Efeito do cultivo de espécies vegetais sobre a população de Pratylenchus brachyurus na soja.

O presente trabalho, conduzido em casa de vegetação da Embrapa Soja, em Londrina, PR, no período de novembro/2011 a março/2012, teve como objetivos principais conhecer a reação de 23 espécies vegetais a Pratylenchus brachyurus e avaliar a influência da incorporação de suas fitomassas (parte aérea e raízes) no solo sobre as população do nematoide e performance da soja semeada, na sequência, nos vasos. Os fatores de reprodução (FR) de P. brachyurus obtidos nas diferentes espécies vegetais avaliadas variaram de zero (Crotalaria spectabilis, crambe, guandu ‘Fava Larga’ e tremoço branco) a 4,8 (Lab- Lab ‘Rongai’). As espécies vegetais com FR mais altos, independente da quantidade/composição da fitomassa incorporada, resultaram sempre em populações do nematoide mais elevadas nas raízes da soja (‘CD 202’). De todas as espécies vegetais testadas, apenas as C. specetabilis (FR=zero) e C. ochroleuca (FR=0,3) reduziram de fato a população original (1.000 nematoides) de P. brachyurus no vaso

The Impact Of Cardiac Diseases During Pregnancy On Severe Maternal Morbidity And Mortality In Brazil.

To evaluate maternal heart disease as a cause or complicating factor for severe morbidity in the setting of the Brazilian Network for Surveillance of Severe Maternal Morbidity. Secondary data analysis of this multicenter cross-sectional study was implemented in 27 referral obstetric units in Brazil. From July 2009 to June 2010, a prospective surveillance was conducted among all delivery hospitalizations to identify cases of severe maternal morbidity (SMM), including Potentially Life-Threatening Conditions (PLTC) and Maternal Near Miss (MNM), using the new criteria established by the WHO. The variables studied included: sociodemographic characteristics, clinical and obstetric history of the women; perinatal outcome and the occurrence of maternal outcomes (PLTC, MNM, MD) between groups of cardiac and non-cardiac patients. Only heart conditions with hemodynamic impact characterizing severity of maternal morbidity were considered. 9555 women were included in the Network with severe pregnancy-related complications: 770 maternal near miss cases and 140 maternal death cases. A total of 293 (3.6%) cases were related to heart disease and the condition was known before pregnancy in 82.6% of cases. Maternal near miss occurred in 15% of cardiac disease patients (most due to clinical-surgical causes, p<0.001) and 7.7% of non-cardiac patients (hemorrhagic and hypertensive causes, p<0.001). Maternal death occurred in 4.8% of cardiac patients and in 1.2% of non-cardiac patients, respectively. In this study, heart disease was significantly associated with a higher occurrence of severe maternal outcomes, including maternal death and maternal near miss, among women presenting with any severe maternal morbidity.10e014438

The Burden Of Eclampsia: Results From A Multicenter Study On Surveillance Of Severe Maternal Morbidity In Brazil.

Maternal mortality (MM) is a core indicator of disparities in women's rights. The study of Near Miss cases is strategic to identifying the breakdowns in obstetrical care. In absolute numbers, both MM and occurrence of eclampsia are rare events. We aim to assess the obstetric care indicators and main predictors for severe maternal outcome from eclampsia (SMO: maternal death plus maternal near miss). Secondary analysis of a multicenter, cross-sectional study, including 27 centers from all geographic regions of Brazil, from 2009 to 2010. 426 cases of eclampsia were identified and classified according to the outcomes: SMO and non-SMO. We classified facilities as coming from low- and high-income regions and calculated the WHO's obstetric health indicators. SPSS and Stata softwares were used to calculate the prevalence ratios (PR) and respective 95% confidence interval (CI) to assess maternal characteristics, clinical and obstetrical history, and access to health services as predictors for SMO, subsequently correlating them with the corresponding perinatal outcomes, also applying multiple regression analysis (adjusted for cluster effect). Prevalence of and mortality indexes for eclampsia in higher and lower income regions were 0.2%/0.8% and 8.1%/22%, respectively. Difficulties in access to health care showed that ICU admission (adjPR 3.61; 95% CI 1.77-7.35) and inadequate monitoring (adjPR 2.31; 95% CI 1.48-3.59) were associated with SMO. Morbidity and mortality associated with eclampsia were high in Brazil, especially in lower income regions. Promoting quality maternal health care and improving the availability of obstetric emergency care are essential actions to relieve the burden of eclampsia.9e9740

Maternal near miss and death among women with severe hypertensive disorders: a brazilian multicenter surveillance study

Hypertensive disorders represent the major cause of maternal morbidity in middle income countries. The main objective of this study was to identify the prevalence and factors associated with severe maternal outcomes in women with severe hypertensive disorders. This was a cross-sectional, multicenter study, including 6706 women with severe hypertensive disorder from 27 maternity hospitals in Brazil. A prospective surveillance of severe maternal morbidity with data collected from medical charts and entered into OpenClinica (R), an online system, over a one-year period (2009 to 2010). Women with severe preeclampsia, severe hypertension, eclampsia and HELLP syndrome were included in the study. They were grouped according to outcome in near miss, maternal death and potentially life-threatening condition. Prevalence ratios and 95% confidence intervals adjusted for cluster effect for maternal and perinatal variables and delays in receiving obstetric care were calculated as risk estimates of maternal complications having a severe maternal outcome (near miss or death). Poisson multiple regression analysis was also performed. Severe hypertensive disorders were the main cause of severe maternal morbidity (6706/ 9555); the prevalence of near miss was 4.2 cases per 1000 live births, there were 8.3 cases of Near Miss to 1 Maternal Death and the mortality index was 10.7% (case fatality). Early onset of the disease and postpartum hemorrhage were independent variables associated with severe maternal outcomes, in addition to acute pulmonary edema, previous heart disease and delays in receiving secondary and tertiary care. In women with severe hypertensive disorders, the current study identified situations independently associated with a severe maternal outcome, which could be modified by interventions in obstetric care and in the healthcare system. Furthermore, the study showed the feasibility of a hospital system for surveillance of severe maternal morbidity11CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQ402702/2008-

Orthogonal methods based ant colony search for solving continuous optimization problems

Research into ant colony algorithms for solving continuous optimization problems forms one of the most significant and promising areas in swarm computation. Although traditional ant algorithms are designed for combinatorial optimization, they have shown great potential in solving a wide range of optimization problems, including continuous optimization. Aimed at solving continuous problems effectively, this paper develops a novel ant algorithm termed "continuous orthogonal ant colony" (COAC), whose pheromone deposit mechanisms would enable ants to search for solutions collaboratively and effectively. By using the orthogonal design method, ants in the feasible domain can explore their chosen regions rapidly and e±ciently. By implementing an "adaptive regional radius" method, the proposed algorithm can reduce the probability of being trapped in local optima and therefore enhance the global search capability and accuracy. An elitist strategy is also employed to reserve the most valuable points. The performance of the COAC is compared with two other ant algorithms for continuous optimization of API and CACO by testing seventeen functions in the continuous domain. The results demonstrate that the proposed COAC algorithm outperforms the others

Does severe maternal morbidity affect female sexual activity and function? Evidence from a brazilian cohort study

To assess Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) scores and delay to resume sexual activity associated with a previous severe maternal morbidity. This was a multidimensional retrospective cohort study. Women who gave birth at a Brazilian tertiary maternity between 2008 and 2012 were included, with data extraction from the hospital information system. Those with potentially life-threatening conditions and maternal near miss episodes (severe maternal morbidity) were considered the exposed group. The control group was a random sample of women who had had uncomplicated pregnancy. Female sexual function was evaluated through FSFI questionnaire, and general and reproductive aspects were addressed through specific questions. Statistical analyses were performed using Mann-Whitney and Pearson's Chi-square for bivariate analyses. Logistic regression was used to identify variables independently associated with lower FSFI scores. 638 women were included (315 at exposed and 323 at not exposed groups). The majority of women were under 30 years-old in the control group and between 30 and 46 years-old in the exposed group (p = 0.003). Women who experienced severe maternal morbidity (SMM) had statistically significant differences regarding cesarean section (82.4% versus 47.1% among deliveries without complications, p< 0.001), and some previous pathological conditions. FSFI mean scores were similar among groups ranging from 24.39 to 24.42. It took longer for exposed women to resume sexual activity after index pregnancy (mean 84 days after SMM and 65 days for control group, p = 0.01). Multiple analyses showed no significant association of FSFI below cut-off value with any predictor. FSFI scores were not different in both groups. However, they were lower than expected. SMM delayed resumption of sexual activity after delivery, beyond postpartum period. However, the proportion of women in both groups having sex at 3 months after delivery was similar. Altered sexual response may be evaluated as one of possible long-term consequences after SMM episodes. Further studies on the growing population of women surviving severe maternal conditions might be worth for improvement of care for women1012CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQ471142/2011-

Reference ranges of the WHO Disability Assessment Schedule (WHODAS 2.0) score and diagnostic validity of its 12-item version in identifying altered functioning in healthy postpartum women.

OBJECTIVES: To compare scores on the 36-item WHO Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 tool (WHODAS-36) for postpartum women across a continuum of morbidity and to validate the 12-item version (WHODAS-12). METHODS: This is a secondary analysis of the Brazilian retrospective cohort study on long-term repercussions of severe maternal morbidity. We determined mean, median, and percentile values for WHODAS-36 total score and for each domain, and percentile values for WHODAS-12 total score in postpartum women divided into three groups: "no," "nonsevere," and "severe" morbidities. RESULTS: The WHODAS-36 mean total scores were 11.58, 18.31, and 19.19, respectively for no, nonsevere, and severe morbidity. There was a dose-dependent effect on scores for each domain of WHODAS-36 according to the presence and severity of morbidity. The diagnostic validity of WHODAS-12 was determined by comparing it with WHODAS-36 as a "gold standard." The best cut-off point for diagnosing dysfunctionality was the 95th percentile. CONCLUSION: The upward trend of WHODAS-36 total mean value scores of women with no morbidity compared with those with morbidity along a severity continuum may reflect the impact of morbidity on postpartum functioning

Biologia floral e polinização em girassol (Helianthus annuus L.) por abelhas africanizadas

O girassol (Helianthus annuus&nbsp; L.) &eacute; uma planta de poliniza&ccedil;&atilde;o cruzada&nbsp; e os seus principais polinizadores s&atilde;o as abelhas. Com a poliniza&ccedil;&atilde;o por insetos o girassol produz sementes, sendo a abelha africanizada&nbsp; Apis mellifera&nbsp; L. o agente mais efetivo. A&nbsp; performance desta abelha como polinizadora depende de v&aacute;rios fatores, sendo eles, a disponibilidade de p&oacute;len e n&eacute;ctar na flor, condi&ccedil;&otilde;es clim&aacute;ticas e aspectos f&iacute;sicos do solo. O girassol &eacute; pouco sens&iacute;vel &agrave;s varia&ccedil;&otilde;es no fotoper&iacute;odo, fato este que permite seu escalonamento de produ&ccedil;&atilde;o em quase todo o territ&oacute;rio nacional. No Brasil uma grande parte do territ&oacute;rio &eacute; considerada apta para o cultivo por apresentar condi&ccedil;&otilde;es clim&aacute;ticas satisfat&oacute;rias, sendo que atualmente esta oleaginosa &eacute; cultivada em todos os continentes. O objetivo desta revis&atilde;o &eacute; reunir dados para uma compila&ccedil;&atilde;o de informa&ccedil;&otilde;es referentes &agrave; cultura do girassol e a import&acirc;ncia de A. mellifera L., principalmente as africanizadas na poliniza&ccedil;&atilde;o de H. annuus L.&nbsp

Validation of the WHO Disability Assessment Schedule (WHODAS 2.0) 12-item tool against the 36-item version for measuring functioning and disability associated with pregnancy and history of severe maternal morbidity.

OBJECTIVE: To validate the WHO Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 (WHODAS 2.0) 12-item tool against the 36-item version for measuring functioning and disability associated with pregnancy and the occurrence of maternal morbidity. METHODS: This is a secondary analysis of the Brazilian retrospective cohort study on long-term repercussions of severe maternal morbidity (SMM) among women who delivered at a tertiary facility (COMMAG study). We compared WHODAS-12 and WHODAS-36 scores of women with and without SMM using measures of central tendency and variability, tests for instruments' agreement (Bland-Altman plot), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and Cronbach alpha coefficient for internal consistency. RESULTS: The COMMAG study enrolled 638 women up to 5 years postpartum. Although the median WHODAS-36 and -12 scores for all women were statistically different (13.04 and 11.76, respectively; P<0.001), there was a strong linear correlation between them. Furthermore, the mean difference and the differences in variance analyses demonstrated agreement of total scores between the two versions. CFA demonstrated how the WHODAS-12 questions are divided into six previously defined factors and Cronbach alpha showed good internal consistency. CONCLUSION: WHODAS-12 demonstrated agreement with WHODAS-36 for total score and was a good instrument for screening functioning and disability among postpartum women, with and without SMM