Post-traumatic stress symptoms in 223 childhood cancer survivors: incidence, severity and predictive risk factors

With modern therapies and supportive care, survival rates of childhood cancer have increased considerably. However, there are long-term psychological sequelae of these treatments that may not manifest until pediatric survivors are into adulthood. The prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder in young adult survivors of childhood cancer ranges from 6.2 to 22%; associated risk factors are young age at the assessment, female gender, low education level, and some disease-related factors. The aim of this study was to investigate, in adolescent and young adult (AYA) survivors of childhood cancer, the incidence and severity of post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSSs), and to identify the risk factors and the associated post-traumatic growth (PTG) index. Participants were 223 AYA cancer survivors recruited during follow-up visits in the Oncohematology Clinic of the Department of Child and Woman\u2019s Health, University of Padua. Data were collected from self-report questionnaires on PTSS incidence, PTG mean score, perceived social support, and medical and socio-demographic factors. Ex-patients\u2019 mean age at the assessment was 19.33 years (SD = 3.01, 15\u201325), 123 males and 100 females, with a mean of years off-therapy of 9.64 (SD = 4.17). Most (52.5%) had survived an hematological disorder and 47.5% a solid tumor when they were aged, on average, 8.02 years (SD = 4.40). The main results indicated a moderate presence of clinical ( 659 symptoms: 9.4%) and sub-clinical PTSS (6\u20138 symptoms: 11.2%), with the avoidance criterion most often encountered. Re-experience symptoms and PTG mean score were significantly associated (r = 0.24; p = 0.0001). A hierarchical regression model (R2 = 0.08; F = 1.46; p = 0.05) identified female gender (\u3b2 = 0.16; p = 0.05) and less perceived social support (\u3b2 = -0.43; p = 0.05) as risk factors to developing PTSS. Another hierarchical regression model assessed the possible predictors of the PTG total score (R2 = 0.36; F = 9.1; p = 0.0001), with female gender (\u3b2 = 0.13; p = 0.04), actual age (\u3b2 = 0.52; p = 0.0001), younger age at the diagnosis (\u3b2 = -0.3; p = 0.02), and less years off-therapy (\u3b2 = -0.58; p = 0.0001) impacting on PTG

Self\u2010esteem and academic difficulties in preadolescents and adolescents healed from paediatric leukaemia

Adolescents with cancer may demonstrate problems in their self\u2010esteem and schooling. This study aims to screen the preadolescents and adolescents more at risk in their self\u2010esteem perception and schooling difficulties post\u2010five years from the end of therapy. Twenty\u2010five paediatric ex\u2010patients healed from leukaemia were recruited at the Haematology\u2010Oncologic Clinic (University of Padua). The mean age of the children was 13.64 years (Standard Deviation (SD)) = 3.08, range = 10\u201319 years), most were treated for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) (84%) and relatively equally distributed by gender. They filled in the Multidimensional Self\u2010Esteem Test, while parents completed a questionnaire on their child\u2019s schooling. Global self\u2010esteem was mostly below the 50 percentile (58.5%), especially regarding interpersonal relationships (75%). An independent sample t\u2010test showed significant mean differences on the emotionality scale (t = 2.23; degree of freedom (df) = 24; p = 0.03) and in the bodily experience scale (t = 3.02; df = 24; p = 0.006) with survivors of Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML) having lower scores. An Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) showed significant mean differences in the bodily experience scale (F = 12.31; df = 2, p = 0.0001) depending on the survivors\u2019 assigned risk band. The parent reports showed that 43.5% of children had difficulties at school. Childhood AML survivors with a high\u2010risk treatment were more at risk in their self\u2010esteem perceptions. Preventive interventions focusing on self\u2010esteem and scholastic wellbeing are suggested in order to help their return to their normal schedules

Motor skill delays in pre-school children with leukemia one year after treatment: Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation therapy as an important risk factor

CNS-directed therapies for the treatment of leukemia can adversely affect the acquisition of new skills, such as reading/writing and math. Two years after the end of treatments, children show gross and fine motor skill delays that may persist even when patients are considered healed. The goal of the present study was to assess motor skills difficulties in pre-school children with leukemia one year after treatment. Particular attention has been paid to those patients who had undergone Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (HSCT) and to the relationship between motor delays and age bands. Participants were 60 children (median age of 5; inter quartile range: 3.07-5.76), including 31 females and 29 males, 91.7% of them were affected by acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), and 8.3% by acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Five children had undergone HCST. Parents were interviewed by Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (VABS) on children\u2019s motor skills and filled in the Italian Temperament Questionnaire (QUIT). VABS\u2019s total scores were converted into equivalent mental age scores (EMA). A score difference of at least three months between current age and equivalent mental age was considered a developmental delay. Non-parametric analyses were run to understand if HSCT treatment and a specific age band influence children\u2019s motor skills. Significant delays were found in global motor skills (56.7%) as well as in fine and gross motor domains. Mann Whitney U tests showed that children with HSCT were reported to have lower gross motor mean ranks (U = 62; p=0.004; Mean rank =15.40) than peers without HSCT (Mean rank = 31.87) and lower mean rank values on motor temperament scale (U = 9; p = 0.003; HSCT Mean rank = 4.75 versus no HSCT Mean rank = 27.81). Kruskal Wallis\u2019 tests identified the high risk treatment showing that HSCT experience negatively impacted the motor skills and temperamental motor activity of pre-school children one year after the diagnosis of leukemia

Health‐related quality of life in AYA cancer survivors who underwent HSCT compared with healthy peers

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How the italian residential sector could contribute to load flexibility in demand response activities: a methodology for residential clustering and developing a flexibility strategy

This work aims at exploring the potential contribution of the Italian residential sector in implementing load flexibility for Demand Response activities. In detail, by combining experimental and statistical approaches, a method to estimate the load profile of a dwelling cluster of 751 units has been presented. To do so, 14 dwelling archetypes have been defined and the algorithm to categorise the sample units has been built. Then, once the potential flexible loads for each archetype have been evaluated, a control strategy for applying load time shifting has been implemented. That strategy accounts for both the power demand profile and the hourly electricity price. Specifically, it has been assumed that end users access a pricing mechanism following the hourly trend of electricity economic value, which is traded day by day in the Italian spot market, instead of the current Time of Use (TOU) system. In such a way, it is possible to flatten the dwellings cluster profile, limiting undesired and unexpected results on the balancing market. In the end, monthly and yearly flexibility indexes have been defined along with the strategy effectiveness parameter. From calculations, it emerges that a dwelling cluster for the Italian residential sector is characterised by a flexibility index of 10.3% and by a strategy effectiveness equal to 34%. It is noteworthy that the highest values for flexibility purpose have been registered over the heating season (winter) for the weekends

Long-term continuous monitoring of the preterm brain with diffuse optical tomography and electroencephalography: A technical note on cap manufacturing

open12noDiffuse optical tomography (DOT) has recently proved useful for detecting whole-brain oxygenation changes in preterm and term newborns' brains. The data recording phase in prior explorations was limited up to a maximum of a couple of hours, a time dictated by the need to minimize skin damage caused by the protracted contact with optode holders and interference with concomitant clinical/nursing procedures. In an attempt to extend the data recording phase, we developed a new custom-made cap for multimodal DOT and electroencephalography acquisitions for the neonatal population. The cap was tested on a preterm neonate (28 weeks gestation) for a 7-day continuous monitoring period. The cap was well tolerated by the neonate, who did not suffer any evident discomfort and/or skin damage. Montage and data acquisition using our cap was operated by an attending nurse with no difficulty. DOT data quality was remarkable, with an average of 92% of reliable channels, characterized by the clear presence of the heartbeat in most of them.openopenAlfonso Galderisi; Sabrina Brigadoi; Simone Cutini; Sara Basso Moro; Elisabetta Lolli; Federica Meconi; Silvia Benavides-Varela; Eugenio Baraldi; Piero Amodio; Claudio Cobelli; Daniele Trevisanuto; Roberto Dell'AcquaGalderisi, Alfonso; Brigadoi, Sabrina; Cutini, Simone; BASSO MORO, Sara; Lolli, Elisabetta; Meconi, Federica; Silvia, Benavides-Varela; Baraldi, Eugenio; Amodio, Piero; Cobelli, Claudio; Trevisanuto, Daniele; Dell'Acqua, Robert

Licenciaturas em Ciências e Educação Inclusiva: a visão dos/as licenciandos/as

In Brazil, the inclusion of students with special educational needs (SEN), especially those with disabilities, is a recent topic in research on science teaching. Existing research within this feld is more focused on classroom practice and didactic materials. A study was carried out within the undergraduate teaching licensing courses in the public universities of the state of São Paulo (USP, Unicamp and UNESP) which aimed to analyze the training of Science teachers for the inclusion of SEN students. The work presented here is a portion of this study and it aims to present and discuss the students’ perception about their initial training for the inclusion of students with SEN. The survey was conducted with 236 students in their fnal year of undergraduate courses in Biology, Physics and Chemistry. From the graduate’s responses, it was determined that teacher training courses have underprepared future teachers to work with students with disabilities, and most of the graduates do not feel prepared to teach students with SEN. In these courses there is little discussion of Inclusive Education and when there is discussion, it occurs in a non-systematized form and only in specifc instances. This data is worrying, since these future teachers will teach classes for students with SEN without understanding Inclusive Education and without perceiving themselves as prepared, which can ultimately lead to discouragement and disinterest within the teaching profession. No Brasil, a inclusão de estudantes com necessidades educacionais especiais (NEE) é um tema recente em pesquisas sobre ensino de Ciências e os estudos, de maneira geral, abordam a prática em sala de aula e materiais didáticos. O trabalho aqui apresentado é um recorte de uma pesquisa que analisou a formação inicial de professores da área de Ciências para a inclusão de alunos NEE, em cursos de universidades públicas estaduais do estado de São Paulo e tem por objetivo apresentar e discutir a percepção dos estudantes sobre a sua formação inicial para a inclusão de alunos com NEE. Participaram do estudo 236 alunos do último ano dos cursos presenciais de Licenciatura em Ciências (Biologia, Física e Química) das universidades públicas estaduais do estado de São Paulo (USP, Unicamp e UNESP). A partir das respostas dos licenciandos, pode-se considerar que os cursos de formação de professores têm preparado pouco os futuros docentes para atuarem com alunos com defciência e a maioria dos licenciandos não se sente preparada para lecionar aos alunos com NEE. Nesses cursos, não é proposta a discussão sobre Educação Inclusiva e quando ocorre, ela se dá em poucas aulas ou de forma não sistematizada, a partir de eventos pontuais. Esse dado é preocupante, pois esses futuros professores ministrarão aulas para alunos com NEE sem compreender a Educação Inclusiva e sem se perceberem como preparados, o que pode acarretar em desânimo e desinteresse com a profssão de professor

A formação inicial para o Ensino de Ciências e a Educação Inclusiva: o currículo das licenciaturas

O objetivo do trabalho foi analisar a inserção da temática Educação Inclusiva (EI) em cursos de licenciatura da área de Ciências (Biologia, Física e Química), dasuniversidades públicas estaduais do estado de São Paulo. Analisou-se o projetopolíticos pedagógicos (PPP) e planos de ensino das disciplinas da áreapedagógica, através da análise documental. Dos PPPs das licenciaturas emCiências, apenas um curso de Física (FIS 4), um de Química (QUIM 6) e CiênciasBiológicas (BIO 13) tratam da EI. Em relação às disciplinas que abordam a EI, dos13 cursos de licenciatura em Ciências Biológicas, apenas três apresentamdisciplinas que abordam a temática. Dos nove cursos de licenciatura em Física,quatro possuem disciplina que abordam a temática. Dos oito cursos delicenciatura em Química, dois contam com disciplinas que abordam a temática“Educação Inclusiva”. Palavras-chaves Formação Inicial; Ensino de Ciências; Educação Inclusiva

A PRÁTICA DA ASSESSORIA E DA CONSULTORIA EMPRESARIAL NO CURSO DE ADMININSTRAÇÃO

Para alcançar um potencial competitivo no mercado, as empresas estão cada vez mais atentas à importância da consultoria empresarial, principalmente aquelas que almejam uma maior visibilidade junto a seu público alvo. A consultoria tornou-se o grande elo através do qual realiza-se a percepção das oportunidades que surgem no mercado, auxilia a busca pelo crescimento através de novas praticas e aperfeiçoamentos de metodologias, tornando-se dessa forma mais do que um ponto de suporte. Com o objetivo de promover a vivência desta prática, o curso de Administração da Unoesc Chapecó, realizou uma disciplina focando Assessoria e  Consultoria Empresarial para a oitava fase do curso. Os conceitos e práticas foram incluídos e justificados pela competitividade atual o que leva as empresas manterem um aperfeiçoamento constante dos seus processos para acompanhar o mercado, um dos meios da organização rever seus processos, além facilitar e agregar aos discentes novas competências e habilidades  para atuarem nos processos de intervenção nas organizações.  A disciplina ocorreu no primeiro semestre deste ano, e através de atividades práticas foram simuladas empresas prestadoras de serviços em assessoria e consultoria empresarial abrangendo todo o processo de intervenção

Empreendedorismo Agil

O empreendedorismo ágil compreende uma proposta de uma disciplina de cunho transdiciplinar voltada ao empreendedorismo tradicional que ultrapassou as fronteiras da interdisciplinariedade, uma vez que envolveu acadêmicos dos cursos de Ciências Contábeis, Administração, Sistema de Informação, Engenharia da Computação e Pré-incubados do Núcleo de Inovação Tecnológica (NIT) do Campus de Chapecó. A disciplina proposta supera o conceito de disciplina convencional ao realizar a relação entre saberes das áreas de exatas, humanas e artes, interação das ciências, além de prover uma compreensão do mundo real por meio de práticas inovadoras. Nesta disciplina, foram utilizadas práticas educacionais inovadoras em que os acadêmicos foram conduzidos a elaborarem uma solução voltada ao agronegócio por meio da ferramenta do Design Thinking. Na sequência, realizaram a validação das ideias com auxílio do Design Thinking e pesquisas de mercado e depois iniciaram a construção do modelo de negócio com o Business Model Canvas (CANVAS). E seguida, elaboraram o produto mínimo viável (MVP) de suas soluções. E por fim, participaram de um Pitch de Negócios sob a avaliação de empresários da Associação Comercial de Chapecó (ACIC), empreendedores e professores para que estes realizassem uma análise criteriosa das soluções propostas pelos acadêmicos