Dynamics of the Davydov-Scott monomer in a thermal bath: comparison of the full quantum and semiclassical approaches.

The quantum state diffusion equation is applied to the problem of energy transfer in proteins. Lindblad operators, capable of coupling the full quantum Davydov-Scott monomer to a thermal bath, are derived. Numerical simulations with the QSD equation show that the Lindblad operators derived do recreate the exact equilibrium ensemble for the Davydov-Scott monomer. Comparison of the results obtained with the full quantum and with the semiclassical systems shows that, at biological temperatures, the latter provides a good approximation of the former.

Breathers in a system with helicity and dipole interaction.

Recent papers that have studied variants of the Peyrard-Bishop model for DNA, have taken into account the long range interaction due to the dipole moments of the hydrogen bonds between base pairs. In these models the helicity of the double strand is not considered. In this paper we have performed an analysis of the influence of the helicity on the properties of static and moving breathers in a Klein-Gordon chain with dipole-dipole interaction. It has been found that the helicity enlarges the range of existence and stability of static breathers, although this effect is small for a typical helical structure of DNA. However, the effect of the orientation of the dipole moments is considerably higher with transcendental consequences for the existence of mobile breathers.

[Amenable mortality as indicator of effectiveness of health care services in Spain before and after transferences]. / Mortalidad reducible como indicador de efectividad de los servicios sanitarios en España antes y después de las transferencias.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the evolution of amenable mortality (MRASS) in Spain and to evaluate differences in trend patterns before and after health care services were transferred to local authorities. METHODS: MRASS was defined from a list of causes of death used in other studies. We analyzed the change in sex-age-standardized death rates of MRASS in two periods: 1999-2001 and 2006-2008, just before, and five years after, the health care transfers were completed. RESULTS: MRASS represented 24% of deaths in persons from 0 to 74 years old. MRASS has seen a reduction (19.4%) between the two periods over and above other causes of mortality (14.5%). The group of causes of mortality which showed most reduction: ischemic heart disease (28%), other vascular disease (27%), surgical conditions and surgical-medical errors (26%), and diabetes (22.5%). Although there were differences between the districts, health care transfers have not created significant variations in MRASS. Navarra and Madrid showed lower rates of MRASS, and the Canary Islands, Asturias, Andalusia, Ceuta and Melilla had higher rates. The Balearic Islands showed the greatest reduction in MRASS. CONCLUSIONS: MRASS constitutes an important proportion of trends of mortality in persons between 0-74 years. It has declined in all districts. Even though there were large differences between districts, there does not appear to be any direct influence due to health care transfer in amenable mortality trends. In spite of limitations, MRASS is an indicator to be considered when monitoring and detecting weaknesses in the effectiveness of health care systems.

Mortalidad reducible como indicador de efectividad de los servicios sanitarios en España antes y después de las transferencias / Amenable mortality as indicator of effectiveness of health care services in Spain before and after transferences

Objetivo. Describir la evolución de la mortalidad reducible por acción de los servicios sanitarios (MRASS) en España y evaluar si las transferencias sanitarias han supuesto algún cambio significativo. Métodos. La MRASS se definió a partir de una lista de causas utilizada en otros estudios. Se analizan tasas de MRASS ajustadas por edad y sexo en los períodos 1999-2001 y 2006-2008, justo antes y 5 años tras culminar el proceso de transferencias. Resultados. La MRASS representó el 24% de las defunciones en personas de 0-74 años. Descendió entre ambos períodos en mayor medida (19,4%) que el resto de causas (14,5%). El grupo de causas que más descendieron fueron: cardiopatía isquémica (28,0%), resto de enfermedades vasculares (26,8%), enfermedades quirúrgicas y errores médico-quirúrgicos (25,9%) y diabetes (22,5%). Aunque existieron diferencias entre comunidades autónomas (CCAA), no se apreció que estas diferencias ni la evolución de la MRASS se relacionaran con las transferencias. Navarra y Madrid presentaron las menores tasas de MRASS y Canarias, Asturias, Andalucía, Ceuta y Melilla, las mayores. Baleares fue la CCAA donde más disminuyó la MRASS. Conclusiones. La MRASS representa una importante proporción de la experiencia de mortalidad de personas de 0-74 años. Ha descendido en todas las CCAA, y aunque hay grandes diferencias entre ellas, no parece que el proceso de transferencias sanitarias influyera en su evolución en el período estudiado. Pese a limitaciones, la MRASS es un indicador que se debe considerar para monitorizar y detectar debilidades en la efectividad de los sistemas asistenciales(AU)

Objective. To describe the evolution of amenable mortality (MRASS) in Spain and to evaluate differences in trend patterns before and after health care services were tranferred to local authorities. Methods. MRASS was defined from a list of causes of death used in other studies. We analyzed the change in sex-age-standardized death rates of MRASS in two periods: 1999-2001 and 2006-2008, just before, and five years after, the health care transfers were completed. Results. MRASS represented 24% of deaths in persons from 0 to 74 years old. MRASS has seen a reduction (19.4%) between the two periods over and above other causes of mortality (14.5%). The group of causes of mortality which showed most reduction: ischemic heart disease (28%), other vascular disease (27%), surgical conditions and surgical-medical errors (26%), and diabetes (22.5%). Although there were differences between the districts, health care transfers have not created significant variations in MRASS. Navarra and Madrid showed lower rates of MRASS, and the Canary Islands, Asturias, Andalusia, Ceuta and Melilla had higher rates. The Balearic Islands showed the greatest reduction in MRASS. Conclusions. MRASS constitutes an important proportion of trends of mortality in persons between 0-74 years. It has declined in all districts. Even though there were large differences between districts, there does not appear to be any direct influence due to health care transfer in amenable mortality trends. In spite of limitations, MRASS is an indicator to be considered when monitoring and detecting weaknesses in the effectiveness of health care systems(AU)