Maternal factors regulating preterm infants' responses to pain and stress while in maternal kangaroo care

The relationship between maternal factors and the response of preterm infants to pain and stress experienced during heel puncture while in maternal kangaroo care was investigated. This descriptive study included 42 mothers and their preterm infants cared for in a neonatal unit. Data were collected in the baseline, procedure, and recovery phases. We measured the neonates' facial actions, sleep and wake states, crying, salivary cortisol levels, and heart rate, in addition to the mothers' behavior, salivary cortisol levels, and mental condition. The influence of the maternal explanatory variables on the neonatal response variables were verified through bivariate analysis, ANOVA, and multiple regression. The mothers' behavior and depression and/or anxiety did not affect the neonates' responses to pain and stress, though the mothers' levels of salivary cortisol before the procedure explained the variance in the neonates' levels of salivary cortisol after the procedure (p=0.036). Additionally, the mothers' baseline levels of salivary cortisol along with the neonates' age explained the variance in the neonates' heart rate (p=0.001). The ability of mothers to regulate their own stress contributed to the infants' responses to pain and stress.

Effects of abiotic factors on growth and chemical defenses in cultivated clones of Laurencia dendroidea J. Agardh (Ceramiales, Rhodophyta)

Laurencia dendroidea shows high inter- and intrapopulation variability in the amount of the sesquiterpene elatol, caused by genetic variation as well as environmental factors. To test the independent effect of physical and nutritional conditions, the growth and the levels of elatol in L. dendroidea clones were evaluated under different conditions of temperature, salinity, irradiance, and culture medium in the laboratory. Growth of L. dendroidea was clearly affected by all these factors, but elatol levels were influenced only by temperature and salinity. Better conditions for growth did not produce a similar effect on elatol production in L. dendroidea, contradicting the carbon/nutrient balance and growth/differentiation balance models. On the contrary, severe conditions of temperature and salinity promoted a decrease in elatol levels, as predicted by the environmental stress model. Our results using clones indicated that abiotic factors clearly take part in fostering chemical variations observed in natural populations, in addition to genetic factors, and can promote differential susceptibility of plant specimens to natural enemies.

Factors affecting faecal glucocorticoid levels in domestic cats (Felis catus): a pilot study with single and large multi-cat households

Domestic cats (Fells catus) are widely believed to be highly sensitive to the effects of social stress, especially when living in high density populations. Cats are capable of adapting to living in a group, but this will often require opportunities for escaping and hiding. In this pilot study, adrenocortical activity, as a valuable physiological indicator of arousal underpinning potential emotional stress, was evaluated through the measurement of mean faecal glucocorticoid metabolites (mGCM) in fourteen singly and sixteen group-housed cats. Living conditions and ratings of the owners' quality of life (evaluated from self-reported questionnaires) were used as factors associated with faecal glucocorticoid levels of the cats. A direct association between the scores of owners' social dimension of quality of life and the cats' mGCM was found for single cats only, with higher owner social scores associated with higher cat mGCM. No significant differences in mGCM were found between singly versus group-living cats. This suggests that the under-explored factor of owner lifestyle could play an important role in domestic cats' day-to-day levels of arousal, especially when kept as single pets.

Stress urinary incontinence in climacteric women in a northeastern Brazilian municipality: a household survey

Low socioeconomic factors may influence the development of stress urinary incontinence (SUI). Thus far, there is little research available on SUI in developing countries. We aimed to determine whether the prevalence of SUI in a northeastern Brazilian municipality was higher or lower than in the general female population. Cross-sectional household cluster study of 1,180 climacteric women in the So Luis municipality (Maranho state, Brazil) was conducted using a standardized questionnaire that was previously tested in a pilot study and administered by interviewers to obtain socioeconomic and cultural information, climacteric aspects, and life habits related to SUI. From this population, 15.34% (n = 181) had SUI; this prevalence did not change with age. More than half (57.92%) of the patients replied that they had not consulted a physician for their SUI. The presence of SUI was not associated with any socioeconomic or gynecological variables after multivariate analysis. The prevalence of SUI in So Luis was similar to the rates observed in the general global female population. Socioeconomic and gynecological variables were not associated with SUI.

Protein Oxidative Stress and Dyslipidemia in Dialysis Patients

Our aim was to investigate and determine the associations between oxidative stress (OS), dyslipidemia and inflammation in patients treated with continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) and hemodialysis (HD) using observational cross-sectional study. Twenty patients in CAPD and 48 in HD for at least 8 weeks and aged =18 years were included in the study. Individuals with malignant or acute inflammatory disease were excluded. A control group of 17 healthy individuals was also recruited. The biochemical parameter evaluations were analyzed using colorimetric kits for albumin, serum glucose, total cholesterol (TC) and lipid fractions. To determine the inflammatory status, CRP, IL-6 and TNF-a were analyzed by automated chemiluminescence kits. Plasma advanced oxidation protein products (AOPP) were determined by spectrophotometry. Mean AOPP levels were significantly higher for the HD group compared to the control, and there was no difference in AOPP concentrations between the control and CAPD groups. Dialysis patients had levels of inflammatory parameters higher than controls, and showed a high prevalence of patients with dyslipidemia, especially in CAPD. In the HD group, AOPP was positively correlated with triglycerides (TG) and inversely associated with HDL. Also the HD group was observed to have negative associations between TNF-a and HDL, LDL and TC. In the CAPD group, CRP was inversely correlated with HDL. Hemodialysis patients had increased protein OS and associations of inflammation and dyslipidemia were also observed in these dialysis groups. A more detailed characterization of the relations between oxidative stress and other more traditional risk factors has therapeutic importance, since cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death among dialysis patients.

Expression of angiogenic factors in placenta of stressed rats

The aim of the present study was to analyse the influence of stress on pregnant rats, particularly in terms of maternal, placental and fetal weight, placental morphology and placental gene expression of the angiogenic factors Vegfa and Pgf and their receptors. The parameters were evaluated on gestation Day 20. Maternal, fetal and placental weights were statistically lower in stressed animals than controls, suggesting abnormalities in gestational physiology. Morphologically the placentas of rats subjected to stress were reduced in size and weight, with few glycogen cells and a significant increase in the number of apoptotic cells. Stress caused an increase in placental gene expression of Vegfa (P < 0.05) and a reduction in Pgf, Flt1 and Kdr expression (P < 0.05). It has been suggested that increased VEGF is associated with vasodilatation and hypotension, but in this model persistent hypertension was present. This study suggests that the limited hypotensive Vegfa response to stress-induced hypertension could result from reduced expression of Flt1/Kdr disrupting specific VEGF pathways. These findings may elucidate one of the multiple possible factors underlying how stress modulates placental physiology, and could aid the understanding of stress-induced gestational disorders.

Child Physical Abuse: Evaluating Psychological Risk Factors in Accused Caregivers

It was verified to what extent cognitive and affective/emotional variables could distinguish caregivers accused of committing physical abuse (G1) from those without physical abuse records (G2). The Child Abuse Potential Inventory (CAP), which is an instrument designed to assess psychological risk factors in caregivers, was used. A questionnaire on socio-demographic characterization and another on economic classification were also employed to equate the groups. G1 presented a greater potential risk than G2, higher levels of Distress, Rigidity, Problems with the Child and with Themselves, Problems with Others, and a lower level of Ego Strength. These variables contribute with the composition of physical abuse risk, since, in agreement with the Social Information Processing Model, they would be related to cognitive and affective basic processes which are veiled to the perceptions and evaluation/interpretations, associated to abusive parental behavior.

Behavioral problems and emotional stress in children with bruxism

Bruxism has a multifactorial etiology, and psychosocial factors have been considered to increase the risk of occurrence of this parafunction. The aim of this study was to evaluate the behavior profile of a group of children diagnosed with bruxism. Eighty 7-11-year-old children of both genders (mean age 8.8 years) first recruited as eligible participants. Twenty-nine children (18 males and 11 females) whose parents/guardians reported to present frequent episodes of tooth grinding/clenching while awake or during sleep (at least 3 nights a week) in the previous 3 months were enrolled in the study. The diagnosis of bruxism was established based on the parents/guardians' report about the children's behavior, habits and possible discomforts in the components of the stomatognathic system allied to the presence of signs and symptoms such as pain on the masticatory muscles, masseter muscle hypertrophy, wear facets, fractures of restorations, dental impressions on the cheek mucosa and tongue. As part of the psychological evaluation, the Rutter's Child Behavior Scale-A2 was applied to the parents/caregivers (one for each child) and the Child Stress Scale was applied to the children. Data were analyzed descriptively based on the frequency of each studied variable. Twenty-four (82.76%) children needed psychological or psychiatric intervention; 17 of them presented neurotic disorders and 7 children presented antisocial disorders. Six (20.70%) children presented significant physical and psychological manifestations of stress. The findings of the present study suggest that behavioral problems and potential emotional problems can be risk factors to bruxism in children.

Disruption of endogenous tidal rhythms of larval release linked to food supply and heat stress in an intertidal barnacle

The timing of larval release may greatly affect the survivorship and distribution of pelagic stages and reveal important aspects of life history tactics in marine invertebrates. Endogenous rhythms of breeding individuals and populations are valuable indicators of selected strategies because they are free of the neutral effect of stochastic environmental variation. The high-shore intertidal barnacle Chthamalus bisinuatus exhibits endogenous tidal and tidal amplitude rhythms in a way that larval release would more likely occur during fortnightly neap periods at high tide. Such timing would minimize larval loss due to stranding and promote larval retention close to shore. This fully explains temporal patterns in populations facing the open sea and inhabiting eutrophic areas. However, rhythmic activity breaks down to an irregular pattern in a population within the São Sebastião Channel subjected to large variation of food supply around a mesotrophic average. Peaks of chl a concentration precede release events by 6 d, suggesting resource limitation for egg production within the channel. Also, extreme daily temperatures imposing mortality risk correlate to release rate just 1 d ahead, suggesting a terminal reproductive strategy. Oceanographic conditions apparently dictate whether barnacles follow a rhythmic trend of larval release supported by endogenous timing or, alternatively, respond to the stochastic variation of key environmental factors, resulting in an erratic temporal pattern.