Positive body image: a qualitative study on the successful experiences of adolescents, teachers and parents.

Purpose Body image encompasses body-related self-perceptions and personal attitudes. Dissatisfaction with body image during the early stages of adolescence is negatively related to self-esteem and other health problems. A few publications focused on positive body image and directly related to the experiences and interactions of adolescents themselves. To explore positive body image in adolescents and describe the familial and educational factors that contribute to its development.Methods A qualitative study was conducted. Purposive sampling was used, and 9 adolescents, 6 families, and 8 teachers participated in semi-structured interviews, which were then theme analyzed. Results Self-care, body acceptance, confronting messages that attack body image, and the influence of social media have been identified as emerging themes in adolescents' positive body image experiences. Therefore, the pubertal period, family values, fostering, and educational actions as well as media literacy were identified as factors promoting self-esteem and positive body image in the family and educational environment. Conclusions Their parents also expressed aspects such as those that contribute to the development of healthy self-esteem, confidence, and positive body image. Alternatively, the teachers indicated educational activities to work on self-image and self-esteem when faced with situations of concern in the classroom.

Age-neutrality of the SCID-II: Differential Item Functioning in Younger Outpatients (Aged 20-45) and Older Outpatients (Aged 65+).

OBJECTIVES: Measurements are often developed for the assessment of personality disorders (PDs) in younger adults and seldom evaluated on the applicability in older adults. Remarkably, research has not yet been conducted into age-group appropriateness of the gold standard for the assessment of PDs, known as Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Personality Disorders (SCID-II). Therefore, the current study empirically investigated the age-neutrality of the PDs assessed by the SCID-II. METHODS: Age-neutrality was examined in 84 younger adults (aged 20-45 years) and 68 older adults (aged 65-85) by Differential Item Functioning (DIF). The impact of DIF on scale level was further examined using Differential Test Functioning analyzes to examine the impact of the amount of DIF variance in the items on scale level. RESULTS: Overall, the great majority, 95.8% of the categorically measured items and 87.5% of the dimensionally measured items, was endorsed in the same way by younger adults and older adults with equal scores on the PD scale. Subsequent analyzes revealed no large DTF for PD scales. CONCLUSIONS: Overall the SCID-II in an outpatient population is age-neutral for both categorically and dimensionally scored PD scales. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: The SCID-II can be used for the assessment of PDs in older adults.

Severity Indices of Personality Problems-Short Form in Old-Age Psychiatry: Reliability and Validity.

The Severity Indices of Personality Problems (SIPP; Verheul et al., 2008) is a popular self-report questionnaire that measures severity of maladaptive personality functioning. Two studies demonstrated the utility of the short form (SIPP-SF) among older adults but validation in clinical settings is lacking. Therefore, we examined the psychometric properties of the SIPP-SF in a large sample of older adult Dutch outpatients (N = 124; age range = 60-85 years, M = 69.8, SD = 5.3). The SIPP-SF domains showed good to excellent internal reliability (Cronbach's α = .75-.91) and effectively discriminated between participants with and without a personality disorder, as assessed with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis II Personality Disorders (SCID-II). Convergent validity of the SIPP-SF was examined with instruments for measuring personality pathology among older adults (Informant Personality questionnaire [HAP]; Gerontological Personality Disorders Scale [GPS]). The GPS generally correlated with the SIPP-SF domains in expected directions, with small to large effect sizes. For the HAP, only 1 scale correlated with all SIPP-SF domains. No associations were found between the SIPP-SF and psychiatric symptomatology as measured by the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI). The SIPP-SF appears to be a promising instrument for assessing maladaptive personality functioning among older adult outpatients.

Effect of date palm coproducts and annatto extract on lipid oxidation and microbial quality in a pork liver pâté.

Dates are an interesting source of bioactive compounds, and coproducts from the date industry are of potential use in the manufacturing of meat products. In the present research, spreadable pork liver pâtés were made using fresh date coproducts (2.5% and 7.5%) as a potential functional ingredient and an ethanolic annatto extract (128 mg/kg) as colorant. The effect of these 2 ingredients on the lipid oxidation and microbial quality of the pâtés was assessed during 21 d of storage. The pâtés containing 7.5% date paste were seen to have the highest content of phenolic compounds during storage. The combination of 2.5% date paste and annatto protected pâtés against lipid oxidation throughout the 21 d of storage, thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances values being 0.47 mg MDA/kg at the end of this period, while other combinations increased oxidation compared to the control pâté. The control and those made with 2.5% date paste alone showed the highest counts of mesophilic aerobic bacteria, while the addition of annatto and/or 7.5% date paste reduced this count. The results suggest that a combination of both ingredients is necessary to reduce oxidation and microbial growth, but whereas the concentration of 2.5% is more appropriate to reduce oxidation, the combination with 7.5% date paste reduces the microbial counts. Both ingredients could have an opportunity of valorization in the meat industry for improving the quality.

Tomato and tomato byproducts. Human health benefits of lycopene and its application to meat products: a review.

During recent decades, the food industry, consumers, and regulatory authorities have developed a significant interest in functional foods because of their potential benefits for human health over and above their basic nutritional value. Tomato is the second most important vegetable crop in the world. The amount of the related wastes is estimated at up to 50,000 tons per year, representing a serious disposal problem with a consequent negative impact on the environment. Tomato byproducts contain a great variety of biologically active substances, principally lycopene, which have been demonstrated by in vitro and in vivo studies to possess antioxidant, hypolipidemic, and anticarcinogenic activities. The aim of this review is to present an overview of the functional and physiological properties of the principal bioactive compound present in tomato and tomato byproducts, lycopene, its addition to meat, and meat products.

Plasmocitosis cutánea / Cutaneous plasmacytosis

La plasmocitosis cutánea es un raro trastorno caracterizado por una proliferación benigna de células plasmáticas maduras que se presenta como múltiples lesiones rojizo-marronáceas, normalmente asociadas a hipergammaglobulinemia policlonal. Presentamos el caso de una mujer blanca de 33 años con clínica de placas marronáceas en tronco y cuero cabelludo. Histológicamente las lesiones mostraban un denso infiltrado en dermis superficial y profundo de distribución perivascular y perianexial compuesto principalmente de células plasmáticas maduras sin atipia (AU)

Cutaneous plasmacytosis is a rare disorder characterized by a benign proliferation of mature plasma cells that appears as multiple red to dark brown skin lesions, often associated with polyclonal hypergammaglobulinaemia. We report the case of a 33-year-old white woman who presented with reddish brown plaques restricted to trunk and scalp. Histologically, the lesions showed a moderately dense superficial and deep perivascular and periadnexal infiltrate composed predominantly of mature plasma cells without atypia (AU)

Food ingredients as anti-obesity agents: a review.

Overweight and obesity have a major impact on global health; their prevalence has rapidly increased in all industrialized countries in the past few decades and diabetes and hypertension are their direct consequences. Pharmacotherapy provides reinforcement for obesity treatment, but should be an adjunctive support to diet, exercise, and lifestyle modification. At present, only orlistat and sibutramine have been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for long-term use, but sibutramine was withdrawn for sale by the European Medicines Agency. The development of functional foods for the prevention and/or treatment of obesity suppose an opportunity for the food market and involve the knowledge of the mechanisms of appetite and energy expenditure as well as the metabolic sensation of satiety. Strategies for weight control management affect gut hormones as potential targets for the appetite metabolic regulation, stimulation of energy expenditure (thermogenesis), and modifications in the metabolic activity of the gut microbiota. Functional foods for obesity may also include bioactive fatty acids, phenolic compounds, soybean, plant sterols, dietary calcium, and dietary fiber. This review intends to offer an overview of the present situation of the anti-obesity agents currently used in dietary therapy as well as some functional food ingredients with potentially anti-obesity effects.

Assessment of the in vivo formation of biofilm on external ventricular drainages.

Biofilm formation on external ventricular drainages (EVDs) has been postulated as the main pathogenic mechanism for EVD-associated ventriculitis. However, biofilm on EVDs has never been systematically studied and the in vivo effect of antibiotic-impregnated EVDs on biofilm has not been assessed. The aim of this study was to measure the prevalence of biofilm formation on EVDs and to analyze the influence of antibiotic-impregnated EVD on the risk of biofilm formation and ventriculitis. Consecutive patients with EVDs were included in the study. Surveillance cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) cultures were performed twice a week. Withdrawn EVDs were cultured using standard bacteriologic techniques and examined under a scanning electron microscope. We collected 32 EVDs, 18 of which (56 %) were antibiotic-impregnated EVDs. Biofilm was present on 24 EVDs (75 %), ventriculitis was diagnosed in 6 patients (19 %), and colonization occurred in 12 patients (38 %). All cases of ventriculitis were due to Gram-negative bacteria. Biofilm was more frequent on EVDs originating from patients with ventriculitis or bacterial colonization. Impregnated EVDs did not avoid ventriculitis or colonization, but biofilm development on these devices depended on the time from insertion and varied from 67 % for those used for <7 days to 88 % for those used for ≥ 7 days (p = 0.094). In conclusion, biofilm is a common phenomenon on EVDs. Currently available impregnated EVDs could not avoid ventriculitis due to multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria, but a trend of delayment of biofilm development was observed.

Effect of the molecular weight and concentration of chitosan in pork model burgers.

Chitosan of high and low molecular weights was added at 0%, 0.25%, 0.5% and 1% concentrations to a burger model system. Burgers were evaluated by physicochemical analysis, cooking characteristic and storage stability. The antioxidant activity of chitosan was studied in vitro. The addition of chitosan influenced pH and color properties, in molecular weight and concentration dependent ways. Cooking properties were significantly affected by the chitosan. High molecular weight chitosan improved all cooking characteristics compared with control samples. Low molecular weight chitosan increased the shelf life of burgers, enhanced the red color and reduced total viable counts, compared with control and high molecular weight chitosan samples. The antioxidant activity of chitosan was dependent on molecular weight and concentration. The results indicate that high molecular weight chitosan (HMWC) improves all cooking characteristics and antioxidant activity while low molecular weight chitosan extends the red color and reduces total viable counts.

Citrus co-products as technological strategy to reduce residual nitrite content in meat products.

Sodium or potassium nitrite is widely used as a curing agent in cured meat products because it inhibits outgrowth and neurotoxin formation by Clostridium botulinum, delays the development of oxidative rancidity, develops the characteristic flavor of cured meats, and reacts with myoglobin and stabilizes the red meat color. As soon as nitrite is added in the meat formulation, it starts to disappear and the nitrite that has not reacted with myoglobin and it is available corresponds to residual nitrite level. Health concerns relating to the use of nitrates and nitrites in cured meats (cooked and dry cured) trend toward decreased usage to alleviate the potential risk to the consumers from formation of carcinogenic compounds. Recently, some new ingredients principally agro-industrial co-products in general and those from the citrus industry in particular (albedo [with different treatments], dietetic fiber obtained from the whole co-product, and washing water used in the process to obtain the dietetic fiber) are seen as good sources of bio-compounds that may help to reduce the residual nitrite level in meat products. From these co-products, citrus fiber shows the highest potential to reduce the residual nitrite level, followed by the albedo and finally the washing water. The aim of this article is to describe the latest advances concerning the use of citrus co-products in meat products as a potential ingredient to reduce the nitrite level.

Effect of packaging conditions on shelf-life of ostrich steaks.

This study was conducted to establish the shelf-life of ostrich steaks stored in four different packaging types: (i) air exposure, (ii) vacuum, and two different modified atmospheres packages (iii) MAP: 80% CO(2)+20% N(2,) and (iv) MAP+CO: 30% CO(2)+69.8% argon+0.2% CO. Shelf-life evaluation was based on colour, lipid and hemopigments oxidation, microbial counts and sensory assessment of odour and colour. Samples stored under air exposure showed the highest lipid and hemopigments oxidation rate. Based on aerobic bacteria counts, the shelf life of ostrich steaks stored under aerobic conditions would be 8 d at most, whereas under vacuum, MAP or MAP+CO it would be 12 d. The presence of CO extends the shelf life of ostrich steaks by stabilisation of red colour measured by instrumental and sensory techniques, and maintenance of fresh meat odour by slowing down off-odour perception.

Physico-chemical and microbiological profiles of "salchichón" (Spanish dry-fermented sausage) enriched with orange fiber.

Spanish dry-fermented sausages with three concentrations (0, 1 and 2%) of orange fiber (juice industry by-product) were prepared and studied. Fermentation and dry-curing processes were followed by physico-chemical (pH and water activity), chemical (moisture, lactic acid and residual nitrite level) and microbiological (aerobic mesophilic bacteria, lactic acid bacteria, Enterobacteriaceae, Micrococcaceae and molds and yeasts counts) analysis. Sensory analyses were conducted on the finished products. Only residual nitrite level and counts of micrococcus were affected by fiber addition during fermentation. pH, water activity, residual nitrite level and counts of Micrococcaceae were affected by fiber addition during dry-curing. Orange fiber decreases residual nitrite levels and favours micrococcus growth. Both effects have a positive impact on sausage safety and quality. The reduction in residual nitrite level decreases the risk of nitrosamine formation. For all sensorial attributes evaluated sausages containing 1% fiber showed similar scores to controls.

Quality characteristics of ostrich (Struthio camelus) burgers.

Quality characteristics and storage stability of three types of burgers prepared with ostrich meat (alone or mixed with pork or beef meat) were evaluated. Burger evaluation was based on chemical, microbiological, textural, colour, sensory and oxidation characteristics. All of the assayed formulas showed acceptable general quality scores in the sensory evaluation, but the burgers formulated with 100% ostrich meat or mixing ostrich and beef meat had the highest scores. Only TBA values and redness were influenced by storage time. Burgers formulated with ostrich and pork meat had a faster oxidation rate and became more oxidized than the others. Microbial counts indicated that, at the end of the refrigerated storage (9days), all of the preparations were spoiled.

Lemon albedo as a new source of dietary fiber: Application to bologna sausages.

The aim of this work was to study the effect of the addition of lemon albedo in bologna sausages. Two types of albedo (raw and cooked) and five concentrations (0%, 2.5%, 5%, 7.5% and 10%) were added to sausages. Chemical, physicochemical and sensory analyses were made. The addition of albedo to bologna sausages represents an improvement in their nutritional properties and may have beneficial effects, possibly due to the presence of active biocompounds which induce a decrease in residual nitrite levels. The formulations which gave products with sensory properties similar to conventional sausages were sausages with 2.5% and 5% raw albedo and 2.5%, 5% and 7.5% cooked albedo.

Clonal hemopoiesis and risk of thrombosis in young female patients with essential thrombocythemia.

OBJECTIVE: Several studies demonstrated a high prevalence of nonrandom X-chromosome inactivation pattern (X-CIP) in essential thrombocythemia (ET). This study explored the incidence of clonal hemopoiesis in myeloid precursors and endogenous erythroid colonies (EECs) in ET patients and its correlation with thrombotic manifestations. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Clonal analysis of hemopoiesis using X-CIP was performed in 40 female patients with ET. Median age was 40.5 years (range 20-64), and median platelet count at testing time was 700 x 10(9)/L (range 220-1300 x 10(9)/L). Patients older than 65 years were excluded to reduce age-related skewing. Clonality was assessed on neutrophils, platelets, EECs, and bone marrow CD34(+) cells. RESULTS: Eight (20%) of 40 patients developed thrombosis mainly at diagnosis. Clonal hemopoiesis was found in 17 (42.5%) patients, 15 (37.5%) had polyclonal hemopoiesis, and 8 (20%) were considered uninterpretable due to constitutive skewing. Clonality was confirmed on purified CD34(+) subpopulations from bone marrow, documenting that clonality does not appear lineage-restricted. There were no statistical differences in age at diagnosis, median platelet count at testing time, and length of follow-up. Thrombotic episodes were significantly more frequent in the monoclonal group (p = 0.04, Fisher exact test). CONCLUSIONS: Young female patients with ET exhibiting a clonal pattern of hemopoiesis by X-CIP analysis are at higher risk for thrombosis. X-CIP analysis may contribute to defining the individual risk leading to appropriate treatment. X-CIP will allow a correct diagnosis in patients with latent myeloproliferative disorders and thrombosis in unusual sites. Clonal hemopoiesis is easily recognized by X-CIP, but its applicability is limited to the female sex and is hampered by the presence of age-related or constitutive skewing.

Molecular and clinical follow-up after stem cell transplantation for multiple myeloma.

Molecular follow-up has been carried out using immunoglobulin heavy-chain (IgH) gene finger-printing, a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based technique with a sensitivity of 0.1-0.01% (10(-3)-10(-4)), in 22 patients affected by multiple myeloma and submitted to stem cell transplantation (SCT). Twelve patients were submitted to either single or double autologous unselected peripheral blood progenitor cell transplantation, eight patients were submitted to autologous CD34+ immunoselected transplantation and two patients were submitted to allogeneic bone marrow (one patient) or peripheral blood CD34+ stem cell (one patient) transplantation. At diagnosis, all patients showed clonal CDIII rearrangement. The molecular analysis performed on leukapheresis products and CD34+ purified fractions proved to be contaminated by myeloma cells. During follow-up after autografting, all but one patient retained clonal rearrangement despite clinical complete remission (CR) in ten of them. These ten patients either relapsed (Rel) or showed progressive disease (PD) after transplantation; four of them died. Only one patient did not retain clonal rearrangement after autologous transplantation; she is currently alive in CR after a follow-up of 100 months. One patient submitted to allogeneic transplantation is currently alive with no evidence of the disease, but still retains clonal rearrangement after a follow-up of 47 months. Another patient died 4 months after transplantation after succumbing to fatal pneumonia showing myeloma progression.

MiCMA: an alternative treatment for refractory or recurrent Hodgkin's disease.

BACKGROUND: We determined the response rate to MiCMA (mitoxantrone, carboplatinum, methylprednisolone and aracytin) in a group of 29 patients with Hodgkin's disease (HD) and poor prognostic factors either resistant to first line or relapsing after conventional chemotherapy and subsequently evaluated the role of autologous stem-cell transplantation (ASCT) in these patients after MiCMA. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The treatment was intended as a brief tumor debulking program before ASCT. Twenty-nine patients with primary refractory HD or relapsed HD were submitted to two courses of MiCMA (mitoxantrone 10 mg/m2 day 1; carboplatinum 100 mg/m2 days 1-4; aracytin 2 g/m2 day 5; methylprednisolone 500 mg/m2 days 1-5) and subsequently evaluated for response. Those with responding or stable disease, received one or two other courses of MiCMA followed by ASCT. RESULTS: There were 10 complete responses (34% CR), 15 partial responses (52% PR) and 4 treatment failures with disease progression (14% PD). In total there were 25 evaluable responses out of 29 patients (86% CR + PR). Myelosuppression was the main toxicity of this treatment. At this time 20 patients (69%) are alive with a median follow-up of 26.5 months (7-100), 13 patients in CR (45%), 8 patients died, 7 of them from disease progression and one due to multi-organ failure, one patient is lost to follow-up. All but one of the patients who achieved CR after MiCMA are alive. Only the number of extranodal sites was found to predict a poor response to MiCMA. CONCLUSIONS: A short pre-transplantation treatment with MiCMA is an effective tumor debulking approach in patients with refractory or relapsed HD.

Autologous graft-versus-host disease after CD34+-purified autologous peripheral blood progenitor cell transplantation.

Autologous graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) has been frequently reported after cyclosporine A (CsA) administration in the autologous setting. This complication is related to the disruption of self-tolerance mechanisms induced by CsA and may exert an antitumor effect. We report the spontaneous occurrence of autologous GVHD after CD34+-purified peripheral blood progenitor cell transplantation (PBPCT) in 5 out of 24 consecutive patients (20.8%). The syndrome was characterized by skin rash (5/5), pruritus (5/5), eosinophilia (5/5), and fever (2/5) occurring at a median of 37 days (range 22-60) after transplantation. Diagnosis was confirmed by skin biopsy in all patients. The syndrome was self-limiting, lasted a median of 25 days, and did not require treatment. The rate of autologous GVHD was high after CD34+-purified autologous PBPCT. In fact, no autologous GVHD was documented in an historical control of 100 consecutive patients submitted to unmanipulated PBPCT at the same institution. The manipulation of the graft by the purging procedure causes a profound T lymphocyte depletion, thus possibly perturbing the equilibrium between autoregulatory cells and autocytotoxic T cells. These observations add new interest to the antitumor efficacy of autologous GVHD and suggest new questions regarding the role of transplantation for autoimmune diseases.