Behind bars: the burden of being a woman in Brazilian prisons.

BACKGROUND: Brazil has the third largest prison population in the world. In 2016, the female prison population totaled 42,000, an increase of 656% over the population recorded in the early 2000s. The objective of this study was to describe the socialeconomic and reproductive health of women in Brazilian prisons, and the specific assistance received within the prison system. METHODS: This is a first of its kind national survey conducted in 15 female prisons in eight Brazilian states between 2014 and 2015. The sample consisted of 1327 women in closed or semi-open prison regimes. Data collection used Audio Computer-Assisted Self-Interviewing (ACASI). STATA v.15. Was use in analysis. The study was submitted to the Research Ethics Committee of the Federal University of Ceará, under CEP protocol No. 1,024,053. RESULTS: The population was overwhelmingly Black or Brown, poor and little educated. When women worked previously, they had worked as domestic servants and were the sole source of income for their families. Most were mothers, with 39% having children less than 10 years old, now in the care of others. Most were in jail for drug-related crimes. Prisons were crowded, with more than 2/3rds of the inmates sharing a cell with 6 or more inmates. Services were provide, but women had not had a cervical cancer screening within the past 3 years and breast cancer screening was not conducted. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, given their backround and prison conditions they are unlikely to change the circumstances that brought them to prison in the first place.

Hazardous alcohol use among transwomen in a Brazilian city.

There is a lack of information about alcohol use by transgender women. We estimated the prevalence of dangerous alcohol use in the last 12 months by transgender women, who are known as travestis in Brazil, and we identified the associated risk factors. Three hundred travestis were recruited using Respondent Driving Sampling (RDS). We applied the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). We controlled the sample by applying a weight to each interviewee. Three quarters (74.2%) of travestis were regular drinkers, half (48.7%) scored over eight in the AUDIT and 14.8% scored over 20. The risk factors for alcohol use were: aged over 24, low income and unprotected sex. The dangerous use of alcohol is prevalent among travestis. Given that this group has a greater risk of HIV infection and transmission, and that the dangerous use of alcohol was associated with unsafe sex, specific intervention strategies are required.

Metabolic acidosis and its association with nutritional status in hemodialysis.

INTRODUCTION: Metabolic acidosis is a common problem in dialysis patients and plays an important role in the pathogenesis of protein-energy malnutrition in these patients. OBJECTIVES: To assess the prevalence of metabolic acidosis in hemodialysis and search their association with nutritional status. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was performed in hemodialysis patients at a single center. Nutritional status was assessed by anthropometric, biochemical and multifrequency bioelectrical impedance analysis. Metabolic acidosis was defined as serum bicarbonate (BIC) < 22 mEq/L and patients were divided into 3 groups according to BIC (< 15.15 to 21.9 and ≥ 22). The association between BIC and continuous variables was investigated using the Kruskal Wallis test. The linear correlation between BIC and the variables of the study was also tested. RESULTS: We studied 95 patients, 59% male, mean age 52.3 years. The prevalence of metabolic acidosis was 94.7%. BMI, interdialytic weight gain and PTH were significantly different among the 3 groups of BIC. The BIC was negatively correlated with urea, phosphorus and interdialytic weight gain. There was no significant correlation with albumin, phase angle and lean body mass index. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of metabolic acidosis was high in this population, and a lower BIC correlated with higher levels of urea, PTH, phosphorus, interdialytic weight gain and lower BMI. The evaluation of acid-basic status should be routinely implemented in dialysis patients by considering the negative effects of acidosis on the nutritional status, inflammation and bone disease.