ABSTRACT Introduction: thoracic trauma is defined as anything that involves the rib cage, the musculoskeletal framework that houses the heart, lungs, pleurae and mediastinal structures. It can be superficial or immediately lifethreatening for victims. In Brazil, most assistance is due to urban violence. Objective: evaluate the clinical and epidemiological aspect of patients who are victims of thoracic trauma treated at Hospital de Urgência de Sergipe, Aracaju/SE, Brazil. Method: cross-sectional, observational and prospective study, carried out for eleven months, with 100 polytraumatized patients. A semi-structured form was applied, and the data were systematized, analyzed and statistically tested considering a 5% margin of error. Results: 85% of the patients were male, with a mean age of 39.3 and an age range of 30 to 49 years; 57% of them had incomplete primary education, 70% had a family income of up to 2 minimum wages and 41% were from Greater Aracaju. As for the mechanism of trauma, 33% were car-related, with blunt trauma as the main mechanism, and rib fractures as the main consequence. Among penetrating injuries, CWI (26%) and GSW (21%) were the most prevalent, with hemothorax being the main consequence. Most patients underwent thoracostomy (59%). Conclusion: the profile found was of young men, victims of urban violence. The thoracostomy was resolving in most cases and should be instituted promptly when necessary. A smaller number of patients may require thoracotomy, especially in the presence of hemodynamic instability.

RESUMO Introdução: o trauma torácico é definido como toda aquele que envolve a caixa torácica, arcabouço osteomuscular que aloja o coração, os pulmões, as pleuras e as estruturas do mediastino. Pode ser superficial ou causar risco de vida imediato às vítimas. No Brasil, a maioria dos atendimentos é decorrente da violência urbana. Objetivo: avaliar o aspecto clínico-epidemiológico dos pacientes vítimas de trauma torácico atendidos no Hospital de Urgência de Sergipe, Aracaju/SE, Brasil. Métodos: estudo transversal, observacional e prospectivo, realizado durante onze meses, com 100 pacientes politraumatizados. Formulário semiestruturado foi aplicado, e os dados sistematizados, analisados e testados estatisticamente considerando-se a margem de erro de 5%. Resultados: 85% dos pacientes eram do gênero masculino, com idade média de 39,3 e faixa etária de 30 a 49 anos; 57% deles possuíam ensino fundamental incompleto, 70% tinham renda familiar de até 2 salários mínimos e 41% eram provenientes da Grande Aracaju. Quanto ao mecanismo de trauma, 33% foi automobilístico, tendo como principal mecanismo o trauma contuso, e a principal consequência a fratura de arcos costais. Dentre os ferimentos penetrantes, os FAB (26%) e FAF (21%) foram os mais prevalentes, sendo o hemotórax sua principal consequência, sendo maioria dos pacientes submetida a toracostomia (59%). Conclusão: o perfil encontrado foi de homens, jovens, vítimas da violência urbana. A toracostomia foi resolutiva na maioria dos casos e deve ser instituída prontamente quando necessário. Uma menor parte dos pacientes necessitou de toracotomia, principalmente na presença de instabilidade hemodinâmica.

Aim: To evaluate prospectively the upper airway of 16 patients submitted to surgically assisted rapid maxillary expansion. Methods: Volumetric tomography acquisitions were done preoperatively (T1) and after six months postoperatively (T2), the slices were obtained from the hard palate to the third cervical vertebra (C3), the images were imported and reconstructed in the Dolphin software for 2D definition of the upper airway. A cephalometric radiograph was generated by the software, the cephalometric points were traced at T1 and T2 for all patients in a dark environment always by the same operator and the Arnett-Gunson FAB Surgery analysis was applied. Results: A statistically significant reduction in area (p=0.03) at the level of the nasopharynx was observed, while at the oropharynx and hypopharynx it showed no statistical difference between T1 and T2. Conclusions: The area in the nasopharynx level presented a statistically significant decrease, however, despite the area decrease at this point, the patients seem to do better, and thus, this area decrease may not be clinically significant.

Dichotomius schiffleri Vaz-de-Mello et al is often cited as endemic to the preserved coastal sandy-dune vegetation (restinga) of Guriri Island, Espírito Santo state, and is included in the Brazilian List of Endangered Fauna as "critically endangered" (CR). However, we recorded its occurrence in twelve additional sites along the coasts of Espírito Santo, Bahia, Sergipe and Pernambuco. The geographic distribution of D. schiffleri is limited to the coastal Atlantic Forest domain, mainly in preserved restinga patches. We recommend that D. schiffleri remains in the List of Endangered species, but in the "endangered" (EN) category, according to the IUCN criteria.

Resumo A doença de Parkinson (DP) caracteriza-se por alterações do movimento, cognitivas, comportamentais e psicológicas. O objetivo do presente estudo foi correlacionar diferentes testes que examinam funções executivas em pacientes com DP acompanhados em um ambulatório especializado. Métodos: Foram avaliados 35 pacientes com DP idiopática com idade média de 63,0 anos e escolaridade média de 5,5±4,2 utilizando os seguintes testes: Escala de Avaliação de demência de Mattis (EADM), Escala de Desfechos da Doença de Parkinson (SCOPA-COG), Teste Wisconsin de Classificação de Cartas (WCST), Bateria de Avaliação Frontal (BAF), Amplitude de Dígitos-Ordem Inversa (OI) (subteste do WAIS III) e Teste de Fluência Verbal (categoria animais). Resultados: Foram encontradas correlações significativas entre BAF e EADM Conceituação (0,814), EADM Iniciativa/Perseveração (I/P) e SCOPA-COG Funções Executivas (0,643), BAF e EADM I/P (0,601), BAF e Fluência Verbal (0,602) e EADM I/P e EADM Conceituação (0,558), Fluência Verbal e EADM I/P (0,529), EADM Atenção e SCOPA-COG Funções Executivas (0,49), EADM Conceituação e SCOPA-COG Funções Executivas (0,495), BAF e Amplitude de dígitos (OI) (0,503), Fluência Verbal e EADM Conceituação (0,501), WCST Erros Perseverativos e BAF (-0,379), WCST erros perseverativos e MDRS Conceptualization (-0,445), WCST erros perseverativos e EADM I/P (-0,407) e WCST categorias completas e EADM Conceituação (0,382). Discussão: Os resultados evidenciaram fortes correlações entre a maioria dos testes aplicados. Uma dificuldade do estudo presente diz respeito à falta de grupo controle para estabelecer padrões adequados a essa população.

Abstract Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by changes in movement, which are later followed by cognitive, behavioral and psychological changes. The objective of the present study was to correlate different tests used to examine executive functions in PD patients followed at a specialized outpatient clinic. Methods: Thirty-five patients with idiopathic PD aged 63.0 years on average and with mean schooling of 5.5±4.2 years, were examined using the following tests: Mattis Dementia Rating Scale (MDRS), Scales for Outcomes of Parkinson's Disease-Cognition (SCOPA-COG), Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB), Digit Span - Inverse Order (IO) (a subtest of the WAIS III) and Verbal Fluency Test (category animals). Results: Significant correlations were detected between FAB and MDRS Conceptualization (0.814), MDRS Initiation/Perseveration (I/P) and SCOPA-COG Executive Function (0.643), FAB and MDRS I/P (0.601), FAB and Verbal Fluency (0.602), MDRS I/P and MDRS Conceptualization (0.558), Verbal Fluency and MDRS I/P (0.529), MDRS Attention and SCOPA-COG Executive Function (0.495), MDRS Conceptualization and SCOPA-COG Executive Function (0.520), FAB and Digit Span (OI) (0.503), Verbal Fluency and MDRS Conceptualization (0.501), and WCST perseverative errors and FAB (-0.379), WCST perseverative errors and MDRS Conceptualization (0.445), WCST perseverative errors and MDRS I/P (-0.407) and WCST categories completed and MDRS Conceptualization (0.382). Discussion: The results demonstrated strong correlations between most of the tests applied, but no associations were detected between the WCST and the other tests, a fact that may be explained by the heterogeneity of scores obtained in the tests by the patients evaluated. A difficulty of the present study was the lack of a control groups for the establishment of adequate standards for this population.

A leucemia promielocítica aguda (LPA) corresponde a 10% -15% das leucemias mielóides agudas (LMA). Este tipo de leucemia (LMA-M3 de acordo com a classificação FAB) está associado, em cerca de 90% dos casos, à translocação t(15;17)(q22;q21), que resulta na fusão dos genes PML e RARalfa. A análise citogenética tradicional tem sido utilizada para confirmar o diagnóstico morfológico da LPA. Embora a t(15;17) não seja detectada em outros tipos de leucemia, podem ocorrer resultados "falso-negativos", decorrentes da análise de células que não pertencem ao clone neoplásico, da dificuldade de visualização da translocação ou, até mesmo, da existência de rearranjos crípticos que mascaram a translocação. Por outro lado, foram descritas alterações cromossômicas alternativas em pacientes com LPA e, nesses casos, o tratamento com ATRA não é eficaz. No período de julho de 1993 a dezembro de 2002 foram encaminhados para análise citogenética 47 casos com suspeita e/ou diagnóstico clínico-morfológico de LPA. Trinta e quatro pacientes (72,3%) apresentaram a t(15;17), detectada pela citogenética tradicional e/ou molecular. Em seis destes pacientes foram observadas alterações cromossômicas adicionais ou rearranjos envolvendo um terceiro cromossomo. Em cinco (10%) pacientes com características de LPA, a técnica de FISH não revelou a fusão PML/RARalfa, dado importante para a orientação do diagnóstico e da conduta terapêutica desses pacientes. O presente trabalho foi realizado com o objetivo de avaliar a importância da análise citogenética tradicional e molecular no diagnóstico de pacientes com LPA.

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) accounts for 10 to 15% of acute myeloid leukemias (AML). This type of leukemia (AML-M3 according to the FAB classification) is associated, in about 90% of the cases, with a t(15;17)(q22;q21) translocation, resulting in the fusion of the PML and RARalpha genes. Traditional cytogenetic analysis has been used to confirm the morphological diagnosis of ALP. Although the t(15;17) translocation is characteristic for this kind of leukemia, "false-negative" results may occur as a result of the analysis of cells which do not belong to the neoplastic clone, of the difficulty to visualize the translocation and even of the existence of cryptic rearrangements masking the translocation. Moreover, alternative chromosome alterations were described in patients with APL and in these cases treatment with ATRA is not effective. From July 1993 to December 2002, 47 cases suspected of or being diagnosed with APL by clinical-laboratorial methods were referred for cytogenetic analysis. Thirty-four patients (72.3%) had the t(15;17) translocation, detected by traditional and/or molecular cytogenetics. In six of these patients, additional chromosome alterations or rearrangements involving a third chromosome were observed. In five patients (10%) with APL characteristics, the FISH technique did not reveal the PML/RARalpha fusion, an important finding in the process of reaching a diagnosis and of establishing a therapeutic conduct for these patients. This work was carried out with the purpose of evaluating the importance of traditional and molecular cytogenetic analysis in the diagnosis of APL.