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Background: Detraining is the partial or complete loss of physical training-induced adaptations as a result of exercise interruption or reduction. The COVID-19 pandemic led to the discontinuation of many older adult exercise programs and led to increased depressive symptoms (DS), increased sedentary behavior (SB), and decreased quality of life (QoL). Objective: To evaluate the effects of detraining, in the pandemic, on physical capacity and its relationship with DS, QoL, and SB of community-dwelling older adults. Methods: The physical capacity (static balance, dynamic balance, and lower limb and handgrip strength) of 35 participants was assessed prepandemic and after 18 and 24 months of the pandemic. DS, QoL, and SB were evaluated only at 18-month period. The analysis of variance for repeated measures or the Friedman and Pearson or Spearman tests were used for statistical analysis. Results: There was a decline in dynamic balance (p <.001) and strength in the lower limbs (p <.001) in the first 18 months, as well as maintenance in the following 6 months. The reduction in dynamic balance during the 18 months of the pandemic was associated with greater DS (p =.015; r =.414) and worse QoL (p =.024; r = −.381) in this period. More time spent on SB (p =.024; r =.386) in the 18th month was associated with worse dynamic balance in the following 6 months. Conclusion: Detraining in the pandemic setting led to long-lasting harmful effects, which can last for 2 years, on the physical capacity of community-dwelling older adults. Implication: Our findings highlight how periods of detraining can interfere in physical and mental health of older adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Previous literature has demonstrated the mediating role of adiposity in the association between cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and cardiometabolic risk as well as the potential role of CRF in attenuating the adverse consequences associated with excess weight. This study aimed to evaluate the mediating role of CRF and adiposity in the possible association with cardiometabolic risk. Method: Observational 3-year longitudinal study that included 420 children and adolescents (10.50 [2.05] y of age at baseline; 56.2% girls). Body mass index (BMI) was calculated, and CRF was evaluated using field assessments. A clustered cardiometabolic risk score (cMetS) was calculated from glucose, systolic blood pressure, total cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio, and triglycerides z scores. Analyses evaluated the mediating role of BMI in the association between CRF and cMetS as well as whether CRF mediated the association between BMI and cMetS. Results: BMI at baseline was directly associated with the cMetS at follow-up (0.102; 95% confidence interval, 0.020 to 0.181), independently of CRF, whereas CRF was only indirectly associated with cMetS at follow-up through BMI (−0.036; 95% confidence interval, −0.070 to −0.009), meaning that the association between CRF and cMetS was explained via the mediation role of BMI. Conclusions: BMI presented direct association with cMetS, whereas CRF exhibited indirect association with cMetS mediated via BMI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Age-related changes in DNA methylation (DNAm) play a critical role in regulating gene expression. However, most epigenome-wide association studies have predominantly focused on individuals of European descent. This study aims to characterize longitudinal changes in DNAm patterns in a cohort of elderly Brazilian participants. Methods: DNAm profiles were collected approximately nine years apart from 23 elderly Brazilian individuals using the Illumina Infinium MethyationEPIC BeadChip. Using mixed-effects models, we examined changes in DNAm patterns using both quantitative age and binary timepoint (e.g., baseline vs. follow-up) as predictors of interest to identify differentially methylated positions (DMPs). Significant DMPs were compared with a list of previously identified age-related DMPs. Differentially methylated regions (DMRs) were also identified using DMRcate. Gene ontology (GO) pathway enrichment analyses were performed to explore the functional significance of identified DMPs and DMRs. Results: Of the 586,229 autosomal probes included in the differential methylation analyses, 2768 significant (FDR < 0.05) age-associated DMPs (aDMPs) and 2757 significant (FDR < 0.05) timepoint-associated DMPs (tpDMPs) were identified. Of the 2768 aDMPs, 1471 were replicated from previous studies. Of the 1297 non-replicated CpGs, 77.4% were exclusive to the EPIC array. The DMR analyses identified 305 age-associated DMRs (aDMRs) and 372 timepoint-associated DMRs (tpDMRs). Both aDMPs and aDMRs exhibited age-related hypermethylation within CpG islands and promoter regions of the genome, whereas hypomethylation predominantly occurred in interCGI and intergenic regions and introns. The GO enrichment analyses identified several neurological and cognition-related pathways enriched for hypermethylated CpG islands, many of which were mapped near transcription start sites and first exon regions. Conclusions: This longitudinal study identified age-associated and timepoint-associated DMPs and DMRs in a sample of elderly Brazilians. Most of the non-replicated CpGs were found to be on the new EPIC array, suggesting that more age-related studies using the EPIC array are required to validate these CpGs. The GO pathway enrichment analyses identified age-related enrichment of several gene sets related to cognitive and physical decline in elderly populations. The enrichment of these sites could provide evidence for age-related neurodegeneration and cognitive decline in elderly populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Resilience refers to one's ability to face life's challenges and achieve positive outcomes, and has drawn increasing interest from researchers and policymakers. The Adolescent Resilience Questionnaire (ARQ) is a measure that assesses resilience in adolescents according to a multidimensional perspective, encompassing its several different domains. This cross-sectional study aimed to translate and evaluate the measurement properties of the Brazilian version of the ARQ (B-ARQ) for use with Brazilian adolescents. Two native speakers in Brazilian Portuguese language who were also fluent in English language translated the ARQ from English into Portuguese. A committee of experts in validation studies compared the translated versions. A summarized version was produced and back-translated by a translator native of the English language and fluent in Portuguese. The B-ARQ was pre-tested in a sample of 21 adolescents. An expert committee considered the suggestions and defined the final version of the instrument, which was tested in a sample of 210 adolescent students from public and private schools in the city of Dom Pedrito, Brazil. All students filled out the 88-item instrument as well as a socio-demographic questionnaire. Statistical analysis included descriptive statistics of all variables (frequency distribution, floor, ceiling effects), internal consistency, and confirmatory factor analysis of the version with 88 items and the shortened version with 49 items. The short version with 49 items was validated in a cross-sectional study in an adolescent population of high school students using exploratory factor analysis in the Unites States. The 88-item ARQ had poor structural validity with unsatisfactory model fit indices. Therefore, the investigation focused on the short 49-item version of the ARQ (B-ARQ-SV). The final model presented satisfactory RMSEA = 0.042 (p = 0.994, 90% CI: 0.037–0.047) and SRMR of 0.076, despite the low CFI (0.878). The internal consistency was estimated with McDonald's Omega for each factor: Confidence (ω = 0.480), Negative Cognition (ω = 0.588), Empathy/tolerance (ω = 0.295), Emotional insight (ω = 0.425), Social Skill (ω = 0.235), Family Domain Connectedness (ω = 0.785), Family Domain Availability (ω = 0.847), Peers Domain Connectedness (ω = 0.719), Peers Domain Availability (ω = 0.402), School Domain Supportive environment (ω = 0.677), School Domain Connectedness (ω = 0.013), Community Domain Connectedness (ω = 0.791). One scale showed a ceiling effect (frequency higher than 15.0%), but we identified no critical floor effect. The B-ARQ-SV is a valid (in terms of content and structural validity) and reliable (in terms of internal consistency) measurement instrument to assess resilience in Brazilian adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the differences in fruit and/or vegetable consumption (FVC) among Brazilian adults by examining various social markers, such as gender, race, income, and education level. Method: A cross-sectional study of 88,531 Brazilian adults aged 18 years or older who participated in the 2019 National Health Survey was conducted. The dependent variable was irregular FVC (<5 d/wk). Individuals at the highest risk for irregular FVC include those who are men and Black and who have lower education levels and lower income. Individuals at lower risk include those who are women and White and who have higher education levels and higher income. The prevalence of irregular FVC was calculated considering the levels of the social risk index for FVC and the intersections among two, three, and four risk categories. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) analyses were performed to compare groups at higher risk with those at lower risk. Results: The prevalence of irregular FVC was 57.2% in the general population, 38.1% for individuals in the lowest risk group, 47.5% for individuals in one risk category, 57.9% for individuals in two risk categories, 67.6% for individuals in three risk categories, and 74.4% for individuals in the highest-risk group, and there were significant differences at each level. The highest risk group had a 4.36 (95% CI, 3.86–4.92) times greater chance of irregular FVC. Conclusions: The complex path to promote FVC among the Brazilian population underscores the need for intersectoral policies aimed at reducing inequalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing studies that directly measure the three types of overconfidence—overprecision, overplacement, and overestimation—are largely exploratory, highlighting the need for further confirmatory research to establish robust overconfidence measures. Moreover, there is no comprehensive instrument for analyzing these types of overconfidence in the context of investment decisions. To address these gaps, the present study aims to develop and validate a scale for assessing overconfidence in investment decisions, considering its three forms. The research involved 380 Brazilian participants and employed confirmatory factor analysis and standard multivariate validation methods. The scale, based on a theoretical framework of the three types of overconfidence, consisted of 30 questions (10 for each type) designed to measure the degree of overconfidence in investment decision-making. The scale demonstrated acceptable factor loadings and internal and external validity, indicating its suitability for evaluating overconfidence in investment decisions. The standardized factor loadings showed p values < 0.01 for all factors. The average variance extracted was above 0.5, and the composite reliability exceeded 0.7 for all three constructs analyzed. These results support the convergent validity of the proposed measurement model. In this way, the developed scale fills a gap in the literature by providing a valid tool to assess overconfidence in investment decision-making, which can be practically applied by financial market participants, such as investors, fund managers, and financial professionals. This instrument enables more informed and personalized investment decisions, mitigates the risks of bias in decision-making, and contributes to a more efficient and resilient financial market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Objectives: Internalizing disorders, including depression and anxiety, are major contributors to the global burden of disease. While the genetic architecture of these disorders in adults has been extensively studied, their early-life genetic mechanisms remain underexplored, especially in non-European populations. This study investigated the genetic mechanisms underlying internalizing symptoms in a cohort of Latin American children. Methods: This study included 1244 Brazilian children whose legal guardians completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) questionnaire. Genotyping was performed using the Illumina HumanOmni 2.5-8v1 BeadChip. Results: The genome-wide association analysis revealed a significant association of rs7196970 (p = 4.5 × 10−8, OR = 0.61), in the ABCC1 gene, with internalizing symptoms. Functional annotation highlighted variants in epigenetically active regulatory regions, with multiple variants linked to differential expression of ABCC1 across several human tissues. Pathway enrichment analysis identified 42 significant pathways, with notable involvement in neurobiological processes such as glutamatergic, GABAergic, and dopaminergic synapses. Conclusions: This study identifies ABCC1 variants as novel genetic factors potentially associated with early-life internalizing symptoms. These results may contribute to future research on targeted interventions for childhood internalizing conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nasopharyngeal transmission of Streptococcus pneumoniae is a prerequisite for the development of pneumococcal diseases. Previous studies have reported a relationship between respiratory viruses and S. pneumoniae infections. However, there are few studies on this issue among healthy children. This study aimed to examine the relationships between these agents in healthy children from Southern Brazil. This cohort study included 229 nasopharyngeal samples collected from children aged 18–59 months at baseline. S. pneumoniae was detected using bacterial culture, whereas respiratory viruses were identified using quantitative polymerase chain reaction. A questionnaire was used at the time of sample collection and medical records were reviewed 14 days after participant inclusion. The prevalence of pneumococcal carriage was 63.7% (146/229), while respiratory viruses were detected in 49.3% (113/229) of the children. Respiratory viruses were more frequently found among pneumococcal carriers than among non-carriers (54.4% vs. 39.7%, p = 0.033). Additionally, rhinovirus (hRV) was more frequent among the pneumococcal carriers (39% vs. 21.7%, p = 0.012), and the presence of human bocavirus (hBOV) alone was associated with the absence of pneumococcal carriage (2.7% vs. 10.8%, p = 0.016). No differences were found in the frequency of pneumococcal carriage, respiratory virus detection, or the co-occurrence of clinical symptoms and diagnosis in the participants 14 days after specimen collection. Our findings revealed a positive relationship between pneumococcal carriage and respiratory virus detection, particularly for hRV. However, we did not observe a relationship between nasopharyngeal respiratory viruses and pneumococci detection during medical appointments, respiratory symptoms, or diseases. This study was one of the first investigations in Latin America to explore the relationship between respiratory viruses and pneumococcal carriage in a healthy children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to investigate anthropometric and training characteristics associated with injuries in runners using a complex approach. We conducted a cross-sectional study with 97 Brazilian runners of both sexes (age: 39.1 ± 11.5 years; body mass index: 24.2 ± 4.2 kg/m2). A web survey was used for data collection, including age, sex, body weight, body height, training volume/frequency, session duration, running pace and injury information (yes or no; the number of injuries). The partial correlation parameter was used for network estimation, considering both sexes. For women, injury occurrence was positively and strongly associated with training frequency (r = 0.57) and the number of competitions (r = 0.64), while for men, a negative and strong association was found with age (r=-0.69), and positive associations were observed with BMI (r = 0.89) and training volume (r = 0.82). Network centrality showed that training session duration and the number of competitions/year presented a higher expected influence value for women (−1.47) and men (−1.31). Using a non-linear approach with Brazilian non-professional runners, training characteristics had a stronger influence on running-related injuries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the prevalence and the factors associated with experimentation and use of e-cigarettes. Cross-sectional study. Cross-sectional analysis of data from the National School Health Survey (PeNSE 2019), with students attending elementary school and high school in Brazil. Two outcomes were investigated: experimentation and last 30-day use of e-cigarettes. Potential exposures included family and adolescents' socio-demographic, mental health, and behavioral characteristics. Adjusted prevalence ratios (PR) were obtained by Poisson regression with robust variance. 133,237 adolescents aged ≥13 years were included. Prevalence of experimentation and last 30-day use was higher in males (20.7 % and 4.1 %, respectively) than in females (15.4 % and 2.6 %, respectively). The higher PR were with ever use of hookah in males (PR = 3.34 for e-cigarettes experimentation and PR = 4.05 for last 30-day use) and females (PR = 3.26 for experimentation and PR = 4.14 for last 30-day use). For males who ever used alcoholic beverages, the PR for e-cigarettes experimentation ranged from 2.86 to 3.18, and the PR for last 30-day use ranged from 3.09 to 3.39, depending upon the age of first alcoholic beverage experimentation. Among the females who ever used alcoholic beverages, PR for experimentation ranged from 3.46 to 4.31 and PR for last 30-day use ranged from 2.44 to 4.09. About a quarter of school age adolescents had already tried e-cigarettes and 3.4 % used e-cigarettes in the prior 30 days. There were sex differences in the prevalence and in factors associated with experimentation and last 30-day use of e-cigarettes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractAimsMethodsResultsConclusionTo describe participation patterns and identify factors associated with participation of young Brazilian children with myelomeningocele (MMC) in their home, daycare/preschool, and community settings.The participants were parents/caregivers of 70 children with MMC, averaging 26.7 (±17.3) months in age. Participation was measured by the Young Children’s Participation and Environment Measure (YC-PEM) completed by interview. Simple and stepwise multiple linear egression models were used to examine factors associated with participation.On average children participated in home activities a few times a week, community activities once a month to a few times in the last month, and daycare or preschool activities once to a few times in the past four months. Age was associated with participation frequency (R2 = 0.32; p < .0001) and number of activities (R2 = 0.27; p < .02) in daycare/preschool and in the number of activities in the community (R2 = 0.30; p < .0001). Number of environmental facilitators was associated with the desire for change in participation in daycare/preschool (R2 = 0.21; p < .04). Mobility performance was associated with children’s level of involvement (R2 = 0.10; p = .006) and caregivers’ desire for change in community participation (R2 = 0.11; p = .006).Knowledge of participation and factors that influence participation can help in designing interventions to improve participation opportunities for young children with MMC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Saúde Coletiva is the property of MPM Comunicacao and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Retos: Nuevas Perspectivas de Educación Física, Deporte y Recreación is the property of Federacion Espanola de Asociaciones de Docentes de Educacion Fisica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Women's artistic gymnastics (WAG) is a complex aesthetic sport in which athletes start at a young age and are exposed to high loads during their careers. Little is known about the external and internal training load characteristics among elite young gymnasts. Hypothesis: High training loads, with variations over the weeks, are expected. There is a relationship between external and internal load variables. Study Design: Cohort study. Level of Evidence: Level 3. Methods: Seven elite-level Brazilian youth artistic gymnasts (age, 11.3 ± 0.4 years; mass, 33.0 ± 7.0 kg; height, 137.7 ± 10.6 cm; experience, 4.0 ± 1.2 years) participated in this study. Five nonconsecutive microcycles were monitored. Both external and internal training loads were quantified by counting the number of elements in video recordings of training sessions and by the session rating of perceived exertion method. Results: A total of 168 individual training sessions were monitored. The microcycle that succeeded the main competition showed a significantly lower training load than ≥3 of the other 4 microcycles for all training load variables, except for vault elements, of which microcycle 4 was inferior only to the microcycle before the competition. Significant correlations were found between weekly internal training load and the total of elements and elements performed on uneven bars. Conclusion: Youth women's artistic gymnasts present fluctuations in external and internal training load variables over the weeks close to a major competition. Training load management in this sport must consider the specificity of each apparatus, as they have different demands and training load behaviors. Clinical Relevance: A better comprehension of external and internal training loads in youth WAG and its apparatuses can benefit coaches and support staff and provide more information to overcome the challenge of training load management in gymnastics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate how body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) may be associated with insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes (T2DM) in Brazilian adolescents. Methods: Cross-sectional study using data from the Brazilian Study of Cardiovascular Risks in Adolescents (ERICA) including adolescents aged 12-17 years. The relationship between adiposity and T2DM was investigated using ordinal logistic regression models. To study the association between adiposity categories and the occurrence of insulin resistance, linear regression models were used. Results: The prevalence of T2DM for the same BMI category did not increase with the presence of high WC. Regarding insulin resistance, for the same BMI categories, having a high WC resulted in a higher prevalence of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). The only groups significantly associated with prediabetes and T2DM were those with obesity by BMI with elevated WC (POR 1.68, 95 % CI 1.45; 1.94) and obesity with normal WC (POR 1.58, 95 % CI 1.01; 2.46). Similar findings were observed concerning insulin resistance, where the increased WC had its greatest effect when associated with obesity by BMI (b Coefficient 2.20, 95 % CI 1.89; 2.50). Conclusion: The combination of BMI and WC is better for assessing adolescents at risk of developing T2DM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To identify, map, and describe studies involving Brazilian children in early childhood in situations of social vulnerability. Source of data: A scoping review including full articles published in Portuguese and English up to March 2023, with no temporal restrictions. Searches were conducted in the MEDLINE/PubMed, Scielo, EMBASE, Cochrane, Scopus, CINAHL, Web of Science, PEDro, and LILACS databases. Journal metrics, sample characteristics, study area, characterization of the situation of social vulnerability, and study outcomes were extracted. Summary of the findings: Seventy-six articles involving a total of 107.740 children in early childhood were included in this study. These studies presented relevant findings, including the temporal publication trend, the variability of social vulnerability indicators, the scarcity of intervention studies, and the fact that 100% of eligible studies were from the health area. Negative outcomes were associated with the condition of social vulnerability in almost the entire sample, reinforcing the need for government policies capable of protecting early childhood from the effects of social vulnerability. Conclusion: This scoping review mapped important findings involving Brazilian children in social vulnerability. It also identified literature gaps such as the need for intervention and multisectoral studies among health, education, and social protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Lingüística y Literatura is the property of Universidad de Antioquia, Facultad de Comunicaciones and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: The widely implemented prevention program in Brazil, PROERD (a translated version of the DARE-kiR program), showed no evidence of effect in preventing drug use in a recent trial. The lack of cultural adaptation and instructors' deviations from the curriculum were identified as potential reasons for its ineffectiveness. This study aims to identify points of inadequacy of the PROERD program for the Brazilian culture, suggesting strategies for revising the curriculum to improve implementation. Methods: We triangulated data obtained from three different groups of study participants: semi-structured interviews with the law enforcement officer who implemented the program, focus groups with students who participated in the program, and questionnaires completed by external experts in the prevention field who evaluated the program's manuals. Data was analyzed using thematic analysis based on the Ecological Validity Model theory, which encompasses three main axes: methodology, content, and language to identify the main points for cultural adaptation. Results: Regarding the program's methodology, there is an excess of activities with little interactivity involving literacy skills that do not match Brazilian students' cognitive development and require equipment unavailable in Brazilian public schools. Regarding content, activities were considered appropriate for evidence-based prevention; however, there were some contradictions related to the drug content. The language presented in the program's manuals was considered inappropriate for the culture of Brazilian youth (vocabulary, examples, and images). Conclusions: In conclusion, this study strongly recommends revising the PROERD curriculum Caindo na Real, ensuring it will align with the international prevention standards and Brazilian Culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThe Atlantic Forest is home to about 70% of the Brazilian population and in need of special protection. In this context, understanding beliefs about the environment and the intensity of connectedness to nature makes it possible to infer whether people are favorably disposed toward ecological behaviors. This study investigated the ecological affinity profile of young people toward the Atlantic Forest. A convenience sample of Brazilian youth (n = 326) responded to a sociodemographic questionnaire, and to the Inclusion of Nature in Self, Connectedness to Nature, Consideration of Future Consequences, and Beliefs about the Forest scales. We found that young people who felt more connected to nature, expressed more ecocentric beliefs, and were more aware of the immediate consequences of their actions. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed no influence of sociodemographic and socioeconomic variables on the constructs that constitute the psychosocial profile of ecological affinity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brazilian jeitinho constitutes an emic hierarchical personality trait related to problem-solving strategies, including creativity, breaking rules, and corruption. This manuscript provides a historical perspective of the Brazilian culture, describing how colonization might have impacted how many Brazilians deal with adversities and everyday situations. Additionally, we present research on Brazilian jeitinho and indicate how widely known conceptions of malandragem, or crafty jeitinho, possibly affect the validity of self-reported big-five personality tests. Finally, we advocate for the integration of anchoring vignettes and self-enhancement measures within personality assessments to mitigate the bias introduced by the Brazilian jeitinho on personality item responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Methods Results Conclusions Adolescent mental health is vital for public health, yet many interventions fail to recognise adolescents as proactive community contributors. This paper discusses the co‐design and acceptability testing of a chat‐story intervention to enhance Brazilian adolescents' participation in the promotion of mental health in their peer communities. We specifically highlight the iterative process of co‐creating this intervention with community stakeholders.The co‐design was led by researchers, a youth collaborative group, and health‐tech experts. Part 1 included quantitative (n = 1,768) and qualitative (n = 46) studies with Brazilian adolescents aged 15–18 for priority‐setting. Part 2 involved co‐creation and technical production, with input from youth advisors (n = 24), school staff (n = 11), and policy experts (n = 3). In Part 3, the chat‐story was user tested (n = 32). Parts 4 and 5 assessed acceptability through a qualitative study in schools (n = 138) and initial efficacy during an online campaign (n = 795).Participants aspired to support their peers' mental health in schools, both one‐to‐one and collectively, but felt unprepared. This informed the chat‐story's goal of enhancing peer support and collective action skills. Themes identified during Part 1, such as prejudice and academic pressure, were woven into the narrative to raise awareness of the social determinants of mental health, drawing from real‐life stories. In the final story, players search for their missing best friend at school, uncovering his anxiety struggles and practicing skills such as empathic listening and partnership building. A manual for teachers was collaboratively designed for use within school settings, supplementing direct‐to‐user online applications. Acceptability testing showed participants found the tool authentic and user‐friendly. Online users perceived the tool as preparing and motivating them to offer peer support and engage in collective action.The immersive co‐creation model, enriched by input from key stakeholders, yielded a relevant and well‐received intervention for Brazilian adolescents. Co‐designed creative tools like chat‐stories hold promise as digital mental health tools, fostering awareness, critical reflection, and inspiring adolescents to drive positive social change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Retos: Nuevas Perspectivas de Educación Física, Deporte y Recreación is the property of Federacion Espanola de Asociaciones de Docentes de Educacion Fisica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In this article we focus on how two Brazilian elementary school-aged children with transnational and transborder lives and ties experience their childhood while navigating a Portuguese-English dual language bilingual program (DLBE) designed to serve the local Brazilian immigrant community. Through in-depth portraits of Ana and Luis (pseudonyms), we aim to elucidate how they practiced, experienced, and made sense of their childhoods in educational settings. Through these portraits of Luis and Ana we argue that Brazilian im/migrant children are actively building their visibility in schools, so that their transnational and transborder identities are seen as legitimate and valid. We have constructed these portraits of Luis and Ana after conducting three years of ethnographic research during which we observed 84 children from first to third grade enrolled in a DLBE program at one elementary school in the northeastern U.S. Brazilian children enrolled in the program were either newcomer immigrants to the U.S. or born in the U.S. with at least one Brazilian immigrant parent (second-generation immigrants). In this article we focus our attention on children’s enactments of their transnational experiences inside the classroom. Building on previous work which centered children in migratory processes (Heidbrick, 2020; Orellana, 2012; Orellana etal. 2001), we turn our attention to classroom spaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Background Methods Results Conclusions Despite recent advancements, women still encounter significant challenges in various fields, including dentistry. However, the increasing interest in female participation in science acknowledges its fundamental role in the advancement of knowledge. This study aims to assess indicators of women's involvement in Brazilian research in the areas of Oral Pathology and Oral Medicine.This cross‐sectional study evaluated 197 professionals affiliated with the Brazilian Society of Stomatology and Oral Pathology in 2023. Data were collected from publicly available Lattes curriculum and organized into three sets of information: researcher profile, scientific production and human resources formation. Both the data from the researcher's entire career and from the last 5 years (2019–2023) were assessed separately. Descriptive analyses of categorical variables were performed, while the Mann–Whitney test was employed to compare the numerical variables regarding researchers' gender.Of 197 professionals, 117 (59.4%) were female. Although there was no significant difference in scientific production between genders, men had more publications, received approximately twice as many citations, and exhibited higher H‐index values compared to women. Notably, women surpassed men in undergraduate student supervision, while men predominated in supervising master's and PhD students.This study highlighted the relevance of female participation in Oral Pathology and Oral Medicine research in Brazil. However, disparities persist regarding women participation, especially in scientific article citations and postgraduate students' supervision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The population is aging rapidly worldwide, impacting public health, with countries in the Global South, such as Brazil, aging faster than developed nations. The 24-hour movement behavior is crucial for healthy aging, but its relationship with the neighborhood built environment is underresearched, especially for older adults. The EpiMove Study uses accelerometers and GPS to investigate the relationships between 24-hour movement behavior, community mobility and the neighborhood built environment for healthy aging in older Brazilian adults. Methods: The EpiMove Study is a representative cross-sectional study of older adults aged 60 years and older from an urban area in the southern region of Brazil. It consists of two phases. Phase 1 involves conducting home interviews to gather subjective measures of the neighborhood built environment and physical activity. Phase 2 involves delivering devices to participants' homes and collecting objective data on 24-hour movement behavior via wrist-worn wGT3X-BT ActiGraph accelerometers and community-based active transportation via hip-mounted GPS Qstarz-1000XT devices. The data are collected simultaneously over seven consecutive days, along with the participants' reasons for adhering to the study protocol. Discussion: The EpiMove study will provide a better understanding of the relationships between the perceived neighborhood environment and 24-hour movement behaviors and community-based active transportation among older adults, with a particular focus on whether environmental factors influence these behaviors, which are crucial for healthy aging. The results from the EpiMove study could offer essential evidence for developing public policies and urban interventions that support healthier and more equitable environments for aging populations, particularly in rapidly urbanizing regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Objective Methods Results Conclusions This study explores the NodeIdentifyR algorithm (NIRA) as a novel network analysis method for examining Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD) traits.Using a sample of 2230 Brazilian adults (aged 18–73 years) who responded to ASPD‐related factors of the Personality Inventory for DSM‐5 (PID‐5), we applied NIRA to an ASPD network and compared its results with traditional network analysis methods.Our findings revealed that deceitfulness emerged as the most central trait across both methodologies. NIRA provided additional insights, indicating that simulated decreases in the likelihood of irresponsibility reduced the presence of other traits, while a simulated increase in deceitfulness amplified the likelihood of other ASPD pathological traits.Our results suggest that traditional network centrality measures converge with NIRA's simulated increase results, but NIRA's simulated decrease provides additional information not captured by traditional centrality estimates. We recommend further research to validate these findings across different psychopathologies and refine NIRA use in clinical settings. The insights from this study could serve as a foundation for developing targeted interventions and enhancing our understanding of ASPD trait dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Retos: Nuevas Perspectivas de Educación Física, Deporte y Recreación is the property of Federacion Espanola de Asociaciones de Docentes de Educacion Fisica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Retos: Nuevas Perspectivas de Educación Física, Deporte y Recreación is the property of Federacion Espanola de Asociaciones de Docentes de Educacion Fisica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objective: To present the first Brazilian real-world results with galcanezumab and provide a consensus expert opinion on the prophylactic treatment of cluster headache (CH) in Brazil. Methods: The first part of the study (real-world results) was observational, prospective, uncontrolled, and descriptive. A sample of 44 consecutive patients with episodic or chronic CH were evaluated and treated in a traditional tertiary clinic from March 2020 to June 2024. The second part (consensus expert opinion) consisted of a survey completed by ten Brazilian headache clinicians with at least 25 years of clinical experience, who published at least 15 headache papers and attended at least 15 national or international headache conferences. Results: Forty-four patients (86.4% men, 13.6% women) were included. The average age was 45.9 ± 14.2 years. The diagnosis was made 27.3 ± 13.6 years after the onset of headache bouts. In 84.1% of the patients, CH was classified as episodic. Verapamil, lithium, or verapamil plus lithium were prescribed to respectively, 25%, 9.1%, and 6.8% of patients. Galcanezumab was prescribed to all and the majority (65.9%) used a dose of 300 mg once. There was a reduction in headache frequency of ≥ 50% at 3 weeks in 65.9% of patients for all doses of galcanezumab, and in 72.4% of those using galcanezumab 300 mg. Verapamil was recommended as a first-line treatment by 6 of 10 experts and a second-line treatment by the other 4 experts; galcanezumab was recommended as a first-line treatment by 4 of 10 experts and as a second-line treatment by 3 of 10 experts. Conclusions: This study presented the first real-world data with galcanezumab in Brazilian patients with CH and showed a reduction in headache frequency in most patients. A survey of Brazilian experts not meant to represent the country's guidelines, favored galcanezumab as either the first or the second option in prophylaxis. Collectively, these results highlighted galcanezumab's promising efficacy as a new tool in CH patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As gender-based violence, obstetric violence is a complex phenomenon that represents a matter for debate worldwide. The main objective of this exploratory study is to understand the experiences of obstetric violence during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period of racialised Brazilian women in the Portuguese National Health System. Using a qualitative case study research approach, semi-structured individual interviews were conducted with ten racialised Brazilian women who gave birth in Portugal. A thematic qualitative analysis was used. The findings reveal significant cases of obstetric violence, which include the complexities and lack of support, assistance and monitoring networks, structural inequalities, neglect, and intersectional discriminatory practices based on racial and cultural prejudices, as well as reflection. These experiences not only affect the physical health of mothers but also have profound psychological and emotional consequences. This study highlights the urgent need for culturally sensitive care and the implementation of policies to prevent obstetric violence, ensuring that the rights and dignity of migrant mothers are upheld. By highlighting these critical issues, this study aims to contribute to the broader discourse on maternal health care and promote social justice for these historically marginalised groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public health safety belongs to the category of 'securitization'. However, in some countries, there is a tendency of discourse manipulation and desecuritization in COVID‐19's discourse. This paper first embarks from the perspective of the Copenhagen School's securitization theory and employs an analytical framework of discourse manipulation to deconstruct the process of Bolsonaro's 'desecuritization' crisis discourse construction in response to the COVID‐19 threat in his country, which consists in discourse restraint, discourse framing, discourse positioning. The results show that: in terms of discourse restraint strategy, Bolsonaro's government realizes this strategy by reducing the frequency of epidemic topics, continuously suppressing scientific discourse on epidemic prevention and control and suppressing public health and safety discourse through political discourse. In terms of framing strategies, the nature, severity, causes and responsibilities of COVID‐19 problem are diagnosed, respectively. Through the negative frame of other programmes and the positive frame of the epidemic plan, the president constructs the expected frame of COVID‐19 problem. Through incentive framing, his discourse stimulates Brazilian people's support for the federal government and the president himself and enhances public confidence in Brazil's success in overcoming the epidemic. In terms of discourse positioning strategy, the plots of 'focusing on economic issues', 'life first', 'freedom first' and 'sovereignty first' are adopted, respectively. Drawing on the three‐dimensional analytical framework as a Critical Discourse Analysis tool, Bolsonaro's discourse manipulation and desecuritization strategies reflect an antagonistic regard towards the relations between economic development and epidemic prevention and a rival perspective towards the relationship between administrative authority and professional authority, and furthermore, the overlapping left‐right power struggles under the crossover of the era of 'Great changes not seen in a century' and the COVID‐19's non‐traditional security crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low hydrogen cyanide (HCN) concentration is a high-priority trait for cassava varieties targeting their fresh and dry product profiles. To be acceptable, varieties bred and developed for these market segments must meet international safety standards for maximum acceptable residual levels of cyanide in cassava food and food products. The discovery of molecular markers that co-segregate with low HCN has not yet resulted in widespread usage in marker-assisted selection (MAS) in breeding programs. To deploy these HCN markers in regular MAS, assessing their reliability in various genetic backgrounds is crucial. The aim of this study was to assess the predictive accuracy of trait specific markers for HCN. The study used six HCN kompetitive allele-specific polymerase chain reaction (KASP) markers that had previously been developed in a Brazilian population and verified in segregating West African cassava populations. For most markers used in the study, the average call rate was more than 91.7%. Three markers—snpME00404, snpME00405 and snpME00406—showed a significant co-segregation of genotypes with the HCN phenotype. On average, genotypes that carried at least one copy of the favourable allele had lower HCN scores. The proportion of phenotypic variance accounted for by the three most important markers was 14% (snpME00406), 17% (snpME00405) and 27% (snpME00404). The validation of identified HCN SNP-markers marks a significant step in their deployment to support selection and advancement decisions in cassava breeding programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: 5‐Fluorouracil (5‐FU) is essential in treating gastrointestinal cancers, but some patients show severe toxicity. The toxicity is exposure‐related, which is linked to the enzyme dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) decoded by the DPYD gene. This study aimed to evaluate the possible toxicity related to 5‐FU plasma levels, DPYD genotyping, and DPD phenotyping. Methods: Forty‐seven gastrointestinal cancer patients receiving 5‐FU were included in this study. 5‐FU plasma levels and DPD phenotyping were analyzed by UPLC‐MS/MS. DPYD genotyping was also assessed. The Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) was used to classify the toxicity. Results: For hematological toxicity, 27.65% showed neutropenia, 78.72% anemia, and 29.78% thrombocytopenia. The area under the curve (AUC) of 5‐FU calculated from the plasma was evaluated for three treatment cycles, and we observed that at the initial cycle, 48.93% were underexposed and 10.63% were overexposed, with a total of 59.56% of patients outside the therapeutic range. In the DPYD genotyping, 97.87% of patients had a wild‐type genotype, and 2.12% had c.1236G>A mutation (E412E, rs56038477). A total of 82.97% of patients showed a phenotype compatible with normal DPD activity. Conclusion: These findings suggest that the evaluation of DPYD genotyping and DPD phenotyping in the Brazilian population still requires further study. Moreover, the analysis of the plasma AUC of 5‐FU could contribute to clinical routine, being a very useful tool, especially for identifying patients outside the therapeutic range and thus guiding more individualized doses, or even in the intervention of possible toxicities related to overexposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Riverside populations in the Amazon are considered vulnerable due to their living conditions, social aspects, and access to health services; therefore, they may be more exposed to sexually transmitted infections. The objective of this study is to analyze knowledge about STI and associated factors in the riverside population of a metropolis from the Brazilian Amazon. A cross‐sectional study carried out in the Combú environmental protection area. The participants were individuals aged at least 18 years old living in the study area. A questionnaire on knowledge about STI was applied, in addition to another one on associated factors. Multiple binary logistic regression was performed in Minitab 22. A total of 325 riverside dwellers participated in the study. Participants with low schooling levels, incomes below one minimum wage and who had never taken any rapid HIV tests are twice as likely to having low knowledge about STI. Those who live with more people in the same household are more likely to presenting low knowledge levels. The social factors exerted a greater impact on low knowledge about STI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyzes the trajectory of Brazilian women journalists. It compares the position of women and men journalists in the workplace and in the configuration of journalistic careers. It also analyzes how bot groups make their choices within this organizational system. This study also discusses how work-family balance mechanisms affect both genders differently. To meet these objectives, two sets of data were explored: a survey conducted with 496 Brazilian journalists and in-depth interviews conducted with 21 professionals. Results coincide with findings from literature in the area regarding structural inequalities in the profession: women earn less; they are under-represented in leadership and directorial positions in media companies while simultaneously being in the majority in less legitimate and more precarious segments of the profession. Women appear to limit their career choices to less ambitious positions in the workplace. In addition, female journalists are more likely to be constrained by the effects of balancing work and family when building their careers. The study argues that the literature on journalism careers should take gender studies into account when proposing different typologies of journalists' careers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an audiovisual perceptual analysis of the wh-question and wh-exclamation intonation in Brazilian Portuguese using auditory–visual congruent and incongruent stimuli, to investigate the relative importance of each modality in signaling pragmatic meanings. Ten Brazilian Portuguese speakers (five female) were filmed while producing both speech acts 10 times. Next, artificial stimuli were created: audio and visual cues were either matched (audio and video from the same speech act) or mismatched (audio and video from the different speech acts), resulting in 10 congruent and 10 incongruent stimuli of the wh-questions and the wh-exclamations. The perceptual experiment was taken by 36 Brazilians who identified the stimulus as a question or an exclamation. Results from the logistic regression showed that the factor 'congruence' was significant and had a significant interaction with 'speakers', which means that the congruent stimuli increased the comprehension of the Brazilian Portuguese wh-questions and wh-exclamations. In contrast, the incongruent stimuli tended to lower listeners' identification, but to a degree depending on individual speakers' strategies. Although variation in the accuracy of expressing both speech acts was also found across speakers, this study corroborates that the visual channel impacts the perceptual identification of the pragmatic intonation function of distinguishing sentence mode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Society & Leisure / Loisir & Société is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Biological age is a construct that seeks to evaluate the biological wear and tear process of the organism that cannot be observed by chronological age. We estimate individuals' biological age based on biomarkers from multiple systems and validate it through its association with mortality from natural causes. Biological age was estimated in 12,109 participants (6621 women and 5488 men) from the first visit of the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil) who had valid data for the biomarkers used in the analyses. Biological age was estimated using the Klemera and Doubal method. The difference between chronological age and biological age (Δage) was computed. Cox proportional hazard models stratified by sex were used to assess whether Δage was associated with mortality risk after a median follow-up of 9.1 years. The accuracy of the models was estimated by the area under the curve (AUC). Δage had equal mean for men and women, with greater variability for men. Cox models showed that every 1-year increase in Δage was associated with increased mortality in men (HR (95% CI) 1.21; 1.17–1.25) and women (HR (95% CI) 1.24; 1.15–1.34), independently of chronological age. Results of the AUC demonstrated that the predictive power of models that only included chronological age (AUC chronological age = 0.7396) or Δage (AUC Δage = 0.6842) was lower than those that included both, chronological age and Δage (AUC chronological age + Δage = 0.802), in men. This difference was not observed in women. We demonstrate that biological age is strongly related to mortality in both genders and is a valid predictor of death in Brazilian adults, especially among men. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVES: To (1) estimate the economic cost of disabling musculoskeletal pain in children and adolescents from a health care and societal perspective, (2) identify the characteristics of children and adolescents with higher costs, and (3) estimate the economic cost of children's pain to Brazil. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. METHODS: We recruited children and adolescents with disabling musculoskeletal pain from public and private schools. The economic cost associated with disabling musculoskeletal pain was reported by parents each month for 1 year. The cost categories were health care, lost productivity, and patient/family costs. The sum of the categories resulted in the societal costs. Costs were reported using means, standard errors, medians, interquartile ranges, confidence intervals, and sum for each cost category. We compared participant characteristics between groups with low and high costs, and estimated the health and social cost of children's pain to the Brazilian federal budget. RESULTS: We included 237 children and adolescents with mean age of 11.8 years (standard deviation, 2.9). Total annual health care costs were $29.58 and $103.13 for health insurance/public health care and out-of-pocket, respectively, per child. Total annual societal costs were $177.62 per child. Individuals in low socioeconomic class E (with a monthly income of up to R$403.00) reported that heavy backpack weight, practice of fewer days of sports, and more negative psychosomatic symptoms were associated with higher health care costs. The annual costs to Brazil from the societal perspective was $1 001 329 553. CONCLUSION: Disabling musculoskeletal pain in children and adolescents in Brazil imposes a serious economic burden of up to $1 billion on the federal budget. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Foco (Interdisciplinary Studies Journal) is the property of Revista Foco and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Brazil's education system lags behind international standards, with two-fifths of students scoring below the minimum level of proficiency in mathematics, science, and reading. Thus, this study combined machine learning with traditional statistics to identify the most important predictors and to interpret their effects on proficiency in the PISA 2018 mathematics, science, and reading tests. Predictors encompassed a wide range of variables, sociodemographic characteristics, teaching and learning processes, and non-cognitive skills. The outcome of the present study was proficiency in mathematics, science, and reading. PISA proficiency levels were grouped into "low proficiency" and "proficient" categories, using a classification system commonly employed in PISA reports. Using random forest analysis, a machine learning method, I compared the importance of predictors for proficiency in mathematics, science, and reading. I then adjusted multilevel logistic regression analyses to investigate the relationship between the top predictors and the outcomes. Among the top predictors for the three outcomes identified, annual household income, parents' highest occupational status, and early childhood education and care were positively associated with proficiency in mathematics, science, and reading, while grade repetition and additional instruction were negatively associated with these outcomes. These findings urge Brazilian policymakers and educators to prioritize initiatives that strengthen early childhood programs, minimize grade repetition, and promote effective learning strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To determine the prevalence of body image accuracy/distortion in Brazilian men and women and to investigate sociodemographic and lifestyle-related factors, and the presence of chronic diseases associated with body image distortion. Methods: Data from 6,357 men and 7,657 women participating in the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil) were collected using a multidimensional questionnaire covering sociodemographic characteristics, health behaviors, heath conditions and body image perception. Results: Most participants (53.5% of the women and 54.7% of the men) were found to have an accurate self-perception of their body. When the factors associated with the perception of being heavier than reality were investigated, adopting weight loss measures and not being hypertensive proved protective against this distortion, both in women and men. Conversely, the perception of being lighter than reality was associated, in both women and men, with better education, being black or of mixed race, adopting weight loss measures and not being hypertensive or diabetic. Additional factors associated with underestimating weight were not consuming alcohol (only in women) and belonging to a lower social class (only in men). Conclusion: These findings may contribute to the implementation of public health policies and interventions to promote health and well-being in the Brazilian population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Apotheke is the property of Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Aim: To examine whether changes in public open spaces (POS) were associated with leisure-time walking (LTW) between 2014 and 2021. Methods: The sample comprised a prospective cohort of individuals living in São Paulo City, Brazil. The baseline sample was collected in 2014/2015 (4042 people aged 12 y or older) and the second wave in 2020/2021 (1431 people aged 18 y or older, 35.4% of total). Changes in POS scores in 500-m network buffers were based on household address, including positive or negative maintenance and increases or decreases in parks, public squares, and bike paths between 2015 and 2020. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire was used to evaluate LTW in the baseline and second wave. To examine the association of LTW with changes in POS, we used multilevel models in 4 levels: health administration areas, census tracts, individuals, and observations of individuals. The exposure was the POS tertiles, and the outcome was LTW. Results: Changes in LTW prevalence were observed in both periods and according to POS tertiles distributions. When adjusted for time (baseline/second wave), gender, education, and age, the highest POS tertile was significantly associated with a high likelihood for LTW (odds ratio = 1.44; 95% confidence interval, 1.03–2.02). Conclusion: The results showed that people in São Paulo who lived within 500-m buffers with the highest access to POS were more likely to practice LTW between 2014/2015 and 2020/2021. These results have important implications for policies that were implemented in 2014, including the New Master Plan to contribute to São Paulo's good ranking among healthy cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increase in digitalization of adolescents and health services, the population must demonstrate digital health literacy skills to be able to navigate online health information, as well as identify, evaluate, and apply relevant information. The present study aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of the adapted version of the eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS-BrA) for Brazilian adolescents. This study was conducted between September 2022 and May 2023, involving a total of 260 adolescents aged 13 to 19, with a mean age of 15.64 years (SD = 1.84), all of whom were enrolled in public schools in Brazil. Structural validity was evaluated by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The reliability of the instrument was assessed using Cronbach's alpha (α) and McDonald's omega (ω), and test-retest reliability. Questionnaires about sociodemographic aspects, health-related characteristics, and internet use were administered and used as discriminant validation measures. Convergent Validity was determined by correction with the domains of the World Health Organization Quality of Life-Bref (WHOQOL-Bref) instrument. For test-retest reliability, 67 participants completed the eHEALS-BrA a fortnight later. The average eHEALS-BrA score was 28.05 points (SD = 5.05). CFA revealed that the model with the best fit had a single factor (χ2 = 49.884 [df = 20, p = 0.0002], CFI = 0.934, TLI = 0.908, RMSEA = 0.076(CI:0.05–0.10), and SRMR = 0.045). The instrument demonstrated good reliability, with satisfactory internal consistency (α and ω = 0.71) and stability (ICC = 0.82, 95% CI:0.70–0.89). The eHEALS-BrA was correlated with the physical, psychological, and environmental domains of the WHOQOL-Bref (p = 0.001) (convergent validity). Higher scores were found among male adolescents, individuals who practiced physical activity, those with better self-rated health, those who considered the internet useful for searching for health information (discriminant validity), and those with better self-rated skills related to using the internet (convergent validity) (p < 0.05). The eHEALS-BrA demonstrated adequate psychometric properties for measuring digital health literacy in Brazilian adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Precocious exits from adolescence via early union formation are often argued to represent a strong risk factor for intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization. However, causal evidence for this claim is scant. This study examines the impact of teen union formation (before age 18) on experiences of IPV in Brazil and Colombia, where early family transitions are common and levels of interpersonal violence are high. Using data that allow instrumenting for teen union formation with age at menarche, results show that both Brazilian and Colombian women who start a co‐residential union before age 18 have a higher probability of experiencing psychological violence from partners. Early cohabitation is also linked to greater risk of past‐year sexual abuse among Black/Brown Brazilian women, and lifetime sexual IPV in Colombia, including among women who partnered once. Among testable potential pathways, age‐heterogamy (male partner being older) explains part of the results, but lower educational attainment among early cohabiting women emerges as a key driver in both countries. Education remains a powerful policy tool to confront both forms of gender‐based violence in South America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: α-mannosidosis is an inborn error of metabolism caused by the deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme α-mannosidase, which is encoded by the MAN2B1 gene and inherited in an autosomal recessive manner. The impairment of affected individuals is multisystemic and very similar to the observed in some mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS) patients. The aim of this study was to search for α-mannosidosis cases in individuals with clinical suspicion of MPS without a confirmed diagnosis. Biochemical and molecular analysis were standardized by our group for this study. Two hundred and fifty samples from patients with clinical suspicion of MPS, but with inconclusive MPS biochemical and/or molecular analysis, were screened for α-mannosidase activity. Subsequently the MAN2B1 gene was sequenced in samples from 53 patients by the Sanger method. Results: The measurement of enzymatic activity detected fifty-three samples with abnormal results, suggesting α-mannosidosis. Molecular analysis confirmed three affected families, which presented the nonsense variant p.Ser899Ter. This variant generates a premature stop codon in exon 22, resulting in a truncated protein with no residual enzymatic activity. Conclusion: In conclusion, this work brings data for the beginning of a genetic characterization of α-mannosidosis in the Brazilian population. It also shows that α-mannosidosis cases may be underdiagnosed due to the clinical similarity to MPS and the lack of information about this ultra-rare disease. Based on our data, we strongly recommend to all screening centers to consider α-mannosidosis testing together with screening for MPS as a tool for diagnosis to MPS-like phenotype individuals, since the phenotype similarity between these diseases poses a significant challenge for clinicians worldwide and often leads to the failure of the correct clinical diagnosis and treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To determine reference values and propose prediction equations for respiratory muscle strength, maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP), maximal expiratory pressure (MEP), and endurance by means of maximal voluntary ventilation (MVV) in healthy Brazilian adults. Methods: Anthropometric data, level of physical activity, pulmonary function, and respiratory muscle strength and maximal voluntary ventilation of 243 participants (111 men and 132 women) aged 20 to 80 years were assessed at three cities in the southeast and northeast region of Brazil. Results: Mean maximal respiratory pressures and MVV were higher in men (MIP = 111.0 ± 28.0; MEP = 149.6 ± 40.3; MVV = 150.6 ± 35.2) than in women (MIP = 87.9 ± 17.6; MEP = 106.7 ± 25.2; MVV = 103.4 ± 23.2; all p < 0.05). Based on regression models, the following prediction equations were proposed for men: MIP = 137–0.57 (age), R2 = 0.13, standard error of estimate (SEE) = 26.11; MEP = 179.9–0.67 x (age), R2 = 0.08, SEE = 38.54; and MVV = 206.3–1.18 x (age), R2 = 0.36, SEE = 28.08. Prediction equations were also proposed for women: MIP = 107.3–0.4 x (age), R2 = 0.16, SEE = 16.10; MEP = 127.4–0.43 x (age), R2 = 0.08, SEE = 24.09; and MVV = 146.3–0.86 x (age), R2 = 0.42, SEE = 17.56. Conclusion: Reference values for MIP, MEP, and MVV were determined in healthy Brazilian adults. Results from different Brazilian regions provided adequate prediction equations considering an ethnically heterogeneous population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To assess common gastrointestinal symptoms in healthy Brazilian infants receiving goat milk-based formula (GMF) compared to cow's milk-based formula (CMF). Methods: We performed a 24-weeks double-blind, randomized, controlled study in Brazil, enrolling healthy infants from 3 to 12 months of age. Primary outcome were the gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms stool consistency, regurgitation frequency and crying duration. Secondary outcomes were growth trajectories and hemoglobin levels. Repeated mixed models were used to compare outcomes variables between GMF and CMF groups, while adjusting for age at baseline. Results: Fifty-six infants were recruited and randomly allocated in the GMF (n = 26) and the CMF (n = 30) group. Scores on all measured GI symptoms were low and similar among the groups throughout intervention period and improved over time. Average age- and sex-adjusted WHO z-scores of weight, length, head circumference, and weight-for-length were all within +/-1 SD and similar between groups, indicating adequate growth. Serum hemoglobin was 11.1 (SD 0.7) g/dL in infants fed GMF and 11.0 (SD 0.8) g/dL in infants fed CMF after the intervention and was similar between groups. Conclusion: GMF was well tolerated, safe and supported adequate growth in infants. This was shown by the low occurrence of GI symptoms, adequate blood hemoglobin levels and adequate growth within WHO standards. Trial registration: The clinical trial was approved by the ethics committee of the Federal University of Bahia under number CAAE06923319.5.0000.5577. The study was retrospectively registered in clinicaltrials.gov on 02/05/2024 under identifier NCT06395571. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThe construction of intimacy quite often implies fluxes and mobilities. Building upon this premise, the article delves into the chains of dislocations associated with the transnationalisation of intimacy led by European men and Brazilian women who find themselves in the tourism meeting ground of Ponta Negra (Natal-RN, Northeast Brazil). The primary aim presupposes an understanding of transatlantic configurations of mobility and intimacy that emerge in passionate Euro-Brazilian relationships, while adopting a critical stance towards the notions of ‘sex tourism’ and ‘marriage migrations’, conceptual constructions which are common in the social sciences, yet profoundly reductive and with little empirical support. This analysis draws on elements provided by a multi-sited ethnographic fieldwork, encompassing various physical and digital research sites. The gathered data allowed the comprehension of the pluricausality, interconnectedness, and plasticity of Euro-Brazilian mobilities, alongside their intrinsic association with polymorphic transnational configurations of intimacy, in the framework of which relations with different places are (re)defined and flexible links of conjugality, family, residence and citizenship are generated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]