratio (UACR) of ≥30 mg/g assessed by IRAE, IURAE or total AE concentrations was observed in 74, 273 and 417 participants, respectively. Among discordant pairs, there were 49 events in those classified as micro- and macroalbuminuric by IURAE, but normoalbuminuric by IRAE. Only the IRAE was a significant independent factor for the incidence of CV events [HR (95% confidence interval) 1.15 (1.04-1.27)]. The association of UAE with CV events was mainly driven by heart failure (HF) [HR 1.33 (1.15-1.55) for IRAE; HR 1.38 (1.06-1.79) for IURAE; HR 1.62 (1.22-2.13) for total AE]. Those subjects who were micro- and macroalbuminuric by both IRAE and IURAE had a significant increase in risk for any CV event, and especially for HF. CONCLUSIONS: IRAE, IURAE and AE were associated with an increased risk for CV events, but IRAE offered better prognostic assessment.

A Staged Approach of Proximal Left Anterior Descending Coronary Artery Percutaneous Intervention Followed by Minimally Invasive Valve Surgery.

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE STUDY: A subset of patients requiring coronary revascularization of the proximal left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD) and valve surgery may benefit from a staged approach, rather than combined median sternotomy coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) and valve surgery. METHODS: A retrospective evaluation was made of the outcomes of patients with significant proximal LAD and valvular heart disease undergoing a staged approach of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) followed by minimally invasive valve surgery (MIVS) at the authors' institution between February 2009 and April 2014. A Kaplan-Meier analysis was performed to estimate mid-term survival. RESULTS: A total of 68 consecutive patients (mean age 75.2 ± 8.9 years) was identified. PCI was performed for one- or two-vessel disease in 76.5% and 23.5% of the patients, respectively. Within a median of 39 days (IQR 11-62 days), 91.2% of patients underwent primary MIVS, and 8.8% underwent re-operative MIVS, of which 58 (85.3%) were single-valve and 10 (14.7%) were double-valve operations. At the time of surgery, 72.1% of the patients were receiving dual anti-platelet therapy. The 30-day mortality was 2.9%. At a mean follow up of 26 ± 16 months, 7.4% of the patients had a non-target vessel acute coronary syndrome, and the survival rate was 88.2%. CONCLUSIONS: Among a select group of patients with proximal LAD and valvular disease, a staged approach of PCI followed by MIVS can be safely performed for primary or re-operative surgery, with excellent mid-term outcomes.

Normal-Weight Central Obesity: Implications for Total and Cardiovascular Mortality.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between central obesity and survival in community-dwelling adults with normal body mass index (BMI) is not well-known. OBJECTIVE: To examine total and cardiovascular mortality risks associated with central obesity and normal BMI. DESIGN: Stratified multistage probability design. SETTING: NHANES III (Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey). PARTICIPANTS: 15,184 adults (52.3% women) aged 18 to 90 years. MEASUREMENTS: Multivariable Cox proportional hazards models were used to evaluate the relationship of obesity patterns defined by BMI and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and total and cardiovascular mortality risk after adjustment for confounding factors. RESULTS: Persons with normal-weight central obesity had the worst long-term survival. For example, a man with a normal BMI (22 kg/m2) and central obesity had greater total mortality risk than one with similar BMI but no central obesity (hazard ratio [HR], 1.87 [95% CI, 1.53 to 2.29]), and this man had twice the mortality risk of participants who were overweight or obese according to BMI only (HR, 2.24 [CI, 1.52 to 3.32] and 2.42 [CI, 1.30 to 4.53], respectively). Women with normal-weight central obesity also had a higher mortality risk than those with similar BMI but no central obesity (HR, 1.48 [CI, 1.35 to 1.62]) and those who were obese according to BMI only (HR, 1.32 [CI, 1.15 to 1.51]). Expected survival estimates were consistently lower for those with central obesity when age and BMI were controlled for. LIMITATIONS: Body fat distribution was assessed based on anthropometric indicators alone. Information on comorbidities was collected by self-report. CONCLUSION: Normal-weight central obesity defined by WHR is associated with higher mortality than BMI-defined obesity, particularly in the absence of central fat distribution. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE: National Institutes of Health, American Heart Association, European Regional Development Fund, and Czech Ministry of Health.

The nutrigenetic influence of the interaction between dietary vitamin E and TXN and COMT gene polymorphisms on waist circumference: a case control study.

BACKGROUND: Abdominal obesity (AO) is a common modifiable risk factor for certain non-communicable diseases associated with enhanced oxidative stress (OS). The objective of this work was to investigate whether the interaction between antioxidant vitamin intake and OS-related polymorphisms modulates gene-associated anthropometry in a Spanish population. METHODS: A total of 246 subjects with AO, and 492 age and gender matched non-AO subjects were included in the study. Anthropometric, biochemical, and OS parameters, and antioxidant dietary intake data were assessed using validated procedures. DNA from white blood cells was isolated and the genotype of seven polymorphisms from genes involved in OS (pro-oxidant and antioxidant) were analyzed using the SNPlex system. The effects of the c.-793T > C polymorphism on promoter activity and thus thioredoxin (TXN) activity were examined using reporter assays. RESULTS: The AO group had higher 8-Oxo-2'-deoxyguanosine levels and took in less vitamin A and vitamin E compared to the non-AO group. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the rs2301241 polymorphism in TXN and rs740603 in catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) were associated with waist circumference (WC) and AO. Moreover, these polymorphisms were more strongly associated with variations in WC in subjects with low vitamin E intakes. A promoter assay revealed that the T to C conversion at c.-793 (rs2301241) induced a more than two fold increase in reporter gene expression. CONCLUSIONS: WC is associated both with dietary vitamin E intake and genetic variants of TXN and COMT suggesting that existence of a complex nutrigenetic pathway that involves regulation of AO.

Bicuspid Aortic Valve and Aortic Root Morphology in Hispanic Patients.

BACKGROUND: The study aim was to evaluate the aortic valve and aortic root morphology in Hispanic patients with a bicuspid aortic valve (BAV). BAV disease is one of the most common congenital anomaly of the heart, and is associated with abnormalities of the aorta. Interracial differences have been described between Caucasian and African-American patients with BAV, which may have clinical and therapeutic implications. The clinical and anatomical spectrum of BAV disease in Hispanic patients has not been well established. METHODS: A retrospective review was conducted of all heart operations performed at the authors' institution between April 2008 and June 2013. Patients with BAV who underwent aortic valve replacement (AVR) were identified. All echocardiograms available were reviewed in order to compare cusp morphology, valvular function, and ascending aorta dimensions between Hispanic and non-Hispanic individuals. RESULTS: A total of 291 patients (159 Hispanic, 132 non-Hispanic) with a mean age of 62 ± 13 years were identified. The baseline characteristics were similar between the two groups. In both Hispanics and non-Hispanics, the most prevalent cusp morphology was fusion of the right and left coronary cusps (82% for both groups). The most common indication for surgery was aortic stenosis. Hispanic patients had a larger aortic annulus diameter (2.58 ± 0.32 cm versus 2.39 ± 0.39 cm, p = 0.04). However, this difference was not significant after adjusting for age, gender, body surface area, and the presence of moderate-to-severe aortic insufficiency. Ascending aortopathy was present in 42.7% of the total study population. Regardless of ethnicity, the most common pattern of aortopathy involved the tubular ascending aorta with mild to moderate root enlargement (type 1). CONCLUSIONS: Compared with other ethnic groups, Hispanics with BAVs have similar aortic valve morphology and function, as well as comparable aortopathy.

Rosai-Dorfman disease with atypical intrascrotal involvement.

We describe two new cases of Rosai-Dorfman disease with intrascrotal involvement. Also known as sinus histiocytosis with massive lymphadenopathy, this is a rare entity, usually presenting with massive bilateral cervical lymphadenopathy. It is associated with extranodal involvement in up to 40% of cases, commonly in the face and neck area. Isolated intrascrotal involvement with no lymphadenopathies is extremely rare, and its definitive diagnosis is histopathological. Although they are the most frequent type, not all intrascrotal lesions are neoplastic; therefore, it is important to know other possible etiologies and their radiogical features that might help in the diagnosis. We also review other cases of intrascrotal involvement reported in the literature, as well as a review clinical features, treatment and prognosis of this entity, and a differential diagnosis of solid intrascrotal lesions.

Oxidative stress in susceptibility to breast cancer: study in Spanish population.

BACKGROUND: Alterations in the redox balance are involved in the origin, promotion and progression of cancer. Inter-individual differences in the oxidative stress regulation can explain a part of the variability in cancer susceptibility.The aim of this study was to evaluate if polymorphisms in genes codifying for the different systems involved in oxidative stress levels can have a role in susceptibility to breast cancer. METHODS: We have analyzed 76 single base polymorphisms located in 27 genes involved in oxidative stress regulation by SNPlex technology. First, we have tested all the selected SNPs in 493 breast cancer patients and 683 controls and we have replicated the significant results in a second independent set of samples (430 patients and 803 controls). Gene-gene interactions were performed by the multifactor dimensionality reduction approach. RESULTS: Six polymorphisms rs1052133 (OGG1), rs406113 and rs974334 (GPX6), rs2284659 (SOD3), rs4135225 (TXN) and rs207454 (XDH) were significant in the global analysis. The gene-gene interactions demonstrated a significant four-variant interaction among rs406113 (GPX6), rs974334 (GPX6), rs105213 (OGG1) and rs2284659 (SOD3) (p-value = 0.0008) with high-risk genotype combination showing increased risk for breast cancer (OR = 1.75 [95% CI; 1.26-2.44]). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study indicate that different genotypes in genes of the oxidant/antioxidant pathway could affect the susceptibility to breast cancer. Furthermore, our study highlighted the importance of the analysis of the epistatic interactions to define with more accuracy the influence of genetic variants in susceptibility to breast cancer.

Associations of physical activity and history of sports participation with subjective and objective measures of executive functioning in university students.

This study examined how physical activity and history of sports participation affect subjective and objective executive functioning in university students. A total of 215 university students aged 18-25 (81% female) completed a virtual assessment of executive function. The correlates were age, sex, physical activity, and history of sports participation. Structural equation modeling was used to examine objective executive function using a three-factor model (shifting, updating, inhibition). The Executive Function Index (EFI) was used to measure subjective executive functioning, and linear regression was used to examine total EFI scores. Physical activity (b = 0.12, p < .01) was a significant correlate of subjective but not objective executive functioning. Male sex and history of sports participation were significantly positively related to the objective measure of inhibition (b = 0.64, p < .01; b = 0.18, p < .05). These findings suggest that subjective and objective measures of executive functioning should be differentiated when investigating their relationship with physical activity and history of sports participation.

sEMG as complementary tool for VFSS: A synchronized study in patients with neurogenic oropharyngeal dysphagia.

The neurogenic oropharyngeal dysphagia is a prevalent functional swallowing disorder resulting from neurological causes. The conventional diagnosis involves ionizing radiation in Videofluoroscopy Swallowing Studies (VFSS). Surface electromyography (sEMG) offers a non-invasive alternative by recording muscle activity. This research compares bolus passage timing through anatomical structures using VFSS and sEMG-related activation times. Fifty confirmed oropharyngeal dysphagia patients underwent synchronized VFSS and sEMG, evaluating muscle groups during cracker and fluid ingestion. sEMG revealed activation patterns in masseters, suprahyoid, and infrahyoid muscles, occurring before bolus passage through the mandibular line and concluding near the upper esophageal sphincter complex. sEMG identified differences in dysphagia severity (EAT-10 score), age, and diagnosis, contrasting VFSS results. Results indicate potential complementarity between sEMG and VFSS for dysphagia screening, diagnosis, and monitoring.

Mechanisms of adverse cardiometabolic consequences of obesity.

Obesity is an epidemic that threatens the health of millions of people worldwide and is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia. There are multiple and complex mechanisms to explain how obesity can cause cardiovascular disease. In recent years, studies have shown some limitations in the way we currently define obesity and assess adiposity. This review focuses on the mechanisms involved in the cardiometabolic consequences of obesity and on the relationship between obesity and cardiovascular comorbidities, and provides a brief review of the latest studies focused on normal weight obesity and the obesity paradox.

Impact of obesity-related genes in Spanish population.

BACKGROUND: The objective was to investigate the association between BMI and single nucleotide polymorphisms previously identified of obesity-related genes in two Spanish populations. Forty SNPs in 23 obesity-related genes were evaluated in a rural population characterized by a high prevalence of obesity (869 subjects, mean age 46 yr, 62% women, 36% obese) and in an urban population (1425 subjects, mean age 54 yr, 50% women, 19% obese). Genotyping was assessed by using SNPlex and PLINK for the association analysis. RESULTS: Polymorphisms of the FTO were significantly associated with BMI, in the rural population (beta 0.87, p-value <0.001). None of the other SNPs showed significant association after Bonferroni correction in the two populations or in the pooled analysis. A weighted genetic risk score (wGRS) was constructed using the risk alleles of the Tag-SNPs with a positive Beta parameter in both populations. From the first to the fifth quintile of the score, the BMI increased 0.45 kg/m2 in Hortega and 2.0 kg/m2 in Pizarra. Overall, the obesity predictive value was low (less than 1%). CONCLUSION: The risk associated with polymorphisms is low and the overall effect on BMI or obesity prediction is minimal. A weighted genetic risk score based on genes mainly acting through central nervous system mechanisms was associated with BMI but it yields minimal clinical prediction for the obesity risk in the general population.

Economic Decisions, Attractiveness, and Intrasexual Competition during Menstrual Cycle in the Ultimatum Game.

Introduction: it seems that, in the phase of greatest fertility, women's intrasexual competition (toward attractive women who live nearby) increases due to access to resources, status, and biologically desirable partners. Objective: to compare the economic decisions (ED) during the ovulatory (OP) and luteal (LP) phases of the menstrual cycle (MC) with exposure to two stimuli: a photograph of a more attractive woman and a photograph of a less attractive woman, through the ultimatum game (UG). Methodology: the research followed a cross-sectional design between subjects to see group differences by contrasting hypotheses. The sampling was probabilistic, with a sample of 100 heterosexual women, students at a public university with an age range of 18 to 24 years, with regular MC, who did not use hormonal contraceptive methods and did not have any endocrine condition. The inverse counting method with confirmation was applied to identify CM phases; and the UG to evaluate the DE. Results: the phases of the MC had no effect on the ED; the women behaved similarly in their decisions, regardless of the phase of the cycle they were in or the type of stimulus to which they were exposed. Conclusion: OP and LP do not affect the ED of women when they are exposed to an attractive stimulus. The discussion is made considering the evolutionary theory of the ovulatory shift hypothesis.

Introducción: parece ser que, en su fase de mayor fertilidad, la competencia intrasexual de la mujer (con mujeres atractivas y que viven cerca) aumenta por el acceso a recursos, estatus y parejas biológicamente deseables. Objetivo: comparar las decisiones económicas (DE) en las fases ovulatoria (FO) y lútea (FL) del ciclo menstrual (CM) con exposición a dos estímulos: fotografía de una mujer de mayor atractivo y fotografía de una mujer de menor atractivo, a través del juego del ultimátum (UG). Metodología: la investigación tuvo un diseño cross-sectional entre sujetos para ver diferencia de grupos mediante contraste de hipótesis. El muestreo fue probabilístico, con una muestra de 100 mujeres heterosexuales, estudiantes de una universidad pública con un rango de edad de 18 a 24 años, con CM regulares, que no usaran métodos anticonceptivos hormonales y no tuvieran ninguna afección endocrina. Resultados: las fases del CM no tuvieron efectos sobre las DE; las mujeres se comportaron de forma similar en sus decisiones, sin importar la fase del ciclo en la que se encontraban o el tipo de estímulo al que fueron expuestas. Conclusión: las FO y FL no afectan las DE de las mujeres cuando son expuestas a un estímulo atractivo. La discusión se hace a la luz de la teoría evolutiva de la hipótesis del cambio ovulatorio.

Hospital length of stay throughout bed pathways and factors affecting this time: A non-concurrent cohort study of Colombia COVID-19 patients and an unCoVer network project.

Predictions of hospital beds occupancy depends on hospital admission rates and the length of stay (LoS) according to bed type (general ward -GW- and intensive care unit -ICU- beds). The objective of this study was to describe the LoS of COVID-19 hospital patients in Colombia during 2020-2021. Accelerated failure time models were used to estimate the LoS distribution according to each bed type and throughout each bed pathway. Acceleration factors and 95% confidence intervals were calculated to measure the effect on LoS of the outcome, sex, age, admission period during the epidemic (i.e., epidemic waves, peaks or valleys, and before/after vaccination period), and patients geographic origin. Most of the admitted COVID-19 patients occupied just a GW bed. Recovered patients spent more time in the GW and ICU beds than deceased patients. Men had longer LoS than women. In general, the LoS increased with age. Finally, the LoS varied along epidemic waves. It was lower in epidemic valleys than peaks, and decreased after vaccinations began in Colombia. Our study highlights the necessity of analyzing local data on hospital admission rates and LoS to design strategies to prioritize hospital beds resources during the current and future pandemics.

Electrophysiological variability during tests of executive functioning: A comparison of athletes with and without concussion and sedentary control participants.

OBJECTIVE: Sport participation may benefit executive functioning (EF), but EF can also be adversely affected by concussion, which can occur during sport participation. Neural variability is an emerging proxy of brain health that indexes the brain's range of possible responses to incoming stimuli (i.e., dynamic range) and interconnectedness, but has yet to be characterized following concussion among athletes. This study examined whether neural variability was enhanced by athletic participation and attenuated by concussion. METHOD: Seventy-seven participants (18-25 years-old) were classified as sedentary controls (n = 33), athletes with positive concussion history (n = 21), or athletes without concussion (n = 23). Participants completed tests of attention switching, response inhibition, and updating working memory while undergoing electroencephalography recordings to index neural variability. RESULTS: Compared to sedentary controls and athletes without concussion, athletes with concussion exhibited a restricted whole-brain dynamic range of neural variability when completing a test of inhibitory control. There were no group differences observed for either the switching or working memory tasks. CONCLUSIONS: A history of concussion was related to reduced dynamic range of neural activity during a task of response inhibition in young adult athletes. Neural variability may have value for evaluating brain health following concussion.