There is evidence of the effect of air pollutants on asthma hospitalization in a medium-sized city in Southeast Brazil.

There is a demonstrable association between exposure to air pollutants and deaths due to cardiovascular diseases. The objective of this study was to estimate the effects of exposure to sulfur dioxide on mortality due to circulatory diseases in individuals 50 years of age or older residing in São José dos Campos, SP. This was a time-series ecological study for the years 2003 to 2007 using information on deaths due to circulatory disease obtained from Datasus reports. Data on daily levels of pollutants, particulate matter, sulfur dioxide (SO2), ozone, temperature, and humidity were obtained from the São Paulo State Environmental Agency. Moving average models for 2 to 7 days were calculated by Poisson regression using the R software. Exposure to SO2 was analyzed using a unipollutant, bipollutant or multipollutant model adjusted for mean temperature and humidity. The relative risks with 95%CI were obtained and the percent decrease in risk was calculated. There were 1928 deaths with a daily mean (± SD) of 1.05 ± 1.03 (range: 0-6). Exposure to SO2 was significantly associated with mortality due to circulatory disease: RR = 1.04 (95%CI = 1.01 to 1.06) in the 7-day moving average, after adjusting for ozone. There was an 8.5% decrease in risk in the multipollutant model, proportional to a decrease of SO2 concentrations. The results of this study suggest that residents of medium-sized Brazilian cities with characteristics similar to those of São José dos Campos probably have health problems due to exposure to air pollutants.

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: Little has been discussed about the increased risk of stroke after exposure to air pollutants, particularly in Brazil. The mechanisms through which air pollution can influence occurrences of vascular events such as stroke are still poorly understood. The aim of this study was to estimate the association between exposure to some air pollutants and risk of death due to stroke.DESIGN AND SETTING: Ecological time series study with data from São José dos Campos, Brazil.METHODS: Data on deaths due to stroke among individuals of all ages living in São José dos Campos and on particulate matter, sulfur dioxide and ozone were used. Statistical analysis was performed using a generalized additive model of Poisson regression with the Statistica software, in unipollutant and multipollutant models. The percentage increase in the risk of increased interquartile difference was calculated.RESULTS: There were 1,032 deaths due to stroke, ranging from 0 to 5 per day. The statistical significance of the exposure to particulate matter was ascertained in the unipollutant model and the importance of particulate matter and sulfur dioxide, in the multipollutant model. The increases in risk were 10% and 7%, for particulate matter and sulfur dioxide, respectively.CONCLUSION: It was possible to identify exposure to air pollutants as a risk factor for death due to stroke, even in a city with low levels of air pollution.

BACKGROUNDCutaneous melanoma is a skin cancer with low incidence but high mortality rates. Several factors are associated with increased risk of melanoma, such as excessive sun exposure, fair skin, and family history, among others. Little is known about the spatial distribution of this cancer in Brazil.OBJECTIVETo identify, through the use of geostatistical tools, spatial clusters of municipalities in the state of São Paulo based on their incidence of cutaneous melanoma.METHODSThis was an ecological and exploratory study of data on new cases obtained from Fundação Oncocentro for the period 1 January 2006-31 December 2011. Cases were separated by gender and rates per 100,000 inhabitants were calculated and used to compile thematic maps, Moran maps and kernel maps, using TerraView software.RESULTSThere were 3,172 new cases of cutaneous melanoma in the study period. High rates were identified in the North, Northwest, Southwest, and Southeast regions of São Paulo state. Global Moran's I values were statistically significant (p<0.05) at 0.12, 0.08, and 0.16, respectively, for males, females, and all cases. Areas such as the Southeast, North, and Northwest of São Paulo were identified as being of high priority for intervention.CONCLUSION Spatial clusters of municipalities with high incidence rates of cutaneous melanoma in the state of São Paulo were identified. These data can serve as an important input for public health agencies.

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Objective: to estimate the association between exposure to air pollutants and hospital admissions for asthma. Methods: this is an ecological study of time series, which included individuals from 0 to10 years living in Sao Jose dos Campos, for the period 2004 to 2005.Data of hospitalizations for asthma were obtained from DATASUS. The data of ambient levels of particulate matter, sulfur dioxideand ozone were obtained from the Company of Technology of Environmental Sanitation (CETESB) and temperature and humidity from the Foundation for Science, Technology and Space Applications(FUNCATE). Lag models have been made from 0 to 7 days and analyzed by binary logistic regression,yielding odds ratios and their confidence intervals of 95% by SPSS 15.0. Results: there were 809admissions, ranging from 0 to 7. It was possible to identify an association of the particulate matterboth on the same day of exposure and the next third, fifth and sixth days with the admissions; sulfurdioxide was associated with hospitalizations in the first, second and third days after exposure andozone on the third day after exposure to gas. Thus, this study showed an association between airpollutants and asthma hospitalization in a medium-sized city.

Der Hippokampus ist aufgrund seiner vielschichtigen Anatomie, seiner erstaunlichen Funktionen, seiner Wechselbeziehungen zu anderen Strukturen und der damit verbundenen Symptome eine der komplexesten Strukturen im Gehirn. Zwar wird diese Struktur schon seit Jahrhunderten analysiert, doch ihre Anatomie und Physiologie im menschlichen Körper sowie die damit zusammenhängenden Krankheitsbilder und potenziellen Biomarker sind nach wie vor Objekte intensiver Forschungsbemühungen. Der Hippokampus kann von einer Vielzahl von Krankheiten betroffen sein. Dabei kann zwischen kongenitalen, degenerativen, infektiösen oder inflammatorischen, neoplastischen, vaskulären oder toxisch-metabolischen Erkrankungen unterschieden werden. Im vorliegenden Beitrag stellen die Autoren die Anatomie samt angrenzenden Strukturen, die Funktion und die Entwicklung des Hippokampus sowie einen neuartigen Algorithmus für die bildgebende Diagnose vor. Dieser Algorithmus berücksichtigt Erkrankungen, die typischerweise den Hippokampus betreffen. Diese werden anschließend zur besseren Eingrenzung der Differenzialdiagnose in noduläre (raumfordernde) und nicht noduläre Krankheitsbilder unterteilt. Die MRT ist das bevorzugte bildgebende Verfahren zur Beurteilung des Hippokampus, aber auch die CT und die Nuklearmedizin können zur Analyse beitragen. Die MRT-Differenzialdiagnose hängt von der anatomischen Erkennung und der sorgfältigen Charakterisierung begleitender Bildgebungsbefunde ab. Beispiele dafür sind etwa volumetrische Veränderungen, Diffusionsrestriktion, ein zystisches Erscheinungsbild, Hyperintensität in der T1w Bildgebung, Kontrastmittelanreicherung oder Kalzifikation. Diese bildgebenden Befunde spielen neben den klinischen Befunden eine zentrale Rolle bei der Diagnose. Einige Krankheitsbilder, die von