Contribuições para o desenvolvimento da Educação Ambiental em Unidades de Conservação no Brasil a partir de programas educativos do Geoparque Naturtejo (Portugal)

O presente trabalho pretende apresentar os resultados de estudos realizados sobre programas educativos desenvolvidos no Geoparque Naturtejo (Portugal) e avaliar se os programas podem contribuir para o desenvolvimento de programas de preservação e educação ambiental em Unidades de Conservação – UC brasileiras cuja organização e sistematização de uso e ocupação tem como base o Sistema Nacional de Unidades de Conservação (SNUC). A pesquisa envolveu pesquisa documental, entrevistas com responsáveis por programas educativos do geoparque e acompanhamento de atividades de campo. A educação ambiental (EA) desenvolvida no geoparque possui três características notáveis: 1. EA naturalmente inclusiva, pois busca integrar os moradores locais; 2. Os conteúdos de EA estão integrados a conteúdos do ensino formal; 3. A EA junto às escolas e comunidades locais é muito ativa. A EA praticada nas UC brasileiras foca somente em quem as visita, geralmente excluindo a comunidade ou escolas da região; exige-se proteção local sem que a comunidade compreenda os processos relacionados ao ambiente. Embora os objetivos e finalidades de um geoparque não sejam os mesmos definidos para as UC brasileiras, consideramos que o modelo dos programas educativos do geoparque estudado poderia ser uma proposta mais efetiva para desenvolver a educação ambiental no Brasil.CAPES pelo apoio financeiro com bolsas do programa PDSE, Doutorado Sanduíche no Exterior, e à FAPESP, Proc. 2009/01741-9.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Floating islands implementation in marine and freshwater environments

Rapid industrialization, changes in human activities, and agricultural practices have led to the widespread use of toxic organic compounds, resulting in increased concentrations of pollutants in the environment that can be transmitted through air, water, or soil, resulting in numerous environmental and health problems. Therefore, the efficient management of water in these polluted sites is urgently needed. Aiming at this, this work proposes the use of floating wetland islands (FWI) for phytoremediation of these environments, since they have a great potential to promote several ecosystem services, such as biodiversity and water quality improvement. Having that in consideration it will be carried out an assessment related to the most adequate materials for the floating platform to be applied in marine and freshwater environments. Plants will be selected based on previous research carried out by the group It is intended that the floating platform developed under the present study will be compared with a commercial system cork based. It will be monitored the plant development and establishment in the two floating platforms materials and environments, the associated fauna and the water characterization. From the analysis of these results, this work hopes that these nature-based solutions can contribute to better water management, in such a way that will involve the conservation and rehabilitation of ecosystems.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Modelling prevalence and incidence of fibrosis and pleural plaques in asbestos-exposed populations for screening and follow-up: a cross-sectional study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>CT-Scan is currently under assessment for the screening of asbestos-related diseases. However, to date no consensus exists as to how to select high-risk asbestos-exposed populations suitable for such screening programs. The objective of this study is to select the most relevant exposure variables for the prediction of pleural plaques and asbestosis in order to guide clinicians in their use of CT-Scan.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A screening program of non malignant asbestos-related diseases by CT-scan was conducted among asbestos-exposed volunteers in France. Precise assessments of asbestos exposure were obtained by occupational hygiene measurements and a job-exposure matrix. Several parameters were calculated (time since first exposure, duration, intensity and cumulative exposure to asbestos). Predictive parameters of prevalence and incidence were then estimated by standard logistic and a complementary log-log regression models.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>1011 subjects were recruited in this screening program among them 474 (46.9%) presented with pleural plaques and 61 (6.0%) with interstitial changes compatible with asbestosis on CT-scan. Time since first exposure (p < 0.0001) and either cumulative or mean exposure (p < 0.0001) showed independent associations with both pleural plaques and asbestosis prevalence and pleural plaques incidence. Modelling incidence of pleural plaques showed a 0.8% to 2.4% yearly increase for a mean exposure of 1 f/ml.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our findings confirmed the role played by time since first exposure and dose but not duration in asbestos-related diseases. We recommend to include these parameters in high-risk populations suitable for screening of these diseases. Short-periodicity of survey of pleural plaques by CT-Scan seemed not to be warranted.</p

Investigation of occupational and environmental causes of respiratory cancers (ICARE): a multicenter, population-based case-control study in France

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Occupational causes of respiratory cancers need to be further investigated: the role of occupational exposures in the aetiology of head and neck cancers remains largely unknown, and there are still substantial uncertainties for a number of suspected lung carcinogens. The main objective of the study is to examine occupational risk factors for lung and head and neck cancers.</p> <p>Methods/design</p> <p>ICARE is a multi-center, population-based case-control study, which included a group of 2926 lung cancer cases, a group of 2415 head and neck cancer cases, and a common control group of 3555 subjects. Incident cases were identified in collaboration with cancer registries, in 10 geographical areas. The control group was a random sample of the population of these areas, with a distribution by sex and age comparable to that of the cases, and a distribution by socioeconomic status comparable to that of the population. Subjects were interviewed face to face, using a standardized questionnaire collecting particularly information on tobacco and alcohol consumption, residential history and a detailed description of occupational history. Biological samples were also collected from study subjects. The main occupational exposures of interest are asbestos, man-made mineral fibers, formaldehyde, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, chromium and nickel compounds, arsenic, wood dust, textile dust, solvents, strong acids, cutting fluids, silica, diesel fumes, welding fumes. The complete list of exposures of interest includes more than 60 substances. Occupational exposure assessment will use several complementary methods: case-by-case evaluation of exposure by experts; development and use of algorithms to assess exposure from the questionnaires; application of job-exposure matrices.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>The large number of subjects should allow to uncover exposures associated with moderate increase in risks, and to evaluate risks associated with infrequent or widely dispersed exposures. It will be possible to study joint effects of exposure to different occupational risk factors, to examine the interactions between occupational exposures, tobacco smoking, alcohol drinking, and genetic risk factors, and to estimate the proportion of respiratory cancers attributable to occupational exposures in France. In addition, information on many non-occupational risk factors is available, and the study will provide an excellent framework for numerous studies in various fields.</p

Clinical phenotypes of acute heart failure based on signs and symptoms of perfusion and congestion at emergency department presentation and their relationship with patient management and outcomes

Objective To compare the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with acute heart failure (AHF) according to clinical profiles based on congestion and perfusion determined in the emergency department (ED). Methods and results Overall, 11 261 unselected AHF patients from 41 Spanish EDs were classified according to perfusion (normoperfusion = warm; hypoperfusion = cold) and congestion (not = dry; yes = wet). Baseline and decompensation characteristics were recorded as were the main wards to which patients were admitted. The primary outcome was 1-year all-cause mortality; secondary outcomes were need for hospitalisation during the index AHF event, in-hospital all-cause mortality, prolonged hospitalisation, 7-day post-discharge ED revisit for AHF and 30-day post-discharge rehospitalisation for AHF. A total of 8558 patients (76.0%) were warm+ wet, 1929 (17.1%) cold+ wet, 675 (6.0%) warm+ dry, and 99 (0.9%) cold+ dry; hypoperfused (cold) patients were more frequently admitted to intensive care units and geriatrics departments, and warm+ wet patients were discharged home without admission. The four phenotypes differed in most of the baseline and decompensation characteristics. The 1-year mortality was 30.8%, and compared to warm+ dry, the adjusted hazard ratios were significantly increased for cold+ wet (1.660; 95% confidence interval 1.400-1.968) and cold+ dry (1.672; 95% confidence interval 1.189-2.351). Hypoperfused (cold) phenotypes also showed higher rates of index episode hospitalisation and in-hospital mortality, while congestive (wet) phenotypes had a higher risk of prolonged hospitalisation but decreased risk of rehospitalisation. No differences were observed among phenotypes in ED revisit risk. Conclusions Bedside clinical evaluation of congestion and perfusion of AHF patients upon ED arrival and classification according to phenotypic profiles proposed by the latest European Society of Cardiology guidelines provide useful complementary information and help to rapidly predict patient outcomes shortly after ED patient arrival