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This article addresses the possibilities and challenges in the performance of the community health worker (CHW) from the perspective of the National Policy of Popular Health Education. It is based on the analysis of findings from a research-intervention carried out at a Family Health Center in a small city in the southern region of Brazil. The data analyzed was produced in meetings with the research team, in activities with the CHWs (individual interviews and workshops), and in feedback sessions with the team regarding the intervention. Among the results, the intertwined role of the CHW within the team was emphasized. In situating themselves between technical and popular forms of knowledge, the work of the CHW potentializes the actions of the Popular Health Education program, as it points to the need for training, agreement of the developed practices, and professional valorization. From these findings we were able to approach and understand the results in terms of the National Policy of Popular Health Education. Based on the analyses, we recommend the establishment of practices associated with the broader concept of health sustained in holistic teamwork that valorizes the knowledge/action of CHW and of the community, inspired in the guiding principles of PNEP-SUS.

Purpose: To evaluate, in vitro, the obliteration of dentin tubules promoted by different desensitizing methods, before and after pH cycling., Methods: Human dentin blocks of 4x4 mm were randomly divided into: control group (n = 20): no treatment; Group GH (n = 20): surface treatment with a solution containing glutaraldehyde (5.1%), HEMA (36.1%), sodium fluoride (NaF), and deionized water; Group NP (n = 20): surface treatment with a calcium phosphate gel containing nanostructured hydroxyapatite crystals, NaF and NK; and Group ARG (n = 20): surface treatment with a paste containing CaCO3 and 8% arginine. After treatment, 10 samples of each group were evaluated in scanning electron microscopy (SEM) while another 10 were included in a pH cycling procedure for 48 hours, and then analyzed in the SEM. All SEM images were evaluated by three calibrated examiners regarding dentin tubular obliteration. Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used for data analysis (P < 0.05)., Results: The GH, NP, and ARG groups promoted immediate obliteration higher than the control group (P < 0.05) with NP and ARG groups superior to GH group (P < 0.05). After pH cycling, an increase in tubular obliteration in the GH group was observed, which was similar to the NP and ARG groups (P > 0.05), even though all groups promoted higher obliteration than the control group (P < 0.05). All treatments were effective in a tubular obliteration.

Aim of the Study: Vochysia tucanorum is an important medicinal plant used in the Cerrado of Brazil against gastric disorders and this study reveals the pharmacological action of this traditional medicine use., Materials and Methods: The methanolic extract (E-MeOH) and buthanolic fraction (Fr-Bu) obtained from V. tucanorum were challenged by different necrotizing agents in rodents. NO-synthase inhibitor (L-NAME) and SH blocker (NEM) were used to evaluate the participation of cytoprotective factors in E-MeOH and Fr-Bu gastroprotection. Antiulcerogenic action of V. tucanorum was evaluated in rats and mice at doses 250, 500 or 1000 mg/kg (E-MeOH) and 37.5, 75 or 150 mg/kg (Fr-Bu)., Results: Both E-MeOH and Fr-Bu present elevated gastroprotective action in all in vivo experimental models, without signs of acute toxicity. The mechanisms involved in the gastroprotective action of E-MeOH and Fr-Bu are related to the antioxidant activity and protection to gastric mucosa NO levels. Phytochemical investigations of Fr-Bu identified different pentacyclic triterpenoids such as betulinic acid, erythrodiol, epi-betulinic acid and mixtures of ursolic acid and oleanolic acid derivatives as the major constituents. The presence of such triterpenoids in Fr-Bu is probably related to the potent gastroprotective action of this medicinal plant species., Conclusion: Effectiveness in gastroprotection and the absence of acute toxicity indicate this species as a promising herbal drug that is in accordance with ethnopharmacological use against gastric disorders.