Thermal analysis evaluation of mechanical properties changes promoted by gamma radiation on surgical polymeric textiles

The large number of surgical operations with pos-operative infection problems and the appearing of new infectious diseases, contribute to the development of new materials in order to answer the needs of health care services. This development must take into account the modifications promoted by sterilisation methods in materials, namely by gamma radiation. The Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and Thermogravimetry (TGA) techniques show that a nonwoven and a laminate textiles maintain a good molecular cohesion, do not showing high levels of degradation, for gamma radiation dose values lower than 100 kGy in nonwoven and 200 kGy in laminate materials. The tensile strength and the elongation decrease slowly for the nonwoven textile and decrease faster for the laminate textile for 25 and 80 kGy absorbed dose. This paper shows that the DSC and TGA techniques can be helpful for the prevision of mechanical changes occurred in the materials as a consequence of the gamma irradiation

Carta ao Editor – “Recomendações na Abordagem do Doente com Hidradenite Supurativa”: A Importância da Colaboração com Doenças Infeciosas

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Late Neuroborreliosis in an Erasmus Programme Student

Lyme disease is an endemic zoonosis, the most prevalent tick-transmitted infection in temperate areas of Europe, North America and Asia. It is a multisystemic disease with cutaneous, musculoskeletal, neurologic and cardiac manifestations, according to the stage of the disease. We describe a case of late neuroborreliosis in an Erasmus programme student living in Porto. We discuss the importance of the epidemiological suspicion, the clinical approach, the diagnostic criteria and the most adequate treatment

Should all patients with a culture-negative periprosthetic joint infection be treated with antibiotics?:A multicentre observational study

Aims: The aim of this study was to analyze the prevalence of culture-negative periprosthetic joint infections (PJIs) when adequate methods of culture are used, and to evaluate the outcome in patients who were treated with antibiotics for a culture-negative PJI compared with those in whom antibiotics were withheld. Methods: A multicentre observational study was undertaken: 1,553 acute and 1,556 chronic PJIs, diagnosed between 2013 and 2018, were retrospectively analyzed. Culture-negative PJIs were diagnosed according to the Muskuloskeletal Infection Society (MSIS), International Consensus Meeting (ICM), and European Bone and Joint Society (EBJIS) definitions. The primary outcome was recurrent infection, and the secondary outcome was removal of the prosthetic components for any indication, both during a follow -up period of two years. Results: None of the acute PJIs and 70 of the chronic PJIs (4.7%) were culture-negative; a total of 36 culture-negative PJIs (51%) were treated with antibiotics, particularly those with histological signs of infection. After two years of follow -up, no recurrent infections occurred in patients in whom antibiotics were withheld. The requirement for removal of the components for any indication during follow -up was not significantly different in those who received antibiotics compared with those in whom antibiotics were withheld (7.1% vs 2.9%; p = 0.431). Conclusion: When adequate methods of culture are used, the incidence of culture-negative PJIs is low. In patients with culture-negative PJI, antibiotic treatment can probably be withheld if there are no histological signs of infection. In all other patients, diagnostic efforts should be made to identify the causative microorganism by means of serology or molecular techniques

Análise das vantagens e desvantagens do uso de medicações naturais

RESUMO: As plantas são usadas para o tratamento de enfermidades desde as primeiras civilizações. Mas a grande questão é: o uso dessas substâncias naturais para procedimentos de cura é sempre benéfico? A partir desse questionamento, essa mini revisão de literatura tem como objetivo avaliar os riscos e benefícios do uso de medicamentos de origem natural. Os cinco artigos selecionados para uso nessa mini revisão passaram por um processo de seleção, incluindo os ensaios clínicos, publicados em um periódico com qualis A3 ou superior, relacionados ao tema e publicados entre os anos 2016-2020 e excluindo os que não apresentaram uma conclusão da pesquisa e são classificados como revisão de literatura. Os resultados demonstraram que o uso das plantas para o tratamento de doenças é fundamental em muitas sociedades, além de ser parte da sua cultura, porém mostram também que quando esses medicamentos naturais não são utilizados de forma consciente, se tornam extremamente perigosos. Através dos artigos analisados, pode-se concluirque o uso de medicamentos naturais tem diversos benefícios, mas esse uso deve sempre ser acompanhado de um profissional qualificado para que não cause malefícios

Adoption and patterns of use of invasive physiological assessment of coronary artery disease in a large cohort of 40 821 real-world procedures over a 12-year period

Funding Information: The authors wish to acknowledge the invaluable contributions of Paulo Leal regarding data acquisition and management, and John Henderson for statistical consultancy. Publisher Copyright: © 2021 Sociedade Portuguesa de CardiologiaIntroduction and Objectives: Use of invasive physiological assessment in patients with coronary artery disease varies widely and is perceived to be low. We aimed to examine adoption rates as well as patterns and determinants of use in an unselected population undergoing invasive coronary angiography over a long time frame. Methods: We retrospectively determined the per-procedure prevalence of physiological assessment in 40 821 coronary cases performed between 2007 and 2018 in two large-volume centers. Adoption was examined according to procedure type and patient- and operator-related variables. Its association with relevant scientific landmarks, such as the release of clinical trial results and practice guidelines, was also assessed. Results: Overall adoption was low, ranging from 0.6% in patients undergoing invasive coronary angiography due to underlying valve disease, to 6% in the setting of stable coronary artery disease (CAD); it was 3.1% in patients sustaining an acute coronary syndrome. Of scientific landmarks, FAME 1, the long-term results of FAME 2 and the 2014 European myocardial revascularization guidelines were associated with changes in practice. Publication of instantaneous wave-free ratio (iFR) trials had no influence on adoption rates, except for a higher proportion of iFR use. In 42.9% of stable CAD patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention there was no objective non-invasive evidence of ischemia, nor was physiological assessment performed. Younger operator age (4.5% vs. 4.0% vs. 0.9% for ages 55 years, respectively; p<0.001) and later time of procedure during the day (2.9% between 6 and 8 p.m. vs. 4.4% at other times) were independent correlates of use of invasive physiology. Conclusions: Our study confirms the low use of invasive physiology in routine practice. The availability of resting indices did not increase adoption. Strategies are warranted to promote guideline implementation and to improve patient care and clinical outcomes.publishersversionpublishe

Guideline for management of septic arthritis in native joints (SANJO).

This clinical guideline is intended for use by orthopedic surgeons and physicians who care for patients with possible or documented septic arthritis of a native joint (SANJO). It includes evidence and opinion-based recommendations for the diagnosis and management of patients with SANJO

A importância das I Miniolimpíadas Experimentais de Ciência na formação científica dos professores do 1.º CEB e na Educação em Ciências.

As Olimpíadas de Ciência têm o potencial de divulgar e motivar os alunos para a ciência, estimular a construção do conhecimento científico e promover o desenvolvimento de novas metodologias em contexto escolar de 1.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico (CEB), bem como identificar indicadores relevantes na Educação em Ciências (Oliveira & Paixão, 2018). Neste enquadramento, foi desenhado um estudo piloto para implementar, pela 1.ª vez em Portugal, as “I Mini-Olimpíadas Experimentais de Ciência” ao nível do 1.º CEB. Em termos metodológicos, o estudo é classificado como exploratório-descritivo (Tuckman, 2000). A amostra envolve os diretores, os professores e os alunos do 4.º ano do 1.º CEB do distrito de Viseu. O projeto teve início no ano letivo 2020/2021, continuando em curso, e foi desenvolvido com base na análise dos resultados obtidos após a aplicação de questionários aos diretores e professores, com o objetivo de os auscultar sobre a sua realidade escolar e as práticas letivas na área das ciências e, ainda, sobre a exequibilidade das Mini-Olimpíadas. Com base nestes resultados, foram desenvolvidos: i) um Curso de Formação já realizado, intitulado “Recursos científicos e didáticos para a Educação em Ciências no 1.º CEB” e ii) as provas olímpicas de índole teórica e experimental no âmbito da disciplina de Estudo do Meio, que serão implementadas posteriormente. Este estudo foi aprovado no contexto dos projetos de Investigação, Desenvolvimento e Inovação Científica e Tecnológica do Instituto Politécnico de Viseu [PROJ/IPV/ ID&I/023], e é financiado pela Caixa Geral de Depósitos. Está a ser desenvolvido pela Escola Superior de Educação de Viseu em cooperação com a Ciência Viva, as Sociedades Portuguesas de Física e Química, a Sociedade Geológica de Portugal, a Ordem dos Biólogos, a Association of Polar Early Career Scientists e a International Association for Geoethics. Com a análise de posteriores resultados e consequentes conclusões, esperamos que seja possível estabelecer, entre os intervenientes da investigação, pontes de diálogo e reflexão sobre a Educação em Ciências no 1.º CEB. Finalizado o projeto, poderá haver a possibilidade de expandir a sua implementação a nível nacional, com alargamento da rede de parceiros. Nesta comunicação apresentar-se-á uma visão holística do estudo piloto e os primeiros resultados.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio