Hospital nurses' knowledge regarding older patients: a multicenter study.

Background: Nursing care in hospitals increasingly involves older adults. A nursing workforce able to care for the ageing population is therefore critical for ensuring quality older adult care. Gaining insight in the knowledge and attitudes of nurses regarding older patients in the Netherlands is needed to develop and increase the impact of education- and quality improvement programs which can positively influence nurses' knowledge and attitudes regarding older patients.

Minimizing the knowledge-to-action gap; identification of interventions to change nurses' behavior regarding fall prevention, a mixed method study.

Background: The need for effective continuing education is especially high in in-hospital geriatric care, as older patients have a higher risk of complications, such as falls. It is important that nurses are able to prevent them. However, it remains unknown which interventions change the behavior of nurses.

Atypical Porcine Pestivirus: A Possible Cause of Congenital Tremor Type A-II in Newborn Piglets.

Congenital tremor type A-II in piglets has been regarded as a transmissible disease since the 1970s, possibly caused by a very recently-described virus: atypical porcine pestivirus (APPV). Here, we describe several strains of APPV in piglets with clinical signs of congenital tremor (10 of 10 farms tested). Piglets on a farm with no history of congenital tremor were PCR-negative for the virus.

Preemptive tumor profiling for biomarker-stratified early clinical drug development in metastatic breast cancer patients.

Biomarker-stratified cancer pharmacotherapy was pioneered in the care of breast cancer patients. The utility of agents modulating hormone receptors, synthesis of steroid hormones, or HER2-targeting agents has been greatly enhanced by the detection of predictive biomarkers in diagnostic tumor samples. Based on deeper understanding of breast cancer biology multiple drug candidates have been developed to modulate additional molecular targets which may associate with specific biomarker profiles.

Feasibility of preemptive biomarker profiling for personalised early clinical drug development at a Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Purpose: Multiple investigational drugs are currently explored in cancer patient populations defined by specific biomarkers. This demands a new process of patient selection for clinical trials.

Patients And Methods: Starting January 1, 2012, preemptive biomarker profiling was offered at the West German Cancer Center to all patients with advanced non-small-cell lung (NSCLC) or colorectal cancer (CRC), who met generic study inclusion criteria.

Electronic structure and soft-X-ray-induced photoreduction studies of iron-based magnetic polyoxometalates of type {(M)M5}12Fe(III)30 (M = Mo(VI), W(VI)).

Giant Keplerate-type molecules with a {Mo72Fe30} core show a number of very interesting properties, making them particularly promising for various applications. So far, only limited data on the electronic structure of these molecules from X-ray spectra and electronic structure calculations have been available. Here we present a combined electronic and magnetic structure study of three Keplerate-type nanospheres--two with a {Mo72Fe30} core and one with a {W72Fe30} core by means of X-ray absorption spectroscopy, X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD), SQUID magnetometry, and complementary theoretical approaches.

Morphology and nanostructure of CeO2(111) surfaces of single crystals and Si(111) supported ceria films.

The surface morphology of CeO(2)(111) single crystals and silicon supported ceria films is investigated by non-contact atomic force microscopy (NC-AFM) and Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) for various annealing conditions. Annealing bulk samples at 1100 K results in small terraces with rounded ledges and steps with predominantly one O-Ce-O triple layer height while annealing at 1200 K produces well-ordered straight step edges in a hexagonal motif and step bunching. The morphology and topographic details of films are similar, however, films are destroyed upon heating them above 1100 K.

Preparation of monolayers of [MnIII6CrIII]3+ single-molecule magnets on HOPG, mica and silicon surfaces and characterization by means of non-contact AFM.

We report on the characterization of various salts of [MnIII6CrIII]3+ complexes prepared on substrates such as highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG), mica, SiO2, and Si3N4. [MnIII6CrIII]3+ is a single-molecule magnet, i.e.

Duration of immunity induced by an equine influenza and tetanus combination vaccine formulation adjuvanted with ISCOM-Matrix.

Equine influenza is a contagious disease caused by equine influenza virus which belongs to the orthomyxovirus family. Outbreaks of equine influenza cause severe economic loses to the horse industry and consequently horses in competition are required to be regularly vaccinated against equine influenza. Unlike the existing inactivated vaccines, Equilis Prequenza Te is the only one able to induce protection against clinical disease and virus excretion after a primary vaccination course consisting of two vaccine applications 4-6 weeks apart until the recommended time of the third vaccination.

The first safe inactivated equine influenza vaccine formulation adjuvanted with ISCOM-Matrix that closes the immunity gap.

Equine influenza is a contagious diseases caused by equine influenza viruses which belong to the orthomyxovirus family. Outbreaks of equine influenza cause severe economic loses to the horse industry and consequently competition horses are required to be regularly vaccinated against equine influenza. Currently available inactivated vaccines are only able to induce protection against clinical disease and virus excretion after a primary vaccination course consisting of three vaccine applications at 4-6 and 22-26 weeks apart, respectively.

Anthracyline-reduced sequential combination chemotherapy for younger patients with good-prognosis aggressive B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Introduction: Anthracyline-based chemotherapy is the treatment of choice for patients with aggressive B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). However, anthracyclines have been associated with long-term cardiac toxicity.

Methods: We conducted a study using a sequential combination chemotherapy with a reduced cumulative dose of anthracyclines in younger patients with good-prognosis aggressive NHL.

Long-term results of a phase-I/II study of sequential high-dose chemotherapy with autologous stem cell transplantation in the initial treatment of aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Aims And Background: To improve the survival of patients with aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, we evaluated a risk-adapted therapeutic approach using high-dose (HD) or conventional-dose (CD) chemotherapy (CT) for poor-risk and good-risk patients, respectively.

Methods: Twenty patients were treated in each group. In both groups, the first chemotherapy cycle consisted of dexamethasone, vincristine, ifosfamide, and etoposide.

Mitochondrial rhomboid PARL regulates cytochrome c release during apoptosis via OPA1-dependent cristae remodeling.

Rhomboids, evolutionarily conserved integral membrane proteases, participate in crucial signaling pathways. Presenilin-associated rhomboid-like (PARL) is an inner mitochondrial membrane rhomboid of unknown function, whose yeast ortholog is involved in mitochondrial fusion. Parl-/- mice display normal intrauterine development but from the fourth postnatal week undergo progressive multisystemic atrophy leading to cachectic death.

Regulated intramembrane proteolysis of amyloid precursor protein and regulation of expression of putative target genes.

gamma-Secretase-dependent regulated intramembrane proteolysis of amyloid precursor protein (APP) releases the APP intracellular domain (AICD). The question of whether this domain, like the Notch intracellular domain, is involved in nuclear signalling is highly controversial. Although some reports suggest that AICD regulates the expression of KAI1, glycogen synthase kinase-3beta, Neprilysin and APP, we found no consistent effects of gamma-secretase inhibitors or of genetic deficiencies in the gamma-secretase complex or the APP family on the expression levels of these genes in cells and tissues.

Local treatment of pressure sores in the elderly: amino acid copolymer membrane versus hydrocolloid dressing.

Objective: To compare the clinical effectiveness and wound management properties of a copolymer membrane, Inerpan (Synthélabo), and a hydrocolloid dressing, Comfeel (Coloplast), in the treatment of decubitus ulcers in the elderly.

Design: Open, randomized, multicentric French study, with two parallel groups of patients.

Patients: 168 in-patients aged more 65 years (mean age: 82 years) suffering from grade II to grade IV (in the Shea classification) pressure sores.

Pathophysiology and morphometry of the early pulmonary fibrosis in dogs.

A physiological (hemodynamics, gas exchange and respiratory mechanics) and morphometric evaluation has been undertaken on six normal dogs (N) and seven dogs (F) whose lungs showed variable degrees of fibrosis produced by successive injections of oleic acid. The correlation between the degree of fibrosis and the ratio of measured to predicted alveolar surface was --0.97 (alpha < 0.

Effect of body position and of respiratory frequency on distribution of pulmonary ventilation and perfusion in dogs.

Ventilation (VA) perfusion (Q) ratios distribution measured by the inert gases method is studied in 7 anesthetized dogs in supine position, in prone position at a respiratory frequency of 15 cpm, and in prone position at a respiratory frequency of 10 cpm so as to test the sensitivity of this VA/Q method. Despite the fact that the precise height-width characteristics of the distribution modes are unknown, our results show coherent changes and sensitivity of the log standard deviation of the perfusion curve, of the shunt, and of the dead space obtained with the inert gas method. After the change from supine to prone position, cardiac output increases, shunt, if it exists, diminishes, VA/Q ratios distribution becomes more uniform, and PaO2 increases and (A-a)DO2 decreases.

Distribution of ventilation-perfusion ratios in pneumonectomized dogs.

In this paper, the distribution of ventilation (VA) and of pulmonary perfusion (Q), gas exchanges, and the single breath CO diffusing capacity are measured in 8 dogs before and after left pneumonectomy. During surgery 4 dogs, in which the left pulmonary artery is clamped, and 4 other dogs in which the left mainstem bronchus is clamped, are studied. A minute ventilation (VE) is adjusted during the initial stage in each dog but it is kept constant for the other stages.

Pulmonary neutral fat embolism in dogs.

Twenty-two adult dogs were each given a single, 30-minute injection of 1.5 ml/kg body weight of pure triolein, and their pulmonary, hepatic, renal, and cerebral morphology was observed for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 15, 24, and 48 hours; 3,4, and 5 days; 1 and 2 weeks; and 1 month after the injection. A picture of massive capillary occlusion by lipid droplets was followed by rapidly resolvable inflammatory pneumopathy of granulomatous type, leaving a normal lung at the end of the experiment.

Respiratory mechanics measured by a simple device.

A simple and inexpensive apparatus is described which permits the semi-automatic measurements of pulmonary dynamic compliance (Cdyn) and airway resistance (Raw) while rapid changes of these factors during the experimental induction of pneumopathies can be followed. A diaphragm is used as a pneumotachograph because it was found to be quite sensitive and pulmonary secretions did not disturb the measurements. Volume base line drift is prevented.

Embolic pneumopathy induced by oleic acid. A systematic morphologic study.

This paper presents a systematic study of acute and chronic pulmonary lesions resulting from a single intravenous injection of oleic acid and a new fibrosis lung model is proposed: pulmonary interstitial fibrosis is obtained by means of a number of oleic acid intravenous injections. Nineteen adult dogs received 0.045 g/kg or 0.