UCP1-dependent brown adipose activation accelerates cardiac metabolic remodeling and reduces initial hypertrophic and fibrotic responses to pathological stress.

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is correlated to cardiovascular health in rodents and humans, but the physiological role of BAT in the initial cardiac remodeling at the onset of stress is unknown. Activation of BAT via 48 h cold (16°C) in mice following transverse aortic constriction (TAC) reduced cardiac gene expression for LCFA uptake and oxidation in male mice and accelerated the onset of cardiac metabolic remodeling, with an early isoform shift of carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1 (CPT1) toward increased CPT1a, reduced entry of long chain fatty acid (LCFA) into oxidative metabolism (0.59 ± 0.

Improving Discharge Teaching for Adult Patients with an Ileostomy.

Local Problem: Discharge teaching is essential to the self-care and successful recovery of colorectal surgery patients, yet the trend toward shorter hospital stays for patients with new ileostomies limits opportunities for patient education. As a result, discharged patients at our institution are initiating calls to providers with questions that could have been addressed prior to discharge.

Purpose: The aim of this quality improvement (QI) project was to decrease patient-initiated postdischarge inquiries using a frequently asked questions (FAQs) handout at discharge.

Western Diet Causes Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction and Metabolic Shifts After Diastolic Dysfunction and Novel Cardiac Lipid Derangements.

Western diet (WD) impairs glucose tolerance and cardiac lipid dynamics, preceding heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) in mice. Unlike diabetic db/db mice with high cardiac triglyceride (TG) and rapid TG turnover, WD mice had high TG but slowed turnover, reducing lipolytic PPAR⍺ activation. WD deranged cardiac TG dynamics by imbalancing synthesis and lipolysis, with low cardiac TG lipase (ATGL), low ATGL co-activator, and high ATGL inhibitory peptide.

Increasing Understanding and Perceived Confidence of Nurses Working in an Emergency Department in Assessing Patients at Risk of Violent Behavior.

Purpose: The aims of this quality improvement project were to improve understanding and perceived confidence in using a tool that assesses patients at risk of violence.

Project Description: The Brøset Violence Checklist is valid at assessing patients at risk of violence. Participants were given access to an e-learning module that demonstrated how to use the tool.