Annualized hospitalization rate with natalizumab vs fingolimod in second-line treatment for RRMS in the public healthcare system in Brazil: A claim database approach.

Purpose: In the Brazilian public healthcare system, natalizumab is recommended as fourth-line treatment for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). Although natalizumab has already demonstrated higher effectiveness compared with fingolimod in some studies, this real-world study was conducted to evaluate annualized hospitalization rates (AHR) in Brazil for both treatments when switching from platform therapies. As secondary goals, we analyzed RRMS treatment patterns and hospitalization profiles.

[Characteristics of the notification of violence against children in the municipality of Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil].

Objective: to describe the cases of violence against children reported in Ribeirão Preto-SP, Brazil.

Methods: this was a descriptive study using data provided by the Violence and Accidents Surveillance System (VIVA), of the Municipal Health Department of Ribeirão Preto-SP, Brazil, from 2006 to 2008.

Results: a total of 498 cases of violence against children (0-9 years old) were reported in the period, with an increase in the number of notifications, from 112 in 2006 to 197 in 2008; 79.

Associations of Body Mass Index and Physical Activity With Sexual Dysfunction in Breast Cancer Survivors.

Sexual dysfunction is a common and distressing consequence of breast cancer (BC) treatment. In the present study, we investigated the sexual functioning of BC patients and its association with women's personal characteristics and cancer treatments. In this cross-sectional study, sexual function was assessed using the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI).

Understanding the Differences Between Oncology Patients and Oncology Health Professionals Concerning Spirituality/Religiosity: A Cross-Sectional Study.

This study investigated whether spirituality/religiosity (S/R) plays an important role in the lives of cancer patients and in the work of health professionals who provide care for these patients. The correlations between spiritual quality of life (QOL) and the other QOL domain scores of patients and health professionals were also assessed. Moreover, QOL domain scores were compared between patients and health professionals.

What are the best terms in Portuguese to explain the concepts of "fatigue" and "depression" in cancer patients?

Objective: Although "fatigue" and "depression" are well-accepted clinical terms in the English language, they are ill defined in many other languages, including Portuguese. We aimed to investigate the most appropriate words to describe cancer-related fatigue (CRF) and depression in Brazilian cancer patients.

Method: The interviewers read to patients two clinical vignettes describing fatigued patients and two others describing depressed patients.

Further evaluation of the EORTC QLQ-C30 psychometric properties in a large Brazilian cancer patient cohort as a function of their educational status.

Purpose: The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) is considered a valid instrument for use in Brazil. However, the previous Brazilian validation study included only 30 lung cancer patients and only measured test-retest reliability. The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the EORTC QLQ-C30 in a sample of cancer patients at different educational levels who completed the instrument administered by an interviewer.

Impact of a physical activity program on the anxiety, depression, occupational stress and burnout syndrome of nursing professionals.

Objective: to assess the effects of a workplace physical activity (WPA) program on levels of anxiety, depression, burnout, occupational stress and self-perception of health and work-related quality of life of a nursing team in a palliative care unit.

Methods: the WPA was conducted five days per week, lasting ten minutes, during three consecutive months. Twenty-one nursing professionals were evaluated before and after the intervention, with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Maslch Burnout Inventory, and the Job Stress Scale.

A critical analysis of test-retest reliability in instrument validation studies of cancer patients under palliative care: a systematic review.

Background: Patient-reported outcome validation needs to achieve validity and reliability standards. Among reliability analysis parameters, test-retest reliability is an important psychometric property. Retested patients must be in a clinically stable condition.

HER2 in gastric cancer: comparative analysis of three different antibodies using whole-tissue sections and tissue microarrays.

Aim: To compare the performance of three commercially available anti-human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) antibodies in whole-tissue sections and tissue microarrays (TMAs) of a series of gastric tumors.

Methods: We present a comparative analysis of three anti-HER2 antibodies (HercepTest, 4B5 and SP3) using TMA and whole-tissue sections prepared from the same paraffin blocks of 199 gastric adenocarcinomas operated upon between January 2004 and December 2008 at a Brazilian cancer hospital. The data on the patients' age, sex, the anatomical location of the tumor and the Lauren's histological classification were collected from clinical and pathological records.

The Hospital de Câncer de Barretos Registry: an analysis of cancer survival at a single institution in Brazil over a 10-year period.

Background: Epidemiological studies that describe cancer survival statistics at specific hospitals are scarce. Cancer registries, which are collections of cancer patient characteristics, treatment and outcome data, help determine quality of care and treatment indicators.

Methods: This study analysed data from patients treated between 2000 and 2009 at the Hospital de Câncer de Barretos, a referral cancer hospital in Brazil.

Association between particulate matter air pollution and monthly inhalation and nebulization procedures in Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo State, Brazil.

The study was designed to investigate the impact of air pollution on monthly inhalation/nebulization procedures in Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo State, Brazil, from 2004 to 2010. To assess the relationship between the procedures and particulate matter (PM(10)) a Bayesian Poisson regression model was used, including a random factor that captured extra-Poisson variability between counts. Particulate matter was associated with the monthly number of inhalation/nebulization procedures, but the inclusion of covariates (temperature, precipitation, and season of the year) suggests a possible confounding effect.