Self-care in older people with functional deficit: needs of long-term care.

The group of 65-year-olds is becoming more numerous and with greater needs for health care. So, is necessary the reflection about new models of provision, organization, and allocation of health resources. According to the United Nations Organization, 2015, in 2050 elderly people will reach two million people (20% of the world’s population), what mean that the number of people over 60 years old will exceed a population of young people under 15 years. Parallel to aging, less healthy lifestyles have contributed to the prevalence of chronic diseases, especially cerebrovascular diseases. Hypertension and diabetes mellitus are risk factors and increase predisposition to other diseases. With aging, there is an increased risk for developing chronic, oncological and degenerative diseases, which account for more than 50% of the burden of diseases, with profound implications on independency, use of health care and services.

Modelação do cancro da mama na região do Alentejo

Estudos epidemiológicos são estudos estatísticos onde se procura relacionar ocorrências de eventos de saúde com uma ou várias causas específicas. A importância que os modelos epidemiológicos assumem hoje no estudo de doenças de foro oncológico, em particular no estabelecimento das suas etiologias, é incontornável. Segundo Ogden, J. (1999) o cancro é "um crescimento incontrolável de células anormais que produzem tumores chamados neoplasias". Estes tumores podem ter origem benigna (não se espalham pelo corpo) ou maligna (apresentam metastização de outros órgãos). Sendo uma doença actual, com uma elevada taxa de incidência em Portugal quando comparada com outras doenças (Instituto Nacional de Estatística- INE, 2009), aumentando esta taxa com a idade tal como refere Marques, L. (2003), podendo ocorrer o diagnóstico desta doença em qualquer idade. De acordo com INE (2000) pode dizer-se que o cancro está entre as três principais causas de morte em Portugal, registando-se um aumento progressivo do seu peso proporcional, sendo o cancro da mama o tipo de cancro mais comum entre as mulheres e uma das doenças com maior impacto na nossa sociedade. O objectivo principal deste trabalho é a estimação e modelação do risco de contrair uma doença de natureza não contagiosa e rara (neste caso, cancro da mama), usando dados da região do Alentejo. Pretende-se fazer um apanhado das metodologias mais empregues nesta área e aplicá-las na prática, com ênfase nos estudos caso-controlo e nos modelos lineares generalizados (GLM) - mais concretamente regressão logística. Os estudos caso-controlo são usados para identificar os factores que podem contribuir para uma condição médica, comparando indivíduos que têm essa condição (casos) com pacientes que não têm a condição, mas que de resto são semelhantes (controlos). Neste trabalho utilizou-se essa metodologia para estudar a associação entre o viver em ambiente rural/urbano e o cancro da mama. Tendo em conta que o objectivo principal deste estudo se prende com o estudo da relação entre variáveis, mais propriamente, análise de influência que uma ou mais variáveis (explicativas) têm sobre uma variável de interesse (resposta), para esse efeito são estudados os modelos lineares generalizados - GLM - unificados na mesma moldura teórica pela primeira vez por Nelder & Wedderburn (1972) - e, posteriormente aplicados ao conjunto de dados sobre cancro da mama na Região do Alentejo. O presente trabalho pretende assim, ser um contributo na identificação de factores de risco do cancro da mama na região do Alentejo. ABSTRACT: Epidemiological studies are statistical studies where attempts to relate occurrences of health events with one or more specific causes. The importance of epidemiological models that are far in the study of diseases of cancer forum, particularly in establishing their etiology, is inescapable. According to Ogden, J. (1999) cancer is "an incontrollable growth of abnormal cells that produce tumors called cancer". These tumors may be benign (not spread throughout the body) or malignant (show metastasis to other organs). Being a current illness with a high incidence rate in Portugal compared with the same respect to other diseases (National Statistics 1nstitute -1NE, 2009) having an increasing rate with age as mentioned Marques, L. (2003), and can possibly be diagnosed at any age. According to 1NE (2000) the cancer is among the top three causes of death in Portugal and there is a progressive increase of its proportional weight. Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer among women and the diseases with major impact in our society. The main objective of this work is to model and estimate the risk of contracting a non-contagious and rare disease (in this case, breast cancer), using data from the Alentejo region. It is intended to summarize some of the methodologies employed in this area and apply them in practice, with emphasis on case-control studies and generalized linear models (GLM) - more specifically the logistic regression. The case-control studies are used to identify factors that may contribute to a medical condition, comparing individuals who have this condition (cases) with patients who have not the condition but that are otherwise similar (controls). ln this work we used this methodology to study the association between living in a rural/urban and breast cancer. Given that the main objective of this study rather relates to the study of the relationship between variables to analyze the influence that one or more variables (explanatory) have on a variable (response), for this purpose we study the generalized linear models - GLM - first unified in the same theoretical framework by Nelder and Wedderburn (1972) and subsequently applied to the data set on breast cancer in the Alentejo region. This work intends to be a contribution in identifying risk factors for breast cancer in the Alentejo region.

RELAZIONE TRA IL CONSUMO DI OLIO EXTRAVERGINE DI OLIVA E I CASI DI DECESSO PER MALATTIA DI ALZHEIMER IN SPAGNA

In the chemical composition of olive oil (Olea europaea L.) it is emphasized the massive presence of oleic acid (over 70%), monounsaturated fatty acid part of the family of omega 9, a 7-8% linoleic acid (omega 6) and a small presence (0.5-1%) of linolenic acid (omega 3). For its high content of monounsaturated fatty acids, olive oil is the most stable and therefore the most suitable for heating, compared to oils with a dominance of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Interest in vitamin E has increased in recent years, thanks to its high antioxidant power and its role against related diseases with age-related, visual, dermatological, cardiovascular disorders Alzheimer’s disease and more. Vegetable oils are a major source of vitamin E through diet (Sayago et al., 2007), especially with the variety of olives “Hojiblanca”. Thanks to unsaturated fatty acids cell oxidation can be prevented: this helps prevent many illness, and even premature aging. So far, the advantages acknowledged to olive oil are those of lowering cholesterol, preventing cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer. Among the most recent researches it is important to distinguish the studies carried out on their contribution to the prevention and treatment of breast cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers found that in addition to the benefi ts that give monounsaturated fats, in extra virgin olive oil, there is a substance called “oleocanthal”, which helps protect nerve cells damaged in Alzheimer’s disease. The importance of this discovery is enormous when one considers that only Alzheimer’s disease affects 30 million people around the world, with a different distribution depending on the type of oil in the diet (Olguín Cordero, 2012). The latest research endorses that oleocanthal works by destroying cancer cells without affecting the healthy ones, as it is stated in the Molecular and Cellular Oncology Journal. Studies carried out in different Spanish universities have concluded that thanks to the antioxidant power of olive oil, a disease such as Alzheimer can be prevented. In conclusion, we can say that the Mediterranean diet rich in extra virgin olive oil greatly infl uences on human health, reducing, delaying or even eliminating several diseases.