Women with polycystic ovary syndrome are more likely to have problems with pregnancy regardless of whether they are undergoing fertility treatment, claims new research published on the British Medical Journal website. The Swedish researchers call for better monitoring of women with polycystic ovary syndrome during pregnancy and childbirth because they are more prone to premature birth, diabetes and pre-eclampsia -- outcomes which are not explained by assisted reproductive technology, as previously thought.
Polycystic ovary syndrome is a common disorder that affects between 5% and 15% of women of reproductive age.
Women with the condition typically have small cysts around the edge of their ovaries. Symptoms include irregular periods, problems with ovulation, weight gain and excessive hair growth. Women with the condition are more likely to have fertility treatment.
Researchers from the Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm, Sweden set out to study the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes in women with the condition, taking into account maternal characteristics and fertility treatment.
They studied nationwide data on 3,787 births among women with polycystic ovary syndrome and 1,191,336 births among women without the condition.
They measured risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes, such as diabetes brought on by pregnancy, pre-eclampsia, premature birth, stillbirth, neonatal death, and poor health of newborns, taking into account maternal characteristics (body mass index and age), socioeconomic factors, and fertility treatment such as IVF.
Analysis of the results showed that women diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome were more often obese and more commonly used assisted reproductive technology than women without the condition.
There was a strong link between polycystic ovary syndrome and pre-eclampsia -- women with the syndrome were 45% more likely to experience pre-eclampsia -- and were also more than twice as likely to give birth prematurely and/or to develop diabetes while pregnant.
Babies born to mothers with polycystic ovary syndrome were more prone to be large for gestational age and tended to develop asphyxia during labour.
Overall, the researchers found that a diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome was associated with increased risks of adverse pregnancy outcomes that could not be attributed to the increased use of assisted reproductive technology or maternal characteristics such as advanced age or being overweight or obese.
The researchers conclude: "These women may need increased surveillance during pregnancy and childbirth. Future research would benefit from focusing on glucose control, medical treatment and hormonal status among women with polycystic ovary syndrome during pregnancy."
In an accompanying editorial, Professor Nick Macklon from the University of Southampton, says: "It is clear that women with polycystic ovary syndrome should be considered "high risk" obstetric patients and that midwives, general practitioners, and obstetricians should monitor these women as such."
However, he believes that "more evidence is required to support the use of currently used interventions designed to reduce perinatal risk, and this requires a greater understanding of the different polycystic ovary syndrome phenotypes and the underlying mechanisms by which this common condition alters pregnancy outcomes."
**Source: BMJ-British Medical Journal
14 October 2011
Según un estudio uno de cada seis móviles está contaminado con materia fecal
Los europeos seguramente no olviden qué es la 'E. coli', después de que este pasado verano un brote de esta bacteria sembrara el pánico en Alemania y acabara con la vida de más de 50 personas e infectara a unas 4.440. Pero a veces ni el miedo es suficiente para concienciarse de que las medidas de higiene básicas son fundamentales para evitar infecciones. Lo demuestra el hecho de que un estudio, llevado a cabo en Reino Unido, constata que uno de cada seis móviles está contaminado con bacterias fecales, una de ellas la 'E. coli'.
Dirigidos por Ron Cutler, un equipo de especialistas de la Universidad Queen Mary de Londres viajó a 12 ciudades británicas y tomó muestras de 390 móviles y de las manos de sus usuarios que fueron enviadas al laboratorio en busca de bacterias. Además, los científicos realizaron cuestionarios a los participantes sobre sus medidas de higiene.
"Aunque el 95% de las personas dijo que se lavaba las manos con agua y jabón siempre que podían, en el 92% de los teléfonos y en el 82% de las manos había bacterias. Lo más preocupante es que el 16% de las manos y el 16% de los teléfonos estaban contaminados por 'E. coli' (una bacteria de origen fecal)", determinan los autores de la investigación.
Cutler reconoce que "nuestro análisis reveló algunos resultados interesantes relación con el Reino Unido. Mientras que en algunas ciudades había menos contaminación que en otras, el hecho de que la 'E.coli' estuviera presente en los teléfonos y manos de cada uno de los lugares analizados muestra que se trata de un problema nacional. La gente puede decir que se lava las manos con regularidad, pero la ciencia demuestra lo contrario".
Peter Barratt, director de Soluciones Iniciales para el Lavado de Manos, que apoya el 'Día Mundial del Lavado de Manos' , que se celebra hoy, asevera: "La investigación es sorprendente y demuestra la importancia de la higiene. Es muy importante que la gente se la tome en serio y que las empresas ofrezcan a sus empleados y clientes los medios para llevarla a la práctica con el fin de que se protejan a sí mismos y ayuden a combatir la propagación de enfermedades".
De las 12 ciudades analizadas, Birmingham se ha revelado como la que más móviles contaminados tiene (41%), mientras que los londinenses fueron los ciudadanos con más 'E.coli' en sus manos (28%).
Los científicos reconocen que cuanto más al norte se situaron mayores fueron los niveles de bacterias. Así, la ciudad más sucia fue Glasgow, donde el grado de promedio de contaminación en los teléfonos y en las manos era nueve veces superior al de Brighton (en el sur). Otro dato que aportan es el que hace referencia a que los usuarios que tenían patógenos en sus manos eran hasta tres veces más propensos a tenerlos también en sus móviles.
El ' Día Mundial de Lavado de Manos' pretende desde 2008 reforzar el llamamiento a extender mejores prácticas de higiene en todo el mundo.
**Publicado en "EL MUNDO"
Dirigidos por Ron Cutler, un equipo de especialistas de la Universidad Queen Mary de Londres viajó a 12 ciudades británicas y tomó muestras de 390 móviles y de las manos de sus usuarios que fueron enviadas al laboratorio en busca de bacterias. Además, los científicos realizaron cuestionarios a los participantes sobre sus medidas de higiene.
"Aunque el 95% de las personas dijo que se lavaba las manos con agua y jabón siempre que podían, en el 92% de los teléfonos y en el 82% de las manos había bacterias. Lo más preocupante es que el 16% de las manos y el 16% de los teléfonos estaban contaminados por 'E. coli' (una bacteria de origen fecal)", determinan los autores de la investigación.
Cutler reconoce que "nuestro análisis reveló algunos resultados interesantes relación con el Reino Unido. Mientras que en algunas ciudades había menos contaminación que en otras, el hecho de que la 'E.coli' estuviera presente en los teléfonos y manos de cada uno de los lugares analizados muestra que se trata de un problema nacional. La gente puede decir que se lava las manos con regularidad, pero la ciencia demuestra lo contrario".
Peter Barratt, director de Soluciones Iniciales para el Lavado de Manos, que apoya el 'Día Mundial del Lavado de Manos' , que se celebra hoy, asevera: "La investigación es sorprendente y demuestra la importancia de la higiene. Es muy importante que la gente se la tome en serio y que las empresas ofrezcan a sus empleados y clientes los medios para llevarla a la práctica con el fin de que se protejan a sí mismos y ayuden a combatir la propagación de enfermedades".
De las 12 ciudades analizadas, Birmingham se ha revelado como la que más móviles contaminados tiene (41%), mientras que los londinenses fueron los ciudadanos con más 'E.coli' en sus manos (28%).
Los científicos reconocen que cuanto más al norte se situaron mayores fueron los niveles de bacterias. Así, la ciudad más sucia fue Glasgow, donde el grado de promedio de contaminación en los teléfonos y en las manos era nueve veces superior al de Brighton (en el sur). Otro dato que aportan es el que hace referencia a que los usuarios que tenían patógenos en sus manos eran hasta tres veces más propensos a tenerlos también en sus móviles.
El ' Día Mundial de Lavado de Manos' pretende desde 2008 reforzar el llamamiento a extender mejores prácticas de higiene en todo el mundo.
**Publicado en "EL MUNDO"
Study could help battle against superbugs
Targeting a toxin released by virtually all strains of MRSA could help scientists develop new drugs that can fight the superbug, research suggests. A study led by the University of Edinburgh has discovered the toxin -- SElX -- which leads the body's immune system to go into overdrive and damage healthy cells.
The toxin SElX is made by 95 per cent of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, including MRSA strains linked with hospital-acquired infections.
When it is released it triggers an over multiplication of immune cells, which can lead to high fever, toxic shock and potentially fatal lung infections.
The study, published in the journal PLoS Pathogens, will help research to find drugs that could target SElX and prevent damage to healthy cells.
The research, carried out by the Universities of Edinburgh, Iowa and Mississippi State, looked at a strain of MRSA known as USA300 that can cause severe infections in otherwise healthy individuals.
MRSA strains are known to produce different types of toxins but scientists found that SElX is made by virtually all strains of the superbug.
It belongs to a family of toxins known as superantigens, which can invoke an extreme immune response.
Dr Ross Fitzgerald, from The Roslin Institute at the University of Edinburgh, said: "If we can find ways to target this toxin, we can stop it from triggering an over-reaction of the body's immune system and prevent severe infections"
The research was funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, the National Institutes of Health, USA, the US Department of Agriculture and Pfizer Animal Health.
Gill Wilson, of The Roslin Institute and first author on the paper, said: "MRSA continues to be a global problem. This research could help us find a new way to target the infection."
**Source: University of Edinburgh
The toxin SElX is made by 95 per cent of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, including MRSA strains linked with hospital-acquired infections.
When it is released it triggers an over multiplication of immune cells, which can lead to high fever, toxic shock and potentially fatal lung infections.
The study, published in the journal PLoS Pathogens, will help research to find drugs that could target SElX and prevent damage to healthy cells.
The research, carried out by the Universities of Edinburgh, Iowa and Mississippi State, looked at a strain of MRSA known as USA300 that can cause severe infections in otherwise healthy individuals.
MRSA strains are known to produce different types of toxins but scientists found that SElX is made by virtually all strains of the superbug.
It belongs to a family of toxins known as superantigens, which can invoke an extreme immune response.
Dr Ross Fitzgerald, from The Roslin Institute at the University of Edinburgh, said: "If we can find ways to target this toxin, we can stop it from triggering an over-reaction of the body's immune system and prevent severe infections"
The research was funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, the National Institutes of Health, USA, the US Department of Agriculture and Pfizer Animal Health.
Gill Wilson, of The Roslin Institute and first author on the paper, said: "MRSA continues to be a global problem. This research could help us find a new way to target the infection."
**Source: University of Edinburgh
Nasal congestion: More than physical obstruction
Nose feel congested and stuffed up? Scientists from the Monell Center report that the annoying feeling of nasal obstruction is related to the temperature and humidity of inhaled air. The findings suggest that sensory feedback from nasal airflow contributes to the sensation of congestion. This knowledge may help researchers design and test more effective treatments for this familiar symptom of nasal sinus disease. Nasal sinus disease, usually caused by infection or allergy, is one of the most common medical conditions in the United States, afflicting approximately 33 million people and accounting for over $5.8 billion in healthcare costs annually. Nasal congestion and the associated feeling of obstruction is the symptom that typically causes individuals to seek medical assistance.
However, symptoms of nasal congestion have been difficult to treat effectively because, as many physicians have found, patient reports of congestion often have little relationship to the actual physical obstruction of nasal airflow.
"By establishing that feelings of nasal congestion can be sensory-related, we open doors for more targeted treatment," said study lead author Kai Zhao, Ph.D., a bioengineer at Monell. "For example, effective treatments may need to include a focus on restoring optimal humidity and temperature in the patient's nasal airflow."
In the study, published online in the open-access journal PLoS ONE, 44 healthy volunteers rated symptoms of nasal congestion after breathing air from three boxes: one containing room air at normal humidity, another containing dry air at room temperature, and the third containing cold air.
The volunteers reported reduced nasal congestion after breathing from both the cold air box and the dry air box as compared with the room air box, with the cold air box decreasing reports of congestion most effectively.
Calculations revealed that humidity also was an important factor, with lower humidity associated with decreased feelings of congestion.
The authors speculate that temperature and humidity interact as air moves through the nasal cavity to influence nasal cooling. It is this cooling that is then detected by 'cool sensors' inside the nose to influence the feeling of air flow as being either easy or obstructed.
"Someone in the desert, all other things being equal, should feel less congested than someone in the jungle. In the low humidity of the desert, there is more evaporative cooling inside of the nose, such that the temperature of the nasal passages is lower. This leads to a feeling of greater air flow -- and less sensation of obstruction." said co-author Bruce Bryant, Ph.D., a sensory scientist at Monell.
Future studies will examine patients reporting nasal obstruction to see if the sensory findings reported here can explain their symptoms, and also explore how sensory factors interact with other predictors of nasal obstruction.
Also contributing to the study were Kara Blacker, Yuehao Luo, and Jianbo Jiang, all of Monell. The research was funded by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders.
**Source: Monell Chemical Senses Center
However, symptoms of nasal congestion have been difficult to treat effectively because, as many physicians have found, patient reports of congestion often have little relationship to the actual physical obstruction of nasal airflow.
"By establishing that feelings of nasal congestion can be sensory-related, we open doors for more targeted treatment," said study lead author Kai Zhao, Ph.D., a bioengineer at Monell. "For example, effective treatments may need to include a focus on restoring optimal humidity and temperature in the patient's nasal airflow."
In the study, published online in the open-access journal PLoS ONE, 44 healthy volunteers rated symptoms of nasal congestion after breathing air from three boxes: one containing room air at normal humidity, another containing dry air at room temperature, and the third containing cold air.
The volunteers reported reduced nasal congestion after breathing from both the cold air box and the dry air box as compared with the room air box, with the cold air box decreasing reports of congestion most effectively.
Calculations revealed that humidity also was an important factor, with lower humidity associated with decreased feelings of congestion.
The authors speculate that temperature and humidity interact as air moves through the nasal cavity to influence nasal cooling. It is this cooling that is then detected by 'cool sensors' inside the nose to influence the feeling of air flow as being either easy or obstructed.
"Someone in the desert, all other things being equal, should feel less congested than someone in the jungle. In the low humidity of the desert, there is more evaporative cooling inside of the nose, such that the temperature of the nasal passages is lower. This leads to a feeling of greater air flow -- and less sensation of obstruction." said co-author Bruce Bryant, Ph.D., a sensory scientist at Monell.
Future studies will examine patients reporting nasal obstruction to see if the sensory findings reported here can explain their symptoms, and also explore how sensory factors interact with other predictors of nasal obstruction.
Also contributing to the study were Kara Blacker, Yuehao Luo, and Jianbo Jiang, all of Monell. The research was funded by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders.
**Source: Monell Chemical Senses Center
Un estudio señala que las frutas y verduras blancas ayudan a reducir el riesgo de ictus
El consejo de introducir en la dieta frutas y verduras para asegurar una mayor variedad de sutancia nutritivas y protectoras no es nuevo. Lo que sí es novedoso es el resultado de un estudio, recientemente publicado en la revista Stroke, en el que sugieren que el blanco puede ser un color particularmente últil cuando se trata de prevención de ictus.
Para este estudio, impulsado por la Universidad de Wageningen (Países Bajos), controlaron el consumo de fruta y verdura en más de 20 mil adultos durante diez años, y el resultado fue que el consumo de verdura de color blano está asociado con la reducción del riesgo de ictus.
Por cada 25 gramos más de fruta y verdura de color blanco al día, el riesgo de sufrir un derrame cerebral se reducía el 9%.
En el «grupo blanco» se encuentran manzanas, peras, plátanos, pepinos, champiñones, endibias, ajo, cebolla, puerros y coliflor.
Para este estudio, impulsado por la Universidad de Wageningen (Países Bajos), controlaron el consumo de fruta y verdura en más de 20 mil adultos durante diez años, y el resultado fue que el consumo de verdura de color blano está asociado con la reducción del riesgo de ictus.
Por cada 25 gramos más de fruta y verdura de color blanco al día, el riesgo de sufrir un derrame cerebral se reducía el 9%.
En el «grupo blanco» se encuentran manzanas, peras, plátanos, pepinos, champiñones, endibias, ajo, cebolla, puerros y coliflor.
Reversing sickle cell anemia by turning on fetal hemoglobin
Not long after birth, human babies transition from producing blood containing oxygen-rich fetal hemoglobin to blood bearing the adult hemoglobin protein. For children with sickle cell disease, the transition from the fetal to adult form of hemoglobin -- the oxygen-carrying protein in blood -- marks the onset of anemia and painful symptoms of the disorder. Now, new research led by Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) investigator Stuart H. Orkin of Children's Hospital Boston, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, and Harvard Medical School shows that silencing a protein known as BCL11A can reactivate fetal hemoglobin production in adult mice and effectively reverses sickle cell disease. The new finding, reported October 13, 2011, in Science Express, reveals that BCL11A is one of the primary factors involved in turning off fetal hemoglobin production.
"I think we've demonstrated that a single protein in the cells is a target that, if interfered with, would provide enough fetal hemoglobin to make patients better," says Orkin. "It's been hypothesized for three decades that fetal hemoglobin could be turned on once we understood the mechanism of hemoglobin switching, and this is the first evidence of a target to do that."
BCL11A is likely one of a suite of up to a dozen factors that influence fetal hemoglobin levels, Orkin says, but the new study provides hard evidence that it is one of the key players in regulating the production of fetal hemoglobin. BCL11A works as a repressor by binding to DNA and regulating gene expression.
Sickle cell anemia is a genetic disease that affects hemoglobin production. It is estimated that as many as 100,000 people in the United States and many more in other parts of the world, Africa in particular, have the disease. A single nucleotide change in the hemoglobin gene causes an amino acid substitution in the hemoglobin protein from glutamic acid to valine. The resulting proteins stick together to form long fibers and cause the development of irregular, crescent-shaped red blood cells.
It is no secret to scientists or clinicians that elevating fetal hemoglobin in human sickle cell patients can help alleviate the pain-fraught episodes of fatigue and abdominal and bone pain that are hallmarks of the condition. Though a few drugs have been found that can increase fetal hemoglobin, biomedical researchers have spent decades trolling for the basic molecular mechanisms that control the shift from fetal to adult hemoglobin. Recent genome-wide association studies helped narrow the search to a few genes and now, in a critical "proof of principle" test in transgenic mice, the team led by Orkin identified the critical role of BCL11A in tamping down the production of fetal hemoglobin.
Fetal hemoglobin differs from the adult form of the protein in its affinity for oxygen. Production of fetal hemoglobin begins about two months into gestation and helps deliver oxygen from the mother's bloodstream to the developing fetus. By about 3-6 months after birth, fetal hemoglobin is almost completely replaced by adult hemoglobin. The timing, notes Orkin, explains why sickle cell patients don't experience symptoms of the disease until several months after birth.
Drug therapy with the agent hydroxyurea helps ramp up fetal hemoglobin in some patients and reduces the number of painful episodes characteristic of sickle cell. But the drug is not uniformly effective, has several side effects and its mode of action is unknown.
Orkin notes that sickle cell was the first congenital disease for which scientists determined the single amino acid change in hemoglobin that sparks the condition. That work was done 60 years ago, he says, but that knowledge has never informed therapy for the disease.
Elevating the amount of fetal hemoglobin, says Orkin, emerged as a desirable strategy for treating sickle cell as clinicians and researchers noted long ago that levels of fetal hemoglobin naturally vary among individuals and that those sickle cell patients who express more of the fetal form of the protein experience fewer episodes of pain. "The more fetal hemoglobin you have, the better," says Orkin, noting that elevating levels of the fetal protein seems to have no toxic side effects. "The cell doesn't care if it's producing fetal hemoglobin or not."
The new study was done through genetic manipulation of a mouse model of sickle cell disease, demonstrating that in the future, gene therapy may be feasible. Knowing the target protein also means the search for new drugs to govern the production of fetal hemoglobin can shift to a higher gear. Finally, the new work holds promise for devising new treatments for a other congenital blood disorders known as thalassemias, which are also caused by an underproduction of adult hemoglobin.
Now that this key switch has been identified, Orkin asserts, the chances of powerful new therapies for sickle cell and other hemoglobin disorders will become more evident: "For the last 20 years we've been shooting arrows in the dark in hopes of hitting the target. Now we can see the target and it is a meaningful one."
**Source: Howard Hughes Medical Institute
"I think we've demonstrated that a single protein in the cells is a target that, if interfered with, would provide enough fetal hemoglobin to make patients better," says Orkin. "It's been hypothesized for three decades that fetal hemoglobin could be turned on once we understood the mechanism of hemoglobin switching, and this is the first evidence of a target to do that."
BCL11A is likely one of a suite of up to a dozen factors that influence fetal hemoglobin levels, Orkin says, but the new study provides hard evidence that it is one of the key players in regulating the production of fetal hemoglobin. BCL11A works as a repressor by binding to DNA and regulating gene expression.
Sickle cell anemia is a genetic disease that affects hemoglobin production. It is estimated that as many as 100,000 people in the United States and many more in other parts of the world, Africa in particular, have the disease. A single nucleotide change in the hemoglobin gene causes an amino acid substitution in the hemoglobin protein from glutamic acid to valine. The resulting proteins stick together to form long fibers and cause the development of irregular, crescent-shaped red blood cells.
It is no secret to scientists or clinicians that elevating fetal hemoglobin in human sickle cell patients can help alleviate the pain-fraught episodes of fatigue and abdominal and bone pain that are hallmarks of the condition. Though a few drugs have been found that can increase fetal hemoglobin, biomedical researchers have spent decades trolling for the basic molecular mechanisms that control the shift from fetal to adult hemoglobin. Recent genome-wide association studies helped narrow the search to a few genes and now, in a critical "proof of principle" test in transgenic mice, the team led by Orkin identified the critical role of BCL11A in tamping down the production of fetal hemoglobin.
Fetal hemoglobin differs from the adult form of the protein in its affinity for oxygen. Production of fetal hemoglobin begins about two months into gestation and helps deliver oxygen from the mother's bloodstream to the developing fetus. By about 3-6 months after birth, fetal hemoglobin is almost completely replaced by adult hemoglobin. The timing, notes Orkin, explains why sickle cell patients don't experience symptoms of the disease until several months after birth.
Drug therapy with the agent hydroxyurea helps ramp up fetal hemoglobin in some patients and reduces the number of painful episodes characteristic of sickle cell. But the drug is not uniformly effective, has several side effects and its mode of action is unknown.
Orkin notes that sickle cell was the first congenital disease for which scientists determined the single amino acid change in hemoglobin that sparks the condition. That work was done 60 years ago, he says, but that knowledge has never informed therapy for the disease.
Elevating the amount of fetal hemoglobin, says Orkin, emerged as a desirable strategy for treating sickle cell as clinicians and researchers noted long ago that levels of fetal hemoglobin naturally vary among individuals and that those sickle cell patients who express more of the fetal form of the protein experience fewer episodes of pain. "The more fetal hemoglobin you have, the better," says Orkin, noting that elevating levels of the fetal protein seems to have no toxic side effects. "The cell doesn't care if it's producing fetal hemoglobin or not."
The new study was done through genetic manipulation of a mouse model of sickle cell disease, demonstrating that in the future, gene therapy may be feasible. Knowing the target protein also means the search for new drugs to govern the production of fetal hemoglobin can shift to a higher gear. Finally, the new work holds promise for devising new treatments for a other congenital blood disorders known as thalassemias, which are also caused by an underproduction of adult hemoglobin.
Now that this key switch has been identified, Orkin asserts, the chances of powerful new therapies for sickle cell and other hemoglobin disorders will become more evident: "For the last 20 years we've been shooting arrows in the dark in hopes of hitting the target. Now we can see the target and it is a meaningful one."
**Source: Howard Hughes Medical Institute
El FIEM replantea la relación médico-paciente con el objetivo de brindar una mejor atención sanitaria
En el marco de la Reunión que el Foro Iberoamericano de Entidades Médicas (FIEM) celebra estos días en Montevideo (Uruguay) se ha trabajado sobre varios documentos entre los que cabe destacar una Declaración para “la Revalorización de la Relación Médico-Paciente y la aplicación de medidas para lograrlo”.
En el documento se constatan los cambios sufridos en los últimos años en la relación médico-paciente, identificándose una serie de factores que han contribuido a dicho cambio: desde los cambios demográficos, políticos y culturales hasta la revolución tecnológica que conlleva un mayor acceso a la información que no es utilizada, muchas veces, del modo más adecuado.
A partir de esta Declaración, desde el FIEM se considera que hay que replantear y refundar la relación médico-paciente “en beneficio mutuo y con el objetivo de brindar una mejor atención sanitaria, fin último del desempeño profesional”.
La revaloración de esta relación se debe dar en el marco de los valores “fundacionales”, con más profesión y profesionalismo, y se debe basar en el predominio del bienestar y la autonomía del paciente en el marco de sistemas sanitarios que tiendan a la justicia social con una distribución adecuada de sus recursos
El documento concluye con una serie de recomendaciones que giran en torno a impulsar los mecanismos que fomenten la formación y el conocimiento médico; y proteger el tiempo y el espacio adecuado para la atención médica de la población y promover la actualización permanente del profesional y el trabajo en equipo como estrategia para minimizar la posibilidad de error.
Asimismo, se recomienda impulsar un escenario para el ejercicio de la práctica médica en el que la organización de la actividad profesional no sufra distorsiones originadas por errores de diseño provenientes de las entidades formadoras y/o de las organizaciones que brindan cobertura asistencial.
Por último, se insta a exigir a los gobiernos la aplicación de las medidas prácticas que permitan la mejora de las condiciones de trabajo médico en los términos mencionados, como forma de revalorizar la atención del paciente y su acceso a las mejores prácticas de atención profesional sin distinciones de ningún tipo.
En el documento se constatan los cambios sufridos en los últimos años en la relación médico-paciente, identificándose una serie de factores que han contribuido a dicho cambio: desde los cambios demográficos, políticos y culturales hasta la revolución tecnológica que conlleva un mayor acceso a la información que no es utilizada, muchas veces, del modo más adecuado.
A partir de esta Declaración, desde el FIEM se considera que hay que replantear y refundar la relación médico-paciente “en beneficio mutuo y con el objetivo de brindar una mejor atención sanitaria, fin último del desempeño profesional”.
La revaloración de esta relación se debe dar en el marco de los valores “fundacionales”, con más profesión y profesionalismo, y se debe basar en el predominio del bienestar y la autonomía del paciente en el marco de sistemas sanitarios que tiendan a la justicia social con una distribución adecuada de sus recursos
El documento concluye con una serie de recomendaciones que giran en torno a impulsar los mecanismos que fomenten la formación y el conocimiento médico; y proteger el tiempo y el espacio adecuado para la atención médica de la población y promover la actualización permanente del profesional y el trabajo en equipo como estrategia para minimizar la posibilidad de error.
Asimismo, se recomienda impulsar un escenario para el ejercicio de la práctica médica en el que la organización de la actividad profesional no sufra distorsiones originadas por errores de diseño provenientes de las entidades formadoras y/o de las organizaciones que brindan cobertura asistencial.
Por último, se insta a exigir a los gobiernos la aplicación de las medidas prácticas que permitan la mejora de las condiciones de trabajo médico en los términos mencionados, como forma de revalorizar la atención del paciente y su acceso a las mejores prácticas de atención profesional sin distinciones de ningún tipo.
-V encuentro FIEM
En otro orden de cosas, y con vistas al contenido del próximo V encuentro FIEM, las organizaciones integrantes de dicho Foro consideran que las posturas políticas que no toman a la salud como una prioridad se convierten en una forma de violencia, en especial contra la población más necesitada. Dicha violencia se puede ejemplarizar en situaciones como: bajos niveles saliariales; interveciones inadecuadas sobre la autonomía del médico; ausencia de camas y servicios extrahospitalarios en hospitales; y ausencia de programas para extener la atención sanitaria a poblaciones distantes de los centros urbanos.
La reunión del Foro Iberoamericano de Entidades Médicas (FIEM), al que pertenecen 19 países: España, Portugal, Argentina, Brasil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Haití, Honduras, México, Nicaragua, Panamá, Paraguay, Perú, República Dominicana, Uruguay y Venezuela, está sirviendo para el intercambio de experiencias entre todas las organizaciones participantes sobre éstos y otros temas de interés en estos momentos para la profesión médica como ética y competencia profesional para promover y defender los derechos de los profesionales y los pacientes y la cooperación en el desarrollo profesional permanente. La formación profesional, los sistemas de protección social del médico y la realidad de las migraciones médicas también están contemplados.
En otro orden de cosas, y con vistas al contenido del próximo V encuentro FIEM, las organizaciones integrantes de dicho Foro consideran que las posturas políticas que no toman a la salud como una prioridad se convierten en una forma de violencia, en especial contra la población más necesitada. Dicha violencia se puede ejemplarizar en situaciones como: bajos niveles saliariales; interveciones inadecuadas sobre la autonomía del médico; ausencia de camas y servicios extrahospitalarios en hospitales; y ausencia de programas para extener la atención sanitaria a poblaciones distantes de los centros urbanos.
La reunión del Foro Iberoamericano de Entidades Médicas (FIEM), al que pertenecen 19 países: España, Portugal, Argentina, Brasil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Haití, Honduras, México, Nicaragua, Panamá, Paraguay, Perú, República Dominicana, Uruguay y Venezuela, está sirviendo para el intercambio de experiencias entre todas las organizaciones participantes sobre éstos y otros temas de interés en estos momentos para la profesión médica como ética y competencia profesional para promover y defender los derechos de los profesionales y los pacientes y la cooperación en el desarrollo profesional permanente. La formación profesional, los sistemas de protección social del médico y la realidad de las migraciones médicas también están contemplados.
**Publicado en "MEDICOS Y PACIENTES"
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