Body mass index and sex differences for mortality in hospitalized COVID-19 patients: a path analysis using a brazilian national database.

Previous studies have shown that associations between obesity and other comorbidities favor worse outcomes in COVID-19. However, it is not clear how these factors interrelate and whether effects on men and women differ. We conducted an observational, cross-sectional study using a national COVID-19 inpatient database.

Public policy coverage and access to medicines in Brazil.

Objective: Describe consumption patterns for monetary and non-monetary acquisition of medicines according to age and income groups, highlighting pharmaceuticals associated with health programs with specific access guarantees.

Methods: Descriptive observational study using microdata from the 2017-2018 Pesquisa de Orçamentos Familiares (Household Budget Survey, POF/IBGE). We initially reviewed programs/policies with specific guarantees of access to medicines in the SUS.

Primary health care expenditure in the Americas: measuring what matters.

This special report compares the measurement of primary health care (PHC) expenditure proposed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and by the World Health Organization (WHO), according to the global framework for reporting health expenditures (SHA 2011) in three countries in the Region of the Americas. There are conceptual differences: (1) operationalization as basic care, by OECD, versus first contact, by WHO; (2) a wider range of goods and services in the WHO definition (including medicines, administration, and collective preventive services); and (3) consideration only of services in outpatient providers by OECD. PHC expenditures as a percentage of current healthcare spending in 2017 for WHO and OECD: Mexico (43.

[Primary health care expenditure in the Americas: measuring what mattersGasto en atención primaria en salud en las Américas: medir lo que importa].

This special report compares the measurement of primary health care (PHC) expenditure proposed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and by the World Health Organization (WHO), according to the global framework for reporting health expenditures (SHA 2011) in three countries in the Region of the Americas. There are conceptual differences: 1) operationalization as basic care, by OECD, versus first contact, by WHO; 2) a wider range of goods and services in the WHO definition (including medicines, administration, and collective preventive services); and 3) consideration only of services in outpatient providers by OECD. PHC expenditures as a percentage of current healthcare spending in 2017 for WHO and OECD: Mexico (43.

[Family expenditures on healthcare plans in Brazil and household budget commitment: an analysis of the Brazilian Household Budgets Survey (2017/2018)].

According to studies using previous editions of the Household Budgets Survey (POF) in Brazil, paying for a healthcare plan increases the percentage of income spent on health and fails to reduce the probability of incurring excessive health expenditures. The study's objective was to describe relations between expenditures on healthcare plans, income, and age groups, highlighting the effect of having a plan on the probability of committing more than 40% of income on health-related expenditures. An analysis of the POF 2017/2018 determined the commitment of per capita household income for payers of plans by age group and type of plan and logistic regression for factors associated with committing more than 40% of income to health-related expenditures.

[Primary health care expenditure in the Americas: measuring what mattersGasto em atenção primária à saúde nas Américas: calcular o que importa].

This special report compares the measurement of primary health care (PHC) expenditure proposed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and by the World Health Organization (WHO), according to the global framework for reporting health expenditures (SHA 2011) in three countries in the Region of the Americas. There are conceptual differences: 1) operationalization as basic care, by OECD, versus first contact, by WHO; 2) a wider range of goods and services in the WHO definition (including medicines, administration, and collective preventive services); and 3) consideration only of services in outpatient providers by OECD. PHC expenditures as a percentage of current healthcare spending in 2017 for WHO and OECD: Mexico (43.

Public financing of human insulins in Brazil: 2009-2017.

Background: From 2006 to 2017, the Brazilian federal government provided free of charge traditional insulins for diabetes treatment. This involved public tendering by the Department of Health Logistics of the Ministry of Health (DLOG-MOH) and the reimbursement after direct contracting for supply with commercial private retailers (Brazilian Popular Pharmacy Program - PFPB).

Objective: We aim to describe the budget of the Brazilian federal government committed to for the acquisition of insulin, as well as corresponding prices and treatment availability from 2009 to 2017.

Diagnostic parameters and reliability of four rapid immunochromatographic tests for dengue 4.

Background: Although performance of rapid immunochromatographic tests (RITs) for dengue virus (DENV) serotypes 1, 2 and 3 is relatively settled, evidence on accuracy of RITs for DENV-4 are based on studies with small sample sizes and with discrepant results.

Objectives: To assess accuracy and inter-observer agreement of RITs targeting dengue nonstructural protein-1 (NS1) antigen - Dengue NS1-Bioeasyâ„¢, Dengue NS1 Ag Strip-Bio-Radâ„¢, IVB Dengue Ag NS1-Orangelifeâ„¢ and Dengue NS1-K130-Bioclinâ„¢ in DENV-4 samples.

Methods: Study sample (n = 324) included adults presenting at an emergency unit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with fever of ≤72 h and two or more dengue symptoms.

Factors influencing pharmaceutical pricing - a scoping review of academic literature in health science.

Introduction: Pharmaceutical pricing has only recently gained space in mainstream health science literature.

Objectives: Bibliometric and content description of health science academic literature and ad hoc analysis of grey literature on factors influencing pharmaceutical pricing on databases commonly accessed by healthcare professionals.

Methods: Scoping study with no time limits performed in Medline, Scopus and Scielo, and relevant sites and databases for grey literature, using search terms with database-appropriate keywords

Results: Two hundred four articles were published in 103 peer-reviewed journals between 1981 and 2016 (last search year).

Quality assessment of clinical guidelines for the treatment of obesity in adults: application of the AGREE II instrument.

There are various guidelines for the treatment of obesity, and thus the quality of these clinical guidelines has become a matter of concern. The objective was to describe and assess the quality of clinical guidelines for treatment of obesity in adults. We collected several studies, dated from 1998 to 2016, produced by different countries.

Correction to: Accuracy and reliability of an NS1 rapid immunochromatographic test for DENV-1 diagnosis at point of care and in the laboratory.

An error occurred during the publication of the original article [1].

Precisão e confiabilidade de um teste imuno-cromatográfico rápido NS1 para diagnóstico DENV-1 no ponto de atendimento e no laboratório.

Background: Rapid immunochromatographic tests (ICT) for dengue non-structural protein 1 (NS1) have shown good performance for diagnosing acute-phase dengue in serum in laboratory settings, but rarely have been assessed in whole blood and at point of care (POC). This study compare the accuracy and inter- and intra-observer reliability of the NS1 Bioeasyâ„¢ ICT in whole blood at POC versus serum in the laboratory, during a DENV-1 epidemic.

Methods: Cross-sectional study involving 144 adults spontaneously demanding care in an emergency department within 4 days of onset of acute febrile illness.

Systematic review with meta-analyses and critical appraisal of clinical prediction rules for pulmonary tuberculosis in hospitals.

Objective: To systematically review studies evaluating clinical prediction rules (CPRs) for adult inpatients suspected to have pulmonary tuberculosis.

Design: Systematic review with meta-analyses.

Setting: Hospitals.

[Autonomy for financial management in public and private healthcare facilities in Brazil].

Autonomy in financial management is an advantage in public administration. A 2009 National Healthcare Facility Survey showed that 3.9% of Brazil's 52,055 public healthcare facilities had some degree of financial autonomy.

[Share of health care activities in the Brazilian economy: information on Health Accounts from 2000 to 2007].

Objective: To describe the share of health care activities in the Brazilian economy between 2000 and 2007 in terms of economic value added and creation of jobs.

Methods: Secondary data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) for the years 2000 to 2007 were employed. The following health care activities were analyzed: public health, production of private health services and private social services, health insurance, the pharmaceutical industry, medical equipment manufacturing, and medical and pharmaceutical product sales.

Performance indicators and decision making for outsourcing public health laboratory services.

Objective: To develop performance indicators for outsourcing clinical laboratory services, based on information systems and public administrative records.

Methods: In the municipality of Rio de Janeiro, Southern Brazil, the public health laboratory network comprised 33 laboratories with automated equipment (but no integrated information system), 90 primary care units (where sample collection was performed) and 983 employees. Information records were obtained from the administrative records of the Budget Information System for Public Health and the Outpatient and Hospital Information System of the Unified Health System.

[International trade in health services and the medical industrial complex: implications for national health systems].

Health services have increasingly proven to be an innovative sector, gaining prominence in the medical industrial complex through expansion to public and international markets. International trade can foster economic development and redirect the resources and infrastructure available for healthcare in different countries in favorable or unfavorable directions. Wherever private providers play a significant role in government-funded healthcare, GATS commitments may restrict health policy options in subscribing countries.

[Production chain supply management for public hospitals: a logistical approach to healthcare].

Despite their importance for hospital operations, discussions of healthcare organization logistics and supply and materials management are notably lacking in Brazilian literature. This paper describes a methodology for organizing the supply of medical materials in public hospitals, based on an action-research approach. Interventions were based on the assumption that a significant portion of problems in Brazil's National Health System (SUS) facilities derive from the fact that their clinical and administrative departments do not see themselves as belonging to the same production chain - neither the hospital nor the supply department is aware of what the other produces.

Prevalence of psychoactive drug use among medical students in Rio de Janeiro.

Background: Drug use and abuse may hamper learning capabilities and the development of technical skills in medical students and, therefore, the quality of care offered to patients. The aim of this investigation was to estimate the prevalence of psychoactive drug use among medical students of public universities in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and to identify characteristics associated with substance use.

Method: This was a cross-sectional investigation designed to include all medical students of four universities.

Nefazodone in out-patient treatment of inhaled cocaine dependence: a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial.

Aims: To assess the efficacy of oral nefazodone in the treatment of cocaine dependence.

Design: A 10-week randomized double-blind clinical trial was performed.

Methods: All 210 subjects fulfilled Diagnostic and Statistical Manual version IV (DSM-IV) criteria for cocaine dependence and were assigned randomly to 300 mg/day of oral nefazodone (N) or placebo (P).