The brain is the body’s control center, so when a disease affects it, the outcomes are devastating. Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, and multiple sclerosis are brain diseases that cause a large number of human deaths worldwide. Curcumin has demonstrated beneficial effects on brain health through several mechanisms such as antioxidant, amyloid β-binding, anti-inflammatory, tau inhibition, metal chelation, neurogenesis activity, and synaptogenesis promotion. The therapeutic limitation of curcumin is its bioavailability, and to address this problem, new nanoformulations are being developed. The present review aims to summarize the general bioactivity of curcumin in neurological disorders, how functional molecules are extracted, and the different types of nanoformulations available.

Thymoquinone (TQ) is a secondary metabolite found in abundance in very few plant species including Nigella sativa L., Monarda fistulosa L., Thymus vulgaris L. and Satureja montana L. Preclinical pharmacological studies have shown that TQ has many biological activities, such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anticancer. Both in vivo and in vitro experiments have shown that TQ acts as an antitumor agent by altering cell cycle progression, inhibiting cell proliferation, stimulating apoptosis, inhibiting angiogenesis, reducing metastasis and affecting autophagy. In this comprehensive study, the evidence on the pharmacological potential of TQ on pancreatic cancer is reviewed. The positive results of preclinical studies support the view that TQ can be considered as an additional therapeutic agent against pancreatic cancer. The possibilities of success for this compound in human medicine should be further explored through clinical trials.

La bibliometría es la aplicación de métodos estadísticos para analizar libros, artículos y otras publicaciones, especialmente científicos. Muy relacionada con la cienciometría e informetría, al punto de superponerse y confundirse. La bibliometría se refiere al estudio de la dinámica de las disciplinas reflejado en la producción de su literatura. Incluye desde el registro de cambios en la producción de una disciplina académica a lo largo del tiempo y entre países, hasta el problema de la colección bibliotecaria.En este artículo se explicarán algunos conceptos históricos, definiciones y objetivos de la bibliometría; así como las Leyes de la bibliometría; los tipos de análisis e indicadores bibliométricos más utilizados; para terminar con algunos ejemplos de diferentes tipos de estudios bibliométricos publicados, para que el lector pueda formarse una idea general de lo que puede hacer en este campo, aplicando estas metodologías a disciplinas quirúrgicas y otras también.El objetivo de este manuscrito fue generar un documento de estudio respecto de la bibliometría como alternativa para desarrollar investigación en cirugía y disciplinas afines.

INTRODUCCIÓN: La alfabetización en salud está relacionada en la competitividad y preparación del personal frente a los complejos sistemas de salud; siguiendo una gradiente social que puede profundizar desigualdades existentes. Teniendo como objetivo de esta investigación la recopilación de datos para establecer una línea de base.MÉTODOS: Este estudio observacional transversal, que aplica una modificación del cuestionario HLS-EU-Q16 para medir competencias en salud, a una muestra de 871 personas de 11 parroquias del cantón Cuenca - Ecuador. Adicionalmente se recopilaron variables sociodemográficas y sanitarias. Se realizó un análisis mediante estadística descriptiva e inferencial.RESULTADOS: Tres parroquias presentan índices de alfabetización en salud significativamente mejores que las demás. Una parroquia se destaca por resultados muy malos. Los subíndices de alfabetización siguen un patrón común. Las variables independientes presentan variaciones menores o ninguna entre las parroquias.CONCLUSIONES: Se conoce el impacto positivo de la alfabetización en salud sobre el gasto público. Reduce el número de consultas en el primer nivel de atención y permite dedicar más tiempo a los pacientes. Esta inversión de tiempo evitaría futuros problemas. Se propone realizar estudios para analizar los programas educacionales de las unidades operativas del Ministerio de Salud Pública y una encuesta en línea basada en el cuestionario HLS-EU-Q16.ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: Health literacy concerns our competencies to meet the demands of complex health systems. It follows a social gradient and can deepen existing inequalities. For this reason this research was undertaken to collect data for a baseline.METHODS: A cross-sectional, observational study was performed, using a modification of the HLS-EU-Q16 questionnaire to measure health competencies in a sample of 871 people from 11 parishes of the district of Cuenca. Additionally, sociodemographic and health variables were collected. For analysis descriptive and inferential statistics were used.RESULTS: Three parishes have significantly better health literacy rates than others. A parish stands out for very bad results. Literacy sub-indices follow a common pattern. Independent variables have minor or no variations between parishes.CONCLUSIONS: Health literacy’s positive impact on public spending is well known. It reduces the number of primary care consultations and allows spending more time for patients. This investment of time would avoid future problems. We propose to perform further studies to analyze the educational programs of the Health Ministry’s dependencies and do launch an online survey based on the HLS-EU-Q16 questionnaire.

Background: For every minute CPR is delayed, the probability of survival decreases by up to 10%. For this reason, guidelines recommend routine CPR training for health care providers to improve their performance and patient results. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the retention capacity of postgraduate students of Critical Areas of the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador following a theoretical-practical course in Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS). Methods: A total of 140 students were recruited and divided into three groups according to studied subject: Emergency Medicine and Disasters, Anesthesiology, and Critical Medicine. A theoretical-practical course was carried out, and theoretical and practical skills were assessed immediately and subsequently one month after ACLS training. For statistical analysis, measures of central tendency, one-way ANOVA, T-test and ANCOVA were used. Results: Scores for the immediate theoretical exam were 58.6% immediately after the intervention vs 40% 30 days after the intervention; in the immediate practical exam this was 77% vs 35.7%, respectively. No statistically significant difference was found between the three groups for the initial practical examination; however, for the evaluation 30 days after training a significant difference was found between Anesthesiology and the other two postgraduate studies. Conclusions: Knowledge and practical skills in ACLS of postgraduate physicians of Critical Areas deteriorate 30 days after training, especially in practical skills compared with theoretical knowledge. The results of this research indicate that it is necessary to carry out update courses more frequently, in order to keep knowledge and skills at a level that guarantees adequate care to the patient to reduce potential risk of death or disability.