Sidnei Miyoshi Sakamoto

Background: Leprosy is endemic to Brazil. The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may have affected diagnosis and treatment. Methods: Study in Mossoró-RN (2018-2023) analyzing epidemiological data, treatment abandonment, and COVID-19 co-infection. Results: The average weekly number of cases declined during the post-pandemic period. The dropout rate was higher during the acute phase. Male sex was associated with dropout (odds ratio [OR], 6.32; p = 0.013). Of the 57 patients tested for COVID-19, 21 tested positive, with no clinical aggravation. Conclusions: The pandemic has affected leprosy control. Local strategies helped reduce the impact, and co-infection did not worsen the disease.

RESUMO: Introdução: Avaliar o impacto da pandemia na utilização dos serviços de patologia, especificamente as biópsias, durante as restrições iniciais desse período. Metodologia: Dados dos laudos histopatológicos durante um período considerado como linha de base, período pré-bloqueio e bloqueio em 2019 comparados aos mesmos períodos em 2020 foram coletados e analisados. Resultados: O número total de biópsias foi menor durante a pandemia. Aumento do tempo de espera do material e do tempo de entrega dos laudos durante o bloqueio foram observados. Houve significativa mudança no perfil do diagnóstico patológico durante os períodos, com redução global do diagnóstico de neoplasias malignas, embora em alguns sítios anatômicos tenha sido verificado aumento significativo, como por exemplo a pele. Conclusões: Verificaram-se redução do tipo e quantitativo de espécimes analisados, além da mudança no perfil de diagnóstico patológico e na carga de trabalho. PALAVRAS-CHAVE: COVID-19, Carga de trabalho, Diagnóstico patológico, Taxa de malignidade Introduction: To assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on pathology services, specifically biopsies, during the initial restrictions. Methodology: Histopathological report data from a baseline period, pre-lockdown, and lockdown in 2019 were collected and compared to the same periods in 2020. Results: The total number of biopsies decreased during the pandemic. Waiting times for materials and report delivery increased during the lockdown. There was a significant change in the pathology diagnostics profile during the periods, with an overall reduction in the diagnosis of malignant neoplasms, although there was a significant increase in some anatomical sites, such as the skin. Conclusion: There was a reduction in the type and quantity of specimens analyzed, as well as a change in the pathology diagnostics profile and workload. KEYWORDS: COVID-19, Workload, Pathology diagnostics, Malignancy rate.

This study investigates the role of eugenol (EUG) on CS-induced acute lung injury (ALI) and how this compound is able to modulate macrophage activity. C57BL/6 mice were exposed to 12 cigarettes/day/5days and treated 15 min/day/5days with EUG. Rat alveolar macrophages (RAMs) were exposed to CSE (5%) and treated with EUG. In vivo, EUG reduced morphological changes inflammatory cells, oxidative stress markers, while, in vitro, it induced balance in the oxidative stress and reduced the pro-inflammatory cytokine release while increasing the anti-inflammatory one. These results suggest that eugenol reduced CS-induced ALI and acted as a modulator of macrophage activity.

Introdução: Assim como observado no cenário nacional, o município de Mossoró apresentou altas taxas de letalidade nos primeiros meses de pandemia. Todavia, o conhecimento epidemiológico em torno da Covid-19 no município tem ocorrido, sobretudo, através de documentos institucionais das Secretarias de Saúde. Desse modo, a finalidade deste estudo é fornecer evidências que permitam ampliar a compreensão da ocorrência da doença em nível local, ofertar dados e informações que venham a subsidiar as políticas públicas de saúde municipais e gerar hipóteses sobre a morbimortalidade da doença para futuras investigações científicas. Objetivo: Analisar o perfil epidemiológico dos casos internados e confirmados de Covid-19 no município de Mossoró no estado do Rio Grande do Norte/Brasil. Metodologia: Estudo observacional transversal, baseado em dados secundários de casos internados de Covid-19 registrados no Sistema Único de Saúde entre março e outubro de 2020. Resultados: Foram incluídos na amostra 664 pacientes, dos quais 46,5% evoluíram para óbito. Entre as internações, 63,1% resultaram em internações em unidades de terapia intensiva (UTI). Observamos diferenças estatísticas significativas entre 'admissão na UTI e evolução para óbito' e 'faixa etária e evolução para óbito' e, maior risco entre idosos acima de 60 anos, com comorbidades, dispneia e saturação de O2 Conclusões: A hospitalização e o óbito de pacientes com COVID-19 foram maiores em pacientes idosos com comorbidades. Palavras-Chave: COVID-19; infecção por coronavírus; Epidemiologia; pandemia; Brasil.

To provide a synthesis of diverse evidence on the impact of the non-therapeutic preventive measures, specifically quarantine, physical distancing and social isolation, on the control of COVID-19. A scoping review conducted in the PubMed, Embase, LILACS, CENTRAL and SCOPUS databases between 2019 and August 28th, 2020. The descriptors used were the following: “quarantine”, “physical distancing”, “social isolation”, “COVID-19” and “SARS-Cov2”. Studies that addressed the non-therapeutic preventive measures in people exposed to SARs-CoV-2 in community settings and health services were included. A total of 14,442 records identified through a database search were reduced to 346 studies and, after a standardized selection process, a total of 68 articles were selected for analysis. A total of 35 descriptive, cross-sectional or longitudinal observational studies were identified, as well as 3 reviews, in addition to 30 studies with mathematical modeling. The main intervention assessed was social distancing (56.6%), followed by lockdown (25.0%) and quarantine (18.4%). The main evidence analyzed points to the need for rapid responses to reduce the number of infections, deaths and hospital admissions, especially in intensive care unit beds.The current review revealed consistent reports that the quarantine, physical distancing and social isolation are effective strategies to contain spread of the new coronavirus.

Donkeys (Equus asinus) and mules represent approximately 50% of the entire domestic equine herd in the world and play an essential role in the lives of thousands of people, primarily in developing countries. Despite their importance, donkeys are currently a neglected and threatened species due to abandonment, indiscriminate slaughter, and a lack of proper sanitary management. Specific knowledge about infectious viral diseases that affect this group of Equidae is still limited. In many cases, donkeys and mules are treated like horses, with the physiological differences between these species usually not taken into account. Most infectious diseases that affect the Equidae family are exclusive to the family, and they have a tremendous economic impact on the equine industry. However, some viruses may cross the species barrier and affect humans, representing an imminent risk to public health. Nevertheless, even with such importance, most studies are conducted on horses (Equus caballus), and there is little comparative information on infection in donkeys and mules. Therefore, the objective of this article is to provide a brief update on viruses that affect donkeys and mules, thereby compromising their performance and well-being. These diseases may put them at risk of extinction in some parts of the world due to neglect and the precarious conditions they live in and may ultimately endanger other species’ health and humans.

This study investigated biological characteristics of recovered stressed M. tuberculosis isolates that failed to grow in differential culture media for phenotypic identification and in culture media containing anti-tuberculosis drugs for drug-susceptibility testing, despite of having grown in primary culture. It represents an improvement in the diagnosis of MDR tuberculosis and tuberculosis control.

The 3′-terminal 853 nt (and the putative 283 aa) sequence of the VP2-encoding gene from 29 field strains of porcine parvovirus (PPV) were determined and compared both to each other and with other published sequences. Sequences were examined using maximum-parsimony and statistical analyses for nucleotide diversity and sequence variability. Among the nucleotide sequences of the PPV field strains, 26 polymorphic sites were encountered; 22 polymorphic sites were detected in the putative amino acid sequence. Mapping polymorphic sites of protein data onto the three-dimensional (3D) structure of PPV VP2 revealed that almost all substitutions were located on the external surface of the viral capsid. Mapping amino acid substitutions to the alignment between PPV VP2 sequences and the 3D structure of canine parvovirus (CPV) capsid, many PPV substitutions were observed to map to regions of recognized antigenicity and/or to contain phenotypically important residues for CPV and other parvoviruses. In spite of the high sequence similarity, genetic analysis has shown the existence of at least two virus lineages among the samples. In conclusion, these results highlight the need for close surveillance on PPV genetic drift, with an assessment of its potential ability to modify the antigenic make-up of the virus.