Biomedical subjects

D Guillén

Publications and source records attributed to D Guillén.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

[Results of a comprehensive workplace program for the prevention and treatment of smoking addiction].

OBJECTIVES: To assess a comprehensive smoking prevention and treatment program in an electrical appliances company with 1600 employees. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The program included smoking restrictions with the designation of smoking areas and the offer of smoking cessation treatment for the smokers affected. Study variables were age, sex, nicotine dependence (Fagerström Test), carbon monoxide in expired air, adherence to therapy, and smoking abstinence at 1 week, 1 month, 3 months (end of treatment), and 6 months. Successful smoking abstinence was defined as continuous abstinence from the beginning of treatment. RESULTS: Smoking prevalence was 34.8% and 19.5% of smokers requested treatment (77.4% men and 22.6% women). Mean (SD) age was 41.3 (10.3) years. Mean score of nicotine dependence was 5.3 (2.6) and the mean quantity of carbon monoxide in expired air was 35.6 (23.7) ppm. Adherence to therapy was good in 80% of patients. Rate of abstinence was 57.5% at 6 months, signifying a 4% reduction in prevalence. CONCLUSIONS: Workplace smoking cessation programs reduce prevalence and facilitate the establishment of smoking restrictions at the worksite. Companies are convenient settings for the implementation of programs aimed at smoking prevention and treatment.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

[Evaluation of the influence of medical education on the smoking attitudes of future doctors].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether medical education influences the prevalence, awareness of, and attitudes to smoking of medical students in the first 3 years of their degree. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In this descriptive longitudinal questionnaire-based study of university students, data for medical and veterinary students in their first 3 years were compared. RESULTS: Of the 226 registered first-year medical students, 181 (80%) returned the questionnaire. Of the 180 first-year veterinary students, 161 (89%) replied to the questionnaire. In the third year, 151 questionnaires from medical students and 139 from veterinary students were returned. There were no differences in age or sex between the 2 groups, and both had more women. The prevalence of smokers increased between the first year and the beginning of the third (from 20% to 31% among medical students and from 28% to 32% among veterinary students). An improvement in the awareness of smoking as a risk factor was observed for medical students, but no change in attitude was observed. CONCLUSIONS: The influence of medical education on this health concern is limited as there is no reduction in the prevalence of smoking. Medical education also seems unable to change attitudes to smoking. More students relate smoking to risk factors for certain diseases, showing greater awareness of the health problems caused by smoking.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

[Smoking habits among sixth-year medical students in Spain].

OBJECTIVE: To describe and analyze the smoking habits of sixth-year Spanish medical students. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The target population of this descriptive cross-sectional study was students completing their sixth year in Spanish medical schools. An anonymous, self-administered questionnaire was sent to the students' homes by ordinary mail. The relationships between the variables were analyzed using contingency tables, the chi2 test, the Student t test, and analysis of variance with a significance level of P< .05. The software package was SPSS. RESULTS: A total of 3840 questionnaires were distributed to students, and 1340 were returned completed (34.9%). Of the respondents, 27% were smokers (8.7% smoked only on weekends, and 18.3% were daily smokers). The mean (SD) number of cigarettes smoked per day was 10.54 (7.89). Consumption was significantly higher among men than among women. The mean age of initiation was 17.20 years. Of the students who were smokers, 32.54% stated that they had started smoking during their medical studies. The percentage of smokers who stated that they wanted to quit was 76.3%, and 56.6% said that they had already made at least one quit attempt. CONCLUSIONS: It is cause for concern that a large number of students start smoking after they enter medical school. One of the reasons for this is the lack of concern about smoking as a health problem within medical schools. The smoking habits of medical students are affected by the same phenomena that affect those of the general public, such as the increase in the number of women smokers, the influence of sociocultural factors, and the increasingly broader age range of initiation. The lower prevalence of smoking among medical students with respect to other populations is probably due to the fact that, in general, these students have better health habits than the general public, and/or the reasons that led them to study medicine also make them disinclined to smoke.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2003

[Reliability of a questionnaire on smoking to evaluate prevalence, knowledge and attitudes of medical students].

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the reliability and reproducibility of results obtained from a questionnaire on the smoking habits of medical students. METHOD: A questionnaire with 30 variables was designed to measure three main parameters: prevalence, knowledge and attitudes toward smoking. First-year medical students at the University of Zaragoza (1997-98 academic year) were asked to fill in the questionnaire, and a code was assigned to each individual respondent. A test-retest method was then used to assess reliability: the same questionnaire was answered by the subjects after a period of time had elapsed. The Kappa coefficient was calculated to measure agreement. RESULTS: The questionnaire was filled in by 181 students at registration and 7 weeks later by 43 students. The first- and second-time questionnaires for 35 individuals were matched by codes. Reliability was good for most variables related to the main characteristics of smoking (such as prevalence, number of cigarettes smoked daily and consonance-dissonance). Reliability was acceptable for most variables related to knowledge but was low for 3 items. Reliability was acceptable for half the items related to attitudes and low for half. CONCLUSIONS: The questionnaire has a generally good level of reliability, with regard to reproducibility, or the likelihood that an individual will respond to an item in the same way at two different times. Some variables that measure attitudes toward smoking, however, are less reliable. Results obtained for those items should therefore be interpreted cautiously.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

[Profile of smokers who seek treatment at a smoking cessation clinic].

OBJECTIVES: The variety of smoking cessation therapies that have proven effective ranges from simple counseling to intensive interventions. The objective of our study was to identify the characteristics of smokers who currently seek treatment at a smoking cessation clinic. METHODS: Descriptive observational study. The target population consisted of smokers who sought treatment at a smoking cessation clinic. The following variables were studied: sex; age; referral source; marital status; educational level; age at which smoking began, age at which it became a regular habit and the time elapsed between the two moments; level of nicotine dependence (Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence); number of cigarettes per day; number of years smoking; use of other potentially-addictive substances (alcohol, caffeine, psychotropic medications and other drugs); presence of concomitant disease; previous attempts to quit smoking; current reasons for smoking cessation; and concentration of expired air carbon monoxide (CO). An initial medical history was taken from each smoker on the waiting list for treatment at the clinic in order to gather data on the study variables; these individuals were then enrolled in a 3-month group smoking cessation program that utilized both medication and cognitive-behavioral therapy. The results are presented in percentages and means with standard deviations (SD) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: 385 smokers were studied--239 (62%) men and 146 (38%) women--the average age being 43.05 years (SD: 9.07). Mean nicotine-dependence (Fagerström Test score) was 6.05 (SD: 2.19); mean number of cigarettes per day: 25.9 (SD: 12.11); mean number of years as a smoker: 25.3 (SD: 9.04); and mean expired air CO: 39.30 (SD: 25.18). Associated disease was present as chronic bronchitis for 27.5% and cardiovascular risk factors for 15%. Previous attempts to quit smoking were reported by 72%; the reasons for the present attempt to quit smoking were the prevention of disease (38%), awareness of dependence (20%) and parental desire to serve as a positive role model for children (10%). CONCLUSIONS: At present, the smokers who attend a smoking cessation clinic are young, severely-dependent adults in the initial stage of preparing to quit. The prevalence of symptoms in this population is low. The profile of the population seeking specialized smoking cessation treatment is expected to change in the future as those with smoking-related diseases and other specific populations of smokers become included.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

[Evaluation of a workplace anti-smoking program at a company with 640 employees].

OBJECTIVES: Awareness of the health risks of passive smoking for non-smokers has led to the development of workplace interventions for smokers, although they are still few in our setting. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of an anti-smoking program among the workers of a company, in function of changes in the pre- and post-intervention prevalence of smoking in the study population. METHOD: A pre-intervention questionnaire on smoking (prevalence and attitudes) was administered at a company with 640 employees (92% men, 8% women). An anti-smoking program was carried out inside the company during working hours over the next nine months. The questionnaire was then repeated (post-intervention) in order to evaluate its efficacy based on changes. For employees who answered both questionnaires, paired variables were analyzed. RESULTS: The pre-intervention questionnaire was answered by 388 employees (60%), 357 men (92%) and 31 women (8%); their mean age was 48.4 years (SD 9.36). The prevalence of smoking was 55%, including daily smokers, sporadic smokers and others. The mean number of cigarettes per day was 17.86 (SD 2.45). The mean level of nicotine dependence measured by the Fagerström test was 3.3 (SD 2.8) out of 10. The post-intervention questionnaire was answered by 206 employees (32%). Among employees who answered both questionnaires (83), analysis of paired data showed a decrease in the prevalence of smoking of 4% and in the number of cigarettes per day from 17.4 (pre-intervention) to 16.4 (post-intervention). The differences were not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: Although the workplace is an appropriate setting for anti-smoking interventions that would contribute to improving the health of smokers, such programs are currently underutilized.

Adult↗

PubMed1997

[Tuberculous meningoencephalitis].

Tuberculosis (TBC) in children is still a public health problem in developing countries. Its most serious complication in children is meningo-encephalitis (ME TBC), which is one of the main causes of death from TBC. The objective of this review is to outline its aetiopathological, clinical and prognostic characteristics and compare these with three studies made in our University between 1984 and the present time. METBC is always a complication secondary to an unknown (but often pulmonary) focus. The morbid anatomy of the deposit of basal exudate explains all the subsequent clinical findings. The data given in the literature regarding the commonest presentation, that of subacute or chronic meningo-encephalitis, is similar to our findings. However there are some differences. These are: a tendency to presentation in older children, much lower mortality, a long-term incidence of sequelae of less than 50% which is much less than would be expected (especially in certain areas of superior nerve function). With regard to treatment, we emphasize that the standard recommendation is still to use four drugs for twelve mouths. Although steroids have not been shown to be of use with regard to either mortality or morbidity, they continue to be given.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed1994

[Cerebral hydatid cyst in children in the Hospital Nacional Cayetano Heredia: apropos of a case].

Case report of a 12 years old female child who developed in the last seven months focal neurological signs and progressive intracranial hypertension. CT scan showed a giant cystic tumor, and cerebral hydatidosis has been diagnosed. The hydatic cyst was surgically removed without complications. Cerebral hydatidosis is rare, its diagnosis is clinical and tomographic, and the treatment is always surgical.

Brain Diseases↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Neurological involvement in free living amebiasis].

INTRODUCTION: Free-living amoeba infection is today a known and outgrowth disease, which is suspected when exists a special skin lesion. DEVELOPMENT: Balamuthia mandrillaris is one of these amoebas recently categorized and identified as a cause of meningoecephalitis granulomatous and chronic. Human infection: until 1997 in Cayetano Heredia Hospital (Lima, Peru) was described 24 cases of Balamuthia mandrillaris infection, 10 under 15 years old. All had skin lesion and all died, 16 had conscious impairment, 8 intracranial hypertension and 8 seizures. CONCLUSIONS: The free-living amoebas disease is now an outgrowth illness that depends on its worldwide distribution and association with immunocompromised host. The Balamuthia mandrillaris infection is a new form responsible for a fatal disease and clinical suspected is possible by the occurrence of skin lesion. Is very important to promove in Latin America collaborative studies in order to future actions.

Acanthamoeba↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Neuronal migration disorders: clinical-radiological correlation].

We present the correlation of imaging findings with clinical deficits in 34 children with several anomalies of neuronal migration which were studied retrospectively. The cases studied corresponded to: Schizencephaly 10, lissencephaly 4, heterotopy 9, and hemimegalencephaly 2. The diagnosis of the malformations was performed by computerized tomography (CT) in a few patients and by magnetic resonance (MR) in most cases. Among the clinical alterations, psychomotor delay and seizures of difficult control were the most severe, both appeared at early age. The findings observed in this study suggest the correlations between extension, location and gray matter displasticity and the neurological manifestations.

Adolescent↗