Thesis (M.P.H.)--University of Hong Kong, 2006.

Thesis (M.Tech.: Homoeopathy)-Dept. of Homoeopathy, Durban Institute of Technology, 2006 xxiii, 154 leaves / This study sought to determine the perceptions that currently exist amongst pregnant women towards homoeopathy, in light of the fact that drug use during pregnancy is limited. This study aimed at identifying myths and misconceptions that currently exist towards homoeopathy by looking at the attitudes and perceptions held by this target group. This information can be used to develop future homoeopathic education initiatives for this target group.

Background: The prevalence of cases of HIV among children below the ages of 15 years continues to increase and majority of these children acquired the infection through mother-to-child transmission. Methodology: The main objectives of the study were to explore the perceptions of local women regarding the PMTCT program, to evaluate the strength of these perceptions and to make recommendations. A qualitative method was used involving a number of focus group discussions among antenatal clinic attendees in the 27 primary health care clinics in Qwa-Qwa, Free State province of South Africa. Findings: The findings were organised under eight major themes: (1) Knowledge of the program -where the participants expressed high knowledge about the PMTCT program as they knew how MTCT of HIV occurs and how it can be prevented, (2) Perceived concerns about the program- which were mainly fear of resistance to ARVs, fear of stopping the treatment after delivery, potential for high numbers of orphans, depression and suicide when HIV result is positive, the fear of the family neglecting the baby if the mothers dies, the perception that the program cares for only the babies and not their mother, (3)Readiness to do HIV test- where majority of the participants said it was difficult doing the HIV test due to fear of positive result, (4) Ease of taking ARVs- Difficulty in taking the ARVs due to fear of resistance and harmful side effects, (5) Relationship with clinic staff- a majority of the participants were happy with their relationship with the clinic staff, (6) Reactions expected from family members when program advice is followed- more than half of the participants expected negative reactions from family members if the program advice is followed because of the negative attitudes of their male partners and the elders’ of the resistance to change from their cultural beliefs, (7) Advantages of the program- according to the focus group participants, the advantages of the program include the knowledge gained about HIV, modes of MTCT of HIV and how to prevent MTCT of HIV. Other advantages mentioned were prevention of MTCT of HIV, pre-test counselling reducing the fear of doing HIV test, knowing one’s HIV status as well as the potential of the program to have positive change on the cultural beliefs of the people, and lastly (8)How they felt being part of the program- where all the participants said they were excited . Conclusions: The findings were similar to those of other studies in many respects. Recommendations: The recommendations were community and family HIV/AIDS education and their involvement in the PMTCT program in other to reduce misconceptions about the disease, and stigmatization against the women in the program. Other recommendations include: the concept of PMTCT-plus which provides ongoing support and treatment for the mothers, babies and infected family members; integration of innovative health education and culturally appropriate interventions into the program; provision of adequate maternity leaves to women in the PMTCT program as well as full integration of the PMTCT program into the District Health System (DHS) as part of the “horizontal” delivered package.

Objective: To report an outbreak of ZIKV infection among asymptomatic pregnant women during 2016 in the city of Jaen, Cajamarca. Results: Zika virus RNA was detected in 3.2% (n = 36) of cases by RT-PCR. The mean age of patients positive for ZIKV infection was 29.6 years. 7 patients (19.4%) infected with ZIKV were in their first-trimester of gestation, 13 (36.1%) were in their second-trimester, and 16 (44%) were in their third-trimester. All of the infected pregnant women were asymptomatic. ZIKV infection remains a major public health issue that calls for constant epidemiological surveillance. It can cause the congenital Zika virus syndrome in the newborns of infected mothers. The lack of molecular diagnostic methods in isolated localities and the similarity of symptoms to other arboviral infections, lead to an under-diagnosis of this disease in endemic areas. / Revisión por pares

Orientador: José Carlos Peraçoli / Resumo: A gravidez é um momento complexo na vida da mulher. Um momento ao mesmo tempo rico e doloroso, impactante e inesquecível e que remete a grávida à sua própria origem. Existem alguns sintomas bastante comuns na gestação e que apesar de provocarem um certo transtorno, podem ser vividos como prazerosos à medida que evidenciam a existência da gravidez. Sendo assim, a grávida pode vivenciá-los com relativa tranqüilidade. O mesmo não acontece quando a gestante é portadora de alguma patologia considerada de alto risco, o que determina um clima de ameaça com conseqüente apreensão e insegurança como é o caso da hipertensão arterial. Considerando-se a estreita relação entre o psíquico e o somático, o conhecimento das características emocionais e de personalidade dessas gestantes, por parte dos profissionais envolvidos no tratamento delas, pode favorecer um melhor e mais completo atendimento dessas gestantes. OBJETIVO- Investigar sobre as características emocionais e de personalidade da gestante portadora de hipertensão arterial crônica. SUJEITOS E MÉTODOS- Estudo prospectivo, observacional e comparativo (quali-quantitativo), de 70 gestantes com idade entre 20 e 35 anos, idade gestacional inicial entre 16 e 36 semanas, sendo 35 hipertensas e 35 normotensas. Para o estudo da personalidade foi utilizado o teste projetivo H.T.P. (casa-árvore-pessoa) na forma monocromática e para o levantamento das características emocionais a entrevista semi-estruturada. RESULTADOS- As gestantes portadoras de hipertensão arterial crônica têm maiores dificuldades na expressão de certas emoções do que as gestantes que não sofrem desta doença. Estas dificuldades se referem principalmente à raiva e à alegria e justificam-se por serem as gestantes hipertensas possuidoras de... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Pregnancy is a complex moment in a woman's life. A moment, at the same time, rich and painful, impacting and unforgettablewhich refers the pregnant woman to her own origin. There are some very common symptoms in pregnancy which are uncomfortable, however, they can be experimented as a kind of pleasure as they evidence the existence of pregnancy. Thus, the pregnant woman can experiment them with a certain serenity. The same is not true when the pregnant woman is carrier of some pathology considered of high risk, which determine a degree of threatening with consequent concern and insecurity such as the case of high arterial pressure. Considering the close relationship between the psychological and the somatic aspects, the knowledge of the emotional and personality characteristics of those pregnant women, by the professional involved in their treatment, can favor a better and more complete care of those women. OBJECTIVE - To investigate the emotional and personality characteristics of the chronic high arterial pressure pregnant woman. SUBJECTS AND METHODS - Prospective, observational and comparative study of 70 pregnant women with ages ranging from 20 to 35 years old, initial pregnancy age between 16 and 36 weeks, being 35 hypertensive and 35 normotentive with normal arterial pressure ou non-hypertensive . For studying the personality the H.T.P projective test was utilized (house-tree-person) in monochromatic form and for surveying the emotional characteristics the semistructured interview. RESULTS - The chronic hypertensive pregnant women have greater difficulties for expressing certain emotions than the pregnant women who do not have that condition. The difficulties are particularly related to the expression of anger and joy and this is justified by the fact of being hypertensive pregnant women with peculiar personality characteristics... (Complete abstract click electronicaccess below) / Mestre

Orientador: Marisa Trench de Oliveira Fonterrada / Banca: Izildinha Maesta / Banca: Ilza Zenker Leme Jolly / Resumo: Durante a gestação, é comum que a mulher fique mais sensível, física e emocionalmente, ao meio. Os sentidos ficam mais aguçados e a emoção à flor da pele. No entanto, pouco se comenta sobre o aumento da sensibilidade auditiva, e são escassos os dados específicos sobre a influência do meio sonoro sobre a saúde da gestante e do bebê. Esta pesquisa busca entender como se dá a relação da gestante com o meio sonoro: os fatores positivos - relacionados ao prazer - e os negativos, relacionados ao estresse, que pode ser causado tanto pelo excesso de ruídos, como pela associação subjetiva a determinados sons e músicas, e com essa relação pode afetar sua saúde, e conseqüentemente, a do bebê, e tem como ponto de partida a necessidade de averiguar o possível aumento da sensibilidade auditiva durante o período de gestação. Para essa finalidade, foi utilizada a Internet como meio de contato com as gestantes, e criada uma comunidade virtual para discussão dos aspectos do ambiente sonoro ligados à gestação. Deste modo, formou-se um grupo com mulheres de diversas partes do Brasil, de formação, classe social e idades diversificadas, dispostas a falar sobre sua gestação e a percepção do ambiente sonoro. A investigação do tema fundamenta-se, principalmente, no trabalho de Murray Schafer , precursor do estudo da ecologia acústica, e em pesquisa da área médica, com o objetivo de realçar a relação entre a paisagem sonora e a gestação, e para dar sustentação à hipótese de que o ambiente sonoro possa influenciar a saúde da gestante, tanto positiva como negativamente, dependendo do tipo de som que o forme, e que sua percepção adequada possa se tornar um instrumento auxiliar na prevenção de problemas e na promoção do bem-estar durante esse período. / Abstract: It's usual that women get emotionally and fiscally more sensible to the environment during pregnancy. Their senses get more accurate, and they are emotionally touchier. However, little is said about hearing sensibility, and there is hardly any specific data about how sounds from environment interfere whit baby and mother healthy. This research intends to undersand how these sounds from environment possitively and negativily affect a pregnant woman. Sounds can positively affect pregnancy providing pleasant sensations, and negativily, thei can be related either to stress caused by noise excess or to subjective reactions to certain sounds or music. As environment sounds can affect pregnancy and therefore the baby's healty there's need to check as much as possible, the increase of hearing sensibility during pregnancy. Communication with pregnant women was established through Internet, and through a virtual community for discussion on how sounds from environment can affect pregnancy. This community was made up of women from all over Brazil, of different ages and from social levels who were willing to talk about their pregnancy and influence of sounds on it. This investigation is based on Murray Schafer's work who first studied acoustic ecology and medical area researches with the intention of approachling soundscape and pregnancy. This study is used to fundament the idea that souds from the environment can positively or negatively influence harthy in pregnancy, according to what kind of souns the woman is exposed to, and it explains that its appropriat use can be an instrument of prevention to problems and can also promote well being during the pregnancy time. / Mestre

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:27:44Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2004Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:35:51Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 bormio_sng_me_botfm.pdf: 332709 bytes, checksum: e72c303050068e5055194ef227f1e5d4 (MD5) / Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) / A gravidez é um momento complexo na vida da mulher. Um momento ao mesmo tempo rico e doloroso, impactante e inesquecível e que remete a grávida à sua própria origem. Existem alguns sintomas bastante comuns na gestação e que apesar de provocarem um certo transtorno, podem ser vividos como prazerosos à medida que evidenciam a existência da gravidez. Sendo assim, a grávida pode vivenciá-los com relativa tranqüilidade. O mesmo não acontece quando a gestante é portadora de alguma patologia considerada de alto risco, o que determina um clima de ameaça com conseqüente apreensão e insegurança como é o caso da hipertensão arterial. Considerando-se a estreita relação entre o psíquico e o somático, o conhecimento das características emocionais e de personalidade dessas gestantes, por parte dos profissionais envolvidos no tratamento delas, pode favorecer um melhor e mais completo atendimento dessas gestantes. OBJETIVO- Investigar sobre as características emocionais e de personalidade da gestante portadora de hipertensão arterial crônica. SUJEITOS E MÉTODOS- Estudo prospectivo, observacional e comparativo (quali-quantitativo), de 70 gestantes com idade entre 20 e 35 anos, idade gestacional inicial entre 16 e 36 semanas, sendo 35 hipertensas e 35 normotensas. Para o estudo da personalidade foi utilizado o teste projetivo H.T.P. (casa-árvore-pessoa) na forma monocromática e para o levantamento das características emocionais a entrevista semi-estruturada. RESULTADOS- As gestantes portadoras de hipertensão arterial crônica têm maiores dificuldades na expressão de certas emoções do que as gestantes que não sofrem desta doença. Estas dificuldades se referem principalmente à raiva e à alegria e justificam-se por serem as gestantes hipertensas possuidoras de... / Pregnancy is a complex moment in a woman’s life. A moment, at the same time, rich and painful, impacting and unforgettablewhich refers the pregnant woman to her own origin. There are some very common symptoms in pregnancy which are uncomfortable, however, they can be experimented as a kind of pleasure as they evidence the existence of pregnancy. Thus, the pregnant woman can experiment them with a certain serenity. The same is not true when the pregnant woman is carrier of some pathology considered of high risk, which determine a degree of threatening with consequent concern and insecurity such as the case of high arterial pressure. Considering the close relationship between the psychological and the somatic aspects, the knowledge of the emotional and personality characteristics of those pregnant women, by the professional involved in their treatment, can favor a better and more complete care of those women. OBJECTIVE - To investigate the emotional and personality characteristics of the chronic high arterial pressure pregnant woman. SUBJECTS AND METHODS - Prospective, observational and comparative study of 70 pregnant women with ages ranging from 20 to 35 years old, initial pregnancy age between 16 and 36 weeks, being 35 hypertensive and 35 normotentive with normal arterial pressure ou non-hypertensive . For studying the personality the H.T.P projective test was utilized (house-tree-person) in monochromatic form and for surveying the emotional characteristics the semistructured interview. RESULTS - The chronic hypertensive pregnant women have greater difficulties for expressing certain emotions than the pregnant women who do not have that condition. The difficulties are particularly related to the expression of anger and joy and this is justified by the fact of being hypertensive pregnant women with peculiar personality characteristics... (Complete abstract click electronicaccess below)

Este estudo avaliou a colonização vaginal/anal por Streptococcus agalactiae em 167 grávidas entre a 32a e 41a semanas de gestação, atendidas no ambulatório prénatal da Maternidade Escola da Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), no período de fevereiro de 2003 a fevereiro de 2004. A freqüência de colonização foi de 19,2%, não havendo diferenças significativas quando comparadas variáveis como faixa etária, número de gestações, hipertensão, doenças auto-imunes, prematuridade em gestações anteriores, número de abortos e a presença ou não de diabetes (p>0.05). Todas as 32 amostras isoladas foram sensíveis à penicilina, cefotaxima, ofloxacina, cloranfenicol, vancomicina e meropenem. Com relação à penicilina, a resistência apresentada por 3 amostras no teste de difusão, não foi confirmada pelo teste de diluição. A resistência concomitante a clindamicina e eritromicina foi verificada em 2 amostras; estas apresentaram o fenótipo MLSB constitutivo. A amostra resistente apenas a eritromicina apresentou o fenótipo M. A incidência relativamente elevada (19,2%) de colonização por S.agalactiae entre as gestantes estudadas e o isolamento de amostras resistentes aos antibióticos recomendados nos casos de alergia à penicilina, enfatizam a importância de detectar esta colonização no final da gravidez assim como de avaliar a susceptibilidade de S.agalactiae aos antimicrobianos, para uma correta prevenção da infecção neonatal. / This study evaluated the vaginal/anal colonization by Streptococcus agalactiae among 167 pregnant women between 32nd and 41st weeks of gestation, attended in the prenatal ambulatory of the School Maternity of Rio de Janeiro University (UFRJ), during the period from february 2003 to february 2004. The frequency of colonization was of 19,2%, without significant differences when variants like age, number of gestations, premature delivery in previous pregnancies, number of abortions and the presence or absence of diabetes (p>0,05) were compared. All 32 strains isolated were susceptible to penicillin, cefotaxime, ofloxacin, chloramphenicol, vancomycin and meropenem. Resistance to penicillin of two strains, as detected by disk diffusion susceptibility test, was not confirmed by dilution antimicrobial susceptibility tests. The concomitant resistance to clindamycin and erythromycin was verified in 2 strains; these presented the constitutive MLSB phenotype. The isolate resistant only to erythromycin presented the M phenotype. The relatively high incidence (19,2%) of colonization by S. agalactiae among the pregnant women evaluated and the recovery of antimicrobial resistant strains, specialy those recommended in cases of penicillin allergy, emphasize the importance, for a correct prevention of neonatal infections, to detect colonization at the end of pregnancy and to evaluate the antimicrobial susceptibility of S. agalacti

Magister Scientiae (Medical Bioscience) - MSc(MBS) / Increased levels of oestrogen and progesterone during pregnancy may lead to periodontal disease. The anaerobic Gram-negative bacteria called red complex (Porphyromonas gingivalis, Tannerella forsythensis and Treponema denticola) are frequently associated with periodontal disease. Periodontopathogens produce toxins and enzymes which can enter the bloodstream and cross the placenta to harm the foetus. The response of the mother’s immune system to infection by these periodontopathogens, brings about the release of inflammatory mediators which may trigger preterm labour or result in low birth-weight infants. The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of red complex, using BANA and PCR in subginginval plaque samples from pregnant women. Subgingival plaque samples were obtained from pregnant women between the ages of 17 to 45 years attending a Mitchells Plain ante-natal clinic. Plaque samples were analyzed by the enzymatic BANA-test for detection of the presence of red complex and DNA was extracted and analyzed using 16 rDNA-Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). Seventy-nine percent of pregnant women showed gingival index scores of ≥ 1 of which 74.24% harboured by at least one of the members of the red complex. P.gingivalis was the most prevalent of the three members of the red complex. Findings of this study confirmed a need for dental preventive measures in pregnant women and microbial monitoring of suspected periodontopathogenes. This could be achieved by joint cooperation between Maternity Obstetric Units (MOU), Dentistry and oral microbiology departments. The results of this study revealed that although PCR is more sensitive than BANA in detecting members of the red complex, BANA showed a better association with the indices used to diagnose periodontal disease. / South Africa

As part of the Serithi project a longitudinal study of HIV positive women diagnosed during pregnancy, support groups for HIV-positive women were established in Mamelodi and Atteridgeville (Tshwane). Eighty-eight women participated in these groups during 2005, with the groups being facilitated by Masters Psychology students. This study explores therapeutic processes in these support groups. Yalom’s therapeutic factors were used as the underlying theory. These are factors that Yalom advances as therapeutic processes in understanding group psychotherapy. The process notes of the Masters Student facilitators, together with the interviews that were conducted with the women after the support group experience, were analysed to identify therapeutic processes that manifested themselves in the support group experience. Qualitative methods were used to collect data and thematic analysis was utilised to analyse the data. The research results revealed that support groups are therapeutic, in the sense that ten of the twelve therapeutic factors advanced by Yalom proved to have been made manifest, or demonstrated, within these groups. These are: altruism, group cohesion, interpersonal learning input, interpersonal learning output, guidance, identification, family re-enactment, instillation of hope and existential factors. The women reported having felt a sense of relief from being part of a group of people who experienced similar issues. They also reported that they learnt from each other. This gave them hope and an understanding that, even though there may be people going through the same problems as they are, they still need to face life alone. The women reported feeling a sense of self-worth from helping others, which contributed to rebuilding their self-esteem. These results indicate that support groups can be therapeutic for the people involved. They can be used to guide support group facilitators with regards to what to look for when facilitating groups. They can also assist policy makers in developing guidelines for the facilitation of support groups in order for the participants to obtain maximum benefit from their support group experience. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Psychology / unrestricted