Screening for frailty in older adults using a self-reported instrument

OBJECTIVE To validate a screening instrument using self-reported assessment of frailty syndrome in older adults.METHODS This cross-sectional study used data from the Saúde, Bem-estar e Envelhecimento study conducted in Sao Paulo, SP, Southeastern Brazil. The sample consisted of 433 older adult individuals (≥ 75 years) assessed in 2009. The self-reported instrument can be applied to older adults or their proxy respondents and consists of dichotomous questions directly related to each component of the frailty phenotype, which is considered the gold standard model: unintentional weight loss, fatigue, low physical activity, decreased physical strength, and decreased walking speed. The same classification proposed in the phenotype was utilized: not frail (no component identified); pre-frail (presence of one or two components), and frail (presence of three or more components). Because this is a screening instrument, “process of frailty” was included as a category (pre-frail and frail). Cronbach’s α was used in psychometric analysis to evaluate the reliability and validity of the criterion, the sensitivity, the specificity, as well as positive and negative predictive values. Factor analysis was used to assess the suitability of the proposed number of components.RESULTS Decreased walking speed and decreased physical strength showed good internal consistency (α = 0.77 and 0.72, respectively); however, low physical activity was less satisfactory (α = 0.63). The sensitivity and specificity for identifying pre-frail individuals were 89.7% and 24.3%, respectively, while those for identifying frail individuals were 63.2% and 71.6%, respectively. In addition, 89.7% of the individuals from both the evaluations were identified in the “process of frailty” category.CONCLUSIONS The self-reported assessment of frailty can identify the syndrome among older adults and can be used as a screening tool. Its advantages include simplicity, rapidity, low cost, and ability to be used by different professionals.

Dietary patterns in pregnancy and birth weight

OBJECTIVE To analyze if dietary patterns during the third gestational trimester are associated with birth weight.METHODS Longitudinal study conducted in the cities of Petropolis and Queimados, Rio de Janeiro (RJ), Southeastern Brazil, between 2007 and 2008. We analyzed data from the first and second follow-up wave of a prospective cohort. Food consumption of 1,298 pregnant women was assessed using a semi-quantitative questionnaire about food frequency. Dietary patterns were obtained by exploratory factor analysis, using the Varimax rotation method. We also applied the multivariate linear regression model to estimate the association between food consumption patterns and birth weight.RESULTS Four patterns of consumption – which explain 36.4% of the variability – were identified and divided as follows: (1) prudent pattern (milk, yogurt, cheese, fruit and fresh-fruit juice, cracker, and chicken/beef/fish/liver), which explained 14.9% of the consumption; (2) traditional pattern, consisting of beans, rice, vegetables, breads, butter/margarine and sugar, which explained 8.8% of the variation in consumption; (3) Western pattern (potato/cassava/yams, macaroni, flour/farofa/grits, pizza/hamburger/deep fried pastries, soft drinks/cool drinks and pork/sausages/egg), which accounts for 6.9% of the variance; and (4) snack pattern (sandwich cookie, salty snacks, chocolate, and chocolate drink mix), which explains 5.7% of the consumption variability. The snack dietary pattern was positively associated with birth weight (β = 56.64; p = 0.04) in pregnant adolescents.CONCLUSIONS For pregnant adolescents, the greater the adherence to snack pattern during pregnancy, the greater the baby’s birth weight.

Internal consistency of the self-reporting questionnaire-20 in occupational groups

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE To assess the internal consistency of the measurements of the Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) in different occupational groups. METHODS A validation study was conducted with data from four surveys with groups of workers, using similar methods. A total of 9,959 workers were studied. In all surveys, the common mental disorders were assessed via SRQ-20. The internal consistency considered the items belonging to dimensions extracted by tetrachoric factor analysis for each study. Item homogeneity assessment compared estimates of Cronbach’s alpha (KD-20), the alpha applied to a tetrachoric correlation matrix and stratified Cronbach’s alpha. RESULTS The SRQ-20 dimensions showed adequate values, considering the reference parameters. The internal consistency of the instrument items, assessed by stratified Cronbach’s alpha, was high (> 0.80) in the four studies. CONCLUSIONS The SRQ-20 showed good internal consistency in the professional categories evaluated. However, there is still a need for studies using alternative methods and additional information able to refine the accuracy of latent variable measurement instruments, as in the case of common mental disorders.

Outbreak of neonatal infection by an endemic clone of Serratia marcescens

INTRODUCTION: The outbreak occurred between February and June 2006 and included identification of the cases, analysis of medical records, cultures from environmental sources, resistance analyses and genotyping profile of Serratia marcescens. METHODS: The cultures were composed of 13 blood isolates, 17 rectal and hand swabs and air sampling. RESULTS: The data obtained by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis exhibited three strains that contaminated 24 patients. Systemic infection was the most common in neonates with lower weight, long periods of hospitalization, premature delivery and the use of mechanical ventilation. CONCLUSIONS: This investigation revealed the multifactorial nature of the outbreak. An endemic clone of S. marcescens was detected.

Molecular characterization of Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates from Tehran, Iran by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis and spoligotyping

Abstract: INTRODUCTION Characterization of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) isolates by DNA fingerprinting has contributed to tuberculosis (TB) control. The aim of this study was to determine the genetic diversity of MTB isolates from Tehran province in Iran. METHODS MTB isolates from 60 Iranian and 10 Afghan TB patients were fingerprinted by standard IS6110-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis and spoligotyping. RESULTS The copy number of IS6110 ranged from 10-24 per isolate. The isolates were classified into 22 clusters showing ≥ 80% similarity by RFLP analysis. Fourteen multidrug-resistant (MDR) isolates were grouped into 4 IS6110-RFLP clusters, with 10 isolates [71% (95% CI: 45-89%)] in 1 cluster, suggesting a possible epidemiological linkage. Eighteen Iranian isolates showed ≥ 80% similarity with Afghan isolates. There were no strains with identical fingerprints. Spoligotyping of 70 isolates produced 23 distinct patterns. Sixty (85.7%) isolates were grouped into 13 clusters, while the remaining 10 isolates (14.2%) were not clustered. Ural (formerly Haarlem4) (n = 22, 31.4%) was the most common family followed by Central Asian strain (CAS) (n = 18, 25.7%) and T (n = 9, 12.8%) families. Only 1strain was characterized as having the Beijing genotype. Among 60 Iranian and 10 Afghan MTB isolates, 25% (95% CI: 16-37) and 70% (95% CI: 39-89) were categorized as Ural lineage, respectively. CONCLUSIONS A higher prevalence of Ural family MTB isolates among Afghan patients than among Iranian patients suggests the possible transmission of this lineage following the immigration of Afghans to Iran.

Soil CO2 efflux in central Amazonia: environmental and methodological effects

Soil respiration plays a significant role in the carbon cycle of Amazonian rainforests. Measurements of soil respiration have only been carried out in few places in the Amazon. This study investigated the effects of the method of ring insertion in the soil as well as of rainfall and spatial distribution on CO2 emission in the central Amazon region. The ring insertion effect increased the soil emission about 13-20% for sandy and loamy soils during the firsts 4-7 hours, respectively. After rainfall events below 2 mm, the soil respiration did not change, but for rainfall greater than 3 mm, after 2 hours there was a decrease in soil temperature and respiration of about 10-34% for the loamy and sand soils, with emissions returning to normal after around 15-18 hours. The size of the measurement areas and the spatial distribution of soil respiration were better estimated using the Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM) data. The Campina reserve is a mosaic of bare soil, stunted heath forest-SHF and tall heath forest-THF. The estimated total average CO2 emissions from the area was 3.08±0.8 µmol CO2 m-2 s-1. The Cuieiras reserve is another mosaic of plateau, slope, Campinarana and riparian forests and the total average emission from the area was 3.82±0.76 µmol CO2 m-2 s-1. We also found that the main control factor of the soil respiration was soil temperature, with 90% explained by regression analysis. Automated soil respiration datasets are a good tool to improve the technique and increase the reliability of measurements to allow a better understanding of all possible factors driven by soil respiration processes.

Influência do propianato de testosterona e do "Diffusing factor" sôbre a cicatrização cutânea de lesões experimentais

The effect of testosterone propionate in different treatments was tested in adult male rats (250 g.) with mechanical skin experimental lesions. The whole period of cicatrization was investigated in normals, castrated and testosterone treated animals. We could not detect any alteration in the regeneration process in both treated and untreated rats (normals and castrated). Diffusing factor obtained from homologous testis, directly applied upon the lesions also do not change the healing period. Related to the course of the healing process, little evidence is presented by variance analysis that significative differences could be detected in the first periods, in both castrated and testosterone treated groups; however new well planed experiments should be carried to test this point.

Rhodnius robustus in Bolivia identified by its wings

Wings of a Rhodnius specimen from Alto Beni (Bolivia) was examined for identification and compared with R. stali, R. robustus, (certified Bolivian species), R. pictipes and R. prolixus (suspected Bolivian species). A projection of the unidentified wings as supplementary data into a discriminant analysis of shape revealed clear cut differences with R. stali and R. pictipes, less differences with R. prolixus, and none with R. robustus. Combining global size and shape of the wings, the unknown specimen was identified as R. robustus. Thus, this study confirmed the presence of R. robustus in Bolivia. It also highlighted the possibility of morphometrics to taxonomically interpret one individual, or even one piece of an individual, when related species data are available for comparison.

A comparative evaluation of endemic and non-endemic region of visceral leishmaniasis (Kala-azar) in India with ground survey and space technology

In visceral leishmaniasis, phlebotomine vectors are targets for control measures. Understanding the ecosystem of the vectors is a prerequisite for creating these control measures. This study endeavours to delineate the suitable locations of Phlebotomus argentipes with relation to environmental characteristics between endemic and non-endemic districts in India. A cross-sectional survey was conducted on 25 villages in each district. Environmental data were obtained through remote sensing images and vector density was measured using a CDC light trap. Simple linear regression analysis was used to measure the association between climatic parameters and vector density. Using factor analysis, the relationship between land cover classes and P. argentipes density among the villages in both districts was investigated. The results of the regression analysis indicated that indoor temperature and relative humidity are the best predictors for P. argentipes distribution. Factor analysis confirmed breeding preferences for P. argentipes by landscape element. Minimum Normalised Difference Vegetation Index, marshy land and orchard/settlement produced high loading in an endemic region, whereas water bodies and dense forest were preferred in non-endemic sites. Soil properties between the two districts were studied and indicated that soil pH and moisture content is higher in endemic sites compared to non-endemic sites. The present study should be utilised to make critical decisions for vector surveillance and controlling Kala-azar disease vectors.

Validity of the Katz Index to assess activities of daily living by informants in neuropathological studies

Abstract OBJECTIVE To analyze the evidences of construct validity of the Katz Index for the retrospective assessment of activities of daily living (ADL) by informants, to assist neuropathological studies in the elderly. METHOD A cross-sectional study analyzed the functional ability of ADL measure by the Katz Index, of 650 cases randomly selected from the Brazilian Brain Bank of the Ageing Brain Study Group (BBBABSG) database. Sample was divided in two subsamples for the analysis (N=325, each) and then stratified according to cognitive decline assessed by the Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR). Factor analyses with calculations of internal consistency and invariance were performed. RESULTS Factor analysis evidenced a unidimensional instrument with optimal internal consistency, in all subgroups. Goodness of fit indices were obtained after two treatments of covariance, indicating adequacy of the scale for assessing ADL by informants. The scale is invariant to cognitive decline meaning that it can be used for subjects with or without cognitive impairment. CONCLUSION Katz Index is valid for the retrospective assessment of basic ADL by informants, with optimal reliability.

Phylogenetic relationships among four species of the guarani group of Drosophila (Diptera, Drosophilidae) as inferred by molecular and morphological analyses

Traditionally, the Drosophila guarani species group has been divided into two subgroups: the guarani and the guaramunu subgroups. Two, out of the four species included in this research, are members of the guarani subgroup (D. ornatifrons Duda, 1927 and D. subbadia Paterson & Mainland, 1943) and two are included in the guaramunu subgroup (D. maculifrons Duda, 1927 and D. griseolineata Duda, 1927). However, some authors have suggested that D. maculifrons and D. griseolineata are much closer to some species of the Drosophila tripunctata group than to some of the species of the guarani group. To add new data to the matter under dispute, Polyacrylamide Gel Eletrophoresis (PAGE-SDS) was used for the analysis and comparison of protein composition and Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis to find differences in genomic DNA, in addition to the analysis of quantitative morphological characters previously described. Analysis of PAGE-SDS results in a dendrogram that pointed out D. subbadia as being the most distant within the Drosophila guarani group. However, these results were not supported either by RAPD analysis or by the analysis of continuous morphological characters, which supplied the clustering of D. subbadia with D. ornatifrons. Although our data give strong support to the clustering of D. subbadia and D. ornatifrons, none of the dendrograms provided a clade comprising D. maculifrons and D. griseolineata. Thus, this research does not support the traditional subdivision of the D. guarani group into those two subgroups.

Molecular analysis of the bacterial diversity in a specialized consortium for diesel oil degradation

Diesel oil is a compound derived from petroleum, consisting primarily of hydrocarbons. Poor conditions in transportation and storage of this product can contribute significantly to accidental spills causing serious ecological problems in soil and water and affecting the diversity of the microbial environment. The cloning and sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene is one of the molecular techniques that allows estimation and comparison of the microbial diversity in different environmental samples. The aim of this work was to estimate the diversity of microorganisms from the Bacteria domain in a consortium specialized in diesel oil degradation through partial sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene. After the extraction of DNA metagenomics, the material was amplified by PCR reaction using specific oligonucleotide primers for the 16S rRNA gene. The PCR products were cloned into a pGEM-T-Easy vector (Promega), and Escherichia coli was used as the host cell for recombinant DNAs. The partial clone sequencing was obtained using universal oligonucleotide primers from the vector. The genetic library obtained generated 431 clones. All the sequenced clones presented similarity to phylum Proteobacteria, with Gammaproteobacteria the most present group (49.8 % of the clones), followed by Alphaproteobacteira (44.8 %) and Betaproteobacteria (5.4 %). The Pseudomonas genus was the most abundant in the metagenomic library, followed by the Parvibaculum and the Sphingobium genus, respectively. After partial sequencing of the 16S rRNA, the diversity of the bacterial consortium was estimated using DOTUR software. When comparing these sequences to the database from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), a strong correlation was found between the data generated by the software used and the data deposited in NCBI.

Local influence for spatial analysis of soil physical properties and soybean yield using student's t-distribution

The modeling and estimation of the parameters that define the spatial dependence structure of a regionalized variable by geostatistical methods are fundamental, since these parameters, underlying the kriging of unsampled points, allow the construction of thematic maps. One or more atypical observations in the sample data can affect the estimation of these parameters. Thus, the assessment of the combined influence of these observations by the analysis of Local Influence is essential. The purpose of this paper was to propose local influence analysis methods for the regionalized variable, given that it has n-variate Student's t-distribution, and compare it with the analysis of local influence when the same regionalized variable has n-variate normal distribution. These local influence analysis methods were applied to soil physical properties and soybean yield data of an experiment carried out in a 56.68 ha commercial field in western Paraná, Brazil. Results showed that influential values are efficiently determined with n-variate Student's t-distribution.

Distinção entre cachaças destiladas em alambiques e em colunas usando quimiometria

One hundred fifteen cachaça samples derived from distillation in copper stills (73) or in stainless steels (42) were analyzed for thirty five itens by chromatography and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. The analytical data were treated through Factor Analysis (FA), Partial Least Square Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) and Quadratic Discriminant Analysis (QDA). The FA explained 66.0% of the database variance. PLS-DA showed that it is possible to distinguish between the two groups of cachaças with 52.8% of the database variance. QDA was used to build up a classification model using acetaldehyde, ethyl carbamate, isobutyl alcohol, benzaldehyde, acetic acid and formaldehyde as chemical descriptors. The model presented 91.7% of accuracy on predicting the apparatus in which unknown samples were distilled.

APPLICATION OF PARAFAC AND OPLS-DA ANALYSES ON HPLC FINGERPRINTS FOR THE CHARACTERIZATION OF Hibiscus sabdariffaCALYXES

The calyxes of Hibiscus sabdariffa are used in traditional medicine around the world. However, quality assurance protocols and chemical variability have not been previously analyzed. In the present study, chemical characterization of a set of samples of H. sabdariffa calyxes commercialized in Colombia was accomplished with the aim to explore the chemical variability among them. Chemometrics-based analyses on the data obtained from the HPLC-UV-DAD-derived profiles were then performed. Thus, the pre-processed single-wavelength data were subjected to principal component analysis (PCA). The PCA-derived results evidenced different groups which were well-correlated to the corresponding total phenolic and total anthocyanin contents. Multi-wavelength chromatographic (HPLC-UV-DAD surfaces) data were additionally examined via parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) as data reduction method and the obtained loadings were subsequently submitted to PCA and orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA). Results were thus consistent with those from single-wavelength data. PCA loadings were employed to determine those chemical components responsible for the data variance and OPLS-DA model, constructed from PARAFAC loadings, and indicated differentiation according total anthocyanin contents among samples. The present chemometric analysis therefore demonstrated to be an excellent tool for differentiation of H. sabdariffacalyxes according to their chemical composition.