Comparación da función pulmonar e do patrón respiratorio entre suxeitos con dor lumbar crónica e controis sans: un estudio piloto

[Resumen] Introdución. A dor lumbar representa a causa principal dos anos vividos con discapacidade a nivel mundial. A súa prevalencia situase entre o 60 e o 80%, e é maior en mulleres e en persoas entre 40 e 80 anos. Por outra parte, documentouse que existe alteración da mecánica ventilatoria en suxeitos con dor lumbar en comparación con suxeitos sans, pero os mecanismos que subxacen a dita relación ou as características que están alteradas non se coñecen de forma concluínte. Obxectivo. Determinar se existen diferenzas estadisticamente significativas na función pulmonar e no patrón respiratorio entre suxeitos sans e suxeitos con dor lumbar crónica. Material e método. Estudo piloto con deseño de estudo transversal de casos e controis, no que se realizou a contratación de participantes mediante a difusión do proxecto de diferentes xeitos. As principais variables estudadas son o patrón respiratorio, a función pulmonar a través dunha espirometría forzada e da máxima ventilación voluntaria, así como o control motor da rexión lumbo-pélvica a través da extensibilidade e da forza posicional da musculatura flexora da cadeira. Resultados. Estudáronse 11 individuos con dor lumbar crónica e 13 controis sans. Os valores da capacidade vital forzada (FVC) foron significativos (p = 0,048), sendo máis baixos no grupo de casos. Non se atoparon diferenzas significativas entre os grupos no patrón respiratorio, nin nos parámetros de ventilación voluntaria máxima, a pesar de que neste o valor medio observado é menor no grupo de casos. En canto ao control motor, os suxeitos con dor lumbar realizan máis compensacións que os controis sans, tanto no membro inferior esquerdo (p=<0,01) como no dereito (p=0,03). En canto á análise da fiabilidade interobservador, na análise do patrón respiratorio obtense unha feble fiabilidade entre os dous expertos e entre as dúas novelas, e unha fiabilidade moderada entre a novela1 e o experto1. Realizouse unha análise descritiva utilizando chi-cuadrado e T-student para analizar a diferenza entre os grupos. Conclusións. Existen diferenzas estadisticamente significativas en determinados parámetros da funcion pulmonar entre suxeitos sans e suxeitos con dor lumbar crónica, así como na forza posicional da musculatura estabilizadora lumbar.[Abstract] Background. Low back pain represents the leading cause of years lived with disability worldwide. Its prevalence is around 60 to 80%, and is higher in women and in people between 40 and 80 years. On the other hand, it has been documented that there is alteration of ventilatory mechanics in subjects with low back pain in comparison with healthy subjects, but the mechanisms that underlie this relationship or the characteristics that are altered are not known conclusively. Objective. The objective of this study is to determine if there are statistically significant differences in lung function and respiratory pattern between healthy subjects and subjects with chronic low back pain. Methods. Pilot study with cross-sectional study design of cases and controls, in which the recruitment of participants was carried out by diffusing the project in different ways. The main variables studied are the respiratory pattern, pulmonary function through forced spirometry and maximum voluntary ventilation are measured, as well as the motor control of the lumbo-pelvic region through the extensibility and the positional force of the hip flexor muscles. Outcomes. 11 subjects with chronic low back pain and 13 healthy controls were studied. The values of forced vital capacity (FVC) were significant (p=0.048), being lower in the group of cases. No significant differences were found between the groups in the respiratory pattern, nor in the parameters of maximum voluntary ventilation, despite the fact that in this the mean value observed is lower in the case group. Regarding the motor control, subjects with low back pain perform more compensations than healthy controls, both in the lower left (p = <0.01) and right (p=0.03). Regarding the interobserver reliability analysis, in the analysis of the respiratory pattern, weak reliability is obtained between the two experts and between the two novices, and a moderate reliability between the novel1 and expert1. A descriptive analysis was carried out using chi-square and T-student to analyze the difference between the groups.. Conclusions. There are statistically significant differences in certain parameters of lung function between healthy subjects and subjects with chronic low back pain, as well as in the positional strength of the lumbar stabilizing muscles.[Resumo] Introdución. A dor lumbar representa a causa principal dos anos vividos con discapacidade a nivel mundial. A súa prevalencia situase entre o 60 e o 80%, e é maior en mulleres e en persoas entre 40 e 80 anos. Por outra parte, documentouse que existe alteración da mecánica ventilatoria en suxeitos con dor lumbar en comparación con suxeitos sans, pero os mecanismos que subxacen a dita relación ou as características que están alteradas non se coñecen de forma concluínte. Obxectivo. Determinar se existen diferenzas estadisticamente significativas na función pulmonar e no patrón respiratorio entre suxeitos sans e suxeitos con dor lumbar crónica. Material e método. Estudo piloto con deseño de estudo transversal de casos e controis, no que se realizou a contratación de participantes mediante a difusión do proxecto de diferentes xeitos. As principais variables estudadas son o patrón respiratorio, a función pulmonar a través dunha espirometría forzada e da máxima ventilación voluntaria, así como o control motor da rexión lumbo-pélvica a través da extensibilidade e da forza posicional da musculatura flexora da cadeira. Resultados. Estudáronse 11 individuos con dor lumbar crónica e 13 controis sans. Os valores da capacidade vital forzada (FVC) foron significativos (p = 0,048), sendo máis baixos no grupo de casos. Non se atoparon diferenzas significativas entre os grupos no patrón respiratorio, nin nos parámetros de ventilación voluntaria máxima, a pesar de que neste o valor medio observado é menor no grupo de casos. En canto ao control motor, os suxeitos con dor lumbar realizan máis compensacións que os controis sans, tanto no membro inferior esquerdo (p=<0,01) como no dereito (p=0,03). En canto á análise da fiabilidade interobservador, na análise do patrón respiratorio obtense unha feble fiabilidade entre os dous expertos e entre as dúas novelas, e unha fiabilidade moderada entre a novela1 e o experto1. Realizouse unha análise descritiva utilizando chi-cuadrado e T-student para analizar a diferenza entre os grupos. Conclusións. Existen diferenzas estadisticamente significativas en determinados parámetros da funcion pulmonar entre suxeitos sans e suxeitos con dor lumbar crónica, así como na forza posicional da musculatura estabilizadora lumbar.Traballo fin de grao (UDC.FCS). Fisioterapia. Curso 2018/201

Estágio na Região de Turismo do Algarve: análise dos indicadores e das métricas do website promocional e das redes sociais

Com o intuito de concluir o mestrado em Gestão de Marketing da Faculdade de Economia, da Universidade do Algarve, foi realizado um estágio curricular na Região de Turismo do Algarve. O relatório de estágio é o trabalho final ao qual irá resultar na obtenção do grau de mestre na instituição de ensino referida. O presente trabalho pretende atingir objetivos estabelecidos para o estágio e para o estudo empírico. Os objetivos do estágio são: colaborar numa entidade onde fosse possível conciliar as duas áreas de formação, o turismo e o marketing; desenvolver competências de marketing digital; iniciar o desenvolvimento do conhecimento do marketing em termos profissionais e aplicar os conhecimentos teóricos no contexto real das organizações. Os objetivos do estudo empírico são: analisar os indicadores e as métricas do website promocional da organização e das redes sociais; observar o desempenho das plataformas digitais de acordo com os consumidores e os seus comportamentos online nessas mesmas plataformas; e entender que tipo de conteúdos apresentam um maior engagement por parte dos consumidores. No presente relatório é feita uma apresentação da organização que acolheu a estagiária assim como das funções desempenhadas pela mesma. A temática e a área em que incidiu o estágio, o marketing digital, será abordada na revisão da literatura que teve como base referências bibliográficas, o que permitiu aprofundar os conhecimentos nesta área. Para iniciar será feita a introdução ao relatório de forma a contextualizar o mesmo. De seguida é apresentada a organização e é feita a caracterização do estágio curricular e das atividades realizadas dentro do departamento de Marketing. O enquadramento teórico na revisão da literatura aborda as temáticas relacionadas com o estágio e o estudo realizado, sobretudo o marketing digital, os social media e o digital analytics. Por fim, encontra-se a metodologia de investigação e o estudo empírico realizado sobre os canais digitais da organização, o website promocional e as redes sociais Facebook e Instagram. Com a realização do estudo empírico às plataformas digitais da entidade acolhedora foi possível compreender a forma como as mesmas estavam a ser recebidas pelos consumidores. A realização do estágio curricular e a elaboração do respetivo relatório mostraram-se ser a abordagem mais apropriada para o trabalho final do mestrado, no sentido em que permitiram adquirir experiência em contexto profissional e aprofundar temáticas pouco abordadas no plano curricular do mestrado.In order to complete the master's degree in Marketing Management at the Faculty of Economics of the University of Algarve, a curricular internship was carried out in the Região de Turismo do Algarve. The internship report is the final assignment which will result in obtaining a master's degree at the educational institution in a manner. The present work intends to reach objectives established for the internship and for the empirical study. The objectives of the internship are: to collaborate in an entity where it is possible to reconcile the two training areas, Tourism and Marketing; develop digital marketing skills; initiate the development of Marketing knowledge in professional terms and apply theoretical knowledge in the real context of organizations. The objectives of the empirical study are: to analyze the indicators and metrics of the organization's promotional website and social networks; observe the performance of digital platforms according to consumers and their online behavior on those same platforms; and understand what kind of content has a greater engagement by consumers. In this report, a presentation is made of the organization that welcomed the intern as well as the functions performed by the intern. The theme and the area in which the internship focused, Digital Marketing, will be addressed in the literature review based on bibliographic references, which allowed to deepen the knowledge in this area. To begin, the report will be introduced in order to contextualize it. The organization is then presented and the curricular internship and activities carried out within the Marketing department are characterized. The theoretical framework in the literature review addresses the themes related to the internship and the study carried out, especially digital marketing, social media and digital analytics. Finally, there is the research methodology and the empirical study carried out on the organization's digital channels, the promotional website and the social networks Facebook and Instagram. With the realization of the empirical study of the hosting entity's digital platforms, it was possible to understand how they were being received by consumers. The accomplishment of the curricular internship and the elaboration of the respective report proved to be the most appropriate approach for the final work of the master's degree, in the sense that they allowed to acquire experience in a professional context and to deepen themes that were not addressed in the master's curriculum plan

Evaluation of non-destructive techniques for mechanical characterisation of earth-based mortars in masonry joints

In this paper, the use of non-destructive tests for the mechanical characterisation of earth-based mortars in masonry joints is discussed. Four testing methods, namely the penetrometer, Schmidt hammer, pendulum hammer and scratch test, originally developed for other types of mortar, are reviewed. The methods are applied to the earth-based mortars at the Wupatki Pueblo archaeological site, in Arizona, US. The outcomes of the experimental programme allowed to assess the reliability of the methods and to identify their limitations. Finally, the methods are compared in terms of six qualitative indicators, namely easy-of-use, consistency of results, range and granularity of results, respect towards cultural value, depth of investigation under the visible surface and versatility in application. Overall, the penetrometer test is recommended as the preferable method to characterise the mechanical performance of earth-based mortars.FCT - Fuel Cell Technologies Program(2022.09946

Thermal behavior of a BIPV combined with water storage: an experimental analysis

ABSTRACT: Buildings play an active role in the global energy consumption and are required to not only minimize their energy use, but also generate energy in a sustainable manner. The integration of renewable energies in building elements can improve their overall performance, as they are able to replace common construction materials, while offering both electrical and thermal energy. The scope of this paper is to present the first results of an experimental study of a Building-Integrated Photovoltaic system combined with a water storage tank (BIPV-WS), a combined integration not extensively studied yet. Both layers are separated by a ventilated air cavity, and the thermal behavior of the system was analyzed experimentally in real functioning conditions. The water tank performs as a thermal storage, maintaining a regular temperature of about 20-30 degrees C during a typical winter day of Lisbon for a period of 11 h. Moreover, through the ventilation of the air cavity, the heat provided by the solar panel was naturally recovered to the indoors of the building, while keeping the temperature high enough to heat up the water. During summer, the ventilated BIPV-WS enabled beneficial nocturnal heat loss while delaying diurnal space heating.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Assessment of layer thickness and uniformity in railway embankments with Ground Penetrating Radar

In the aim of a national research project entitled “Interaction soil-rail track for high speed trains”, a protocol was established between the National Railway Network and four national research institutions to develop the knowledge concerning the methodology for the construction and quality control of the railway embankments and railtrack layers for high speed trains. One of the objectives of this protocol is to establish a methodology for quality control of construction layers by different available test methods. Nondestructive testing (NDT) methods are currently very attractive due to their ability to provide information about layer thickness and state condition without causing damage or requiring the removal of material samples. Within the NDT available, ground penetrating radar (GPR) is a very fast and reliable technique, whose advantage is the repeatability and the capability of acquiring continuous data. To reach the proposed goal, a trial embankment was constructed with different materials, layer’s thicknesses, water contents and compaction energy levels. GPR was used in two embankments, in order to detect the thickness of the sub-ballast layer located over the compacted sand layer and its uniformity along the track, but also along the cross-section of the track. In order to control some parameters of the sub-ballast layer, like thickness and uniformity, several metallic plates had been used in the base of the sub-ballast layer, along an alignment. It shows clearly the ability of GPR to detect the sub-ballast layer and its thickness variations along the profile

Laxative use by community pharmacy users in southern Portugal

Publicação sob a forma de PosterThe aim of this study was the characterization of laxative use by Pharmacy users, including the prevalence of use, types of laxatives used, and places for acquiring and obtaining advice on laxatives. METHODS: A cross-sectional and descriptive study was carried, using a structured questionnaire, in a Community Pharmacy located in Faro, Portugal. During a period of 3 weeks, all Pharmacy users (≥18 years) who agreed to voluntarily participate in this study, were enrolled. Our study sample included 50 users, mainly women (74%), aged from 22 to 94 years (median of 59 years). RESULTS: Most of the participants (88%) reported to be suffering or to have previously suffered from constipation, whereas 62% indicated to be suffering with symptoms for more than 3 years. From those, 64% had presented symptoms of constipation more than once a week in the previous year. Whenever users felt constipated, more than half (58%) indicated to use a laxative. Contact laxatives were the more often used (63%), while 18% and 8% of the participants indicated to have used bulk-forming and osmotic laxatives, respectively, during the previous year. Over half of the participants (54%) indicated to use laxatives at least on a weekly basis, with 38% presenting a daily consumption. Elderly users, ≥60 years, were who used laxatives more often (65% daily; p<0.001). Whereas Pharmacies were the preferred place to purchase laxatives (85%), only about 40% of the users indicated to ask for health professional advise at the time of acquisition. CONCLUSIONS: A high rate and frequency of laxative use was identified in the study sample, particularly contact laxatives. It is imperative, therefore, to provide users with more information on non-pharmacological measures to avoid and approach constipation and its symptoms, as well as further information such as overuse complications, allowing the appropriate selection of the laxative. Pharmacy professionals have a key role on this area, and related education campaigns should be implemented.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

McArdle disease: mutational spectrum of Portuguese patients

McArdle disease or Glycogen Storage Disease type V (GSD V; myophosphorylase deficiency; MIM 232600) its an inborn error of glycogen metabolism, caused by a deficiency in muscle specific isoform of glycogen phosphorylase. This metabolic myopathy is characterised by exercise intolerance, myalgia, cramps and episodic myoglobinuria, symptoms that usually appear during the second or third decade of life. The diagnosis was typically made in muscle biopsy by histological analysis (demonstration of subsarcolemmal glycogen deposits and negative histochemical stain for phosphorylase) and/or measurement of muscle phosphorylase activity. Although since 1984, when the gene of muscle isoform of phosphorylase (myophosphorylase) was cloned and assigned to chromosome 11 (11q13), molecular genetics analysis has been more and more used to confirm the clinical diagnosis. Until now, 146 pathogenic mutations have been described (according to HGMDTM) including nonsense, missense and framshift mutations. High genetic heterogeneity is a hallmark of McArdle disease with a very frequent common mutation among Caucasian populations – R49X (present in about 60% of the mutated alleles) – and several rare mutations, without a clear genotype/phenotype correlation. The authors will present molecular data from the characterisation of 53 Portuguese patients, from 42 families, with McArdle disease. Our results reveal the presence of the R49X mutation in 60 of the alleles (57%), in accordance to what has been described to other Caucasian populations, being identified a total of 15 different mutations were identified. These results allowed in many cases the diagnosis without the need of a muscle biopsy, but also provide valuable information for genetic counselling and to increase the knowledge about the molecular pathology of this disorder

RECONTAR POR ESCOMBROS O MODELO:

O objetivo deste estudo foi contar uma versão possível da experiência brasileira de formalização dos saberes em administração pública no Brasil, integrando fontes que materializaram a circulação desses saberes: fotografias, notícias, revistas; entre outras, que acompanharam o surgimento da primeira escola no país. Para isso, foram utilizadas as publicações da Escola Brasileira de Administração Pública (EBAP), disponibilizada pela Fundação Getúlio Vagas (FGV). A partir delas, se delineou o modelo de educação em administração pública elaborado, no qual, a classificação dos saberes entre empíricos e importados, com a valorização do segundo, operou produzindo: por um lado, os administradores públicos brasileiros ditos “incapazes, estéreis, produtores de desordem”; por outro, impediu que aflorasse&nbsp; conhecimentos advindos da necessidade cotidiana da população mapeada; e essa, passar a ser objeto do pensamento e das ações do administrador público

MULHERES QUE NARRAM: UMA ANÁLISE DAS PUBLICAÇÕES DA ESCOLA BRASILEIRA DE ADMINISTRAÇÃO PÚBLICA EM SEU PERÍODO DE IMPLANTAÇÃO - 1954 A 1977

O objetivo deste estudo foi compreender como as narrativas femininas integraram o período de surgimento e de implantação dos cursos de Administração Pública no Brasil, partindo da análise das publicações da Escola Brasileira de Administração Pública (EBAP) no período de 1954 a 1977. Para isso, foram analisadas todas as publicações e evidenciados os fragmentos das narrativas femininas, explorando suas características e contribuições. Esse percurso apresentou como resultado a descrição de abordagens e de interesses diferenciados da ótica masculina: sensibilidade social, artes nas diversas formas, maneiras de transmitir conhecimentos, espaços de lazer, entre outros, que se mostraram mais próximos da produção de saberes locais do que da importação de saberes – característica do período. Tais manifestações, por um lado, evidenciam os efeitos de práticas educativas menos difundidas, demonstrando que não é novidade a elaboração de saberes mais plurais e mais próximos da cotidianidade. Já por outro, incitam à efetividade da remontagem histórica para recuperar existências que nem sempre serviram aos desígnios predominantes em uma época

The use of key enabling technologies in the nearly zero energy buildings monitoring, control and intelligent management

SUDOKET—SOE2/P1/E0677The 2018 revision of the European Performance Building Directive (EPBD) requires that from the year 2020 onwards, all new buildings will have to be “nearly zero energy buildings”. It also further promotes smart building technologies, raising awareness amongst building owners and occupants of the value behind building automation. The European Commission also identified, in 2011, Key Enabling Technologies (KETs), which provide the basis for innovation in the EU. In the frame of the SUDOKET project, the Solar XXI building was used as a pilot case, as innovative integrated solutions and technologies are monitored and controlled. The objective of this paper is to validate a simulation of the laboratorial test room in EnergyPlus with data obtained experimentally and determine the impact of the control systems on energy needs and on thermal comfort. Two systems, in particular, were studied: the Building‐Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) and the earth tubes. Once validated, the simulation of the test room without the systems was created, allowing their impact to be determined. The results show that, for the analysed periods, BIPVs reduced the heating consumption by 22% while also increasing thermal comfort, and the earth tube system would reduce the cooling needs by 97%.publishersversionpublishe