Objective: To determine the prevalence of smoking among dentists in the Federal District of Brasília, Brazil. Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional survey, involving 446 dentists residing in the Federal District, was conducted in the second semester of 2004. Data regarding the smoking habit were obtained using a World Health Organization questionnaire that was translated and validated for use in Brazil by the Brazilian National Cancer Institute. Individuals who had smoked a minimum of one cigarette per day for at least 6 months prior to the study outset were classified as regular smokers. The distribution of frequencies was analyzed using descriptive statistics (means and standard deviations), as well as calculation of prevalence rates. The different variables were compared using the chi-square test, and values of p < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: Of the dentists evaluated, 37% (42% of the males and 31.4% of the females) reported being smokers. Conclusions: The prevalence of smokers among dentists in the Federal District is above the national average for the adult population, which is approximately 32%. Although there was a predominance of males, the high number of female dentists who reported being smokers was a worrisome finding.

Keywords: Dentists; Smoking; Prevalence.

Objective: To determine the prevalence of smoking in the adult population of Brazil, in order to propose recommendations for the reduction of tobacco use. Methods: This was a population-based, cross-sectional study including a sample composed of residents (≥ 18 years of age) of the capital cities of 26 Brazilian states and in the Federal District of Brasília, Brazil. For the determination of sample size, a 95% confidence interval and a 2% sample error were defined. The participants were selected and interviewed by means of the Sistema de Vigilância de Fatores de Risco e Proteção para Doenças Crônicas por Inquérito Telefônico (VIGITEL, Telephone-based System for the Surveillance of Risk and Protective Factors for Chronic Diseases).The proportion of smokers and the number of cigarettes smoked per day were estimated and stratified according to sociodemographic variables. In addition, the male/female ratio was estimated for the prevalence of smoking. Results: The prevalence of smoking was 16.1% (20.5% among males and 12.4% among females). The proportion of adults that reported smoking ≥ 20 cigarettes a day was 4.9%, being greater in males (6.5% vs. 3.6%). The prevalence of smoking was greater among individuals with a lower level of education (≤ 8 years of schooling). The number of cigarettes smoked per day by males was approximately the double that smoked by females. Conclusions: The VIGITEL estimates indicate a reduction in the prevalence of smoking, which was, however, still greater among males than among females. The VIGITEL has been fundamental to monitoring smoking, as well as to informing decisions regarding public policies for health promotion and the prevention of chronic nontransmissible diseases.

Keywords: Smoking/epidemiology; Smoking/prevention & control; Cross-sectional studies.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of smoking, as well as to determine the association between smoking and the use of other drugs, among middle and high school students in the Federal District of Brasília, Brazil. Methods: Epidemiological study involving a reference population of students in the District. Our sample comprised 2,661 students from 9 to 19 years of age, in all middle and high school grades. All participating students completed a standard questionnaire. Results were analyzed by gender and type of school (public or private). Results: The prevalence of smoking among students in the District was 10.5%. Smoking was found to be associated with the use of alcohol and other drugs. Conclusions: Smoking is a gateway to the use of other drugs.

Keywords: Smoking; Tobacco; Adolescent; Students; Alcohol drinking; Dependency (Psychology).

Objective: To determine the prevalence of smoking and to describe the profile and smoking habits of students attending the Universidade de Brasília (University of Brasília) in Brasília, Brazil. Methods: A total of 1341 students responded to a smoking questionnaire, adapted from the World Health Organization questionnaire, including questions directed at smokers, former smokers and nonsmokers. Twenty different courses in the areas of health, exact sciences and human sciences were evaluated. The students included in the study were duly enrolled in day courses and were evaluated during the second semester of 2003. Results: The overall prevalence of smoking was 14.7%. Approximately 80.8% of the students were nonsmokers, and 4.5% were former smokers. In the study sample, 57.3% of the students were male. No significant difference (p > 0.05) in the prevalence of smoking was observed in terms of gender or class year. The mean age of the study population was 21.6 ± 3.6 years, and the mean age at which the smoking habit was acquired was 17 ± 2.8 years. The percentage of smokers was higher in the Geology, Communication, and History courses (32.9, 26.3 and 24.4%, respectively). Mean consumption was 7.5 cigarettes per day. The majority (72.6%) of the students used commercial cigarettes rather than other types of tobacco. Conclusion: The high prevalence of smoking observed in the present study is similar to that reported for other universities and indicates the need for smoking control policies in university environments.

Keywords: Smoking/epidemiology; Students; Questionnaires

Introduction: The teaching hospital, HUCFF, Southeastern Brazil, annually receives three hundred tuberculosis cases. Medical students have their practice at that hospital. Objective: To determine the prevalence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infection among the students of the UFRJ School of Medicine. Design: Cross-sectional study of medical students at different levels of their training programs. Information about social and demographic characteristics, BCG vaccination history, and potential exposures to tuberculosis were obtained with a standardized questionnaire. Tuberculin skin testing was used to determine the prevalence of tuberculosis infection. Results: The prevalence of tuberculin skin testing positivity among medical students increased as they advanced to higher training levels (4.6%, 7.8%, 16.2%, respectively; P = 0.002). The risks were greatest during the years of clinical training, when medical students had more contact with patients. Conclusions: Medical students in the HUCFF/UFRJ may be at an increased risk of M. tuberculosis infection. A program of routine tuberculin skin testing, combined with interventions to confirm TST conversion and to reduce the risk of nosocomial transmission in the workplace is needed.

Keywords: Nosocomial infection. Medical students. Risk factors. Cross-sectional studies.

Objective: To profile the characteristics of smoking among physicians working in the Federal District of Brazil. Methods: A questionnaire on smoking, adapted from that used by the World Health Organization, was mailed to all physicians registered with the Federal District Regional Council of Medicine. Of the 7023 questionnaires mailed, 830 (12%) were duly completed and returned. Results: Among the physicians participating in the study, the prevalence of smoking was 7.2% (5.9% being regular smokers and 1.3% being occasional smokers). The remainder of the sample consisted of nonsmokers (70.1%) and former smokers (22.7%). In terms of gender, approximately 8.5% of the male physicians were smokers, compared with 5.3% of the female physicians (p > 0.05). Of the physicians who smoked, 80% had taken up the habit before the age of 20, 13% from 21 to 30, and 7% after the age of 31. The prevalence of smoking by specialty was as follows: Surgeons, 10.3%; Anesthesiologists, 10.3%; Clinicians, 9.1%; Gynecologists, 2.9%; and Pediatricians, 2.4%. Approximately 75% of the smoking physicians had been advised by their own doctors to stop smoking, although only 34.9% had tried to quit smoking with the preceding year. Of the physicians responding, 57.1% agreed that smoking is a health hazard, and 26.3% reported smoking in hospitals or doctors' offices. Conclusion: Efforts to control smoking in the Federal District should be intensified and, despite the fact that the prevalence of smoking is declining among physicians, smoking cessation programs should target this population.

Keywords: Smoking; Physicians; Smoking cessation

Objective: To analyze the prevalence of electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) awareness and experimentation among university students, as well as the characteristics associated with that awareness. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study, conducted in 2015, in which 489 university students at the Federal University of Mato Grosso (Cuiabá campus), Brazil, were interviewed with the use of a specific questionnaire. We estimated the prevalence of e-cigarette awareness and use, as well as analyzing the major characteristics associated with that awareness and use. Results: The prevalence of e-cigarette awareness was 37%, and the rate of e-cigarette experimentation was 2.7%. Awareness of e-cigarettes was found to be associated with marital status, work status, the level of parental education, and the presence or absence of smokers in the family. Conclusions: A high proportion of university students were aware of e-cigarettes. Although the prevalence of those who had experimented with e-cigarettes was low, there is concern that there could be an increase in the use of these types of device. There is a need for measures targeting university students, in order to build awareness of and prevent e-cigarette use.

Keywords: Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems; Young adult; Smoking.

Background: Surveys of patients diagnosed with mycobacteriosis, taken at the Laboratory of Mycobacteriology of the Hospital das Clínicas da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, have shown that lack of information concerning diagnosis prevented 42% from initiating treatment. Objective: To evaluate the profile of patients with mycobacterial infection attending the Hospital das Clínicas da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais. To describe the follow up of those patients and compare it to the guidelines made by the National Program for the Control of Tuberculosis. Methods: The files of patients diagnosed with mycobacterium infection during 2002 were selected from the archives of the Laboratory of Mycobacteriology of the Hospital das Clínicas da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais. An active search for these patients was carried out and follow-up exams were then performed. Results: Of the 66 patients selected, 62 (94%) were positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis and 4 (6%) had nontuberculous mycobacteriosis. Another 4 (6%) had been transferred to other institutions. Of the remaining 58, 37 (63%) had been cured, 1 (2%) had refused treatment, 9 (16%) were not found and 11 (19%) had died. Of the 11 deaths, 7 (64%) had tested positive for HIV. Conclusion: Patients failed to receive treatment not due to lack of diagnosis, but to inadequate structure, low awareness levels of all parties, and lack of tuberculosis control organization at the hospital level. Due to the high number of HIV-positive patients, the number of patients cured was lower than that required by the National Health Ministry. Deaths were attributed to HIV infection and lack of knowledge about the disease. In order to identify and address the problems associated with clinical laboratory practice, laboratory professionals must work in concert with their clinical counterparts when carrying out operational research on tuberculosis.

Keywords: Tuberculosis/diagnosis. Mycobacterium infections/complications.

Objective: To evaluate the asthma prevalence in the Federal District of Brazil, using the questionnaire developed for the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood to look for correlations with socioeconomic levels. Methods: A total of 6437 children (3183 from six to seven years old and 3254 from thirteen to fourteen years old), attending public or private schools, were evaluated. The data were analyzed by gender and socioeconomic status (chi-square test). Results: The prevalence of asthma in the Federal District was 12.1% among the six- and seven-year-olds and 13.8% among the thirteen- and fourteen-year-olds (p < 0.04). In the six-to-seven age bracket, asthma prevalence was significantly greater, and asthma-related symptoms were more frequent, among males (p < 0.001). In contrast, asthma-related symptoms were more frequent among females in the thirteen-to-fourteen age bracket (p < 0.05). Children belonging to the lowest socioeconomic class, as determined by the responses given on the questionnaire completed by the parents, presented the highest prevalence of asthma, regardless of age bracket (p < 0.001). Among such children, asthma-related symptoms were also more frequent (p < 0.05). In the thirteen-to-fourteen age bracket, the prevalence of asthma was greater among those belonging to the highest socioeconomic class (p = 0.001). Conclusions: Overall, economically disadvantaged children more frequently presented asthma-related symptoms and experienced asthma attacks that were of greater severity. In addition, the prevalence of suspected asthma was higher than that of diagnosed asthma in this group, suggesting that asthma is underdiagnosed in children belonging to the lowest socioeconomic class.

Keywords: Asthma/epidemiology; Asthma/diagnosis; Socioeconomic factors; School health; Questionnaires

Introduction: There have been few Latin American studies investigating the fact that the rate of tuberculosis (TB) infection among medical students is higher than the 1.3% rate seen in the population at large. Objective: To describe the cumulative incidence and the relative risk for TB infection among medical students. Method: In 1998, a prospective cohort study was conducted involving medical students at the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro Faculdade de Medicina who tested negative (induration <10 mm) on the tuberculin skin test (TST). Students were tested using the two-step TST method and were retested one year later. The students tested were at two different stages in their training: pre-clinical (no contact with patients) and final year (contact with patients). Information about demographic characteristics, BCG vaccination history, and instances of potential exposure to Mycobacterium tuberculosis were obtained using a standardized questionnaire. Of the 575 students initially enrolled, 72% (414) completed the study. Results: The TSTs of 16 (3.9%) of the 414 students converted, representing a cumulative incidence of 3.9% (95% confidence interval = 1.06 to 12.1). Senior medical students were at an almost fourfold higher risk for M. tuberculosis infection than were those in pre-clinical training. Conclusion: The risk for TST conversion is very high in this population.

Keywords: PPD. Tuberculosis-infection. Tuberculin conversion. Medical students

Objective: To evaluate cases of tuberculosis occurring in the Entorno region of the state of Goiás but reported in the Federal District (FD) and to analyze the influence that this has on the effectiveness of the local tuberculosis control program, as well as on the socioeconomic and demographic data related to tuberculosis incidence rates. Methods: Rates of tuberculosis incidence, cure, noncompliance, treatment failure, mortality and referral, as well as socioeconomic and demographic data, were reviewed for patients from ten cities in Goiás. Results: From 2000 to 2004 in the cities under study, 714 new cases of tuberculosis were reported, 436 (61.0%) of which were treated in the FD, and therefore, were not included in the Goiás database. Among patients treated only in Goiás, the mean incidence of tuberculosis ranged from 4.40 to 10.02/100,000 inhabitants. When those treated in the FD were included, the incidence significantly increased, ranging from 15.16 to 20.54/100,000 inhabitants (p < 0.001). The rate at which contacts of tuberculosis patients were investigated was low, and treatment outcomes were unsatisfactory in Goiás and in the DF. Socioeconomic and demographic data were consistent with the tuberculosis incidence. Conclusion: The number of tuberculosis patients treated in the city in which they reside was lower than expected. Treatment in another city might compromise tuberculosis control. The recalculated tuberculosis incidence is consistent with the socioeconomic and demographic profile of the region. A federal surveillance system can be efficiently optimized, improving the control of this disease.

Keywords: Tuberculosis/epidemiology; Epidemiologic studies; Government programs.