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The aim of the present study was to evaluate knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding tuberculosis (TB) among transvestites and transsexual women. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a convenience sample (n = 124; 58 transvestites and 66 transsexuals) in the city of São Paulo, Brazil, in 2014 and involved the administration of the Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices questionnaire. Absolute and relative frequencies were calculated for all variables and the comparisons of percentage distributions between groups were performed using Pearson's Chi-square test, Fisher's exact test or its generalization, with a 5% significance level. Most participants were young and non-white. Transvestites had lower levels of schooling, reported more passages through the prison system and declared themselves to be sex workers more frequently. Little more than half of the participants were aware that treatment for TB was free of charge. Knowledge on TB was modest, permeated with misunderstandings regarding signs/symptoms, transmission and prevention, which influence attitudes and practices in relation to the disease. The findings demonstrate that health education actions do not achieve their goals in the control of tuberculosis.

Objective: Estimate the prevalence of active tuberculosis and latent tuberculosis infection among the staff that is in contact and the staff that is not in contact with prisoners, and investigate factors associated with latent tuberculosis infection in this population., Methods: Observational cross-sectional study, conducted from 2012 to 2015, in employees of different prison units in the municipality of Franco da Rocha, SP. It consisted of the application of a questionnaire, application and reading of the tuberculin test, sputum smear microscopy, sputum culture, and radiological examination. The association between the qualitative variables was calculated by the Pearson's chi-squared test. The sociodemographic and clinical-epidemiological factors related to the latent tuberculosis infection were evaluated by the logistic regression with the odds ratios (OR) calculation and their respective intervals with 95% of confidence (95%CI)., Results: A total of 1,059 employees were examined, 657 (62.0%) of prisons, 249 (23.5%) of CASA Foundation units and 153 (14.5%) of custodial and psychiatric treatment hospitals. The tuberculin test was applied and read for 945 (89.2%) professionals. Of these, 797 (84.3%) were contacts of detainees and 148 (15.7%) were not. Among prison staff, the factors associated with latent tuberculosis infection were: contact with detainee (OR = 2.12, 95%CI 1.21-3.71); male gender (OR = 1.97, 95%CI 1.19-3.27); between 30 and 39 years old (OR = 2.98, 95%CI 1.34-6.63), 40 to 49 years old (OR = 4.32, 95%CI 1.94-9.60), and 50 to 59 years old (OR = 3.98, 95%CI 1.68-9.43); nonwhite color or race (OR = 1.89, 95%CI 1.29-2.78); and smoker (OR = 1.64, 95%CI 1.05-2.55). There were no positive test on sputum smear microscopy and culture. Of the 241 (22.8%) professionals who underwent radiological examination, 48 (19.9%) presented alterations of which 11 were suspected of tuberculosis., Conclusions: Prison employees who have direct contact with detainees are 2.12 times more likely to become infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis in the work environment and consequently to become ill with tuberculosis and should be targeted for disease prevention and control.

Objective: To characterize the profile of transvestites and transgender women participating in a survey regarding tuberculosis and HIV/Aids in the city of São Paulo., Method: This cross-sectional study employed the Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices (KAP) questionnaire adapted for data collection. Sociodemographic aspects as well as aspects related to history of imprisonment, process of gender transition, use of condoms, previous treatment of sexually transmitted diseases and tuberculosis and knowledge regarding HIV/Aids were addressed., Results: The study included 58 transvestites and 66 transgender women. There were differences between the two groups regarding schooling (P = 0.008), prostitution (P < 0.001), imprisonment (P < 0.001), silicone injections (P = 0.005), and hormone therapy without medical guidance (P = 0.004). All trans women (100%) and 80% of transvestites mentioned treatment of syphilis; 25.9% of transvestites reported tuberculosis/HIV co-infection. The investigation regarding knowledge of HIV/AIDS revealed inconsistent use of condoms and mistaken beliefs related to modes of transmission., Conclusion: The present results show that transvestites and trans women were vulnerable to tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS. The differences observed between the two groups suggest the need for different approaches to transvestites and transgender women in future studies.

Introduction: For groups of persons who remain confined, mainly in prisons, tuberculosis has always been a serious health problem, due to its transmission respiratory, putting in risk the professionals that work in a prison, especially the communicants of inmates., Objective: To know the infection prevalence for the Mycobacterium tuberculosis among the employees communicating and no communicating of inmates of two prisons of the State of São Paulo., Methods: This study consisted of the application of an individual questionnaire; application and reading of the tuberculin skin testing (TST); sputum smear examination and culture; identification and drug sensitivity testing; in the period of March the June of 2008., Results: 277 (48.3%) employees of the 574 existent were examined. They were applied and read 248 (89.5%) TST (PPD-RT23 - 2TU/0.1 mL); of them, 194 were in employees that worked directly with the inmates, that is, were communicants and 54 were no communicants. Among the communicants, 62.4% presented induration larger than 10 mm and among the non communicants, 38.9% presented this measure of TST. There was not positive in the sputum smear examination or in the culture, that is, tuberculosis illness case was not identified enters the professionals, at the moment of the research., Conclusion: This study suggests that the communicant employees have a larger risk of if they infect for the M. tuberculosis and consequently of being sick of tuberculosis.

Background: Patients with cardiac failure (CF) present progressive incapacity and decreased quality of life, both related to dyspnea and fatigue. Thus, there is the increasing interest in measuring the quality of life (QL), by generic instrument, such as the 36-item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36), by specific instrument, such as Minnesota Living with Heart Failure (MLHFQ)., Objective: This study has the objective to correlate the QL surveys, SF-36 and MLHFQ, with the functional capacity of patients with CF, expressed by the cardiopulmonary test and the TC6M., Methods: Using the SF-36 and MLHFQ surveys for QL evaluation, for the evaluation of the functional capacity, it was used the cardiopulmonary test, being executed using a tredmill with Weber protocol, as well sa the distance covered in the walk test of six minutes (TC6M)., Results: Forty-six patients were selected with CF diagnosis (22 men, average age of 52 years old), classes II and III of New York Heart Association. It was observed that the mild correlation between the physical and emotional domains of SF-36 and VE/VCO2.peak (r=-0.3; p<0.05) and the distance covered in TC6M (r=0.4; p<0.05), respectively. It was also observed the mild to moderate correlations of MLHFQ total score with VO2.peak (r=-0.5; p<0.05), the aerobic threshold (r=-0.4; p<0.05) and the distance covered in TC6M (r=-0.5; p<0.05)., Conclusion: The data suggest that the application of both evaluation instruments of QL, generic (SF-36) and specific (MLHFQ) in patients with CF, showed mild and moderate correlation with the variable of the cardiopulmonary test with the variables of the cardiopulmonary test and the distance covered in TC6M.

The revaccination of schoolchildren can restore the residual allergy induced by vaccination in the first years of life but can not modify the allergy resulting from a natural infection. So revaccination in this population should indicate the group infected by the Koch bacilli. To assess the applicability of these assumptions in estimating the risk of tuberculosis infection in regions with high BCG coverage a study was undertaken on schoolchildren between 6 and 9 years of age who were attending the municipal schools in the east zone of S. Paulo City, in the course of the first semester of 1988. Of 11,455 who were vaccinated only 7,470 were tested with PPD, revaccinated and retested ten weeks later; 3,314 of these were vaccinated in the first trimester of life with a half dose and 4,156 received a full dose at later ages (75% during the first year, 20% during the second and 5% during the third). In comparing the results pre and post vaccination by correlation table, the calculation of infection was made according to the criteria of the original method and to the modifications made by the authors under separate cover for those vaccinated in the first trimester and those vaccinated later. The risk of infection was 0.35% and 0.37%, respectively, for the original model and 0.45% and 0.49% for the modified model. The referential was 0.55%. The difference between model and age or with the referential was not significant (p > 0.005). Data suggest that the method is applicable to estimate the risk of tuberculosis infection in schoolchildren vaccinated with a full dose of BCG during the first year of life.

The successful application of Bhattacharya's method (decomposition of frequency distribution into normal components by a graphic method) in the analysis of the results of tuberculin test performed on a population sensitized by "anonymous" strains of mycobacteria, suggested the possibility of its application to two samples of BCG vaccinated school-children, living in the city of S. Paulo (Brazil). One of the sample groups, vaccinated between the second and seventh years of life, was surveyed in 1982 and the other, vaccinated during the first year of life, was surveyed in 1988. In both populations it was possible to characterize the normal component corresponding to children infected by tuberculous bacilli and to quantify them. In the first one, the average size of the reactions was 17.40 mm, the standard deviation 3.72 mm and the proportion of infected children 7.71%, against 4.85% in the unvaccinated control group; otherwise, in the population surveyed in 1988, the average size was 17.00 mm, the standard deviation 4.67 mm and the proportion of infected children amounted to 4.14% against 4.48% in the control group. It is concluded that the method permits the estimation of the prevalence of tuberculosis infection among BCG-vaccinated school-children, provided that the vaccine has been given during the first year of life.