Lenalidomide or Thalidomide for Transplant-Ineligible Patients With Newly Diagnosed Multiple Myeloma? An Overview of Systematic Reviews.

OBJECTIVES: To present an overview of evidence of efficacy, safety, and health-related quality of life of lenalidomide or thalidomide for transplant-ineligible multiple myeloma. METHODS: A literature search was performed in 5 databases until July 2022. We included systematic reviews with network meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials on the use of lenalidomide compared with thalidomide for transplant-ineligible multiple myeloma. The A Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews 2 was used to appraise the quality of included reviews. The results were focused on the lenalidomide + dexamethasone until disease progression (RDc) versus thalidomide + dexamethasone until disease progression (TDc) and induction with melphalan + prednisone + lenalidomide, followed by maintenance with lenalidomide (MPR-R) versus induction with melphalan + prednisone + thalidomide, followed by maintenance with thalidomide (MPT-T) regimens. RESULTS: Nine studies were included. Only 1 study did not show any weakness in critical domains of A Measurement Tool to Assess Systematic Reviews 2. For overall survival, RDc proved to be superior to TDc; however, no study showed significant difference between MPR-R and MPT-T. For progression-free survival, 2 of 3 studies showed that RDc is better than TDc; however, no difference between MPR-R and MPT-T was found. Regarding safety, these lenalidomide-based regimens had a lower risk for neurologic adverse events, with an increased risk of hematologic adverse events. No health-related quality of life meta-analyses were found. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that, in terms of efficacy and safety, lenalidomide-based regimen is a good option for treatment of transplant-ineligible multiple myeloma in the public health system of Brazil, especially for those patients who develop severe neuropathy with thalidomide.

Fluvastatin Converts Human Macrophages into Foam Cells with Increased Inflammatory Response to Inactivated Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Ra.

Cholesterol biosynthesis inhibitors (statins) protect hypercholesterolemic patients against developing active tuberculosis, suggesting that these drugs could help the host to control the pathogen at the initial stages of the disease. This work studies the effect of fluvastatin on the early response of healthy peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) to inactivated Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) H37Ra. We found that in fluvastatin-treated PBMCs, most monocytes/macrophages became foamy cells that overproduced NLRP3 inflammasome components in the absence of immune stimulation, evidencing important cholesterol metabolism/immunity connections. When both fluvastatin-treated and untreated PBMCs were exposed to Mtb H37Ra, a small subset of macrophages captured large amounts of bacilli and died, concentrating the bacteria in necrotic areas. In fluvastatin-untreated cultures, most of the remaining macrophages became epithelioid cells that isolated these areas of cell death in granulomatous structures that barely produced IFNγ. By contrast, in fluvastatin-treated cultures, foamy macrophages surrounded the accumulated bacteria, degraded them, markedly activated caspase-1 and elicited a potent IFNγ/cytotoxic response. In rabbits immunized with the same bacteria, fluvastatin increased the tuberculin test response. We conclude that statins may enhance macrophage efficacy to control Mtb, with the help of adaptive immunity, offering a promising tool in the design of alternative therapies to fight tuberculosis.

Risk factors for reamputation in patients with diabetic foot: A case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Reamputation as a complication of diabetic foot ulcers presents a high economic burden and represents a therapeutic failure. It is paramount to identify as early as possible patients in whom a minor amputation may not be the best option. The purpose of this investigation was to do a case-controlled study to determine risk factors associated with re-amputation in patients with DFU (diabetic foot ulcers) at two University Hospitals. METHODS: Multicentric, observational, retrospective, case-control study from clinical records of 2 university hospitals. Our study included 420 patients, with 171 cases (re-amputations), and 249 controls. We performed a multivariate logistic regression analysis and time-to-event survival analysis to identify re-amputation risk factors. RESULTS: Statistically significant risk factors were artery history of tobacco use (p = 0.001); male sex (p = 0.048); arterial occlusion in Doppler ultrasound (p = 0.001); percentage of stenosis in arterial ultrasound >50 % (p = 0.053); requirement of vascular intervention (p = 0.01); and microvascular involvement in photoplethysmography (p = 0.033). The most parsimonious regression model suggests that history of tobacco use, male sex, arterial occlusion in ultrasound, and percentage of stenosis in arterial ultrasound >50 % remained statistically significant. The survival analysis identified earlier amputations in patients with larger occlusion in arterial ultrasound, high leukocyte count, and elevated ESR. CONCLUSION: Direct and surrogate outcomes in patients with diabetic foot ulcers identify vascular involvement as an important risk factor for reamputation. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.

Humans decompose tasks by trading off utility and computational cost.

Human behavior emerges from planning over elaborate decompositions of tasks into goals, subgoals, and low-level actions. How are these decompositions created and used? Here, we propose and evaluate a normative framework for task decomposition based on the simple idea that people decompose tasks to reduce the overall cost of planning while maintaining task performance. Analyzing 11,117 distinct graph-structured planning tasks, we find that our framework justifies several existing heuristics for task decomposition and makes predictions that can be distinguished from two alternative normative accounts. We report a behavioral study of task decomposition (N = 806) that uses 30 randomly sampled graphs, a larger and more diverse set than that of any previous behavioral study on this topic. We find that human responses are more consistent with our framework for task decomposition than alternative normative accounts and are most consistent with a heuristic-betweenness centrality-that is justified by our approach. Taken together, our results suggest the computational cost of planning is a key principle guiding the intelligent structuring of goal-directed behavior.

Ejection Fraction Improvement Does Not Reflect Changes in Quality of Life Following Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if health-related quality of life (HRQoL) improvement after cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) correlates with improved left-ventricular ejection fraction (EF). BACKGROUND: CRT was reported to improve EF and HRQoL in clinical trials of heart failure with reduced EF (HFrEF). It is unknown if improvements in HRQoL reflect EF response to CRT. METHODS: We included HFrEF patients who underwent CRT and had both pre- and post-CRT HRQoL assessment. EF response was categorized as absent (0% change or decrease), modest (0%-19% increase), or significant ( > 20% increase). We examined the associations between EF response and generic (PROMIS) and HF-specific (KCCQ-12) HRQoL. RESULTS: The group included 115 patients with mean age of 65 years and baseline EF of 31%; 39% were female (n = 45). Nineteen percent (n = 22) had significant, 57% (n = 66) modest, and 23% (n = 27) absent EF responses. AF burden across significant (8.9%), modest (4.8%), and absent EF responders (1.4%) was similar ( P = 0.20). Significant improvements in KCCQ-12 (43.4-57.5, P = 0.003), current health visual analog scale (49.1-55.9, P = 0.042), PROMIS fatigue (58.9-55.1, P = 0.026), and PROMIS satisfaction (42.7-46.4, P = 0.020) resulted following CRT across all groups. There was no association between significant EF improvement and HRQoL by KCCQ-12 (nonresponse, 44.4%; modest response, 33.3%; and significant response, 22.2%) at 1 year ( P = 0.52 across all groups). CONCLUSION: CRT was associated with a modest to significant EF response in a majority of patients. However, EF response did not significantly correlate with generic or HF-specific HRQoL measures. Further investigations are warranted into determinants of improved HRQoL following CRT.

People construct simplified mental representations to plan.

One of the most striking features of human cognition is the ability to plan. Two aspects of human planning stand out-its efficiency and flexibility. Efficiency is especially impressive because plans must often be made in complex environments, and yet people successfully plan solutions to many everyday problems despite having limited cognitive resources1-3. Standard accounts in psychology, economics and artificial intelligence have suggested that human planning succeeds because people have a complete representation of a task and then use heuristics to plan future actions in that representation4-11. However, this approach generally assumes that task representations are fixed. Here we propose that task representations can be controlled and that such control provides opportunities to quickly simplify problems and more easily reason about them. We propose a computational account of this simplification process and, in a series of preregistered behavioural experiments, show that it is subject to online cognitive control12-14 and that people optimally balance the complexity of a task representation and its utility for planning and acting. These results demonstrate how strategically perceiving and conceiving problems facilitates the effective use of limited cognitive resources.

Challenges to reducing post-consumer plastic rejects from the MSW selective collection at two MRFs in São Paulo city, Brazil.

​The present study is concerned with an overview of the main aspects of the selective collection from the municipal solid waste in São Paulo City and the limitations of its two automated Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) to tackle the problem of reducing recyclable plastic waste sent to landfills as rejects. The research aimed to characterize the composition of screened mass flows of as-received mixes from the selective collection at the two MRFs through in situ random collection campaigns. The results of the gravimetric analysis have shown that both MRFs provided higher recovery yields (> 40%) for paper, cardboard, Tetrapack®, ferrous and non-ferrous metals (aluminium), akin to some post-consumer plastics (PET, HDPE/LDPE and PP) that ranged from 38% for PP up to 89% for HDPE, Losses in recovery yields of recyclable plastics after the screening process resulted from lack of clear resin label identification, inefficient materials sortation by households and poor recognition capabilities of the MRFs screening devices to target and segregate specific types of plastics such as PS and vinylic. Packaging design complexity, multi-layered material diversity, and food contaminated post-consumer packaging pose further challenges to improve the plastics recovery capabilities of the two MRFs.

Analysis of an outpatient child hearing health program: from screening to referral for rehabilitation. / Análise de um programa de saúde auditiva infantil ambulatorial: da triagem ao encaminhamento para reabilitação.

PURPOSE: To analyze the stages of a hearing health program, from screening to referral for rehabilitation, based on the quality indicators for neonatal screening programs. METHODS: This is a cohort, observational, retrospective study encompassing all newborns included in the Municipal Information System of Mogi Mirim, São Paulo, from 2010 to 2016. Besides the data present in the Information System on Live Newborns, the newborn's age at the first test, test and diagnosis results, and referrals for rehabilitation were analyzed, based on the quality indicator criteria recommended by the Neonatal Hearing Screening Care Guidelines, with a statistical program. RESULTS: A total of 7,800 newborns participated. The following results were obtained in the analysis of the program quality indicators: 1) Neonatal hearing screening stage: 97% coverage in the first test; 91% of newborns by 30 days old; 2) Diagnosis stage: 0.24% referred after failing the second test; 94.73% adherence; 13.66% confirmed diagnosis by 3 months old; 3) Rehabilitation stage: 100% began speech-language-hearing therapy immediately after the diagnosis; 20% received the hearing aid within 1 month from diagnosis. CONCLUSION: The program, conducted in an outpatient setting, met the recommendations of the guidelines presented by the Ministry of Health concerning the coverage and age at first examination, age at screening up to 1 month old, referral for diagnosis, and beginning the intervention. These results were obtained thanks to institutional support from the municipality.

OBJETIVO: Analisar as etapas de um programa de saúde auditiva, da triagem ao encaminhamento para reabilitação, segundo os indicadores de qualidade de programas de triagem neonatal. MÉTODO: Trata-se de um estudo de coorte, observacional e retrospectivo, constituído por todos os neonatos inscritos no Sistema de Informação Municipal de Mogi Mirim/SP, de 2010 a 2016. Além dos dados que constam no Sistema de Informações sobre Nascidos Vivos, foram analisados idade do neonato no primeiro teste, resultado dos testes, do diagnóstico e encaminhamento para reabilitação. A análise dos dados foi feita segundo os critérios de indicadores de qualidade das diretrizes de atenção à triagem auditiva neonatal, por meio de programa estatístico. RESULTADOS: Participaram 7.800 neonatos e com relação à análise dos indicadores de qualidade do programa foram obtidos os seguintes resultados: 1) Etapa da TAN: 97% de cobertura do primeiro teste; 91% dos neonatos com até 30 dias de vida; 2) Etapa do Diagnóstico: 0,24% encaminhados após falharem no segundo teste; 94,73% de adesão; 13,66% concluíram até os três meses de idade e 3) Etapa da Reabilitação: 100% iniciaram terapia fonoaudiológica imediatamente após o diagnóstico; 20% receberam o aparelho de amplificação sonora individual com até um mês do diagnóstico. CONCLUSÃO: O programa, realizado em nível ambulatorial, atingiu as recomendações das Diretrizes do Ministério da Saúde com relação à cobertura e idade do primeiro exame, idade da triagem até um mês de vida, encaminhamento para diagnóstico e início da intervenção. Tais resultados só puderam ser obtidos com o apoio institucional do município.

Diversidad de escarabajos coprófagos (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) en tres zonas urbanizadas del Caribe colombiano / Diversity of dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) in three urban areas from Colombian Caribbean

Resumen En el presente trabajo se estudia la diversidad de escarabajos coprófagos en tres zonas urbanizadas del departamento de Sucre, Colombia, cada una con características ecológicas distintas. Los individuos fueron capturados con trampas de caída cebadas. Se analizaron el esfuerzo de muestreo, las curvas de rango-abundancia y los índices de diversidad alfa y beta. Se capturaron 710 individuos, agrupados en nueve géneros y 13 especies. El análisis de completitud arrojó valores por encima del 97%. El ensamble más diverso en cualquiera de los tres órdenes de "q" se encontró en la zona que alberga edificaciones, jardines y un parche de bosque de vegetación secundaria, seguido por una zona de pastizales, con pocas edificaciones; el ensamble de menor diversidad correspondió a la zona rodeada de edificaciones y con escasa cobertura vegetal. El índice de Sorensen-Dice arrojó una similitud total entre las tres zonas del 38%. Las curvas de rango-abundancia mostraron mayor equidad de especies en la zona más diversa. Los resultados indicaron que la composición del ensamble de escarabajos depende de las condiciones ambientales y el grado de urbanización. Así mismo, se evidenció que algunas especies pueden tener alta adaptabilidad y que algunas de ellas corren el riesgo potencial de presentar eventos de extinción local.

Abstract In this paper, diversity and composition of dung beetles assemblage was study in three urbanized areas with different ecological characteristics from Sucre department , Colombia. Individuals were captured with baited pitfall traps. Sampling effort, range-abundance curves, alpha and beta diversity indices were estimated and compared among the sites. Seven hundred ten individuals grouped into nine genera and 13 species were recorded. The completeness analysis yielded values above 97%. The most diverse assemblage in any of the three orders of "q" was found in the site with a mixture of buildings, gardens, and a patch of secondary vegetation forest, followed by the site with few facilities and open green spaces, and the least diverse site corresponded to the area surrounded by buildings with little vegetation cover. Sorensen-Dice index similarity among the three sites was 38%. The range-abundance curves showed higher species equitability in the most diverse site. The results show that the beetle assemblage composition depends on environmental conditions and the degree of urbanization. It was also evident that some species have high adaptability to urban spaces and others are potentially at risk of local extinction events.

Análise de um programa de saúde auditiva infantil ambulatorial: da triagem ao encaminhamento para reabilitação / Analysis of an outpatient child hearing health program: from screening to referral for rehabilitation

RESUMO Objetivo Analisar as etapas de um programa de saúde auditiva, da triagem ao encaminhamento para reabilitação, segundo os indicadores de qualidade de programas de triagem neonatal. Método Trata-se de um estudo de coorte, observacional e retrospectivo, constituído por todos os neonatos inscritos no Sistema de Informação Municipal de Mogi Mirim/SP, de 2010 a 2016. Além dos dados que constam no Sistema de Informações sobre Nascidos Vivos, foram analisados idade do neonato no primeiro teste, resultado dos testes, do diagnóstico e encaminhamento para reabilitação. A análise dos dados foi feita segundo os critérios de indicadores de qualidade das diretrizes de atenção à triagem auditiva neonatal, por meio de programa estatístico. Resultados Participaram 7.800 neonatos e com relação à análise dos indicadores de qualidade do programa foram obtidos os seguintes resultados: 1) Etapa da TAN: 97% de cobertura do primeiro teste; 91% dos neonatos com até 30 dias de vida; 2) Etapa do Diagnóstico: 0,24% encaminhados após falharem no segundo teste; 94,73% de adesão; 13,66% concluíram até os três meses de idade e 3) Etapa da Reabilitação: 100% iniciaram terapia fonoaudiológica imediatamente após o diagnóstico; 20% receberam o aparelho de amplificação sonora individual com até um mês do diagnóstico. Conclusão O programa, realizado em nível ambulatorial, atingiu as recomendações das Diretrizes do Ministério da Saúde com relação à cobertura e idade do primeiro exame, idade da triagem até um mês de vida, encaminhamento para diagnóstico e início da intervenção. Tais resultados só puderam ser obtidos com o apoio institucional do município.

ABSTRACT Purpose To analyze the stages of a hearing health program, from screening to referral for rehabilitation, based on the quality indicators for neonatal screening programs. Methods This is a cohort, observational, retrospective study encompassing all newborns included in the Municipal Information System of Mogi Mirim, São Paulo, from 2010 to 2016. Besides the data present in the Information System on Live Newborns, the newborn's age at the first test, test and diagnosis results, and referrals for rehabilitation were analyzed, based on the quality indicator criteria recommended by the Neonatal Hearing Screening Care Guidelines, with a statistical program. Results A total of 7,800 newborns participated. The following results were obtained in the analysis of the program quality indicators: 1) Neonatal hearing screening stage: 97% coverage in the first test; 91% of newborns by 30 days old; 2) Diagnosis stage: 0.24% referred after failing the second test; 94.73% adherence; 13.66% confirmed diagnosis by 3 months old; 3) Rehabilitation stage: 100% began speech-language-hearing therapy immediately after the diagnosis; 20% received the hearing aid within 1 month from diagnosis. Conclusion The program, conducted in an outpatient setting, met the recommendations of the guidelines presented by the Ministry of Health concerning the coverage and age at first examination, age at screening up to 1 month old, referral for diagnosis, and beginning the intervention. These results were obtained thanks to institutional support from the municipality.

Qualificação profissional e o câncer infantojuvenil na atenção básica / Cualificación profesional y cáncer infantojuvenil en la Atención Básica / Professional qualification and childhood cancer in primary care

Resumo Objetivo Analisar a percepção de profissionais que atuam na Atenção Básica sobre sua formação profissional relacionada ao câncer infantojuvenil. Métodos Trata-se de um estudo exploratório, com abordagem qualitativa, desenvolvido junto aos profissionais da Atenção Básica do município de Campinas-SP. A condução do estudo foi realizada por meio de grupos focais, orientados por questões semiestruturadas. Adotou-se a modalidade temática da Análise de Conteúdo. Resultados Foram identificadas duas categorias: "Experiências e formação profissional frente ao câncer infantojuvenil na Atenção Básica", traduzindo-se em pouco contato com a temática, tanto por experiências, quanto por meio da formação profissional; e, a "Integralidade do cuidado à criança e ao adolescente com câncer na Atenção Básica e a qualificação profissional", sendo desvelado pouco ou o nenhum preparo para garantir a integralidade do cuidado, com questões distintas dos aspectos biológicos da doença. Conclusão A partir das percepções dos profissionais, notou-se pouco contato e preparo insuficiente para elencar ações assertivas relacionadas ao câncer infantojuvenil na Atenção Básica, apontando necessidades de mudanças futuras na inclusão do tema neste nível de atenção e melhorias na qualidade da educação permanente nos serviços.

Resumen Objetivo Analizar la percepción de profesionales que actúan en la Atención Básica sobre su formación profesional relacionada con el cáncer infantojuvenil. Métodos Se trata de un estudio exploratorio, con enfoque cualitativo, llevado a cabo con profesionales de la Atención Básica del municipio de Campinas, estado de São Paulo. El estudio fue conducido por medio de grupos focales, guiados con preguntas semiestructuradas. Se adoptó la modalidad temática del análisis de contenido. Resultados Se identificaron dos categorías: "Experiencias y formación profesional frente al cáncer infantojuvenil en la Atención Básica", que se tradujo en poco contacto con la temática, tanto por experiencias, como mediante la formación profesional, e "Integralidad del cuidado de niños y adolescentes con cáncer en la Atención Básica y la cualificación profesional", que reveló poco o ningún tipo de preparación para garantizar la integralidad del cuidado, con cuestiones distintas a los aspectos biológicos de la enfermedad. Conclusión A partir de las percepciones de los profesionales, se observó poco contacto y preparación insuficiente para enumerar acciones asertivas relacionadas con el cáncer infantojuvenil en la Atención Básica, lo que indica la necesidad de cambios futuros respecto a la inclusión del tema en este nivel de atención y mejoras en la calidad de la educación permanente en los servicios.

Abstract Objective To analyze the perception of professionals working in Primary Care about their professional training related to childhood cancer. Methods This is an exploratory study, with a qualitative approach, developed with professionals in Primary Care in the city of Campinas-SP. The study was conducted through focus groups, guided by semi-structured questions. Thematic modality of Content Analysis was adopted. Results Two categories were identified: "Experiences and professional training in the face of childhood cancer in Primary Care", resulting in little contact with the theme, both through experiences and through professional training; and "Comprehensiveness of care for children and adolescents with cancer in Primary Care and professional qualification", with little or no preparation being unveiled to ensure comprehensive care, with issues different from the biological aspects of the disease. Conclusion From professionals' perceptions, there was little contact and insufficient preparation to list assertive actions related to childhood cancer in Primary Care, pointing out the need for future changes in the inclusion of the theme in this level of care and improvements in the quality of continuing education in the services.

Compresión medular por linfoma B difuso de célulagrande en columna torácica en paciente con infección por VIH no diagnosticada. Reporte de caso / Spinal cord compression due to diffuse large B cell lymphoma in the thoracic spine in a patient with undiagnosed HIV infection. Case report

El linfoma no Hodgkin difuso de célula B grande corresponde a un tipo raro de tumor que se ha visto asociado a infección por VIH. Se presenta el caso de un paciente masculino con una presentación inusual de linfoma en columna con compresión medular a nivel de T12 el cual adicionalmente cursa con una infección por VIH diagnosticada durante la misma hospitalización. Se realiza un manejo quirúrgico por compresión medular aguda y posterior coadyuvancia con quimioterapia esquema R-EPOCH con una mejoría significativa en la clínica del paciente en las siguientes semanas.

Diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma is a rare type of tumor that has been associated with HIV infection. The case of a male patient with an unusual presentation of lymphoma in the spine with spinal cord compression at the level of T12 is presented, which additionally presents with an HIV infection diagnosed during the same hospitalization. Surgical management was performed due to acute spinal cord compression and subsequent adjuvant treatment with R-EPOCH chemotherapy, with a significant improvement in the patient's symptoms in the following weeks.

De lo complejo a lo simple… deshidrogenasa láctica como marcador de severidad en pacientes con infección por SARS-CoV-2 / From complex to simple... lactic dehydrogenase as a severity marker in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infections / Do complexo ao simples… Desidrogenase láctica como marcador de gravidade em pacientes com infecção por SARS-CoV-2

resumen está disponible en el texto completo

Abstract: Introduction: The reference standard for the diagnosis of COVID-19 remains reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)-positive, while plain chest computed tomography (CT) has been more sensitive and specific in severity classification. In defining the severity of SARS-CoV-2, clinical, imaging and laboratory criteria have been specified, mentioning several markers, including lactate dehydrogenase (LDH). Historically, LHD has been of interest as a biomarker associated with lung damage, with a greater peak during the influenza A H1N1 pandemic, and taken as a marker in the definition of severity. Objective: To determine the diagnostic performance of serum LHD levels on admission to the ICU as a marker of severity in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Material and methods: Observational, analytical, longitudinal and prospective study, carried out in two stages, the first (April 1, 2020 to September 30, 2020) consisted of a correlation study between serum LHD levels at Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission and simple chest CT, a moderate correlation was obtained between serum LHD levels and severity score by pulmonary tomography, with an r = 0.5 and p < 0.0001; a severity-associated serum LHD cut-off point of 396 U/dL was obtained (p < 0.001, sensitivity 86.02%, specificity 75%). The second stage was extended until December 31, 2020, in which analysis is performed for diagnostic test performance, in inferential statistics correlation tests are performed, a multiple linear regression model is built, analysis was performed for diagnostic tests by building two-by-two contingency Tables, determining sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, likelihood ratios and Bayesian analysis. Results: 155 patients were included in the study to determine the diagnostic performance of serum LHD levels in patients with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection; by multiple linear regression analysis, it was determined that LHD levels on admission to the ICU is a predictor of severity in patients with SARS-CoV-2. A sensitivity of 0.92, specificity 0.41, with PPV 0.854, NPV 0.57 and an accuracy of 0.83, an LR + 1.57 and LR- 0.63 were obtained. In the post-test probability results, patients with DHL > 396 U/dL have a 86.3% probability of developing severe COVID-19. DHL levels have a direct correlation with ICU days of stay and days of invasive mechanical ventilation with statistical significance (p = 0.001, p = 0.033 respectively). Conclusion: Serum LHD levels have a high sensitivity to diagnose COVID-19 severity; and in the absence of simple chest CT, it can predict severe lung damage. It constitutes a test with high screening power in severe cases of COVID-19; with a probability of almost double (LR + 1.6) that of predicting a severe case.

Resumo: Introdução: O padrão de referência para o diagnóstico de COVID-19 continua sendo a reação em cadeia da polimerase com transcriptase reversa positiva (RT-PCR), enquanto a tomografia computadorizada (TC) de tórax simples tem se mostrado mais sensível e específica na classificação de gravidade. Na definição da gravidade do SARS-CoV-2, foram especificados critérios clínicos, de imagem e laboratoriais, mencionando vários marcadores, incluindo a desidrogenase láctica (DHL). A DHL ao longo da história tem sido de interesse como biomarcador associado a danos pulmonares, com maior boom durante a pandemia de influenza A H1N1, e tomado como marcador na definição de gravidade. Objetivo: Determinar o desempenho diagnóstico de dois níveis séricos de DHL na admissão à UTI como marcador de gravidade em pacientes com infecção por SARS-CoV-2. Métodos: Estudo observacional, analítico, longitudinal e prospectivo, realizado em duas etapas, a primeira (01 de abril de 2020 a 30 de setembro de 2020) consistiu em um estudo de correlação entre os níveis séricos de DHL na admissão na UTI e TC simples de tórax, um foi obtida correlação entre os níveis séricos de DHL e o escore de gravidade pela tomografia pulmonar, com r 0.5 ep < 0.0001; um ponto de corte para DHL sérico associado à gravidade de 396 U/dL foi obtido (p < 0.001, sensibilidade 86.02%, especificidade 75%). A segunda etapa foi estendida até 31 de dezembro de 2020, na qual são realizadas análises para realização de testes diagnósticos, testes de correlação em estatística inferencial, construção de um modelo de regressão linear múltipla, análise para testes diagnósticos, construção tabelas de contingência dois a dois, determinando sensibilidade, especificidade, valor preditivo positivo, valor preditivo negativo, razões de verossimilhança e análise Bayesiana. Resultados: 155 pacientes foram incluídos no estudo para determinar o desempenho diagnóstico dos níveis séricos de DHL em pacientes com infecção grave por SARS-CoV-2; pela análise de regressão linear múltipla, determina-se que os níveis de DHL na admissão à UTI é um preditor de gravidade em pacientes com SARS-CoV-2. Obteve-se sensibilidade de 0.92, especificidade de 0.41, com VPP 0.854, VPN 0.57 e exatidão de 0.83, LR+ 1.57 e LR- 0.63. Nos resultados de probabilidade pós-teste, pacientes com DHL > 396 U/Dl têm probabilidade de 86.3% de desenvolver doença grave por COVID-19. Os níveis de DHL têm correlação direta com os dias de permanência na UTI e os dias de tratamento invasivo ventilação mecânica com significância estatística (p = 0.001, p = 0.33 respectivamente). Conclusão: Os níveis séricos de DHL têm alta sensibilidade para diagnosticar gravidade por COVID-19; e na ausência de TC simples de tórax, pode predizer danos pulmonares graves. Constitui um teste com alto poder de escrutínio em casos graves de COVID-19; com quase o dobro da probabilidade (LR + 1.6) de predizer uma condição grave.

Early changes in neural circuit function engaged by negative emotion and modified by behavioural intervention are associated with depression and problem-solving outcomes: A report from the ENGAGE randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Depression exerts a staggering toll that is worsened with co-occurring chronic conditions such as obesity. It is imperative to develop more effective interventions for depression and to identify objective and biological plausible neural mechanisms to understand intervention outcomes. The current study uses functional neuroimaging to determine whether a behavioural intervention changes the negative affect circuit and whether these changes relate to subsequent improvements in both symptom and problem-solving outcomes in depressed patients with co-occurring obesity. METHODS: This study ('ENGAGE') was a pre-planned element of the randomized controlled trial, 'RAINBOW' (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02246413). 108 depressed patients with obesity were randomized to receive an integrated collaborative care intervention (I-CARE) or usual care. Participants underwent functional neuroimaging using an established facial emotion task at baseline and two months (coinciding with the first two months of intervention focused on problem-solving therapy ('PST')). Amygdala, insula and anterior cingulate cortex activation was extracted using pre-planned definitions and standardized methods. The primary health and behavioural outcomes were depression symptom severity and problem-solving ability respectively, assessed at baseline, the main 6-month outcome point and at 12-month follow up. Mediation analyses used an intent-to-treat approach. FINDINGS: PST, relative to usual care, reduced amygdala activation engaged by threat stimuli at two months. This reduction mediated subsequent improvements in depression severity in an intervention-dependent manner. PST did not change insula activation at two months but did temper the strength of the relationship between insula activation and improvements in problem-solving ability. INTERPRETATION: The negative affect circuit may be an important neural target and potential mediator of PST in patients with comorbid obesity. FUNDING: US National Institutes of Health/National Heart Lung and Blood Institute R01 HL119453 and UH2/UH3 HL132368.

StopWatch: Pilot study for an Apple Watch application for youth with ADHD.

INTRODUCTION: To address the need for non-pharmacologic, scalable approaches for managing attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in young people, we report the results of a study of an application developed for a wearable device (Apple Watch) that was designed to track movement and provide visual and haptic feedback for ADHD. METHODS: Six-week, open label pilot study with structured rating scales ADHD and semi-structured qualitative interview. Apple Watch software application given to users that uses actigraphy and graphic interface as well as haptic feedback to provide feedback to users about level of movement during periods of intentional focus. Linear mixed models to estimate trajectories. RESULTS: Thirty-two participants entered the study. This application was associated with improvement in ADHD symptoms over the 6 weeks of the study. We observed an ADHD-Rating Scale change of ß = -1.2 units/week (95% CI = -0.56 to -1.88, F = 13.4, P = .0004). CONCLUSIONS: These positive clinical outcomes highlight the promise of such wearable applications for ADHD and the need to pursue their further development.

Prevalencia de fracturas en niños con Parálisis Cerebral. Estudio de Cohorte Transversal / Prevalence of fractures in children with Cerebral Palsy. Cross-sectional Cohort Study

Introducción La parálisis cerebral (PC) es un grupo de trastornos no progresivos del movimiento y la postura que se produce como resultado de una lesión en el cerebro durante el desarrollo. Se asocia a fracturas afectando la región supracondílea del fémur principalmente. El objetivo general de este estudio fue determinar cuál es la prevalencia de fracturas en niños con PC en el Instituto Roosevelt entre Enero y Diciembre de 2017. Materiales y métodos Se realizó un estudio descriptivo de corte transversal teniendo como variables la edad, sexo, nivel funcional (GMFCS), uso de anticonvulsivantes y presencia de gastrostomía, siendo el desenlace la presencia de fractura. Resultados Se identificaron 648 pacientes con parálisis cerebral dentro de los cuales un total de 5 pacientes presentaron fracturas para una prevalencia calculada de 0.0187, todas fueron localizadas en la región supracondílea del fémur. Dos pacientes (40%) recibieron manejo ortopédico y tres pacientes (60%) manejo quirúrgico con osteosíntesis. 2 pacientes (40%) presentaban GMFCS I, 1 paciente (20%) GMFCS II y 2 pacientes (40%) GMFCS V. Ningún paciente tenía gastrostomía ni recibía anticonvulsivantes. Discusión La incidencia de fracturas en la población a estudio fue más baja que lo reportado en la literatura, la región supracondílea del fémur fue la más afectada en el presente estudio, sin complicaciones en el seguimiento. No se identificó asociación con gastrostomía ni uso de anticonvulsivantes.

Background Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of non-progressive movement and posture disorders that occurs as a result of an injury to the brain during development. It is associated with fractures mainly affecting the supracondylar region of the femur. The general objective of thestudy was to determine the prevalence of fractures in children with CP at the Roosevelt Institute between January and December 2017. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out taking as variables age, sex, functional level (GMFCS), use of anticonvulsants and presence of gastrostomy, defining the outcome as the presence of fracture. Results 648 patients with cerebral palsy were identified, within which a total of 5 patients presented fractures for a calculated prevalence of 0.0187, all were located in the supracondylar region of the femur. Two patients (40%) received orthopedic management and three patients (60%) surgical management with osteosynthesis. Two patients (40%) presented GMFCS I, 1 patient (20%) GMFCS II and 2 patients (40%) GMFCS V. No patient had a gastrostomy or received anticonvulsants. Discussion The incidence of fractures in the study population was lower than that reported in the literature, the supracondylar region of the femur was the most affected in the present study, without complications during follow-up. No association with gastrostomy or use of anticonvulsants was identified.

Species survey of the subfamily Cerambycinae (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) in the Rio Doce State Park, Minas Gerais, Brazil.

The Rio Doce State Park ("PERD") is the largest Atlantic Forest remnant in Minas Gerais State, Brazil, with predominantly semi-deciduous forests. The longhorned beetles of the Cerambycinae subfamily (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) are distributed worldwide, developing on healthy, stressed or recently dead trees. Faunistic surveys are necessary to understand about the Minas Gerais' cerambycid fauna due to a lack of research, especially in the eastern region of the state. A list of species of the subfamily Cerambycinae (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), collected in the PERD during the rainy season (September 2013- February 2014), is presented. The beetles were collected using a light trap and through their emergence from Anadenanthera colubrina (Vell.) Brenan (Fabaceae) logs. A total of 663 individuals of 33 species, 30 genera, and 15 tribes of the Cerambycinae subfamily were collected. The species Malacopterus tenellus (Fabricius, 1801) was registered for the first time in Minas Gerais State, while A. colubrina is a new host plant for 14 Cerambycinae species. The geographical distribution, number of host plants and materials examined are presented for each species collected. This is the first list of Cerambycidae species from the Rio Doce State Park.

Cetoacidosis diabética euglucémica asociada al uso de inhibidores del cotransportador de sodio-glucosa 2

RESUMEN Mujer de 48 años con antecedentes de diabetes mellitus tipo 2 tratada con empaglifozina acudió a consulta después de 8 horas de dolor abdominal, náuseas, vómitos y falta de aliento. Tras el examen físico, la paciente estaba alerta, álgica, pálida, con mucosas secas, taquipneica, taquicárdica y con dolor abdominal difuso sin signos de irritación peritoneal. Los resultados de su laboratorio mostraron una glucemia sérica de 115 mg/dL (70-100 mg/dL), gasometría arterial con acidosis metabólica con anión gap elevado 20 mmol/L. El análisis de orina reportó cetonuria (cuerpos cetónicos 150) y la HbA1C fue 12,4% (4,8%-6%). Se descartó una causa quirúrgica de dolor abdominal y finalmente fue diagnosticada con cetoacidosis diabética euglucémica secundaria al uso de Inhibidores del cotransportador de sodio-glucosa 2.

ABSTRACT A 48-year-old woman with a history of type 2 diabetes mellitus treated with empaglifozine came to consultation after 8 hours of abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and shortness of breath. After the physical examination, the patient was alert, allergic, pale, with dry mucosa, tachypnea, tachycardia, and with diffuse abdominal pain without signs of peritoneal irritation. The results of his laboratory showed a serum glucose of 115 mg/dL (70-100 mg/dL), arterial blood gasometry with metabolic acidosis with an elevated gap anion of 20 mmol/L. Urine analysis reported ketonuria (150 ketone bodies) and HbA1C was 12.4% (4.8% -6%). A surgical cause of abdominal pain was ruled out and she was finally diagnosed with euglycemic diabetic ketoacidosis secondary to the use of sodium-glucose cotransporter inhibitors 2.

Quarentena, o bem que ela nos faz / Quarentine, the good it does to us

A quarentena é uma invenção legal. De início seria um tempo livre favorecendo o usufruto para pensar sem compromisso. Na verdade, nova forma de pensar cujos propósitos não são suficientemente claros. Retiradas as metas assertivas, a quarentena é uma condenação à revisão de erros pelos quais a humanidade tem que se responsabilizar. O autor lembra que a proposta parece um surto inimaginável e até seu impacto não real. É surpreendente, exigindo que a população tente avaliações inventadas. Existe ainda a necessidade de vivê-la sem desespero enlouquecedor ou apatia, enfrentar um coletivo duro e ameaçador, antecipando a solidariedade que será exigida(AU)

Quarantine is a legal invention. At first it would be free time favoring the enjoyment of thinking with no compromise. In fact, a new way of thinking whose purposes are not clear enough. With the assertive goals removed, quarantine is a condemnation to review the errors humanity must take responsibility for. The author recalls that the proposal seems like an unimaginable outbreak and even its non-real impact is surprising, requiring people to try invented evaluations. There is also a need to live it without maddening despair or apathy, to face a tough and threatening community, anticipating the solidarity that will be demanded(AU)