AVALIAÇÃO DO CONTROLE POSTURAL E DA PRESSÃO PLANTAR EM PESSOAS COM ALTERAÇÃO VISUAL

O estudo objetivou avaliar o controle postural e a pressão plantar em pessoas com alteração visual, utilizando como referência o estrabismo. Participaram do estudo trinta e quatro voluntários, divididos em dois grupos: Grupo com Alteração Visual (GAV) com dezessete indivíduos com estrabismo e um Grupo Controle (GC) formado por dezessete indivíduos com visão normal. Todos os participantes foram submetidos às avaliações da pressão plantar e do equilíbrio através do exame da baropodometria computadorizada. Não houve diferença significativa na distribuição da pressão na região plantar entre os dois grupos. Na avaliação do equilíbrio, a velocidade média de oscilação e o deslocamento látero-lateral, com olhos abertos, apresentaram diferença estatística entre os grupos, bem como o deslocamento ântero-posterior, com olhos fechados. Conclui-se que não houve diferença estatisticamente significante na distribuição da pressão plantar ao comparar os dois grupos. Há alterações significativas no equilíbrio em indivíduos com alteração visual no deslocamento L/L e na velocidade média de oscilação, quando com os olhos abertos, no entanto existe uma correlação positiva em relação ao deslocamento A/P na condição olhos fechados, quando comparados com os indivíduos com visão normal

DNA identification of Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis in human saliva from a patient with American cutaneous leishmaniasis

This study aims to report the amplification of the DNA of Leishmania (V.) braziliensis, using polymerase chain reaction, obtained from the saliva of a patient with American cutaneous leishmaniasis who did not present any lesion in the oral mucosa. Amplification produced fragments of 103 bp, an estimated size employing Leishmania (V.) braziliensis primers (b1 e b2). The present results revealed, for the first time, that the in vitro amplification of Leishmania DNA using samples from the salivary fluid of a patient with American cutaneous leishmaniasis is possible. However, more studies are required with a larger number of participants to evaluate the usefulness of saliva as a non-invasive sample for PCR. The development of such non-invasive technique is necessary for the diagnosis of many diseases in the future, especially infectious and parasitic ones

The Effect of Clown Intervention on Self-Report and Biomarker Measures of Stress and Fatigue in Pediatric Osteosarcoma Inpatients: A Pilot Study

Background: Pediatric cancer patients experience different psychological processes during hospitalization that may regulate the immune response and affect recovery and response to cancer treatment. In this study, we aimed to examine the feasibility of longitudinal testing of psychophysiological parameters of stress and fatigue in pediatric osteosarcoma patients hospitalized for chemotherapy submitted to clown intervention; and to investigate whether changes in the levels of biomarkers are associated with psychological stress and fatigue levels in these patients after the clown intervention. Methods: A pretest-posttest quasi-experimental pilot study was conducted at the pediatric oncology inpatient unit in a comprehensive cancer care center in Brazil including children and adolescents with osteosarcoma hospitalized for chemotherapy. Eight saliva samples were collected, comprising 4 at baseline (pre-intervention) and 4 after the clown intervention (+1, +4, +9, and +13 hours post-awakening). Salivary cortisol, α-amylase (sAA), cytokines, and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) levels were determined using high-sensitivity enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits. Stress and fatigue were measured by Child Stress Scale–ESI and PedsQL Multidimensional Fatigue Scale respectively. Bivariate association analysis between stress and fatigue scores and biomarker levels were investigated using nonparametric statistics. Effect sizes were calculated for each outcome variable. Results: Six pediatric osteosarcoma patients were enrolled with no missing data. No significant effects sizes were observed for psychophysiological outcomes. Effect sizes ranged from 0.54 (cortisol) to 0 (interleukin-1β [IL-1β]). Decreasing overall trends were observed for cortisol levels for all 6 pediatric osteosarcoma patients over time. In addition, a similar pattern of tumor necrosis factor–α (TNF-α) levels over time was found for all 6 patients. Patients with metastatic osteosarcoma showed a linear trend for a decrease in MMP-9 levels between 1 and 9 hours after the clown intervention and restoration to basal levels after 13 hours. Conclusions: The results of this pilot study suggest that it is feasible longitudinally measure psychophysiological outcomes in the pediatric osteosarcoma inpatients for chemotherapy. Clown intervention merits further study as a way to reduce stress as well as fatigue, since that the stress and cytokines measurements are feasible based on our work