Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear un derstanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5–7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8–11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world’s most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepre sented in biodiversity databases.13–15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may elim inate pieces of the Amazon’s biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological com munities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple or ganism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region’s vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most ne glected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lostinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time,1,2 and attempts to address it require a clear understanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space.3,4 While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes,5,6,7 vast areas of the tropics remain understudied.8,9,10,11 In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world's most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity,12 but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepresented in biodiversity databases.13,14,15 To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications16,17 may eliminate pieces of the Amazon's biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological communities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge,18,19 it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple organism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region's vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most neglected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lost

Isokinetic Training Program to Improve the Physical Function and Muscular Performance of an Individual with Partial Injury of the Medial Meniscus: A Case Report

# Background and Purpose One of the best alternatives for the treatment of meniscal injuries in relation to surgical procedures, is exercise. This case report aimed to describe the effects of isokinetic training and a neuromuscular/proprioceptive exercise program on muscle performance and physical function in an individual after a rupture of the posterior horn of the medial meniscus. # Study Design Case report. # Case Description A 40-year-old man injured his right knee during a soccer match, with a partial lesion of the medial meniscus confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging. He completed an isokinetic training program in addition to exercises that targeted proprioception (22 sessions, 11 weeks) to improve physical function and performance, which were assessed before and after treatment and at a six-month follow-up. An individual with similar anthropometric characteristics was chosen to be used as a control for understanding the patient's assessment values. # Outcomes Muscular performance of the knee flexors and extensors was evaluated isokinetically using the Biodex System-4 in a concentric mode at angular velocities of 60, 120, and 300 °/s . The main results indicated that after 11 weeks, the peak torque normalized to body mass (PT/BM), at 60 °/s of the knee extensors remained unchanged (2.54 N.m/kg) (below the control value - 3.06 N.m/kg), and at the six-month follow-up, increased by approximately 20% (3.08 N.m/kg). For the hamstrings, at 60 °/s, an increase of 18 % occurred after intervention (1.98 N.m/kg) and by approximately 30 % at the six-month follow-up (2.12 N.m/kg) - values much higher than the control 1.55 N.m/kg). This increase in the PT/BM was also reflected in the Hamstrings:Quadriceps ratio (78 %) after treatment which improved at follow-up (68 %). # Discussion The results showed that the isokinetic training and neuromuscular/proprioceptive exercises improved the muscle performance of the knee flexors and extensors, after eleven weeks of intervention, and remained (or continued to improve) at the six-month follow-up. # Level of evidence 5, single case repor

Avaliação da capacidade para o trabalho em docentes

Os professores são essenciais para formar cidadãos, mas têm sido acometidos com problemas de saúde devido à exposição a riscos em sua atividade, comprometendo sua capacidade para o trabalho. Portanto, o objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a capacidade para o trabalho entre professores de uma instituição da rede federal e da municipal (fundamental II) de um município do sertão paraibano. Tratou-se de uma pesquisa quantitativa transversal, cujos dados foram coletados por dois questionários (sociodemográfico e índice de capacidade para o trabalho – ICT) com 120 professores de uma cidade do interior da Paraíba. Os dados foram analisados com estatística descritiva, bem como com o teste t para amostras independentes e correlação de Spearmann. Participaram do estudo 120 professores, dos quais 33 eram de uma instituição federal e 87 de escolas municipais de ensino fundamental II. Houve diferença significativa entre os sexos, assim como uma associação negativa com o tempo de docência. Não houve diferença entre o tipo de instituição e o tipo de vínculo. Aproximadamente 70% dos professores estavam entre boa e ótima capacidade, não havendo diferença entre as redes. As professoras apresentaram menor capacidade para o trabalho, assim como aqueles que tinham maior tempo na docência

Static Balance Measurements in Stable and Unstable Conditions Do Not Discriminate Groups of Young Adults Assessed By the Functional Movement Screen™ (fms™)

BACKGROUND: The Functional Movement Screen™ (FMS™) has been the focus of recent research related to movement profiling and injury prediction. However, there is a paucity of studies examining the associations between physical performance tasks such as balance and the FMS™ screening system.PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare measures of static balance in stable and unstable conditions between different groups divided by FMS™ scores. A secondary purpose was to discern if balance indices discriminate the groups divided by FMS™ scores.STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study.METHODS: Fifty-seven physically active subjects (25 men and 32 women; mean age of 22.9 ± 3.1 yrs) participated. The outcome was unilateral stance balance indices, composed by: Anteroposterior Index; Medial-lateral Index, and Overall Balance Index in stable and unstable conditions, as provided by the Biodex balance platform. Subjects were dichotomized into two groups, according to a FMS™ cut-off score of 14: FMS1 (score &gt; 14) and FMS2 (score ≤ 14). The independent Students t-test was used to verify differences in balance indices between FMS1 and FMS2 groups. A discriminant analysis was applied in order to identify which of the balance indices would adequately discriminate the FMS™ groups.RESULTS: Comparisons between FMS1 and FMS2 groups in the stable and unstable conditions demonstrated a higher unstable Anteroposterior index for FMS2 (p=0.017). No significant differences were found for other comparisons (p&gt;0.05). The indices did not discriminate the FMS™ groups (p &gt; 0.05).CONCLUSIONS: The balance indices adopted in this study were not useful as a parameter for identification and discrimination of healthy subjects assessed by the FMS™.LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 2c.</p

Comparison between isolated and associated with codeine acetaminophen in pain control of acute apical abscess : a randomized clinical trial

Objectives The study aimed to compare the acetaminophen administration efficacy or its combination with codeine for pain control in acute apical abscesses cases. Materials and Methods Thirty-nine patients who sought emergency treatment in the Faculty of Dentistry of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul were included, all of them with acute apical abscess diagnosis. These patients were divided into two groups: acetaminophen group—prescription of acetaminophen (1000 mg) and acetaminophen–codeine group— prescription of acetaminophen (1000 mg) + codeine (30 mg), both with oral intake every 6 h for 3 days. The pain scores were recorded by the patients on their own at 6, 12, 24, 48, and 72 h after finishing clinical assistance, by filling a pain evolution journal, containing a visual analogue scale (VAS). Student t test was conducted to investigate different mean ages between groups 1 and 2. A comparison of weight and means of initial pain scores between groups was carried out using the Mann– Whitney U test. Chi-square test was performed to compare gender, affected tooth, education, initial swelling, and frequency of adverse effect between test and control groups. Mann–Whitney U test was applied to compare groups in the same period. Friedman’s test was used to compare results from the same group over time. Results Both groups showed score reduction over time (P 0.05). There was no difference between the groups regarding the frequency of adverse reactions (P > 0.05). Conclusion Both medications were effective for pain control in acute apical abscess cases. The findings might have inferred in pain control of acute apical abscess associated pain in patients who used an antibiotic drug. External validity of the findings for acute apical abscess cases with no need for an antibiotic prescription is uncertain. Clinical relevance This paper suggests acetaminophen 1000 mg can be used for pain control in the treatment of acute apical abscess associated with systemic manifestation