Prevalence of the different types of age-related cataract in an African population.

PURPOSE: To describe the prevalence of different types of cataract and their association with visual acuity in a Tanzanian population aged 40 years and older. METHODS: A prevalence survey for lens opacity, glaucoma, and visual impairment was carried out on all residents age 40 and older of six villages in Kongwa, Tanzania. One examiner graded the lens for presence of nuclear (NSC), posterior subcapsular (PSC), and cortical cataract (CC), using the new WHO Simplified Cataract Grading System. Visual acuity was measured in each eye, both presenting and best corrected, using an illiterate E chart. RESULTS: The proportion of eligible subjects participating was 90% (3268/3641). The prevalence of cataract was as follows: NSC, 15.6%; CC, 8.8%; and PSC, 1.9%. All types of cataract increased with age, from NSC, 1.7%; CC, 2.4%; and PSC, 0.4% for those aged 40 to 49 years to NSC, 59.2%; CC, 23.5%; and PSC, 5.9% for those aged 70 years and older (P < 0.0001 for all cataract types, chi(2) test for trend). Cataract prevalence was higher among women than men for NSC (P = 0.0001), but not for CC (P = 0.15) or PSC (P = 0.25), after adjusting for age. Prevalence rates of visual impairment (BCVA < 6/12), US blindness (< or = 6/60) and WHO blindness (< 6/120) for this population were 13.3%, 2.1%, and 1.3%, respectively. Older age and each of the major types of pure and mixed cataract were independently associated with worse vision in regression modeling. CONCLUSIONS: Unlike African-derived populations in Salisbury and Barbados, NSC rather than CC was most prevalent in this African population. The seeming lower prevalence of CC may to some extent be explained by different grading schemes, differential availability of cataract surgery, the younger mean age of the Tanzanian subjects, and a higher prevalence of NSC in this population.

Prevalence of cataract and pseudophakia/aphakia among adults in the United States.

OBJECTIVES:

To determine the prevalence of cataract and pseudophakia/aphakia in the United States and to project the expected change in these prevalence figures by 2020.

METHODS:

Summary prevalence estimates of cataract and of pseudophakia/aphakia were prepared separately for black, white, and Hispanic persons (for whom only cataract surgery data were available) in 5-year age intervals starting at 40 years for women and men. The estimates were based on a standardized definition of various types of cataract: cortical, greater than 25% of the lens involved; posterior subcapsular, present according to the grading system used in each study; and nuclear, greater than or equal to the penultimate grade in the system used. Data were collected from major population-based studies in the United States, and, where appropriate, Australia, Barbados, and Western Europe. The age-, gender-, and race/ethnicity-specific rates were applied to 2000 US Census data, and projected population figures for 2020, to obtain overall estimates.

RESULTS:

An estimated 20.5 million (17.2%) Americans older than 40 years have cataract in either eye, and 6.1 million (5.1%) have pseudophakia/aphakia. Women have a significantly (odds ratio = 1.37; 95% confidence interval, 1.26-1.50) higher age-adjusted prevalence of cataract than men in the United States. The total number of persons who have cataract is estimated to rise to 30.1 million by 2020; and for those who are expected to have pseudophakia/aphakia, to 9.5 million.

CONCLUSION:

The number of Americans affected by cataract and undergoing cataract surgery will dramatically increase over the next 20 years as the US population ages.

Conocimientos de los criterios diagnósticos de diabetes mellitus tipo 2 en médicos de Barranquilla 2005

La Diabetes Mellitus (DM) es una enfermedad metabólica, crónica, no transmisible y de etiología multifactorial, causada por defectos en la secreción y acción de la insulina(1), constituye el 90-95 % de todos los casos de Diabetes(2). Es una enfermedad crónica que afecta a un gran número de personas, representando un problema personal y de salud pública de enormes proporciones. En Colombia está dentro de las 10 primeras causas de consulta y mortalidad, y la prevalencia en Bogotá en personas de 30-64 años es de 7.3% (3.7-10.9) en hombres y de 8.7 (5.2-12.3) en mujeres. Se estima que la mitad de los casos de Diabetes permanecen sin ser especificados. Muchos de estos pacientes presentan complicaciones crónicas en el momento del diagnóstico por lo que el inicio de la enfermedad antecede a su detección en varios años.

Frecuencia de neoplasia escamosa de la superficie ocular coexistente con pterigio

Introducción: En la literatura, han aparecido reportes de neoplasia escamosa de superficie ocular (NESO) asociado con pterigio en un mismo paciente. Sin embargo, Colombia no cuenta con una estadística para ninguna de estas patologías. Objetivos: Determinar la frecuencia de NESO en pterigios resecados, en la Fundación Oftalmológica Nacional. Identificar factores de riesgo y características clínicas que predispongan a su aparición. Metodología: Estudio descriptivo de corte transversal. Se realizó una clasificación prequirúrgica y estudio histopatológico de los pterigios resecados en 93 pacientes, para confirmar su coexistencia con NESO. Se efectuó un análisis de frecuencias para datos demográficos y factores de riesgo asociados su aparición. Resultados: La frecuencia de NESO asociado a pterigio fue 7,07%. De estos, 28,5% identificados como sospechosos en la evaluación preoperatoria. La mayoría se presentaron en mujeres (71,4%), las ocupaciones con mayor frecuencia: labores domésticas (42,8%) y el comercio (28.5%). La exposición a derivados del petróleo y tabaquismo fue del 14,28%. No se presentaron casos asociados a infección por VIH. No hubo diferencias estadísticamente significativas sobre la presencia de NESO al comparar los casos en edad (p=0,8), procedencia (p=0,6) tabaquismo (p=0,4), leucoplaquia (p=1,0), queratinización (p=0,137), o vasos amputados (p=0,137). Conclusiones: De los pacientes con diagnóstico histopatológico de NESO, un porcentaje mínimo es sospechado clínicamente. Además se encontró este diagnóstico en pacientes más jóvenes que lo reportado en la literatura. Se recomienda realizar estudios con mayor número de pacientes para una mejor identificación de factores de riesgo. Palabras clave:

El arte en el mundo de hoy.

Mención en: 'I premios internacionales redELE para la creación de unidades didácticas del español como lengua extranjera', Orden ECI-3268-2005 de 10 de octubre. Incluye anexo con resumen de la autora (4 p.). Resumen basado en el de la publicación

'Black skins-white masks': Postcolonial reflections on 'race', gender and second generation return migration to the Caribbean

This paper illustrates the opportunities afforded by the adoption of postcolonial discourse in development geography, drawing specifically on issues of transnationalism, hybridity and inbetweeness. The utility of such notions and associated approaches is illustrated by the authors' current research on the migration of young, second generation and foreign-born 'Bajan-Brits' to the small Caribbean island nation of Barbados, the homeland of their parents. Focussing on issues of 'race' and gender, the paper examines the experiences of return migration among this cohort from an interpretative perspective framed within postcolonial discourse. It argues that notwithstanding the considerable sociocultural problems of adjustment encountered, these Bajan-Brit 'returnees' may be seen as occupying positions of relative economic privilege. Theirs is a liminal space derived by virtue of having been born and/or raised in the UK and being of the black 'race'. Accordingly, they are demonstrated to be both advantaged and disadvantaged; both transnational and national; and black but, in some senses, symbolically white.

Quality of Life Issues and Second-Generation Migration: the Case of 'Bajan-Brit Returnees'

This paper forms part of research that is investigating the migration of young Bajan-Brits to Barbados. Specifically, it explores the role of quality of life issues in the decision-making processes of young Bajan-Brits as they negotiate their 'return' to Barbados. The research, based on 51 in-depth qualitative interviews conducted with an under-researched cohort of young Bajan-Brits living in Barbados, argues from a 'lure of home' conceptualisation that the return of young Bajan-Brits to Barbados can best be understood from the context of a search for a better quality of life in the face of social and economic disenfranchisement in the UK context. Subsequently, the paper examines the extent to which the quality of life factors which formed the basis of return to Barbados have in fact been realised on the part of young Bajan-Brits in their adjustment to life in Barbados. The paper ultimately argues that despite problems of adjustment, young Bajan-Brits have generally been successful in actualising a better quality of life in Barbados. Copyright (C) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

"Mad dogs and transnational migrants?" Bajan-Brit second-generation migrants and accusations of madness

Second-generation British-Barbadians ("Bajan-Brits'') returning to the land of their parents are frequently accused by indigenous Barbadian nationals of being mad. Narratives of the migrants reflect four major sets of factors: (1) madness as perceived behavioral and cultural differences; (2) explanations that relate to the historical-clinical circumstances surrounding the incidence of mental ill health among first-generation West Indian migrants to the United Kingdom; (3) madness as a pathology of alienation that is attendant on living in Barbados; and (4) madness as "othering,'' "outing,'' and "fixity.'' British second-generation "returning nationals'' to the Caribbean, living as they do in the plural world of the land of their parents' birth, after having been raised in the colonial "Mother Country,'' exhibit hybridity and in-betweenness. Accusations of madness serve to fix the position of these young migrants outside the mainstream of indigenous Barbadian society. Our analysis invokes recent postcolonial writings dealing with "strange encounters'' to theorize that the madness accusation serves to "other'' the young Bajan-Brit migrants in a strongly postcolonial context.

Both black and symbolically white: The 'Bajan-Brit' return migrant as post-colonial hybrid

The research presented in this article centres on an under-researched demographic group of young return migrants, namely, second-generation Barbadians, or 'Bajan-Brits', who have decided to 'return' to the birthplace of their parents. Based on 51 in-depth interviews, the essay examines the experiences of second-generation return migrants from an interpretative perspective framed within post-colonial discourse. The article first considers the Bajan-Brits and issues of race in the UK before their decision to migrate. It is then demonstrated that on 'return', in certain respects, these young, black English migrants occupy a liminal position of cultural, racial and economic privilege, based on their 'symbolic' or 'token' whiteness within the post-colonial context of Barbados. But this very hybridity and inbetweeness means that they also face difficulties and associated feelings of social alienation and discrimination. The ambivalent status of this transnational group of migrants serves to challenge traditional notions of Barbadian racial identity.

Qualidade de fruto da aceroleira cv. Olivier em dois estádios de maturação

A acerola é um fruto de grande potencial econômico e nutricional devido ao seu alto teor de vitamina C, destacando-se como alimento funcional. É comercializada principalmente na forma de polpa congelada e fruto in natura. O objetivo deste estudo foi avaliar a qualidade dos frutos da aceroleira cv. Olivier em dois estádios de maturação. Para tanto, foram colhidas amostras de frutos em um pomar comercial no município de Junqueirópolis-SP. Foram realizadas a determinação da cor externa dos frutos e análises das características químicas de teor de sólidos solúveis, pH, acidez titulável, açúcares redutores, 'ratio' e ácido ascórbico de frutos semi-maduros e maduros. Os resultados obtidos permitiram concluir que os frutos semimaduros apresentaram maior acidez total, menor teor de sólidos solúveis e menor concentração de açúcares; no entanto, estes frutos apresentaram maiores teores de vitamina C, expressa em ácido ascórbico. Portanto, quando se buscam altos índices de vitamina C, os frutos devem ser colhidos num estádio de maturação menos avançado, com coloração alaranjada. O estudo demonstrou também que a cv Olivier produz frutos com características adequadas tanto para o mercado in natura quanto para a indústria, apresentando boa coloração e características químicas dentro dos padrões para esta fruta.

Fenologia da aceroleira cv. Olivier em Junqueirópolis-SP

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Elaboração e validação de escala diagramática para quantificação da mancha alvo em folhas de acerola

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

Comprimento de estacas e parte do ramo na formação de mudas de aceroleira

A capacidade rizogênica, a brotação e o vigor de estacas caulinares de aceroleira foram avaliados em condições de casa de vegetação na Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária (EMBRAPA) Agroindústria Tropical, em Fortaleza-CE, no período de novembro de 2000 a janeiro de 2001, objetivando determinar a parte do ramo e o tamanho mais apropriado para estaquia. O delineamento experimental foi inteiramente casualizado, no esquema fatorial 3x3, correspondendo a três posições no ramo (apical, mediano e basal) e três comprimentos de estacas (10; 15 e 20 cm), com três repetições de 10 estacas por parcela. As estacas, colhidas de plantas com 2,5 anos de idade, foram plantadas em tubetes de 288cm³ contendo uma mistura de casca de arroz carbonizada e vermicomposto, na proporção volumétrica de 2:3, e cultivadas por um período de 60 dias sob condições de nebulização intermitente. Avaliaram-se a percentagem de estacas enraizadas, o peso da matéria seca do sistema radicular e parte aérea, o número de folhas, de gemas sem brotação e as ramificações emitidas por estaca. Os resultados indicaram que estacas caulinares com 10 centímetros de comprimento e colhidas da porção mediana dos ramos são mais apropriadas para a produção de mudas de aceroleira por estaquia, sob condições de casa de vegetação com nebulização intermitente.

Variação sazonal da concentração de macronutrientes em folhas de diferentes genótipos de aceroleira

A aceroleira produz durante o ano inteiro, e seus frutos são ricos em vitaminas e sais minerais. Para a obtenção de produções elevadas e frutos de boa qualidade, é necessário conhecer as necessidades nutricionais e as épocas mais apropriadas para a adubação das plantas. Este trabalho, conduzido em área do Campo Experimental da Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária (EMBRAPA) Agroindústria Tropical, em Pacajus, Ceará, de dezembro de 1999 a outubro de 2000, teve por objetivo estudar a variação sazonal dos teores de nutrientes (N, P, K, Ca, Mg e S) e determinar a época mais indicada para a análise foliar de seis genótipos (P 52, P 66, P 78, P 91, P 93 e P 97) de aceroleira (Malpighia emarginata D.C.). Adotou-se o delineamento de blocos ao acaso, em esquema de parcelas subdivididas no tempo, com 4 repetições e uma planta por unidade experimental. Existem poucas diferenças no teor de macronutrientes das folhas de distintos genótipos de aceroleiras. O mês de dezembro é a época mais apropriada para diagnosticar os teores de macronutrientes em genótipos de aceroleira no Estado do Ceará, pois é o período menos influenciado pela falta ou excesso de chuva ou pela demanda dos órgãos em formação na planta.

Teores de macronutrientes em mudas de aceroleira (Malpighia emarginata DC.) em função da composição do substrato

The composition of substrates with different sources of organic matter is considered as a key factor to obtain seedlings of good quality. Then, this study aimed to evaluate the best source and the best quantity of organic matter that should be used in order to produce barbados cherry (Malpighia emarginata DC.) seedlings of good quality. A factorial arrangement of four (20: 80, 40: 60, 60:40 and 80:20% of organic matter: earth) by four (earthworm compost, burnt rice husk, powdered coconut husk and carnauba straw) levels was used and it was designed in randomized blocks with four replicates. The nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and calcium content of the leaves and stems were quantified in the dry tissue. The results showed that the proportion 80% of earthworm compost: 20% of earth allowed good development of the plants and sufficient accumulation of N, P, K and Ca. Burnt rice husk, powdered coconut husk and carnauba straw have not generated seedlings of good quality.