Key factors of the functional ability of older people to self-manage medications

Daily medication use can be affected by the gradual loss of functional ability. Thus, elderly patients are at risk for nonadherence due to functional decline, namely, decreases in cognitive skills and visual and manual dexterity. The main objective was to assess the ability of older people to self-manage their medication and to identify the main predictors for unintentional nonadherence. A cross-sectional study was conducted (2014–2017) in community centers and pharmacies. Functional assessment was performed with the Portuguese versions of the Drug Regimen Unassisted Grading Scale (DRUGS-PT) and the Self-Medication Assessment Tool (SMAT-PT). A purposive sample including 207 elderly patients was obtained. To identify the main predictors, binary logistic regression was performed. The average DRUGS-PT score was slightly lower than that in other studies. On the SMAT-PT, the greatest challenge for patients was identifying medications by reading labels/prescriptions. The main difficulties identified were medication memorization and correct schedule identification. The scores were higher with the real regimen than with the simulated regimen, underlining the difficulties for patients in receiving new information. Regarding the predictors of an older individual’s ability to self-manage medications, two explanatory models were obtained, with very high areas under the curve (> 90%). The main predictors identified were cognitive ability, level of schooling and daily medication consumption

Plant litter dynamics in the forest-stream interface: Precipitation is a major control across tropical biomes

Riparian plant litter is a major energy source for forested streams across the world and its decomposition has repercussions on nutrient cycling, food webs and ecosystem functioning. However, we know little about plant litter dynamics in tropical streams, even though the tropics occupy 40% of the Earth's land surface. Here we investigated spatial and temporal (along a year cycle) patterns of litter inputs and storage in multiple streams of three tropical biomes in Brazil (Atlantic forest, Amazon forest and Cerrado savanna), predicting major differences among biomes in relation to temperature and precipitation regimes. Precipitation explained most of litter inputs and storage, which were generally higher in more humid biomes (litterfall: 384, 422 and 308 g m-2 y-1, storage: 55, 113 and 38 g m-2, on average in Atlantic forest, Amazon and Cerrado, respectively). Temporal dynamics varied across biomes in relation to precipitation and temperature, with uniform litter inputs but seasonal storage in Atlantic forest streams, seasonal inputs in Amazon and Cerrado streams, and aseasonal storage in Amazon streams. Our findings suggest that litter dynamics vary greatly within the tropics, but point to the major role of precipitation, which contrasts with the main influence of temperature in temperate areas. © 2017 The Author(s)

Transmission of Leishmania in coffee plantations of Minas Gerais, Brazil

Transmission of Leishmania was studied in 27 coffee plantations in the Brazilian State of Minas Gerais. Eighteen females and six males (11.6% of the people tested), aged between 7-65 gave a positive response to the Montenegro skin test. Awareness of sand flies based on the ability of respondents to identify the insects using up to seven predetermined characteristics was significantly greater among inhabitants of houses occupied by at least one Mn+ve individual. Five species of phlebotomine sand fly, including three suspected Leishmania vectors, were collected within plantations under three different cultivation systems. Four of these species i.e., Lu. fischeri (Pinto 1926), Lu. migonei (França 1920), Lu. misionensis (Castro 1959) and Lutzomyia whitmani (Antunes & Coutinho 1939) were collected in an organic plantation and the last of these was also present in the other two plantation types. The remaining species, Lu. intermedia (Lutz & Neiva 1912), was collected in plantations under both the "adensado" and "convencional" systems. The results of this study indicate that transmission of Leishmania to man in coffee-growing areas of Minas Gerais may involve phlebotomine sand flies that inhabit plantations

Crescimento e produtividade do pinhão-manso em função do espaçamento e irrigação Growth and productivity of physic nut as a function of plant spacing and irrigation

Objetivou-se, com este trabalho, avaliar o efeito do espaçamento e da complementação hídrica no crescimento e produtividade do pinhão-manso. O experimento foi conduzido na área experimental do Instituto Federal Goiano, campus Rio Verde,GO, no período de 12/09/2009 a 30/04/2011, no delineamento de blocos casualizados com três repetições, os fatores foram sete espaçamentos e duas condições hídricas, cada parcela constituída de 16 plantas, sendo as quatro plantas centrais a área útil. Aos 60 dias após o transplantio das mudas foram feitas, bimensalmente, as avaliações dos parâmetros altura de planta, número de ramificações, área foliar e produtividade. O fator espaçamento não apresentou diferença significativa para os parâmetros altura, ramificação e produtividade e a complementação hídrica teve efeito significativo para altura aos 240 dias após transplantio. A produção de sementes em sequeiro foi maior no espaçamento 3 x 3 e com complementação hídrica no espaçamento 4 x 4.<br>The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of plant spacing and water supplementation on growth and productivity of physic nut (Jatropha). This research was carried out at the experimental area of the Instituto Federal Goiano - Rio Verde during the period 12/09/2009 to 30/04/2011, in a randomized block design with three replications. The factors consisted of seven plant spacings and two water conditions, each plot consisted of 16 plants, and four central plants were considered for data collection. At 60 days after transplanting of seedlings, fortnightly the evaluation of the parameters plant height, number of branches, leaf area and productivity was carried out. The plant spacing showed no significant difference for height, branching and productivity, while the water supplementation had significant effect on height at 240 days after transplanting. Seed production under rainfed conditions was higher in 3 x 3 m spacing and with complementary water in 4 x 4 m spacing