Surgical Treatment of Intestinal Perforation in Behçet Syndrome: an Unusual Presentation

Behçet syndrome is a chronic, recurring, systemic disorder characterized by the histopathologic finding of nonspecific vasculitis in multiple organs. Behçet syndrome involves the gastrointestinal tract in 10-50% of patients; The main sites of involvement are the terminal ileum and cecum. In patients with Behçet syndrome, CT is advocated for early detection of complications as well as for exclusion of other abdominal pathologic conditions but there is no specific exam. The report of histology in conjunction with the clinical history and the presence of oral ulcers, uveitis and suspected cutaneous lesions suggests the diagnosis. The optimal medical treatment of Behçet syndrome has not yet been well established. In rare cases surgery must be required to control the disease. The authors report one case of Behcet Syndrome presenting with intestinal perforation.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A new approach for speed estimation in induction motor drives based on a reduced-order extended Kalman filter

This paper presents and proposes a new approach to achieve robust speed estimation in induction motor sensorless control. The estimation method is based on a reduced-order extended Kalman filter (EKF), instead of a full-order EKF. The EKF algorithm uses a reduced-order state-space model structure that is discretized in a particular and innovative way proposed in this paper. With this model structure, only the rotor flux components are estimated, besides the rotor speed itself. Important practical aspects and new improvements are introduced that enable us to reduce the execution time of the algorithm without difficulties related to the tuning of covariance matrices, since the number of elements to be adjusted is reduced

Crowdfunding for sustainable development projects: Empirical analysis of a Portuguese sustainability-oriented plataform

Funding has been identified as one of the main barriers to entrepreneurship, with a particular focus on female entrepreneurship, for whom access to traditional sources of finance is recognised as particularly difficult. Crowdfunding (CF) has emerged as an alternative fundraising source, which exploits the digital environment to bring together entrepreneurs looking for funding to develop their projects (crowdfunders) and potential investors (crowdfundees). The last few years have seen a growth in CF activities worldwide, both in terms of the amount of money raised and the number of platforms created. This growth has also led to the emergence of platforms that specialise in the financing of projects that are developed for specific targets and types of CF. In Portugal, a crowdlending platform specifically dedicated to financing projects that contribute to sustainable development was launched in 2017. To this day the GO Parity platform remains the only one in the country in this area. This study investigates the Portuguese CF campaigns carried out on the GO Parity platform with the objectives: i) to examine the characteristics of the sustainable development projects that have been posted to attract investors; ii), to explore the characteristics of the CF operations carried out in the platform; iii) to understand the extent to which gender can influence the use of CF as a source of fundraising for sustainable projects. The results of the study show that most of the projects aimed to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development goals related to the renewable and accessible energy (SDG7), industry, innovation and infrastructure (SDG9) and sustainable production and consumption (SDG12). These projects were implemented in different sectors of activity and in different regions of Portugal, albeit with a predominance in the capital city (Lisbon) and the Central geographical area. In the majority of cases, the CF was used to support the implementation of the sustainable development project and was the only source of funding that was used. In general, the projects were able to mobilise funding under conditions that could be considered favourable regarding the time taken to obtain the funding, the amount of money obtained and the interest rate applied, although many of the operations made use of credit guarantees. The results show a low presence of women in projects using the CF platform, in terms of the shareholder structure of the project, the presence in the management bodies or the composition of the working teams. There is some influence of gender on the characteristics of the CF operation. In particular, having women as shareholders might affect the amount financed, the objectives pursued or the guarantees provided. The presence of women in management positions affects some of the guarantees used as well as the purpose of the financing. The same applies to the duration of the financing, the level of risk or the guarantees provided, depending on the degree of feminisation of the project staff.info:eu-repo/semantics/submittedVersio

Relação entre limitações físicas e sintomatologia depressiva em idosos europeus

Objetive: To explore the relationship between physical limitations and depressive symptomatology. Methods: Study with a cross-sectional design. Data were from the population-based Survey of Health, Aging, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) wave seven (2017). Physical limitations were assessed by the Global Activity Limitations Indicator (GALI). The EURO-D scale was used to measure depressive symptomatology. Results: The sample consisted of 13450 individuals with a mean age of 70.7 ± 7.6 years. Physical limitations showed a positive and significant correlation with depressive symptomatology (r=0.221; p < 0.001). For men, having physical limitations increased 46% (OR=1.46, 95% IC: 1.35, 1.57) the probability of having depressive symptoms and for women increased 50% (OR=1.50, 95% IC: 1.38, 1.63). Conclusion: Having physical limitations increases the likelihood of having depressive symptomatology.Objetivo: Explorar a relação entre as limitações físicas e a sintomatologia depressiva. Metodologia: Estudo com um desenho transversal. Os dados provêm da base populacional da wave 7 (2017) do Inquérito de Saúde, Envelhecimento e Reforma na Europa (SHARE). As limitações físicas foram avaliadas pelo Indicador Global de Limitações de Atividades (GALI). A escala EURO-D foi utilizada para avaliar a sintomatologia depressiva. Resultados: A amostra foi constituída por 13450 indivíduos com uma idade média de 70.7 ± 7.6. As limitações físicas apresentaram uma correlação positiva e significativa com a sintomatologia depressiva (r=0.221; p < 0.001). Para os homens, ter limitações físicas aumentou 46% (OR=1.46, 95% IC: 1.35, 1.57) a probabilidade de apresentar sintomatologia depressiva e para as mulheres aumentou 50% (OR=1.50, 95% IC: 1.38, 1.63). Conclusão: Apresentar limitações físicas aumenta a probabilidade de ter sintomatologia depressiv

NOVOS REGISTROS DE ESPÉCIES DE FORMIGAS NEOTROPICAIS NA AMAZÔNIA MERIDIONAL

Although they occupy the most varied soil habitats in the forest canopy and are involved in several ecological processes, little is known about the biology and distribution of many species of neotropical ants. In this paper, we communicate the distribution of two rarely sampled ants species and ecological about them. The distribution of Neoponera luteola is extended to another 500 km more in straight line and the distribution of Gnamptogenys caelata is extended to another 1.500 km in straight line from its closest available records from Brazilian Amazon.Keywords: Ants; Mato grosso; Gnamptogenys caelata; Neoponera luteola.Embora ocupem os mais variados habitats do solo e dossel da floresta e estejam envolvidos em vários processos ecológicos, pouco se conhece sobre a biologia e distribuição de muitas espécies de formigas neotropicais. Neste artigo, comunicamos a distribuição de duas espécies de formigas raramente amostradas e informações ecológicas sobre elas. A distribuição de Neoponera luteola é expandida em mais de 500 km em linha reta e a distribuição de Gnamptogenys caelata é ampliada por cerca de 1,500 km em linha reta de seus registros mais próximos, em uma região da Amazônia Brasileira.Palavras-chave: Formigas, Mato grosso, Gnamptogenys caelata, Neoponera luteola

Handling default data under a case-based reasoning approach

The knowledge acquired through past experiences is of the most importance when humans or machines try to find solutions for new problems based on past ones, which makes the core of any Case-based Reasoning approach to problem solving. On the other hand, existent CBR systems are neither complete nor adaptable to specific domains. Indeed, the effort to adapt either the reasoning process or the knowledge representation mechanism to a new problem is too high, i.e., it is extremely difficult to adapt the input to the computational framework in order to get a solution to a particular problem. This is the drawback that is addressed in this work.This work is funded by National Funds through the FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology) within projects PEst-OE/EEI/UI0752/2014 and PEst-OE/QUI/UI0619/2012

Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA): validation study for vascular dementia

The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is a brief instrument developed for the screening of milder forms of cognitive impairment, having surpassed the well-known limitations of the MMSE. The aim of the present study was to validate the MoCA as well as its short version, which was proposed by the NINDS-CSN VCI Harmonization Standards for screening Vascular Dementia (VaD) patients. The results, based on a homogeneous sample of 34 VaD patients, indicate that the MoCA is a psychometrically valid and reliable instrument for cognitive screening in VaD patients, showing excellent discriminant validity. Both the full and short versions of the MoCA had excellent diagnostic accuracy in discriminating VaD patients, exhibiting an area under curve (AUC) higher than the MMSE [AUC(MoCA full version) = .950; 95% IC = .868-.988; AUC(MoCA short version) = .936; 95% IC = .849-.981; AUC(MMSE) = .860; 95% IC = .754-.932]. With a cutoff below 17 on the MoCA full version and 8 on the short version, the results for sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and classification accuracy were superior compared to the MMSE. In conclusion, both versions of the MoCA are valid, reliable, sensitive and accurate screening instruments for VaD patients

State-of-the-art and Emerging Technologies for In Vitro Embryo Production in Buffaloes

Buffalo is a multipurpose and economically important animal due to the demand for its products (milk and meat). Thus, the use of reproductive biotechnologies is important to maximize the diffusion of genetically superior dams and sires. After the unsatisfactory results of the Multiple Ovulation and Embryo Transfer, the combined effect of ovum pick-up from live animals and in vitro embryo production (IVEP) has great potential to dissemination of selected genetics in buffalo herds, contributing to an increase in meat and milk production. During the past two decades, considerable advances have been made in IVEP following continuous scientific effort, but at the moment their cost is not satisfactory for commercial purpose. This technique is refined day by day in order to improve the buffalo embryo quality. Thus, the objective of this paper was to review the state-of-art in IVEP, as well as discussed the emerging technologies that can contribute to improving the results of this technology in buffalo species