Epidemiologia da violência contra adolescentes no Brasil: Análise de dados do sistema de vigilância de violência e acidentes*

Objetivo : Descrever as características da violência contra adolescentes notificados a partir do Sistema de Vigilância de Violência e Acidentes/VIVA, no Brasil. Material e métodos : Estudo descritivo, com dados do Sistema de Vigilância de Violência e Acidentes/VIVA, Brasil, no período de 2009 a 2016. As variáveis analisadas foram: idade, sexo, raça, local de ocorrência, vinculo do agressor com a vítima e suspeita de uso de álcool nos casos de violência física, psicológica/moral e sexual. Utilizou-se estatística descritiva e o teste de tendência de proporções no STATA. Resultados : A taxa de prevalência da violência física na faixa de 15-19 anos alcançou 104,4 por 100 000 casos, e a prevalência da violência sexual na faixa de 10-14 anos foi de 38,5 por 100 000 casos. A violência sexual alcançou nas meninas a prevalência de 52,0 por 100 000 casos, enquanto que, nos meninos, de 4,5 por 100 000 casos. Houve tendência crescente significativa de violência física na faixa de 15-19, e de violência sexual na faixa de 10-14 anos. Ambos tipos de violência atingiram as raças parda e indígena, acontecendo na residência da vítima, sendo o agressor o namorado. No caso de violência sexual, cresceu a suspeita de uso de álcool pelo agressor. A variação percentual na violência física e psicológica aumentou em mais de 400%. Conclusões: Houve aumento de todos os tipos de violência nestes oito anos. Foram mais frequentes as notificações de violência física e sexual, atingindo principalmente as meninas, na residência, sendo o amigo/conhecido ou namorado da vítima os principais agressores.

SUMMARY Objective: To describe the characteristics of violence against adolescents in Brazil reported from the Violence and Accident Surveillance System (VIVA). Methods: A descriptive study, based on data from the VIVA, Brazil, from 2009 to 2016. The variables analyzed were age, gender, race, place of occurrence, bond between the aggressor and the victim, and suspected of alcohol use in cases of physical, psychological/moral and sexual violence. Descriptive statistics and tends proportion test with STATA were used. Results : The prevalence rate of physical violence in the 15-19 years age bracket reached 104.4 per 100,000 cases, and the prevalence of sexual violence in the 10-14 years age bracket was 38.5 per 100,000 cases. Sexual violence reached 52.0 per 100,000 cases in girls, compared to 4.5 per 100,000 in boys. There was a significant upward trend in physical violence in the 15-19 years age bracket, and in sexual violence in the 10-14 years age bracket. Both types of violence affecting more frequently brown and indigenous races, and happening at the victim's home, with the perpetrator being the adolescent's boyfriend. In cases of sexual violence, the suspicion of alcohol use by the aggressor has grown. The percentage change in physical and psychological violence increased by more than 400%. Conclusions : Regardless of the type of violence, there was an increase in the eight years. Notifications of physical and sexual violence were more frequent, affecting mainly girls, in their residence, being a friend/acquaintance or boyfriend of the victim the main aggressors.

Correlations between subunits of GABAA and NMDA receptors after chronic alcohol treatment or withdrawal, and the effect of taurine in the hippocampus of rats.

Chronic use of alcohol and its withdrawal impairs the delicate balance between GABAergic and glutamatergic systems. This imbalance includes changes in GABA receptors - importantly in GABAA subtypes - and glutamate receptors, especially in NMDA subtypes. A better comprehension of the different roles of GABAAR and NMDAR subunits could be helpful to define new strategies to counteract the deleterious effects observed during alcohol withdrawal. Taurine, a sulfonated amino acid, has been proposed to attenuate alcohol withdrawal symptoms due to its neuromodulatory properties. In this study, we evaluated the correlations between GABAAR and NMDAR subunits in the hippocampus of rats chronically treated with alcohol or in alcohol withdrawal, and the effects of taurine treatment on these parameters. Male Wistar rats received alcohol (2 g/kg) or water by oral gavage (control), 2 × /day, for 28 days. From day 29 to day 33, withdrawal rats received water instead of alcohol and all groups were reallocated to receive 100 mg/kg taurine or saline intraperitoneally (i.p.), once a day. On day 34, rats were euthanized and the hippocampus was dissected for GABAAR α1, α4, δ, and γ2 and NMDAR GluN2A and GluN2B subunits mRNA expression determination by RT qPCR. There were no differences between groups in the studied GABAAR and NMDA subunits. However, we observed a correlation of α1 and γ2 subunits induced by taurine, while in the alcohol group there was a correlation between α4 and GluN2A. In the group treated with alcohol and taurine, we observed an extra correlation, between α1 and GluN2A. After 5 days of withdrawal, a correlation observed in the control group, between δ and GluN2A, was reestablished. The correlation found between subunits suggests a neuroadaptation of GABAergic and glutamatergic systems in withdrawal rats. Results from this study contribute to the elucidation of the mechanisms beyond neuroadaptations observed in alcohol use and withdrawal.

Symptoms Suggestive of Dysphagia and the Quality of Life in Cocaine and/or Crack Users.

Users of cocaine and/or crack may present symptoms of dysphagia due to changes in anatomical structures caused by the use of these substances. The objective of this study was to investigate the presence of symptoms suggestive of dysphagia in users of cocaine and/or crack seeking treatment, as well as to investigate the quality of life of these individuals related to their swallowing condition. A cross-sectional study from September 2015 to December 2016, with 121 users of cocaine and/or crack, was conducted. 59 of them called a telemarketing service and 61 sought treatment at the Centro de Atenção Psicossocial Álcool e Drogas in Porto Alegre (Psychosocial Alcohol and Drug Center). Users were screened and asked to fill the Eating Assessment Tool questionnaire. Users who presented themselves at the center were submitted to the Tool Volume-Viscosity Swallow Test. Users with symptoms of dysphagia responded to the Quality of Life in Swallowing questionnaire. Of all the interviewees, 22.3% (n = 27) reported symptoms suggestive of dysphagia and 2% of the individuals, submitted to swallowing test, presented cough in the liquid consistency. The scores showed a negative impact on quality of life, mainly related to fatigue, sleep, feeding duration, and fear of eating. Significant numbers of users of cocaine and/or crack referred to symptoms suggestive of dysphagia and significant impairments in quality of life, which require specific care in feeding this population in order to assist in their rehabilitation.

Combined use of alcohol and cigarette increases locomotion and glutamate levels in the cerebrospinal fluid without changes on GABAA or NMDA receptor subunit mRNA expression in the hippocampus of rats.

Interactions on neurotransmitter systems in the reward pathways may explain the high frequency of combined use of alcohol and cigarettes in humans. In this study, we evaluated some behavioral and neurochemical changes promoted by chronic exposure to alcohol and cigarette smoke in rats. Adult rats were administered with 2 g/kg alcohol (v.o.) or/and inhaled the smoke from 6 cigarettes, twice/day, for 30 days. Behavioral tests were performed 3 h after the alcohol administration and 1 h after the last exposure to cigarette smoke in the morning. Cerebrospinal fluid was collected for glutamate determination and the hippocampus was dissected for GABAA and NMDA receptor subunits mRNA expression determination. Results showed that the combined use of alcohol and cigarette smoke (ALTB) in rats increased the locomotor activity and all interventions decreased anxiety-like behaviors. Despite being on a short-term withdrawal, the cigarette smoke exposure decreased the percentage of open arm entries in the elevated plus maze test, which was prevented by combined use with alcohol. Even though GABAA and glutamate receptor subunits expression did not change in the hippocampus, glutamate levels were significantly higher in the cerebrospinal fluid from ALTB rats. Therefore, we showed that the combined use of alcohol and cigarette maintained a psychostimulant effect after a short-term withdrawal that was associated with the elevated glutamatergic activity. The combined use also prevented anxiety-like signs in cigarette smoke exposure rats, decreasing an adverse effect caused by nicotine withdrawal. These results could explain, in part, the elevated frequency of combined use of these two drugs of abuse in humans.

GABAergic Modulation in Diabetic Encephalopathy-Related Depression.

Central nervous system is not spared from the deleterious effects of diabetes, since several studies have described neuropsychological and neurobehavioral changes in diabetic subjects, suggesting that diabetic encephalopathy should be recognized as a complication of this complex metabolic disorder. In fact, psychiatric manifestations may accompany this encephalopathy, since the prevalence of depression in diabetic patients is much higher than in the general population. Furthermore, evidences from preclinical and clinical studies suggest that GABA plays a role both in the pathophysiology of the diabetic encephalopathy-related depression. So, this review addresses the GABAergic modulation in diabetic encephalopathy-related depression. Data presented from literature support the association between GABA and depressive- like behaviors in diabetic encephalopathy, being this neurotransmitter a potential target for the treatment of diabetes, depression and related comorbidities.

Chronic nasal instillation of residual-oil fly ash (ROFA) induces brain lipid peroxidation and behavioral changes in rats.

Several epidemiological studies have linked particulate matter exposure to numerous adverse health effects on the respiratory, cardiovascular, and reproductive systems (Braga et al., 1999; Zanobetti et al., 2000; Anderson et al., 2001; Farhat et al., 2005). More recently, ambient levels of black carbon were associated to impaired cognitive function in children (Suglia et al., 2008), suggesting that the central nervous system (CNS) may be a target of air pollutants. The present study was conducted to (a) determine whether chronic residual oil fly ash (ROFA) exposure promotes behavioral changes and lipid peroxidation in rat brain areas, and (b) determine whether N-acetylcysteine (NAC), a general antioxidant, prevents these effects. Forty-five-day-old male Wistar rats were exposed or not to ROFA by intranasal instillation and were treated or not with NAC (150 mg/kg) ip for 30 days. One day later, rats were submitted to the open field test to evaluate the motor/exploratory activities and emotionality followed by decapitation. Striatum and cerebellum were dissected to determine lipid peroxidation by the accumulation of thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS). ROFA instillation induced an increase in lipid peroxidation level in striatum (p = .033) and cerebellum (p = .030), as compared with the control group. NAC treatment blocked these changes. ROFA promoted a decrease in the frequency of peripheral walking (p = .006) and a decrease in exploration (p = .001), which were not blocked by N-acetylcysteine. The present study provides evidence that toxic particles, administered by the respiratory route, induce oxidative stress in structures of the central nervous system, as well as behavioral alterations. The administration of NAC reduces lipid peroxidation at the striatum and cerebellum levels, but does not influence behavioral disturbances.