Clinical and economic impact analysis of viscosupplementation with hylan G-F 20 versus hyaluronic acids and no viscosupplementation for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis in Colombia.

Background: Viscosupplementation is a viable alternative for managing knee osteoarthritis, showing potential to delay the need for total joint replacement in affected patients.

Methods: We constructed an economic model that compared viscosupplementation with hylan G-F 20, with available hyaluronic acids, and no viscosupplementation over a 5-year period, from the perspective of the Colombian general health system. Time until total knee replacement, sourced from published literature, informed the model.

[Baseline characterization of a cohort of colombian patients with chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps].

Objective: To present the baseline clinical and demographic characteristics of CRSwNP patients over the age of 18 enrolled in a Patient Support Program (PSP) prior to biologic treatment.

Methods: Descriptive, cross-sectional study performed in a Colombian CRSwNP asthma PSP sponsored by Sanofi from Aug-2021 to Jul-2022. Data was collected from CRSwNP patients, prior to the start of Dupilumab treatment, who consented to the use of their data.

Economic burden of type-2 diabetes in Peru: a cost-of-illness study valuing cost differences associated with the level of glycemic control.

Objectives: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) represents an increasing public health problem in Peru. This study aims to estimate the national economic burden of this disease for the public funder, the social security, and private sector insurers.

Methods: Direct healthcare costs were estimated for a cohort of 45-to-75-year-old adults diagnosed with T2DM in 2019, over a 20-year period.

Non-invasive assessment of sublingual microcirculation using flow derived from green light PPG: evaluation and reference values.

Significance: The study of sublingual microcirculation offers valuable insights into vascular changes and overcomes some limitations of peripheral microcirculation assessment. Videomicroscopy and pulse oximetry have been used to assess microcirculation, providing insights into organ perfusion beyond macrohemodynamics parameters. However, both techniques have important limitations that preclude their use in clinical practice.

Cost-effectiveness analysis of dupilumab versus omalizumab, mepolizumab, and benralizumab added to the standard of care in adults with severe asthma in Colombia.

Background: Cost-effectiveness studies evaluate health technologies and help choose treatments. The current study compared dupilumab to omalizumab, mepolizumab, and benralizumab in Colombian adults with severe uncontrolled type 2 asthma.

Methods: Over a 5-year period, a Markov model was utilized to assess the costs of biological treatments and management of exacerbations, comparing various doses of exacerbations, comparing various doses of dupilumab, omalizumab, mepolizumab, and benralizumab as add-on treatments.

Temporal Evaluation of the Surface Area of Treated Skin Ulcers Caused by Cutaneous Leishmaniasis and Relation with Optical Parameters in an Animal Model: A Proof of Concept.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a neglected disease caused by an intracellular parasite of the genus. CL lacks tools that allow its understanding and treatment follow-up. This article presents the use of metrical and optical tools for the analysis of the temporal evolution of treated skin ulcers caused by CL in an animal model.

Endometriosis and irritable bowel syndrome: A systematic review and meta-analyses.

Objective: To estimate the pooled odds ratio of endometriosis and irritable bowel syndrome, and to estimate the pooled prevalence of irritable bowel syndrome in patients with endometriosis.

Data Sources: Using Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, Science Direct, ClinicalTrials.gov, Web of Science, and CINAHL, we conducted a systematic literature search through October 2021, using the key terms "endometriosis" and "irritable bowel syndrome.

Biocompatible and Antimicrobial Electrospun Membranes Based on Nanocomposites of Chitosan/Poly (Vinyl Alcohol)/Graphene Oxide.

Tissue engineering is gaining attention rapidly to replace and repair defective tissues in the human body after illnesses and accidents in different organs. Electrospun nanofiber scaffolds have emerged as a potential alternative for cell regeneration and organ replacement. In this paper, porous membranes, based on nanofibrous chitosan (CS), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), and graphene oxide (GO), were obtained via electrospinning methodology.

Minimum number of measurements for evaluating soursop (Annona muricata L.) yield.

Repeatability studies on fruit species are of great importance to identify the minimum number of measurements necessary to accurately select superior genotypes. This study aimed to identify the most efficient method to estimate the repeatability coefficient (r) and predict the minimum number of measurements needed for a more accurate evaluation of soursop (Annona muricata L.) genotypes based on fruit yield.

Antibacterial Activity of Aluminum in Clay from the Colombian Amazon.

The problems of antibiotic overuse compel us to seek alternative antibacterial agents. Some clays have been shown to kill antibiotic-resistant human pathogens and may provide an alternative to known antibiotics. Here we show that Al toxicity plays a central role in the antibacterial action of a kaolin-rich clay from the Colombian Amazon (AMZ).

Prevalence of peri-implant disease on platform switching implants: a cross-sectional pilot study.

The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of mucositis and peri-implantitis associated with the use of two types of implants-conventional versus platform switching after one year of loading. A longitudinal study of 64 implants in 25 patients was performed. Clinical variables, such as clinical pocket depth and bleeding upon probing, plaque, mobility, gingival recession, clinical attachment loss, and radiographic bone loss, were analyzed.

Unraveling the antibacterial mode of action of a clay from the Colombian Amazon.

Natural antibacterial clays can inhibit growth of human pathogens; therefore, understanding the antibacterial mode of action may lead to new applications for health. The antibacterial modes of action have shown differences based on mineralogical constraints. Here we investigate a natural clay from the Colombian Amazon (AMZ) known to the Uitoto natives as a healing clay.

What sense can the sense-making perspective make for economics?

A landscape of interdisciplinary decision theories is sketched with a tentative place for the sense-making approach presented by Salvatore et al (2009). Uncertainty and ambiguity are highlighted as key concepts in both, economics and sense-making perspectives aligning possible and useful conceptual coincidences among post Keynesian economics (Shackle 1974; Davidson 2005) cultural psychology (Salvatore et al. 2009) and organization theory (March 1978, 1994; Weick 1995).

Adverse reactions to venom immunotherapy.

The authors treated 22 adults patients with histories of systemic hypersensitivity to hymenoptera with venom extracts using a traditional approach to immunotherapy. Patients had an immunological response consisting of an increase in venom specific IgE and IgG. Twelve patients underwent an uneventful in-hospital insect sting challenge.

Evidence for the involvement of monocyte-derived toxic oxygen metabolites in the lymphocyte dysfunction of Hodgkin's disease.

This study was performed to see if adherent cell-derived toxic oxygen metabolites contribute to the suppression of mononuclear cell blastogenic responses in Hodgkin's disease. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 10 patients with Hodgkin's disease were stimulated in culture with the mitogen PHA in the presence of the prostaglandin inhibitor indomethacin and the antioxidants catalase or vitamin E. Patient lymphocytes showed significant increases in PHA-induced proliferation at all PHA doses when cultured with indomethacin.