Cardiac Nestin Cells Derived from Early Stage of Dilated Cardiomyopathy Enhanced the Survival of the Doxorubicin-Injured Cardiac Muscle HL-1 Cells.

Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), as one of the common cardiomyopathies, is a disease of the heart muscle; however, the etiology and pathogenesis of DCM were still poorly understood. Nestin has been reported a special marker of stem/progenitor cells in various tissues, and the tissue resident Nestin cells could promote the wound healing and tissue remodeling. However, it remains unclear whether Nestin cells participate in the protection of cardiomyocytes during the pathogenesis of DCM.

Antibiotic prescription for fever episodes in hospice patients.

Bacterial infection usually plays an important part in the fever episodes that are common in patients in the hospice palliative care unit. The physicians' attitude to use of antibiotics in such cases is usually complex. We retrospectively studied 535 admissions to a hospice and palliative care unit in a medical center in Taiwan.