Análisis y comentarios de fuentes para el estudio de la tierra en los partidos de Chascomús, Ranchos y Monte 1779-1850

El objetivo de esta comunicación es revisar las fuentes utilizadas por los historiadores y relacionarlas mediante series completas de datos en un período más amplio de tiempo, con el fin de abarcar todas las alternativas legales para la adquisición de la tierra. Para fijar espacialmente la cuestión y determinar la ubicación de las parcelas se reconstruye el Registro Gráfico de 1830, complementando las deficiencias de información con expedientes de Escribanía Mayor de Gobierno, libros de Mensuras Antiguas y Duplicados de Mensura. Se pondera el grado de exactitud de la información que contiene la fuente, se completan las áreas vacías y, por último, se utiliza el resultado final para producir dos registros gráficos que reflejen la ocupación y propiedad legal de la tierra para 1822 y 1850, con el fin de verificar el grado de subdivisión parcelaria. El espacio trabajado se circunscribe a los actuales partidos de Chascomús, General Paz y Monte al noreste del río Salado

Haiti : The 'invisibility' of a territory to build projects that strengthen their autonomy

Haiti, conocida en la época colonial como 'la Perla de las Antillas', su economía se organizó entorno a la producción de azúcar que proveían a través de Francia al resto de Europa. De este modo 70de la producción de azúcar era consumido en Europa y más del 60del café. Con una lógica que perseguía obtener los máximos rindes, buscaron mano de obra esclava en el África Subsahariana, población que directamente reemplazó a la originaria. Así comienza a plantearse el desarrollo de un tipo de economía en Haiti, que traería graves consecuencias ambientales hasta la actualidad. Hoy es el país más pobre de América, con una esperanza de vida de alrededor de 60 años, y la tasa de analfabetismo del 52. Ubicado en un área tropical, es frecuente que sufra el impacto de las tormentas tropicales y ciclones que, como consecuencia de una tala desmedida de laforestación originaria, las inundaciones acentúan los problemas, a lo que se suman los problemas sanitarios inherentes a un nivel de vida con tantas carencias; y a la preponderancia de minifundios en el área rural, llevan a conformar un escenario de enorme vulnerabilidad. En el año 2010, una triste noticia pondría a Haïti en el centro de la escena mundial: el terremoto de marzo de ese año que afectara el área de Puerto Príncipe dejando alrededor de 300.000 muertos y más de un millón de damnificados. En la actualidad la presencia debarrios enteros viviendo en carpas en espacios públicos, son una expresión de la vigencia de dicho evento. Sin embargo, desde mediados de la década pasada tienen lugar proyectos que intentan territorializar una experiencia argentina de reconocido impacto en procura de atender las necesidades de la población con mayor vulnerabilidad que habita en los espacios rurales. Se trata del Programa Pro Huerta, que desde hace más de veinte años se desarrolla en Argentina y se propuso en el ámbito de este país desde la perspectiva de la cooperación internacional. De este modo, en distintos departamentos de Haiti con el trabajo en conjunto de diversos países ponen en marcha un proyecto social de seguridad alimentaria. La finalidad es el análisis de la territorialización de la experiencia Pro Huerta Haiti a partir del enfoque de cooperación internacional del cual Argentina participa junto con Canadá y Haiti. Entre los resultados y aportes de esta investigación, se pudo constatar que en Haïtí se fortalecen las redes sociales, la familia, el trabajo solidario, la salud y en conjunto contribuyen a fortalecer la soberanía alimentaria, en un país con grandes carencias y gran vulnerabilidad. Asimismo, es interesante resaltar que el modelo de Cooperación Sur-Sur que la Argentina desarrolla, desde una visión horizontal donde nuestro país camina junto a Haití y Canadá en el aprendizaje cotidiano del crecimiento conjunto, donde cada país tiene mucho por seguir aprendiendo

Biblioteca integradora para ciegos y disminuidos visuales : Realidad y desafío

El objetivo de este trabajo ha sido el estudio de la actual situación de los servicios bibliotecarios para personas ciegas y disminuidas visuales en Argentina. Se realizó una encuesta a bibliotecas que prestan servicios a personas ciegas y disminuidas visuales de todo el país. La muestra quedó conformada por 20 bibliotecas públicas y especiales en Argentina. Se confeccionó un cuestionario de 114 preguntas basadas en estándares elaborados por American Library Association (ALA) los cuales fueron preparados y enviados vía correo electrónico. Asimismo, se llevaron a cabo visitas a 10 de estas bibliotecas con el objetivo de obtener información a través de entrevistas a sus respectivos directores así como también al personal y a los usuarios que en ese momento se encontraban presentes en el lugar. El análisis de la situación de las bibliotecas para ciegos y disminuidos visuales en Argentina revela que el 70de estas bibliotecas tienen menos de 1000 ejemplares, el 40depende de donaciones y canje y el 45carecen de tecnología especial. Además presentan severas deficiencias en sus edificios. El 35atienden menos de 100 usuarios y un 40no posee ningún tipo de registro de los usuarios. Se pudieron identificar: colecciones pequeñas, servicios limitados, procesos técnicos incompletos, estructura edilicia inadecuada, escasa tiflotecnología (tecnología especial para personas ciegas y disminuidas visuales) y falta de gestión bibliotecológica, entre otras falencias. Se considera que el presente modelo de biblioteca especial posiblemente contribuya al aislamiento y al confinamiento de la persona ciega y disminuida visual, por ello se debe tener en cuenta un nuevo modelo de biblioteca integradora basado en los Manifiestos de la Unesco para bibliotecas públicas y bibliotecas escolares. Se sugiere la aplicación de este modelo de biblioteca integradora capaz de garantizar eficazmente el acceso a la información para los ciegos y disminuidos visuales de acuerdo a las nuevas recomendaciones universales. En unas pocas palabras, una biblioteca pública para todos.

Organizaciones vecinales en municipios de Mendoza : Potencialidad para generar prácticas sociales con inteligencia territorial

The idea of Territorial Intelligence emphasizes the participation of different types from actors in the decisions that concern to the local territory. Between the communitarian actors, the ocal organizations are fundamental because they have an existential knowledge of the geographic space who share the neighbors. That knowledge, is focused generally in the deficiencies of the district or of the district and it is constituted in its reason of being, like average for the defense as opposed to the authority of the local government. This so shared in common function is left lamentably to a quite traditional relation like intermediary between municipality and community annotated. A special case constitutes the cooperative calls of rural services or vicinal organizations that are in charge to administer the service of potable water, those that are generally led by people greater or small proprietors of traditional agriculture. A strong territorial identity can be observed that, as opposed to the transformations and modernization of the field, subsists exactly by that feeling of root. In the province of Mendoza, the importance of the ocal organizations was increased during the decade of the' 90 with the decentralization processes, to canalize house policies, some public works and services in the districts. From a perspective of associated management, projects of economic, cultural, environmental development would have to revitalize their function like organizations able to also agglutinate not only demands but that they promote to the local territory from other dimensions. With these motivations and the purpose of proposing strategies to induce practices of ocal work with territorial intelligence, a set of reflections that allow to compare the space distribution and the characteristics of these organizations between 90 years' and the present time, in some departments of the province of Mendoza appears. The most important result is expressed in a tipología of ocal unions, with a cartography that ties feasible territory and social actors to collaborate to generate transformations social, specially in rural areas

Geochemistry of Lesser Antilles forearc sediments

Oceanic sediments contain the products of erosion of continental crust, biologic activity and chemical precipitation. These processes create a large diversity of their chemical and isotopic compositions. Here we focus on the influence of the distance from a continental platform on the trace element and isotopic compositions of sediments deposited on the ocean floor and highlight the role of zircons in decoupling high-field strength elements and Hf isotopic compositions from other trace elements and Nd isotopic compositions. We report major and trace element concentrations as well as Sr and Hf isotopic data for 80 sediments from the Lesser Antilles forearc region. The trace-element characteristics and the Sr and Hf isotopic compositions are generally dominated by detrital material from the continental crust but are also variably influenced by chemical or biogenic carbonate and pure biogenic silica. Next to the South American continent, at DSDP Site 144 and on Barbados Island, sediments, coarse quartz arenites, exhibit marked Zr and Hf excesses that we attribute to the presence of zircon. In contrast, the sediments from DSDP Site 543, which were deposited farther away from the continental platform, consist of fine clay and they show strong deficiencies in Zr and Hf. The enrichment or depletion of Zr-Hf is coupled to large changes in Hf isotopic compositions (-30 < epsilon-Hf < +4) that vary independently from the Nd isotopes. We interpret this feature as a clear expression of the "zircon effect" suggested by Patchett and coauthors in 1984. Zircon-rich sediments deposited next to the South American continent have very low epsilon-Hf values inherited from old zircons. In contrast, in detrital clay-rich sediments deposited a few hundred kilometers farther north, the mineral fraction is devoid of zircon and they have drastically higher epsilon-Hf values inherited from finer, clay-rich continental material. In the two DSDP sites, average Hf isotopes are very unradiogenic relative to other oceanic sediments worldwide (epsilon-Hf = -14.4 and -7.4) and they define the low Hf end member of the sedimentary field in Hf-Nd space. Their compositions correspond to end members that, when mixed with mantle, are able to reproduce the pattern of volcanic rocks from the Lesser Antilles. More generally, we find a relationship between Nb/Zr ratios and the vertical deviation of Hf isotope ratios from the Nd-Hf terrestrial array and we suggest that this relationship can be used as a tool to distinguish sediment input from fractionation during melting during the formation of arc lavas.

Sable isotope record and sediment composition of Cretaceous samples of Deremara Rise

We estimate tropical Atlantic upper ocean temperatures using oxygen isotope and Mg/Ca ratios in well-preserved planktonic foraminifera extracted from Albian through Santonian black shales recovered during Ocean Drilling Program Leg 207 (North Atlantic Demerara Rise). On the basis of a range of plausible assumptions regarding seawater composition at the time the data support temperatures between 33° and 42°C. In our low-resolution data set spanning ~84-100 Ma a local temperature maximum occurs in the late Turonian, and a possible minimum occurs in the mid to early late Cenomanian. The relation between single species foraminiferal d18O and Mg/Ca suggests that the ratio of magnesium to calcium in the Turonian-Coniacian ocean may have been lower than in the Albian-Cenomanian ocean, perhaps coincident with an ocean 87Sr/86Sr minimum. The carbon isotopic compositions of distinct marine algal biomarkers were measured in the same sediment samples. The d13C values of phytane, combined with foraminiferal d13C and inferred temperatures, were used to estimate atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations through this interval. Estimates of atmospheric CO2 concentrations range between 600 and 2400 ppmv. Within the uncertainty in the various proxies, there is only a weak overall correspondence between higher (lower) tropical temperatures and more (less) atmospheric CO2. The GENESIS climate model underpredicts tropical Atlantic temperatures inferred from ODP Leg 207 foraminiferal d18O and Mg/Ca when we specify approximate CO2 concentrations estimated from the biomarker isotopes in the same samples. Possible errors in the temperature and CO2 estimates and possible deficiencies in the model are discussed. The potential for and effects of substantially higher atmospheric methane during Cretaceous anoxic events, perhaps derived from high fluxes from the oxygen minimum zone, are considered in light of recent work that shows a quadratic relation between increased methane flux and atmospheric CH4 concentrations. With 50 ppm CH4, GENESIS sea surface temperatures approximate the minimum upper ocean temperatures inferred from proxy data when CO2 concentrations specified to the model are near those inferred using the phytane d13C proxy. However, atmospheric CO2 concentrations of 3500 ppm or more are still required in the model in order to reproduce inferred maximum temperatures.

Improved geoid solution for the Weddell Sea region

We present a geoid solution for the Weddell Sea and adjacent continental Antarctic regions. There, a refined geoid is of interest, especially for oceanographic and glaciological applications. For example, to investigate the Weddell Gyre as a part of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and, thus, of the global ocean circulation, the mean dynamic topography (MDT) is needed. These days, the marine gravity field can be inferred with high and homogeneous resolution from altimetric height profiles of the mean sea surface. However, in areas permanently covered by sea ice as well as in coastal regions, satellite altimetry features deficiencies. Focussing on the Weddell Sea, these aspects are investigated in detail. In these areas, ground-based data that have not been used for geoid computation so far provide additional information in comparison with the existing high-resolution global gravity field models such as EGM2008. The geoid computation is based on the remove-compute-restore approach making use of least-squares collocation. The residual geoid with respect to a release 4 GOCE model adds up to two meters and more in the near-coastal and continental areas of the Weddell Sea region, also in comparison with EGM2008. Consequently, the thus refined geoid serves to compute new estimates of the regional MDT and geostrophic currents.

Abundance and biomass of in- and epibenthic invertebrate macrofauna in the German Bight from 1969 to 2000

In order to examine the long-term development of offshore macrozoobenthic soft-bottom communities of the German Bight, four representative permanent stations (MZB-SSd, -FSd, -Slt, -WB) have been sampled continuously since 1969. Inter-annual variability and possible long-term trends were analysed based on spring-time samples from 1969 until 2000. This is part of the ecological long-term series of the AWI and is supplemented by periodic large-scale mapping of the benthos. The main factors influencing the development of the benthic communities are biological interactions, climate, food supply (eutrophication) and the disturbance regime. The most frequent disturbances are sediment relocations during strong storms or by bottom trawling, while occasional oxygen deficiencies and extremely cold winters are important disturbance events working on a much larger scale. Benthic communities at the sampling stations show a large inter-annual variability combined with a variation on a roughly decadal scale. In accordance with large-scale system shifts reported for the North Sea, benthic community transitions occurred between roughly the 1970ies, 80ies and 90ies. The transitions between periods are not distinctly marked by strong changes but rather reflected in gradual changes of the species composition and dominance structure.

Tidal-induced mixing and diapycnal nutrient fluxes in the Mauritanian upwelling region

The Mauritanian coastal area is one of the most biologically productive upwelling regions in the world ocean. Shipboard observations carried out during maximum upwelling season and short-term moored observations are used to investigate diapycnal mixing processes and to quantify diapycnal fluxes of nutrients. The observations indicate strong tide-topography interactions that are favored by near-critical angles occurring on large parts of the continental slope. Moored velocity observations reveal the existence of highly nonlinear internal waves and bores and levels of internal wave spectra are strongly elevated near the buoyancy frequency. Dissipation rates of turbulent kinetic energy at the slope and shelf determined from microstructure measurements in the upper 200 m averages to ? = 5 × 10-8 W kg-1. Particularly elevated dissipation rates were found at the continental slope close to the shelf break, being enhanced by a factor of 100 to 1000 compared to dissipation rates farther offshore. Vertically integrated dissipation rates per unit volume are strongest at the upper continental slope reaching values of up to 30 mW m-2. A comparison of fine-scale parameterizations of turbulent dissipation rates for shelf regions and the open ocean to the measured dissipation rates indicates deficiencies in reproducing the observations. Diapycnal nitrate fluxes above the continental slope at the base of the mixed layer yielding a mean value of 12 × 10-2 µmol m-2 s-1 are amongst the largest published to date. However, they seem to only represent a minor contribution (10% to 25%) to the net community production in the upwelling region.

Diagnóstico de la seguridad en los aprovechamientos forestales a partir de registros empresariales, bases de datos oficiales y muestreos de campo: propuestas de actuación

Desde 1995, el derecho internacional se ha integrado en el ordenamiento jurídico español en lo referente a seguridad y salud. Sin embargo, la situación de la seguridad en los aprovechamientos forestales no ha mejorado notablemente, puesto que se detectan frecuentes casos de personal trabajando sin equipo de protección e incumpliendo las instrucciones de trabajo seguro, y son abundantes las referencias a una elevada accidentalidad. Para evaluar estos aspectos, primeramente se han comparado y valorado los datos de accidentalidad de los taladores de una empresa de referencia con los de los sectores agrario y de la construcción a través de las estadísticas nacionales y con los datos depurados del sector forestal a partir de la base de datos de declaración electrónica de accidentes de la C.A. de Castilla y León. En segundo lugar, se han identificado las deficiencias en materia de prevención, diseñando para ello una encuesta que se ha llevado a cabo en 35 aprovechamientos de Castilla y León. Posteriormente, se ha verificado que la reducción de la accidentalidad en la empresa de referencia se debe a la aplicación del plan de prevención. Se han caracterizado los riesgos en los que habían incurrido los taladores y se han descrito las medidas adoptadas para la reducción de los accidentes en la empresa estudiada, lo que ha conducido a una serie de recomendaciones para reducir la accidentalidad. Por otro lado se han analizado las causas de los picos de accidentalidad detectados. Como conclusión, se puede reducir sensiblemente la accidentalidad sólo si la empresa integra la política de prevención como un objetivo más de la gestión empresarial, en todos los niveles de su organización, acompañando las herramientas técnicas con formación temprana y motivación adecuada. Palabras clave: aprovechamientos forestales, riesgos laborales, prevención, trabajador forestal, accidentalidad, incidencia, gravedad. From 1995, Spanish safety legislation has been adapted to the Internationa! framework. However, operationally the situation is not so good, at least in the wood harvesting activity. Some forest workers are still found not wearing the compulsory safety equipment, working without respecting safety rules and references to high accidents rates are frequent. To assess those aspects, firstly some comparisons have been made between the accident records in a reference company and the accident indexes at national and regional level for building and farming activities. Secondly, using a purpose-designed questionnaire applied to 35 logging worksites in Castilla y Leon Region, deficiencies in prevention have been identified. The relation between the accident reduction and the prevention methods used by the reference studied company has been confirmed. Also the main causes and peaks of the accidents have been analyzed. Finally, some recommendations to reduce the risk of accidents in harvesting operations are provided. The main conclusion confirms that the possibility of reducing the accident risk is conditioned to the commitment of all the staff of the timber harvesting company, at every level of responsibility, to search for excellence in safety as one more entrepreneurial goal. This fact should be accompanied by the staff early training and the adequate motivation means. Keywords: logging, labor risk, safety and health, prevention, logging workers, accident incidence, accident severity.

Understanding long-term hunting statistics: the case of Spain (1972-2007)

Hunting is assuming a growing role in the current European forestry and agroforestry landscape. However, consistent statistical sources that provide quantitative information for policy-making, planning and management of game resources are often lacking. In addition, in many instances statistical information can be used without sufficient evaluation or criticism. Recently, the European Commission has declared the importance of high quality hunting statistics and the need to set up a common scheme in Europe for their collection, interpretation and proper use. This work aims to contribute to this current debate on hunting statistics in Europe by exploring data from the last 35 years of Spanish hunting statistics. The analysis focuses on the three major pillars underpinning hunting activity: hunters, hunting grounds and game animals. First, the study aims to provide a better understanding of official hunting statistics for use by researchers, game managers and other potential users. Second, the study highlights the major strengths and weaknesses of the statistical information that was collected. The results of the analysis indicate that official hunting statistics can be incomplete, dispersed and not always homogeneous over a long period of time. This is an issue of which one should be aware when using official hunting data for scientific or technical work. To improve statistical deficiencies associated with hunting data in Spain, our main suggestion is the adoption of a common protocol on data collection to which different regions agree. This protocol should be in accordance with future European hunting statistics and based on robust and well-informed data collection methods. Also it should expand the range of biological, ecological and economic concepts currently included to take account of the profound transformations experienced by the hunting sector in recent years. As much as possible, any future changes in the selection of hunting statistics should allow for comparisons between new variables with the previous ones.

Tools in Spanish Universities to facilitate the transmission from High School to University and their assessment.

Incoming students in the University have education deficiencies, so universities studies require a sound basis of scientific knowledge. In this project are analysed instruments to reinforcing knowledge in those areas related to the studies that students are about to embark on public Spanish universities. There are important differences among universities and, in each university there are great differences among titles. Initial courses (cursos cero) are widespread (in 50% of universities) that selfevaluation instruments (14 % of universities). It is necessary to improve diffusion of those instruments because it is not possible to evaluate them. So are proposed the next actuations: to make regular standard surveys for professors and students; to publish results of surveys; public universities should institutionalize their basic training offer and improve the dissemination of this offer especially through the web. This paper presents a questionnaire to assess student opinion about these tools. To analyze the effectiveness, and make an initial estimate of the evaluation of these tools, we conducted a pilot test of the questionnaire with 68 students at the University of Extremadura. The results of preliminary statistical analysis conducted on the pilot test indicate that the survey results are reliable. A global evaluation of both tools, with a scale of 1 to 5, gave an average score of 3.29 for initial courses and 3.41 for selfevaluation. The 72.9% of the students consider the "self assessment" more effective than the "initial course"

e-MIS Contents: Multimedia Contents for e-Learning Environments in Minimally Invasive Surgery

This work describes the design and application of multimedia contents for web technologies-based training in minimally invasive surgery (MIS). The chosen strategy allows knowing the deficiencies of the current training methods so new multimedia contents can cover them. This study is concluded with the definition of three different types of multimedia contents accordingly to the development degree and didactic objectives that they present: Didactic resources are basic contents such as videos or documents that can be enhanced with contributions of users. On the other hand, case reports and didactic units have a defined structure. Didactic resources and case reports provide an informal training while didactic units are included in a more regulated training.

Multi-criteria selection of structural adhesives to bond ABS parts obtained by rapid prototyping

One of the most used methods in rapidprototyping is Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM), which provides components with a reasonable strength in plastic materials such as ABS and has a low environmental impact. However, the FDM process exhibits low levels of surface finishing, difficulty in getting complex and/or small geometries and low consistency in “slim” elements of the parts. Furthermore, “cantilever” elements need large material structures to be supported. The solution of these deficiencies requires a comprehensive review of the three-dimensional part design to enhance advantages and performances of FDM and reduce their constraints. As a key feature of this redesign a novel method of construction by assembling parts with structuraladhesive joints is proposed. These adhesive joints should be designed specifically to fit the plastic substrate and the FDM manufacturing technology. To achieve this, the most suitable structuraladhesiveselection is firstly required. Therefore, the present work analyzes five different families of adhesives (cyanoacrylate, polyurethane, epoxy, acrylic and silicone), and, by means of the application of technical multi-criteria decision analysis based on the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), to select the structuraladhesive that better conjugates mechanical benefits and adaptation to the FDM manufacturing process

Evolution and treatment of vitamin B12 deficiency as a risk factor for (cognitive and functional) neurodegenerative diseases in institutionalized elderly = Evolución y tratamiento de la deficiencia de vitamina B12 como factor de riesgo de enfermedades neurodegenerativas (cognitivas y funcionales) en las personas mayores institucionalizadas.

Prevalence of vitamin B12 deficiency is very common in elderly people and can reach values as high as 40.5% of the population. It can be the result of the interaction among several factors. Vitamin B12 deficiencies have been associated with neurological, cognitive deterioration, haematological abnormalities and cardiovascular diseases that have an important influence on the health of the elderly and their quality of life. It is necessary to approach the problems arisen from the lack of data relative to them. The main objective of this thesis was to analyse the evolution of vitamin B12 status and related parameters, lipid and haematological profiles and their relationship to health risk factors, and to functional and cognitive status over one year and to determine the effect of an oral supplementation of 500 μg of cyanocobalamin for a short period of 28 days. An additional objective was to analyze the possible effects of medicine intakes on vitamin B status. Three studies were performed: a) a one year longitudinal follow-up with four measure points; b) an intervention study providing an oral liquid supplement of 500 μg of cyanocobalamin for a 28 days period; and c) analysis of the possible effect of medication intake on vitamin B status using the ATC classification of medicines. The participants for these studies were recruited from nursing homes for the elderly in the Region of Madrid. Sixty elders (mean age 84 _ 7y, 19 men and 41 women) were recruited for Study I and 64 elders (mean age 82 _ 7y, 24 men and 40 women) for Study II. For Study III, baseline data from the initially recruited participants of the first two studies were used. An informed consent was obtained from all participants or their mentors. The studies were approved by the Ethical Committee of the University of Granada. Blood samples were obtained at each examination date and were analyzed for serum cobalamin, holoTC, serum and RBC folate and total homocysteine according to laboratory standard procedures. The haematological parameters analyzed were haematocrit, haemoglobin and MCV. For the lipid profile TG, total cholesterol, LDL- and HDLcholesterol were analyzed. Anthropometric measures (BMI, skinfolds [triceps and subscapular], waist girth and waist to hip ratio), functional tests (hand grip, arm and leg strength tests, static balance) and MMSE were obtained or administered by trained personal. The vitamin B12 supplement of Study II was administered with breakfast and the medication intake was taken from the residents’ anamnesis. Data were analyzed by parametric and non-parametric statistics depending on the obtained data. Comparisons were done using the appropriate ANOVAs or non-parametric tests. Pearsons’ partial correlations with the variable “time” as control were used to define the association of the analyzed parameters. XIII The results showed that: A) Over one year, in relationship to vitamin B status, serum cobalamin decreased, serum folate and mean corpuscular volumen increased significantly and total homocysteine concentrations were stable. Regarding blood lipid profile, triglycerides increased and HDL-cholesterol decreased significantly. Regarding selected anthropometric measurements, waist circumference increased significantly. No significant changes were observed for the rest of parameters. B) Prevalence of hyperhomocysteinemia was high in the elderly studied, ranging from 60% to 90 % over the year depending on the cut-off used for the classification. LDL-cholesterol values were high, especially among women, and showed a tendency to increase over the year. Results of the balance test showed a deficiency and a tendency to decrease; this indicates that the population studied is at high risk for falls. Lower extremity muscular function was deficient and showed a tendency to decrease. A highly significant relationship was observed between the skinfold of the triceps and blood lipid profile. C) Low cobalamin concentrations correlated significantly with low MMSE scores in the elderly studied. No correlations were observed between vitamin B12 status and functional parameters. D) Regarding vitamin B12 status, holo-transcobalamin seems to be more sensitive for diagnosis; 5-10% of the elderly had a deficiency using serum cobalamin as a criterion, and 45-52% had a deficiency when using serum holotranscobalamin as a criterion. E) 500 μg of cyanocobalamin administered orally during 28 days significantly improved vitamin B12 status and significantly decreased total homocysteine concentrations in institutionalized elderly. No effect of the intervention was observed on functional and cognitive parameters. F) The relative change (%) of improvement of vitamin B12 status was higher when using serum holo-transcobalamin as a criterion than serum cobalamin. G) Antiaenemic drug intake normalized cobalamin, urologic drugs and corticosteroids serum folate, and psychoanaleptics holo-transcobalamin levels. Drugs treating pulmonary obstruction increased total homocysteine concentration significantly. H) The daily mean drug intake was 5.1. Fiftynine percent of the elderly took medication belonging to 5 or more different ATC groups. The most prevalent were psycholeptic (53%), antiacid (53%) and antithrombotic (47%) drugs.