Estágio profissional de intervenção em fisioterapia neurológica com pacientes adultos após aciente vascular cerebral

Mestrado em Fisioterapia NeurológicaIntrodução: A Fisioterapia Neurológica é uma área de intervenção essencial na medida em que existem cada vez mais doentes com sequelas resultantes de lesões do sistema nervoso central a necessitar de cuidados de fisioterapia, nomeadamente doentes com Acidente Vascular Cerebral já que as taxas de incidência são altas e a mortalidade tem vindo a decrescer com os avanços da medicina. Por outro lado, os conhecimentos atuais da área da neurociência permitem que a intervenção do fisioterapeuta seja baseada na evidência. Objetivos: Aprofundar conhecimentos, capacidades e competências em Fisioterapia Neurológica em pacientes adultos; intervindo essencialmente, em pacientes com sequelas de Acidente Vascular Cerebral, desenvolvendo o modelo de raciocínio clínico e investigando a efetividade do conceito de Bobath na funcionalidade de pacientes pós Acidente Vascular Cerebral. Metodologia: O estágio articulou a vertente de investigação, a dimensão pedagógica e a prática clínica; decorreu no Hospital Curry Cabral (Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Central) com pacientes adultos a realizar fisioterapia, em regime de internamento ou ambulatório, devido a patologia neurológica e mais especificamente com pacientes com sequelas de AVC; teve a duração de 200h. Foram selecionadas três escalas de funcionalidade (o Indicador de Barthel Modificado, a Medida de Independência Funcional e a Motor Assessement Scale) para a avaliação dos casos clínicos acompanhados e a abordagem em fisioterapia foi baseada no Conceito de Bobath. Resultados: Este estágio favoreceu a aquisição e consolidação de conhecimentos na área da Fisioterapia Neurológica, nomeadamente sobre o Conceito de Bobath e a avaliação da funcionalidade. São apresentados três casos clínicos de pacientes com sequelas de AVC que permitiram treinar a aplicação das escalas de funcionalidade, desenvolver o raciocínio clínico, aplicar as estratégias selecionadas e refletir sobre a eficácia da intervenção. Discussão: Embora não exista evidência robusta da superioridade do Conceito de Bobath em relação a outras abordagens, a sua filosofia facilita a avaliação e a tomada de decisão numa perspetiva holística sem menosprezar a individualidade de cada paciente. Das três escalas de funcionalidade aplicadas a Motor Assessement Scale é a única a levar em consideração a qualidade do movimento, o que a torna mais sensível a pequenas evoluções facilitando a mensuração adequada dos objetivos da intervenção. Conclusão: A realização deste estágio foi um período de aprendizagem importante e uma experiência enriquecedora no aspeto clínico, científico e académico.ABSTRACT - Introduction: Neurological Physiotherapy is an essential intervention area as there are more and more patients with sequelae resulting from injuries to the central nervous system requiring physiotherapy care, namely patients with stroke as the incidence rates are high and mortality has been decreasing with medical advances. On the other hand, current knowledge in the field of neuroscience allows the intervention of the physiotherapist to be based on evidence Objectives: To deepen knowledge, skills, and competencies in Neurological Physiotherapy in adult patients; essentially intervening in patients with sequelae of stroke, developing the model of clinical reasoning and investigating the effectiveness of the Bobath Concept in the functionality of patients after stroke. Methodology: The internship articulated the research aspect, the pedagogical dimension, and the clinical practice; it took place at Hospital Curry Cabral (Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Central) with adult patients undergoing physical therapy, inpatient or outpatient, due to neurological pathology and more specifically with patients with stroke sequelae; lasted 200 hours. Three scales of functionality were selected (the Barthel modified indicator the Functional Independence Measure and the Motor Assessment Scale) for the evaluation of the clinical cases followed and the approach in physiotherapy was based on the Bobath Concept. Results: This internship allowed the acquisition and consolidation of knowledge in the area of Neurological Physiotherapy, namely on the Bobath Concept and the evaluation of functionality. Three clinical cases of patients with stroke sequelae are presented, which allowed to train the application of the selected functionality scales, develop clinical reasoning and reflect on the effectiveness of the intervention. Discussion: While there is no robust evidence of the superiority of the Bobath Concept over other approaches, its philosophy facilitates assessment and decision-making from a holistic perspective without underestimating the individuality of each patient. Of the three scales of functionality applied the Motor Assessment Scale, is the only one to consider the quality of the movement, which makes it more sensitive to small developments, facilitating the adequate measurement of the intervention goals. Conclusion: This internship was an important learning period and an enriching experience in the clinical, scientific, and academic aspects.N/

Pathogen-induced hatching and population-specific life-history response to water-borne cues in brown trout (Salmo trutta)

Hatching is an important niche shift, and embryos in a wide range of taxa can either accelerate or delay this life-history switch in order to avoid stage-specific risks. Such behavior can occur in response to stress itself and to chemical cues that allow anticipation of stress. We studied the genetic organization of this phenotypic plasticity and tested whether there are differences among populations and across environments in order to learn more about the evolutionary potential of stress-induced hatching. As a study species, we chose the brown trout (Salmo trutta; Salmonidae). Gametes were collected from five natural populations (within one river network) and used for full-factorial in vitro fertilizations. The resulting embryos were either directly infected with Pseudomonas fluorescens or were exposed to waterborne cues from P. fluorescens-infected conspecifics. We found that direct inoculation with P. fluorescens increased embryonic mortality and induced hatching in all host populations. Exposure to waterborne cues revealed population-specific responses. We found significant additive genetic variation for hatching time, and genetic variation in trait plasticity. In conclusion, hatching is induced in response to infection and can be affected by waterborne cues of infection, but populations and families differ in their reaction to the latter

Cheese trademarks: Italian dairy firms’ practices during the 20th century

Trademarks have recently become a very useful sources for business historians. This longitudinal analysis of the twentieth-century trademarking activities of the most important Italian dairy firms of the era, namely Galbani, Invernizzi and Locatelli, demonstrates that trademarks were used both as a protective weapon against competitors and as an innovation carrier to open up new markets. This article also argues that trademark registrations had another dual purpose – not only were they used as buffers against negative shocks but they were also used to support periods of economic growth. A fundamental finding of this work is that trademarks, across various types of registrations, were closely connected to the features on which the companies based their sales strategies

The Immune System in Stroke

Stroke represents an unresolved challenge for both developed and developing countries and has a huge socio-economic impact. Although considerable effort has been made to limit stroke incidence and improve outcome, strategies aimed at protecting injured neurons in the brain have all failed. This failure is likely to be due to both the incompleteness of modelling the disease and its causes in experimental research, and also the lack of understanding of how systemic mechanisms lead to an acute cerebrovascular event or contribute to outcome. Inflammation has been implicated in all forms of brain injury and it is now clear that immune mechanisms profoundly influence (and are responsible for the development of) risk and causation of stroke, and the outcome following the onset of cerebral ischemia. Until very recently, systemic inflammatory mechanisms, with respect to common comorbidities in stroke, have largely been ignored in experimental studies. The main aim is therefore to understand interactions between the immune system and brain injury in order to develop novel therapeutic approaches. Recent data from clinical and experimental research clearly show that systemic inflammatory diseases -such as atherosclerosis, obesity, diabetes or infection - similar to stress and advanced age, are associated with dysregulated immune responses which can profoundly contribute to cerebrovascular inflammation and injury in the central nervous system. In this review, we summarize recent advances in the field of inflammation and stroke, focusing on the challenges of translation between pre-clinical and clinical studies, and potential anti-inflammatory/immunomodulatory therapeutic approaches

A multidisciplinary approach to study the effects of balneotherapy and mud-bath therapy treatments on fibromyalgia

Objectives: To study the effects of both balneotherapy and mud-bath therapy treatments in patients affected by primary fibromyalgia (FM) using rheumatological, psychiatric, biochemical and proteomic approaches. Methods: Forty-one FM patients (39 females, 2 males), who fulfilled the American College of Rheumatology criteria received a 2-week thermal therapy programme consisting of therapy once daily for 6 days/week. Twenty-one patients received mud-bath treatment, while the other twenty balneotherapy. Pain, symptoms, and quality of life were assessed. Oxytocin, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), ATP and serotonin transporter levels during therapy were assayed. Comparative whole saliva (WS) proteomic analysis was performed using a combination of two-dimensional electrophoresis (2DE) and mass spectrometry techniques. Results: We observed a reduction in pain, FIQ values and improvement of SF36 in both groups of patients treated with mud-bath or balneotherapy. The improvement of the outcome measures occurred with different timing and duration in the two spa treatments. A significant decrease in BDNF concentrations was observed either after balneotherapy or mud-bath therapy when assayed after twelve weeks, while no significant change in oxytocin levels, ATP levels and serotonin transporter were detected. Significant differences were observed for phosphoglycerate mutase1 (PGAM1) and zinc alpha-2-glycoprotein 1 (AZGP1) protein expression. Conclusions: Our results showed that the thermal treatment might have a beneficial effect on the specific symptoms of the disease. In particular, while balneotherapy gives results that in most patients occur after the end of the treatment but which are no longer noticeable after 3 months, the mud-bath treatment gives longer lasting results

TRPV4 activates autonomic and behavioural warmth-defence responses in Wistar rats

Aim In this study, we aimed at investigating the involvement of the warmth-sensitive channel - TRPV4 (in vitro sensitive to temperatures in the range of approx. 24-34 degrees C) - on the thermoregulatory mechanisms in rats.MethodsWe treated rats with a chemical selective agonist (RN-1747) and two antagonists (RN-1734 and HC-067047) of the TRPV4 channel and measured core body temperature, metabolism, heat loss index and preferred ambient temperature.ResultsOur data revealed that chemical activation of TRPV4 channels by topical application of RN-1747 on the skin leads to hypothermia and this effect was blocked by the pre-treatment with the selective antagonist of this channel. Intracerebroventricular treatment with RN-1747 did not cause hypothermia, indicating that the observed response was indeed due to activation of TRPV4 channels in the periphery. Intravenous blockade of this channel with HC-067047 caused an increase in core body temperature at ambient temperature of 26 and 30 degrees C, but not at 22 and 32 degrees C. At 26 degrees C, HC-067047-induced hyperthermia was accompanied by increase in oxygen consumption (an index of thermogenesis), while chemical stimulation of TRPV4 increased tail heat loss, indicating that these two autonomic thermoeffectors in the rat are modulated through TRPV4 channels. Furthermore, rats chemically stimulated with TRPV4 agonist choose colder ambient temperatures and cold-seeking behaviour after thermal stimulation (28-31 degrees C) was inhibited by TRPV4 antagonist.ConclusionOur results suggest, for the first time, that TRPV4 channel is involved in the recruitment of behavioural and autonomic warmth-defence responses to regulate core body temperature.Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP