Changes in contraceptive use during the second COVID-19 lockdown in Brazil: A web-based survey.

OBJECTIVE: We assessed contraceptive use changes during the second lockdown due to COVID-19 in Brazil and their associated factors. STUDY DESIGN: This was a longitudinal web-based study in which 725 non-pregnant Brazilian women aged 18 to 49 completed an online structured survey about their contraceptive practices in two rounds in 2021. Multivariate multinomial logistic regression was used to analyze factors associated with contraceptive use changes during COVID-19. RESULTS: Sixty percent reported they changed their contraceptive use during COVID-19, especially starting to use a method or switching to a more effective one (32%). In adjusted analysis, women who were ambivalent about a future pregnancy were more likely to switch to a more effective method (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 2.33, 95% CI 1.42-3.83) and to stop using contraceptive (aOR 3.64, 95% CI 1.91-6.91). Women with a partner were less likely to switch to a more effective method (aOR 0.61, 95% CI 0.39-0.93) and to stop using contraceptive (aOR 0.53, 95% CI 0.31-0.93), but more likely to switch to a less effective method (aOR 2.25, 95% CI 1.16-4.34). Age was also associated with contraceptive use changes. CONCLUSIONS: Contraceptive use among Brazilian women during COVID-19 depended on their age and partnership status. During the period of the highest peak in the number of cases and deaths in the country, ambivalence towards a future pregnancy increased changes in contraceptive use. IMPLICATIONS: Contraceptive changes were observed during a two-wave web-survey in Brazil depending on women's age and partnership status. Ambivalence towards a future pregnancy increased changes in contraceptive use and should be considered in future studies regarding sexual and reproductive health and COVID-19 as well as in family planning program implementation.

Sexual activity and satisfaction in older adults from a Brazilian cohort study.

Objectives: Although the majority of older adults experience sexual satisfaction regardless of their sexual activity, there are few studies that address sexuality in aging, especially in Latin America. The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of sexual activity and satisfaction among older adults in two time-points, as well as their sociodemographic and health predictors.Method: We analyze data from 1,464 older adults aged 60 years or over from the Health, Well-Being, and Aging (SABE) cohort study conducted in Brazil. Multivariable regression models were used to determinate the factors associated with sexual activity and sexual satisfaction, stratified by gender. Results: Among older adults, the prevalence of sexual activity was 48%, while the vast majority reported feeling sexually satisfied (80%). Men had more sexual activity than women, while women presented greater sexual satisfaction than men. After the follow-up, older adults that were married were more likely to have sexual activity. In women, being older than 71 years was associated with lower sexual activity. In men, those with mobility problems and depression were less likely to have sexual activity. Regarding sexual satisfaction, having depression remained a leading factor for lower sexual satisfaction in men.Conclusion: Despite beliefs, a high percentage of older adults reported being sexually active and feeling sexually satisfied. Our results highlight the gender difference in the predictors of sexual activity and sexual satisfaction. Since sexuality is important for well-being throughout life, preventing factors that decrease sexual activity and sexual satisfaction in aging could help improve the quality of life of older adults.

Neonatal mortality by gestational age in days in infants born at term: A cohort study in Sao Paulo city, Brazil.

Birth at term comprises a period with heterogeneous neonatal outcomes that tend to be worse for infants born earlier. However, few studies have analyzed this period, in which each day can make a difference. Therefore, we aim to assess neonatal mortality (NM) according to gestational age (GA) at birth measured in days in term liveborn infants born in 2012-2017 in São Paulo, the largest city in Latin America. This population-based cohort study assessed term liveborn infants followed until the end of the neonatal period. We analyzed 7 models for NM according to GA in days: crude NM adjusted for maternal and prenatal variables, NM additionally adjusted for type of birth and type of hospital, and adjusted NM stratified by type of birth (cesarean and vaginal) and by type of hospital (public and private). We included 440,119 live infants born at 259-293 days of gestation. The median GA at birth was 274 days. In all models, NM was higher for infants born early term, decreasing in infants born full term and rising again in infants born late term. In the unadjusted model, hazard ratios of NM changed daily, decreasing from 3.34 to 1.00 on day 278 and increasing again thereafter. In the stratified analysis according to type of hospital, being born in a public hospital was associated with a reduced risk of NM for infants born at 278-283 days of pregnancy. There was a decrease in GA related to obstetric interventions, especially cesarean sections, which increased NM. The loss of days of pregnancy was larger in private hospitals. Increasing the granularity of GA to days is feasible and has the potential to drive public policies. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first Brazilian study on GA in days using a national live births database.

Functional mobility and 10-year all-cause and cause-specific mortality in older people from São Paulo, Brazil.

BACKGROUND: A better understanding of performance in functional mobility tasks related to the mortality patterns for the different causes of death for the Brazilian older population is still a challenge. OBJECTIVE: To analyze if gait speed and chair stand test performance are associated with mortality in older adults, and if the overall mobility status changes the effect of other mortality risk factors. METHODS: The data were from SABE (Health, Well-being and Aging Study), a multiple-cohort study conducted in São Paulo, Brazil, with a representative sample of people aged 60 and more. Cox regression models were used to analyze 10-year all-cause and cause-specific mortality with consideration for gait speed and the chair stand test. RESULTS: Of the 1411 participants, 26% died during the follow-up. The performance in the chair stand test had a more consistent association with mortality (hazard ratio (HR)=1.03, 95%CI: 1.00, 1.05) than gait speed. Being unable to perform the test also increased the risk to die by all-cause (HR=1.71, 95%CI: 1.21, 2.42) and by diseases of the circulatory system (HR=2.14, 95%CI: 1.25, 3.65). The stratified analysis of mobility performance changed the effects of some of the mortality risk factors, such as cognitive impairment and multimorbidity. CONCLUSIONS: The chair stand test could be a better choice than 3-meters walking test as a mortality predictor. In addition, the impact of cognitive decline and multimorbidity were greater among those with reduced mobility, supporting the development of preventive interventions and public policies targeted at more vulnerable groups of older adults.

Prevalence and correlates of early sexual initiation among Brazilian adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Early adolescence is a critical stage in adolescents. This is the phase at which many young people start their sexual life early, increasing the risk of sexually transmitted infections and unintended pregnancy. Few studies have analyzed the factors associated with early sexual initiation in very young adolescents in low- and middle-income countries. Therefore, this study assessed the early sexual initiation stratified by sex and its correlates in a sample of Brazilian adolescents. METHODS: The study sample included Brazilian adolescents aged 12-14 who participated in The Study of Cardiovascular Risk in Adolescents (ERICA), a multicenter, school-based, country-wide, cross-sectional study. Early sexual initiation was defined as the first sexual intercourse at or before 14 years old. Multivariate logistic regression was used to identify independent factors associated with early sexual initiation. RESULTS: The prevalence of early sexual initiation was 7% among girls and 18% in boys. In a multivariate analysis, the adolescent's age, mother's schooling, smoking, alcohol consumption, and Tanner Stages were associated with early sexual initiation for both boys and girls. For girls, living with both parents, common mental disorders, and age at menarche were predictors of early sexual initiation, while race and type of school were correlated to early sexual initiation only for boys. CONCLUSIONS: The early sexual initiation was associated with sociodemographic, lifestyle risk factors and secondary sexual characteristics in both sexes, while there were differences between the predictors of early sexual initiation among girls and boys. It emphasizes the importance of sex education and promotes healthy lifestyles in environments through families and schools in early adolescence.

Cause-specific mortality prediction in older residents of São Paulo, Brazil: a machine learning approach.

BACKGROUND: Populational ageing has been increasing in a remarkable rate in developing countries. In this scenario, preventive strategies could help to decrease the burden of higher demands for healthcare services. Machine learning algorithms have been increasingly applied for identifying priority candidates for preventive actions, presenting a better predictive performance than traditional parsimonious models. METHODS: Data were collected from the Health, Well Being and Aging (SABE) Study, a representative sample of older residents of São Paulo, Brazil. Machine learning algorithms were applied to predict death by diseases of respiratory system (DRS), diseases of circulatory system (DCS), neoplasms and other specific causes within 5 years, using socioeconomic, demographic and health features. The algorithms were trained in a random sample of 70% of subjects, and then tested in the other 30% unseen data. RESULTS: The outcome with highest predictive performance was death by DRS (AUC-ROC = 0.89), followed by the other specific causes (AUC-ROC = 0.87), DCS (AUC-ROC = 0.67) and neoplasms (AUC-ROC = 0.52). Among only the 25% of individuals with the highest predicted risk of mortality from DRS were included 100% of the actual cases. The machine learning algorithms with the highest predictive performance were light gradient boosted machine and extreme gradient boosting. CONCLUSION: The algorithms had a high predictive performance for DRS, but lower for DCS and neoplasms. Mortality prediction with machine learning can improve clinical decisions especially regarding targeted preventive measures for older individuals.

Association between obesity with pattern and length of menstrual cycle: The role of metabolic and hormonal markers.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate in a sample of Chilean adult women, the association between adiposity markers with pattern and length of the menstrual cycle, assessing the influence of metabolic markers and hormones in this relationship. STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a cross-sectional study involving 401 premenopausal women belonging to the DERCAM study (Determinants of Breast Cancer Risk) from Santiago, Chile. The menstrual cycle pattern was defined as regular or irregular, while menstrual cycle length was categorized as short (≤25 d), normal (26-31d), and long (≥32d). Adiposity markers included body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-hip ratio (WHR), and body fat percentage (BFP). Insulin, sex-hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), estrone (E1), estradiol (E2), androstenedione (A2), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and progesterone were measured in the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle. RESULTS: There was no association between adiposity markers and cycle patterns. However, after all, metabolic and hormonal adjustments, women in the third tertile of BFP (RRR = 2.63; 95 % CI: 1.21.5.69) were more likely to have longer menstrual cycles. CONCLUSION: Women with high BFP presented a higher risk of having irregular menstrual cycles, which was an indicator of reproductive disorders; this relationship could be partially mediated by hormonal markers, especially SHBG, E1, and insulin levels.

Gender Differences between Multimorbidity and All-Cause Mortality among Older Adults.

OBJECTIVES: This study seeks to determine the prevalence of chronic diseases and analyze the association between multimorbidity and all-cause mortality by sex. METHODS: This is a 16-year longitudinal study of follow-up. We used sample data of the SABE (Health, Well-Being and Aging) study cohort and mortality data obtained through the Mortality Information Improvement Program of the City of São Paulo (PRO-AIM) from the 2000-2016 period. Survival analysis was performed using Cox proportional hazard models. RESULTS: Hypertension (HT) was the most prevalent disease in older adults (52.93%), followed by musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) (27.09%), cardiovascular diseases (CD) (17.79%), diabetes mellitus (DM) (16.95%), mental disorders (MD) (15.43%), and respiratory diseases (RD) (9.72%). The highest mortality rate in women was observed in the combination of HT/MSDs/DM/MD (HR = 6.15, 95% CI = 2.32, 16.32), while in men was in the combination of HT/CD/MSDs/DM (HR = 5.72, 95% CI = 1.72, 19.06). CONCLUSION: Similar to previous studies carried out in developed countries, we found that all-cause mortality increased as diseases are added to an individual. Women and men presented different mortality patterns according to multimorbidity. Therefore, we suggest that additional longitudinal studies should be performed in order to analyze mortality by sex.

Reproductive factors and age at natural menopause: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: To systematically review the evidence on the association between age at natural menopause (NM) and reproductive factors such as age at menarche, parity and ever use of oral contraceptives. STUDY DESIGN: A literature search was carried out in PubMed, Scielo, Scopus and LILACS databases, without restriction of publication year until July 6, 2017. We excluded clinical trials, case-control studies, case reports and studies using statistical methods other than Cox proportional hazard models to assess the factors associated with age at NM. Cross-sectional studies evaluating women aged <50 years were also excluded. Random-effects models were used to pool the estimates. We registered the systematic review in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Review (PROSPERO) in August 2018, CRD42018099105. RESULTS: We identified 30 articles to include in the meta-analysis. We found that previous ever use of oral contraceptives (OC) (HR = 0.87, CI = 0.82, 0.93), age at menarche ≥13 years (HR = 0.90, CI = 0.84, 0.96), and having at least one live birth (HR = 0.79, CI = 0.74, 0.85) were associated with a later age of NM. CONCLUSIONS: Despite differences in results between countries and study design, our findings suggest that previous use of OC, age at menarche ≥13 and having at least one live birth are associated with later menopause. The results suggest that these factors could be markers of later ovarian aging.

Age at natural menopause and mortality: A survival analysis of elderly residents of São Paulo, Brazil.

OBJECTIVE: To conduct a survival analysis according to age at natural menopause (NM) in a representative sample of elderly women from the municipality of São Paulo, Brazil. STUDY DESIGN: We analyzed data from the Health, Well-Being and Aging study (SABE), a cohort that started in 2000. Mortality data up to September 2016 were obtained by linkage from the Program for Mortality Information of São Paulo (PRO-AIM). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: We used Cox regression to analyze all-cause and cause-specific mortality rates for cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases and cancer, according to age at menopause, categorized as <40, 41-44, 45-49, 50-54 (reference) and ≥55. RESULTS: After 16 years of follow-up, there were 444 deaths, of which 199 were from cardiovascular diseases, 73 from respiratory diseases and 65 from cancer. After adjustment for socioeconomic, reproductive and lifestyle factors, having an early menopause (at age 41-44) was associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality (HR = 1.48, 95% IC: 1.03, 2.14) relative to NM at 50-54 years. Women aged 41-44 and 45-49 at NM had twice the risk of cancer mortality of the reference group. We did not find significant associations between age at NM and cause-specific mortality for respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that early menopause is associated with all-cause mortality in the largest city of Latin America. In addition, earlier age at NM was associated with cancer mortality. These results suggest that age at NM may be a biomarker for mortality, irrespective of country of residence.

Idade da menopausa em mulheres idosas do município de São Paulo: fatores associados e análise de sobrevida / Age at menopause among elderly women in the São Paulo municipality associated factors and survival analysis

Introdução: O crescimento do número de idosos no Brasil tem aumentado o interesse em identificar os determinantes da sua sobrevida e da incidência de doenças crônicas. A menopausa é definida como a cessação permanente da menstruação e está associada à diminuição da secreção de estrógenos por perda da função folicular, marcando o fim da fase reprodutiva na vida feminina. A idade da menopausa tem sido associada em alguns estudos internacionais com a mortalidade e algumas causas de morbidade, mas faltam estudos sobre o tema no Brasil. Esta tese será apresentada por meio de 3 artigos. O primeiro analisou os fatores associados à idade da menopausa natural em mulheres do estudo SABE (Saúde, Bem-estar e Envelhecimento). O tabagismo e a escolaridade estiveram estatisticamente associados com uma menopausa mais cedo nas três coortes analisadas: 2000, 2006 e 2010. Mulheres fumantes atuais tiveram 35% maior risco de ter menopausa precoce (HR=1.35, 95% CI: 1.12, 1.62) e as ex-fumantes 27% maior risco (HR=1.27, 95% CI: 1.09, 1.50), em comparação com as mulheres que nunca fumaram. Em relação à escolaridade, as mulheres com 8 anos ou mais de estudos tiveram 33% menor risco de menopausa precoce (HR=0.67, 95% CI: 0.50, 0.89) comparadas às mulheres sem escolaridade. Estado civil e número de filhos estiveram associados a uma menopausa mais tardia na coorte 2006. No segundo artigo, foi realizada uma análise de sobrevida segundo a idade da menopausa natural das mulheres pertencentes à coorte 2000. Foram identificados 444 óbitos de mulheres até 2016. Mulheres com menopausa precoce tiveram 48% de maior risco de mortalidade geral (HR=1.48, 95% IC: 1.03, 2.14) comparadas às mulheres com idade de menopausa entre os 50 e 54 anos (referência). Em relação à mortalidade específica, mulheres entre 41 e 49 anos apresentaram o dobro de risco de mortalidade por neoplasias em comparação com o grupo de referência. No terceiro artigo, foi realizada uma revisão sistemática e meta-análise dos fatores reprodutivos associados à menopausa natural. Os três fatores estudados apresentaram uma associação com a menopausa tardia. As mulheres com uso de anticoncepcionais orais em relação àquelas que não relataram uso de anticoncepcionais orais (HR=0.86, CI=0.79, 0.92), as com idade da menarca >=13 anos comparadas àquelas com idade da menarca

Introduction: The increase of the elderly population in Brazil has raised concerns about their care and the determinants of survival and incidence of chronic diseases. Menopause is defined as the permanent end of a woman's menstruation and is associated with the decline of the release of estrogens due to loss of follicular function, indicating the end of the reproductive phase of a woman's life. Age at menopause has been linked with mortality and morbidity in international studies. The first article of this thesis analyzed the factors associated with age at natural menopause among women of the SABE study cohort (Health, Well-Being, Aging). Smoking and education were associated with earlier menopause for the three waves analyzed: 2000, 2006 and 2010. Current smokers had 35% higher risk of earlier natural menopause (HR=1.35, 95% CI: 1.12, 1.62) and former smokers had 27% higher risk of earlier natural menopause (HR=1.27, 95% CI: 1.09, 1.50), in comparison with never smokers. Regarding education, women with 8 years or more of formal education had 33% lower risk of earlier natural menopause (HR=0.67, 95% CI: 0.50, 0.89) than women with no education. Marital status and parity were associated with later age at natural menopause only in 2006. In the second article, a survival analysis was performed according to age at natural menopause in women from SABE 2000. We found a total of 444 deaths from 2000 to 2016. Women with earlier menopause had 48% increased risk of all-cause mortality (HR=1.48, 95% IC: 1.03, 2.14) compared to women with age at menopause between 50 and 54 years (reference group). Regarding cause-specific mortality, women with ages at natural menopause between 41 and 49 had twice the risk of cancer mortality compared to the reference group. In the third article, we performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of the reproductive factors associated with natural menopause. The three factors analyzed were statistically associated with later menopause: women with use of oral contraceptives before menopause compared to women with no use of oral contraceptive (HR=0.86, CI=0.79, 0.92), women with age at menarche >=13 compared to women with age at menarche