The Guatemalan Construction Industry: Approach of Knowledge Regarding Work Risks Prevention.

In the present work, the results are presented for the characterization of work risk prevention in the Guatemalan construction industry. This characterization has been carried out using a simple random sampling technique, employing a questionnaire that was structured into 3 groups of variables: 1. General company data; 2. Prevention and management activities regarding health and safety in the company and on the worksite; and 3. Health and safety in the contractor companies. Following the sampling phase, the data were introduced in a database format, and a preliminary analysis was performed on the studied variables, followed by a descriptive analysis and a multiple correspondence analysis. The main findings of the study emphasize that companies in the Guatemalan construction sector are characterized as dedicating most of their activity (52.0%) indistinctly between civil engineering work, building construction and other specialized construction, mainly working as contractors (47.5%). These are "medium-sized" companies, employing an average of 81.1 on-site workers, having an average of 6.8 on-site work crews, and grossing an average turnover of 1.29 million euros annually. Likewise, it found that the larger construction companies adopt better prevention and management measures for worksite health and safety the larger companies are correlated with a high awareness of experiencing worksite accidents, while medium-sized companies have medium-level awareness. Companies with fewer workers manage workplace risk prevention worse, with low accident risk awareness. This correlation between these indicative variables of company size and workplace risk management and prevention is clearly reflected in the four company "clusters" that have been identified as having homogenous characteristics using the multiple correspondence analysis technique. Companies in the Guatemalan construction sector should make a greater effort to improve manager and worker training regarding workplace risk prevention to increase the effectiveness of company prevention management.

Osteotomy as a treatment option in dysplasia epiphyseal hemimelica of the distal radius: a case report.

Dysplasia epiphysialis hemimelica (DEH), also known as Trevor disease, is a very rare disease characterized by an overgrowth of the osteocartilaginous epiphyseal caused by unknown factors. The medial side of the epiphysis is affected twice as often as the lateral side and more than one epiphysis was affected in two-thirds of the cases. Only a few cases of DEH in the upper extremities have been published, as the lower limb is usually the most affected, especially in the bones of the ankle joint. The symptoms vary from little significant deformities to symptomatic cases, pain, and decreased function depending on the location and the size of the lesion. When surgery is indicated, the complete excision of the lesion is the procedure of choice. If this is not possible, because of the location or size of the lesion, a realignment osteotomy may be necessary. We report the case of a 12-year-old patient with a distal epiphysis DEH on the left radius, treated by wedge osteotomy realignment at the level of the lesion with Kirschner wires. The clinical outcome of realignment osteotomy of the radial epiphysis has been the correction of the deformity with a normal and painless function of the wrist and hand. The case reported was an extremely rare location in the distal radial epiphysis of DEH. We are aware of only one case published previously with involvement of the distal radius in children. The surgical treatment of realignment osteotomy without complete removal of the lesion has enabled anatomical and functional improvement of the joint as well as a reduction in lesion size. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level IV case report.

Effects of Vibration on Leg Blood Flow After Intense Exercise and Its Influence on Subsequent Exercise Performance.

This study aimed to determine the effects of vibration on leg blood flow after intense exercise and find out whether or not these effects can influence subsequent maximal exercise performance. Twenty-three participants performed an exercise test-to-exhaustion followed by a recovery period using six 1-minute sets of whole-body vibration (WBV; 25 Hz-4 mm) or a passive control (noWBV; 0 Hz-0 mm) in the seated position on separate days in random order. Blood flow was assessed at baseline and during each 1-minute interset rest periods post-WBV and noWBV. Thereafter, participants performed a cycle-ergometer test, and time to exhaustion and total distance covered (TDC) were recorded. During recovery, a similar trend was observed in both systolic and diastolic peak frequency dynamics in both conditions. The pulsatility index decreased (p < 0.01) from baseline during postbout 1 in both trials and during post-4 and post-5 in the WBV trial. Significant between-group differences were observed during post-4 (p ≤ 0.05) with greater decreases in pulsatility index after WBV compared with noWBV. Time to exhaustion and TDC were higher after WBV compared with noWBV. In conclusion, WBV decreased pulsatility index in the popliteal artery after maximal exercise and was effective to increase performance in a later exercise test-to-exhaustion.

DNA extraction and amplification from contemporary Polynesian bark-cloth.

BACKGROUND: Paper mulberry has been used for thousands of years in Asia and Oceania for making paper and bark-cloth, respectively. Museums around the world hold valuable collections of Polynesian bark-cloth. Genetic analysis of the plant fibers from which the textiles were made may answer a number of questions of interest related to provenance, authenticity or species used in the manufacture of these textiles. Recovery of nucleic acids from paper mulberry bark-cloth has not been reported before. METHODOLOGY: We describe a simple method for the extraction of PCR-amplifiable DNA from small samples of contemporary Polynesian bark-cloth (tapa) using two types of nuclear markers. We report the amplification of about 300 bp sequences of the ITS1 region and of a microsatellite marker. CONCLUSIONS: Sufficient DNA was retrieved from all bark-cloth samples to permit successful PCR amplification. This method shows a means of obtaining useful genetic information from modern bark-cloth samples and opens perspectives for the analyses of small fragments derived from ethnographic materials.