On the motivations for Merleau-Ponty’s ontological research

This paper attempts to clarify Merleau-Ponty’s later work by tracing a hitherto overlooked set of concerns that were of key consequence for the formulation of his ontological research. I argue that his ontology can be understood as a response to a set of problems originating in reflections on the intersubjective use of language in dialogue, undertaken in the early 1950s. His study of dialogue disclosed a structure of meaning-formation and pointed towards a theory of truth (both recurring ontological topics) that post-Phenomenology premises could not account for. A study of dialogue shows that speakers’ positions are interchangeable, that speaking subjects are active and passive in varying degrees, and that the intentional roles of subjects and objects are liable to shift or ‘transgress’ themselves. These observations anticipate the concepts of ‘reversibility’ and ‘narcissism’, his later view of activity and passivity, and his later view of intentionality, and sharpened the need to adopt an intersubjective focus in ontological research

Ethnic differences in results of fertility and mother’s health care: Portuguese population and Cape Verdeans living in Portugal

This paper pursues a comparison between sociographic profiles and birthcare conditions related to the Portuguese and Cape Verdean mothers living in Portugal, considering the cultural and ethnic variables as determinants to possible distinctions. Based on the live birth Survey, the Fertility Survey results and the Population Census (official statistics produced by the National Statistics Institute), a statistical analysis was performed, namely, a K-means Cluster Analysis and a Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA). We adopted a longitudinal and comparative perspective in the 1995-2013 period. Furthermore, a synchronic analysis approach has been underlined, thoroughly exploring the database of entries of live births for the year 2013. Despite the fertility rate being lower in the Portuguese population, there is a tendency for convergence between the fertility patterns of both populations, which reveals a porosity of the the Cape Verdean population by incorporating a different fertility model from the one that exists in their country of origin. Fertility occurs later in the Portuguese women compared with the Cape Verdeans. Differences were also observed in both populations, regarding the sociographic profiles, the birthcare conditions and, finally, the marital status and family structure.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Comparação de perfis de fecundidade em duas populações culturalmente distintas: portuguesa e cabo-verdiana residente em Portugal

Nas últimas décadas, em Portugal, os comportamentos em matéria de fecundidade têm assumido contornos de ajustamento às características da modernidade e da especificidade socioeconómica do país. De uma forma articulada, os indicadores da intensidade e do calendário da fecundidade vão revelando sucessivamente, ao longo dos anos, uma redução do número médio de filhos por mulher (perto do padrão do filho único) e idades mais tardias na fecundidade (atualmente, perto dos 30 anos). Por outro lado, o contexto/perfil sociodemográfico da população fecunda revela-se diferenciador dos resultados da fecundidade, bem como das condições assistenciais de nascimento. O aumento do peso da população fecunda com capitais escolar e social elevados associa-se a um calendário de fecundidade tardio e sugere uma assistência mais institucionalizada, medicalizada e normalizada do nascimento. Sendo Portugal um país de forte imigração, questionamo-nos até que ponto é que os contrastes culturais e étnicos podem introduzir esbatimentos ou reforços no padrão de fecundidade dominante. Assim, é nosso objetivo, num primeiro momento, procedermos à comparação dos perfis de fecundidade da população portuguesa com os da população imigrante com um maior tempo de permanência em Portugal, a população cabo-verdiana, o que nos remete para a importância, em tese, de variáveis de natureza cultural e étnica na ancoragem de eventuais distinções. Num segundo momento, interrogamo-nos sobre o papel explicativo, em simultâneo ou com preponderâncias variáveis, dos indicadores de classe social e de etnia na configuração: i) dos comportamentos fecundos (no que diz respeito à intensidade e ao calendário); ii) dos enquadramentos familiares e de conjugalidade; iii) e ainda das condições assistenciais no nascimento. As fontes de informação consideradas para este estudo são, fundamentalmente, as bases de dados dos nados-vivos, do Instituto Nacional de Estatística, de 2011.info:eu-repo/semantics/submittedVersio

Leisure time physical activity throughout adulthood is associated with lower medicare costs : Evidence from the linked nih-aarp diet and health study cohort

Background There is limited information about the association between long-term leisure time physical activity (LTPA) participation and healthcare costs. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association LTPA over adulthood with later life healthcare costs in the USA. Methods Using Medicare claims data (between 1999 and 2008) linked to the National Institutes of Health-American Association of Retired Persons (NIH-AARP) Diet and Health Study, we examined associations between nine trajectories of physical activity participation throughout adulthood with Medicare costs. Results Compared with adults who were consistently inactive from adolescence into middle age, average annual healthcare costs were significantly lower for maintainers, adults who maintained moderate (-US$1350 (95$2009 to-US$690) or-15.9$1200 (95% CI:-US$1777 to-US$622) or-14.1% (95% CI:-20.9% to-7.3%)) and increasers, adults who increased physical activity levels in early adulthood (-US$1874 (95$2691 to-US$1057) or-22.0$824 (95% CI:-US$1580 to-US$69 or-9.7% (95% CI-18.6% to-0.8%)). For the four trajectories where physical activity decreased, the only significant difference was for adults who increased physical activity levels during early adulthood with a decline in middle age (-US$861 (95$1678 to-US$45) or-10.1% (95% CI:-19.7% to-0.5%)). Conclusion Our analyses suggest the healthcare cost burden in later life could be reduced through promotion efforts supporting physical activity participation throughout adulthood

Prospective associations between accelerometry-derived physical activity and sedentary behaviors and mortality among cancer survivors

BACKGROUND: Survival benefits of self-reported recreational physical activity (PA) during cancer survivorship are well-documented in common cancer types, yet there are limited data on the associations between accelerometer-derived PA of all domains, sedentary behavior, and mortality in large, diverse cohorts of cancer survivors. METHODS: Participants included adults who reported a cancer diagnosis in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and wore an accelerometer for up to 7 days in 2003-2006. Participants were followed for subsequent mortality through 2015. We examined the association of light PA, moderate to vigorous PA, total PA, and sedentary behavior, with all-cause mortality. Cox proportional hazards models estimated hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs), adjusting for demographics and health indicators. RESULTS: A total of 480 participants (mean age of 68.8 years [SD = 12.4] at the time of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey assessment) reported a history of cancer. A total of 215 deaths occurred over the follow-up period. For every 1-h/d increase in light PA and moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA), cancer survivors had 49% (HR = 0.51, 95% CI = 0.34 to 0.76) and 37% (HR = 0.63 , 95% CI = 0.40 to 0.99) lower hazards of all-cause mortality, respectively. Total PA demonstrated similar associations with statistically significantly lower hazards of death for each additional hour per day (HR = 0.68, 95% CI = 0.54 to 0.85), as did every metabolic equivalents of task-hour per day increase in total PA estimations of energy expenditure (HR = 0.88, 95% CI = 0.82 to 0.95). Conversely, more sedentary time (1 h/d) was not associated with statistically significantly higher hazards (HR = 1.08, 95% CI = 0.94 to 1.23). CONCLUSIONS: These findings reinforce the current recommendations for cancer survivors to be physically active and underscore the continued need for widespread PA promotion for long-term survival in older cancer survivors

Parent Artery Occlusion in Large, Giant, or Fusiform Aneurysms of the Carotid Siphon: Clinical and Imaging Results

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Parent artery occlusion has long been considered the reference treatment for large/giant or fusiform aneurysms of the carotid siphon. However, meager recent data exist on this technique, which tends to be replaced by stent-assisted reconstructive techniques. In our department since 2004, we have assessed the safety, efficacy, and complication risk factors of parent artery occlusion by using coils for trapping these aneurysms

Merleau-Ponty and the Measuring Body

In recent years a growing number of scholars in science studies and related fields are developing new ontologies to displace entrenched dualisms. These efforts often go together with a renewed interest in the roles played by symbolisms and tools in knowledge and being. This article brings Maurice Merleau-Ponty into these conversations, positioning him as a precursor of today’s innovative recastings of technoscience. While Merleau-Ponty is often invoked in relation to his early work on the body and embodiment, this article focuses on his later work, where the investigation of perception is integrated with an ontological exploration. The resulting approach revolves around the highly original idea of the body as a standard of measurement. We further develop this idea by coining the term ‘the measuring body’, which to a greater extent than did Merleau-Ponty accentuates the relative autonomy of symbolisms and tools and their capacity to decentre the perceiving body

Fibroma ossificante dei seni paranasali: diagnosi e management

Le lesioni fibro-ossee benigne raramente colpiscono i seni paranasali e sono suddivise in 3 entità: osteoma, displasia fibrosa e fibroma ossificante. Questi presentano simili caratteristiche cliniche, radiologiche e istologiche ma hanno un comportamento diverso. Il fibroma ossificante, in particolare la variante istologica giovanile, può presentare un comportamento aggressivo con un alto rischio di recidiva se rimosso in modo incompleto. Lo scopo dello studio è quello di paragonare il comportamento clinico del fibroma ossificante con quello delle altre lesioni fibro-ossee; di evidenziare un eventuale comportamento differente tra i vari sottotipi istologici; di descrivere i vantaggi, i limiti e i risultati della chirurgia endoscopica endonasale rispetto ai dati presenti in letteratura. Abbiamo analizzato retrospettivamente 11 pazienti affetti da fibroma ossificante naso-sinusale e trattati in un centro ospedaliero di terzo livello. Tutti i pazienti sono stati sottoposti a TC. La RM è stata eseguita in caso di coinvolgimento del basicranio o in caso di recidiva. Una biopsia pre-operatoria è stata effettuata nei casi in cui la massa era raggiungibile per via endoscopica. Un paziente è stato sottoposto a embolizzazione pre-operatoria ed ha riportato una cecità monolaterale al termine della procedure. In base alla localizzazione, l’exeresi del tumore è stata eseguita con un approccio endoscopico (7 pazienti), esterno (3), combinato (1). Istologicamente 5 pazienti hanno riportato un sottotipo convenzionale, 5 la variante giovanile psammomatoide associata in un caso a cisti aneurismatica ossea, e un paziente la variante giovanile trabecolare. Tre pazienti affetti dalla variante istologica giovanile psammomatoide hanno presentato un’invasione del basicranio e sono stati sottoposti ad exeresi subtotale per via endoscopica che ha richiesto in seguito, a causa di un aumento di volume del residuo, un secondo intervento per via transbasale. I reperti clinici, radiologici e istologici dovrebbero essere considerati insieme per una accurata diagnosi differenziale tra le lesioni fibro-ossee. Ulteriori studi sono necessari per concludere se la localizzazione e l’estensione del fibroma ossificante al momento della diagnosi sono più importanti della variante istologica. L’approccio endoscopico è la prima opzione nella maggior parte dei casi anche se in alcuni selezionati pazienti l’approccio esterno risulta ancora necessario

Different healthy habits between northern and southern Spanish school children

Aim: Healthy habits are influenced by several factors such as, geographical location. The aims of this study were to describe and compare healthy habits within two populations of sixth-grade primary school children (aged 11-12 years) from Northern and Southern Spain. Subject and Methods: A cross-sectional study using two representative samples of school children was conducted. Participants came from Logroño (n=329), in the North and Granada (n=284), in the South of Spain. Socio-demographic and anthropometric variables, adherence to the Mediterranean diet, aerobic fitness, and healthy lifestyles were recorded. Results: Boys reported higher level of physical activity and aerobic fitness than girls (p=0.000). Southern school children reported significantly higher adherence to the Mediterranean diet (♀: p=0.041; ♂: p=0.008), and lower aerobic fitness (♀: p=0.000; ♂: p=0.042) and hours of nightly sleep (♀: p=0.008, ♂: p=0.007) than Northern school children. Southern boys also reported lower levels of physical activity (p=0.013). There were slight or moderate correlations among all habits measured (physical activity, diet, screen and sleep time). Additionally, physical activity level was inversely related to body mass index in Northern boys (p=0.020) and Southern girls (p=0.024). Conclusions: Results showed differences in physical activity, eating and sleep habits, and aerobic fitness, according to geographical location. The relationships found among lifestyle habits indicate the need of health promotion interventions nationally and considering the differences discussed here