62 results
Invariant measures of Toeplitz subshifts on non-amenable groups
- Part of
- PAULINA CECCHI BERNALES, MARÍA ISABEL CORTEZ, JAIME GÓMEZ
-
- Journal:
- Ergodic Theory and Dynamical Systems , First View
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 04 March 2024, pp. 1-30
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Open access
- HTML
- Export citation
-
Let G be a countable residually finite group (for instance, ${\mathbb F}_2$) and let $\overleftarrow {G}$ be a totally disconnected metric compactification of G equipped with the action of G by left multiplication. For every $r\geq 1$, we construct a Toeplitz G-subshift $(X,\sigma ,G)$, which is an almost one-to-one extension of $\overleftarrow {G}$, having r ergodic measures $\nu _1, \ldots ,\nu _r$ such that for every $1\leq i\leq r$, the measure-theoretic dynamical system $(X,\sigma ,G,\nu _i)$ is isomorphic to $\overleftarrow {G}$ endowed with the Haar measure. The construction we propose is general (for amenable and non-amenable residually finite groups); however, we point out the differences and obstructions that could appear when the acting group is not amenable.
P79: Correlates of anticipatory grief in family caregivers of persons with dementia
- Isabel Bermejo-Gómez, Laura Gallego-Alberto, Isabel Cabrera, Laura Mérida-Herrera, Isabel Lozano-Montoya, Javier Gómez-Pavón, María Márquez-González
-
- Journal:
- International Psychogeriatrics / Volume 35 / Issue S1 / December 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 02 February 2024, pp. 121-122
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Export citation
-
Objective:
Anticipatory grief is frequently experienced by family caregivers of persons with dementia. It is defined as the feelings of pain and loss that appear in the caregiver prior to the death of the person cared for, and it is linked to negative consequences for the physical and psychological caregiver’s health. However, more research is needed about this construct. The purpose of this work was to explore the differences regarding gender and kinship in anticipatory grief in caregivers and to explore its associations with distress experienced by the caregivers.
Method:The sample consisted of 70 caregivers. The anticipatory grief was measured with the Caregiver Grief Scale (CGS; Meichsner et al., 2016). Also, frequency of problematic behaviours in the person with dementia and caregiver reactions to them (RMPBC; Teri et al., 1992), depressive symptomatology (CES-D; Radloff, 1977), guilt (CGQ; Losada et al., 2010), anxiety (Tension Sub-scale of POMS’s Questionnaire; Fernández et al., 2000), emotional ambivalence (CAS; Losada et al., 2017) and the experiential avoidance in caregiving (EACQ; Losada et al., 2014) were measured.
Independent-samples T-tests were conducted to study if there were differences in anticipatory grief according to the gender of the caregiver and the kinship with the person with dementia. Secondly, Pearson correlations were conducted to study the associations between anticipatory grief and emotional distress variables.
Results:The results showed no significative differences according to the gender of the caregiver in anticipatory grief. However, a longer caregiver ́s age and being a spouse caregiver was related to a greater anticipatory grief. Regarding the person cared for, behavioral problems and caregivers ́ reaction to them were associated with anticipatory grief. With regard to caregiver ́s emotional distress, significant and positive correlations were also obtained between anticipatory grief and its subscales with depressive symptomatology, guilt, anxiety, emotional ambivalence and experiential avoidance in caregiving.
Conclusions:The results suggest that anticipatory grief may have a relevant role in the well-being of dementia family caregivers. Therefore, it is necessary to consider this process in the assessment and intervention in this context with caregivers.
P80: Implicit emotional ambivalence and emotional distress in family carers of people with dementia: Exploratory study.
- Isabel Cabrera, Inés García-Batalloso, Laura Mérida-Herrera, Laura Gallego-Alberto, Vanessa Da Silva, Andrés Losada-Baltar, Isabel Bermejo-Gómez, María Márquez-González
-
- Journal:
- International Psychogeriatrics / Volume 35 / Issue S1 / December 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 02 February 2024, p. 122
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Export citation
-
Objective:
Caring for a relative with dementia is a chronic stress situation related to negative consequences such as elevated depressive and anxiety symptoms. A possible mediator variable explored to explain pathways from chronic stress to emotional distress is emotional ambivalence towards the care-recipient (the simultaneous experience of positive and negative feelings towards the care-recipient). Emotional ambivalence, measured with questionnaires, presents significant associations with depression and anxiety in family carers of people with dementia. However, the self-report of emotional ambivalence is susceptible to being influenced by social desirability. The aim of this study is to present preliminary results that analyze implicit ambivalence and its association with emotional distress in family carers of people with dementia.
Methods:54 caregivers participated in the study (mean age = 61.2, SD = 12.92, 81.5% women). To explore implicit emotional ambivalence, we adapted a sequential priming paradigm developed to measure implicit ambivalence about significant others (Zayas & Shoda, 2015). Two priming stimuli were used: a) neutral (e.g., RRR) and b) valenced prime (i.e., the name of the care-recipient). The targets were positive and negative words that participants have to categorize as positive or negative.
Results:A facilitation-inhibition indexes for positive and negative targets were calculated by subtracting the mean reaction time (RT) for valenced prime from the mean RT for neutral primes. Positive values show a facilitation effect of the valenced prime (i.e., the name of the care-recipient), and negative values inhibition. Participants were classified depending on their results of this indexes: a) positive (facilitation of positive information, inhibition of negative information), b) negative (facilitation of negative information, inhibition of positive information), c) flat (inhibition of positive and negative information), and d) ambivalence (facilitation of positive and negative information). ANOVAS were performed to explore differences between groups in emotional distress. The preliminary results showed that the ambivalence group might present more depressive symptoms compared with the positive group.
Conclusion:This is the first study that analyzed implicit ambivalence in family carers of people with dementia. The preliminary results show the relevance of exploring implicit processes to explain emotional distress in this population.
Incidence and risk factors for catheter-associated urinary tract infection in 623 intensive care units throughout 37 Asian, African, Eastern European, Latin American, and Middle Eastern nations: A multinational prospective research of INICC
- Victor Daniel Rosenthal, Ruijie Yin, Eric Christopher Brown, Brandon Hochahn Lee, Camilla Rodrigues, Sheila Nainan Myatra, Mohit Kharbanda, Prasad Rajhans, Yatin Mehta, Subhash Kumar Todi, Sushmita Basu, Suneeta Sahu, Shakti Bedanta Mishra, Rajesh Chawla, Pravin K. Nair, Rajalakshmi Arjun, Deepak Singla, Kavita Sandhu, Vijayanand Palaniswamy, Arpita Bhakta, Mohd-Basri Mat Nor, Tai Chian-Wern, Ider Bat-Erdene, Subhash P. Acharya, Aamer Ikram, Nellie Tumu, Lili Tao, Gustavo Andres Alvarez, Sandra Liliana Valderrama-Beltran, Luisa Fernanda Jiménez-Alvarez, Claudia Milena Henao-Rodas, Katherine Gomez, Lina Alejandra Aguilar-Moreno, Yuliana Andrea Cano-Medina, Maria Adelia Zuniga-Chavarria, Guadalupe Aguirre-Avalos, Alejandro Sassoe-Gonzalez, Mary Cruz Aleman-Bocanegra, Blanca Estela Hernandez-Chena, Maria Isabel Villegas-Mota, Daisy Aguilar-de-Moros, Alex Castañeda-Sabogal, Eduardo Alexandrino Medeiros, Lourdes Dueñas, Nilton Yhuri Carreazo, Estuardo Salgado, Safaa Abdulaziz-Alkhawaja, Hala Mounir Agha, Amani Ali El-Kholy, Mohammad Abdellatif Daboor, Ertugrul Guclu, Oguz Dursun, Iftihar Koksal, Merve Havan, Suna Secil Ozturk-Deniz, Dincer Yildizdas, Emel Okulu, Abeer Aly Omar, Ziad A. Memish, Jarosław Janc, Sona Hlinkova, Wieslawa Duszynska, George Horhat-Florin, Lul Raka, Michael M. Petrov, Zhilin Jin
-
- Journal:
- Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology / Volume 45 / Issue 5 / May 2024
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 04 January 2024, pp. 567-575
- Print publication:
- May 2024
-
- Article
- Export citation
-
Objective:
To identify urinary catheter (UC)–associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) incidence and risk factors.
Design:A prospective cohort study.
Setting:The study was conducted across 623 ICUs of 224 hospitals in 114 cities in 37 African, Asian, Eastern European, Latin American, and Middle Eastern countries.
Participants:The study included 169,036 patients, hospitalized for 1,166,593 patient days.
Methods:Data collection took place from January 1, 2014, to February 12, 2022. We identified CAUTI rates per 1,000 UC days and UC device utilization (DU) ratios stratified by country, by ICU type, by facility ownership type, by World Bank country classification by income level, and by UC type. To estimate CAUTI risk factors, we analyzed 11 variables using multiple logistic regression.
Results:Participant patients acquired 2,010 CAUTIs. The pooled CAUTI rate was 2.83 per 1,000 UC days. The highest CAUTI rate was associated with the use of suprapubic catheters (3.93 CAUTIs per 1,000 UC days); with patients hospitalized in Eastern Europe (14.03) and in Asia (6.28); with patients hospitalized in trauma (7.97), neurologic (6.28), and neurosurgical ICUs (4.95); with patients hospitalized in lower–middle-income countries (3.05); and with patients in public hospitals (5.89).
The following variables were independently associated with CAUTI: Age (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.01; P < .0001), female sex (aOR, 1.39; P < .0001), length of stay (LOS) before CAUTI-acquisition (aOR, 1.05; P < .0001), UC DU ratio (aOR, 1.09; P < .0001), public facilities (aOR, 2.24; P < .0001), and neurologic ICUs (aOR, 11.49; P < .0001).
Conclusions:CAUTI rates are higher in patients with suprapubic catheters, in middle-income countries, in public hospitals, in trauma and neurologic ICUs, and in Eastern European and Asian facilities.
Based on findings regarding risk factors for CAUTI, focus on reducing LOS and UC utilization is warranted, as well as implementing evidence-based CAUTI-prevention recommendations.
The Influence of High-Concentration Na Hexametaphosphate Dispersant on the Rheological Behavior of Aqueous Kaolin Dispersions
- Francisco-José Rubio-Hernández, Nicolás-Marcelo Páez-Flor, Ana-Isabel Gómez-Merino, Francisco-José Sánchez-Luque, Reinaldo Delgado-García, Leonardo Goyos-Pérez
-
- Journal:
- Clays and Clay Minerals / Volume 64 / Issue 3 / June 2016
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 01 January 2024, pp. 210-219
-
- Article
- Export citation
-
Previous studies of dispersant—aqueous kaolin dispersions have indicated clearly that the concentration of the dispersant determines the type of rheological behavior. Those studies focused on the use of dispersant concentrations below the limit of saturation, ignoring what might have happened at concentrations above that limit, and the practical uses to which such information might be put. The present study examined the influence of sodium hexametaphosphate dispersant on the viscous and viscoelastic properties of aqueous kaolin dispersions when its concentration was greater than the saturation limit. A concentric-cylinders geometry sensor system (with a narrow gap between the cylinders) was used to test the rheological behavior of Na hexametaphosphate-aqueous kaolin dispersions. Aqueous kaolin dispersions were viscoplastic, thixotropic, and viscoelastic fluids. The analysis of frequency sweep tests in the linear viscoelastic limit and steady-flow curves led to the conclusion that an increase in the dispersant concentration above the limit of saturation gave way to ‘solid-like’ dispersions.
89 Depression and Executive Function in a Mexican Population
- Natalia Lozano Acosta, Yvette De Jesus, Krissy E Smith, Isabel D.C. Munoz, Adriana Cuello Cancino, Mariam Gomez, Raymundo Cervantes, Daniel W Lopez Hernandez
-
- Journal:
- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 289-290
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Export citation
-
Objective:
Depression is a mood or emotional state that is characterized by feelings of sadness (i.e., a loss of interest in activities, low self-worth) for a minimum of two weeks. Executive function is a set of mental processes that are necessary for cognitive control of behavior to achieve and successfully execute a specific goal (e.g., inhibition). Researchers have reported that people with abnormal symptoms of depression (ASD) demonstrate worse executive functioning abilities (e.g., planning) compared to persons with normal symptoms of depression (NSD). Currently, there is a lack of research studies examining how depressive symptoms influence executive functioning in people that identify as Mexican. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the influence of depression on executive functioning in a healthy Mexican Spanish speaking population. We hypothesized that participants with NSD would demonstrate better executive functioning abilities compared to participants with ASD.
Participants and Methods:The sample in the present study consisted of 87 neurologically and psychologically healthy Mexican participants all residing in Mexico. Mean age was 24.71 (SD = 9.66) and 14.78 (SD = 4.50) years of education completed. Participants completed a neuropsychological battery in Spanish and were divided into two groups: NSD (n = 61) and ASD (n = 26). The Stroop Color Word Test - Color-Word (SCWT-CW) task, phonemic verbal fluency task consisting of three trials, and semantic verbal fluency task consisting of one trial were used to evaluate executive functioning. In addition, participants completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale in Spanish to report the current level of depression. ANCOVAS, controlling for age were used to examine executive functioning performance. We used a threshold of p < .05 for statistical significance.
Results:ANCOVAS revealed the NSD group outperformed the ASD group on the SCWT-CW task, p = .004, np2 = .10. We also found the NSD group outperformed the ASD group on the phonemic verbal fluency task, p = .045, np2 = .05. Finally, no significant differences were found between depression groups on the semantic verbal fluency task.
Conclusions:As we predicted, the NSD group demonstrated better executive functioning abilities compared to the ASD group, except on the semantic verbal fluency task. Our data suggests that the current level of depression have a significant influence on verbal executive functioning abilities in a Spanish speaking population. Future studies with larger sample size should evaluate if current symptoms of depression influence non-verbal executive functioning abilities in a Spanish speaking Mexican population.
25 Exploring Phonemic and Semantic Fluency Ability Across Multiple Generations
- Krithika Sivaramakrishnan, Dorthy Schmidt, Krissy E Smith, Brittany Heuchert, Adriana C Cuello, Natalia L Acosta, Miriam Gomez, Isabel D Munoz, Yvette D Jesus, Daniel W Lopez-Hernandez
-
- Journal:
- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 438-439
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Export citation
-
Objective:
Verbal fluency tasks evaluate executive functioning by requiring a person to provide words within a certain time period that start with a certain letter (phonemic fluency) or category (semantic fluency). Research shows that age impacts test takers’ phonemic and semantic verbal fluency performance. In fact, it has been suggested that phonemic verbal fluency peaks around age 30 to 39 and begins to decline at older ages. In contrast to phonemic fluency, research suggests that semantic fluency increases steadily between test takers until age 12 and begins declining around age 20. A generation is a cohort of people born within a certain period who share age and experiences. Studies show that Generation X individuals (persons born between 1965-1980) outperform Generation Y (persons born between 19811995) and Generation Z individuals (persons born between 1965-1980) on the Cordoba Naming Test. To our knowledge, no study has investigated verbal fluency performance across generational groups. We predicted that Generation X individuals would outperform individuals from Generation Y and Z on both verbal fluency measures.
Participants and Methods:The sample of the present study consisted of 107 participants with a mean age of 27.39 (SD = 9.16). Participants were divided into three groups: Generation X (n = 19), Generation Y (n = 52), and Generation Z (n = 36). The phonemic verbal fluency task consisted of three trials and the semantic verbal fluency task consisted of one trial, one minute each. A series of ANCOVAs with Bonferroni post-hoc tests were used to evaluate verbal fluency performance between generational groups. All participants passed performance validity testing.
Results:We found significant differences between our generational groups on both verbal fluency tasks. Post-hoc tests revealed that the Generation Y group outperformed both Generation X and Z groups on both verbal fluency tasks, p’s <.05, np2 =.11 -.16. No significant differences were found on either verbal fluency task between the Generation X and Z groups.
Conclusions:Contrary to our hypothesis, Generation Y individuals possessed better phonemic and semantic fluency than both Generation X and Z individuals. Meanwhile, Generation X individuals did not significantly differ on any of the verbal fluency tasks compared to Generation Z individuals. Speaking multiple languages has been shown to impact verbal fluency performance. In our sample, the Generation X and Z groups consisted primarily of bilingual speakers compared to the Generation Y group. Examining generational differences is essential to understand the unique characteristics and impact of the times in which various individuals have grown up. Future research, for instance, should evaluate the influence of bilingualism across generational groups on verbal fluency performance.
30 Analyzing Spanish Speakers Cordoba Naming Test Performance
- Raymundo Cervantes, Isabel D.C. Munoz, Estefania J. Aguirre, Natalia Lozano Acosta, Mariam Gomez, Adriana C. Cuello, Krissy E. Smith, Diana I. Palacios Mata, Krithika Sivaramakrishnan, Yvette De Jesus, Santiago I. Espinoza, Diana M. R. Maqueda, David J. Hardy, Tara L. Victor, Alberto L. Fernandez, Daniel W. Lopez-Hernandez
-
- Journal:
- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 443-444
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Export citation
-
Objective:
A 30-item confrontation naming test was developed in Argentina for Spanish speakers, The Cordoba Naming Test (CNT). The Boston Naming Test is an established confrontation naming task in the United States. Researchers have used the Boston Naming Test to identify individuals with different clinical pathologies (e.g., Alzheimer’s disease). The current literature on how Spanish speakers across various countries perform on confrontational naming tasks is limited. To our knowledge, one study investigated CNT performance across three Spanish-speaking countries (i.e., Argentina, Mexico, and Guatemala). Investigators found that the Guatemalan group underperformed on the CNT compared to the Argentine and Mexican groups. The purpose of this study was to extend the current literature and investigate CNT performance across five Spanish-speaking countries (i.e., Argentina, Mexico, Guatemala, Colombia, United States). We predicted that the Argentine group would outperform the other Spanish-speaking countries.
Participants and Methods:The present study sample consisted of 502 neurologically and psychologically healthy participants with a mean age of 29.06 (SD = 13.41) with 14.75 years of education completed (SD = 3.01). Participants were divided into five different groups based on their country of birth and current country residency (i.e., United States, Mexico, Guatemala, Argentina, & Colombia). All participants consented to voluntary participation and completed the CNT and a comprehensive background questionnaire in Spanish. The CNT consisted of 30 black and white line drawings, ranging from easy to hard in difficulty. An ANCOVA, controlling for gender, education, and age, was used to evaluate CNT performance between the five Spanish-speaking country groups. Meanwhile, a Bonferroni post-hoc test was utilized to evaluate the significant differences between Spanish-speaking groups. We used a threshold of p < .05 for statistical significance.
Results:Results revealed significant group differences between the five Spanish speaking groups on the CNT, p = .000, np2 = .48. Bonferroni post-hoc test revealed that the United States group significantly underperformed on the CNT compared to all the Spanish-speaking groups. Next, we found the Guatemalan group underperformed on the CNT compared to the Argentinian, Mexican, and Colombian groups. Additionally, we found the Argentinian group outperformed the Mexican, Guatemalan, and United States groups on the CNT. No significant differences were found between the Argentinian group and Colombian group or the Mexican group and Colombian group on the CNT.
Conclusions:As predicted, the Argentinian group outperformed all the Spanish-speaking groups on the CNT except the Colombian group. Additionally, we found that the United States group underperformed on the CNT compared to all the Spanish-speaking groups. A possible explanation is that Spanish is not the official language in the United States compared to the rest of the Spanish-speaking groups. Meanwhile, a possible reason why the Argentinian and Colombian groups demonstrated better CNT performances might have been that it was less culturally sensitive than the United States, Mexican, and Guatemalan groups. Further analysis is needed with bigger sample sizes across other Spanish-speaking countries (e.g., Costa Rica, Chile) to evaluate what variables, if any, are influencing CNT performance.
68 Bilinguals' Perceived Workloads on The Boston Naming Test
- Krithika Sivaramakrishnan, Yvette D Jesus, Dorthy Schmidt, Brittany Heuchert, Krissy E Smith, Adriana C Cancino, Natalia Lozano, Miriam Gomez, Isabel D Munoz, Daniel W Lopez-Hernandez
-
- Journal:
- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, pp. 272-273
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Export citation
-
Objective:
The Boston Naming Test (BNT) is a 60-item confrontation naming task requiring participants to name a series of pictures. Prior research has shown that bilingual children have smaller vocabularies than monolinguals and that this effect continues into adulthood. Numerous studies have confirmed that bilingual adults name fewer pictures correctly than monolinguals on the BNT. Research also shows that self-reported workload correlates with neuropsychological test performance and that estimates of workload provide additional information regarding cognitive outcomes. Hardy and Wright (2018) conditionally validated a measure of perceived mental workload called the NASA Task Load Index (NASA-TLX; Hart & Staveland 1988) with healthy adults on a neuropsychological test (i.e., the Tower of Hanoi). Research also shows that bilinguals report higher perceived workloads on cognitive tasks compared to monolinguals. Although this work has recently extended to other tests, to our knowledge, the workload profile of the BNT remains relatively unexplored. We evaluated BNT performance and perceived workload via the NASA-TLX in monolinguals and bilinguals. We predicted that monolinguals would outperform bilinguals on the BNT, but that bilinguals would report higher workloads.
Participants and Methods:The study sample consisted of 84 healthy participants (36 monolinguals, 48 bilinguals) with a mean age of 28.94 (SD = 10.76). Participants completed the standard 60-item BNT in English. The NASA-TLX scale was utilized to evaluate perceived workload across six subscales. The NASA-TLX was also completed in English after the completion of the BNT. ANOVAs were used to test BNT performance and perceived workload ratings between our language groups.
Results:We found that monolinguals performed better on the BNT compared to bilinguals, p =.001, np2 = 24. However, bilinguals reported exerting more effort when completing the BNT compared to monolinguals, p =.002, np2 = .11. Additionally. bilinguals also experienced more frustration when completing the BNT compared to monolinguals, p =.034, np2 = .05.
Conclusions:As expected, results revealed that monolinguals outperformed bilingual participants on the BNT. However, bilinguals exerted more effort on the BNT and reported the BNT to be more frustrating. A possible reason for bilinguals underperforming and reporting higher perceived workloads on the BNT may be because correct responses were only accepted in English. This may have caused bilingual speakers to exert increased effort to complete the task in a non-native language. In turn, this increased effort likely increased cognitive load and led to higher frustration levels. Further research is needed to confirm our findings and support the idea that bilingualism leads to perceiving greater effort and frustration, and to determine whether there are subgroup differences in BNT performances among bilingual individuals (e.g., English learned as a first language compared to English learned as a second language).
41 Analyzing Perceived Workloads in Bilinguals and Monolinguals’ Digit Span Performance
- Yvette De Jesus, Krithika Sivaramakrishnan, Adriana Cuello Cancino, Mariam Gomez Curiel, Natalia Lozano Acosta, Isabel D.C. Munoz, Krissy E. Smith, Daniel W. Lopez Hernandez
-
- Journal:
- Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society / Volume 29 / Issue s1 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 21 December 2023, p. 452
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Export citation
-
Objective:
A common neuropsychological task used is the Digit Span, known as a test of attention and working memory. The Digit Span Forward (DS-F) task evaluates attention; meanwhile, the Digit Span Backward (DS-B) and Sequencing (DS-S) evaluate working memory. Research shows that persons that speak multiple languages demonstrate better attention and working memory abilities compared to monolingual speakers. The NASA Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) was conditionally validated by Hardy and Wright (2018) to measure perceived mental workload. Research also shows that bilinguals report higher perceived workloads on cognitive tasks compared to monolinguals. With that said, it was hypothesized that bilinguals would demonstrate better performances on Digit Span tasks compared to monolinguals. Additionally, it was hypothesized that bilinguals would report higher perceived workloads on all digit span tasks compared to monolinguals.
Participants and Methods:The sample consisted of 29 psychologically and neurologically healthy participants with a mean age of 29.66 (SD = 7.14). Participants were divided into two groups: English monolingual speakers (n = 10) and English and other language bilingual speakers (n = 19).
Participants completed all the subtests of the Digit Span (i.e., DS-F, DS-B, DS-S) in English. The NASA-TLX was used to measured DS-F, DS-B, and DS-S perceived workloads. The NASA-TLX was completed after each Digit Span subtest in English. We used ANOVAs to evaluate DS-F, DS-B, and DS-S performance and their perceived workload between our language groups.
Results:We found no significant differences between language groups on the DS-F. However, the bilingual group reported the DS-F to be more temporally demanding and frustrating compared to the monolingual group, p’s < .05, nps2 =.14-.15. Next, we found that the monolingual group outperformed the bilingual group on the DS-B task, p = .027, np2 = .17. On the other hand, the bilingual group reported the DS-B task to be more temporally demanding and frustrating compared to the monolingual group, p’s < .05, nps2=.18-.20. Finally, on the DS-S task the monolingual group outperformed the bilingual group, p = .043, np2 = .14. Meanwhile, the bilingual group reported the DS-S task to be more mentally and temporally demanding compared to the monolingual group, p’s < .05, nps2=.18-.34.
Conclusions:Contrary to our hypothesis, results show that monolinguals outperformed bilinguals on DS-B and DS-S, but not DS-F. However, as expected, bilinguals did report higher perceived workloads (e.g., frustration) on Digit Span tasks compared to monolinguals. A possible explanation could be that bilinguals’ efforts to remember the numbers were more taxing compared to monolinguals’ because they had to inhibit from verbally responding in their other language. Rushing bilinguals to provide responses, ultimately developing higher perceived workloads on Digit Span tasks. Future work should investigate if time perspective may be influencing bilingual speakers Digit Span performances and perceived workloads.
Anandamide and 2-arachidonoylglycerol baseline plasma concentrations and their clinical correlate in gambling disorder
- Isabel Baenas, Neus Solé-Morata, Roser Granero, Fernando Fernández-Aranda, Mitona Pujadas, Bernat Mora-Maltas, Ignacio Lucas, Mónica Gómez-Peña, Laura Moragas, Amparo del Pino-Gutiérrez, Javier Tapia, Rafael de la Torre, Marc N. Potenza, Susana Jiménez-Murcia
-
- Journal:
- European Psychiatry / Volume 66 / Issue 1 / 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 08 November 2023, e97
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Open access
- HTML
- Export citation
-
Introduction
Different components of the endocannabinoid (eCB) system such as their most well-known endogenous ligands, anandamide (AEA) and 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG), have been implicated in brain reward pathways. While shared neurobiological substrates have been described among addiction-related disorders, information regarding the role of this system in behavioral addictions such as gambling disorder (GD) is scarce.
AimsFasting plasma concentrations of AEA and 2-AG were analyzed in individuals with GD at baseline, compared with healthy control subjects (HC). Through structural equation modeling, we evaluated associations between endocannabinoids and GD severity, exploring the potentially mediating role of clinical and neuropsychological variables.
MethodsThe sample included 166 adult outpatients with GD (95.8% male, mean age 39 years old) and 41 HC. Peripheral blood samples were collected after overnight fasting to assess AEA and 2-AG concentrations (ng/ml). Clinical (i.e., general psychopathology, emotion regulation, impulsivity, personality) and neuropsychological variables were evaluated through a semi-structured clinical interview and psychometric assessments.
ResultsPlasma AEA concentrations were higher in patients with GD compared with HC (p = .002), without differences in 2-AG. AEA and 2-AG concentrations were related to GD severity, with novelty-seeking mediating relationships.
ConclusionsThis study points to differences in fasting plasma concentrations of endocannabinoids between individuals with GD and HC. In the clinical group, the pathway defined by the association between the concentrations of endocannabinoids and novelty-seeking predicted GD severity. Although exploratory, these results could contribute to the identification of potential endophenotypic features that help optimize personalized approaches to prevent and treat GD.
Impulsivity and compulsivity in gambling disorder and bulimic spectrum eating disorders: Analysis of neuropsychological profiles and sex differences
- María Lozano-Madrid, Roser Granero, Ignacio Lucas, Isabel Sánchez, Jéssica Sánchez-González, Mónica Gómez-Peña, Laura Moragas, Nuria Mallorquí-Bagué, Javier Tapia, Susana Jiménez-Murcia, Fernando Fernández-Aranda
-
- Journal:
- European Psychiatry / Volume 66 / Issue 1 / 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 19 October 2023, e91
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Open access
- HTML
- Export citation
-
Background
Gambling disorder (GD) and bulimic spectrum eating disorders (BSDs) not only share numerous psychopathological, neurobiological, and comorbidity features but also are distinguished by the presence of inappropriate behaviours related to impulsivity and compulsivity. This study aimed to emphasise the differences and similarities in the main impulsivity and compulsivity features between GD and BSD patients, and to analyse the potential influence of sex in these domains.
MethodsUsing self-reported and neurocognitive measures, we assessed different impulsive–compulsive components in a sample of 218 female and male patients (59 with BSD and 159 with GD) and 150 healthy controls.
ResultsWe observed that GD and BSDs exhibited elevated levels of impulsivity and compulsivity in all the dimensions compared to healthy controls. Moreover, these disorders showed differences in several personality traits, such as high novelty seeking in GD, and low persistence and high harm avoidance in BSDs. In addition, patients with BSDs also displayed a trend towards greater impulsive choice than GD patients. Regarding sex effects, GD women presented higher overall impulsivity and compulsivity than GD men. Nevertheless, no sex differences were found in BSDs.
ConclusionsClinical interventions should consider these deficits to enhance their effectiveness, including adjunctive treatment to target these difficulties. Our findings also provide support to the relevance of sex in GD, which should also be considered in clinical interventions.
Using intonation to disambiguate meaning: The role of empathy and proficiency in L2 perceptual development
- Joseph V. Casillas, Juan José Garrido-Pozú, Kyle Parrish, Laura Fernández Arroyo, Nicole Rodríguez, Robert Esposito, Isabelle Chang, Kimberly Gómez, Gabriela Constantin-Dureci, Jiawei Shao, Iván Andreu Rascón, Katherine Taveras
-
- Journal:
- Applied Psycholinguistics / Volume 44 / Issue 5 / September 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 17 August 2023, pp. 913-940
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Open access
- HTML
- Export citation
-
The present study investigates the interplay between proficiency and empathy in the development of second language (L2) prosody by analyzing the perception and processing of intonation in questions and statements in L2 Spanish. A total of 225 adult L2 Spanish learners (L1 English) from the Northeastern United States completed a two-alternative forced choice (2AFC) task in which they listened to four utterance types and categorized them as either questions or statements. We used Bayesian multilevel regression and drift diffusion modeling to analyze the 2AFC data as a function of proficiency level and empathy scores for each utterance type. We show that learner response accuracy and sensitivity to intonation are positively correlated with proficiency, and this association is affected by individual empathy levels in both response accuracy and sentence processing. Higher empathic individuals, in comparison with lower empathic individuals, appear to be more sensitive to intonation cues in the process of forming sound-meaning associations, though increased sensitivity does not necessarily imply increased processing speed. The results motivate the inclusion of measures of pragmatic skill, such as empathy, to better account for intonational meaning processing and sentence comprehension in second language acquisition.
Multinational prospective study of incidence and risk factors for central-line–associated bloodstream infections in 728 intensive care units of 41 Asian, African, Eastern European, Latin American, and Middle Eastern countries over 24 years
- Victor Daniel Rosenthal, Ruijie Yin, Sheila Nainan Myatra, Ziad A. Memish, Camilla Rodrigues, Mohit Kharbanda, Sandra Liliana Valderrama-Beltran, Yatin Mehta, Majeda Afeef Al-Ruzzieh, Guadalupe Aguirre-Avalos, Ertugrul Guclu, Chin Seng Gan, Luisa Fernanda Jiménez Alvarez, Rajesh Chawla, Sona Hlinkova, Rajalakshmi Arjun, Hala Mounir Agha, Maria Adelia Zuniga Chavarria, Narangarav Davaadagva, Yin Hoong Lai, Katherine Gomez, Daisy Aguilar-de-Moros, Chian-Wern Tai, Alejandro Sassoe Gonzalez, Lina Alejandra Aguilar Moreno, Kavita Sandhu, Jarosław Janc, Mary Cruz Aleman Bocanegra, Dincer Yildizdas, Yuliana Andrea Cano Medina, Maria Isabel Villegas Mota, Abeer Aly Omar, Wieslawa Duszynska, Amani Ali El-Kholy, Safaa Abdulaziz Alkhawaja, George Horhat Florin, Eduardo Alexandrino Medeiros, Lili Tao, Nellie Tumu, May Gamar Elanbya, Reshma Dongol, Vesna Mioljević, Lul Raka, Lourdes Dueñas, Nilton Yhuri Carreazo, Tarek Dendane, Aamer Ikram, Tala Kardas, Michael M. Petrov, Asma Bouziri, Nguyen Viet-Hung, Vladislav Belskiy, Naheed Elahi, Estuardo Salgado, Zhilin Jin
-
- Journal:
- Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology / Volume 44 / Issue 11 / November 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 28 April 2023, pp. 1737-1747
- Print publication:
- November 2023
-
- Article
- Export citation
-
Objective:
To identify central-line (CL)–associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) incidence and risk factors in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
Design:From July 1, 1998, to February 12, 2022, we conducted a multinational multicenter prospective cohort study using online standardized surveillance system and unified forms.
Setting:The study included 728 ICUs of 286 hospitals in 147 cities in 41 African, Asian, Eastern European, Latin American, and Middle Eastern countries.
Patients:In total, 278,241 patients followed during 1,815,043 patient days acquired 3,537 CLABSIs.
Methods:For the CLABSI rate, we used CL days as the denominator and the number of CLABSIs as the numerator. Using multiple logistic regression, outcomes are shown as adjusted odds ratios (aORs).
Results:The pooled CLABSI rate was 4.82 CLABSIs per 1,000 CL days, which is significantly higher than that reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Healthcare Safety Network (CDC NHSN). We analyzed 11 variables, and the following variables were independently and significantly associated with CLABSI: length of stay (LOS), risk increasing 3% daily (aOR, 1.03; 95% CI, 1.03–1.04; P < .0001), number of CL days, risk increasing 4% per CL day (aOR, 1.04; 95% CI, 1.03–1.04; P < .0001), surgical hospitalization (aOR, 1.12; 95% CI, 1.03–1.21; P < .0001), tracheostomy use (aOR, 1.52; 95% CI, 1.23–1.88; P < .0001), hospitalization at a publicly owned facility (aOR, 3.04; 95% CI, 2.31–4.01; P <.0001) or at a teaching hospital (aOR, 2.91; 95% CI, 2.22–3.83; P < .0001), hospitalization in a middle-income country (aOR, 2.41; 95% CI, 2.09–2.77; P < .0001). The ICU type with highest risk was adult oncology (aOR, 4.35; 95% CI, 3.11–6.09; P < .0001), followed by pediatric oncology (aOR, 2.51;95% CI, 1.57–3.99; P < .0001), and pediatric (aOR, 2.34; 95% CI, 1.81–3.01; P < .0001). The CL type with the highest risk was internal-jugular (aOR, 3.01; 95% CI, 2.71–3.33; P < .0001), followed by femoral (aOR, 2.29; 95% CI, 1.96–2.68; P < .0001). Peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) was the CL with the lowest CLABSI risk (aOR, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.02–2.18; P = .04).
Conclusions:The following CLABSI risk factors are unlikely to change: country income level, facility ownership, hospitalization type, and ICU type. These findings suggest a focus on reducing LOS, CL days, and tracheostomy; using PICC instead of internal-jugular or femoral CL; and implementing evidence-based CLABSI prevention recommendations.
Which rural settlements have lost the most population? An analysis of a case study of north-east Spain (Aragón) (1900–2001)
- María Isabel Ayuda, Pablo Gómez, Vicente Pinilla
-
- Journal:
- Rural History , First View
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 23 February 2023, pp. 1-19
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Open access
- HTML
- Export citation
-
The aim of this article is to investigate how the characteristics of the different types of human settlements explain their demographic dynamics and, therefore, which of these have been affected to a greater extent by depopulation processes. For this purpose, we analyse the evolution of the population of Aragón (north-east Spain) in the period 1900–2001, according to the different types of population settlements that exist. Our results show that access to public services has played an essential role, especially when the construction of the welfare state made the rural population feel that there was a penalty for residing in settlements with problems to access them. The main settlements, headquarters of the municipal administration, have had advantages over the secondary settlements. Finally, the scattered population was the most affected and, therefore, emigrated to a greater extent, until this form of residence practically disappeared.
Multinational prospective cohort study of rates and risk factors for ventilator-associated pneumonia over 24 years in 42 countries of Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East: Findings of the International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortium (INICC)
- Victor Daniel Rosenthal, Zhilin Jin, Ziad A. Memish, Camilla Rodrigues, Sheila Nainan Myatra, Mohit Kharbanda, Sandra Liliana Valderrama-Beltran, Yatin Mehta, Mohammad Abdellatif Daboor, Subhash Kumar Todi, Guadalupe Aguirre-Avalos, Ertugrul Guclu, Chin Seng Gan, Luisa Fernanda Jiménez Alvarez, Rajesh Chawla, Sona Hlinkova, Rajalakshmi Arjun, Hala Mounir Agha, Maria Adelia Zuniga Chavarria, Narangarav Davaadagva, Mat Nor Mohd Basri, Katherine Gomez, Daisy Aguilar De Moros, Chian-Wern Tai, Alejandro Sassoe Gonzalez, Lina Alejandra Aguilar Moreno, Kavita Sandhu, Jarosław Janc, Mary Cruz Aleman Bocanegra, Dincer Yildizdas, Yuliana Andrea Cano Medina, Maria Isabel Villegas Mota, Abeer Aly Omar, Wieslawa Duszynska, Souad BelKebir, Amani Ali El-Kholy, Safaa Abdulaziz Alkhawaja, George Horhat Florin, Eduardo Alexandrino Medeiros, Lili Tao, Nellie Tumu, May Gamar Elanbya, Reshma Dongol, Vesna Mioljević, Lul Raka, Lourdes Dueñas, Nilton Yhuri Carreazo, Tarek Dendane, Aamer Ikram, Souha S. Kanj, Michael M. Petrov, Asma Bouziri, Nguyen Viet Hung, Vladislav Belskiy, Naheed Elahi, María Marcela Bovera, Ruijie Yin
-
- Journal:
- Antimicrobial Stewardship & Healthcare Epidemiology / Volume 3 / Issue 1 / 2023
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 09 January 2023, e6
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Open access
- HTML
- Export citation
-
Objective:
Rates of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) are several times above those of high-income countries. The objective of this study was to identify risk factors (RFs) for VAP cases in ICUs of LMICs.
Design:Prospective cohort study.
Setting:This study was conducted across 743 ICUs of 282 hospitals in 144 cities in 42 Asian, African, European, Latin American, and Middle Eastern countries.
Participants:The study included patients admitted to ICUs across 24 years.
Results:In total, 289,643 patients were followed during 1,951,405 patient days and acquired 8,236 VAPs. We analyzed 10 independent variables. Multiple logistic regression identified the following independent VAP RFs: male sex (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.22; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.16–1.28; P < .0001); longer length of stay (LOS), which increased the risk 7% per day (aOR, 1.07; 95% CI, 1.07–1.08; P < .0001); mechanical ventilation (MV) utilization ratio (aOR, 1.27; 95% CI, 1.23–1.31; P < .0001); continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), which was associated with the highest risk (aOR, 13.38; 95% CI, 11.57–15.48; P < .0001); tracheostomy connected to a MV, which was associated with the next-highest risk (aOR, 8.31; 95% CI, 7.21–9.58; P < .0001); endotracheal tube connected to a MV (aOR, 6.76; 95% CI, 6.34–7.21; P < .0001); surgical hospitalization (aOR, 1.23; 95% CI, 1.17–1.29; P < .0001); admission to a public hospital (aOR, 1.59; 95% CI, 1.35-1.86; P < .0001); middle-income country (aOR, 1.22; 95% CI, 15–1.29; P < .0001); admission to an adult-oncology ICU, which was associated with the highest risk (aOR, 4.05; 95% CI, 3.22–5.09; P < .0001), admission to a neurologic ICU, which was associated with the next-highest risk (aOR, 2.48; 95% CI, 1.78–3.45; P < .0001); and admission to a respiratory ICU (aOR, 2.35; 95% CI, 1.79–3.07; P < .0001). Admission to a coronary ICU showed the lowest risk (aOR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.51–0.77; P < .0001).
Conclusions:Some identified VAP RFs are unlikely to change: sex, hospitalization type, ICU type, facility ownership, and country income level. Based on our results, we recommend focusing on strategies to reduce LOS, to reduce the MV utilization ratio, to limit CPAP use and implementing a set of evidence-based VAP prevention recommendations.
PD05 Novel Non-Thermal Ablation Technology For The Treatment Of Atrial Fibrillation
- Ana Isabel Hijas-Gómez, Setefilla Luengo-Matos, Begoña Rodriguez-Ortiz-de-Salazar, Amparo Arias-Pacheco, Luis Maria Sánchez-Gómez, Maria del Mar Polo-de-Santos
-
- Journal:
- International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care / Volume 38 / Issue S1 / December 2022
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 23 December 2022, pp. S91-S92
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Export citation
-
Introduction
Pulsed-field ablation (PFA) is a new non-thermal ablative approach for treating paroxysmal and persistent atrial fibrillation (AF). It provides an alternative to the conventional thermal techniques of radiofrequency ablation and cryoablation. PFA is currently performed with the Farapulse PFA system (Boston Scientific, USA), which recently received CE marking in Europe. In this study, we describe the current evidence on the efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness of this new technology.
MethodsThe Early Awareness and Alert System of the Agencia de Evaluación de Tecnologías Sanitarias-at the Instituto de Salud Carlos III- identified this new ablation approach in June 2021. An early technology assessment was conducted by reviewing relevant literature published to November 2021. The literature was identified by searching PubMed, Embase, the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, ClinicalTrials.gov, and the Cochrane Library.
ResultsSeven relevant publications were identified, including three open-label trials for paroxysmal AF and one for persistent AF. Three studies comparing PFA with conventional thermal ablation techniques were also included. The safety results showed a lower incidence of complications (esophageal injury, pulmonary venous stenosis, pericardial effusion, and aortic injury) after PFA relative to conventional techniques. In terms of efficacy, PFA resulted in lower rates of AF recurrence in the medium and long term, compared with conventional techniques, and there were no differences in the lengths or success rates of the procedures. No cost-effectiveness studies were identified. Seven ongoing trials were identified, but no results have been published.
ConclusionsThe current evidence for PFA in the treatment of AF showed good safety and promising efficacy. However, there is a lack of information on its effect on quality of life and the risk of death, disabling stroke, or cardiac arrest. Early evaluation of new and emerging technologies makes it possible to gather the minimum information necessary to support decisions on their inclusion in the healthcare system. In this case, based on current evidence, the widespread use of PFA is not recommended, except under a rigorous research protocol.
PP110 An External Combined Occipital And Trigeminal Neurostimulation Device For Migraine Treatment
- Begoña Rodríguez-Ortiz-de-Salazar, Ana Isabel Hijas-Gómez, María del Mar Polo de Santos, Amparo Arias-Pacheco, Luis Sánchez-Gómez, Seteffilla Luengo-Matos
-
- Journal:
- International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care / Volume 38 / Issue S1 / December 2022
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 23 December 2022, p. S76
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Export citation
-
Introduction
Migraine is a multifactorial pathology that affects 12 percent of the world’s population. Relivion® MG (Neurolief Inc., USA) is a non-invasive self-administered device for external combined occipital and trigeminal nerve stimulation that has been recently approved for marketing in Europe and the USA. The objective of this study was to conduct an early assessment of the efficacy and safety of Relivion for the treatment of migraine episodes.
MethodsRelivion was identified by the early awareness and alert system, SINTESIS- nuevas tecnologías, of the Agencia de Evaluación de Tecnologías Sanitarias at the Instituto de Salud Carlos III. An early assessment of the technology was conducted by reviewing relevant clinical studies published to 29 September 2021. The literature was identified by searching PubMed, Embase, the International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, ClinicalTrials.gov, and the Cochrane Library.
ResultsTwo randomized, sham-controlled double-blind trials were found. They assessed side effects and pain relief, response rate, and pain freedom two hours after treatment. One study included 55 patients and the other (the RIME study) included 131 patients. The rate of pain relief two hours after treatment ranged from 60 to 76 percent in the treatment group and from 31 to 37 percent in the control group (p<0.01). The response rate, defined as at least 50 percent pain reduction two hours after treatment, was significantly higher in the treatment group (67 to 70% versus 32 to 42%). The percentage of patients free of pain two hours after treatment ranged from 42 to 46 percent in the treatment group, compared with 11 to 12 percent in the control group (p<0.0001). No notable adverse events were recorded.
ConclusionsPreliminary results indicated that Relivion effectively and safely relieves or eliminates acute migraine pain. However, more comparative studies are needed. The use of Relivion could improve the control of symptoms and improve quality of life in patients with migraine.
PP109 Efficacy And Safety Of High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound In Parkinson’s Disease
- Amparo Arias-Pacheco, María del Mar Polo-de-Santos, Setefilla Luengo-Matos, Ana Isabel Hijas-Gómez, Begoña Rodríguez-Ortiz-de-Salazar, Luis María Sánchez-Gómez
-
- Journal:
- International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care / Volume 38 / Issue S1 / December 2022
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 23 December 2022, p. S75
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Export citation
-
Introduction
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease in the world. High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) is a new non-invasive therapeutic option for treating the motor symptoms of PD. HIFU is an imaging-guided procedure for therapeutic brain ablation that has been used for patients with essential tremor and neuropathic pain. It is indicated for patients older than 22 years of age who have PD that is refractory to drug treatment and are ineligible for surgery. The objective of this study was to conduct an early assessment of HIFU subthalamotomy for the treatment of motor symptoms in patients with PD.
MethodsHIFU was identified by the early awareness and alert system, SINTESIS- nuevas tecnologías, of the Agencia de Evaluación de Tecnologías Sanitarias at the Instituto de Salud Carlos III. Relevant literature published to October 2021 was identified by searching PubMed, EMBASE, ClinicalTrials.gov, and the Cochrane Library.
ResultsOne prospective study and one randomized controlled trial (RCT) were found that assessed the efficacy and safety of HIFU subthalamotomy for treating the motor symptoms of PD. The Movement Disorder Society-Sponsored Revision of the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale Part III (MDS-UPDRS III) was used to measure changes in symptoms (>30% change from baseline was considered clinically relevant). Both studies reported a reduction of symptoms in the intervention group. The MDS-UPDRS III score changed from 16.6 to 7.5 six months after treatment in the prospective study and from 19.9 to 9.9 four months after treatment in the RCT (a decrease of 11.6 points was observed after 12 months). The main adverse events reported were dyskinesia, speech and gait disturbances, and weakness, all of which resolved without treatment.
ConclusionsThe results regarding the efficacy and safety of HIFU for treating the motor symptoms of PD are promising. HIFU is a non-invasive procedure that eliminates the risks associated with surgery. Although rapid diffusion of this technology is expected, further studies and economic evaluation are needed.
OP54 The Early Detection And Warning System ‘SINTESIS-New Technologies’: A Horizon Scanning Experience In Spain
- Ana Isabel Hijas-Gómez, Setefilla Luengo-Matos, Amparo Arias-Pacheco, Begoña Rodriguez-Ortiz-de-Salazar, Luis Maria Sánchez-Gómez, Maria del Mar Polo-de-Santos
-
- Journal:
- International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care / Volume 38 / Issue S1 / December 2022
- Published online by Cambridge University Press:
- 23 December 2022, p. S21
-
- Article
-
- You have access Access
- Export citation
-
Introduction
SINTESIS-new technologies is the early warning system for new and emerging technologies of the Agencia de Evaluación de Tecnologías Sanitarias, Instituto de Salud Carlos III. SINTESIS is part of the Action Plan for the Early Detection of New and Emerging Technologies of the Spanish Network of Health Technology Assessment Agencies (RedETS). In RedETS, four agencies are responsible for the identification of innovative technologies. These agencies have been collaborating since 2016 according to the early awareness methods contained in the EuroScan Methods Toolkit. SINTESIS focuses on secondary information sources (i.e., experts and literature). This study describes the experience of SINTESIS in identifying and filtering new technologies in recent years.
MethodsRetrospective analysis of all new and emerging technologies notified by SINTESIS to RedETS since 2018. Technologies were analyzed on a year-by-year basis for their source of information, the clinical specialties involved, and whether technologies found in the identification phase were selected for further assessment.
ResultsBetween 2018–2020, SINTESIS identified 69 emerging and new technologies. Most of the information came from medical press news (35%), and medical web news (22%); other sources included experts (15%), licensing news search (12%), general press (12%), and scientific websites (6%). Almost 37 technologies (54%) were selected for further analysis. Reasons for exclusion included too early identification of technologies/prototypes without enough evidence (52%), technologies already implemented (28%), overlapping technologies between agencies (17%), and not being medical technologies (3%).
ConclusionsExperience suggests that news sections of general and medical journals, websites, and expert consultation are useful sources to identify new and emerging health technologies. The main limitation is that the technologies identified are often at too early a stage of development for further assessment. SINTESIS contributes, within a national horizon scanning system with other agencies, to broaden the information sources and provide useful data on early awareness of innovative technologies. Further studies are needed to assess the impact of emerging technologies detection on healthcare delivery.