cometadata/datacite-titles-descriptions-related-identifiers huggingface dataset:
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956951.v1
title: Does the appointment of secretariesgeneral to lead global bureaucracies correlate with international power sharing? A longitudinal assessment based on empirical evidence from 1945 to 2016

description: Abstract This paper focuses on secretaries-general, given their relative centrality in international politics, as they embody the power to explore institutional and personal agendas, and enjoy the chance to seek prestige for a country or region. Through descriptive statistics, this article analyzes the distribution of secretaries-general per country, reaching some noteworthy findings, especially regarding sharp changes in recent years.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956939
title: Value of Contrast Transesophageal Echocardiography in the Detection of Intrapulmonary Vascular Dilatations in Hepatosplenic Schistosomiasis

description: Abstract Background: Hepatopulmonary syndrome (HPS), found in cirrhotic patients, has been little studied in hepatosplenic schistosomiasis (HSS) and includes the occurrence of intrapulmonary vascular dilatations (IPVD). Contrast transesophageal echocardiography (cTEE) with microbubbles is more sensitive than contrast transthoracic echocardiography (cTTE) with microbubbles in the detection of IPVD in cirrhosis. Objective: To assess the performance of the cTEE, compared with that of cTTE, in detecting IPVD for the diagnosis of HPS in patients with HSS. Methods: cTEE and cTTE for investigation of IPVD and laboratory tests were performed in 22 patients with HSS. Agitated saline solution was injected in peripheral vein during the cTEE and cTTE procedures. Late appearance of the microbubbles in the left chambers indicated the presence of IPVD. Results of the two methods were compared by the Student’s t-test and the chi-square test (p &lt; 0.05). Results: cTEE was performed in all patients without complications. Three patients were excluded due to the presence of patent foramen ovale (PFO). The presence of IPVD was confirmed in 13 (68%) of 19 patients according to the cTEE and in only six (32%, p &lt; 0.01) according to the cTTE. No significant differences in clinical or laboratory data were found between the groups with and without IPVD, including the alveolar-arterial gradient. The diagnosis of HPS (presence of IPVD with changes in the arterial blood gas analysis) was made in five patients by the cTEE and in only one by the cTTE (p = 0.09). Conclusion: In HSS patients, cTEE was safe and superior to cTTE in detecting IPVD and allowed the exclusion of PFO.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956942.v1
title: Myocardial Perfusion by Coronary Computed Tomography in the Evaluation of Myocardial Ischemia: Simultaneous Stress Protocol with SPECT

description: Abstract Background: Functional assessment to rule out myocardial ischemia using coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) is extremely important and data on the Brazilian population are still limited. Objective: To assess the diagnostic performance of myocardial perfusion by CCTA in the detection of severe obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) compared with single-photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT). To analyze the importance of anatomical knowledge to understand the presence of myocardial perfusion defects on SPECT imaging that is not identified on computed tomography (CT) scan. Method: A total of 35 patients were evaluated by a simultaneous pharmacologic stress protocol. Fisher’s exact test was used to compare proportions. The patients were grouped according to the presence or absence of significant CAD. The area under the ROC curve was used to identify the diagnostic performance of CCTA and SPECT in perfusion assessment. P &lt; 0.05 values were considered statistically significant. Results: For detection of obstructive CAD, CT myocardial perfusion analysis yielded an area under the ROC curve of 0.84 [a 95% confidence interval (CI95%): 0.67-0.94, p &lt; 0.001]. SPECT myocardial perfusion imaging, on the other hand, showed an AUC of 0.58 (95% CI 0.40 - 0.74, p &lt; 0.001). In this study, false-positive results with SPECT are described. Conclusion: Myocardial perfusion analysis by CTA displays satisfactory results compared to SPECT in the detection of obstructive CAD. CCTA can rule out false-positive results of SPECT.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956930
title: Epidemiological survey of hepatitis C in a region considered to have high prevalence: the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil

description: Abstract INTRODUCTION: The prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is affected by demographic, virological, clinical, and lifestyle-related factors and varies in different regions in Brazil or worldwide. The present study aimed to clarify the epidemiological patterns of HCV infection in the interior region of Brazil. METHODS: This study was conducted in the Southern Triangle Macro-region of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, according to the guidelines of the National Program for the Prevention and Control of Viral Hepatitis. The participants answered a structured questionnaire on social and epidemiological factors. Immunochromatographic rapid tests were used for the qualitative detection of antibodies against HCV in whole blood (Alere HCV® Code 02FK10) in adult subjects by a free-standing method. RESULTS: Of 24,085 tested individuals, 184 (0.76%) were anti-HCV positive. The majority of anti-HCV-positive individuals were born between 1951 and 1980 (n=146 [79.3%]), with 68 women and 116 men. Identified risk factors included syringe and/or needle sharing (p = 0.003), being in prison (p = 0.004), and having tattoos or piercings (p = 0.005) and were significantly associated with the decade of birth. CONCLUSIONS: The study shows the importance of testing populations at risk for HCV infection, including incarcerated individuals, those with tattoos or piercings, those who share or have shared syringes or needles, and those in high-risk birth cohorts (1950s, 1960s, and 1970s) in the Southern Triangle Macro-region.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956933
title: Pregnancy in Women with Complex Congenital Heart Disease. A Constant Challenge

description: Abstract Background: The improvement in surgical techniques has contributed to an increasing number of childbearing women with complex congenital heart disease (CCC). However, adequate counseling about pregnancy in this situation is uncertain, due to a wide variety of residual cardiac lesions. Objectives: To evaluate fetal and maternal outcomes in pregnant women with CCC and to analyze the predictive variables of prognosis. Methods: During 10 years we followed 435 consecutive pregnancies in patients (pts) with congenital heart disease. Among of them, we selected 42 pregnancies in 40 (mean age of 25.5 ± 4.5 years) pts with CCC, who had been advised against pregnancy. The distribution of underlying cardiac lesions were: D-Transposition of the great arteries, pulmonary atresia, tricuspid atresia, single ventricle, double-outlet ventricle and truncus arteriosus. The surgical procedures performed before gestation were: Fontan, Jatene, Rastelli, Senning, Mustard and other surgical techniques, including Blalock, Taussing, and Glenn. Eight (20,0%) pts did not have previous surgery. Nineteen 19 (47.5%) pts had hypoxemia. The clinical follow-up protocol included oxygen saturation recording, hemoglobin and hematocrit values; medication adjustment to pregnancy, anticoagulation use, when necessary, and hospitalization from 28 weeks, in severe cases. The statistical significance level considered was p &lt; 0.05. Results: Only seventeen (40.5%) pregnancies had maternal and fetal uneventful courses. There were 13 (30.9%) maternal complications, two (4.7%) maternal deaths due to hemorrhage pos-partum and severe pre-eclampsia, both of them in women with hypoxemia. There were 7 (16.6%) stillbirths and 17 (40.5%) premature babies. Congenital heart disease was identified in two (4.1%) infants. Maternal and fetal complications were higher (p &lt; 0.05) in women with hypoxemia. Conclusions: Pregnancy in women with CCC was associated to high maternal and offspring risks. Hypoxemia was a predictive variable of poor maternal and fetal outcomes. Women with CCC should be advised against pregnancy, even when treated in specialized care centers.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956939.v1
title: Value of Contrast Transesophageal Echocardiography in the Detection of Intrapulmonary Vascular Dilatations in Hepatosplenic Schistosomiasis

description: Abstract Background: Hepatopulmonary syndrome (HPS), found in cirrhotic patients, has been little studied in hepatosplenic schistosomiasis (HSS) and includes the occurrence of intrapulmonary vascular dilatations (IPVD). Contrast transesophageal echocardiography (cTEE) with microbubbles is more sensitive than contrast transthoracic echocardiography (cTTE) with microbubbles in the detection of IPVD in cirrhosis. Objective: To assess the performance of the cTEE, compared with that of cTTE, in detecting IPVD for the diagnosis of HPS in patients with HSS. Methods: cTEE and cTTE for investigation of IPVD and laboratory tests were performed in 22 patients with HSS. Agitated saline solution was injected in peripheral vein during the cTEE and cTTE procedures. Late appearance of the microbubbles in the left chambers indicated the presence of IPVD. Results of the two methods were compared by the Student’s t-test and the chi-square test (p &lt; 0.05). Results: cTEE was performed in all patients without complications. Three patients were excluded due to the presence of patent foramen ovale (PFO). The presence of IPVD was confirmed in 13 (68%) of 19 patients according to the cTEE and in only six (32%, p &lt; 0.01) according to the cTTE. No significant differences in clinical or laboratory data were found between the groups with and without IPVD, including the alveolar-arterial gradient. The diagnosis of HPS (presence of IPVD with changes in the arterial blood gas analysis) was made in five patients by the cTEE and in only one by the cTTE (p = 0.09). Conclusion: In HSS patients, cTEE was safe and superior to cTTE in detecting IPVD and allowed the exclusion of PFO.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956924
title: Walking and walkability: do built environment measures correspond with pedestrian activity?

description: Abstract After the emergence of the term “walkability” in the 1990’s, many metrics have been developed with the aim of evaluating the quality of the built environment for pedestrians. More recently, researchers have also sought an association of these metrics with pedestrian behavior: do better sidewalk conditions and their surroundings correspond with higher pedestrian activity? To study the association of the built environment with the share of pedestrian movements, two different indexes, one at the city level (macro) and one at the neighborhood level (micro), were proposed using georeferenced data from São Paulo (Brazil). Once the available built environment and transport-related data were incorporated in a linear regression model, the neighborhood-level index (micro) and the share of pedestrian movements presented a strong positive correlation (adjusted R2 = 0.797). In addition to the contributions to the relationship of walkability scores with data from developing countries, the discussions presented in this paper intend to provide insights into the territorial disparities in pedestrian mobility, mainly those related to socio-spatial segregation.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956933.v1
title: Pregnancy in Women with Complex Congenital Heart Disease. A Constant Challenge

description: Abstract Background: The improvement in surgical techniques has contributed to an increasing number of childbearing women with complex congenital heart disease (CCC). However, adequate counseling about pregnancy in this situation is uncertain, due to a wide variety of residual cardiac lesions. Objectives: To evaluate fetal and maternal outcomes in pregnant women with CCC and to analyze the predictive variables of prognosis. Methods: During 10 years we followed 435 consecutive pregnancies in patients (pts) with congenital heart disease. Among of them, we selected 42 pregnancies in 40 (mean age of 25.5 ± 4.5 years) pts with CCC, who had been advised against pregnancy. The distribution of underlying cardiac lesions were: D-Transposition of the great arteries, pulmonary atresia, tricuspid atresia, single ventricle, double-outlet ventricle and truncus arteriosus. The surgical procedures performed before gestation were: Fontan, Jatene, Rastelli, Senning, Mustard and other surgical techniques, including Blalock, Taussing, and Glenn. Eight (20,0%) pts did not have previous surgery. Nineteen 19 (47.5%) pts had hypoxemia. The clinical follow-up protocol included oxygen saturation recording, hemoglobin and hematocrit values; medication adjustment to pregnancy, anticoagulation use, when necessary, and hospitalization from 28 weeks, in severe cases. The statistical significance level considered was p &lt; 0.05. Results: Only seventeen (40.5%) pregnancies had maternal and fetal uneventful courses. There were 13 (30.9%) maternal complications, two (4.7%) maternal deaths due to hemorrhage pos-partum and severe pre-eclampsia, both of them in women with hypoxemia. There were 7 (16.6%) stillbirths and 17 (40.5%) premature babies. Congenital heart disease was identified in two (4.1%) infants. Maternal and fetal complications were higher (p &lt; 0.05) in women with hypoxemia. Conclusions: Pregnancy in women with CCC was associated to high maternal and offspring risks. Hypoxemia was a predictive variable of poor maternal and fetal outcomes. Women with CCC should be advised against pregnancy, even when treated in specialized care centers.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956930.v1
title: Epidemiological survey of hepatitis C in a region considered to have high prevalence: the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil

description: Abstract INTRODUCTION: The prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is affected by demographic, virological, clinical, and lifestyle-related factors and varies in different regions in Brazil or worldwide. The present study aimed to clarify the epidemiological patterns of HCV infection in the interior region of Brazil. METHODS: This study was conducted in the Southern Triangle Macro-region of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, according to the guidelines of the National Program for the Prevention and Control of Viral Hepatitis. The participants answered a structured questionnaire on social and epidemiological factors. Immunochromatographic rapid tests were used for the qualitative detection of antibodies against HCV in whole blood (Alere HCV® Code 02FK10) in adult subjects by a free-standing method. RESULTS: Of 24,085 tested individuals, 184 (0.76%) were anti-HCV positive. The majority of anti-HCV-positive individuals were born between 1951 and 1980 (n=146 [79.3%]), with 68 women and 116 men. Identified risk factors included syringe and/or needle sharing (p = 0.003), being in prison (p = 0.004), and having tattoos or piercings (p = 0.005) and were significantly associated with the decade of birth. CONCLUSIONS: The study shows the importance of testing populations at risk for HCV infection, including incarcerated individuals, those with tattoos or piercings, those who share or have shared syringes or needles, and those in high-risk birth cohorts (1950s, 1960s, and 1970s) in the Southern Triangle Macro-region.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956915
title: Calculation of CO2 emission derived from land-use change from soybean production at Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil

description: ABSTRACT One of the environmental impacts that presents great concern nowadays, the green-house gases (GHG) emissions affect decision-making from both government and private sector. Within this concern is the soybean biodiesel production growing that takes place in Brazil and Rio Grande do Sul State, this last one of main producers of soybean. Based on this, GHG emissions accounting from soybean cultivation and their potential environmental impacts depend on an inventory performing that presents a reality as close as possible in relation to Rio Grande do Sul State. Thus, this work aimed to trace how the soybean cultivation has developed for 20 years at Rio Grande do Sul State (between 1992 and 2013). During this research, a soybean growing, mainly on temporary croplands, that results in a different accounting in relation to current inventories that show soybean cultivation moving forward on forests areas was found. In this case, it was verified that this work, following The Intergovernmntal Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) methodology, the land use change (LUC) occurred in only 15.4% of the area, where soybean cultivation moved forward for 20 years. Finally, this work suggests future discussion for methodologies that encompass soybean cultivation advanced over wetland areas according to what is pointed out in this study.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956924.v1
title: Walking and walkability: do built environment measures correspond with pedestrian activity?

description: Abstract After the emergence of the term “walkability” in the 1990’s, many metrics have been developed with the aim of evaluating the quality of the built environment for pedestrians. More recently, researchers have also sought an association of these metrics with pedestrian behavior: do better sidewalk conditions and their surroundings correspond with higher pedestrian activity? To study the association of the built environment with the share of pedestrian movements, two different indexes, one at the city level (macro) and one at the neighborhood level (micro), were proposed using georeferenced data from São Paulo (Brazil). Once the available built environment and transport-related data were incorporated in a linear regression model, the neighborhood-level index (micro) and the share of pedestrian movements presented a strong positive correlation (adjusted R2 = 0.797). In addition to the contributions to the relationship of walkability scores with data from developing countries, the discussions presented in this paper intend to provide insights into the territorial disparities in pedestrian mobility, mainly those related to socio-spatial segregation.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956912
title: SEDENTARY BEHAVIOR AND CARDIOVASCULAR RISK IN CHILDREN: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

description: ABSTRACT In recognition of the increasing time spent in sedentary activities in modern life, an emerging area of study linking sedentary time to health has highlighted its role in the development of chronic diseases. Therefore, the objective of this systematic review was to investigate the indicators and characteristics of sedentary behavior associated with cardiovascular risk factors in children and adolescents. The databases SciVerse Scopus, MEDLINE®/PubMed and LILACS were selected as a source of reference, using the associated terms “sedentary lifestyle” or “sedentary behavior” or “sedentary” AND “cardiovascular diseases” AND “child or adolescent” to identify studies published from January 2006 to March 2019. The methodological quality of the studies was evaluated and a score was assigned. Fifty articles were included in this review at the end. Extensive sedentary time, especially greater screen and TV exposure time, were associated with cardiovascular risk factors. In addition, the accumulation of prolonged sedentary bouts with few breaks in sedentary time tended to compromise the cardiometabolic profile. These findings highlight the importance of differentiating and considering these various indicators and characteristics of sedentary behavior. Further studies are needed to elucidate the multiple and overlapping facets of sedentary behavior and their relationship with health, and to encourage the development of evidence-based recommendations for this population. Level of Evidence I; Systematic Review of Level I Studies.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956912.v1
title: SEDENTARY BEHAVIOR AND CARDIOVASCULAR RISK IN CHILDREN: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

description: ABSTRACT In recognition of the increasing time spent in sedentary activities in modern life, an emerging area of study linking sedentary time to health has highlighted its role in the development of chronic diseases. Therefore, the objective of this systematic review was to investigate the indicators and characteristics of sedentary behavior associated with cardiovascular risk factors in children and adolescents. The databases SciVerse Scopus, MEDLINE®/PubMed and LILACS were selected as a source of reference, using the associated terms “sedentary lifestyle” or “sedentary behavior” or “sedentary” AND “cardiovascular diseases” AND “child or adolescent” to identify studies published from January 2006 to March 2019. The methodological quality of the studies was evaluated and a score was assigned. Fifty articles were included in this review at the end. Extensive sedentary time, especially greater screen and TV exposure time, were associated with cardiovascular risk factors. In addition, the accumulation of prolonged sedentary bouts with few breaks in sedentary time tended to compromise the cardiometabolic profile. These findings highlight the importance of differentiating and considering these various indicators and characteristics of sedentary behavior. Further studies are needed to elucidate the multiple and overlapping facets of sedentary behavior and their relationship with health, and to encourage the development of evidence-based recommendations for this population. Level of Evidence I; Systematic Review of Level I Studies.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956915.v1
title: Calculation of CO2 emission derived from land-use change from soybean production at Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil

description: ABSTRACT One of the environmental impacts that presents great concern nowadays, the green-house gases (GHG) emissions affect decision-making from both government and private sector. Within this concern is the soybean biodiesel production growing that takes place in Brazil and Rio Grande do Sul State, this last one of main producers of soybean. Based on this, GHG emissions accounting from soybean cultivation and their potential environmental impacts depend on an inventory performing that presents a reality as close as possible in relation to Rio Grande do Sul State. Thus, this work aimed to trace how the soybean cultivation has developed for 20 years at Rio Grande do Sul State (between 1992 and 2013). During this research, a soybean growing, mainly on temporary croplands, that results in a different accounting in relation to current inventories that show soybean cultivation moving forward on forests areas was found. In this case, it was verified that this work, following The Intergovernmntal Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) methodology, the land use change (LUC) occurred in only 15.4% of the area, where soybean cultivation moved forward for 20 years. Finally, this work suggests future discussion for methodologies that encompass soybean cultivation advanced over wetland areas according to what is pointed out in this study.
DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.9956906
title: Brazilian Spotted Fever Prevention through a Nonlethal Capybara Population Control Strategy

description: Abstract INTRODUCTION: Brazilian spotted fever (BSF), a lethal tick-borne Rickettsioses (2000 - 2018 &gt;600 human deaths) involving synanthropic capybara as host. METHODS: We introduced an alternative to mitigate human-capybara conflicts and epidemiologic concerns of BSF. Complex aspects like transmission dynamics, risk areas, host mobility, and birth rate control, were considered to develop a prevention strategy using an anti-GnRH vaccine. RESULTS: The propositioned immunocontraceptive potentially remove and prevent the spread of BSF from endemic areas. CONCLUSIONS: We propose the anti-GnRH vaccine as a BSF prevention strategy based on these favorable results.