BioMed, Volume 2, Issue 3 (September 2022) – 5 articles

Background: To determine risk factors of death in diagnosed patients with COVID-19 who were aged ≥60 years and could not benefit from intubation and mechanical ventilation. Methods: Retrospective multicentre study including all patients with COVID-19 admitted to four medium-stay centres in Catalonia (March-June 2020). At the multivariate level, we calculated hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) to determine risk factors associated with mortality. Results: 683 patients were included, of whom 227 died (case fatality rate of 33%, reaching 42% in patients of more than 90 years). Mean survival was 21.92 (20.98–22.86) days. Factors associated with death were fever (HR:1.5 (1.06–2.13)), malaise (HR:1.4 (1.04–1.99)), dyspnoea (HR:1.98 (1.41–2.79)) and atrial fibrillation (HR:1.45 (1.03–2.05)), while coughing (HR: 0.66 (0.46–0.94)), diarrhoea (HR:0.46 (0.23–0.92)), dyslipidaemia (HR:0.47 (0.28–0.82)), and receiving antithrombotic treatment (HR:0.56 (0.40–0.78)) had a protective effect. The analysis by age group showed that other factors were uniquely associated with each age group, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at 60–74 years and polypharmacy at 75–90 years, among other factors. Conclusions: Case fatality in COVID-19 patients who could not benefit from intubation and mechanical ventilation was exceptional. Clinical manifestations such as fever, malaise, dyspnoea and atrial fibrillation helped to identify patients at higher risk of mortality, while antithrombotic treatment had a protective effect. Although some symptoms are very general regarding COVID-19, in the context of the first wave without vaccination, when not much was known about the disease, such symptoms could be useful. Full article

Football is characterized as a contact sport that increases the risk of injury. For the reduction of injuries, health care providers created a warm-up program that is called the FIFA11+. This is a 20 min warm-up program that has the goal of preventing injuries. This literature review investigated the effects of FIFA11+ on injury prevention and performance in football players. A systematic search was performed in three scientific databases (Pubmed, Scopus, and Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro)) and one search engine (Google Scholar) from inception to June 2022. Relevant studies published in the English language were extracted, evaluated, and independently rated for methodological quality (PEDro scale). Overall, 10 randomized controlled trials were analyzed and their outcomes are discussed. Through the analysis of the studies, it was observed that the groups which performed the FIFA 11+ warm-up program had fewer incidents of injuries. In addition, the athletes of these groups increased their performance, especially in balance, proprioception, and strength of hamstrings. After the analysis, the results and limitations of the randomized controlled trials are discussed. Finally, this review suggests the inclusion of the FIFA 11+ in training sessions, and future recommendations are provided for the next trials for the maximization of their reliability. Full article

Lymphomas have been increasing at an alarming rate globally and causing deaths worldwide due to the lack of effective therapies. Among different pharmacological agents, selenium (Se) and selenium-related compounds are widely tested and have gained interest as anticancer agents due to their selectivity to cancer and high efficacy for lymphoma treatment over recent decades. Se is a trace non-metallic element identified as an essential micronutrient that mediates a range of biological functions after incorporation into selenoproteins (SePs), and thus affects the overall quality of human health. Specifically, low levels of Se in serum have been linked with aberrant immune functions, cancer, inflammatory diseases, and predictive of worse outcomes in patients with hematological malignancies including lymphoma. Over the past few years, a number of promising selenium compounds (SeCs) have been developed to mimic and alter the functions of SePs to achieve pharmacological interventions such as anticancer, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory activities with minimal adverse effects by suitable chemical substitution. Here, we have reviewed various lymphoma types and their molecular characterization, along with emphasis on the potential role of Se and SeCs as anti-cancer agents for lymphoma treatment. In addition, we have discussed various pros and cons associated with the usage of Se/SeCs for selectively targeting cancers including lymphomas. Full article

Height loss starting in middle age is reported to be an independent risk factor for cardiovascular mortality. Recent studies have revealed an inverse association between height and hypertension, but the influence of hypertension on height loss is unknown. Since hypertension is an established cardiovascular risk factor, clarifying the association between baseline hypertension and height loss could lead to an efficient tool to estimate the risk of mortality. A retrospective study of 11,154 Japanese aged 40–74 years was conducted. Height loss was defined as being in the highest quintile of annual height decrease (≥2.015 mm/year for men and ≥1.756 mm/year). Baseline height was significantly inversely associated with incident hypertension for men only. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for incident hypertension for each 1 standard deviation increment of height (5.9 cm for men and 5.6 cm for women) was 0.90 (0.84, 0.97) for men and 1.07 (0.91, 1.26) for women, respectively. We also found that baseline hypertension is independently positively associated with height loss for men only. The adjusted OR was 1.25 (1.11, 1.42) for men and 0.93 (0.71, 1.21) for women. These results might lead to an efficient tool for estimating the risk of height loss, which has been reported to be associated with a higher risk of mortality in adults. Full article

Cancer is a chronic disease with long-term consequences for health and quality of life and is more prevalent among older people. Therefore, comorbidity among cancer patients is commonly observed. Several data indicate that 40% of cancer patients have at least one other chronic condition recorded, and of these, 15% have two or more medical conditions, including cardiovascular disease, obesity and metabolic disease, mental health problems, and muscle-skeletal conditions. There is no gold-standard approach for measuring comorbidity in the context of cancer, especially in recent years, when health systems have dealt with a pandemic emergency that has negatively impacted the management of cancer patients. The purpose of this narrative review is to clarify and provide the necessary insights to optimize the care of cancer patients. Ensuring the continuum of care for cancer patients is of vital importance and is considered a top priority. It is necessary to overcome the model that considers neoplastic pathology as a single morbid condition. Instead, the complexity of a cancer patient’s problems must be considered and related to complex medical conditions. Addressing the problem of comorbidity in cancer more decisively will be a central challenge if we are to avert a crisis in the models of diagnosis and treatment of cancer patients. Full article