The SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2) Lambda variant rapidly diffused across Peru following its identification in December 2020, and had now spread worldwide. In this study, we investigated infodemiologic trends in symptomatology associated with the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) following the spread of SARS-CoV-2 Lambda variant in Peru, enabling infodemiologic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in regions with high circulation of this new variant. Weekly Google Trends scores were obtained for key symptom keywords between March 1st, 2020 and July 4th, 2021, whilst case count data were obtained from Peruvian Ministry of Health. Multiple time series linear regression was used to assess trends in each score series, using the week of December 27th as cutoff for emergence of the Lambda variant. The significance of such trends was tested for each time period, before and after the cutoff date. A total 2,075,484 confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infections in Peru in relation to Google Trends data were analyzed. After Lambda variant emergence, searches for diarrhea demonstrated a change from a negative to positive correlation with weekly case counts and anticipated dynamic changes in case counts by 1-5 weeks. Searches for shortness of breath and headache remained consistently positively correlated to weekly case counts before and after Lambda emergence. No changes in searches for other common cold symptoms were observed, while no specific trends were observed for taste loss or smell loss. Diarrhea, headache, and shortness of breath appear to be the most important symptoms for infodemiologic tracking the current outbreak in Peru and other regions with high circulation of SARS-CoV-2 Lambda variant.

OBJECTIVE: There is evidence that sweet substances such as saccharose can enhance the analgesic properties of endogenous opioids, leading to pain relief; it is also known that Cordyline dracaenoides Kunth, commonly known as uvarana, is used in folk medicine as an anti-inflammatory and analgesic agent. The aim of the present study was to compare the antinociceptive effects of uvarana aqueous extracts vs. saccharose in rats. METHOD: Twenty-four Wistar rats were used, divided into two groups of twelve, namely a uvarana and a saccharose group. Capsaicin was used to induce hyperalgesia and the nociceptive threshold was assessed every five minutes for a total of 50 minutes Baseline values were obtained and this was followed by administration of uvarana or saccharose at threedifferent concentrations (100, 250 and 300 g/L) The nociceptive threshold was assessed using the tail flick test. RESULT: In comparison to baseline values, uvarana and saccharose provoked significant and comparable antinociceptive effects at concentrations of 250 g/L and 300 g/L, respectively. CONCLUSION: Both substances caused similar antinociceptive effects in comparison to baseline values.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a global public health problem. Since the beginning of the pandemic, notified in March 2020, Brazil has shown high lethality from the disease in older adults. From 2012 to 2018, the country showed an increase of 20% in the older adults’ population. Despite the completeness of vaccine protocols against COVID-19 in the country, there is evidence that this age group, associated with the presence of comorbidities, can be a predictor of the occurrence of hospitalization and severe symptoms due to COVID-19. In this direction, this paper aimed to identify patterns and relationships between symptoms, comorbidities, gender, Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission, and survival status of older adults, fully vaccinated against COVID-19, hospitalized in Brazil. For this purpose, we perform association rules mining on the OpenDataSUS database. For the group of patients with comorbidity, associations with conditions of oxygen saturation (SpO2) <95%, dyspnea and death were predominant; The female sex was associated with survival and the presence of comorbidities, while the male sex with death and admission to the ICU; for patients admitted to the ICU and who died, associations with SpO2<95%, dyspnea, presence of comorbidities and use of ventilatory support were found. The association rule mining procedure has been shown to be useful in surveying the hospitalization profile of these patients.

Introduction: The concept of body posture involves balance, neuromuscular coordination and adaptation. Automatic postural responses are adjusted to meet the needs of interaction between systems of postural organization and the environment. Postural control is to maintain body position seeking stability and orientation in space, and the maintenance of posture and balance is directly related to three main systems: visual, vestibular and proprioceptive, whose junction ensures body balance. Other factors may be related to this control, such as the use of prostheses, among them the dentures that provide the balance of the mouth and jaws, through neuromuscular balance, helping to balance the body as a whole. Stabilometry assesses postural balance through the quantification of postural sway in the orthostatic position on a force platform. Objective: To evaluate the influence of the use of dental prostheses in maintaining balance and posture through baropodometry. Method: The study included 10 women with an average age of 65 years old, all using dental prosthesis, which remained on the platform for 30 seconds, with the prosthesis, repeating the procedure without the use of the prosthesis. Results: As the postural balance is given by the sum of the balance of all body structures, where all must be wholesome, and may include dental arch, in this case replaced by dental prosthesis, there was a direct contribution of using it over body balance as a whole, since there was a decrease in the number of oscillations of the body centroid and radial displacement, among individuals who use dental prosthesis. Conclusion: The present study demonstrated that there is a direct influence of the use of dental prostheses on posture and body balance.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the antinociceptive effect of a light emitting diode (LED) in the acute phase of pain induced by capsaicin. METHOD: Twelve Wistar rats were used, divided into a control and an experimental group. The pain process was induced in both groups by applying 50 microliters of a 2% capsaicin solution in the plantar region of the right hind limb. In the experimental group, a single application of LED 627 nm (70 mw, 7 Joules/cm 2 dose) was also applied. Nociception was assessed 30 minutes and 24 hours after LED application using a digital analgesymeter (Von Frey). RESULTS: Twenty four hours after irradiation, an increase in the nociceptive threshold was observed in the LED group in comparison to the 30 min level, as well as in the inter-group comparison. CONCLUSIONS: The use of LED can be considered as a non-invasive analgesic method as it increases of the nociceptive threshold 24 hours after pain is induced.