Is it worth screening quarry workers for TB infection in high-incidence areas? A cost-benefit analysis.

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) infection screening of high-risk groups is an important strategy for achieving End TB targets. A TB infection screening program was implemented for quarry workers from a Portuguese high-incidence area in 2018-2022. We aimed to calculate the cost-benefit of the screening program from the societal perspective.

Environmental influence on the functional ecological structure of benthic macrofaunal communities of the northwest Iberian coast.

Evaluating the functional structure of benthic macrofaunal communities provides insights into how environmental drivers shape the ecosystem and establishes a baseline knowledge of the communities' dynamics and functioning. This understanding allows the prediction of responses to environmental changes and the implementation of efficient conservation and management strategies. Here we examine the structures and functions of benthic macrofaunal communities on the Northwest Iberian coast concerning environmental factors such as depth, hydrodynamic energy, and bottom type.

Drug Development for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Disease: Where Do We Go Now?

Neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) are a set of progressive, chronic, and incurable diseases characterized by the gradual loss of neurons, culminating in the decline of cognitive and/or motor functions. Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) are the most common NDs and represent an enormous burden both in terms of human suffering and economic cost. The available therapies for AD and PD only provide symptomatic and palliative relief for a limited period and are unable to modify the diseases' progression.

Community-Based Action Research Intervention to Promote Occupational Health Nursing of Portuguese Quarry Workers.

The northern region of Portugal has the largest number of companies manufacturing granite and stone products, which has become the region's trademark. In the municipalities of Marco de Canaveses and Penafiel, the economic activity of this area is important. However, the lack of attractiveness of this activity, combined with the high prevalence of silicosis and tuberculosis in this population, has led to a growing shortage of labor.

The flavodiiron protein from Syntrophomonas wolfei has five domains and acts both as an NADH:O or an NADH:H O oxidoreductase.

Flavodiiron proteins (FDPs) are a family of enzymes with a significant role in O /H O and/or NO detoxification through the reduction of these species to H O or N O, respectively. All FDPs contain a minimal catalytic unit of two identical subunits, each one having a metallo-β-lactamase-like domain harboring the catalytic diiron site, and a flavodoxin-like domain. However, more complex and diverse arrangements in terms of domains are found in this family, of which the class H enzymes are among the most complex.

Thiopurines have no impact on outcomes of Crohn's disease patients beyond 12 months of maintenance treatment with infliximab.

Background: The emergence of new treatments the inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) raised questions regarding the role of older agents, namely thiopurines.

Aims: To clarify the benefits of combination treatment with thiopurines on Crohn's disease (CD) patients in the maintenance phase of infliximab.

Methods: In this analysis of the 2-year prospective multicentric DIRECT study, patients were assessed in terms of clinical activity, faecal calprotectin (FC), C-reactive protein (CRP), and infliximab pharmacokinetics.

Cerebral Venous Thrombosis After Unintentional Dural Puncture: Raising awareness for an uncommon cause of postpartum headache.

Headache is a common symptom in the postpartum period, which can have a varied aetiology. Although rare, cerebral venous thrombosis can be a fatal complication in the parturient. Dural puncture is considered as one of the risk factors for cerebral venous thrombosis and the proposed mechanism pathogenesis can be explained by the components of Virchow's triad: stasis of the blood, hypercoagulability, and endothelial damage.

Has the therapeutical ceiling been reached in Crohn's disease randomized controlled trials? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background And Aims: The availability of biological agents for inflammatory bowel disease has increased over the past years. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we aimed to explore time trends in clinical response and clinical remission rates in Crohn's disease (CD) patients treated with biologics while discussing the need for new strategies.

Methods: MEDLINE, Cochrane, and ISI Web of Science databases were searched for randomized placebo-controlled trials with biological agents in moderate-to-severe CD patients.

Impact of Crohn's Disease Therapies on Histology in Randomized Controlled Trials: Systematic Review With Meta-analysis.

Background: The effectiveness of Crohn's disease treatments for inducing histological outcomes has not been addressed systematically. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials in Crohn's disease to assess the impact of therapies on mucosal histopathology.

Methods: Databases (MEDLINE, CENTRAL, Web of Science, EMBASE) were searched for randomized controlled trials including adult patients and evaluating histological outcomes.

Composite outcomes in observational studies of Crohn's disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to assess composite and aggregate outcomes of observational studies in Crohn's disease and to evaluate whether the number and type of variables included affect the frequency of the outcome.

Methods: MEDLINE [via PubMed], Scopus and Web of Science were searched to identify observational studies that enrolled patients with Crohn's disease and evaluated a composite or aggregate outcome. The proportion of patients achieving the outcome was determined and a random-effects meta-analysis was performed to evaluate how the frequency of each outcome varies according to the reporting of predefined variables.

Perioperative Management of a Patient with Secreting Paraganglioma Undergoing Cesarean Section.

Paraganglioma is a catecholamine-secreting tumor (CST) in extra-adrenal autonomic ganglia and a rare cause of hypertension during pregnancy. If not properly treated, it can lead to disastrous outcomes for both the mother and fetus. This report describes the successful anesthetic management of a paraganglioma diagnosed during pregnancy.

The Magnitude of Crohn's Disease Direct Costs in Health Care Systems (from Different Perspectives): A Systematic Review.

Background: The prevalence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been increasing worldwide, causing high impact on the quality of life of patients and an increasing burden for health care systems. In this systematic review, we reviewed the literature concerning the direct costs of Crohn's disease (CD) for health care systems from different perspectives: regional, economic, and temporal.

Methods: We searched for original real-world studies examining direct medical health care costs in Crohn's disease.

Composite outcomes in observational studies of ulcerative colitis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Ulcerative colitis (UC) has been the focus of numerous observational studies over the years and a common strategy employed in their design is the use of composite and aggregate outcomes.

Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to identify composite and aggregate outcomes of observational studies in UC and to evaluate how the number and type of variables included and the length of follow-up affect the frequency of patients that achieve these outcomes.

Methods: A systematic literature search was carried out using MEDLINE [via PubMed], Scopus, and Web of Science online databases.

Subclinical Persistent Inflammation as Risk Factor for Crohn's Disease Progression: Findings From a Prospective Real-World Study of 2 Years.

Background And Aims: Subclinical intestinal inflammation is common in Crohn's disease (CD). We aimed to explore its impact in the disease progression of infliximab-treated patients and the usefulness of fecal calprotectin (FC) and C-reactive protein (CRP) as surrogate minimally invasive biomarkers.

Methods: The registry-based, prospective, observational, multicenter DIRECT (study to investigate the correlation of fecal calprotectin with serum Drug levels and development of an antI-dRug antibodiEs among adult patients with inflammatory bowel disease reCeiving anti-TNF-alfa treatment or vedoluzimab treatment) study followed infliximab-treated CD patients for 2 years in a tertiary care setting.

Prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 Antibodies after First 6 Months of COVID-19 Pandemic, Portugal.

In September 2020, we tested 13,398 persons in Portugal for antibodies against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 by using a quota sample stratified by age and population density. We found a seroprevalence of 2.2%, 3-4 times larger than the official number of cases at the end of the first wave of the pandemic.

Age at Diagnosis Is Determinant for the Outcome of Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Is It a Myth?

Introduction: Patients with elderly-onset inflammatory bowel disease were previously associated with a less aggressive course of the disease. However, there are conflicting data that need further validation. We aimed to determine the association between age at diagnosis and the development of progressive disease in patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC).

Rapid test detection of anti-infliximab antibodies: performance comparison with three different immunoassays.

Background And Aims: Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of infliximab (IFX) and anti-infliximab antibodies (ATIs) is essential for treatment optimisation in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients. The aim of this study was to estimate and compare the agreement and accuracy between a new rapid test and three established enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) to quantify ATIs levels, and to evaluate the impact of exogenous IFX on the performance of these assays.

Methods: We analysed 200 serum samples from 57 IBD outpatients in IFX induction or maintenance therapy at six IBD centres in Portugal.

Histologic Features of Colon Biopsies (Geboes Score) Associated With Progression of Ulcerative Colitis for the First 36 Months After Biopsy.

Background & Aims: In addition to findings from endoscopy, histologic features of colon biopsies have been associated with outcomes of patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). We investigated associations between Geboes scores (a system to quantify structural changes and inflammatory activity in colon biopsies) and UC progression, and the time period over which this association is valid.

Methods: We analyzed data from 399 asymptomatic patients with UC enrolled in the ACERTIVE study, followed at 13 inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) centers in Portugal through 31 December 2019.

"Mongering Is a Weird Life Sometimes": Discourse Analysis of a Sex Buyer Online Community.

The purpose of this study was to examine the narrative of sex buyers in an unmoderated online forum. Using a feminist critical discourse analysis (FCDA) and intersectionality approach, we investigated overt and subtle ways power inequalities were present in the discourse of men who bought sex in Chicago. Four main themes emerged: (a) toxic masculinity; (b) violence against women; (c) intersectionality of sexuality, race, and age; and (d) the need to maintain the community.

Hip pain in childhood.

Hip pain in a child can have infectious, inflammatory, traumatic, neoplastic, or developmental causes, which can make the diagnosis challenging. Meticulous history taking and a detailed clinical examination guide the radiological investigation. In this article, we address some of the main causes of hip pain in childhood and their findings on diagnostic imaging.

Virtual Reality-Based Cognitive Stimulation to Improve Cognitive Functioning in Community Elderly: A Controlled Study.

The advantages of using naturalistic virtual reality (VR) environments based on everyday life tasks for cognitive intervention in the elderly are not yet well understood. The literature suggests that the similarity of such exercises with real life activities may improve generalizability by extending the transfer of gains of training to everyday living. This study aimed to investigate the gains associated with this ecologically-oriented virtual reality cognitive stimulation (VR-CS) versus standard cognitive stimulation in the elderly.

Cognitive Stimulation of Elderly Individuals with Instrumental Virtual Reality-Based Activities of Daily Life: Pre-Post Treatment Study.

As the demographic structure in western societies ages, the prevalence and impact of cognitive decline rises. Thus, new solutions to tackle this problem are required. The use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)-based cognitive exercises has emerged in the last few decades, though with inconsistent results.

A review on moringa tree and vetiver grass - Potential biorefinery feedstocks.

Plants and derivatives have been explored for unlimited purposes by mankind, from crop cultivation for providing food and animal feed, to the use for cosmetics, therapeutics and energy. Moringa tree and vetiver grass features, capabilities and applications were explored through a literature review. The suitability of these plants for the bioenergy industry products is evidenced, namely for bioethanol, biogas and biodiesel, given the lignocellulosic biomass content of these plants and characteristics of moringa seed oil.