Characteristics of Contraceptive Use in Sao Paulo State, Brazil

Objective To know the characteristics of contraceptive use in Sao Paulo State collected by the Demographic and Health Survey （DHS） conducted in 1996. Methods Data of Sao Paulo in 1996 were analyzed compared with the previous DHS carried on in 1986focusing on Sao Paulo State. Contraceptive use among married or cohabiting women by age, number of children and schooling was closely examined. Age and timing of female sterilization were also analyzed. Results The results showed that unlike Brazil there was a stability of female sterilization in Sao Paulo State during 1986 and 1996. There was a pattern in Sao Paulo： up to 30 years old the pill was the most used contraceptive, after 30 there was a predominance of female sterilization, which increased with the number of children and decreased with schooling. The use of male methods had also increased in the 1986 and 1996 period, being greater in Sao Paulo than in Brazil. Sao Paulo also presented more diversity in the use of reversible contraceptives. Conclusions The predominant two contraceptive methods in Brazil and Sao Paulo changed from 1986 to 1996, i.e..from pill to female sterilization.     

Mechanism of the endothelium-dependent vasodilator effect of an alcohol-free extract obtained from a vinifera grape skin.

An alcohol-free grape-skin extract (GSE) obtained from skins of Vitis labrusca has significant anti-hypertensive, antioxidant and vasodilator effects. According to our previous results, the vasodilator effect of GSE in the isolated mesenteric vascular bed (MVB) of the rat is dependent on endothelium and partially dependent on nitric oxide (NO). In the MVB of the rat pre-contracted with norepinephrine (NE), bolus injections of GSE induced a long-lasting dose-dependent vasodilation that is significantly reduced after the treatment with 1H-[1,2,3] oxadiazolo [4,4-a] quinoxalin-1-one (ODQ). Additionally, in vessels pre-contracted with norepinephrine and depolarized with KCl (25 mM) or treated with Ca(2+)-dependent K(+)-channel blockers charybdotoxin (ChTx) plus apamin, the vasodilator effect of GSE was significantly reduced and almost abolished by ChTx plus apamin plus L-NAME. However, the vasodilator effect of GSE was unaffected by D-Arg[Hyp(3),Thi(5),D-Tic(7),Oic(8)]bradykinin (HOE-140), atropine, yohimbine, pyrilamine and 4-aminopyridine (4-AP). The vasoconstriction response elicited by bolus injection of KCl was not affected by GSE, whereas the vasoconstrictor response induced by NE was dose-dependently and completed inhibited by GSE in the presence but not in the absence of endothelium. However, NE-induced vasoconstriction in calcium-free condition or without endothelium was not reduced by GSE. The present results demonstrate that GSE induces a vasodilator effect in the rat MVB, which is dependent on NO in combination with endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF). Additionally, our results indicated that extracellular Ca(2+) has an important role on the endothelium-dependent vasodilator effect induced by GSE.     

Sentinel node biopsy or limited oriented axillary dissection (LOAD) in early breast cancer.

AIMS: The value of the sentinel node biopsy technique is recognised by the majority of surgical teams as an alternative to conventional axillary lymph node dissection for the treatment of small breast cancers. Secondary procedures are necessary when lymph node invasion not detected by frozen section examination is discovered post-operatively. In order to avoid or limit these reoperations, our sentinel node biopsy technique has gradually been transformed into limited oriented axillary dissection (LOAD), which avoids secondary procedures in the majority of patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Three hundred and eighty two patients were operated on by the same surgeon, using the patent blue sentinel node identification technique. This technique failed in nine patients, seven of whom were obese. Only one lymph node was removed in 75 patients, two in 88 patients, 3-5 in 174 patients and more than five lymph nodes were removed in the remaining patients. Eighty-eight percent of patients had no lymph node invasion on intraoperative and post-operative examination. RESULTS: Only seven patients were reoperated by secondary conventional lymph node dissection and there was residual cancer in only one patient. CONCLUSION: The oriented limited axillary dissection technique, combined with frozen section histological examination, avoids the usually unnecessary secondary operations in small breast cancers, in which axillary lymph node invasion rarely exceeds more than two nodes. This technique requires surgeons experienced in axillary surgery and conventional sentinel lymph node biopsy. It needs to be validated on a larger scale by a multicentre randomized prospective trial comparing LOAD to conventional axillary lymph node dissection.     

Underreporting of work accidents associated with blood-borne risk factors

Background: Work accidents (WA) due to percutaneous or mucocutaneous injury are frequent among health professionals. Accident notification ensures compliance with legal requirements, enabling health institutions to develop, implement and evaluate prevention strategies. This study aimed to estimate the proportion of underreporting of work accidents caused by percutaneous and mucocutaneous lesions in a hospital setting and its determinants. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was made available to all hospital employees. The multivariate logistic regression models computed age, gender, professional category, and type of service adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). Results: Underreporting of WA associated with biological risk factors was high, particularly in accidents by mucocutaneous injury (80.9%). Physicians were the professional category that least reported this type of work accident (OR=4.64; 95% CI2.20-9.78). The main determinants of underreporting were underestimating the risk of transmission and the excessive bureaucracy. Conclusion: The underreporting of work accidents associated with biological risk factors was considerable, and it contributes to a high degree of uncertainty on accidents'' characterization.     

Current Evidence of Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) Ingestion on Vascular Health: A Food Science and Technology Perspective

The amino acid L-arginine is crucial for nitric oxide (NO) synthesis, an important molecule regulating vascular tone. Considering that vascular dysfunction precedes cardiovascular disease, supplementation with precursors of NO synthesis (e.g., L-arginine) is warranted. However, supplementation of L-citrulline is recommended instead of L-arginine since most L-arginine is catabolized during its course to the endothelium. Given that L-citrulline, found mainly in watermelon, can be converted to L-arginine, watermelon supplementation seems to be effective in increasing plasma L-arginine and improving vascular function. Nonetheless, there are divergent findings when investigating the effect of watermelon supplementation on vascular function, which may be explained by the L-citrulline dose in watermelon products. In some instances, offering a sufficient amount of L-citrulline can be impaired by the greater volume (>700 mL) of watermelon needed to reach a proper dose of L-citrulline. Thus, food technology can be applied to reduce the watermelon volume and make supplementation more convenient. Therefore, this narrative review aims to discuss the current evidence showing the effects of watermelon ingestion on vascular health parameters, exploring the critical relevance of food technology for acceptable L-citrulline content in these products. Watermelon-derived L-citrulline appears as a supplementation that can improve vascular function, including arterial stiffness and blood pressure. Applying food technologies to concentrate bioactive compounds in a reduced volume is warranted so that its ingestion can be more convenient, improving the adherence of those who want to ingest watermelon products daily.     

Anticancer and antileishmanial in vitro activity of gold(I) complexes with 1,3,4‐oxadiazole‐2(3H)‐thione ligands derived from δ‐D‐gluconolactone

Four gold(I) complexes conceived as anticancer agents were synthesized by reacting [Au(PEt₃)Cl] and [Au(PPh₃)Cl] with ligands derived from δ‐d ‐gluconolactone. The ligands’ structure was designed to combine desired biological properties previously reported for each group. Ligands were synthesized from δ‐d ‐gluconolactone via ketal protection and hydrazide formation followed by cyclization with CS₂ to produce the novel oxadiazolidine‐2‐thione 7 and 8 . Increasing of the ligands’ lipophilicity via ketal protection proved useful since all four gold(I) complexes showed anticancer and antileishmanial properties. The IC₅₀ values are at low micromolar range, varying from 2 to 3 μm for the most active compounds. The free D‐gluconate 1,3,4 oxadiazole‐derived ligands were neither toxic nor presented anticancer or antileishmanial properties. Triethylphosphine‐derived compounds 9 and 10 were more selective against B16‐F10 melanoma cell line. Although similar in vitro antileishmanial activity was observed for the gold(I) precursors themselves and their derived complexes, the latter were three times less toxic for human THP‐1 macrophage cell line; this result is attributed to an isomeric variation of the D‐gluconate ligand and the oxadiazole portion, which was one of the key concepts behind this work. These findings should encourage further research on gold(I) complexes to develop novel compounds with potential application in cancer and leishmaniasis chemotherapy.     

Avaliação do Impacto da Implantação de um Sistema de Ambulância Pré-Hospitalar sobre Mortalidade por Infarto Agudo do Miocárdio em um País em Desenvolvimento

BackgroundThe effective management of patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is time-dependent.ObjectivesTo assess the impacts of the implementation of prehospital care on admission rates and mortality associated with AMI.MethodsRetrospective, ecological study, which assessed data from the Brazilian Universal Health System, from all 853 municipalities of Minas Gerais, from 2008 to 2016. Excessive skewness of general and in-hospital mortality rates was smoothed using the empirical Bayes method. This study assessed the relationship between Mobile Emergency Care Service (SAMU) in each municipality and the following 3 outcomes: mortality rate due to AMI, AMI in-hospital mortality, and AMI hospitalization rate, using the Poisson hierarchical model. Rates were corrected by age structure and detrended by seasonality and temporal influences. A confidence interval of 95% was adopted.ResultsAMI mortality rates decreased throughout the study, on average 2% per year, with seasonal variation. AMI in-hospital mortality also showed a decreasing trend, from 13.81% in 2008 to 11.43% in 2016. SAMU implementation was associated with decreased AMI mortality (odds ratio [OR] = 0.967, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.936 to 0.998) and AMI in-hospital mortality (OR = 0.914, 95% CI 0.845 to 0.986), with no relation with hospitalizations (OR = 1.003, 95% CI 0.927 to 1.083).ConclusionSAMU implementation was associated with a modest but significant decrease in AMI in-hospital mortality. This finding reinforces the key role of prehospital care in AMI care and the need for investments on this service to improve clinical outcomes in low- and middle-income countries.