Public Health

We formulated a deterministic model for simulation of zika virus (ZIKV) infections. This cooperates with WHO serious alert on February 1st, 2016 to contain ZIKV epidemic in the world, Brazil being the most hit. Accordingly, we have taken Brazil records on ZIKV cases as an example to justify the model. According to the model, simulations suggests that by 2020, ZIKV infections is no longer a threat in this country. In our analytic analysis we have included some brief simulations as specific cases. Finally, model simulation is all about Brazil. In this model, besides a disease free equilibrium (DFE) point being globally stable, analysis of local DFE has two sets of eigenvalues, leading two different qualitative behavior. This follows due to variation in some parameters. In each of these two sets, none has backward bifurcation. That is the disease is controllable when R_01 the disease free is unstable. In the analytic analysis of either qualitative behavior, we have associated brief simulation. Only analytic analysis of endemic equilibrium has not been fully developed. We have considered Brazil ZIKV cases from January 2016 onward to verify the model plus having some predictions about ZIKV infections to around 2020. The basic reproduction (R_0) has been estimated as R_0=0.19221.

Introduction: Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease characterized clinically by tremor, stiffness, bradykinesia and postural instability. In addition to motor symptoms, some non-motor signals may be observed, such as olfactory dysfunction, sleep disturbance, constipation, depression, irritable bowel syndrome, hearing loss, cataract and others. Some non-motor symptoms may precede the onset of motor symptoms that are characteristic of Parkinson’s disease. Herpes zoster infection as a potential predecessor for the disease was recently reported. Objective: In this study, we do a case report of a patient, attended at the University Hospital of Sergipe (HU), with initial symptoms of herpes zoster infection who developed Parkinson’s disease in a subsequent year. Methodology: A medical record analysis was performed. Information such as age, sex, occupation, residence, previous pathological history and clinical evolution were collected. Results and Discussion: A 70-year-old male patient was admitted to the Neurology outpatient clinic, HU, in 2007. He reported being a former smoker and having cancer in the axillary region in 2003. Physical examination showed bilateral tremor, accentuated in upper left and left cog wheel. The patient was attended until 2015 in the hospital, followed with use of Prolopa, symptomatic treatment and motor physiotherapy. He did not evolve with psychiatric alterations. The symptoms of Parkinson’s disease began approximately one year after herpes zoster infection in the chest region. The following year, patient started a tremor in the fingers of one hand, which evolved throughout the arm, leading the patient to his first medical care in the HU, in 2007. Conclusion: Herpes zoster infection may possibly confer a risk factor for Parkinson’s Disease development.

Introduction: It is important to chart the profile of service users so that actions and resources are planned to ensure effectiveness, and proportionality. The funds will be procured in accordance with hospital demand, with the best of them and loss prevention. And the shares will be effected in a targeted manner to the real needs of users. Objective: To describe the situational diagnosis of a Regional Hospital of Pernambuco. Methodology: Descriptive sectional research, with a quantitative approach performed in the period from january to december, 2016 at the Belarmino Correa Hospital, located in the city of Goiana, Pernambuco. Secondary data were analyzed in the Excel® 2017 program. Results and Discussion: Female users predominated (56%). Prevalent age range of 15 to 59 years (55%). The main place of residence was the home (93%), highlighting the demand of users for the emergency medical clinic (43%). In view of the findings, it can be inferred that the female sex is the majority in the total number of visits, with emphasis on the adult and economically active population, standing out health problems related to clinical demands. It is noteworthy that the users’ preferential entrance door is still the hospital first to the detriment of the family health units, since this is responsible for 80% of the resolution of community health problems it covers. Conclusion: With the study it was possible to identify the difficulties that the institution presents in solving the health problems of the population, evidencing the increase in the demand in the entrance doors mainly of clinical nature and that could be being solved in Primary Care.

Introduction: Epidemiology is the study of factors that determine the frequency and distribution of diseases in human collectivities. Neurodegenerative diseases compose a very heterogeneous group of diseases, caused by distinct mechanisms and characterized by the neuronal degeneration in different regions of the Nervous System. Objective: The objective of this study was to perform a survey on the number of cases of neurodegenerative diseases in the Sergipe University Hospital (HU). Methodology: In this study, an analytic epidemiology study, with a cross-sectional design, we analyzed the epidemiological profile of patients’s medical appointments at HU Neurology Clinic, from January 2003 to January 2016. The research was based on the analysis of patient medical records. These were selected in fixed percentages, per year, at random sampling. Descriptive statistics were performed and the percentage values of the analyzed data were reported. Results and Discussion: A total of 819 medical records were analyzed, of which 166 were cases of neurodegenerative diseases, representing an incidence of 20.2% in the studied episodes. In these cases, 1.2% was patients with Wilson’s Disease, 7.8% with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, 9% with Alzheimer’s Disease and 82% with Parkinson’s Disease (PD). In this study, it was possible to observe that there is a high percentage of people in the HU with neurodegenerative diseases, mainly PD. In the national literature, no articles were found that presented results of epidemiological studies in PD. It is estimated that this disease affects about 1% of the world’s population over 65 years old, representing up to 2/3 of patients attending major movement disorders centers around the world. Conclusion: The results of this work contribute to the determination of the profile of care in HU, providing greater clarity for the planning and replanning of actions at all levels of health care.

Introduction: South Korean international students are the fourth largest number of international students in Japan. Japan and Korea have similar sexuality-related issues, such as declining birthrates, increasing ages of marriage and childbirth. The purpose of this study is to clarify the feelings of Korean international student couples living in Japan about topics such as marriage, family planning, work-life balance, and sexual concerns in Japan and South Korea. Based on our study, we consider future supports for these students’ sexuality. Materials and Methods: The study targeted four unmarried South Korean couples (eight people) aged 20–35 and conducted a qualitative descriptive study using semi-structured interviews. Results: Participants’ average age was 23.5 years for women and 25.5 years for men. The participants thought about when they want to get married; reasons why they want to get married; anxiety about marriage; hopes to be mother or father, timing of having children; thoughts on child-rearing; and hopes about having children. They considered feelings toward work-life balance and sexual concerns; hopes to continue working after marriage and childbirth; the need for coordination between ideal scenarios and reality; reasons for the declining birth rate and increasing age of marriage; good quality of life; feelings of double-standard about pregnancy as a reason for early marriage; and reasons for their negative feelings. Discussion: This study demonstrated that South Korean international student couples in Japan have hopes for marriage and family planning. However, economic uncertainty is a large obstacle, so they think that it was important to build an economic foundation first. Two-income family is common in South Korea. Participants thought [Hope to continue working], but they consider the [Possibility to stop working for a period after marriage and childbirth]. It was clear that there was a [Feeling of a double-standard about working]. For that reason, role sharing and work-life…

To evaluate the nutritional status of children and adolescents monitored in MEC / SESu UFPE project. Cross-sectional descriptive study in Centro de Revitalização e Revalorização da Vida, in the community of Bode, Recife / PE, from August to September 2015. A total of 35 children and adolescents and observed 18 % overweight, being higher in males (22). A high waist circumference was found in 22 % male, 8 % female. For weight / age and height / age was not found deficits nor surpluses in the sample.

The Human Immune-deficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Virus (AIDS) is one of the most significant Public Health problems confronting the human race. This study explored the knowledge and attitude of nursing students in a tertiary health institution towards the care of patients who are living with HIV/AIDS by employing a quantitative & descriptive design. Purposive sampling technique was used to select 165 students who have had contact hours of lectures on the subject matter as well as been exposed to care of patients in the clinical areas. Results were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics at a df of 0.05. Findings revealed that 147 (89.1%) of the respondents have good knowledge of HIV/AIDS and are aware of the universal safety precautions; 116 (70.3%) feel protected using the universal safety precautions. However, 107 (64.8%) respondents strongly agree that being exposed to HIV infection is a major source of concern, while 85 (51.5%) of the respondents strongly support the idea that patients living with HIV/AIDS should not be admitted into the same ward with patients suffering from other disease conditions. The study recommends that all patients should be regarded as potential HIV carriers until proven otherwise due to the multifarious nature of the disease. Health workers are also reminded to adhere strictly to the universal precaution and the AIDS policy guidelines in the management of HIV/AIDS patients at all times.

With the current launch of End TB Strategy by World Health Organization, this is a global call to reduce Tuberculosis death by 95percent and tuberculosis incidence by 90 percent by the year 2035. It becomes imperative to investigate some factors that may hinder the achievement of this goal and find solution to these limiting factors. The aim of this study was to determine the influence of distance to Direct Observation Treatment (DOT) centre on one hand and patients’ perception of improved prognostic outcome on tuberculosis treatment default. A random sample of 150 tuberculosis patients on treatment between May – August 2016 attending different health centers in Ebonyi State, Nigeria were interviewed. Data were collected using self-administered questionnaires from consenting TB patients. Chi-square statistical technique at 5 percent level of significance was used to test the null hypothesis of no relationship. Results indicated that 83 of the 150 TB patients defaulted in their treatment regimen, giving a default rate of 55.3 percent. Residential distance to health /DOT center was statistically associated with Tuberculosis (TB) treatment default, default increased with travel distance between patients’ residence and treatment center (X2 = 16.7003; df = 2; p < 0.001). Also, patients’ experience of disappearance of signs and symptoms as evidence of improved prognosis (perception of recovery) of TB illness was statistically associated with TB treatment default (X2 = 12.5468, df = 4, P = 0.014 ). This study emphasized the need for suitable specific measures for reducing treatment non-compliance as well as proper and repeated motivation of patients during treatment e.g. referring patients to nearby DOT centers, improving contact and default tracing, DOTS expansion and consolidation etc.

This article seeks to draw parallels between various rituals and practices of the Indian wedding and the concept of organ donation and transplantation. The purpose of this article is to make it easier for the layman to relate to the concept of organ donation and transplantation. The article attempts to liken “Kanyadan” (giving away of a daughter in marriage) and “Aangdan” (organ donation); makes comparisons between the two using parameters of legal age, importance of love, search for a suitable match, appointment of middle men, financial investments and legal penalties etc. The article equates traditional match making on the basis of religion with the blood group matching in organ donation and transplantation. It further links the guna milap (Matching of fate lines) of the prospective bride and groom with that of Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) matching in organ donation and transplantation. It also highlights the significance of ensuring compatibility with internal environment irrespective of best selected matches in both the cases. The engagement ceremony to grant social approval to a marriage is equated with socio-legal approvals by “Authorization Committees” for organ donation and transplantation. Geography or spatial proximity also plays a crucial role in facilitating a marriage as well as organ transplant. The article also concludes that a combination of sadness and jubilation is common in both these events. The post-event management in both the cases is a roller coaster ride – full of apprehensions and anxieties – and needs more investments in terms of money, emotions and care. The two however differ on the infrastructure issue; while it’s easy to perform “Kanyadan” at any place by priests or pundits, availability of infrastructure and manpower is restricted in case of “Aangdan”. The author also draws parallel between some unusual marriages and unusual organ donation and transplantations and warns people against…

Drawing on the salutogenic, or ‘origins of health’ framework, this article explores the health and well-being conceptions of urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and identifies individual and community health-enabling strategies employed to support their health and well-being. This qualitative study included 12 focus groups with 83 predominantly Indigenous Australian participants of Work It Out, a chronic disease self-management and rehabilitation program in South East Queensland. The focus groups explored meanings of health and well-being as well as strategies used to keep healthy and well. The findings indicate that urban Indigenous Australians participants view health as a balance between physical, psychological, socio-emotional and environmental factors and are active engagers in health enhancing behavior. This study provides new insights into the health and well-being conceptions of urban Indigenous Australians at risk of suffering from a chronic disease and reveals a unique view of health and well-being. Understanding how urban Indigenous Australians conceptualize health and well-being will contribute to the evidence base to inform culturally responsive public health programs and policy.