Evidence for Succession and Putative Metabolic Roles of Fungi and Bacteria in the Farming Mutualism of the Ambrosia Beetle Xyleborus affinis.

The bacterial and fungal community involved in ambrosia beetle fungiculture remains poorly studied compared to the famous fungus-farming ants and termites. Here we studied microbial community dynamics of laboratory nests, adults, and brood during the life cycle of the sugarcane shot hole borer, Xyleborus affinis We identified a total of 40 fungal and 428 bacterial operational taxonomic units (OTUs), from which only five fungi (a Raffaelea fungus and four ascomycete yeasts) and four bacterial genera (Stenotrophomonas, Enterobacter, Burkholderia, and Ochrobactrum) can be considered the core community playing the most relevant symbiotic role. Both the fungal and bacterial populations varied significantly during the beetle's life cycle. While the ascomycete yeasts were the main colonizers of the gallery early on, the Raffaelea and other filamentous fungi appeared after day 10, at the time when larval hatching happened. Regarding bacteria, Stenotrophomonas and Enterobacter dominated overall but decreased in foundresses and brood with age. Finally, inferred analyses of the putative metabolic capabilities of the bacterial microbiome revealed that they are involved in (i) degradation of fungal and plant polymers, (ii) fixation of atmospheric nitrogen, and (iii) essential amino acid, cofactor, and vitamin provisioning. Overall, our results suggest that yeasts and bacteria are more strongly involved in supporting the beetle-fungus farming symbiosis than previously thought.IMPORTANCE Ambrosia beetles farm their own food fungi within tunnel systems in wood and are among the three insect lineages performing agriculture (the others are fungus-farming ants and termites). In ambrosia beetles, primary ambrosia fungus cultivars have been regarded essential, whereas other microbes have been more or less ignored. Our KEGG analyses suggest so far unknown roles of yeasts and bacterial symbionts, by preparing the tunnel walls for the primary ambrosia fungi. This preparation includes enzymatic degradation of wood, essential amino acid production, and nitrogen fixation. The latter is especially exciting because if it turns out to be present in vivo in ambrosia beetles, all farming animals (including humans) are dependent on atmospheric nitrogen fertilization of their crops. As previous internal transcribed spacer (ITS) metabarcoding approaches failed on covering the primary ambrosia fungi, our 18S metabarcoding approach can also serve as a template for future studies on the ambrosia beetle-fungus symbiosis.

Impacto de una intervención en las consultas de Enfermería de Atención Primaria para la mejora de la calidad de la colonoscopia de cribado / Impact of an intervention in primary care nursing units for improvement in the quality of colonoscopy screening

OBJETIVO: analizar la efectividad de una intervención enfermera en Atención Primaria (AP) para la mejora de la preparación colónica de las personas que se realizan una colonoscopia de cribado. MÉTODO: estudio de evaluación antes (invitación 2015 del Programa de Cribado de Cáncer Colorrectal -PCCR-) después (invitación 2018 del PCCR) en una Unidad de Atención Primaria del País Vasco, sobre 154 personas que se hicieron la colonoscopia de confirmación tras tener resultado positivo en el PCCR. La intervención llevada a cabo por profesionales de Enfermería de AP constó de la realización de una consulta específica para instruir a los pacientes sobre la preparación colónica a través de una lista de comprobación disponible en la historia clínica digital, y una llamada recordatorio 24 horas antes de la colonoscopia. La variable principal fue la calidad de la preparación colónica (escala de Boston). Se utilizó Chi-cuadrado o el test exacto de Fisher en los análisis bivariantes. RESULTADOS: 135 personas aceptaron participar en el estudio. El 54,1% visualizó los vídeos sobre la preparación. El 94,8% recibió la llamada telefónica. La variable de resultado "calidad de la preparación de la colonoscopia" mostró diferencias estadísticamente significativas entre los dos años comparados, pudiéndose observar una preparación adecuada en más casos en el año 2018 que en el año 2015 (97,8% vs. 88,7%; p = 0,003). CONCLUSIONES: la realización de la intervención enfermera orientada a una mejor preparación colónica siguiendo la lista de comprobación estandarizado y disponible en la historia clínica, además de la llamada telefónica 24 horas antes de la colonoscopia, resultó efectiva en la mejora de la calidad de la limpieza colónica. También, ha supuesto la creación de un registro del proceso de atención de Enfermería

OBJECTIVE: to analyze the efficacy of a Primary Care (PC) nursing intervention for the colonic preparation of patients undergoing colonoscopy screening. METHOD: a before (2015 invitation by the Colorectal Cancer Screening Program - CCSP) and after (2018 invitation by the CCSP) evaluation study at a Primary Care Unit in the Basque Country, including 154 persons who underwent confirmation colonoscopy after obtaining a positive result in the CCSP. The intervention was conducted by PC Nursing professionals, and consisted of a specific training consultation for patients about colonic preparation, through a check-list available at the electronic clinical record, and a reminder call 24 hours prior to the colonoscopy. The primary variable was the quality of the colonic preparation (Boston Scale). Chi-square or Fisher's exact test were used at bivariate analyses. RESULTS: in total, 135 persons accepted to participate in the study; 54.1% of them viewed the videos on preparation, and 94.8% of them received the phone call. The "quality of the colonoscopy preparation" outcome variable showed statistically significant differences between both years compared: an adequate preparation could be observed in more cases in 2018 than in 2015 (97.8% vs. 88.7%; p = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: conducting the nursing intervention, targeted to a better colonic preparation, and following the standard check-list available in the clinical record, as well as the phone call 24 hours prior to the colonoscopy, proved to be effective for the improvement of colonic cleansing. Moreover, it has led to the creation of a Nursing care process record

Effects of region of birth, educational level and age on late presentation among men who have sex with men newly diagnosed with HIV in a network of STI/HIV counselling and testing clinics in Spain.

This paper analyses late presentation (LP) of HIV infection, and its determinants, among men who have sex with men (MSM) in Spain, newly diagnosed with HIV (2003-2011) in 15 sexually transmitted infection/HIV counselling and testing clinics. LP was defined as <350 CD4 cells/µL or AIDS. In total, 3,081 MSM were included (2,499 having CD4/AIDS); overall LP was 25.3%. LP was higher in men older than 34 years, those not previously HIV-tested (adjusted odds ratio (aOR):3.1; 95% confidence intervals (CI):2.3-4.2) , and those tested > 12 months before diagnosis (12-24 months (aOR:1.4; 95% CI:1.0-2.0); > 24 months (aOR:2.2; 95% CI:1.7-3.0)). LP was less likely in MSM reporting a known HIV-infected partner as infection source or symptoms compatible with acute retroviral syndrome. 'Region of birth' interacted with 'educational level' and 'steady partner as infection source': only African and Latin-American MSM with low educational level were more likely to present late; Latin-American men attributing their infection to steady partner, but no other MSM, had LP more frequently. In Spain, HIV testing among MSM should be promoted, especially those > 34 years old and migrants with low educational level. The current recommendation that MSM be tested at least once a year is appropriate.

Trends in HIV testing, prevalence among first-time testers, and incidence in most-at-risk populations in Spain: the EPI-VIH Study, 2000 to 2009.

During 2000 to 2009, data on people undergoing HIV testing and on those newly diagnosed with HIV were collected in a network of 20 Spanish clinics specialising in sexually transmitted infections and/or HIV testing and counselling. The number of tests performed, overall and disaggregated by different variables, was obtained. HIV prevalence among first-time testers and HIV incidence among repeat testers were calculated. To evaluate trends, joinpoint regression models were fitted. In total, 236,939 HIV tests were performed for 165,745 individuals. Overall HIV prevalence among persons seeking HIV testing was 2.5% (95% CI: 2.4 to 2.6). Prevalence was highest in male sex workers who had sex with other men (19.0% (95% CI: 16.7 to 21.4)) and was lowest in female sex workers (0.8% (95% CI: 0.7 to 0.9)). Significant trends in prevalence were observed in men who have sex with men (MSM) (increasing) and heterosexual individuals (decreasing). The incidence analysis included 30,679 persons, 64,104 person-years (py) of follow-up and 642 seroconversions. The overall incidence rate (IR) was 1.0/100 py (95% CI: 0.9/100 to 1.1/100). Incidence was significantly higher in men and transgender females than in women (1.8/100 py (95% CI: 1.6 to 1.9), 1.2/100 py (95% CI: 0.5 to 2.8) and 0.1/100 py (95% CI: 0.09 to 0.2) respectively) and increased with age until 35­39 years. IRs in MSM and people who inject drugs were significantly greater than in heterosexual individuals (2.5/100 py (95% CI: 2.3 to 2.7), 1.6/100 py (95% CI: 1.1 to 2.2) and 0.1/100 py (95% CI: 0.09 to 0.2) respectively), and an upward trend was observed in MSM. Our results call for HIV prevention to be reinforced in MSM and transgender women in Spain.

Insuficiencia renal aguda según RIFLE y AKIN: estudio multicéntrico / Acute renal failure according to the RIFLE and AKIN criteria: A multicenter study

OBJETIVO: Determinar la incidencia de insuficiencia renal aguda (IRA) en pacientes críticos usando RIFLE y AKIN. DISEÑO: Estudio observacional prospectivo multicéntrico, realizado durante un año desde febrero de 2010. Se emplearon RIFLE y AKIN aplicando los criterios urinario (criterio U) y creatinina (criterio C) juntos y separados. Ámbito: Nueve Unidades de Cuidados Críticos (UCC) polivalentes de Argentina. PACIENTES: Un total de 627 pacientes críticos mayores de 18 años de edad internados en UCC durante más de 48 h; motivos de exclusión: imposibilidad de cuantificar diuresis, instrumentación quirúrgica de la vía urinaria y necesidad de terapias de soporte renal (TSR).Variables de interés: Se utilizó una diuresis horaria calculada (DHC) para aplicar el criterio U. RESULTADOS: La incidencia de IRA fue de 69,4 y 51,8% (RIFLE y AKIN, respectivamente). El criterio U detectó IRA en el 59,5% de los casos, mientras que el criterio C identificó IRA en el 34,7% (RIFLE) y 25,3% (AKIN). La mortalidad fue de 40,9 y 44,6% según RIFLE y AKIN, respectivamente, significativamente mayor a la de los pacientes sin IRA, y aumentó con la gravedad de la enfermedad. (Procesamiento de datos: Excel, SQL y SPSS. Test de Levenne, comparación de medias/promedios con t de Student y chi-cuadrado, con 95% de confianza).CONCLUSIONES: RIFLE identificó más casos de IRA que AKIN. El criterio U fue más eficaz que el criterio C. La presencia de IRA y sus niveles de gravedad tuvieron correlación con la mortalidad pero no con los días de estancia en UCC. La implementación de la DHC fue útil para unificar la aplicación del criterio C y lograr resultados comparables

OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of acute renal failure (ARF) in critically ill patients using the RIFLE and AKIN criteria. DESIGN: A prospective, multicenter observational study with a duration of one year from February 2010 was carried out. RIFLE and AKIN were employed using the urinary (UC) and creatinine criteria (CC) jointly and separately. Scope: Nine polyvalent Critical Care Units (CCUs) in Argentina. PATIENTS: A total of 627 critical patients over 18 years of age were admitted to the CCU for more than 48 h. Exclusion criteria: inability to quantify diuresis, surgical instrumentation of the urinary tract, and need for renal support therapy (RST).Variables of interest: Calculated hourly diuresis (CHD) was used to apply the UC. RESULTS: The incidence of ARF was 69.4% and 51.8% according to RIFLE and AKIN, respectively. UC detected ARF in 59.5% of cases, while CC identified ARF in 34.7% (RIFLE) and 25.3% (AKIN). The mortality rate was 40.9% and 44.6% according to RIFLE and AKIN respectively, was significantly higher than in patients without ARF, and increased with disease severity (Data processing: Excel, SQL and SPSS. Levene test, comparison of means with Student t and chi-squared, with 95% confidence interval). CONCLUSIONS: RIFLE identified more cases of ARF. UC proved more effective than CC. The presence of ARF and severity levels were correlated to mortality but not to days of stay in the CCU. Implementation of the unified CHD was useful for implementing UC and achieving comparable results

Acute renal failure according to the RIFLE and AKIN criteria: a multicenter study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of acute renal failure (ARF) in critically ill patients using the RIFLE and AKIN criteria. DESIGN: A prospective, multicenter observational study with a duration of one year from February 2010 was carried out. RIFLE and AKIN were employed using the urinary (UC) and creatinine criteria (CC) jointly and separately. SCOPE: Nine polyvalent Critical Care Units (CCUs) in Argentina. PATIENTS: A total of 627 critical patients over 18 years of age were admitted to the CCU for more than 48h. EXCLUSION CRITERIA: inability to quantify diuresis, surgical instrumentation of the urinary tract, and need for renal support therapy (RST). VARIABLES OF INTEREST: Calculated hourly diuresis (CHD) was used to apply the UC. RESULTS: The incidence of ARF was 69.4% and 51.8% according to RIFLE and AKIN, respectively. UC detected ARF in 59.5% of cases, while CC identified ARF in 34.7% (RIFLE) and 25.3% (AKIN). The mortality rate was 40.9% and 44.6% according to RIFLE and AKIN respectively, was significantly higher than in patients without ARF, and increased with disease severity (Data processing: Excel, SQL and SPSS. Levene test, comparison of means with Student t and chi-squared, with 95% confidence interval). CONCLUSIONS: RIFLE identified more cases of ARF. UC proved more effective than CC. The presence of ARF and severity levels were correlated to mortality but not to days of stay in the CCU. Implementation of the unified CHD was useful for implementing UC and achieving comparable results.

Phylogenetic and structural response of heterotrophic bacteria to dissolved organic matter of different chemical composition in a continuous culture study.

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) and heterotrophic bacteria are highly diverse components of the ocean system, and their interactions are key in regulating the biogeochemical cycles of major elements. How chemical and phylogenetic diversity are linked remains largely unexplored to date. To investigate interactions between bacterial diversity and DOM, we followed the response of natural bacterial communities to two sources of phytoplankton-derived DOM over six bacterial generation times in continuous cultures. Analyses of total hydrolysable neutral sugars and amino acids, and ultrahigh resolution mass spectrometry revealed large differences in the chemical composition of the two DOM sources. According to 454 pyrosequences of 16S ribosomal ribonucleic acid genes, diatom-derived DOM sustained higher levels of bacterial richness, evenness and phylogenetic diversity than cyanobacteria-derived DOM. These distinct community structures were, however, not associated with specific taxa. Grazing pressure affected bacterial community composition without changing the overall pattern of bacterial diversity levels set by DOM. Our results demonstrate that resource composition can shape several facets of bacterial diversity without influencing the phylogenetic composition of bacterial communities, suggesting functional redundancy at different taxonomic levels for the degradation of phytoplankton-derived DOM.

Effects of growth hormone withdrawal in obese premenopausal women.

OBJECTIVE: We previously reported improved body composition and cardiovascular risk markers plus a small decrease in glucose tolerance with GH administration vs placebo for 6 months to abdominally obese premenopausal women. The objective of this study was to determine whether the effects of GH treatment on cardiovascular risk markers, body composition and glucose tolerance in obese women persist 6 months after GH withdrawal. DESIGN AND PATIENTS: Fifty abdominally obese premenopausal women completed a trial of rhGH vs placebo for 6 months; thirty-nine women completed a subsequent 6-month withdrawal observation period. MEASUREMENTS: IGF-I, body composition by CT, (1) H-MRS and DXA, serum cardiovascular risk markers, oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). RESULTS: IGF-I standard deviation scores (SDS) within the GH group were -1.7 ± 0.1 (pretreatment),-0.1 ± 0.3 (after 6 months of GH) and -1.7 ± 0.1 (6 months post-GH withdrawal). Six months after GH withdrawal, total abdominal and subcutaneous adipose tissue, total fat, trunk fat, trunk/extremity fat, hsCRP, apoB, LDL, and tPA were higher than at the 6-month (GH discontinuation) timepoint (P ≤ 0.05). All body composition and cardiovascular risk markers that had improved with GH returned to baseline levels by 6 months after GH discontinuation, as did fasting and 2-h OGTT glucose levels. CONCLUSION: The effects of GH administration to abdominally obese premenopausal women have a short time-course. The beneficial effects on body composition and cardiovascular risk markers, and the side effect of altered glucose tolerance returned to pretreatment levels after GH withdrawal. There was no suppression of endogenous IGF-I levels, which returned to baseline after GH withdrawal.

Utilization of advanced-age donors in renal transplantation.

The shortage of organ availability in recent years has made it necessary to use grafts from advanced-aged donors to maintain the rate of renal transplantation in our country. The objective of this study was to evaluate the graft function and patient survival using kidneys from deceased donors of over 65 year of age. From 2005 until 2010, we compared the outcomes of patients who received grafts from donors over 65 years old vs less than 65 years. We observed no significant difference in sex, time on dialysis, or cold ischemia time between the groups. As expected the recipient age was significantly different. For the analysis of survival, we used the Tablecloth-Haenzel test and the Kaplan-Meier survival estimator. Actuarial survivals at 3 years after transplantation showed 84.8% among patients transplanted with kidneys from donors over 65 years old versus 97.5% in the control group. The graft survival was 78.8% among expanded criteria versus 86.85% in the control group. When we analyzed graft survival using an "exitus-censured" analysis, we obtained graft survivals of 89.1% in the expanded criteria kidney group versus 88.6% among the controls. We concluded that the use of kidney from donors over 65 years of age allows us to increase the rate of renal transplantation to about 15 to 20 per million population, with good graft and patient survivals provided that the protocol for expanded criteria organs ensured proper macroscopic and microscopic evaluation of the organ for transplantation.

HIV/STI co-infection among men who have sex with men in Spain.

In Spain, neither the HIV nor the STI national surveillance systems collect information on HIV/STI co-infection. However, there are two networks based on HIV/STI clinics which gather this data. We describe HIV prevalence in men who have sex with men (MSM) diagnosed with infectious syphilis and/or gonorrhoea in 15 STI clinics; and concurrent diagnoses of STI in MSM newly diagnosed with HIV in 19 HIV/STI clinics. In total, 572 MSM were diagnosed with infectious syphilis and 580 with gonorrhoea during 2005-2007. HIV prevalence among syphilis and gonorrhoea cases was 29.8% and 15.2% respectively. In the multivariate analysis, HIV/syphilis co-infection was associated with being Latin American; having a history of STI; reporting exclusively anal intercourse; and having sex with casual or several types of partners. HIV and gonorrhoea co-infection was associated with age older than 45 years; having no education or only primary education completed; and having a history of STI. In total, 1,462 HIV infections were newly diagnosed among MSM during 2003-2007. Of these, 31.0% were diagnosed with other STI at the same time. Factors associated with STI co-infection among new HIV cases in MSM were being Latin American; and having sex with casual partners or with both steady and casual partners. In Spain, a considerable proportion of MSM are co-infected with HIV and STI.

Application of the method of Kvaal et al. to digital orthopantomograms.

Estimation of age in individuals has received considerable attention in the forensic literature. The reduction of size of dental pulp cavity as a result of secondary dentin deposit with increasing age could be used as an indicator of age. This regression change, apart from morphological techniques, can also be analysed by radiological techniques. In 1995, Kvaal et al. reported a new method for estimating the chronological age of adults based on the relationship between age and the pulp size on periapical dental radiographs. In 2005, Paewinsky et al. reported specific regression formulae for dental age calculation. The aim of this work was to evaluate the reproducibility of the original method of Kvaal et al. on digital panoramic radiographs as well as to analyse the application of age-estimation formulae reported in the literature. Orthopantomograms (OPGs) of 100 patients aged between 14 and 60 years old from a private radiology department in Bilbao were selected at random. According to the reported technique, three mandibular teeth were evaluated in each orthopantomogram. The results showed that the method reported by Kvaal at al. cannot be applied to direct digital OPGs. The values of age estimation obtained using regression formulae analysed on digital images were so distant from the real ages that this method must be discouraged as being a reliable one to estimate age on a direct digital OPGs sample.

Estudio de la fusión del asta mayor del hioides en relacion con la edad y revisión bibliográfica sobre las fracturas del hioides en medicina forense / A study of the coalition of major cornua of the hioides in connection with the age and bibliographical revision on the fractures of the hioides in forensic medicine

Se presenta un estudio de revisión sobre las características generales de las fracturas del hioides en el contexto de la medicina forense. Junto con esta revisión, se incluye un estudio sobre el estado de fusión de las astas mayores con el cuerpo del hioides en una muestra de Ortopantomografías dentales digitales. La conclusión del trabajo es la de que el estado de fusión en la unión de las astas mayores del hioides con el cuerpo no puede predecirse por la edad o el sexo de un sujeto, ni tampoco puede presuponerse por este estado que vayan a existir o no fracturas de las astas mayores en casos de asfixia mecánica por compresión cervical. Se recomienda la práctica previa, en todos los casos de autopsias por asfixia mecánica con sospecha de compresión cervical de un estudio radiográfico del bloque cervical previo a la disección y, tras ésta, el análisis histopatológico del mismo para evitar errores de diagnóstico diferencial entre fracturas vitales y postmortales y ausencias de fusión del asta mayor con el cuerpo del hioides (AU)

We present a review of the medico legal literature on hyoid bone fractures. It is also included a research on bone fusion of major cornua and hyoid bone body. This research has been conducted in a sample of digital dental Orthopantomographies. This research suggests that it isn´t possible to predict the state of fusion of the major cornuain subjects of known sex and age. In cases of non union of major cornua it shouldn´t be supossed that fractures of the hyoid won’t happen. In all cases of forensic autopsies when mechanical asphyxia is suspected it is recommended to perform a radiological study of cervical tissues prior to extraction and after extraction it should be performed hystopathological studies (AU)

Osificación del cartílago costal de la primera costilla en relación con la edad. Aplicaciones en la estimación forense de la edad / Ossification of first rib cartilage related to age. Applications in the forensic estimation of age

Se presenta un estudio sobre una muestra de 123 radiografías digitales de tórax de sujetos entre 5 y 75 años de edad en las que se ha analizado el estado de osificación del cartílago costal de la primera costilla. En este estudio el estadio 0 de osificación suele asociarse con edades entre 5 y 19 años. Los estadios de osificación 2 y 3 se han asociado con edades mínimas de 24 años de edad. Autores previos (Michelson, 1934) ya habían indicado quela edad mínima a la que los sujetos estudiados presentaban un estadio 3 de osificación era de 21 años de edad. Se sugiere la posibilidad de integrar el estudio de la osificación de la primera costilla entre los datos diagnósticos manejados para la estimación forense de edad en sujetos vivos basada en las recomendaciones del AGFAD del año 2000 (AU)

The results of a research on ossification of first ribcartilage in a Spanish population are presented in this paper.Our sample is constituted by 123 digital x-rays studies hadmade up our sample. Minimum subject age has been 5years old and maximum age 75 years old. Stage 0 has been usually found out in subjects between 5 and 19 years of age. Stages 2 and 3 had been found out in subjects at a minimum age of 24 years old. Previous researches had pointed out that stage 3 could be observed in subjects at an age of at least 21 years of age. We suggest that the analysis of the ossification degree of the first rib cartilage could beuseful as a complementary method for the forensic estimation of age based on radiographic methods (AU)

Reliability of the methods applied to assess age minority in living subjects around 18 years old. A survey on a Moroccan origin population.

We present a review of a population of 114 immigrant Moroccan males for which an age estimation was requested. The subjects' real chronological age was confirmed by the Moroccan Embassy in Spain. The confirmed age range was between 13 and 25, with an average age of 18.1 years and a standard deviation of 2.03. The following tests were performed to arrive at the forensic estimation of age: general physical examination, carpus X-ray (Greulich and Pyle method) and dental orthopantomography to determine the degree of maturity of the third inferior molars (Demirjian's method). Carpus X-ray (skeletal age) was the most useful method, followed by Demirjian's method (dental age), as prediction factors of a chronological age of over or under 18. The combination of skeletal and dental age variables represented a significant improvement in the prediction of the chronological age of the subjects in this population, reducing the number of ethically unacceptable test errors to a minimum.

[Pulmonary thromboembolism associated with glioblastoma multiforme: imaging diagnosis of a case and a review of the literature]. / Tromboembolia pulmonar asociada a glioblastoma multiforme: diagnóstico por imagen de un caso y revisión de la bibliografía.

INTRODUCTION: The incidence of deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism in patients with cerebral neoplasia has been estimated at 120/100,000 (the second highest rate for any kind of malignant neoplasia). A timely diagnosis is an indispensable requisite in the clinical evaluation of neurological patients. Patients suffering from glioblastoma multiforme present a generalized state of hypercoagulability with a deep vein thrombosis incidence after surgery of between 3 and 60%. The incidence with which pulmonary embolism occurs is 5% in patients following neurosurgical operations, with a mortality rate of between 9 and 50%. CASE REPORT: We report the case of a 64 year old male patient with a suspected diagnosis of pulmonary thromboembolism and thrombosis of the right lower limb. Clinical studies included a simple chest X ray, a Doppler ultrasound recording of the lower limbs, a spiral computed tomography (CAT) scan of the thorax, and a magnetic resonance (MR) scan of the head. The spiral CAT scan showed filling defects in the main pulmonary arteries, a tram track appearance and central filling defects. All these findings are compatible with an imaging diagnosis of pulmonary thromboembolism. CONCLUSIONS: The main aim of this study was to describe the use of spiral CAT scanning as a primary tool in the diagnosis of a case. The concurrence of the spiral scan image, the abnormal increase in D dimer and the clinical information left no doubts about the diagnosis. The clinical manifestations of pulmonary thromboembolism are not specific and therefore the patient s life is at risk. In addition, few reports have been published about the association between glioblastoma multiforme and the later appearance of pulmonary thromboembolism (a search was conducted in the medical literature from the last 10 years using MEDLINE), and hence we have presented a communication dealing with this pathological association together with a brief review of the clinical diagnosis of pulmonary thromboembolism and its physiopathogenic mechanisms.

Tromboembolia pulmonar asociada a glioblastoma multiforme: diagnóstico por imagen de un caso y revisión de la bibliografía / Pulmonary thromboembolism associated to glioblastoma multiforme: imaging diagnosis of a case and a review of the literature

Introducción. La incidencia de trombosis venosa profunda y embolismo pulmonar en pacientes con una neoplasia cerebral se ha estimado en 120/100.000 (la segunda tasa más alta para cualquier neoplasia maligna). El diagnóstico oportuno es un requisito indispensable en la valoración clínica del paciente neurológico .Los pacientes con glioblastoma multiforme presentan un estado de hipercoagulabilidad generalizada con una incidencia de trombosis venosa profunda después de la cirugía del 3 al 60 por ciento. La embolia pulmonar tiene una incidencia del 5 por ciento en pacientes a los que se ha practicado un procedimiento neuroquirúrgico, con una tasa de mortalidad de entre el 9 y el 50 por ciento. Caso clínico. Paciente varón de 64 años, con diagnóstico de sospecha de tromboembolia pulmonar y trombosis del miembro pélvico derecho. Se obtuvo la placa simple del tórax, la ecografía Doppler de los miembros pélvicos, una tomografía computarizada (TAC) helicoidal del tórax y una resonancia magnética (RM) del cráneo. La TAC helicoidal mostró defectos de llenado en las arterias pulmonares principales, imágenes en el riel y defectos de llenado centrales. Todos estos hallazgos son compatibles con un diagnóstico por imagen de tromboembolia pulmonar. Conclusiones. El objetivo principal de este trabajo fue describir el uso de la TAC helicoidal como herramienta primaria en el diagnóstico de un caso. La conjunción de la imagen helicoidal, el aumento desproporcionado del dímero D y la información clínica no dejó dudas sobre el diagnóstico. Debido a que el tromboembolismo pulmonar no presenta unas manifestaciones clínicas específicas y pone en riesgo la vida del paciente, y ante la falta de publicaciones de casos con la asociación del glioblastoma multiforme y la aparición posterior de tromboembolia pulmonar (realizamos una búsqueda en la bibliografía medica de los últimos 10 años mediante MEDLINE), presentamos un comunicado de esta asociación patológica, junto con una breve revisión del diagnóstico clínico de la tromboembolia pulmonar y sus mecanismos fisiopatogénicos (AU)

Introduction. The incidence of deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism in patients with cerebral neoplasia has been estimated at 120/100,000 (the second highest rate for any kind of malignant neoplasia). A timely diagnosis is an indispensable requisite in the clinical evaluation of neurological patients. Patients suffering from glioblastoma multiforme present a generalized state of hypercoagulability with a deep vein thrombosis incidence after surgery of between 3 and 60%. The incidence with which pulmonary embolism occurs is 5% in patients following neurosurgical operations, with a mortality rate of between 9 and 50%. Case report. We report the case of a 64-year-old male patient with a suspected diagnosis of pulmonary thromboembolism and thrombosis of the right lower limb. Clinical studies included a simple chest X-ray, a Doppler ultrasound recording of the lower limbs, a spiral computed tomography (CAT) scan of the thorax, and a magnetic resonance (MR) scan of the head. The spiral CAT scan showed filling defects in the main pulmonary arteries, a ‘tram track’ appearance and central filling defects. All these findings are compatible with an imaging diagnosis of pulmonary thromboembolism. Conclusions. The main aim of this study was to describe the use of spiral CAT scanning as a primary tool in the diagnosis of a case. The concurrence of the spiral scan image, the abnormal increase in D-dimer and the clinical information left no doubts about the diagnosis. The clinical manifestations of pulmonary thromboembolism are not specific and therefore the patient’s life is at risk. In addition, few reports have been published about the association between glioblastoma multiforme and the later appearance of pulmonary thromboembolism (a search was conducted in the medical literature from the last 10 years using MEDLINE), and hence we have presented a communication dealing with this pathological association together with a brief review of the clinical diagnosis of pulmonary thromboembolism and its physiopathogenic mechanisms (AU)

Papel de la terapia hormonal sustitutiva, en la prevención y tratamiento de la osteoporosis menopáusica / Role of hormone replacement therapy in the prevention and treatment of menopausal osteoporosis

La terapia hormonal sustitutiva se ha venido utilizando como prevención y tratamiento de la osteoporosis postmenopáusica. En este trabajo se revisan los ensayos publicados recientemente, especialmente los estudios Heart and estrogen/progestin replacement study (HERS) y Women´s Health Initiative (WHI), ensayos aleatorizados controlados de gran extensión. Se concluye que la terapia hormonal sustitutiva tiene un efecto de mejora de los síntomas vasomotores de la menopausia. Tiene un efecto positivo sobre la masa ósea con más intensidad sobre el hueso trabecular, pero este efecto sólo persiste durante el tratamiento hormonal y se recupera el balance negativo del recambio óseo al acabar el tratamiento. Se comprueba un efecto protector sobre las fracturas osteoporóticas (vértebra, fémur) durante el tratamiento en mujeres mayores (>60 años), pero no se comprueba esta acción a largo plazo por lo que su valor como terapia preventiva de la osteoporosis no es apoyada. Al finalizar se dan unas orientaciones que permitan ayudar en la práctica clínica (AU)

[Role of hormone replacement therapy in the prevention and treatment of menopausal osteoporosis]. / Papel de la terapia hormonal sustitutiva, en la prevención y tratamiento de la osteoporosis menopaúsica.

Hormone replacement therapy has been employed for the prevention and treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis. This paper reviews recently published trials, especially the studies Heart and estrogen/progestin replacement study (HERS) and Womens Health Initiative (WHI), randomized controlled trials of wide scope. The conclusion reached is that hormone replacement therapy has the effect of improving the vasomotor symptoms of menopause. It has a positive effect on the bone mass with more intensity on the trabecular bone, but this effect only persists during the hormonal treatment and the negative balance of bone exchange is recovered when treatment stops. A protective effect is found on osteoporotic fractures (vertebra, femur) during the treatment of older women (above 60 years), but this action is not found in the long term, which is why its value as a preventive therapy for osteoporosis is not supported. Finally, certain guidelines are given that can be helpful in clinical practice.