Antimicrobial activity of phenolic extracts of Eucalyptus globulus and Juglans regia against dairy industry pathogens

Book of Abstracts of CEB Annual Meeting 2017[Excerpt] Bovine mastitis (BM) is the most expensive pathology for dairy industry and Staphylococcus aureus is amongst the most prevalent causative agents of this disease. Nowadays, it is known that S. aureus contaminated milk can enter the dairy production chain and be the origin of food contamination. Due to the poor efficacy of antibiotics and to the ability to form biofilms evidenced by this pathogen, BM has become increasingly difficult to control and to eradicate. Phenolic plant extracts are nowadays being evaluated since they are a rich source of bioactive molecules. Thus, in this work the antimicrobial activity of E. globulus and J. regia alone and in combination against S. aureus BM isolates was evaluated and compared with penicillin G (Pen G), an antibiotic commonly used in the treatment of this pathology. The evaluation of the cytotoxic potential of both extracts was also performed. [...]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Suporte de Leitura: desenvolvimento de um protótipo para auxílio a pessoas com baixa visão – testes preliminares

A baixa visão é uma condição intermediária entre a visão normal e a cegueira, secundária a um acometimento irreversível do sistema visual, acarretando prejuízos no desempenho e na realização de determinadas atividades. Para minimizar esses problemas, é recomendada a utilização dos recursos de Tecnologia Assistiva. O objetivo deste trabalho foi fazer um relato do desenvolvimento de um protótipo de Suporte de Leitura (SL) e descrever os resultados dos testes preliminares. Quanto ao aspecto metodológico, foi feito um levantamento dos diferentes dispositivos de auxílio para indivíduos com baixa visão disponíveis no mercado e definiu-se pela construção do protótipo do Suporte de Leitura, que contemplasse as necessidades ergonômicas do usuário, com baixo custo, de fácil acesso, dentro do conceito de design universal. Os resultados obtidos foram: suporte de leitura composto por uma base de sustentação, um tampo reclinável facilitando a portabilidade e trilhos para movimentação do suporte da lente. Concluiu-se que o equipamento desenvolvido possui aspectos positivos, como melhor manutenção da postura, boa usabilidade, portabilidade considerável e boa viabilidade ergonômica. Contudo será fundamental dar continuidade aos testes do equipamento com a população-alvo para garantir a usabilidade e aplicabilidade reais do dispositivo.Low vision is an intermediate condition between normal vision and blindness, secondary to an irreversible impairment of the visual system, causing losses in performance and achievement of certain activities. To minimize these problems, it is recommended the use of Assistive Technology resources. The objective of this paper was to report the development of a Reading Support (RS) prototype and describe the results of the preliminary tests. For the methodological aspect, a survey of different assistive devices available for individuals with low vision was conducted and it was decided to build a Reading Support prototype that considers the ergonomic needs of the user, with low cost, easy access and within the concept of universal design. The results were: reading support comprised of a support base, a reclining top facilitating the portability and rails to drive the lens holder. It was concluded that the equipment developed has positive aspects such as better maintenance of posture, good usability, considerable portability and good ergonomic viability, but it will be essential to continue the equipment testing with the target population to ensure the actual usability and applicability of the device

Perfil das necessidades de Tecnologia Assistiva de pacientes pediátricos em hospital de alta complexidade: um estudo de caso/ People of assistive technology needs of pediatric patients in a highly complexity hospital: a case study

Introdução: O acesso às tecnologias assistivas no Brasil, apesar da previsão legal, é difícil e há carência de discussões e políticas voltadas para o cenário hospitalar pediátrico. Objetivos: discutir a implementação de políticas de saúde para tecnologia assistiva no cenário hospitalar pediátrico, a partir do estudo de caso de hospital pediátrico de alta complexidade. Métodos: estudo descritivo transversal, dos usuários dos atendidos pela equipe multidisciplinar de Tecnologia Assistiva, no período de fevereiro de 2019 a abril de 2021. Resultados: foram atendidos 77 usuários, com maior prevalência no sexo masculino e mais de 90% com até 14 anos. Em 80,7% havia mais de um tipo de deficiência e 2/3 tinham restrições nas ocupações típicas da infância, como ir à escola e brincar. No ambulatório, 77% das demandas foram relacionadas a cadeira de rodas enquanto na internação foram as órteses de posicionamento de mão (60%). Conclusões: as carências observadas na área da tecnologia assistiva apontam sua importância no hospital pediátrico. Entretanto vários fatores podem estar interferindo na inclusão de ações voltadas à tais recursos dentro do hospital, como por exemplo, o foco biomédico prioritário nos sistemas de informação e de financiamento do SUS e a não inclusão do pediatra como profissional apto a solicitar tais recursos. Sugere-se a necessidade de se rediscutir as políticas de saúde sobre a temática.Introdução: O acesso às tecnologias assistivas no Brasil, apesar da previsão legal, é difícil e há carência de discussões e políticas voltadas para o cenário hospitalar pediátrico. Objetivos: discutir a implementação de políticas de saúde para tecnologia assistiva no cenário hospitalar pediátrico, a partir do estudo de caso de hospital pediátrico de alta complexidade. Métodos: estudo descritivo transversal, do tipo estudo de caso, dos usuários dos atendidos pela equipe multidisciplinar de Tecnologia Assistiva, no período de fevereiro de 2019 a abril de 2021. Resultados: foram atendidos 77 usuários, com maior prevalência no sexo masculino e mais de 90% com até 14 anos. Em 80,7% havia mais de um tipo de deficiência e 2/3 tinham restrições nas ocupações típicas da infância, como ir à escola e brincar. No ambulatório, 77% das demandas foram relacionadas a cadeira de rodas enquanto na internação foram as órteses de posicionamento de mão (60%). Conclusões: as carências observadas na área da tecnologia assistiva apontam sua importância no hospital pediátrico. Entretanto, vários fatores podem estar interferindo na inclusão de ações voltadas à tais recursos dentro do hospital, como por exemplo, o foco biomédico prioritário nos sistemas de informação e de financiamento do SUS e a não inclusão do pediatra como profissional apto a solicitar tais recursos. Sugere-se a necessidade de se rediscutir as políticas de saúde sobre a temática.Palavras-chave: Tecnologia Assistiva. Criança Hospitalizada. Crianças com Deficiência. Doença Crônica. Política de SaúdeAbstractIntroduction: Access to assistive technologies in Brazil, despite the legal provision, is difficult and there is a lack of discussions and policies aimed at the pediatric hospital setting. Objectives: to discuss the implementation of health policies for assistive technology in the pediatric hospital scenario, based on the case study of a high complexity pediatric hospital. Methods: cross-sectional descriptive study of users assisted by the multidisciplinary Assistive Technology team, from February 2019 to April 2021. Results: 77 users were assisted, with a higher prevalence of males and more than 90% aged up to 14 years. In 80.7% there was more than one type of disability and 2/3 had restrictions on typical childhood occupations, such as going to school and playing. At the outpatient clinic, 77% of the demands were related to a wheelchair, while at the hospital, they were related to hand positioning orthoses (60%). Conclusions: the deficiencies observed in the area of assistive technology point to its importance in the pediatric hospital. However, several factors may be interfering with the inclusion of actions aimed at such resources within the hospital, such as, for example, the priority biomedical focus in the information and financing systems of the SUS and the non-inclusion of the pediatrician as a professional able to request such resources. It is suggested the need to re-discuss health policies on the subject.Keywords: Self-Help Equipment. Hospitalized Child. Children with Disabilities. Chronic disease. Health Policy.ResumenIntroducción: El acceso a las tecnologías asistivas en Brasil, a pesar de la disposición legal, es difícil y faltan discusiones y políticas dirigidas al escenario hospitalario pediátrico. Objetivos: discutir la implementación de políticas de salud para tecnología asistiva en el escenario hospitalario pediátrico, a partir del estudio de caso de un hospital pediátrico de alta complejidad. Métodos: estudio descriptivo transversal de usuarios atendidos por el equipo multidisciplinario de Tecnología Asistiva, de febrero de 2019 a abril de 2021. Resultados: fueron atendidos 77 usuarios, con mayor  prevalencia del sexo masculino y más del 90% con edades hasta los 14 años. En el 80,7% había más de un tipo de discapacidad y 2/3 tenían restricciones en ocupaciones típicas de la infancia, como ir a la escuela y jugar. En el ambulatorio, el 77% de las demandas se relacionaron con silla de ruedas, mientras que en el hospital se relacionaron con ortesis de posicionamiento de manos (60%). Conclusiones: las deficiencias observadas en el área de tecnología asistiva apuntan a su importancia en el hospital pediátrico. Sin embargo, varios factores pueden estar interfiriendo en la inclusión de acciones dirigidas a tales recursos dentro del hospital, como, por ejemplo, el enfoque biomédico prioritario en los sistemas de información y financiamiento del SUS y la no inclusión del pediatra como profesional poder solicitar tales recursos. Se sugiere la necesidad de rediscutir las políticas de salud sobre el tema.Palabras clave: Equipos de Autoayuda. Niño Hospitalizado. niños con discapacidades. Enfermedad crónica. Política de Salu

Patient-physician discordance in assessment of adherence to inhaled controller medication: a cross-sectional analysis of two cohorts

We aimed to compare patient's and physician's ratings of inhaled medication adherence and to identify predictors of patient-physician discordance.(SFRH/BPD/115169/2016) funded by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT); ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) through the operations: POCI-01-0145-FEDER-029130 ('mINSPIRERS—mHealth to measure and improve adherence to medication in chronic obstructive respiratory diseases—generalisation and evaluation of gamification, peer support and advanced image processing technologies') cofunded by the COMPETE2020 (Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização), Portugal 2020 and by Portuguese Funds through FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Integrated ecosystem assessment around islands of the tropical South Mid-Atlantic Ridge

The South Mid Atlantic Ridge comprises three main oceanic islands in the equatorial and tropical portions of the Atlantic Ocean. These islands are isolated from each other and equidistant from both the continental margins of South America and Africa, sharing common patterns but with different types of human use and pressures. Moreover, the areas beyond national jurisdiction between those islands are visited and exploited by distant fishing fleets and include large areas of shipping activity for commodities. Here, a pioneering integrated ecosystem assessment (IEA) process is constructed for the region among Saint Peter and Saint Paul’s Archipelago (Brazil), Saint Helena Island and Ascension Island (UK overseas territories). For that, we used a qualitative assessment of risks arising from anthropogenic activities, representing a novel contribution to the field. The Options for Delivering Ecosystem-Based Marine Management (ODEMM) approach was applied to trace sector–pressure–component pathways. A ‘linkage framework’ was outlined including pressures affecting each ecosystem component, and supported a process of knowledge attributions that scored the impact risks. All results were validated with regional stakeholders through workshops, including local and international management bodies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and scientists. The approach focused on a significant area among encompassing the open ocean, shallow and deep-sea biomes, analyzing the main sectors and pressures affecting the ecological components. Our results identified 14 sectors and 16 key pressures associated with 23 ecosystem components, totaling 780 impact chains. Fishing, shipping, wastewater, and tourism/recreation appeared as the top impacting sectors. Fishing and shipping were the most connected with ecosystem components links. Litter, species extraction, contaminants, and bycatch were the pressures that had the highest risk of impact values. Lastly, demersal and pelagic fish and pelagic and demersal elasmobranchs were the groups with the highest risk related to overall impacts, which were supported by local and regional evidence from long term monitoring programs and local studies. Our study demonstrated that these seemingly pristine islands and oceanic waters are already experiencing human impacts that should be addressed by local both conservation measures and international agreements. We also highlight the pressures that should be prioritized for better monitoring and policy, as well as those linkage components that have been less investigated

Pneumococcal Serotypes Colonise the Nasopharynx in Children at Different Densities.

Prevalence of pneumococcal serotypes in carriage and disease has been described but absolute serotype colonisation densities have not been reported. 515 paediatric nasal swab DNA extracts were subjected to lytA qPCR and molecular serotyping by microarray. Absolute serotype densities were derived from total pneumococcal density (qPCR cycle threshold and standard curve) and relative abundance (microarray) and varied widely. Compared to all serotype densities observed, the strongest evidence of differences was seen for serotypes 21 and 35B (higher) and 3, 38 and non-typeables (lower) (p<0.05) with a similar hierarchy when only a single serotype carriage was assessed. There was no evidence of any overall density differences between children with single or multiple serotypes detected but serotypes with mid-range densities were more prevalent. The hierarchy of distinct pneumococcal serotype carriage densities described here for the first time, may help explain the dynamics of transmission between children

Morphological and Postural changes in the foot during pregnancy and puerperium : a longitudinal study

The aim of this study is to observe the morphological and postural changes to the foot that take place during pregnancy and the puerperium. Method: In this descriptive, observational, longitudinal study, we analysed 23 pregnant women, with particular attention to morphological and postural aspects of the foot, at three time points during and after pregnancy: in weeks 9-13 of gestation, weeks 32-35 of gestation and weeks 4-6 after delivery. The parameters considered were changes in foot length, the Foot Posture Index (FPI) and the Hernández Corvo Index, which were analysed using a pedigraph and taking into account the Body Mass Index (BMI). The same procedure was conducted in each review. Results: The statistical analyses obtained for each foot did not differ significantly between the three measurement times. A pronator-type footprint was most frequently observed during the third trimester of pregnancy; it was predominantly neutral during the postpartum period. Statistically significant differences between the measurement times were obtained in the right foot for cavus vs. neutral foot type (between the first and third trimesters and also between the first trimester and the puerperium) (in both cases, p < 0.0001). Conclusions: Foot length increases in the third trimester and returns to normal in the puerperium. According to FPI findings, the third trimester of pregnancy is characterised by pronation, while the posture returns to neutrality during the postpartum period. During pregnancy, the plantar arch flattens, and this persists during the puerperium. The incidence of cavus foot increases significantly in the third trimester and in the puerperium

Cell-Free Antigens from Paracoccidioides brasiliensis Drive IL-4 Production and Increase the Severity of Paracoccidioidomycosis

The thermally dimorphic fungus Paracoccidioides brasiliensis (Pb) is the causative agent of paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM), one of the most frequent systemic mycosis that affects the rural population in Latin America. PCM is characterized by a chronic inflammatory granulomatous reaction, which is consequence of a Th1-mediated adaptive immune response. In the present study we investigated the mechanisms involved in the immunoregulation triggered after a prior contact with cell-free antigens (CFA) during a murine model of PCM. The results showed that the inoculation of CFA prior to the infection resulted in disorganized granulomatous lesions and increased fungal replication in the lungs, liver and spleen, that paralleled with the higher levels of IL-4 when compared with the control group. The role of IL-4 in facilitating the fungal growth was demonstrated in IL-4-deficient- and neutralizing anti-IL-4 mAb-treated mice. The injection of CFA did not affect the fungal growth in these mice, which, in fact, exhibited a significant diminished amount of fungus in the tissues and smaller granulomas. Considering that in vivo anti-IL-4-application started one week after the CFA-inoculum, it implicates that IL-4-CFA-induced is responsible by the mediation of the observed unresponsiveness. Further, the characterization of CFA indicated that a proteic fraction is required for triggering the immunosuppressive mechanisms, while glycosylation or glycosphingolipids moieties are not. Taken together, our data suggest that the prior contact with soluble Pb antigens leads to severe PCM in an IL-4 dependent manner