Evaluation of Usability and Gameplay of Games on Mobile Platforms for Young People on Oncological Treatment

This paper presents a method to evaluate usability and gameplay efficiency for educational games developed for children undergoing cancer treatment, as well as a case study involving the game “Corrida Gramatical”. The methodology of this paper consists of the use of tablets by patients aged 10 to 15 years old to evaluate and quantify the usability and gameplay of the game, while the process is documented through non-participant observation, a System Usability Scale (SUS) questionnaire and a semi-structured interview. The proposed method has proved to be supportive in the evaluation of existing educational games, considering the participants of the research, as well as in the improvement of the game by analyzing the flaws identified in the game design. For future studies, we intend to change the inclusion criteria to select a larger group of patients and reaffirm the effectiveness of the proposed method

Factores asociados al patrón de sueño en pacientes con insuficiencia cardíaca

O estudo teve como objetivo descrever o padrão de sono em pacientes com insuficiência cardíaca (IC) e analisar associações do sono com as seguintes variáveis: sexo, idade, fadiga, fadiga ao esforço, atividade física, classe funcional, terapia medicamentosa, dispneia e índice de massa corporal. A amostra não probabilística foi de 400 pacientes (idade média 57,8 anos; 64,8% eram homens; escolaridade média de 6,1 anos; 82,5% em classe funcional II ou III). A prevalência de maus dormidores foi de 68,5% e 46,5% classificou o sono como ruim ou muito ruim. Escores que sugerem categoria de mau dormidor foram associados a: sexo feminino, não empregados, fadiga, fadiga ao esforço, dispneia e classes funcionais mais elevadas da IC. A proporção de maus dormidores entre os pacientes com IC está entre as mais altas nas doenças crônicas. Dispneia e fadiga, sintomas comuns a essa enfermidade, aumentam significativamente a chance de ser mau dormidor.The objective of this study was to describe sleep patterns in patients with heart failure (HF) and analyze associations between sleep and the following variables: gender, age, fatigue, fatigue on exertion, physical activity, functional class, drug therapy, dyspnea, and body mass index. The nonprobability sample consisted of 400 patients (mean age 57.8 years; 64.8% were men, average schooling of 6.1 years; 82.5% Functional Class II or III). The prevalence of poor sleepers was 68.5%, and 46.5% rated sleep as poor or very poor. Scores suggest that the bad sleeper category was associated with: female, unemployed, fatigue, fatigue on exertion, dyspnea and higher functional classes of HF. The proportion of poor sleepers among patients with HF is among the highest in chronic diseases. Dyspnea and fatigue, common symptoms of this disease, significantly increase the chance of being a bad sleeper.Estudio que objetivó describir el patrón de sueño en pacientes con insuficiencia cardíaca y analizar asociaciones del sueño con las siguientes variables: sexo, edad, fatiga, fatiga ante esfuerzo, actividad física, clase funcional, terapia medicamentosa, disnea e índice de masa corporal. La muestra no probabilística fue de 400 pacientes (edad media 57,8 años; 64,8% hombres, escolaridad media de 6,1 años; 82,5% en clase funcional II o III). La prevalencia de afectados por transtornos del sueño fue de 68,5%, y 46,5% clasificó su sueño como malo o muy malo. Puntajes que sugieren categoría de transtornos del sueño se asociaron con: sexo femenino, desempleados, fatiga, fatiga ante esfuerzo, disnea y clases funcionales más elevadas del IC. La proporción de afectados por transtornos del sueño entre pacientes con IC está entre las más altas en enfermedades crónicas. Disnea y fatiga, síntomas comunes en esa enfermedad, aumentan significativamente la chance de sufrir alteraciones del sueño.Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo - FAPES

A comparison between the concentration of mast cells in squamous cell carcinomas of the skin and oral cavity

FUNDAMENTOS: A letalidade dos carcinomas espinocelulares (CECs) de pele é considerada baixa. Os CECs de boca têm prognóstico ruim. Evidências atuais sugerem que os mastócitos, residentes no tecido normal, contribuem para a tumorigênese dos CECs, provavelmente por promoverem angiogênese. OBJETIVO: Comparar a concentração de mastócitos em CECs da pele e da boca e avaliar se há correlação com o grau de diferenciação desses tumores. MATERIAL E MÉTODOS: Foram analisados 30 casos de CEC de pele e 34 casos de CEC de boca. A coloração de azul de toluidina, para evidenciar os mastócitos, foi realizada nos blocos com a área central da neoplasia. RESULTADOS: Apenas um caso de CEC de pele apresentou concentração de mastócitos de 0-10 e nenhum caso de CEC de boca apresentou concentração maior que 201 mastócitos no tumor. A maioria dos CECs de boca tem concentração de mastócitos entre 0 e 10 (47% - n = 16); 80% dos CECs de pele têm concentração acima de 51 mastócitos. Todos os casos de CEC de boca com concentração entre 100 e 200 mastócitos e 80% daqueles com concentração entre 51 e 99 eram de lábio. A concentração de mastócitos não está relacionada ao grau de diferenciação do tumor. CONCLUSÃO: A concentração de mastócitos é menor nos CECs de boca, exceto nos de lábio, podendo refletir uma menor necessidade de ativação de células do microambiente para melhorar a vascularização nos cânceres de boca.BACKGROUND: The lethality of squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) of the skin is considered low. SCC in the mouth is usually associated with poor prognosis. Current evidence suggests that mast cells in the normal tissue contribute to the tumorigenesis of SCC, probably by promoting angiogenesis. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to compare the concentration of mast cells in SCC of the mouth and skin and evaluate whether there is a correlation with the degree of differentiation of these tumors. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Thirty cases of SCC of the skin and 34 of the mouth were investigated. Toluidine blue staining was used to identify mast cells in blocks containing the central portion of the neoplasm. RESULTS: A concentration of between 0 and 10 mast cells was found in one single case of SCC of the skin and there were no cases of SCC of the mouth with concentrations of mast cells in the tumor >201. In the majority of cases of SCC of the mouth (47%; n=16), mast cell concentration was between 0 and 10, with a concentration >51 mast cells in 80% of cases of SCC of the skin. All the cases of SCC of the mouth with a concentration of mast cells between 100 and 200 and 80% of those with a concentration of 51-99 were located on the lip. The concentration of mast cells was unrelated to the degree of differentiation of the tumor. CONCLUSION: The concentration of mast cells is lower in SCC of the mouth except when the tumor is located on the lip. This may reflect a lower need for cell activation in the microenvironment to improve vascularization in oral cancer

Presence of cells of the cervical transicional zone in cervicovaginal smears in women older than 40 years old

OBJETIVO: avaliar a frequência de células da junção escamo-colunar (JEC) em esfregaços cérvico-vaginais de mulheres com 40 anos ou mais. MÉTODOS: foi realizado um estudo retrospectivo, com revisão de 24.316 laudos colpocitológicos realizados no período de janeiro de 2005 a dezembro de 2008, para avaliação dos casos sem material da JEC. Os critérios de exclusão foram: hiterectomia total, esfregaços com atrofia intensa ou insatisfatórios para análise, casos sem visualização do colo uterino ou com o orifício externo do colo uterino fechado ao exame e aqueles sem a idade da paciente. Foram incluídas neste estudo 21.866 citologias cérvico-vaginais. Avaliou-se a relação entre a presença de material da JEC e uso de terapia de reposição hormonal (TRH) nas pacientes com 40 anos ou mais e a relação entre presença de material da JEC e processo inflamatório moderado a intenso nas pacientes com idade inferior ou igual a 39 anos. Para análise estatística utilizou-se o teste do χ2 e o teste de razão de chances. RESULTADOS: apenas 11,2% das pacientes com idade inferior a 40 anos não apresentavam material da JEC em seus esfregaços, enquanto nas pacientes com 40 anos ou mais, 47% não apresentavam (p=0,0001). A maioria das pacientes com 40 anos ou mais (92,1%) não fazia uso de TRH e este não foi um fator preditor da incidência de material da JEC nestas pacientes (p>0,05). Em contrapartida, a maioria das pacientes com idade inferior a 40 anos sem material da JEC (74,5%) apresenta inflamação exuberante no esfregaço (p=0,0001). CONCLUSÃO: pacientes com 40 anos ou mais apresentam uma menor incidência de material da JEC em esfregaços cérvico-vaginais, e inflamação é um fator que contribui para ausência de material da JEC nos esfregaços das pacientes com idade inferior a 40 anos.PURPOSE: to evaluate the frequency of cells of the cervical transitional zone (CTZ) in cervicovaginal smears of women older than 40 years. METHODS: we conducted a retrospective study with review of 24,316 Pap smear reports during the period from January 2005 to December 2008, to evaluate the cases without material of the CTZ. Exclusion criteria were: total hysterectomy, smears with severe atrophy or unsatisfactory for analysis, cases without visualization of the cervix or the external orifice of the cervix closed during examination and records without the patient's age. A total of 21,866 cervical-vaginal cytology reports were included in this study. We evaluated the relationship between the presence of material of the CTZ and use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in patients aged 40 years or more and the relationship between presence of material of the CTZ and a moderate to intense inflammatory process in patients aged 39 years or less. Data were analyzed statistically by the χ2 test and Odds Ratio. RESULTS: only 11.2% of patients younger than 40 years had no material from the CTZ in their smears, while 47% patients older than 40 years had no material from the CTZ (p=0.0001). Most patients aged 40 years or more (92.1%) did not use HRT and this was not a predictor of incidence of CTZ material in these patients (p> 0.05). In contrast, most patients younger than 40 years without CTZ material (74.5%) had abundant inflammation in the smears (p=0.0001). CONCLUSION: patients aged 40 years or more had a lower incidence of material from the CTZ in cervicovaginal smears, and inflammation was a factor that contributed to the absence of CTZ material in the smears from patients younger than 40 years

Primeira armada da Índia: novo conceito de jogo misturando realidades aumentada e virtual, gestos finos e amplos

Comunicação apresentada na SciTecIn15 - Conferência Ciências e Tecnologias da Interação, realizada em Coimbra, de 12-13 de novembro de 2015Apresentamos um conceito de jogo inovador e o seu protótipo inicial, integrando tipos distintos de interação e de visualização. Dois jogadores interagem como timoneiro de uma nau portuguesa e gigante Adamastor. Um joga em realidade virtual controlada por gestos finos, outro usa aumentação contextual com gestos amplos e fi-nos. Pretende o conceito e o protótipo servirem como exemplificadores das potencialidades das novas formas de interação e de como as concretizar

Separating gesture detection and application control concerns with a multimodal architecture

Comunicação apresentada na conferência internacional - CIT 2015, realizada de 26-28 de outubro de 2015Gesture-controlled applications typically are tied to specific gestures, and also tied to specific recognition methods and specific gesture-detection devices. We propose a concernseparation architecture, which mediates the following concerns: gesture acquisition; gesture recognition; and gestural control. It enables application developers to respond to gesture-independent commands, recognized using plug-in gesture-recognition modules that process gesture data via both device-dependent and deviceindependent data formats and callbacks. Its feasibility is demonstrated with a sample implementation

ABSENTEÍSMO DE FUNCIONÁRIOS EM UM HOSPITAL PÚBLICO EM PRESIDENTE PRUDENTE – SP

 O objetivo deste trabalho foi identificar o absenteísmo de funcionários em um hospital público com atendimento materno-infantil na cidade de Presidente Prudente - SP. Os dados foram obtidos através dos prontuários dos funcionários, da guia de perícia médica e do livro registro de licença-saúde, com os diagnósticos médicos codificados usando a CID – 9 e 10. Foram realizadas as estatísticas descritivas e duas regressões logísticas binárias, com nível de significância de 5%. A média de afastamento por licença foi de 19,85 dias, e dos atestados, 2,37 dias. Os funcionários com nível superior têm menos afastamentos do que os com nível primário e secundário. Uma mulher tem razão de chance 2,09 vezes maior de ter uma licença do que um homem, e uma razão de chance 4,92 vezes maior de ter um atestado do que um homem. As mulheres têm uma chance maior de se afastarem de suas funções do que os homens, sendo gravidez, parto e puerpério as principais causas de afastamento, condições inerentes ao sexo feminino, seguidas por lesões, envenenamento, causas e consequências externas e doenças osteomusculares. Palavras-chave: Absenteísmo, hospital público, trabalhador da saúde.     EMPLOYEES ABSENTEEISM IN A PUBLIC HOSPITAL IN PRESIDENTE PRUDENTE - SP   Abstract To identify the absenteeism of the workers in a public hospital with maternal-child health services in the city of Presidente Prudente, São Paulo, Brazil, was carried out this studies were performed based on the medical records of the workers, the respective analysis from the guides of medical investigations and the register books of health license. The selected medical diagnostic had codes CID-9-10. Statistical analyses was performed through descriptive as well logistic regression with a significance level of 5%. The mean of absence days in sick leave was 19.85 days and the health certificate was 2.37 days. A woman had odds ratio of 2.09 times greater to have a sick leave than a man and odds ratio of 4.92 times bigger to have a health certificate than a man. The women have bigger odds ratio of absenteeism from their functions than the men. The main causes of absenteeism being pregnancy, parturition and postpartum period, which are inherent for them, followed of the injuries, poisoning and environmental exposure and osteo-muscle sickness. Keywords: Absenteeism, public hospital, workers of heal

Associations between Coronavirus and Immune Response, Cardiorespiratory Fitness Rehabilitation and Physical Activity: A Brief Report

COVID-19 has serious effects on cardiorespiratory capacity. In this sense, physical activity has been identified as beneficial in the treatment of cardiorespiratory diseases due to its anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive benefits. To date, no study has been found on cardiorespiratory capacity and rehabilitation in patients cured after COVID-19. Thus, this brief report aims to relate the benefits of physical activity to cardiorespiratory function after COVID-19. It is important to know how different levels of physical activity can be related to the different symptoms of COVID-19. In view of this, the objectives of this brief report were to: (1) explore the theoretical associations between COVID-19 symptoms and physical activity; (2) compare the cardiorespiratory function of non-COVID-19 participants and post-COVID-19 patients; and (3) propose a physical activity program to improve the cardiorespiratory fitness of post-COVID-19 patients. Thus, we note that moderate-intensity physical activity (i.e., walking) has a greater beneficial effect on immune function, whereas vigorous activity (i.e., marathon running) tends to temporarily reduce immune function through an imbalance of cytokine types I and II in the hours and days after exercise. However, there is no consensus in the literature in this regard, since other investigations suggest that high-intensity training can also be beneficial, not causing clinically relevant immunosuppression. Physical activity has been shown to be beneficial in improving the clinical conditions most frequently associated with severe COVID-19. Thus, it is possible to infer that physically active individuals seem to be less exposed to the dangers of severe COVID-19 compared to non-active individuals through the benefits of physical activity in strengthening the immune system and fighting infections. The current study demonstrates that physical activity appears to be beneficial in improving the clinical conditions most often associated with severe COVID-19.This research was founded by the Higher Institute of Educational Sciences of the Douro and by national funds (FCT—Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology) under the project UIBD/DTP/04045/2021.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio