The COVID-19 laboratory response in Timor-Leste; a story of collaboration.

Timor-Leste is a small nation of 1.3 million people which shares a land border with Indonesia and is 550 km from Darwin, Australia. It is one of the poorest nations in Asia. The National Health Laboratory (NHL) and its network of smaller laboratories in Timor-Leste had limited capacity to perform molecular diagnostic testing before the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic began. With the support of international development partners, the NHL rapidly expanded its molecular testing service. From March 2020 to February 2022, over 200,000 molecular tests were performed; COVID-19 testing sites were established in hospital and community health center laboratories and all 13 municipalities, and the number of scientists and technicians at the molecular diagnostic laboratory at the NHL increased from five to 28 between 2019 and 2022. Molecular diagnostic testing for COVID-19 was successfully established at the NHL and in the municipalities. The molecular diagnostic laboratory at NHL is now equipped to respond to not only large-scale COVID-19 testing but also laboratory detection of other infectious diseases, preparing Timor-Leste for future outbreaks or pandemics.

Acute burn care and outcomes at the Hospital Nacional Guido Valadares (HNGV), Timor-Leste: A 7-year retrospective study.

The purpose of this study was to describe the epidemiology of patients presenting with acute burns and undergoing admission at Hospital Nacional Guido Valadares (HNGV) in Dili, Timor-Leste in the period 2013 to 2019. HNGV is the only tertiary referral hospital in Timor-Leste. This was a retrospective study involving all acute burn patients admitted to the surgical wards of HNGV from 2013 to 2019. The data was collected from patient charts and hospital medical archives. Data were reviewed and analyzed statistically in terms of age, gender, residence, cause, total body surface area (TBSA), burns depth, length of stay (LOS), and mortality. The outcomes were analyzed using logistic regression. Over the 7-year period, there were 288 acute burn patients admitted to the surgical wards of HNGV. Most patients were children (55%), male (65%) and from the capital city of Dili or surrounding areas (59%). The most common cause of burns in children was scalds and the most common cause among adults was flames. Of the admitted patients 59% had burns affecting >10% of the TBSA and 41% had full thickness burns. The median LOS was 17 days (1-143) and the average mortality for admitted burn patients in HNGV was 5.6% (annual mortality 0-17%). The odds ratio for extended LOS was 1.9 (95% confidence interval 1.1-3.2) in female compared with male patients. The odds ratio for mortality was 14.6 (95% confidence interval 2.7-80.6) in the older adults when compared with younger adults. Higher TBSA, full thickness burns, and flame burns were also significantly associated with longer LOS and higher mortality. Children and male patients were disproportionately overrepresented among patients admitted to HNGV, while female patients had longer LOS and older adults had more severe injury and a higher risk of mortality. Establishment of a national program for the prevention of burns is essential.

The Economic Value of the Delivery of Primary Cleft Surgery in Timor Leste 2000-2017.

BACKGROUND: Plastic and reconstructive surgical teams visiting from Australia, a high-income country, have delivered cleft surgical services to Timor Leste since 2000 on a volunteer basis. This paper aims to estimate the economic benefit of correcting cleft deformities in this new nation as it evolved its healthcare delivery service from independence in 1999. METHODS: We have utilised a prospective database of all cleft surgical interventions performed during 44 plastic surgical missions over the last 18 years. The disability-adjusted life year (DALY) framework was used to calculate the total DALYs averted by primary cleft lip and palate repair. The 2004 global burden of disease disability weights were used. Economic benefits were calculated using the gross national income (GNI) and the value of a statistical life (VSL) methods for Timor Leste. Estimates were adjusted for treatment effectiveness, counterfactual cases, and complications. Cost estimates included the local hospitalisation costs, the foregone salaries of the visiting surgeons and nurses, other costs associated with providing surgical care, and an estimate for foregone wages of the patients or their carers. Sensitivity analysis was performed with income elasticity set to 0.55, 1.0, and 1.5. RESULTS: During 44 visiting plastic surgical missions to Timor Leste, 1500 procedures were performed, including 843 primary cleft lip and palate operations. The cleft procedures resulted in the aversion of 842 DALYs and an economic return to Timor Leste of USD 2.2 million (GNI-based) or USD 197,917 (VSL-based). Our programme cost USD 705 per DALY averted. The economic return on investment was 0.3:1 (VSL-based) or 3.8:1 (GNI-based). CONCLUSION: A sustained and consistent visiting team approach providing repair of cleft lip and palate defects has resulted in considerable economic gain for Timor Leste over an 18-year period. The training of a local surgeon and multidisciplinary team with ongoing support to the in-country cleft service is expected to reduce the cost per DALY averted once the surgeon and team are able to manage clefts independently.

Síndrome de Crouzon: características clínicas. Relato de casos clínicos / Crouzon Syndrome: clinical features. Clinical case reports

A Síndrome de Crouzon é uma doença hereditária que surge com o fechamento prematuro das suturas da base do crânio, resultando em um crescimento compensatório na direção em que as suturas permanecem abertas. A síndrome é caracterizada por deformidade craniofacial com redução do comprimento das bases anterior e posterior do crânio, tendo como principais características clínicas a exoftalmia, hipertelorismo e a hipoplasia do terço médio da face. / Objetivo / Relatar os casos clínicos de uma família, onde três de seus membros são portadores da Síndrome de Crouzon, apresentando, assim, as características clínicas e as formas de tratamento. / Relato / No caso 1, a paciente foi submetida à cirurgia de avanço frontofacial convencional; e nos casos 2 e 3, os pacientes foram submetidos ao avanço frontofacial com distração osteogênica. Todos foram operados em idade precoce, necessitando de tratamento ortodôntico e cirúrgico para finalização do caso. / Conclusão / Os tratamentos cirúrgico, ortopédico e ortodôntico são uma combinação perfeita para a correção das deformidades craniofaciais, sendo a distração osteogênica do terço médio da face uma técnica cirúrgica de grande sucesso, que apresenta menor morbidade e excelentes resultados.

Avaliação das atividades antimicrobiana e biológica do cimento portland associado ao AH PLUS em diferentes proporções / Evaluation of antimicrobial and biological activities of Portland cement associated of AH Plus sealer in different proportions

A endodontia vem sofrendo um processo de evolução muito grande nos últimos anos. Apesar dessa grande evolução técnico-científica, infelizmente o tratamento endodôntico convencional ainda não possibilita a obtenção do sucesso total. Objetivo: O objetivo do presente estudo foi avaliar a atividade antimicrobiana e a resposta do tecido subcutâneo de ratos frente à implantação do cimento Portland associado ao AH Plus em diferentes proporções. Metodologia: Para a avaliação da resposta biológica, foram utilizados 42 ratos (Rattus Norvegicus), que foram divididos em 14 animais para cada período experimental. Para se avaliar a atividade antimicrobiana, foi utilizada a técnica de difusão radial em placas de ágar Mueller-Hinton. Foram utilizadas 30 linhagens de campo e 1 ATCC (29212) de Enterococcus faecalis. Os materiais foram proporcionados em massa e os poços preenchidos com os cimentos através de seringas tipo Luer-Look. Com os dados em mãos, os mesmos foram submetidos à análise estatística, empregando-se o teste Kruskal-Wallis para comparação global e o teste de Miller para as comparações individuais com nível de significância de 5 por cento. Resultados: Quanto à resposta biológica, todos os grupos apresentaram bom comportamento. Em relação a atividade antimicrobiana, os grupos 4, 5 e 6 apresentaram atividade, tanto em 24, quanto em 48 horas, com diferença estatisticamente significante com relação aos outros grupos. Conclusão: Conclui-se que a associação do AH Plus ao cimento Portland apresenta boa resposta tecidual e atividade antimicrobiana, principalmente nos grupo com maior quantidade de cimento AH Plus...

Endodontics has been suffering a long evolution process in recent years. Despite this great technical and scientific developments, unfortunately the conventional endodontic treatment hasn't allows obtaining the total success. Objective: the objective of the present study was to evaluate the antimicrobial activity and the response of the subcutaneous tissue against deployment of associated Portland cement to AH Plus sealer in different proportions. Methodology: for evaluation of biological response, 42 rats were used (Rattus Norvegicus), which were divided into 14 animals for each experimental period. To evaluate antimicrobial activity, was used the technique of radial diffusion in Mueller-Hinton agar plates. 30 strains were used and 1 ATCC (29212) of Enterococcus faecalis. The materials were provided by weight and pits filled with the cements through syringes Luer-type Look. With data, they were subjected to statistical analysis, using the Kruskal-Wallis test for global comparison and the Miller test for individual comparisons with a significance level of 5. Results: as for biological response, all groups showed good behavior. In relation to antimicrobial activity, groups 4, 5 and 6 showed activity in both. 24, 48 hours, with statistically significant difference with respect to other groups. Conclusion: It is concluded that the Association of AH Plus to Portland cement and tissue response presents good antimicrobial activity, mainly in the group with the highest amount of cement AH Plus...