Objective. To evaluate the changes that have occurred from 2012 to 2017, and analyze the factors that influence them. Materials and Methods. The maternal-perinatal statistical database managed by the National Maternal Perinatal Institute was analyzed. All those births belonging to Metropolitan Lima, born alive, of single births were included, obtaining a total of 107,581 deliveries. A multivariate analysis was performed adjusting for different obstetric and socioeconomic variables. Results. There were no significant changes in Low Birth Weight, Preterm Birth and PEG between the different years. In all three cases, mild anemia is playing as a protective factor 0.91 (0.74-1.1), 0.80 (0.72-0.90) and 0.85 (0.76-0.95), respectively. While pre-eclampsia is the most influential risk factor, OR: 2.90 (2.25-3.73), 5.23 (4.61-5.98) and 3.00 (2.57-3.49), respectively. Conclusion. The risk of Low Bi...

Introduction: It is estimated that about 140 million people worldwide are exposed to arsenic levels in drinking water above the WHO's suggested limit of 10 μg/L. Exposure during pregnancy has been associated with low birth weight, preterm birth, small for gestational age (SGA), etc. In Peru, the province of Tacna has shown considerable concentrations of arsenic in drinking water. Objective: The aim of this study is to assess the effect of arsenic consumption in drinking water on perinatal outcomes in Tacna province. Methods: A longitudinal observational study was carried out in which 150 pregnant women were recruited up to the 24th week of pregnancy. A drinking water sample from their most consumed source was collected for the analysis of total inorganic arsenic, and a urine sample for the evaluation of total urinary arsenic and its different metabolites (U-iAsIII, U-iAsV, arsenobetaine...

Objective: To determine the relationship between SARS-CoV-2 vaccination dimensions and COVID-19 death rates in the Callao region. Methods: A cross-sectional study based on the Ministry of Health databases was carried out. A total of 44,867 records from the Callao region were analyzed for the period 2021 to 2022. To assess the association of interest, logistic regression models were constructed, reporting crude odds ratios (cOR) and adjusted odds ratios (aOR). Results: The logistic regression models showed that vaccination had a protective effect against death from COVID-19, with an aOR of 0.19 (p<0.001) after controlling for sex, age, hospitalization, ICU admission, and pandemic wave, compared to the reference group (unvaccinated). Conclusions: Vaccination provides a monotonic protective effect against death from COVID-19 in the Región Callao.

The diagnosis of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is key for the initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART). Viral load (VL) values and other immunological components are essential for the follow-up and prognosis of people with HIV. The aim of the study was to evaluate patients with a confirmatory diagnosis of HIV residing in the Callao region. Prospective study, in which 289 adult residents of the Callao region were evaluated, confirmatory and post ART treatment measurements were performed. For the difference of means, Student’s T-test for paired samples was calculated, considering p<0.05 as statistical significant.  People who received ART showed a significant decrease in VL values and an increase in CD4+. There have been a successful disease management and control of the HIV-infected population in Callao.

Foodborne diseases (FBD) represent an impact on public health, since they are responsible for the increase in mortality and morbidity rates, generating greater negative effects in low and middle-income countries. This manuscript reports a FBD outbreak in the Callao region, Peru, which affected 33 people with persistent gastrointestinal symptoms. These cases call for epidemiological surveillance in health centers in order to determine the pathogen and generate an efficient treatment.

The Instituto de Investigaciones de la Altura (IIA) was born 60 years ago with the creation of the Cayetano Heredia University (UPCH).It is oriented to the investigation of the adaptation and acclimatization to the altitude, and without pretending it to the solution of the national problems in health. The eradication of endemic goiter, the consolidation of the Tuberculosis Pilot Program and its expansion to a community model, the proposition that anemia in Peru is due to overdiagnosis by using an inadequate correction formula for height and a flat cut-off point for the children, knowing the beneficial effect of native plants such as maca, treatment for COVID-19 with second-indication drugs, damage to health from the use of traditional biomass stoves are some of the problems whose solutions have been born from his investigations, in addition to those found by his investigations on the pro...

Objective: To compare the isothermal molecular screening techniques CPA and RT-LAMP, against the gold standard test, reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), and to determine its agreement. Materials and Methods: Paired comparative case-control study. For the evaluation of the CPA method, 70 cases and 130 controls were used, while for RT-LAMP, 30 cases and 70 controls were used. The sensitivity and specificity of both tests were calculated. Subsequently, the bias-corrected Kappa index was calculated by resampling. Results: Both techniques have adequate and equivalent values of sensitivity (RT-LAMP: 82.8%, CPA: 83%) and specificity (RT-LAMP and CPA: 91.5%), as well as a high concordance (88%), and Kappa-index (0.72). Conclusion: Both isothermal molecular screening techniques are suitable for SARS-CoV-2 screening, with a similar sensitivity and specificity.

Objetivo: Comparar las técnicas de cribado molecular isotérmico CPA y RT-LAMP, frente a la prueba de referencia, la reacción en cadena de la polimerasa cuantitativa de transcripción inversa (RT-qPCR), y determinar su concordancia. Materiales y métodos: Estudio comparativo de casos y controles emparejados. Para la evaluación del método CPA se utilizaron 70 casos y 130 controles, mientras que para la RT-LAMP se utilizaron 30 casos y 70 controles. Se calcularon la sensibilidad y la especificidad de ambas pruebas. Posteriormente, se calculó el índice Kappa corregido por sesgo mediante un nuevo muestreo. Resultados: Ambas técnicas presentan valores adecuados y equivalentes de sensibilidad (RT-LAMP: 82,8 %, CPA: 83 %) y especificidad (RT-LAMP y CPA: 91,5 %), así como una alta concordancia (88 %), y un índice Kappa (0,72). Conclusiones: Ambas técnicas de cribado molecular isotérmi...

La rápida propagación mundial de un nuevo coronavirus denominado SARS-CoV-2, detectado en la cuidad de Wuhan, China, hace necesario del conocimiento e implementación de métodos de diagnóstico confiables para detectar y tratar adecuadamente a los pacientes. Para ello, los métodos más utilizados para el diagnóstico son: la técnica de inmunocromatografía (IC), la cual enmarca tanto a las pruebas detectoras de anticuerpos como a la prueba de detección de antígenos; y las pruebas de diagnóstico molecular basadas en tecnología de PCR, detectando cuantitativa y cualitativamente al virus, como por ejemplo qRT-PCR y al LAMP. Mediante la revisión de las bases de Scielo, Pubmed y Scopus se compara la utilidad diagnóstica de las pruebas LAMP, qRT-PCR e IC aplicadas al diagnóstico de SARS-CoV-2, y cómo las distintas variantes del virus han impactado sobre la confiabilidad de estas p...

The rapid global spread of a new coronavirus initially named 2019-nCoV, detected in the city of Wuhan, China, now known as SARS-CoV-2, has posed new challenges for epidemiological surveillance. At the same time, the alarming growth of the pandemic makes it necessary to know and implement reliable diagnostic methods to detect and adequately treat patients. To this end, the most commonly used methods for diagnosis are: the immunochromatographic (IC) technique, which includes both antibody detection tests and antigen detection tests; and molecular diagnostic tests based on PCR technology, detecting virus quantitatively and qualitatively, such as qRT-PCR and LAMP, respectively. In the present review, we compare the diagnostic utility of LAMP, PCR and IC tests applied to the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2, and how the different virus variants has impacted on its reliability. The necessary informatio...