Parkinson's disease severity and motor subtype influence physical capacity components

The severity of Parkinson's disease (PD) and PD's motor subtypes influence the components of physical capacity. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of both PD severity and motor subtype in the performance of these components. Thirty-six PD patients were assigned into four groups: Tremor (TD) initial and TD mild, akinetic-rigid (AR) initial, and AR mild. Patients' strength, balance, coordination, mobility and aerobic capacity were evaluated and groups were compared using a two-way ANOVA (severity and subtype as factors). AR presents a poorer performance than TD in almost all tests. Also this performance was worsened with the advance of the disease in AR, contrary to TD. We conclude that AR and TD subgroups are different about their performance on physical capacity components, moreover, this performance worsens with the advance of the disease of the AR group, but not for TD.

Space-time description of dengue epidemic in Cruzeiro, SP, in 2006 and 2011

Objective: to identify patterns in the spatial and temporal distribution of cases of dengue fever occurring in the city of Cruzeiro, state of Sao Paulo (SP).Methods: an ecological and exploratory study was undertaken using spatial analysis tools and data from dengue cases obtained on the SinanNet. The analysis was carried out by area, using the IBGE census sector as a unit. The months of March to June 2006 and 2011 were assessed, revealing progress of the disease. TerraView 3.3.1 was used to calculate the Global Moran's I, month to month, and the Kernel estimator.Results: in the year 2006, 691 cases of dengue fever (rate of 864.2 cases/100,000 inhabitants) were georeferenced; and the Moran's I and p-values were significant in the months of April and May (TM = 0.28; p = 0.01; I-M = 0.20; p = 0.01) with higher densities in the central, north, northeast and south regions. In the year 2011, 654 cases of dengue fever (rate of 886.8 cases/100,000 inhabitants) were georeferenced; and the Moran's I and p-values were significant in the months of April and May (I, = 0.28; p = 0.01; I-M = 0.16; p = 0.05) with densities in the same regions as 2006. The Global Moran's I is a global measure of spatial autocorrelation, which indicates the degree of spatial association in the set of information from the product in relation to the average. The I varies between -1 and +1 and can be attributed to a level of significance (p-value). The positive value points to a positive or direct spatial autocorrelation.Conclusion: we were able to identify patterns in the spatial and temporal distribution of dengue cases occurring in the city of Cruzeiro, SP, and locate the census sectors where the outbreak began and how it evolved.

Produção de um modelo animal para o estudo de doenças causadoras de desmielinização do sistema nervoso central

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Doença Cria Giz Ascosphaera apis (Maassen ex Claussen) Olive & Spiltoir em abelhas Apis mellifera L. na Depressão Central do Rio Grande do Sul

A ocorrência da doença apícola cria giz, em colônias de abelhas Apis mellifera no apiário do Departamento de Zootecnia da Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM), RS, Brasil, foi constatada em 2004. Foram coletadas amostras de crias de abelhas duras e mumificadas em favos falhados nas colônias com pequena população. Essas amostras foram analisadas no Laboratório de Fitopatologia do Departamento de Defesa Fitossanitária da UFSM, onde se observou a presença de estruturas fúngicas com formação típica do fungo Ascosphaera apis, conhecido como causador da doença cria giz. Até então não existiam notificações da presença dessa doença na região central do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul, o que pode caracterizar um avanço dessa enfermidade para o interior, a partir de regiões próximas à fronteira com o Uruguai e a Argentina.

Modos e modas da doença e do corpo

O presente artigo busca compreender o processo da Construção Social da Saúde levando-se em consideração que a saúde, no decorrer da historia dos homens, foi sempre considerada um bem e, por isso, mereceu constante preocupação, no sentido de tornar-se geradora de modas, de modos de fazer e de existir, de conflitos, dualidades e controle social. No decorrer desse tempo, modelos de saúde foram sendo criados, interpretados e recriados, quando necessário, provocando igual processo de transformação nas maneiras de sentir, pensar e agir da população usuária dos mais variados recursos de saúde disponíveis, segundo as relações entre o mágico e o necessário , estabelecendo, entre os que serviam e os que eram servidos, uma relação também tão mágica quanto necessária, intermediada pelo corpo, destes sujeitos, depositário do estado de saúde ou de doença. Além do processo de transformação das mentalidades, são ainda levados em consideração os processos de construção, desconstrução e de evolução do imaginário e das representações sociais vivenciados pelos sujeitos e seus corpos. A evolução dos conhecimentos e o avanço científico-tecnológico são enfocados também como fontes modelares e comunicativas no sentido de ditar regras ao corpo que a humanidade porta socialmente neste século.

Comportamento de indivíduos com doença de Parkinson no levantar da cadeira e no início da marcha: relações com o envelhecimento

Large motor dysfunctions are observed in older adults with the age advance. Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients have motor deficits to perform daily living activities. To raise from a chair, a daily task necessary to live independently, requires both large muscle recruitment and large joint range of motion to achieve the vertical position safely. Normally, we initiate gait after raise from a chair. The aim of this study was to analyze the PD patients’ behavior when rising from a chair and initiating gait and to compare it according to the age advance. In order to do that, 23 PD patients (66.61±7.64 years old) were distributed in three age groups: Young group, between 51 and 60 years of age (n=7); intermediary group, between 61 and 70 years of age (n=7); and elderly group, over 70 years of age (n=9). There were no statistical differences among groups either for the disease evolution stage or for it compromising. The task was to stand from a chair and to initiate gait forward in three attempts. The dependent variables were: spatial and temporal (first step length and duration, and stride length, duration and velocity) and angular (flexion and extension of head, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle). The motion of standing from a chair was divided in two phases. The data was statistically treated by means of Analyses of Variance with group as the only factor. The Scheffé’s post hoc test was used to localize differences among groups and the significance level was adjusted to p≤0.017. There were statistical differences for stride...(Complete abstract click electronic access below)