Applicability and usefulness of pupillometry in the study of lexical access. A scoping review of primary research.

Pupil dilation has been associated with the effort required to perform various cognitive tasks. At the lexical level, some studies suggest that this neurophysiological measure would provide objective, real-time information during word processing and lexical access. However, due to the scarcity and incipient advancement of this line of research, its applicability, use, and sensitivity are not entirely clear. This scoping review aims to determine the applicability and usefulness of pupillometry in the study of lexical access by providing an up-to-date overview of research in this area. Following the PRISMA protocol, 16 articles were included in this review. The results show that pupillometry is a highly applicable, useful, and sensitive method for assessing lexical skills of word recognition, word retrieval, and semantic activation. Moreover, it easily fits into traditional research paradigms and methods in the field. Because it is a non-invasive, objective, and automated procedure, it can be applied to any population or age group. However, the emerging development of this specific area of research and the methodological diversity observed in the included studies do not yet allow for definitive conclusions in this area, which in turn does not allow for meta-analyses or fully conclusive statements about what the pupil response actually reflects when processing words. Standardized pupillary recording and analysis methods need to be defined to generate more accurate, replicable research designs with more reliable results to strengthen this line of research.

Structure of treatment goals set by expert voice-specialized speech-language pathologists for patients with vocal needs / Estructura de los objetivos terapéuticos formulados por fonoaudiólogos/as en la intervención de usuarios/as con necesidades vocales

ABSTRACT Purpose: to determine the structure of treatment goals set by expert voice-specialized speech-language pathologists in treatment plans for patients with vocal needs. Methods: a cross-sectional documentary research was conducted to analyze 129 treatment goals proposed in treatment plans by 30 expert voice-specialized speech-language pathologists. These goals were thematically analyzed and organized according to the therapeutic content addressed. The goals including the notion of patient in their wording, the statement of a specific purpose, the method for achieving it, and the presence of outcome criteria, were evaluated. Results: most treatment goals analyzed correspond to those aimed at modifying vocal parameters (67.4%). The contents referring to muscle tone (13.8%), vocal hygiene and education (10%), breathing (7.75%), and posture (1.55%) are represented to a lesser extent. From the total number of treatment goals analyzed, 82.17% include the notion of patient, 88.37% indicate the method, 100% indicate the purpose, 52.71% state the outcome criteria used, and 17.05% include other components in their structure. Conclusions: diversity in goal setting shows different visions by the professionals involved in the therapeutic process.

RESUMEN Objetivo: determinar la estructura de los objetivos operacionales formulados por los/las fonoaudiólogos/as en las planificaciones terapéuticas para usuarios con necesidades vocales. Métodos: investigación documental transversal en que se analizaron 129 objetivos operacionales propuestos en las planificaciones terapéuticas de 30 fonoaudiólogos/as. Estos objetivos se sometieron a un proceso de análisis temático y se organizaron según el contenido terapéutico abordado. Se examinó la inclusión de la noción de usuario en la redacción, la declaración de una finalidad específica, el método para alcanzarla y la presencia de criterios de logro. Resultados: de la totalidad de objetivos analizados, la mayoría corresponde a aquellos que están orientados a la modificación de parámetros vocales (67.4%). En menor medida, están representados los contenidos referentes a tonicidad muscular (13.8%), educación e higiene vocal (10%), respiración (7.75%) y postura (1.55%). Del total, un 82.17% incluye la noción de usuario, un 88.37% señala el método, el 100% indica la finalidad y un 52.71% declara los criterios de logro utilizados. Un 17.05% incluye otros componentes en su estructura. Conclusiones: la diversidad en la formulación de los objetivos evidencia distintas visiones acerca del proceso terapéutico por parte de los profesionales involucrados.

How to build measurable treatment goals? A taxonomy of outcome criteria for vocal intervention monitoring

Introduction: The complexity of the vocal phenomenon hinders the therapist's ability to quickly and effectively monitor the achievements obtained by the patient through vocal intervention. The assessment of therapeutic progress relies on the therapist's capability to utilize valid, reliable, and meaningful outcome criteria. Aim: Develop a conceptual framework of outcome criteria to be used in the treatment plans designed by speech-language pathologists for patients with vocal complaints. Methodology: Qualitative, conceptual, and model-type research in which a critical review is conducted through a non-probabilistic theoretical sampling of the theoretical models of therapy treatment plans, the outcome criteria involved and their relevance to voice intervention. Building upon this, a taxonomy of outcome criteria is proposed for verifying therapeutic progress in voice therapy. Results: A conceptual outcome criteria framework is proposed. This model incorporates quantitative, qualitative, and mixed criteria to monitor the diverse aspects of vocal function in the context of voice intervention. Conclusion: The model provides a precise guide to assess the results achieved by the patient in vocal intervention through treatment goals.

Introducción: La complejidad del fenómeno vocal dificulta que el/la terapeuta monitoree de manera rápida y eficaz los logros obtenidos por el/la usuario/a mediante la intervención fonoaudiológica. La evaluación del avance terapéutico depende de la habilidad del/la terapeuta para emplear criterios de medición válidos, confiables y significativos. Objetivo: Desarrollar un modelo teórico de criterios de logro para su consideración en la formulación de los objetivos operacionales en las planificaciones terapéuticas que emplean los profesionales fonoaudiólogos en la atención de usuarios/as que presentan queja vocal. Metodología: Investigación cualitativa, de tipo conceptual y modélica, en la que se lleva a cabo una revisión crítica de la literatura a través de un muestreo teórico no probabilístico de los modelos teóricos propuestos para la formulación y medición de objetivos en el contexto terapéutico y sus alcances respecto de la intervención vocal. A partir de ello, se propone una taxonomía de criterios de logro para la verificación del avance terapéutico. Resultados: Se propone una taxonomía organizada en torno a criterios de logro cuantitativos, cualitativos y mixtos, los que son propuestos para el monitoreo de diversos aspectos de la función vocal en el contexto de la intervención fonoaudiológica. Conclusión: El modelo proporciona una guía precisa para evaluar de manera efectiva el progreso y los resultados alcanzados por el/la usuario/a en el abordaje fonoaudiológico vocal a través de los objetivos operacionales planteados para la intervención.

Sobrevida de los recién nacidos con cardiopatías congénitas diagnosticadas prenatalmente / Survival of newborns with prenatally diagnosed congenital heart disease

Objetivo: Estimar la sobrevida al año de los recién nacidos con cardiopatías congénitas diagnosticadas prenatalmente y el perfil epidemiológico de sus madres. Método: Cohorte dinámica retrospectiva de 825 pacientes, ingresados entre el 1 de abril de 2003 y el 31 de marzo de 2019, con tiempo de seguimiento de 1 año, que se elaboró utilizando la base de datos del Centro de Referencia Perinatal Oriente (CERPO), Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile. Resultados: Se estimó la función de supervivencia global de la muestra, obteniendo una supervivencia del 70% al año de seguimiento (error estándar (ES): 0,0164; intervalo de confianza del 95% [IC95%]: 0,66-0,73). Los recién nacidos con edad gestacional < 30 semanas tuvieron una menor sobrevida (hazard ratio [HR]: 4,17; IC95%: 1,52-11.44; p < 0,01). Los recién nacidos con un peso < 3000 g tuvieron una menor sobrevida (HR: 1,41; IC95%: 1,09-1,84; p < 0,01). La distribución de las cardiopatías congénitas según la gravedad en esta cohorte fue: riesgo vital 64%, clínicamente relevante 34% y clínicamente no relevante 2%. La menor sobrevida fue para la categoría riesgo vital (HR: 6,005; IC95%: 3,97-9,08; p < 0,01). Conclusiones: La prematuridad, el bajo peso al nacer y la gravedad de la cardiopatía se correlacionaron con una menor sobrevida.

Objective: To estimate the survival at one year of newborns with prenatally diagnosed congenital heart diseases and the epidemiological profile of their mothers. Method: Dynamic retrospective cohort of 825 patients, admitted between April 1, 2003 and March 31, 2019, with a follow-up time of 1 year, which was elaborated using the database of the Centro de Referencia Perinatal Oriente (CERPO), Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Chile. Results: The overall survival function of the sample was estimated, resulting in a survival of 70% at one year follow-up (standard error (SE): 0.0164; 95% confidence interval [95% CI]: 0.66-0.73). Newborns with gestational age < 30 weeks had a lower survival (hazard ratio [HR]: 4.17; 95% CI: 1.52-11.44; p < 0.01). Newborns with a birth weight < 3000 g had a lower survival (HR: 1.41; 95% CI: 1.09-1.84; p < 0.01). The distribution of congenital heart disease according to severity in this cohort was: life-threatening 64%, clinically relevant 34% and clinically not relevant 2%. With a lower survival for the life-threatening category (HR: 6.005; 95% CI: 3.97-9.08; p < 0.01). Conclusions: Prematurity, low birth weight and severity of congenital heart correlated with a lower survival rate.

Source and acquisition of rhizosphere microbes in Antarctic vascular plants.

Rhizosphere microbial communities exert critical roles in plant health, nutrient cycling, and soil fertility. Despite the essential functions conferred by microbes, the source and acquisition of the rhizosphere are not entirely clear. Therefore, we investigated microbial community diversity and potential source using the only two native Antarctic plants, Deschampsia antarctica (Da) and Colobanthus quitensis (Cq), as models. We interrogated rhizosphere and bulk soil microbiomes at six locations in the Byers Peninsula, Livingston Island, Antarctica, both individual plant species and their association (Da.Cq). Our results show that host plant species influenced the richness and diversity of bacterial communities in the rhizosphere. Here, the Da rhizosphere showed the lowest richness and diversity of bacteria compared to Cq and Da.Cq rhizospheres. In contrast, for rhizosphere fungal communities, plant species only influenced diversity, whereas the rhizosphere of Da exhibited higher fungal diversity than the Cq rhizosphere. Also, we found that environmental geographic pressures (i.e., sampling site, latitude, and altitude) and, to a lesser extent, biotic factors (i.e., plant species) determined the species turnover between microbial communities. Moreover, our analysis shows that the sources of the bacterial communities in the rhizosphere were local soils that contributed to homogenizing the community composition of the different plant species growing in the same sampling site. In contrast, the sources of rhizosphere fungi were local (for Da and Da.Cq) and distant soils (for Cq). Here, the host plant species have a specific effect in acquiring fungal communities to the rhizosphere. However, the contribution of unknown sources to the fungal rhizosphere (especially in Da and Da.Cq) indicates the existence of relevant stochastic processes in acquiring these microbes. Our study shows that rhizosphere microbial communities differ in their composition and diversity. These differences are explained mainly by the microbial composition of the soils that harbor them, acting together with plant species-specific effects. Both plant species acquire bacteria from local soils to form part of their rhizosphere. Seemingly, the acquisition process is more complex for fungi. We identified a significant contribution from unknown fungal sources due to stochastic processes and known sources from soils across the Byers Peninsula.

Evaluation of the Effect of Hydroxyzine on Preoperative Anxiety and Anesthetic Adequacy in Children: Double Blind Randomized Clinical Trial.

Surgical procedures can generate significant preoperative anxiety (POA) in as much as 70% of the paediatric population. The role of hydroxyzine and distractive techniques such as clowns in the management of anxiety is controversial. Our main objective was to evaluate the effect of hydroxyzine on the control of POA. The secondary objective was to assess the potential additive effect of hydroxyzine and distracting techniques. We performed a randomized double-blind, controlled clinical trial in children aged 2-16 years undergoing outpatient surgery (n = 165). Subjects were randomized to hydroxyzine (group 1) or placebo (group 2). For the secondary objective, two further groups were made by allocation by chance to hydroxyzine plus accompaniment with clowns (group 3) and placebo plus clowns (group 4). All patients were accompanied by their parents as the standard procedure. POA was determined by a modified Yale scale of POA (m-YPAS). Compliance of children during induction of anesthesia (Induction Compliance Checklist (ICC)) was also assessed. No differences (p = 0.788) were found in POA control at the time of induction measured by m-YPAS (group 1: 39.2 ± 27.9; group 2: 37.0 ± 26.1; group 3: 34.7 ± 25.5; group 4: 32.4 ± 20.5). No differences were found in the level of ICC between the different treatment arms (group 1: 1.8 ± 3.4; group 2: 1.5 ± 3.0; group 3: 1.2 ± 2.4; group 4: 1.5 ± 2.7). The combination of all treatments (group 3) was the only effective strategy to contain the progression of anxiety. In conclusion, hydroxyzine was not effective to control POA in children. The combination of hydroxyzine and clowns avoided the progression of POA in our patients. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03324828 (registered 21 September 2017, subject recruitment started on 12th January 2018).

Composition and structure of the skin microbiota of rorquals off the Eastern South Pacific.

Recent advances in high-throughput sequencing have enabled the large-scale interrogation of microbiota in the most diverse environments, including host-associated microbiota. This has led to the recognition that the skin microbiota of rorquals is specific and structurally different from that of the ocean. This study reveals the skin microbiome of 85 wild individuals along the Chilean coast belonging to Megaptera novaeangliae, Balaenoptera musculus and Balaenoptera physalus. Alpha diversity analysis revealed significant differences in richness and phylogenetic diversity, particularly among humpback whales from different locations and between blue and humpback whales. Beta diversity was partially explained by host and location but only accounting for up to 17% of microbiota variability (adjusted VPA). Overall, we found that microbiota composition was dominated by bacterial genera such as Cardiobacter, Moraxella, Tenacibaculum, Stenotrophomonas, Flavobacteria and Pseudomonas. We also found that no ASVs were associated with the three rorqual species. Up to four ASVs were specific of a location, indicating a great variability in the microbiota. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the composition and structure of the skin microbiota of whales off the coast of Chile, providing a foundational dataset to understand the microbiota's role in rorquals.

Influence of Physical-Chemical Soil Parameters on Microbiota Composition and Diversity in a Deep Hyperarid Core of the Atacama Desert.

The extreme environmental conditions and lack of water on the soil surface in hyperarid deserts hamper microbial life, allowing only highly specialized microbial communities to the establish colonies and survive. Until now, the microbial communities that inhabit or have inhabited soils of hyperarid environments at greater depths have been poorly studied. We analyzed for the first time the variation in microbial communities down to a depth of 3.4 m in one of the driest places of the world, the hyperarid Yungay region in the Atacama Desert, and we related it to changes in soil physico-chemical characteristics. We found that the moisture content changed from 2 to 11% with depth and enabled the differentiation of three depth intervals: (i) surface zone A (0-60 cm), (ii) intermediate zone B (60-220 cm), and (iii) deep zone C (220-340 cm). Each zone showed further specific physicochemical and mineralogical features. Likewise, some bacterial phyla were unique in each zone, i.e., members of the taxa Deinococcota, Halobacterota, and Latescibacterota in zone A; Crenarchaeota, Fusobacteriota, and Deltaproteobacterium Sva0485 in zone B; and Fervidibacteria and Campilobacterota in zone C, which indicates taxon-specific preferences in deep soil habitats. Differences in the microbiota between the zones were rather abrupt, which is concomitant with abrupt changes in the physical-chemical parameters. Overall, moisture content, total carbon (TC), pH, and electric conductivity (EC) were most predictive of microbial richness and diversity, while total sulfur (TS) and total phosphorous (TP) contents were additionally predictive of community composition. We also found statistically significant associations between taxa and soil properties, most of which involved moisture and TC contents. Our findings show that under-explored habitats for microbial survival and existence may prevail at greater soil depths near water or within water-bearing layers, a valuable substantiation also for the ongoing search for biosignatures on other planets, such as Mars.

Sequences of Endophytic Fungal and Bacterial Communities from Araucaria araucana [(Molina) K. Koch, 1869] in the Coastal and Andes Mountain Ranges, Chile.

Here, we report the results from PCR and sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA and fungal internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1) genes from needle, branch, trunk, and root samples of Araucaria araucana, plus soil and associated insects, collected along the entirety of its geographic distribution in Chile (January 2017 and 2018).

Pre-operative anxiolysis in children through a combined pharmacological therapy with hydroxyzine and a non-pharmacological distraction technique with a clown (SONRISA): study protocol for randomised double-blind clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Surgery can generate significant stress and anxiety in up to 70% of the paediatric population. There are several pharmacological and non-pharmacological strategies to reduce pre-operative anxiety in children, however, they have several side effects and the available information about them is contradictory. The role of clowns and hydroxyzine in the management of anxiety is controversial, with some studies supporting and others contraindicating both strategies. METHODS: We propose a randomised double-blind, controlled clinical trial that will evaluate the effectiveness of both interventions (hydroxyzine and clowns), alone or in combination, to reduce pre-operative anxiety (using the modified Yale scale of preoperative anxiety) in children aged 2-16 years undergoing outpatient surgery (n = 188). Subjects will be randomised into two groups - (1) standard procedure (parental accompaniment) combined with placebo or (2) standard procedure combined with preoperative hydroxyzine. After randomisation, they will be divided by chance into two further groups, depending on the presence of clowns on the patient's surgery day. Control of pre-operative anxiety will be determined in the four groups by a modified Yale scale of preoperative anxiety and cortisol levels. Compliance of children during induction of anaesthesia, time until anaesthesia recovery, presence of postoperative delirium and use of analgesia until discharge will be also assessed. For additional information, the children, parents and healthcare professionals involved in the study will complete a satisfaction survey. CONCLUSIONS: This study aims to gather evidence on which of these four therapeutic options achieves the highest reduction of pre-operative anxiety with the best safety profile to allow paediatricians and anaesthesiologists to use the most effective and safe option for their patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03324828. Registered 21 September 2017.

Impacto del uso de surfactante en la morbimortalidad del recién nacido <1.500 grs 1990-2000 / Impact of the use of surfactants in the morbidity and mortality of the newborn < 1.500 grs, 1990-2000

Se presentan los resultados de la introducción del uso sistemático de surfactante en todo recién nacido con Síndrome de Dificultad Respiratoria Idiopática. El 63,07 por ciento de los RN que recibieron tratamiento tuvieron un peso inferior a 1.500 grs. Las causas más frecuentes de parto prematuro fueron el SHIE y RPM. En un 84 por ciento de los casos se utilizó corticoides prenatales. Como morbilidad asociada destacan un 29 por ciento de incidencia de Ductus; 28 por ciento de Enfermedad Pulmonar Crónica, y 46,34 por ciento de incidencia global de rinopatía con predominio de etapas 1 y 2; 3,65 por ciento en etapa 3 y 1,2 por ciento de enfermedad Plus. El mayor impacto en la sobrevida se obtuvo en el rango de peso de 750 a 999 grs. Se destaca que se cumplió el objetivo de disminuir la mortalidad en este grupo etario, pero se debe estar preparado para diagnosticar precozmente y manejar en forma adecuada morbilidad asociada como: - Ductus (DAP): Uso de indometacina. - Enfermedad Pulmonar Crónica (EPC): Oxígeno domiciliario. Retinopatía del Prematuro (ROP): Fotocoagulación láser. - Secuelas Neurológicas: Tratamiento y rehabilitación