Effectiveness of environmental interventions to reduce entomological indices of dengue, Zika, and chikungunya vector.

Vector-borne diseases are a major public health problem. Amongst them, dengue, Zika and chikungunya illnesses are increasing their incidence and geographical expansion. Since vector control is the main measure to prevent these diseases, this systematic review aims to determine the effectiveness of environmental interventions for the prevention of the transmission of these three diseases, as well as for the reduction of their burden. Experimental studies of environmental management interventions aimed at vector control were included. The outcome variables of interest were disease burden indicators and entomological indicators. Of the 923 references initially retrieved, after discarding those that were duplicated or didn't comply with the inclusion criteria, a total of 7 articles were included. All included studies carried out environmental manipulation interventions and only 1 carried out an environmental modification intervention. Regarding the outcome variables, all used entomological indicators (larval or pupae indices). Of those, pupae indices are better indicators of vector abundance. In 4 out of the 6 studies, there was a statistically significant reduction of the pupae indices related to the elimination of small containers, manipulation of large tanks and cleaning outdoor spaces. These interventions are easy to implement and involve little resources, which acquires special importance regarding areas with limited resources. Although it is assumed that a reduction of mosquitoes would lead to a reduction or the risk of transmission, a little evidence proving this has been published. It would be advisable that, in addition to entomological indicators, epidemiological, environmental and sociodemographic factors would be taken into consideration, bearing in mind that mosquito density is one of the many factors that influence the transmission of these viruses. None of the papers included used disease indicators, not allowing to demonstrate if environmental interventions contribute to reduce disease burden.

Adoption of the HPV vaccine: a case study of three emerging countries.

BACKGROUND: The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine has recently attracted considerable attention in emerging countries, due to its potential to reduce the impact of HPV-related diseases. This case study sheds new light about the variety of HTA arrangements, methods and processes involved in the adoption and use of HPV vaccines in a selected sample of central, eastern and southern Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean, all of them emerging in the use of HTA. MATERIALS & METHODS: A multi-country case study was designed. Mixed methods, document review, semi-structured surveys and personal communication with experts, were used for data collection and triangulation. RESULTS: This study shows that common elements of good practice exist in the processes and methods used, with all countries arriving at the same appraisal recommendations. However, the influence of socio-politico-economic factors appears to be determinant on the final decisions and restrictions to access made. CONCLUSION: This case study intends to draw useful lessons for policymakers in emerging settings interested in the adoption of the HPV vaccine supported by evidence-informed processes, such as those offered by institutionalized HTA. Future studies are also recommended to elucidate the specific roles that social values and uncertainties play in vaccine decision-making across different societies.

Oligomers, protofibrils and amyloid fibrils from recombinant human lysozyme (rHL): fibrillation process and cytotoxicity evaluation for ARPE-19 cell line.

Amyloid-associated diseases, such Alzheimer's, Huntington's, Parkinson's, and type II diabetes, are related to protein misfolding and aggregation. Herein, the time evolution of scattered light intensity, hydrophobic properties, and conformational changes during fibrillation processes of rHL solutions at 55 °C and pH 2.0 were used to monitor the aggregation process of recombinant human lysozyme (rHL). Dynamic light scattering (DLS), thioflavin T (ThT) fluorescence, and surface tension (ST) at the air-water interface were used to analyze the hydrophobic properties of pre-amyloid aggregates involved in the fibrillation process of rHL to find a correlation between the hydrophobic character of oligomers, protofibrils and amyloid aggregates with the gain in cross-ß-sheet structure, depending on the increase in the incubation periods. The ability of the different aggregates of rHL isolated during the fibrillation process to be adsorbed at the air-water interface can provide important information about the hydrophobic properties of the protein, which can be related to changes in the secondary structure of rHL, resulting in cytotoxic or non-cytotoxic species. Thus, we evaluated the cytotoxic effect of oligomers, protofibrils and amyloid fibrils on the cell line ARPE-19 using the MTT reduction test. The more cytotoxic protein species arose after a 600-min incubation time, suggesting that the hydrophobic character of pre-amyloid fibrils, in addition to the high prevalence of the cross-ß-sheet conformation, can become toxic for the cell line ARPE-19.

Opiniones de menores residentes en Andalucía (España) sobre temas de salud: Aplicación de un cuestionario por Internet / Opinions of minor children residing in Andalusia (Spain) on health-related topics: An online questionnaire

Objetivo: Analizar opiniones de menores sobre el concepto de salud, centros y profesionales sanitarios así como recomendaciones en forma de consejos sobre promoción de salud. Métodos: Estudio transversal con cuestionario online dirigido a menores de 14 años de edad. Se utilizó una versión adaptada del cuestionario Kid's Hospital, el cual contiene preguntas abiertas y cerradas. Resultados: Contestaron al cuestionario 358 menores, de los cuales 225 fueron niñas (61,3%). La edad media global fue de 9,2(DE 2,61). Asocian buena salud con la ausencia de enfermedad (n=165, 46,1%) y estar en forma (n=151, 42,2%) ; sobre experiencias de la última visita al médico, reconocen el papel de ayuda y mediación de estos profesionales (n=233, 65,1%); destacan la ayuda y la recuperación como lo mejor de la atención, y como lo peor los pinchazos y el dolor padecido. De los consejos emitidos para promoción de salud destacan aquellos sobre alimentación (n=233, 62,3%). Conclusiones: Los cuestionarios online a menores, constituyen una forma útil de recolección de información. Así, estas consultas directas permiten la participación de los niños y niñas o de los menores y proporcionan información útil para adecuar las intervenciones de cara a fomentar la promoción entre iguales, así como sobre sus preferencias en el diseño de intervenciones.

Objective: To analyze opinions of minors regarding the concept of health, health centers, and professionals, as well as providing them with recommendations on health promotion in the form of health promotion advice. Methods: A cross-sectional survey with an online questionnaire aimed to kids below 14. An adapted version of Kid's Hospital questionnaire was utilized, which has both open and closed questions. Results: 358 minors answered the questionnaire, 225 of which were girls (61.3%). The mean global age was 9.2 years (SD 2.61). They associated good health with the absence of illnesses (n=165, 46.1%) and being in shape (n=151, 42.2%). Regarding their experiences about their last doctor's appointment, they acknowledged the aiding and mediation role of these professionals as the best features of the assistance (n=233, 65.1%) and the pain suffered and syringe jabs as the worst ones. They also highlighted healthy eating advice from the health promotion advice given (n=233, 62.3%). Discussion: Online questionnaires for minors are a useful data collection tool. These direct queries allow them to participate and provide useful information to adequate medical interventions in order to develop actions for health promotion, as well as taking their opinions into account when designing interventions.

Female depression and substance dependence in the Mexico City penitentiary system / Depresión en mujeres y la dependencia a sustancias en el sistema penitenciario de la Ciudad de México

Summary: The prevalence of mental disorders in people deprived of freedom has been estimated at between 10 and 15%. Acute or chronic mental illnesses provoke a major breakdown and maladjustment to prison conditions. The more frequent diagnose of mental disorders have been substance consumption, major depression, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and psychotic disorders. Objective To identify the frequency of major depressive episode in women in prison in Mexico City, its frequency of association with alcohol and substance dependence, and to describe the symptomatic and socio-demographic characteristics. Material and method A transversal, non-experimental, descriptive, ex post facto field study, in two prisons of Mexico City (Centro Preventivo Femenil Oriente [Preventivo Oriente] and the Feminine Center for Social Readaptation Tepepan CERESO), in a non- probabilistic sample of 213 women, selected by convenience. The instrument was designed ex profeso. For the evaluation of the major depressive episode, the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) and DSM-IV criteria were used for substance dependence. Field work lasted from August 2001 to March 2004. Interviews were carried out under previous informed consent; confidentiality and anonymity were guaranteed. In collaboration with the Center of Orientation and Classification (COC), each center elaborated a list of inmates with a history of substance abuse who met the inclusion criteria to take part in the research. Results The mean age of the interviewed population was 30.6 ± 7.9 years; 45.5% belonged to the age group between 28 to 40 years; the school attainment more frequent was elementary school (41.3%), followed by secondary school. Single women represented 48.6% of the population and 50.2% referred having, at the moment of the interview, a partner relationship. The type of offense reported with major frequency was robbery (51.6%, in different modalities: unspecific, simple, aggravated, not-aggravated, unspecific, burglary, tentative of robbery and car theft). The researched population referred that 43.7% had previously done time in some penal institution. The frequency of depressive episodes was 62% (n=132) in the interviewed population. The group between 18 to 27 years, with lower years of schooling, single mothers with children under 18 years presented the highest frequency of depression and substance abuse. Alcohol dependence and depression were more frequent in women with less than six months in prison. For depression and substance dependence, the more affected group was the one between one to four years of imprisonment. As to the length of the sentence, women with three to seven years were the most affected by the two diagnoses. Conclusions The interviewed population showed that the longer the imprisonment or the sentence, the higher the frequency of the depressive disorder. A possible explanation is that being imprisoned for a long time may have severe consequences in women's well-being due in part to the fact that in most of the cases women are abandoned by their relatives and loved ones, which intern increases their loss of social support networks. The problem of mental disorders becomes more evident when it is estimated that only 40% of the people who have a disorder had received treatment. Nearly half of the depressed women had not received support and care for their mental health problem. In the group of women with alcohol dependence, less than a quarter had asked for help, in contrast with the group with substance dependence where half of the women had asked for help. On the other hand, prison by itself generates depression and it is a normal reaction in the face of the new situation. There is also the erroneous belief that symptoms will fade away by themselves. In other studies it has been observed that being deprived of freedom causes the lose of emotional relationships, solitude and boredom, lack of services, heterosexual relationships, autonomy, security, a problematic cohabitation with other unpredictable prisoners, all of which cause fear and anxiety. All these deprivations may constitute serious threats to the personality and self-esteem.

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Autoestima y sintomatología depressiva en adolescentes mexicanos: un estudio correlacional por género / Self-esteem and depressive symptomatology in Mexican adolescents: correlation studies considering gender differences

El presente trabajo tuvo como objetivo evaluar: 1) La adecuación de la Escala de Autoestima de ROSENBERG (1965) en adolescentes mexicanos; y 2) La relación entre autoestima y sintomatología depresiva, distinguiendo la característica atributiva de sexo para delimitar similitudes y diferencias en la relación entre las dimensiones de autoestima y nivel de sintomatología depresiva. La muestra quedó formada por 100 adolescentes entre 13 y 15 años de edad (52 por cento mujeres), estudiantes de secundaria en la Ciudad de México. El muestreo fue no probabilístico e intencional. Un requisito metodológico para evaluar la adecuación de la escala de autoestima es el An lisis Discriminante de los Reactivos. Por ello, de los reactivos originales, la versión definitiva quedó constituída por los 7 reactivos que significativamente discriminaron los niveles de autoestima. Un siguiente paso fue evaluar la confiabilidad y validez de la escala. Los factores de autoestima que explicaron el 66.2 por cento de la varianza total fueron: Satisfacción, Valía y Respeto. Las primeras dos dimensiones fueron: 1) Satisfacción (3 reactivos) con una consistencia interna alpha de Cronbach = .71; y 2) Valía (3 reactivos) = .56. El tercer factor: Respeto - con un reactivo - fue considerado como un indicador, ya que obtuvo un peso factorial alto = .94. Los an lisis correlacionales de Pearson mostraron algunas correlaciones significativas entre autoestima y nivel se sintomatología depresiva. Menor Valía, Respeto, y Satisfacción correlaciónaron con mayor nivel de sintomatologia depresiva. En los varones, sólo se detectó correlacion de menor Satisfacción com mayor nivel de sintomatologia depresiva. Mientras que en las mujeres, las dos dimensiones de autoestima mostraron correlación inversa significativa con la variable dependiente: menor Valía y Satisfacción con mayor nivel de sintomatología depresiva. Los resultados obtenidos son discutidos a la luz de las implicaciones de los sistemas y contenidos de socialización que por género moldean las características psicosociales del desarrollo de los adolescentes

Autoestima y sintomatologia depresiva en adolescentes mexicanos: un estudio correlacional por genero / Autoestima y sintomatologia depresiva en adolescentes mexicanos: un estudio correlacional por genero

El presente trabajo tuvo como objetivo evaluar: 1)La adecuacion de la Escala de Autoestima de ROSENBERG (1965) en adolescentes mexicanos; y 2) La relacion entre autoestima y sintomatologia depresiva, distinguiendo la caracteristica atributiva de sexo para delimitar similitudes y diferencias en la relacion entre las dimensiones de autoestima y nivel de sintomatologia depresiva. La muestra quedo formada por 100 adolescentes entre 13 y 15 anos de edad (52 por cento mujeres), estudiantes de secundaria en la Ciudad de Mexico. El muestreo fue no probalibilistico e intencional. Un requisito metodologico para evaluar la adecuacion de la escala de autoestima es el Analisis Discriminante de los Reactivos. Por ello, de los 10 reactivos originales, la version definitiva quedo constituida por los 7 reactivos que significativamente discriminaron los niveles de autoestima. Un siguiente paso fue evaluar la confiabilidad y validez de la escala. Los factores de autoestima que explicaron el 66.2 por cento de la varianza total fueron: Satisfaccion, Valia y Respeto. Las primeras dos dimensiones fureron: 1) Satisfaccion (3 reactivos) con una consistencia interna alpha de Cronbach = 71; y 2) Valia (3 reactivos) = 56. El tercer factor: Respeto - con un reactivo - fue considerado como un indicador, ya que obtuvo un peso factorial alto = 94. Los analisis correlacionales de Pearson mostraron algunas correlaciones significativas entre autoestima y nivel se sintomatologia depresiva. Menor Valia, Respeto, y Satisfaccion correlacionaron con mayor nivel de sintomatologia depresiva. En los varones, solo se detecto correlacion de menor Satisfaccion com mayor Valia y Satisfaccion con mayor nivel de sintomatologia depresiva. Mientras que en las mujeres, las dos dimensiones de autoestima mostraron correlacion inversa significativa con la variable dependiente: menor Valia y Satisfaccion con mayor nivel de sintomatologia depresiva. Los resultados obtenidos son discutidos a la luz de las implicaciones de los sistemas y contenidos de socializacion que por genero moldean las caracteristicas psicosociales del desarrollo de los adolescentes.

Fuentes alternativas de información en farmacodependencia: las encuestas de hogares-escuelas y la búsqueda intensiva de casos / Alternative resources of information in addictions: the inquiries of homes-schools and the intensive search of cases

En el trabajo se hacen señalamientos sobre aspectos metodológicos, técnicas e instrumentos, que se utilizan en la recopilación de datos al realizarse investigaciones sobre la farmacodependencia. Se hace hincapié en que al formularse o establecerse el instrumento, para la obtención se datos, éste debe ser congruente con la fuente de información y su contexto y, además, debe estructurarse de acuerdo con la información que se desea obtener. Las encuestas en los hogares y en las escuelas son un medio relevante en la búsqueda de información sobre farmacodependencia; razón por la cual, es recomendable tener presente los siguientes aspectos al iniciar o proyectar cualquier estudio o investigación sobre la farmacodependencia: identificar la comunidad objeto de estudio; reconocer la zona; identificar las fuentes de información (los informantes); identificar a los informantes clave; identificar a usuarios; y, convivir con el grupo