Universidade de Pernambuco

About: Universidade de Pernambuco is a education organization based out in Recife, Brazil. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Medicine. The organization has 6147 authors who have published 6948 publications receiving 73648 citations.

Plasmatic higher levels of homocysteine in Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)

Abstract: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a chronic liver disease, which includes a spectrum of hepatic pathology such as simple steatosis, steatohepatitis, fibrosis and cirrhosis. The increased serum levels of homocysteine (Hcy) may be associated with hepatic fat accumulation. Genetic mutations in the folate route may only mildly impair Hcy metabolism. The aim of this study was to investigate the relation between liver steatosis with plasma homocysteine level and MTHFR C677T and A1298C polymorphisms in Brazilian patients with NAFLD. Thirty-five patients diagnosed with NAFLD by liver biopsy and forty-five healthy controls neither age nor sex matched were genotyped for C677T and A1298C MTHFR polymorphisms using PCR-RFLP and PCR-ASA, respectively, and Hcy was determined by HPLC. All patients were negative for markers of Wilson’s, hemochromatosis and autoimmune diseases. Their daily alcohol intake was less than 100 g/week. A set of metabolic and serum lipid markers were also measured at the time of liver biopsies. The plasma Hcy level was higher in NAFLD patients compared to the control group (p = 0.0341). No statistical difference for genotypes 677C/T (p = 0.110) and 1298A/C (p = 0.343) in patients with NAFLD and control subjects was observed. The genotypes distribution was in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (677C/T p = 0.694 and 1298 A/C p = 0.188). The group of patients and controls showed a statistically significant difference (p 0.05). The suggested genetic susceptibility to the MTHFR C677T and A1298C should be confirmed in large population based studies.

Inequities in access to health care in different health systems: a study in municipalities of central Colombia and north-eastern Brazil

Abstract: Introduction: Health system reforms are undertaken with the aim of improving equity of access to health care. Their impact is generally analyzed based on health care utilization, without distinguishing between levels of care. This study aims to analyze inequities in access to the continuum of care in municipalities of Brazil and Colombia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted based on a survey of a multistage probability sample of people who had had at least one health problem in the prior three months (2,163 in Colombia and 2,167 in Brazil). The outcome variables were dichotomous variables on the utilization of curative and preventive services. The main independent variables were income, being the holder of a private health plan and, in Colombia, type of insurance scheme of the General System of Social Security in Health (SGSSS). For each country, the prevalence of the outcome variables was calculated overall and stratified by levels of per capita income, SGSSS insurance schemes and private health plan. Prevalence ratios were computed by means of Poisson regression models with robust variance, controlling for health care need. Results: There are inequities in favor of individuals of a higher socioeconomic status: in Colombia, in the three different care levels (primary, outpatient secondary and emergency care) and preventive activities; and in Brazil, in the use of outpatient secondary care services and preventive activities, whilst lower-income individuals make greater use of the primary care services. In both countries, inequity in the use of outpatient secondary care is more pronounced than in the other care levels. Income in both countries, insurance scheme enrollment in Colombia and holding a private health plan in Brazil all contribute to the presence of inequities in utilization. Conclusions: Twenty years after the introduction of reforms implemented to improve equity in access to health care, inequities, defined in terms of unequal use for equal need, are still present in both countries. The design of the health systems appears to determine access to the health services: two insurance schemes in Colombia with different benefits packages and a segmented system in Brazil, with a significant private component.

A Method for Extracting the Fundamental-Frequency Positive-Sequence Voltage Vector Based on Simple Mathematical Transformations

Abstract: In this paper, a novel scheme for obtaining the fundamental-frequency positive-sequence grid voltage is proposed. The method is based on four simple mathematical transformations; two of them are in the stationary reference frame, which are able to eliminate odd harmonics from the original signals. The other two transformations are implemented in a synchronously rotating reference frame in order to eliminate even harmonics. The output of the last transformation block is the input to a synchronous reference-frame phase-locked loop for detecting the frequency and position of the positive-sequence voltage vector. The proposed algorithm was verified through simulations and experiments by applying distorted and unbalanced signals, containing positive and negative-sequence components. The results are in agreement with those theoretically predicted and indicate that the proposed scheme has a great potential for use in grid-connected converter synchronization algorithms.