Sistema Regional de Información
en línea para Revistas Científicas de América Latina,
el Caribe, España y Portugal

Introduction: venous insufficiency is an affection in which the veins are unable to send blood from the lower extremities to the heart. The seriousness of this disease lies in its complications, the mildest degree produces itching, pain, heaviness, tiredness and burning on the soles of the feet, when complicated it can present edema, calf cramps, intense itching, and dark coloration of the skin. Objective: the knowledge and compliance of nursing staff in the surgical area with respect to self-care related to venous insufficiency of the lower limbs is described. Material and methods: This are a descriptive, cross-sectional, prolective and observational study. The universe is made up of 24 nursing professionals and the sample was made up of 22 collaborators assigned to the surgical area of a second-level public hospital; 2 instruments were used: 1) knowledge and 2) questionnaire to assess self- care. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Fisher's exact test. Results: 100% of the study participants do not comply with self-care, the criterion to determine compliance was that when observing the preventive actions known as self-care, a score of 6 complete items was obtained, which does not happen. Conclusion: there is a risk factor for venous insufficiency in the lower limbs, when the seniority is the variable that shows significant differences with respect to knowledge and compliance.

Aims: To investigate the association between cardiovascular risk factors and cardiovascular risk score with the thyroid status of patients with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis. Methods: Thirty-eight consenting adults with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis participated in this cross-sectional study. The cardiovascular risk factors considered included age, sex, blood pressure, body mass index, fast blood glucose, lipid profile, cardiovascular comorbidities, C reactive protein, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate. The Framingham CV risk score was performed. The sample was classified into euthyroid (n = 15), clinical hypothyroidism (n = 9), and subclinical hypothyroidism (n = 13), and included the presence of antithyroid antibodies. Fisher’s exact test was used to determine the association between the variables studied. Results: 100% of the sample were women; a mean age between 39-59 years old. The category with low risk was the largest (n = 30), equivalent to 78.9%; moderate risk, no patient was obtained; high risk (n = 8) constituted 21.1%. Statistical significance between age and CV risk score in patients with clinical hypothyroidism was found (p < 1), 95% CI. The glucose level in the subclinical hypothyroidism and clinical hypothyroidism had statistical significance. The presence of anti-Thyroglobulin (antiTg) was shown to be closely related to the level of CV risk in patients with subclinical hypothyroidism. Conclusion: Age, glycemia, anti-Tg, history of DM, dyslipidemia, or cerebrovascular accidents have been linked to raising the risk of developing CVD in up to 10 years depending on their thyroid profile. No evidence of a direct relationship between CV risk score and thyroid state was found in the participants of this study.

Introduction: Changes in deoxyribonucleic acid are known as mutations, these give place to polymorphisms, which generate allelic variation between individuals and provide diversity among same species. Genetic polymorphisms in immune mediators have been suggested to play a key role in the pathogenesis of many autoimmune disorders, such as immune thrombocytopenic purpura, this being the most common type of thrombocytopenic purpura and is often diagnosed as a type of autoimmune disorder, due to the destruction of platelets mediated by the immune system. Objective: To execute a bibliographic review on the role of genetic polymorphisms and their influence on the development of immune thrombocytopenic purpura. Methods: A literary review in English and Spanish was performed in PubMed and Elsevier from March to May 2021, with the use of a combination of keywords and MeSH terms such as Thrombocytopenic Purpura and genetic polymorphisms. Analysis and summary of the literature found was executed. Conclusion: Immune thrombocytopenic purpura is considered a multifactorial pathology, caused by environmental and genetic factors, among which are polymorphisms for immune mediators that can lead to an exacerbation of the disease or not intervene in the same.

Introduction: For many years hematopoietic stem cells have been the treatment for many hematological disorders, but their efficacy is limited by graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), one of the main complications of allogeneic transplantation associated with morbidity and mortality; therefore, prevention is important for the success of allogeneic transplantation. Objective: To review the clinical recognition of GVHD in order to provide the correct treatment and avoid certain complications, such as infections that lead to graft rejection and jeopardize the patient's quality of life. In most cases laboratory tests such as biomarkers and biopsies are good predictors of biological or pathological processes that confirm the diagnosis and establish the stage of the disease. Methodology: A bibliographic review was carried out in databases such as Pubmed and ClinicalKey based on the following MeSH terms: surgery, mortality, pathology, complications, virology. Conclusion: The prevention and treatment of this disease predisposes to infections and different complications that put the patient's life at risk.

Introduction: The inflammatory syndrome of immune reconstitution (IRIS) is a clinical complication given in some people infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), after they begin antiretroviral therapy (ART), which stands out for the production of abundant proinflammatory cytokines, which have been studied as possible biomarkers that can guide the diagnosis and prognosis of this clinical condition. Objective: Review the advances in biomarkers for the diagnosis of IRIS,and the importance of inflammatory molecules and exosomes, so their pathogenesis and as a possible Gold standard for confirmation of this inflammatory. Methodology: A bibliographic review was carried out in databases, such as Science Direct, Pubmed, Scopus and Medline based on the following MeSH terms: Inflammatory reconstitution syndrome, Immune system diseases, Biomarkers, Anti-HIV drugs, Plasma. Conclusion: There are more and more advances in the identification of various molecules that can serve as biomarkers of IRIS, seeking timely diagnosis, monitoring of clinical progression, better response to treatment and more findings on the pathophysiology of IRIS, but the urgent need to find a gold standard that provides criteria for its suspicion and confirmation persists.

Introduction: Aplastic anemia (AA) is a rare disease characterized by presenting bone marrow failure and pancytopenia, with no trace of myeloproliferative or fibrotic processes. Objective: To present the different pharmacological treatments used in immunosuppressive therapy (IST) in AA, in addition, the response of patients to IST and the mechanisms of action of the drugs used will be studied in depth. Methodology: A systematic search was carried out in medical literature databases such as PUBMED, British Medical Journal, New England Journal, among others. Articles in both English and Spanish were included. Conclusions: The management of aplastic anemia continues to represent a challenge for modern medicine; however, a large number of new therapeutic options have been developed to treat patients.

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed the deficiency of the rectors and health systems of the countries, and transformed the behavior of humanity...

Introduction: It is well known the usefulness of left ventricle (LV) longitudinal global strain (GLS) in patients receiving antineoplastic therapy. Recent studies suggested a similar behavior of the right ventricle (RV) free wall longitudinal strain (FWLS), but in the literature there are still many controversies that limit its evaluation, so this study is a contribution to this need for practicality. Objective: To assess the behavior and usefulness of RV FWLS in patients treated with chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy and its correlation with the LV GLS. Method: A data collection protocol that included demographic variables and personal history was applied to patients diagnosed with cancer treated with chemotherapy and/ or radiotherapy who underwent an echocardiogram with strain from November 2020 to March 2021. The echocardiogram was performed accordingly with American Society of Echocardiography guidelines standards, including a LV GLS and a RV FWLS. The data was analyzed in the SPSS program. Results: Of 90 patients, 6 excluded for a total of 84 collected. 89% were women, mean age 59 ±11 years, 73% breast cancer. 54% had hypertension, 27% obesity, 23% dyslipidemia, 19% were diabetic and 11% are or use to be smokers. 46% had received concomitantly chemotherapy and radiotherapy and 48% were treated more than a year ago. In echocardiographic findings, mean LV ejection fraction (EF) was 64±7 %, however, 82% had reduced LV GLS (44% being less than -15%). Similarly, 74% of RV FWLS was reduced, but only 15% of the S wave of the RV by tissue Doppler was abnormal, 7% of TAPSE was reduced, and 6% of fractional area change (FAC). The Pearson correlation coefficient between LV GLS and RV FWLS was of 0.463 with a p value of <.001 indicating a significant moderate positive linear relationship. Conclusion: Our study suggests that RV FWLS has a similar behavior as LV GLS and is a better predictor of right ventricular dysfunction over conventional parameters. Whereby should be incorporated as a routine measurement in the echocardiographic evaluation of patients receiving antineoplastic therapy.

Objective. Identify if hormonal contraception (HC) has a negative impact on female sexual function (FSF) in a group of university students of reproductive age in the Dominican Republic. Methods: A total of 251 female students between ages 18-30 completed an online survey to evaluate their FSF with the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI), as well as their relationship with their contraceptive method (CM). Results were analyzed using descriptive statistics and standard non-parametric tests.  Results: The groups in this study were: never used HC (NHC) n=80 (31.9%), uses HC (UHC) n=132 (52.6%), and abandoned HC (AHC) n=39 (15.5%). The mean grade for the FSFI for all groups was 28.84 (2.0-36.0). UHC was the lowest grade (28.15) when compared to NHC (29.84) and AHC (29.23) (p=0.023). UHC had the most participants at risk of female sexual dysfunction (FSD). The highest level of general satisfaction with their CM was in the UHC group (90.2% reported to be satisfied/very satisfied).  Conclusion: There is a weak correlation between HC use and the increased risk of FSD with statistical significance (Rho=0.132; p=0.037). FSF levels in UHC were lower than in the NHC group. Despite having the greatest level of satisfaction with their CM, UHC reported the highest level of FSF disturbance. The disturbance of FSF due to HC use was a strong predictor of abandonment (65%).

Objective: To identify factors associated with severity and mortality by COVID-19. Material and methods: Retrospective multicenter observational study of patients admitted with COVID-19 in health centers in a city of the Dominican Republic. Demographic, clinical, therapeutic and laboratory data were reported for comparison between patients with severe and non-severe disease, deceased and discharged. Results: Factors significantly associated with higher risk of severity and mortality were male sex, hypertension, number of comorbidities, drugs’ used previously, high levels of inflammatory markers, lymphopenia, neutrophilia, among others. While the use of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors was associated with lower mortality. Conclusions: Identification of factors associated with severe and fatal progression of COVID-19 contributes to early clinical decision-making related to hospitalization and differential medical management in those at increased risk of adverse outcomes.