This study aimed to describe the severity of abortion-related complications, factors associated with complications, the types of management and the experience of care in Brazil. A cross-sectional study in twenty hospitals (10 in Federal District, 3 in Rondônia and 7 in Maranhão). For 3 months, all women treated for abortion/miscarriage had their data collected.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: The early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic affected cancer care globally. Evaluating the impact of the pandemic on the quality of cancer care delivery is crucial for understanding how changes in care delivery may influence outcomes. Our study compared care delivered during the early phase of the pandemic with the same period in the previous year at two institutions across continents (Princess Margaret Cancer Center [PM] in Canada and A.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: valproic acid (VPA), an epigenetic drug, has potential for the treatment of neoplasms. Its effects on the healing of the peritoneal-musculo-aponeurotic plane (PMA) of the abdominal wall are studied.
Method: sixty Wistar rats were allocated into two groups: experimental (VPA) and control (0.
Vector control is a crucial strategy for malaria elimination by preventing infection and reducing disease transmission. Most gains have been achieved through insecticide-treated nets (ITNs) and indoor residual spraying (IRS), but the emergence of insecticide resistance among mosquitoes calls for new tools to be applied. Here, we present the development of a highly effective murine monoclonal antibody, targeting the N-terminal region of the gametocyte antigen Pfs230, that can decrease the infection prevalence by > 50% when fed to mosquitoes with gametocytes in an artificial membrane feeding system.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInvasive meningococcal disease (IMD) continues to be a public health problem due to its epidemic potential, affecting mostly children. We aimed to present a detailed description of the epidemiology of IMD in Portugal, including insights into the genetic diversity of Neisseria meningitidis strains. Epidemiological analysis included data from the Portuguese National Reference Laboratory of Neisseria meningitidis during 2003 to 2020.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTransgenesis has emerged as a powerful tool to control arthropod vectors and the diseases they transmit. Here, we highlight the latest developments on transgenic approaches in ticks, Anopheles and Aedes mosquitoes, based on recent findings and significant papers from 2022. We survey topics ranging from population replacement, population suppression, gene drive, sex ratio distortion, public engagement and capacity building, and gene editing in ticks.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: The Pediatric Palliative Screening Scale (PaPaS Scale) was designed to help professionals to identify life-limiting or life-threatening children/young people with complex chronic conditions who would benefit from pediatric palliative care and facilitate their timely and appropriate referral. The aim of this study was to translate, culturally adapt and validate the PaPaS Scale for the Portuguese pediatric population.
Material And Methods: A quantitative methodological study involving translation, cultural adaptation and validation of a scale was performed.
Tuberculosis (TB) is a transmissible disease listed as one of the 10 leading causes of death worldwide (10 million infected in 2019). A swift and precise diagnosis is essential to forestall its transmission, for which the discovery of effective diagnostic biomarkers is crucial. In this study, we aimed to discover molecular biomarkers for the early diagnosis of tuberculosis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFront Public Health
October 2022
Background: There are currently more than 200 million smartphones in Brazil. The potential of mobile technologies for favorable changes in health behavior such as physical activity has been previously described in the literature. Results of surveys in developed countries indicate that applications (APPs) are developed for people who are better educated, younger, and with higher incomes compared to non-users.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Human movement is considered one of the important factors for maintaining an independent life. Individuals in different age groups have different characteristics of locomotion patterns and some health conditions can affect or be affected by mobility changes. Few studies clarify or present data about the influence of different ages and biopsychosocial factors on accelerometry features.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCalcium is essential for plants, yet as its mobility is limited, the understanding of the rate of Ca accumulation and deposition in tissues of tubers, as well as the interactions with other critical nutrients prompted this study. To assess the interactions and differential accumulation of micro and macronutrients in the tissues of tubers, L. varieties Agria and Rossi were cultivated and, after the beginning of tuberization, four foliar sprayings (at 8-10 day intervals) with CaCl (3 and 6 kg ha) or Ca(NO) (2 and 4 kg ha) solutions were performed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF(1) Background: We aim to identify clinical and laboratorial parameters to distinguish Kingella kingae from pyogenic septic arthritis (SA). (2) Methods: A longitudinal, observational, single-centre study of children < 5 years old with microbiological positive SA admitted to a paediatric hospital from 2013−2020 was performed. Clinical and laboratorial data at admission and at 48 h, as well as on treatment and evolution, were obtained.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study evaluated the elemental composition of 25 herbal tea plants commonly used in infusions by Portuguese consumers and the contribution to the elemental daily intake of some essential elements. (L.), (L.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHypertension is the most determinant risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Early intervention and future therapies targeting hypertension mechanisms may improve the quality of life and clinical outcomes. Hypertension has a complex multifactorial aetiology and was recently associated with protein homeostasis (proteostasis).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIt is widely accepted that exercise training has beneficial effects on vascular health. Although a dose-dependent relation has been suggested, little is known about the effects of different exercise durations on endothelial markers. This study aimed to assess the effect of single exercise sessions with different durations in the circulating levels of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) and endothelial cells (CECs) among adults with cardiovascular risk factors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCurr Oncol
January 2022
Small cell carcinoma of the ovary, hypercalcemic type (SCCOHT) is a rare and aggressive condition that is associated with the mutation and has a dismal prognosis. It is generally diagnosed in young women. Here, we report a case of a young woman with SCCOHT harboring a rare molecular finding with a highly aggressive biological behavior.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Endothelial dysfunction has been suggested as a potential mechanism contributing to the development and progression of heart failure (HF). Levels of circulating endothelial cells (CECs), endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs), and hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) have been recognized as useful markers of vascular damage and endothelial repair in response to tissue injury.
Aims: To evaluate the circulating levels of EPCs, CECs, and HSPCs among patients with HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF).
Anopheles gambiae melanization-based refractoriness to the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum has rarely been observed in either laboratory or natural conditions, in contrast to the rodent model malaria parasite Plasmodium berghei that can become completely melanized by a TEP1 complement-like system-dependent mechanism. Multiple studies have shown that the rodent parasite evades this defense by recruiting the C-type lectins CTL4 and CTLMA2, while permissiveness to the human malaria parasite was not affected by partial depletion of these factors by RNAi silencing. Using CRISPR/Cas9-based CTL4 knockout, we show that A.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis
February 2022
In recent years, a change in the epidemiology of meningococcal disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroup W (MenW) has been observed worldwide, with the emergence of new sublineages associated with a higher rate of fatal cases. The present study intends to describe the epidemiology of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) due to MenW in Portugal between 2003 and 2019, and to genetically characterize population structure. Despite MenW has a low incidence in Portugal, having almost disappeared from 2008 to 2015, since 2016, the number of MenW cases has been steadily increasing at a rate of ~ twofold per year, with more than 80% of the characterized isolates belonging to clonal complex 11 (cc11).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMalaria is one of the deadliest diseases. Because of the ineffectiveness of current malaria-control methods, several novel mosquito vector-based control strategies have been proposed to supplement existing control strategies. Mosquito transgenesis and gene drive have emerged as promising tools for preventing the spread of malaria by either suppressing mosquito populations by self-destructing mosquitoes or replacing mosquito populations with disease-refractory populations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Knowledge on whether low expressions of HER2 have prognostic impact in early-stage breast cancer (BC) and on its response to current chemotherapy protocols can contribute to medical practice and development of new drugs for this subset of patients, changing treatment paradigms. This study aims to evaluate the impact of HER2-low status on response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) and survival outcomes in early-stage HER2-negative BC.
Methods: Records from all BC patients treated with NACT from January 2007 to December 2018 in a single cancer center were retrospectively reviewed.
Florence Nightingale J Nurs
February 2021
Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of pedagogical training program for the prevention of musculoskeletal symptoms in affectivity of nursing students.
Method: A quantitative, longitudinal, and quasi-experimental study, which included a pre-test, intervention, and a later test was conducted in a convenience sample of 21 students from the 4 year nursing degree at a private university in the region of Lisboa e Vale do Tejo. A total of 11 students were included in the experimental group and 10 were included in the control group.