Alcoolemia em vítimas fatais de acidentes de trânsito no Rio Grande do Norte empregando cromatografia em fase gasosa - head space

Alcohol is one of the few psychotropic drugs that their consumption has admitted legally and sometimes encouraged by the society. Studies show alcohol as the highest consumption of drugs among young people and society in general, probably because of its availability and easy access. The abuse causes public health problems, which was closely related to the violence, socioeconomic problems and the high number of automobile accidents. Transit is one of the main sectors affected by the effects of alcohol, observing a high incidence in the studies. About half of automobile accidents occurs after the consumption of alcoholic beverage, and the vast majority of cases related to high concentrations of alcohol in the bloodstream. The relationship of drunk with traffic accidents is in fact evident everywhere in the world, including Brazil, where studies have shown a high relationship between alcohol consumption and traffic accidents. This study determined the alcohol in fatal victims of traffic accidents in the state of Rio Grande do Norte and established the profile of this population compared with those found in Brazil and other countries. Samples of blood of ethanol added to fulfillment of the standardization of chromatographic conditions and procedures for the analysis, being employed in the determination of alcohol in blood samples of 277 victims of traffic accidents, collected at the Institute of Scientific Technical Police of Rio Grande do North (ITEP) in the year 2007. The blood alcohol level was determined in these samples correlated with the sex, age and marital status of the victim and the location, day of week and month when the accident occurred, is doing a statistical analysis and outlining a profile of the victims of an accident at transit in the state of Rio Grande do Norte. The parameters of standardization studied ensured the quality of the analytical method and, consequently, to obtain reliable laboratory results. Being given the best temperature for injector (150 ºC), detector (250 ºC) and column (50 ºC) with a flow of gas in the column of 2mL/minutos and analysis of time of 12 minutes. The method was linear in the range of 0.01 to 3.2 g / L (r2 = 0.9989) with average recovery of 100.2% and precision with coefficient of variation less than 15%. The analysis carried out on victims of fatal road traffic accidents, ethanol detected in the blood in 66.43% of the victims and these, 96% showed concentration ≥ 0.2 g / L, 87.73% of victims were male, while 12.27% female. The younger age group (1535 years) was the most involved (52,35%) and most single (55.60%). The accidents occurred with greater prevalence in the day on Monday (27%) followed by Sunday (24,19%) and Saturday (15,52%) and it was found that the prevalence of injuries varied between the different months of the year, and in February (14.4%) and April (10.47%) the months that had a higher number of accidents, however this oscillation showed no statistically significant difference. Also no significant difference was observed between the tracks of concentration found in men and women. The standardized method showed to be efficient, given satisfactorily to the goals of this work, and the high levels of alcohol found in victims of fatal road traffic accidents are consistent with several studies of literature, and the profile of the victim also supported by presenting in its most young adults, male and single

Avaliação da gravidade do trauma em condutores de motocicleta vítimas de acidentes de trânsito no Rio Grande do Norte

Descriptive exploratory study, prospective, with quantitative approach, performed on the Monsenhor Walfredo Gurgel Hospital Complex (MWGHC), in Natal/RN, aiming to identify injuries by body area and wound severity on drivers who suffered motorcycle accidents, evaluate the severity of injuries and trauma on these drivers and identify the existence of association between wound and trauma severity and some of the accident s characteristics. The population comprised 371 motorcycle drivers, with data collected between October and December 2007. We used as instruments the Abberviated Injury Scale (AIS), Injury Severity Score (ISS) and the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCE1). The results show that, concerning characterization, there was a predominance of the male gender (88.4%), aged between 18 and 24 years (39.90%), originating from the Natal metropolitan region (55.79%), with fundamental-level instruction (51.48%), catholic (75.78%), married (47.98%). 23.18% work on commerce-related activities and 75.20% have income of up to 2 minimum wages. As for the accident s characteristics, the predominant shift was the afternoon (46.36%), received up to one hour after the event (50.67%), transported by countryside ambulances colleagues and relatives (51.21%), 25.34% had the accident on Sunday; 53.91% suffered falls and vehicle rolls; among the collisions there was a predominance of the motorcycle-automoblie type (28.03%); 52,6% were licensed and among these 50.76% had up to one year of license; 65.50% declared not having suffered previous accidents; 65.77% declared waring helmets in the time of the accident; 57.41% said not to have used drugs, and among those who used, alcohol was the most consumed (98.10%). The lowest score evaluated by GCS1 (3 to 8) was linked to drivers who suffered accidents on Saturday (10.3%), those who were not wearing helmets (14.29%) and the victims of motorcycle-pedestrian/animal crashes (13.33%). The body areas most affected had AIS between 1 and 3 (95.76%) and were: external surface (39.90%) and head/neck (33.20%). As for trauma severity, the highest scores (ISS>25) belonged to those who consumed alcohol (30.73%), suffered falls or vehicle rolls (48.9%) and those attended to 3 hours or longer after the accident (50%). We conclude that for motorcycle drivers who suffered accidents, age, gender, weekday, type of accident, use of drugs and the absence of helmet use signal both to the risk of occurrence of these events, as well as for the greater severity of injuries and trauma.

Caracterização do acidente de trânsito e gravidade do trauma: um estudo em vítimas de um hospital de emergência de Natal

Descriptive exploratory study, with quantitative approach and prospective data performed on the Monsenhor Walfredo Gurgel Hospital Complex (MWGH), in Natal/RN, aiming to classify the type of motor vehicle involved in the accident, the public roadway s user quality and the more frequent injuries; to evaluate the severity of trauma in traffic accident victims; characterized the severity of the injuries and the trauma, and the type of motor vehicle involved. The population comprises 605 traffic accident victims, with data collected between October and December 2007. We used as a support for the evaluation of severity of injuries and trauma the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCSl), the Condensed Abbreviated Injury Scale (CAIS) and the Injury Severity Score (ISS). The results show that 82.8% of the victims were male; 78.4% were aged 18 to 38; the victims originating from the State s Countryside prevailed (43.1%); 24.3% of the population had completed middle-level instruction; 23.1% worked on commerce and auxiliary activities; most (79.4%) was catholic; 48.8% were married/consensual union; 76.2% earned up to two monthly minimum wages; Sunday was the day with the most accidents (25.1%); 47.4% were attended to in under an hour after the event; the motorcycle on its own was responsible for 53.2% of the accidents; 42.3% were attended to by the SAMU; 61.8% were victims of crashes; over half (53.4%) used individual protection equipment (IPE); 49.4% were helmets and 4.0% the seatbelt; 61.3% were motorcycle drivers; 43.3% of the accidents took place in the afternoon shift; from 395 drivers, 55.2% were licensed, and 50.7% among those had been licensed for 1 to 5 years; 90.7% of the victims had GCS1 between 13 and 15 points at the time of evaluation; the body area most affected was the external surface (35.9%); 38.8% of the injuries were light or moderate (AIS=1 and AIS=2); 83.2% had light trauma (ISS between 1 and 15 points). In face of the results, we can conclude that there is a risk for the elevation of injury severity and trauma resulting from traffic accidents, when these events are related to certain variables such as gender, age, weekday, the interval between the accident and the first care, ingestion of drugs, type of accident, the public roadway s user quality, the use of IPE, day shift, body regions and the type of motor vehicle involved in the accident

Riscos ocupacionais e acidentes de trabalho em um serviço de atendimento móvel de urgência do Rio Grande do Norte

Exploratory, descriptive and quantitative study with prospective data, performed in the Mobile Emergency Care Service in the metropolitan region of Natal/RN, in order to identify the knowledge of the multidisciplinary team about the rules of standard precautions and worker safety, to identify occupational hazards peculiar to the activities of this service; characterize work-related accidents (WRA) and know the procedures adopted after each WRA. The population consisted of 162 professionals and data were collected between the months of November and December 2010. As for personal and professional characteristics, of the 162 professional, 12,96% were physicians; 6,79%, nurses; 33,95%, nursing technicians, 46,29%, conductors; 74,70% were male; 43,21% were between 31 and 40 years old; 69,33% lived in Natal/RN, 50,00% had completed high school; 58,64% were married; 69,75% had children, 46,91% were between 1 and 4 years of training; 61,73% had improvement courses; 59,25% had 3 to 4 years of service; 54,32%, with 1-4 years experience in emergency; 44,44% received 1-2 minimum wages; 78,40% received insalubrity premium; 67,28% worked in Basic Support Unit (BSU); 83,95% had journey on SAMU Metropolitano of 31-40 hours per week; 52,47% had other employments. As for knowledge of rules of standard precautions, safety and occupational hazards, 99,38% knew what it was WRA; 62,96% gave incomplete answers; 74,07% knew the rules of prevent WRA; 46,67% acquired this knowledge in lectures; 53,09% knew Personal Protective Equipment (PPE); 71,60% gave incorrect answers about the importance of standard precautions; 45,06% never received an educational intervention on this issue; 89,51% said that educational interventions in the prevention of WRA are very important; 90,12% pointed out this as a very important issue in the workplace; 27,00% suggested guidance on the topic in the workplace; regarding the physical hazards, 34,57% considered noise as the most important; about chemical hazards, 78,40% chose the gases and smoke; for biological hazards, 48,77% reported contact with the blood; for mechanical hazards, 80,86% said that were transport accidents; about ergonomic risks, 40,12% say it is the tension/stress in the care of critically ill, psychiatric and aggressive patients; and there was an average of 4,5 to the feeling of safety in the workplace. Regarding the data on the WRAs occurred, 31,48% experienced at least one accident event; 72,55% did not notify it; 60,98% answered that there was no routine for notification; 56,86% were performing patient transportation; 49,02% were hurt in the Basic Support Unit/Rescue Unit (BSU/RH); 60,78% occurred during the day; 96,08% of professionals were in normal work schedule (24 hours on duty); 31,37% had contusion; 58.82% had damage to members/pelvic girdle; 43,14% had traffic accidents. About the evolution of the WRA, 62,75% did not have to take time away from work; 76,47% had no sequelae; 88,24% did not require rehabilitation; no professional had a change of occupation. And by means of univariate logistic regression, showed that the nurses and male sex were risk factors for the occurrence of WRA. We conclude that there were gaps in the knowledge of staff regarding WRA, emphasizing the need for continuing education in biosafety in the service.

Soil compaction by machine traffic and least limiting water range related to soybean yield

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

Traffic soil compaction of an oxisol related to soybean development and yield

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

Trauma em idosos atendidos pelo serviço pré-hospitalar móvel

O The aim of this study was to characterize the occurrence of trauma in the elderly population served by the mobile pre-hospital service, in Natal, Rio Grande do Norte. This is a descriptive, transversal and quantitative approach and whose population consisted of 2,080 trauma victims. The sample, of systematic random type, consisted of 400 elderly people, aged from 60 years old, assisted by the Office of Mobile Emergency in Natal / RN, between January 2011 and December 2012. Data collection began after consent and assent of the institution of a Research Ethics Committee under No. 309 505. It was proceeded to documentary retrospective analysis of records of this service through a form of self-development, validated by expert judges considered reliable (α> 0.75) and valid (CVI = 0.97) in their clarity and relevance. Data were tabulated by the Statistical Package for Social Sciences, version 20.0. The results show that older victims have an average age of 74.19 years old, with a prevalence of female involvement by chronic diseases, especially hypertension, average usage of 2.2 routine medications with vital signs within normal limits. The trauma prevailed during the daytime, in the residence of the victims, north of the city and on weekends. Among the mechanisms of trauma were falls, traffic accidents and physical aggression, whose most common type was brain-cerebral trauma and the main consequences were suture wounds and closed fractures. Basic Support Units were as more driven to pre-hospital care (87.8%) and the main destination place consisted of a referral hospital for emergency of the state (57.5%). Among the most commonly performed procedures by nursing staff immobilization with rigid board and neck collar and the peripheral venipuncture, and the main component used for volume replacement to saline were highlighted. There was a significant relationship between the deaths and the mechanism of injury, mechanism of injury and procedures, except medication administration procedures carried out, except immobilization and unit for service. It is highlighted the prevalence of trauma in the elderly, poor follow-up Pre-Hospital Trauma Life Support protocol and the paucity of records and nursing procedures performed. There is need for a protocol of care specific to elderly trauma victims and education strategies for the prevention of such events

Análise da situação de trabalho do motorista em uma empresa de ônibus urbano da idade de Natal (RN)

The problem dealt with in this study concerns the analysis of bus drivers' working situation. It stemmed from the need to identify the difficulties faced by these professionals in accomplishing the results expected by the company. A case study was carried out in a public transportation company in the city of Natal. Records and observations made in the workplace, alongside perfomance indicators, such as absenteeism tax, staff turnover and traffic accidents, revealed problems in their activity. It was made clear that, in the company being studied, absenteeism was related to health problems, particularly psychiatric and musculoskeletal disorders, and that although the indicators of traffic accidents and staff turnover have declined over the years, they are still elevated. The interviews involved 50 of the 124 drivers who worked directly in the service, and contained questions covering eleven factors related to the drivers' work. They indicated a gap between the prescribed work and the work actually done, in that there were a series of embarassing or stressful situations involving traffic, itinerary length, road conditions, vehicle maintenance, physical environment (bus terminus), job post and supervision policies. On the other hand, factors such as enjoying driving, the work itself and being with workmates positively influenced the drivers' working conditions. In the propositions of the administration and human resources subsystems, some alternatives were found in order to remodel this activity

Uma Aplicação do Algoritmo QT Clustering para Marcação Colaborativa de Pontos Perigosos em Vias Públicas

This work proposes a collaborative system for marking dangerous points in the transport routes and generation of alerts to drivers. It consisted of a proximity warning system for a danger point that is fed by the driver via a mobile device equipped with GPS. The system will consolidate data provided by several different drivers and generate a set of points common to be used in the warning system. Although the application is designed to protect drivers, the data generated by it can serve as inputs for the responsible to improve signage and recovery of public roads

Indicadores associados a acidentes de trânsito envolvendo motoristas de ônibus da cidade de Natal

The purpose of this study was to investigate indicators of urban bus drivers involvement in transit accidents. We analyzed their involvement in accidents in relation to several indicators suggested by the literature, including the temporal dimension of those bus drivers, as expressed in Zimbardo's Time Perspective Inventory (ZTPI), for previous studies have shown that people more present time oriented revealed greater tendency to engage in risk driving. A questionnaire was applied to 457 bus drivers of the city of Natal, RN, Brazil, with questions about participants socio-demographic information, their professional performance and items on time perspective, presented in a five points Likert type scale. Among the indicators analyzed, the best predictors of traffic accidents were: worried about not being on schedule, family problems, and falling asleep; to work overtime, passengers complaints, work while on vacations and medical leaves. In regard to drivers' time perspective, the sub-scale of "combined present" showed a positive relationship with involvement in transit accidents, while the future scale a negative one, in both cases in accordance with the expect direction, even though the effects have not been statistically significant. The selected predictive variable indicate that traffic accidents are mainly associated to situational factors, that could be prevented through the betterment of work conditions of the bus drivers and other organizational and public policies, since transit accidents should be part of initiatives in the areas of health and safety

Skin lesions in envenoming by cnidarians (Portuguese man-of-war and jellyfish): etiology and severity of accidents on the Brazilian coast

This work attempts to establish dermatological identification patterns for Brazilian enidarian species and it probable correlation with envenoming, severity In all observational prospective study, one hundred and twenty-eight patients from the North Coast re-ion of São Paulo State, Brazil were seen between 2002 and 2008. About 80% of these Showed only local effects (erythema, edema, and pain) with small, less than 20 cm, oval or round skin marks and impressions from Small tentacles. Approximately 20% of the victims had long, more than 20 cm, linear and crossed marks with frequent systemic phenomena, such as malaise, vomiting, dyspnea, and tachycardia. The former is compatible with the common hydromedusa from Southeast and Southern Brazil (Olindias sambaquiensis). The long linear marks with intense pain and systemic phenomena are compatible with envenoming, by the box jellyfish Tamoya haplonema and Chiropsalmus quadrumanus and the hydrozoan Portuguese man-of-war (Physalis physalis). There was an association between Skin marks and probable accident etiology. This simple observation rule can be indicative of severity as the Cubozoa Class (box jellyfish) and Portuguese man-of-war cause the most severe accidents. In such cases, medical attention, including intensive care, is important, as the systemic manifestations call be associated with death.

Fraction of work-related accidents attributable to occupational noise in the city of Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil

Background: Noise is the most common agent of occupational exposure. It may induce both auditory and extraauditory dysfunction and increase the risk of work accidents. The purpose of this study was to estimate the fraction of accidents attributable to noise occupational exposure in a mid-size city located in southeastern Brazil. Materials and Methods: In this population case-control study, which included 108 cases and 324 controls, the incidence rate ratio of work accidents controlled for several covariables was obtained by classifying occupational noise exposure into three levels, as well as determining the prevalence in each level. Results: Based on these data, the attributable fraction was estimated as 0.6391 (95 CI = 0.2341-0.3676), i.e., 63 of the work accidents that took place in the study site were statistically associated with occupational noise exposure. Discussion: The causes of this association as well as its implications in the prevention of work accidents are discussed.

Trabalho, violência e morte em Campinas, São Paulo, Brasil

Neste estudo epidemiológico foram analisados óbitos decorrentes de causas externas, ocorridos nos anos 1999 e 2000 entre moradores masculinos da Cidade de Campinas falecidos com idade entre 15 e 64 anos, por intermédio de entrevistas com familiares. Buscou-se correlacionar esta incidência com a história ocupacional dos indivíduos, permitindo a caracterização de tais eventos como acidentes de trabalho. A mortalidade proporcional devido a acidentes de trabalho foi estimada em 27,0% neste grupo. em nenhuma das Declarações de Óbito analisadas estava assinalado com sim o campo Acidente de Trabalho. Com base nos resultados, estimou-se que a informação oficial do Ministério do Trabalho e Emprego sobre o número de óbitos decorrentes de acidentes de trabalho no período no Estado de São Paulo esteja subestimada em 83,4%. Constatou-se ainda que a imensa maioria dos acidentes de trabalho fatais identificados era de homicídios e acidentes de transporte, refletindo o aumento da violência nas grandes cidades brasileiras.

Venomous mollusks: the risks of human accidents by conus snails (gastropoda: conidae) in Brazil

Os moluscos do gênero Conus apresentam um aparato venenoso composto de uma rádula quitinosa ligada a glândulas de peçonha, causando envenenamentos humanos graves e mesmo óbitos pela ação neurotóxica indutora do bloqueio de vários receptores e paralisia muscular. Não há casos descritos de envenenamento no país, mas determinadas populações correm risco de acidentes.