Geographical patterns of the species richness of helminth parasites of moles (Talpa spp.) in Spain: Separating the effects of sampling effort from those of other conditioning factors

We analysed the viscera of 534 moles (Ta l p a spp.) from 30 of the 47 provinces of peninsular Spain, including 255 individuals of T. europaea from eight provinces, 154 individuals of T. occidentalis from 20 provinces, and 125 unidentified Ta l p a individuals from two provinces. We identified their helminth parasites and determined parasite species richness. We related parasite species richness with sampling effort using both a linear and a logarithmic function. We then performed stepwise linear regressions to predict mole parasite species richness from a small set of selected predictor variables that included sampling effort. We applied the resulting models to forecast T. euro p a e a, T. occidentalis, and Ta l p a spp. parasite species richness in all provinces with recorded host presence, assuming different levels of sampling eff o r t . F i n a l l y, we used partial regression analysis to partition the variation explained by each of the selected variables in the models. We found that mole parasite species richness is strongly conditioned by sampling effort, but that other factors such as cropland area and environmental disturbance have significant independent effects.

Effects of dry-land strength and conditioning programs in age group swimmers

Context: Even though dry-land S&C training is a common practice in swimming, there are countless uncertainties over it effects in performance of age group swimmers. Objective: To investigate the effects of dry-land S&C programs in swimming performance of age group swimmers. Participants: A total of 21 male competitive swimmers (12.7±0.7 years) were randomly assigned to the Control Group (n=7) and experimental GR1 and GR2 (n=7 for each group). Intervention: Control group performed a 10-week training period of swim training alone, GR1 followed a 6-week dry-land S&C program based on sets/repetitions plus a 4-week swim training program alone and GR2 followed a 6-week dry-land S&C program focused on explosiveness, plus a 4-week program of swim training alone. Results: For the dry-land tests a time effect was observed between week 0 and week 6 for vertical jump (p<0.01) in both experimental groups, and for the GR2 ball throwing (p<0.01), with moderate-strong effect sizes. The time*group analyses showed that for performance in 50 m, differences were significant, with the GR2 presenting higher improvements than their counterparts (F=4.156; ƿ=0.007; η2=0.316) at week 10. Conclusions: The results suggest that 6 weeks of a complementary dry-land S&C training may lead to improvements in dry-land strength. Furthermore, a 4-week adaptation period was mandatory to achieve beneficial transfer for aquatic performance. Additional benefits may occur if coaches plan the dry-land S&C training focusing on explosiveness.

Medication regimen complexity in institutionalized elderly people in an aging society

Background Complex medication regimens may adversely affect compliance and treatment outcomes. Complexity can be assessed with the medication regimen complexity index (MRCI), which has proved to be a valid, reliable tool, with potential uses in both practice and research. Objective To use the MRCI to assess medication regimen complexity in institutionalized elderly people. Setting Five nursing homes in mainland Portugal. Methods A descriptive, cross-sectional study of institutionalized elderly people (n = 415) was performed from March to June 2009, including all inpatients aged 65 and over taking at least one medication per day. Main outcome measure Medication regimen complexity index. Results The mean age of the sample was 83.9 years (±6.6 years), and 60.2 % were women. The elderly patients were taking a large number of drugs, with 76.6 % taking more than five medications per day. The average medication regimen complexity was 18.2 (±SD = 9.6), and was higher in the females (p < 0.001). The most decisive factors contributing to the complexity were the number of drugs and dosage frequency. In regimens with the same number of medications, schedule was the most relevant factor in the final score (r = 0.922), followed by pharmaceutical forms (r = 0.768) and additional instructions (r = 0.742). Conclusion Medication regimen complexity proved to be high. There is certainly potential for the pharmacist’s intervention to reduce it as part as the medication review routine in all the patients.