Development of premature children: caregivers' understanding according to the Bioecological Theory

OBJECTIVE Understanding the conceptions of premature children caregivers on child development and associated factors. METHOD An exploratory-descriptive qualitative study of 12 families with children under three years of age. Interviews were submitted to thematic content analysis, systematized into the categories of Bioecological Theory of Human Development: Process, Person, Context and Time, and in the Functional Development category. RESULTS There are concerns about impairment in the current and future development of a Person/child defined as fragile as a result of premature birth (Time dimension), minimized by the scope of observable competencies such as motor skills. The Context, especially family and health services, and Proximal Processes, described as one-way caregiver interactions, are considered determinants of development. Functional Development is considered a natural consequence and result of education. The support network is crucial, supporting or limiting care. CONCLUSION Concerns about the development mobilize caregivers to stimulate the premature child/person and requests family and healthcare assistance.OBJETIVO Comprender las concepciones de cuidadores de nacidos prematuros acerca del desarrollo infantil y los factores asociados. MÉTODO Estudio exploratorio descriptivo, cualitativo, con 12 familias de menores de tres años de edad. Entrevistas sometidas al análisis temático de contenido, sistematizadas en las categorías de la Teoría Bioecológica del Desarrollo Humano: Proceso, Persona, Contexto y Tiempo, y la categoría Desarrollo Funcional. RESULTADOS Existe preocupación de perjuicio en el desarrollo actual y futuro de la Persona/niño, definido como frágil en virtud del nacimiento prematuro (dimensión Tiempo), minimizada por el alcance de competencias observables, como habilidades motoras. El Contexto, especialmente familia y servicios de salud, y los Procesos proximales, descritos por interacciones unidireccionales de los cuidadores se consideran determinantes del desarrollo. Se considera el desarrollo funcional como consecuencia natural y resultado de la enseñanza. La red de soporte es crucial, al apoyar o limitar el cuidado. CONCLUSIÓN Preocupaciones por el desarrollo movilizan a los cuidadores a estimular a la Persona/niño prematuro y demandar soporte familiar y asistencial.OBJETIVO Compreender as concepções de cuidadores de nascidos prematuros sobre o desenvolvimento infantil e fatores associados. MÉTODO Estudo exploratório-descritivo, qualitativo, com 12 famílias de menores de três anos de idade. Entrevistas submetidas à análise temática de conteúdo, sistematizados nas categorias da Teoria Bioecológica do Desenvolvimento Humano: Processo, Pessoa, Contexto e Tempo, e na categoria Desenvolvimento Funcional. RESULTADOS Há preocupação de prejuízo no desenvolvimento atual e futuro da Pessoa/criança, definida como frágil em razão do nascimento prematuro (dimensão Tempo), minimizada pelo alcance de competências observáveis, como habilidades motoras. O Contexto, especialmente família e serviços de saúde, e os Processos proximais, descritos por interações unidirecionais dos cuidadores, são considerados determinantes do desenvolvimento. O desenvolvimento funcional é considerado consequência natural e resultado do ensino. A rede de suporte é crucial, apoiando ou limitando o cuidado. CONCLUSÃOPreocupações com o desenvolvimento mobilizam os cuidadores a estimular a Pessoa/criança prematura e demandar suporte familiar e assistencial

Caracterização de Doentes com Espondilite Anquilosante em Hidrocinesiterapia – Uma Avaliação Multidimensional

OBJECTIVES: Clinical, functional and working characterization of an Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) group of patients that perform hydrotherapy regularly in a physical and rehabilitation department. Assessment of the benefit of hydrotherapy in symptom relief, function and consumption of analgesics and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). MATERIAL AND METHODS: A transversal characterization of a group of patients with SA undergoing hydrotherapy was performed. Demographic, clinical (including disease activity, function and health-related quality of life), radiographic and laboratorial data was collected. A questionnaire about working situation, presence of dyspnoea, smoking, number of sessions and benefit of hydrotherapy was applied. RESULTS: 22 patients (73% males) were enrolled in the study, mean age 55.6 ± 8.8 years, mean duration of the disease 28.0 ± 13.13 years. Apart from the axial involvement, 50% had a previous history of enthesitis, 54.5% peripheral arthritis, 18% dactylitis and 36% uveitis. At the day of assessment, 81% had low-back pain complaints (39% inflammatory rhythm), 18% oligoarthritis, 9.1% had total hip and/or knee prosthesis. The majority of the patients had active disease, accentuated functional deterioration and reduced health related quality of life. About 54.5% were retired due to disability, 18.2% were smokers and 36.4% had dyspnoea; 31.8% presented restrictive ventilatory alterations; 36.4% obstructive (predominance in the small airways); 13.6% mixed and in 18.2% the spiromety was normal. The mean total time of hydrotherapy was 13 ± 6.8 years. The patients attended a mean of 3 sessions per week and 3 series of 15 sessions per year. Of the 22.7% that performed another physical activity, 80% walked and 20% cycled. The ingestions of analgesics (p < 0.05) and NSAIDs (p < 0.01) were also reduced. CONCLUSION: A high percentage of spyrometric changes were identified. The majority of the patients are retired due to disability. The patients feel benefit with hydrotherapy, that contributed to reduction of the analgesic and NSAIDs consumption. The importance of the global systemic evaluation and multidisciplinary of the SA to optimize the therapeuthics and improve the quality of life of the patients is pointed out

The Web of Human Sexual Contacts

Many ``real-world'' networks are clearly defined while most ``social'' networks are to some extent subjective. Indeed, the accuracy of empirically-determined social networks is a question of some concern because individuals may have distinct perceptions of what constitutes a social link. One unambiguous type of connection is sexual contact. Here we analyze data on the sexual behavior of a random sample of individuals, and find that the cumulative distributions of the number of sexual partners during the twelve months prior to the survey decays as a power law with similar exponents $\alpha \approx 2.4$ for females and males. The scale-free nature of the web of human sexual contacts suggests that strategic interventions aimed at preventing the spread of sexually-transmitted diseases may be the most efficient approach.Comment: 7 pages with 2 eps figures. Latex file. For more details or for downloading the PDF file of the published article see http://polymer.bu.edu/~amaral/WebofContacts.html . For more results on teh structure of complex networks see http://polymer.bu.edu/~amaral/Networks.htm

Envisioning a Marine Biodiversity Observation Network

Humans depend on diverse ocean ecosystems for food, jobs, and sustained well-being, yet many stressors threaten marine life. Extensive research has demonstrated that maintaining biodiversity promotes ocean health and service provision; therefore, monitoring the status and trends of marine biodiversity is important for effective ecosystem management. However, there is no systematic sustained program for evaluating ocean biodiversity. Coordinating existing monitoring and building a proactive marine biodiversity observation network will support efficient, economical resource management and conservation and should be a high priority. A synthesis of expert opinions suggests that, to be most effective, a marine biodiversity observation network should integrate biological levels, from genes to habitats; link biodiversity observations to abiotic environmental variables; site projects to incorporate environmental forcing and biogeography; and monitor adaptively to address emerging issues. We summarize examples illustrating how to leverage existing data and infrastructure to meet these goals

A decomposition-based uncertainty quantification approach for environmental impacts of aviation technology and operation

As a measure to manage the climate impact of aviation, significant enhancements to aviation technologies and operations are necessary. When assessing these enhancements and their respective impacts on the climate, it is important that we also quantify the associated uncertainties. This is important to support an effective decision and policymaking process. However, such quantification of uncertainty is challenging, especially in a complex system that comprises multiple interacting components. The uncertainty quantification task can quickly become computationally intractable and cumbersome for one individual or group to manage. Recognizing the challenge of quantifying uncertainty in multicomponent systems, we utilize a divide-and-conquer approach, inspired by the decomposition-based approaches used in multidisciplinary analysis and optimization. Specifically, we perform uncertainty analysis and global sensitivity analysis of our multicomponent aviation system in a decomposition-based manner. In this work, we demonstrate how to handle a high-dimensional multicomponent interface using sensitivity-based dimension reduction and a novel importance sampling method. Our results demonstrate that the decomposition-based uncertainty quantification approach can effectively quantify the uncertainty of a feed-forward multicomponent system for which the component models are housed in different locations and owned by different groups. Keywords: Aviation Environmental Impact; Decomposition; Global Sensitivity Analysis; Uncertainty Quantificatio

Election turnout statistics in many countries: similarities, differences, and a diffusive field model for decision-making

We study in details the turnout rate statistics for 77 elections in 11 different countries. We show that the empirical results established in a previous paper for French elections appear to hold much more generally. We find in particular that the spatial correlation of turnout rates decay logarithmically with distance in all cases. This result is quantitatively reproduced by a decision model that assumes that each voter makes his mind as a result of three influence terms: one totally idiosyncratic component, one city-specific term with short-ranged fluctuations in space, and one long-ranged correlated field which propagates diffusively in space. A detailed analysis reveals several interesting features: for example, different countries have different degrees of local heterogeneities and seem to be characterized by a different propensity for individuals to conform to the cultural norm. We furthermore find clear signs of herding (i.e. strongly correlated decisions at the individual level) in some countries, but not in others.Comment: 15 pages, 9 figures, 7 table

Functional development of preterm infants: an integrative literature review Desenvolvimento funcional de crianças nascidas prematuras: revisão integrativa da literatura 1 [A]

Abstract Introduction: Prematurity is a public health problem. Despite many studies that aim to characterize th

ABORDAGENS QUANTITATIVAS NA SOCIOLOGIA DA EDUCAÇÃO: análise de produções do GT 14 da ANPEd (2005-2015)

 O objetivo deste artigo foi analisar os usos de abordagens quantitativas em pesquisas da Sociologia da Educação em um espaço institucional nacional reconhecido por essa área. Para tanto, apresentamos inicialmente uma breve contextualização histórica da Sociologia da Educação no Brasil, para posteriormente introduzir os resultados da análise de trabalhos apresentados no grupo de trabalho em Sociologia da Educação – GT 14 – nas últimas dez reuniões científicas nacionais da Associação Nacional de Pós-Graduação e Pesquisa em Educação – ANPEd, ocorridas no período de 2005 a 2015. A partir da leitura do resumo e das palavras-chave dos 157 trabalhos completos recuperados no repositório institucional dessa associação correspondente ao GT 14, constatamos que 28% dessas produções (n=44) se valiam de abordagens quantitativas. Após análise desses 44 artigos, identificamos mudanças em relação a estudo anterior sobre o tema: aumento no número de pesquisas elaboradas a partir do uso de abordagens quantitativas; uso frequente de análises de dados secundários provenientes de fontes estatísticas oficiais; emprego de técnicas analíticas sofisticadas, para além da estatística descritiva; e predominância de estudos que usaram exclusivamente dados quantitativos na sua metodologia. As temáticas abordadas dizem respeito a políticas e práticas educacionais, o que confirma o caráter situado das pesquisas desse espaço. Apropriações de contributos de Bernard Charlot em relação ao hibridismo da pesquisa educacional e construtos teóricos de Pierre Bourdieu sobre o campo científico orientaram algumas das reflexões que introduzimos neste artigo.Palavras-chave: Pesquisa educacional. Sociologia da Educação. Abordagens quantitativas. Campo. Hibridismo. Autonomia.QUANTITATIVE APPROACHES IN SOCIOLOGY OF EDUCATION: analysis of works of GT 14 of ANPED (2005-2015) Abstract: The aim of this article was to analyze the uses of quantitative approaches in Sociology of Education research in a national institutional space that is recognized by this area. In order to do so, we first present a brief historical context of the Sociology of Education in Brazil, to later introduce the results of the analysis of papers presented in the Working Group on Sociology of Education – GT 14 – in the last ten national scientific meetings of Associação Nacional de Pós-Graduação e Pesquisa em Educação – ANPEd, which occurred in the period from 2005 to 2015. From the reading of the summary and key words of the 157 papers found in the institutional repository of this association corresponding to the GT-14, we found that 28% of these works (n=44) had used quantitative approaches. From the analysis of these 44 articles, we identified changes in relation to a previous study on the topic: an increasing number of researches using quantitative approaches; the frequent use of analyzes of secondary data from official statistical sources; the use of sophisticated analytical techniques, in addition to descriptive statistics; and predominance of studies that exclusively used quantitative data in their methodology. The covered topics are related to educational policies and practices, which confirms the position of research in this area. Appropriations of Bernard Charlot's contributions to the hybridity of educational research and theoretical constructs of Pierre Bourdieu's theorizing on the scientific field have guided some of the reflections we have introduced in this article.Keywords: Educational research. Sociology of Education. Quantitatives approaches. Field. Hybridity. Autonomy.ABORDAJES CUANTITATIVOS EN SOCIOLOGÍA DE LA EDUCACIÓN: análisis de producciones del gt 14 de la ANPEd (2005-2015) resumen: El objetivo de este artículo fue analizar los usos de abordajes cuantitativos en investigaciones de la Sociología de la Educación en un espacio nacional reconocido por esa área. Para eso, se presenta inicialmente una breve contextualización histórica de ese campo en Brasil, posteriormente se introducen resultados del análisis de una selección de artículos, basada en la revisión de trabajos presentados en el grupo de trabajo en Sociología de la Educación (GT 14) correspondientes a las Reuniones Científicas Nacionales de la Asociación Nacional de Posgrado e Investigación en Educación (ANPEd) del período 2005-2015. A partir de la lectura de los resúmenes y de las palabras clave de los 157 trabajos localizados en el repositorio institucional de dicha asociación fue constatado que 28% de esos trabajos (n=44) utilizaron abordajes cuantitativos. El análisis de esos 44 artículos permitió identificar transformaciones en relación a resultados presentados por un estudio anterior sobre este tema: aumento de la cantidad de investigaciones elaboradas a partir del uso de abordajes cuantitativas; uso frecuente de análisis de datos secundarios provenientes de estadísticas oficiales; utilización de técnicas analíticas de mayor sofisticación que las de la estadística descriptiva y predominio de estudios que utilizaron exclusivamente abordajes cuantitativos. Las temáticas trabajadas refieren a políticas y prácticas educativas, cuestión que confirma el carácter situado de las investigaciones de ese espacio. Apropiaciones de las contribuciones de Bernard Charlot en relación al hibridismo de la investigación en educación y conceptos de la teorización de Pierre Bourdieu sobre el campo científico orientaron algunas de las reflexiones que se introducen en este artículo.Palabras clave: Investigación educacional. Sociología de la Educación. Abordajes cuantitativos. Campo. Hibridismo. Autonomía.          

Continuity of psychiatric disorders between 6 and 11 years of age in the 2004 Pelotas Birth Cohort

Objective: To investigate the incidence and homotypic and heterotypic continuity of psychiatric disorders between ages 6 and 11. Methods: In 2004, all live births in the city of Pelotas, Brazil, were recorded (n=4,231). Psychiatric disorders were assessed by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). SDQ subscale scores (emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention, and peer relationship problems) were categorized as normal or abnormal. To examine associations between problems over time, odds ratios were computed using logistic regression. Results: Any SDQ difficulty was observed in 350 children (10.4%, 95%CI 9.4-11.5) at age 6 and 476 (14.2%, 95%CI 13.0-15.4) at age 11, with a higher prevalence among boys at both ages. Between ages 6 and 11, there was a 50 and a 45% increase in the prevalence of emotional and hyperactivity/ inattention symptoms, respectively. Among those who had any SDQ difficulty at age 6, that status persisted in 81% at age 11. We found homotypic continuity of emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention, and peer relationship problems. Conclusions: Our results indicate an increasing incidence of psychiatric disorders in this age group, with rates of disorders and continuity patterns similar to those observed in other studie