Adriane Mesquita de Medeiros

Does regular practice of physical activity reduce the risk of dysphonia

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between regular physical activity and the prevalence of dysphonia. METHOD A cross-sectional study was conducted with 3142 teachers from 129 municipal public schools in the city of Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The dependent variable, dysphonia, was classified (absent or present) according to reported symptoms (fatigue when speaking and loss of voice quality), their frequency (occasionally and daily), and duration (past 15 days). The independent variable was regular physical activity. The degree of association was estimated based on the prevalence ratio and a 95% confidence interval obtained by the Poisson regression adapted for cross-sectional studies. RESULTS In the study sample, the prevalence of dysphonia in teachers was 15.63%. Nearly half (47.52%) of the teachers reported no regular practice of physical exercises. The remaining teachers (52.48%) walked and did physical exercises, sports, and other activities; 31.25% undertook these activities once or twice a week, and 21.23% exercised three or more times a week. Teachers who did not practice physical activity were more likely to present dysphonia compared to those that exercised three or more times a week. CONCLUSION Regular physical activity was associated positively with the prevalence of dysphonia.

Violence against metropolitan bus drivers and fare collectors in Brazil

OBJECTIVE To analyze the correlation between sociodemographic factors and working conditions of bus workers in a metropolitan area and violence against them. METHODS This cross-sectional study used a nonprobabilistic sample estimated according to the number of workers employed in bus companies located in three cities in the Belo Horizonte metropolitan region in 2012 (N = 17,470). Face-to-face interviews were conducted using a digital questionnaire. The factors associated with violence were analyzed in two stages using Poisson regression, according to each level. The magnitude of the association was evaluated using prevalence ratios with robust variance and a statistical significance of 5%, and 95% confidence intervals were obtained. RESULTS The study sample comprised 782 drivers and 691 fare collectors; 45.0% participants reported at least one act of violence in the workplace in the last 12 months, with passengers being predominantly responsible. The age of the bus workers was inversely associated with violence. Chronic diseases, sickness absenteeism, and working conditions were also associated with violence. CONCLUSIONS The findings on the correlation between violence and working conditions are essential for implementing prevention strategies by transportation service managers.

Absenteísmo-doença segundo autorrelato de servidores públicos municipais em Belo Horizonte

The purpose of this study was to analyze the profile of municipal public servants who reported illnessrelated absenteeism in the preceding 12 months. The study involved a sample of 5,646 (14%) of all 38,304 municipal workers in the city of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, in 2009. A questionnaire was placed on the Internet, where entry depended on the respondents’ consent. Poisson regression analysis was used to determine the associated factors. Absenteeism due to illness was highly correlated with women (PR 1.12) and decreased with age: 30-39 years (PR 0.79), 40-49 years (PR 0.72) and 50 years of over (PR 0.68). Sickness-related absenteeism was closely associated with work involving monitoring and surveillance groups (PR 1.46), general services (PR 1.22), information, education and culture (PR 1.50), and health (PR 1.50). Comorbidities included WRMD (PR 1.19), lower-back pain (PR 1.16), depression / anxiety (PR 1.20) and perception of mental fatigue (PR 1.12). The reported use of medication for depression / anxiety proved to be a protective factor (PR 0.82). Factors such as Greater likelihood of mental disorder (PR 1.23) according to SRQ20, Dissatisfaction with one’s ability to work (PR 1.08), Reasonable conditions (PR 1.21) and Poor working conditions (PR 1.19), were associated with the outcomes. Health promotion programs would be useful to decrease illness-related absenteeism because interventions for preventing musculoskeletal comorbidity and psychosocial complaints would attenuate situations that are probably the source of absenteeism due to illness.

Aspectos temporais auditivos de crianças com mau desempenho escolar e fatores associados

Purpose To investigate the auditory temporal aspects in children with poor school performance aged 7-12 years and their association with behavioral aspects, health perception, school and health profiles, and sociodemographic factors. Methods This is an observational, analytical, transversal study including 89 children with poor school performance aged 7-12 years enrolled in the municipal public schools of a municipality in Minas Gerais state, participants of Specialized Educational Assistance. The first stage of the study was conducted with the subjects’ parents aiming to collect information on sociodemographic aspects, health profile, and educational records. In addition, the parents responded to the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). The second stage was conducted with the children in order to investigate their health self-perception and analyze the auditory assessment, which consisted of meatoscopy, Transient Otoacoustic Emissions, and tests that evaluated the aspects of simple auditory temporal ordering and auditory temporal resolution. Tests assessing the temporal aspects of auditory temporal processing were considered as response variables, and the explanatory variables were grouped for univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. The level of significance was set at 5%. Results Significant statistical correlation was found between the auditory temporal aspects and the variables age, gender, presence of repetition, and health self-perception. Conclusion Children with poor school performance presented changes in the auditory temporal aspects. The temporal abilities assessed suggest association with different factors such as maturational process, health self-perception, and school records.

Perda auditiva em trabalhadores do transporte urbano na Região Metropolitana de Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brasil

This study analyzed the association between self-reported diagnosis of hearing loss and individual and occupational factors among urban transportation workers in Greater Metropolitan Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. The sample size was calculated by quotas and stratified by occupation (drivers and fare collectors) in the urban transportation companies in Belo Horizonte, Betim, and Contagem. Data were collected with face-to-face interviews and recorded by the interviewers on netbooks. The dependent variable was defined as an affirmative response to the question on prevailing medical diagnosis of hearing loss. The independent variables were organized in three blocks: social and demographic characteristics, lifestyle, and work aspects. Diagnosis of hearing loss was reported by 213 of the 1,527 workers and was associated with age and diagnosis of tinnitus. At the occupational level, hearing loss was associated with history of sick leave, time-on-the-job, and two environmental risks, unbearable noise and whole-body vibration. Measures to prevent hearing loss are needed for urban transportation workers.Objetivou-se verificar a associacao entre o diagnostico de perda auditiva autorrelatado por trabalhadores do transporte urbano da Regiao Metropolitana de Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brasil, e fatores individuais e ocupacionais. O tamanho da amostra foi calculado por quotas e estratificado por ocupacao (motoristas e cobradores) nas empresas de Belo Horizonte, Betim e Contagem. A coleta de dados foi realizada face a face com o auxilio de netbooks pelos entrevistadores. A variavel resposta foi definida pela resposta positiva a pergunta sobre a vigencia de diagnostico medico de perda auditiva. As variaveis independentes foram organizadas em 3 blocos: caracteristicas sociodemograficas, estilo de vida e aspectos do trabalho. O diagnostico de perda auditiva foi mencionado por 213 dos 1.527 trabalhadores e esteve associado a idade e ao diagnostico de zumbido. Na esfera ocupacional, destacaram-se o absenteismo-doenca, antiguidade no cargo e dois riscos ambientais: ruido insuportavel e vibracao de corpo inteiro. Medidas de prevencao da perda auditiva para os trabalhadores do transporte urbano sao necessarias.

Absenteeism and sickness as per self-reports by municipal public employees in Belo Horizonte, Brazil

The purpose of this study was to analyze the profile of municipal public servants who reported illnessrelated absenteeism in the preceding 12 months. The study involved a sample of 5,646 (14%) of all 38,304 municipal workers in the city of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, in 2009. A questionnaire was placed on the Internet, where entry depended on the respondents’ consent. Poisson regression analysis was used to determine the associated factors. Absenteeism due to illness was highly correlated with women (PR 1.12) and decreased with age: 30-39 years (PR 0.79), 40-49 years (PR 0.72) and 50 years of over (PR 0.68). Sickness-related absenteeism was closely associated with work involving monitoring and surveillance groups (PR 1.46), general services (PR 1.22), information, education and culture (PR 1.50), and health (PR 1.50). Comorbidities included WRMD (PR 1.19), lower-back pain (PR 1.16), depression / anxiety (PR 1.20) and perception of mental fatigue (PR 1.12). The reported use of medication for depression / anxiety proved to be a protective factor (PR 0.82). Factors such as Greater likelihood of mental disorder (PR 1.23) according to SRQ20, Dissatisfaction with one’s ability to work (PR 1.08), Reasonable conditions (PR 1.21) and Poor working conditions (PR 1.19), were associated with the outcomes. Health promotion programs would be useful to decrease illness-related absenteeism because interventions for preventing musculoskeletal comorbidity and psychosocial complaints would attenuate situations that are probably the source of absenteeism due to illness.

QUALIDADE DE VIDA E AUTOPERCEPÇÃO DE SAÚDE DE CRIANÇAS COM MAU DESEMPENHO ESCOLAR

ABSTRACT Objective: To examine the association between quality of life and health self-perception of children with poor school performance, considering sociodemographic factors. Methods: An analytical, observational, cross-sectional study was conducted with 99 children aged 7 to 12 years receiving specialized educational assistance. Parents and legal guardians answered questions concerning the sociodemographic profile. For an assessment of the quality of life and proposed domains (autonomy, functioning, leisure, and family), the children completed the Autoquestionnarie Qualité de Vie Enfant Imagé (AUQEI) and answered a question concerning their self-perceived health. Data were analyzed using multiple linear regression, considering a 5% significance level. Results: Among the evaluated children, 69 (69.7%) male participants with mean age of 8.7±1.5, 27% self-assessed their health status as poor/very poor, and 36.4% of the children reported having impaired quality of life. As for the domains assessed by AUQEI, there was statistical significance in the associations between family with age, autonomy with economic classification, and leisure and functioning with self-perceived health. Conclusions: The quality of life of children with academic underachievement is associated with their health self-perception and sociodemographic characteristics.

Fear of Public Speaking: Perception of College Students and Correlates.

OBJECTIVES The aims of the study were to determine the prevalence of fear of public speaking among college students and to assess its association with sociodemographic variables and those related to the voice and oral communication. METHODS A cross-sectional descriptive and analytic study was conducted with 1135 undergraduates aged 17-58 years. The assessment instruments were (1) a questionnaire addressing the variables sex, age, field of undergraduate study, voice, and frequency of exposure to public speaking, and (2) the Self-statements During Public Speaking Scale (SSPS), which includes variables implicated in specific domains of public speaking. A descriptive analysis was performed of the variables as well as uni- and multivariate logistic regressions to examine their association with fear of public speaking. The level of significance was set at 5%. RESULTS In all, 63.9% of the college students reported fear of public speaking. As many as 89.3% of the students would like their undergraduate program to include classes to improve public speaking. Being female, having infrequent participation as speakers in groups, and perceiving their voice as high-pitched or too soft increase the odds of exhibiting fear of public speaking compared with students without those features. CONCLUSION A great number of undergraduates report fear of public speaking. This fear is more prevalent among women, students who participate in few activities involving speaking to groups of people, and those who have a self-perception of their voice as high-pitched or too soft.

Autopercepção das condições de trabalho por professores de ensino fundamental

Objetivo: investigar a percepcao dos aspectos ambientais e psicossociais do trabalho de professores de escolas publicas de ensino fundamental e relacionar aos sintomas de desconforto vocal. Metodos: estudo transversal com amostra probabilistica de professores de escolas municipais. Participaram do estudo 90 individuos (18 homens e 72 mulheres) distribuidos nas faixas etarias de 24 a 65 anos. O instrumento de investigacao foi um questionario com 40 questoes composto por 5 blocos de perguntas. Foram realizadas: analise descritiva e analise de regressao linear uni e multivariada para verificar as associacoes entre o numero de sintomas vocais e as condicoes de trabalho dos professores. Resultados: aproximadamente um terco dos professores (34,4%) relataram a presenca dos 8 sintomas vocais (media=5,6/DP=2,4). Com relacao as caracteristicas do ambiente de trabalho, a maior parte dos docentes refere ruido elevado ou insuportavel como competicao sonora ao uso da voz, sendo (43,3%) da sala de aula, e (41,1%) da escola. Quanto aos aspectos psicossociais do trabalho 54,4% dos professores relatou baixa demanda psicologica e 55,6% baixo suporte social. No modelo multivariado final, a variavel que apresentou associacao com numero de sintomas foi o ruido dentro da sala de aula. Conclusao: professores de ensino fundamental apresentam elevado numero de sintomas de desconforto vocal. O desconforto vocal se associa significativamente com a presenca do ruido em sala de aula. A relacao entre os aspectos psicossociais do trabalho e os problemas de voz, apesar de nao ter se diferenciado quanto ao numero de sintomas vocais neste estudo, precisa ser investigada.

Impacto da voz na comunicação social e emoção de professoras antes e após fonoterapia

Objetivo: comparar o impacto da voz na qualidade de vida de professoras no momento inicial e apos alta fonoterapica e identificar os fatores associados. Metodos: estudo observacional prospectivo, por meio de informacoes coletadas em dois momentos: dados secundarios dos prontuarios e questionarios online, apos alta fonoaudiologica. Participaram da pesquisa 54 professoras, encaminhadas pelo servico ocupacional municipal com o diagnostico de disfonia, para o Ambulatorio de Fonoaudiologia de um Hospital de ensino. A fonoterapia ocorreu entre janeiro de 2012 e dezembro de 2013. As informacoes de interesse foram: respostas ao Protocolo do Perfil de Participacao e Atividades Vocais, numero de sintomas vocais, questoes relativas as condicoes de trabalho e habitos de vida. Realizou-se analise descritiva e inferencial por meio de um programa estatistico. Resultados: houve reducao no relato de sintomas ao comparar os momentos pre e pos-fonoterapia. Quanto as medianas dos parâmetros do protocolo supracitado nos dois momentos, observou-se que os grupos se diferenciaram em comunicacao social e em emocao. Para estes parâmetros houve diferenca estatistica entre os grupos em relacao a ausencia de ruido gerado em sala de aula. As demais variaveis independentes nao se diferenciaram entre os grupos. Conclusao: a intervencao fonoaudiologica traz impacto positivo sobre a voz de professoras em relacao aos fatores comportamentais e ocupacionais. A melhora e evidenciada pela reducao do numero de sintomas vocais relatados apos alta fonoaudiologica. Apos fonoterapia, ha menor limitacao da disfonia nas atividades vocais relacionadas a comunicacao social e emocao, principalmente diante da ausencia de ruido em sala de aula.