ABSTRACT Agriculture is one of the segments that most uses water and developments have been made to save irrigation water. Deficit irrigation is a technique that can contribute to production and water saving in agriculture. This study aimed to evaluate the viability of deficit irrigation in tomato production irrigated by subsurface drip in a greenhouse and estimate water saving. The experiment was conducted at the CCA/UFSCar, in Araras, São Paulo, Brazil, with grape tomato cultivation. It consisted of three treatments, 100 % water depth and deficit irrigation (75 and 50 % of water depth), with a randomized block design. Irrigation management was performed using mean soil moisture data collected through TDR probes installed in each treatment. Tomato plants were cultivated for 137 days and conducted vertically with one stem and six bunches. Fruit size, number and mass of fruits per plant, fruit pH and soluble solids were attributes measured and analyzed weekly. The deficit irrigation of 50 % treatment presented lower values in all attributes evaluated and 90.6 % of water saving. The 75 % treatment showed lower value only for pH and fruit diameter and 70.4 % of water saving. Deficit irrigation of 75 % was viable for tomato cultivation in greenhouse and for water saving in crop cycle.

ABSTRACT The use of new technologies to meet the demands of the agricultural market is increasing; however, technical information on application is scarce for some areas of knowledge, including irrigation management. The objective of this study is to evaluate an automatic irrigation system with capacitance sensors connected to a local wireless network for the semiautomatic management of irrigation in tomato crops compared with a manual control system based on time-domain reflectometry (TDR)-type sensors. The experiments were carried out in a protected environment, and the seedlings were transplanted following surface drip lines. The study adopted a completely randomized block design consisting of two treatments and 12 repetitions, totaling 24 subplots. The evaluated treatments were an irrigation management system with TDR sensors and a manually-programmed controller, and an irrigation management system with capacitance sensors and a semiautomatically-programmed controller connected to a digital assistant. Quantitative and qualitative parameters as well as the green and dry matter production were evaluated in each treatment. The results indicated that both sensors were effective in managing irrigation in tomato crops. Furthermore, both systems were accurate, and the Alexa® digital assistant was efficient in programming the GreenIQ® semiautomatic system by voice commands.

Crianças com a forma poliarticular da artrite idiopática juvenil (AIJ), ao entrarem na idade adulta, têm um quadro similar ao de pacientes com artrite reumatoide (AR) de início no adulto. No presente estudo comparam-se características clínicas e imunológicas desses dois grupos de pacientes. Para isso, foram estudados vinte adultos com AIJ poliarticular e cinquenta pacientes com AR (pareados para sexo e tempo de duração de doença), para presença de autoanticorpos, nódulos subcutâneos, síndrome de Sjögren secundária, hipotireoidismo e para a determinação de índices funcionais e antropométricos. Encontraram-se, nesses dois grupos, características similares, exceto pela presença de fator reumatoide (menor no grupo de AIJ poliarticular; P = 0,026) e menor IMC nos pacientes com AIJ poliarticular (P < 0,001).

When children with polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) reach adulthood, they have a condition similar to that of patients with adult onset rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In the present study, the clinical and immunological characteristics of these two groups of patients are compared. The presence of autoantibodies, subcutaneous nodules, secondary Sjögren syndrome, and hypothyroidism, was determined in 20 adult patients with polyarticular JIA and in 50 patients with RA (paired for gender and duration of the disease), as well as the determination of functional and anthropometric indexes. Both groups had similar characteristics, except for the presence of rheumatoid factor (lower in the polyarticular JIA group; P = 0.026) and lower BMI in patients with polyarticular JIA (P < 0.001).

OBJETIVO: Verificar a prevalência de tendinites e/ou entesopatia em pacientes portadores de diabetes mellitus (DM) tipos 1 e 2 e relacionar a presença das mesmas com a idade dos pacientes, tipo de diabetes e níveis de glicemia. MÉTODOS: Foram estudados 149 pacientes com DM (64 homens e 85 mulheres), sendo 12 portadores de DM tipo 1 e 137 de DM tipo 2, e 55 pessoas normais (23 homens e 32 mulheres). Os indivíduos foram submetidos a exame físico para tendinites e entesopatias, dosagem de glicemia de jejum e hemoglobina (Hb) A1C. RESULTADOS: Achou-se tendinite e/ou entesopatia em 3,6% do grupo-controle contra 32,21% nos diabéticos. A freqüência de tendinites e/ou entesopatia no diabético era semelhante nos dois sexos, e não se notou correlação entre a presença dessas e a idade, o tempo de doença e o tipo de DM. No que diz respeito a níveis glicêmicos, apesar de os diabéticos com tendinites apresentarem uma média das glicemias levemente superior à dos sem tendinites, o estudo não demonstrou diferença estatisticamente significativa, acontecendo o mesmo em relação à Hb A1C. CONCLUSÕES: Concluiu-se que pacientes diabéticos apresentam uma maior prevalência de tendinites e/ou entesopatias que a população normal e que estas não dependem da duração da doença nem do tipo de diabetes. A glicemia de jejum e Hb A1C não refletem adequadamente as alterações no metabolismo do colágeno, responsáveis pelas entesopatias e tendinites nesses pacientes.

OBJECTIVE: To verify the prevalence of tendinitis and/or enthesopathy in diabetic patients and its relationship to with age, type and duration of diabetes as well as glycemic control. METHODS: We studied 55 normal controls (23 males and 32 females) and 149 diabetic patients (64 males and 85 females); 12 of them with type 1 diabetes and 137 with type 2. We performed physical examination for tendinitis and determination of fasting glycemic levels and hemoglobin (Hb) A1C. RESULTS: We found that 3.6% (n = 2) of normal persons, and 32.31% of diabetic patients (n = 48) had tendinitis and/or enthesopathy. The frequency of tendinitis and/or enthesopathy in diabetic patients was similar in both gender and we could not find a relationship with age, disease duration and diabetes type. Concerning glycemic control, we found that patients with tendinitis had a glycemic medium level higher than those without it, but no significant statistical difference could be demonstrated, happening the same with HbA1C. CONCLUSIONS: We concluded that diabetic patients have a high prevalence of tendinitis and/or enthesopathy, which does not depend on disease duration or diabetes type. Fasting glycemia and HbA1C do not reflect collagen metabolism changes that favor enthesophaties and tendinitis in these patients.

OBJETIVO: O presente estudo teve por finalidade estudar a freqüência de catarata em pacientes reumáticos e usuários crônicos de corticóide, procurando-se correlacionar o seu aparecimento com tempo de uso, dose cumulativa total e doença de fundo. MÉTODOS: Foram estudados 27 pacientes reumáticos usuários crônicos de corticóide, com exame de lâmpada de fenda e calculado o tempo de uso e doses cumulativas de prednisona ou equivalente. RESULTADO: Encontrou-se freqüência de 18,52% de cataratas e não foi possível demonstrar correlação com dose cumulativa do medicamento (p=0,231) ou com o tipo de doença de fundo. Apesar do tempo médio de uso de corticóide ter sido maior entre os pacientes que apresentaram catarata, esta correlação não demostrou significância estatística (p=0,694). CONCLUSÃO: Os autores concluem que esta complicação é relativamente comum e que mais estudos são necessários para melhor entender o processo fisiopatológico implicado na sua formação.

PURPOSE: To study cataract prevalence in rheumatic patients who used corticosteroid chronically and to correlate it with time and total corticosteroid dose as well as with the disease that required such treatment. METHODS: We studied 27 rheumatic patients regarding cataract using slit lamp and calculated the total dose of prednisone or equivalent steroids as well as the treatment time. RESULTS: We found an 18.52% prevalence and no correlation with cumulative dose (p=0.231) or with the underlying disease. Although the time of treatment was longer in the group with cataract, no statistically significant difference could be found (p=0.694). CONCLUSION: The authors conclude that cataract is a relativelly common complication of steroid use and that further studies are needed to understand the pathophysiologic process of its formation.