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The application of light scattering to concentrated colloidal suspensions has often been considered too complicated due to strong multiple scattering. Here we show that diffusing wave spectroscopy (DWS) permits the characterization of dynamic and static properties of such systems on a large range of time and length scales. In particular we focus on the aggregation and sol-gel transition in different colloidal systems such as latex suspensions or milk. Using DWS we obtain quantitative information about the microscopic dynamics all the way from an aggregating suspension to the final gel, thereby covering the whole sol-gel transition. At the gel point a dramatic change of the particle dynamics from diffusion to a subdiffusive arrested motion is observed. As biopolymer solutions and gels represent one of the most interesting class of gelling systems we have performed a systematic study using solutions of casein micelles which we destabilized and investigated during the sol-gel transition using DWS and rheological measurements. We can find the same behavior as found in concentrated suspensions of monodisperse latex spheres that undergo a sol-gel transition. The changes observed in the microscopic dynamics can be clearly linked to the formation of a macroscopic gel with drastically modified viscoelastic properties.

Accumulating evidence indicates that unpredictable signals in early life represent a unique form of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) associated with disrupted neurodevelopmental trajectories in children and adolescents. The Questionnaire of Unpredictability in Childhood (QUIC) was developed to assess early life unpredictability [1], encompassing social, emotional, and physical unpredictability in a child's environment, and has been validated in three independent cohorts. However, the importance of identifying ACEs in diverse populations, including non-English speaking groups, necessitates translation of the QUIC. The current study aims to translate and validate a Spanish language version of the QUIC (QUIC-SP) and assess its associations with mental and physical health. Spanish-speaking participants (N = 285) were recruited via the online market crowdsourcing platform, Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk), and completed an online survey that included the QUIC-SP and validated Spanish language assessments of physical and mental health. The QUIC-SP demonstrated excellent psychometric properties and similar mean scores, endorsement rates, and internal reliability to the English language version, thus establishing its validity among Spanish-speaking adults. Higher QUIC-SP scores, indicating greater unpredictability in early life, predicted increased symptoms of anxiety, anhedonia, depression, and poorer physical health. Given significant racial and ethnic disparities in health, the QUIC-SP may serve as a valuable tool to address the public health consequences of ACEs among Spanish-speaking populations.

A human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) line (UCLi025-A) was generated from dermal fibroblast cells from a 42-year-old female donor with polyneuropathy, hearing loss, retinitis pigmentosa and early-onset cataract (PHARC) syndrome carrying a homozygous nonsense variant in ABHD12 c.193C>T, p.(Arg65*). Fibroblasts were confirmed to carry the variant by Sanger sequencing and subsequently reprogrammed using non-integrating episomal plasmids generating a hiPSC line (UCLi025-A). This established cell line was validated for pluripotency markers expression, in vitro differentiation potential and normal karyotype. The utilization of this cell line will serve as a valuable resource for modelling PHARC syndrome and identification of therapeutic targets.

Se presenta una nueva localidad paleontológica del Ordovícico del noroeste de España, ubicada en el flanco meridional del sinclinorio de Vega de Espinareda, al norte de Ponferrada (provincia de León). Se trata de la octava localidad con fósiles esqueléticos encontrada en la Formación Agüeira (Ordovícico Superior) del Dominio del Navia-Alto Sil de la Zona Asturoccidental-leonesa, y la primera ubicada en la mitad inferior de la formación. El nuevo yacimiento se sitúa muy próximo a su sección de referencia de la garganta fluvial entre las localidades de Congosto y Santa Marina del Sil, donde estos niveles eran interpretados como facies distales de un abanico submarino, en una sedimentación predominantemente turbidítica. Pero los trilobites, moluscos y braquiópodos encontrados, que por su escasa a nula desarticulación no parecen transportados, revelan una asociación propia de ambientes de plataforma mucho más someros, con fondos oxigenados como revela la alta concentración de galerías horizontales. La presencia de los trilobites Colpocoryphe grandis (Šnajdr) y Dalmanitina n. sp. (D. rabanoae Pereira, n. n.) indica una edad Berouniense temprano (= Sandbiense temprano), lo que abre la posibilidad de que el límite Ordovícico Medio/Superior se sitúe en los 400-450 m basales de la Fm. Agüeira en el sector estudiado.

The transition towards nature-based cities has increasingly become a central focus in political–environmental agendas and urban design practices, aiming to enhance climate adaptation, urban biodiversity, spatial equilibrium, and social well-being as part of the ongoing socio-ecological urban transition process. Climate adaptation in cities is a complex problem and one of the main collective challenges for society, but the relationships between city managers and citizens as to urban green care still face many challenges. Parks design guided by technical-expert and globalised criteria; inflexibility from bureaucratic inertia; and citizens’ demands to participate in the urban green transition, sometimes without the necessary knowledge or time, are some of the challenges that require further research. In this study, we examine four long-lasting approaches to green-space management in four cities in the Netherlands, ranging from municipality-driven to community-driven management forms, and encompassing diverse spatial configurations of greenery within the urban fabric. Utilising the theoretical lens of the Social–Ecological Systems Framework, we employ a multiple-case-study approach and ethnographic fieldwork analysis to gain a comprehensive understanding of the norms, collective-choice rules, and social conventions embodied in each urban green management arrangement. The purpose of this research is applied, that is, to provide urban managers and decision-makers with a deeper understanding of drivers to promote effective collaborative management approaches, focusing on specific organisational rules that may contribute to more sustained planning and maintenance pathways for urban green spaces, regardless of changes in political leadership or significant external funding sources. The results of the investigated cases show that long-lasting collaborative management of forests and parks has established a set of collective-choice rules for resource transfer between municipalities and citizens, including non-monetary resources (such as pruning-training courses or guided tours that attract tourists and researchers). Additionally, these arrangements have been favoured by the existence of legal norms that enable co-ownership of the land, and monitoring and sanctioning mechanisms that offer a slightly different interpretation from the evidence identified so far in the scientific literature on collective resource management and organisational studies.

Migrants and refugees face elevated risks for mental health problems but have limited access to services. This study compared two strategies for training and supervising nonspecialists to deliver a scalable psychological intervention, Group Problem Management Plus (gPM+), in northern Colombia. Adult women who reported elevated psychological distress and functional impairment were randomized to receive gPM+ delivered by nonspecialists who received training and supervision by: 1) a psychologist (specialized technical support); or 2) a nonspecialist who had been trained as a trainer/supervisor (nonspecialized technical support). We examined effectiveness and implementation outcomes using a mixed-methods approach. Thirteen nonspecialists were trained as gPM+ facilitators and three were trained-as-trainers. We enrolled 128 women to participate in gPM+ across the two conditions. Intervention attendance was higher in the specialized technical support condition. The nonspecialized technical support condition demonstrated higher fidelity to gPM+ and lower cost of implementation. Other indicators of effectiveness, adoption and implementation were comparable between the two implementation strategies. These results suggest it is feasible to implement mental health interventions, like gPM+, using lower-resource, community-embedded task sharing models, while maintaining safety and fidelity. Further evidence from fully powered trials is needed to make definitive conclusions about the relative cost of these implementation strategies.

El estuario de la Ría de Huelva (SO de España), está seriamente contaminado por lixiviados ácidos de origen minero y efluentes de la industria de fertilizantes fosfatados. Este trabajo evalúa la eficacia de unos residuos sólidos ricos en calcita (CaCO3) generados durante el tratamiento de efluentes industriales con la tecnología Sustrato Alcalino Disperso (DAS), para el tratamiento pasivo de aguas de mina altamente ácidas y contaminadas. El estudio consiste en hacer fluir el agua de mina a través de una columna rellena por una mezcla de un reactivo alcalino (i.e., calcita resultante del tratamiento de lixiviados de fosfoyesos) disperso en una matriz inerte (i.e., virutas de madera) para elevar el pH del agua ácida y así disminuir la solubilidad de los contaminantes disueltos. El tratamiento propuesto logró la eliminación total de Al, Fe, Cu, Cd y tierras raras e Y (REY). La solubilidad de los contaminantes durante el tratamiento fue probablemente controlada por procesos de co-precipitación y/o adsorción con oxihidróxidos-oxihidroxisulfatos de Fe y Al. Este trabajo puede contribuir a minimizar los costes económicos y ambientales del tratamiento de aguas de mina con la tecnología DAS.

Abstract Background Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been hailed by some as the emblematic mental disorder of the COVID-19 pandemic, assuming that PTSD’s life-threat criterion was met de facto. More plausible outcomes like adjustment disorder (AD) have been overlooked. Methods An online cross-sectional survey was launched in the initial stage of the pandemic using a convenience sample of 5 913 adults to compare the prevalence of COVID-related probable PTSD versus probable AD. The abridged Impact of Event Scale – Revised (IES-6) assessed the severity of trauma- and stressor-related symptoms over the previous week. Demographic and pandemic-related data (e.g., receiving a formal diagnosis of COVID-19, job loss, loss of loved one, confinement, material hardship) were collected. A Classification and Regression Tree analysis was conducted to uncover the pandemic experiences leading to clinical ‘caseness’. Caseness was defined by a score > 9 on the IES-6 symptom measure and further characterized as PTSD or AD depending on whether the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory’s life-threat item was endorsed or not. Results The participants were predominantly Caucasian (72.8%), women (79.2%), with a university degree (85%), and a mean age of 42.22 (SD = 15.24) years; 3 647 participants (61.7%; 95%CI [60.4, 63.0]) met the threshold for caseness. However, when perceived life-threat was accounted for, only 6.7% (95%CI [6.1, 7.4]) were classified as PTSD cases, and 55% (95%CI [53.7, 56.2]) as AD cases. Among the AD cases, three distinct profiles emerged marked by the following: (i) a worst personal pandemic experience eliciting intense fear, helplessness or horror (in the absence, however, of any life-threat), (ii) a pandemic experience eliciting sadness/grief, and (iii) worrying intensely about the safety of significant others. Conclusions Studies considering the life-threat criterion as met de facto during the pandemic are confusing PTSD for AD on most counts. This misconception is obscuring the various AD-related idioms of distress that have emerged during the pandemic and the actual treatment needs.

C-reactive protein (CRP), an active regulator of the innate immune system, has been related to COVID-19 severity. CRP is a dynamic protein undergoing conformational changes upon activation in inflammatory microenvironments between pentameric and monomeric isoforms. Although pentameric CRP is the circulating isoform routinely tested for clinical purposes, monomeric CRP shows more proinflammatory properties. Therefore, we aimed to determine the potential of monomeric CRP in serum as a biomarker of disease severity in COVID-19 patients (admission to intensive care unit [ICU] and/or in-hospital mortality). We retrospectively determined clinical and biological features as well as pentameric and monomeric CRP levels in a cohort of 97 COVID-19 patients within 72h of hospital admission. Patients with severe disease had higher levels of both pentameric and monomeric CRP. However, multivariate analysis showed increased mCRP but not pCRP to be independently associated to disease severity. Notably, mCRP levels higher than 4000 ng/mL (OR: 4.551, 95% CI: 1.329-15.58), together with number of co-morbidities, low lymphocyte count, and procalcitonin levels were independent predictors of disease severity in the multivariate model. Our results show the potential of mCRP levels as a marker of clinical severity in COVID-19 disease.

The introduction of forests in cities has been an observable trend in recent years, with planned forest management projects proliferating around the world. The fact that many urban forests in the public space are traditionally managed by top-down bureaucratic procedures and guided by expert knowledge raises questions about whether green areas should follow the same management approach as other urban infrastructures, such as mobility infrastructures, or whether they should explore a collaborative approach designed to engage diverse stakeholders. This article examines the challenges of innovating in urban forests, changing the management rules that may limit participatory and deliberative processes to support decision-making. In particular, we analyzed how introducing a co-creation stage impacted the traditional competitive public tender procedure in the Madrid Metropolitan Forest project, using the Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework. Results showed that the costs and benefits of innovation differ among involved actors, generating unintended deterrent effects for experimentation. To mitigate these decoupling effects, we suggest a strategic design of working rules and updating the shared incentive to move from a competitive and transactional logic to a more collaborative and co-creative form of connection.

The concept of “urban forest” (UF) is gaining momentum in urban planning in the context of climate adaptation. Principles from the field of urban forestry are mainstreamed into urban planning, but little is known about effective tools for the successful implementation of new UFs. This article presents explorative research comparing how three cities (Almere, Madrid, and Boston) are dealing with the planning of a UF project, and their alignment with distinct organisational and typological interpretations of a UF. We employed a mixed-methods approach to gain insights into the main goals of the project, their organisational structure, and the employed planning process through the analysis of project documents and expert interviews. Our results point to an effective mainstreaming of environmental questions among stakeholders, but also indicate a poor development of objective criteria for the success of a UF. We note that municipal planners circumvented current internal rigidities and barriers by relying on intermediaries and local academia as providers of external knowledge, or by facilitating experiments. Finally, our results show that there may not be just one UF type to achieve the desired environmental and social goals and overcome implementation barriers. Conversely, each of the governance and organisational models behind the implementation of each type present collaborative and mainstreaming challenges. Therefore, we see an opportunity in further research examining processes and institutions towards the collaborative building of UFs that could bridge gaps between top-down and bottom-up approaches and activate different types of agencies.

NBS provides the technical basis for adaptation to climate change, and co-creation is the vehicle for the co-production of knowledge and innovation, both forming a strong binomial for the UE Green Infrastructures Strategy. Nonetheless, one of the main challenges for the implementation of effective co-creation strategies is the incorporation of knowledge from diverse social systems. Knowledge production has been approached through different methodological models, such as the quintuple helix innovation by Carayannis, or the diffuse/expert knowledge model by Manzini. These theoretical models are based on linear knowledge transfers, without sufficiently depicting alternative knowledge flows among (un)conventional actors. In view of these limitations, the research proposes a third strategy: the KREBS cycle of creativity defined by Oxman is a conceptual map capable of describing knowledge transfers across the four modalities of human creativity (i.e., science, engineering, design, and art). Providing sufficient “creative energy” in a co-creation process would guarantee the successful production of knowledge. Thus, the research seeks to illuminate different co-creation strategies to promote “creative energy” in the design of the Cyborg Garden (CG) in Madrid, giving a novel application to Oxman’s methodological framework based on the Carayannis’s and Manzini’s models.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) heads the list of legal blindness among the elderly population in developed countries. Due to the complex nature of the retina and the variety of risk factors and mechanisms involved, the molecular pathways underlying AMD are not yet fully defined. Persistent low-grade inflammation and oxidative stress eventually lead to retinal pigment epithelium dysfunction and outer blood–retinal barrier (oBRB) breakdown. The identification of AMD susceptibility genes encoding complement factors, and the presence of inflammatory mediators in drusen, the hallmark deposits of AMD, supports the notion that immune-mediated processes are major drivers of AMD pathobiology. Complement factor H (FH), the main regulator of the alternative pathway of the complement system, may have a key contribution in the pathogenesis of AMD as it is able to regulate both inflammatory and oxidative stress responses in the oBRB. Indeed, genetic variants in the CFH gene account for the strongest genetic risk factors for AMD. In this review, we focus on the roles of inflammation and oxidative stress and their connection with FH and related proteins as regulators of both phenomena in the context of AMD.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a retinal degenerative disease, is the leading cause of central vision loss among the elderly population in developed countries and an increasing global burden. The major risk is aging, compounded by other environmental factors and association with genetic variants for risk of progression. Although the etiology of AMD is not yet clearly understood, several pathogenic pathways have been proposed, including dysfunction of the retinal pigment epithelium, inflammation, and oxidative stress. The identification of AMD susceptibility genes encoding complement factors and the presence of complement and other inflammatory mediators in drusen, the hallmark deposits of AMD, support the concept that local inflammation and immune-mediated processes play a key role in AMD pathogenesis that may be accelerated through systemic immune activation. In this regard, increased levels of circulating C-reactive protein (CRP) have been associated with higher risk of AMD. Besides being a risk marker for AMD, CRP may also play a role in the progression of the disease as it has been identified in drusen, and we have recently found that its monomeric form (mCRP) induces blood retinal barrier disruption in vitro. In this review, we will address recent evidence that links CRP and AMD pathogenesis, which may open new therapeutic opportunities to prevent the progression of AMD.

OBJETIVOS: Analisar a cobertura da Política de Incentivo do Ministério da Saúde para Programas de Aids e as características das ações de prevenção, assistência, gestão e apoio às organizações da sociedade civil induzidas nos Estados e municípios. METODOLOGIA: Os Planos de Ações e Metas de 2006, das 27 Unidades Federadas e de 427 municípios incluídos na Política de Incentivo, foram analisados segundo indicadores estabelecidos para aferir a complexidade e a sustentabilidade das ações induzidas, a inclusão de populações prioritárias e a capacidade de intervenção na epidemia. Informações sobre população e casos de aids registrados foram utilizadas para mensurar a cobertura. RESULTADOS: Os municípios incluídos representaram uma cobertura de 85,2% dos casos de aids do País. Houve uma baixa proporção de secretarias estaduais (48,2%) e municipais (32,6%) de saúde que contemplaram, concomitantemente, ações de prevenção para a população geral e as de maior prevalência da doença, assim como ações para o diagnóstico do HIV, o tratamento de pessoas infectadas e a prevenção da transmissão vertical. Em relação às populações prioritárias, 51,9% dos Estados e 31,1% dos municípios propuseram ações específicas na prevenção e na assistência. Estados (44,4%) e municípios (27,9%) com Planos abrangentes estão mais concentrados no Sudeste e em cidades de grande porte, representando a maioria dos casos de aids do País. CONCLUSÃO: A Política de Incentivo do Ministério da Saúde compreende as regiões de maior ocorrência da aids no Brasil, porém, o perfil da resposta induzida encontra-se parcialmente dissociado das características epidemiológicas da doença no País.OBJECTIVE: To analyze the coverage of the Brazilian Ministry of Health's Incentive Policy for AIDS programs and the characteristics of prevention, care, management and support to civil society organizations induced in states and municipalities. METHODS: The 2006 Action and Target Plans of the 27 Brazilian States and 427 municipalities enlisted in the Incentive Policy were analyzed according to indicators established to measure the complexity and sustainability of actions taken, the inclusion of priority populations, and the ability to address the epidemic. Information on population and on AIDS cases that were reported was used to measure the coverage of the Incentive Policy. RESULTS: The studied municipalities covered 85.2% of AIDS cases in the country. There was a low proportion of state (48.2%) and municipal (32.6%) departments that simultaneously adopted actions aimed at AIDS prevention in the general and in higher disease prevalence populations, as well as HIV diagnosis, treatment of infected individuals and mother-child transmission. Additionally, 51.9% of the states and 31.1% of the municipalities planned specific prevention and care actions aimed at priority population segments. States (44.4%) and municipalities (27.9%) with comprehensive responses are concentrated in the Southeast region, mainly in large cities, and represent most of the AIDS cases in the country. CONCLUSION: The Incentive Policy of the Ministry of Health comprises the regions with the highest incidences of AIDS, but the profile of the induced response is in partial disagreement with the epidemiological characteristics of the disease in Brazil.

Análisis descriptivo de la urgencia psiquiátrica en un hospital general durante 6 años. Se mantienen como grupo principal los pacientes psicóticos, se detecta un aumento de pacientes con trastornos de personalidad. El principal motivo de consulta es la agresividad. Predominan mujeres con conductas autolesivas y varones con conductas violentas.

O HIV, inicialmente vinculado a homens que fazem sexo com homens (HSH), particularmente nos países industrializados e na América Latina, disseminou-se rapidamente entre os diversos segmentos, alcançando mulheres, homens com prática heterossexual e crianças. A crescente desigualdade entre países desenvolvidos e em desenvolvimento reflete-se, tanto na magnitude da propagação do HIV, quanto na mortalidade por aids. Na medida em que se acentuam as diferenças de acesso ao tratamento, diminui a mortalidade por aids nos países mais ricos e aumenta nos países mais pobres, exceção feita ao Brasil, um dos poucos países que adotaram a política de distribuição gratuita de anti-retrovirais. Aqui, a mortalidade vem apresentando queda acentuada a partir de 1996 e o uso de anti-retrovirais, entre outros, é um dos principais fatores associados a esta diminuição. No presente artigo foram analisados os dados do Sistema de Vigilância Epidemiológica de DST/aids do Estado de São Paulo, com o intuito de descrever o perfil da epidemia e discutir os termos juvenilização, pauperização, heterossexualização e feminização, introduzidos no discurso sobre a epidemia, para acompanhar as mudanças de seu padrão epidemiológico. Até 31/12/2001, no Estado de São Paulo, foram notificados 106.873 casos da doença, o que representa cerca de 50% do total de notificações do país. Os maiores coeficientes de incidência aparecem nos indivíduos de 30 a 39 anos, sendo que tanto o número de casos como o de óbitos mostra um ligeiro aumento nas idades mais avançadas, indicando um leve "envelhecimento" da epidemia. A aids aparece em todas as camadas sociais. Ao longo dos anos tem havido um aumento do número de casos entre pessoas de menor escolaridade, com ocupações menos qualificadas. O crescimento do número de casos entre homens heterossexuais, junto ao marcante predomínio desta forma de transmissão na população feminina, corrobora a hipótese de heterossexualização da epidemia. O atual sistema de vigilância epidemiológica de aids é baseado principalmente na notificação de casos e tem sido utilizado como principal fonte de informação para observação das tendências da epidemia e para o planejamento das atividades de prevenção e assistência, assim como para divulgação da doença para a população em geral. Reflete uma situação de vários anos após a infecção ter acontecido, e este intervalo de tempo tende a aumentar em virtude de diversos fatores, tais como a introdução dos anti-retrovirais, entre outros, levando ao aumento do tempo para os casos entrarem no sistema de informação, fazendo com que as informações do sistema atual fiquem cada vez mais distantes da real magnitude da infecção pelo HIV. Dessa forma, outras estratégias têm sido implementadas para se avaliar as tendências da infecção pelo HIV e para subsidiar novas atividades de prevenção e controle, tais como: a notificação compulsória de gestantes HIV positivas e crianças expostas ao HIV; notificação dos portadores assintomáticos do HIV; aprimoramento da investigação sobre a situação de risco dos casos de HIV/aids e incorporação do quesito cor/raça na notificação de casos de aids para subsidiar a definição de grupos de risco acrescido e de maior vulnerabilidade; assim como os sistemas de vigilância de segunda geração, que objetivam identificar as tendências do comportamento e de prevalência da infecção.HIV, initially associated with men who have sex with men, mainly in industrialized countries and Latin America, spread quickly reaching women, heterosexual men and children. The increasing inequalities between industrialized and developing countries become apparent in rates of HIV infection and AIDS mortality. As the differences in access to AIDS treatment grow, mortality due to AIDS decreases in richer countries and increases in poorer countries, with the exception of Brazil, one of the few countries in the world that has free distribution of combination antiretroviral therapy. In Brazil, AIDS mortality has been falling since 1996, and has been substantially affected by access to AIDS treatment. In this paper, data on STD and AIDS, collected from the epidemiological surveillance system of the State of São Paulo, were analyzed with the purpose of describing the profile of the AIDS epidemic, and discussing the way this disease affects women and young, poor and heterosexual persons. Until 12/31/2001, 106,873 cases were reported in the State of São Paulo, which was about 50% of the cases reported in the country as a whole. The highest incidence rates occur among individuals between 30 and 39 years of age. The number of cases and deaths has grown slightly in older individuals. AIDS affects all, the rich and the poor, but in past years it has been increasing in individuals with fewer years of education and non-qualified occupations. The increase in cases among heterosexual men and the fact that this mode of exposure is the most frequent among women corroborates the importance of heterosexual transmission in the AIDS epidemic. The STD and AIDS epidemiological surveillance system in Brazil is based mainly upon cases reported, and it has been used as the main source of information on the AIDS epidemic. These epidemiological surveillance data support the study of trends, prevention and care planning, and provides the means to promote information on AIDS to the population. Such data reflect the status of HIV several years after infection occurred, and this gap tends to grow due to many factors, such as antiretroviral therapy and others. In this manner, data take longer to enter the information system, and therefore, such information becomes increasingly distant from the actual magnitude of HIV infection. Other strategies for acknowledging trends of HIV infections are necessary in order to make its control more effective. Examples are reporting HIV infection in pregnant women and their children, and in people living with HIV (without AIDS); and implementing information from case reports, by introducing data on color or race, investigating forms of exposure to HIV infection, defining risks and vulnerability of population groups and by using the strategies of second generation epidemiological surveillance.

Embora o aborto provocado no Brasil seja importante problema de saúde, é difícil conhecer a exata medida de sua ocorrência, em função da ilegalidade dessa prática. Com a disponibilidade das informações sobre as hospitalizações pelo Ministério da Saúde, tornou-se possível conhecer, ainda que de forma incompleta, o quadro dos abortos atendidos na rede hospitalar do SUS. O objetivo do estudo foi conhecer as 53.861 internações com diagnóstico de aborto entre mulheres de 10 a 49 anos na rede hospitalar conveniada com o SUS no Estado de São Paulo no ano de 1995, segundo o tipo do aborto, idade e local de residência. As internações de mulheres em idade reprodutiva no Estado de São Paulo, em 1995, representaram 37,8% do total das hospitalizações pagas pelo SUS, sendo que dessas 59,6% foram por questões ligadas à gravidez, parto e puerpério, dentre as quais os abortos representam cerca de 10%. Sua distribuição nas regiões da Grande São Paulo e Interior do Estado mostra que é maior a proporção aborto/parto entre as mulheres da Grande São Paulo do que do Interior (127,4 abortos a cada 1.000 partos na Grande São Paulo contra 90,9 no Interior). O tipo de aborto mais freqüente foi o aborto espontâneo (57,4%) e a distribuição por idade mostra uma concentração entre os 20 e 29 anos, além de revelar que cerca de 20% deles ocorreram em adolescentes com menos de 19 anos.Despite the importance of the issue of abortion in Brazil, it is difficult to know the exact extent of the problem owing to the fact that it is an illegal practice. Information about hospitalizations from the Ministry of Health has helped an admittedly incomplete understanding of the situation with regard to abortions carried out in the SUS (Unified Health System) hospital network. The objective of the study was to investigate the 53,861 hospitalizations diagnosed as abortion among women from 10 to 49 years of age in hospitals affiliated to SUS in the state of São Paulo in 1995, by type of abortion, age, and place of residence. In 1995, hospitalizations of women of child-bearing age in the state of São Paulo accounted for 37.8% of all hospitalizations paid for by SUS. Of these, 59.6% were caused by problems related to pregnancy, birth and puerperium. In turn, abortions accounted for approximately 10% of these. The distribution in Greater São Paulo and in the interior of São Paulo state shows that the abortion/delivery ratio is higher among women in Greater São Paulo than in the interior of the state (127.4 abortions per 1,000 deliveries in Greater São Paulo, as against 90.9 in the interior). The most common type of abortion was miscarriage (57.4%). Distribution by age shows the highest concentration to be between the ages of 20 and 29, as well as revealing that approximately 20% of all abortions occur among adolescents under 19 years of age.

Se diseñó y desarrolló un Sistema Computarizado para el Subsistema Bibliotecario de la Facultad de Ingeniería de la Universidad del Zulia, con el objeto de mejorar el funcionamiento de las bibliotecas que conforman dicho Subsistema. El Diseño se fundamentó en un análisis de las actividades que se efectúan en el mencionado Subsistema, considerando: -Estructura del Subsistema. -Material bibliográfico existente. - Actividades rutinarias. -Personal de Biblioteca. - Usuarios inscritos en las distintas bibliotecas. El Sistema utiliza un Microcomputador y un Manejador de Archivos (dBASE 11), con un volumen de 25000 libros y 3000 usuarios aproximadamente. Permite realizar: Reportes del Material Bibliográfico (por Autor, Título, Dewey, Escuela, Total de Volúmenes por Título), realización de inventario, Control de Préstamos Externos incluyendo renovación y devolución de los libros), listado de morosos, actualización de los archivos del Sistema y la elaboración del carnet de los usuarios inscritos en las distintas bibliotecas. Adicionalmente, el Sistema se diseñó para facilitar su implementación en cualquier biblioteca con características similares a las del Subsistema Bibliotecario.