[Giardiasis in a paediatric population of the province of castellon. Clinical details and impact]. / Giardiosis en población pediátrica de la provincia de Castellón: clínica e impacto.

INTRODUCTION: Giardiasis is a gastrointestinal parasitosis that has a great public health impact. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Observational case study - in children under 15 years old in the Health Department 3 of the Province of Castellon (Spain), during the period 2012-2019. RESULTS: A total of 190 cases of giardiasis were recorded in children under 15 years old. The number of cases varied significantly according to age group and month of the year. There were 115 males. The most frequent symptoms were diarrhea and abdominal pain. The most commonly used treatment was standard metronidazole (80% of patients). Co-infection occurred in 13% of cases, and comorbidities in 36%, especially atopic dermatitis and lactose/fructose intolerance. Relapses and/or re-infections were recorded in 8%. All cases were diagnosed by conventional parasitological stool tests and complementary immunochromatography (63 cases). Thirty-five samples were positive for Giardia duodenalis by qPCR. The direct health cost per patient was 117€. A disease notification bias was detected between 2012-2016 at a national scale. CONCLUSIONS: Giardiasis is a current disease in Castellon, and should be considered as a probable diagnosis of gastrointestinal disease in a child under 4 years-old with diarrhea and abdominal pain. Its correct clinical and therapeutic management could reduce the possibility of worsening of the patient's condition and, additionally, would reduce the economic impact of the disease in terms of direct health costs.

El arte como herramienta docente en medicina / Art as a resource for teaching medical students

El presente artículo forma parte de un proyecto que pretende formar a estudiantes en la observación de la enfermedad utilizando para ello obras de arte. Los objetivos son desarrollar el interés científico de los participantes, promover y desarrollar la afición por el arte en estudiantes con formación básicamente científica. La peste negra, aunque fue una de las mayores catástrofes del mundo pre-modernista, produjo un obligado avance en la medicina. En este contexto histórico, a través de la representación de san Roque se vislumbra el impacto social de la pandemia gracias a la herencia artística del gótico, del renacimiento y del barroco (siglos XIV a xvii). MATERIAL Y MÉTODOS: Se han analizado algunas obras pictóricas sobre san Roque y, aprovechando la visión artística e histórica de su figura, se ha recopilado información de la labor y relación de san Roque con la peste bubónica. RESULTADOS Y DISCUSIÓN: A través de contenidos artísticos de la figura san Roque se observa una correlación bastante fidedigna entre la clínica representada en los cuadros de san Roque y los signos descritos en la medicina interna e infecciosa actual. Los signos y síntomas comunes de la peste aparecen fielmente representados en las obras analizadas dado que algunos de los pintores que dedicaron trabajos a su figura convivieron con la enfermedad e incluso la padecieron

INTRODUCTION: This article forms part of a project intended to teach students about observation through artwork. The objectives were to promote and develop art appreciation in science students, as well to continue developing their scientific interest. Although bubonic plague was one of the greatest catastrophes in the pre-modern world, it was also partly responsible for major advances in medicine. In this historic context, and using the figure of Saint Roch, a Catholic saint and confessor especially invoked against the plague, the social impact of the pandemic is assessed using the artistic heritage of gothic, renaissance and baroque periods (fourteen to seventeenth centuries). MATERIAL AND METHODS: Some paintings of Saint Roch have been analysed by looking at the historical and artistic viewpoints in order to gather information about his work and the relationship of the Saint with the bubonic plague. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Through the artistic representations of Saint Roch, and after a bibliographic review, a good correlation can be established between the clinical signs shown in the paintings and those described by in current internal medicine and knowledge of infections. There is ample evidence showing the fidelity of the representations regarding the common signs and symptoms of Black Death, particularly as some of the painters who painted the Saint lived at the time of the epidemics and even suffered the disease themselves