Abordagem da morte na graduação médica: percepções de estudantes à luz de contribuições freudianas / Approach to death in medical graduation: students' perceptions in light of Freudian contributions

Resumo Introdução: Na sociedade ocidental contemporânea, as tentativas de evitar a morte e o sofrimento impulsionam a formação de médicos voltados para lidar majoritariamente com aspectos biológicos do adoecimento e da morte, em detrimento dos aspectos psicossociais relacionados a essas questões. Objetivo: Buscou-se identificar a percepção de estudantes de Medicina sobre a abordagem da morte e do morrer na graduação à luz de estudos atuais sobre a formação médica no país e algumas contribuições da teoria freudiana sobre a morte. Método: Trata-se de pesquisa qualitativa de caráter exploratório, desenvolvida a partir de seis grupos focais compostos por 55 estudantes de todos os períodos do curso de Medicina de uma universidade federal do interior de Minas Gerais. O material produzido foi analisado a partir do referencial de análise de conteúdo temática ou categorial, e emergiram categorias: 1. a morte na formação médica; 2. o médico diante da morte. Resultado: Discutir a morte e o morrer no processo formativo é falar da angústia diante da finitude. Os estudantes identificaram a abordagem da morte e do morrer na graduação, mas de forma limitada e insuficiente. Apontaram a necessidade de ampliar o contato com os temas no currículo, melhorar as metodologias utilizadas e inserir de forma obrigatória os conteúdos de cuidados paliativos. O papel do médico comporta tanto o cuidado com foco na cura quanto a assistência nas situações em que a cura não for possível. A preparação para lidar com a morte ao longo da graduação envolve concepções e experiências pessoais, experiências na graduação, acesso aos conteúdos teóricos, especificidades e aspectos subjetivos relacionados a cada situação. Os recursos mencionados para lidar com a morte, além dos estudos, foram a religiosidade e psicoterapias. Conclusão: Abordar a morte nos currículos de graduação em Medicina envolve grande complexidade e desafios. Do ponto de vista da realidade psíquica, os seres humanos tentam negar a morte e evitar os sofrimentos. Dessa forma, os desafios da formação e da prática médica consistem em assumir a articulação indissociável entre aspectos biológicos, culturais e psicossociais. Cuidar da vida é também cuidar da morte, e evitá-la pode desencadear maior sofrimento aos pacientes, familiares, estudantes e médicos.

Abstract: Introduction: In western contemporary society, attempts to prevent death and suffering promote a medical training focused on dealing mostly with the biological aspects of illness and death, to the detriment of the psychosocial aspects related to those issues. Objective: The authors intended to identify medical students' perceptions about the approach to death and dying in the light of Freudian theory about death. Method: This was a qualitative study with an exploratory approach, developed based on six focal groups consisting of 55 students from all the undergraduate medical school semesters from a federal university in the interior of the state Minas Gerais. The data produced was analyzed according to the thematic or category-based content analysis, from which the following categories emerged: 1- The death topic in undergraduate medical school; 2- The medical professional facing death. Results: To discuss death and dying in the formative process is to talk about the anguish in the face of human finitude. The students identified the approach to death and dying in undergraduate school, but in a limited and insufficient way. They indicated the need to increase contact with the topic in the curriculum, and to include, in a mandatory way, the contents on Palliative Care. The medical role encompasses both the care focused on healing and the assistance in moments when healing is not possible. The preparation to deal with death throughout undergraduate training involves personal conceptions and experiences, undergraduate practice, access to theoretical contents, specificities and subjective aspects related to each situation. The mentioned resources to deal with death, in addition to the studies, were religiosity and psychotherapy. Conclusion: To approach death in undergraduate medical curricula involves great complexity and challenges. From the viewpoint of psychological reality, human beings try to deny death and avoid suffering. Thus, the challenges in medical formation and practices consist in assuming the indissociable articulation between the biological, cultural and psychosocial aspects. To take care of life is also to take care of death and avoiding it may cause greater suffering to the patients, family members, students and medical professionals.

Animal venoms as a source of antiviral peptides active against arboviruses: a systematic review.

Arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses), such as Zika virus (ZIKV), chikungunya virus (CHIKV), dengue virus (DENV), yellow fever virus (YFV), and West Nile virus (WNV), are pathogens of global importance. Therefore, there has been an increasing need for new drugs for the treatment of these viral infections. In this context, antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) obtained from animal venoms stand out as promising compounds because they exhibit strong antiviral activity against emerging arboviral pathogens. Thus, we systematically searched and critically analyzed in vitro and in vivo studies that evaluated the anti-arbovirus effect of peptide derivatives from toxins produced by vertebrates and invertebrates. Thirteen studies that evaluated the antiviral action of 10 peptides against arboviruses were included in this review. The peptides were derived from the venom of scorpions, spiders, wasps, snakes, sea snails, and frogs and were tested against DENV, ZIKV, YFV, WNV, and CHIKV. Despite the high structural variety of the peptides included in this study, their antiviral activity appears to be associated with the presence of positive charges, an excess of basic amino acids (mainly lysine), and a high isoelectric point (above 8). These peptides use different antiviral mechanisms, the most common of which is the inhibition of viral replication, release, entry, or fusion. Moreover, peptides with virucidal and cytoprotective (pre-treatment) effects were also identified. In conclusion, animal-venom-derived peptides stand out as a promising alternative in the search and development of prototype antivirals against arboviruses.

Morte e morrer na formação médica brasileira: revisão integrativa / Death and dying in Brazilian medical training: an integrative review / La murte y el morir em la formación médica brasileña: uma revisión integradora

Resumo A fim de descrever como a morte e o morrer são abordados na graduação médica no Brasil e suas repercussões para estudantes, realizou-se revisão integrativa de publicações ocorridas entre 2008 e 2019, resultando na seleção de 36 artigos. Identificaram-se dificuldades na abordagem do tema relacionadas ao modelo biomédico de formação, à organização dos currículos e à formação dos professores. Estas afetam os estudantes, trazendo sofrimento psíquico e prejudicando o processo de formação. Poucos currículos abordam aspectos psicossociais relacionados à morte e ao morrer, sendo frequentemente abordados com carga horária insuficiente, métodos inadequados ou como atividades extracurriculares. Propostas de solução apontam a necessidade de investimentos em cuidados paliativos na graduação. Conclui-se que essas temáticas precisam ser mais bem contempladas nas Diretrizes Curriculares Nacionais de cursos de medicina, de modo a garantir uma formação mais humanitária, pautada em princípios éticos, e que prepare estudantes e profissionais para lidar com situações de terminalidade.

Abstract To describe how death and dying are approached in the medical undergraduate programs in Brazil and their repercussions for students, an integrative review of publications from 2008 to 2019 was carried out, resulting in a selection of 36 articles. The difficulties in approaching the theme related to the biomedical model of training, the organization of the curriculum, and the training of teacher were identified. Those affect students, causing psychic suffering and hindering the training process. Few curriculums approach psychosocial aspects related to death and dying, which are often approached for insufficient credit hours, inadequate methods, or as extracurricular activities. Solution proposals point to the necessity of investments in palliative care in the undergraduate programs. In conclusion, these themes need to be more thoroughly included in the National Curricular Directives of medicine programs, to foster a more humanitarian training, based on ethical principles, and which prepares students and professionals to deal with end-of-life situations

Resumen Este texto describe cómo la graduación en Medicina en Brasil aborda la muerte y el morir y sus repercusiones al alumnado; para ello, se realizó una revisión integradora de 36 artículos publicados entre 2008 y 2019. Se identificaron las dificultades en el enfoque del tema relacionadas con el modelo biomédico de formación, la organización curricular y la formación docente. Esas dificultades generan sufrimiento psíquico a los estudiantes y perjudican su formación. Pocos currículos abordan los aspectos psicosociales en este tema y, muchas veces, lo hacen con inadecuados métodos, desde una insuficiente carga horaria o desde actividades extracurriculares. Para solucionarlo, es necesario plantear los cuidados paliativos en la graduación. Esta temática debe abordarse mejor en las Directrices Curriculares Nacionales de la carrera de medicina para garantizar una formación más humanitaria, basada en principios éticos y que prepara a los estudiantes y profesionales para enfrentar situaciones de final de la vida.

Epilepsy in children with Congenital Zika Syndrome: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the overall frequency of epilepsy in children with congenital Zika syndrome (CZS) and describe the profile of seizures and the response rate to anti-epileptic treatment in this group of patients. METHODS: A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted following the Cochrane Handbook and preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Cochrane Library, SciELO, and LILACS were searched until June 23, 2020. Observational studies that evaluated the frequency of epilepsy in children diagnosed with CZS according to international criteria were included in the study. RESULTS: Fourteen studies evaluating 903 patients diagnosed with CZS were pooled in a meta-analysis. All studies were conducted in Brazil, with reports published between 2016 and 2020, and included children diagnosed with CSZ from 0 to 40 months of age. The overall rate of epilepsy in children diagnosed with CZS was estimated at 60% (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.51-0.68). The studies included in this review show that the frequency of epilepsy in patients with CSZ varies with age, with higher rates in older children. Epileptic spasms was the primary type of seizure observed in this group, followed by focal and generalized crisis. The response rate to anti-epileptic drugs was considerably low, ranging from 20% of seizure control in the first year and 30% in the second year. SIGNIFICANCE: Children with CZS presented a high cumulative incidence of epilepsy episodes with increased severity and a low response to anti-epileptic therapy, which is associated with the extensive damage caused by the Zika virus on the cortical structures of patients.