In the february 2005 issue of CLINICS

EDITORIAL

In the february 2005 issue of CLINICS

Mauricio Rocha-e-Silva

Hospital das Clínicas, Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo — São Paulo/SP, Brazil. E-mail: [e-mail]

This first issue of our renamed journal, CLINICS, celebrates 60 years of uninterrupted publication of the Official Scientific Journal of Hospital das Clínicas, the SãoPaulo University Medical School Hospital. To celebrate this occasion, we have reluctantly abandoned the old title in order to adopt an English language name to make it more readily accessible throughout the World. Our goal is to turn it into an internationally impacting publication, over the next few years. Our mission remains the same, i.e. to publish quality science originated mainly in Brazil and in the region covered by SCIELO. However we are totally open and welcome good contributions from anywhere in the world. In this issue we publish seven reports of original research and two reviews. In Letters to the Editors, the reader will find our case reports.

Penha et al.¹ assessed posture in 132 girls aged 7-10 and observed a high incidence of postural alterations. Some reflect normal postural development, which corrects itself during growth; others are asymmetries which can be caused by daily demands on the body, and may result in negative impacts on future quality of life. The importance of providing information to parents and teachers about bad posture is emphasized.

Habr-Gama et al.² describe early and late (1 year) results of 77 anoplasty operations performed on patients with moderate to severe anal stenosis using two sliding graft techniques, Sarner's operation (n =58) and Musiari's operation (n=19). Bilateral flaps were used in 7 patients. Early morbidity occurred in 4 patients, and 1 required early reoperation. Good results were obtained in 67 cases (87%), with no reoperation due to recurrence of stenosis. The ease of performance, good functional results, and lack of severe complications show that Sarner's and Musiari's sliding graft techniques are effective and safe methods.

Azevedo et al.³ studied, in sixty patients the imaging exams more commonly used for abdominal aortic aneurysms evaluation — ultrasonography, conventional computerised tomography, helical computerised tomography and nuclear magnetic angioresonance — comparing measurements obtained by them to those made during the surgical procedures: ultrasonography is reliable for diagnosis and followup, but insufficient for the endovascular surgery planning; conventional computed tomography may distort length measurements of the dilatation; helical computed tomography and nuclear magnetic angioresonance provided precise measurements of all the studied parameters, proving its usefulness for the surgical planning.

Khouri et al.⁴ led an expedition of São Paulo University Medical School students to Monte Negro, a village in the state of Rondonia, in the western Amazonic region. The basic aim was to train students in rural assistance. The specific study published here focused on determining seroprevalence of Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and Hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the local population. A total of 267 volunteers randomly chosen from the population were examined. Seroprevalence was 61.79% for HBV, but only 0.38% for HCV. HBV prevalence rose with age, and was higher in those coming from outside the state of Rondonia. Exposure to vaccination against HBV was higher in younger individuals and in native born Rondonians. Monte Negro is thus a highly endemic region for HBV but not for HCV. Results indirectly indicate an improvement in immunization in Rondonia, over recent years.

Tannuri et al.⁵ report their experience in the attempted creation of 33 arteriovenous fistulae in 29 children (aged 4 — 16) with end-stage renal disease. Primary patency was achieved in 27 (82%) of cases. Fistula occlusion occurred in 2 patients and radial artery thrombosis in 2 patients; new successful fistulae were created in these 4 patients and all patent fistulae were used for dialysis. An aneurysm formed in a brachiocephalic fistula after a long period of utilization. Arteriovenous fistulas are thus described as a satisfactory method for providing hemodialysis to children. Microsurgical techniques and technical refinements are described, which allow for the attainment of the high patency rates described.

Ishizuka et al.⁶ examined the frequency of identifiable falls recorded in 49 elderly patients seeking medical care in a geriatric unit (average age: 71.2 ± 5.5 years) with normal or moderate levels of movement functionality, as assessed by the Performance-Oriented Mobility Assessment (POMA Ia) questionnaire. A significantly higher level of falls was reported by the moderate movement functionality group indicating that POMA 1a is a valid method of detection of individuals with increased risk of falling.

Filippin & Souza⁷ determined normal range of Serum beta 2-microglobulin (Sb2M) values among healthy Brazilians using a DPC IMMULITE^® assay in 96 healthy blood donors. Levels of Sb2M are elevated in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients and have been shown to be the best predictor of HIV infection status and of some malignant disorders, especially multiple myeloma.The range established in this study was 1.05 to 3.9 mg/mL, with the upper limit being higher than that reported elsewhere. This is a significant difference between the current reference limits for Sb2M IMMULITE^® assay and those found here in Brazil, indicating that a significant difference in range of normal values may occur and that these new values should be considered for Brazilian individuals.

REFERENCES

1. Penha PJ, Amado João SM, Casarotto RA, Amino CJ, Penteado DC. Postural assessment of girls between 7 and 10 years of age. CLINICS 2005;60(1):9-16.

2. Habr-Gama A, Sobrado CW, Araújo SEA de, Nahas SC, Birbojm I, Rizkallah CS et al. Surgical treatment of anal stenosis: assessment of 77 anoplasties. CLINICS 2005;60(1):17-20.

3. Azevedo F das C de, Zerati AE, Blasbalg R, Wolosker N, Puech-Leão P. Comparison of ultrasonography, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging with intraoperative measurements in the evaluation of abdominal aortic aneurysms. CLINICS 2005;60(1):21-28.

4. El Khouri M, Duarte LS, Ribeiro RB, Silva LFF da, Camargo LMA, Santos VA dos et al. Seroprevalence of hepatatis B virus and hepatitis C virus in Monte Negro in the Brazilian western Amazon region. CLINICS 2005;60(1):29-36.

5. Tannuri U, Tannuri ACA. Experience with arteriovenous fistulas for chronic hemodialysis in children: technical details and refinements. CLINICS 2005;60(1):37-40.

6. Ishizuka MA, Mutarelli EG, Yamaguchi AM, Jacob Filho W. Falls by elders with moderate levels of movement functionality. CLINICS 2005;60(1):41-46.

7. Filippin FB, Souza LC. Serum b₂-Microglobulin values among healthy Brazilians using DPC IMMULITE^® Assay. CLINICS 2005;60(1):47-50.

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  01 Mar 2005
• Date of issue
  Feb 2005