RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Although it is well known that allergic diseases involve a strong Th2 immune response, with production of high levels of specific IgE allergen, knowledge on the association between filarial infection and allergies, among paediatric patients is scarce. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the allergic response patterns in cases of filarial infection by comparing peripheral eosinophils, total IgE levels, immediate hypersensitivity and cytokine levels in children and adolescents in Brazil. METHODS: This was an exploratory study with three groups: (I) with filarial infection and without allergic diseases; (II) without filarial infection and with allergic diseases; and (III) without filarial infection and without allergic diseases. The prick test and specific IgE tests for aeroallergens were performed using five antigens. Peripheral eosinophils and total IgE were also evaluated. IL-4 and IL-5 were determined using whole-blood culture stimulated by three antigens. RESULTS: Eosinophilia and elevated levels of total IgE (≥400IU/dl) were observed in all groups. The prick test was positive in 56.6% of the cases. Group I presented hypersensitive responses similar to the allergic disease groups. In the whole-blood culture stimulated by Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, average IL-4 production did not differ significantly among the groups, but IL5 production resulting from stimulation was greater in the allergic disease groups (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The allergic response pattern in group with filarial infection was similar to that of the groups with and without allergic diseases, but the response to IL-5 in the culture stimulated by D. pteronyssinus was an exclusive characteristic of the allergic group.
Assuntos
Brugia Malayi/imunologia , Filariose Linfática/imunologia , Eosinófilos/imunologia , Hipersensibilidade Imediata/imunologia , Células Th2/imunologia , Wuchereria bancrofti/imunologia , Adolescente , Animais , Antígenos de Dermatophagoides/imunologia , Brasil/epidemiologia , Células Cultivadas , Criança , Pré-Escolar , Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus/imunologia , Filariose Linfática/epidemiologia , Doenças Endêmicas , Feminino , Humanos , Hipersensibilidade Imediata/epidemiologia , Imunoglobulina E/sangue , Interleucina-4/metabolismo , Interleucina-5/metabolismo , Masculino , Doenças NegligenciadasRESUMO
AIM: To identify and synthesize the national and international literature on forensic nursing in Brazil. BACKGROUND: Forensic nursing is a new specialty to the nursing practice in Brazil, being recognized by the Federal Nursing Council of Brazil in 2011. In 2016, the first forensic nursing specialization programme was authorized in the country. INTRODUCTION: The implementation of forensic nursing specialty in Brazil marks new possibilities for the nursing practice, making it possible for nurses to develop additional skills to intervene in various situations under the Brazilian Unified Healthcare System. METHODS: A systematic search of the literature was conducted using the keyword 'Forensic nursing' in combination with 'Brazil'. LILACS, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus and Web of Science databases were searched. Studies were also retrieved from the grey literature. Once literature had been identified, a thematic analysis was undertaken in order to extract themes, which were: establishment of the forensic nursing specialty and its contributions to Brazil and its practical implications. RESULTS: Eight manuscripts and 20 studies from the grey literature were included in the final review. Most studies (54%) were literature reviews that indicated forensic nursing as an emerging specialty in Brazil, addressing educational, instructional, communicative or contextual aspects of the specialty in the country. DISCUSSION: In the nursing profession in Brazil, few studies exist on forensic nursing and those are limited to short communications. Although most studies address the definition of forensic nursing, others present its implications in various situations such as intimate partner violence, domestic violence, sexual abuse and elder mistreatment. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING AND HEALTH POLICY: Despite the study limitations, it provides evidence that forensic nursing has been silently implemented in the country with the need for more evidence-based studies to support its constitution as a specialty in Brazil.
Assuntos
Enfermagem Forense , Pesquisa em Enfermagem , Brasil , HumanosRESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To describe the spatial distribution of lymphatic filariasis and its relationship with the socioenvironmental risk indicator, thus identifying priority localities for interventions in endemic urban areas. METHODS: The study area was the municipality of Jaboatão dos Guararapes, State of Pernambuco, Brazil. The data sources were a parasitological survey and the 2000 demographic census. From these data, a socioenvironmental composite risk indicator was constructed using the 484 census tracts (CT) as the analysis units, based on the score-formation technique. Census tracts with higher indicator values presented higher risk of occurrences of filariasis. RESULTS: Six thousand five hundred and seven households were surveyed and 23 673 individuals were examined, among whom 323 cases of microfilaremia were identified. The mean prevalence rate for the municipality was 1.4%. The indicator showed that 73% (237/323) of the cases of microfilaremia were in high-risk areas (third and fourth quartiles) with worse socioenvironmental conditions (RR = 4.86, CI = 3.09-7.73, P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The socioenvironmental composite risk indicator demonstrated sensitivity, since it was able to identify the localities with greater occurrence of infection. Because it can stratify spaces by using official and available data, it constitutes an important tool for use in the worldwide program for eliminating lymphatic filariasis.
Assuntos
Filariose Linfática/epidemiologia , Adolescente , Adulto , Idoso , Idoso de 80 Anos ou mais , Animais , Brasil/epidemiologia , Criança , Pré-Escolar , Filariose Linfática/prevenção & controle , Filariose Linfática/transmissão , Feminino , Humanos , Lactente , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Prevalência , Medição de Risco , Sensibilidade e Especificidade , Fatores Socioeconômicos , Saúde da População Urbana , Adulto JovemRESUMO
In an ecological study based on the 18 microregions that form the city of Recife, the capital of the Brazilian state of Pernambuco, associations between socio-demographic, environmental and reservoir factors and the incidence of leptospirosis in the city were investigated. Incidence over a 5-year period (2001-2005) and 14 variables were analysed, using central trend and dispersion measurements, Pearson's correlation and multiple linear regression. Variables relating to education, income, housing type, sewage system, rubbish collection and hydrographic factors were found to be significantly correlated with leptospirosis incidence (P<0.05 for each). Just two variables - the proportion of heads of households with incomes less than or equal to the legal minimum (U.S.$83.55/month), and the proportion of households from which rubbish was dumped in skips, lakes, rivers or the sea or on vacant land - explained 60% (P=0.017) of the differences in disease risk observed between the various areas of the city.
Assuntos
Leptospirose/epidemiologia , Saúde da População Urbana/estatística & dados numéricos , Brasil/epidemiologia , Reservatórios de Doenças , Humanos , Incidência , Leptospirose/transmissão , Eliminação de Resíduos/estatística & dados numéricos , Fatores de Risco , Fatores SocioeconômicosRESUMO
In 2002, the status of lymphatic filariasis (LF) in the district of Jaboatão, in north-eastern Brazil, was reviewed, 41 years after the first case of the disease was recorded in the area. Current data from Jaboatão were compared with older information from the district that had been published, as official reports on filariasis cases and mosquitoes and as the result of population surveys, between 1948 and 1997. Although the first microfilaria-positive cases were detected in the district in 1959, it was not until 1993 that the national Ministry of Health categorized Jaboatão as an endemic area. In 2002, fingerprick samples of blood, each of about 50 microl, were collected at night (23.00-01.00 hours) from 4365 individuals in the district and used to make thick smears. Microfilariae were detected in the smears of blood from 33 (0.8%) of the subjects, 12 of whom were considered autochthonous cases of LF. The male subjects were significantly more likely to be microfilaraemic than the female (1.1% v. 0.4%; P<0.05) but there was no direct relationship between prevalence and age, the microfilaraemics varying in age from 6-64 years. The Socorro sub-district had the highest prevalence, of 2.9%. It is recommended that the National Programme to Eliminate Filariasis uses mass drug administrations and vector control throughout the district, regardless of the prevalences recorded in the latest survey.
Assuntos
Filariose Linfática/epidemiologia , Wuchereria bancrofti , Adolescente , Adulto , Animais , Brasil/epidemiologia , Criança , Doenças Endêmicas , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Microfilárias/isolamento & purificação , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Prevalência , Distribuição por SexoRESUMO
In order to assess the present status of lymphatic filariasis in Alagoas State, Brazil, hemoscopic surveys were carried out in the human population of the three different physiographic regions of the State. Blood samples were collected by thick smear technique taken after 10:00 p.m. From a total of 101 cities of the State, 10 were randomly selected, Bancroftian filariasis was only found in Maceió, the capital of Alagoas State. In a cross-sectional survey conducted among the general population of 4 neighborhoods in the city, 10,973 individuals were examined, 226 were microfilaraemic with prevalence in the city neighborhoods ranging from 0 to 5.4%. Prevalence rates and microfilariae density were significantly higher in males. Among the examined inhabitants born out of Maceió, microfilariae carriers had lived a significantly longer time in endemic areas than the amicrofilaraemic subjects. Based on the data obtained in the present study, measures to avoid expansion of bancroftian filariasis in the region were established.
Assuntos
Filariose/epidemiologia , Wuchereria bancrofti , Adolescente , Adulto , Animais , Brasil , Criança , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Saúde da População UrbanaRESUMO
During the 1950s, three foci of Wuchereria bancrofti transmission were identified in the State of Santa Catarina, Brazil. In Florianópolis, São José da Ponta Grossa and Barra da Laguna community treatment of bancroftian filariasis with diethylcarbamazine (DEC) was performed using two distinct approaches, without vector control or improvements in sanitation. In two of the three communities only microfilaraemic individuals were treated, while in Barra da Laguna the entire population received DEC treatment regardless of their infection status. In both cases, transmission of the parasite was blocked and no new cases were detected in all localities for up to 10 years. Recently, a new survey in São José da Ponta Grossa and Barra communities revealed no microfilaria-positive individuals, including residents that were positive in the 1950s. These data confirm that transmission of W. bancrofti was interrupted in Santa Catarina, and mass treatment appears to be more effective than treatment of microfilaraemic individuals only.
Assuntos
Dietilcarbamazina/uso terapêutico , Filariose Linfática/prevenção & controle , Filaricidas/uso terapêutico , Programas de Rastreamento , Serviços Preventivos de Saúde , Wuchereria bancrofti , Animais , Brasil/epidemiologia , Filariose Linfática/epidemiologia , Humanos , Programas de Rastreamento/métodos , Serviços Preventivos de Saúde/métodosRESUMO
Between 1989 and 1995, blood surveys were performed for Wuchereria bancrofti infection in several barracks of the Brazilian army in the metropolitan Recife region. For initial screening, 60 microliters of capillary blood were examined for microfilaria. All men who tested positive had microfilaria quantified by filtration of venous blood through a polycarbonate membrane. Of 23,773 men screened, 585 (2.5%) had microfilaria (mf). Microfilarial density ranged from < 1-8706 mf/ml of blood. Thirteen individuals had ultra-low microfilarial densities (1 mf/11 ml of blood). Characterization of 174 autochthonous cases made it possible to map 8 new districts in 4 cities within metropolitan Recife region where transmission of W. bancrofti was previously unknown. Routine screening of soldiers in the military may provide important surveillance data for national programmes to eliminate transmission of W. bancrofti.
Assuntos
Filariose/epidemiologia , Programas de Rastreamento , Militares , Wuchereria bancrofti , Adolescente , Distribuição por Idade , Animais , Brasil/epidemiologia , Filariose/diagnóstico , Filariose/parasitologia , Humanos , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Prevalência , Vigilância de Evento Sentinela , Wuchereria bancrofti/isolamento & purificaçãoRESUMO
Little is known about lymphatic filariasis or the anatomical location of adult Wuchereria bancrofti in children. Seventy-eight children from Greater Recife, 23 microfilaria-positive and 55 microfilaria-negative in approximately 60 microL blood, underwent ultrasound examinations of the major superficial lymphatic vessels of the limbs, scrotal area (boys), and breast area (girls). The characteristic movements of adult worms, known as the filaria dance sign (FDS), were detected in 11 (14.1%) children. In 9 boys, the FDS was detected in lymphatic vessels of the scrotal area (8, ages 14-16) and the inguinal cord (1, age 11). In girls, the FDS was detected in a crural lymphatic vessel and an axillary lymph node. FDS detection was more common in boys (P = 0.06), older children (P = 0.001), and children with microfilaraemia (P = 0.05). Diffuse lymphangiectasia was visualized in 4 boys (ages 14-16) and 2 children had clinical signs of filariasis. These ultrasonographic findings associate W. bancrofti with both infection and disease in children.
Assuntos
Filariose Linfática/diagnóstico por imagem , Wuchereria bancrofti/isolamento & purificação , Adolescente , Animais , Criança , Pré-Escolar , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Microfilárias/isolamento & purificação , Fatores de Tempo , UltrassonografiaRESUMO
The natural history of lymphatic disease in human filariasis remains unclear, but recurrent episodes of acute lymphangitis are believed to constitute a major risk factor for the development of chronic lymphoedema and elephantiasis. Prospective analysis of 600 patients referred to the filariasis clinic of the Centro de Pesquisas Aggeu Magalhães/FIOCRUZ in Recife, Brazil, indicated that 2 distinct acute syndromes accompanied by lymphangitis occur in residents of this filariasis-endemic area. One syndrome, which we call acute filarial lymphangitis (AFL), is caused by the death of adult worms. It is relatively uncommon in untreated persons, usually is asymptomatic or has a mild clinical course, and rarely causes residual lymphoedema. The second syndrome, of acute dermatolymphangioadenitis (ADLA), is not caused by filarial worms per se, but probably results from secondary bacterial infections. ADLA is a common cause of chronic lymphoedema and elephantiasis in Recife as well as in other areas of Brazil where lymphatic filariasis is not present. The syndromes of AFL and ADLA can be readily distinguished from each other by simple clinical criteria.