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Discrimination and stigma are significant barriers to healthcare for the LGBTQIAPN+ community, necessitating a deeper analysis of their sociocultural causes. There is a notable gap in the literature regarding the understanding of socio-discursive representations and their impact on the stigmatization and pathologization of sexual minorities in the context of communicable diseases. This study aims to discuss the understanding of the sociodiscursive aspects of the health-disease process, particularly in stigmatized infectious diseases affecting the LGBTQIAPN+ community. The focus is on examining how news articles, or the set of analyzed texts (corpus), shape these perceptions. We conducted documentary research with a qualitative and discursive approach using news articles retrieved from Google News Ⓡ about diseases affecting the LGBTQIAPN+ population from 2011 to 2022. The analysis was based on critical discourse analysis, processed using MAXQDA and IRAMUTEQ software. The identified representations predominantly align with biomedical ideology, manifesting in a discourse that normalizes and medicalizes (normative-curative discourse), and notable for its pathologizing and stigmatizing nature. Six classes were found: Ethical professional dilemmas facing stigma, infection and contamination of the LGBT+ population, prejudice and discrimination in the form of information, stigma related to sexual behavior/orientation, Vulnerability and stigma related to infectious diseases, and strategies for minimizing health risk/stigma for the LGBT+ public. The most relevant analytical categories were related to infectious diseases and sexual identity. These themes were identified, indicating that media representations reinforce stigma and maintain unequal health practices (verticalization) for the LGBT+ community. Understanding these patterns within a broader historical context is crucial for promoting health education and strategies that challenge internalized prejudice. The need to reformulate cultural norms and develop health information and education policies is urgent. These policies should be led by professionals with a comprehensive and humanized vision, addressing the diverse needs of the LGBT+ population., Competing Interests: Declarations. Conflict of interest: No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors. Ethical Approval: As these are public data under a shared domain, the study was not submitted for ethical approval., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

This study aims to analyze the repercussions of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on the health of male immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in Brazil. A qualitative study involving 307 adult men living in Brazil during the COVID-19 pandemic was conducted. Data were collected between August 2021 and March 2022 and interpreted based on the Transcultural Nursing Theory. Cultural care repercussions were identified in various dimensions: technological: changes in daily life and disruptions in routine; religious, philosophical, social, and cultural values: changes stemming from disrupted social bonds, religious practices, and sociocultural isolation; political: experiences of political partisanship, conflicts, government mismanagement, a lack of immigration policies, human rights violations, and xenophobia; educational/economic: challenges arising from economic impoverishment, economic insecurity, unemployment, language difficulties, and challenges in academic and literacy development during the pandemic. The persistence of the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil had significant repercussions for the health of migrant men, resulting in a transcultural phenomenon that requires sensitive nursing care. Implications for nursing: the uniqueness of cultural care in nursing and health, as most of the repercussions found were mostly negative, contributed to the increase in social and health vulnerabilities.

Objective: To adapt the PROactive Physical Activity in COPD-clinical visit (C-PPAC) instrument to the cultural setting in Brazil and to determine the criterion validity, test-retest reliability agreement, and internal consistency of this version., Methods: A protocol for cultural adaptation and validation was provided by the authors of the original instrument and, together with another guideline, was applied in a Portuguese-language version developed by a partner research group from Portugal. The adapted Brazilian Portuguese version was then cross-sectionally administered twice within a seven-day interval to 30 individuals with COPD (57% were men; mean age was 69 ± 6 years; and mean FEV1 was 53 ± 18% of predicted) to evaluate internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Participants also completed the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), the modified Medical Research Council scale, the COPD Assessment Test, and Saint George's Respiratory Questionnaire to evaluate criterion validity., Results: The C-PPAC instrument showed good internal consistency and excellent test-retest reliability: "amount" domain = 0.87 (95% CI, 0.73-0.94) and "difficulty" domain = 0.90 (95% CI, 0.76-0.96). Bland & Altman plots, together with high Lin's concordance correlation coefficients, reinforced that agreement. Criterion validity showed moderate-to-strong correlations of the C-PPAC with all of the other instruments evaluated, especially with the IPAQ (rho = -0.63)., Conclusions: The Brazilian Portuguese version of the C-PPAC is a reliable and valid instrument for evaluating the experience of Brazilian individuals with COPD with their physical activity in daily life.

Pesticides, which are associated with endocrine dysfunction, immunological dysregulation, and cancer, are widespread sources of drinking water contamination. The state of Paraná has a population of 11 million, is the second largest grain producer in Brazil and is a leading consumer of pesticides. In this study, we analyzed the extent of drinking water contamination from 11 proven, probable, or potentially carcinogenic pesticides (alachlor, aldrin-dieldrin, atrazine, chlordane, DDT-DDD-DDE, diuron, glyphosate-AMPA, lindane-γ-HCH, mancozeb-ETU, molinate, and trifluralin) in 127 grain-producing municipalities in the state of Paraná. Extensive contamination of drinking water was found, including legacy pesticides such as aldrin-dieldrin (mean 0.047 ppb), DDT-DDD-DDE (mean: 0.07), chlordane (mean: 0.181), and lindane-HCH (mean: 2.17). Most of the municipalities were significantly above the maximum limits for each one of the currently allowed pesticides (67% for alachlor, 9.44% for atrazine, 96.85% for diuron, 100% for glyphosate-AMPA, 80.31% for mancozeb-ETU, 91.33% for molinate, and 12.6% for trifluralin). Ninety-seven percent of municipalities presented a sum of all pesticides at levels significantly above (189.84 ppb) the European Union preconized limits (<0.5 ppb). Using the mean pesticide concentration in water (ppb), the exposed population for each municipality, and the benchmark cancer risk for pesticides, we estimated the minimum number of cancer cases attributable to pesticide-contaminated drinking water during the period (total of 542 cases). More than 80% were attributed to mancozeb-ETU and diuron. Glyphosate-AMPA and diuron-attributable cases strongly correlated with the total cancer cases in the same period (R = 0.8117 and 0.8138, respectively) as well as with breast cancer cases (R = 0.7695 and 0.7551, respectively). Water contamination was significantly correlated with the sum of the estimated cancer cases for all 11 pesticides detected in each city (R = 0.58 and p < 0.0001). These findings reveal extensive contamination of drinking water in the state of Paraná and suggest that contamination may increase the risk of cancer in this region., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The clinical outcomes associated with Zika virus (ZIKV) in the Americas have been well documented, but other aspects of the pandemic, such as attack rates and risk factors, are poorly understood. We prospectively followed a cohort of 1453 urban residents in Salvador, Brazil, and, using an assay that measured immunoglobulin G3 (IgG3) responses against ZIKV NS1 antigen, we estimated that 73% of individuals were infected during the 2015 outbreak. Attack rates were spatially heterogeneous, varying by a factor of 3 within a community spanning 0.17 square kilometers. Preexisting high antibody titers to dengue virus were associated with reduced risk of ZIKV infection and symptoms. The landscape of ZIKV immunity that now exists may affect the risk for future transmission., (Copyright © 2019 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.)

Background: It is known that chronic kidney disease (CKD) is continuously increasing all over the world, but the available numbers of affected subjects are mostly collected from renal replacement therapy services and they correspond to individuals with end-stage renal disease. The aim of the present study was to diagnose CKD in its earliest stages in the general population based on detection of proteinuria., Methods: In public prevention campaigns, from 2005 to 2010, 38 721 inhabitants were evaluated in the state of Sao Paulo (Brazil). Screening procedures included a dipstick test, blood pressure measurement and application of a medical questionnaire., Results: In the whole population, urine samples of 37 771 individuals (mean age: 44.59 + 21.70, 55.74% females) were evaluated, 7.3% presented proteinuria (1+ or more) in the screening test and 85.5% of them had no previous knowledge of this urinary abnormality. Those individuals were referred for further clinical evaluation in order to confirm the detected alterations. Considering being diabetic and/or hypertensive as important risk factors for CKD, it was observed that they corresponded to 9.7 and 28.4% of the population screened for proteinuria, respectively. Newly detected cases of possible CKD, diabetes and hypertension corresponded to 6.2, 0.3 and 6.5%, respectively., Conclusions: This initiative provided information on proteinuria and possible cases of CKD based on a large sampling of the Brazilian population. Proteinuria was detected in 7.3% of these individuals, and such prevalence is similar to that previously described in developed countries.

Epilepsy is the most common acquired chronic neurological disorder; each year about 1 in a 1000 patients with chronic epilepsy die suddenly, unexpectedly, and without explanation, even with postmortem examination (SUDEP). Seizure incidence is approximately 10% in patients with chronic renal failure and hemodialysis-associated seizure has been considered to be a common complication of people on hemodialysis treatment. Considering this, we evaluated the incidence of seizures in 189 patients under dialytic treatment., (© 2010 The Authors. Hemodialysis International © 2010 International Society for Hemodialysis.)

Rubella serum assays performed in the laboratory of the Materno-Infantil Presidente Vargas Hospital (HMIPV) from 1998 to 2002 were reviewed to determine if IgG avidity assays should be implemented. IgG was determined using the Enzyme Linked Fluorescent Assay, ELFA, VIDAS system, bioMerieux or the Microparticle Enzyme Immunoassay, MEIA, Axsym system, Abbott, and IgM was determined using the ELFA, VIDAS system, bioMerieux, a capture format assay. Specific IgG was assayed in 2,863 samples, with positive results for 84% of the patients, for the most part with high levels of antibodies. IgM was assayed in 2,851 samples, being positive in 14 (0.49%) and inconclusive in 25 (0.88%). Serology for toxoplasmosis was also positive or inconclusive in 5 patients. After a cost-effectiveness analysis, it was decided not to implement avidity assays, considering that the HMIPV is a public institution, with limited funding. Difficulties concerning the integration of the Clinical Pathology Service with the Clinical Staff of the institution were also considered.

The prophylactic efficacy of ivermectin against navel or scrotal myiasis in calves was evaluated in eight trials in Argentina and Brazil. In two trials, calves were injected subcutaneously with ivermectin at a dosage of at least 200 microg kg(-1) within 24 h of birth. In the other six trials, two with two-month-old calves and four with four-month-old or older calves, all calves were treated with ivermectin at a dosage of at least 200 microg kg(-1) immediately after castration. In all trials, calves were maintained together on pasture and naturally exposed to Cochliomyia hominivorax. Navel and scrotal wounds were examined for myiasis daily for at least 14 days. Incidence of navel and scrotal myiasis was significantly lower (P < 0.01) in treated calves than in control calves.

The prevalences of the various histopathologic forms of primary glomerular disease (PGD) were evaluated by the retrospective analysis of 206 kidney biopsies performed in a three-year period (september 1990-september 1993) in patients between 14 and 73 years of age (107 men and 99 women). Data were compared with those of a study conducted in 1985-1987, on patients of the same age group. In the present study, primary glomerular diseases showed the following prevalences: focal glomerulosclerosis, 43.2%; membranous GN, 20.4%; membranoproliferative GN, 14.1%; IgA nephropathy, 10.2%; minimal-change disease, 5.3%; mesangioproliferative GN, 2.9%; acute diffuse GN, 1.9%; rapidly progressive GN and proliferative focal segmental GN, 1% each one. Prevalences were similar in both sexes. Primary glomerular diseases were significantly more prevalent in patients with 35 years or less than in those up this age (64.6% vs 34.4%). Nonproliferative primary glomerular diseases were significantly more prevalent than the proliferative forms (68.9% vs 31.1%). The prevalences of the various histopathologic of PGD, with few exceptions, were about similar in the periods 1985-1987 and 1990-1993: the prevalences of focal glomerulosclerosis, membranous GN, IgA nephropathy and mesangioproliferative GN showed no significant differences; the prevalence of membranoproliferative GN increased (6.8% vs 14.1%), but that of type II remained very low (0.5%). Focal glomerulosclerosis was the most prevalent PGD. The prevalence of IgA nephropathy remained low, comparable with the smallest prevalences found in some of the Western countries.

In 1,000 students from Great São Paulo First Degree Schools, from 6 to 18 years old, we studied: age, sex, race, weight, height, left arm circumference, blood pressure, pulse and family history of hypertension. Of these 550 were female and 450 male, with predominance of caucasians in both sexes (83.7%). The conclusions of this study were: until 9 years old the blood pressure was similar in both sexes. As the school girls grow up earlier, their blood pressure rose first, but after 16 years this fact changed: 126 +/- 3.5 x 76 +/- 2.8 in males and 115 +/- 2.0 x 74 +/- 1.9 in females. Students with a family history of hypertension had higher blood pressure than students without and the prevalence of systolic and diastolic hypertension was higher in the first group: 12.2 and 13.8 to 4.7 and 3.8% respectively. Diastolic blood pressure was dominant in only in males Negros. The prevalence of systolic and diastolic hypertension was 6.9% in these 1,000 students.