The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic posed an unprecedented challenge to global health. In the context of an overwhelmed healthcare system and the rising demand for alternative strategies to manage stress and anxiety, this study aims to investigate and analyze the use of Integrative and Complementary Practices (ICP) in Brazil during the COVID-19 pandemic, emphasizing their importance in promoting health and well-being. We conducted a cross-sectional study among n = 12,136 Brazilian adults predominantly female, white, under 40 years of age and with a predominantly higher education level between August 24 and December 16, 2020, to assess the use of ICP.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPLoS One
December 2024
Introduction: Epidemiology is considered both a field of research and a methodological approach within the broader health sciences. It aims to understand health-related events' causes and effects and provide the evidence necessary to prevent disease and implement effective control and prevention strategies. One of the main focuses of epidemiology is identifying the determinant factors in the health situation of populations since health-related anomalies are not randomly distributed among people.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: The control chart is a classic statistical technique in epidemiology for identifying trends, patterns, or alerts. One meaningful use is monitoring and tracking Infant Mortality Rates, which is a priority both domestically and for the World Health Organization, as it reflects the effectiveness of public policies and the progress of nations. This study aims to evaluate the applicability and performance of this technique in Brazilian cities with different population sizes using infant mortality data.
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October 2023
The National Wealth Score (IEN) is a synthetic household index that assesses socioeconomic conditions. This study aims to present the methods used to update the IEN using data from the Brazilian National Survey on Child Nutrition (ENANI-2019). The following items were included: the education level of the mother or caregiver of the child; the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, TV sets, and cars in the household; and the presence of a radio, refrigerator or freezer, washing machine, microwave oven, telephone line, computers, air conditioner, media player devices, cable or satellite TV, cell phone ownership and type of service, cell phone internet, and internet at the household.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: The National Registry of Healthcare Facilities is a system with the registry of every healthcare facility in Brazil with information on the capacity building and healthcare workforce regarding its public or private nature. Despite being publicly available, it can only be accessed in separated disjoint tables, with different primary units of analysis. The objective is to offer an interoperable dataset containing monthly data from 2005 to 2021 with information on healthcare facilities, including their physical and human resources, services and teams, enriched with municipal information.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To estimate the prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding during maternity hospital stay (outcome) and to analyze the association between delivery in a Baby-Friendly Hospital (BFH) and the outcome. The hypothesis is that accreditation to this program improves exclusive breastfeeding during maternity hospital stay. Exclusive breastfeeding is essential in reducing neonatal morbidity and mortality.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Primary health care builds the backbone of an effective healthcare system and can improve population health, reduce cost growth, and lessen inequality. We offer a machine-readable and open-access dataset on primary health care coverage in Brazil from 1998 to 2020. This dataset is interoperable with epidemiological data from two major studies and reusable by the research community worldwide for other purposes, such as monitoring progress toward universal health coverage and studying the association between primary health care and health outcomes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe present a machine-readable and open-access dataset on vaccination results among children under five years old in Brazil from 1996 to 2021. This dataset is interoperable with epidemiological data from the VAX*SIM project and reusable by the research community worldwide for other purposes, such as monitoring vaccination coverage and studying its determinants and impacts on child morbidity and mortality. The dataset gathers official and public information from the Brazilian National Immunisation Program, the Institute of Geography and Statistics, the Institute for Applied Economic Research, and the Ministry of Health.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Early feeding practices are important determinants of optimal feeding patterns later in life. We aimed to investigate if giving any fluids or foods other than breast milk during the first three days after birth (prelacteal feeds) affects exclusive breastfeeding and consumption of formula among children under six months of age in low and middle-income countries (LMICs).
Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using data from 85 nationally representative Demographic Health Surveys (DHS) and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) in LMICs (2010-2019).
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic brought countless challenges to public health and highlighted the Brazilian health system vulnerabilities in facing the emergency. In this article, we analyze data on COVID-19-related deaths in 2020-21 to show the epidemic consequences in Brazil.
Methods: The Mortality Information System and the Live Birth Information System were the primary information sources.
Background: In recent decades, it has been possible to observe an increase in Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) usage globally for both disease prevention and health promotion purposes. we aim to estimate the prevalence of CAM use and analyze associated factors in Brazil.
Methods: Observational study with data from the 2019 National Health Survey that evaluated a sample of Brazilian adults.
Objective: To analyze the receipt of sponsorships from breast-milk substitute companies by health professionals in scientific events.
Methods: Multicenter study (Multi-NBCAL) performed from November 2018 to November 2019 in six cities in different Brazilian regions. In 26 public and private hospitals, pediatricians, nutritionists, speech therapists, and a hospital manager were interviewed using a structured questionnaire.
Objective: To analyze if milk and complementary foods are being sold under the Brazilian Code of Marketing of Infant and Toddler's Food, Teats, Pacifiers and Baby Bottles (NBCAL), Law 11265/2006 of breastfeeding protection.
Methods: Epidemiological survey that analyzed the marketing practices of pharmacies, supermarkets, and department stores in the Southern region of the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, by direct observation.
Results: Among the 349 stores in Rio de Janeiro's South Region, 339 traded milk and complementary foods and, among them, 60.
The Brazilian Code of Marketing of Infant and Toddlers Food, Nipples, Pacifiers and Baby Bottles (NBCAL), in force in Brazil since 1988, is still systematically violated, exposing mothers and family members to illegal marketing of products that compete with breastfeeding. This study aimed to describe a multicenter study methodology and propose standardized indicators for NBCAL monitoring. This is a Multicenter Study for NBCAL Compliance Assessment (Multi-NBCAL) conducted in seven Brazilian cities: Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Ouro Preto (Minas Gerais State), Florianópolis (Santa Catarina State), Brasília (Federal District), João Pessoa (Paraíba State), and Belém (Pará State).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study evaluated the role of social inequalities in complementary feeding patterns between and within countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. This ecological study employed aggregate data from population-based surveys. The units of analysis were all 16 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean for which information was available in the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) databases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: The "Bolsa-Família" Program (PBF) is a Brazilian conditional cash-transfer program in which families should comply with health, education, and social assistance conditionalities. The program aims to fight poverty and hunger, promoting nutrition and health services for low-income populations. This paper presents a database on the coverage of monitoring and compliance with the PBF health conditionalities in Brazil from January 2005 to July 2021.
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September 2021
This manuscript aims to describe the methodological, operational, and quality control aspects of the assessment of dietary intake in children under five years of age participating in the Brazilian National Survey on Child Nutrition (ENANI-2019), a household survey in a probability sample of Brazilian households. Two instruments were developed to assess child feeding practices - a structured, current status-type questionnaire and a 24-hour dietary recall (24HR), both installed in a mobile data collection device used by previously trained interviewers. A Photographic Manual for Quantification of Children's Dietary Intake was specifically developed for and used in the survey as a support aid to identify and quantify foods reported in the 24HR.
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