Mensajes persuasivos en redes sociales de la industria de alimentos y bebidas no saludables.

OBJETIVO: Identificar los mensajes persuasivos usados por la industria de alimentos y bebidas no saludables en las redes sociales más visitadas por niñas, niños y adolescentes mexicanos y determinar a qué grupo de edad estaban dirigidos. Material y métodos. Se analizaron 892 anuncios de los 20 productos y marcas de alimentos y bebidas no saludables más consumidas en México publicados en las cuentas oficiales de dichos productos y marcas en YouTube, Facebook e Instagram. Se determinó el mensaje primario y el público objetivo (niños, adolescentes o ambos) y se clasificó como emocional o racional. RESULTADOS: En Facebook, la proporción de anuncios con mensajes emocionales (50.7%) y mensajes racionales (49.3%) fue similar. En YouTube hubo mayor proporción de mensajes racionales (60.2%). Se encontraron 2.9 más posibilidades de que un mensaje persuasivo emocional se dirija a niños o adolescentes en comparación con mensajes que no tienen publicidad dirigida. Conclusión. La naturaleza de los mensajes persuasivos analizados depende de la red social en la que se presentaron. La industria alimentaria dirige sus mensajes a niños o adolescentes, razón por la que es importante regular la publicidad de alimentos y bebidas no saludables en redes sociales que busca influir en el comportamiento y las decisiones de compra de niñas, niños y adolescentes.

Desarrollo de las habilidades blandas en estudiantes de odontología. Revisión sistemática / Development of soft skills in dental studens: a systematic review

Objetivo: El odontólogo debe desarrollar habilidades que le permitirán el éxito en su profesión. En la actualidad los estudiantes se centran en el desarrollo de habilidades técnicas dejando relegado el desarrollo de las habilidades blandas. El objetivo de esta revisión sistemática es describir cuáles son las habilidades blandas con mayor influencia en la práctica odontológica y su nivel del desarrollo dentro de la formación académica de los estudiantes de odontología. Materiales y métodos: La presente investigación corresponde a una revisión sistemática, de tipo descriptiva, de ámbito documental y retrospectiva de la literatura. En la sistematización de las fuentes documentales y la formula- ción de la pregunta de investigación se aplicó la estrategia PICO. Se emplearon los siguientes términos de búsqueda para el idioma español e inglés: habilidades blandas, comu- nicación, pensamiento, estudiantes de odontología. Se selec- cionaron artículos en inglés y español publicados entre los años 2000 y 2023. Resultados: Se incluyeron 26 artículos que evidencia- ban que las habilidades más importantes eran: habilidades comunicativas, pensamiento crítico, resolución de problemas, toma de decisiones y trabajo en equipo; y también identifi- caban que los estudiantes al inicio del grado académico pre- sentan niveles inferiores de desarrollo de dichas habilidades. Conclusiones: Los estudios permitieron identificar la influencia de las habilidades blandas en la práctica dental y el desarrollo de estas habilidades en el ámbito académico, las que han dado resultados favorables en el ejercicio de la pro- fesión (AU)

Aim: The dentist must develop skills that will enable him to succeed in his profession. Currently, students focus on the development of technical skills, leaving behind the devel- opment of soft skills. The aim of this systematic review is to describe which are the soft skills with the greatest influence on dental practice and their level of development within the academic training of dental students. Materials and methods: This research corresponds to a systematic, descriptive, documentary, and retrospec- tive review of the literature. The PICO strategy was applied in the systematization of the documentary sources and the formulation of the research question. The following search terms were used for the Spanish and English languages: soft skills, communication, thinking, dental students. Articles in English and Spanish published between 2000 and 2023 were selected. Results: 26 articles were included that showed that the most important skills were: communication skills, critical thinking, problem solving, decision making and teamwork; and they also identified that students at the beginning of the academic degree present lower levels of development of these skills. Conclusions: The studies made it possible to identify the influence of soft skills in dental practice and the development of these skills in the academic field, which have given favora- ble results in the practice of the profession (AU))

Long-lasting biofouling formation on transparent fouling-release coatings for the construction of efficient closed photobioreactors.

In order to build an efficient closed-photobioreactor (PBR) in which biofouling formation is avoided, a non-toxic coating with high transparency is required, which can be applied to the interior surface of the PBR walls. Nowadays, amphiphilic copolymers are being used to inhibit microorganism adhesion, so poly(dimethylsiloxane)-based coatings mixed with poly(ethylene glycol)-based copolymers could be a good option. The 7 poly(dimethylsiloxane)-based coatings tested in this work contained 4% w/w of poly(ethylene glycol)-based copolymers. All were a good alternative to glass because they presented lower cell adhesion. However, the DBE-311 copolymer proved the best option due to its very low cell adhesion and high transmittance. Furthermore, XDLVO theory indicates that these coatings should have no cell adhesion at time 0 since they create a very high-energy barrier that microalgae cells cannot overcome. Nevertheless, this theory also shows that their surface properties change over time, making cell adhesion possible on all coatings after 8 months of immersion. The theory is useful in explaining the interaction forces between the surface and microalgae cells at any moment in time, but it should be complemented with models to predict the conditioning film formation and the contribution of the PBR's fluid dynamics over time.

The nature and extent of food marketing on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube posts in Mexico.

Food and beverage marketing appealing to children and adolescents has an impact on their food preferences, purchases requests, consumption patterns, health outcomes, and obesity. The objective of this study was to assess the nature and extent of food and beverage marketing on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube posts in Mexico. This was a content analysis that followed the World Health Organization CLICK methodology to comprehend the landscape of digital food marketing campaigns of the top-selling food products and brands and the most popular accounts carried out between September and October 2020. A total of 926 posts from 12 food and beverage products and 8 brands were included. Facebook was the social media platform with the most posts and greatest engagement. The most prevalent marketing techniques were brand logo, image of packaging, image of the product itself, hashtags, and engagement to consume. Fifty percent of the posts were assessed as appealing to children, 66% to adolescents, and 80% to either children or adolescents. Ninety-one percent of products (n = 1250) were classified as unhealthy according to the Mexican warning labels nutrient profile; 93% of the food promoted on posts appealing to either children or adolescents were unhealthy. Hashtags commonly referred to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the unhealthy food digital marketing features marketing techniques that appeal to children or adolescents; moreover, the use of the pandemic hashtag reflected brands' responsiveness to the environment at the time of the study. The present data contribute to evidence supporting the strengthening of food marketing regulations in Mexico.

Cost-effectiveness of transdiagnostic group cognitive behavioural therapy versus group relaxation therapy for emotional disorders in primary care (PsicAP-Costs2): Protocol for a multicentre randomised controlled trial.

Several randomised controlled trials (RCT) have demonstrated the superiority of transdiagnostic group cognitive-behavioural therapy (TD-CBT) to treatment as usual (TAU) for emotional disorders in primary care. To date, however, no RCTs have been conducted to compare TD-CBT to another active intervention in this setting. Our aim is to conduct a single-blind RCT to compare group TD-CBT plus TAU to progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) plus TAU in adults (age 18 to 65 years) with a suspected emotional disorder. We expect that TD-CBT + TAU will be more cost-effective than TAU + PMR, and that these gains will be maintained at the 12-month follow-up. Seven therapy sessions (1.5 hours each) will be offered over a 24-week period. The study will be carried out at four primary care centres in Cantabria, Spain. The study will take a societal perspective. Psychological assessments will be made at three time points: baseline, post-treatment, and at 12-months. The following variables will be evaluated: clinical symptoms (anxiety, depression, and/or somatic); functioning; quality of life (QoL); cognitive-emotional factors (rumination, worry, attentional and interpretative biases, emotion regulation and meta-cognitive beliefs); and satisfaction with treatment. Data on health service use, medications, and sick days will be obtained from electronic medical records. Primary outcome measures will include: incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICER) and incremental cost-utility ratios (ICURs). Secondary outcome measures will include: clinical symptoms, QoL, functioning, and treatment satisfaction. Bootstrap sampling will be used to assess uncertainty of the results. Secondary moderation and mediation analyses will be conducted. Two questionnaires will be administered at sessions 1, 4, and 7 to assess therapeutic alliance and group satisfaction. If this trial is successful, widespread application of this cost-effective treatment could greatly improve access to psychological treatment for emotional disorders in the context of increasing demand for mental healthcare in primary care. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov: Cost-effectiveness of a Transdiagnostic Psychological Treatment for Emotional Disorders in Primary Care (PsicAP). NCT05314920.

Training, management, and quality of nursing care of vascular access in adult patients: The INCATIV project.

BACKGROUND: More than one billion of peripheral venous catheters are inserted into hospitalized patients every year. This study sought to identify the status of nursing care in vascular accesses in different hospitals and to evaluate the impact of a series of informative and formative interventions aimed at their care. METHODS: Quasi-experimental, multicenter study. A total of 54 nursing professionals of 19 hospitals participated. The intervention consisted of informative talk and three training sessions related to the care and maintenance of vascular accesses and intravenous therapy in the hospital-admitted adult population. This was delivered in four years, with eight periodic cross-sectional assessments conducted before and after each intervention. To assess quality of nursing care in vascular accesses and intravenous therapy, a quality indicator called Standard Variable (VES), was developed and validated with the Delphi methodology. RESULTS: A total of 21,108 patients, aged 64.0 years (SD 18.3), were assessed, of which 78.3% (16,516) had some type of vascular access inserted. An average of 22.1% (95% CI: 21.4-22.7) were classified as optimal. In total, 3218 nursing care professionals took part in the training activities. The VES indicator grew steadily throughout the study, raising from 7.8% to 37.6%. Changes were statistically significant between those time points in which one of the described interventions was delivered; however, there were no significant changes between time points with no intervention. CONCLUSIONS: This study supports that continuous training interventions can produce improvements in the quality of nursing care and reduce complications in patients with vascular accesses. In addition, the VES indicator was a useful and simple tool to measure quality, but the experience with its use suggests continuous research in the search for standardized indicators that objectify the evaluation and evolution of care.

Adsorption Analysis of Exopolymeric Substances as a Tool for the Materials Selection of Photobioreactors Manufacture.

An improved method that allows the robust characterization of surfaces is necessary to accurately predict the biofouling formation on construction materials of photobioreactors (PBR). Exopolymeric substances (EPS), such as proteins and polysaccharides, have been demonstrated to present a similar behavior to cells in terms of surface adhesion. In this work, these EPS were used to optimize parameters, such as EPS concentration or adsorption time, to evaluate accurately the adsorption capacity of surfaces and, with it, predict the biofouling formation in contact with microalgae cultures. Once the method was optimized, the characterization of seven commercial polymeric surfaces was submitted to different abrasive particles sizes, which modified the roughness of the samples, as well as protein and polysaccharide lawns, which were prepared and carried out in order to evaluate the characteristics of these substances. The characterization consisted of the determination of surface free energy, water adhesion tension, and critical tension determined from the measurement of the contact angle, roughness, surface zeta potential, and the EPS adhesion capacity of each material. This will be useful to understand the behavior of the surface in the function of its characteristics and the interaction with the solutions of EPS, concluding that the hydrophobic and smooth surfaces present good anti-biofouling characteristics.

Influence of abiotic conditions on the biofouling formation of flagellated microalgae culture.

This work analyses the adhesion of flagellated microalgae to seven surfaces that have different water adhesion tension characteristics. Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Isochrysis galbana, were cultivated in batch and fed-batch mode at four nitrogen/phosphorus (N/P) ratios (from 1.29 to 70) and subjected to four irradiance levels (50, 100, 200 and 400 µE·s-1·m-2) at 23 °C. Cell adhesion was greater in C. reinhardtii and a higher biomass concentration was obtained for this strain, reaching 2 g·L-1 compared to 1 g·L-1 for I. galbana. The adhesion of cells and exopolymeric substances was measured upon the batch and the first fed-batch reaching the stationary growth phase, observing a direct correlation between them and inversely to biomass generation in the cultures. The protein adhesion data for the different materials are comparable to those for cell adhesion coinciding with minimums of Baier's theory and Vogler. It is observed displacements in the curves as a function of the irradiance level.

Conocimientos y aptitudes del personal sanitario frente a sospecha de caso de enfermedad por el virus del Ébola / Knowledge and attitudes of healthcare workers towards a suspect case of Ebola virus disease

Introducción. El último brote de la enfermedad por el virus del Ébola, constituyó un precedente a la hora de evidenciar la necesaria formación del personal sanitario para posibles eventualidades de casos sospechosos de enfermedades contagiosas. Se precisa estudiar el nivel de cualificación del personal sanitario ante dichas situaciones. Material y métodos. Estudio descriptivo mediante encuesta post-taller al personal sanitario de un departamento de salud de la Comunidad Valenciana sobre los conocimientos y aptitudes adquiridos tras la formación. Resultados y conclusiones. El personal sanitario obtuvo una calificación global de aprobado en la encuesta post-taller, pero con diferencias en cuanto a categorías profesionales y distintos bloques de la formación, cuyas calificaciones podrían ser consideradas como deficientes en algunos casos. Se debería revisar la formación del personal sanitario periódicamente y calibrar dicha formación a los recursos de los que se dispone para una correcta actuación (AU)

Introduction. The last outbreak of the Ebola virus disease, was a precedent to demonstrate the necessary training of healthcare personnel for possible eventualities of suspected cases of infectious diseases. It is required to study the level of qualification of healthcare workers in such situations. Methods. Descriptive study using post-workshop survey of healthcare workers in a Valencian Community health department on acquired knowledge and skills after training. Results and conclusions. Healthcare personnel received an overall passing score on the post-workshop survey, but with differences in occupational categories and different blocks of training. The ratings could be considered deficient in some cases. It should be reviewed periodically training health personnel and calibrate such training to the resources available for proper operation (AU)

[Knowledge and attitudes of healthcare workers towards a suspect case of Ebola virus disease]. / Conocimientos y aptitudes del personal sanitario frente a sospecha de caso de enfermedad por el virus del Ébola.

OBJECTIVE: The last outbreak of the Ebola virus disease, was a precedent to demonstrate the necessary training of healthcare personnel for possible eventualities of suspected cases of infectious diseases. It is required to study the level of qualification of healthcare workers in such situations. METHODS: Descriptive study using post-workshop survey of healthcare workers in a Valencian Community health department on acquired knowledge and skills after training. CONCLUSIONS: Healthcare personnel received an overall passing score on the post-workshop survey, but with differences in occupational categories and different blocks of training. The ratings could be considered deficient in some cases. It should be reviewed periodically training health personnel and calibrate such training to the resources available for proper operation.

IVUS-guided treatment strategies for definite late and very late stent thrombosis.

AIMS: Our aim was to describe the intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) findings of patients with late stent thrombosis (ST) undergoing percutaneous intervention, and to compare the pre- and post-intervention IVUS findings of patients treated with balloon angioplasty (BA) vs. additional stent implantation (ASI). METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 117 patients with late ST imaged with IVUS were included (51.2% had drug-eluting stent ST). Treatment was left to the operator's discretion: BA was performed in 53.8% and ASI in 46.2%. Pre-intervention, incomplete stent apposition (ISA) was observed in 69.8% vs. 63.0% (p=0.43), underexpansion in 33.3% vs. 18.5% (p=0.07) and restenosis in 15.9% vs. 27.8% (p=0.12), respectively. Post-intervention, persistent ISA was observed in 37.2% vs. 60.9% (p=0.03) and malapposition volume decreased by 43.6% vs. 2.6% (p=0.03). Persistent underexpansion was observed in 9.3% vs. 17.4% (p=0.26); however, the stent expansion index was largely increased with BA (from 0.75 to 0.88) compared to ASI (from 0.80 to 0.82); p=0.046. At two years, recurrent ST was observed in one (1.7%) vs. four (7.7%) patients, respectively; p=0.09. CONCLUSIONS: Non-optimal IVUS criteria of stent implantation are often observed in patients with late ST. Treatment of late ST with BA leads to a larger reduction of malapposition and underexpansion with respect to ASI and is associated with favourable outcomes.

Exposición cutáneo-mucosa a sangre o material biológico en trabajadores sanitarios / Skin or mucous exposure to blood or biological materials in healthcare workers

Objetivo: analizar las exposiciones cutáneo-mucosas a sangre y material biológico en trabajadores sanitarios de la Comunidad Valenciana recogidas en un período de catorce años (1997-2010).Material y método: estudio descriptivo con componente transversal y longitudinal (1997-2010), en el ámbito que corresponde al Hospital General Universitario de Elche (Comunidad Valenciana). Se utilizó la información generada por el sistema de vigilancia epidemiológica EPINETAC, que recoge las exposiciones accidentales a sangre o material biológico y su seguimiento. También se recogieron variables de identificación, laborales, uso de dispositivos de protección, actuación tras exposición, situación vacunal frente al VHB del expuesto y estado serológico de la fuente. Los datos fueron recogidos mediante entrevista personal, revisión de expediente laboral e historia clínica de la fuente. Resultados: las declaraciones de exposiciones cutáneo-mucosa han ido aumentando con el paso de los años. Las enfermeras declararon el 44%,los médicos de plantilla un 17% y los auxiliares de Enfermería un 14%.El lugar de la exposición más habitual fue la habitación del paciente(34%). La sangre fue el fluido más frecuentemente implicado 76%.Conclusiones: la exposición cutáneo-mucosa en los sanitarios depende de muchas variables: características del paciente y trabajo a realizar, los protocolos y material de seguridad utilizado, la dotación y estructuras que se posean en el lugar de trabajo, pero también son muy importantes factores ligados al comportamiento humano y la organización en el trabajo. Estas exposiciones cutáneo-mucosas, aunque menos numerosas que las percutáneas, deben ser tenidas en cuenta a la hora de la prevención y gestión del riesgo (AU)

Objective: to analyze mucocutaneous exposures to blood and biological material in healthcare workers in the Valencian Community collected over a period of fourteen years (1997-2010).Material and methods: descriptive cross-sectional study with longitudinal component (1997-2010), in the catchment area corresponding to the Hospital General Universitario de Elche (Comunidad Valenciana).The information generated by the surveillance system EPINETAC was used, which includes accidental exposures to blood or biological material, and monitoring. Variables were also collected for identification, employment, use of protective devices, actions taken after exposure, vaccination status of the person exposed against HBV and serological status of the source. Data were collected through personal interview, review of employment records and medical history of the source. Results: confirmations of mucocutaneous exposures have been increasing over the years. Nursing reported 44%, staff physicians 17% and nursing assistants 14%. The place of exposure was most frequently the patient's room (34%). Blood was the most frequently involved fluid 76%.Conclusions: mucocutaneous exposure in health workers depends on many variables: patient characteristics and work to be done, protocols and safety gear used, the equipment and structures in the workplace, but also of outmost importance are factors associated to human behavior and organization at work. These mucocutaneous exposures, though less numerous than the percutaneous, must be taken into account in prevention and risk management planning (AU)

Exposiciones accidentales a sangre y/o material biológico en trabajadores sanitarios / Accidental exposure to blood and/or biological material in healthcare workers

Objetivo: presentar el análisis descriptivo de la información obtenida en un período de doce años (EPINETAC 1997/2008) en el Departamento 20 de Salud de Elche (Alicante). Materiales y métodos: se analizó la información obtenida de 2.023 encuestas sobre exposiciones accidentales realizadas desde 01/01/1997 hasta 31/12/2008 del proyecto EPINETAC. Los datos registrados se analizaron con el programa estadístico SPSS15. Resultados: las enfermeras declaran el 42% de los accidentes percutáneos, los médicos un 14,7% y las auxiliaresde Enfermería un 14,6%. Los médicos sufren el accidente en el quirófano o salas de partos en tres de cada cuatro ocasiones (75,3%) mientras que las enfermeras lo hacen en la habitación de los pacientes (42,3%). Las matronas, médicos y MIR sufren alrededor del 90% de las inoculaciones accidentales durante el uso del material. Conclusiones: aproximadamente la mitad de las exposiciones accidentales declaradas durante este período podían haberse evitado (los accidentes ocurridos durante el uso del material (49,6%) son los únicos que se consideran no evitables).El colectivo profesional con mayor asiduidad de exposiciones accidentales a sangre y fluidos biológicos es elde la Enfermería. Las agujas huecas son el material más frecuentemente implicado en exposiciones ocupacionales, siendo las que se asocian a un mayor riesgo de transmisión (AU)

Objetive: the epidemiological surveillance of exposure tobiological risk in the work place is a fundamental basis for the planning and prioritization of any prevention strategy. The objective is to present the descriptive analysis of the information obtained over a 12 year period (EPINETAC 1997/2008)in the 20th Health Department of Elche (Alicante). Materials and methods: the information obtained from 2.023 surveys on accidental exposures that took place between 01/01/1997 to 31/12/2008 of the EPINETAC project. Recorded data are analysed with the SPSS 15 statistical programme. Results: nurses report 42% of percutaneous accidents; physiciansreport 14,7% and nursing aids 14,6%. Physicians experience accidents in operating or labour and delivery room in three of every four occasions (75,3%), whereas nurses report that accidents happen mainly in patient rooms (42,3%). Midwives, physicians and resident medical students suffer close to 90%of accidental inoculations during the use of materials.Conclusions: approximately half of accidental exposures reported during this period could have been avoided (accidents that occurred during the use of materials (49,6%) arethe only ones that are considered unavoidable). Nurses are the professionals with the highest accidental exposure to blood and biologic fluids. Hollow needles are the most frequently involved material in work-related exposures, and are also associated with a higher transmission risk (AU)

Cytotoxicity of paraquat in freshly isolated rat hepatocytes: effects of L-carnitine.

The effects of L-carnitine, a mitochondrial carrier of fatty acids, on paraquat (PQ) cytotoxicity in freshly isolated rat hepatocytes were studied. Addition of PQ (10 mM) to hepatocytes resulted in a time-dependent depletion of intracellular glutathione (GSH) accompanied by an increase in accumulation of malondialdehyde (MDA) in the incubation medium which proceeded to a loss of cell viability. Pretreatment of hepatocytes with L-carnitine (50-mM) alone did not affect cell viability or intracellular levels of GSH, or accumulation of MDA in the medium during the incubation period; however, pretreatment with L-carnitine 30 min prior to PQ addition did promote the depletion of intracellular GSH and MDA accumulation induced by PQ, and ultimately enhanced the cytotoxicity of PQ.

[Tuberculosis outbreak at a public school]. / Brote epidémico de tuberculosis en un colegio público.

BACKGROUND: At school there are special circumstances of living together and a particular susceptibility, which favour the emergence of tuberculosis microepidemics. We report here the microepidemic occurred at a school among 9-year old children. METHODS: After ruling out a possible familiar source in a child with pulmonary tuberculosis, we detected a case with high bacillar shedding in a female teacher and conducted a tuberculin search among children and teachers, initially outlining the theoretical groups at risk. Tuberculin positive children underwent chest-X-ray and when abnormalities were found, children were derived to the pediatrician for chemotherapy. All converters received secondary chemoprophylaxis and all non-respondents primary chemoprophylaxis. RESULTS: The classroom where the teacher spent most of het time had a higher rate of converters (70%) than other classroom, where the index teacher spent only a partial time (40%; RR: 1.75; CI: 1.06-2.88) or the collective of teachers (45.4%; RR: 1.45; CI: 0.94-2.23). Three additional cases of secondary disease were detected, all of them children. The initial compliance with chemoprophylaxis was greater among (for) children (97.0%) than among teachers (41.6%). Among children there was one case of tuberculin conversion compared with three cases among teachers. No additional cases were detected; also, an abnormal rate of reactors outside the initially studied groups was also not detected. CONCLUSIONS: Our results somehow agree with those reported from other school outbreaks. To note the anergy and lack of symptoms in the index case and the suggestion to delineate the degree of spending hours together to identify groups with a higher theoretical risk of being infected. Thus, an unnecessary expense of resources and a social alarm would be avoided.

Distribución, reproducción y alimentación de Syacium gunteri Ginsburg (Pisces: Bothidae), en el Golfo de México / Distribution, reproduction and alimentation of Syacium gunteri Ginsburg (Pisces: Bothidae), in Gulf of Mexico

El pez plano Syacium gunteri es una especie dominante en las comunidades demersales del sur del Golfo de México. Es estrictamente marina, no dependiente de aguas estuarinas en ninguna fase de su ciclo de vida y se distribuye en toda el área de la sonda, principalmente en la región oeste. Su distribución está fuertemente influída por el sustrato, prefiriendo sedimentos terrígenos con bajo contenido en CaCo3 y alto contenido orgánico. Las hembras maduran a los 60 mm de longitud total, presentándose la talla de primera madurez a los 96 mm LT. La reproducción se presenta en el período de mayo a septiembre, lo que indica una sola reproducción al año y un reclutamiento contínuo de huveniles a la población adulta. Es un carnívoro consumidor de tercer orden que se alimenta principalmente de crustáceos (camarones peneidos) y secundariamente de peces. Es de hábitos alimentarios diurnos y descansa enterrada en el sustrato durante la noche