Seroprevalence and risk factors associated with Helicobacter pylori infection in blood donors in Salvador, Northeast-Brazil

Helicobacter pylori plays an important role in the etiology of peptic ulcer disease. Its prevalence appears to be higher in developing countries. We evaluated the seroprevalence of H. pylori and risk factors associated with infection in voluntary blood donors who attended the main blood center of the city of Salvador, Brazil. The subjects responded to an epidemiological questionnaire, with information about sex, age, race, lifestyle, social-economic level indicators, and residence and hygiene conditions. Anti-H. pylori antibody was determined by ELISA (Cobas Core, Roche). Three hundred and seven subjects were included in the study. Anti-H. pylori antibody results were indeterminate in 33 individuals (10.8%), who were excluded from analysis. Among the remaining 274 subjects, 187 (68.2%) were anti-H. pylori positive. Based on multivariate logistic regression analysis three variables were found to be significantly associated with a higher prevalence of H. pylori infection: absence of plumbing in the residence during childhood, a history of rainwater invading the dwelling during childhood, and low ingestion of milk.339345Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Lentinus crinitus response to blue light on carbohydrate-active enzymes

Fungi are capable of sensing light from ultraviolet to far-red and they use light as a source of information about the environment anticipating stress and adverse conditions. Lentinus crinitus is a lignin-degrading fungus which produces laccase and other enzymes of biotechnological interest. The effect of blue light on fungal enzymatic activity has been studied; however, it has not been found studies on the effect of the blue light on carbohydrate-active enzymes and on mycelial biomass production of L. crinitus. We aimed to investigate carbohydrate-active enzymes activity and mycelial biomass production of L. crinitus cultivated under continuous illumination with blue light. L. crinitus was cultivated in malt extract medium in the dark, without agitation, and under continuous illumination with blue light-emitting diodes. The blue light reduced the total cellulase, pectinase and xylanase activities but increased the endoglucanase activity. Blue light reduced the mycelial growth of L. crinitus in 26% and the enzymatic activity-to-mycelial biomass ratio (U mg-1 dry basis) increased in 10% total cellulase, 33% endoglucanase, and 16% pectinase activities. Also, it is suggested that L. crinitus has a photosensory system and it could lead to new process of obtaining enzymes of biotechnological interest

Rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART): Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background: Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is associated with high in-hospital mortality. Alveolar recruitment followed by ventilation at optimal titrated PEEP may reduce ventilator-induced lung injury and improve oxygenation in patients with ARDS, but the effects on mortality and other clinical outcomes remain unknown. This article reports the rationale, study design, and analysis plan of the Alveolar Recruitment for ARDS Trial (ART). Methods/Design: ART is a pragmatic, multicenter, randomized (concealed), controlled trial, which aims to determine if maximum stepwise alveolar recruitment associated with PEEP titration is able to increase 28-day survival in patients with ARDS compared to conventional treatment (ARDSNet strategy). We will enroll adult patients with ARDS of less than 72 h duration. The intervention group will receive an alveolar recruitment maneuver, with stepwise increases of PEEP achieving 45 cmH(2)O and peak pressure of 60 cmH2O, followed by ventilation with optimal PEEP titrated according to the static compliance of the respiratory system. In the control group, mechanical ventilation will follow a conventional protocol (ARDSNet). In both groups, we will use controlled volume mode with low tidal volumes (4 to 6 mL/kg of predicted body weight) and targeting plateau pressure <= 30 cmH2O. The primary outcome is 28-day survival, and the secondary outcomes are: length of ICU stay; length of hospital stay; pneumothorax requiring chest tube during first 7 days; barotrauma during first 7 days; mechanical ventilation-free days from days 1 to 28; ICU, in-hospital, and 6-month survival. ART is an event-guided trial planned to last until 520 events (deaths within 28 days) are observed. These events allow detection of a hazard ratio of 0.75, with 90% power and two-tailed type I error of 5%. All analysis will follow the intention-to-treat principle. Discussion: If the ART strategy with maximum recruitment and PEEP titration improves 28-day survival, this will represent a notable advance to the care of ARDS patients. Conversely, if the ART strategy is similar or inferior to the current evidence-based strategy (ARDSNet), this should also change current practice as many institutions routinely employ recruitment maneuvers and set PEEP levels according to some titration method.Hospital do Coracao (HCor) as part of the Program 'Hospitais de Excelencia a Servico do SUS (PROADI-SUS)'Brazilian Ministry of Healt

As práticas de ensino-aprendizagem de leitura no ensino fundamental II: do texto ao hipertexto

This paper describes the practices of teaching and learning of reading in their mother tongue, having the computer as a primary teaching tools. This is an action research based on assumptions sociointeractionists language, language and reading. So it makes reference to the dialogical perspective, the genres - theoretical concepts and as a teaching object - the didactic sequence, the blog as a virtual support and genre experience report on the blog, as well as the teaching of reading comprehension in their mother tongue and the computer as a teaching tool. This theoretical apparatus is used to analyze part of a didactic sequence that prioritized working with the power of reading and writing (the first being the focus of this study) developed with a class II primary school in the Municipality of Benevides, Para. Also, try to ascertain to what extent these practices, when using the tool didactic computer technology, contribute to the improvement of reading comprehension of learners.O presente trabalho versa sobre as práticas de ensino-aprendizagem da leitura em língua materna, tendo o computador como uma das principais ferramentas didáticas. Trata-se de uma pesquisa-ação fundamentada em pressupostos sociointeracionistas de língua, linguagem e leitura. Portanto, faz-se referência à perspectiva dialógica, aos gêneros discursivos - concepções teóricas e como objeto de ensino - à sequência didática, ao blog como suporte virtual e gênero relato de experiência em blog, assim como ao ensino da compreensão escrita em língua materna e ai computador como ferramenta didática. Esse aparato teórico é utilizado para analisar parte de uma sequência didática que priorizou o trabalho com a competência de leitura e escrita (sendo a primeira o foco de nossos estudos) desenvolvida com uma turma do ensino fundamental II do Município de Benevides/PA. E tenta verificar em que medida essas práticas, ao se utilizar da ferramenta didático-tecnológica computador, contribuem para o aprimoramento da compreensão escrita dos aprendentes

Liver histological alterations in patients with chronic hepatitis C and normal ALT levels in the city of Salvador, Northeast-Brazil

Submitted by Ana Maria Fiscina Sampaio ([email protected]) on 2013-01-18T19:42:20Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Santana, Nelma Pereira de et al. Liver histological alterations.pdf: 117489 bytes, checksum: ae2c35cd1681fc7a9728f771c2c32d94 (MD5)Made available in DSpace on 2013-01-18T19:42:20Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Santana, Nelma Pereira de et al. Liver histological alterations.pdf: 117489 bytes, checksum: ae2c35cd1681fc7a9728f771c2c32d94 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005Federal University of Bahia. Gastro-Hepatology Service Hospital Prof. Edgard Santos. / Hospital São Rafael. Gastro-hepatology Service. Salvador, Bahia, BrasilFundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Pesquisas Gonçalo Moniz. Salvador, Bahia, Brasil / Federal University of Bahia. Pathology Department. Salvador, Bahia, BrasilFederal University of Bahia. Gastro-Hepatology Service Hospital Prof. Edgard Santos. / Hospital São Rafael. Gastro-hepatology Service. Salvador, Bahia, BrasilUniversity of Bahia. Post-graduate course in Medicine and Health Federal. Salvador, Bahia, BrasilFederal University of Bahia. Gastro-Hepatology Service Hospital Prof. Edgard Santos. / Hospital São Rafael. Gastro-hepatology Service. Salvador, Bahia, BrasilINSERM. Viral Hepatitis LAaoratory. Lyon, FranceFederal University of Bahia. Gastro-Hepatology Service Hospital Prof. Edgard Santos. / Hospital São Rafael. Gastro-hepatology Service. Salvador, Bahia, BrasilPatients with chronic hepatitis C can have variable clinical progression. Hepatic histological alterations appear to be milder in asymptomatic subjects who have persistently normal ALT levels. Aims: To evaluate the severity of histological liver alterations in blood donors with normal and elevated ALT levels. Methods: We evaluated volunteer blood donors from the main blood bank of the city of Salvador-Brazil. Those who were anti-HCV positive were invited to participate in the study. Serum ALT and AST levels were measured at two time points, two months apart. Donors were divided into two groups: group I, individuals with ALT ≥ 1.5 times the upper limit of normal in at least one time point and group II, individuals with normal or near normal ALT, at both time points. Results: We evaluated 30,232 blood donors and 528 (1.7%) of them were anti-HCV positive. Eighty-two attended our service and HCV infection was confirmed in 66 individuals. Male gender predominated in both groups; the mean age was 36 for group I, and 33 for group II. Tattoos and intravenous illicit drug use were frequently-encountered risk factors. Liver biopsy was done in 43 subjects. Among donors with elevated ALT, two (10%) had minimum alterations, while in group II normal liver or minimum alterations were observed in six (26%) subjects. Chronic hepatitis or cirrhosis was encountered in 35 (81%) individuals: three (15%) and five (21%) subjects had chronic hepatitis without inflammatory activity, 10 (50%) and 11 (48%) had minimum to moderate activity and five (25%) and one (4.3%) had cirrhosis, in groups I and II, respectively (P was not significant). Conclusions: The prevalence of anti-HCV among this population of volunteer blood donors was 1.7%, and these subjects had few liver histological alterations or chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis. Liver injury severity was significant in patients with elevated ALT, however subjects with normal levels may also present chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis