EVENT
LOCATION.
RIO
GRANDE DO SUL AND ITS CAPITAL.
COUNTRY SANITARY
ASPECTS.
DISTANCES.
EVENT
LOCATION
Centro de Eventos , PUCRS
Av. Ipiranga, 6681 - Prédios 40 e 41
Porto Alegre/RS
TRANSFER SERVICE
Transfer
service will be offered to the Congress participants from/to the
official hotels and the university, PUCRS, during the event and in
pre-established schedule.
RIO
GRANDE DO SUL AND ITS CAPITAL
Rio Grande do
Sul is the southernmost state of Brazil, with an approximate area of
280,670 Km². According to the IBGE (The Brazilian Institute of
Geography and Statistics), in 2007 the state population was of
10.582.887 inhabitants. The state occupies the fifth place among the
Brazilian states, a position maintained since 1940.
The GDP per
capita was of 15.813 reais in 2007, while in the rest of the country,
it was of 12.491 reais in the same year.
The climate is
temperate and subtropical, classified as mesothermic humid. Due to its
geographic localization, between parallel 27º and latitude 33º south,
and 49º and 57º longitude west, it presents great differences in
relation to the rest of the country.
The
temperatures present great seasonal variation, with hot summers and
winter with temperatures sometimes lower to freezing point; heavy rains
and snowfall may occur occasionally. The average temperature ranges
from 15º C to 18º C, with the lowest temperatures of -10º C and the
highest of 40º C. In October, when the IV Latin American Congress of
Photobiology and Photomedicine will take place, the temperatures will
probably vary from 15º C to 25º C.
Due to its
European origin, 84% of the population are White, 5, 2% Black, 10, 4
Brown, and 0, 4 Asian. In 1940, the proportion for foreign people was
22% Italians, 21% Uruguayans and 15% Germans. Currently, the highest
number of people come from Uruguay. However, there are regions where
Spanish, Polish, Russian, Jewish, and Japanese peoples have settled.
Our state is
well known in Brazil for its agriculture and cattle raising activities.
Great grain production like rice, soybean and wheat characterize
certain regions in Rio Grande do Sul.
Porto Alegre
is the state capital and is located by the Guaíba River margins, which
discharges in the Lagoa dos Patos, one of the largest coast lakes of
the world with 265 Km in extension and 10,000 km² in surface.
The population
is estimated around 1.5 million inhabitants. The main spoken language
is Portuguese, however, Spanish can be understood by a great number of
people.
COUNTRY
SANITARY ASPECTS
Currently,
people in Rio de Janeiro, the most famous tourism attraction in the
country, are facing an outbreak of Dengue epidemic.
Dengue
is an infectious disease caused by an arbovirus which
occurs in tropical and subtropical areas in the world. It is
transmitted by two mosquito species: Aedes aegypti and
Aedes albopictus. They are
daytime biters, different from the common mosquito (Culex).
The first one can also transmit Yellow Fever. The vectors increase in
number near households with clean water storages (water tanks,
cisterns, cans, tires, and plant vases).
No Dengue
vaccine is available; therefore, some precautions should be taken
against the infections like: 1. wear long pants, long sleeves; 2.
insect repellent (with 35% diethyl-meta-toluamide – DEET, or 20%
picaridin); 3. clothes should be soaked with permetrine; 4. stay in
places with air conditioning; 5. use electrical devices with pyrethrin
and pyrethroid (Esbiothin) in the bedrooms.
Yellow
Fever is an infectious disease transmitted by a flavivirus
and vaccine is available. The
transmission by the bite of infected mosquitoes .In the wild, the Haemagogus
mosquito is the vector .In
urban areas, the Aedes aegypti, also causes the
fever. The vaccine is manufactured from the attenuated live virus,
being effective for 1 week after the application. The immunity is for
at least 10 years.
The same
protective measures advised for Dengue, can be also applied for Yellow
Fever.
Malaria
is a potentially severe infectious disease caused by parasites
(protozoan of genus Plasmodium) transmitted by
the Anopheles mosquitos. They are night time
biters and are found inside households. There is no available vaccine.
The transmission is more common in the rural and semi-rural areas, but
may also occur in urban ones. The high risk region in Brazil is in the
Amazon. The states of Amazonas, Pará, Rondônia, Acre are the ones with
the highest indexes of the disease. In other regions of the country,
the disease risk is inexistent.
Although with
some risks, chemoprophylaxis may be used. The protozoa Plasmodium
falciparum is resistant to chloroquine in most exposed
areas. Mefloquine (Lariam®) is an option. However, this drug is no
recommended for people suffering from epilepsy, psychiatric conditions
(anxiety, depression and uneseaness), cardiac arrhythmia and for the
ones using beta blockers. The prophylactic drug should be taken 1 week
before exposure and used 4 weeks after leaving the risky area.
Due to diverse
regional and climatic sanitary characteristics, these diseases are not
found in Rio Grande do Sul (where the IV Latin American Congress of
Photobiology and Photomedicine will be held). If any congress
participant travels to any other state in the country, it is important
to take some precautions regarding these diseases, like vaccination for
the infirmity (Yellow Fever before coming to Brazil)
DISTANCES FROM BRAZILIAN CAPITALS:
Aracajú (SE) 3.296 Km
Belo Horizonte (MG) 1.712 Km
Belém (PA) 3.854 Km
Boa Vista (RR) 5.348 Km
Brasília (DF) 2.027 Km
Campo Grande (MS) 1.518 Km
Cuiabá (MT) 2.206 Km
Curitiba (PR) 711 Km
Florianópolis (SC) 476 Km
Fortaleza (CE) 4.242 Km
Goiânia (GO) 1.847 Km
João Pessoa (PB) 3.889 Km
Macapá (AP) 4.448 Km
Maceió (AL) 3.572 Km
Manaus (AM) 4.563 Km
Natal (RN) 4.066 Km
Palmas (TO) 2.747 Km
Porto Velho (RO) 3.662 Km
Recife (PE) 3.779 Km
Rio Branco (AC) 4.196 Km
Rio de Janeiro (RJ) 1.553 Km
Salvador (BA) 3.090 Km
São Luis (MA) 3.891 Km
São Paulo(SP) 1.109 Km
Teresina (PI) 3.804
Km
Vitória (ES) 2.001 Km
MERCOSUL CITIES
Assunção 1.311 Km
Buenos Aires 1.048 Km
Chuy 523 Km
Ciudad del Leste 988 Km
Córdoba 1.454 Km
Mar del Plata 1.446 Km
Mendoza 2.016 Km
Montevideo 868 Km
Paso de Los Libres 639 Km
Posadas 959 Km
Paysandu 833 Km
Resistencia 1.008 Km
Rivera 494 Km
Rosario 1.280 Km
Salto 833 Km
San Carlos de Bariloche 2.461 Km
Santa Fé 1.112 Km
Santiago 2.408 Km
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