Browsing by Author "Fregni, Felipe"
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Publication Clinical Characteristics Associated with the PLP-PLS Index, a New Potential Metric to Phenotype Phantom Limb Pain(2024) Ortega, Jorge; Garnier, Justyna; Mena, Lucas; Palagi, Ana; Boschetti, Eleonora; Vallejos, Gabriel; Cost, Valton; Martinez, Daniela; Vaz de Macedo, Antonio; Neiva de Paula-Garcia, Waynice; Saretta, Denise; Fregni, Felipe; Pacheco, KevinBackground: Phantom limb pain (PLP) is highly prevalent after amputation. However, the influence of non-painful sensations (PLS) remains unclear. This study examines the PLP-PLS index as a novel tool to differentiate PLP from PLS and explores the association of clinical factors with the index. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of baseline data from 112 participants in a previous factorial trial in patients with unilateral traumatic lower limb amputation. Linear regression models were used to examine the associations between the index and various demographic, psychological and clinical factors. Logistic and Poisson regression, and e-value calculation were utilized for sensitivity analyses. Results: Adjusted multivariable linear regression models demonstrated significant associations of phantom movement sensation (β: -1.532; 95% CI: -2.615 to -0.449; p = 0.006) and time since amputation (β: 0.005; 95% CI: 0.0006 to 0.0101; p = 0.026) with the PLP-PLS index. These findings were confirmed by multivariable logistic regression (phantom movement sensation OR: 0.469; 95% CI: 0.200 to 1.099, p = 0.082; time since amputation OR: 1.003; 95% CI: 1.00003 to 1.007; p = 0.048) and sensitivity analyses. Conclusions: Time since amputation and phantom movement sensation likely reflect distinct phenotypes and potential mechanisms for PLP and PLS. The PLP-PLS index is a promising clinical tool for selecting therapies to prevent/treat PLP and for measuring treatment effects to modulate phantom pain. These findings emphasize the importance of understanding the mechanisms underlying PLP and PLS for improving clinical management and guiding future research.Publication Risk and impact of stroke across 38 countries and territories of the Americas from 1990 to 2021: a population-based trends analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021(2025) Martinez, Ramón; Munoz Venturelli, Paula; Ordunez, Pero; Fregni, Felipe; Abanto, Carlos; Alet, Matias; Alvarez, Tony; Amaya, Pablo; Ameriso, Sebastian; Arauz, Antonio; Barboza, Miguel; Bayona, Hernán; Ortiz, Antonio; Calleja, Juan; Cano, Vanessa; Carbonera, Leonardo; Carrillo, Rodrigo; Corredor, Angel; De Souza, Ana; Jimenez, Claudio; Lanas, Fernando; Martins, Sheila; Navia, Víctor; Novarro, Nelson; Olavarría, Verónica V.; Ovbiagele, Bruce; Pachecho, Kevin; Pontes, Octavio; Pujol, Virginia; Rabinstein, Alejandro; Rosales, Julieta; Rosende, Andrés; Sampaio, Gisele; Saposnik, Gustavo; Sen, Souvik; Testai, Fernando; Urrutia, Victor; Anderson, Craig; Lavados, PabloBackground: Despite substantial declines in burden over time, stroke remains a public health threat in the Americas. This study aimed to assess the current magnitude, trends, and disparities in the estimates of stroke burden by sex and age in the Americas from 1990 to 2021. Methods: Estimates from the Global Burden of Disease, Injuries and Risk Factors Study 2021 were used to analyze incidence, prevalence, mortality, years of life lost due to premature death, years lived with disabilities, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) caused by stroke and its major subtypes stratified by age, and sex in the Americas from 1990 to 2021. We used Joinpoint regression analysis to estimate the average annual percent change (AAPC) of stroke mortality and disease burden outcomes and assessed trends. Findings: In 2021, there were 1.1 million (95% uncertainty interval: 1.0-1.2) new cases, 12.9 million (12.3-13.7) prevalent cases, 0.5 million (0.5-0.6) deaths, and 11.4 million (10.6-12.1) DALYs due to stroke in the Americas. The absolute number of stroke burden outcomes increased from 1990 to 2021, but their corresponding age-standardized rates significantly declined. A deceleration in reduction rates of burden outcomes for all strokes and most stroke subtypes occurred over the last decade, with pronounced difference between sexes mainly in incidence among younger groups. From 2015 to 2021, trends in incidence rates from all stroke and stroke subtypes reversed to increase in most age groups, and strikingly, trends in mortality and DALY rates from ischemic stroke among younger populations reversed to upward with AAPC over 1.4%. A substantial number of countries contributed to these increasing trends. Interpretation: Regionally, the annual number of stroke cases and deaths significantly increased from 1990 to 2021, despite reductions in age-standardized rates. The declining pace in age-standardized stroke rates has decelerated in recent years, while trends in incidence, and ischemic stroke mortality and DALY among middle-aged adults and adults, reversed towards upward in the period 2015-2021. Further studies are needed to understand the determinants of this recent pattern and identify the most cost-effective interventions to stem this alarming trend. Funding: There was no funding source for this study.Publication The impact of education level and socioeconomic status on the association between depressive symptoms and memory in an older population in Latin America: An exploratory analysis from the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSI-BRAZIL)(2024) Loss, Karla; Fandino, Wilson; Almarie, Bassel; Bazan-Perkins, Blanca; Minetto, Julia; Nadine Aranis, Nadine; Monaco, Thiago; Aladab, Aisha; Pacheco-Barrios, Kevin; Fregni, FelipePurpose: The globally increasing older population raises concerns about age-related conditions, including cognitive impairment and depressive symptoms. In Latin America, nearly one-third of the population is affected by either of these conditions. However, data investigating the association between cognitive impairment and depressive symptoms, particularly in Brazil, are limited to small-scale studies that have not carefully examined the critical effects of variables such as education level and socioeconomic status on this relationship. We aimed at exploring this association in a representative population-based cohort. Methods: We used the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSI-BRAZIL) database to examine the relationship between depressive symptoms and cognitive impairment in Brazilian older adults, adjusted for potential confounders. Direct acyclic graphs and multivariable linear regression were used to build our model. Depressive symptoms were measured using a short version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Scale (CES D-8), and combined memory recall test as a surrogate of cognitive impairment. Results: The study included 8280 participants. Only education level was identified as a confounder for the relationship between memory loss and depressive symptoms. After adjusting for age, sex, and education level, there was strong evidence for a negative association between depressive symptoms and memory performance. For every 5-unit increase in the CES D-8 score, there was a reduction in memory capacity, translating to a loss of approximately one word in the combined words recall test (mean - 0.18, 95% CI -0.22; -0.15, P < 0.001). In addition, we found strong evidence for an interaction between socioeconomic status and depressive symptoms. Subjects belonging to medium socioeconomic status (SES) showed more pronounced memory decline, when compared to those with lower SES (mean - 0.28, 95% CI -0.42 to -0.14, P < 0.001). Conclusions: In adults aged over 50, after adjusting for sex, age, and educational level, a 5-unit increase in CES D-8 score is associated with loss of one point in the combined memory recall test. This association seems to be confounded by educational level and significantly modified by socioeconomic status.