Indirect protection in adults ≥18 years of age from pediatric pneumococcal vaccination: a review.

Introduction: Infant immunization programs using pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) have reduced the rates of pneumococcal disease through direct vaccine-induced protection in vaccinated children and through indirect protection in non-vaccinated children and adults.

Areas Covered: This review summarizes current evidence on the indirect protection of adults conferred by pediatric pneumococcal vaccination, including the impact on invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) incidence and mortality, pneumonia admissions, and nasopharyngeal carriage prevalence. Factors affecting indirect protection against IPD are also discussed.

Physical Chemistry Lab for Data Analysis of COVID-19 Spreading Kinetics in Different Countries.

The COVID-19 pandemic has passed. It gives us a real-world example of kinetic data analysis practice for our undergraduate physical chemistry laboratory class. It is a great example to connect this seemingly very different problem to the kinetic theories for chemical reactions that the students have learned in the lecture class.

Pneumococcal Vaccine Breakthrough and Failure in Infants and Children: A Narrative Review.

Globally, is a leading cause of vaccine-preventable morbidity and mortality in infants and children. In recent decades, large-scale pediatric immunization programs have substantially reduced the incidence of invasive pneumococcal disease. Despite this, residual vaccine-type pneumococcal disease remains in the form of vaccine breakthrough and vaccine failure.

Active Bystander Training: Using Standardized Patient Methodology to Teach Residents to Navigate Microaggressions in Patient Encounters.

Introduction: Studies show that physicians and medical trainees who identify as underrepresented in medicine or as women experience higher rates of microaggressions during patient encounters. We designed, implemented, and evaluated an active bystander training workshop focused on mitigating microaggressions using standardized patient (SP) methodology.

Methods: Internal medicine faculty members and chief residents led the workshop.

Characterisation of 99mTc EDDA/HYNIC-TOC (Tektrotyd) physiological and neuroendocrine tumour uptake using SPECT/CT standardised uptake values: initial experience.

99mTc Ethylene diamine N,N'-diacetic acid hydrazinonicotinamide-conjugated Tyr3-octreotide (99mTc EDDA/HYNIC-TOC) single photon emission tomography/computed tomography (SPECT/CT) imaging of somatostatin receptors is used in the assessment of neuroendocrine tumours (NETs). The objective of this study was to characterise quantitative standardised uptake value (SUV) SPECT/CT of normal physiological uptake and NET disease. Forty-four patients (22 female and 22 male) referred for 99mTc EDDA/HYNIC-TOC SPECT/CT imaging for diagnosis/primary staging (n = 28) or the assessment of residual/recurrent disease (n = 16) were included.

Single modality radical radiotherapy is an acceptable alternative for the older patient with squamous cell carcinoma of the oesophagus.

Background: Oesophageal cancer remains a common cause of cancer mortality worldwide. Increasingly, oncology centres are treating an older population and comorbidities may preclude multimodality treatment with chemoradiotherapy (CRT). We review outcomes of radical radiotherapy (RT) in an older population treating squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) oesophagus.

SPARC, a phase-I trial of pre-operative, margin intensified, stereotactic body radiation therapy for pancreatic cancer.

Background And Purpose: Following resection of pancreatic cancer, risk of positive margins and local recurrence remain high, especially for borderline-resectable pancreatic cancer (BRPC). We aimed to establish the maximum tolerated dose of a margin-intensified five-fraction stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) regimen designed to treat the region at risk.

Materials And Methods: We conducted a prospective multicentre phase-1 rolling-six dose-escalation study.

Staging the Tumor and Staging the Host: Pretreatment Combined Neutrophil Lymphocyte Ratio and Modified Glasgow Prognostic Score Is Associated with Overall Survival in Patients with Esophagogastric Cancers Undergoing Treatment with Curative Intent.

Background: This study examined whether an innate systemic inflammatory response (SIR) measured by combination neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and modified Glasgow Prognostic Score (mGPS) was associated with overall survival (OS) in patients with esophagogastric cancer (EC) undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) followed by surgery.

Methods: Patients diagnosed with EC, managed with NAC prior to surgery at a regional referral center, between January 2010 and December 2015, were included. The mGPS and NLR were calculated within 12 weeks before NAC.

An unusual cause of paraesthesia in a neo-adjuvant gastro-oesophageal cancer.

There is ongoing debate about the best neo-adjuvant strategy for localised resectable oesophageal cancer, however chemotherapy is often employed. Both oesophageal cancer and cisplatin carry an increased risk of thrombosis. Here, we look at an unusual finding in a previously fit woman who presented following neo-adjuvant chemotherapy for resectable oesophageal cancer with increasing difficulty in walking and lower limb paraesthesia.

The downstaging approach to irresectable oesophageal and gastric cancer: a single centre experience.

Background: There is uncertainty over optimal management of locally advanced non-metastatic oesophageal and gastric (OG) adenocarcinomas which are deemed irresectable at time of diagnosis due to local tumour or nodal burden. Current practice in our regional centre is to administer chemotherapy in a "downstaging" strategy in the hope of achieving tumour shrinkage to allow radical treatment. Patients without sufficient response to downstaging are treated palliatively.

Explicit bias among fourth-year medical students.

The aim of this study was to analyze themes related to explicit bias in patient-doctor relationships among fourth-year medical students. Class cohorts between 2013 and 2016 taking an online elective, "Self and Culture," submitted reflections about explicit bias. Thematic analysis was conducted on 283 student submissions totaling 849 entries until saturation.

Healthcare-associated infections: potential for prevention through vaccination.

The challenge of healthcare-associated infections is compounded by the higher incidence of resistant organisms and the decreasing utility of antimicrobial agents. Historic and current vaccines have already contributed to reductions in healthcare-associated infections, and future vaccines have the potential to reduce these infections further. Through examples of bacterial and viral vaccines, this review will attempt to chart the way forward.

Methods for the Comparison of Differential Item Functioning across Assessments.

An important aspect of the educational and psychological evaluation of individuals is the selection of scales with appropriate evidence of reliability and validity for inferences and uses of the scores for the population of interest. One key aspect of validity is the degree to which a scale fairly assesses the construct(s) of interest for members of different subgroups within the population. Typically, this issue is addressed statistically through assessment of differential item functioning (DIF) of individual items, or differential test functioning (DTF) of sets of items within the same measure.

Effects of the source gap on transmission efficiency of a quadrupole mass spectrometer.

Rationale: Recent trends towards miniature and portable quadrupole mass spectrometry (QMS) entail challenges in instrumental sensitivity, which is influenced by 3D fringe field effects on ion transmission in the Quadrupole Mass Filter (QMF). The relationship of these effects with the gap from the ion source to the QMF entrance (source gap) is significant and little explored. We examine transmission characteristics experimentally and use the results to test the predictive accuracy of a recently developed 3D QMF simulation model.

The role of induction chemotherapy + chemoradiotherapy in localised pancreatic cancer: initial experience in Scotland.

Background: Despite being relatively rare pancreatic cancer is one of the highest causes of death. Even within the potentially resectable group outcomes are poor. We present our initial experiences utilising a neoadjuvant approach to localised pancreatic cancer, evaluating survival, response rates and tolerability.

Increasing Nursing Students' Knowledge of Autism Spectrum Disorder by Using a Standardized Patient.

Nursing students participated in a simulation using a standardized patient role-playing an adolescent with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The researchers used student feedback to develop and improve a simulation aimed at increasing learner skills and knowledge for treating ASD patients. Students indicated that the standardized patient provided realism not obtained when using static manikins or high-fidelity simulators.

Conformity analysis to demonstrate reproducibility of target volumes for Margin-Intense Stereotactic Radiotherapy for borderline-resectable pancreatic cancer.

Background And Purpose: Margin-directed neoadjuvant radiotherapy for borderline-resectable pancreatic cancer (BRPC) aims to facilitate clear surgical margins. A systematic method was developed for definition of a boost target volume prior to a formal phase-I study.

Material And Methods: Reference structures were defined by two oncologists and one radiologist, target structures were submitted by eight oncologist investigators and compared using conformity indices.

Potential Cost-Effectiveness of RSV Vaccination of Infants and Pregnant Women in Turkey: An Illustration Based on Bursa Data.

Background: Worldwide, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is considered to be the most important viral cause of respiratory morbidity and mortality among infants and young children. Although no active vaccine is available on the market yet, there are several active vaccine development programs in various stages. To assess whether one of these vaccines might be a future asset for national immunization programs, modeling the costs and benefits of various vaccination strategies is needed.

A phase-I trial of pre-operative, margin intensive, stereotactic body radiation therapy for pancreatic cancer: the 'SPARC' trial protocol.

Background: Standard therapy for borderline-resectable pancreatic cancer in the UK is surgery with adjuvant chemotherapy, but rates of resection with clear margins are unsatisfactory and overall survival remains poor. Meta-analysis of single-arm studies shows the potential of neo-adjuvant chemo-radiotherapy but the relative radio-resistance of pancreatic cancer means the efficacy of conventional dose schedules is limited. Stereotactic radiotherapy achieves sufficient accuracy and precision to enable pre-operative margin-intensive dose escalation with the goal of increasing rates of clear resection margins and local disease control.

Single centre outcomes from definitive chemo-radiotherapy and single modality radiotherapy for locally advanced oesophageal cancer.

Background: Definitive chemo-radiotherapy (dCRT) has been advocated as an alternative to surgical resection for the treatment of locally advanced oesophageal cancer (OC). We have retrospectively reviewed 4 years' experience of patients (pts) who underwent contemporary staging and were treated with concurrent chemo-radiotherapy (dCRT) or single modality radical radiotherapy (RT) with curative intent.

Methods: Retrospective analysis permitted identification of consecutive patients who underwent contemporary staging prior to non-surgical treatment for locally advanced oesophageal carcinoma.

Determination of the ATP Affinity of the Sarcoplasmic Reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase by Competitive Inhibition of [γ-(32)P]TNP-8N3-ATP Photolabeling.

The photoactivation of aryl azides is commonly employed as a means to covalently attach cross-linking and labeling reagents to proteins, facilitated by the high reactivity of the resultant aryl nitrenes with amino groups present in the protein side chains. We have developed a simple and reliable assay for the determination of the ATP binding affinity of native or recombinant sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase, taking advantage of the specific photolabeling of Lys(492) in the Ca(2+)-ATPase by [γ-(32)P]2',3'-O-(2,4,6-trinitrophenyl)-8-azido-adenosine 5'-triphosphate ([γ-(32)P]TNP-8N3-ATP) and the competitive inhibition by ATP of the photolabeling reaction. The method allows determination of the ATP affinity of Ca(2+)-ATPase mutants expressed in mammalian cell culture in amounts too minute for conventional equilibrium binding studies.