Prevalence of Overweight and Associated Factors in a Male Prison Population in the Extreme South of Brazil: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: This cross-sectional study serves as a first Brazilian inventory about overweight as a marker for metabolic health and risk factor to develop noncommunicable chronic diseases in prison populations. The prevalence of overweight, and its associated factors in prisoners of the Fifth Regional State Penitentiary of Rio Grande do Sul (5th DPR) in the extreme South of Brazil were investigated using a precoded questionnaire with sociodemographic, behavioral, and health questions, applied to proportional stratified random sampled prisoners. Methods: Five hundred eighty male prisoners (70%) in the closed regime agreed to answer the questionnaire and allowed anthropomorphic body measurement, carried out by trained scientists. We used bivariate Pearson's chi-squared test and adjusted multinomial logistic regression for analyses. Results: Considering that the studied incarcerated population is young (mean age 33 years) it is concerning that already 43.6% of them are overweight, report regular sweets and sugary soft drink consumption (77.7%, and 81.4%, respectively), 60.2% are smokers, and 19.4% are at elevated risk to develop cardiovascular diseases. Further, 13.8% of the respondents reported a diagnosis of hypertension, 4.9% hypercholesterolemia, and 2.7% diabetes mellitus type 2. Among those who reported not smoking, excess weight was almost four times higher (prevalence ratio: 3.79; 95% confidence interval: 2.61-5.50). Conclusions: Our study suggests that the prison environment promotes modifiable risk factors for chronic diseases. These data deserve attention and intervention, aiming to prevent and reduce the current levels of excess weight.

Cut down on the prevalence of cesarean sections in Brazil: a time-series from 2000 to 2017

Cesarean section was developed to reduce maternal-fetal morbidity and mortality, however when performed without scientific evidence it is associated with complications. This study analyses the temporal trend and factors associated with cesarean section in Brazil, its regions and Federation Units between 2000 and 2017. Ecological study. The prevalence of cesarean sections and maternal variables were identified from the Information System on Live Births. The Prais-Winsten method was used for time series analysis. In the whole period there were 53.497.303 births in Brazil, 48.4% by cesarean section. Between 2000 and 2009, the mean cesarean section in Brazil increased from 39.7% (SD 9.8) to 53% (SD 9.4) between 2010 and 2017 with an annual variation of 1.7 p.p (95%CI 1.6; 1.8). There is stability between 2010 and 2017, with a slight decline from 2015 in the Southeast region with an annual variation of -0.9 (95%CI -1.5; 0.0). It is observed that the caesarean section has remained stable in most macro-regions and even decreasing in the southeast and in the group of women with higher education, not adolescents and better prenatal coverage. It is believed that Brazil has reached the plateau in the prevalence of cesarean section (60%) in most states and in the next years there is a decrease in these prevalences.

Streptococcus agalactiae colonization and screening approach in high-risk pregnant women in southern Brazil.

INTRODUCTION: Considering that Group B Streptococcus (GBS) persists as an important cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality, the objective of this study was to evaluate the frequency of maternal colonization by GBS, comparing the culture by the Granada broth with the GeneXpert real-time PCR diagnostic methods and the impact of chemoprophylaxis in high-risk pregnant women. METHODOLOGY: A prospective cohort of 110 pregnant women hospitalized for gestational complications was formed and recruited following interview and collection of rectovaginal swabs. RESULTS: The frequency of maternal colonization was 28.2% and statistically associated with Capurro> 37 weeks (p = 0.030) and neonatal infection (p = 0.008). Chemoprophylaxis was offered to 80% of those colonized. Among the pregnant women treated, a fivefold reduction in the rate of prematurity and rate of neonatal infection was observed. The sensitivity was 76.6% and 86.6% in culture and PCR, respectively, with an optimal index of agreement between the methods (K = 0.877). Grenade culture was considered an easy and low-cost method, while GeneXpert presented higher cost and error rate of 10%. However, 23.3% of the pregnant women were diagnosed exclusively by GeneXpert and the results were obtained in two hours. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed a significant prevalence of maternal colonization for GBS and that both culture and molecular methods had peculiarities that allow different applicability, with the culture being feasible for antenatal screening and in the hospital for high-risk pregnant women with no sign of imminent delivery and GeneXpert being prioritized for situations of preterm birth.