Predictive genetic panel for adult asthma using machine learning methods.

Background: Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways that is heterogeneous and multifactorial, making its accurate characterization a complex process. Therefore, identifying the genetic variations associated with asthma and discovering the molecular interactions between the omics that confer risk of developing this disease will help us to unravel the biological pathways involved in its pathogenesis.

Objective: We sought to develop a predictive genetic panel for asthma using machine learning methods.

Understanding the municipal-level design and adaptation of pay-for-performance schemes across two states of Brazil.

The design of complex health systems interventions, such as pay for performance (P4P), can be critical to determining such programmes' success. In P4P programmes, the design of financial incentives is crucial in shaping how these programmes work. However, the design of such schemes is usually homogenous across providers within a given scheme.

Does pay-for-performance design matter? Evidence from Brazil.

Pay-for-performance (P4P) schemes have been shown to have mixed effects on health care outcomes. A challenge in interpreting this evidence is that P4P is often considered a homogenous intervention, when in practice schemes vary widely in their design. Our study contributes to this literature by providing a detailed depiction of incentive design across municipalities within a national P4P scheme in Brazil [Primary Care Access and Quality (PMAQ)] and exploring the association of alternative design typologies with the performance of primary health care providers.

PDE4D gene variants and haplotypes are associated with asthma and atopy in Brazilian children.

PDE4D (Phosphodiesterase 4D) gene encodes a hydrolase of cyclic AMP. PDE4D genetic variants have been associated with asthma susceptibility. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the association between PDE4D variants (and haplotypes) with asthma and atopy in a Brazilian population.

[For the return of high vaccination coverage].

The global decline in vaccine coverage led the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2019 to define vaccine hesitation as one of the world's top ten threats to public health. In Brazil, the drop in vaccination coverage began in 2012, increasing from 2016, and was aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The warning of low vaccination coverage is accompanied by the reintroduction of immunopreventable diseases such as measles.

Prognostic value of neutrophil and lymphocyte counts and neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio for predicting death in patients hospitalized for COVID-19.

COVID-19 primarily affects the respiratory system and can cause changes in other systems. Early identification of patients with a higher potential for complications is critical to provide the best possible treatment to reduce the disease's lethality. This study aimed to analyze the behavior of hematologic biomarkers in predicting mortality in patients hospitalized with COVID-19.

Pay-for-performance for primary health care in Brazil: A comparison with England's Quality Outcomes Framework and lessons for the future.

Pay-for-performance (P4P) has been widely applied in OECD countries to improve the quality of both primary and secondary care, and is increasingly being implemented in low- and middle-income countries. In 2011, Brazil introduced one of the largest P4P schemes in the world, the National Programme for Improving Primary Care Access and Quality (PMAQ). We critically assess the design of PMAQ, drawing on a comparison with England's quality and outcome framework which, like PMAQ, was implemented at scale relatively rapidly within a nationalised health system.

Performance bonuses and the quality of primary health care delivered by family health teams in Brazil: A difference-in-differences analysis.

Background: Pay-for-performance (P4P) programmes to incentivise health providers to improve quality of care have been widely implemented globally. Despite intuitive appeal, evidence on the effectiveness of P4P is mixed, potentially due to differences in how schemes are designed. We exploited municipality variation in the design features of Brazil's National Programme for Improving Primary Care Access and Quality (PMAQ) to examine whether performance bonuses given to family health team workers were associated with changes in the quality of care and whether the size of bonus mattered.

Pay for performance in primary care: the contribution of the Programme for Improving Access and Quality of Primary Care (PMAQ) on avoidable hospitalisations in Brazil, 2009-2018.

Background: Evidence on the effect of pay-for-performance (P4P) schemes on provider performance is mixed in low-income and middle-income countries. Brazil introduced its first national-level P4P scheme in 2011 (PMAQ-Brazilian National Programme for Improving Primary Care Access and Quality). PMAQ is likely one of the largest P4P schemes in the world.

[Mapping the intricacies of care networks for persons with disabilities, from the perspectives of users-citizens-guides].

This article presents an analysis of the production of care networks for persons with disabilities in the state of Paraíba, Brazil. We employed a qualitative methodology with a cartographic approach, involving the participation of four users-citizens-guides. Weekly virtual meetings were held throughout the second half of 2020, in which we were able to collect, systematize, and theorize on four issues: 1) guilt and (non) life expectancy on the part of persons with disabilities; 2) the place of disability in family dynamics; 3) the production of specific core relational dependency networks; and 4) the public vs.

Social determinants of health and COVID-19 infection in Brazil: an analysis of the pandemic.

Objective: To analyze the influence of socioeconomic, demographic, epidemiological factors, and the health system structure in the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil.

Methods: Ecological study with variables extracted from databases, having the incidence and mortality by COVID-19 until August 23, 2020, in Brazilian states, as response variables. The magnitude of the associations was estimated using Spearman's correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis.

New laboratory perspectives for evaluation of vivax malaria infected patients: a useful tool for infection monitoring.

In recent years, the number of cases with severe Plasmodium vivax malaria has shown an increasing trend. It is, therefore, important to identify routine laboratory markers that best characterize the acute disease phase and can serve as a tool for clinical follow-up of patients. In a cohort study, we followed 87 patients with acute P.

Assessment of hazardous property HP 14 using ecotoxicological tests: a case study of weathered coal fly ash.

The classification of wastes regarding hazardous property HP 14 (ecotoxicity) is essential for proper waste management. In the EU, HP 14 has been estimated based on waste chemical composition rather than using biotests, and guidelines for experimental assessment are still lacking. This study aims at evaluating the potential ecotoxicological impacts of weathered coal fly ash (CFA) from a landfill, as a case study to assess the current EU methodology used to classify wastes regarding HP 14.

Thermal dehydration of urban biosolids with green liquor dregs from pulp and paper mill.

This study aims to investigate the sewage sludge (SS) drying process by incorporating a by-product formed in the pulp and paper industry (green liquor dregs - GLD) as drying adjuvant. Through an innovative approach, the drying kinetics was modelled, and the final dried product was tested for soil applications. After the characterization phase, small cylinders of SS without and with 0.

Diagnostic value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in patients with leprosy reactions.

Introduction: Leprosy reactions, classified as type 1 and type 2 reactions, are acute clinical conditions of exacerbation of localized or systemic inflammatory response inpatients with leprosy. No laboratory biomarker is available to predict the emergence of these reactions. Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is an accurate biomarker for diagnosis and prognosis of various inflammatory and neoplastic diseases.

Isothermal drying kinetics of sewage sludge using weathered coal fly ash as adjuvant for agronomic application.

This study aims to evaluate the effect of weathered coal fly ash (CFA) as a drying adjuvant of sewage sludge (SS) to produce a soil amendment. The high amount of SS and CFA creates a complex waste management problem in many countries, requiring more research efforts. Towards a circular economy, CFA can be viewed as an anthropogenic inorganic by-product with valuable nutrients (e.

Aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index (APRI): A potential marker for diagnosis in patients at risk of severe malaria caused by Plasmodium vivax.

Acute infection with Plasmodium vivax, classically associated with benign disease, has been presenting as serious and even fatal disease in recent years. Severe disease is mainly due to biochemical and hematological alterations during the acute phase of infection. In the present cross-sectional study, the aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index (APRI) was evaluated as a method for identifying patients at risk of severe vivax malaria.

The diverse mechanisms and anticancer potential of naphthoquinones.

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death around the world and although the different clinical approaches have helped to increase survival rates, incidence is still high and so its mortality. Chemotherapy is the only approach which is systemic, reaching cancer cells in all body tissues and the search for new potent and selective drugs is still an attractive field within cancer research. Naphthoquinones, natural and synthetic, have garnered much attention in the scientific community due to their pharmacological properties, among them anticancer action, and potential therapeutic significance.

Analysis of potentially toxic metal constraints to apply sewage sludge in Portuguese agricultural soils.

The application of sewage sludge (SS) in the soil can be a valuable way to increase its content of organic matter. However, the concentration of potentially toxic metal (PTM) in both SS and soil can hinder this route of management. Thus, the main objective of this work was to evaluate the compliance with the restrictions related to PTM contained in SS from wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) for agricultural land application.

Decreased uric acid levels in the acute phase of Plasmodium vivax malaria.

Introduction: Uric acid is one of the compounds associated with the inflammatory process in malaria. It acts as an indicator of cellular damage by activating the immune response and inflammatory process.

Methods: We measured serum concentrations of uric acid in 60 symptomatic patients before and after treatment for malarial infections caused by Plasmodium vivax.

Anatomic evaluation of the incisive canal with cone beam computed tomography and its relevance to surgical procedures in the mental region: a retrospective study in a Brazilian population.

Background And Objective: To evaluate the prevalence, location, length, diameter, and distances related to the incisive canal (IC) and the need for cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) as a complementary exam prior to surgery in the mental region.

Materials And Methods: One hundred CBCT images from patients of both genders aged 27 to 73 years were evaluated. At every 3 mm, the diameter (DIAM) of the right and left ICs and their location, their distance to base of the jaw (BIC), the buccal (BAIC) and lingual (LAIC) aspects, and their length were measured.

User satisfaction with primary health care by region in Brazil: 1st cycle of external evaluation from PMAQ-AB.

The National Program for Access and Quality Improvement in Primary Care (Programa Nacional de Melhoria do Acesso e da Qualidade da Atenção Básica, PMAQ-AB) aimed to improve healthcare public service quality and satisfaction of health service users. This study's objective was to identify the main factors influencing user satisfaction with primary care (PC) services by region in Brazil. Using secondary data from the 1st Cycle of PMAQ-AB, logistic regression models were developed by region, with user satisfaction as the dependent variable, as defined by cluster analysis.

Factors associated with user satisfaction regarding treatment offered in Brazilian primary health care.

The Program for Access and Quality Improvement in Primary Care (PMAQ-AB) aimed to improve healthcare public service quality. The purpose of this study was to identify the main factors that influence user satisfaction in Brazilian primary health care services. This research was carried out using secondary data from the first cycle of the PMAQ-AB.

Changes in serum lipid profile in the acute and convalescent Plasmodium vivax malaria: A cohort study.

Although serum lipids are known to be altered in Plasmodium falciparum-induced malaria, little is known about such changes due to Plasmodium vivax infection. This cohort study assessed serum concentrations of triglycerides, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) in 164 patients in the acute phase of malaria caused by P. vivax and characterized these changes in the convalescent phase after treatment with chloroquine and primaquine.

Environmental variables and levels of exhaled carbon monoxide and carboxyhemoglobin in elderly people taking exercise.

This article aims to analyze levels of exhaled carbon monoxide, carboxyhemoglobinand cardiopulmonary variables in old people practicing exercise in external environments, and correlate them with climate and pollution factors. Temporal ecological study with118 active elderly people in the city of Cuiabá, in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil. Data were obtained on use of medication, smoking, anthropometric measurements, spirometry, peak flow, oxygen saturation, heart rate, exhaled carbon monoxide, carboxyhemoglobin, climate, number of farm fires and pollution.