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Biomedical subjects

R Blanco

Publications and source records attributed to R Blanco.

At least 199 records · Page 11Linked to original sources
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Relationship between sex differences in onset of schizophrenia and puberty.

Some neurodevelopmental hypotheses of schizophrenia have postulated that sex differences in onset of illness could be explained by sexual dimorphism in onset of puberty, suggesting that early maturation accounts for the later onset of illness in women. The objective of this study was to analyse the relationship between age of menarche and age of onset of schizophrenia in a sample of Chilean patients. The medical records of 105 schizophrenic women diagnosed according to DSM-III-R criteria were studied. In all cases age of onset (first psychotic symptoms) and age of menarche were obtained. Pearson's correlation and student's t-test were used to analyse the data. The mean age of menarche in the sample of female patients (12. 98 years, S.D.=1.49) was significantly different from that of the general population of Santiago, Chile (12.53 years, S.D.=1.32) (t=2. 38; P<0.05). The mean age of onset of schizophrenia in female patients (19.92 years, S.D.=5.13) was significantly earlier in the Chilean sample than that reported in European and North American samples (P<0.05). No differences were observed when comparing the mean age at menarche. The subtypes with the earliest onset presented the earliest age of menarche and the subtypes with the latest onsets showed the latest ages at menarche. However, no correlation was observed between the age at onset of illness and the age at menarche, both in the total sample and in the analysis by subtype. The results of this study do not support a correlation between puberty and age of onset of illness.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Tolerance and short-term effect of a cluster schedule with pollen-extracts quantified in mass-units.

We performed a prospective, multicenter study to assess the tolerance and possible short-term effects of allergen vaccines administered according to a cluster schedule in the months immediately preceding the onset of the pollen season. The study was carried out in eight centers and included 191 patients (children and adults) with allergic respiratory disease due to sensitization to olive tree and/or grass pollen. Of these, 34 patients acted as controls and the remaining patients received immunotherapy administered in the initiation phase according to a cluster schedule of eight doses injected on four visits. After 3 months of treatment, significant differences were found between the two groups in medication consumption (antihistamines in drops and oral formulations: p = 0.045 and p = 0.001, respectively; short-acting beta2-agonist treatments: p = 0.004) and respiratory symptoms (wheezing and coughing: p = 0.035 and 0.014, respectively). The cytokine profile (interleukin [IL]-4, 5, 10 and 2, interferon [IFN-gamma], and tumor necrosis factor [TNF-alpha]) was determined before the start of treatment and at the end of follow-up (4-5 months). Levels of IL-4, 5 and 10 (Th2 profile) decreased while those of IL-2, IFN-gamma, and TNF-alpha (Th1 profile) decreased. These differences were more marked in the active group than in the control group but were not statistically significant. No severe adverse effects were recorded. This study shows that the schedule tested had an acceptable tolerance profile and produced significant changes in symptom and medication scores after a few months of treatment. A double-blind, placebo-controlled study is needed to confirm these results.

Adult↗