Browsing by Author "Mendez Vejar, Constanza"

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    Contribution of Two-Dose Vaccination Toward the Reduction of COVID-19 Cases, ICU Hospitalizations and Deaths in Chile Assessed Through Explanatory Generalized Additive Models for Location, Scale, and Shape
    (2022) Reyes, Humberto; Diethelm-Varela, Benjamin; Mendez Vejar, Constanza; Rebolledo-Zelada, Diego; Lillo-Dapremont, Bastián; Muñoz, Sergio R.; Bueno, Susan M.; González, Pablo A.; Kalergis, Alexis
    Objectives: To assess the impact of the initial two-dose-schedule mass vaccination campaign in Chile toward reducing adverse epidemiological outcomes due to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Methods: Publicly available epidemiological data ranging from 3 February 2021 to 30 September 2021 were used to construct GAMLSS models that explain the beneficial effect of up to two doses of vaccination on the following COVID-19-related outcomes: new cases per day, daily active cases, daily occupied ICU beds and daily deaths. Results: Administered first and second vaccine doses, and the statistical interaction between the two, are strong, statistically significant predictors for COVID-19-related new cases per day (R2 = 0.847), daily active cases (R2 = 0.903), ICU hospitalizations (R2 = 0.767), and deaths (R2 = 0.827). Conclusion: Our models stress the importance of completing vaccination schedules to reduce the adverse outcomes during the pandemic. Future work will continue to assess the influence of vaccines, including booster doses, as the pandemic progresses, and new variants emerge. Policy Implications: This work highlights the importance of attaining full (two-dose) vaccination status and reinforces the notion that a second dose provides increased non-additive protection. The trends we observed may also support the inclusion of booster doses in vaccination plans. These insights could contribute to guiding other countries in their vaccination campaigns.
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    Excess weight and gastrointestinal symptoms in Chilean celiac patients at the time of diagnosis.
    (2019) Parada, Alejandra; Mendez Vejar, Constanza; Aguirre, Carolina
    Introduction: celiac disease is an immune condition that results in histologic changes in the small bowel and produces both digestive and extra-digestive symptoms. Intestinal damage results in malabsorption and impaired weight or impaired optimal weight gain. However, these patients may be overweight or obese in spite of histologic damage. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of excess weight in newly diagnosed (adult) celiac patients.Methodsthis was a retrospective observational study of patients recently diagnosed with celiac disease according to the standard Marsh classification. Nutritional status was assessed based on body mass index (BMI), as categorized by the World Health Organization (WHO). Clinical presentation was classified as typical or atypical. Potential differences in gastrointestinal symptoms according to nutritional status were also assessed.Resultsa total of 135 medical records of adult celiac patients (women = 123; men = 12) were reviewed. The average weight and BMI were 61.1 kg and 23.7 kg/m2, respectively. The proportion of typical clinical presentations was 59.2% and of atypical presentations 40.8%. A total of 71.8% of patients had a BMI indicating low or normal weight and 28.1% had a BMI indicative of being overweight or obese. No differences with regard to the presence of gastrointestinal symptoms were found according to nutritional status.Conclusionsfurther studies are needed to jointly assess energy intake and intestinal absorption in these patients, in order to explain the high rate of excess weight.
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    Sobrepeso y obesidad en la enfermedad celiaca activa: posibles mecanismos fisiopatológicos
    (2019) Mendez Vejar, Constanza
    La enfermedad celiaca (EC) es una enteropatía crónica del intestino delgado, mediado por una respuesta inmune, gatillada por la exposición al gluten en individuos genéticamente susceptibles. La presentación clínica de la EC es variada y conduce a mala absorción. El estado nutricional en el momento del diagnóstico de la EC depende del tiempo en que la enfermedad ha estado activa, la extensión de la inflamación intestinal, grado de mala absorción e ingesta alimentaria. Sin embargo, en los últimos años se ha observado un cambio epidemiológico del estado nutricional en los pacientes celiacos al momento del diagnóstico. La presente revisión tuvo por objetivo realizar un análisis descriptivo de la presencia de obesidad en pacientes celiacos y de los posibles mecanismos fisiopatológicos que la explicarían.