Health-related factors correlate with behavior trends in physical activity level in old age: longitudinal results from a population in São Paulo, Brazil

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Physical inactivity in leisure time is common among elderly in Brazil and this finding is particularly alarming considering that this population is greatly affected by chronic diseases. The identification of health factors that influence physical activity level (PAL) will help in the development of strategies for increasing PAL older adults. The current research aimed to identify variables that independently affect behavior trends in PAL over the course of two years among elderly.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A survey entitled the Epidoso Project ("Epidemiology of aging") studied 1,667 community-based older individuals in São Paulo city, Brazil over the course of two years. Physical activity level was determined through questions about frequency and duration of physical activities. Body Mass Index was calculated; functional capacity was assessed through the ADL (activities of daily living) scale; cognition was assessed by Mini-Mental State Examination; and mental health was assessed through the Dysthymia Screening. Experiences of falls and fractures were also assessed. Subjects were divided into three groups according to their self-report of Physical Activity Level: a - Regularly Active; b - Insufficiently Active and c - Physically Inactive. Behavior trends in PAL were also measured after two years. Multivariate regression model methodology was used to test associations longitudinally.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Results from the final model demonstrated that the risk of a not favorable behavior trend in PAL, which included the group who remained physically inactive and the group that displayed decreased PAL, in this cohort of older adults was significantly increased if the individual was female (OR = 2.50; 95% CI = 1.60-3.89; <it>P < 0.01</it>), older (80 y vs. 65 y, OR = 6.29, 95% CI = 2.69-14.67; <it>P < 0.01</it>), dependent on help from others for activities in the ADL scale (moderate-severe = 4-7+ vs. 0 ADLs) (OR = 2.25, 95% CI = 1.20-4.21; <it>P < 0.011</it>) or had experienced a history of falls with consequences (OR = 6.88, 95% CI = 0.91-52.01; <it>P < 0.062</it>).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Age, gender, ADL scores and falls were associated with a not favorable behavior trend in PAL. Promotion programs should target these factors, reducing barriers to achieve desired changes in PAL.</p

Prediction of self-compacting concrete elastic modulus using two symbolic regression techniques

yesThis paper introduces a novel symbolic regression approach, namely biogeographical-based programming (BBP), for the prediction of elastic modulus of self-compacting concrete (SCC). The BBP model was constructed directly from a comprehensive dataset of experimental results of SCC available in the literature. For comparison purposes, another new symbolic regression model, namely artificial bee colony programming (ABCP), was also developed. Furthermore, several available formulas for predicting the elastic modulus of SCC were assessed using the collected database. The results show that the proposed BBP model provides slightly closer results to experiments than ABCP model and existing available formulas. A sensitivity analysis of BBP parameters also shows that the prediction by BBP model improves with the increase of habitat size, colony size and maximum tree depth. In addition, among all considered empirical and design code equations, Leemann and Hoffmann and ACI 318-08’s equations exhibit a reasonable performance but Persson and Felekoglu et al.’s equations are highly inaccurate for the prediction of SCC elastic modulus

Enteric viruses in turkey flocks: a historic review

In this review, diagnostic techniques and viral agents involved in enteric diseases affecting turkeys are described. Data from field observations and laboratory researches have been reported in turkey flocks for over 70 years, and several viruses have been identified. After a period of 30 years of inoculation experiments and neutralization studies, adequate visualization of the viruses was achieved using electronic microscopy. During the following years, several studies were then conducted to isolate and classify those viruses using cell-culture, embryo-propagation, serological tests, genome electropherotyping by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of double-stranded RNA viruses, and recently, nucleic acid studies. Thus, since the 1990s, the nucleic-acid technology has focused on genomic surveys and on the detection of specific segments of the genome of each virus using the polymerase-chain reaction, resulting in several prevalence studies and phylogenetic analyses of different isolates and proper classification of the viruses

Lethal factor to mice produced by Escherichia coli isolated from chickens with swollen head syndrome

A lethal toxin similar to Bacillus cererus lethal toxin was detected in the culture supernatants of Escherichia coli isolated from chickens with swollen head syndrome. The lethal activity was heat-labile, protease-sensitive and killed mice within 10 min. The. light microscopy of the histopathological studies revealed that the principal organ affected by this toxin was the lung but the liver and kidneys also showed lesions. The relevance of this lethal activity from E. coli remains to be determined.461177377