Jorge Bravo

• PhD
• Universidade de Évora

Introduction: Obesity affects over 650 million individuals worldwide and poses a significant public health challenge. Bariatric surgery is the most effective treatment for severe obesity, resulting in substantial weight loss and improvements in obesity-related conditions. However, the weight loss achieved through bariatric surgery is often associat...

This study aimed to investigate the effects of two exercise-based programs over a short-term six-week period, compared to a control group (no exercise program), on the quality of life (QoL) and mental health of patients with myocardial infarction (MI). Methods: In this randomized controlled trial, 72 patients with MI were individually randomized (1...

The role of obesity in contributing to inflammation is an influential factor in the progression of obesity-associated medical issues. Metabolic and bariatric surgery has been proven as effective in obtaining weight loss and associated conditions remission. The Systemic Immune Inflammation Index (SII) was developed to offer more comprehensive data o...

Introduction: Leptin and ghrelin are two hormones that play a role in weight homeostasis. Leptin, which is produced primarily by adipocytes and is dependent on body fat mass, suppresses appetite and increases energy expenditure. Conversely, ghrelin is the “hunger hormone”, it stimulates appetite and promotes fat storage. Bariatric surgery significa...

Purpose Bariatric surgery is a treatment for severe obesity and its associated conditions, which already has ample evidence of its benefits. In addition to the reduction in body fat mass, the weight loss caused by bariatric surgery includes a significant reduction in skeletal muscle and bone mineral mass, which could negatively affect functional ca...

Introduction: Leptin and ghrelin are two hormones that play a role in weight homeostasis. Leptin, which is produced primarily by adipocytes and is dependent on body fat mass, suppresses appetite and increases energy expenditure. Conversely, ghrelin is the “hunger hormone”, it stimulates appetite and promotes fat storage. Bariatric surgery significa...

Background: This study aimed to analyze the effect of cardiac rehabilitation programs on the health-related quality of life of patients after a coronary cardiac event using patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) for up to 6 months of evaluation. Methods: A comprehensive search was carried out in the MEDLINE, CINAHL, CENTRAL, and Web of Science d...

One of the significant advantages of technological evolution is the greater ease of collecting and analyzing data. Miniaturization, wireless communication protocols and IoT allow the use of sensors to collect data, with all the potential to support decision making in real time. In this paper, we describe the design and implementation of a digital s...

Introduction Bariatric surgery is a recognized treatment option for severe obesity, and its effectiveness in reducing weight and controlling obesity-related conditions has been demonstrated. However, it can also lead to decreased skeletal muscle mass and strength, increasing the risk of sarcopenia after surgery. This randomized clinical trial studi...

(1) Background: Sarcopenia, a condition characterized by a decrease in muscle mass and strength, is very common in patients with obesity and can be aggravated by bariatric surgery, potentially compromising the clinical results of surgery. There is increasing interest in pa-tient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) to assess results in other health va...

Introduction: Obesity affects over 650 million individuals worldwide and it is a major public health problem. Bariatric surgery is the most effective treatment for severe obesity, resulting in significant weight reduction and improvement in obesity-related conditions. However, the weight loss achieved through bariatric surgery often correlates with...

Aim This study aimed to investigate the long-term effects of two exercise-based CR programs on physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior, physical fitness, quality of life (QoL), and mental health in coronary artery disease (CAD) patients. Subject and methods Seventy-two CAD participants were randomized (1:1:1) into HIIT, MICT, and control groups...

Background Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is essential in reducing cardiovascular mortality and morbidity. High-intensity interval training (HIIT) has emerged as a promising exercise intervention for enhancing clinical outcomes in cardiac patients. This study aimed to investigate the effects of two short-term exercise-based programs employing HIIT and...

Studies have shown that the higher the aerobic capacity, the lower the risk of cardiovascular mortality and morbidity. In the case of cardiac patients, high-intensity interval training (HIIT) seems to be more effective than moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) in improving aerobic capacity. The aim of this study was to investigate the effe...

Aims To (i) assess the adherence of long‐term care (LTC) facilities to the COVID‐19 prevention and control recommendations, (ii) identify predictors of this adherence and (iii) examine the association between the adherence level and the impact of the pandemic on selected unfavourable conditions. Design Cross‐sectional survey. Methods Managers (n...

This is an open-access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of two exercise-based programs using two short-term (six-week) protocols: High-intensity interval training (HIIT) and moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT), compared to the control group in fat loss and blood biomarkers. Methods: 72 patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) w...

Objective: Investigate the effects of two community-based exercise programs using two short-term (six-week) protocols: High-intensity interval training (HIIT) and moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) in physical fitness and physical activity (PA) levels in myocardial infarction (MI) patients. Methods: Physical fitness (aerobic capacity and...

Objective: Investigate the effects of two community-based exercise programs using two short-term protocols: High-intensity interval training (HIIT) and moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) in cardiovascular risk factors in stable coronary artery disease (CAD) patients. Methods: We conducted a RCT, recruiting 46 CAD patients from Hospital E...

775-Retos, número 48, 2023 (2º trimestre) Physical complaints and participation habits in female artistic roller skaters Quejas físicas y hábitos de participación en patinadoras artísticas femeninas Abstract. Introduction: Educational and health professionals need to acquire knowledge about the specific needs of figure skaters, aiming at their effe...

Severe obesity is a chronic disease and bariatric surgery is the treatment with more proven efficacy in reducing weight. After surgery, the weight loss is greatly associated with a significant reduction of skeletal muscle and bone mineral mass, with an increased risk of sarcopenia for these patients. Prophylactic programs that prevent sarcopenia in...

Bariatric surgery is the treatment for severe obesity, with proven efficacy in reducing weight. Weight loss associated with bariatric surgery is greatly associated with a significant reduction of skeletal muscle and bone mineral mass, which leads us to induce that after bariatric surgery, patients incur an increased risk of sarcopenia. Prophylactic...

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of death globally. Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) programs’ benefits are overall consensual; however, during exercise, progressive physiological effects have not been studied yet in cardiac patients. Our study aims to analyze physiological parameters of thermography, heart rate variability (HRV), blo...

Educators and health professionals need to gain knowledge of the special needs of artistic roller skaters if they seek effective training and preventing physical complaints or injuries. In the absence of epidemiological studies on artistic roller skaters, it is useful to characterize the participants, their participation habits, and the occurrence...

Introduction Bariatric surgery is one of the treatments for severe obesity, with proven efficacy in reducing weight and diseases associated with obesity. Weight loss associated with bariatric surgery is greatly associated with a significant reduction of skeletal muscle and bone mineral mass, which leads us to induce that after bariatric surgery, pa...

Objective: Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of death globally. Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) programs benefits are overall consensual; however, during exercise, progressive physiological effects have not yet been studied in cardiac patients. Our study aimed to analyze physiological parameters of thermography, heart rate variability...

This study aimed to design a dynamic performance-exposure algorithm for falling risk assessment and prevention of falls in community-dwelling older adults. It involved a cross-sectional and follow-up survey assessing retrospective and prospective falls and respective performance-related, exposure and performance-exposure risk factors. In total, 500...

Background Falls are associated with cognitive and physical function deterioration. Attention decline, inaccurate affordance perception, and balance impairment are considered to be risk factors for falls. Furthermore, few studies have reported psychomotor intervention as a fall prevention program. This study aimed to investigate the effects of two...

This 24-week randomized controlled trial study evaluated the effects of two interactive cognitive–motor programs on body composition, lower-body strength, and processing speed in community dwellings at risk of falling. Forty-eight participants (75.0 ± 5.4 years) were allocated into EG1 (psychomotor intervention program), EG2 (combined program (psyc...

Background Mental disorders are highly prevalent in older people, being depression a predominant disorder. Evidence points to a possible relationship between depression and violence against older people. Nonetheless, the role of the depressive symptomology severity in the risk of violence against older people remains unclear. Thus, this study’s mai...

Background Multimodal forms of exercise can influence several physical and mental factors important for successful aging. In the present study, we introduce a new type of multimodal intervention, combining movement (creative dance) with traditional singing. This study aims to compare physical fitness, functional physical independence, depressive sy...

Background: Several models and algorithms were designed to identify older adults at risk of falling supported on an intrinsically and extrinsically traditional approach. However, the dynamic interaction between multiple risk factors for falls must be considered. The present study aimed to design a dynamic performance-exposure algorithm for falling...

Background To evaluate the effects of two interactive cognitive-motor programs in processing speed, lower-body strength, and body composition in community dwellings at risk of falling. Methods Forty-eight community dwellings (75.0 ± 5.4 years) completed this randomized controlled trial, were allocated into three groups: 1) experimental group 1 (EG...

2nd Annual Summit of the Comprehensive Health Research Centre (CHRC) - Book of Abstracts

Background Fall risk assessment in older people is of major importance for providing adequate preventive measures. Current predictive models are mainly focused on intrinsic risk factors and do not adjust for contextual exposure. The validity and utility of continuous risk scores have already been demonstrated in clinical practice in several disease...

Background Falls in older adults are considered a major public health problem. Declines in cognitive and physical functions, as measured by parameters including reaction time, mobility, and dual-task performance, have been reported to be important risk factors for falls. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of two multimodal program...

Background Falls and violence against older people might represent a joint public health problem, as both may result in injury, fear, social isolation, sedentary behavior and dependence or even death. The ESACA project “Aging safely in Alentejo - Understanding for action” was designed to promote the healthy aging of older people in Alentejo by prev...

Background Fall risk assessment and determination of older adults’ individual risk profiles are crucial elements in fall prevention. As such, it is essential to establish cutoffs and reference values for high and low risk according to key risk factor outcomes. This study main objective was to determine the key physical fitness, body composition, ph...

Background: Muscle weakness is a key risk factor for falls and strength exercises should be included in fall prevention programs. A psychomotor intervention promoting motor stimulation and the whole-body vibration (WBV) providing muscle contractions may reduce the incidence of falls. Our hypothesis relies on the greater benefits of a combined progr...

Background: A slower reaction time (RT) performance is considered a risk factor for falls. Different approaches as a psychomotor intervention (involving neuromotor exercises) or the whole-body vibration (inducing neurophysiological changes) may reduce the risk of falls. Nevertheless, a combined program may promote greater gains. This study aimed to...

Background Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are among the most prevalent illnesses worldwide, causing substantial mortality, morbidity and hospitalization. Understanding the correlation of thyroid function and glycemic metabolism and inflammation to body composition and cardiorespiratory and muscular function is imperative. This manuscript's main goal...

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are among the most prevalent illnesses worldwide, causing substantial mortality, morbidity and hospitalization. Understanding the correlation of thyroid function and glycemic metabolism and inflammation to body composition and cardiorespiratory and muscular function is imperative. This manuscript's main goal is to eval...

Relative age is a phenomenon broadly studied in sport sciences. Youth sports participants born earlier in the selection year tend to present a maturational advantage over their peers. As it is also dependent on physical performance, older physical education students may also benefit from this effect in this school subject. The main goal of this man...

Exercise-induced improvements in the VO2peak of cardiac rehabilitation participants are well documented. However, optimal exercise intensity remains doubtful. This study aimed to identify the optimal exercise intensity and program length to improve VO2peak in patients with cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) following cardiac rehabilitation. Randomized...

Background There are a variety of intrinsic determinants which are key to understand the reasons for older people to stay (or not) active. Objectives To identify and analyse the factors underlying the physical activity engagement in older Portuguese living in a rural area. Methods: A total of 504 community‐dwelling older adults (aged ≥65 years) we...

The stepping-forward affordance perception test (SF-APT) fills an important gap within the screening of falls risk factors by considering the perception of affordances. The test showed to be a valid instrument for community-dwelling older adults falls risk assessment. The present study aimed to distinguish and test the key outcomes of the SF-APT us...

This invention consists on a multidimensional tool for evaluating the risk of falling, particularly in older people. The tool hereby described was developed from a trolley-style box, built specifically to comprise different measuring instruments that allow for the application of physical, functional and cognitive tests, and clinical ques- tionnaire...

Objective: To compare the effect of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) on cardiovascular diseases main risk factors in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) enrolled in cardiac rehabilitation phase III. Methods: Fourteen stable CAD-patients were randomly selected for supervised treadmill...

Recent literature reinforces that cardiac rehabilitation based on exercise training induces several beneficial effects on cardiovascular functional capacity, quality of life, risk factors modification, psychological profile, hospital readmissions, and mortality [1]. However, the most effective exercise intensity for cardiac patients remains doubtfu...

The stepping-forward affordance perception test (SF-APT) fills an important gap within the screening of falls risk factors by considering the perception of affordances. The test showed to be a valid instrument for community-dwelling older adults falls risk assessment. The present study aimed to distinguish and test the key outcomes of the SF-APT us...

Introduction Performing a dual-task (DT), mainly while walking and performing another task simultaneously, is seen as determinants factors for falls and injuries in older adults. A psychomotor intervention relying on the prevention of sensorimotor and neurocognitive deterioration may prevent falls. The whole-body vibration (WBV) promotes the increa...

Background: Falls and fall-related injuries along with fear of falling (FoF) seem to restrict activities of daily living (ADL), resulting in physical dependence. However, it is still unclear how falls and related injuries or FoF by themselves explain general and specific ADL dependence. Objectives: To investigate the relationships between falls...

A probabilidade da ocorrência de quedas em pessoas idosas aumenta de forma proporcional ao número de fatores de risco de quedas presentes. As autoridades de saúde recomendam que as pessoas idosas com histórico de quedas, ou dificuldades na marcha/equilíbrio, devem ser alvo de uma avaliação multifatorial do risco de quedas. Esta deve incluir, entre...

De uma forma generalizada, as quedas estão associadas a situações de dependência, morbilidade, ou mortalidade em pessoas idosas. Importa testar a suscetibilidade individual ao risco de queda e implementar programas de intervenção. A identificação e a associação dos fatores de risco que contribuem para a queda são fundamentais, dado que as quedas ap...

The stepping-forward affordance perception test (SF-APT) fills an important gap within the screening of falls risk factors by considering the perception of affordances. The test showed to be a valid instrument for community-dwelling older adults falls risk assessment.

Aim and objective: Ageing is associated with an increased risk of falling. Identification of risk factors is crucial for the prevention of falls in older people. Methods: A total of 508 older adults enrolled in a cross‐sectional study. For the assessment of risk factors, the research team collected basic data and health‐related information and per...

Thus far, few studies have examined the estimation and actual performance of locomotor ability in older adults. To our knowledge, there are no studies examining the relationship between stepping-forward estimation versus ability and fall occurrence. The aim of this study was to develop and assess the reliability and validity of a new test for fall...

Although is noticeable growth, Figure skating is an underrated sport at severallevels. As a competitive sport it demands for technical skills, interpretation andrepresentation, requiring skaters high performance levels (Lagoa, 2009; FPP, 2017), as well as intensive and systematic training, which may lead to an increase in injury risk (Porter, Young...

Introduction: Injuries resulting from falls are a major problem facing older adults. Several studies showed that falls may occur due to limitations in functional fitness, poor body composition, or ognitive and emotional factors. Objectives: The aim of this study was to identify preponderant physical fitness, body composition, cognitive and emotiona...

Format 2 - 30x40m The ball position in the 2D horizontal plane was modelled using an algorithm that integrated players relative positioning collected by the GPS system and the notational data retrieved from the video, synchronising the events with the GPS time.

Format 1 - 40x30m The ball position in the 2D horizontal plane was modelled using an algorithm that integrated players relative positioning collected by the GPS system and the notational data retrieved from the video, synchronising the events with the GPS time.

This study aimed to compare youth football players’ performance during two small-sided games with different pitch orientation: i) 40x30m and ii) 30x40m formats. Twenty under-15 players (age = 14.1 ± 0.5 years) participated in nine GK+4vs4+GK situations in each format, with the duration of six minutes each. Positional data were collected using indiv...

The ball position in the 2D horizontal plane was modelled using an algorithm that integrated players relative positioning collected by the GPS system and the notational data retrieved from the video, synchronising the events with the GPS time.

Introduction For there to be a good development of the components of body weight, it is necessary that the body is in good health and nutrition. The imbalance between food consumption and requirements, either deficit or excess, has implications for the development of body components. Several studies report differences in body composition related to...

Ao longo deste livro, serão apresentados protocolos de avaliação da capacidade aeróbia, quer através de Testes Submaximais para Estimação do Consumo Máximo de Oxigénio, quer através de Testes Maximais para Determinação do Consumo Máximo de Oxigénio. Serão igualmente apresentados protocolos de avaliação da capacidade anaeróbia através dos Testes Sup...

Este livro procura transmitir conhecimentos de suporte à prática e supervisão de atividades físicas e desportivas na natureza, com foco específico na prática de montanhismo. Sendo a segurança do montanhista a principal prioridade, procuramos com este livro fornecer um suporte teórico à correta execução dos nós e ancoragens mais comuns. Embora a gén...

Este livro constitui um guião para a realização de trabalhos práticos de fisiologia do exercício e da atividade física. É o primeiro volume de três livros dedicados ao tema. Este primeiro volume - “Testes Históricos de Avaliação de Parâmetros Fisiológicos do Exercício e da Atividade Física” - procura abordar as bases práticas da fisiologia do esfor...

O presente livro destina-se mormente aos alunos de licenciatura em Ciências do Desporto da Universidade de Évora, como manual de suporte às unidades curriculares no âmbito das Atividades de Exploração da Natureza. Contudo, pelas características genéricas da informação que contem e pela forma simplificada como são expostos os conteúdos, torna-o uma...

Objetivos: O objetivo deste livro é proporcionar às pessoas idosas e respectivas famílias, profissionais de saúde e profissionais do exercício físico um método de rastreio do risco de queda da pessoa idosa. Um método que permite identificar os parâmetros funcionais de fragilidade que potencialmente contribuirão para a ocorrência de quedas. Esta ide...

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to develop age- and sex-specific waist circumference (WC) cut-off points, linked to older adolescent and adult criteria for abdominal obesity, to be applied to children in the clinical setting. Methods: A total of 16,788 adolescents aged 10 to 16 years were assessed for WC. Smoothed age and sex-specific...

The papers published in this book of abstracts / proceedings were submitted to the Scientific Commission of the International Congress of Research Center in Sports Sciences, Health Sciences & Human Development, held on 11 and 12 November 2016, at the University of Évora, Évora, Portugal, under the topic of Exercise and Health, Sports and Human Deve...

INTRODUÇÃO: O aumento do sedentarismo assume um importante contributo para o aumento do risco de surgimento de osteoporose (Tremblay et al, 2010). Por outro lado, a prática desportiva durante a puberdade, principalmente em atividades que suportam o peso corporal, pode ser um fator importante para alcançar um pico elevado de massa óssea e melhorar a...