Sociodemographic characteristics determine dietary pattern adherence during pregnancy

OBJECTIVE:Sociodemographic factors may affect adherence to specific dietary patterns during pregnancy. The present study aimed to identify dietary patterns during pregnancy and associated factors among Brazilian pregnant women. DESIGN:A cross-sectional analysis. Dietary intake was evaluated with a semi-quantitative FFQ during the first postpartum week; the time frame included the second and third gestational trimesters. Principal component analysis was used to identify dietary patterns during pregnancy. Sociodemographic data were obtained using a structured questionnaire. Multiple linear regressions were applied to test the associations between the sociodemographic factors and dietary patterns. SETTING:Mesquita, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2011. SUBJECTS:Postpartum women (n 327) who were 18-45 years of age and Mesquita residents. RESULTS:Three different dietary patterns were identified: 'healthy' (mainly comprising legumes, vegetables and fruits), 'mixed' (mainly comprising candy, butter and margarine, and snacks) and 'traditional' (mainly comprising beans and rice). Women with a higher monthly per capita family income (β=0·0006; 95% CI 0·0001, 0·001; P=0·011) and women of older age (β=0·021; 95% CI -0·001, 0·042; P=0·058) were more likely to adhere to the 'healthy' dietary pattern. Women with higher parity were less likely to adhere to the 'healthy' pattern (β=-0·097; 95% CI -0·184, -0·009; P=0·030) and were more likely to adhere to the 'traditional' pattern (β=0·098; 95% CI 0·021, 0·175; P=0·012). Although not statistically significant, older women were less likely to adhere to the 'mixed' (β=-0·017; 95% CI -0·037, 0·003; P=0·075) and 'traditional' (β=-0·018; 95% CI -0·037, 0·001; P=0·061) dietary patterns. CONCLUSIONS:Monthly per capita family income, parity and maternal age were factors associated with adherence to a healthy diet during pregnancy

Sialic Acid Glycobiology Unveils Trypanosoma cruzi Trypomastigote Membrane Physiology.

Trypanosoma cruzi, the flagellate protozoan agent of Chagas disease or American trypanosomiasis, is unable to synthesize sialic acids de novo. Mucins and trans-sialidase (TS) are substrate and enzyme, respectively, of the glycobiological system that scavenges sialic acid from the host in a crucial interplay for T. cruzi life cycle. The acquisition of the sialyl residue allows the parasite to avoid lysis by serum factors and to interact with the host cell. A major drawback to studying the sialylation kinetics and turnover of the trypomastigote glycoconjugates is the difficulty to identify and follow the recently acquired sialyl residues. To tackle this issue, we followed an unnatural sugar approach as bioorthogonal chemical reporters, where the use of azidosialyl residues allowed identifying the acquired sugar. Advanced microscopy techniques, together with biochemical methods, were used to study the trypomastigote membrane from its glycobiological perspective. Main sialyl acceptors were identified as mucins by biochemical procedures and protein markers. Together with determining their shedding and turnover rates, we also report that several membrane proteins, including TS and its substrates, both glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored proteins, are separately distributed on parasite surface and contained in different and highly stable membrane microdomains. Notably, labeling for α(1,3)Galactosyl residues only partially colocalize with sialylated mucins, indicating that two species of glycosylated mucins do exist, which are segregated at the parasite surface. Moreover, sialylated mucins were included in lipid-raft-domains, whereas TS molecules are not. The location of the surface-anchored TS resulted too far off as to be capable to sialylate mucins, a role played by the shed TS instead. Phosphatidylinositol-phospholipase-C activity is actually not present in trypomastigotes. Therefore, shedding of TS occurs via microvesicles instead of as a fully soluble form

Qualidade dos cuidados de enfermagem e satisfação do paciente atendido em um hospital de ensino

OBJECTIVES: assess the quality of nursing care, the patients' satisfaction and the correlation between both. METHOD: cross-sectional study, involving 275 patients hospitalized at a teaching hospital in the Central-West of Brazil. The data were collected through the simultaneous application of three instruments. Next, they were included in an electronic database and analyzed in function of the positivity, median value and Spearman's correlation coefficients. RESULTS: among the nursing care assessed, only two were considered safe - hygiene and physical comfort; nutrition and hydration - while the remainder were classified as poor. Nevertheless, the patients were satisfied with the care received in the domains assessed: technical-professional, confidence and educational. This can be justified by the weak to moderate correlation that was observed among these variables. CONCLUSION: Despite the quality deficit, the patients' satisfaction level with the nursing care received was high. These results indicate that the institution needs to center its objectives on a continuing evaluation system of the care quality, aiming to attend to the patients' expectations.OBJETIVOS: evaluar la calidad de los cuidados de enfermería, la satisfacción del paciente y la correlación entre ambos. MÉTODO: estudio trasversal con 275 pacientes internados en un hospital de enseñanza de la región Centro-Oeste de Brasil. Los datos fueron recolectados mediante la aplicación simultánea de tres instrumentos. A seguir, fueron digitalizados en un banco de datos electrónico y analizados en función de la positividad, valor de mediana y coeficientes de correlación de Spearman. RESULTADOS: entre los cuidados de enfermería evaluados, solamente dos fueron considerados seguros - higiene y conforto físico; nutrición e hidratación - y los demás clasificados como pobres. Sin embargo, los pacientes se mostraron satisfechos con los cuidados recibidos en los dominios evaluados: técnico-profesional, confianza y educacional. Eso puede ser justificado por la correlación débil a moderada observada entre esas variables. CONCLUSIÓN: A pesar del déficit de cualidad, fue encontrado alto nivel de satisfacción de los pacientes con los cuidados de enfermería recibidos. Tales resultados indican la necesidad de que la institución centre sus objetivos en un sistema de evaluación permanente de la cualidad del cuidado, visando atender a las expectativas de los pacientes.OBJETIVOS: avaliar a qualidade dos cuidados de enfermagem, a satisfação do paciente e a correlação entre ambos. MÉTODO: estudo transversal, realizado com 275 pacientes internados em um hospital de ensino da Região Centro-Oeste do Brasil. Os dados foram obtidos por meio da aplicação simultânea de três instrumentos. A seguir, foram digitados em banco de dados eletrônico e analisados em função da positividade, valor de mediana e coeficientes de correlação de Spearman. RESULTADOS: dentre os cuidados de enfermagem avaliados, apenas dois foram considerados seguros - higiene e conforto físico; nutrição e hidratação - e os demais foram classificados como pobres. Todavia, os pacientes mostraram-se satisfeitos com os cuidados recebidos nos domínios avaliados: técnico-profissional, confiança e educacional. Isso pode ser justificado pela correlação fraca a moderada observada entre essas variáveis. CONCLUSÃO: apesar do déficit de qualidade, houve alto nível de satisfação dos pacientes com os cuidados de enfermagem recebidos. Tais resultados apontam a necessidade de a instituição centrar seus objetivos num sistema de avaliação permanente da qualidade do cuidado, visando o atendimento das expectativas dos pacientes