RCAAP Repository

OBJECTIVE: To assess the influence of skeletal muscle mass on ventilatory and hemodynamic variables during exercise in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). METHODS: Twenty-five male patients underwent maximum cardiopulmonary exercise testing on a treadmill with a ramp protocol and measurement of the skeletal muscle mass of their thighs by using magnetic resonance imaging. The clinically stable, noncachectic patients were assessed and compared with 14 healthy individuals (S) paired by age and body mass index, who underwent the same examinations. RESULTS: Similar values of skeletal muscle mass were found in both groups (CHF group: 3863 ± 874 g; S group: 3743 ± 540 g; p = 0.32). Significant correlations of oxygen consumption in the anaerobic threshold (CHF: r = 0.39; P= 0.02 and S: r = 0.14; P = 0.31) and of oxygen pulse also in the anaerobic threshold (CHF: r = 0.49; P = 0.01 and S: r =0.12; P = 0.36) were found only in the group of patients with chronic heart failure. CONCLUSION: The results obtained indicate that skeletal muscle mass may influence the capacity of patients with CHF to withstand submaximal effort, due to limitations in their physical condition, even maintaining a value similar to that of healthy individuals. This suggests qualitative changes in the musculature.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of smoking on in-hospital morbidity and mortality in patients who have experienced acute myocardial infarction and to assess the association between smoking and other cardiovascular risk factors and clinical data. METHODS: A prospective cohort study analyzed 121 patients, including 54 smokers, 35 ex-smokers, and 32 nonsmokers. RESULTS: Using the chi-square test (P<0.05), an association between smoking and the risk factors sex, age, and diabetes was documented. Among the morbidity and mortality variables, only acute pulmonary edema showed a statistically significant difference (OR=9.5; 95% CI), which was greater in the ex-smoker group than in the nonsmoker group. CONCLUSION: An association between smoking and some cardiovascular risk factors was observed, but no statistical difference in morbidity and mortality was observed in the groups studied, except for the variable acute pulmonary edema.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the lipid profiles and coronary heart disease risks of 2 Brazilian Amazonian populations as follows: a riverside population (village of Vigia) and an urban population (city of Belém in the state of Pará). METHODS: Fifty individuals controlled for age and sex were assessed in each region, and the major risk factors for coronary heart disease were analyzed. RESULTS: According to the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP III) and using the Framingham score, both populations had the same absolute risk of events (Vigia = 5.4 ± 1 vs Belém = 5.7 ± 1), although the population of Vigia had a lower consumption of saturated fat (P<0.0001), a greater consumption of mono- and polyunsaturated fat (P<0.03), in addition to lower values for body mass index (25.4± 0.6 vs 27.6 ± 0.7 kg/m², P<0.02), of biceps skin fold (18.6 ± 1.1 vs 27.5 ± 1.3 mm, P<0.0001), of triceps skin fold (28.7 ± 1.2 vs 37.3 ± 1.7 mm, P<0.002), and of total cholesterol (205 ± 5 vs 223 ± 6 mg/dL, P< 0.03) and triglycerides (119 ± 9 vs 177 ± 18 mg/dL, P<0.005). Both populations did not differ in regard to HDL-C (46 ± 1 vs 46 ± 1 mg/dL), LDL-C (135 ± 4 vs 144 ± 5 mg/dL) and blood pressure (SBP 124 ± 3 vs 128 ± 3 mmHg; DBP 80 ± 2 vs 82 ± 2 mmHg). CONCLUSION: The riverside and urban populations of Amazonia had similar cardiovascular risks. However, the marked difference in the variables studied suggests that different strategies of prevention should be applied.

OBJECTIVE: To verify the hypothesis that the pulmonary vein pulsatility index is higher in fetuses of diabetic mothers than it is in normal fetuses of nondiabetic mothers. METHODS: Twenty-four fetuses of mothers with either gestational or previous diabetes (cases), and 25 normal fetuses of mothers without systemic disease (control) were examined. Fetuses were examined through prenatal Doppler and color flow mapping. The pulmonary vein pulsatility index was obtained by placing the pulsed Doppler sample volume over the right superior pulmonary vein and applying the formula (systolic velocity - presystolic velocity)/mean velocity. RESULTS: The mean gestational age of the study fetuses was 30.3±2.7 weeks, and gestational age of the controls was 29±3.3 weeks, with no significant difference in gestational age between groups (p=0.14). Fetuses of diabetic mothers had a mean pulmonary vein pulsatility index of 1.6±1, and those of the control group had an index of 0.86±0.27. CONCLUSION: Fetuses of diabetic mothers had pulmonary vein pulsatility indexes (parameter easily obtained through Doppler echocardiography that may be related to fetal diastolic function) higher than those in fetuses of mothers with normal glycemia.

Primary cardiac angiosarcoma is a rare disease of difficult diagnosis and poor prognosis frequently associated with recurring hemopericardium. We report the case of a 30-year-old female with a right atrial angiosarcoma and spontaneous rupture to the pericardial cavity, who was diagnosed during an emergency exploratory thoracotomy, whose indication was cardiac tamponade. This is the 8th case reported in the literature. Clinical findings are discussed and a literature review is provided.

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OBJETIVO: Descrever a distribuição dos escores de cálcio coronariano numa população de homens brasileiros brancos assintomáticos submetidos à avaliação pela tomografia ultra-rápida. MÉTODOS: Foram avaliados 2.253 homens de 22-88 anos, submetidos a exame tomográfico num aparelho ImatronR C150 para detecção do cálcio coronariano. Os dados foram separados em 7 faixas etárias: < 40 anos, 40-44 anos, 45-49 anos, 50-54 anos, 55-59 anos, 60-64 anos e >65 anos. RESULTADOS: A média e o desvio padrão da idade foram de 50,0 ± 9,7 anos. Em 48,8% dos casos ocorreu incidência de escore de cálcio coronário > zero, que apresentou distribuição não Gaussiana e mostrou grande variação para a mesma faixa etária. Houve correlação direta entre a idade e o escores de cálcio coronariano (r=0,4, p<0,01). Exceto na comparação entre os indivíduos nas faixas etárias 60-64 anos e, abaixo 55-60 anos e acima de 65 anos, quanto maior a faixa etária maiores as medianas dos escores de cálcio coronariano (p<0,0001). Os escores de cálcio coronariano estão relatados de acordo com os percentis 25,50,75 e 90 para as faixas etárias. CONCLUSÃO: Este estudo, primeiro a relatar a distribuição dos escores de cálcio coronariano em uma amostra de homens brasileiros brancos, pode ser útil para estratificação do risco de eventos coronarianos.

Abstract We determined the infestation rate of Probopyrus sp. in populations of Palaemon pandaliformis (Stimpson, 1871) and P. northropi (Rankin, 1898) in the Ubatumirim River, localized in a mangrove ecosystem on Ubatumirim Beach, northern coast of the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Samplings were carried out monthly from April 2003 to March 2004. Monthly prevalence varied from 0 to 4.94 % for P. pandaliformis, and from 0 to 4.54 % for P. northropi. This is the first record of Probopyrus sp. infesting the studied species in this region. Species of Probopyrus (Giard and Bonnier, 1888) seem to have a high plasticity with regard to palaemonid hosts, as they can be parasites of shrimps in both Palaemon (Fabricius, 1798) and Macrobrachium (Spence Bate, 1868). The linear relationships between the parasite and host sizes suggest that the parasite infests both hosts early in their development. We concluded that the infestation of Probopyrus sp. has little impact on Palaemon populations, mostly due to the low prevalence of infestation.

ABSTRACT The distributional patterns of 13 species of Diaptomus Westwood, 1836 were analyzed using the panbiogeographical method of track analysis. Locality records were compiled from the literature and mapped for the construction of individual tracks for each species. These tracks were superimposed to find the generalized tracks. Four generalized tracks were found: (1) Siberia, Central Europe, and Iceland; (2) Northern Italy, southern France, central Spain, northern Algeria, and northern Morocco; (3) Southern France, central Spain, and northern Morocco; (4) Southern Italy, Sicily, and Albania. Five biogeographic nodes were found: (A) Southwestern Iberia, (B) Southeastern Iberia, (C) Central Iberia, (D) Cantabria, at the intersections of generalized tracks 2 and 3; and (E) Italian Peninsula Islands, at the intersection of generalized tracks 2 and 4. The main massing of the species of Diaptomus studied is located in the Iberian peninsula, where six of the species do occur. A model based on the fragmentation and differentiation of already widespread ancestors during the late Mesozoic and early Cenozoic, related to the opening the North Atlantic Ocean and the formation of the Mediterranean Sea, is proposed as a most parsimonious explanation for the observed patterns of geographic vicariance.

Abstract We describe a new species of freshwater crab, Aegla chilota, from two small streams at Yaldad Bay, in the southern end of Chiloé Island, western Patagonia. The new taxon is distinguished from the remaining Chilean species of Aegla Leach, 1820 by the following morphological diagnostic features: rostrum neatly triangular, short, scarcely surpassing eyes; orbital sinus wide, shallow, limited by tiny extra-orbital spine and wide extra-orbital sinus; carpal lobe prominent, triangular, tipped by at least two coalescent acute conical scales; second abdominal epimeron little produced, armed with acute scale; telson plate roughly pentagonal, with functional median suture. Molecular phylogenetic analyses also support the separation and diagnosis of A. chilota from its sister taxon, A. hueicollensis Jara and Palacios, 1999. The type locality for A. chilota n. sp. is a small river that drains a small hilly portion of the south-eastern coast of Chiloé Island; the other river in which the species was found is isolated from the type locality by the Yaldad Bay into which both rivers drain.

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to describe the morphology of Clibanarius antillensis Stimpson, 1859 megalopae collected in the vicinity of Isla Sacrificios, Mexico, and compare it to previous descriptions originated from Brazilian and Panamanian specimens raised in laboratory conditions. We found four meristic differences between the Brazilian and the Panamanian and Mexican populations with the Brazilian population: the outer flagellum of antennule in the Panamanian and Mexican populations has more aesthetascs on the second, third, and fourth segments of the outer flagellum (0, 6, 5, 3, 0) than the Brazilian population (0, 4, 4, 2, 0); the maxilla has more setae on the scaphognathite in the Brazilian specimens (70) than in the Mexican and Panamanian specimens (49-62); the crista dentata of the third maxilliped is formed by only three denticles in the Brazilian specimens, while 4 or 6 denticles form the same structure in the Panamanian and Mexican populations; there are fewer number of setae on the endopod of the uropod in the Brazilian population. The differences may be explained by intraspecific variation.

Abstract Based on an updated checklist of the benthic caridean shrimp fauna of the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETP), we analyzed their large-scale species richness distribution patterns using a grid approximation. Caridean fauna is composed of 183 species belonging to 67 genera and 18 families. Alpheidae, Palaemonidae and Thoridae contributed largely to species richness. Alpheus and Synalpheus were the most diverse genera. Most species (24%) have a narrow distribution inhabiting a single grid, and as many as 135 are restricted to < 5 grids. Mexico has the largest richness (130) besides Ecuador (98) and Panama (75). Richness among grids varies largely; overall, it is larger around Galapagos and Panama, Colombia, Costa Rica and the Gulf of California. There was a meaningful correlation between a proxy of sampling intensity and richness, suggesting that along with habitat heterogeneity or large-scale evolutionary processes currently invoked as richness drivers, the pattern can also be related to differences in research efforts. Exponential fitting and Chao2 index suggest that the caridean faunal inventory from the ETP is still far from being complete. Overall, the results call for a more thoughtful and systematic sampling scheme in order to get information from poorly sampled environments and areas in the ETP.

Abstract A series of specimens of the fish external parasite Rocinella murilloi Brusca and Iverson, 1985, is reported from 12 localities off western Mexico. These records are the first for southwestern Mexico (four) and add six new localities off the west coast of the Baja California Peninsula where the species was known from a single record. The specimens were recovered from bottom-operated nets, between 700 and 1235 m, slightly shallower than previous records. Environmental conditions confirm the presence of R. murilloi below the core of the Oxygen Minimum Zone, and this species appears to be highly tolerant to moderate to severe hypoxic conditions. General distribution of the species in the eastern Pacific is presented.

ABSTRACT A checklist of the order Mysida from Pulau Tinggi, Sultan Iskandar Marine Park, Johor, Malaysia is presented. With the aid of an epibenthic sledge, a total number of 9,239 mysids were collected during years 2012-2013 from two fixed stations of seagrass bed in Pulau Tinggi. So far there are 13 species, 10 genera, and 6 subfamilies of mysids. Of these, one species Siriella media Hansen, 1910 is recorded as new to Pulau Tinggi. The checklist presented herein includes the reference to each species’ original description, type locality, information on geographical distribution.

Abstract All species of Brazilian terrestrial isopod known up to date, including references and distribution information, are listed. The list comprises 189 valid species, 135 of which are endemic to the country, 22 are recorded also from other countries in the Americas, 20 are introduced, and 12 have circumtropical or pantropical distributions.

Abstract Caprellid amphipods are common crustaceans at Sargassum beds of southeastern Brazil and constitute an important link between primary producers and marine consumers. The goal of this study is to evaluate population and reproductive biology of two caprellid species: Paracaprella tenuis Mayer, 1903 and Pseudaeginella montoucheti Quitete, 1971. Sargassum cymosum Agardh, 1820 samples were collected monthly between October 2010 and September 2011 in a rock shore in southeastern Brazil. The caprellids were identified, counted, measured and classified as males, immature females, sexually mature females, ovigerous females and juveniles. Eggs were counted and measured. Higher densities of P. tenuis and P. montoucheti were found mainly in winter and lower densities in fall and summer. Density variation is probably related to organic matter supply and substrate availability. Both species showed continuous reproduction with reproductive peaks. Pseudaeginella montoucheti larger egg volume indicates a longer incubation period. The egg volume was directly related to female size. The number of eggs was weakly related to female size, indicating that fecundity may be driven by other factors, such as the physiological conditions. Sex ratio deviated for males suggests a higher longevity of males. The present study highlighted important data of two caprellids species that occur in algal beds of different regions.