Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in Brazil: 1998 national survey

OBJECTIVES: To assess the epidemiologic characteristics of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in Brazil in 1998. METHOD: Structured Clinical Report Forms (CRFs) sent to 2,505 Brazilian neurologists from January to September 1998 to be filled with demographic and clinical data regarding any ALS patient seen at any time during that year. RESULTS: Five hundred and forty CRFs were returned by 168 neurologists. Data on 443 patients meeting the criteria of probable or definite ALS according to El Escorial definition were analysed: 63 probable (14.2 percent) and 380 definite (85.8 percent). Two hundred and fifty-nine (58.5 percent) of the patients were male, mean age of onset was 52. Spinal onset occurred in 306 patients (69 percent); bulbar onset in 82 (18.5 percent), and both in 52 (11.7 percent). Twenty-six (5.9 percent) had a family history of ALS. Two hundred and fifty-nine (58.6 percent) were seen by private practitioners, and 178 (40.2 percent) at a hospital clinic. Age-ajusted incidence shows a peak incidence at the 65-74 years old range. CONCLUSIONS: The disease's characteristics are similar to those described in international studies, except for age of onset (Brazilian patients are younger). This difference is not confirmed when figures are age-adjusted

Avaliaçäo da profilaxia medicamentosa para tromboembolismo venoso (Tev) e índice de suspeita de Tev em pacientes submetidos à cirurgia de prótese total de quadril, eletiva e näo eletiva, em 16 Hospitais Brasileiros / Survey on drug prophylaxis for venous thromboembolism (VTE) and VTE suspicion rates in patients undergoing elective and non-elective total hip replacement (THR) in 16 Brazilian hospitals

O tromboembolismo venoso (TEV, trombose venosa profunda e embolia pulmonar) é uma séria complicaçäo dos procedimentos cirúrgicos de grande porte, especialmente nas cirurgias de quadril e joelho.Com o objetivo de avaliar o uso da profilaxia medicamentosa para TVP, bem como o índice de suspeita e o manuseio desta complicaçäo nos pacientes submetidos à prótese total de quadril, realizou-se estudo retrospectivo baseado nos prontuáarios de pacientes de 16 hospitais brasileiros, 7 públicos e 9 privados, durante os anos de 1997 e 1998.Os centros de ortopedia convidados a participar preencheram um formulário especificando sexo, idade, data da cirurgia, principal indicaçäo para prótese de quadril, doenças concomitantes e o uso de prodilaxia medicamentosa, incluindo o tipo de droga e a posologia.Outros dados coletados foram volume de transfusäo sanguínea, suspeita de TVP até 15 dias após a alta e o manuseio da TVP após a suspeita.Resultados:dados de 386 pacientes de 16 hospitais foram coletados; 310 (80 por cento) receberam algum tipo de profilaxia medicamentosa, 20 por cento nenhuma.Dos que receberam profilaxia, heparina näo fracionada (HNF) foi a droga mais comumente usada, em 55 (14 por cento) dos pacientes.Seu uso combinado ou associado à aspirina foi encontrado em 7 (2 por cento) dos pacientes.Nos 248 pacientes em que HFN foi prescrita, 17 (7por cento) receberam 5000 UI 3x/dia, e 93 por cento receberam 2x/dia...

Comparative study of the efficacy and tolerability of Secnidazole suspension (single dose) and Tinidazole suspension (two days dosage) in the treatment of amebiasis in children

Amebiasis caused by Entamoeba histolytica may be considered the most aggressive parasitic disease affecting human intestine, causing acute amoebic colitis and extra-intestinal diseases of high morbidity and mortality. 5-nitroimidazoles are the drugs of choice. In this multicenter, open and randon clinical trial, the efficacy and tolerability of secnidazole suspension in a single oral dose of 1ml/kg was compared with 0.5ml/kg doses of tinidazole suspension given for 2 consecutive days to 303 Entamoeba histolytica-positive children aged 2 to 13. Patients with extra-intestinal complications were excluded from the study. Clinical and parasitological follow-up using the Faus and Kato-Katz method were carried out 7, 14, and 21 days after treatment. Clinical improvement/cure was observed in 93 percent of the patients in the secnidazole group and 91 percent in the tinidaloze group. Parasitological sucess was reported for 77 percent and 63 percent of the secnidazole and tinidazole patients, respectively, showing a significant statistical difference between the two groups (p=0.007). Both drugs were well tolerated, and the adverse effects reported were mild, consisting mainly of digestive disturbances. This comparative study showed that a single oral dose of 1ml/kg of secnidazole produced a significantly higher parasitological cure rate than 2 doses of tinidazole. Secnidazole is a safe and effective drug for the treatment of uncomplicated intestinal amebiasis.