ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To systematically review published articles reporting the use of smoking cessation mobile health (mHealth) interventions in Latin America. METHODS: Five different databases were searched from database inception to 2020. Criteria: (1) the research was a smoking cessation randomized controlled trial (RCT), quasi-experimental research, or single-arm study; (2) the intervention used at least one type of mHealth intervention; (3) the research was conducted in Latin American; and (4) the research reported the cessation rate. RESULTS: Of the seven selected studies, four were conducted in Brazil, two in Mexico, and one in Peru. Only one study was an adequately powered RCT. Interventions relied on text messages (n = 3), web-based tools (n = 2), and telephone calls (n = 3). Some studies (n = 4) provided pharmacotherapy support. Smoking cessation outcomes included self-reported (n = 5) and biochemically verified (n = 2) abstinence. Follow-ups were conducted at Month 6 (n = 2), Week 12 (n = 4), and Day 30 (n = 1). Cessation rates varied from 9.4% at Week 12 to 55.5% at Day 30. CONCLUSION: Despite the promising cessation rates of mHealth interventions in Brazil, Mexico, and Peru, there is a need to rigorously evaluate these interventions in different Latin American countries with RCTs that are long-term, adequately powered, and use biochemical verification of cessation.
Subject(s)
Smoking Cessation , Telemedicine , Text Messaging , Health Behavior , Humans , Latin America , Randomized Controlled Trials as TopicABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Ablative procedures are still frequent for the surgical treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD). Although the P300 component has been used to assess cognitive changes induced by levodopa and deep brain stimulation (DBS), the effects caused by unilateral pallidotomy remain unknown. MATERIAL AND METHODS: P300 amplitude and latency in 10 PD patients who underwent unilateral pallidotomy with and without levodopa treatment were compared with 10 healthy controls. Measurements in patients were performed 6 months before and after surgery while only once in controls, throughout the 6-month lapse between the comparative measurements performed in patients. RESULTS: Statistical differences in P300 amplitude and latency were found between the control and PD groups (p < 0.001). On the other hand, there were no differences between the groups with the use of the levodopa treatment or surgery. DISCUSSION: Lack of statistically significant results after six months of pallidotomy or treatment with levodopa suggests an absence of cognitive impairment. Our results obtained with P300 in which safety of surgical treatment has been assessed in PD are consistent with those of other procedures, such as DBS.
Subject(s)
Event-Related Potentials, P300 , Pallidotomy , Parkinson Disease/physiopathology , Parkinson Disease/surgery , Antiparkinson Agents/pharmacology , Event-Related Potentials, P300/drug effects , Female , Humans , Levodopa/pharmacology , Male , Middle Aged , Pallidotomy/methodsABSTRACT
A 45 year old male was admitted to the hospital for unsteady gait and dizziness. The brain CT showed bilateral cerebellar ischemic stroke. The MRI corroborated the stroke in the cerebellum with a third acute ischemic stroke in the pons. The laboratory work up showed a positive anti beta2-glycoprotein I antibodies. The cerebral angiogram showed the territories occluded and also a rare malformation of the cranium vertebral junction called assimilation of the atlas. We concluded that due to the turbulence created in the V3 segment of the vertebral artery surrounding the atlas, the presence of the anti beta2-glycoprotein was the cause of the infarction in this patient.
