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Objectives: To prospectively validate a model to predict hospital admission of patients given a low-priority classification on emergency department triage and to indicate the safety of reverse triage., Material and Methods: Single-center observational study of a prospective cohort to validate a risk model incorporating demographic and emergency care process variables as well as vital signs. The cohort included emergency visits from patients over the age of 15 years with priority level classifications of IV and V according to the Andorran-Spanish triage system (Spanish acronym, MAT-SET) between October 2018 and June 2019. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of the model was calculated to evaluate discrimination. Based on the model, we identified cut-off points to distinguish patients with low, intermediate, or high risk for hospital admission., Results: A total of 2110 emergencies were included in the validation cohort; 109 patients (5.2%) were hospitalized. The median age was 43.5 years (interquartile range, 31-60.3 years); 55.5% were female. The AUC was 0.71 (95% CI, 0.64-0.75). The model identified 357 patients (16.9%) at low risk of hospitalization and 240 (11.4%) at high risk. A total of 15.8% of the high-risk patients and 2.8% of the low-risk patients were hospitalized., Conclusion: The validated model is able to identify risk for hospitalization among patients classified as low priority on triage. Patients identified as having high risk of hospitalization could be offered preferential treatment within the same level of priority at triage, while those at low risk of admission could be referred to a more appropriate care level on reverse triage.

The N501Y mutation in SARS-CoV-2 variants found in several strains from the UK, South Africa and Brazil has been linked to increased transmission. In order to discriminate N501Y variants quickly, a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) discrimination assay was designed and validated. It was then deployed prospectively in 757 nasopharyngeal swabs. Validation of the novel variant discrimination assay corroborated the results in all validation panel samples (n = 63) through sequencing. This novel variant discrimination assay was then deployed prospectively in 757 clinical nasopharyngeal swabs during the last week of January 2021. N501Y was found in 206 (27.4 %) of the samples: 94 (28.2 %) men and 112 (26.85 %) women (p = 0.73). The patients in whom it was identified had a mean age of 47.8 ± 25.8 (0-96) years, similar to that of patients without this variant: 51.7 ± 25.9 (0-104) years (p = 0.06). 501Y variant was confirmed in 34 samples by sequence method and 501 N wild type was confirmed in 67. This method is sensitive, specific, and simple to apply in any microbiology lab., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: To develop a model to predict hospital admission of patients in cases assessed as nonurgent or semiurgent on emergency department triage., Material and Methods: Single-center observational study of a retrospective cohort. We included cases of patients older than 15 years whose emergency was classified as level IV-V according to the Andorran-Spanish triage model (MAT-SET, the Spanish acronym). Fourteen independent variables included demographic and care process items as well as vital signs. The dependent variable was hospital admission. The regression models were based on generalized estimating equations., Results: A total of 53 860 episodes were included; 3430 patients (6.4%) were admitted. The median (interquartile range) age was 44.5 (31.1-63.9) years, and 54.1% were female. Vital signs were recorded in 19.3% of the episodes. The model that best predicted admission included the following variables: age > 84 years (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 6.72; 95% CI, 5.26-8.60); male sex (aOR, 1.46; 95% CI, 1.28-1.66); referral from a primary care center (aOR, 1.94; 95% CI, 1.64-2.29); referral from another acute-care hospital (aOR, 11.22; 95% CI, 4.42-28.51); arrival by ambulance (aOR, 3.72; 95% CI, 3.16-4.40); revisit 72 hours (aOR, 2.15; 95% CI, 1.60-2.87); systolic blood pressure $ 150 mmHg (aOR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.71-0.97); diastolic blood pressure 60 mmHg (aOR, 1.57; 95% CI, 1.25-1.98); axillary temperature > 37°C (aOR, 2.29; 95% CI, 1.91-2.74); heart rate > 100 beats/min (aOR, 1.65; 95% CI, 1.40-1.96); baseline oxygen saturation in arterial blood (SaO2) 93% (aOR, 2.66; 95% CI, 1.86-3.81); and SaO2 93%-95% (aOR, 1.70; 95% CI, 1.42-2.05). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for the model was 0.82 (95% CI; 95% CI, 0.80-0.83)., Conclusion: The model predicts which patients are more likely to be admitted after their cases were initially considered nonurgent or semi-urgent on triage. Patients found to be at risk can then be given greater attention than others in the same triage level.

Background: Home parenteral nutrition (HPN) has become a common therapy. There is still controversy regarding the possibility that peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) may diminish catheter-related blood stream infection (CRBSI) rates., Methods: We searched the PubMed database for studies reporting the rates of CRBSI with HPN. Study selection was performed independently by three investigators. Disagreements were discussed and resolved by consensus or by arbitration by an author not involved in the search. The National Institutes of Health Quality Assessment Tools was used to assess the methodological quality of the studies. Meta-analyses were performed using MetaXL 5.3 with the quality effects model., Results: Screening of the article titles and abstracts yielded 134 full text articles for evaluation. Only three prospective studies that included appropriate data were considered for the final analysis. The relative risk of the CRBSI rate was 0.41 (0.14-1.17) for PICC vs. tunneled catheters. The relative risk of the CRBSI rate was 0.16 (0.04-0.64) for PICC vs. ports. The relative risk of the thrombosis rate was 3.16 (0.20-49.67) for PICCs vs. tunneled., Conclusions: There is insufficient evidence to show a difference in CRBSI rates between PICCs and tunneled catheters. On the other hand, PICCs showed lower CRBSI rates than ports. There was also no difference in the rate of catheter-related thrombosis and mechanical complications.

Objective: Home parenteral nutrition (HPN) has become a common therapy, with tunneled central venous catheters (CVCs) being the preferred route of administration. Peripherally inserted central catheters (PICCs) have been used increasingly, but whether they should be preferred over other types of CVCs is still controversial. The aim of this study was to evaluate catheter-related complications of CVC in patients receiving HPN., Methods: All patients treated at our center for HPN from 2007 to 2017 were prospectively included. A specialized intravenous therapy team took care of these patients. Catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSI) were confirmed with positive, simultaneous, differential blood cultures drawn through the CVC and peripheral vein and then semiquantitative or quantitative culture of the catheter tip., Results: In all, 151 patients received HPN during the 11-y study period. Of these patients, 95 were women (63%) and 55 were men (37%), with a mean age of 58 ± 13 y. Twenty-six were non-cancer patients (17%) and the remaining 125 patients had an underlying malignancy (83%). Regarding the CVC, 116 were PICCs, 18 Hickman, and 36 ports. Confirmed CRBSI per catheter-days showed 0.15 episodes per 1000 catheter-days for PICCs, 0.72 for Hickman, and 2.02 for ports. PICCs had less-confirmed CRBSIs per 1000 catheter-days than ports (φ = 0.54, P = 0.005), but no difference between PICCs and Hickman was found (φ = 0.32, P = 0.110). Confirmed episodes of CRBSI (2 versus 13%, χ 2  = 6.625, P = 0.036) were more frequent with multilumen catheters., Conclusions: In our setting, single-lumen PICC and Hickman catheters showed low infectious complications., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: The presence of cutaneous nodules in patients with gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumours (GEP-NETs) receiving depot somatostatin analogs (SSAs) is a diagnostic challenge as differential diagnosis between injection site reactions and metastases is essential., Objective: To characterize the clinical, radiological, cytological and histopathological features of subcutaneous nodules in patients with GEP-NETs treated with SSAs., Materials and Methods: Retrospective, cross-sectional study of patients with GEP-NETs treated with SSAs in whom subcutaneous nodules were detected on routine abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans. High resolution and colour Doppler ultrasonography was performed. Those patients with inconclusive radiological studies went through fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) and/or biopsy., Results: Twelve patients (five males, seven females) were included (six midgut carcinoid NETs, six pancreatic NETs). Three patients received intramuscular depot octreotide, seven subcutaneous lanreotide, and two both treatments. CT scan findings were nonspecific. Sonography revealed a hyperechoic pattern in recent injections, and a hypoechoic pattern with a characteristic hyperechoic peripheral rim in long-term injections (more than 3 months after injection). On colour Doppler sonography, nodules showed no signs of intralesional vascularity. Fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) was performed in five patients, revealing a characteristic acellular proteinaceous material. Biopsy in four patients showed different reactional infiltrates around the acellular material., Conclusions: High resolution and colour Doppler ultrasonography may be very useful for the differential diagnosis of subcutaneous nodules in patients with GEP-NETs treated with SSAs. FNAC and a biopsy are useful tests for confirmation of the diagnosis in patients with inconclusive findings. We propose a management algorithm., (© 2018 European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.)

Introduction: intracavitary electrocardiogram (IC-ECG) guidance has been recently proposed for peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) placement since it may reduce the time of placement and avoid radiological control., Objective: to evaluate IC-ECG compared to conventional radiological control. METHOS: prospective study of 532 consecutive patients. Those with arrhythmias or on antiarrhythmic drugs were excluded. In all cases, PICC tip placement was checked by IC-ECG guidance and by a chest X-ray, which was considered as the reference test., Results: PICC placement with IC-ECG guidance was achieved in 96.8% of patients (applicability). PICC correct placement according to IC-ECG guidance was confirmed by chest X-ray in 94% of patients (accuracy). In 13 patients (2.7%) the catheter had to be repositioned after radiological control. The κ concordance index was 0.356 (p < 0.001). The IC-ECG sensitivity was 0.98, with a PPV of 0.97 and a positive likelihood ratio of 1.5. However, the specificity was only 0.35 with a NPV of 0.41 and a negative likelihood ratio of 0.06., Conclusion: PICC placement by IC-ECG guidance is plausible, safe, presents adequate indexes of validity and reliability, and allows reducing the time of catheter placement. However, radiological verification is still necessary, especially in cases of negative or uncertain ECG.

Introduction: Patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) submitted to radiotherapy alone or combined chemoradiotherapy present a high prevalence of malnutrition at baseline. Prophylactic use of gastrostomy has been suggested for these patients for delivering enteral nutrition. On the other hand, other authors have failed to demonstrate the effectiveness of this measure over nasogastric tube feeding., Material and Methods: We studied 40 patients with HNC with moderate or severe malnutrition who were offered either prophylactic percutaneous gastrostomy before starting oncologic treatment or close follow-up with nutritional counseling with the placement of a nasogastric tube when necessary., Results: There were no significant changes throughout the study period in weight (p = 0.338), body mass index (BMI) (p = 0.314) or serum proteins (p = 0.729), and these changes showed no differences between the gastrostomy vsnasogastric tube feeding groups. The amount of delivered energy was above the estimated energy needs with both gastrostomy and nasogastric tube feeding, but there were no differences in the total energy provided by enteral nutrition between groups. Patients in the gastrostomy group received enteral nutrition support for a longer period of time (p = 0.007)., Conclusions: Both gastrostomy and nasogastric tube feeding are effective methods of delivering enteral nutrition in patients with HNC submitted to radiotherapy alone or combined chemoradiotherapy, with no differences between them in terms of avoiding further nutritional deterioration.

Introduction and Aims: the precise role of parenteral nutrition in the management of oncologic patients with intestinal occlusion is not well defined yet. We aimed to identify the effects of parenteral nutrition in these patients regarding prognosis., Material and Methods: 55 patients with intestinal occlusion and peritoneal carcinomatosis were included. Parenteral nutrition aimed at 20-35 kcal/Kg/day, and 1.0 g/kg/day of amino-acids. Weight, body mass index, type of tumor, type of chemotherapy, and ECOG among others were recorded and analyzed., Results: 69.1% of the patients had gastrointestinal tumors, 18.2% gynecologic and 12.7% others. Age was 60 ± 13y, baseline ECOG 1.5 ± 0.5 and body mass index 21.6 ± 4.3. Malnutrition was present in 85%. Survival from the start of parenteral nutrition was not significant when considering baseline ECOG (log rank = 0.593, p = 0.743), previous lines of chemotherapy (log rank = 2.117, p = 0.548), baseline BMI (log rank = 2.686, p = 0.261), or type of tumor (log rank = 2.066, p = 0.356). Survival in patients who received home parenteral nutrition after hospital discharge was higher than those who stayed in-hospital (log rank = 7.090, p = 0.008). Survival in patients who started chemotherapy during or after parenteral nutrition was higher than those who did not so (log rank = 17.316, p < 0.001). A total of 3.6% of patients presented catheter related infection without affecting survival (log rank = 0.061, p = 0.804)., Conclusions: Parenteral nutrition in patients with advanced cancer and intestinal occlusion is safe, and in tho se who respond to chemotherapy, further administration of home parenteral nutrition together with chemotherapy may enhance prolonged survival., (Copyright AULA MEDICA EDICIONES 2014. Published by AULA MEDICA. All rights reserved.)

Objective: IGF1 and IGFBP3 gene polymorphisms have been recently described. However, their potential role in the setting of acromegaly and its outcome is unknown. In this study, we analyze these polymorphisms in patients with acromegaly and investigate their association with clinical presentation and response to treatments., Design: A retrospective observational study was conducted in patients with acromegaly to analyze IGF1 and IGFBP3 gene polymorphisms., Methods: A total of 124 patients with acromegaly (57.3% women, mean age 44.9±13.1 years old) were followed up for a period of 11.4±8.0 years in eight tertiary referral hospitals in Spain. Clinical and analytical data were evaluated at baseline and after treatment. IGF1 and IGFBP3 gene polymorphisms were analyzed using PCR and specific primers., Results: Baseline laboratory test results were GH 19.3 (8.0-39.6) ng/ml, nadir GH 11.8 (4.1-21.5) ng/ml, and index IGF1 2.65±1.25 upper limit of normal. Regarding the IGF1 gene polymorphism, we did not find any association between the number of cyto-adenosine (CA) repeats and patients' baseline characteristics. Nevertheless, a trend for higher nadir GH values was observed in patients with <19 CA repeats. Regarding the IGFBP3 polymorphism, the absence of an A allele at the -202 position was associated with a higher baseline IGF1 and a higher prevalence of cancer and polyps. There were no differences in response to therapies according to the specific genotypes., Conclusions: Polymorphisms in the IGF1 and IGFBP3 genes may not be invariably determinant of treatment outcome in acromegalic patients, but they may be associated with higher nadir GH levels or baseline IGF1, and determine a higher rate of colorectal polyps and cancer., (© 2015 European Society of Endocrinology.)

Porous films of Co/CoO magnetic nanoparticles have been obtained by inert gas condensation and partially oxidized in situ in the deposition chamber. These nanoparticle films were subjected to thermal treatments in high vacuum and the chemical and structural changes monitored by x-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, transport and magnetic measurements (with a focus on the exchange-bias phenomenon), which evidence that for vacuum annealing temperatures above 360 °C, most of the CoO phase is reduced to metallic Co without requiring the presence of an external reducing agent (e.g., H₂) or a plasma. Additionally, there is a certain degree of particle coalescence resulting in the formation of greater nanoparticles as the annealing temperature increases. This yields a smaller proportion of CoO compared to metallic Co and a reduction of the Co/CoO interface density, pinpointed by a drastic decrease of the exchange-bias field. The crucial roles of the vacuum level and the surface-to-volume ratio are evidenced by magnetic measurements, highlighting the potential of magnetometry as a probe for the reduction/oxidation of composite nanostructures.

We report on the unexpected deterioration under ambient conditions of films of Co clusters capped with relatively thick (>100 nm) Cu (or Ti) layers deposited by either thermal evaporation or by radiofrequency sputtering. The magnetic character of the clusters, prepared by gas-phase condensation, allows monitoring the oxidation of the samples through the decay of the saturation magnetization, which takes place on a timescale of days. By contrast, diluted (<10 at.%) cluster-assembled granular Co:Cu films, prepared by co-deposition of the Co clusters with a Cu vapour, are perfectly stable under ambient conditions. We tentatively explain the oxidation of the cluster films as stemming from their very high porosity.

Background: The topic of academic goals has provided very important information about students' motivation. Traditional research has described several mutually exclusive goals that elicit different motivational patterns. Nevertheless, goal-orientation research has reported the possibility that more than one goal may operate simultaneously., Aim: The purpose of this study was to characterise multiple-goal groups of students, who use various types of cognitive, self-regulatory, and motivational strategies., Sample: Participants were 595 Spanish-speaking university students at the University of A Coruña., Method: In order to examine the relationships between goal orientations and strategies, a Pearson correlational analysis was performed. Then, a cluster analysis was performed to identify potential subgroups of students with more than one simultaneously operative goal. Finally, a one-way test was conducted to determine whether the multiple-goal clusters differed in any of the nine strategies., Results: Only those students who reported high task orientation tended to exhibit more frequent use of cognitive and self-regulatory strategies. Nevertheless, this does not mean that learning processes are only optimised by task orientation. When multiple-goal adoption was considered, students who developed the most positive self-regulation were characterised by their focus on learning, but also by their desire to avoid being judged negatively by others., Conclusions: Students should not adopt only task goals, which are sometimes overvalued, but also other kinds of goals that allow them to manage their learning and make it more flexible in each situation. This aspect characterises self-regulated learning, which is defined not only by cognitive and behavioural regulation but also by motivational regulation.

Objective: In order to know the efficiency, tolerance and acceptance of Sildenafil Citrate in our area as a new treatment for Eréctil Dysfunction (E.D.)., Material and Methods: We include 100 patients with E.D. who were assisted in our medical office from November 1998 to February 2000 to evaluate them according to several predeterminated variables., Results: The positive response index (E.D. improvement) was 69.9%. We only found side effects in 11.8% (headache 5.4%, flushing 4.3%, diarrhea/blurred vision 2.2%). The most widely used dose was 50 mgrs (65.6%). Only 50.5% of the patients had enough information about Sildenafil. The highest positive response index corresponded to the mild E.D. (76.1%). Also the best results were achieved with the mixed and psychological etiology (74.1%). The Sildenafil treatment was rejected (fear or its price) by the 46.2% of the patients., Conclusions: The Sildenafil Citrate is an effective treatment for the E.D. It hardly has any side effects. The 50 mgrs dose got the best results. Almost half of the patients complained about an insufficient information on this pharmaceutical. Sildenafil got a good response even when there were risk associated factors of E.D.