Oswaldo Cruz Foundation

About: Oswaldo Cruz Foundation is a facility organization based out in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Trypanosoma cruzi. The organization has 18673 authors who have published 36752 publications receiving 802378 citations. The organization is also known as: Fundação Oswaldo Cruz & FIOCRUZ.

Twenty-five years of the AIDS epidemic in Brazil: principal epidemiological findings, 1980-2005

Abstract: The Brazilian AIDS epidemic is undergoing important changes in its third decade. The present article reviews some central findings: the proportional reduction in cases related to injection drug use; the stability, in recent years, of new cases in the male homosexual/bisexual population; and the relative and absolute increment in heterosexual transmission, even though the estimates of incident rates still point to the first two categories mentioned as those most affected by the epidemic. Still should be detached the persistent increase in incidence rates among women and its stability in the younger age groups, probably the result of behavior changes (such as the consistent use among youth of condoms in sexual relations with casual partners and a reduction in cases related to injection drug use). It is well-know that HIV prevalence in the general population has stabilized at less than 1%, which characterizes Brazil as one of the countries with a concentrated epidemic. The article also emphasizes the growth of AIDS morbidity-mortality in the less favored socioeconomic strata and in women, and the stability of the mortality rate among men.

Preceptor, supervisor, tutor e mentor: quais são seus papéis?

Abstract: The education of those who care for the health of the population has always been a matter of concern. In medical education, the figure of the experienced professional helping to educate and qualify a new generation is a constant finding. Such a professional has been given different names, preceptor, supervisor, tutor and mentor being the most common among them. Even official documents fail to clearly specify which functions, interventions, and activities each denomination entails. We thus aimed to analyze the meaning of these different denominations as used by the national and international scientific communities. Starting with the analysis of the concept each term expresses, we intend to build up a better framework for the regulation and practice of the teaching-learning process in the graduation and post-graduation courses in the health professions.

Mandados judiciais como ferramenta para garantia do acesso a medicamentos no setor público: a experiência do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil

Abstract: There are increasing numbers of legal suits concerning access to medicines brought against the Rio de Janeiro State Health Department. The situation indicated the need for a study to clarify the underlying issues. A sample of 389 court suits from January 1991 to December 2001 (stratified by year) was used. A cross-sectional design was used to describe and analyze the legal suits in relation to the responsibilities defined under the Unified National Health System (SUS). Results suggest major delays in court decisions. Most suits are filed by the Public Defender's Office for users of the National Health System. The most frequent cases involve medicines for the cardiovascular and nervous systems, many of which involve continuous use. Prescribing practices are institutionalized through the inclusion of the most frequently prescribed drugs in public financing lists, which makes rational drug use difficult to achieve. Municipalities are not fulfilling their responsibility to supply medicines to users, and the State is thus encumbered with these responsibilities. However, the State does not adequately supply medicines to the municipalities. The apparent lack of awareness among both lawyers and clients generates stress between the Executive and Judiciary branches and limits the resources for collective pharmaceutical services.

[The importance of water testing for public health in two regions in Rio de Janeiro: a focus on fecal coliforms, nitrates, and aluminum].

Abstract: In developing countries, due to poor sanitation conditions and poor quality of drinking water, typical water-borne diseases and more recently diseases caused by drinking water with high concentrations of nitrates and certain metals like aluminum have increased the concern over the health effects of these compounds. Several articles have shown associations between nitrates and methemoglobinemia in children, and aluminum and Alzheimer disease in adults. This study identified water quality with several parameters in non-conformity with Brazilian drinking water standards (Ruling 36/90): more than 50% of all samples from both regions contained fecal coliforms; some 31% of water samples from wells in Duque de Caxias had excessive nitrate concentrations; 100% of all groundwater samples from both regions showed aluminum concentrations not conforming to the norm, with the same result for 100% of samples from the drinking water distribution system in Sao Goncalo and 75% of same in Duque de Caxias. This lack of conformity poses several health risks for the local population.