Newborn birth weight,maternal age group and delivery method

This article has as its objective the study of the weight of the newly born, the age group of the mother and the kind of deliveries which took place in the maternity wards in Rio Branco--Acre Federal State--Brazil, in the period between 1994 and 1996. It was observed that 73.8% of the deliveries were regular and 25.5% were cesareans. Adolescents, between 10 to 14 years old represented 5.4% of the total of the deliveries. In relation to the weight of the newly born, 84.6% met the expectations, 7.4% were underweight and 6.6% were overweight. The present study also found that the data related to weight, age and gender was ignored in many cases, which shows flaws on the registration system of the institutions analyzed. As a conclusion, we would like to stress the importance of prenatal assistance both for the mother and the child, and also the effort on the part of the Maternity and Nursing management regarding the production and analysis of data.     

Problems during the recovery of patients following coronary artery bypass surgery: the follow up by nurses in the first month after hospital discharge

Patients may present problems after coronary artery bypass surgery and nurses play an important role in the detection of such problems. With the purpose to determine the problems of 25 patients during the first month after hospital discharge, they were followed up via telephone as well as when they returned to hospital. Content analyses of detailed nurses' recording revealed eight categories of problems. The most frequently related problems were related to the surgical incision site (76%), pharmacological therapy (28%), other pathologies (24%), mood alterations (20%) and sleep pattern disturbances (16%). The strategy chosen showed to be efficient to analyze the recovery of these patients during the first month after hospital discharge.     

A scintigraphic study of oropharyngeal swallowing dynamics in Chagas'' disease

We studied oropharyngeal function in patients with Chagas' disease and oesophageal disease. Twenty-four patients with Chagas' disease, 17 of them with oesophageal disease, were submitted to scintigraphic oropharyngeal transit. A single swallow of a 10-mL bolus of water labelled with 40 MBq 99m Tc-phytate, followed by image acquisition at 20 images s-1 yielded time-activity curves in which oropharyngeal dynamics was evaluated. Thirteen normal volunteers were used as controls. Oral transit was longer for chagasics with oesophageal disease than for controls (P=0.004) or for chagasics with a normal oesophagus (P=0.028). Oesophageal filling rate, measured by the slope of the ascending aspect of the oesophageal radioactivity curve, was lower for chagasics with oesophageal disease than for controls (P=0.037). Also, maximum oesophageal filling rate was lower (P=0. 021) and occurred later (P=0.003) for chagasics with oesophageal disease than for controls. Pharyngeal clearance was positively correlated with oral transit (r=0.603, P=0.002). We conclude that chagasic oesophageal disease is associated with oral transit delay and a slower oesophageal filling rate.     

Acute Conjunctivitis with Episcleritis and Anterior Uveitis Linked to Adiaspiromycosis and Freshwater Sponges, Amazon Region, Brazil, 2005

We conducted an epidemiologic investigation of an outbreak of ocular disease among children to determine whether the disease was linked to Emmonsia sp., a rarely-reported fungus and an agent of adiaspiromycosis. Using an unmatched case–control study design, we compared case-patients with asymptomatic controls randomly selected from the population. Scleral biopsies were analyzed microscopically. Of 5,084 children examined, 99 case-patients were identified; mean age (+1 SD) was 11.0 ± 4.4 years. Symptoms included photophobia (57%), ocular pain (42%), and blurred vision (40%). In the multivariate analysis, risk factors included diving in the Araguaia River (odds ratio 5.2; 95% confidence interval 2.4–12.0). Microscopy identified foreign bodies consistent with adiaconidia. This outbreak probably resulted from foreign-body–type reactions to adiaspiromycosis conidia after initial irritation caused by conjunctival contact with spicules of sponges in the river. Symptomatic children responded to corticosteroid treatment. Adiaspiromycosis is a preventable cause of ocular disease in the Amazon region.     

An anti-EnaTS detected in the serum of an MiI homozygote

The serum of EH reacted with all red cells (RBCs) except her own, ficin- or trypsin-treated red cells, and En(a-) red cells. This reactivity defined an anti-EnaTS specificity. The red cells of the proposita typed as M-N+S-S+, Vw+Mur-Hil-Hut-Anek-Lane-, Wr(a-b+), EnaKT+. Red cells of five relatives were Vw+ and positive with her serum. Titration studies suggest that EH is genetically an MiI homozygote and that her Vw+ relatives are MiI heterozygotes. There is no history of consanguinity. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and immunoblotting studies have agreed with the serologic observations. A variant sialoglycoprotein of faster mobility than normal glycoprotein A, but no normal glycoprotein A, was detected on her red cells. Treatment with N-glycanase did not alter the mobility, which indicated that there was no N-glycosylation of residue 26. These findings are in agreement with the reported properties of the Mi.I-specific glycoprotein A. The relatives' Vw+ red cells showed the variant sialoglycoprotein and normal glycoprotein A. EH appears to be the first reported MiI homozygote.