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Transparent and easy-to-understand communication can enhance the dissemination of systematic reviews (SRs) results to interest holders. The Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) Working Group developed an approach to improve the communication of results from SR of interventions in the English language. Here, we present the cross-cultural translation into Brazil Portuguese language of this approach. The cross-cultural adaptation of the approach to communicate the results into Brazilian Portuguese followed three steps: a) a qualitative research method was used to translate the informative statements designed by the GRADE Working Group and culturally adapted them into Brazilian Portuguese; b) Brazilian experts in evidence synthesis evaluated the content validity of the translated statements; and c) a quantitative cross-sectional study assessed the reliability and acceptability of the translated sentences. One of the main challenges was adjusting the terms related to the classification of low and moderate certainty of evidence. Experts suggested the adoption of “average” instead \"moderate\" for effect size to avoid misleading in Portuguese, as it is also used for the classification of certainty of evidence. The group proposed to use the term \"average effect\" as an alternative to \"moderate effect.” Low acceptability (<50%) was found in for some statements of low certainty of evidence. The main contributions of this study were related to adjustments of English terms that are prone to diverse interpretations but share a similar translation in Portuguese. Through cultural adaptation processes, it is possible to ensure a higher level of understanding and clarity, enhancing the effectiveness of the use of GRADE in decision-making process. •Brazilian Portuguese version of GRADE statements was culturally adapted and validated.•High agreement found for statements with high and moderate certainty of evidence.•Terms like “moderate” required adaptation to avoid misinterpretation in Portuguese.•Translated statements support clearer SR communication for health decision-making.

This work addresses the durability of structural epoxy adhesives and carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminates typically used in strengthening of existing reinforced concrete structures exposed to natural ageing. The experimental program included four natural (real) outdoor environments inducing ageing mainly caused by carbonation, freeze-thaw attack, elevated temperatures, and airborne chlorides from seawater. Moreover, a control (reference) environment (20 °C of temperature and 55% of relative humidity) and an environment involving water immersion of the materials under controlled temperature (20 °C of temperature) were also included in this investigation. The characterization involved the assessment of the physical, chemical and mechanical properties along a study period of up to two years. Furthermore, comparisons between the natural ageing tests developed in the scope of the present work and accelerated ageing tests existing in the literature were performed. Regarding to the epoxy adhesives, an increase in the glass transition temperature with the time was observed, while the tensile properties decreased, regardless of the outdoor environment. The CFRP laminates were marginally affected by the studied environments. Despite the remarkable dispersion of the results observed in the accelerated ageing tests for the period investigated, this testing protocol yielded higher mechanical degradation than under natural ageing.

This work was developed within the scope of the research project “Easyfloor—Development of composite sandwich panels for building floor rehabilitation”, which aims at developing an innovative hybrid sandwich panel as an alternative construction system to conventional floor solutions, mainly for building rehabilitation. The developed hybrid sandwich panel is composed of a top face layer of steel-fibre-reinforced self-compacting concrete (FRC), a core of polyurethane (PUR) closed-cell foam, a bottom face sheet, and lateral webs of glass-fibre-reinforced polymer (GFRP). Full-scale experimental tests on the developed sandwich panels were carried out to characterize their short- and long-term (creep) flexural behaviour. The present work includes a detailed description of the developed panels and the experimental programme carried out and presents and discusses the relevant results. The experimental results showed an almost linear behaviour up to failure. The creep tests were carried out for a period of 180 days, using a creep load equal to 20% of its ultimate loading capacity. An average creep coefficient of 0.27 was obtained for this period. The composed creep model used to simulate the sandwich panel’s creep deflections by considering the individual viscoelastic contributions was able to predict the observed structural response with good accuracy.

This review highlights recent research on the application of core–shell structured materials as catalysts in the oxidation of alcohols to value-added products, such as benzaldehyde, acetophenone, benzophenone, cinnamaldehyde, and vanillin, among others. While the application of various unconventional energy inputs (such as microwave and ultrasound irradiation) was reported, this paper focuses on conventional heating. The oxidation of homocyclic aromatic, heterocyclic aromatic, aliphatic, and alicyclic alcohols catalyzed by core–shell composite catalysts is addressed. This work also highlights some unique advantages of core–shell nanomaterial catalysis, namely the flexibility of combining individual functions for specific purposes as well as the effect of various parameters on the catalytic performance of these materials.

Global education (GE) has become important in education due to heightened global interconnectedness and interdependence, with its incorporation into school materials aimed at preparing learners to navigate global challenges. In implementing GE, teachers are considered critical agents to transform normative GE into knowledge in classrooms. This study examines Rwandese teachers’ knowledge, awareness, and perceptions of challenges they face in implementing GE in schools. In a quantitative design, 208 teachers from 15 participating secondary schools completed a survey. The study findings reveal that the teachers had moderate to high levels of knowledge and awareness of global education, with most of the teachers recognising GE to be important in preparing learners for the future and stated the need to incorporate it within the curriculum in Rwanda. This study underscores the need for teacher training and professional development to enhance GE integration, and the provision of necessary resources and materials to enable the implementation of GE in schools in Rwanda.

AbstractBackground and Study Aims: Positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) with 2-[18F]FDG (FDG) has been increasingly used to detect or monitor neoplasms. Gastrointestinal tract (GIT) is one of the most common sites of FDG uptake, leading to increasing requests for endoscopic examinations. We aimed to evaluate the nature and significance of unexpected PET/CT-FDG findings in the GIT. Patients and Methods: We retrospectively analyzed 371 consecutive patients with incidental GIT findings on PET/CT-FDG between June 2016 and October 2021 who were subsequently referred to endoscopic examinations. Demographic data, PET/CT-FDG results, endoscopic findings, and histological analysis were analyzed. Results: Of 194 colonic incidental uptakes, 102 (52.6%) corresponded to at least premalignant lesions, being 57 (29.4%) advanced adenomas and 23 (11.9%) adenocarcinomas. Of 193 upper GIT incidental uptakes, there were 11 (13.8%) esophageal and 14 (14.4%) gastric malignant/premalignant lesions. The maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) significantly varied according to the nature of the lesion, being higher in malignant lesions (in the esophagus, stomach, and colon). However, an optimal SUVmax cutoff was only found for stomach (SUVmax 8.2; sensitivity of 79% and specificity of 76%). There was a significant association between the site of uptake and the nature of the lesion – left colon and gastric body uptake were associated with neoplastic origin whereas rectum and lower esophagus were associated with inflammatory or no endoscopic changes. Conclusions: Any incidental uptake in the lower GIT should be investigated provided that patients are suitable for further treatment. However, in the upper GIT the characteristics of uptake on 18F‐FDG‐PET/CT may allow to select those who need endoscopic examination.

Currently, solutions based on the Internet of Things (IoT) concept are increasingly being adopted in several fields, namely, industry, agriculture, and home automation. The costs associated with this type of equipment is reasonably small, as IoT devices usually do not have output peripherals to display information about their status (e.g., a screen or a printer), although they may have informative LEDs, which is sometimes insufficient. For most IoT devices, the price of a minimalist display, to output and display the device’s running status (i.e., what the device is doing), might cost much more than the actual IoT device. Occasionally, it might become necessary to visualize the IoT device output, making it necessary to find solutions to show the hardware output information in real time, without requiring extra equipment, only what the administrator usually has with them. In order to solve the above, a technological solution that allows for the visualization of IoT device information in actual time, using augmented reality and a simple smartphone, was developed and analyzed. In addition, the system created integrates a security layer, at the level of AR, to secure the shown data from unwanted eyes. The results of the tests carried out allowed us to validate the operation of the solution when accessing the information of the IoT devices, verify the operation of the security layer in AR, analyze the interaction between smartphones, the platform, and the devices, and check which AR markers are most optimized for this use case. This work results in a secure augmented reality solution, which can be used with a simple smartphone, to monitor/manage IoT devices in industrial, laboratory or research environments.

Mucosal healing (MH) is currently accepted as one of the best treatment targets in Crohn's disease. However, even in patients with sustained MH, residual bowel wall inflammation can still be detected by cross-sectional imaging. The long-term benefits of obtaining transmural healing (TH) have not been previously assessed.MethodsWe performed an observational study including 214 patients with Crohn's disease with a magnetic resonance enterography (MRE) and colonoscopy performed within a 6-month interval. Patients were classified as having TH (inactive MRE and colonoscopy), MH (active MRE with inactive colonoscopy), or no healing (active colonoscopy). Need for surgery, hospital admission, and therapy escalation were evaluated at 12 months of follow-up.ResultsPatients with TH presented lower rates of hospital admission, therapy escalation, and surgery than patients with MH or no healing. In logistic regression analysis, endoscopic remission (odds ratio 0.331 95% confidence interval [0.178–0.614], P < 0.001) and MRE remission (odds ratio 0.270 95% confidence interval [0.130–0.564], P < 0.001) were independently associated with a lower likelihood of reaching any unfavorable outcome.ConclusionsTH is associated with improved long-term outcomes in Crohn's disease and may be a more suitable target than MH.

Abstract Background The prevalence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been increasing worldwide, causing high impact on the quality of life of patients and an increasing burden for health care systems. In this systematic review, we reviewed the literature concerning the direct costs of Crohn’s disease (CD) for health care systems from different perspectives: regional, economic, and temporal. Methods We searched for original real-world studies examining direct medical health care costs in Crohn’s disease. The primary outcome measure was the mean value per patient per year (PPY) of total direct health care costs for CD. Secondary outcomes comprised hospitalization, surgery, CD-related medication (including biologics), and biologics mean costs PPY. Results A total of 19 articles were selected for inclusion in the systematic review. The studies enrolled 179 056 CD patients in the period between 1997 and 2016. The pooled mean total cost PPY was €6295.28 (95% CI, €4660.55-€8503.41). The pooled mean hospitalization cost PPY for CD patients was €2004.83 (95% CI, €1351.68-€2973.59). The major contributors for the total health expenditure were biologics (€5554.58) and medications (€3096.53), followed by hospitalization (€2004.83) and surgery (€1883.67). No differences were found between regional or economic perspectives, as confidence intervals overlapped. However, total costs were significantly higher after 2010. Conclusions Our review highlighted the burden of CD for health care systems from different perspectives (regional, economic, and temporal) and analyzed the impact of the change of IBD treatment paradigm on total costs. Reducing the overall burden can depend on the increase of remission rates to further decrease hospitalizations and surgeries.