Socioeconomic inequalities in COVID-19 infection and vaccine uptake among children and adolescents in Catalonia, Spain: a population-based cohort study.

Introduction: This study aims to investigate the relationship between deprivation, as measured by a socioeconomic deprivation index (SDI) score for census tract urban areas, and COVID-19 infections and vaccine uptake among children and adolescents before and after the vaccination rollout in Catalonia, Spain.

Methods: We conducted a population-based cohort study using primary care records. Individuals were followed 3 months before the start of the vaccination campaign in Spain and 3 months after.

Executive summary: Clinical practice guidelines on the management of resistant tuberculosis of the Spanish Society of Pulmonology and Thoracic Surgery (SEPAR) and the Spanish Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology (SEIMC).

The Spanish Society of Pneumology and Thoracic Surgery (SEPAR) and the Spanish Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology (SEIMC) have developed together Clinical Practice Guidelines (GPC) on the management of people affected by tuberculosis (TB) resistant to drugs with activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. These clinical practice guidelines include the latest updates of the SEPAR regulations for the diagnosis and treatment of drug-resistant TB from 2017 to 2020 as the starting point. The methodology included asking relevant clinical questions based on PICO methodology, a literature search focusing on each question, and a systematic and comprehensive evaluation of the evidence, with a summary of this evidence for each question.

Bisphosphonate drug holidays in osteoporosis according to fracture risk profile.

Unlabelled: We analyzed the incidence of fractures and changes in bone mineral density and bone turnover markers in 264 patients who discontinued bisphosphonates. Fractures were recorded in 12.3%.

Increased Platelet Adhesiveness in Patients with Venous Thromboembolic Disease.

 Association between global platelet function and the risk of venous thromboembolic disease (VTE) has been proposed, though the mechanisms do not involve increased platelet aggregation. However, platelet adhesiveness has not been systematically explored in VTE patients.  To evaluate platelet adhesive functions in VTE patients.

PET biodistribution study of subcutaneous and intravenous administration of adalimumab in an inflammatory bowel disease model.

Monoclonal antibodies targeting tumor necrosis factor-alpha (antiTNF-α) are used for patients with immuno-mediated illness as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, 20-40 % of IBD patients do not respond to these therapies, and increasing knowledge of biodistribution could optimize their use and consequently their effectiveness. The aim of this study is to compare the biodistribution of adalimumab after intravenous (IV) and subcutaneous (SC) administration using Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imaging in IBD animal models.

Sitagliptin eye drops prevent the impairment of retinal neurovascular unit in the new Trpv2 rat model.

Impaired function of the retinal neurovascular unit (NVU) is an early event in diabetic retinopathy (DR). It has been previously shown that topical delivery of the dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor sitagliptin can protect against diabetes-mediated dysfunction of the retinal NVU in the db/db mouse. The aim of the present study was to examine whether sitagliptin could prevent the DR-like lesions within the NVU of the new non-diabetic model of DR, the Trpv2 knockout rat (Trpv2).

Trends in antiseizure medication prescription in Idiopathic generalized epilepsy over the last 10 years.

Background: Idiopathic Generalized Epilepsies (IGE) are a subset of syndromes defined by the International League against Epilepsy (ILAE) with the particularity to respond to a narrow number of ASMs and particularly to valproic acid (VPA). Recommendations have changed in the last decade. We aimed to describe changes in antiseizure medication (ASM) in adult IGE over the last 10 years.

Costs during the first year after stroke by degree of functional disability: A societal perspective.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to estimate societal costs during the first year after stroke by degree of functional disability.

Patients And Methods: Descriptive study of the cumulative costs incurred during 1-year follow-up of a cohort of patients with stroke in Catalonia (Spain) participating in a multicentre, population-based, cluster-randomised trial (RACECAT). Patients were recruited between September 2017 and January 2019.

Burnout Among Physicians of Specialties Dedicated to Liver Transplantation.

Burnout is increasingly relevant among healthcare professionals. The aim of this study is to describe the prevalence of burnout and other parameters of professional satisfaction among different specialists dedicated to Liver Transplantation (LT) in transplant teams. A working group from the Spanish Society of LT designed a survey with 39 questions evaluating the prevalence of parameters related to professional satisfaction, including burnout.

A Phase II, Multicentric, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Proof of Concept Study of Efficacy and Safety of Rifamycin SV-MMX 600 mg Tablets Administered Three or Two Times Daily to Patients With Diarrhea-Predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

Introduction: Treatment with nonresorbable antibiotics is effective in diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D). Multimatrix (MMX) formulations ensure targeted drug delivery to the mid-distal small bowel and colon-traditionally considered the origin of IBS symptoms. To assess the efficacy of rifamycin SV-MMX for the treatment of IBS-D.

Blood-brain barrier permeable β-blockers association with Alzheimer's disease cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers levels in non-demented individuals.

β-blockers that easily cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) seem to diminish the risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD), hypothetically facilitating waste clearance. However, their effect on AD pathophysiological markers is unknown. We compared cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) AD biomarker levels among non-demented individuals taking low, intermediate, or high BBB permeable β-blockers in two samples (ADNI:  = 216; EPAD:  = 79).

Immunomolecular and reactivity landscapes of gut IgA subclasses in homeostasis and inflammatory bowel disease.

The human gut includes plasma cells (PCs) expressing immunoglobulin A1 (IgA1) or IgA2, two structurally distinct IgA subclasses with elusive regulation, function, and reactivity. We show here that intestinal IgA1+ and IgA2+ PCs co-emerged early in life, comparably accumulated somatic mutations, and were enriched within short-lived CD19+ and long-lived CD19- PC subsets, respectively. IgA2+ PCs were extensively clonally related to IgA1+ PCs and a subset of them presumably emerged from IgA1+ precursors.

Assessing sepsis-induced immunosuppression to predict positive blood cultures.

Introduction: Bacteremia is a life-threatening condition that can progress to sepsis and septic shock, leading to significant mortality in the emergency department (ED). The standard diagnostic method, blood culture, is time-consuming and prone to false positives and false negatives. Although not widely accepted, several clinical and artificial intelligence-based algorithms have been recently developed to predict bacteremia.

Efficacy of the preformulated irrigation solution Bactisure® in acute periprosthetic joint infection debridement surgery: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Despite significant progress in orthopaedic surgery, the prevalence of periprosthetic joint infections (PJIs) remains persistent, and future increases are expected due to the increasing number of joint arthroplasties. PJIs are intricately connected to biofilm-producing bacteria, which encase infected prostheses, impairing the effectiveness of antibiotics and the immune system. Acute PJIs with immature biofilms are traditionally managed with debridement, antibiotics, and implant retention (DAIR).

Prediabetes and CKD: Does a causal relationship exist.

The relationship between diabetes and the development of kidney complications is well known, but the understanding of prediabetes and insulin resistance with impaired kidney function has been scarcely assessed. Various factors could explain this phenomenon, from the lack of standardization in the definitions of prediabetes, to the erratic and inconsistent evidence in large-scale epidemiological and cohort studies. It seems that the pathophysiological pathway of prediabetes could be related to inflammation and neurohormonal hyperactivation, factors present even before the onset of diabetes, which might be the main drivers of glomerular hyperfiltration, albuminuria, and impaired glomerular filtration rate.

Enteric fever in a young man with bowel wall thickening and hepatosplenomegaly.

Typhoid fever (enteric fever), caused by Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Typhi (S. Typhi), is a public health problem especially in South Asia and sub-Saharan African countries, while incidence remains low in most other parts of the world, where the disease is primary related to recent travel to endemic countries or contact with chronic carriers.

An innovative gamification tool to enhance intercultural competence and self-efficacy among healthcare professionals caring for vulnerable migrants and refugees.

Background: The growing number of vulnerable migrants and refugees (VMRs) in the European Union presents challenges to healthcare systems, emphasizing the need for enhanced intercultural competence training for healthcare professionals. Educational escape rooms, using gamification-based principles, may offer an innovative solution to improve these competencies.

Objective: This pilot study evaluates the acceptability and preliminary effectiveness of an educational escape room aimed at improving intercultural competence, self-efficacy, and knowledge among healthcare students and professionals caring for VMRs.