Convalescent Plasma Therapy in Severe COVID-19: A Pilot Study at the Beginning of the Pandemic Outbreak in Southern Chile.

Unlabelled: Convalescent Plasma (CP) from patients who recovered from COVID-19 may present neutralizing antibodies against viral protein S of SARS-CoV-2 and emerged as a potential therapeutic alternative for patients with severe infection at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic breakout. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the effect and safety of CP treatment in patients with severe COVID-19.

Methods: We designed a quasi-experimental study that included 156 patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection confirmed by RT-qPCR and severe symptoms who received CP.

Diversity of Culturable Bacteria from Endemic Medicinal Plants of the Highlands of the Province of Parinacota, Chile.

Endemic medicinal plants that grow at altitudes in northern Chile have been traditionally used for therapeutic applications by Aymara doctors. Several studies have analyzed the biological properties of these plants for therapeutic purposes. The aim was to characterize at molecular and biochemical levels the bacteria that live in the rhizosphere and roots from endemic medicinal plants that grow between 3681-5104 m.

Cytotoxic Effects on Breast Cancer Cell Lines of Chalcones Derived from a Natural Precursor and Their Molecular Docking Analysis.

This study aimed to determine the in vitro cytotoxicity and understand possible cytotoxic mechanisms via an in silico study of eleven chalcones synthesized from two acetophenones. Five were synthesized from a prenylacetophenone isolated from a plant that grows in the Andean region of the Atacama Desert. The cytotoxic activity of all the synthesized chalcones was tested against breast cancer cell lines using an MTT cell proliferation assay.

Concordance Between Clinical and Laboratory Diagnosis of Abnormal Vaginal Discharge in Chilean Women.

Objective:  To determine the concordance between the clinical diagnosis of women with abnormal vaginal discharge (AVD) and laboratory results using molecular detection and observation of the vaginal microbiota.

Methods:  Cross-sectional study conducted in 2018 in Temuco, Chile. A total of 25 midwives from 12 health centers participated.

[Factors associated with Chlamydia trachomatis in women with vaginitis attending in primary health care].

Background: Chlamydia trachomatis is recognized as the causative agent of one of the most common and curable sexually transmitted infections (STIs). In women, it can be a trigger for pelvic inflammatory disease, a risk factor for infertility or acquisition of other STIs.

Aim: To determine CT in women with vaginitis and associate it with sociodemographic, sexual, clinical, and vaginal microbiota factors.

Exercise training for adult lung transplant recipients.

Background: Pulmonary transplantation is the final treatment option for people with end-stage respiratory diseases. Evidence suggests that exercise training may contribute to speeding up physical recovery in adults undergoing lung transplantation, helping to minimize or resolve impairments due to physical inactivity in both the pre- and post-transplant stages. However, there is a lack of detailed guidelines on how exercise training should be carried out in this specific sub-population.

UHPLC-DAD Characterization of L. from Atacama Desert Andean Region and Antioxidant, Antibacterial and Enzyme Inhibition Activities.

The Lamiaceae family is an important source of species among medicinal plants highly valued for their biological properties and numerous uses in folk medicine. is one of the main genera that belong to this family. The purpose of the study was to determine the phenolic composition of the extract and evaluate the antimicrobial, antioxidant, and inhibitory activities of this species that grows in the Andean region of the Atacama Desert.

Circulating miRNA-23b and miRNA-143 Are Potential Biomarkers for In-Stent Restenosis.

In-stent restenosis (ISR) is one of the main complications in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary angioplasty, and microRNAs participate in the contractile-to-synthetic phenotypic switch of vascular smooth muscle cells, a hallmark of restenosis development. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) can be released into circulation from injured tissues, enticing a potential role as noninvasive biomarkers. We aimed to evaluate circulating levels of miRNA-23b, miRNA-143, and miRNA-145 as diagnostic markers of ISR.

Prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease: a population-based cross-sectional study in southern Chile.

Background: This study assessed the prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in a general adult population from Temuco in southern Chile. The association of GERD with demographic variables was also examined.

Methods: A cross-sectional study among the general population of Temuco in southern Chile was conducted in 2017, using a validated and reliable questionnaire for detecting GERD.

[Frequency of cervical cytological alterations and human papilloma virus in a sample of university students in Temuco, Chile].

Background: The early onset of sexual activity can promote the development of cervical alterations and sexually transmitted infections, especially the human papillomavirus (HPV) very common in adolescents and young people.

Aim: The condition of the cervix, HPV and sexual behavior in young women under 25 years of age were analyzed.

Methods: 182 university students, healthy, sexually active, 18-24 years old, without vaccine for HPV participated.

Determining the Operating Costs of a Medical Surveillance Program for Copper Miners Exposed to High Altitude-Induced Chronic Intermittent Hypoxia in Chile Using a Combination of Microcosting and Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing.

Background: Copper mining installations in Chile use a large number of workers who do their jobs at high altitudes, exposing them to the conditions of chronic intermittent hypobaric hypoxia. The Chilean Safety Association implements the surveillance program.

Objective: This organization, under the sponsorship of the Chilean Superintendency of Social Security, was interested in determining the costs involved in this program to support its decision-making processes and to improve its performance.

Cost-Effectiveness of Exercise-Based Cardiac Rehabilitation in Chilean Patients Surviving Acute Coronary Syndrome.

Purpose: To assess the cost-effectiveness of 3 models of exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation (CR) compared with standard care in survivors of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) within the public health system in Chile.

Methods: A Markov model was designed using 5 health states: ACS survivor, second ACS, complications, general mortality, and cardiovascular mortality. The transition probabilities between health states for standard care and corresponding relative risk for CR were calculated from a systematic review.

Latin American Clinical Epidemiology Network Series - Paper 8: Ticagrelor was cost-effective vs. clopidogrel in acute coronary syndrome in Chile.

Objective: To evaluate the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of the use of ticagrelor as a substitute for clopidogrel for secondary prevention of acute coronary syndrome in Chile.

Study Design And Setting: Cost-effectiveness analysis based on a Markov model: Safety and effectiveness data of ticagrelor were obtained from a systematic review of the literature. Costs are expressed in Chilean pesos (CLP) as of 2013.

Latin American Clinical Epidemiology Network Series - Paper 2: Apixaban was cost-effective vs. acenocoumarol in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation with moderate to severe risk of embolism in Chile.

Objective: Nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) is a risk factor for ischemic stroke and systemic embolism. New oral anticoagulants are currently available. The objective of this study was to assess the incremental cost-utility ratio (ICUR) for apixaban vs.

Efficacious In Vitro and In Vivo Effects of Dihydrosphingosine-Ethambutol Analogues Against Susceptible and Multi-drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Background And Aims: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major worldwide health problem in part due to the lack of new drugs and the emergence of multidrug-resistant strains (MDR). The aim of this study was to select anti-tuberculosis drug candidates from a collection of 69 synthetic sphingosine-ethambutol analogues through in vitro and in vivo evaluations.

Methods: The 69 compounds were evaluated in vitro against two Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains, a drug susceptible (H37Rv) and a MDR clinical isolate (CIBIN-99).

[Inequality in the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections among schoolchildren from urban and rural schools].

Background: Parasitic infections in children reflect social inequalities throughout the world, especially in urban and rural territories.

Aim: To assess inequalities in the prevalence of infections by protozoa and intestinal helminths and associated factors in children of different geographical areas from the commune of Puerto Montt.

Material And Methods: Cross-sectional study carried out in 103 students from one urban and two rural schools in the commune of Puerto Montt.

In vitro and in vivo evaluation of 2-aminoalkanol and 1,2-alkanediamine derivatives against Strongyloides venezuelensis.

Background: Strongyloidiasis is a parasitic disease widely present in tropical and subtropical areas. Strongyloides stercoralis represents the main species that infects human beings. Ivermectin is the current drug of choice; however, issues related with treatment failure in patients with diabetes or infected with T-lymphotropic virus-1 make the identification of new molecules for alternative treatment a priority.

[Mother-newborn relational risk - Study of prevalence and associated variables].

Introduction: Clinical evidence reveals the importance of mother-newborn bonding experience for health promoting and maintenance of human life. If the newborn lacks care and affection, she/he may develop an attachment disorder. A predictive scale regarding the risk of mothernewborn relationships is available, which makes possible an early intervention to prevent the development of relational disorders.

Trypanocidal Activity of Long Chain Diamines and Aminoalcohols.

Thirteen aminoalcohols and eight diamines were obtained and tested against Trypanosoma cruzi epimastigotes strains MG, JEM and CL-B5 clone. Some of them were equal or more potent (1.0-6.

[Adaptation and validation of checklists to detect medication prescription and dispensing errors].

Background: Adverse effects of medications are an important source of morbidity. Prescription and dispensing errors are an important cause of these adverse effects.

Aim: To adapt and validate two checklists, one to measure errors in handwritten prescriptions and other to detected errors in the medication dispensing process of hospital pharmacies for outpatient care.

Validation of the chronic respiratory questionnaire in the Colombian population with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Objective: To assess the validity and reliability of the chronic respiratory questionnaire (CRQ) in the measurement of HRQL in the Colombian population with COPD.

Study Design And Setting: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 200 patients diagnosed with COPD according to GOLD criteria. Convergence validity was evaluated by correlating the questionnaire results with other clinical variables such as exercise tolerance, forced expiratory volume at the first second (FEV1), and depression levels.

Mechanisms of action of substituted β-amino alkanols on Leishmania donovani.

Leishmaniasis is the protozoan disease second in importance for human health, superseded only by malaria; however, the options for chemotherapeutic treatment are increasingly limited due to drug resistance and toxicity. Under this perspective, a quest for new chemical compounds is urgently needed. An N-substituted 2-aminoalkan-1-ol scaffold has been shown to be a versatile scaffold for antiparasitic activity.

[The main methodological aspects in Health Technology Assessment].

This article reviews the most relevant methodological aspects involved in Health Technology Assessment (HTA). Firstly, it addresses the process of defining the research problem (or scoping). Then it explains some specific aspects of systematic reviews of evidence, as well as indirect and mixed comparisons of the effectiveness of interventions.

[Psychomotor development in offspring of mothers with post partum depression].

Background: Postpartum depression (PPD) has adverse effects on psychomotor development of the offspring.

Aim: To evaluate the relationship between PPD and psychomotor development in children aged 18 months, consulting in primary care.

Material And Methods: Cross-sectional study with 360 infants and their mothers.