A comparative analysis of health surveillance strategies for administrative video display terminal employees.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to develop a strategy to optimize medical health surveillance protocols for administrative employees using video display terminals (VDTs). A total of 2453 medical examinations were analysed for VDT users in various sectors. From these data, using Bayesian statistics we inferred which factors were most relevant to medical diagnosis of the main disorders affecting VDT users. This information was used to build an influence diagram to evaluate the time and monetary costs associated with each diagnostic test and define an optimal protocol strategy based on occupational risks. RESULTS: Musculoskeletal and ophthalmological diseases were identified as the most frequent disorders among VDT users. The Bayesian network inferred age, sleep quality, activity level, smoking and the consumption of alcohol as risk factors. The blood count was the most costly test (5.23 USD/employee) and the second most costly test in time terms (4 min/employee), yet is a diagnostic test that has little influence on the medical decision regarding an employee's capacity to perform their job. CONCLUSIONS: Current occupational health surveillance protocols for VDT users may lead to expenditure that is 54% greater than necessary. For many employees and employers, failure to perform a wide range of medical tests for occupational health surveillance purposes is subjectively perceived as a threat to health. Awareness needs to be raised of the appropriate role of different health areas, so as to optimize diagnostic efficiency on the basis of greater flexibility.

Effect of Biomass Torrefaction on the Syngas Quality Produced by Chemical Looping Gasification at 20 kWth Scale.

The innovative Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification (BCLG) process uses two reactors (fuel and air reactors) to generate nitrogen-free syngas with low tar content under autothermal conditions. A solid oxygen carrier supplies the oxygen for partial oxidation of the fuel. This study investigated the BCLG process, conducted over 25 h of continuous operation at 20 kWth scale, using ilmenite as the oxygen carrier and wheat straw pellets as fuel (WSP). The effect of using torrefied wheat straw pellets (T-WSP) on the syngas quality was assessed. In addition, the impact of several operational variables on the overall process performance and syngas yield was analyzed. The primary factors influencing the syngas yield were the char conversion through gasification and the oxygen-to-fuel ratio. Higher temperatures, extended residence times of solids in the fuel reactor, and using a secondary gasifier led to increased char conversion, enhancing H2 and CO production. Optimizing the air reactor design could enhance the CO2 capture potential by inhibiting the combustion of bypassed char. While char conversion and syngas yield with T-WSP were lower than those with WSP at temperatures below 900 °C, T-WSP achieved a higher syngas yield under conditions favoring high char conversion. The presence of CH4 and light hydrocarbons showed minimal sensitivity to operating conditions variation, limiting the theoretical syngas yield. Overall, the CLG unit operated smoothly without any agglomeration issues.

Syngas Production in a 1.5 kWth Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification Unit Using Fe and Mn Ores as the Oxygen Carrier.

Biomass chemical looping gasification (BCLG) uses lattice oxygen from an oxygen carrier instead of gaseous oxygen for high-quality syngas production without CO2 emissions. In this work, the effect of the main operating variables, such as oxygen/biomass ratio (λ), gasification temperature, and steam/biomass ratio (S/B), was investigated using two low-cost materials: a Fe ore and a Mn ore. Oxygen fed to the air reactor for oxidation was used as an effective method for controlling the amount of lattice oxygen used for syngas production. The main variable that affected the process performance and the syngas quality was λ, while the fuel reactor temperature and the S/B ratio had a minor effect. Small performance differences found between the ores can be attributed to different degrees of CH4 and light hydrocarbons reforming in the process. The CO2 content in the syngas was high (40 -43%) under autothermal conditions because the gasification reactions required the heat to be generated by combustion. CH4 contents of around 10% were found in syngas, coming from the unburned or unreformed volatiles. Syngas yields around 0.60 Nm3/kg of dry biomass were found for both ores. Additionally, high biomass conversions (X b > 94%) and carbon conversion efficiencies (ηcc > 95%) were obtained in all cases, showing the capability of the process of avoiding CO2 emissions to the atmosphere. No agglomeration was found in the bed during the BCLG process, although attrition rates were high, leading to lifetimes of 160 and 300 h for the manganese and iron ores, respectively. Migration of Fe or Mn to the external part of the particle, generating a metal concentrated shell, was observed. Its detachment was responsible for the decrease in the oxygen transport capacity (R OC) of the material with the operating time and the reduced lifetime. The results obtained here allowed the iron ore to be considered as an oxygen carrier suitable for the BCLG process.

Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification of pine wood using a synthetic Fe2O3/Al2O3 oxygen carrier in a continuous unit.

Biomass Chemical Looping Gasification is a novel technology allowing high quality syngas production at autothermal conditions without CO2 emissions to the atmosphere and low tar generation. This work compiles gasification results corresponding to 38 h of continuous operation in a 1.5 kWth unit using pine wood as fuel and a synthetic Fe-based oxygen carrier, Fe20Al. The main operating conditions such as temperature (T = 820-940 °C), steam-to-biomass ratio (S/B = 0.05-0.65), and oxygen-to-biomass ratio (λ = 0.2-0.6) were analyzed at steady state conditions using a novel method for controlling oxygen in the process. A syngas composed by 37% H2, 21% CO, 34% CO2 and 7% CH4, and tars below 2 g/Nm3 could be obtained at autothermal conditions, leading to a syngas yield of 0.8 Nm3/kg dry biomass and a cold gas efficiency of 68%. The material maintained a high reactivity although some Fe lost was observed.

Pituitary adenoma with peliosis: a report of two cases.

Peliosis is characterised by multiple blood-filled lakes or cavities within parenchymatous organs. Typically found in the liver, spleen, bone marrow and lymph nodes, it has also been described in other organs such as lungs, kidneys, parathyroids and pancreas. The mechanism responsible for the development of peliosis remains unknown. (1) A 69 year-old man with a 6-year history of acromegaly underwent transsphenoidal surgery for pituitary adenoma. Morphologic findings demonstrated a plurimorphous plurihormonal pituitary adenoma consisting of somatotrophs, lactotrophs and mammosomatotrophs. The tumor contained several blood-filled cavities characteristic of peliosis. (2) A 61-year-old man with a prolactin-producing pituitary adenoma who underwent transsphenoidal surgery. In the tumor, peliosis was noted. Peliosis in a pituitary adenoma is an intriguing finding. The question arises whether it represents vasculogenic mimicry.

A Bayesian assessment of occupational health surveillance in workers exposed to silica in the energy and construction industry.

Medical records generated during occupational health surveillance processes have large amounts of unexploited information that can help to reduce silica-related health risks and many occupational diseases. The methodology applied in this study consists in analyzing through machine learning techniques a database with 70,000 medical examinations from workers in the energy and construction industry in Spain. First, a general unsupervised Bayesian model is built and node force analysis is used to identify the factors with the greatest impact on the worker's health surveillance process. Second, a predictive Bayesian model is created and mutual information is employed to assess the more relevant factors affecting the medical capability of workers exposed to silica dust. The lung auscultation and the breathing exploration are the two factors that influence the most the medical capability of silica-exposed employees. Probabilistic inference shows a remarkable gender effect, where women present more resilience towards occupational diseases than men showing a higher proportion of normal results in certain key factors, such as body mass index (♀49.73%, ♂25.17%) or spirometry (♀53.73%, ♂48.91%). Finally, environmental conditions demonstrate to have a major influence on spatial variability of occupational diseases. The design of health prevention programs based on geographical variations can be crucial to the attainment of an ongoing and sustained healthier workforce with a reduction in the number of chronic workplace illnesses.

Unique gold chemoselectivity for the aerobic oxidation of allylic alcohols.

Gold nanoparticles supported on nanocrystalline ceria has been found to be more active and chemoselective than palladium and gold(core)-palladium(shell) nanoparticles for the aerobic oxidation of allylic alcohols.

Computing periodic orbits with arbitrary precision.

This paper deals with the computation of periodic orbits of dynamical systems up to any arbitrary precision. These very high requirements are useful, for example, in the studies of complex pole location in many physical systems. The algorithm is based on an optimized shooting method combined with a numerical ordinary differential equation (ODE) solver, tides, that uses a Taylor-series method. Nowadays, this methodology is the only one capable of reaching precision up to thousands of digits for ODEs. The method is shown to be quadratically convergent. Some numerical tests for the paradigmatic Lorenz model and the Hénon-Heiles Hamiltonian are presented, giving periodic orbits up to 1000 digits.

Catalyst parameters determining activity and selectivity of supported gold nanoparticles for the aerobic oxidation of alcohols: the molecular reaction mechanism.

As previously reported for for solventless reactions, gold nanoparticles supported on ceria are also excellent general heterogeneous catalysts for the aerobic oxidations of alcohols in organic solvents. Among organic solvents it was found that toluene is a convenient one. A systematic study on the influence of the particle size and gold content on the support has established that the activity correlates linearly with the total number of external gold atoms, and with the surface coverage of the support. Amongst catalysts with different supports, but similar gold particle size and content, gold on ceria exhibits the highest activity. By means of a kinetic study (influence of sigma+ parameter, kinetic isotopic effect, temperature, alcohol concentration and oxygen pressure) a mechanistic proposal consisting of the formation of metal-alcoholate, beta-hydride shift from carbon to metal and M--H oxidation has been proposed that explains all experimental results.

Phase III study of capecitabine plus oxaliplatin compared with continuous-infusion fluorouracil plus oxaliplatin as first-line therapy in metastatic colorectal cancer: final report of the Spanish Cooperative Group for the Treatment of Digestive Tumors Trial.

PURPOSE: The aim of this phase III trial was to compare the efficacy and safety of capecitabine plus oxaliplatin (XELOX) versus Spanish-based continuous-infusion high-dose fluorouracil (FU) plus oxaliplatin (FUOX) regimens as first-line therapy for metastatic colorectal cancer (MCRC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 348 patients were randomly assigned to receive XELOX (oral capecitabine 1,000 mg/m2 bid for 14 days plus oxaliplatin 130 mg/m2 on day 1 every 3 weeks) or FUOX (continuous-infusion FU 2,250 mg/m2 during 48 hours on days 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, and 36 plus oxaliplatin 85 mg/m2 on days 1, 15, and 29 every 6 weeks). RESULTS: There were no significant differences in efficacy between XELOX and FUOX arms, which showed, respectively, median time to tumor progression (TTP; 8.9 v 9.5 months; P = .153); median overall survival (18.1 v 20.8 months; P = .145); and confirmed response rate (RR; 37% v 46%; P = .539). The safety profile of the two regimens was similar, although there were lower rates of grade 3/4 diarrhea (14% v 24%) and grade 1/2 stomatitis (28% v 43%), and higher rates of grade 1/2 hyperbilirubinemia (37% v 21%) and grade 1/2 hand-foot syndrome (14% v 5%) with XELOX versus FUOX, respectively. CONCLUSION: This randomized study shows a similar TTP of XELOX compared with FUOX in the first-line treatment of MCRC, although there was a trend for slightly lower RR and survival. XELOX can be considered as an alternative to FUOX.

Captura de co2 eediante transportadores sólidos de xíígeno / Co2 cpture by chhemical looping combustion / Captação deco2 aa través de transportadores sólidos de oxigênio

La evaluación de transportadores de oxígeno (TO), basados en CuO y NiO sobre Al2O3 y preparados por impregnación, se llevó a cabo en una planta piloto de dos lechos fluidizados interconectados de 500 Wte, donde se utilizaron tanto metano como gas de síntesis como gas combustible. Además, se estudió el efecto de diferentes impurezas presentes en el gas combustible como azufre o hidrocarburos ligeros en la eficacia de combustión del proceso y en el comportamiento de los TO. Los resultados obtenidos mostraron que ambos TO son adecuados para la captura de CO2 mediante transportadores sólidos de oxígeno en el proceso de combustión de metano, gas de síntesis o metano con impurezas como hidrocarburos ligeros o azufre en el gas.

NiO and CuO based oxygen carriers (OCs) supported on Al2O3 prepared by impregnation were selected for its evaluation in a continuous pilot plant of 500 Wth of two interconnected fluidized beds, where both methane and syngas were used as fuel gas. In addition, the effect of possible impurities in the fuel gas such as sulphur compounds and other hydrocarbons in the combustion efficiency of the process and the behaviour of the OCs were studied. Based on these results, it can be concluded that both OCs are suitable for a chemical looping combustion (CLC) process with methane, syngas and methane with impurities such as light hydrocarbons or sulphur.

A avaliação das transportadoras de oxigênio (TOs), baseados em CuO e NiO sobre Al2O3 e preparados por impregnação, foi testada em uma planta piloto de dois leitos fluidizados de 500 Wte interligados, utilizando-se o metano como gás de síntese e como combustível. Além disso, foi estudado o efeito de diferentes impurezas presentes no gás combustível como enxofre o hidrocarbonetos ligeros na eficiência de combustão do processo e no comportamento dos TOs. Os resultados mostraram que ambos TOs são adequados para a captura de CO2 por transportadores de oxigênio sólido no processo de combustão de metano, gás de síntese ou metano com presença de impurezas como enxofre ou hidrocarbonetos ligeros e gases.

Saúde e COVID-19 no Brasil: um novo olhar interdisciplinar sobre a pandemia / Health and COVID-19 in Brazil: a new interdisciplinary look at the pandemic

Obra interdisciplinar com trabalhos que apresentam infinitas possibilidades humanas de significação e ressignificação da vida em qualquer situação

Anxiety-related psychological impacts in the COVID-19 pandemic on cardiovascular diseases and diabetes

Patients and the general public are under insurmountable psychological pressure which may lead to various psychological problems, such as anxiety, fear, depression, and insomnia, causing, consequently, the impaired quality of life. Psychological crisis intervention plays a pivotal role in the overall deployment of health-related quality of life and disease control. A novel Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARSCoV-2), a pathogen of the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19), has affected several sector activities, including people's health. To enhance infection control methods, appropriate interventions, and public health policies, the present study aims to assess the fear and peri-traumatic stress during the Covid-19 in Brazil. Method: A cross-sectional survey has been conducted from April 12th to 18th using the Peri-Traumatic Distress Scale (CPDI) and the Fear Scale (FCV-19S) aiming to measure the peri-traumatic stress and fear as psychological reactions during the COVID-19 pandemic. For that purpose, an online spreadsheet was used to send the questionnaire and scales to a sample of 1844 participants as a collecting information tool. After the data analysis, the individuals were separated into 4 groups: Group 1 (1232) population without chronic health conditions; group 2 (298) patients with previous psychological suffering, group 3 (229) patients with cardiovascular diseases, group 4 (71) patients with diabetes. For analysis, G1 and were considered control for comparison with groups 2, 3 and 4 in accordance with One-Way Anova followed by Bonferroni test. Results: All the groups showed the CPDI and FCV-19S increased in comparison with the G1 group. Concerning CPDI, the G 3 was increased when compared to G1, G2 and G4. The G3 had the FCV-19S higher in comparison with G1, G2 and G4. The Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney test showed a statistical difference between the control group in comparison with 2 and 3 groups (Mann-Whitney p< 0.05). Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the Brazilian population, with patients with heart disease and hypertension presenting the highest numbers of stress and fear, with numbers comparable and even higher than those who reported previous psychological distress.