Ibsen Bellini Coimbra

Falls in the elderly of the Family Health Program

This study aims to determine the factors that may be related to falls in the elderly assisted by the Family Health Program (FHP). Elderly individuals aged 60 years or over, who were assisted by the FHP primary care system (n=2209), responded to a sociodemographic and health questionnaire. Mental health was evaluated using the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) and quality of life was assessed by the Medical Outcome Study Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36). In order to verify which independent variables affected the occurrence of falls, logistic regression analysis was performed. 27.1% of the sample reported one fall during the previous year, and 8.7% were recurrent fallers over the same period. The factors considered in the final model for falls were: age over 80 years-old, female gender, the presence of more than eight associated diseases, need for hospitalization during the previous year and appointments outside the FHP routine, hearing complaints, GDS score over 11 points, and emotional problems SF-36 score between 25 and 74 points. The factors included in the final model for falls can be easily identified and properly overcome by FHP strategy. Patient falling history investigation should thus form part of the FHP team routine. This concern should be reinforced when it comes to women aged 80 years and over.

Sensory interaction on static balance : A comparison concerning the history of falls of community-dwelling elderly

Aim:  To determine whether elderly subjects with distinct histories of falls presented differences concerning the influence of sensory interaction on balance.

Periosteum as a source of mesenchymal stem cells: the effects of TGF-β3 on chondrogenesis

INTRODUCTION: Numerous experimental efforts have been undertaken to induce the healing of lesions within articular cartilage by re-establishing competent repair tissue. Adult mesenchymal stem cells have attracted attention as a source of cells for cartilage tissue engineering. The purpose of this study was to investigate chondrogenesis employing periosteal mesenchymal cells. METHODS: Periosteum was harvested from patients who underwent orthopedic surgeries. Mesenchymal stem cells were characterized through flow cytometry using specific antibodies. The stem cells were divided into four groups. Two groups were stimulated with transforming growth factor β3 (TGF-β3), of which one group was cultivated in a monolayer culture and the other was cultured in a micromass culture. The remaining two groups were cultivated in monolayer or micromass cultures in the absence of TGF-β3. Cell differentiation was verified through quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and using western blot analysis. RESULT: In the groups cultured without TGF-β3, only the cells maintained in the micromass culture expressed type II collagen. Both the monolayer and the micromass groups that were stimulated with TGF-β3 expressed type II collagen, which was observed in both quantitative RT-PCR and western blot analysis. The expression of type II collagen was significantly greater in the micromass system than in the monolayer system. CONCLUSION: The results of this study demonstrate that the interactions between the cells in the micromass culture system can regulate the proliferation and differentiation of periosteal mesenchymal cells during chondrogenesis and that this effect is enhanced by TGF-β3.

Effects of kinesiotherapy, ultrasound and electrotherapy in management of bilateral knee osteoarthritis: prospective clinical trial.

BackgroundAlthough recent advances in knee osteoarthritis (OA) treatment and evaluation were achieved, to the best of our knowledge, few studies have evaluated the longitudinal effect of therapeutic modalities on the functional exercise capacity of patients with knee OA. The purpose was to investigate the effects of kinesiotherapy and electrotherapy on functional exercise capacity, evaluated using the six-minute walk test (6-MWT) in patients with bilateral knee OA. Secondary measurements included range of motion (ROM), severity of knee pain (VAS), and a measure of perceived health and physical function, evaluated using the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities (WOMAC) Osteoarthritis Index.MethodsA total of 40 women with bilateral knee OA were assigned to three groups: kinesiotherapy (KIN, n = 16), transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS, n = 12), or ultrasound (US, n = 10). The groups underwent 12 weeks of intervention twice per week. The participants were subjected to the 6-MWT, ROM, VAS and WOMAC index. These tests were performed before and after the intervention. The study was focused on outpatients and was carried out at Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Brazil.ResultsAt follow-up, the KIN and US groups had significantly higher 6-MWT distances (19.8 ± 21.7 and 14.1 ± 22.5%, respectively) compared with their respective pre-intervention values. All treatments were effective for reducing pain and improving the WOMAC index.ConclusionsWe demonstrated that the 6-MWT is a tool that can be used to evaluate improvements in the functional exercise capacity of patients submitted to a clinical intervention.

Impact of rheumatic diseases and chronic joint symptoms on quality of life in the elderly

Musculoskeletal disorders are the major causes of the pain in the elderly population. Rheumatic conditions restrict participation in activities and mobility, as well as cause difficulties in the execution of self-care tasks. The assessment of health related quality of life (HRQOL) is an important indicator of the impact of rheumatic diseases on the physical, mental and social aspects. This study aims to analyze the influence of rheumatic diseases and chronic joint symptoms on the quality of life of the elderly (n=2209) aged 60 years or over. The effects of rheumatism and joint symptoms on quality of life were investigated by the Outcome Study Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36), and this analysis was adjusted for age and sex. The univariate analysis of variance and analysis of covariance (ANOVA and ANCOVAS) were used for statistical procedures, p≤0.05. Rheumatic diseases affected: functional capacity (F(1, 2012))=10.9 and pain (F(1, 2012))=34.77. Joint symptoms affected all components of the SF-36: physical functioning (F(1, 2012))=10.9; physical problems (F(1, 2012))=72.61; pain (F(1, 2012))=164.29; general health (F(1, 2012))=71.95; vitality (F(1, 2012))=55.78; social aspect (F(1, 2012))=73.14; emotional aspect (F(1, 2012))=49.09 and mental health (F(1, 2012))=44.72. There was a significant impact of rheumatic diseases on physical health, and that joint symptoms affected self-evaluations of physical and mental health. These results will contribute to a better understanding of this systemic disease and will be used for planning effective interventions.

Fatores associados ao histórico de quedas de idosos assistidos pelo programa de saúde da família

Este estudo tem como objetivo identificar os fatores sociodemograficos, clinico-funcionais e psicocognitivos associados ao historico de quedas de idosos saudaveis. A amostra foi constituida por 96 idosos divididos igualmente em tres grupos de acordo com o historico de quedas ocorrido no ultimo ano (sem queda, uma queda e quedas recorrentes). Nao houve diferenca entre os grupos quanto aos dados sociodemograficos. Os idosos do grupo sem quedas apresentaram menor queixa de dor (p = 0,012) e de tontura (p = 0,003), melhor mobilidade (p < 0,001), capacidade funcional (p < 0,001) e menor relato de quase quedas (p = 0,003) quando comparados aos idosos dos grupos com historico de quedas. Na avaliacao psicocognitiva os idosos com quedas recorrentes revelaram maior escore para humor deprimido (p = 0,009) e maior deficit cognitivo (p = 0,040) do que os sem quedas. As quedas interferem de forma negativa na vida do idoso, motivo da importância de identificacao dos fatores protetores e potencializadores deste evento. Com o reconhecimento desses fatores e possivel que os profissionais possam prevenir as quedas ou as consequencias debilitantes causadas por sua ocorrencia.

Exercício físico como tratamento na osteoartrite de quadril: uma revisão de ensaios clínicos aleatórios controlados

Functions of the hip are crucial for the functional independence of an individual, being the reason of great repercussion of Osteoarthritis (OA) on the alterations in this joint. Hip OA is a chronic degenerative disease and the available treatment aims to alleviate its symptoms. Exercises, one of the conservative treatment possibilities, have been indicated for the reduction of pain and function improvement. The purpose of this systematic review is to clarify the function and effectiveness of physical exercises in the conservative treatment of hip OA. The review of the literature was based on PUBMED, LILACS and MEDLINE database consultation, searching for article publications of randomized clinical trials for the last ten years (July/2005 - July/1995), using the combination of the following keywords: osteoarthritis, hip, exercise. The search resulted in eighteen articles; ten of each followed given criteria and underwent complete revision. After analysis of the ten selected studies, three categories were identified: a) specific exercises for OA of hip (n=3); b) exercises for OA of hip and knee (n=4) and c) exercises for pre and post-surgery of total hip (n=3). Three studies have encountered limitations with the practice of exercises. Although, the majority of the articles have demonstrated good results of exercises in the hip OA treatment, it is still not possible to determine their actual extension in the clinical picture of the illness and on its progression, mainly due to the scarcity of researches and to the lack of specificity of the proposed interventions.

Camurati-Engelmann disease: failure of response to bisphosphonates: report of two cases

Camurati-Engelmann disease is a rare bone disorder characterized by cortical thickening of the diaphysis of tubular bones, with sparing of the epiphysis. It has variable degrees of penetrance and expression, but may be very disabling for the affected individuals who manifest the painful symptoms. The authors report on two women with typical presentation of severe Camurati-Engelmann disease whose treatment with bisphosphonates failed to add any improvement beyond that elicited by corticosteroids alone.

Osteoartrite (artrose): tratamento

DESCRICAO DO METODO DE COLETA DE EVIDENCIAS: Foram utilizados os estudos disponiveis na literatura medica presentes nas seguintes bases de dados, acessiveis atraves da internet: OVID (EBM-Reviews, incluindo-se as bases de dados da Cochrane) e o Medline, de 1966 ate o presente, atraves do Pubmed. Foram selecionados trabalhos de meta-analise e estudos duplo-cegos randomizados, quando presentes. Relatos ou serie de casos foram utilizados quando publicados em jornaisde reconhecida idoneidade. As opinioes dos especialistas presentes foram utilizadas em relacao a terapias nao disponiveis na literatura e que fossem consideradas pela unanimidade dos presentes como importante para o manejo dos pacientes com osteoartrite. Envio previo da bibliografia principal aos participantes. Reuniao para elaboracao do documento. Colocacao do rascunho na internet por dez dias para mudancas. Elaboracao final do documento. GRAU DE RECOMENDACAO E FORCA DE EVIDENCIA: A: Estudos experimentais e observacionais de melhor consistencia. B: Estudos experimentais e observacionais de menor consistencia. C: Relatos de casos (estudos nao controlados). D: Opiniao desprovida de avaliacao critica, baseada em consensos, estudos fisiologicos ou modelos animais. OBJETIVOS: Conciliar informacoes e condutas referentes ao tratamento da osteoartrite pelas tres principais especialidades envolvidas, reumatologia, fisiatria e ortopedia. As condutas consensuais para a maioria dos participantes foram entao agrupadas e constam nas recomendacoes deste documento. CONFLITO DE INTERESSE: Os autores Coimbra IB, Pucinelli MLC, Cavalcanti FS e Maciel FMB, declararam vinculo com a Industria Farmaceutica.

Regulation of hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) expression by interleukin-1β (IL-1 β), insulin-like growth factors I (IGF-I) and II (IGF-II) in human osteoarthritic chondrocytes

OBJECTIVE: Hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha regulates genes related to cellular survival under hypoxia. This factor is present in osteroarthritic chondrocytes, and cytokines, such as interleukin-1 beta, participate in the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis, thereby increasing the activities of proteolytic enzymes, such as matrix metalloproteinases, and accelerating cartilage destruction. We hypothesize that Hypoxia Inducible Factor-1 alpha (HIF-1α) can regulate cytokines (catabolic action) and/or growth factors (anabolic action) in osteoarthritis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the modulation of HIF-1α in human osteoarthritic chondrocytes by interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) and insulin-like growth factors I (IGF-I) and II (IGF-II) and to determine the involvement of the phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI-3K) pathway in this process. METHODS: Human osteroarthritic chondrocytes were stimulated with IL-1β, IGF-I and IGF-II and LY294002, a specific inhibitor of PI-3K. Nuclear protein levels and gene expression were analyzed by western blot and quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction analyses, respectively. RESULTS: HIF-1α expression was upregulated by IL-1β at the protein level but not at the gene level. IGF-I treatment resulted in increases in both the protein and mRNA levels of HIF-1α, whereas IGF-II had no effect on its expression. However, all of these stimuli exploited the PI-3K pathway. CONCLUSION: IL-1β upregulated the levels of HIF-1α protein post-transcriptionally, whereas IGF-I increased HIF-1α at the transcript level. In contrast, IGF-II did not affect the protein or gene expression levels of HIF-1α. Furthermore, all of the tested stimuli exploited the PI-3K pathway to some degree. Based on these findings, we are able to suggest that Hypoxia inducible Factor-1 exhibits protective activity in chondrocytes during osteoarthritis.