Bayesian Modeling and Estimation of Spatial Risk for Hospitalization and Mortality from Ischemic Heart Disease in Paraná, Brazil.

Objective: Despite significant advancements in understanding risk factors and treatment strategies, ischemic heart disease (IHD) remains the leading cause of mortality worldwide, particularly within specific regions in Brazil, where the disease is a burden. Therefore, the aim of this study was to estimate the risk of hospitalization and mortality from IHD in the state of Paraná (Brazil), using spatial analysis to identify areas with higher risk based on socioeconomic, demographic and health variables.

Methods: This is an ecological study based on secondary and retrospective IHD hospitalization and mortality data obtained from the Brazilian Hospitalization and Mortality Information Systems during the 2010-2021 period.

Hospitalizations for Cardiovascular Diseases Sensitive to Primary Health Care in Paraná State, Brazil: A Bayesian Spatiotemporal Model.

Purpose: To analyze spatiotemporal trends in hospitalizations for cardiovascular diseases (CVD) sensitive to primary health care (PHC) among individuals aged 50-69 years in Paraná State, Brazil, from 2014 to 2019 and investigate correlations between PHC services and the Social Development Index.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional ecological study using publicly available secondary data to analyze the municipal incidence of hospitalizations for CVD sensitive to PHC and to estimate the risk of hospitalization for this group of diseases and associated factors using hierarchical Bayesian spatiotemporal modeling with Markov chain Monte Carlo simulation.

Results: There was a 5% decrease in the average rate of hospitalizations for PHC-sensitive CVD from 2014 to 2019.

Applicability of machine learning algorithm to predict the therapeutic intervention success in Brazilian smokers.

Smoking cessation is an important public health policy worldwide. However, as far as we know, there is a lack of screening of variables related to the success of therapeutic intervention (STI) in Brazilian smokers by machine learning (ML) algorithms. To address this gap in the literature, we evaluated the ability of eight ML algorithms to correctly predict the STI in Brazilian smokers who were treated at a smoking cessation program in Brazil between 2006 and 2017.

Mortality in Women with Coronary Artery Disease in Paraná State, Brazil: A Bayesian Spatiotemporal Analysis.

Background: Mortality resulting from coronary artery disease (CAD) among women is a complex issue influenced by many factors that encompass not only biological distinctions but also sociocultural, economic, and healthcare-related components. Understanding these factors is crucial to enhance healthcare provisions. Therefore, this study seeks to identify the social and clinical variables related to the risk of mortality caused by CAD in women aged 50 to 79 years old in Paraná state, Brazil, between 2010 and 2019.

Spatial distribution of mortality from colorectal cancer in the southern region of Brazil.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the leading cause of death due to cancer worldwide. In Brazil, it is the second most frequent cancer in men and women, with a mortality reaching 9.4% of those diagnosed.

Exploring regional disparities in lung cancer mortality in a Brazilian state: A cross-sectional ecological study.

Background: Lung cancer (LC) is one of the main causes of mortality in Brazil; geographic, cultural, socioeconomic and health access factors can affect the development of the disease. We explored the geospatial distribution of LC mortality, and associated factors, between 2015 and 2019, in Parana state, Brazil.

Methods And Findings: We obtained mortality (from the Brazilian Health Informatics Department) and population rates (from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics [IBGE]) in people over 40 years old, accessibility of oncology centers by municipality, disease diagnosis rate (from Brazilian Ministry of Health), the tobacco production rate (IBGE) and Parana Municipal Performance Index (IPDM) (from Parana Institute for Economic and Social Development).

Built environment influence on the incidence of elderly pedestrian collisions in a medium-large city in southern Brazil: a spatial analysis.

Trauma disproportionately affects vulnerable road users, especially the elderly. We analyzed the spatial distribution of elderly pedestrians struck by vehicles in the urban area of Maringa city, from 2014 to 2018. Hotspots were obtained by kernel density estimation and wavelet analysis.

Temporal and spatial analysis of municipal dengue cases in Paraná and social and environmental indicators, 2012 to 2021: ecological study.

Objective: Analyze the temporal trend and spatial distribution of the incidence rate of dengue cases in Paraná and its regions between 2012 to 2021 and investigate associated sociodemographic and environmental variables.

Methods: Ecological study with temporal and spatial analysis of the dengue incidence rate reported in the Disease and Notification Information System (SINAN) in the period 2012 to 2021 and investigation of sociodemographic and environmental variables. To identify differences between municipal incidence rates the Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis test followed by Dunn's test for multiple comparisons were used.

Physiologic roles of P2 receptors in leukocytes.

Since their discovery in the 1970s, purinergic receptors have been shown to play key roles in a wide variety of biologic systems and cell types. In the immune system, purinergic receptors participate in innate immunity and in the modulation of the adaptive immune response. In particular, P2 receptors, which respond to extracellular nucleotides, are widely expressed on leukocytes, causing the release of cytokines and chemokines and the formation of inflammatory mediators, and inducing phagocytosis, degranulation, and cell death.

Depression, anxiety and stress symptoms in Brazilian university students during the COVID-19 pandemic: Predictors and association with life satisfaction, psychological well-being and coping strategies.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic raises concerns about the mental health of the world population. Protection measures to prevention the disease impacted education and undergraduate students were exposed to additional stressors.

Objectives: Analyze depression, anxiety and stress symptoms in undergraduates, their respective predictors and the association with satisfaction with life, psychological well-being and coping strategies.

High prevalence of gastroschisis in Brazilian triple side border: A socioenvironmental spatial analysis.

This research investigated the spatial association between socioenvironmental factors and gastroschisis in Brazilian triple side border. A geographic analysis for gastroschisis prevalence was performed considering census sector units using Global Moran Index, Local Indicator of Spatial Association Analysis and Getis Ord statistics. Sociodemographic factors included rate of adolescent and parturients over 35 years; population with no income and above 5 minimum wages; rate of late prenatal; and proximity to power transmission lines.

The Impact of Socioeconomic Factors, Coverage and Access to Health on Heart Ischemic Disease Mortality in a Brazilian Southern State: A Geospatial Analysis.

Background: No other disease has killed more than ischemic heart disease (IHD) for the past few years globally. Despite the advances in cardiology, the response time for starting treatment still leads patients to death because of the lack of healthcare coverage and access to referral centers.

Objectives: To analyze the spatial disparities related to IHD mortality in the Parana state, Brazil.

Mapping risk of ischemic heart disease using machine learning in a Brazilian state.

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of deaths globally. Machine learning studies predicting mortality rates for ischemic heart disease (IHD) at the municipal level are very limited. The goal of this paper was to create and validate a Heart Health Care Index (HHCI) to predict risk of IHD based on location and risk factors.

Geospatial analysis of births with congenital disorders, Paraná, 2008-2015: ecological study.

Objective: analyze the pattern of spatial distribution of the prevalence rate of births with congenital disorders and its relationship with social, economic, health care and environmental indicators in Paraná, Brazil, from 2008 to 2015.

Method: ecological study with variables extracted from secondary banks, related to the births of children of mothers residing in Paraná, in two quadrennial (2008-2011 and 2012-2015). The analysis of the rates was performed with univariate spatial (Moran) and multivariate approach (Ordinary Least Squares and Geographically Weighted Regression).

Burnout among nursing students: predictors and association with empathy and self-efficacy.

Objective: to analyze burnout, its predictors and association with empathy and self-efficacy among nursing students.

Method: cross-sectional analytical study with 284 students from five state universities in the state of Parana, Brazil. The instruments applied were: social and academic questionnaire, Maslach Burnout Inventory, Interpersonal Reactivity Index and Occupational Self-Efficacy Scale (Short Form).

Effect of acetylsalicylic acid on total myenteric neurons in mice experimentally infected with Trypanosoma cruzi.

We investigated the effects of acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) on the total myenteric neuronal population in the descending colon in Trypanosoma cruzi-infected mice. Thirty-five male Swiss mice, 60 days old, were divided into a control group (C group), control group treated with ASA (CA group), infected group (I group), and infected group treated with ASA (IA group). A total of 1300 trypomastigotes of the Y strain of T.

Spatial distribution of breast cancer mortality: Socioeconomic disparities and access to treatment in the state of Parana, Brazil.

Introduction: Breast cancer remains an important public health problem that is responsible for high morbidity and mortality rates, especially in developing countries.

Objective: To analyze the socioeconomic and access disparities related to breast cancer mortality in 399 cities in the state of Parana, Brazil.

Methods: Ecological, descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study based on secondary data from the Mortality Information System from 2009 to 2012 in the state of Parana.

How do social-economic differences in urban areas affect tuberculosis mortality in a city in the tri-border region of Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina.

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) launched the "End TB Strategy", which aims to reduce tuberculosis (TB) mortality by 95% by 2035, Brazil has made a commitment to this, however, one challenge is achieving the goal in the border region, where the TB situation is more critical. The proposal was to analyse the spatial mortality due to TB and its socio-economic determinants in the general population, around the border areas of Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina, as well as the temporal trend in this region.

Method: This ecological study considered the cases of TB deaths of residents of Foz do Iguaçu (BR), with its units of analysis being the census sectors.

Regional disparities in the intimate partner sexual violence rate against women in Paraná State, Brazil, 2009-2014: an ecological study.

Objective: Evaluate disparities in a Brazilian state by conducting an analysis to determine whether socioeconomic status was associated with the reported intimate partner sexual violence (IPSV) rates against women.

Design: A retrospective, ecological study.

Settings: Data retrieved from the Notifiable Diseases Information System database of the Ministry of Health of Brazil.

System dynamics modeling in the evaluation of delays of care in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction patients within a tiered health system.

Background: Mortality rates amongst ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients remain high, especially in developing countries. The aim of this study was to evaluate the factors related with delays in the treatment of STEMI patients to support a strategic plan toward structural and personnel modifications in a primary hospital aligning its process with international guidelines.

Methods And Findings: The study was conducted in a primary hospital localized in Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil.

Brazilian road traffic fatalities: a spatial and environmental analysis.

Background: Road traffic injuries (RTI) are a major public health epidemic killing thousands of people daily. Low and middle-income countries, such as Brazil, have the highest annual rates of road traffic fatalities. In order to improve road safety, this study mapped road traffic fatalities on a Brazilian highway to determine the main environmental factors affecting road traffic fatalities.

Regional disparities in mortality after ischemic heart disease in a Brazilian state from 2006 to 2010.

Background: High technology in the field of interventional cardiology applied in tertiary hospitals has brought enormous benefits in the treatment of ischemic heart disease (IHD). However, IHD mortality rates remain high. We analyzed the relationship between IHD mortality rate and the socioeconomic, demographic, and geographic conditions in 399 cities in Parana state, Brazil, from 2006 to 2010.

[Juvenile homicides and informal work in a Brazilian city in the Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina tri-border area].

Objective: To analyze the spatial distribution of juvenile homicide mortality for males in the city of Foz do Iguaçu (state of Paraná), located in the Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina tri-border area, between 2000 and 2007.

Methods: The data were obtained from the Ministry of Health's Mortality Information System (SIM) and the Brazilian Geography and Statistics Institute (IBGE). Spatial analysis of 873 deaths distributed in 11 demographic expansion areas (AEDs) was performed using ArcGIS® 9.

Modulatory effects of cAMP and PKC activation on gap junctional intercellular communication among thymic epithelial cells.

Background: We investigated the effects of the signaling molecules, cyclic AMP (cAMP) and protein-kinase C (PKC), on gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC) between thymic epithelial cells (TEC).

Results: Treatment with 8-Br-cAMP, a cAMP analog; or forskolin, which stimulates cAMP production, resulted in an increase in dye transfer between adjacent TEC, inducing a three-fold enhancement in the mean fluorescence of coupled cells, ascertained by flow cytometry after calcein transfer. These treatments also increased Cx43 mRNA expression, and stimulated Cx43 protein accumulation in regions of intercellular contacts.