The increasing demand for quality assurance in agro-food production requires sophisticated analytical methods for in-line quality control. One of these techniques is visible and near-infrared ...(VIS-NIR) spectroscopy, which has low running costs, does not need sample preparation, and is non-destructive, environmentally friendly, and fast. Despite these advantages, only a limited amount of research has been conducted on VIS-NIR in-line applications to measure, control, and predict quality in fruits and vegetables.
The applicability of VIS-NIR spectroscopy for the off-line and in-line monitoring of quality in postharvest products has been addressed in this review. The document focuses on the comparison between the two processes for the same agro-food product, highlighting the main advantages and disadvantages, problems, solutions, and differences.
VIS-NIR techniques, combined with chemometric methods, have shown great potential due to their fast detection speed, and the possibility of simultaneously predicting multiple quality parameters or distinguishing between products according to the objectives. Being able to automate processes is a great advantage compared to routine off-line analyses, mainly due to the savings achieved in time, material, and personnel. However, in numerous cases, in-line implementation has not been accomplished in the corresponding studies, hence the scarcity of real in-line applications. Recent demands, together with the advances being made in the technology and a reduction in the price of equipment, makes VIS-NIR technology an analytical alternative for continuous real-time food quality controls, which will become predominant in the next few years.
•VIS-NIR spectroscopy allow the off/in-line monitoring of agro-food quality.•VIS-NIR techniques for qualitative and quantitative analysis of post-harvest food.•Chemometrics together VIS-NIR spectroscopy allows to extract analytical information.
Summary
What is known and objectives
The safety of continued ustekinumab (UST) therapy during pregnancy remains unclear in patients with Crohn's disease (CD). There are no meta‐analysis reports of ...exposure to UST during pregnancy. The objective was to describe a case of a pregnant patient with CD who was successfully treated with UST maintenance therapy throughout the pregnancy and delivered a baby boy without any congenital malformations, neurological abnormalities or birth defects.
Case summary
A 37‐year‐old patient with CD treated with UST became pregnant. She had been receiving UST for 8 months at the time. After discussion with the patient and the obstetric team, the UST therapy was continued. The result of treatment was an uneventful pregnancy with delivery, at term, of a healthy boy and the maintenance of clinical, biological and endoscopic remission of CD during and after pregnancy.
What is new and conclusion
To our knowledge, this is the first reported use of continued UST therapy for CD throughout a pregnancy. The result of treatment was an uncomplicated pregnancy with the mother giving birth to a healthy boy at term and the maintenance of clinical biological and endoscopic remission of CD during and after pregnancy.
Hyperspectral imaging systems are starting to be used as a scientific tool for food quality assessment. A typical hyperspectral image is composed of a set of a relatively wide range of monochromatic ...images corresponding to continuous wavelengths that normally contain redundant information or may exhibit a high degree of correlation. In addition, computation of the classifiers used to deal with the data obtained from the images can become excessively complex and time-consuming for such high-dimensional datasets, and this makes it difficult to incorporate such systems into an industry that demands standard protocols or high-speed processes. Therefore, recent works have focused on the development of new systems based on this technology that are capable of analysing quality features that cannot be inspected using visible imaging. Many of those studies have also centred on finding new statistical techniques to reduce the hyperspectral images to multispectral ones, which are easier to implement in automatic, non-destructive systems. This article reviews recent works that use hyperspectral imaging for the inspection of fruit and vegetables. It explains the different technologies available to acquire the images and their use for the non-destructive inspection of the internal and external features of these products. Particular attention is paid to the works aimed at reducing the dimensionality of the images, with details of the statistical techniques most commonly used for this task.
•Substance use is a phenomenon of worldwide concern due to its negative impact.•Accessibility to treatments is low.•To boost efficacy, electronic methods must integrate into clinical ...practice.•Electronic interventions are effective primary care tools for addressing substance use.
The present systematic review aims to identify electronic interventions for addressing substance use and understand their effectiveness in primary care settings. A systematic search was carried out in the Web of Science, PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, and Cochrane Library. The search included the keywords “electronic intervention”, “substance use”, “primary care” and synonyms. To determine the quality and recommendation of the analyzed interventions, the efficacy results reported by the studies were considered, as well as the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) assessment and the GRADE Evidence Assessment. Twenty-one electronic interventions in Primary Care were identified: internet, mobile or tablet applications, text messages, emails, automated telephone calls, or electronic self-reports. These interventions had diverse components, incorporating theories that have proven effective in face-to-face interventions as their theoretical frameworks. Some of them were complementary to in-person treatment, while others replaced it. Six interventions (28.5 %) displayed high quality: HealthCall, AB-CASI, Quit Genius, eCHECKUP-TOGO, CBI, and TES. Another nine interventions (42.8 %) were found to have moderate-high quality: Alcohol y Salud, IVR-BI, Program of Wallace et al., Let’s Talk About Smoking, SMSalud, ESCAPE, AAC-ASPIRE, iQuit, and Programa VIH. One intervention (4.7 %) had moderate-low quality: Vive sin tabaco ¡Decídete! The remaining five interventions (23.8 %) were found to have very low quality: Connection to health, cSBI, Teen Well Check, the program of Helzer et al. (2008), and Down your drink. The programs with the highest recommendation for addressing alcohol-related issues are HealthCall and AB-CASI; for tobacco use, it is Quit Genius; for cannabis use, it is eCHECKUP-TOGO; for addressing both legal and illegal substances, it is CBI and TES. Finally, for specific illicit drug use, the only recommended program is CBI. This last intervention, CBI, is of the highest quality and, therefore, can be considered a model intervention for dissemination in the primary care setting.
•This is the first systematic review and meta-analysis based on longitudinal studies analysing mental disorders and psychiatric comorbidity on suicidal behaviour among young people.•Mental disorders ...increase the risk for suicide attempts in young people.•In particular affective disorders predicted suicide attempts in young people.•Mental disorders and comorbidity are strong predictors of suicide behavior.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death for young people. Objective: To assess mental disorders as risk factors for suicidal behaviour among adolescents and young adults including population-based longitudinal studies.
We conducted a systematic literature review. Bibliographic searches undertaken in five international databases and grey literature sources until January 2017 yielded a total of 26,883 potential papers. 1701 full-text articles were assessed for eligibility of which 1677 were excluded because they did not meet our eligibility criteria. Separate meta-analyses were conducted for each outcome (suicide death and suicide attempts). Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) and beta coefficients and standard errors were calculated.
24 studies were finally included involving 25,354 participants (12–26 years). The presence of any mental disorder was associated with higher risk of suicide death (OR = 10.83, 95%CI = 4.69–25.00) and suicide attempt (OR = 3.56; 95%CI 2.24–5.67). When considering suicidal attempt as the outcome, only affective disorders (OR = 1.54; 95%CI = 1.21–1.96) were significant. Finally, the results revealed that psychiatric comorbidity was a primary risk factor for suicide attempts.
Data were obtained from studies with heterogeneous diagnostic assessments of mental disorders. Nine case-control studies were included and some data were collected in students, not in general population.
Mental disorders and comorbidity are strong predictors of suicide behaviour in young people. Detection and management of the affective disorders as well as their psychiatric comorbidity could be a crucial strategy to prevent suicidality in this age group.
Aquaculture has become an agronomic activity with noticeable development around the world to respond to the simultaneous decrease of fish captures and the increasing demand of aquatic products for ...human consumption. However, different problems limit the development of this industry and one of those is the time required for most of the cultured fish species to achieve economically viable the commercial size. The knowledge up to date of the regulatory systems involved in controlling growth has improved very much but, it is still necessary to devote efforts to transform the basic information in application to fish culture production. The aim of the present review is to summarize the knowledge acquired with the studies about the GH/IGF axis and other hormones regarding their function on the regulation of fish muscle development and growth. To this end, GH and IGFs effects in muscle cells on metabolism and development are examined, as well as the contribution of IGF-I binding proteins, IGF-I receptors and their downstream regulated molecules like TOR and its relation with cell proliferation and differentiation and the myogenic regulatory factors. The effect of regulatory molecules on cultured myocytes are reviewed as well as in vivo responses, including the model of sustained and maintained swimming. Key aspects we consider should be further investigated to complete the scenario of the regulation of fish muscle are also proposed.
•The GH/IGF axis regulates growth and metabolism in fish muscle•Thyroid hormones and steroids exert important roles controlling muscle growth•IGF-I and IGF-II stimulate nutrients uptake and differentially regulate myogenesis•TOR and proteolytic systems' members can be valuable markers of growth condition•Moderate and sustained swimming provokes in fish better growth and flesh quality
An evaluation of a multiplex PCR assay (Bruce-ladder) was performed in seven laboratories using 625 Brucella strains from different animal and geographical origins. This robust test can differentiate ...in a single step all of the classical Brucella species, including those found in marine mammals and the S19, RB51, and Rev.1 vaccine strains.
The tools available for the diagnosis and control of brucellosis and their applicability in the context of SSA are presented and gaps identified.
Display omitted
•Bacteriological and serological ...evidence of brucellosis in Sub-Saharan Africa are reviewed.•Strategies for implementation of animal vaccination are discussed.•There is a need for simpler and more affordable treatments for human brucellosis.•Development of a B. melitensis vaccine to circumvent the drawbacks of Rev 1 is overdue.•Performance of serological tests for camel and wildlife brucellosis should be investigated.
Brucellosis is a highly contagious zoonosis caused by bacteria of the genus Brucella and affecting domestic and wild mammals. In this paper, the bacteriological and serological evidence of brucellosis in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and its epidemiological characteristics are discussed. The tools available for the diagnosis and treatment of human brucellosis and for the diagnosis and control of animal brucellosis and their applicability in the context of SSA are presented and gaps identified. These gaps concern mostly the need for simpler and more affordable antimicrobial treatments against human brucellosis, the development of a B. melitensis vaccine that could circumvent the drawbacks of the currently available Rev 1 vaccine, and the investigation of serological diagnostic tests for camel brucellosis and wildlife. Strategies for the implementation of animal vaccination are also discussed.
Background
Smoking at the time of surgery is associated with postoperative complications. Quitting smoking before surgery is linked to fewer complications during the hospital stay. This work analysed ...whether a smoking cessation intervention before surgery is economically worthwhile when funded by the National Health System (NHS) in Spain.
Methods
The economic analysis considered costs and benefits of the intervention to the NHS for the year 2016. The population who would benefit comprised adult smokers who were ready to quit and for whom surgery requiring admission to hospital was planned. The intervention, a combination of medical counselling and use of a smoking cessation drug which should occur 12 weeks before surgery, considered one attempt only to quit smoking. Benefits were costs avoided by averting postoperative complications if cessation was successful. The analysis compared the net economic outcome (benefit minus cost of intervention) and the return on investment, for intervention funded by the NHS versus the current situation without funding.
Results
Smoking cessation increased by 21·7 per cent with funding; the rate was 32·5 per cent when funded versus 10·7 per cent without funding, producing 9611 extra quitters. The cost per averted smoker was €1753 with a benefit of €503, achieving a net economic benefit of €4·8 million per year. Given the annual cost of the intervention (€17·4 million, of which €5·6 million (32·5 per cent) represents drugs), the return on investment was 28·7 per cent annually, equivalent to €1·29 per €1 of investment.
Conclusion
From the perspective of the Spanish NHS, the benefit of funding smoking cessation before surgery, in terms of healthcare cost savings, appears to greatly outweigh the costs.
Antecedentes
Ser fumador activo hasta el momento de la cirugía se asocia con complicaciones postoperatorias. Se ha descrito una disminución de las complicaciones durante la hospitalización al abandonar el hábito de fumar antes de la cirugía. Este trabajo analizó si una intervención preoperatoria para dejar de fumar es económicamente beneficiosa cuando se financia por el Sistema Nacional de Salud (SNS) en España.
Métodos
En el análisis económico se consideraron tantos los costes como los beneficios de la intervención para el SNS, en euros, correspondientes al año 2016. La población que se beneficiaría eran fumadores adultos dispuestos a dejar de fumar, en los que se programase una intervención quirúrgica con hospitalización. La intervención, una combinación de asesoramiento médico y tratamiento farmacológico para dejar de fumar, se llevó a cabo a las 12 semanas antes de la cirugía, considerando únicamente un intento para dejar de fumar. Los beneficios fueron los costes evitados por una reducción en la tasa de complicaciones postoperatorias en los casos en los que se hubiese conseguido la eliminación del hábito. El análisis comparó el resultado económico neto (beneficio menos coste de la intervención) y el retorno de la inversión (return on investment, ROI), cuando la intervención era financiada por el SNS en comparación con la situación actual sin financiamiento público.
Resultados
La tasa de abandono del hábito tabáquico aumentó en un 21,8%; 32,5% cuando se financiaba frente al 10,7% sin financiación, consiguiendo un extra de 9.611 personas que dejaron de fumar. El coste por fumador rescatado fue de €1753 con un beneficio de €503, por lo que el beneficio económico neto conseguido fue de €4,8 millones por año. Dado que el coste anual de la intervención (€17,4 millones, de los cuales €5,6 millones corresponden a fármacos (32%)), el ROI anual fue del 28,7% con un beneficio de €1,29 por cada €1 de inversión.
Conclusión
Desde la perspectiva del SNS español, los beneficios de financiar el abandono del hábito de fumar en el preoperatorio de los pacientes, en términos de ahorro de costes parecen ser muy superiores a los costes de la intervención.
Smoking at the time of surgery is associated with postoperative complications. Quitting smoking before surgery is linked to fewer complications during the hospital stay. This work analysed whether a smoking cessation intervention before surgery is worthwhile economically when funded by the National Health System in Spain. The benefit of funding smoking cessation before surgery, in terms of healthcare cost savings, greatly outweighed the costs, with a substantial return on investment.
Benefits from funding smoking cessation
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