The Challenges of Treating Lead Toxicity During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Despite decades of environmental reform, legacy lead is a persistent health hazard within communities. Secondary prevention with screening for childhood lead exposure typically occurs at the 12-month and 24-month well visits, and early identification of toxicity is of vital importance to reduce morbidity and mortality. Over the past few years, there have been multiple challenges impacting the management of lead toxicity, including the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, a national shortage of the chelation agent CaNa2EDTA, and housing-related concerns that may result in re-exposure of lead before lead abatement.

Differential contributions of performance-based and parental reports of executive functioning on memory in pediatric focal and generalized epilepsies.

Children with epilepsy often experience deficits in both executive functioning (EF) and memory. However, how these two domains interact and relate to specific epilepsy types remains unclear. This study compared two groups of children: those with localization-related epilepsy (LRE) and those with genetic generalized epilepsy (GGE).

Association of biomarkers with successful ventilatory weaning in COVID-19 patients: an observational study.

Objective: To evaluate the association of biomarkers with successful ventilatory weaning in COVID-19 patients.

Methods: An observational, retrospective, and single-center study was conducted between March 2020 and April 2021. C-reactive protein, total lymphocytes, and the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio were evaluated during attrition and extubation, and the variation in these biomarker values was measured.

Excess Weight and Dental Caries throughout Childhood and Adolescence: Systematic Review of Longitudinal Studies.

Objective: The aim of the present study was to analyze existing scientific evidence on the longitudinal association between overweight/obesity and dental caries in children and adolescents and indicate possible gaps in the literature to guide future studies.

Study Design: A systematic search of the literature was performed for the identification of longitudinal studies on this issue. The search strategy included words related to the outcome (dental caries), exposure (overweight/obesity), population (children and adolescents), and study design (longitudinal) of interest.

Age is the most important factor for change in body mass index and waist circumference in older people in southern Brazil.

Objectives: The aim of this study is to assess the changes in body mass index and waist circumference (WC) and their associations with sociodemographic, behavioral, and health characteristics in non-institutionalized older people in southern Brazil over a period of ≤6 y.

Methods: This is a prospective study, with interviews conducted in 2014 and in 2019 to 2020. Of the 1451 individuals from Pelotas, Brazil, aged >60 y and interviewed in 2014, 537 were reevaluated in 2019 to 2020.

COVID-19-Induced Fatal Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura in a Healthy Young Patient.

Since the global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic began, findings indicate that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) might induce autoimmune disorders. Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is a devastating disease if not emergently treated. It presents with severe thrombocytopenia, microangiopathic hemolytic anemia, and neurologic findings with or without renal insufficiency.

NCD behavioral risk factors and mortality among older adults in Brazil.

Backgrounds & Aims: Literature shows that the most studied concurrent risk factors for mortality in elderly individuals are smoking, inadequate diet, alcohol consumption and physical inactivity. The combination of such habits can increase from 3 to 11 times the chance of death. To measure the association between concurrence of behavioral risk factors (BRF) for non-communicable diseases (NCD's) and mortality up to three years among the elderly.

[Behavioral risk factors for cardiovascular diseases in adolescents from the rural area of a municipality in Southern Brazil].

The study aimed to estimate the prevalence of behavioral risk factors for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and factors associated with their accumulation in adolescents from the rural area of a municipality in Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil. This was a cross-sectional school-based census-type study with a sample of 515 sixth to nineth-grade schoolchildren in 21 rural public schools in Pelotas. The target behavioral risk factors were: physical inactivity; irregular consumption of fruits, vegetables, and greens; initiation to alcohol consumption and smoking; and addition of salt to foods.

Prevalence of ideal cardiovascular health in young adults: A birth cohort from southern Brazil.

Background: Ideal cardiovascular health (ICH) aims at primordial prevention of cardiovascular diseases in the population. However, there is a lack of research describing ICH in youth from middle-income countries. The aims of this study were to describe the prevalence of ICH at 18- and 22-year-old and to investigate the influence of socioeconomic status.

Gestational weight gain and childhood body mass index across three generations: Results from the 1993 Pelotas (Brazil) Birth Cohort.

Background: Gestational weight gain (GWG) has been associated with the accumulation of body fat in offspring, but little is known about the intergenerational relationship.

Objective: To assess the effect of GWG in grandmothers and mothers on the child's body mass index (BMI).

Methods: This is a sub-study nested in the 1993 Pelotas (Brazil) Birth Cohort at 22 years follow-up visit.

Influence of maternal pre-pregnancy nutritional status on offspring anthropometric measurements and body composition in three Brazilian Birth Cohorts.

Objective: We aimed at evaluating the association of maternal pre-pregnancy nutritional status with offspring anthropometry and body composition. We also evaluated whether these associations were modified by gender, diet and physical activity and mediated by birth weight.

Design: Birth cohort study.

Longitudinal Association Between Diet Quality and Asthma Symptoms in Early Adult Life in a Brazilian Birth Cohort.

Background: The role of diet in the etiology of asthma is still inconclusive. This paper evaluated the longitudinal association between diet quality and chest wheezing in young adults.

Methods: This is a longitudinal study with follow-up information from 18- and 22-year-olds (18y and 22y) of the 1993 Pelotas (Brazil) Birth Cohort.

Relative validity of a computer-based semi-quantitative FFQ for use in the Pelotas (Brazil) Birth Cohort Studies.

Objective: To assess the relative validity of a FFQ developed for the Pelotas Birth Cohort Studies.

Design: Participants completed a ninety-two-food-item FFQ and then answered two 24-h recalls (24HR), one in-person interview and a second one by telephone, administered 14-28 d apart. Median and relative differences of energy, fifteen nutrients and eleven food groups were estimated based on the FFQ and the average of two 24HR.

Introduction to complementary feeding in the first year of life and risk of overweight at 24 months of age: changes from 2004 to 2015 Pelotas (Brazil) Birth Cohorts.

Complementary feeding (CF) and overweight relationships during early childhood are inconsistent in the literature. We described the association of CF during the first year of life with risk of overweight at 24 months of age in the population-based 2004 and 2015 Pelotas (Brazil) Birth Cohorts (2004c and 2015c). CF introduction was evaluated at the 3 and 12 months' follow-ups by asking mothers using a list of foods.

Fetal, neonatal, and post-neonatal mortality in the 2015 Pelotas (Brazil) birth cohort and associated factors.

This study aimed to describe fetal, neonatal, and post-neonatal mortality and associated factors in participants of the 2015 Pelotas (Brazil) birth cohort. The child mortality sub-study followed up all deaths in the first year of life. Data were collected on intrauterine fetal deaths (weight ≥ 500g and/or gestational age ≥ 20 weeks), neonatal deaths (< 28 days of life), and post-neonatal deaths (from 28 days to the end of the first year of life).

Is intrauterine exposure to acetaminophen associated with emotional and hyperactivity problems during childhood? Findings from the 2004 Pelotas birth cohort.

Background: Longitudinal studies have consistently reported that prenatal exposure to acetaminophen can to lead to an increased risk of attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder during childhood. This study aimed to investigate the association between intrauterine exposure to acetaminophen and the presence of emotional and behavioral problems at the ages of 6 and 11 years in a low-middle income country.

Methods: We performed a prospective longitudinal population-based study using data from the 2004 Pelotas birth cohort.

Diet and body fat in adolescence and early adulthood: a systematic review of longitudinal studies.

Adipose tissue is a vital component of the human body, but in excess, it represents a risk to health. According to the World Health Organization, one of the main factors determining excessive body adiposity is the dietary habit. This systematic review investigated longitudinal studies that assessed the association between diet and body fat in adolescents and young adults.

[General and abdominal obesity among the elderly from Southern Brazil: results of the HOW ARE YOU DOING? (COMO VAI?) study].

This is a cross-sectional population-based study aimed to measure the prevalence and to identify associated factors with the occurrence of general and abdominal obesity among the elderly living in the urban area of Pelotas, State of Rio Grande do Sul. The process of cluster sampling was conducted in two stages. Overall obesity was defined by Body Mass Index (BMI) from measurements of weight and height estimated by knee height.

Design of a digital and self-reported food frequency questionnaire to estimate food consumption in adolescents and young adults: birth cohorts at Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.

Purpose: Methodological paper aiming to describe the development of a digital and self-reported food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), created to the 1982 and 1993 Pelotas Birth Cohorts.

Methods: The instrument was created based on FFQs previously applied to subjects belonging to both cohorts in the 2004 and 2008 follow-ups. The FFQ was developed including 88 foods and/or meals where frequencies were clustered from a minimum of never or once/month to a maximum of greater than or equal to 5 times/day.

How Do Tracking and Changes in Dietary Pattern during Adolescence Relate to the Amount of Body Fat in Early Adulthood?

Background: Few studies have addressed the influence of dietary patterns (DP) during adolescence on the amount of body fat in early adulthood.

Objective: To analyze the associations between DP tracking and changes in the period between 15 and 18 years of age and the percentage of body fat (%BF) at age 18 years.

Methods: We used data from 3,823 members of the 1993 Pelotas (Brazil) birth cohort.

[Diet quality of preschool children aged 2 to 5 years living in the urban area of Pelotas, Brazil].

Objective:: To assess the dietary quality of preschool children in the urban area of Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil.

Methods:: Dietary quality was measured according to the Healthy Eating Index (HEI), adapted to Brazil. Food consumption was obtained using the Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ).

[Meat consumption by adults in southern Brazil: a population-based study].

This paper is the result of a cross-sectional population-based study that evaluated individuals aged 20 or more living in the urban area of Pelotas in the state of Rio Grande do Sul and sought to describe the frequency of meat consumption and the habit of eating meat with an excess of fat. It evaluated the consumption over the past year of red meat (including bone, steak and ground beef), white meats (chicken and fish) and viscera and processed meats. Of the 2,730 people interviewed, 99.

[Daily consumption of soft drinks, sweets and fried foods among adolescents in the northeast of Brazil].

A school-based cross-sectional study in 2007 evaluated the prevalence and associated factors of daily consumption of soft drinks, sweets and fried foods among adolescents (15 to 20 years of age) in public schools in Caruaru in the state of Pernambuco. To evaluate the factors associated with the daily consumption of the above foods, a multivariate and hierarchical analysis was conducted using Poisson regression, with social and demographic variables at the first hierarchical level, behavioral variables at the second level and dietary standards at the third level. Consumption of soft drinks, sweets and fried foods at least once a week was declared by 90.

[Early nutritional determinants of fat-free mass in early adulthood: a systematic review].

Early childhood nutritional factors can play a crucial role in the development of body composition in later phases of life. A systematic literature review was conducted to identify studies on the association between early nutritional determinants and fat-free mass in adulthood. The PubMed and Virtual Health Library electronic databases were used.