Objective The objective of this study was to assess the fear of falling and restriction of activities in the elderly of the city of Londrina (PR). Materials and method A cross-sectional study was conducted with individuals over 60 years old of both sexes. They were interviewed at their home with the Falls Efficacy Scale International - Brazil the Survey of Activities and Fear of Falling in the Elderly a socio-demographic and health perception questionnaire. Results The participants were 38 elderly people (mean age 71.6 ± 6.1 years) with a prevalence of women (68.4%). The occurrence of a fall in the last year was reported by 44.7% of the elderly, and the prevalence of the fear of falling again by 56.3%. In the evaluation of the Falls Efficacy Scale, 97.4% of participants reported fear of falling in at least one of the activities while 55.3% had score ≥ 23 points showing high risk for falls. Fifty two percent of the elders restricted their activity due the fear of falling. Conclusion These results show a high frequency of fear of falling associated with restriction of activities and individuals with a high risk potential for falls. The evaluation of this data contributes to establishing indicators and development of preventive strategies and specific interventions for the elderly with fear of falling.

ObjectiveThis study aimed to translate and culturally adapt the Falls Risk Awareness Questionnaire (FRAQ) for the elderly Brazilian population as well as to evaluate the internal consistency and reliability of this instrument. MethodThe study used internationally accepted guidelines for the cross-cultural adaptation process. The questionnaire in its final Portuguese version was then applied to 120 elderly people to assess the measurement properties. The participants were interviewed twice in the first assessment (examiners 1 and 2 at an interval of 30to60minutes) and again after 2 to 7 days by examiner 1. The internal consistency was assessed with Cronbach' s alpha coefficient. To evaluate the reliability of the intra- and inter-evaluators, the Kappa coefficient for categorical variables was used; for numeric variables, the intra-class correlation coefficient (2-way mixed model) and the respective 95% confidence intervals were used in addition to the concordance test of Bland and Altman. ResultsThe Brazilian version of the FRAQ was obtained while maintaining a semantic, idiomatic, cultural and conceptual equivalence. The internal consistency was α=0.95, while for intra-examiner reliability, an intrarater correlation coefficient (ICC-3,1) of 0.91 was obtained with an intra-class correlation Kappa coefficient of 0.89 and a Bland and Altman mean difference (bias) of -0.52. Regarding the inter-examiner reliability, the ICC=0.78, Kappa=0.76 and bias=0.12. ConclusionsThe translation and cultural adaptation of the FRAQ for the elderly Brazilian population was successfully performed. The instrument demonstrated excellent reliability and internal consistency, thus making it useful for assessing the perception of the risk of a fall among elderly Brazilians.

The ankle sprain is the most frequently found acute injury in volleyball. Aiming to prevent the occurrence of ankle injuries, prophylactic equipment as the bracing had been developed. This study had the purpose to evaluate the performance of the ankle muscles (tibialis anterior, peroneous longus, and medial and lateral gastrocnemius) by measuring the electrical activity in different volleyball activities (vertical jumping and lateral shuffling) with and without using ankle bracing. Nine young female volleyball athletes with ages ranging from 14 to 17 years (x: 15.8 ± 1.3) were evaluated, all of them without previous injuries in the dominant member. Maximal voluntary isometric contractions (MVIC) of each muscle was collected, and after that, the electromyographic activity in different situations with and without using the bracing, randomly. The bracing used had two lateral supports. The electromyographic signal was quantified by the root mean square (RMS), and normalized by the MVIC. Analysis of the variance with repeated measurement was used to verify the difference of the electric activity of the muscles involved in each activity, with and without using the bracing, with 5% (p < 0.05) significance level. It was identified a statistically significant difference in phase I of the jumping in favor of the tibialis anterior (p < 0.001) and in phase II in favor of the three flexors muscles (p < 0.001; p = 0.01; p = 0.003) in both situations, with and without using the bracing. As to the lateral jump activity, a significant difference was observed in the phase of braked in favor of the tibialis anterior and the lateral gastrocnemius (p = 0.013) in both situations. It was found no statistical difference among muscles of the two groups. Results suggest that using the ankle bracing cannot influence the electrical activity of the muscles studied during the vertical jumping and the lateral shuffling.

Summary Introduction: Advancing age increases the risk for a number of chronic diseases. Hypertension and dizziness are highly prevalent in the elderly population and represent major health problems. Objective: To verify the association between complaints of dizziness and the presence of hypertension in non-institutionalized elders. Method: This was a prospective cross-sectional cohort study of the elderly population of Londrina, Paraná in terms of aging and longevity. The required sample size was calculated, and subjects e” 60 years of age of both genders were selected at random. Data were collected using a questionnaire covering socio-demographic information and self-reported cases of hypertension and dizziness. Statistical analysis was performed using the chi-square test with p d” 0.05 as the level of significance. Results: The study included 493 elderly subjects, of whom 257 (52.1%) complained of dizziness and 308 (62.5%) reported a diagnosis of arterial systemic hypertension. Dizziness was significantly associated with hypertension (χ2 = 6.26, p = 0.01) and female sex. Conclusions: Hypertension and dizziness were both highly prevalent and were significantly associated, showing the great need for investments in preventive measures.

The purpose of this survey was to estimate the prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms (MS) and identify the related factors in professionals of administrative sectors who work predominantly seated. An analytical observational cross-sectional study was carried out in a federal public institution in the country's southern region. The Nordic questionnaire was used to estimate the prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms, being considered dependent variable for the association analysis of the number of reports. After validation by judges, 19 independent variables were selected for study, being three sociodemographic, four behavioral, six occupational, and six health variables. A univariate analysis was performed and then multiple regression of Poisson with robust variance. The independent variables were inserted by blocks in hierarchical model with backward stepwise criterion, considering p<0.20. The effect measures were expressed in average Relative Increase (RI), having data analyzed for a significance level of 5% and confidence intervals in 95%. 451 workers took part of the survey, with mean age of 44.4 years, the most part females (54.5%), with higher education or graduate studies (81.2%), non-smokers (84.2%), and practicing physical activities (53.9%). The mean time seated per day at work was 6.5 hours, at home or other places 3.1 hours, and the time in sitting-posture occupations was 20.3 years. The prevalence of MS in the last 12 months was 90% CI95% [87%-93%], being the most affected areas: lumbar spine with 61%, followed by neck with 49.7%, and shoulders 49.4%. The ergonomic conditions were considered to be good and 81.1% of the workers presented good or great work capability index (WCI). Regarding health, 55.2% were with waist circumference above recommended level, 54.1% used drug products in the last twelve months, and 61.7% and 44.8% presented low flexibility and muscular resistance, respectively. In the final model of regression analysis, the female variables (RI=14.75%), low WCI (RI=100.02%), and mild WCI (RI=64.06%), use of drug products (RI=48.06%), and waist circumference at risk (RI=15.59%), had significant association with the increase of MS average. The education with technical instruction acted as a protection factor by reducing the average by 36.46%. Aware of this context, improvement measures can be proposed, e.g., perform adaptations in the work environment and changes in the work organization, aiming more physical activities and reduction of time seated per day. In addition to other benefits, these actions contribute directly in reducing the lumbar spine pressure and increasing the consumption of energy, what may contribute in reducing abdominal obesity, and indirectly in improving the capability for work. Another substantial measure is the treatment to the high presence of symptoms, because every pain, tingling or numbness needs immediate care, avoiding potential disabling injuries in the future. Therefore, the health of these workers needs specific care and greater attention, with expanded vi...

OBJETIVOS: Estimar a prevalência de sintomas osteomusculares e analisar os fatores a eles associados em profissionais de setores administrativos que trabalham predominantemente na postura sentada. MÉTODOS: Trata-se de estudo transversal com dados obtidos de 451 trabalhadores de instituição pública federal na região Sul do país. A variável dependente foi o número de sintomas osteomusculares nos últimos 12 meses, aferido utilizando-se o Questionário Nórdico de Sintomas Osteomusculares. Foram investigadas 19 variáveis independentes, divididas em quatro categorias: características sociodemográficas, comportamentais, ocupacionais e de saúde. Foi realizada análise univariada e, na sequência, regressão múltipla de Poisson com variância robusta. As variáveis independentes foram inseridas em blocos com critério backward stepwise, considerando o valor para estatística de Wald igual a 0,20. As medidas de efeito foram expressas em aumento relativo (AR) no valor médio, sendo os dados analisados para um nível de significância de 5%. RESULTADOS: A prevalência estimada de sintomas osteomusculares nos últimos 12 meses foi de 90% (intervalo de confiança – IC95% 87–93). No modelo final da análise de regressão, as variáveis sexo feminino (AR = 14,75%), índice de capacidade para o trabalho baixo (AR = 100,02%) e moderado (AR = 64,06%), uso de medicamentos (AR = 48,06%) e circunferência da cintura em risco (AR = 15,59%) tiveram associação significativa com o aumento da média de sintomas; já a escolaridade com ensino técnico atuou como fator de proteção, reduzindo a média em 36,46%. CONCLUSÕES: A alta prevalência de sintomas osteomusculares encontrada e os fatores associados indicam a necessidade de propor ações e cuidados específicos para essa população, como tratamento imediato dos sintomas e mudanças na organização e no ambiente laboral, a fim de alcançar equilíbrio e harmonia nas exigências do trabalho sentado prolongado e evitar o impacto dessa condição na saúde pública. DESCRITORES: Saúde do Trabalhador. Medidas de Associação, Exposição, Risco ou Desfecho. Transtornos Traumáticos Cumulativos. Postura. Estilo de Vida Sedentário.

A Atenção Primária à Saúde, também chamada de Atenção Básica é a principal porta de entrada e o centro de comunicação com toda a Rede de Atenção no Sistema Único de Saúde. Deve ofertar ações de saúde individuais, familiares e coletivas que visem a promoção, proteção, diagnóstico, tratamento e reabilitação, através de equipe multiprofissional. Diante disso, o objetivo do estudo é estabelecer uma articulação teórico-prática entre atributos, elementos constituintes do processo de trabalho e a realidade do serviço. Trata-se de um relato de experiência, decorrente de uma atividade vinculada à prática do módulo Programa de Integração Ensino Serviço Comunidade II do curso de Medicina, realizada em uma Unidade Saúde da Família de um município da região oeste do Paraná. Para coleta de dados, utilizou-se um formulário prévio desenvolvido pelos docentes, com base na literatura, no intuito de direcionar a atividade de acordo com as temáticas propostas para investigação. Identificou-se, a partir das experiências analisadas, consideráveis avanços no modelo de saúde brasileiro. Entretanto, fragilidades foram identificadas nas ações de promoção da saúde e nos atributos essenciais deste modelo de atenção. Contudo, entende-se que através de ações de educação permanente e educação popular em saúde os processos de trabalho em saúde podem ser desenvolvidos e aprimorados visando sanar as debilidades identificadas.

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