Introduction: Depressive disorders can be defined as episodes of depressed mood or loss of interest and pleasure in nearly all activities. Depression is considered a major mental disorder in the elderly, and may be related to quality of sleep and living habits as well as being influenced by sociodemographic factors. Objective: To determine the prevalence of depression among the elderly in the north-east of Brazil, and the relationship between the condition and socio-demographic profile, quality of sleep and living habits. Method: An epidemiological cross-sectional study was performed of the elderly population of the urban area of Campina Grande, Paraiba. The dependent variable presence of depression and the independent variables sociodemographic aspects, sleep quality, and living habits were investigated. Estimates of the prevalence of the variables were obtained and association measured using Poisson Regression. A 5% significance level was adopted for the estimates. Results: The study included 168 elderly patients with a mean age of 72.3 (±7.8) years, most of whom, 122 (72.6%), were women. Depression was identified in 72 elderly persons (42.9%). Elderly women were twice as associated with depression (PR=2.26) as men. A subjective quality of sleep of very good (PR=0.34), medium/high risk of sleep disturbance (PR = 4.08), taking sleeping medications once or twice (PR=5.21) and three times or more (PR=8.69) a week, daytime dysfunction once or twice (PR=14.40) and three times or more (PR=27) a week and poor quality of sleep on the Pittsburgh index were associated with depression in bivariate analysis, although there was no relationship following multivariable adjustment. Conclusion: The prevalence of depression was high in the studied population, being noticeably more frequent among elderly woman. However, it was not possible to detect an association between depression and living habits and sleep quality.

OBJETIVO: Este estudo teve como objetivo descobrir a influência da atividade física na percepção de qualidade de vida (QV) e finitude de indivíduos praticantes e não praticantes de atividade física e de dança em salões de dança da grande Florianópolis-SC. MÉTODOS: Participaram por conveniência 195 indivíduos com média de idade de 63,7±9,6 anos, sendo 119 dos salões de dança, 50 praticantes de atividade física (AF), e 26 que não realizam AF. Optou-se por um questionário autoaplicável composto de instrumentos previamente validados (Whoqol abreviado e Finitude de Sheppard). A análise foi descritiva e inferencial por meio do teste do Qui-quadrado e ANOVA. RESULTADOS: A qualidade de vida pode ser considerada positiva com escores que variaram de 70,3 a 58,9% entre seus domínios, tendo uma percepção positiva da finitude, no qual o grupo que realiza dança (79,8%) destacou-se em relação aos demais (p= 0,035). CONCLUSÃO: De acordo com os resultados, entende-se que a prática da dança como AF pode contribuir na percepção positiva da QV e na finitude.

RESUMO:Este artigo pretende explorar a fundamentação teórica e filosófica da pedagogia crítica no Humanismo Marxista através do conceito de práxis (revolucionária) e através de uma investigação sobre o papel da solidariedade na superação da opressão. Mais precisamente, ele examina a vasta obra teórica sobre o Humanismo Marxista e como suas perspectivas sobre a opressão, alienação, libertação e revolução são essencialmente ligadas ao conceito de práxis, que é central para a pedagogia crítica de Paulo Freire. A solidariedade, que normalmente é apresentada de forma tangencial à discussão, torna-se um dos pontos focais do argumento, enfatizando totalidade e coletividade em uma visão de libertação destinada à abolição e superação (aufheben).Palavras-chave: Humanismo marxista. Pedagogia crítica. Práxis. Solidariedade. Libertação. Critical pedagogy as Humanistic Marxist praxis: perspectives on solidarity, oppression, and revolutionABSTRACT: This article aims to explore the theoretical and philosophical basis of critical pedagogy in Marxist Humanism by analyzing the concept of (revolutionary) praxis and investigating the role of solidarity in overcoming oppression. More to the point, it attempts to examine the extensive theoretical work on Marxist Humanism and to find out how the visions about oppression, alienation, liberation and revolution are essentially linked to the concept of praxis, which is central to the critical pedagogy of Paulo Freire. Solidarity, which is usually presented tangentially to the discussion, becomes one of the key points of the argument, emphasizing totality and community when referring to liberation aimed to abolition and overcoming (aufheben).

It was found that the behavioral, biopsychological, and socioeconomic factors seem to interfere with overweight and obesity in students of Florianópolis.

Background Self-rated Health (SRH) is regarded as a simple and valid measure of a person’s health status, given its association to adverse health outcomes, including low physical performance in older populations. However, studies investigating these associations in low- and middle-income settings are scarce, especially for middle-aged populations. Understanding the validity of SRH in relation to objective health measures in low-income populations could assist in decision making about health policy and strategies, especially in under-resourced settings. Objective Assess the relationship between SRH and physical performance measures in middle-aged and older women in a low-income setting of Brazil. Methods This is a cross-sectional study of 571 middle-aged (40–59 years old) and older (60–80 years old) women living in Parnamirim and Santa Cruz in the Northeast region of Brazil. Participants reported their health status and were allocated to the “SRH good” or “SRH poor” groups. The physical performance evaluation included: handgrip strength, one-legged balance with eyes open and closed and chair stand test. The relationship between SRH and physical performance for middle-aged and older women was assessed by quantile regression (modeling medians) adjusted for potential confounders (age, socioeconomic variables, body mass index, menopause status, age at first birth, parity, chronic conditions and physical activity). Results Middle-aged women from the “SRH good” group presented better physical performance with 1.75 kgf stronger handgrip strength (95% CI [0.47–3.02]; p = 0.004), 1.31 s longer balance with eyes closed ([0.00–2.61]; p = 0.030), and they were 0.56 s faster in the chair stand test ([0.18–0.94]; p = 0.009) than those who reported “SRH poor”. No association was found for balance with eyes open. For older women, there was no evidence of associations between physical performance and SRH. Conclusion This study showed that SRH is significantly associated with objective measures of physical performance in a sample of low-income middle-aged women. SRH can be an important tool to indicate the need for further evaluation of physical performance among middle-aged women and can be particularly useful for low-income communities.

Background At a time when the world’s population is aging, one of the most important challenges for the healthcare field is to control the decline of the musculoskeletal system. This decline consists of a reduction in muscle mass and function, which is called sarcopenia and is associated with adverse health outcomes. Although there has been an increase in the number of publications on sarcopenia and its consequences, the reported prevalence varies widely, since these depend on the characteristics of the population studied, the definitions found in the literature and the cut-off points adopted. In this perspective, the heterogeneity in the classification and the different reference values has a critical impact on the epidemiology of sarcopenia, since neither the procedures, the components and the cut-off points are consistent. Objectives To develop cut-off points for the screening of sarcopenia in community-dwelling older people residents in the northeast of Brazil and compare the prevalences between the values defined by the consensus and the values of the population studied. Methods Community-dwelling older men and women living in three cities in the countryside of Rio Grande do Norte were evaluated. Cutoff points were defined for the variables used to screen for sarcopenia (handgrip strength, SMI, gait speed and SPPB) using the 20th percentile of their population distributions. Results The sample was composed of 1,290 older people (62.5% female and 37.5% male), with an average of 69.5 (± 6.05) years of age. Regarding the cutoff points, the handgrip values were defined as 25.3 kg and 16 kg for men and women, respectively. Considering the SMM adjusted according to their height, the values of 7.88 kg/m2 were adopted for men and 5.52 kg/m2 for women. When adjusting by BMI we obtained 0.73 kg/BMI for men and 0.41 kg/BMI for women. For gait speed it was defined 0.71 m/s for men and 0.63 m/s for women. In the case of SPPB, the result was the same for both genders (≤8). When applying the values found in the studied population, a variation in prevalence was observed for both men and women, depending on the cut-off points and consensus used. Conclusion The cutoff values found in our population were lower than those adopted by international consensus (EWGSOP2, IWGS and FNIH), except for HGS in woman and SMI/m2 for men. Therefore, using specific cutoff points for different populations can provide an accurate assessment of the presence of sarcopenia and better target health prevention strategies for the older people living in the community.

This dissertation focuses on two problems in Brazilian left politics: fragmentation anddepoliticization. There is consensus inside the Brazilian left regarding its fragmentation, but the scenario requires a careful analysis of fragmentation since the conjunctural change of June 2013.The same can be said about depoliticization, explained here through the phenomena of post-politics and ultra-politics, and which is arguably the marker of the difficulties the left has found to mobilize the working class even as this class is under attack. This dissertation fills the gap in the literature by addressing these two problems from the Gramscian-influenced perspective of a crisis of praxis.The concept of a crisis of praxis is proposed to attend to the misalignment between theory and practice at the leftist organizational level that has led to melancholia and distance from the consciousness of the class, despite the potential held by new mobilizations -both spontaneous and organized. It is argued that without properly addressing fragmentation and depoliticization, the left will have trouble appealing to the working class, especially given the conclusions of a crisis of representation that was exposed in Brazil in June 2013 and capitalized on by right-wing conservative forces in order to foster political instability in their favour.ii This dissertation is dedicated to the loving memory of Simone Peres, who will continue to inspire those fighting for social justice in Brazil for years to come.iii AcknowledgementsThe path I began trailing in 2012 to write this dissertation is not the one where I ended up in 2016, and I am thankful for that. The idea for this dissertation was born from political and personal struggle, so change was a constant theme throughout. I could not have withstood this challenging course without the help of some incredible people. My first thank you goes to my doctoral supervisor Justin Paulson, who truly embodies the meaning of mentorship. Justin helped me craft the foundation of my research project at a turbulent political time, encouraging me to take on the challenge of studying revolution and counter-revolution as they happened. A careful listener, he guided me through fieldwork and all of my conflicts as a militant-researcher, including during moments of health-related distress, while, of course, helping me sail through programme requirements and those endless funding applications.

Objective: This study aims to compare the prevalence of metabolic syndrome between different age groups of middle-aged and older women and to assess whether these differences are independent of potential covariates. Methods: Study conducted with 510 women divided into three age groups: 45–54, 55–64 and 65–74 years. Socioeconomic, reproductive and lifestyle variables were self-reported. We defined metabolic syndrome using the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III criteria (abdominal obesity, diabetes, reduced high-density lipoprotein, elevated triglycerides, and hypertension). Logistic regression assessed the association between age groups, and metabolic syndrome was adjusted for covariates (socioeconomic variables, age at menarche and at first childbirth, parity, menopausal status, physical activity variables and smoking). Results: Women aged 55–64 years presented higher prevalence of all metabolic syndrome criteria than the other groups, except for abdominal obesity, which was higher in the oldest group. In the fully adjusted analysis, the 55–64 years age group continues to exhibit significantly higher odds of presenting metabolic syndrome when compared to the youngest group (45–54 years) (OR = 2.257; 95% CI = 1.20:4.24). There was no statistical difference in the odds of presenting metabolic syndrome when comparing the oldest and the youngest groups (OR = 1.500; 95% CI = 0.85:2.65). Conclusion: The higher prevalence of metabolic syndrome among those aged 55–64 years may indicate that middle-aged women become unhealthy earlier in the life course and that many of them may die prematurely. This result highlights the importance of screening metabolic syndrome earlier in the midlife and the need for public health policies aimed at reducing adverse effects in later years.