[Applying positive psychology to medical education].

Today we are witnessing an exponential growth in positive psychology (PP), a scientific approach to the most significant purpose of human existence: happiness and meaning of life. As a consequence of PP studies, happiness and wellbeing are now accepted as valid topics of research, despite their subjective and supposedly unscientific essence. Experimental evident indicates that happiness and wellbeing have biological bases and, thus, can be scientifically approached and eventually changed.

[Molecular diagnosis and combined lipid lowering therapy of heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia. Report of one case].

Heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia affects one every 400 individuals, is caused by mutations in the LDL receptor gene and is associated with premature coronary artery disease. Nowadays, LDL cholesterol can be efficiently reduced with the new therapies to reduce blood lipids. We report a female patient who consulted in 1975, when she was 46 years old, for severe hypercholesterolemia.

[Intensive cholesterol lowering therapy to reduce cardiovascular risk].

Primary and secondary prevention trials have clearly demonstrated that lowering serum cholesterol levels with statins reduces the incidence of cardiovascular events. Recent studies plus post hoc analysis of previous clinical trials show that risk reduction is proportional to the magnitude of LDL cholesterol lowering. Therefore, new recommendations of the National Cholesterol Education Program (USA) have defined a category of patients with very high cardiovascular risk, who should achieve serum LDL cholesterol levels below 70 mg/dl.

[Physicians in biomedical research in Chile: a species under risk of extinction].

Several studies have reported a progressive reduction in the number of grant applications and research projects approved by medical doctors (MD) in the United States. The overall trend and current situation of MDs actively involved in biomedical research in Chile has not been defined. Thus, we analyzed the professional profile of the principal investigators (PI) that have led research grants approved by the Technology and Medical Sciences study groups of the Fondo Nacional de Desarrollo Científico y Tecnológico (FONDECYT), during the last 20 years.