Impact of Early Passive Exercise With Cycle Ergometer on Ventilator Interaction.

BACKGROUND: Early exercise has been recommended in critically ill patients, but its impact on subject-ventilator interaction is still unclear. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the occurrence of subject-ventilator asynchrony during passive exercise in mechanically ventilated subjects. METHODS: This study included deeply sedated subjects who were under mechanical ventilation for < 72 h. Subjects were coupled to a cycle ergometer and maintained at rest for 5 min (baseline period). After this period, they started 20 min of passive exercise, followed by 10 min of rest (recovery period). The occurrence of asynchrony was monitored by the analysis of flow and airway pressure waveforms, registered throughout the protocol during the baseline, exercise, and recovery periods. Hemodynamic and respiratory parameters were registered at the end of each period. Finally, arterial blood gas analysis was performed twice, at the end of the baseline period and at the end of the recovery period. RESULTS: 8 subjects were enrolled (63.3 ± 16.7 y old, 50% male). The asynchrony index increased during exercise (median 32.1% [interquartile range (IQR) 18.6-47.6%]), compared to baseline (median 6.6% [IQR 3.9-10.4%]), returning to initial levels during the recovery period (median 2.7% [IQR 0-12.2%]). The most frequent types of asynchrony were ineffective triggering (index of 11.8% [IQR 1.2-22.5%] during exercise, compared to 2.0% [IQR 1.4-4.4%] at baseline), and insufficient flow (index of 11.7% [IQR 4.7-19.3%] during exercise, compared to 2.0% [IQR 1.1 to 3.3%] at baseline). There were no significant changes in the hemodynamic and respiratory variables. CONCLUSIONS: Early cycle ergometer passive exercise in deeply sedated subjects can worsen subject-ventilator interaction, due to ineffective triggering and insufficient flow. Adjustments in the ventilatory parameters may be necessary to avoid asynchrony during exercise.

Analysis of synovial fluid of the Capybara's stifle joints.

BACKGROUND: Although normal synovial fluid has been well characterized in domestic animals such as dogs, cats, horses, and cows, the available information on larger rodents is scarce. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the study was to analyze the physical, chemical, and cytologic characteristics of the synovial fluid in stifle joints of Capybaras. METHODS: Five free-ranging adult female Capybaras (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris), weighing from 37 to 56 kg were used. Synovial fluid was obtained by aspiration of 10 stifle joints. Samples were analyzed for physical, chemical, and cytologic properties. RESULTS: Spontaneous clotting was negative in 9 samples. Most synovial fluids had pH 8, and protein concentrations ranged from 1.6 to 3.6 g/dL. The mucin clot test was good in all 6 samples that were tested. Nucleated cell counts ranged from 140 to 508 cells/µL. Relative differential leukocyte counts demonstrated a predominance of mononuclear cells (97.6%), including 76.2% undifferentiated mononuclear cells, 18.1% macrophages, and 3.66% lymphocytes. Polymorphonuclear cells included 1.83% neutrophils and 0.2% eosinophils. CONCLUSION: The synovial stifle joint fluid of healthy free-ranging adult Capybaras is clear, colorless, viscous, and with chemical features and cytologic findings similar to those seen in domestic animals.

Comparando fatores de impacto bibliométricos computados a partir de três bases de dados: Web of Science, Scopus e SciELO. / Comparing impact factors from three databases: Web of Science, Scopus and SciELO.

O objetivo do presente trabalho foi analisar a comparabilidade de Fatores de Impacto (FIs) de revistas científicas a partir de três bancos de dados: o ISI Thompson (Web of Science), o Scopus e a Scielo, ano-base 2006. Para tal, a faixa de variação dos FIs em cada banco foi caracterizada, as diferenças das médias dos FIs entre os bancos foram analisadas por um teste t de Student pareado (?=0,05) e o coeficiente de correlação intraclasse (ICC) foi calculado para os bancos. Um total de 34 revistas da área de saúde foi analisado (12 da Scielo). Os FIs Scielo variaram na faixa de 0,02 a 0,60, enquanto que os FIs calculados a partir do banco Scopus situaram-se na faixa de 0,04 a 6,8, com uma variabilidade superior a obtida pelo ISI (0,12-6,60). As diferenças entre as médias foram estatisticamente significantes em todos os casos analisados, e o ICC teve valores máximo e mínimo, respectivamente, de 0,97 (ISI versus Scopus) e 0,45 (para os três bancos). Não foi possível identificar a origem das discrepâncias, uma vez que o cálculo dos FIs não é explícito. No entanto, diferenças (arbitrárias) nas bases de dados analisadas, assim como nos critérios de cômputo, introduzem alterações de complexa interpretação, tornando difícil o uso válido desses indicadores de forma rígida (por exemplo, utilizando-se pontos de corte específicos).

The objective of this study was to analyze the comparability of the Impact Factors (IFs) of scientific journals calculated from three databases: Thompson ISI, Scopus and SciELO, using the base-year 2006. With this aim, the IF variation range in each database was characterized, the IF mean differences across databases were analyzed by means of a Student matched t-test (?=0.05) and the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) was estimated for the analyzed databases. A total of 34 journals were analyzed (12 SciELO). The SciELO IFs were in the range 0.02 to 0.60, while the IFs calculated from the Scopus database varied between 0.04 and 6.8, with a larger variability than that of those obtained by the ISI database (0.12 to 6.60). Mean differences were statistically significant in all the analyzed cases, and the ICC maximum and minimum values were respectively 0.97 (ISI versus Scopus) and 0.45 (for the three databases). It is not possible, however, to identify the origin of these discrepancies, since IF calculation procedures are not clearly specified. However, it is clear that (arbitrary) differences in the databases and on their calculation criteria make changes difficult to interpret, making problematic the rigid use of these indicators (e.g. by means of specific cut-off points).