First and second waves of coronavirus disease-19: A comparative study in hospitalized patients in Reus, Spain.

Many countries have seen a two-wave pattern in reported cases of coronavirus disease-19 during the 2020 pandemic, with a first wave during spring followed by the current second wave in late summer and autumn. Empirical data show that the characteristics of the effects of the virus do vary between the two periods. Differences in age range and severity of the disease have been reported, although the comparative characteristics of the two waves still remain largely unknown. Those characteristics are compared in this study using data from two equal periods of 3 and a half months. The first period, between 15th March and 30th June, corresponding to the entire first wave, and the second, between 1st July and 15th October, corresponding to part of the second wave, still present at the time of writing this article. Two hundred and four patients were hospitalized during the first period, and 264 during the second period. Patients in the second wave were younger and the duration of hospitalization and case fatality rate were lower than those in the first wave. In the second wave, there were more children, and pregnant and post-partum women. The most frequent signs and symptoms in both waves were fever, dyspnea, pneumonia, and cough, and the most relevant comorbidities were cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and chronic neurological diseases. Patients from the second wave more frequently presented renal and gastrointestinal symptoms, were more often treated with non-invasive mechanical ventilation and corticoids, and less often with invasive mechanical ventilation, conventional oxygen therapy and anticoagulants. Several differences in mortality risk factors were also observed. These results might help to understand the characteristics of the second wave and the behaviour and danger of SARS-CoV-2 in the Mediterranean area and in Western Europe. Further studies are needed to confirm our findings.

Ibero-American Society of Interventionism (SIDI) and the Spanish Society of Vascular and Interventional Radiology (SERVEI) Standard of Practice (SOP) for the Management of Inferior Vena Cava Filters in the Treatment of Acute Venous Thromboembolism.

OBJECTIVES: to present an interventional radiology standard of practice on the use of inferior vena cava filters (IVCFs) in patients with or at risk to develop venous thromboembolism (VTE) from the Iberoamerican Interventional Society (SIDI) and Spanish Vascular and Interventional Radiology Society (SERVEI). METHODS: a group of twenty-two interventional radiologist experts, from the SIDI and SERVEI societies, attended online meetings to develop a current clinical practice guideline on the proper indication for the placement and retrieval of IVCFs. A broad review was undertaken to determine the participation of interventional radiologists in the current guidelines and a consensus on inferior vena cava filters. Twenty-two experts from both societies worked on a common draft and received a questionnaire where they had to assess, for IVCF placement, the absolute, relative, and prophylactic indications. The experts voted on the different indications and reasoned their decision. RESULTS: a total of two-hundred-thirty-three articles were reviewed. Interventional radiologists participated in the development of just two of the eight guidelines. The threshold for inclusion was 100% agreement. Three absolute and four relative indications for the IVCF placement were identified. No indications for the prophylactic filter placement reached the threshold. CONCLUSION: interventional radiologists are highly involved in the management of IVCFs but have limited participation in the development of multidisciplinary clinical practice guidelines.

Spectral Color Management in Virtual Reality Scenes.

Virtual reality has reached a great maturity in recent years. However, the quality of its visual appearance still leaves room for improvement. One of the most difficult features to represent in real-time 3D rendered virtual scenes is color fidelity, since there are many factors influencing the faithful reproduction of color. In this paper we introduce a method for improving color fidelity in virtual reality systems based in real-time 3D rendering systems. We developed a color management system for 3D rendered scenes divided into two levels. At the first level, color management is applied only to light sources defined inside the virtual scene. At the second level, we applied spectral techniques over the hyperspectral textures of 3D objects to obtain a higher degree of color fidelity. To illustrate the application of this color management method, we simulated a virtual version of the Ishihara test for color blindness deficiency detection.

Caso insólito de absceso cerebral por Mycobacterium bovis complicado con fístula supurativa / Uncommon case of Mycobacterium bovis brain abscess complicated by suppurative fistula

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Correlation between perception of color, shadows, and surface textures and the realism of a scene in virtual reality.

Head-mounted displays allow us to go through immersive experiences in virtual reality and are expected to be present in more and more applications in both recreational and professional fields. In this context, recent years have witnessed significant advances in rendering techniques following physical models of lighting and shading. The aim of this paper is to check the fidelity of the visual appearance of real objects captured through a 3D scanner, rendered in a personal computer and displayed in a virtual reality device. We have compared forward versus deferred rendering in real-time computing using two different illuminations and five artwork replicas. The survey contains seven items for each artwork (color, shading, texture, definition, geometry, chromatic aberration, and pixelation) and an extra item related to the global realism. The results confirm recent advances in virtual reality, showing considerable visual fidelity of generated to real-world images, with a rate close to 4 in a 5-step perceptive scale. They also show a high correlation of the realism sensation with the fidelity of color reproduction, material texture, and definition of the artwork replicas. Moreover, statistically significant differences between two rendering modes are found, with a higher value of realism sensation in the deferred rendering mode.

Unique hue correction applied to the color rendering of LED light sources.

Existing color quality indices for light sources provide broad information about different dimensions related to color quality. Color fidelity, harmony, and gamut area are concepts related to these indices, and industry requests this information. For the last few years, LED light sources have been widely used at home and at work, and now a color rendering index that solves the problem of underestimation of this type of light source is needed to provide a score of subjective assessments made by real observers related to color fidelity. In this work, this problem has been studied in two ways, theoretically and experimentally, and the results show discrepancies between the hue composition calculated theoretically using a color appearance model and hue composition evaluated by real observers. These discrepancies could originate from divergences in the color fidelity score and the subjective evaluation of the naturalness of a scene.

Educación ambiental en la asignatura Defensa Civil y su expresión en la enseñanza superior / Environmental education in civil defense as a subject and its expression in higher education

Se realizó una investigación con el objetivo de elaborar actividades que relacionan los elementos teóricos con la práctica desde la asignatura Defensa Civil, para contribuir a la participación de estudiantes universitarios y habitantes de la comunidad Los Coquitos en la prevención, mitigación o solución de los problemas ambientales que la afectan. Se aplicó un pre-experimento que permitió comprobar la efectividad de las actividades desarrolladas. Esta propuesta favoreció la vinculación de la escuela con la comunidad desde la protección del medio ambiente(AU)

A research was carried out with the aim of designing tasks that relate theoretical elements with the practice in Civil Defense to contribute to the participation of university students and inhabitants of Los Coquitos community in the prevention, lessening or solution of the environmental problems it faces. A pre-experiment was applied which allowed to test the effectiveness of these tasks. This proposal favored the relation between the school and the community taking into account the environmental protection(AU)

Educación ambiental en la asignatura Defensa Civil y su expresión en la enseñanza superior / Environmental education in civil defense as a subject and its expression in higher education

Se realizó una investigación con el objetivo de elaborar actividades que relacionan los elementos teóricos con la práctica desde la asignatura Defensa Civil, para contribuir a la participación de estudiantes universitarios y habitantes de la comunidad "Los Coquitos" en la prevención, mitigación o solución de los problemas ambientales que la afectan. Se aplicó un pre-experimento que permitió comprobar la efectividad de las actividades desarrolladas. Esta propuesta favoreció la vinculación de la escuela con la comunidad desde la protección del medio ambiente.

A research was carried out with the aim of designing tasks that relate theoretical elements with the practice in Civil Defense to contribute to the participation of university students and inhabitants of Los Coquitos community in the prevention, lessening or solution of the environmental problems it faces. A pre-experiment was applied which allowed to test the effectiveness of these tasks. This proposal favored the relation between the school and the community taking into account the environmental protection.

A low-cost real color picker based on Arduino.

Color measurements have traditionally been linked to expensive and difficult to handle equipment. The set of mathematical transformations that are needed to transfer a color that we observe in any object that doesn't emit its own light (which is usually called a color-object) so that it can be displayed on a computer screen or printed on paper is not at all trivial. This usually requires a thorough knowledge of color spaces, colorimetric transformations and color management systems. The TCS3414CS color sensor (I2C Sensor Color Grove), a system for capturing, processing and color management that allows the colors of any non-self-luminous object using a low-cost hardware based on Arduino, is presented in this paper. Specific software has been developed in Matlab and a study of the linearity of chromatic channels and accuracy of color measurements for this device has been undertaken. All used scripts (Arduino and Matlab) are attached as supplementary material. The results show acceptable accuracy values that, although obviously do not reach the levels obtained with the other scientific instruments, for the price difference they present a good low cost option.

Optimization of the correlated color temperature of a light source for a better color discrimination.

In a previous work [J. Opt. Soc. Am. A29, A209 (2012)], we presented a visual color discrimination experiment whose results established the existence of a relationship between the correlated color temperature (CCT) of a light source and the color discrimination capacities of the observers. The results indicated the existence of a statistically significant difference in the color discrimination of unequal sample pairs when using light sources of different color temperatures, with the discrimination capacity being greater the higher the light source's color temperature. That previous work employed an RGBA-LED light source configured with three color temperatures: 2800, 5000, and 6500 K. In order to go a further step in this line, this work expanded the range of color temperatures up to 9700 K. The results showed that there is an optimum CCT of around 5000 K at which observers were found to have a greater color discrimination capability.

Influence of the correlated color temperature of a light source on the color discrimination capacity of the observer.

It is well known that there are different preferences in correlated color temperature of light sources for daily living activities or for viewing artistic paintings. There are also data relating the capacity of observers to make judgments on color differences with the spectral power distribution of the light source used. The present work describes a visual color discrimination experiment whose results confirm the existence of a relationship between the correlated color temperature of a light source and the color discrimination capacities of the observers.

No relationship between TNF-α genetic variants and combination antiretroviral therapy-related lipodystrophy syndrome in HIV type 1-infected patients: a case-control study and a meta-analysis.

Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) is thought to be involved in the pathogenic and metabolic events associated with HIV-1 infection. We assessed whether carriage of the TNF-α gene promoter single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) is associated with lipodystrophy and metabolic derangements in HIV-1-infected patients treated with cART. We also assessed variations in TNF-α receptor plasma levels. The study group comprised 286 HIV-1-infected patients (133 with and 153 without lipodystrophy) and 203 uninfected controls (UC). TNF-α -238G > A, -308G > A, and -863 C > A SNP were assessed using PCR-RFLPs on white cell DNA. Plasma sTNF-α R1 and R2 levels were measured by ELISA. Student's t test, the χ(2) test, Pearson correlations, and the logistic regression test were performed for statistical analysis. The TNF-α -308G > A SNP was significantly associated with lipodystrophy in the univariate analysis (p = 0.04). This association, however, was no longer significant in the multivariate analysis. A meta-analysis of the published literature and our own data, which included 284 patients with lipodystrophy and 338 without lipodystrophy, showed that there was no relationship between the TNF-α -238G > A and -308G > A SNP and lipodystrophy (p > 0.05 for all comparisons). HIV-1-infected patients had greater sTNF-α R2 plasma levels than UC (p = 0.001) whereas sTNF-α R1 and R2 levels were not significantly different in both the HIV-1-infected cohorts, lipodystrophy vs. nonlipodystrophy (p = NS). In our cohort of white Spaniards the TNF-α -238G > A, -308G > A, and -863C > A SNP were not associated with lipodystrophy in HIV-1-infected patients treated with cART. This finding was replicated in a meta-analysis of the published data, which showed no associations between the TNF-α -238G > A and -308G > A SNP and lipodystrophy. In HIV-1-infected patients under cART there is a systemic overproduction of sTNF-α R2, which is unrelated to the presence of lipodystrophy.

Experimental study of the individual differences in chromatic perception through blue-yellow metameric matches of a white-light continuum.

A metameric colour matching test was designed to study inter-observer variability. Blue-yellow metameric matching to a white-light continuum was used to define the optimal wavelengths at which each of eight non-colour-defective observers achieved a match. The tests involved chromatic stimuli on a 2° bipartite field, with a white-light continuum presented on the left half, and a mixture of two monochromatic stimuli on the right half. The luminance of these chromatic stimuli was adjusted by the researcher using a staircase method, with the observer providing feedback about the similarity in luminance and chromaticity between the two halves of the field. Two series were performed for each observer, using different fixed yellow wavelengths. Since for each fixed yellow wavelength the match with the target white can be achieved by only one corresponding blue wavelength which is particular for each observer, the initial blue wavelengths were approximations based on the 2° CIE 1931 standard observer. Once the observers had attained an achromatic match, they modified the blue wavelength to achieve a perfect match of both halves. Generally, the observers found this modification of the blue wavelength necessary to achieve the metameric match. Each observer had a particular optimal blue wavelength which differed between the two series. The differences between the deviations from the standard observer for the two series were constant in value among the observers.

Estudio de la vegetaciõn del volcán San Pedro, Reserva de usos múltiples de la cuenca del lago de Atitlán, Sololá / Study of the San Pedro volcano vegetation, multipurpose room of the Lake Atitlán Sololá

El presente estudio analizó la distribución de la vegetación en el volcán San Pedro en términos de su riqueza, composición, estructura, y abundancia, con base en la posible relación que esta guarde con los cambios de exposición y altitud observados en el volcán. Para el efecto, el área con cobertura vegetal se dividió en tres pisos de altitud a partir de los 2,400 msnm hasta la cumbre a 3,020 msnm y en cuatro secciones verticales en relación a los cuatro puntos cardinales, dando como resultado el arreglo del área en 12 sub-áreas o estratos relativamente más homogéneos(en cuanto a altitud y exposición). En total se obtuvo una muestra de 36 unidades (parcelas de Whittaker de 0.1 Ha), correspondiendo tres parcelas por cada estrato...

Euro: A new color vision test in the pockets of three hundred million Europeans.

As of 1 January 2002, twelve European Union countries have a new common currency - the euro. Amongst the many advantages that the use of this single currency may bring, there is one that is serendipitous from the viewpoint of studying anomalies in color vision: the eurocent coins serve as a ready-made test to detect anomalous chromatic vision.

Hernia pulmonar traumática / Traumatic lung hernia

La hernia pulmonar es una enfermedad poco frecuente, definida como la protrusión de parénquima pulmonar fuera de la cavidad torácica. Se clasifica en función de su localización (cervicales, intercostales y diafragmáticas) y etiología (congénitas y adquiridas). Dentro del grupo de las adquiridas se subdividen en espontáneas, traumáticas y patológicas en función del mecanismo de producción. De todas ellas, aproximadamente la mitad son secundarias a traumatismos torácicos, bien sean abiertos o cerrados. Presentamos un caso de hernia pulmonar estudiado en nuestro Servicio en un paciente que sufrió un traumatismo torácico abierto, en el que el diagnóstico se sospechó en la radiografía, y se confirmó mediante la realización de una tomografía computarizada (TC).Realizamos asimismo una revisión de la bibliografía en relación a su clasificación e incidencia, medios de diagnóstico y tratamiento de las mismas (AU)

Estudio clínico, serológico y epidemiológico de la rubéola en Buenos Aires / Clinical, serological and epidemiological study of rubella in Buenos Aires

Introducción.El objetivo del presente estudio fue determinar los patrones epidemiológicos y morfológicos de la rubéola.Material y Métodos.Entre abril de 1995 y abril de 1996 se atendieron 625 niños en el consultorio de enfermedades exantemáticas del Hospital de Niños"Ricardo Gutierrez"En aquellos pacientes con criterios clínicis de rubéola se obtuvo una muestra de sangre para la búsqueda de anticuerpos antirubéola por enzomoinmunoensayo de captura de IgM(Abott).Resultados.de los 625 pacientes con exantema,261(41,7 por ciento)tuvieron diagnóstico de rubéola por criterios clínicos.En 217 se obtuvo una muestra de sangrre para la búsqueda de anticuerpos IgM antirrubéola por enzinoinmunoensayo:de éstos,179(82,4 por ciento)fueron positivos.En los niños rubéola confirmada por serología se encontró incidencia estacional,con un mayor número de casos en primavera.La media de edad fue de 6,17 años(rango 2,5 meses-18 años)y menos del 3 por ciento de los casos se presentaron en lactantes.En el 92 por ciento de los casos el exantema fue universal,con progresión cefalocaudal en el 81 por ciento de los pacientes.Se encontraron adenopatías en el 92 por ciento,fiebre en el 48 por ciento y compromiso articular en el 13 por ciento.La medida de la duración de exantema fue de 3,91 días(1,5-10 días)Conclusiones.1)La rubéola fue la causa más frecuente de enfermedad exantemática.2)Se encontró una alta relación entre el diagnóstico clínico de rubéola y la serología

Estudio clínico, serológico y epidemiológico de la rubéola en Buenos Aires / Clinical, serological and epidemiological study of rubella in Buenos Aires

Introducción.El objetivo del presente estudio fue determinar los patrones epidemiológicos y morfológicos de la rubéola.Material y Métodos.Entre abril de 1995 y abril de 1996 se atendieron 625 niños en el consultorio de enfermedades exantemáticas del Hospital de Niños"Ricardo Gutierrez"En aquellos pacientes con criterios clínicis de rubéola se obtuvo una muestra de sangre para la búsqueda de anticuerpos antirubéola por enzomoinmunoensayo de captura de IgM(Abott).Resultados.de los 625 pacientes con exantema,261(41,7 por ciento)tuvieron diagnóstico de rubéola por criterios clínicos.En 217 se obtuvo una muestra de sangrre para la búsqueda de anticuerpos IgM antirrubéola por enzinoinmunoensayo:de éstos,179(82,4 por ciento)fueron positivos.En los niños rubéola confirmada por serología se encontró incidencia estacional,con un mayor número de casos en primavera.La media de edad fue de 6,17 años(rango 2,5 meses-18 años)y menos del 3 por ciento de los casos se presentaron en lactantes.En el 92 por ciento de los casos el exantema fue universal,con progresión cefalocaudal en el 81 por ciento de los pacientes.Se encontraron adenopatías en el 92 por ciento,fiebre en el 48 por ciento y compromiso articular en el 13 por ciento.La medida de la duración de exantema fue de 3,91 días(1,5-10 días)Conclusiones.1)La rubéola fue la causa más frecuente de enfermedad exantemática.2)Se encontró una alta relación entre el diagnóstico clínico de rubéola y la serología