Renal Doppler Ultrasound - a Late Diagnosis of Aortic Coarctation.

Aortic coarctation is characterized by a segmental narrowing of the aortic lumen, usually diagnosed and treated in the neonatal period or early childhood, but can remain undiagnosed until adulthood. It manifests as a broad spectrum of signs and symptoms, ranging from mild to severe, of which arterial hypertension is one of the most common. In this article, the authors describe the clinical case of a 9-year-old child under investigation in the Pediatric Department for secondary causes of arterial hypertension. A renal Doppler ultrasound study revealed the presence of bilateral parvus et tardus waveform morphology in renal and intrarenal arteries and the proximal abdominal aorta. These findings were suspicious for diagnosing aortic coarctation, which thoracic CTangio confirmed.

The impact of COVID-19 on air passenger demand and CO2 emissions in Brazil.

This paper estimates the impact of the COVID-19 on air travel demand and emissions in Brazil, the largest aviation market in Latin America. Combining detailed flight data and data on combustion emission factors, we estimate the CO2 emissions of domestic flights. A Bayesian structural time-series model was used to estimate the impact of COVID-19 on daily trends of air travel demand and emissions. The COVID-19 caused a reduction of 68% in national passengers and 63% in total CO2 emissions compared to what would have occurred if the pandemic had not happened. Despite such a sharp drop, fuel efficiency decreased after the COVID-19 outbreak, and passenger demand recovered to 64.2% of pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2020. The fast recovery in domestic flights by December 2020 indicates that the emissions could soon return to pre-pandemic levels, demonstrating the challenges of reducing emissions in the aviation sector in the short term.

Fatores de risco para mortalidade em idosos admitidos em unidade de terapia intensiva de hospital público / Risk factors for mortality in geriatric patients admitted to the intensive care unit at a public hospital

OBJETIVO: Avaliar fatores de risco para mortalidade em pacientes idosos com internação em uma unidade de terapia intensiva (UTI). MÉTODOS: Foram estudados pacientes idosos admitidos em UTI, em um estudo de coorte histórica. Foi realizada amostragem de conveniência de todos os pacientes com 60 anos ou mais, internados nos 20 leitos de uma UTI de um hospital de alta complexidade. Foi realizada análise de regressão de Cox para estimar os fatores de risco associados à mortalidade. O nível de significância utilizado foi de 5%. RESULTADOS: A proporção de pacientes idosos representou 45% das admissões em UTI no período. A mortalidade hospitalar foi de 38,4%. A variável pós-operatório de cirurgia de urgência e os escores Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE II) e Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) da admissão foram identificados como fatores de risco independentes para mortalidade hospitalar. CONCLUSÃO: Os fatores de risco associados à mortalidade foram os escores APACHE II e SOFA da admissão e pós-operatório de cirurgia de urgência.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate risk factors for mortality in geriatric patients admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU). METHODS: We studied older patients admitted to the ICU in a historical cohort study. Convenience sampling was performed for all patients aged 60 years or older, admitted to the 20 beds of an ICU of a highly complex hospital. Cox regression analysis was performed to estimate risk factors associated with mortality. The significance level used was 5%. RESULTS: The proportion of geriatric patients represented 45% of ICU admissions in the period. In-hospital mortality was 38.4%. The postoperative emergency surgery variable and the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE II) and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) admission scores were identified as independent risk factors for in-hospital mortality. CONCLUSION: Risk factors associated with mortality were APACHE II and SOFA scores for admission and postoperative emergency surgery.

Baixa adesão terapêutica em hipertensão arterial sistêmica: prevalência e fatores associados na atenção básica à saúde / Low adhesion to medication therapy in systemic arterial hipertension: prevalence and associated factors in primary healthcare

INTRODUÇÃO: O abandono do tratamento pode ocorrer sem que os profissionais da Atenção Básica identifiquem os motivos para tais condutas concorrendo para o agravamento dos casos. OBJETIVO: Estimar a associação entre fatores sociodemográficos, culturais e de estilo de vida com a adesão terapêutica de hipertensos. MÉTODOS: Realizou-se um estudo transversal com usuários hipertensos que usavam medicação para controle dos níveis pressóricos e buscavam atendimento em unidades de atenção básica em um distrito sanitário da cidade do Salvador, Bahia. Foram incluídos os que tinham idade maior que 18 anos e excluídos os que tinham alteração cognitiva e também mulheres com hipertensão gestacional. A magnitude da associação entre as variáveis estudadas e a adesão terapêutica foi estimada pelo cálculo da razão de chances (Odds Ratio,OR), adotando-se o intervalo de confiança a 95% (IC95%). RESULTADOS: A amostra foi composta com 185 hipertensos e a prevalência de não adesão ao tratamento foi de 68,1%. Os fatores associados com a não adesão terapêutica foram situação conjugal solteiro, separado, viúvo (OR= 2,23; IC95% 1,04 ­4,47), não alteração dos hábitos alimentares (OR= 2,51; IC95%1,12 ­ 5,59), assim como faltar às consultas (OR=4,20; IC95%1,16 ­ 15,18) e entender bem tudo que é dito em uma consulta (OR=0,60; IC95% 0,38 ­ 0,95). CONCLUSÕES: Grande parte dos hipertensos não apresentou adesão terapêutica, e os fatores associados são passíveis de modificação por meio de tecnologias leves e investimentos na qualidade da atenção primária à saúde. Devem ser encorajados novos estudos com desenhos longitudinais que possam identificar as causas da não adesão.

INTRODUCTION: Abandonment of the treatment can occur without the professionals of the Primary Healthcare identifying the reasons for such behavior which can contribute towards the worsening of the condition. OBJECTIVE: To estimate the association between sociodemographic, cultural and lifestyle factors with adhesion to medication therapy by hypertensive patients. METHODS: A cross-sectional study with hypertensive patients using medication for controlling blood pressure levels and being treated at primary healthcare units of a Health District of Salvador, Bahia. The patients included were of ages over 18 years and excluded those with cognitive impairment and also women with gestational hypertension. The dimension of the association between the studied variables and adhesion to medication was estimated using the Odds Ratio (OR) adopting the Confidence Interval of 95% (CI95%). RESULTS: The sample was composed of 185 hypertensive patients and the prevalence of non-adhesion to medication therapy were: marital status single, separated or widow(er) (OR= 2.23; CI95% 1.04 ­ 4.47), nonalteration to eating habits (OR= 2.51; CI95% 1.12 ­ 5.59), as well as missing appointments with the doctor (OR=4.20; CI95% 1.16 ­ 15.18) and clearly understanding what is said during the appointment (OR=0.60; CI95% 0.38 ­ 0.95). CONCLUSIONS: A large part of the hypertensive patients did not present adhesion to medication therapy, and the associated factors are changeable through light technologies and investments in the quality of primary healthcare. New studies should be promoted with longitudinal designs to identify the causes for the nonadhesion.