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RESUMO: O desenvolvimento da Fisioterapia, aliado às mudanças na educação e na saúde, faz com que a autonomia e os dilemas éticos do fisioterapeuta sejam maiores a cada dia, expandindo seu papel no cuidado do paciente. Para além do Código de Ética, as noções de Bioética são centrais no preparo de graduandos para os desafios profissionais. Este estudo verificou a capacidade de tomar decisões éticas de alunos no último ano de Fisioterapia de duas universidades na cidade de São Paulo, das quais uma oferece no currículo a disciplina Bioética e a outra não. Cinqüenta alunos de cada universidade responderam a um questionário sobre dilemas éticos correspondentes a artigos do Código de Ética; cada questão oferecia três alternativas de resposta: uma bioética, outra referente ao Código e uma não-ética. As respostas foram analisadas estatisticamente. Os resultados mostraram um bom preparo ético em pouco mais de metade dos alunos das duas universidades, sugerindo que ambas oferecem preparo ético similar aos graduandos, independente da diferença curricular. No entanto, os alunos da universidade que oferece Bioética tiveram resultados significantemente melhores nos quesitos referentes à relação com outros profissionais da saúde, sugerindo que essa disciplina oferece melhores condições para o relacionamento interprofissional, fator importante tanto na prática clínica quanto para elevar o status da Fisioterapia. DESCRITORES: Bioética; Ética profissional; Fisioterapia/educação ABSTRACT: Physical therapy recent expansion, along with changes in education and health, enhance physical therapists' role in patient care, while increasing both their autonomy and the ethical challenges they face in daily clinic. In addition to knowledge of the professional ethical code, notions of Bioethics are thought to be central to students training. This study analysed the ability to make ethical decisions among 100 physical therapy undergraduate students at two universities in São Paulo, of which only one offers the discipline Bioethics. Fifty students of each university answered a questionnaire of dilemmas related to items of the Physical Therapy Code of Ethics; for each question there was a choice between three answers, bioethical, in accordance with the ethical code, or non-ethical. Answers were statistically analysed. About half the students of both universities seemed to be satisfactorily prepared to act ethically, thus suggesting that both offer similar ethical training, regardless of curricula differences. However, students from the university that offers Bioethics had significantly better results in questions concerning the relationship with other health providers, thereby suggesting that this discipline may provide better student training for inter-professional relationship, which is important both to clinical practice and to raise physical therapy status.

BackgroundWe evaluated cardiac autonomic modulation in women with chronic ischemic stroke (at least 4 years post-stroke) at rest and in response to submaximal exercise test.MethodsFourteen post-stroke women (S group) and 10 healthy women (C group) participated in this study. Autonomic modulation (using linear and nonlinear analysis), blood pressure and metabolic variables at rest were evaluated immediately after the exercise test and during the recovery period (20 min). All participants underwent submaximal exercise test on cycle ergometer with gas analysis.ResultsAt rest, the S group displayed higher lactate concentration, systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) values when compared to C group. Furthermore, the S group had lower heart rate variability (HRV) in time domain (SDNN: S = 30 ± 5 vs. 40 ± 8 ms; rMSSD: S = 14 ± 2 vs. C = 34 ± 3 ms), decreased high frequency band of pulse interval (S = 8.4 ± 2 vs. 33.1 ± 9 %) and 2V pattern of symbolic analysis (S = 17.3 ± 1 vs. 30 ± 3 %) (both indicators of cardiac vagal modulation) when compared to C group. Immediately after exercise, S group presented higher values of lactate, SBP, DBP and double product when compared to C group, as well as decreased heart rate recovery (HRR) measured at the first, second and third minutes. At recovery time, all HRV parameters in time and frequency domains improved in the S group; however, HF band remained lower when compared to C group.ConclusionsAfter the exercise test, women with chronic stroke presented reduced heart rate variability, reduced cardiac vagal modulation, as well as reduced HRR, while displayed an improvement of heart rate variability and cardiac vagal modulation when compared to their baseline. These results reinforce the importance of a physically active lifestyle for cardiovascular autonomic disorders observed in chronic stroke women.

OBJECTIVES:Acute post-stroke patients present cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction, which manifests as lower heart rate variability and impaired baroreflex sensitivity. However, few studies performed to date have evaluated cardiovascular autonomic function in chronic post-stroke patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate cardiovascular autonomic modulation in chronic post-ischemic stroke patients.METHODS:The seventeen enrolled subjects were divided into a stroke group (SG, n=10, 5±1 years after stroke) and a control group (CG, n=7). Non-invasive curves for blood pressure were continuously recorded (Finometer®) for 15 minutes while the subject was in a supine position. Heart rate variability and blood pressure variability were analyzed in the time and frequency domains.RESULTS:No differences were observed in systolic and diastolic pressure and heart rate between post-stroke patients and healthy individuals. The SG group had lower indexes for heart rate variability in the time domain (standard deviation of normal to normal R-R intervals, SDNN; variance of normal to normal R-R intervals, VarNN; and root mean square differences of successive R-R intervals, RMSSD) and a lower high-frequency band for heart rate variability than was observed in the CG. Systolic blood pressure variability and the low-frequency band for systolic pressure were higher in post-stroke patients, while the alpha index was lower in the SG than in the CG.CONCLUSION:After ischemic stroke, affected patients present chronically reduced heart rate variability, impaired cardiac vagal modulation, increased systolic blood pressure variability and higher sympathetic vascular modulation along with impaired baroreflex sensitivity, which can increase the risk of cardiovascular events, despite adequate blood pressure control.

Aims: (Stroke patients often present sensory-motor alterations and less aerobic capacity. Joint position sense, which is crucial for balance and gait control, is also affected in stroke patients). To compare the effect of two exercise training protocols (walking in deep water and on a treadmill) on the knee position sense of stroke patients. Methods: This study was designed as a randomized controlled clinical trial. Twelve adults, who suffered a stroke at least one year prior to the start of the study, were randomly assigned to one of two groups: 1) pool group submitted to aerobic deep water walking training; and 2) the treadmill group which was submitted to aerobic walk on a treadmill. Measurements: The position sense, absolute error and variable error, of the knee joint was evaluated prior to and after nine weeks of aerobic training. Results: The pool group presented smaller absolute (13.9 o versus 6.1 o ; p < 0.05) and variable (9.2 o versus 3.9 o ; p < 0.05) errors after nine-weeks gait training than the treadmill group. Conclusions: Nineweek aerobic exercise intervention in aquatic environment improved precision in the position sense of the knee joint of stroke patients, suggesting a possible application in a rehabilitation program.

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The aim of this review is to evaluate studies about gait training and exercise interventions applied to patients following chronic stroke on gait and balance. The studies included in this review were random clinical trials, including only chronic post-stroke individuals that evaluated gait and balance outcomes and with a PEDro scale score ≥ 7.0. Eight studies were selected. The results suggest gait and balance will only be affected in chronic post-stroke patients if training sessions last at least 30 minutes, are repeated three times a week, and maintained for at least five weeks. Gait training affects how chronic post-stroke individuals walk. They will probably walk faster and with a lower risk of falling; however, it is unclear whether the consequences of these procedures affect the quality of life.