Publications by authors named "Ana Neves"

Technological advances render the distinction between artificial (e.g., computer-generated faces) and real stimuli increasingly difficult, yet the factors driving our beliefs regarding the nature of ambiguous stimuli remain largely unknown.

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Background: The proliferation of electronic health records (EHR) in health systems of many high-income countries has ushered in profound changes to how clinical information is used, stored, and disseminated. For patients, being able to easily access and share their health information electronically through interoperable EHRs can often impact safety and their experience when seeking care across healthcare providers. While extensive research exists examining how EHRs affected workflow and technical challenges such as limited interoperability, much of it was done from the viewpoint of healthcare staff rather than from patients themselves.

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Objective: To identify patient-safety-related unintended consequences of healthcare technologies experienced by their primary users: patients, carers and healthcare providers (HCPs).

Design: Qualitative study based on data collected in online focus groups. Transcripts were analysed inductively after each focus group using reflexive thematic analysis, focusing on identifying unintended consequences of healthcare technologies with implications for patient safety.

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Gene therapy can be viewed as a promising/valuable therapeutic approach directed to cancer treatment, including glioblastoma. Concretely, the combination of gene therapy with chemotherapy could increase its therapeutic index due to a synergistic effect. In this context, bovine serum albumin (BSA)-coated temozolomide (TMZ)-peptide (WRAP5)/p53 gene-based plasmid DNA complexes were developed to promote payload co-delivery.

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Background: Health care organizations globally have seen a significant increase in the frequency of cyberattacks in recent years. Cyberattacks cause massive disruptions to health service delivery and directly impact patient safety through disruption and treatment delays. Given the increasing number of cyberattacks in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), there is a need to explore the interventions put in place to plan for cyberattacks and develop cyber resilience.

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Background: Around 463 million people globally have diabetes, of which over 90% have type 2 diabetes (T2D). Projections indicate an expected increase to 700 million by 2045. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated digital health uptake, establishing virtual consultations as a feasible alternative to traditional in-person care.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study explored the connection between depression, anxiety, and alcohol use disorder (AUD) in individuals diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) within an English primary care population.
  • Researchers analyzed data from nearly 480,000 people diagnosed with T2DM from 2004 to 2019 to see how these mental health conditions occur in those with and without prior AUD.
  • Results indicated that individuals with AUD were significantly more likely to experience new episodes of depression and anxiety after their T2DM diagnosis compared to those without AUD, even after adjusting for various confounding factors.
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Background: This article aims to examine patient safety in general practice during COVID-19.

Methods: In total, 5489 GP practices from 37 European countries and Israel filled in the online self-reported PRICOV-19 survey between November 2020 and December 2021. The outcome measures include 30 patient safety indicators on structure, process, and outcome.

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Background: The COVID-19 vaccination campaign in several European countries involved collaboration between public health and Primary Health Care (PHC).

Objective: To highlight the role of PHC professionals in the COVID-19 vaccination rollout, specifically in terms of vaccine administration, communication and contributing to vaccination population coverage.

Methods: A descriptive retrospective study of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign across 28 European countries was conducted, covering data from December 2020 to November 2021.

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Background: Myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) antibody-associated disease (MOGAD) is a heterogeneous entity with either a monophasic or relapsing course. Well-established predictors of relapsing disease are lacking.

Objective: Identifying predictors of relapsing MOGAD, particularly at disease onset.

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Purpose: Electronic health records (EHR) are valuable resources for health research; however, their use is challenging. A validated alcohol use disorder (AUD) codelist for UK primary care is needed to improve population-based research in this patient group. We aimed to develop an AUD codelist for use in the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD) Aurum database, a UK EHR primary-care database.

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The current scenario of antifouling (AF) strategies to prevent the natural process of marine biofouling is based in the use of antifouling paints containing different active ingredients, believed to be harmful to the marine environment. Compounds called booster biocides are being used with copper as an alternative to the traditionally used tributyltin (TBT); however, some of them were recently found to accumulate in coastal waters at levels that are deleterious for marine organisms. More ecological alternatives were pursued, some of them based on the marine organism mechanisms' production of specialized metabolites with AF activity.

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Article Synopsis
  • Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is a primary immune disorder that results in poor B cell function, leading to low levels of immunoglobulins and a higher susceptibility to infections and autoimmune diseases.
  • A rare case of a woman in her 30s, already diagnosed with Evans syndrome and lymphocytic alveolitis, demonstrated CVID when she presented with severe headaches and brain lesions, despite no recurrent infections.
  • Treatment with intravenous immunoglobulin and immunosuppressive therapy improved her condition significantly, emphasizing the need to consider CVID in patients with autoimmune issues and the benefits of timely treatment.
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To analyze whether combinations of polymorphisms within FSHR gene influence ovarian response (OR) to stimulation. A multicenter prospective cohort study was conducted from 11/2016-06/2019 in Europe and Asia including predicted normo-responders under 38y. Patients underwent ovarian stimulation using fixed-dose 150 IU rFSH in a GnRH antagonist protocol.

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Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated changes in European healthcare systems, with a significant proportion of COVID-19 cases being managed on an outpatient basis in primary healthcare (PHC). To alleviate the burden on healthcare facilities, many European countries developed contact-tracing apps and symptom checkers to identify potential cases. As the pandemic evolved, the European Union introduced the Digital COVID-19 Certificate for travel, which relies on vaccination, recent recovery, or negative test results.

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Article Synopsis
  • Increasing global healthcare demands are causing significant issues in emergency settings, such as overcrowding and longer wait times, prompting providers to explore digital solutions like self-check-in kiosks for better patient triage.
  • This systematic review will analyze the effectiveness and safety of implementing these kiosks in emergency departments by examining existing studies on their impact on triage efficiency, workflow, and patient outcomes.
  • The study does not require ethical approval as it will only assess published research and aims to share its findings through peer-reviewed journals.
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and are two emerging opportunistic pathogens that have caused an increase in clinical cases in the recent years worldwide. The differentiation of some species is highly laborious, difficult, costly, and time-consuming depending on the similarity between the species. Thus, this study aimed to develop a new, faster, and less expensive methodology for differentiating between .

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Background: Anxiety symptoms are factors that directly affect eating habits, but this interference can be heterogeneous depending on the nutritional status of the individuals.

Objectives: To analyze whether the presence of anxiety symptoms at the beginning of the pandemic influenced the change in food consumption according to its purpose and extent of processing during a one-year follow-up and whether this association occurs equally with excess weight and without excess weight university students.

Methods: This longitudinal study was carried out with 583 university students from a public Higher Education Institution (HEI) in Brazil.

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Background: The Cost of Living Crisis (CoLC), a real term reduction in basic income, risks individuals being unable to afford essentials such as heat, food and clothing. The impact of the CoLC is disproportionate - with different population sub-groups more likely to be negatively affected. The objective of this survey was to evaluate the perceived impact of the CoLC on the life and health of participants across four European countries.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The traditional healthcare approach often overlooks patients' personal experiences and strengths, focusing mainly on disease treatment. Person-centered care aims to align medical decisions with individual values and preferences, particularly for those with chronic conditions.
  • - This paper seeks to enhance care for rhinitis and asthma by developing digital care pathways and incorporating real-world evidence to create a more patient-centered approach.
  • - Key components of the review include advancements in mHealth, the integration of artificial intelligence, a novel classification system for airway diseases, and proposals for the ARIA 2024 guidelines, all targeting a sustainable and applicable healthcare model.
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Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is a systemic autoimmune disease characterized by arterial, venous, or microvascular thrombosis, pregnancy morbidity, or non-thrombotic manifestations in patients with persistent antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL). Catastrophic APS is a rare and severe form of APS that is defined by the presence of multiple vascular occlusive events. When a patent foramen ovale (PFO) is present, paradoxical embolization can occur, simultaneously leading to arterial and venous thrombosis.

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Glioblastoma multiform (GBM) is considered the deadliest brain cancer. Conventional therapies are followed by poor patient survival outcomes, so novel and more efficacious therapeutic strategies are imperative to tackle this scourge. Gene therapy has emerged as an exciting and innovative tool in cancer therapy.

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