General-purpose programmable photonic processor for advanced radiofrequency applications.

A general-purpose photonic processor can be built integrating a silicon photonic programmable core in a technology stack comprising an electronic monitoring and controlling layer and a software layer for resource control and programming. This processor can leverage the unique properties of photonics in terms of ultra-high bandwidth, high-speed operation, and low power consumption while operating in a complementary and synergistic way with electronic processors. These features are key in applications such as next-generation 5/6 G wireless systems where reconfigurable filtering, frequency conversion, arbitrary waveform generation, and beamforming are currently provided by microwave photonic subsystems that cannot be scaled down.

Facial paralysis: Clinical practice guideline of the Spanish Society of Otolaryngology.

Bell's palsy is the most common diagnosis associated with facial nerve weakness or paralysis. However, not all patients with facial paresis/paralysis have Bell's palsy. Other common causes include treatment of vestibular schwannoma, head and neck tumours, iatrogenic injuries, Herpes zoster, or trauma.

Demonstration of multiplexed sensor system combining low coherence interferometry and microwave photonics.

In this work, a multiplexed sensor system is proposed by means of the combination of low coherence interferometry (LCI) and microwave photonics (MWP). Variations of physical magnitudes can be measured in an array of head sensors by monitoring the optical path difference generated by each sensor. In this case, the characterization of the multiplexed sensor system is done through the electrical transfer function corresponding to the MWP-LCI system.

Clinical Subgroups in Bilateral Meniere Disease.

Meniere disease (MD) is a heterogeneous clinical condition characterized by sensorineural hearing loss, episodic vestibular symptoms, and tinnitus associated with several comorbidities, such as migraine or autoimmune disorders (AD). The frequency of bilateral involvement may range from 5 to 50%, and it depends on the duration of the disease. We have performed a two-step cluster analysis in 398 patients with bilateral MD (BMD) to identify the best predictors to define clinical subgroups with a potential different etiology to improve the phenotyping of BMD and to develop new treatments.

Development and evaluation of an audiology app for iPhone/iPad mobile devices.

Conclusion: The application described in this study appears to be accurate and valid, thus allowing calculation of a hearing handicap and assessment of the pure-tone air conduction threshold with iPhone/iPad devices.

Objective: To develop and evaluate a newly developed professional, computer-based hearing handicap calculator and a manual hearing sensitivity assessment test for the iPhone and iPad (AudCal).

Methods: Multi-center prospective non-randomized validation study.

Intronic variants in the NFKB1 gene may influence hearing forecast in patients with unilateral sensorineural hearing loss in Meniere's disease.

Meniere's disease is an episodic vestibular syndrome associated with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) and tinnitus. Patients with MD have an elevated prevalence of several autoimmune diseases (rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, ankylosing spondylitis and psoriasis), which suggests a shared autoimmune background. Functional variants of several genes involved in the NF-κB pathway, such as REL, TNFAIP3, NFKB1 and TNIP1, have been associated with two or more immune-mediated diseases and allelic variations in the TLR10 gene may influence bilateral affectation and clinical course in MD.

[Association between cutaneous leishmaniasis incidence and the human development index and its components in four endemic states of Venezuela].

Objectives: Assess potential relationships between the Human Development Index (HDI) and its components and the incidence of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) in four endemic States of Venezuela (Mérida, Trujillo, Lara and Sucre) in the period 1994-2003.

Material And Methods: Socioeconomical data (classified according the World Bank) was obtained from the National Institute of Statistics, and the epidemiological data from the Ministry of Health, both from Venezuela. For this ecological study the annual variation of the variables was assessed and also regression models were done.

Relationship of type 1 diabetes to ancestral proportions and HLA DR/DQ alleles in a sample of the admixed Cuban population.

Background: Incidence of type 1 diabetes varies widely around the world, probably due to ethnic differences across populations among other factors.

Aims: To determine whether there is an association between disease and ancestry proportions; and to control disease-HLA associations for possible confounding by admixture or population stratification.

Subjects And Methods: 100 cases and 129 controls participated in the study.

Burden of zoonotic diseases in Venezuela during 2004 and 2005.

Emerging zoonotic diseases have increased in importance in human and animal health during the last 10 years. Each of these diseases has emerged from an unsuspected quarter and has caused severe problems. In countries, such as Venezuela, the burden of these zoonoses has been understudied.

HLA class I polymorphism in the Cuban population.

The extreme polymorphism found at some of the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) system loci makes it an invaluable tool for population genetic analyses. In the present study the genetic polymorphism of the Cuban population was estimated at HLA-A, -B, and -Cw loci by DNA typing. HLA class I allele and haplotype diversity were determined in 390 unrelated Cuban individuals (188 whites and 202 mulattos) from all over the country.

Malaria mortality in Venezuela: focus on deaths due to Plasmodium vivax in children.

Morbidity and mortality burden of malaria in the childhood represents a public health threat not only in countries with high levels of transmission, but also in those, such as Venezuela and others in Latin America, with moderate to low transmission. Usually its mortality has been attributed just to Plasmodium falciparum malaria, but the changing patterns of increase in Plasmodium vivax malaria morbidity and mortality are now causing concern. We studied malaria mortality by analyzing different epidemiological variables during a 10-year period in Venezuela, finding mortality rates ranging 0.

Trends in fatal snakebites in Venezuela, 1995-2002.

Objective: There have been few studies evaluating snakebite mortality in Venezuela and South America. In this study we evaluate trends in fatal snakebites occurring in Venezuela between 1995 and 2002.

Methods: Epidemiological data for this study were retrieved from the records of the Ministry of Health of Venezuela.

ACE I/D polymorphism study in a Cuban hypertensive population.

Background: The angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) is a key protein of the renin angiotensin system, whose main function is the conversion of angiotensin I to II. ACE is involved in the physiological control of blood pressure and it is a candidate gene for essential hypertension in humans. We tested the relevance of the ACE insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism in our population.

Epizootics of yellow fever in Venezuela (2004-2005): an emerging zoonotic disease.

Epidemics and epizootics of yellow fever (YF) have been occurring in the border area of eastern Colombia and western Venezuela since 2003; for this reason many epidemiological control measures were adopted by the Ministry of Health (MOH) trying to prevent their spreading. These activities included monkey deaths surveillance as well as immunization of susceptible individuals with YF vaccine. In this setting, we analyzed epidemiological and epizootical issues related to YF in Venezuela during 2004-2005.

Intestinal parasitic infections among pregnant women in Venezuela.

Introduction: Intestinal parasitic infections, especially due to helminths, increase anemia in pregnant women. The results of this are low pregnancy weight gain and IUGR, followed by LBW, with its associated greater risks of infection and higher perinatal mortality rates. For these reasons, in the setting of no large previous studies in Venezuela about this problem, a national multicentric study was conducted.

HLA DQA1*0501 and DQB1*02 in Cuban celiac patients.

Celiac disease (CD) susceptibility has been strongly associated with HLA-DQ2 and HLA-DQ8. The main objective of this study was to assess the distribution of HLA DQA1*0501 and DQB1*02 alleles (DQ2) for the first time in a group of Cuban celiac patients. We evaluated 22 patients, 54 first-degree relatives, and 60 controls for detection of antitissue transglutaminase (tTG)-specific antibodies in serum.

Ecoepidemiological and Social Factors Related to Rabies Incidence in Venezuela during 2002-2004.

Rabies in Venezuela has been important in last years, affecting dogs, cats, and human, among other animals, being a reportable disease. In Zulia state, it is considered a major public health concern. Recently, a considerable increase in the incidence of rabies has been occurring, involving many epidemiological but also ecoepidemiological and social factors.

Improvement of postural control in patients with peripheral vestibulopathy.

We present here the results of a short-term prospective study on a group of 37 patients with persistent unsteadiness. The treatment of these patients was customized according to the results of the Sensory Organization Test carried out using computerized dynamic posturography. A 5-week period of instrumental rehabilitation was established involving visual biofeedback-based computerized balance intervention that manipulated the individuals' capacities, the goals of the tasks and the environmental context.

Lepidopterism due to exposure to the moth Hylesia metabus in northeastern Venezuela.

Lepidopterism refers to a spectrum of medical conditions in humans that usually involves the skin and results from contact with the adult or larval forms of certain butterflies and moths. We analyzed the epidemiologic and clinical features associated with exposure to the moth Hylesia metabus between 1970 and 2002 in the Cajigal district, Sucre, Venezuela. Fifty cases of lepidopterism mostly affecting individuals under 18 years of age were identified during this period and manifested as pruritic dermatitis with or without associated respiratory symptoms.

Development and validation of a quantitative ELISA for the measurement of PSA concentration.

Background: Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) has been used for the diagnosis and follow up of prostate cancer (PCa).

Methods: Mouse monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) were generated against human prostate-specific antigen (PSA) for the development of a sensitive total PSA (t-PSA) assay. Two MAbs, denoted CB-PSA.