La seguridad del paciente frente a las utilización de vendajes / Patient safety in front of the use of bandages

La seguridad del paciente es uno de los objetivos prioritarios del entorno sanitario. Uno de los productos de uso común son la vendas y su seguridad como producto sanitario depende de varios factores: su calidad, las prestaciones y el proceso de producción al que se someten. Los productos sanitarios deben respetar los requisitos establecidos en el Real Decreto 1591/2009, de 16 de octubre, que describe las diferentes clases y los requisitos que ha de cumplir cada una de las clases de productos sanitarios. Las vendas se clasifican como producto sanitario Clase I y, por lo tanto, no requieren de ningún control microbiológico para su comercialización. Por este motivo, cabe preguntarse si las vendas que se utilizan en el ámbito sanitario garantizan una seguridad plena al paciente (AU)

The safety of the patient is one of the main priorities in healthcare environment. One of the most commonly used products are bandagesand their effectiveness and safety depends on many factors: the quality of the materials used, their manufacturing process and the main purpose of use. All sanitary products need to comply with the Royal Decree 1591/2009, October 16, that describes the characteristics and functions of each type of these products. Bandages are classified as a Sanitary Products Class I and, hence, they do not require any microbiological control in order to sell them. Therefore, it is fair to ask whether the bandages that are used in healthcare are totally safe for patients (AU)

[PATIENT SAFETY IN FRONT OF THE USE OF BANDAGES]. / La seguridad del paciente frente a la utilización de vendajes.

The safety of the patient is one of the main priorities in healthcare environment. One of the most commonly used products are bandages and their effectiveness and safety depends on many factors: the quality of the materials used, their manufacturing process and the main purpose of use. All sanitary products need to comply with the Royal Decree 1591/2009, October 16, that describes the characteristics and functions of each type of these products. Bandages are classified as a Sanitary Products Class l and, hence, they do not require any microbiological control in order to sell them. Therefore, it is fair to ask whether the bandages that are used in healthcare are totally safe for patients.

SOLID3: a multiplex antibody microarray-based optical sensor instrument for in situ life detection in planetary exploration.

The search for unequivocal signs of life on other planetary bodies is one of the major challenges for astrobiology. The failure to detect organic molecules on the surface of Mars by measuring volatile compounds after sample heating, together with the new knowledge of martian soil chemistry, has prompted the astrobiological community to develop new methods and technologies. Based on protein microarray technology, we have designed and built a series of instruments called SOLID (for "Signs Of LIfe Detector") for automatic in situ detection and identification of substances or analytes from liquid and solid samples (soil, sediments, or powder). Here, we present the SOLID3 instrument, which is able to perform both sandwich and competitive immunoassays and consists of two separate functional units: a Sample Preparation Unit (SPU) for 10 different extractions by ultrasonication and a Sample Analysis Unit (SAU) for fluorescent immunoassays. The SAU consists of five different flow cells, with an antibody microarray in each one (2000 spots). It is also equipped with an exclusive optical package and a charge-coupled device (CCD) for fluorescent detection. We demonstrated the performance of SOLID3 in the detection of a broad range of molecular-sized compounds, which range from peptides and proteins to whole cells and spores, with sensitivities at 1-2 ppb (ng mL⁻¹) for biomolecules and 104 to 10³ spores per milliliter. We report its application in the detection of acidophilic microorganisms in the Río Tinto Mars analogue and report the absence of substantial negative effects on the immunoassay in the presence of 50 mM perchlorate (20 times higher than that found at the Phoenix landing site). Our SOLID instrument concept is an excellent option with which to detect biomolecules because it avoids the high-temperature treatments that may destroy organic matter in the presence of martian oxidants.

[Attitudes toward influenza vaccination in an urban population older than 60 years]. / Actitudes hacia la vacuna antigripal en una población urbana mayor de 60 años.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the reasons for undergoing or rejecting influenza vaccination among people older than 60 years. METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive study through telephone survey among patients over 60 years old living in a health district of Barcelona (Dreta de l'Eixample) was performed. A total of 1,700 medical records of patients aged more than 60 years old were randomly chosen and 291 surveys were conducted. RESULTS: Among the patients who received influenza vaccination, the main source of information about the vaccine was the family physician in 63.63% (119; 95% confidence interval (CI), 57.1-70.1), followed by the primary care nurse in 27.80% (52; 95% CI, 21.8-33.8) and the media in 21.92% (41; 95% CI, 16.9-26.9). The main reasons for receiving the vaccine in 2005 were health protection (148; 79.14%; 95% CI, 73.64-84.64) and physician request (49; 26.20%; 95% CI, 20.25-32.15). Non-vaccinated individuals argued that the vaccine was unnecessary since "they never get a cold" (44; 42.30%; 95% CI, 33.97-52.43) or "never get the flu" (23; 22.15%; 95% CI, 14.41-29.89). CONCLUSIONS: The main reason for receiving the influenza vaccine was to protect health. Concept mistakes were detected among patients who did not receive the vaccine. This finding highlights the need to develop new strategies to increase vaccination rates. Physicians remain the main source of information about influenza vaccination, suggesting that nurses should increase their efforts in spreading their functions.