Case fatality rate among COVID-19 patients treated with acute kidney replacement therapy.

Introduction: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a frequent complication of severe COVID-19 and is associated with high case fatality rate (CFR). However, there is scarcity of data referring to the CFR of AKI patients that underwent kidney replacement therapy (KRT) in Brazil. The main objective of this study was to describe the CFR of critically ill COVID-19 patients treated with acute kidney replacement therapy (AKRT).

COVID-19 in dialysis units: A comprehensive review.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has been challenging for healthcare professionals worldwide. One of the populations affected by the pandemic are patients on renal replacement therapy, as kidney disease is an independent risk factor for severe COVID-19 and maintenance dialysis (a life-sustaining therapy) cannot be interrupted in the vast majority of cases. Over the past months, several authors and medical societies have published recommendations and guidelines on the management of this population.

Resistant hypertension: Prevalence and profile of patients followed in a university ambulatory.

Background: Hypertension affects about 36 million Brazilians. It is estimated that 10%-20% of these have resistant hypertension. These patients are at an increased risk of early target organ damage, as well as cardiovascular and renal events.

Non-adherence to hemodialysis, perception of the illness, and severity of advanced nephropathy.

Introduction: Hemodialysis (HD) is a complex therapy that imposes several changes in the patient's life. Failure to follow therapy recommendations is called non-adherence (NA). The patient's illness perception, severity of chronic kidney disease, and individual strategies for coping with HD can have an impact on NA to the demands of therapy.

Determinants of losses in the latent tuberculosis cascade of care in Brazil: A retrospective cohort study.

Background: The present study evaluated factors associated with losses in the latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) cascade of care in contacts of tuberculosis (TB) patients, in a referral center from a highly endemic region in Brazil.

Methods: Contacts of 1672 TB patients were retrospectively studied between 2009 and 2014. Data on TB screening by clinical investigation, radiographic examination and tuberculin skin test (TST) were extracted from medical records.

Exposure to secondhand smoke among patients with asthma: a cross-sectional study.

Objective: To estimate the frequency of secondhand smoke exposure among patients with asthma.

Methods: A cross-sectional study of asthma patients and non-asthmatic controls using questionnaires to identify secondhand smoke exposure at home, school, work, and public places.

Results: We studied 544 severe asthma patients, 452 mild/moderate asthma patients, and 454 non-asthmatic patients.

Self-reported smoking status and urinary cotinine levels in patients with asthma.

Objective: To determine the frequency of active smoking among patients with asthma and individuals without asthma by self-report and urinary cotinine measurement.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted in the city of Salvador, Brazil, and involving 1,341 individuals: 498 patients with severe asthma, 417 patients with mild-to-moderate asthma, and 426 individuals without asthma. Smoking status was determined by self-report (with the use of standardized questionnaires) and urinary cotinine measurement.

Decompensated chagasic heart failure versus non-chagasic heart failure at a tertiary care hospital: Clinical characteristics and outcomes.

Objective: To evaluate clinical and epidemiological characteristics and clinical outcomes in patients hospitalized with decompensated heart failure (DHF), with a comparison between Chagas and non-Chagas disease.

Method: This is a retrospective cohort study involving 136 patients consecutively admitted with DHF between January 1 and December 31, 2011, with the following outcomes: acute renal failure, cardiogenic shock, rehospitalization, and hospital death. Individuals aged ≥ 18 years with DHF were included while those with more than 10% of missing data regarding outcomes were excluded.

Acute viral bronchiolitis and risk of asthma in schoolchildren: analysis of a Brazilian newborn cohort.

Objective: To verify whether the occurrence of acute viral bronchiolitis in the first year of life constitutes a risk factor for asthma at age 6 considering a parental history of asthma.

Methods: Cross-sectional study in a cohort of live births. A standardized questionnaire of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood was applied to the mothers to identify asthma in children at the age of 6 years.

Targeted Screening of Fabry Disease in Male Hemodialysis Patients in Brazil Highlights Importance of Family Screening.

Introduction: Fabry disease (FD) is a lysosomal storage disorder caused by enzyme α galactosidase A (α-Gal A) deficiency due to mutations in the galactosidase alpha (GLA) gene. It leads to damage several organs, such as the kidneys, due to progressive accumulation of glycosphingolipids.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of FD among male hemodialysis (HD) patients in a northern state of Brazil.

Increased risk of allergic rhinitis among children delivered by cesarean section: a cross-sectional study nested in a birth cohort.

Background: Few studies have evaluated the association between delivery by cesarean section (CS) and asthma, allergic rhinitis and chronic rhinitis and whether this association is different in children with and without a family history of asthma. This study aims to investigate whether children born by CS have a higher chance to develop asthma, allergic rhinitis and chronic rhinitis and to evaluate the influence of parental history of asthma on these associations.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study of 672 children nested in a birth cohort evaluated at 6-years of age.

A Case of Acute Generalized Pustular Psoriasis of von Zumbusch Triggered by Hypocalcemia.

Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease triggered by different conditions in genetically susceptible people. It is characterized by variable cutaneous manifestations including localized or disseminated pustules. Generalized pustular psoriasis (GPP) has two main clinical forms: von Zumbusch psoriasis, characterized by severe erythrodermia and scaling skin after the resolution of pustules, and the annular form.

Septic versus non-septic acute kidney injury in critically ill patients: characteristics and clinical outcomes.

Objective: This study aimed to describe and compare the characteristics and clinical outcomes of patients with septic and non-septic acute kidney injury.

Methods: This study evaluated an open cohort of 117 critically ill patients with acute kidney injury who were consecutively admitted to an intensive care unit, excluding patients with a history of advanced-stage chronic kidney disease, kidney transplantation, hospitalization or death in a period shorter than 24 hours. The presence of sepsis and in-hospital death were the exposure and primary variables in this study, respectively.

Comparison of the RIFLE, AKIN and KDIGO criteria to predict mortality in critically ill patients.

Objective: Acute kidney injury is a common complication in critically ill patients, and the RIFLE, AKIN and KDIGO criteria are used to classify these patients. The present study's aim was to compare these criteria as predictors of mortality in critically ill patients.

Methods: Prospective cohort study using medical records as the source of data.

Febrile ulceronecrotic mucha habermann disease: case report of a dark-skinned patient.

A male dark-skinned patient, 33 years old, complaining of a 1-month history of skin lesions in the abdominal region and high fever was admitted to the clinical ward. There were ulcerated and coalescent skin lesions all over the body but sparing the palmar region. The culture of material obtained from the penile lesions was positive for Staphylococcus aureus.

Negative anti-C1q antibody titers may influence therapeutic decisions and reduce the number of renal biopsies in systemic lupus erythematosus.

In a cross-sectional study involving 62 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), we found that patients with biopsy-proven lupus nephritis (LN) had higher titers of anti-C1q antibodies than active SLE without nephritis patients. Anti-C1q was associated with a negative predictive value of 94.59%, a positive predictive value of 52%, a sensitivity of 86.

Hospitalizations for asthma: impact of a program for the control of asthma and allergic rhinitis in Feira de Santana, Brazil.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of the Programa de Controle da Asma e Rinite Alérgica em Feira de Santana (ProAR-FS, Program for the Control of Asthma and Allergic Rhinitis in Feira de Santana) on the frequency of hospitalizations for asthma in patients monitored at a referral center for one year.

Methods: This was a historical control study involving 253 consecutive patients with asthma, ages ranging from 4 to 76 years. We compared the frequency of hospital admissions and visits to the emergency room (ER) in the 12 months prior to and after their admission to the ProAR-FS.