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OBJECTIVE: To determine the ability of the Bayley-III cognitive and language composite scores at 18-22 months corrected age to predict WISC-IV Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) at 6-7 years in infants born extremely preterm. STUDY DESIGN: Children in this study were part of the Neuroimaging and Neurodevelopmental Outcome cohort, a secondary study to the SUPPORT trial and born 240/7-276/7 weeks gestational age. Bayley-III cognitive and language scores and WISC-IV FSIQ were compared with pairwise Pearson correlation coefficients and adjusted for medical and socioeconomic variables using linear mixed effect regression models. RESULTS: Bayley-III cognitive (r = 0.33) and language scores (r = 0.44) were mildly correlated with WISC-IV FSIQ score. Of the children with Bayley-III cognitive scores of <70, 67% also had FSIQ of <70. There was less consistency for children with Bayley-III scores in the 85-100 range; 43% had an FSIQ of <85 and 10% an FSIQ of <70. Among those with Bayley-III language scores >100, approximately 1 in 5 had an FSIQ of <85. A cut point of 92 for the cognitive composite score resulted in sensitivity (0.60), specificity (0.64). A cut point of 88 for the language composite score produced sensitivity (0.61), specificity (0.70). CONCLUSIONS: Findings indicate the Bayley-III cognitive and language scores correlate with later IQ, but may fail to predict delay or misclassify children who are not delayed at school age. The Bayley-III can be a useful tool to help identify children born extremely preterm who have below average cognitive scores and may be at the greatest risk for ongoing cognitive difficulties. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Extended Follow-up at School Age for the SUPPORT Neuroimaging and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes (NEURO) Cohort: NCT00233324.
Assuntos
Desenvolvimento Infantil , Lactente Extremamente Prematuro , Recém-Nascido , Lactente , Humanos , Criança , Lactente Extremamente Prematuro/psicologia , Idade Gestacional , Cognição , NeuroimagemRESUMO
Dengue has become one of the vector-borne diseases that affect humans worldwide. In Latin American countries, Colombia is historically one of the most affected by epidemics of this flavivirus. The underreporting of signs and symptoms of probable cases of dengue, the lack of characterization of the serotypes of the infection, and the few detailed studies of postmortem necropsies of patients are among other conditions that have delayed progress in the knowledge of the pathogenesis of the disease. This study presents the results of fragment sequencing assays on paraffin-embedded tissue samples from fatal DENV cases during the 2010 epidemic in Colombia. We found that the predominant serotype was DENV-2, with the Asian/American genotype of lineages 1 and 2. This work is one of the few reports of the circulating genotypes of dengue during the 2010 epidemic in Colombia, one of the most lethal dates in the country's history.
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Vírus da Dengue , Dengue , Humanos , Vírus da Dengue/genética , Dengue/epidemiologia , Parafina , Genótipo , Filogenia , SorogrupoRESUMO
Biodiversity-mediated ecosystem services (ES) support human well-being, but their values are typically estimated individually. Although ES are part of complex socioecological systems, we know surprisingly little about how multiple ES interact ecologically and economically. Interactions could be positive (synergy), negative (trade-offs), or absent (additive effects), with strong implications for management and valuation. Here, we evaluate the interactions of two ES, pollination and pest control, via a factorial field experiment in 30 Costa Rican coffee farms. We found synergistic interactions between these two critical ES to crop production. The combined positive effects of birds and bees on fruit set, fruit weight, and fruit weight uniformity were greater than their individual effects. This represents experimental evidence at realistic farm scales of positive interactions among ES in agricultural systems. These synergies suggest that assessments of individual ES may underestimate the benefits biodiversity provides to agriculture and human well-being. Using our experimental results, we demonstrate that bird pest control and bee pollination services translate directly into monetary benefits to coffee farmers. Excluding both birds and bees resulted in an average yield reduction of 24.7% (equivalent to losing US$1,066.00/ha). These findings highlight that habitat enhancements to support native biodiversity can have multiple benefits for coffee, a valuable crop that supports rural livelihoods worldwide. Accounting for potential interactions among ES is essential to quantifying their combined ecological and economic value.
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Café , Produção Agrícola , Controle de Pragas , Polinização , BiodiversidadeRESUMO
OBJECTIVES: To test the hypothesis that higher blood levels of neurotrophic proteins (proteins that support neuronal survival and function) in the first 2 weeks of life are associated with a lower risk of cognitive impairment at 10 years. STUDY DESIGN: We evaluated 812 10-year-old children with neonatal blood specimens enrolled in the multicenter prospective Extremely Low Gestational Age Newborn Study, assessing 22 blood proteins collected on 3 days over the first 2 weeks of life. Using latent profile analysis, we derived a cognitive function level based on standardized cognitive and executive function tests. We defined high exposure as the top quartile neurotrophic protein blood level on ≥2 days either for ≥4 proteins or for a specific cluster of neurotrophic proteins (defined by latent class analysis). Multinomial logistic regression analyzed associations between high exposures and cognitive impairment. RESULTS: Controlling for the effects of inflammatory proteins, persistently elevated blood levels of ≥4 neurotrophic proteins were associated with reduced risk of moderate (OR, 0.35; 95% CI, 0.18-0.67) and severe cognitive impairment (OR, 0.22; 95% CI, 0.09-0.53). Children with a cluster of elevated proteins including angiopoietin 1, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, and regulated upon activation, normal T-cell expressed, and secreted had a reduced risk of adverse cognitive outcomes (OR range, 0.31-0.6). The risk for moderate to severe cognitive impairment was least with 0-1 inflammatory and >4 neurotrophic proteins. CONCLUSIONS: Persisting elevations of circulating neurotrophic proteins during the first 2 weeks of life are associated with lowered risk of impaired cognition at 10 years of age, controlling for increases in inflammatory proteins.
Assuntos
Desenvolvimento Infantil , Transtornos Cognitivos/sangue , Transtornos Cognitivos/epidemiologia , Lactente Extremamente Prematuro/sangue , Fatores de Crescimento Neural/sangue , Angiopoietina-1/sangue , Fator Neurotrófico Derivado do Encéfalo/sangue , Quimiocina CCL5/sangue , Criança , Cognição , Função Executiva , Feminino , Humanos , Recém-Nascido , Masculino , Estudos Prospectivos , Risco , Índice de Gravidade de Doença , Linfócitos T/metabolismo , Estados Unidos/epidemiologiaRESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To examine outcomes of neonates based on the mode and intensity of resuscitation received in the delivery room (DR). STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective study of 439 infants with birth weight ⩽1500 g receiving DR resuscitation at two hospital centers in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. RESULTS: Of 439 infants, 22 (5%) received routine care, 188 (43%) received noninvasive positive pressure ventilation (PPV) and 229 (52%) received endotracheal tube (ETT) intubation in the DR. Adjusted odds for respiratory distress syndrome was associated with lower rates in infants requiring lower intensity of DR resuscitation (P<0.001). Noninvasive PPV vs ETT was associated with decreased odds of developing intraventricular hemorrhage and retinopathy of prematurity (P<0.05). Routine vs noninvasive PPV or ETT had decreased odds of developing bronchopulmonary dysplasia (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Decreased intensity of DR resuscitation was associated with a decreased risk of specific morbidities.
Assuntos
Pressão Positiva Contínua nas Vias Aéreas/estatística & dados numéricos , Intubação Intratraqueal/estatística & dados numéricos , Ventilação não Invasiva/estatística & dados numéricos , Ressuscitação/métodos , Adulto , Estudos de Casos e Controles , Cesárea/estatística & dados numéricos , Salas de Parto , Feminino , Humanos , Recém-Nascido , Recém-Nascido de muito Baixo Peso , Unidades de Terapia Intensiva/estatística & dados numéricos , Intubação Intratraqueal/efeitos adversos , Masculino , Síndrome do Desconforto Respiratório do Recém-Nascido/epidemiologia , Ressuscitação/efeitos adversos , Estudos Retrospectivos , Adulto JovemRESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of hearing loss in newborns with Down syndrome. STUDY DESIGN: We performed a cross-sectional, retrospective chart review of all infants with Down syndrome born at a university-affiliated hospital (n = 77) or transferred in to the associated pediatric hospital (n = 32) following birth at an outlying hospital between 1995 and 2010. We determined the rate of failure of newborn hearing screens, the proportion of infants lost to follow-up, and the rate of confirmed hearing loss, as well as the associations of risk factors for hearing loss with confirmed hearing loss. RESULTS: Of the 109 patients with hearing screening data, 28 failed their newborn hearing screen. Twenty-seven infants were referred for audiologic evaluation, and 19 completed the evaluation. Fifteen of these 19 infants (79%) had confirmed hearing loss. The prevalence of congenital hearing loss in this sample of neonates with Down syndrome was 15%. Exposure to mechanical ventilation was the sole known risk factor associated with hearing loss. In this study, the loss to follow-up rate for infants with positive hearing screens was 32%. CONCLUSION: Newborns with Down syndrome have a higher prevalence of congenital hearing loss compared with the total neonatal population (15% vs 0.25%). Continued monitoring of hearing is needed in children with Down syndrome.
Assuntos
Síndrome de Down/epidemiologia , Perda Auditiva/epidemiologia , Criança , Estudos Transversais , Feminino , Perda Auditiva/diagnóstico , Testes Auditivos , Humanos , Lactente , Recém-Nascido , Masculino , Triagem Neonatal , Prevalência , Estudos Retrospectivos , Fatores de RiscoRESUMO
Natural ecosystems benefit human communities by providing ecosystem services such as water purification and crop pollination. Mapping ecosystem service values has become popular, but most are static snapshots of average value. Estimating instead the economic impacts of specific ecosystem changes can better inform typical resource decisions. Here we develop an approach to mapping marginal values, those resulting from the next unit of ecosystem change, across landscapes. We demonstrate the approach with a recent model of crop pollination services in Costa Rica, simulating deforestation events to predict resulting marginal changes in pollination services to coffee farms. We find that marginal losses from deforestation vary from zero to US$700/ha across the landscape. Financial risks for farmers from these losses and marginal benefits of forest restoration show similar spatial variation. Marginal values are concentrated in relatively few forest parcels not identified using average value. These parcels lack substitutes: nearby forest parcels that can supply services in the event of loss. Indeed, the marginal value of forest parcels declines exponentially with the density of surrounding forest cover. The approach we develop is applicable to any ecosystem service. Combined with information on costs, it can help target conservation or restoration efforts to optimize benefits to people and biodiversity.
Assuntos
Conservação dos Recursos Naturais/métodos , Ecossistema , Polinização , Árvores , Clima Tropical , Agricultura/economia , Animais , Costa Rica , Monitoramento Ambiental , Humanos , Modelos BiológicosRESUMO
The diversity and abundance of wild insect pollinators have declined in many agricultural landscapes. Whether such declines reduce crop yields, or are mitigated by managed pollinators such as honey bees, is unclear. We found universally positive associations of fruit set with flower visitation by wild insects in 41 crop systems worldwide. In contrast, fruit set increased significantly with flower visitation by honey bees in only 14% of the systems surveyed. Overall, wild insects pollinated crops more effectively; an increase in wild insect visitation enhanced fruit set by twice as much as an equivalent increase in honey bee visitation. Visitation by wild insects and honey bees promoted fruit set independently, so pollination by managed honey bees supplemented, rather than substituted for, pollination by wild insects. Our results suggest that new practices for integrated management of both honey bees and diverse wild insect assemblages will enhance global crop yields.
Assuntos
Produtos Agrícolas/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Frutas/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Insetos/fisiologia , Polinização , Animais , Abelhas/fisiologia , Flores/fisiologiaRESUMO
Sustainable agricultural landscapes by definition provide high magnitude and stability of ecosystem services, biodiversity and crop productivity. However, few studies have considered landscape effects on the stability of ecosystem services. We tested whether isolation from florally diverse natural and semi-natural areas reduces the spatial and temporal stability of flower-visitor richness and pollination services in crop fields. We synthesised data from 29 studies with contrasting biomes, crop species and pollinator communities. Stability of flower-visitor richness, visitation rate (all insects except honey bees) and fruit set all decreased with distance from natural areas. At 1 km from adjacent natural areas, spatial stability decreased by 25, 16 and 9% for richness, visitation and fruit set, respectively, while temporal stability decreased by 39% for richness and 13% for visitation. Mean richness, visitation and fruit set also decreased with isolation, by 34, 27 and 16% at 1 km respectively. In contrast, honey bee visitation did not change with isolation and represented > 25% of crop visits in 21 studies. Therefore, wild pollinators are relevant for crop productivity and stability even when honey bees are abundant. Policies to preserve and restore natural areas in agricultural landscapes should enhance levels and reliability of pollination services.
Assuntos
Abelhas/fisiologia , Ecossistema , Polinização/fisiologia , Agricultura , Animais , BiodiversidadeRESUMO
Recent climate talks in Copenhagen reaffirmed the crucial role of reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD). Creating and strengthening indigenous lands and other protected areas represents an effective, practical, and immediate REDD strategy that addresses both biodiversity and climate crises at once.
Assuntos
Mudança Climática , Conservação dos Recursos Naturais , Brasil , Conservação dos Recursos Naturais/legislação & jurisprudência , Ecossistema , Humanos , Cooperação Internacional/legislação & jurisprudênciaRESUMO
Resources for biodiversity conservation are severely limited, requiring strategic investment. Understanding both the economic benefits and costs of conserving ecosystems will help to allocate scarce dollars most efficiently. However, although cost-benefit analyses are common in many areas of policy, they are not typically used in conservation planning. We conducted a spatial evaluation of the costs and benefits of conservation for a landscape in the Atlantic forests of Paraguay. We considered five ecosystem services (i.e., sustainable bushmeat harvest, sustainable timber harvest, bioprospecting for pharmaceutical products, existence value, and carbon storage in aboveground biomass) and compared them to estimates of the opportunity costs of conservation. We found a high degree of spatial variability in both costs and benefits over this relatively small (approximately 3,000 km(2)) landscape. Benefits exceeded costs in some areas, with carbon storage dominating the ecosystem service values and swamping opportunity costs. Other benefits associated with conservation were more modest and exceeded costs only in protected areas and indigenous reserves. We used this cost-benefit information to show that one potential corridor between two large forest patches had net benefits that were three times greater than two otherwise similar alternatives. Spatial cost-benefit analysis can powerfully inform conservation planning, even though the availability of relevant data may be limited, as was the case in our study area. It can help us understand the synergies between biodiversity conservation and economic development when the two are indeed aligned and to clearly understand the trade-offs when they are not.
Assuntos
Biodiversidade , Conservação dos Recursos Naturais/economia , Conservação dos Recursos Naturais/métodos , Análise Custo-Benefício , Ecossistema , Agricultura Florestal , ParaguaiRESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To quantify the effect of grades I-II intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) on the neurosensory and cognitive outcomes of extremely low birth weight infants. STUDY DESIGN: Of 706 extremely low birth weight infants without major malformations admitted to our center from 1992 to 2000, 537 survived to 20 months' corrected age (CA) and had cranial ultrasound studies performed, of whom 490 (91%) had complete neurodevelopmental assessments. Infants with severe cranial ultrasound abnormalities or meningitis were excluded, leaving a population of 362 infants, 258 of whom had a normal cranial ultrasound and 104 had an isolated grade I-II IVH. The groups had similar birth weight (808 vs 801 grams) and gestational age (26.5 vs 26.3 weeks). Outcomes of infants with normal cranial ultrasound were compared with those with grades I-II IVH at 20 months' CA. Outcomes included the Bayley Scales of Infant Development Mental Developmental Index (MDI) and major neurosensory abnormality. Logistic regression was used to assess the effect of grades I-II IVH on outcomes while adjusting for other risk factors. RESULTS: Extremely low birth weight infants with grades I-II IVH had a significantly lower mean MDI score than infants with normal cranial ultrasound (74 +/- 16 vs 79 +/- 14, P = .006). They had higher rates of MDI <<70 (45% vs 25%; OR, 2.00; 95% CI, 1.20 to 3.30; P = .008), major neurologic abnormality (13% vs 5%; OR, 2.60; 95% CI, 1.06 to 6.36; P = .036), and neurodevelopmental impairment (47% vs 28%; OR, 1.83; 95% CI, 1.11 to 3.03; P = .018) at 20 months' CA, even when adjusting for confounding factors. CONCLUSIONS: Extremely low birth weight infants with grades I-II IVH have poorer neurodevelopmental outcomes at 20 months' CA than infants with normal cranial ultrasound. Advanced radiologic imaging may indicate additional brain injury associated with grade I-II IVH, which could explain these outcomes.
Assuntos
Encéfalo/fisiopatologia , Hemorragia Cerebral/fisiopatologia , Paralisia Cerebral/etiologia , Ventrículos Cerebrais/patologia , Transtornos Cognitivos/etiologia , Transtornos Cognitivos/fisiopatologia , Surdez/etiologia , Deficiências do Desenvolvimento/etiologia , Doenças do Prematuro/fisiopatologia , Transtornos das Habilidades Motoras/etiologia , Hipertonia Muscular/etiologia , Hipotonia Muscular/etiologia , Hemorragia Cerebral/complicações , Hemorragia Cerebral/patologia , Paralisia Cerebral/diagnóstico , Paralisia Cerebral/fisiopatologia , Transtornos Cognitivos/diagnóstico , Surdez/diagnóstico , Demografia , Deficiências do Desenvolvimento/diagnóstico , Deficiências do Desenvolvimento/fisiopatologia , Ecoencefalografia , Humanos , Recém-Nascido , Recém-Nascido Prematuro , Recém-Nascido de muito Baixo Peso , Mães , Transtornos das Habilidades Motoras/diagnóstico , Transtornos das Habilidades Motoras/fisiopatologia , Hipertonia Muscular/diagnóstico , Hipertonia Muscular/fisiopatologia , Hipotonia Muscular/diagnóstico , Hipotonia Muscular/fisiopatologia , Índice de Gravidade de DoençaRESUMO
We extract the dynamics implicit in an algebraic fitted model Hamiltonian for the deuterium chromophore's vibrational motion in the molecule CDBrClF. The original model has four degrees of freedom, three positions and one representing interbond couplings. A conserved polyad allows in a semiclassical approach the reduction to three degrees of freedom. For most quantum states we can identify the underlying motion that when quantized gives the said state. Most of the classifications, identifications, and assignments are done by visual inspection of the already available wave function semiclassically transformed from the number representation to a representation on the reduced dimension toroidal configuration space corresponding to the classical action and angle variables. The concentration of the wave function density to lower dimensional subsets centered on idealized simple lower dimensional organizing structures and the behavior of the phase along such organizing centers already reveals the atomic motion. Extremely little computational work is needed.
RESUMO
Two sampling trips were undertaken in 1994 to determine the distribution of trace elements in the Upper Rio Grande and several of its tributaries. Water discharges decreased in the main stem of the Rio Grande from June to September, whereas dissolved concentrations of trace elements generally increased. This is attributed to dilution of base flow from snowmelt runoff in the June samples. Of the three major mining districts (Creede, Summitville, and Red River) in the Upper Rio Grande drainage basin, only the Creede District appears to impact the Rio Grande in a significant manner, with both waters and sediments having elevated concentrations of some trace elements considerably downriver. For example, dissolved zinc concentrations upriver of Willow Creek, which primarily drains the Creede District, were about 2-3 microg/L; immediately downstream of the Willow Creek confluence, concentrations were above 20 microg/L; and elevated concentrations occurred in the Rio Grande for the next 100 km. The Red River District does not significantly impact the Upper Rio Grande for most trace elements. Because of current water management practices, it is difficult to assess the impact of the Summitville District on the Upper Rio Grande. There are, however, large increases in many dissolved trace element concentrations as the Rio Grande passes through the San Luis Valley, coincident with elevated concentrations of those same trace elements in tributaries. Among these elements are As, B, Cr, Li, Mn, Mo, Ni, Sr, U, and V. None of the trace elements exceeded U.S. EPA primary drinking water standards in either survey, with the exception of cadmium in Willow Creek. Secondary drinking water standards were frequently violated, especially in tributaries draining areas where mining has occurred. Dissolved zinc (in Willow Creek in both June and September) was the only element that exceeded the EPA Water Quality Criteria for aquatic life of 120 microg/L.
Assuntos
Oligoelementos/análise , Poluentes Químicos da Água/análise , Animais , Colorado , Ecossistema , Monitoramento Ambiental , Humanos , Mineração , New Mexico , Valores de Referência , Abastecimento de ÁguaRESUMO
Se han creado pruebas sencillas pero útiles para el tamizaje de personas con visión disminuida en países en desarrollo. Estas pruebas, que miden la visión de lejos y de cerca y que se basan en el uso de una figura en E, fueron evaluadas y respaldadas mediante ensayos en que participaron personas de 4 a 90 años de edad, y se han puesto a prueba en los servicios de salud, educación y rehabilitación de 32 países en desarrollo. Se han calculado su sensibilidad y especificidad como instrumentos para la detección de la visión disminuída: en la prueba de visión a distancia, la sensibilidad es de 85 por ciento y la especificidad, de 96 por ciento; en la prueba de visión cercana, la sensibilidad es de 100 por ciento y la especificidad, de 84 por ciento. Se ha demostrado que el contenido y el formato de las pruebas son adecuados para países en desarrollo y se ha comprobado la utilidad de las mismas para el tamizaje de la visión disminuida
Simple but effective tests have been produced for screening subjects with low vision in developing countries. These tests of distance and near vision, based on the E test, were evaluated and validated in trials with people aged 490 years, and have been field tested in the health, education and rehabilitation services in 32 developing countries. Their sensitivity and specificity as screening tools for low vision have been calculated: sensitivity of 85% and specificity of 96% for the distance vision test, and sensitivity of 100% and specificity of 84% for the near vision test. The content and format of the tests have been demonstrated to be appropriate for developing countries, and their effectiveness for screening for low vision has been confirmed.
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Estudos de Casos e Controles , Programas de Rastreamento , Baixa Visão , Países em DesenvolvimentoRESUMO
PURPOSE: As shown in infected humans and in animal models of chlamydial infection, the major outer membrane protein (MOMP) of Chlamydia trachomatis is immunogenically potent. The purpose of this investigation was to test in the cynomolgus monkey model of trachoma a new extract of MOMP as a candidate vaccine against ocular chlamydial infection. METHOD: The nonionic detergent octyl-beta-D glucopyranoside (OGP) was used to extract MOMP from purified C. trachomatis (serovar C) elementary bodies. Protective immunization with OGP-MOMP by mucosal and systemic routes was compared in the cynomolgus monkey model of trachoma. All control and immunized monkeys were challenged by topical application of infectious C. trachomatis to the conjunctivae 35 days after the initiation of immunization. RESULTS: Immunization with OGP-extracted MOMP successfully induced chlamydia-specific local and systemic immunity to MOMP and to whole organism before challenge and early clearance of infection by systemically immunized monkeys. Although ocular disease was not significantly reduced in either immunized group compared to control animals, the lowest clinical and microbiologic disease scores developed in two animals in the mucosal group with the highest immunoglobulin A tear antibody titers at day 0 to 14, whereas higher tear and serum immunoglobulin G correlated with reduced disease in the systemically immunized group. CONCLUSIONS: These data demonstrate that despite evidence of vigorous MOMP-specific and other chlamydia-specific serologic and cell-mediated immunity, as well as anamnestic serologic responses to chlamydia, vaccination with OGP-MOMP was only partially protective against chlamydial ocular disease. The partial protection correlated best with tear immunoglobulin A responses after mucosal immunization and with local and systemic immunoglobulin G responses after peripheral immunization, suggesting that alternative chlamydial antigens may have to be considered in future vaccine development to induce more effective protective immunity and that evaluation of efficacy must be appropriate to route of immunization.
Assuntos
Proteínas da Membrana Bacteriana Externa/imunologia , Vacinas Bacterianas , Chlamydia trachomatis/imunologia , Porinas , Tracoma/prevenção & controle , Administração Oral , Administração Tópica , Animais , Anticorpos Antibacterianos/biossíntese , Proteínas da Membrana Bacteriana Externa/isolamento & purificação , Vacinas Bacterianas/imunologia , Células Cultivadas , Chlamydia trachomatis/isolamento & purificação , Túnica Conjuntiva/microbiologia , Eletroforese em Gel de Poliacrilamida , Glucosídeos , Imunidade Celular , Imunização/métodos , Imunoglobulina A Secretora/biossíntese , Imunoglobulina G/biossíntese , Ativação Linfocitária/imunologia , Macaca fascicularis , Lágrimas/imunologia , Tracoma/imunologia , VacinaçãoRESUMO
Academic achievement levels in 54 high functioning (IQ > 70) autistic subjects were compared with those of 41 normal controls, who did not differ significantly in age, IQ, gender, race, or SES from the autistic subjects. The measures of academic achievement used included portions of the Detroit Tests of Learning Aptitude-2, the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test, and the Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement. Based on prior neuropsychological findings, it was hypothesized that autistic subjects would not differ from controls on subtests assessing mechanical and procedural skills, but would differ on subtests measuring comprehension and interpretive skills. As predicted, the autistic subjects performed significantly less well than controls on comprehension tasks, but not on mechanical reading, spelling, and computational tasks. This pattern is at variance with the typical academic profile of individuals with disabilities in reading or spelling, but shares some features with the nonverbal learning disabilities.
Assuntos
Transtorno Autístico/psicologia , Escolaridade , Inteligência , Adolescente , Adulto , Testes de Aptidão , Transtorno Autístico/reabilitação , Criança , Formação de Conceito , Humanos , Masculino , Rememoração Mental , Resolução de Problemas , Aprendizagem Seriada , Percepção da FalaRESUMO
Trachoma was considered to have been 'eradicated' from the state of São Paulo, Brazil, until 1982 when a number of new cases of trachoma were reported in preschool children in Bebedouro, a small town in northwestern São Paulo. A household survey was undertaken to assess the prevalence and epidemiological characteristics of trachoma. A total of 2939 people of all ages was examined having been selected from a two-stage probalilistic household sampling frame based on census data. Overall, 7.2% of the population had evidence of one or more signs of trachoma and 2.1% had inflammatory trachoma. Inflammatory trachoma was more common in children aged one to ten years, especially in the peripheral urban and rural areas, and was more common in boys. The presence of chlamydia was confirmed by direct fluorescent antibody cytology. No cases of blindness due to trachoma were seen. A number of socioeconomic and hygiene variables were studied in order to determine the independent risk factors for trachoma in a household. Variables significantly associated with the occurrence of trachoma in the household were the number of children in the house aged one to ten years, the 'per capita' water consumption, the frequency of garbage collections, source of water, and the educational level of the head of household. Clustering of trachoma in different parts of this community was entirely explained by the concentration of households with these characteristics.