Perturbações do sono e a qualidade de vida do utente hipertenso

Enquadramento: Referenciados como fatores de risco da hipertensão, história familiar, sedentarismo, erros alimentares, tabagismo, sexo, raça e idade, existe outro menos convencional como as perturbações do sono que influenciam igualmente a qualidade de vida do hipertenso. Objetivos: Identificar e relacionar as perturbações do sono com a qualidade de vida do hipertenso. Método: Estudo quantitativo, transversal e descritivo-correlacional realizado numa amostra de 431 utentes hipertensos. Colheita de dados em CS da Região Centro, de junho a outubro de 2012. O protocolo de avaliação inclui a caracterização Socio-Demográfica, a avaliação dos parâmetros clínicos, o Questionário de Sono de Oviedo (QSO) e a Questionário da Qualidade de vida dos hipertensos (MINICHAL). Resultados: 56,8% dos participantes são do sexo feminino e 43,2% do sexo masculino, com idades entre os 30 e os 95 anos.72,2% são casados, residem na aldeia (40,6%), com os cônjuges (51,0%). Habilitações até ao 4.º ano de escolaridade (68,7%), encontram-se reformados (69,8%) e 87,9% praticam alguma religião 43,9%; auferem entre os 500-1000 euros de rendimento mensal. 44,5% da amostra encontra-se em pré-obesidade, 52,2% apresenta a hipertensão controla. 55,2% dos inquiridos encontram-se satisfeitos com o seu sono. São as mulheres e os mais idosos que apresentam mais perturbações do sono. Quanto maior são as perturbações do sono, pior é a qualidade de vida. Conclusão: a abordagem desta associação justifica uma atuação planeada e organizada no sistema de saúde; que tente não apenas evitar estas doenças e reduzir as incapacidades por elas causadas mas melhor a qualidade de vida dos utentes. PALAVRAS-CHAVE Perturbações do sono, qualidade de vida, utente hipertenso.ABSTRACT Background: Referenced as risk factors of hypertension are; family history, physical inactivity, dietary neglect, smoking, sex, race and age. There is another less conventional factor such as sleep disturbances which also influence the quality of life of hypertension patients. Objectives: To identify and relate sleep disturbance with quality of life of hypertension patients. Methods: A quantitative, descriptive and cross-correlation performed upon a sample of 431 hypertension sufferers. Data collection was carried out in CS Central Region, from June to October 2012. The evaluation protocol includes the Socio-Demographic characterization, assessment of clinical parameters, the Oviedo Sleep Questionnaire (QSO) and the Quality of Life Questionnaire of hypertensives (MINICHAL). Results: 56.8% of participants were female and 43.2% male, aged between 30 and 95 years of age. 72, 2% are married, reside in villages (40.6%), with their spouses (51.0%). Those with only primary school education (68.7%) are retired (69.8%) and 87.9% practice some religion. 43,9% earn between 500-1000 euros monthly income. 44.5% of the sample who were pre-obese, presented 52.2% of the hypertension control. 55.2% of respondents are satisfied with their sleep. Women and the elderly tend to suffer from more sleep disturbances. The greater sleep disturbances there are, the worse the quality of life. Conclusion: The approach of this association warrants a planned and organized action within the health system, not just to try to avoid these diseases and reduce the disabilities caused by them but to better improve the quality of life of patients. KEYWORDS Sleep disturbances, quality of life, hypertension sufferer

Air conditioning and electricity expenditure: The role of climate in temperate countries

This paper investigates how households adopt and use air conditioning to adapt to climate change and increasingly high temperatures, which pose a threat to the health of vulnerable populations. The analysis examines conditions in eight temperate, industrialized countries (Australia, Canada, France, Japan, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland). The identification strategy exploits cross-country and cross-household variations by matching geocoded households with climate data. Our findings suggest that households respond to excess heat by purchasing and using air conditioners, leading to increased electricity consumption. Households on average spend 35%–42% more on electricity when they adopt air conditioning. Through an illustrative analysis, we show that climate change and the growing demand for air conditioning are likely to exacerbate energy poverty. The number of energy poor who spend a high share of income on electricity increases, and households in the lowest income quantile are the most negatively affected

A Developmental Systems Perspective on Epistasis: Computational Exploration of Mutational Interactions in Model Developmental Regulatory Networks

The way in which the information contained in genotypes is translated into complex phenotypic traits (i.e. embryonic expression patterns) depends on its decoding by a multilayered hierarchy of biomolecular systems (regulatory networks). Each layer of this hierarchy displays its own regulatory schemes (i.e. operational rules such as +/− feedback) and associated control parameters, resulting in characteristic variational constraints. This process can be conceptualized as a mapping issue, and in the context of highly-dimensional genotype-phenotype mappings (GPMs) epistatic events have been shown to be ubiquitous, manifested in non-linear correspondences between changes in the genotype and their phenotypic effects. In this study I concentrate on epistatic phenomena pervading levels of biological organization above the genetic material, more specifically the realm of molecular networks. At this level, systems approaches to studying GPMs are specially suitable to shed light on the mechanistic basis of epistatic phenomena. To this aim, I constructed and analyzed ensembles of highly-modular (fully interconnected) networks with distinctive topologies, each displaying dynamic behaviors that were categorized as either arbitrary or functional according to early patterning processes in the Drosophila embryo. Spatio-temporal expression trajectories in virtual syncytial embryos were simulated via reaction-diffusion models. My in silico mutational experiments show that: 1) the average fitness decay tendency to successively accumulated mutations in ensembles of functional networks indicates the prevalence of positive epistasis, whereas in ensembles of arbitrary networks negative epistasis is the dominant tendency; and 2) the evaluation of epistatic coefficients of diverse interaction orders indicates that, both positive and negative epistasis are more prevalent in functional networks than in arbitrary ones. Overall, I conclude that the phenotypic and fitness effects of multiple perturbations are strongly conditioned by both the regulatory architecture (i.e. pattern of coupled feedback structures) and the dynamic nature of the spatio-temporal expression trajectories displayed by the simulated networks

Syzygium jambolanum treatment improves survival in lethal sepsis induced in mice

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The leaves and the fruits from <it>Syzygium jambolanum </it>DC.(Myrtaceae), a plant known in Brazil as sweet olive or 'jambolão', have been used by native people to treat infectious diseases, diabetes, and stomachache. Since the bactericidal activity of <it>S. jambolanum </it>has been confirmed <it>in vitro</it>, the aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of the prophylactic treatment with <it>S. jambolanum </it>on the <it>in vivo </it>polymicrobial infection induced by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) in mice.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>C57Bl/6 mice were treated by the subcutaneous route with a hydroalcoholic extract from fresh leaves of <it>S. jambolanum </it>(HCE). After 6 h, a bacterial infection was induced in the peritoneum using the lethal CLP model. The mice were killed 12 h after the CLP induction to evaluate the cellular influx and local and systemic inflammatory mediators' production. Some animals were maintained alive to evaluate the survival rate.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The prophylactic HCE treatment increased the mice survival, the neutrophil migration to infectious site, the spreading ability and the hydrogen peroxide release, but decreased the serum TNF and nitrite. Despite the increased migration and activation of peritoneal cells the HCE treatment did not decrease the number of CFU. The HCE treatment induced a significant decrease on the bone marrow cells number but did not alter the cell number of the spleen and lymph node.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We conclude that the treatment with <it>S. jambolanum </it>has a potent prophylactic anti-septic effect that is not associated to a direct microbicidal effect but it is associated to a recruitment of activated neutrophils to the infectious site and to a diminished systemic inflammatory response.</p

Two-pion Bose-Einstein correlations in central Pb-Pb collisions at sNN\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 2.76 TeV

The first measurement of two-pion Bose-Einstein correlations in central Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 2.76$ TeV at the Large Hadron Collider is presented. We observe a growing trend with energy now not only for the longitudinal and the outward but also for the sideward pion source radius. The pion homogeneity volume and the decoupling time are significantly larger than those measured at RHIC.Comment: 17 pages, 5 captioned figures, 1 table, authors from page 12, published version, figures at http://aliceinfo.cern.ch/ArtSubmission/node/388

Suppression of charged particle production at large transverse momentum in central Pb-Pb collisions at sNN=2.76\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}} = 2.76 TeV

Inclusive transverse momentum spectra of primary charged particles in Pb-Pb collisions at $\sqrt{s_{_{\rm NN}}}$ = 2.76 TeV have been measured by the ALICE Collaboration at the LHC. The data are presented for central and peripheral collisions, corresponding to 0-5% and 70-80% of the hadronic Pb-Pb cross section. The measured charged particle spectra in $|\eta|<0.8$ and $0.3 < p_T < 20$ GeV/$c$ are compared to the expectation in pp collisions at the same $\sqrt{s_{\rm NN}}$, scaled by the number of underlying nucleon-nucleon collisions. The comparison is expressed in terms of the nuclear modification factor $R_{\rm AA}$. The result indicates only weak medium effects ($R_{\rm AA} \approx$ 0.7) in peripheral collisions. In central collisions, $R_{\rm AA}$ reaches a minimum of about 0.14 at $p_{\rm T}=6$-7GeV/$c$ and increases significantly at larger $p_{\rm T}$. The measured suppression of high-$p_{\rm T}$ particles is stronger than that observed at lower collision energies, indicating that a very dense medium is formed in central Pb-Pb collisions at the LHC.Comment: 15 pages, 5 captioned figures, 3 tables, authors from page 10, published version, figures at http://aliceinfo.cern.ch/ArtSubmission/node/98

Does Environmental Enrichment Reduce Stress? An Integrated Measure of Corticosterone from Feathers Provides a Novel Perspective

Enrichment is widely used as tool for managing fearfulness, undesirable behaviors, and stress in captive animals, and for studying exploration and personality. Inconsistencies in previous studies of physiological and behavioral responses to enrichment led us to hypothesize that enrichment and its removal are stressful environmental changes to which the hormone corticosterone and fearfulness, activity, and exploration behaviors ought to be sensitive. We conducted two experiments with a captive population of wild-caught Clark's nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana) to assess responses to short- (10-d) and long-term (3-mo) enrichment, their removal, and the influence of novelty, within the same animal. Variation in an integrated measure of corticosterone from feathers, combined with video recordings of behaviors, suggests that how individuals perceive enrichment and its removal depends on the duration of exposure. Short- and long-term enrichment elicited different physiological responses, with the former acting as a stressor and birds exhibiting acclimation to the latter. Non-novel enrichment evoked the strongest corticosterone responses of all the treatments, suggesting that the second exposure to the same objects acted as a physiological cue, and that acclimation was overridden by negative past experience. Birds showed weak behavioral responses that were not related to corticosterone. By demonstrating that an integrated measure of glucocorticoid physiology varies significantly with changes to enrichment in the absence of agonistic interactions, our study sheds light on potential mechanisms driving physiological and behavioral responses to environmental change