A geografia do envelhecimento da população: oferta e procura de estruturas residenciais para idososo caso do concelho de Beja

O envelhecimento é um tema que tem vindo a alcançar singular interesse, particularmente, a partir da segunda metade do século XX, e esta mudança é consequência do fenómeno do envelhecimento que tem vindo a acentuar-se nos países desenvolvidos, e que já se nota em alguns países em desenvolvimento. O envelhecimento reveste-se de primordial relevância tanto no atual contexto de senescência das sociedades ocidentais, com particular incidência nas regiões economicamente menos dinâmicas como é o caso do interior de Portugal. De acordo com Maria João Valente Rosa (2012) apesar de o envelhecimento populacional poder ser entendido como uma história de sucesso, frequentemente é percebido como uma enorme ameaça ao futuro da sociedade em que vivemos. Neste contexto, muitos dos idosos conseguem adaptar-se à velhice e a toda esta problemática, como mais uma fase na vida, independentemente das suas limitações físicas. Mas existem outros em que a situação é o inverso e têm alterações de tal ordem que necessitam de internamento em lares. Face a este cenário, é pertinente refletir/discutir o envelhecimento e as mudanças sociais que acompanham este processo. A presente investigação debruçou-se sobre a oferta e a procura de estruturas residenciais para idosos no concelho de Beja, tendo sido aplicados questionários a idosos institucionalizados em quatro instituições diferentes nas freguesias urbanas de Salvador, Santiago Maior e São João Batista. No entanto, também tivemos em consideração os idosos que vivem em meio rural, na freguesia mais envelhecida do concelho de Beja (Quintos), e aqui também foram aplicados questionários. Podemos considerar este trabalho um estudo exploratório, no qual iremos estabelecer a comparação entre estes dois grupos de idosos. Com este estudo pretendemos entender as características do envelhecimento no concelho de Beja, as condições em que este ocorre, a perceção que os idosos têm acerca das estruturas residenciais para os acolher, e estabelecer uma comparação com a visão dos idosos que vivem nas suas próprias casas, em meio rural.Abstract: Aging is a topic that has achieved singular interest, particularly from the second half of the twentieth century, and this change is a consequence of the aging phenomenon that has become more pronounced in developed countries, and already observed in some developing nations. Aging is of paramount importance in both the current context of senescence of Western societies, with particular focus on economically less dynamic regions as is the case in the interior of Portugal. According to Maria João Valente Rosa (2012) although the population aging can be seen as a success story, it is often perceived as a major threat to the future of the society in which we live. In this context, many of the elderly can adapt to old age and to all the problems related to it and face it as another stage in life, regardless of their physical limitations. However, there are others whose situation is the reverse and they go through changes that require hospitalization in nursing homes. Considering this situation, it is pertinent to reflect / discuss aging and social changes which accompany this process. This research focused on the supply and demand of residential structures for the elderly in the municipality of Beja. In order to reach the goals, the fieldwork included the application of questionnaires to institutionalized elderly in four different institutions in the urban parishes of Salvador, Santiago Maior and S. João Batista. However, the elderly living in rural areas were also considered relevant for the research, and questionnaires were also applied in the most aged parish of the municipality of Beja (Quintos). This can be considered an exploratory study in which a comparison between these two groups of elderly people will be established. With this study we intend to understand the characteristics of aging among the residents in the municipality of Beja, analyzing the conditions under which this occurs, the perception that older people have about the residential structures to accommodate them, and establishing a comparison with the situation of the elderly living in their own homes in a rural setting.Résumé: Le vieillissement est un sujet fortement étudié, en particulier depuis la seconde moitié du XIXe siècle, ce qui prouve l’action de ce phénomène, de plus en plus accentué dans les pays développés, et qui se vérifie aussi dans les pays en développement. Actuellement, le vieillissement a un impact très important sur le plan de la sénescence des sociétés occidentales, notamment dans les régions économiquement défavorisées, telles que l’intérieur de Portugal. Selon Maria João Valente Rosa (2012), le vieillissement de la population peut être compris comme une histoire de succès, cependant, il est fréquemment conçu comme une menace à l’avenir de notre société. De cette façon, la plupart des personnes âgées tend à s’adapter aux modifications provoquées par ce processus, comme s’il s’agissait d’une phase différente, indépendamment des défaillances et limites corporelles. Toutefois, il y a des personnes âgées qui envisagent ce processus d’une manière négative. C’est pourquoi, dans ces cas, il faut garantir l’accueil en institutions spécialisées. Il est donc fondamentale de discuter et comprendre ce phénomène biologique. Cette étude est fondée sur l’offre et la recherche d’hébergements dirigées aux personnes âgées qui vivent près de Beja, en partant des questionnaires appliqués à des gens résidents en quatre foyers-logements (Salvador, Santiago Maior, São João Batista et Quintos). On peut considérer ce travail comme une recherche exploratoire, au fil de laquelle on essayera d’établir une comparaison entre les personnes âgées résidant dans des foyers situés à Beja et les personnes âgées résidant dans le foyer situé au milieu rural. En somme, on veut comprendre les caractéristiques du vieillissement dans la région de Beja, en ce qui concerne les conditions dans lesquelles il se déroule, la perception des personnes âgées quant aux foyers-logements, en comparant la vision des gens qui vivent chez eux-mêmes au milieu rural

Unraveling the genetic background of individuals with a clinical familial hypercholesterolemia phenotype

Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is a common genetic disorder of lipid metabolism caused by pathogenic/likely pathogenic variants in LDLR, APOB, and PCSK9 genes. Variants in FH-phenocopy genes (LDLRAP1, APOE, LIPA, ABCG5, and ABCG8), polygenic hypercholesterolemia, and hyperlipoprotein (a) [Lp(a)] can also mimic a clinical FH phenotype. We aim to present a new diagnostic tool to unravel the genetic background of clinical FH phenotype. Biochemical and genetic study was performed in 1,005 individuals with clinical diagnosis of FH, referred to the Portuguese FH Study. A next-generation sequencing panel, covering eight genes and eight SNPs to determine LDL-C polygenic risk score and LPA genetic score, was validated, and used in this study. FH was genetically confirmed in 417 index cases: 408 heterozygotes and 9 homozygotes. Cascade screening increased the identification to 1,000 FH individuals, including 11 homozygotes. FH-negative individuals (phenotype positive and genotype negative) have Lp(a) >50 mg/dl (30%), high polygenic risk score (16%), other monogenic lipid metabolism disorders (1%), and heterozygous pathogenic variants in FH-phenocopy genes (2%). Heterozygous variants of uncertain significance were identified in primary genes (12%) and phenocopy genes (7%). Overall, 42% of our cohort was genetically confirmed with FH. In the remaining individuals, other causes for high LDL-C were identified in 68%. Hyper-Lp(a) or polygenic hypercholesterolemia may be the cause of the clinical FH phenotype in almost half of FH-negative individuals. A small part has pathogenic variants in ABCG5/ABCG8 in heterozygosity that can cause hypercholesterolemia and should be further investigated. This extended next-generation sequencing panel identifies individuals with FH and FH-phenocopies, allowing to personalize each person’s treatment according to the affected pathway

Characterisation of microbial attack on archaeological bone

As part of an EU funded project to investigate the factors influencing bone preservation in the archaeological record, more than 250 bones from 41 archaeological sites in five countries spanning four climatic regions were studied for diagenetic alteration. Sites were selected to cover a range of environmental conditions and archaeological contexts. Microscopic and physical (mercury intrusion porosimetry) analyses of these bones revealed that the majority (68%) had suffered microbial attack. Furthermore, significant differences were found between animal and human bone in both the state of preservation and the type of microbial attack present. These differences in preservation might result from differences in early taphonomy of the bones. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved