Background COVID-19 is a highly transmissible illness caused by SARS-CoV-2. The disease has affected more than 200 countries, and the measures that have been implemented to combat its spread, as there is still no vaccine or definitive medication, have been based on supportive interventions and drug repositioning. Brazil, the largest country in South America, has had more than 140,000 recorded deaths and is one of the most affected countries. Despite the extensive quantity of scientifically recognized information, there are still conflicting discussions on how best to face the disease and the virus, especially with regard to social distancing, preventive methods, and the use of medications. Objective The main purpose of this study is to evaluate the Brazilian population’s basic knowledge about COVID-19 to demonstrate how Brazilians are managing to identify scientifically proven information. Methods A cross-sectional study design was used. An original online questionnaire survey was administered from June 16 to August 21, 2020, across all five different geopolitical regions of the country (ie, the North, Northeast, Center-West, Southeast, and South). The questionnaire was comprised of questions about basic aspects of COVID-19, such as the related symptoms, conduct that should be followed when suspected of infection, risk groups, prevention, transmission, and social distancing. The wrong questionnaire response alternatives were taken from the fake news combat website of the Brazilian Ministry of Health. Participants (aged ≥18 years) were recruited through social networking platforms, including Facebook, WhatsApp, and Twitter. The mean distributions, frequencies, and similarities or dissimilarities between the responses for the different variables of the study were evaluated. The significance level for all statistical tests was less than .05. Results A total of 4180 valid responses representative of all the states and regions of Brazil were recorded. Most respondents had good knowledge about COVID-19, getting an average of 86.59% of the total score with regard to the basic aspects of the disease. The region, education level, age, sex, and social condition had a significant association (P<.001) with knowledge about the disease, which meant that women, the young, those with higher education levels, nonrecipients of social assistance, and more economically and socially developed regions had more correct answers. Conclusions Overall, Brazilians with social media access have a good level of basic knowledge about COVID-19 but with differences depending on the analyzed subgroup. Due to the limitation of the platform used in carrying out the study, care should be taken when generalizing the study findings to populations with less education or who are not used to accessing social networking platforms.

Background: Body packing is the smuggling of drugs and other contents inside the human body and may represent a serious health risk. Despite studies from several countries, the clinical and surgical aspects of this emergency in Brazil have not been well-explored, especially when considering non-narcotic contents. Thus, the main objective of this study was to investigate cases of body packers treated by the surgical emergency service of a tertiary hospital in a central region of Brazil. We sought to highlight this medical emergency by considering both narcotic and non-narcotic contents smuggled by body packers. Methods: This retrospective study analyzed the medical records of body packers admitted from January 2015 to December 2019 at one of the main tertiary hospitals in central Brazil. Ten cases of body packing were observed. Results: Only 50% of the patients carried drugs, while surprisingly, 70% carried non-content, such as cell phones (40%), cell phone chargers (40%), Durepox adhesives (10%), small saws (10%), and pen-drives (10%). All the patients were male, inmates, and young adults, and body packing was carried out by oral ingestion. In 20% of the cases, there were no important clinical manifestations; in 60% of the cases, there were signs and symptoms of gastrointestinal obstruction; and in 30%, there was acute narcotic intoxication. Abdominal radiography was used for diagnosis in 80% of the cases, and endoscopy and tomography were used for the remaining 20%. In 90% of the cases, emergency laparotomy with gastrostomy was required. All the patients successfully recovered. Conclusions: There was a higher prevalence of body packing of non-narcotic content; however, clinical and radiological presentations were similar to those of narcotic content, except for the presentation of acute narcotic intoxication. Emergency surgery was the most utilized intervention for the body packers and proved to be effective for both content types. This study highlights the concerning high prevalence of body packing of cell phones and accessories in addition to drugs; therefore, health professionals, surgeons, and security agents must be aware of the involvement of body packing in the trafficking of non-narcotic contents in Brazil.

Introduction: Body packing is the smuggling of drugs and other contents inside the human body. However, non-narcotic contents studies are limited to rare case reports in literature. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate cases of body packers in Brazil considering narcotic and non-narcotic contents. Methods: Retrospective study analyzing the medical records of body packers admitted from January 2015 to December 2019 at one of the main tertiary hospitals in central Brazil. Results: Ten cases of body packing were observed. Only 50% of the patients carried drugs, while surprisingly, 70% carried non-content, especially cell phones and accessories. All the patients were male, prisoners and young adults. In 60%, there were gastrointestinal obstruction and in 30%, there was acute narcotic intoxication. Abdominal radiography was enough for diagnosis in 80% of the cases. In 90% of the cases, emergency laparotomy was required, but all the patients successfully recovered. Conclusions: There was a higher prevalence of body packing of non-narcotic content; however, clinical and radiological presentations were similar to those of narcotic content. Emergency surgery proved to be effective for both content types. This study highlights the concerning high prevalence of body packing of cell phones and accessories in addition to drugs.

BACKGROUND Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly transmissible illness caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). The disease has affected more than 200 countries and the measures that have been implemented to combat its spread, as there is still no vaccine or definitive medication, have been based on supportive interventions and drug repositioning. Brazil, the largest country in South America, has had more than 140,000 recorded deaths and is one of the most affected countries. Despite the extensive quantity of scientifically recognized information, there are still conflicting discussions on how best to face the disease and the virus, especially with regard to social distancing, preventive methods, and the use of medications. OBJECTIVE Thus, the main purpose of this work was to evaluate the Brazilian population’s basic knowledge about COVID-19 to demonstrate how Brazilians are managing to identify only scientifically proven information. METHODS A cross-sectional study design was used. An original online questionnaire survey was administered from June 16 to August 21, 2020 across all five different geopolitical regions of the country (i.e., the North, Northeast, Center-West, Southeast, and South). The questionnaire was comprised of questions about basic aspects of COVID-19, such as the related symptoms, conduct that should be followed when suspected of infection, risk groups, prevention, transmission, and social distancing. The wrong questionnaire response alternatives were taken from the fake news combat website of Brazil’s health ministry. Participants (aged ≥18 years) were recruited through social network platforms including Facebook, WhatsApp, and Twitter. RESULTS A total of 4,180 valid responses representative of all the states and regions of Brazil were recorded. Most respondents had good knowledge about COVID-19, getting an average of 86.59% of the total score, with regard to the basic aspects of the disease. Region, educational level, age, sex, and social condition had a significant association (p < .0001) with knowledge about the disease, which meant that women, the young, those with higher educational levels, non-recipients of social assistance, and more economically and socially developed regions had more correct answers. CONCLUSIONS Overall, Brazilians with social media access can be said to have a good level of basic knowledge about COVID-19, but with differences depending on the analyzed subgroup. Due to the limitation of the platform used in carrying out the study, care should be taken when generalizing the study findings to populations unschooled or who are not used to accessing social network platforms.

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Introduction: Pyelonephritis is a urinary tract infection that can frequently be complicated by anatomical abnormalities such as in ectopic ureteroceles, pathologies which are rare in the literature.Case Report: A 23-year-old woman with a clinical history, physical and laboratory examinations compatible with pyelonephritis was admitted. Ultrasonography revealed a ureterocele and hydronephrosis of the upper collecting system of the left kidney. We evoked a complicated pyelonephritis and the patient underwent a computed tomography (CT) scan that confirmed bilateral pyelocalyceal and ureteral duplicity, pyonephrosis, and implantation of the upper ureter of the left kidney into the vaginal dome, forming a left ureterocele. The patient was placed on antibiotics and the ureterocele was drained through the vaginal canal. After twelve days of hospitalization, she underwent an open partial nephrectomy of the upper portion of the left kidney. On the third postoperative day, she was asymptomatic and was discharged. Conclusion:Despite the typical clinical picture of complicated pyelonephritis, this case stands out for the