Racial inequality in perinatal outcomes in two Brazilian birth cohorts

This study aimed to estimate and compare racial inequality in low birth weight (LBW), preterm birth (PTB), and intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) in two Brazilian birth cohorts. This was a cross-sectional study nested within two birth cohorts in Ribeirão Preto (RP) and São Luís (SL), whose mothers were interviewed from January to December 2010. In all, 7430 (RP) and 4995 (SL) mothers were interviewed. The maternal skin color was the exposure variable. Associations were adjusted for socioeconomic and biological covariates: maternal education, per capita family income, family economic classification, household head occupation, maternal age, parity, marital status, prenatal care, type of delivery, maternal pre-pregnancy BMI, hypertension, hypertension during pregnancy, and smoking during pregnancy collected from questionnaires applied at birth. Statistical analysis was done with the chi-squared test and logistic regression. In RP, newborns from mothers with black skin color had a higher risk of LBW and IUGR, even after adjusting for socioeconomic and biological variables (P<0.001). In SL, skin color was not a risk factor for LBW (P=0.859), PTB (P=0.220), and IUGR (P=0.062), before or after adjustment for socioeconomic and biological variables. The detection of racial inequality in these perinatal outcomes only in the RP cohort after adjustment for socioeconomic and biological factors may be reflecting the existence of racial discrimination in the RP society. In contrast, the greater miscegenation present in São Luís may be reflecting less racial discrimination of black and brown women in this city.

Peginterferon alfa-2a (40KD) (PEGASYS®) plus ribavirin (COPEGUS®) in retreatment of chronic hepatitis C patients, nonresponders and relapsers to previous conventional interferon plus ribavirin therapy

Peginterferon alfa plus ribavirin is currently the treatment of choice for chronic hepatitis C. Peginterferon alfa-2a (40KD) plus ribavirin has given an overall sustained virological response of 18 percent in F3/F4 previous nonresponder US patients. We evaluated the effectiveness of peginterferon alfa-2a (40KD) plus ribavirin in Brazilian patients who were relapsers or nonresponders to previous interferon-based therapy. One-hundred-thirty-four patients with biopsy-proven chronic hepatitis C, HCV RNA positive, elevated ALT and who were either relapsers (n=37) or nonresponders (n=97) to at least 24 weeks of conventional interferon/ribavirin therapy were retreated with peginterferon alfa-2a (40KD) 180mg/qw and ribavirin 800mg bid for 48 weeks. Efficacy was assessed as virological response (defined as undetectable HCV RNA) at the end of treatment (EoT) and at the end of follow-up (SVR - Sustained Virological Response). Safety assessments consisted of clinical and laboratory evaluations. In the patient sample, 72 percent were genotype 1 and 34 percent were cirrhotic. In an intention-to-treat analysis, relapser patients showed 78 percent EoT response and 51 percent SVR. Nonresponders showed 57 percent EoT response and 26 percent SVR. Positive predictive factors of SVR were non-1 genotype and relapser state. Six percent of the patients interrupted treatment because of adverse events and 45 percent had dose reduction (mainly associated with leucopenia and anemia). Brazilian patient relapsers and nonresponders to conventional interferon and ribavirin treatment can achieve a sustained virological response when retreated with peginterferon alfa-2a (40KD) and ribavirin. The safety profile is similar to that of naive patients.

Ocorrência da infecção pelo vírus da hepatite B (VHB) e delta (VHD) em sete grupos indígenas do Estado do Amazonas / The occurrence of hepatitis B and delta virus infection within seven Amerindian ethnic groups in the Brazilian western Amazon

HBV and HDV infections are a major health problem in the Amazon. This study evaluates the prevalence of these viruses within Indians groups, measuring the frequency of serological markers. The prevalence of past infection was 54.5% and HBsAg was found in 9.7%. An important variation of those markers was detected between villages, inclusively within the same ethnic group. None showed evidence of an acute infection. All HBeAg reactive were Apurinã, living in the same village and three of them from the same family. The prevalence of anti-HDT was 13.4% in HBsAg positive individuals. The authors observed high prevalence of HBV and HDV infection with the following pattern: low degree of infectivity, marked transmission in early ages, intra-familial dissemination, and lack of importance of vertical transmission. However, the results suggest that these viruses were not yet introduced effectively in some of the studied groups.

A infecção pelo VHB e VHD são importantes problemas de saúde na Amazônia. Este estudo avalia a prevalência da infecção por esses agentes em sete grupos indígenas do Estado do Amazonas. A taxa de infecção passada pelo VHB encontrada foi de 54,5% e a de portadores do AgHBs de 9,7%. Observa-se variação importante destes marcadores entre as aldeias, inclusive da mesma etnia. Não evidenciamos marcador de infecção aguda, os quatro AgHBe reativos eram todos Apurinã, da mesma aldeia, e três da mesma família. O VHD foi encontrado em 13,4% dos AgHBs reativos. O padrão de infecção pelo VHB e VHD encontrado possui as seguintes características: endemicidade elevada, baixo potencial de infectividade, transmissão marcada em idade precoce, provável transmissão familiar, e pouca importância da transmissão vertical. Entretanto, também sugere que esses vírus não tenham sido ainda introduzidos efetivamente em algumas das etnias estudadas

Dialysis, time and death: comparisons of two consecutive decades among patients treated at the same Brazilian dialysis center

The survival of hemodialysis patients is likely to be influenced not only by well-known risk factors like age and comorbidity, but also by changes in dialysis technology and practices accumulated along time. We compared the survival curves, dialysis routines and some risk factors of two groups of patients admitted to a Brazilian maintenance hemodialysis program during two consecutive decades: March 1977 to December 1986 (group 1, N = 162) and January 1987 to June 1997 (group 2, N = 237). The median treatment time was 22 months (range 1-198). Survival curves were constructed using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared using the log-rank method. The Cox proportional hazard regression model was used to investigate the more important variables associated with outcome. The most important changes in dialysis routine and in patient care during the total period of observation were the progressive increase in the dose of dialysis delivered, the prohibition of potassium-free dialysate, the use of bicarbonate as a buffer and the upgrading of the dialysis equipment. There were no significant differences between the survival curves of the two groups. Survival rates at 1, 5 and 10 years were 84, 53 and 29 percent, respectively, for group 1 and 77, 42 and 21 percent for group 2. Patients in group 1 were younger (45.5 = 15.2 vs 55.2 = 15.9 years, P<0.001) and had a lower prevalence of diabetes (11.1 vs 27.4 percent, P<0.001) and of cardiovascular disease (9.3 vs 20.7 percent, P<0.001). According to the Cox multivariate model, only age (hazard ratio (HR) 1.04, confidence interval (CI) 1.03-1.05, P<0.001) and diabetes (HR 2.55, CI 1.82-3.58, P<0.001) were independent predictors of mortality for the whole group. Patients of group 2 had a lower prevalence of sudden death (19.1 vs 9.7 percent, P<0.001). After adjusting for age, diabetes and other mortality risk factors, the risk of death was 17 percent lower in group 2, although this difference was not statistically significant. We conclude that the negative effects of advanced age and of higher frequency of comorbidity on the survival of group 2 patients were probably offset by improvements in patient care and in the quality and dose of dialysis delivered, so that the survival curves did not undergo significant changes along time

Influência da condiçäo sócio-econômica na infecçäo pós-transplante renal / The influence of social and economic conditions in renal post transplant infection

Avaliamos a incidência de infecçäo pós-transplante renal (após a alta hospitalar) em um grupo de 224 pacientes, com seguimento mínimo de quatro anos, transplantados após janeiro de 1985. Os pacientes foram divididos em dois grupos de acordo com a situaçäo sócio-econômica: grupo I, 104 pacientesde classe alta (transplatados e seguidos em clínica privada), grupo II, 120 pacientes de classe sócio-econômica inferior (transplantados e seguidos em hospital público [Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Säo Paulo]). Foram excluídos os casos de infecçäo urinária e de hepatite. No grupo I apenas 25 pacientes (25%) tiveram infecçäo, enquanto que tal número, no grupo II, foi de 60 pacientes (50%) [p = 0,0002]. Infecçäo viral teve a mesma incidência nos dois grupos, enquanto que infecçäo bacteriana e por outros agentes (fungos, micobacteriose atípica e leishmaniose) foi mais freqüente nos pacientes do grupo II. Diversos parâmetros foram analisadso nos pacientes dos grupos I e II e notamos que näo houve diferença significativa em relaçäo a idade, sexo, tipo de doador, doença renal primária, número de rejeiçäo, creatinina sérica e uso de ciclosporina, enquanto que a dose de azatioprina e de predinisona foi levemente maior nos pacientes do grupo II. O número de infecçäo por paciente e o número de hospitalizaçöes devido a infecçäo foram mais freqüentes nos pacientes do grupo II. Condiçäo sócio-econômica baixa é um fator de risco para o pacientes transplantado

Glomerulopatia do transplante. / Transplantation glomerulopathy

Os autores apresentam 8 casos de glomerulopatia do transplante. A caracterizacao clinica do quadro constou de proteinuria (1,5 a 9,5g por dia), que surgiu tempo variavel pos-transplante (1 a 73 meses); hematuria microscopica foi observada em 4 casos; sete casos tiveram hipertensao arterial, sendo severa em 3. Em todos os casos houve perda progressiva de funcao renal e em 4 a perda foi total.Todos os doadores tinham 2 ou mais incompatibilidades no locus A e B. O aspectos histologico a microscopia de luz foi de um quadro de glomerulonefrite membranoproliferativa tipo I em 7 casos e glomerulosclerose segmentar a focal em um. A imunofluorescencia foi negativa e nao se observou a presenca de imunocomplexos na microscopia eletronica. Fibrose da intima de arterias e arteriolas esteve presente em todos os casos.A glomerulopatia do transplante parece ser uma forma particular de rejeicao cronica, com lesao predominantemente glomerular e vascular