E-scooter accidents: A new epidemic. / Accidentes en patinete eléctrico: una nueva epidemia.

INTRODUCTION: During the last years, the use of e-scooter has become more and more popular due to the versatility as the practicality in intra-urban mobility. However, e-scooter has turned into a spring of accidents, lot of them, severe, causing new public health problems and significantly increasing the direct and indirect healthcare costs. OBJECTIVE: To characterize the epidemiology of the injuries caused by e-scooter related accidents and to study their indirect economic impact in work-related accidents hospital. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Retrospective and descriptive study in which has been checked all the medical information about the patients attended in the ER (emergency room) of the Hospital Asepeyo Sant Cugat, who suffered e-scooter accident from January 2018 to December 2020. RESULTS: 167 patients were included in the study. 55% (92) were male and 45% (75) were female. The average of age was 37.4 years-old. There were quantified 117 different fractures in 105 patients (63%). Other injuries documented were: 36 patients with multiple contusions, 16 head traumas and 4 wounds which required suture. The most frequent ligamentous injuries were 4 ACL ruptures, 3 ACJ dislocations and 2 patients with rupture of the UCL of the thumb. 105 patients required hospital admission, 3 of them in ICU. The 51% of the cases required surgical treatment of their injuries. In that period, as a consequence of the work inabilities generated by the total of the patients included in the study, the added cost for the hospital was around 1,062,444€. CONCLUSIONS: The popularization of e-scooters between the employed population has caused a high increased number of accidents in this range of age. Most of the injuries observed may be compared with those seen in high-energy traumas. These cause an important socio-economic impact due to the nature of the injuries and the potential complications that could appear. The work inabilities observed as a consequence of e-scooter related injuries in the employed population have caused a substantial economic impact, shooting up to more than 1,000,000€ the indirect cost of our hospital during the reviewed period.

Accidentes en patinete eléctrico: una nueva epidemia / E-scooter accidents: A new epidemic

Introducción: El uso de patinetes eléctricos se ha popularizado como medio de transporte en los últimos años, tanto por su versatilidad como por la practicidad en el uso de estos. Sin embargo, no dejan de ser una fuente de accidentes, muchas veces graves, generando nuevos problemas de salud pública y aumentando los costes de esta. Objetivo: Caracterizar la epidemiología de las lesiones producidas por accidentes en patinete eléctrico y estudiar el impacto económico indirecto en una mutua laboral. Materiales y métodos: Estudio descriptivo, donde se revisan retrospectivamente los pacientes atendidos en urgencias, del Hospital de Asepeyo en Sant Cugat, que han sufrido accidentes en patinete eléctrico en el periodo comprendido entre enero de 2018 y diciembre de 2020. Resultados: Se incluyeron 167 pacientes. El 55% (92) de los pacientes fueron hombres y el 45% (75) mujeres, con una edad media de 37,4 años. Se diagnosticaron 117 fracturas en el 63% (105) de los pacientes. Otras lesiones frecuentes documentadas fueron: 36 policontusiones, 16 TCE y 4 heridas que requirieron sutura. Las lesiones ligamentosas más comúnmente observadas fueron: 4 casos de rotura aguda de LCA, 3 casos de luxación acromioclavicular y 2 casos de rotura del LCC del pulgar. Un total de 105 pacientes requirieron ingreso hospitalario, 3 de ellos en UCI. El 51% (85) de los pacientes requirieron tratamiento quirúrgico. Durante ese periodo, el coste generado como consecuencia de las bajas laborales ascendió a 1.062.444€. Conclusiones: El patinete eléctrico está comportando un incremento significativo de accidentes de tráfico en población adulta joven. Las lesiones que provocan pueden compararse con las vistas en accidentes de alta energía, generando un alto impacto socioeconómico debido a la naturaleza de las lesiones y sus potenciales complicaciones.(AU)

Introduction: During the last years, the use of e-scooter has become more and more popular due to the versatility as the practicality in intra-urban mobility. However, e-scooter has turned into a spring of accidents, lot of them, severe, causing new public health problems and significantly increasing the direct and indirect healthcare costs. Objective: To characterize the epidemiology of the injuries caused by e-scooter related accidents and to study their indirect economic impact in work-related accidents hospital. Materials and methods: Retrospective and descriptive study in which has been checked all the medical information about the patients attended in the ER (emergency room) of the Hospital Asepeyo Sant Cugat, who suffered e-scooter accident from January 2018 to December 2020. Results: 167 patients were included in the study. 55% (92) were male and 45% (75) were female. The average of age was 37.4 years-old. There were quantified 117 different fractures in 105 patients (63%). Other injuries documented were: 36 patients with multiple contusions, 16 head traumas and 4 wounds which required suture. The most frequent ligamentous injuries were 4 ACL ruptures, 3 ACJ dislocations and 2 patients with rupture of the UCL of the thumb. 105 patients required hospital admission, 3 of them in ICU. The 51% of the cases required surgical treatment of their injuries. In that period, as a consequence of the work inabilities generated by the total of the patients included in the study, the added cost for the hospital was around 1,062,444€. Conclusions: The popularization of e-scooters between the employed population has caused a high increased number of accidents in this range of age. Most of the injuries observed may be compared with those seen in high-energy traumas. These cause an important socio-economic impact due to the nature of the injuries and the potential complications that could appear.(AU)

E-scooter accidents: A new epidemic / Accidentes en patinete eléctrico: una nueva epidemia

Introduction: During the last years, the use of e-scooter has become more and more popular due to the versatility as the practicality in intra-urban mobility. However, e-scooter has turned into a spring of accidents, lot of them, severe, causing new public health problems and significantly increasing the direct and indirect healthcare costs. Objective: To characterize the epidemiology of the injuries caused by e-scooter related accidents and to study their indirect economic impact in work-related accidents hospital. Materials and methods: Retrospective and descriptive study in which has been checked all the medical information about the patients attended in the ER (emergency room) of the Hospital Asepeyo Sant Cugat, who suffered e-scooter accident from January 2018 to December 2020. Results: 167 patients were included in the study. 55% (92) were male and 45% (75) were female. The average of age was 37.4 years-old. There were quantified 117 different fractures in 105 patients (63%). Other injuries documented were: 36 patients with multiple contusions, 16 head traumas and 4 wounds which required suture. The most frequent ligamentous injuries were 4 ACL ruptures, 3 ACJ dislocations and 2 patients with rupture of the UCL of the thumb. 105 patients required hospital admission, 3 of them in ICU. The 51% of the cases required surgical treatment of their injuries. In that period, as a consequence of the work inabilities generated by the total of the patients included in the study, the added cost for the hospital was around 1,062,444€. Conclusions: The popularization of e-scooters between the employed population has caused a high increased number of accidents in this range of age. Most of the injuries observed may be compared with those seen in high-energy traumas. These cause an important socio-economic impact due to the nature of the injuries and the potential complications that could appear.(AU)

Introducción: El uso de patinetes eléctricos se ha popularizado como medio de transporte en los últimos años, tanto por su versatilidad como por la practicidad en el uso de estos. Sin embargo, no dejan de ser una fuente de accidentes, muchas veces graves, generando nuevos problemas de salud pública y aumentando los costes de esta. Objetivo: Caracterizar la epidemiología de las lesiones producidas por accidentes en patinete eléctrico y estudiar el impacto económico indirecto en una mutua laboral. Materiales y métodos: Estudio descriptivo, donde se revisan retrospectivamente los pacientes atendidos en urgencias, del Hospital de Asepeyo en Sant Cugat, que han sufrido accidentes en patinete eléctrico en el periodo comprendido entre enero de 2018 y diciembre de 2020. Resultados: Se incluyeron 167 pacientes. El 55% (92) de los pacientes fueron hombres y el 45% (75) mujeres, con una edad media de 37,4 años. Se diagnosticaron 117 fracturas en el 63% (105) de los pacientes. Otras lesiones frecuentes documentadas fueron: 36 policontusiones, 16 TCE y 4 heridas que requirieron sutura. Las lesiones ligamentosas más comúnmente observadas fueron: 4 casos de rotura aguda de LCA, 3 casos de luxación acromioclavicular y 2 casos de rotura del LCC del pulgar. Un total de 105 pacientes requirieron ingreso hospitalario, 3 de ellos en UCI. El 51% (85) de los pacientes requirieron tratamiento quirúrgico. Durante ese periodo, el coste generado como consecuencia de las bajas laborales ascendió a 1.062.444€. Conclusiones: El patinete eléctrico está comportando un incremento significativo de accidentes de tráfico en población adulta joven. Las lesiones que provocan pueden compararse con las vistas en accidentes de alta energía, generando un alto impacto socioeconómico debido a la naturaleza de las lesiones y sus potenciales complicaciones.(AU)

Liver cirrhosis is reverted by urokinase-type plasminogen activator gene therapy.

Liver cirrhosis represents a worldwide health problem and is a major cause of mortality. Cirrhosis is the result of extensive hepatocyte death and fibrosis induced by chronic alcohol abuse and hepatitis B and C viruses. Successful gene therapy approaches to this disease may require both reversal of fibrosis and stimulation of hepatocyte growth. Urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) may serve this function, as it is an initiator of the matrix proteolysis cascade and induces hepatocyte growth factor expression. In a rat cirrhosis model, a single iv administration of a replication-deficient adenoviral vector encoding a nonsecreted form of human uPA resulted in high production of functional uPA protein in the liver. This led to induction of collagenase expression and reversal of fibrosis with concomitant hepatocyte and improved liver function. Thus, uPA gene therapy may be an effective strategy for treating cirrhosis in humans.

Effects of arsenite pretreatment on the acute toxicity of parathion.

Parathion (PA) is a phosphorotioate pesticide requiring P-450-mediated oxidations to become activated to paraoxon, or to be metabolised to its less toxic metabolites. On the other hand, sodium arsenite [As(III)] markedly decreases total hepatic P-450 content and dependent monoxygenase activities. Our aim was to determine the effects of As(III) pretreatment on the acute toxicity of PA and its possible relationship with the effects of As(III) on P-450-dependent monooxygenase activities. Adult male Wistar rats were pretreated with As(III) (5.6 mg As(III)/kg, s.c.), and 24 h later given PA (5 to 20 mg/kg, per os). As(III) pretreatment increased the acute toxicity of PA, reducing 38% its median lethal dose (LD50) from 11.68 to 7.21 mg PA/kg. In addition, As(III) pretreatment further decreased the inhibitory effect of PA on brain acetylcholinesterase activity, reducing 33% the median inhibitory dose (ID50) from 3.44 to 2.31 mg PA/kg. whereas As(III) alone had no significant effects. As(III) decreased the P-450 content to 87% of control values, reduced EROD activity to 74% and BROD activity to 41%; PA produced no significant effects on these parameters, whereas the joint administration of As(III)+ PA produced effects similar to those of As(III). PROD activity was reduced to 36% of control value by PA, whereas As(III) alone produced no significant effects. However, As(III) pretreatment apparently protected against the inhibition of CYP2B1-mediated PROD activity produced by PA, since PROD values were similar to those of control animals. Our results also indicated that the increase in PA toxicity caused by As(III) pretreatment, could also be related to the CYP2B2 isoform, since decreases in CYP2B2-dependent BROD activity were observed in both As(III) and As(III) + PA groups, but not in PA-treated animals, suggesting that CYP2B2 is involved in PA detoxification.