RESUMENObjetivos. Evaluar la frecuencia de publicación y sus factores asociados en docentes universitarios de investigación científica de escuelas de Medicina del Perú. Materiales y métodos. Estudio de corte transversal analítico. Se incluyó a todos los docentes universitarios de los cursos de investigación de las 32 escuelas de medicina del Perú en el año 2011. La búsqueda de publicaciones se realizó mediante Google Scholar, SCOPUS y Medline. Se calculó las razones de prevalencias crudas y ajustadas (RPa) con intervalos de confianza al 95% mediante regresión de Poisson simple y múltiple con varianza robusta. Resultados. De los 201 docentes universitarios, 43,8% nunca ha publicado un artículo en una revista, 26,9% publicó un artículo original en una revista indizada en Medline y 16,4% lo hizo en los últimos dos años. Solo 3,0% han sido autores corresponsales en alguna revista indizada no peruana. Los factores asociados con haber publicado un artículo original en Medline durante los dos últimos años es ser menor de 40 años de edad (RPa: 2,97; IC 95%:1,21-7,32), ser profesor en una universidad donde se requiere tesis obligatoria para graduarse (RPa: 8,84; IC 95%: 2,60-30,12) y trabajar para una universidad altamente productiva (RPa: 3,24; IC 95%: 1,03-10,20). Conclusiones. La frecuencia de publicación de los docentes en investigación de las escuelas de medicina del Perú es baja. Los docentes universitarios jóvenes y los que trabajan para universidades científicamente productivas presentaron más probabilidades de publicar en una revista indizada en Medline. ABSTRACT Objectives.To evaluate the frequency of publication and its associated factors by professors of scientific research in medical schools in Peru. Materials and methods. This was a cross-sectional study. We included all teachers of research courses from the 32 medical schools in Peru in 2011. The publication search was conducted using Google Scholar, Scopus and Medline. Both the crude and adjusted prevalence ratios (aPR) were calculated with confidence intervals at 95% using simple and multiple Poisson regression with robust variance. Results. Of the 201 university teachers, 43.8% had never published an article in a journal, 26.9% had an original article published in a journal indexed in Medline and 16.4% did so in the past two years. Only 3% had been corresponding authors in non-Peruvian, indexed journals Factors associated with having an original article published in Medline in the past two years were: being under 40 years of age (aPR 2.97, 95% CI: 1.21-7.32), being a professor at a university where a final thesis is required for graduation (aPR 8.84, 95% CI: 2.60-30.12) and working for a highly productive university (aPR 3.24, 95% CI: 1.03-10.20). Conclusions. The frequency of publication of research faculty in medical schools in Peru is low. Young university teachers and those working at scientifically productive universities were more likely to publish in an indexed journal.

A high prevalence of depressive symptoms was found, especially in medical students; being dissatisfaction with academic performance, economic status and living with a relative external to the nuclear family associated factors that could be taken into account in order to build preventive programs.

IntroductionThe selection of a medical specialty has been associated with multiple factors, such as personal preferences, academic exposure, motivational factors and sociodemographic factors, such as gender. The number of women in the medical field has increased in recent years. In Latin America, we have not found any studies that explore this relationship.ObjectiveTo determine whether there is an association between gender and the intention to choose a medical specialty in medical students from 11 countries in Latin America.MethodsSecondary analysis of the Collaborative Working Group for the Research of Human Resources for Health (Red-LIRHUS) data; a multi-country project of students in their first year and fifth year of study, from 63 medical schools in 11 Latin American countries. All students who referred intention to choose a certain medical specialty were considered as participants.ResultsOf the 11073 surveyed students, 9235 indicated the name of a specific specialty. The specialties chosen most often in the fifth year were General Surgery (13.0%), Pediatrics (11.0%), Internal Medicine (10.3%) and Obstetrics/Gynecology (9.0%). For women, the top choices were Pediatrics (15.8%), Obstetrics/Gynecology (11.0%), Cardiology (8.7%), General Surgery (8.6%), and Oncology (6.4%). In the adjusted analysis, the female gender was associated with the choice of Obstetrics/Gynecology (RP: 2.75; IC95%: 2.24–3.39); Pediatric Surgery (RP: 2.19; IC95%: 1.19–4.00), Dermatology (RP: 1.91; IC95%:1.24–2.93), Pediatrics (RP: 1.83; IC95%: 1.56–2.17), and Oncology (RP: 1.37; IC95%: 1.10–1.71).ConclusionsThere is an association between the female gender and the intention to choose Obstetrics/Gynecology, Pediatrics, Pediatric Surgery, Dermatology, and Oncology. We recommend conducting studies that consider other factors that can influence the choice of a medical specialty.

Madariaga virus (MADV) has recently been associated with severe human disease in Panama, where the closely related Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) also circulates. In June 2017, a fatal MADV infection was confirmed in a community of Darien Province. We conducted a cross-sectional outbreak investigation with human and mosquito collections in July 2017, where sera were tested for alphavirus antibodies and viral RNA. In addition, by applying a catalytic, force-of-infection (FOI) statistical model to two serosurveys from Darien Province in 2012 and 2017, we investigated whether endemic or epidemic alphavirus transmission occurred historically. In 2017, MADV and VEEV IgM seroprevalences were 1.6% and 4.4%, respectively; IgG antibody prevalences were MADV: 13.2%, VEEV: 16.8%, Una virus (UNAV): 16.0%, and Mayaro virus: 1.1%. Active viral circulation was not detected. Evidence of MADV and UNAV infection was found near households, raising questions about its vectors and enzootic transmission cycles. Insomnia was associated with MADV and VEEV infections, depression symptoms were associated with MADV, and dizziness with VEEV and UNAV. Force-of-infection analyses suggest endemic alphavirus transmission historically, with recent increased human exposure to MADV and VEEV in Aruza and Mercadeo, respectively. The lack of additional neurological cases suggests that severe MADV and VEEV infections occur only rarely. Our results indicate that over the past five decades, alphavirus infections have occurred at low levels in eastern Panama, but that MADV and VEEV infections have recently increased-potentially during the past decade. Endemic infections and outbreaks of MADV and VEEV appear to differ spatially in some locations of eastern Panama.

BackgroundLatin America is undergoing a human resource crisis in health care in terms of labor shortage, misdistribution and poor orientation to primary care. Workforce data are needed to inform the planning of long-term strategies to address this problem. This study aimed to evaluate the academic and motivational profile, as well as the professional expectations, of Latin American medical students.ResultsWe conducted an observational, cross-sectional, multi-country study evaluating medical students from 11 Spanish-speaking countries in 2011–2012. Motivations to study medicine, migration intentions, intent to enter postgraduate programs, and perceptions regarding primary care were evaluated via a self-administered questionnaire. Outcomes were measured with pilot-tested questions and previously validated scales. A total of 11,072 valid surveys from 63 medical schools were gathered and analyzed.ConclusionsThis study describes the profile and expectations of the future workforce being trained in Latin America. The obtained information will be useful for governments and universities in planning strategies to improve their current state of affairs regarding human resources for health care professions.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13104-017-2479-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The publication rate of abstract submitted at national scientific meetings of medical students in Peru is low. New strategies should be taken, and the existing ones should be reinforced in order to increase the publication rate of the abstract submitted.

Background Human cases of Madariaga virus (MADV) infection were first detected during an outbreak in 2010 in eastern Panama, where Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) also circulates. Little is known about the long-term consequences of either alphavirus infection. Methods A follow-up study of the 2010 outbreak was undertaken in 2015. An additional survey was carried out two weeks after a separate 2017 alphavirus outbreak in a neighboring population in eastern Panama. Serological studies and statistical analyses were undertaken in both populations. Results Amongst the originally alphavirus-seronegative participants (n=35 of 65), seroconversion was observed at a rate of 14.3% (95% CI: 4.8%-30.3%) for MADV and 8.6% (95% CI: 1.8%-23.1%) for VEEV over 5 years. Amongst the originally MADV seropositive participants (n=14 of 65), VEEV seroconversion occurred in 35.7% (95% CI: 12.8%-64.9%). In the VEEV seropositive participants (n=16 of 65), MADV seroconversion occurred in 6.3% (95% CI: 0.2%-30.2%). MADV seroreversion was observed in 14.3% (95% CI: 1.8%-42.8%) of those originally seropositive in 2010. VEEV seroconversion in the baseline MADV-seropositive participants was significantly higher than in alphavirus-negative participants. In the population sampled in 2017, MADV and VEEV seroprevalence was 13.2% and 16.8%, respectively. Memory loss, insomnia, irritability and seizures were reported significantly more frequently in alphavirus-seropositive participants than in seronegative participants. Conclusions High rates of seroconversion to MADV and VEEV over 5 years suggest frequent circulation of both viruses in Panama. Enhanced susceptibility to VEEV infection may be conferred by MADV infection. We provide evidence of persistent neurologic symptoms up to 5 years following MADV and VEEV exposure.

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