Objective: To evaluate the long-term quality of life of patients treated for head and neck cancer at a single institution in a developing country.Design: Cross-sectional analysis of a consecutive series of patients.Setting: Tertiary cancer center hospital in Brazil. Patients:Eligible subjects included patients treated between 1974 and 1999 for head and neck carcinoma who had a minimum disease-free survival of 2 years and who completed a Portuguese version of the University of Washington Quality of Life (UW-QOL) questionnaire. Main Outcome Measures:Descriptive analyses of the results and comparisons of the scores for each UW-QOL domain, stratified by tumor site, were performed using nonparametric tests.Results: Findings from 344 patients were analyzed. Of the study population, 140 (41%) had survived 2 to 5 years, 125 (36%) had survived 5 to 10 years, and 79 (23%) had survived more than 10 years since treatment. Primary tumor sites were in the oral cavity in 43.3% of cases, the oropharynx in 20.9%, the larynx in 32.0%, and the hypopharynx in 3.8%. In terms of treatment, 33.1% underwent surgery alone; 16.9%, radiotherapy alone; and 50% underwent combined treatment. Overall, 78.5% of the patients classified their own health as good or excellent. Stratified analysis showed that impairment in chewing and swallowing was more common in patients with oral and oropharyngeal tumors than in those with larynx and hypopharynx tumors, and speech impairment was more frequently related to patients with larynx and hypopharynx tumors than to those with oral and oropharynx tumors. In all tumor sites, the composite scores were significantly worse in advanced tumors than early stage tumors, but the use of combined treatment had the greatest negative impact on quality-of-life scores, after we adjusted for T and N stage with multivariable analyses (PϽ.001). Conclusions:The Portuguese version of the UW-QOL questionnaire was an effective tool to evaluate quality of life in a Brazilian population. Although many patients reported some limitations, most reported a good to excellent long-term quality of life.

The effectiveness of inactivated vaccines (VE) against symptomatic and severe COVID-19 caused by omicron is unknown. We conducted a nationwide, test-negative, case-control study to estimate VE for homologous and heterologous (BNT162b2) booster doses in adults who received two doses of CoronaVac in Brazil in the Omicron context. Analyzing 1,386,544 matched-pairs, VE against symptomatic disease was 8.6% (95% CI, 5.6–11.5) and 56.8% (95% CI, 56.3–57.3) in the period 8–59 days after receiving a homologous and heterologous booster, respectively. During the same interval, VE against severe Covid-19 was 73.6% (95% CI, 63.9–80.7) and 86.0% (95% CI, 84.5–87.4) after receiving a homologous and heterologous booster, respectively. Waning against severe Covid-19 after 120 days was only observed after a homologous booster. Heterologous booster might be preferable to individuals with completed primary series inactivated vaccine.

It is possible to predict postoperative complications in older patients with head and neck tumors who underwent oncologic surgery using clinical preoperative variables.

Background Large outbreaks of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant have occurred in countries with high coverage of inactivated Covid-19 vaccines, raising urgent questions about effectiveness of these vaccines against disease and hospitalization with Omicron. Methods We conducted a nationwide, test-negative, case-control study of adults who were tested for SARS-CoV-2 infection. We evaluated vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic Covid-19 and severe Covid-19 (hospital admission or deaths) for the primary series of CoronaVac and homologous and heterologous (BNT162b2) booster doses. Findings Between September 6, 2021, and March 10, 2022, a total of 1,339,986 cases were matched to 1,339,986 test-negative controls. In the period of Omicron predominance, vaccine effectiveness ≥180 days after the second CoronaVac dose was 8.1% (95% CI, 7.0 to 9.1) and 57.0% (95% CI, 53.5 to 60.2) against symptomatic and severe Covid-19, respectively. Vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic disease was 15.0% (95% CI, 12.0 to 18.0) and 56.8% (95% CI, 56.3 to 57.4) in the period 8-59 days after receiving a homologous and heterologous booster, respectively. During the same interval, vaccine effectiveness against severe Covid-19 was 71.3% (95% CI, 60.3 to 79.2) and 85.5% (95% CI, 83.3 to 87.0) after receiving a homologous and heterologous booster, respectively. Whereas waning of vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic Covid-19 was observed ≥90 days after a homologous and heterologous booster, waning against severe Covid-19 was only observed after a homologous booster. Interpretation A homologous CoronaVac booster dose provided limited additional protection, while a BNT162b2 booster dose afforded sustained protection against severe disease for at least three months.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o efeito do diclofenaco de sódio na cicatrização da parede abdominal de ratos. Foram utilizados 40 (quarenta) ratos machos Wistar, submetidos a laparotomia com técnica padronizada, distribuidos em dois grupos, um grupo controle e outro onde se administrou o diclofenaco de sódio - 3 mg/kg/dia, via intramuscular durante 4 (quatro) dias consecutivos. Ao sétimo e ao décimo quarto dias de pós operatório, respectivamente, fora realizada a eutanásia, retirando-se a camada músculo-facial abdominal envolvendo a cicatriz operatória para a realização do estudo histológico. Os segmentos foram corados por Hematoxilina-Eosina e Picrosirius Red F3BA, sendo feita observação qualitativa do processo cicatricial e quantitativa do colágeno. Os resultados encontrados foram analisados estatisticamente. Concluiu-se que a cicatriz da parede abdominal de rato tratado com o diclofenaco de sódio apresenta menor quantidade de fibras colágenas no 7° e 14° dias de pós-operatório, quando comparado a animal do grupo controle.
The aim of the experiment was to do a valuation of the effect of the sodium diclofenac on the collagenous sinthesis in abdominal wall healing. It was used 40 male Wistar rats to do longitudinal laparotomies with a standardized technique, divided into 2 groups: One without the drug (control group) and another group wich were administrated sodium diclofenac (3mg/kg) every day for 4 days. In the 7th and 14th postoperative day, 10 animals of each group were submitted to euthanasia and the front abdominal wall involving the scar was removed to be prepared to hystological analysis. The segments were prepared with Hematoxilyn-Eosin and Picrosirius Red F3BA, in order to do either a general view of healing process or a quantitative valuation of collagenous. The resultant data were submitted to statistical analysis. It was conclued that the abdominal wall scar in rats treated with sodium diclofenac had less collagenous fibres in the 7th and 14th postoperative days than rats from the control group