Omalizumab is effective and safe in chronic inducible urticaria (CIndU): Real-world data from a large multi-national UCARE study.

BACKGROUND: Long-term data on the effectiveness and safety of omalizumab for chronic inducible urticaria (CIndU) in large populations are lacking. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness, safety, estimated omalizumab treatment duration and its predictors, as well as differences between CIndU subtypes, in a large long-term CIndU cohort. METHODS: A multinational multicenter study was conducted at 14 specialized urticaria centres (UCAREs), including all CIndU patients ever treated with omalizumab from 2009 until July 2022. Kaplan-Meier survival and regression analyses were performed. RESULTS: Across 234 CIndU patients (55% female; mean age 37 years), 76% (n = 178) had standalone CIndU and 24% (n = 56) had predominant CIndU plus minor CSU, with an observation period up to 13 years. Most CIndU patients (73%, n = 145/200 with available data on response) had complete/good response to omalizumab treatment, without significant differences between CIndU subtypes. Sixty-two (26%) patients discontinued omalizumab; due to well-controlled disease (47%, n = 29), ineffectiveness (34%, n = 21), side effects (3%, n = 2), combination of ineffectiveness and side effects (3%, n = 2) and other reasons (13%, n = 8). The median estimated omalizumab treatment duration exceeded 5 years (54% drug survival at 5 years) and was mostly determined by well-controlled disease. Higher age predicted a lower chance to discontinue omalizumab due to well-controlled disease (HR 0.969, 95%CI 0.945-0.995). CIndU subtype and presence of minor CSU were not related to response and time until omalizumab discontinuation for any reason. CONCLUSION: Omalizumab is highly effective and safe in CIndU patients, with long estimated treatment duration mainly reflecting long disease duration. Our data show omalizumab's high potential as treatment in any subtype of CIndU and support its clinical use for these patients.

Endowing networks with desired symmetries and modular behavior.

Symmetries in a network regulate its organization into functional clustered states. Given a generic ensemble of nodes and a desirable cluster (or group of clusters), we exploit the direct connection between the elements of the eigenvector centrality and the graph symmetries to generate a network equipped with the desired cluster(s), with such a synthetical structure being furthermore perfectly reflected in the modular organization of the network's functioning. Our results solve a relevant problem of designing a desired set of clusters and are of generic application in all cases where a desired parallel functioning needs to be blueprinted.

Prevalencia de dolor y patología osteomuscular en la población adulta de músicos del Área de Gestión Sanitaria de Osuna / Prevalence of pain and musculoskeletal diseases in adult population in Osuna Health Management Area

Objetivo El objetivo principal de este estudio es determinar la prevalencia de patología osteomuscular relacionada con la práctica musical (playing-related musculoskeletal disorders [PRMD]) existente en la población adulta expuesta ocupacionalmente del Área de Gestión Sanitaria de Osuna. Diseño Se trata de un estudio observacional transversal de prevalencia. Lugar: se ha realizado una incursión comunitaria al medio del músico (escuelas de música, conservatorios y bandas de música municipales del Área de Gestión Sanitaria de Osuna). Participantes: han participado un total de 264 músicos mayores de 18 años. Intervención: se han realizado entrevistas semiestructuradas. Variables: las principales variables contempladas han sido la existencia de dolor o molestias relacionadas con la práctica musical alguna vez, variables que definen sociodemográficamente la muestra (edad, sexo, profesión), variables que perfilan la trayectoria musical (instrumento, años tocándolo, horas de práctica a la semana), así como percepción del dolor, zona de dolor e interferencia con el ánimo, entre otras. Resultados Entre los resultados destaca que el 76% de los músicos han referido PRMD en alguna ocasión, siendo más frecuentes en las mujeres (p=0,009; IC 95%), en los músicos de la familia de cuerda (p= 0,041; IC 95%) y en aquellos que realizan menos deporte. (p = 0,000006; IC 95%). Conclusiones Estudiar la prevalencia en nuestro medio del dolor asociado a la práctica musical nos resulta de gran interés por las potenciales opciones de intervención desde el ámbito de Atención Primaria y Comunitaria (AU)

Objective The main aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of PRMD (playing-related musculoskeletal disorders) in adults exposed to it due to their profession, in the area of Osuna. Design It is a cross-sectional study. Site: the study is based on data collected in the local community of musicians (music schools, conservatories and music bands from the region). Participants: 264 individuals older than 18 years old have participated. Interventions: semi-structured interviews were conducted. Main measurements: the main variables considered were: presence of pain or discomfort related to musical practice, socio-demographic variables defining the sample (age, gender, profession), variables characterizing the musical trajectory of the participant (instrument, number of years playing, number of hours of practice per week), perception of pain, area of pain, interference with their mood, among others. Results 76% of the musicians had experienced PRMD in some occasion, being more frequent among women (p = 0,009; IC 95%), string musicians (p= 0,041; IC 95%) and among those doing less physical activity (p = 0,000006; IC 95%). Conclusions Studying the prevalence of playing-related pain was of great interest, given the potential interventions that could be applied in Primary and Community medical care (AU)

[Prevalence of pain and musculoskeletal diseases in adult population in Osuna Health Management Area]. / Prevalencia de dolor y patología osteomuscular en la población adulta de músicos del Área de Gestión Sanitaria de Osuna.

OBJECTIVE: The main aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of PRMD (playing-related musculoskeletal disorders) in adults exposed to it due to their profession, in the area of Osuna. DESIGN: It is a cross-sectional study. Site: the study is based on data collected in the local community of musicians (music schools, conservatories and music bands from the region). PARTICIPANTS: 264 individuals older than 18 years old have participated. INTERVENTIONS: semi-structured interviews were conducted. MAIN MEASUREMENTS: the main variables considered were: presence of pain or discomfort related to musical practice, socio-demographic variables defining the sample (age, gender, profession), variables characterizing the musical trajectory of the participant (instrument, number of years playing, number of hours of practice per week), perception of pain, area of pain, interference with their mood, among others. RESULTS: 76% of the musicians had experienced PRMD in some occasion, being more frequent among women (p = 0,009; IC 95%), string musicians (p= 0,041; IC 95%) and among those doing less physical activity (p = 0,000006; IC 95%). CONCLUSIONS: Studying the prevalence of playing-related pain was of great interest, given the potential interventions that could be applied in Primary and Community medical care.

Evolución del síndrome de desgaste profesional, ansiedad y depresión en personal sanitario durante la pandemia de la COVID-19 / Evolution of burnout syndrome, anxiety and depression in healthcare personnel during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introducción. La pandemia de la COVID-19 ha producido un impacto en la esfera psicológica de los trabajadores sanitarios. El objetivo de este estudio es analizar la evolución del síndrome de desgaste profesional, la ansiedad y la depresión en el personal sanitario a lo largo de la pandemia de la COVID-19. Material y métodos. Estudio observacional de los profesionales sanitarios del Servicio de Neumología del Hospital Gregorio Marañón que ha prestado servicio entre diciembre de 2019 y enero de 2021. Se evaluó el síndrome de desgaste profesional mediante el cuestionario Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) y la ansiedad y depresión mediante los cuestionarios de Zung referido a diciembre de 2019 (situación basal), marzo de 2020 (primera ola) y enero de 2021 (tercera ola) en diferentes profesiones sanitarias. Resultados. Se incluyeron 62 participantes, de los cuales 15 (24,2%) eran varones. En cuanto a las profesiones sanitarias, 24 (38,7%) eran médicos, 22 eran diplomados universitarios de enfermería (DUE), 12 (19,4%) eran técnicos en cuidados auxiliares de enfermería (TCAE), y 4 (6,5%) eran otros profesionales. Se documentó un cambio significativo al alza del estrés emocional y de despersonalización y a la baja de realización personal tanto de forma global como estratificado por diferentes profesiones sanitarias excepto en otros profesionales. Se objetivó un aumento progresivo de la ansiedad, mientras que el aumento de la depresión no fue estadísticamente significativo. Conclusión. Durante la pandemia de la COVID-19, los profesionales sanitarios sufrieron un aumento progresivo del desgaste profesional y de la ansiedad. Es importante tener en cuenta la salud psicológica de los sanitarios (AU)

Introduction. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the psychological sphere of healthcare workers. The objective of this study is to analyze the evolution of burnout syndrome, anxiety and depression in healthcare personnel throughout the COVID-19 pandemic Material and methods. Observational study of the healthcare professionals of the Respiratory Department of Gregorio Marañón Hospital that worked between December 2019 and January 2021. Burnout syndrome was evaluated using the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) questionnaire and anxiety and depression using the Zung questionnaires referred to December 2019 (baseline situation), March 2020 (first wave) and January 2021 (third wave) in different healthcare professions. Results. Sixty-two participants were included, of which 15 (24.2%) were male. Regarding the healthcare professions, 24 (38.7%) were doctors, 22 were nurses, 12 (19.4%) were technicians in auxiliary nursing care, and 4 (6, 5%) were other professionals. A significant upward change in emotional stress and depersonalization and a downward personal fulfillment were documented both globally and stratified by different healthcare professions except in other professionals. A progressive increase in anxiety was observed, meanwhile, the increase in depression was not statistically significant. Conclusion. During the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare professionals suffered a progressive increase in burnout and anxiety. It is important to consider the psychological health of the healthcare personnel (AU)

Allergic contact dermatitis by ophthalmological medications in Brazil: experience of a dermatology department.

SUMMARY: Topical treatments in ophthalmologic therapy are significant for the development of allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) in the periorbital region. Preservatives, antibiotics, glucocorticoids, and beta-blocker eye drops are defined as drugs with the highest sensitizing potential. The unavailability of patch test batteries containing substances of ophthalmological use makes it difficult for this diagnosis. In the present report, we describe six patients who developed ACD induced by different agents presenting in eye drops, confirmed with the cutaneous patch tests. The ACD diagnosis due to ophthalmic medications can be challenging, since many different agents can cause it, and the sensitivity of these cutaneous tests is low. Thus, early diagnosis is essential to avoid the complications of ACD on the skin and ocular disorders related to chronic periorbital eczema.

Stability of synchronization in simplicial complexes.

Various systems in physics, biology, social sciences and engineering have been successfully modeled as networks of coupled dynamical systems, where the links describe pairwise interactions. This is, however, too strong a limitation, as recent studies have revealed that higher-order many-body interactions are present in social groups, ecosystems and in the human brain, and they actually affect the emergent dynamics of all these systems. Here, we introduce a general framework to study coupled dynamical systems accounting for the precise microscopic structure of their interactions at any possible order. We show that complete synchronization exists as an invariant solution, and give the necessary condition for it to be observed as a stable state. Moreover, in some relevant instances, such a necessary condition takes the form of a Master Stability Function. This generalizes the existing results valid for pairwise interactions to the case of complex systems with the most general possible architecture.

Clinical Features and Disease Management in Adult Patients With Atopic Dermatitis Receiving Care at Reference Hospitals in Brazil: the ADAPT Study

Background: Atopic dermatitis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease with a prevalence of 0.02% to 8.1% in adults. Adult patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis are affected by frequent relapses and a significant disease burden. Objective: To determine the clinical, immunological, and therapeutic profile of Brazilian adults with atopic dermatitis. Methods: A multicenter, observational, retrospective, descriptive registry-based study was conducted at reference hospitals between December 2016 and October 2017. The data collected were demographics, personal and family history of atopic diseases, clinical manifestations, laboratory tests, disease severity and management. Results: Of the 187 patients included in the analysis, 56.1% were female and 71.7% were White, with a mean age of 24.7 years. Mean follow-up was 9 years. Asthma or other allergic diseases were reported by 80.2% of patients. The main comorbidity was hypertension (10.2%), and common disease manifestations included pruritus and erythema. Lesions generally affected flexural and nonflexural areas, with typical morphology. Around 83% of patients had moderate-to-severe disease, and 8.6% reported at least 1 hospitalization. Most patients received topical and/or systemic pharmacological therapies, including omalizumab (5.9%); 4.3% received phototherapy. Moreover, 66.8% of patients received adjuvant therapy, and 79.1% changed or discontinued treatment for atopic dermatitis due to remission (46.5%), poor effectiveness (33.7%), or lack of adherence (12.9%). Most patients presented characteristics of type 2 inflammation, with immunoglobulin E levels above 100 IU/mL (94.4%) and peripheral blood eosinophils above 5% (55.9%). Conclusion: Brazilian adult patients with severe atopic dermatitis need treatment to efficiently control the disease and improve quality of life (AU)

Clinical Features and Disease Management in Adult Patients With Atopic Dermatitis Receiving Care at Reference Hospitals in Brazil: the ADAPT Study.

BACKGROUND: Atopic dermatitis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease with a prevalence of 0.02% to 8.1% in adults. Adult patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis are affected by frequent relapses and a significant disease burden. Objective: To determine the clinical, immunological, and therapeutic profile of Brazilian adults with atopic dermatitis. METHODS: A multicenter, observational, retrospective, descriptive registry-based study was conducted at reference hospitals between December 2016 and October 2017. The data collected were demographics, personal and family history of atopic diseases, clinical manifestations, laboratory tests, disease severity and management. RESULTS: Of the 187 patients included in the analysis, 56.1% were female and 71.7% were White, with a mean age of 24.7 years. Mean follow-up was 9 years. Asthma or other allergic diseases were reported by 80.2% of patients. The main comorbidity was hypertension (10.2%), and common disease manifestations included pruritus and erythema. Lesions generally affected flexural and nonflexural areas, with typical morphology. Around 83% of patients had moderate-to-severe disease, and 8.6% reported at least 1 hospitalization. Most patients received topical and/or systemic pharmacological therapies, including omalizumab (5.9%); 4.3% received phototherapy. Moreover, 66.8% of patients received adjuvant therapy, and 79.1% changed or discontinued treatment for atopic dermatitis due to remission (46.5%), poor effectiveness (33.7%), or lack of adherence (12.9%). Most patients presented characteristics of type 2 inflammation, with immunoglobulin E levels above 100 IU/mL (94.4%) and peripheral blood eosinophils above 5% (55.9%). CONCLUSION: Brazilian adult patients with severe atopic dermatitis need treatment to efficiently control the disease and improve quality of life.

Urticarial vasculitis in the childhood with C2 hypocomplementenemia: a rare case.

We report a first case of hypocomplementemic urticarial vasculitis of C2 fraction in a child, with cutaneous manifestation only, with no reports in scientific literature.

Dynamics of dual-polarization VCSEL-based optical frequency combs under optical injection locking.

The present experimental work studies the dynamics of dual-polarization optical frequency combs (OFCs) based on gain switching (GS) vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) diodes under optical injection locking (OIL). This study presents two main results. First, we have obtained an overall comb formed by two orthogonally polarized sub-combs with comparable span and power. The overall comb shows enhanced optical span and flatness and high coherence between its modes. The second result is that we have been able to control the polarization state of the overall comb by tuning the polarization state of the injected light by locking the same single teeth of the comb. This produces an overall comb with single polarization that is parallel or orthogonal. These are novel findings that provide for the development of efficient and compact OFCs based on GS VCSEL sources with versatile polarization dynamics.

The structure and dynamics of multilayer networks.

In the past years, network theory has successfully characterized the interaction among the constituents of a variety of complex systems, ranging from biological to technological, and social systems. However, up until recently, attention was almost exclusively given to networks in which all components were treated on equivalent footing, while neglecting all the extra information about the temporal- or context-related properties of the interactions under study. Only in the last years, taking advantage of the enhanced resolution in real data sets, network scientists have directed their interest to the multiplex character of real-world systems, and explicitly considered the time-varying and multilayer nature of networks. We offer here a comprehensive review on both structural and dynamical organization of graphs made of diverse relationships (layers) between its constituents, and cover several relevant issues, from a full redefinition of the basic structural measures, to understanding how the multilayer nature of the network affects processes and dynamics.

Dermal dendrocytes FXIIIA+ phagocytizing extruded mast cell granules in drug-induced acute urticaria.

BACKGROUND: Few authors have been attempting between mast cells and dermal dendrocytes interactions on urticaria. OBJECTIVE: To describe the extruded mast cell granules and dermal dendrocytes in drug-induced acute urticaria. METHODS: Seven patients with drug-induced acute urticaria were enrolled in the study. We token skin biopsies of urticaria lesion and perilesional skin. The 14 fragments collected were processed to immunogold electron microscopy using single stains to tryptase and FXIIIa, besides double immunogold labeling with both. RESULTS: Some sections demonstrated mast cells in degranulation process, both in anaphylactic and piecemeal degranulation types. After double immunogold staining, 10 nm (FXIIIa) and 15 nm (Tryptase) gold particles were present together over the granules in mast cells indicating that tryptase and FXIIIa are each localized within the granules of these cells. Interestingly, we found a strong evidence of than the exocytosed mast cell granules contents both FXIIIa and tryptase immunolabeled are phagocytized by dermal dendrocytes. CONCLUSIONS: The current observations provide morphological evidence that the exocytosis-phagocytosis mechanisms of mast cell granules represents one pathophysiological example of mast cells-dermal dendrocytes interactions in urticaria.

The effect of anti-Anisakis simplex antibody levels on C3 and C4 complement components in human sera.

Previously, an in vitro effect was observed on the complement system not only of the excretory-secretory products but also of somatic antigens from L3 Anisakis simplex larvae. In the present work the effect of anti-A. simplex specific antibodies on C3 and C4 levels in human sera was investigated. Up to 309 samples of sera were tested to determine levels of C3 and C4 and anti-A. simplex antibodies, including immunoglobulins IgG, IgM, IgA and IgE. Significant differences were observed between levels of C3 and C4 and all immunoglobulins except for IgE. In the case of immunoglobulins, the probability that an anti-A. simplex positive subject has a C3 deficiency was 3.8 times higher than a subject without specific antibodies. In conclusion, an association between elevated levels of anti-A. simplex antibodies and C3 and C4 deficiency was demonstrated.

Molecular analysis of the replication region of the pCIZ2 plasmid from the multiple bacteriocin producer strain Enterococcus faecium L50.

The sequence analysis of the 7383 bp plasmid pCIZ2 from Enterococcus faecium L50 enabled the identification of a DNA region involved in its replication. The structural organization of the pCIZ2 replication region is highly similar to those of well-known theta-replicating plasmids. It contains an untranslated region, the putative replication origin (ori), constituted by two sets of direct repeats of 12 and 22 bp (iterons), and followed by three open-reading frames (orf8 to orf10). orf8 encodes the replication initiation protein (RepE). The transcriptional start site of the replication locus was identified 13 nucleotides upstream of the repE start codon. A two-dimensional agarose gel electrophoresis analysis revealed pCIZ2 intermediates profile typical of the theta-type replication mechanism. Subcloning of different DNA fragments of the pCIZ2 replication region in Escherichia coli and, subsequently, in the plasmidless E. faecium L50/14-2 allowed the determination of the minimal replicon on a 1.2kb DNA fragment containing only the overall ori and repE which also act in trans. The involvement of orf9 in the plasmid copy number and in the plasmid stability was investigated. The pCIZ2 recombinant plasmids constitute narrow-host range shuttle cloning vectors (E. coli-E. faecium) that could be very useful for enterococcal genes studies, allowing an easy identification due to their histochemical recognition.

Circulating tumor cells in breast cancer: methodology and clinical repercussions.

Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer among women, and clinicians have long recognized its heterogeneity. Its detection and treatment in early stages allow for reduction of mortality. Despite the advances and new strategies for combining surgical, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy options, however, the percentage of patients developing metastases and advanced stages remains high. Even though serum tumor markers have been used for the early diagnosis of metastases, their systematic determination has not had an effect on survival. Methods that are more reliable are needed to detect metastases earlier than with the common clinical methods and thus start treatment before overt relapse. Early indicators of response or resistance to treatment are also an issue in clinical practice. Imaging techniques are time consuming, and it is difficult to detect changes that indicate response limited to therapy, and approaches to defining changes in tumor mass are time and resource consuming. In contrast, detection of circulating tumor cells (CTC) could be a useful tool in early detection of relapse and response to systemic chemotherapy. Extremely sensitive techniques are available that are easily applied to peripheral blood samples, which might provide enormous research possibilities in this area.

Circulating tumor cells in breast cancer: methodology and clinical repercussions

Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer among women, and clinicians have long recognized its heterogeneity. Its detection and treatment in early stages allow for reduction of mortality. Despite the advances and new strategies for combining surgical, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy options, however, the percentage of patients developing metastases and advanced stages remains high. Even though serum tumor markers have been used for the early diagnosis of metastases, their systematic determination has not had an effect on survival. Methods that are more reliable are needed to detect metastases earlier than with the common clinical methods and thus start treatment before overt relapse. Early indicators of response or resistance to treatment are also an issue in clinical practice. Imaging techniques are time consuming, and it is difficult to detect changes that indicate response limited to therapy, and approaches to defining changes in tumor mass are time and resource consuming. In contrast, detection of circulating tumor cells (CTC) could be a useful tool in early detection of relapse and response to systemic chemotherapy. Extremely sensitive techniques are available that are easily applied to peripheral blood samples, which might provide enormous research possibilities in this area (AU)

No disponible