Publications by authors named "Varandas L"

Background: Malaria is the parasitic disease with the highest global morbidity and mortality. According to estimates from the World Health Organization (WHO), there were around 249 million cases in 2022, with 3.4% occurring in Angola.

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Neonatal mortality rates in developing countries are influenced by a complex array of factors. Despite advancements in healthcare, Angola has one of the highest neonatal mortality rates in sub-Saharan Africa, with significant contributors including premature birth, intrapartum events, tetanus, and sepsis. This study, utilizing key theoretical frameworks such as intersectionality, social determinants of health (SDOH), and ecosocial theory, aimed to identify the primary causes and contributing factors of neonatal mortality among infants admitted to the Neonatology Service at DBPH in Luanda from May 2022 to June 2023.

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Reducing under-five mortality is a crucial indicator of overall development in a country. However, in Angola, understanding the factors contributing to hospital deaths in this vulnerable demographic remains incomplete despite improvements in healthcare infrastructure and public health policies. With one of the highest under-five mortality rates in sub-Saharan Africa, Angola faces significant challenges such as malaria, malnutrition, pneumonia, neonatal conditions, and intestinal infectious diseases, which are the leading causes of death among children.

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BACKGROUNDTB remains an important cause of childhood morbidity and mortality. Underdiagnosis, underreporting and limited data on the outcomes of childhood TB have led to an underestimation of its impact.METHODSThis was a systematic review to characterise childhood TB outcomes.

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Globally, anaemia prevails as a public health issue, being also a concern in Mozambique, where about two-thirds of children 6-59 months of age are affected by this condition. We carried out this study to estimate anaemia prevalence and evaluate structural determinants and haematological parameters association among children aged 6-59 months attending pediatric inpatient and outpatient services in a Quaternary Health Facility in Maputo City Province, Mozambique. We collected data from 637 inpatients or outpatients who attended pediatric consultations at the Maputo Central Hospital.

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Background: Osteoarticular infections (OAI) are associated with complications and sequelae in children, whose prediction are of great importance in improving outcomes. We aimed to design risk prediction models to identify early complications and sequelae in children with OAI.

Methods: This observational study included children (>3 months-17 years old) with acute OAI admitted to a tertiary-care pediatric hospital between 2008 and 2018.

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Mycetoma is caused by the subcutaneous inoculation of filamentous fungi or aerobic filamentous bacteria. Cellulosimicrobium cellulans is a gram-positive bacterium from the order Actinomycetales that rarely causes human disease. The diagnosis is based on the clinical presentation and identification of the causative microorganism.

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Bone and joint tuberculosis (BJTB) is rare in developed countries, particularly in the paediatric population. The clinical features and sequelae of paediatric BJTB in Europe are not well characterized and should be assessed to achieve a better approach. To assess the management and outcomes of paediatric BJTB.

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Several cases of paediatric acute hepatitis of an unknown aetiology have been described in these last few months and in several countries worldwide. We present two patients, a 7-month-old girl and an 8-year-old boy, with gastrointestinal symptoms and lethargy, associated with elevation of transaminase levels. Serologies for hepatitis A-E virus and PCR test to SARS-CoV-2 were all negative.

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Introduction: Globally, anemia is still a public health issue faced by people in low and high-income countries. This study gives an overview of published scientific articles related to the prevalence, nutritional indicators, and social determinants of anemia in pregnant women and children aged 6 to 59 months living in Mozambique and Portugal.

Methods: We performed a review of scientific literature in April 2021, searching for published indexed articles in the last 15 years (2003-2018) in electronic databases.

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Background: There has been tremendous progress in the fight against HIV worldwide; however, challenges persist in the control of HIV infection. These challenges include the high prevalence of late presenters. There are many disadvantages of late presentation-from reduced survival of the infected person to the risk of transmitting the infection.

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Malaria is a parasitic disease of which Plasmodium falciparum causes the most severe form of the disease. The immune response against Plasmodium spp. is complex and remains unclear.

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Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) and toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) are rare but serious dermatologic diseases with many potential multisystem complications. We describe the case of an 8-year-old girl who developed severe SJS/TEN overlap syndrome (25% of her body surface area was affected) complicated by pancreatitis and bronchiolitis obliterans. These rare complications emphasize the need for careful, intensive monitoring of possible complications and an interdisciplinary team approach to provide optimal treatment and follow-up.

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An increased risk of severe and fatal Israeli spotted fever (ISF) has been observed in adults, mostly associated with ISF strain. Here, we report a case of severe ISF with multiorgan failure in a Portuguese child.

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We report the presence of SNPs in Plasmodium falciparum K13-propeller gene in two African countries, Angola and Mozambique, where malaria is a serious public health problem. Samples were collected before and after ACT introduction as first-line treatment. In each country 50 samples collected before and 50 after ACT introduction were analysed.

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Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) is an emerging public health problem worldwide. Severe invasive infections have been described, mostly associated with the presence of Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL). In Portugal limited information exists regarding CA-MRSA infections.

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