Obesity is a chronic disease characterized by the excessive accumulation of body fat that is harmful to the individuals. Respiratory disorders are among the comorbidities associated with obesity. This study had the objective of investigating the alterations in respiratory function that affect obese individuals. A systematic review was performed, by selecting publications in the science databases MEDLINE and LILACS, using PubMed and SciELO. The articles that assessed pulmonary function by plethysmography and/or spirometry in obese individuals aged under 18 years were included. The results demonstrated that the obese individuals presented with a reduction in lung volume and capacity as compared to healthy individuals. Reduction of total lung capacity and reduction of forced vital capacity, accompanied by reduction of the forced expiratory volume after one second were the most representative findings in the samples. The articles analyzed proved the presence of a restrictive respiratory pattern associated with obesity.

Background. Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a serious disease associated with high morbidity and mortality. Scientific findings showed that physical exercise is an option for treatment of these patients. This study's objective is to investigate the effects of supervised aerobic and/or resistance physical training on inflammatory markers in subjects with T2DM. Methods. A systematic review was conducted on four databases, MEDLINE, CENTRAL, LILACS, and Scopus, and manual search from 21 to 30 November 2016. Randomized clinical trials involving individuals diagnosed with T2DM, who have undergone supervised training protocols, were selected in this study. Results. Eleven studies were included. Studies that evaluated control group versus aerobic exercise reported controversial results about the effectiveness of physical training in modifying C-reactive protein (CRP) and cytokine levels. The only variable analyzed by the six studies in comparison to the control group versus resistance exercise was CRP. This protein showed no significant difference between groups. Between the two modes of exercise (aerobic and resistance), only one study demonstrated that aerobic exercise was more effective in reducing CRP. Conclusion. The evidence was insufficient to prove that aerobic or resistance exercise improves systemic levels of inflammatory markers in patients with T2DM.

This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the autonomic response of older women in the six-minute walk test. In total, 32 women aged 60 years or older without a diagnosed health problem were evaluated during the six-minute walk test. To monitor the autonomic response, the following variables were considered: heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, respiratory rate, and perceived exertion. These variables were compared during rest, effort, and recovery. This study also sought a correlation between autonomic function variables and performance in the test and perceived exertion. Results showed that the effort made by older women in the six-minute walk test induces an autonomic response resulting in increased heart rate and systolic and diastolic blood pressure; however, the respiratory rate remained unchanged during the test. Diastolic blood pressure remained high during recovery. No correlation was found neither between perceived exertion and cardiovascular physiological response nor between distance covered and variation of the autonomic response or level of physical conditioning. Therefore, the effort spent in the six-minute walk test promotes an autonomic response in older women, increasing cardiovascular stress without increasing ventilation. In this context, the Borg scale was not representative of cardiovascular stress during the test.

Objetivo: investigar a correlação entre a participação em Atividades de Integração do Conhecimento (AIC) baseadas em problematização e o rendimento de acadêmicos de Fisioterapia na disciplina de Biofísica. Métodos: realizou-se um estudo retrospectivo, com amostra composta por 35 estudantes do primeiro ano do curso de Fisioterapia, que estavam matriculados na referida disciplina. As AIC constituem atividades que estimulam os alunos à resolução de problemas com base nos conhecimentos teóricos estudados nas aulas. Os dados foram coletados no sistema acadêmico da disciplina, que é continuamente alimentado. A análise para verificar se os dados seguiam uma distribuição normal foi feita por meio do teste Kolmogorov-Smirnov. Para dados com distribuição normal, procedeu-se à análise de correlação de Pearson; para aqueles em que se rejeitou a hipótese de nulidade, utilizou-se o teste de correlação de Spearman. Consideraram-se significantes os resultados com p≤0,05. Resultados: a pontuação obtida nas atividades correlacionou-se positivamente com as notas das avaliações escritas nos trimestres para as unidades 1 (rho=0,69; p≤0,01; n=35), 2 (rho=0,44; p≤0,01; n=35) e 3 (rho=0,46; p≤0,01; n=34). No trimestre 4, porém, não houve correlação significativa; atribui-se tal resultado às desistências dos alunos que tinham notas muito baixas no último trimestre. Houve correlação negativa entre a frequência dos alunos e o rendimento (rho=-0,50; p≤0,01; n=35). Conclusões: alunos que participam assiduamente de atividades baseadas em problematização têm melhor rendimento na disciplina de Biofísica, apresentando-se como estratégia para a flexibilização do método tradicional.