Influência dos cancros ginecológicos e de mama no ajustamento conjugal

Tese de mestrado integrado em Psicologia (Psicologia Clínica e da Saúde - Núcleo de Saúde e Doença), apresentada à Universidade de Lisboa através da Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação, 2008Nesta investigação pretende-se avaliar a influência dos cancros ginecológicos ou de mama no nível de ajustamento conjugal, através da percepção retrospectiva da mulher. A visão prospectiva da mulher acerca do ajustamento marital também é objectivo deste estudo. Desta amostra fizeram parte 17 mulheres com cancro ginecológico ou de mama. Estas encontravam-se em período de internamento depois da cirurgia. Foi aplicada às participantes uma tradução da Revisão da Escala de Ajustamento Diádico (Busby, Christensen, Crane & Larson, 1995) duas vezes, a primeira baseada na fase até o conhecimento do diagnóstico, e a segunda referente ao período desde o conhecimento do diagnóstico até ao pós-cirurgico. Por último, realizou-se uma entrevista semiestruturada, que visava explorar as diferenças nas respostas da Escala nos dois momentos, o apoio do companheiro na doença e a percepção futura do nível de ajustamento conjugal. Os resultados mostraram que existe um aumento no nível de ajustamento marital na fase posterior ao diagnóstico. Ainda que algumas participantes tenham afirmado a inexistência de alterações na vida conjugal depois do diagnóstico, outras manifestaram a implementação de mudanças positivas, como a aproximação do casal. Estas percepções levam a que o futuro do casal não seja uma preocupação para estas mulheres, que reconhecem a importância do apoio do marido neste processo. Apesar das dificuldades com que estes casais se deparam ao longo desta vivência, estas mulheres reconhecem a existência de aspectos positivos que decorrem da mesma.The aim of the present study is to assess the influence of gynaecologic and breast cancer on the marital adjustment level, through a woman’s retrospective perception. The woman’s prospective perception is an additional aim of this study. Data was collected on 17 women with gynaecologic and breast cancer. These women were hospitalised, after the surgery. The participants answered a Portuguese translation of the Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale (RDAS; Busby, Christensen, Crane, & Larson, 1995). This scale was applied twice, the first application was carried out in the period before diagnosis, and the second application took place during the phase since diagnosis knowledge up to the moment after surgery. Finally, a semi-structured interview was conducted to explore the different responses of these two moments assessed by the scale, as well as the husband’s support through the illness and the woman’s future perception of the adjustment marital level. The results indicate that there is an increase in the marital adjustment level in the post-diagnosis phase. Although some participants affirmed that there were no changes in conjugal life after diagnosis, others revealed positive changes like an increase in the couple’s closeness. These perceptions imply that these women are not concerned with the future status of their relationship and that they recognise their husband’s support through this process. In spite of the difficulties encountered by these couples living through the process of this disease, these women are able to recognise the positive outcomes that are derived from it

Abordagens terapêuticas na marcha em crianças com paralisia cerebral: revisão bibliográfica

Projeto de Graduação apresentado à Universidade Fernando Pessoa como parte dos requisitos para obtenção do grau de Licenciada em FisioterapiaIntrodução: A paralisia cerebral (PC) é uma lesão do sistema nervoso central (SNC), que condiciona a função motora, nomeadamente a marcha. Objetivo: analisar as diferentes abordagens terapêuticas, na marcha de crianças com PC. Metodologia: Foi realizada uma pesquisa bibliográfica recorrendo à base de dados PEDro, incluindo, artigos randomizados controlados e caso controlo, artigos em inglês, com classificação igual ou superior a 6 na classificação de PEDro. Resultados: 76 artigos encontrados, dos quais 10 foram incluídos nesta análise de acordo com os objetivos de marcha na passadeira, suspensa, realidade virtual, Mitii e cicloergômetro em crianças com PC. Conclusão: As novas tecnologias como a Realidade Virtual e o Mitii nas estratégias terapêuticas podem melhorar aa velocidade da marcha e força muscular e a capacidade de atividade. O treino de passadeira e marcha suspensa também permitiu melhorias da função motora global em pé, na marcha e no controlo postural. A força muscular e a resistência melhoraram com a utilização do cicloergômetro. O treino de marcha para trás melhorou no equilíbrio postural e controlo motor nas crianças com PC.Introduction: Cerebral palsy (CP) is a lesion of the central nervous system (CNS), which conditions the motor function, essentially gait. Objective: to analyze the different therapeutic approaches in the gait of children with CP. Methodology: A bibliographic research was performed using the PEDro database, with inclusion criteria, randomized controlled articles and control case, where the articles are in English, with a rating of 6 or higher PEDro database, performed by physiotherapists, with access to full text and have up to 10 years of publication. Results: 76 articles were found, of which only 10 were included in this analysis, according to the objectives of gait, suspended, virtual reality, Mitii and cycloergometer in children with CP. Conclusion: The new technologies such as the Virtual Reality and the Mitii in therapeutic strategies, can improve the gait speed, the muscle strength and the capacity for activity. The treadmill training and suspended gait also showed improvements in global standing motor function, in walking and in postural control. The muscular strength and the resistance improved with the use of the cycloergometer. As for the back gait training, it improved both in postural balance and in the motor control, in children with PC.N/

A note on radar altimeter signatures of Internal Solitary Waves in the ocean

well known that Internal Waves of tidal frequency (i.e. Internal Tides) are successfully detected in seasurface height (SSH) by satellite altimetry ([1]). Shorter period Internal Solitary Waves (ISWs), whose periods are an order of magnitude smaller than tidal internal waves, are however generally assumed too small to be detected with standard altimeters (at low sampling rates, i.e. 1 Hz). This is because the Radar Altimeter (RA) footprint is somewhat larger, or of similar size at best, than the ISWs typical wavelengths. Here it will be demonstrated that new generation high sampling rate satellite altimetry data (i.e. similar to 20 Hz) hold a variety of short-period signatures that are consistent with surface manifestations of ISWs in the ocean. Our observational method is based on satellite synergy with imaging sensors such as Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and other high-resolution optical sensors (e.g. 250m resolution MODIS images) with which ISWs are unambiguously recognized. A first order commonly accepted ISW radar imaging mechanism is based on hydrodynamic modulation models ([2] [3]) in which the straining of surface waves due to ISW orbital currents is known to cause modulation of decimeter-scale surface waves, which have group velocities close to the IW phase velocity. This effect can be readily demonstrated by measurements of wind wave slope variances associated with short-period ISWs, as accomplished in the pioneer work of Hughes and Grant ([4]). Mean square slope can be estimated from nadir looking RAs using a geometric optics (specular) scattering model ([5][6][7]), and directly obtained from normalized backscatter (sigma0) along-track records. We use differential scattering from the dual-band (Ku-and C-bands) microwave pulses of the Jason2 high-rate RA to isolate the contribution of small-scale surface waves to mean square slope. The differenced altimeter mean square slope estimate, derived for the nominal wave number range 40-100 rad/m, is then used to detect ISWs in records of along-track high sampling rate RAs. The RA signatures of these ISWs are also apparent in radar backscattered pulse waveforms from the original Sensor Geophysical Data Records (SGDR), in high resolution (20-Hz) data. The shape of these waveforms is modified by the ISWs with respect to waveforms unperturbed by short-period internal waves. Hence, a new method for identification of ISWs in high-rate RA records that combines along-track differenced mean square slopes across ISW crests and waveform shape variation is put forward in this paper. Validation of the method is warranted with quasi-coincident (in time and space) SAR images of ISWs in various deep ocean regions, such as the Andaman Sea, the Mascarene Ridge of the Indian Ocean and the North Atlantic tropical ocean. The practical significance of this new method is related to the anticipated SWOT wide-swath altimeter mission as well as the recently launched Sentinel-3A SARAL, for which removal of internal wave signals may be of critical importance for observing other high-frequency sub-mesoscale dynamics

Success Canvas® in practice

Dissertação de mestrado integrado em Engineering and Management of Information SystemsIn the past few years, canvas has been proved to be a valuable tool. Canvas are management tools characterized by presenting a visual template, that can be customized and applied according to a specific target, creating, or documenting theoretical structures to serve as support for addressing design problems or identifying relevant aspects in the context of an area. These frameworks are often systematized into conceptual boxes with the intent of guiding the user to gather and analyze critical information to achieve their objective and improve performance with transparency. In the Information Systems project management field, there are scarce studies that focus on practical cases using canvas as management tools, specifically examining project success. The Success Canvas® or Project Management Success Map®, is an exception since it captures the definition of success in a project and what is meaningful to accomplish it, considering, for example, the criteria for evaluating success, expected benefits, and success factors. Due to the lack of literature surrounding canvas and the ambiguous concept of success, especially when followed by project management, there is an opportunity to explore this topic by studying on the current state of the art regarding existing canvas in the information systems field, as well as the results that they have been showing in practice, to characterize the contribution of the Success Canvas® to improve project management. To conduct this study, it was adopted a Multiple Case Study methodology. This study contributes with new insights on the benefits of the practical usage of the Success Canvas®, as well as expanding the current literature.Os canvas têm sido reconhecidos como instrumentos de grande utilidade no contexto da gestão. Sendo caracterizados como ferramentas de gestão visuais, permitem identificar aspetos relevantes numa determinada área de aplicação. Estes instrumentos são frequentemente estruturados em caixas temáticas, com a intenção de orientar o utilizador na recolha e análise de informações cruciais a fim de atingir um objetivo, assim como melhorar o desempenho com transparência. No âmbito da gestão de projetos de Sistemas de Informação, são escassos os estudos focados no uso de canvas como instrumentos de gestão, especificamente quando nos referimos ao sucesso de projetos. O Success Canvas® ou Project Management Success Map®, trata-se de uma exceção, dado que visa capturar a definição de sucesso dentro de um projeto, enfatizando os diversos aspetos relevantes como, por exemplo, os critérios de avaliação do sucesso, os benefícios esperados e os fatores de sucesso. Devido à falta de literatura e à ambiguidade envolvente no conceito de sucesso, especialmente referente à gestão de projetos, existe assim uma oportunidade para explorar este tópico, refletindo sobre o estado de arte atual em relação aos canvas existentes na área de Sistemas de Informação, e os resultados que estes têm apresentado na prática, de modo a caracterizar o contributo que o Success Canvas® pode representar no exercício de gestão de projetos. Para a realização do estudo, foi adotada a metodologia multiple case study. Este estudo contribuiu para a avaliação benefícios da utilização prática do Success Canvas®, expandindo a literatura e o corpo de conhecimento da área

Ultra-Low Leakage, Energy-Efficient Digital Integrated Circuit and System Design

The advances of the complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology manufacturing and design over the years have enabled a diverse range of applications across the power consumption, performance, and area (PPA) spectra. Many of the recent and prospective applications rely on the availability of energy-autonomous, miniaturized systems, i.e., ultra-low power (ULP) VLSI systems, which are generally characterized by extreme resource limitations. Some examples of applications are wireless sensing platforms, body-area sensor networks (BASN), biomedical and implantable devices, wearables, hearables, and monitors. Within the context of such applications, the key requirements are long lifetime and miniaturized size (sub-/millimeter-scale). In order to enable both requirements, energy-efficiency is the key metric. It allows for extended battery lifetime and operation with the energy that can be harvested from the environment, and it limits the size (volume) of the energy sources utilized to power these systems. Ultra-low voltage (ULV) operation is a key technique in which the VDD of circuits is reduced from nominal to near or below the threshold voltage of the transistor. It is a powerful knob that has been largely exploited by designers in order to achieve ultra-low power consumption and high energy-efficiency in CMOS. Existing ULP VLSI systems typically operate at a lower supply voltage thereby reducing their energy consumption by one to two orders of magnitude in order to enable the aforementioned applications. While supply voltage scaling is a promising measure for achieving low power and reducing energy consumption, it brings up several challenges. One critical issue is the leakage energy dissipated by the devices, which is magnified in portion to the total energy consumption at ULV. The reason is that, as VDD scales from nominal to near-threshold and sub-threshold, transistors become increasingly slower and they accumulate more leakage (i.e., static) power over longer cycle times. This energy waste accounts for a significant portion of the system's total energy consumption, offsets the gains provided by voltage scaling, defines the minimum energy per operation, and poses a practical limit for the system's energy-efficiency. This thesis presents selected research works on ultra-low leakage, energy-efficient digital integrated circuit design. More specifically, it describes novel and key techniques for minimizing the energy waste of idle/underutilized and always-on hardware. The main goal of such techniques is to push the envelope of energy-efficiency in energy-autonomous, miniaturized VLSI systems. Such techniques are applied to key building blocks of emerging mobile and embedded computing devices resulting in state-of-the-art energy-efficiencies

Smartphone based human activity prediction

Tese de Mestrado Integrado. Bioengenharia. Faculdade de Engenharia. Universidade do Porto. 201

Otimização do processo de monitorização de elétrodos seletivos de ião

During the Ion-selective electrode research process, there are a lot of manual calibrations needed in order to achieve better and more effective results. The main goal of most of the researchers in these areas is about the material behaviours and reactions, but there is no way to test them without building the electrode and testing against various possibilities and mediums. Due to this, the research process usually cannot be a continuous process, since there are some interruptions for the manual process to validate all the previous developments. The human based calibration process is fundamental for many conclusions, but, most of the calibrations logic can be implemented in a machine that automates the process, collects the data, and generates the necessary output. The main goal of this MSc thesis is to optimize the calibration process building a calibration box that is fully configurable, and can be replicated, replacing the researcher manual steps during the membrane testing. Herein, it is possible to find the selected hardware and software architecture used, and also the business logic implemented to achieve the automation of these process. The architecture and implementation were designed to be able to work with a digital potentiometer (Crison GLP 21 pH Potentiometer) and a digital precise fluid pump (Legato 100). The solution contains four main components: • External Devices (Digital pH Meter, Digital Peristaltic Pump); • Server side web services and web application; • Cloud Based Deployment (Serverless, Storage, Database); • Hardware automation box; The implementation of this thesis uses the following technologies: • Code: Java, Spring Boot, Spring Data; • Data: JSON, Excel XML OpenFormat, PostgresSQL; • Hardware: RaspberryPi, Relay Boards, LCD Display, Button, LED; • I/O: Ethernet, USB to RS232, RCA, BNC; • Cloud: Heroku Serverless; Heroku PostgresSQL; Amazon S3 Storage; All the membranes used were made by BioMark researchers.Durante o processo de pesquisa de eletrodos seletivos de íons, há muitas calibrações manuais necessárias para obter resultados melhores e mais eficazes. O objetivo principal da maioria dos investigadores nestas áreas ´e relativa aos comportamentos e reações dos materiais, mas não existe uma maneira de testá-los sem construir o elétrodo e testar contra várias possibilidades e meios. Por este motivo, o processo de pesquisa geralmente não pode ser um processo contínuo, uma vez que existem algumas interrupções no mesmo para manualmente validar todos os desenvolvimentos anteriores. O processo de calibração baseado em trabalho manual ´e fundamental para uma grande parte das conclusões, mas a maior parte da lógica de calibração pode ser implementada e executada por uma máquina que automatiza o processo, recolhe os dados e gera a saída necessária para posterior analise do investigador. O objetivo principal desta tese de mestrado ´e otimizar o processo de calibração construindo uma caixa de calibração totalmente configurável e que pode ser replicada, substituindo as etapas manuais do investigador durante o teste das membranas. Neste relatório, é possível encontrar a arquitetura de hardware e software selecionada e utilizada bem como a lógica implementada para alcançar a automação desses processos. A arquitetura e a implementação foram projetadas para poder trabalhar com um potenciómetro digital (Potenciómetro de pH Crison GLP 21) e uma bomba de fluido (Legato 100). A solução contém quatro componentes principais: • Dispositivos Externos (Medidor de pH Digital, Bomba Peristáltica Digital); • Server side web services e aplicação Web; • Cloud Based Deployment (Serverless, Storage, Database); • Caixa de automação (Hardware); A implementação desta tese utiliza as seguintes tecnologias: • Código: Java, Spring Boot, Spring Data; • Dados: JSON, Excel XML OpenFormat, PostgresSQL; • Hardware: RaspberryPi, Relay Boards, LCD Display, Button, LED; • I/O: Ethernet, USB to RS232, RCA, BNC ; • Cloud: Heroku Serverless; Heroku PostgresSQL; Amazon S3 Storage; Todas as membranas utilizadas foram desenvolvidas por investigadores da BioMark

User friendly knowledge acquisition system for medical devices actuation

Dissertação para obtenção do Grau de Mestre em Engenharia BiomédicaInternet provides a new environment to develop a variety of applications. Hence, large amounts of data, increasing every day, are stored and transferred through the internet. These data are normally weakly structured making information disperse, uncorrelated, non-transparent and difficult to access and share. Semantic Web, proposed by theWorldWideWeb Consortium (W3C), addresses this problem by promoting semantic structured data, like ontologies, enabling machines to perform more work involved in finding, combining, and acting upon information on theWeb. Pursuing this vision, a Knowledge Acquisition System (KAS) was created, written in JavaScript using JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) as the data structure and JSON Schema to define that structure. It grants new ways to acquire and store knowledge semantically structured and human readable. Plus, structuring data with a Schema generates a software robust and error – free. A novel Human Computer Interaction (HCI) framework was constructed employing this KAS, allowing the end user to configure and control medical devices. To demonstrate the potential of this tool, we present the configuration and control of an electrostimulator. Nowadays, most of the software for Electrostimulation is made with specific purposes, and in some cases they have complicated user interfaces and large, bulky designs that deter usability and acceptability. The HCI concedes the opportunity to configure and control an electrostimulator that surpasses the specific use of several electrostimulator software. In the configuration the user is able to compile different types of electrical impulses (modes) in a temporal session, automating the control, making it simple and user-friendly

Evolução do estado de saúde em reclusas : estudo dos registos clínicos

Dissertação de mestrado integrado em Psicologia (área de especialização em Psicologia da Saúde)O ambiente prisional é um caso particular de concentração de pessoas numa instituição, que está associada a situações de frustração, violência, falta de esperança no futuro, perspectivas de novo encarceramento, ruptura de laços sociais e familiares e continuação de consumo de drogas. De acordo com Crofts (1997) e Levy (1999) esta combinação fomenta elevados comportamentos de risco para a saúde, a dependência de drogas e perturbações mentais (Observatório Português dos Sistemas de Saúde, 2003). Se as condições de reclusão podem propiciar problemas de saúde física e mental, também é reconhecido que no momento de reclusão estas pessoas podem ter condições de saúde mais frágeis. Quando se trata especialmente da população feminina, a maioria da população reclusa feminina advém de famílias carenciadas, onde as desigualdades sociais sobressaem, reflectindo-se num estado de saúde precário. Isto significa que a prisão pode ser uma oportunidade para estas mulheres receberem cuidados de saúde adequados. Alguns estudos têm procurado caracterizar o estado de saúde de mulheres reclusas recorrendo ao relato que elas fazem da sua saúde, mas muito raramente se recorreu a dados objectivos de processos clínicos para a descrever. O presente estudo tem como objectivo geral analisar se a saúde das reclusas tende a melhorar ou a deteriorar-se com a reclusão, recorrendo aos registos clínicos. Para isso fez-se uma caracterização do estado de saúde de 100 reclusas de um Estabelecimento Prisional Especial, recorrendo à leitura dos dados clínicos e analisando os dados referentes a duas fases: no 1º mês de reclusão (momento 1 - M1) e no mês que antecedeu o estudo (momento 2 – M2). Para a análise da informação foi construída uma grelha que incluiu o Registo das avaliações, a Lista de problemas, o Esquema Terapêutico e o Histórico da consulta. Os resultados do M1 indicam a presença de comportamentos aditivos, nomeadamente consumo de tabaco e de substâncias ilícitas, evidenciando-se o consumo de cocaína e canábis. Os tratamentos para desintoxicação de drogas no Estabelecimento Prisional foram utilizados por uma minoria. Os processos indicam uma média elevada de diagnósticos físicos e mentais, registando-se um elevado recurso às terapêuticas medicamentosas, a consultas e a apresentação de queixas médicas. No M2, registou-se uma diminuição na afluência a consultas, nas queixas, nos internamentos e no número de diagnósticos. Em suma, sendo uma população em crescimento, sobre-representada pela carência no acesso a cuidados médicos adequados e a outros tipos de serviços de saúde antes da reclusão, os dados deste estudo dão um contributo para conhecer os problemas de saúde existentes nas reclusas em Portugal. Estes dados permitem que durante e depois do encarceramento se possam adoptar estratégias eficazes de prevenção e tratamento.The prison environment is a singular concentration of people in an institution which is associated with frustration, violence, a bleak future as well as ongoing use of drugs, prospects of new incarceration and disruption of social & family ties. According to Crofts (1997) and Levy (1999) this mixture encourages behavior that leads to high health risks, drug dependence and mental disorders. If the conditions of incarceration may provide problems of physical and mental health, it is also recognized that at the time of reclusion these people may have health conditions weaker. In the case especially of the female population, a great part of the female prison population comes from disadvantaged families, where social inequalities emerge, reflected in a precarious health. This means that the prison can be an opportunity for these women to receive adequate health care. Some studies have tried to characterize the health status of women inmates using the account they do for their health, but very rarely resorted to objective data from clinical processes to describe. The present study aims at analyzing the health of prisoners that tends to improve or deteriorate with imprisonment. In a prison, we studied the health of 100 inmates using the reading of clinical data and analyzing data in two phases: in the 1st month of imprisonment (time 1 - M1) and the preceding month of the study (time 2 - M2). To analyze the information we constructed a grid that included a registration of assessments, a list of issues, a therapeutic scheme and the consultation history. The results indicate the M1 data indicate the presence of addictive behaviors, including tobacco and illicit substances, specially cocaine and cannabis. Treatments for drug detoxification in this prison were used by a minority. The cases indicate a high average diagnostic of physical and mental health, which are being monitored and treated, registering a high use of drug therapies, consultation and the exhibition of medical complaints. In M2, there was a decrease in the influx of consultations, complaints, hospitalizations and in the number of diagnostics display. In short, being a growing population over-represented by lack of access to adequate medical care and other health services prior to incarceration, the data from this study provide a contribution for a better understanding of the health problems in Portuguese prisons. These data allow that during and after incarceration it is possible to adopt effective strategies for prevention and treatment