Chronic adaptations of lung function in breath-hold diving fishermen

Objectives: The aim of this study was to verify and analyze the existence of chronic adaptations of lung function in freediving fishermen whose occupation is artisanal fishing. Material and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study involving 11 breath-hold diving fishermen and 10 non-breath-hold diving fishermen (control) from the village of Bitupitá in the municipality of Barroquinha (Ceará - Brazil). Anthropometric measurements, chest and abdominal circumferences as well as spirometric and respiratory muscle strength tests were conducted according to the specifications of the American Thoracic Society/European Respiratory Society (ATS/ERS). In order to compare the measured values versus the predicted values, Student t test was used in the case of parametric test and Wilcoxon test in the case of nonparametric test. To compare the inter-group means Student t test was used for parametric test and Mann-Whitney test for the nonparametric one. The level of significance was set at α = 5%. Results: The forced vital capacity (FVC) (4.9±0.6 l vs. 4.3±0.4 l) and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) (4.0±0.5 l vs. 3.6±0.3 l) were, respectively, higher in the group of divers compared to the control group (p ≤ 0.05). Furthermore, in the group of free divers, the measured FVC, FEV1 and FEV1/FVC ratios were significantly greater than the predicted ones. No differences were found between the measured respiratory pressures. Conclusions: These results indicate that breath-hold diving seems to produce chronic adaptations of the respiratory system, resulting in elevated lung volumes with no airway obstruction

Respiratory functional characteristics of human leptospirosis

Introdução: O comprometimento respiratório da leptospirose humana pode ser sua principal manifestação clínica e comumente está associado a maior morbimortalidade. Métodos: Objetivando descrever aspectos funcionais respiratórios nessa doença, foram analisados 21 pacientes com oximetrias de pulso e espirometrias em dois momentos: em avaliação inicial e após cerca de 28 dias. Resultados: Dois (9,5%) doentes tinham saturação periférica de oxigênio menor que 95%. Padrões espirométricos normais foram observados em 8 (38,1%) casos; distúrbios ventilatórios restritivos foram inferidos em 7 (33,3%), obstrutivos com capacidade vital forçada reduzida em 4 (19%), e inespecíficos em 2 (9,5%). Espirometrias anormais se associaram a pior escore APACHE II (p=0,02) e anormalidades na radiografia de tórax (p=0,05). Após resolução clínica, verificou-se ganho funcional significativo (p<0,05) no grupo de pacientes com espirometria alterada. Conclusões: Alterações espirométricas foram detectadas no curso da enfermidade e estiveram associadas a pior gravidade clínica e maior freqüência de anormalidades radiológicas torácicas. _________________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACT: Introduction: Respiratory impairment may be the main clinical manifestation of human leptospirosis. Methods: With the aim of describing the respiratory functional characteristics of this disease, 21 patients were evaluated using pulse oximetry and spirometry at two times: an initial evaluation and after around 28 days. Results: Two (9.5%) patients presented peripheral oxygen saturation of less than 95%. Normal spirometric patterns were observed in eight (38.1%); cases restrictive ventilatory disorders were inferred in seven (33.3%), obstructive disorders with reduced forced vital capacity in four (19%), and nonspecific disorders in two (9.5%). Abnormal spirometry findings were associated with worse APACHE II scores (p = 0.02) and abnormalities on chest x-ray (p = 0.05). After clinical resolution, significant functional gain was observed (p < 0.05) in the group of patients with abnormal spirometry findings. Conclusions: It was concluded that respiratory functional abnormalities were detected during the course of the disease and were associated with greater clinical severity and higher frequency of chest radiographic abnormalities

Measurement of the t(t)over-bar production cross section in the dilepton channel in pp collisions at √s=8 TeV

The top-antitop quark (t (t) over bar) production cross section is measured in proton-proton collisions at root s = 8 TeV with the CMS experiment at the LHC, using a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5.3 fb(-1). The measurement is performed by analysing events with a pair of electrons or muons, or one electron and one muon, and at least two jets, one of which is identified as originating from hadronisation of a bottom quark. The measured cross section is 239 +/- 2 (stat.) +/- 11 (syst.) +/- 6 (lum.) pb, for an assumed top-quark mass of 172.5 GeV, in agreement with the prediction of the standard model

Performance of CMS muon reconstruction in pp collision events at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

The performance of muon reconstruction, identification, and triggering in CMS has been studied using 40 inverse picobarns of data collected in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV at the LHC in 2010. A few benchmark sets of selection criteria covering a wide range of physics analysis needs have been examined. For all considered selections, the efficiency to reconstruct and identify a muon with a transverse momentum pT larger than a few GeV is above 95% over the whole region of pseudorapidity covered by the CMS muon system, abs(eta) < 2.4, while the probability to misidentify a hadron as a muon is well below 1%. The efficiency to trigger on single muons with pT above a few GeV is higher than 90% over the full eta range, and typically substantially better. The overall momentum scale is measured to a precision of 0.2% with muons from Z decays. The transverse momentum resolution varies from 1% to 6% depending on pseudorapidity for muons with pT below 100 GeV and, using cosmic rays, it is shown to be better than 10% in the central region up to pT = 1 TeV. Observed distributions of all quantities are well reproduced by the Monte Carlo simulation.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO