Factors Related to the Presence of Lowback Pain during Remotework in the Covid-19 Pandemic in Brazil

Objectives: With the new needs that the market and the population presented, there was a need to adopt strategies to make the new work environment as safe and comfortable as possible, preserving the health of workers regardless of the work environment. Given this context, it is extremely important that the workers have knowledge about ergonomics and how environmental factors can affect their work capacity and comfort, factors such as ambient light, noise, air flow, temperature, long period in a static position and inappropriate furniture. The aim of the study was to identify the etiology of low back pain during remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method(s): Two questionnaires were applied, one of them developed by the researchers and the other a disability questionnaire (Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire-RMDQ) in the form of Google Forms for adults (n = 54) of both sexes, aged over 18 years who were working remotely during the period of the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil in the year 2021. Result(s): With the application of the questionnaires, it was possible to notice an increase in the emergence and worsening of lowback pain in individuals who performed remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic;this increase related to factors such as: inadequate furniture at home, excessive number of hours in the sitting position using the computer, decrease in regular physical activities and weight gain. Conclusion(s): From the beginning of remote work, during the COVID-19 pandemic, most individuals studied either developed lowback pain or had increased low back pain, resulting in mild disability. These data are preliminary in Brazil;in the future, we seek to expand to a larger number of participants, as well as to create strategies and health-promoting actions for low back pain prevention.

Student satisfaction with library resources in the COVID-19 era: A case study of Portuguese academic libraries

Higher education libraries are designed to provide access to information for students, teachers, and researchers, ensuring that they are satisfied. The objective of the study is to raise the perception of the students about the response of libraries during the COVID-19 pandemic to their information needs and to assess whether they consider themselves prepared to research, evaluate, and manage the retrieved information, now that they work autonomously and depend exclusively on digital content. Methods: Online questionnaire applied to three higher education libraries in Portugal-a public education institution, a polytechnic, and a private higher education institution. The questionnaire was submitted by institutional email and focused on the degree of satisfaction with the libraries and electronic resources made available and self-perceived evaluation of their information skills. The first results point that students are satisfied with access to electronic resources remotely;the highest levels of dissatisfaction are associated with B-ON;most are unaware of the availability of databases (Scopus, WoS, and RCAAP), favorable perception of their behaviour in information, in researching, citing, and referencing, but findings show the inverse in the qualitative analysis of data;master’s degrees reveal greater security of knowledge compared to undergraduate students. Conclusions: Is necessary to increase the coverage, dissemination, and training of electronic resources in the academic libraries as a formative and pedagogical strategy and to formally implement it in educational policies. © 2021 David Baker and Lucy Ellis Published by Elsevier Ltd.

SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and its impact in a Portuguese Transfusion Medicine Department

Background. The first case of SARS-CoV-2 diagnosed in Portugal was on March 2nd 2020. Due to its high rate of transmission and globalization as a vehicle, the safety and supply of the blood banks worldwide has been a concern. In order to limit the impact of the pandemic on the number and quality of blood donations, our transfusion department changed the work routine and created new protocols. The present study aims to overview the implementation of these protocols and access its success rate on limiting the impact of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in our blood centre. Methods. Changes in standard operational procedures were performed from March 16th 2020 to March 15th 2021. The use of mask and hand sanitizer became obligatory and waiting and donations rooms were rearranged to allow security distance between donors. Blood donations started to be made by appointment. The initial questionnaire to the donors was adapted and temperature measure before donation was performed. Donors that were in close contact with someone infected with SARS-CoV-2 or travelled from countries with active transmission in the community were initially suspended during 28 days. Later blood donations from donors that travelled from risk areas were kept on quarantine (initially for 28 days and then for 14 days). We evaluated the impact of these changes comparing the numbers of blood donations and transfusions between the pandemic period and the previous year. Results. During the first wave (from March 16th 2020 to May 3rd 2020) there was a reduction of 0.4% on blood donations, with no significant impact in our blood reserves because there was a decrease of 28% in overall transfusions, especially in emergency department (40%). However, public appeals to blood donation were performed. Since May 2020 until March 2021, there was an average increase of 4.2% in donations. During the pandemic period in study, 545 red blood cells units (RBC) out of 9554 collections were kept on quarantine. This process implied the waste of plasma and platelets from those donations. Seven RBC and 1 plasma unit were rejected because of confirmed COVID-19 after donation. Two RBC and 1 buffy-coat platelets from two donors with COVID-19 diagnosed after donation were transfused, with no reported SARS-CoV-2 infection in the receptors. The department was always able to maintain its blood supply (9402 RBC and 1033 platelets concentrates transfused in the studied period), but blood use also decreased in a range between 4-9% from May 2020 to March 2021, comparing with the same period in the previous year. Conclusion. In the last year many standard operating procedures had to be adapted due to SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. We observed a reduced use of blood components that was associated to the cancellation of elective procedures, decrease in emergency department' patients and use of restrictive transfusion criteria according to actual patient blood management guidelines. Measures to ensure the safety of blood donors and donations were implemented, with a positive balance throughout the pandemic, being able to maintain sufficiency in blood supply and patients safety.

When Sickle Cell Disease is out of control: what failed?

Background. Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) manifestations are mainly related to hemolytic crises (HC) and vasoocclusive (VO) phenomena with ischemia and tissue damage. Blood transfusion (simple or exchange) has a fundamental role in treating anemia and VO events and in preventing chronic complications. Case report. A 36 years old african woman with SCD entered the emergency department with severe HC (Hemoglobin 3.4 g/dL), acute chest syndrome, limb acute VO pain and urinary infection. She was managed with fluids, antibiotics and transfused with 4 erytrocyte units. She had previous medical history of irregular transfusion support and non complicance to hidroxyurea therapy, despite many VO episodes. On Day 7, due to a prothrombotic state (Figure 1) anticoagulation was started. Because of persistent fever and a COVID-19 outbreak in hematology ward, SARS-CoV-2 infection was diagnosed. She was treated with non-invase ventilation, dexametasone and simple transfusion. On Day 21 she developed a Posterior Reversible Encephalopaty Syndrome, being transferred to Intensive Care Unit and managed with labetalol perfusion and phenytoin. On Day 55 and 104 she needed surgical treatment for osteomyelitis (Figure 1). On Day 88 she was diagnosed with acute pericarditis after new onset of fever. She was discharged on Day 138. Along the hospitalization, she received 23 simple blood transfusion in the context of HC and 5 as part of preoperative management. She presented previous anti-Kell alloimmunization and developed anti-E and anti-Chido/ Rogers. All but 1 unit selected were ABO/Rh/Kell, Fya and S compatible. She had 2 HbS quantifications (Figure 1). Conclusion. Therapy non compliance is associated with serious SCD complications with major impact in patients' prognosis. Delay in diagnosis and institution of proper treatment did occur and could be explained by overlapping symptoms and complex medical issues presented. We argue that, at some points, exchange transfusion could have been the right choice of care preventing some SCD complications. Long term management is also a complex issue: starting a prophylactic regular transfusion program would be challenging considering patient's alloimmunization status and history of bad compliance. Motor and functional rehabilitation plan is ongoing.

Portuguese National Health Service on Instagram: University students' perception of @sns_pt content in the COVID-19 pandemic

This article addresses the perceptions of university students about the Portuguese National Health Service (NHS) on Instagram (IG), which is the main profile of the country's government on the platform. Young people are the largest audience of this social media (SM), which has been considered as a tool to promote public health. Therefore, this study aims at identifying how young adults perceive the content available in @sns_pt regarding health and well-being topics. The qualitative methodology was used, and a survey was carried out with undergraduate students from the University of Aveiro. It was applied digitally in June 2020, 90 days after the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the new coronavirus pandemic. The survey presents 15 questions, divided into three axes: consumption of SM, use of IG, and posts evaluation. A total of 39 valid questionnaires were obtained. The sample is made up of students between the ages of 19 and 45 years old, being 61.5% female and 38.4% male. The results obtained show that @sns_pt is known by 43.5% of the respondents and 12.8% follow the account. Also, 10.2% reported having accessed the profile for the first time after the pandemic started. The posts focused on images attracted the attention of students, as well as the contents regarding the users' routines. © 2021 AISTI.

Accessibility and microcopy remote testing of mobile applications: The case of the CeNTER platform

When designing a digital solution aimed at community initiatives, it is necessary to have a great concern with all potential users, ensuring it can be easily used by anyone, regardless of any sensory or motor limitations. This article reports the developmental stage of a mobile application, which aims to promote collaboration and cooperation between different agents involved in the territorial innovation process. Accessibility and microcopy evaluations of the application prototype were carried out to improve its accessibility and ensure its use by users in several circumstances, contexts, and conditions. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic current restrictions, the tests were performed remotely, allowing the development team to deepen knowledge about the different methods and tools for implementing remote tests. This paper presents the results of this methodology of evaluation, which contributed to assess the CeNTER mobile application's adequacy and make improvements aimed at ensuring its accessibility and universality. © 2021 AISTI.

Coronavirus diseases (COVID-19) current status and future perspectives: a narrative review

At the end of 2019 a novel virus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), causing severe acute respiratory syndrome expanded globally from Wuhan, China. In March 2020 the World Health Organization declared the SARS-Cov-2 virus a global pandemic. We performed a narrative review to describe existing literature with regard to Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, management and future perspective. MEDLINE, EMBASE and Scopus databases were searched for relevant articles. Although only when the pandemic ends it will be possible to assess the full health, social and economic impact of this global disaster, this review represents a picture of the current state of the art. In particular, we focus on public health impact, pathophysiology and clinical manifestations, diagnosis, case management, emergency response and preparedness.