Surgical Site Infection in a University Hospital in Northeast Brazil

We examined prevention of surgical site infection (SSI) in a tertiary teaching hospital in northeast Brazil, from January 1994 to December 2003. The survey included 5,742 patients subjected to thoracic, urologic, vascular and general surgery. The criteria for diagnosing SSI were those of the Centers for Disease Control, USA, and the variables of the National Nosocomial Infection Surveillance risk index were used. Data analysis revealed that anesthetic risk scores, wound class and duration of surgery were significantly associated with SSI. A total of 296 SSIs were detected among the 5,742 patients (5.1%). The overall incidence of SSI was 8.8% in 1994; it decreased to 3.3% in 2003. In conclusion, the use of educational strategies, based on guidelines for SSI prevention reduced SSI incidence. Appropriate management of preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative incision care, and a surveillance system based on international criteria, were useful in reducing SSI rates in our hospital

Índice del perfil del donante renal (KDPI) como factor pronóstico del trasplante

La enfermedad renal crónica ha aumentado a nivel mundial y nacional, mientras que el número de donantes viene en descenso, y los pacientes en lista de espera aumentan. Los donantes cadavéricos son una opción para estos pacientes, y han sido utilizados en últimos años para aumentar los órganos disponibles. La evaluación de la calidad de estos es importante para optimizar su uso. Estudio analítico tipo cohorte retrospectiva, cálculo de KDPI en donantes cadavéricos, seguimiento función renal creatinina sérica 1 mes, 3 meses, 6 meses y un año. Correlación supervivencia del injerto, función renal, KDPI y EPTS. Análisis de supervivencia y regresión logística con variables del donante, receptor y acto quirúrgico.

La concentración de calcio iónico se asocia a la presencia de fibrilación auricular post operatoria en pacientes llevados a revascularización miocardica

Objetivo. Determinar en un grupo de pacientes llevados a revascularización miocárdica si existió asociación entre la presencia de niveles de calcio iónico inferiores a 1,1 en las 24 horas del post operatorio y la ocurrencia de fibrilación auricular post operatoria. Metodología. Estudio observacional, analítico de casos y controles, en donde de manera consecutiva se incluyeron 110 sujetos (57 en el grupo de casos con presencia de fibrilación auricular post operatoria y 54 en el grupo de controles sin evidencia de fibrilación auricular) estos sujetos fueron llevados a revascularización miocárdica en la Fundación Cardioinfantil en los años 2010 a 2015. Resultados. Hubo 13 casos de fibrilación auricular post operatoria en pacientes con niveles de calcio iónico inferiores a 1,1 mmol/l en las primeras 24 horas del post operatorio OR: 0,5, IC (0,2-1,2) p: 0,1. Sin determinarse asociación por limitaciones del estudio, sin embargo un 29% de los pacientes con fibrilación auricular tuvieron niveles de calcio inferiores a 1,1 mmol/l en las primeras 24 horas del post operatorio, este valor aumenta a 31% cuando se analizan por separado los valores de calcio obtenidos a las 12 horas. Conclusiones. Aunque no se logró determinar asociación entre la fibrilación auricular post operatoria y las concentraciones de calcio iónico, de manera exploratoria se pudo establecer que un 29% de los pacientes con fibrilación auricular tuvieron concentraciones de calcio iónico inferiores a 1,1 mmol/l, este valor aumenta a 31% cuando se analizan los niveles de calcio iónico por separado.

Evaluación de la exposición laboral a sílice en empresas de diferentes sectores económicos en Colombia

Introducción: La sílice es un elemento de fácil aprovechamiento y por sus características fisicoquímicas ha sido ampliamente empleado en la industria como objetivo, materia prima o subproducto que genera silicosis en los trabajadores que han estado expuestos a polvo de sílice a través de los años y es una enfermedad que progresa incluso cuando la exposición cesa. La silicosis es conocida como una enfermedad de alta e histórica incidencia y prevalencia a nivel mundial, por lo que es necesario evaluar la exposición laboral a sílice (fracción respirable) en empresas pertenecientes a diferentes sectores económicos que están afiliadas una ARL en Colombia, para contribuir con información diagnóstica actualizada en diferentes regiones y en variadas actividades económicas. Objetivos: Evaluar la exposición laboral a sílice y el nivel de riesgo en empresas afiliadas a una ARL de acuerdo con su ubicación geográfica, actividad económica, área de trabajo, cargo y relacionar las medidas de control empleadas en cada empresa. Materiales y métodos: Se llevó a cabo un estudio de corte transversal sobre 239 mediciones de higiene industrial de 159 empresas de diferentes actividades través de la asociación de variables ocupacionales con las características de la exposición a sílice. Las variables cuantitativas fueron calculadas empleando medidas de tendencia central como media y mediana y medidas de dispersión como rango y desviación estándar con sus correspondientes coeficientes de variación. El nivel máximo permisible o TLV establecido de acuerdo con los parámetros señalados por la Conferencia Americana de Higienistas Industriales Gubernamentales (ACGIH en inglés) y empleado en este estudio para sílice cristalina, fue de 0,025 mg/m3. Resultados: Las actividades económicas que reportaron las mayores concentraciones corregidas a condiciones estándar de polvo de sílice fueron: la minería y actividades Extractivas con 6,340 mg/m3, el mantenimiento industrial, montajes electromecánicos y civiles con 1,312 mg/m3, la maquinaria, metalmecánica, electrodomésticos y equipos con 0,096 mg/m3 y la construcción con 0,702 mg/m3; Discusión: Se realizó un análisis segmentado en dos grupos A y B de acuerdo con el tiempo de medición, se encontró que para el índice de riesgo en ambos grupos indican una sobre-exposición de los trabajadores a niveles críticos, razón por la cual es necesario generar una estrategia de intervención que permita disminuir a tiempo las concentraciones de sílice en las áreas de trabajo y así reducir la exposición de los trabajadores.

Validity and reliability of the international fItness scale (IFIS) in a population-based sample of schoolchildren in Bogota, Colombia: The FUPRECOL study

The International FItness Scale (IFIS) is a self-reported measure of physical fitness that could easily. This scale has been validated in children, adolescents, and young adults; however, it is unknown whether the IFIS represents a valid and reliable estimate of physical fitness in Latino-American youth population. In the present study we aimed to examine the validity and reliability of the IFIS on a population-based sample of schoolchildren in Bogota, Colombia. Participants were 1,875 Colombian youth (56.2% girls) aged 9 to 17.9 years old. We measured adiposity markers (body fat, waist-to-height ratio, skinfold thicknesses and BMI), blood pressure, lipids profile, fasting glucose, and physical fitness level (self reported and measured). Also, a validated cardiometabolic risk index was used. An age- and sex-matched sample of 229 Schoolchildren originally not included in the study sample fulfilled IFIS twice for reliability purposes. Our data suggest that both measured and self-reported overall fitness were associated inversely with adiposity indicators and a cardiometabolic risk score. Overall, schoolchildren who self-reported “good” and “very good” fitness had better measured fitness than those who reported “very poor” and “poor” fitness (all p<0.001). Test–retest reliability of IFIS items was also good, with an average weighted Kappa of 0.811. Therefore, our findings suggest that self-reported fitness, as assessed by IFIS, is a valid, reliable, and health-related measure, and it can be a good alternative for future use in large studies with Latin-schoolchildren from Colombia.

Índice acumulativo de riesgo (nice) como prueba diagnóstica con base en tomografía corneal por elevación en la prevención de ectasia corneal post-lasik

Antecedentes La ectasia corneal post-lasik (ECPL) es una complicación infrecuente, pero devastadora en la cirugía lasik (queratomileusis asistida con éxcimer láser) para el tratamiento de la miopía con o sin astigmatismo. Con base en la tomografía corneal por elevación por imágenes de Scheimpflug (Sistema Pentacam HR, Oculus Wetzlar, Alemania), se propone un novedoso índice acumulativo de riesgo para ser utilizado como prueba diagnóstica de tamizaje y así prevenir esta complicación. Metodología Se realizó un estudio observacional analítico, de corte transversal tipo pruebas diagnósticas, con el fin de evaluar las características operativas del índice NICE teniendo como estándar de referencia el módulo de Belin-Ambrosio (Pentacam HR) utilizando un modelo de regresión logística binaria, tablas de contingencia y estimando el área bajo la curva ROC. Resultados Se evaluaron 361 ojos de los cuales el 59,3% provenían de pacientes de sexo femenino, la edad media global fue de 30 años (RIC 11,0). El modelo logístico binario aplicado se construyó con base en cuatro variables independientes cuantitativas (K2, PAQUI, EP e I-S) y una cualitativa (SEXO), y se determinó su relación con la variable dependiente, NICE (puntaje final). Las variables predictoras fueron estadísticamente significativas clasificando adecuadamente el 92,9% de los ojos evaluados según presencia o ausencia de riesgo. El coeficiente de Nagelkerke fue de 74,4%. Conclusiones El índice acumulativo de riesgo NICE es una herramienta diagnóstica novedosa en la evaluación de candidatos a cirugía refractiva lasik para prevenir la ectasia secundaria.

Lo studio del microclima indoor per la conservazione preventiva del Patrimonio storico artistico e culturale

La conservazione preventiva degli edifici storici e dei beni custoditi al loro interno rappresenta una sfida ad oggi condivisa a livello internazionale. Tale conservazione dipende da numerose variabili, tra le quali il microclima indoor gioca un ruolo decisivo. Il fine di questa tesi è verificare come lo studio del microclima indoor, supportato dalla simulazione virtuale e dalla conoscenza storica delle evoluzioni dell’edificio stesso (legate a modifiche impiantistiche; architettoniche; d’uso; ecc., nel corso degli anni), costituiscano una base conoscitiva fondamentale, da cui architetti e restauratori possono partire per definire strategie specifiche, volte alla conservazione preventiva del Patrimonio. Per fare questo, l’autore presenta le indagini svolte per tre casi-studio: la Sala 33 della Reggia di Venaria Reale, in provincia di Torino, Italia; la Biblioteca Generale Storica dell’Università di Salamanca, in Spagna; il Portico della Gloria, nartece della Cattedrale di Santiago de Compostela, in Spagna. La metodologia definita e adottata per l’analisi e l’interpretazione dei dati di ciascun caso-studio ha previsto la comprensione e la messa in relazione tra: scelte costruttive; vicende evolutive delle singole architetture; fattori che ne determinano il microclima, letti (o ipotizzati) nelle relative modifiche diacroniche; degrado delle architetture e dei beni che sono custoditi in esse. Infine, uno degli esiti più innovativi della ricerca è stata la definizione di due indici di rischio: sono stati infatti definiti due nuovi indici (Heritage Microclimate Risk -HMR- e Predicted Risk of Damage -PRD-) legati al microclima degli edifici che ospitano beni e manufatti che costituiscono il patrimonio storico artistico e culturale. Tali indici sono stati definiti tenendo conto di tutte le variabili da cui il microclima dipende e dei fattori che ne determinano l’evolversi nel tempo e nello spazio.

A multifactorial analysis of obesity as CVD risk factor: use of neural network based methods in a nutrigenetics context

Obesity is a multifactorial trait, which comprises an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). The aim of the current work is to study the complex etiology beneath obesity and identify genetic variations and/or factors related to nutrition that contribute to its variability. To this end, a set of more than 2300 white subjects who participated in a nutrigenetics study was used. For each subject a total of 63 factors describing genetic variants related to CVD (24 in total), gender, and nutrition (38 in total), e.g. average daily intake in calories and cholesterol, were measured. Each subject was categorized according to body mass index (BMI) as normal (BMI ≤ 25) or overweight (BMI > 25). Two artificial neural network (ANN) based methods were designed and used towards the analysis of the available data. These corresponded to i) a multi-layer feed-forward ANN combined with a parameter decreasing method (PDM-ANN), and ii) a multi-layer feed-forward ANN trained by a hybrid method (GA-ANN) which combines genetic algorithms and the popular back-propagation training algorithm.

Multifactorial analysis of changes in body mass index across the adult life course: a study with 65 years of follow-up

Background: Although the negative consequences on health of being obese are well known, most adults gain weight across the lifespan. The general increase in body mass index (BMI) is mainly considered to originate from behavioral and environmental changes; however, few studies have evaluated the influence of these factors on change in BMI in the presence of genetic risk. We aimed to study the influence of multifactorial causes of change in BMI, over 65 years. Methods and Findings: Totally, 6130 participants from TwinGene, who had up to five assessments, and 536 from the Swedish Adoption/Twin Study of Aging, who had up to 12 assessments, ranging over 65 years were included. The influence of lifestyle factors, birth cohort, cardiometabolic diseases and an individual obesity genetic risk score (OGRS) based on 32 single nucleotide polymorphisms on change in BMI was evaluated with a growth model. For both sexes, BMI increased from early adulthood to age of 65 years, after which the increase leveled off; BMI declined after age of 80 years. A higher OGRS, birth after 1925 and cardiometabolic diseases were associated with higher average BMI and a steeper increase in BMI prior to 65 years of age. Among men, few factors were identified that influence BMI trajectories in late life, whereas for women type 2 diabetes mellitus and dementia were associated with a steeper decrease in BMI after the age of 65 years. Conclusions: There are two turning points in BMI in late adulthood, one at the age of 65 years and one at the age 80 years. Factors associated with an increase in BMI in midlife were not associated with an increase in BMI after the age of 65 years. These findings indicate that the causes and consequences of change in BMI differ across the lifespan. Current health recommendations need to be adjusted accordingly.

(Review) Body mass index and risk of diabetes mellitus in the Asia-Pacific region

Few prospective data from the Asia Pacific region are available relating body mass index to the risk of diabetes. Our objective was to provide reliable age, sex and region specific estimates of the associations between body mass index and diabetes. Twenty-seven cohort studies from Asia, New Zealand and Australia, including 154,989 participants, contributed 1,244,793 person-years of follow-up. Outcome data included a combination of incidence of diabetes (based on blood glucose measurements) and fatal diabetes events. Hazard ratios were calculated from Cox models, stratified by sex and cohort, and adjusted for age at risk and smoking. During follow-up (mean = 8 years), 75 fatal diabetes events and 242 new cases of diabetes were documented. There were continuous positive associations between baseline body mass index and risk of diabetes with each 2 kg/m(2) lower body mass index associated with a 27% (23-30%) lower risk of diabetes. The associations were stronger in younger age groups, and regional comparisons demonstrated slightly stronger associations in Asian than in Australasian cohorts (P = 0.04). This overview provides evidence of a strong continuous association between body mass index and diabetes in the Asia Pacific region. The results indicate considerable potential for reduction in incidence of diabetes with population-wide lowering of body mass index in this region.

European ancestry and polymorphisms in DNA repair genes modify the risk of melanoma: A case-control study in a high UV index region in Brazil

Background: UV radiation is the major environmental factor related to development of cutaneous melanoma. Besides sun exposure and the influence of latitude, some host characteristics such as skin phototype and hair and eye color are also risk factors for melanoma. Polymorphisms in DNA repair genes could be good candidates for susceptibility genes, mainly in geographical regions exposed to high solar radiation. Objective: Evaluate the role of host characteristic.; and DNA repair polymorphism in melanoma risk in Brazil. Methods: We carried out a hospital-based case-control study in Brazil to evaluate the contribution of host factors and polymorphisms in DNA repair to melanoma risk. A total of 412 patients (202 with melanoma and 210 controls) were analyzed regarding host characteristics for melanoma risk as well as for 11 polymorphisms in DNA repair genes. Results: We found an association of host characteristics with melanoma development, such as eye and hair color, fair skin, history of pigmented lesions removed, sunburns in childhood and adolescence, and also European ancestry. Regarding DNA repair gene polymorphisms, we found protection for the XPG 1104 His/His genotype (OR 0.32; 95% CI 0.13-0.75), and increased risk for three polymorphisms in the XPC gene (PAT+; IV-6A and 939Gln), which represent a haplotype for XPC. Melanoma risk was higher in individuals carrying the complete XPC haplotype than each individual polymorphism (OR 3.64; 95% CI 1.77-7.48). Conclusions: Our data indicate that the host factors European ancestry and XPC polymorphisms contributed to melanoma risk in a region exposed to high sun radiation. (C) 2011 Japanese Society for Investigative Dermatology. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Body mass index and risk of head and neck cancer in a pooled analysis of case-control studies in the International Head and Neck Cancer Epidemiology (INHANCE) Consortium

Methods We pooled data from 17 case-control studies including 12 716 cases and the 17 438 controls. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated for associations between body mass index (BMI) at different ages and HNC risk, adjusted for age, sex, centre, race, education, tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption. Results Adjusted ORs (95% CIs) were elevated for people with BMI at reference (date of diagnosis for cases and date of selection for controls) < 18.5 kg/m(2) (2.13, 1.75-2.58) and reduced for BMI > 25.0-30.0 kg/m(2) (0.52, 0.44-0.60) and BMI >= 30 kg/m(2) (0.43, 0.33-0.57), compared with BMI > 18.5-25.0 kg/m(2). These associations did not differ by age, sex, tumour site or control source. Although the increased risk among people with BMI < 18.5 kg/m(2) was not modified by tobacco smoking or alcohol drinking, the inverse association for people with BMI > 25 kg/m(2) was present only in smokers and drinkers. Conclusions In our large pooled analysis, leanness was associated with increased HNC risk regardless of smoking and drinking status, although reverse causality cannot be excluded. The reduced risk among overweight or obese people may indicate body size is a modifier of the risk associated with smoking and drinking. Further clarification may be provided by analyses of prospective cohort and mechanistic studies.

Risk factors for dental erosion in a group of 12- and 16-year-old Brazilian schoolchildren

Background. Dental erosion is a multifactorial disease and is associated with dietary habits in infancy and adolescence. Aim. To investigate possible associations among dental erosion and diet, medical history and lifestyle habits in Brazilian schoolchildren. Design. The sample consisted of a random single centre cluster of 414 adolescents (12- and 16-years old) of both genders from private and public schools in Bauru (Brazil). The O`Brien [Children`s Dental Health in the United Kingdom, 1993 (1994) HMSO, London] index was used for dental erosion assessment. Data on medical history, rate and frequency of food and drinks consumption, and lifestyle habits were collected by a self-reported questionnaire. Odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were used to assess the univariate relationships between variables. Analysis of questionnaire items was performed by multiple logistic regression analysis. The statistical significance level was set at 5%. Results. The erosion present group comprised 83 subjects and the erosion absent group 331. There were no statistically significant correlations among dental erosion and the consumption of food and drinks, medical history, or lifestyle habits. Conclusion. The results indicate that there was no correlation between dental erosion and the risk factors analysed among adolescents in Bauru/Brazil and further investigations are necessary to clarify the multifactorial etiology of this condition.

Is an increased body mass index associated with a risk of cutaneous leishmaniasis?

All adults (n = 334) living in Brejo do Mutambal, an endemic area for cutaneous leishmaniasis, were included in this study. Contrary to our initial hypothesis, it was observed that men (23.7 ± 3.2 vs. 22.1 ± 2.6 kg/m²) and women (24.1 ± 4.7 vs. 22.5 ± 3.4 kg/m²) with cutaneous leishmaniasis presented higher body mass index than the controls.