The ISCIII through the extraordinary call for research projects on SARS-COV-2 and the Covid-19 disease has financed the project “Seroprevalence against SARS-CoV-2 in pregnant women and newborns” directed by Dr. Cabero -Head of the Pediatrics Service- and Dr. Llorca -Professor of Preventive Medicine and Public Health-.
This project aims to know the impact that COVID-19 has on pregnant women and their children and analyze how their care has been during delivery and postpartum. Through this study, the real prevalence in this segment of the population will be known, not only the direct consequences of the infection, but also the children will be followed in case any consequence is derived in the medium term and it will be analyzed if there are differences in depending on the quarter in which they have had contact with the virus. For this purpose, the participation of 1,000 pregnant women whose delivery occurred after March 23 or who are still pregnant is intended. In Valdecilla, the PCR test is already being carried out to diagnose the presence of the virus in all pregnant women. The participants in the project are also tested for antibodies to them and their children, and they are followed for a year to find out their health status.
So far, there are already more than 500 participants, from whom information has been collected on the characteristics of pregnancy and childbirth, as well as their personal history. Only eight of the participants were infected with COVID-19 at the time of delivery; all their children were born without the infection, and positive antibodies have been detected in a part of the pregnant women that were not known. The acceptance by the families has been very good and it is carried out with the maximum security measures for all. The study at 6 months and 12 months will also allow us to see the evolution of the pandemic.
The project funded by the special call on COVID-19 of the Carlos III Health Institute and is being carried out with researchers from the Pediatrics and Obstetrics and Gynecology services, and with the excellent collaboration of the Microbiology and Immunology services of the Valdecilla Hospital, being a multiprofessional study with great nursing involvement.
The ISCIII through the extraordinary call for research projects on SARS-COV-2 and the Covid-19 disease has financed the project “Seroprevalence against SARS-CoV-2 in pregnant women and newborns” directed by Dr. Cabero -Head of the Pediatrics Service- and Dr. Llorca -Professor of Preventive Medicine and Public Health-. This project aims to know the impact that COVID-19 […]
The multidisciplinary work team formed by the group of Cell Signaling and Therapeutic Targets in Cancer of IDIVAL; the Optics group of the University of Cantabria (UC) and the Neurosurgery service of the Marqués de Valdecilla University Hospital (HUMV); Together with the company Fotoglass, specialized in biomedical optics, a spin off of UC, they have developed two new devices based on plasmonic technology – plasmonic chip – for the discrimination of the different tumor regions and thus help in the surgical treatment of glioblastoma.
Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common primary brain tumor in adults and one of the most aggressive and lethal. The standard treatment today is surgery followed by radiation therapy and chemotherapy with temozolomide.
GBM is a highly invasive tumor, making complete resection difficult. The most problematic region, from the surgical point of view, is the one that corresponds to the tumor margins.
These new devices make it possible to identify necrotic, tumor and peritumoral tissue in real time, facilitating the work of the neurosurgeon at the time of surgical intervention for glioblastoma or GBM, since they allow tumor determinations that do not require patient preparation.
This collaboration arises from the Sentir project and from which, a prototype capable of detecting tumor cells in the blood, in a non-invasive way, and counting them was created, in order to have very precise information on the evolution of the disease and the effect of the antitumor treatment applied to the patient.
The team has already contacted a multinational company, specialized in surgical equipment, which has taken an interest in manufacturing the devices.
Cell Signaling and Therapeutic Targets in Cancer of IDIVAL
The multidisciplinary work team formed by the group of Cell Signaling and Therapeutic Targets in Cancer of IDIVAL; the Optics group of the University of Cantabria (UC) and the Neurosurgery service of the Marqués de Valdecilla University Hospital (HUMV); Together with the company Fotoglass, specialized in biomedical optics, a spin off of UC, they have […]
The research group "Melatonin and Breast Cancer" of IDIVAL has recently published in the journal Biomedicines, with impact factor Q1, the article "Melatonin as a Radio-Sensitizer in Cancer".
Radiotherapy is one of the treatments of choice in many types of cancer. Adjuvant treatments to radiotherapy try, on one hand, to enhance the response of tumor cells to radiation and, on the other hand, to reduce the side effects to normal cells. Radiosensitizers are agents that increase the effect of radiation in tumor cells by trying not to increase side effects in normal tissues. Melatonin is a hormone produced mainly by the pineal gland which has an important role in the regulation of cancer growth, especially in hormone-dependent mammary tumors. Different studies have showed that melatonin administered with radiotherapy is able to enhance its therapeutic effects and can protect normal cells against side effects of this treatment.
The published article is a review of Several mechanisms are involved in the radiosensitization induced by melatonin: increase of reactive oxygen species production, modulation of proteins involved in estrogen biosynthesis, impairment of tumor cells to DNA repair, modulation of angiogenesis, abolition of inflammation, induction of apoptosis, stimulation of preadipocytes differentiation and modulation of metabolism. Several of these mechanisms have already been described in previous articles by the research group in recent years.
Among the research objectives of the group "Melatonin and Breast Cancer" led by Dr. Samuel Cos Corral, is to study the sensitization by melatonin of tumor cells to radiotherapy or chemotherapy.
The research group "Melatonin and Breast Cancer" of IDIVAL has recently published in the journal Biomedicines, with impact factor Q1, the article "Melatonin as a Radio-Sensitizer in Cancer". Radiotherapy is one of the treatments of choice in many types of cancer. Adjuvant treatments to radiotherapy try, on one hand, to enhance the response of tumor […]
The Postdoctoral Junior Leader fellowships programme is aimed at hiring excellent researchers, of any nationality, who wish to continue their research career in Spain or Portugal in the STEM area (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).
The Postdoctoral Junior Leader fellowships programme is divided into two different frames:
For Spanish institutions, candidates must have resided in Spain less than 12 months in the last three years while for Portuguese institutions, candidates must have resided in Portugal less than 12 months in the last three years.
As part of this complementary training, Junior Leader fellows have to pursue a mandatory secondment in a different institution to increase their transversal skills. These secondments, with a duration between 3 to 6 months, must be performed in an international or intersectorial institution.
The call for applications opens on the date it is published and closes on 7th October 2020 at 2 p.m. (Spain time).
More information: https://fundacionlacaixa.org/en/investigacion-y-becas/becas-de-la-caixa/posdoctorado-junior-leader/descripcion-del-programa
The Postdoctoral Junior Leader fellowships programme is aimed at hiring excellent researchers, of any nationality, who wish to continue their research career in Spain or Portugal in the STEM area (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). The Postdoctoral Junior Leader fellowships programme is divided into two different frames: Postdoctorate Junior Leader – Incoming: 30 postdoctoral fellowships […]
The Master and Expert in Direction and Management of Health Services (MADGS) of the University of Cantabria organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Health of the Government of Cantabria opens the pre-registration period.
The thirteenth edition of the Master and the Expert program in Direction and Management of Health Services of the University of Cantabria will begin on October 16 and will end in June 2021.
IDIVAL participates one more year in the IV module dedicated to Health Research and Public Health.
¿WHO IS IT AIMED AT?
The Master, Expert and Specialization Courses are aimed at university graduates, graduates and graduates, final year students, health professionals, as well as people interested in expanding, updating and developing their management capacity, in addition to specializing in this professional field, such as engineers, economists or lawyers, among others.
WHERE AND WHEN IT IS IMPARTED
The Master's Degree and the Expert in Health Services Direction and Management are blended, on-site and online classes.
The face-to-face sessions will take place alternating weekends of each month, on Fridays from 4:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Faculty of Economic and Business Sciences, Avda. De Los Castros, s / n, Santander.
* Start: October 16, 2020 (Master), March 12, 2021 (Expert)
* End: June 2020 (Master and Expert)
AMOUNT AND SCHOLARSHIPS
The amount of the Master is 2,900€ for the 60 ECTS credits, while the Expert is 1,450€ for the 30 ECTS credits. There is the option of payment in two installments with one at the beginning, as well as partial scholarships.
SPECIALIZATION COURSES
In the same way, the next course will be offered again 7 specialization courses:
PRE-REGISTRATION
http://web.unican.es/admision/acceso-a-estudios-propios-de-posgrado
More information: http://madgs.es/
The Master and Expert in Direction and Management of Health Services (MADGS) of the University of Cantabria organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Health of the Government of Cantabria opens the pre-registration period. The thirteenth edition of the Master and the Expert program in Direction and Management of Health Services of the University of […]
This edition of the Inter-Autonomous Meeting on the Legal Protection of the Patient organized for thirteen years by the Menéndez Pelayo International University must necessarily be different from previous editions. The situation of exceptionality derived from the Covid-19 requires modulating this year one of the consolidated seminars in the Spanish panorama in the matter of specialized training of professionals and managers, both health and legal. In this sense, together with the need to adopt security measures, the exceptionality invites the development of a monograph program dedicated to the bioethical and legal challenges of the crisis caused by coronavirus.
¿Has the structure of our Rule of Law responded to this unusual emergency situation? What is the limit of the impact on the rights of people as patients? And as citizens? And as consumers? To what degree and intensity can limitations be imposed on fundamental rights? Is it ethical to lose humanity to get immunity? What role have fake news played in this process? Should the National Health System be redesigned in a post-Covid scenario? How are globalization and legal control of markets compatible? What compensatory mechanisms exist to assume the damages derived from the pandemic? What scope should transition measures to the new normal have? What have been the legal solutions adopted in other countries? To answer these and other questions and, above all, to formulate proposals for the future, this monograph aims to bring together jurists, clinicians and bioethicists of the highest level, both national and international, in the spirit of fostering an essential academic debate.
The potential recipients of this meeting are academics from legal and health disciplines, managers of the health system, health and law professionals, as well as graduates and university students interested in specializing and updating their knowledge.
Course Directors:
Head of the Legal Advice Service of the Ministry of Health
Government of Cantabria
Director of the Research Group in Health Law and Bioethics IDIVAL-University of Cantabria
Professor of Commercial Law
University of cantabria
Member of the General Codification Commission. Ministry of Justice
MORE INFORMATION: http://www.uimp.es/agenda-link.html?id_actividad=64PQ&anyaca=2020-21
This edition of the Inter-Autonomous Meeting on the Legal Protection of the Patient organized for thirteen years by the Menéndez Pelayo International University must necessarily be different from previous editions. The situation of exceptionality derived from the Covid-19 requires modulating this year one of the consolidated seminars in the Spanish panorama in the matter of […]
Diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) or Forestier-Rotés-Querol disease is a rheumatic process that mainly affects the spine and is characterized by the tendency to ossification of ligamentous structures, tendons and capsules articular.
A research paper has recently been published in the prestigious journal Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism, which analyzes the values of the “Trabecular Bone Score” (TBS), an imaging technique that evaluates the state of the bone microstructure, in a group of 968 males aged 50 and over with and without DISH. This is the first study to analyze the usefulness of TBS in DISH and shows that TBS values are significantly lower in men with DISH compared to those without this disorder. This finding was independent of age, body mass index, and bone mineral density, measured by densitometry, and therefore it is concluded that the presence of DISH could be related to a worse bone microstructure.
The study has been carried out by Drs. Pini, Sgaramella, Pariente, Ramos, Olmos and Hernández from the group "Research in Genetic Epidemiology and Arteriosclerosis in Systemic Inflammatory Diseases and Metabolic Bone Diseases of the Locomotor System" of IDIVAL. It is framed within the research line of Epidemiology of Bone Metabolic Diseases of this group, in the context of the Camargo Cohort, a large population study, the result of collaboration between Primary Care physicians and clinicians of the Bone Metabolism Unit of the Internal Medicine Service of the Marqués de Valdecilla Hospital and the University of Cantabria.
Diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) or Forestier-Rotés-Querol disease is a rheumatic process that mainly affects the spine and is characterized by the tendency to ossification of ligamentous structures, tendons and capsules articular. A research paper has recently been published in the prestigious journal Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism, which analyzes the values of the “Trabecular […]
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, activity in Hospital services has been altered. In the case of Urology Units, they have had to adapt to the new context without being guidelines for action to follow.
The Spanish Archives of Urology magazine has published the monograph “Recommendations for action in a covid-19 pandemic ”in order to provide guidelines for action during the pandemic supported by available scientific evidence. The Urology Service of Hospital Valdecilla has participated with two articles in this monograph: "Emergency surgery during COVID-19 pandemic" and "Reconstructive surgery protocol recommendations during COVID-19 pandemic" described below.
The Urology Units of six Spanish hospitals, including the Urology Unit of the Marqués de Valdecilla University Hospital, have prepared a guide with recommendations on the management, during COVID-19, of the different clinical contexts of patients with pathology framed in the field of Reconstructive Urology.
The initial work consisted of a bibliographic search of the limited literature on the management of reconstructive urological pathology in health emergency situations. With this evidence, the panel of experts who participated in this study have identified the most common clinical contexts and have been structured according to their need for urgent treatment or the possibility of deferring it. Likewise, specific recommendations have been prepared for the management of some situations, both in urgent or elective contexts, to reduce the risks of exposure to the virus for patients and healthcare professionals.
This review and recommendations have been carried out by members of the expert committee of the Urological Reconstructive Group of the Spanish Association of Urology (AEU), of which the Urology Unit of Valdecilla Hospital has been a part since its foundation in 2015.
The Reconstructive Urology and Andrology Unit of the HUMV leads several national multicenter projects to increase the available knowledge on the management of urethral stenotic pathology and improve its diagnosis and treatment. It is currently a reference center at European level, participating in the drafting of the European Guidelines for this pathology.
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, activity in Hospital services has been altered. In the case of Urology Units, they have had to adapt to the new context without being guidelines for action to follow. The Spanish Archives of Urology magazine has published the monograph “Recommendations for action in a covid-19 pandemic ”in order […]
Research carried out by professors David Cantarero, Marta Pascual and Javier Lera (members of the R + D + i Group in Health Economics and Management of Health Services UC-IDIVAL) shows the great importance of the lifestyles of our greater in their use of health resources such as consultations and hospitalizations.
In general, from the age of 50 an increase in the use of health resources is beginning to be seen. In particular, those over 65 are the population group that makes the most use of health services. It is understandable due to several factors: the increase in life expectancy, the development of new technologies and medical techniques and the contribution of these people in health through the payment of taxes. It should not be forgotten that the elderly have contributed the most to the development of the welfare system.
The study has been published in the Atlantic Economic Journal with the title "Healthcare Utilization and Healthy Lifestyles among Elderly People Living in Southern Europe: Recent Evidence from the SHARE". It examines the impact that the lifestyles of our elders have on their number of medical visits and hospitalizations. To do this, a data panel extracted from the Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe – SHARE was used. This database is one of the most widely used in studies of older people due to its multidisciplinary nature. It contains information on the personal relationships, lifestyles, socioeconomic or health data of the respondents.
In this case, the study focuses on smoking and physical activity in the elderly. However, other factors such as age, gender, socioeconomic or health data, such as chronicity or self-perceived health, are taken into account and data from 16 years ago have been accounted for.
At first glance, it is understood that smoking would increase the use of health resources and that, on the contrary, physical activity would reduce said use. However, it is essential to give a figure to the impact of these habits to be able to plan in the medium and long term and thus be able to guarantee the sustainability of one of the legs of the welfare state.
As the main results of the study, it can be highlighted that smoking has a significant impact on the number of hospitalizations, specifically, it is estimated that a person who has been a smoker sees their hospitalizations increased by 14.22%. Conversely, those who remain physically active are associated with a reduction of 7.8% – 28.25% in medical consultations and the number of hospitalizations respectively. These results are very useful for planning and implementing public policies that promote physical activity among our elders.
However, it is very important to take into account other factors such as geographic, socioeconomic level or gender. The study shows that the impact of the place of residence plays a not inconsiderable role. In relation to the socioeconomic level, a positive bias is seen in those individuals with higher incomes: higher income would mean greater use of health resources. Furthermore, gender bias must also be taken into account in all measures carried out. It is essential to remember that women have a longer life expectancy and that they are in charge of all those tasks related to caring for people, which reduces their free time and could worsen their health.
In COVID-19 times, the efficient use of all resources becomes even more important in order to better cope with the pandemic. For this, it is useful to be able to identify all the factors associated with health utilization since they are decisive for the design of policies that aim to sustain the welfare system. Such policies can be carried out by improving health outcomes or empowering citizens (as requested by the European institutions).
Referencia: Cantarero-Prieto, D., Pascual-Sáez, M. & Lera, J. (2020) Healthcare Utilization and Healthy Lifestyles among Elderly People Living in Southern Europe: Recent Evidence from the SHARE. Atl Econ J. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11293-020-09657-3
Research carried out by professors David Cantarero, Marta Pascual and Javier Lera (members of the R + D + i Group in Health Economics and Management of Health Services UC-IDIVAL) shows the great importance of the lifestyles of our greater in their use of health resources such as consultations and hospitalizations. In general, from the […]
The IDIVAL-UC and CIBER-BBN Photonic Engineering Research Group has demonstrated a fiber optic laser light source that, when integrated into a suitable microscope, allows CARS (Coherent Anti-Stokes Raman Scattering Microscopy) spectroscopy to be performed. that enables a new way of doing “photonic biopsies” in quasi-real time both in the laboratory and in clinical events.
The results have been the result of the work that has led to the doctoral thesis of Iñaki Aporta Litago under the co-direction of José Miguel López Higuera and María Angeles Quintela Incera. The developed technology has been protected by a patent, and is in the process of being strengthened to be transferred for commercial exploitation.
Consistent Raman Anti-Stokes Light Scattering (CARS) is a non-destructive technique that requires no “tinting” of the sample and enables advanced, high-contrast, precision analysis and imaging of biological tissues and chemical samples. It allows to obtain representative images of its molecular and morphological composition of both soft and hard tissues. CARS provides valuable information on species that are very abundant in living things, such as lipids, proteins, DNA and water. CARS has been used to monitor growth and lipid distribution in a wide variety of cell types and microorganisms, to visualize the morphological changes induced in myelin sheaths in the spinal cord, and to map lipid deposits in atherosclerotic lesions. Likewise, it has been shown that by CARS the margins between normal and pathological tissue can be obtained based on the biochemical footprint of the spectra in bones, epithelial and muscular tissue, nervous tissues, lung, breast and skin tissues, among others.
A CARS system is made up of three large modules: the tunable laser source, the optical-mechanical and display module, and the software for controlling, processing and presenting information, the key module of the instrument being the laser source for technical and economic reasons.
By means of two coherent and synchronized laser beams the target sample is excited. Its molecules vibrate at specific frequencies and scatter (with great efficiency) the photons, forming the CARS signal from which high-contrast, high-resolution molecular images are obtained in two and three dimensions.
Each type of molecule offers specific modes of vibration, and its frequency is representative of it, which allows it to be identified. By modifying the difference in frequencies between the two laser beams (tunable source), different types of molecules can be identified in the target sample.
As a minimum light intensity is required for a CARS signal to originate from a sample, using low intensity lasers and focusing them properly with objectives (lenses), it can be achieved that the aforementioned condition is only achieved in a very small volume (micrometer) located in the focus of the lens (focal volume). This makes it possible to obtain images in two and three dimensions on the surface and in the volume of the sample under study.
The intensity of the CARS light (number of photons) is representative of the "quantity" of the mentioned molecules in the sample, therefore, by means of the measurement of said intensity, their molecular density is determined. All this, in a non-destructive way (without damaging the samples), therefore, CARS spectroscopy can be used both in cells and biological tissues "in vitro" (dead tissues) and "in vivo" (living tissues).
To date, most sources for CARS have been made by synchronizing two pulsed lasers (one with a fixed frequency and the other with a variable frequency), resulting in complex, bulky, not very compact and very expensive assemblies, which prevents this technology, is popularized or used on a large scale. The CARS source demonstrated in photonic crystal fiber technology by the researchers of the group, in addition to offering the two high-quality laser beams at the output of an optical fiber, is small, very compact, more reliable, much easier to integrate in the opto-mechanical module and much cheaper. This will impact, very significantly, on the manufacture of more advanced CARS systems that reduce disadvantages and at significantly lower costs than their predecessors, which will undoubtedly facilitate their massive use in the chemical and biomedical sectors, among others.
Due to the high viability of being exploited commercially has been protected by patent. The Valencian company FYLA Láseres SA has shown its interest in manufacturing specific laser sources for CARS based on the aforementioned technology once it is strengthened. For this, it is waiting to receive funding from the Innovative Companies Association (AEI) that will allow the joint FULCARS project to be carried out, culminating in a prototype of a reliable, robust laser source that companies specialized in optical microscopy are interested in incorporating their new generation advanced CARS systems. With this, it is proposed to complete a model process of transferring the results arising in the laboratories of an academic institution to the business sector for commercial exploitation.
The IDIVAL-UC and CIBER-BBN Photonic Engineering Research Group has demonstrated a fiber optic laser light source that, when integrated into a suitable microscope, allows CARS (Coherent Anti-Stokes Raman Scattering Microscopy) spectroscopy to be performed. that enables a new way of doing “photonic biopsies” in quasi-real time both in the laboratory and in clinical events. The […]
