Photothermal Biostimulation of Platelet-Rich Plasma Improves Hand Rejuvenation Clinical Outcome: A Pilot Study.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate physical skin changes and patients' subjective perception of treatment with photothermal bioactivated platelet-rich plasma (MCT Plasma) for hand rejuvenation. Background: Age-related changes in the dorsum of the hand include volume loss, dyschromia, and soft-tissue atrophy, which result in wrinkles and prominent deep structures. Methods: We conducted a prospective, single-center, randomized pilot study on 10 healthy female volunteers from 30 to 65 years with hand aging signs. Patients received two sessions of MCT Plasma on the treated hand and two sessions of standard platelet-rich plasma (PRP) on the control hand. Results were assessed through high-frequency ultrasonography, photographs, a patient satisfaction survey, patient perception of skin aspect, and patient perception of amelioration survey. Results: Ten women with a mean age of 57.5 years (standard deviation 10.5, range 31 - 67) were included, and seven (70%) completed the study. The treated hands' skin subepidermal low-echogenic band (SLEB) decreased from 20% to 60%, and 57.1% (n = 4) had better results than control. Twenty percent of patients were very satisfied with the results, 40% were satisfied, 40% were neutral, and none were unsatisfied or very unsatisfied. Patients perceived the skin of the treated hand (MCT Plasma) as "much better" (20%), "better" (60%), and "no changes" (20%) compared with the skin of the control hand (standard PRP). No treatment-related adverse events were reported during the study. Conclusions: Hands treated with MCT Plasma tended to have better outcomes in reducing SLEB compared with those treated with standard PRP. Patients were satisfied and the treatment was safe with no technical complications. However, further randomized controlled trials with larger sample sizes are mandatory to validate the extent of improvement provided by this device based on photothermal biomodulation.

Portuguese Validated Versions of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test: A Systematic Review Protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Alcohol consumption ranks among the top ten risk factors contributing to the global disease burden. Several international organizations recommend the use of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test to screen for at-risk drinkers. However, a fully validated Portuguese version of this test is lacking. The aim of this study is to systematically review validated versions of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test in the Portuguese language, the documented problems and solutions in its application and proposed cut-offs to identify at-risk drinkers. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A systematic search will be performed in Ovid MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, ÍndexRMP, LILACS, African Journals Online and SciELO databases, along with grey literature searches to identify validation studies of the AUDIT in Portuguese. Two authors will independently extract data and assess the studies' methodological quality, using QUADAS-2 and CASP checklists. DISCUSSION: This review will compare different validation studies of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test in Portuguese-speaking countries, reporting, where possible, the psychometric properties, performance characteristics, suggested cut-offs and any documented limitations and suggestions. The results of this review could be used to propose an update of the alcohol screening and brief intervention guidelines in Portugal. The results could also prove useful to support the implementation of alcohol screening delivery by healthcare providers in Portugal and other official Portuguese-speaking countries. CONCLUSION: This review will provide important information on the validity of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test as a screening tool for at-risk drinking in Portugal and other official Portuguese speaking countries.

Introdução: O consumo de álcool é um importante fator de risco modificável. Várias organizações internacionais recomendam a utilização do Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test para identificar consumidores excessivos de álcool. No entanto, não parece haver uma versão totalmente validada deste questionário em português. O objetivo deste estudo é identificar versões validadas do Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test em português, problemas e soluções na sua aplicação, e pontos de corte para identificar consumidores excessivos. Material e Métodos: Será realizada uma revisão sistemática dos estudos de validação do AUDIT em português existentes nas bases de dados Ovid MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, ÍndexRMP, LILACS, African Journals Online e SciELO, bem como na literatura cinzenta. Dois autores extrairão informação, e avaliarão a qualidade dos estudos selecionados, de forma independente, utilizando as grelhas QUADAS-2 e CASP. Discussão: Esta revisão irá comparar estudos de validação do Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test em português e reportar, se descrito, propriedades psicométricas, características de desempenho, pontos de corte sugeridos, limitações e sugestões documentadas. Os resultados poderão ser importantes para propor uma revisão da norma de orientação clínica portuguesa sobre o rastreio e intervenções breves nos consumidores de álcool. Por outro lado, os resultados poderão ser utilizados para apoiar a implementação do rastreio do consumo de álcool na prática clínica em Portugal e noutros países de língua oficial portuguesa. Conclusão: Esta revisão irá fornecer informação relevante sobre a validade do Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test como método de rastreio do consumo excessivo de álcool em Portugal e noutros países de língua oficial portuguesa.

La biblioteca de hospital en Portugal: la visión de los bibliotecarios / Hospital libraries in Portugal: a librarian's view

El objetivo de este trabajo fue identificar la perspectiva profesional de los bibliotecarios y de las bibliotecas de hospital en Portugal y su proyección futura. Se trata de un estudio descriptivo, por medio de una investigación no experimental, basada en un método de análisis cualitativo. Para este estudio se utilizó una muestra de 13 profesionales que, de alguna manera, tienen una conexión/conocimiento con el trabajo desarrollado en las bibliotecas hospitalarias. Se buscó disponer de una muestra que cubriera el país de norte a sur para que los resultados pudieran ser representativos de la realidad portuguesa. Los resultados indican que los profesionales que trabajan en las bibliotecas del área de salud en Portugal consideran que no existe una formación profesional específica para este campo con características muy particulares frente a otras realidades bibliotecarias. Además, estiman que los profesionales de la salud que trabajan en bibliotecas deberían estar integrados a los equipos clínicos y de investigación de sus instituciones. Por otra parte, dada la importancia que tiene hoy la medicina basada en la evidencia, se hace necesario el desarrollo de nuevos roles que los bibliotecarios deben asumir. También consideran que corresponde al bibliotecario de la salud asumir los desafíos, invertir en la actualización y adquisición continua de habilidades, fortalecer su papel en las instituciones en las que se inserta, y justificar, de este modo, el valor añadido de la profesión(AU)

The purpose of the study was to identify the professional perspective of hospital libraries and librarians in Portugal and their future projection. A qualitative non-experimental descriptive study was conducted of a sample of 13 professionals related to / acquainted with the work of hospital libraries. The sample was intended to cover the entire country from north to south, so that the results obtained would be representative of Portuguese reality. Results show that professionals from health libraries in Portugal consider that no specific professional training is available for this field, which is characterized by very particular features unique to this library type. They also think that health professionals working at libraries should be incorporated into the clinical and research teams of their institutions. On the other hand, and given the current importance of evidence-based medicine, it is necessary to develop new roles to be undertaken by librarians. They also consider that librarians should accept the challenges, invest time and energy in permanent skill acquisition and update, and strengthen their role at their institutions, thus justifying the added value of the profession(AU)

Iodonitrene in Action: Direct Transformation of Amino Acids into Terminal Diazirines and 15N2-Diazirines and Their Application as Hyperpolarized Markers.

A one-pot metal-free conversion of unprotected amino acids to terminal diazirines has been developed using phenyliodonium diacetate (PIDA) and ammonia. This PIDA-mediated transformation occurs via three consecutive reactions and involves an iodonitrene intermediate. This method is tolerant to most functional groups found on the lateral chain of amino acids, it is operationally simple, and it can be scaled up to provide multigram quantities of diazirine. Interestingly, we also demonstrated that this transformation could be applied to dipeptides without racemization. Furthermore, 14N2 and 15N2 isotopomers can be obtained, emphasizing a key trans-imination step when using 15NH3. In addition, we report the first experimental observation of 14N/15N isotopomers directly creating an asymmetric carbon. Finally, the 15N2-diazirine from l-tyrosine was hyperpolarized by a parahydrogen-based method (SABRE-SHEATH), demonstrating the products' utility as hyperpolarized molecular tag.

α-Trifluoromethylated tertiary homoallylic amines: diastereoselective synthesis and conversion into ß-aminoesters, γ- and δ-aminoalcohols, azetidines and pyrrolidines.

The diastereoselective addition of allyl zinc and allylindium derivatives to α-trifluoromethyl N-tert-butanesulfinyl hemiaminals, bench stable precursors of aryl and alkyl trifluoromethyl ketimines, allows the synthesis of homoallylic amines containing a tetrasubstituted carbon stereocentre bearing a trifluoromethyl group with good diastereoselectivities (up to dr > 99 : 1). This approach was also suitable for accessing chiral homoallylic amines bearing two contiguous stereocenters. The synthetic usefulness of N-tert-butanesulfinyl homoallylamines was illustrated by preparing various trifluoromethylated nitrogen containing bifunctional synthons (aminoesters, aminoalcohols) and small azaheterocycles (azetidines, pyrrolidines).

Suscetibilidade antimicrobiana de bactérias isoladas de infecções do trato urinário de pacientes atendidos no Hospital Universitário Bettina Ferro de Souza, Belém - PA / Antibiotic susceptibility antimicrobial of uropathogens isolated from culture of patients with urinary tract infections from the University Hospital Bettina Ferro de Souza, Belém - PA

As infecções do trato urinário (ITU) são causadas na maioria das vezes por bactérias da microbiota intestinal e os agentes antimicrobianos apresentam um papel importante no tratamento e prevenção destas infecções. Visando conhecer o perfil de suscetibilidade de bactérias causadoras de ITU em pacientes atendidos no Hospital Universitário Bettina Ferro de Souza (HUBFS), foram analisados os resultados de 919 uroculturas. A identificação das bactérias foi realizada por métodos bioquímicos tradicionais e o antibiograma pelo método de disco-difusão. Foram positivas 208(22,6%) uroculturas. Houve maior freqüência de ITU em mulheres (78,9%) e em adultos (47,6%). Escherichia coli (69,8%), Enterobacter sp (7,2%) e Klebsiella sp (5,8%) foram as bactérias Gram-negativas GN mais isoladas. Entre as Gram-positivas-GP, Staphylococcus coagulase negativa-SCN (4,8%) e S. saprophyticus (2,9%) foram as mais prevalentes. As bactérias GN demonstraram elevada resistência aos antibióticos ampicilina (69%), amicacina (67,4%); sulfametaxazol-trimetropina (61,5%) e alta sensibilidade à cefotaxima (92,5%), ceftazidima (89,8%), iprofloxacina (88,8%) e gentamicina (86,1%). Os cocos GP demonstraram boa sensibilidade apenas à oxacilina (90%) e ciprofloxacina (80%), apresentando resistência acimade 50% aos demais antibióticos testados. Os resultados reforçam a necessidade do conhecimento do perfil de suscetibilidade antimicrobiana das bactérias causadoras de ITU, para evitar o uso incorreto de antibióticos.

The major cause of tract infections (UTIs) are bacteria from the intestinal microbiota, and the antibiotic therapy is the mainstay of treatment and prevention of these infections. To establish the profile of bacteria susceptibility in patients with UTI from the University Hospital Bettina Ferro de Souza (HUBFS), 919 urine samples were cultured and assessed their susceptibility, to common antibiotics Uropathogens identification was done by traditional biochemical methods and antibiogram was determined by the disk-diffusion method. 208(22.6%) urine cultures were positive. There was higher UTI frequency in women (78.9%) and adults (47.6%). Escherichia coli (69.8%), Enterobacter sp (7.2%) and Klebsiella sp (5.8%) were the most frequently isolated Gram-negatives (GN) bacteria. Coagulase negative Staphylococcus (CNS) (4.8%) and S. saprophyticus (2.9%) were the most prevalent among the Gram-positive (GP) bacteria. GN bacteria demonstrated high resistance to ampicilin (69%), amicacin (67.4%); sulfametaxazol-trimetropin (61.5%) and high sensibility only for oxacilin (90%) and ciprofloxacin (80%), with resistance higher than the other tested antibiotics. The results sustain the need to establish a better knowledge of the antibiotic susceptibility profile of the bacteria that cause UTIs to avoid the abusive use of antibiotics.