Publications by authors named "Fraga A"

Introduction: The primary aim of stone treatment is to achieve stone-free status. Residual fragments can cause stone growth, recurrence, urinary tract infections, and ureteric obstruction. Our goal was to describe the natural history of stone burden after retrograde intrarenal surgery (RIRS) based on stone-free status (SFS), evaluating stone growth and stone-events.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Ureteral stents are one of the most used devices in Urology, allowing drainage of the upper urinary system, and can be used either in elective or emergency procedures. However, as a foreign body inside the urinary system, they are subject to encrustation. Encrustation is one of the burdens seen with double-J stents and, to date, there is no consensus about its best management.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to surprise us all with its aftermath. The connection between the virus and neuropsychiatric symptoms is thought to arise from both direct and indirect impacts on the brain, and various explanations have been proposed to account for these effects. This is a case of visual and persisting auditory hallucinations in a middle-aged man, with no previous psychiatric illnesses, after suffering from very severe symptoms of COVID-19.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • This study looked at how well an artificial urinary sphincter (AUS) can help men with severe bladder control issues caused by prostate cancer treatment.
  • Out of 20 men who received the AUS, 70% were able to stay dry with only one pad a day, while some had mild complications.
  • Overall, the AUS was found to be effective and improved the quality of life for most of the patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: Laparoscopic adenomectomy for prostates larger than 80 mL is still a topic of debate. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the perioperative outcomes and complications between open Millin (OM) and laparoscopic Millin (LM) adenomectomy.

Material And Methods: Perioperative data and complications were retrospectively collected from patients submitted to Millin procedure from August 2019 to August 2022 in a tertiary centre, and OM and LM were compared.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Chronic pain remains a serious health problem with significant impact on morbidity and well-being. Available treatments have only resulted in relatively modest efficacy. Thus, novel therapeutic treatments with different mechanisms have recently generated empirical interest.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

UV-stabilizers are a class of additives that provide extended polymer resistance to UV-degradation, but have also been suggested to have antimicrobial activity, potentially preventing the spread of pathogens, and inhibiting microbial-induced biodegradation. In this work, we incorporated different UV-stabilizers, a hindered amine light stabilizer (HALS), Tinuvin 770 DF and Tinuvin PA 123, or a hybrid HALS/UV-absorber, Tinuvin 5151, in polyurethane formulations to produce lacquer-films, and tested their antimicrobial activity against (methicillin-resistant and -sensitive strains), and . Lacquer-films incorporated with Tinuvin 770 DF showed strong antimicrobial performance against bacteria and fungi, while maintaining cytocompatibility.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The influence of anatomical parameters on urinary continence (UC) after Retzius-sparing robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RS-RARP) remains uncharted. Our objective was to evaluate their association with UC at 3, 6 and 12 months post-operatively. Data from patients who underwent RS-RARP were prospectively collected.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objective: To capacitate pregnant women to comply with measures designed to prevent sudden infant death syndrome.

Methods: A quasi-experimental study was conducted before and after the intervention that included pregnant women attending the Course of Preparation for Childbirth and Parenthood of Health Centers Cluster. Six training sessions were given in the context of preventing this syndrome.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Pregnancy, parturition and birth bring major changes to the lives of mothers and fathers. This article presents a research protocol for estimating the prevalence of postpartum mental health outcomes in mothers and fathers, abuse and satisfaction in delivery/abortion care, and the correlations between them and socioeconomic, obstetric, and child health factors. As a 2-component research, it consists of a prospective cohort study with all postpartum women interviewed in the 465 maternity hospitals included at the Birth in Brazil II baseline survey conducted from 2021 to 2023, and a cross-sectional study with the newborns' fathers/partners.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Fabry Disease (FD) is one of the most prevalent lysosomal storage disorders, resulting from mutations in the gene located on the X chromosome. This genetic mutation triggers glo-botriaosylceramide (Gb-3) buildup within lysosomes, ultimately impairing cellular functions. Given the role of lysosomes in immune cell physiology, FD has been suggested to have a profound impact on immunological responses.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Dysregulation of miRNA expression occurs in many cancers, making miRNAs useful in cancer diagnosis and therapeutic guidance. In a clinical context using methods such as polymerase chain reaction (PCR), the limited amount of miRNAs in circulation often limits their quantification. Here, we present a PCR-free and sensitive singlet oxygen (O)-based strategy for the detection and quantification of miRNAs in untreated human plasma from patients diagnosed with prostate cancer.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) is a safe and efficient treatment option for urinary stone disease. The overall stone-free rate (SFR) varies significantly. This study aimed to assess the influence of stone size, location, stone density, and skin-to-stone distance (SSD), on the outcome of ESWL.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Nephrectomy with autotransplantation (NAT) has been performed as an alternative treatment for complex renovascular lesions, intricate ureteral strictures and nephron-sparing surgery in complex renal tumors. : A retrospective observational study was conducted including patients who underwent a NAT from January 2010 to September 2023. Data collected included surgery indications, surgical technique, complications according to Clavien-Dindo classification and mean hospital stay.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background and objective Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL Ph+) is quite rare among pediatric patients. Its management has undergone significant changes in the past few years, leading to some variability in how it is approached. At the Portuguese Oncology Institute of Porto (IPOP), a tertiary oncological center, the standard of care has been aligned with the guidelines proposed by the European intergroup study of post-induction treatment of ALL Ph+ (EsPhALL).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A series of novel 9-alkyl/aryl-2-aryl-6-carbamoylpurines were synthesized, and their activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis strain HRv was assessed. The SAR analysis on the first set of derivatives, with an alkyl or aryl unit at N-9 and a phenolic unit at C-2, showed that the activity depends on the purine ring substituents at N-9 and C-2. A phenyl group at N-9 combined with a 3-hydroxyphenyl or 4-hydroxyphenyl at C-2 improve the activity.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Osteomyelitis of the pubic symphysis presents a diagnostic challenge, characterized by symptoms of pubic pain and discomfort radiating to the groin, thigh, or hip. Post-prostate surgery occurrences are rare, with a propensity for cancer-related procedures. Conservative antibiotic therapy may prove insufficient, necessitating surgical intervention.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This research communication paper addresses the hypothesis that the use of therapeutic alternatives for mastitis, such as intramammary ozone, can cure the disease with lower costs and without harmful residues for human consumption and without formation of microbial resistance like the ones caused by indiscriminate use of antibiotics in dairy farms. The study was performed in 36 mammary quarters from 12 dairy cows with subclinical mastitis grade three. The experimental units were randomly assigned into four groups and each group received a treatment.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: To evaluate the influence of testicular cancer histology and stage on sperm parameters in cryopreserved samples collected prior to orchiectomy.

Materials And Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of tumor histology, stage and sperm parameters of patients who underwent pre-orchiectomy sperm cryopreservation for testicular cancer between March 2010 and March 2023. The World Health Organization (WHO) 2010 sperm reference values were used to identify patients with subnormal semen parameters and to further categorize patients by sperm alteration.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The aim of our study is to compare the perioperative, functional, and oncological outcomes of laparoscopic transperitoneal partial nephrectomy (LTPN) and laparoscopic retroperitoneal partial nephrectomy (LRPN) for posterior cT1 renal tumors. We retrospectively collected data on all patients who consecutively underwent LTPN and LRPN for posterior cT1 renal tumors in three different centers from January 2015 to January 2023. Patients with a single, unilateral, cT1 renal mass, located in the posterior renal surface were included.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and malaria, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and parasites, respectively, share geographical distribution in regions where the latter disease is endemic, leading to the emergence of co-infections between the two pathogens. Thus far, epidemiologic studies and case reports have yielded insufficient data on the reciprocal impact of the two pathogens on either infection and related diseases. We established novel co-infection models to address this issue experimentally, employing either human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hACE2)-expressing or wild-type mice, in combination with human- or mouse-infective variants of SARS-CoV-2, and the rodent malaria parasite.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

A diet based on ultra-processed food (UPF) does not meet nutritional needs, especially during pregnancy. The aim of this study is to assess the change in UPF consumption from preconception to pregnancy and associated factors. Our hypothesis is that women tend to adopt a healthier eating pattern during pregnancy, decreasing the intake of UPF and increasing the intake of unprocessed/minimally processed foods.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

causes Buruli Ulcer, a neglected infectious skin disease that typically progresses from an early non-ulcerative lesion to an ulcer with undermined edges. If not promptly treated, these lesions can lead to severe disfigurement and disability. The standard antibiotic regimen for Buruli Ulcer treatment has been oral rifampicin combined with intramuscular streptomycin administered daily for 8 weeks.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF