Cardiac Manifestations of Systemic Sclerosis: Unraveling the Role of Exercise Tests in Diagnosis and Staging

Background: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a autoimmune connective tissue disease characterized by immune-mediated vascular injury and progressive fibrosis affecting multiple organs, including the lungs and heart. Cardiopulmonary complications, particularly pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and primary cardiac involvement, represent leading causes of morbidity and mortality. Early detection remains challenging due to the subclinical onset and overlapping symptomatology of these entities. Fu...

Para além do indivíduo: uma abordagem socioecológica ao comportamento na atividade física

The practice of physical activity (PA) has been the central topic of numerous debates over the last few decades, with special attention given to the low levels of these practices around the world. The present investigation aims to analyze variations in levels of recreational PA in territories with different population densities in Portugal and analyze how the levels of the socioecological model influence these practices in both geographic contexts. More specifically, an essay and four qualita...

Development, validation and evaluation of an advancement occlusal splint for enhancing running sport performance

A series of research studies were employed to develop a mandibular advancement splint specifically built for sport practice and explore its potential ergogenic effects on running exercise, particularly focusing on biophysical aspects. The experiments comprised (i) an intermittent incremental running protocol performed until exhaustion both conducted in laboratory (4 min steps interspersed by 30 s rest, with 1 km·h−1 running) and real-world conditions (800 m running steps, with 1 km·h−1 increm...

PESSOA IDOSA, URBANISMO E ATIVIDADE FÍSICA Aspectos urbanos da cidade de Manaus e sua influência na prática de atividade física. Uma análise a partir do Guia das Cidades Amigas da Pessoa Idosa da OMS

Since the advent of the industrial revolution, a considerable portion of the world's population has migrated from the countryside to live in cities. However, today this process - urbanization - has received a new catalyst, leading to the booming growth of cities. In addition to the intense process of urbanization, the world's population is experiencing an exponential process of ageing. Data from the WHO (2009) states that in the year 2000 the population of elderly people in the world was 600 ...