Comparison between the IT-MAIS and MUSS questionnaires with video-recording for evaluation of children who may receive a cochlear implantation

There is a great difficulty in determining earlier on which children would benefit or not from cochlear implants, especially because of their young age, the responses they give are very subtle. AIM: To compare results obtained through video-recording of the interactions of children who may receive a cochlear implant with the results obtained through evaluation protocols. METHOD: Seven children, with an average age of 39.7 months, with profound hearing loss were selected for the study. IT-MAIS and MUSS questionnaires were given to their parents/guardians of these children and the results were compared with the observation of the video-recordings. RESULTS: It was possible to observe that the data is compatible with the auditory stages. However, the MUSS questionnaire data gathered during playful activities is very different . The questionnaire only takes into consideration the use of verbal language and therefore the majority of the evaluated children inevitably score low. CONCLUSION: Observing children play allows us to trace a better profile of linguistic behavior and aspects relative to language, that may presented differences in the questionnaire.Existe uma grande dificuldade para determinar precocemente crianças que se beneficiariam ou não com o implante coclear, até porque devido à pouca idade são muito sutis as respostas apresentadas. OBJETIVO: Comparar os resultados obtidos através da vídeo-gravação de situações de interação de crianças candidatas ao implante coclear com os resultados obtidos através de protocolos de avaliação. MÉTODO: Fizeram parte da amostra 7 crianças com idade média de 39,7 meses, portadores de perda auditiva neurossensorial profunda. Foram aplicados os questionários IT-MAIS e MUSS aos pais e os resultados foram comparados com a observação da vídeo-gravação destas crianças. RESULTADOS: Foi possível observar que os dados são compatíveis no que se refere às etapas auditivas. No entanto, no que se refere ao questionário MUSS, os dados obtidos na observação lúdica são bastante diferentes. O questionário leva em consideração apenas a uso da linguagem oral e, portanto, a maioria das crianças apresentou um escore muito baixo. CONCLUSÃO: A observação lúdica permitiu traçar um perfil mais amplo do comportamento lingüístico e de aspectos relativos à linguagem apresentando diferenças do questionário.919

Analysis of the procedures for selection of children for the cochlear implant

Orientador: Cristina Broglia de Feitosa LacerdaTese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Ciencias MedicasResumo: O implante coclear é um dispositivo eletrônico de alta tecnologia, que estimula eletricamente as fibras nervosas remanescentes, permitindo a transmissão do sinal elétrico ao nervo auditivo, para que seja codificado pelo córtex cerebral. Ele difere das próteses auditivas convencionais por não amplificar o som, mas, sim, fornecer impulsos elétricos e, portanto, é considerado uma boa alternativa àqueles pacientes que não apresentam benefícios com a amplificação. Esta tecnologia vem sendo utilizada em crianças cada vez menores, e cabe aos profissionais da área eleger os melhores candidatos a este dispositivo. O objetivo principal desta pesquisa foi analisar aspectos do atendimento oferecido às crianças pela equipe de Implante Coclear do HC-UNICAMP, focalizando os protocolos utilizados para elegibilidade de casos, no que diz respeito à capacidade comunicativa dos sujeitos que receberam o implante e sua audibilidade, apontando diretrizes para um procedimento de seleção de casos mais adequados. Foram considerados sujeitos da amostra 7 crianças com deficiência auditiva severa a profunda, que obedecessem os critérios de inclusão do programa de Implante Coclear do HC-UNICAMP. Foram analisados os limiares audiométricos em campo livre, os índices obtidos para o questionário de avaliação da percepção auditiva IT-MAIS (Escala de Integração Auditiva Significativa para Crianças Pequenas (Castiquini, 1998), os dados dos questionários MUSS (Questionário de Avaliação da Linguagem Oral) (Nascimento, 1997), a vídeo-gravação das crianças em situação lúdica e a análise das anotações do prontuário referentes ao desempenho comunicativo. As análises foram feitas no período pré e pós cirúrgico. O processo de seleção de crianças candidatas ao implante coclear precisa valorizar a observação do comportamento dessas crianças em situações lúdicas, com o objetivo de investigar os aspectos comunicativos. A vídeo-gravação demonstrou ser um importante instrumento para esse fim, ao registrar que as crianças com melhor desempenho comunicativo também apresentaram um melhor desempenho com o implante coclear. As crianças portadoras de perda auditiva de grau severo devem ser consideradas como candidatos em potenciais, pois apresentam melhor estímulo com o aparelho auditivo (apesar de muitas vezes não serem capazes de desenvolver fala), o que parece favorecer a resposta com o implante coclear. Os limiares auditivos melhoram com o aprimoramento do mapeamento e também são melhores quando os limiares elétricos são obtidos por meio de resposta comportamental. A percepção auditiva melhora na mesma proporção. No momento pós-cirúrgico, o aparecimento ou a melhora dos comportamentos comunicativos são os primeiros indícios de benefícios do implante coclearAbstract: Cochlear implants are high- technology electronic devices that electrically stimulate remaining nervous fibers, allowing the transmission of electric signals to the auditory nerve for codification by the cerebral cortex. They differ from conventional auditory prosthesis because they do not amplify sound but supply electric impulses, and are therefore considered a good alternative for patients who are not benefited by sound amplification. This technology is being increasingly used for very young children and professionals of the field are responsible for choosing the best candidates for using the devices. The main goal of this research was to analyze aspects of assistance given to children by the team of Cochlear Implantation of the Hospital of Clinics (HC)-UNICAMP, and focused on protocols used for eligibility to implantation regarding communicative capacity and audibility, suggesting guidelines to a more adequate procedure for selection. The subjects were 7 children with auditory inabilities ranging from severe to profound that met the criteria for inclusion of HC-UNICAMP¿s Cochlear Implantation Program. Free-field audiometric thresholds, rates from IT-MAIS (Infant-Toddler: Meaningful Auditory Integration Scale - Castiquini, 1998), an auditory perception evaluation questionnaire, data from MUSS (Meaningful Use of Speech Scale - Nascimento, 1997), video-recordings of children in a playful situation and notes of clinical histories regarding communicative performance were analyzed both before and after surgery. The process of selection of children for cochlear implantation needs to recognize the value of observing children¿s behavior in playful situations, aiming to investigate the communicative actions they present, and video-recordings turned out to be an important tool. Better-performing children in communicative behaviors presented better results after cochlear implantation. Children with a severe auditory loss must be considered as potential candidates because they present a better stimulation with the auditory device¿s help (although many times they are not able to develop speech), what seems to favor their response to cochlear implantation. Auditory thresholds improve with the improvement of mapping and are better when electric thresholds are elicited through behavioral response. Auditory perception improvement follows the same ratio. Post-surgically, the emergence or improvement of the communicative behaviors is the first indication of benefits of cochlear implantationDoutoradoSaude da Criança e do AdolescenteDoutor em Saude da Criança e do Adolescent

Comparison between the IT- MAIS and MUSS questionnaires with video-recording for evaluation of children who may receive a cochlear implantation Summary

There is a great difficulty in determining earlier on which children would benefit or not from cochlear implants, especially because of their young age, the responses they give are very subtle. Aim: To compare results obtained through video-recording of the interactions of children who may receive a cochlear implant with the results obtained through evaluation protocols. Method: Seven children, with an average age of 39.7 months, with profound hearing loss were selected for the study. IT-MAIS and MUSS questionnaires were given to their parents/guardians of these children and the results were compared with the observation of the videorecordings. Results: It was possible to observe that the data is compatible with the auditory stages. However, the MUSS questionnaire data gathered during playful activities is very different . The questionnaire only takes into consideration the use of verbal language and therefore the majority of the evaluated children inevitably score low. Conclusion: Observing children play allows us to trace a better profile of linguistic behavior and aspects relative to language, that may presented differences in the questionnaire

Global real-world experiences with pembrolizumab in advanced urothelial carcinoma after platinum-based chemotherapy: the ARON-2 study

Background Immune checkpoint inhibitors have changed previous treatment paradigm of advanced urothelial carcinoma (UC). The ARON-2 study (NCT05290038) aimed to assess the real-world effectiveness of pembrolizumab in patients recurred or progressed after platinum-based chemotherapy. Patients and Methods Medical records of patients with documented metastatic UC treated by pembrolizumab as second-line therapy were retrospectively collected from 88 institutions in 23 countries. Patients were assessed for overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS) and overall response rate (ORR). Cox proportional hazards models were adopted to explore the presence of prognostic factors. Results In total, 836 patients were included: 544 patients (65%) received pembrolizumab after progression to first-line platinum-based chemotherapy in the metastatic setting (cohort A) and 292 (35%) after recurring within < 12 months since the completion of adjuvant or neoadjuvant chemotherapy (cohort B). The median follow-up time was 15.3 months. The median OS and the ORR were 10.5 months and 31% in the overall study population, 9.1 months and 29% in cohort A and 14.6 months and 37% in cohort B. At multivariate analysis, ECOG-PS >= 2, bone metastases, liver metastases and pembrolizumab setting (cohort A vs B) proved to be significantly associated with worst OS and PFS. Stratified by the presence of 0, 1-2 or 3-4 prognostic factors, the median OS was 29.4, 12.5 and 4.1 months (p < 0.001), while the median PFS was 12.2, 6.4 and 2.8 months, respectively (p < 0.001). Conclusions Our study confirms that pembrolizumab is effective in the advanced UC real-world context, showing outcome differences between patients recurred or progressed after platinum-based chemotherapy

Implementation of a Brazilian Cardioprotective Nutritional (BALANCE) Program for improvement on quality of diet and secondary prevention of cardiovascular events: A randomized, multicenter trial

Background: Appropriate dietary recommendations represent a key part of secondary prevention in cardiovascular disease (CVD). We evaluated the effectiveness of the implementation of a nutritional program on quality of diet, cardiovascular events, and death in patients with established CVD. Methods: In this open-label, multicenter trial conducted in 35 sites in Brazil, we randomly assigned (1:1) patients aged 45 years or older to receive either the BALANCE Program (experimental group) or conventional nutrition advice (control group). The BALANCE Program included a unique nutritional education strategy to implement recommendations from guidelines, adapted to the use of affordable and regional foods. Adherence to diet was evaluated by the modified Alternative Healthy Eating Index. The primary end point was a composite of all-cause mortality, cardiovascular death, cardiac arrest, myocardial infarction, stroke, myocardial revascularization, amputation, or hospitalization for unstable angina. Secondary end points included biochemical and anthropometric data, and blood pressure levels. Results: From March 5, 2013, to Abril 7, 2015, a total of 2534 eligible patients were randomly assigned to either the BALANCE Program group (n = 1,266) or the control group (n = 1,268) and were followed up for a median of 3.5 years. In total, 235 (9.3%) participants had been lost to follow-up. After 3 years of follow-up, mean modified Alternative Healthy Eating Index (scale 0-70) was only slightly higher in the BALANCE group versus the control group (26.2 ± 8.4 vs 24.7 ± 8.6, P <.01), mainly due to a 0.5-serving/d greater intake of fruits and of vegetables in the BALANCE group. Primary end point events occurred in 236 participants (18.8%) in the BALANCE group and in 207 participants (16.4%) in the control group (hazard ratio, 1.15; 95% CI 0.95-1.38; P =.15). Secondary end points did not differ between groups after follow-up. Conclusions: The BALANCE Program only slightly improved adherence to a healthy diet in patients with established CVD and had no significant effect on the incidence of cardiovascular events or death. © 2019 The Author

NEOTROPICAL XENARTHRANS: a data set of occurrence of xenarthran species in the Neotropics

Xenarthrans—anteaters, sloths, and armadillos—have essential functions for ecosystem maintenance, such as insect control and nutrient cycling, playing key roles as ecosystem engineers. Because of habitat loss and fragmentation, hunting pressure, and conflicts with domestic dogs, these species have been threatened locally, regionally, or even across their full distribution ranges. The Neotropics harbor 21 species of armadillos, 10 anteaters, and 6 sloths. Our data set includes the families Chlamyphoridae (13), Dasypodidae (7), Myrmecophagidae (3), Bradypodidae (4), and Megalonychidae (2). We have no occurrence data on Dasypus pilosus (Dasypodidae). Regarding Cyclopedidae, until recently, only one species was recognized, but new genetic studies have revealed that the group is represented by seven species. In this data paper, we compiled a total of 42,528 records of 31 species, represented by occurrence and quantitative data, totaling 24,847 unique georeferenced records. The geographic range is from the southern United States, Mexico, and Caribbean countries at the northern portion of the Neotropics, to the austral distribution in Argentina, Paraguay, Chile, and Uruguay. Regarding anteaters, Myrmecophaga tridactyla has the most records (n = 5,941), and Cyclopes sp. have the fewest (n = 240). The armadillo species with the most data is Dasypus novemcinctus (n = 11,588), and the fewest data are recorded for Calyptophractus retusus (n = 33). With regard to sloth species, Bradypus variegatus has the most records (n = 962), and Bradypus pygmaeus has the fewest (n = 12). Our main objective with Neotropical Xenarthrans is to make occurrence and quantitative data available to facilitate more ecological research, particularly if we integrate the xenarthran data with other data sets of Neotropical Series that will become available very soon (i.e., Neotropical Carnivores, Neotropical Invasive Mammals, and Neotropical Hunters and Dogs). Therefore, studies on trophic cascades, hunting pressure, habitat loss, fragmentation effects, species invasion, and climate change effects will be possible with the Neotropical Xenarthrans data set. Please cite this data paper when using its data in publications. We also request that researchers and teachers inform us of how they are using these data

NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES: a data set on carnivore distribution in the Neotropics

Mammalian carnivores are considered a key group in maintaining ecological health and can indicate potential ecological integrity in landscapes where they occur. Carnivores also hold high conservation value and their habitat requirements can guide management and conservation plans. The order Carnivora has 84 species from 8 families in the Neotropical region: Canidae; Felidae; Mephitidae; Mustelidae; Otariidae; Phocidae; Procyonidae; and Ursidae. Herein, we include published and unpublished data on native terrestrial Neotropical carnivores (Canidae; Felidae; Mephitidae; Mustelidae; Procyonidae; and Ursidae). NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES is a publicly available data set that includes 99,605 data entries from 35,511 unique georeferenced coordinates. Detection/non-detection and quantitative data were obtained from 1818 to 2018 by researchers, governmental agencies, non-governmental organizations, and private consultants. Data were collected using several methods including camera trapping, museum collections, roadkill, line transect, and opportunistic records. Literature (peer-reviewed and grey literature) from Portuguese, Spanish and English were incorporated in this compilation. Most of the data set consists of detection data entries (n = 79,343; 79.7%) but also includes non-detection data (n = 20,262; 20.3%). Of those, 43.3% also include count data (n = 43,151). The information available in NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES will contribute to macroecological, ecological, and conservation questions in multiple spatio-temporal perspectives. As carnivores play key roles in trophic interactions, a better understanding of their distribution and habitat requirements are essential to establish conservation management plans and safeguard the future ecological health of Neotropical ecosystems. Our data paper, combined with other large-scale data sets, has great potential to clarify species distribution and related ecological processes within the Neotropics. There are no copyright restrictions and no restriction for using data from this data paper, as long as the data paper is cited as the source of the information used. We also request that users inform us of how they intend to use the data

Global variation in postoperative mortality and complications after cancer surgery: a multicentre, prospective cohort study in 82 countries

© 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licenseBackground: 80% of individuals with cancer will require a surgical procedure, yet little comparative data exist on early outcomes in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared postoperative outcomes in breast, colorectal, and gastric cancer surgery in hospitals worldwide, focusing on the effect of disease stage and complications on postoperative mortality. Methods: This was a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of consecutive adult patients undergoing surgery for primary breast, colorectal, or gastric cancer requiring a skin incision done under general or neuraxial anaesthesia. The primary outcome was death or major complication within 30 days of surgery. Multilevel logistic regression determined relationships within three-level nested models of patients within hospitals and countries. Hospital-level infrastructure effects were explored with three-way mediation analyses. This study was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03471494. Findings: Between April 1, 2018, and Jan 31, 2019, we enrolled 15 958 patients from 428 hospitals in 82 countries (high income 9106 patients, 31 countries; upper-middle income 2721 patients, 23 countries; or lower-middle income 4131 patients, 28 countries). Patients in LMICs presented with more advanced disease compared with patients in high-income countries. 30-day mortality was higher for gastric cancer in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (adjusted odds ratio 3·72, 95% CI 1·70–8·16) and for colorectal cancer in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (4·59, 2·39–8·80) and upper-middle-income countries (2·06, 1·11–3·83). No difference in 30-day mortality was seen in breast cancer. The proportion of patients who died after a major complication was greatest in low-income or lower-middle-income countries (6·15, 3·26–11·59) and upper-middle-income countries (3·89, 2·08–7·29). Postoperative death after complications was partly explained by patient factors (60%) and partly by hospital or country (40%). The absence of consistently available postoperative care facilities was associated with seven to 10 more deaths per 100 major complications in LMICs. Cancer stage alone explained little of the early variation in mortality or postoperative complications. Interpretation: Higher levels of mortality after cancer surgery in LMICs was not fully explained by later presentation of disease. The capacity to rescue patients from surgical complications is a tangible opportunity for meaningful intervention. Early death after cancer surgery might be reduced by policies focusing on strengthening perioperative care systems to detect and intervene in common complications. Funding: National Institute for Health Research Global Health Research Unit