The current study investigated effects of dietary amino acid (AA) availability on lactational body condition loss and metabolic status, in relation to reproductive parameters after weaning up to Day 8 post-ovulation. Primiparous sows (n = 35) were allocated to one of two lactation diets containing either low crude protein (CP, 140 g/kg) with a low percentage (8%) of slow protein in total protein (LL, n = 18) or high CP (180 g/kg) with a high (16%) percentage of slow protein (HH, n = 17). The HH diet was expected to improve AA utilization by supplying more AA, in a more gradual fashion.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBirth weight is a key factor for piglet survival, and therefore, there is ongoing interest in how nutrition during gestation can influence birth weight. Interestingly, sows are generally fed one single diet throughout gestation. This paper reviews past attempts to increase foetal growth to term and discusses opportunities to target nutritional manipulations at specific windows of gestation where key developmental events occur.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTo assess the importance of natural variation in colostrum intake on piglet gastrointestinal and reproductive development, two equally sized female piglets from each of 27 litters were selected, one with low (average 226 g) and one with high (average 401 g) colostrum intake. At weaning (23 d of age), piglets were euthanised to perform macromorphological measurements on ileum, colon, cervix and uterus tissues, and to obtain tissue samples from the cervix and uterus for histology. Sections of uterine and cervical preparations were analysed using digital image analysis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: The web-based application Oncokompas was developed to support cancer patients to self-manage their symptoms. This qualitative study was conducted to obtain insight in patients' self-management strategies to cope with cancer and their experiences with Oncokompas as a fully automated behavioural intervention technology.
Methods: Data were collected from semi-structured interviews with 22 participants (10 head and neck cancer survivors and 12 incurably ill patients).
Background: Internet-based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (iCBT) is found effective in treating common mental disorders. However, the use of these interventions in routine care is limited. The international ImpleMentAll study is funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 programme.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFContext: Although much is known about factors influencing short-term implementation, little is known about what factors are relevant for the long-term sustainment of innovations. In the Dutch National Quality Improvement Program for Palliative Care, innovations were implemented in 76 implementation projects.
Objectives: To give insight into the sustainment strategies used and factors facilitating and hindering sustainment.
Objective: Early onset group B streptococcal (EOGBS) disease is an important cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. EOGBS preventive strategies aim to reduce the risk of neonatal complications. Two new strategies to prevent EOGBS were implemented in two regions in the Netherlands: a risk-based and a combination strategy and were compared to the Dutch strategy in a third region.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFProblem: Despite the introduction of preventive guidelines, no decrease in the incidence of early onset infection was observed.
Background: Early onset group B streptococcal (EOGBS) infection is an important cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality.
Aim: Our study was conducted to determine adherence to three guideline-based group B streptococcus (GBS) preventive strategies.
Superfetation, the ability to simultaneously carry multiple litters of different developmental stages , is a reproductive strategy that evolved repeatedly in viviparous animal lineages. The evolution of superfetation is hypothesized to reduce the reproductive burden and, consequently, improve the locomotor performance of the female during pregnancy. Here, we apply new computer-vision-based techniques to study changes in body shape and three-dimensional fast-start escape performance during pregnancy in three live-bearing fishes (family Poeciliidae) that exhibit different levels of superfetation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: The purpose of this research was to generate and validate a questionnaire that identifies determinants of guideline use from the clinician perspective.
Study Design And Setting: From January 2017 to March 2018, a seven-member six-country multidisciplinary team used a five-step multimethod design to search for and compile determinant frameworks, map items to determinants (content validity), select the best items for each determinant (content validity), refine wording of determinants and items (face validity), merge or separate items (construct validity), and review the final questionnaire.
Results: The Clinician Guideline Determinants Questionnaire includes four sections: clinician demographic information (including two determinants: attitudes about/experience with guidelines), 26 close-ended items reflecting clinician- and guideline-specific determinants, four open-ended items reflecting enablers and barriers perceived as most important, and three items on learning style (preferred sources of guideline information).
Swimming performance of pregnant live-bearing fish is presumably constrained by the additional drag associated with the reproductive burden. Yet, it is still unclear how and to what extent the reproductive investment affects body drag of the females. We examined the effect of different levels of reproductive investment on body drag.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe aim of this study was to determine whether newly weaned piglets had a preference for diets containing hydroxychloride trace minerals (HTM). To test this, two preference tests were set up. In Exp.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Due to complex processes of implementation of innovations aimed at persons with intellectual disabilities in healthcare organizations, lifestyle interventions are not used as intended or not used at all. In order to provide insight into determinants influencing this implementation, this study aims to ascertain if the Measurement Instrument for Determinants of Innovations (MIDI) is useful for objectively evaluating implementation.
Method: With semi-structured interviews, data concerning determinants of implementation of lifestyle interventions were aggregated.
Background: The aim of this study is to understand the determinants of adherence to wrap-around care (WAC) by professional care providers working in child and family services. WAC is a care coordination method targeting families with complex needs. The core components of WAC involve activating family members and the social network, integrating the care provider network, and assessing, planning and evaluating the care process.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: A web-based self-management application "Oncokompas" was developed to monitor health-related quality of life and to support cancer survivors in finding and obtaining optimal supportive care. Access to this application is provided via a healthcare professional (HCP). The aim of this study was to explore the adoption and implementation of Oncokompas in routine clinical practice and to obtain insights in potentially relevant determinants of implementation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe aim of this study was to relate the course of parturition to the condition of piglets at birth, based on umbilical cord blood acid-base values, and relate the condition at birth to neonatal survival and performance up to 10 weeks of life. Data were collected from 37 spontaneous unassisted parturitions, and neonatal performance was based on observations of 516 piglets. Stillbirth rate increased from 2% in the first piglets, to 17% in piglets born 13th in the litter or later.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA live-bearing reproductive strategy can induce large morphological changes in the mother during pregnancy. The evolution of the placenta in swimming animals involves a shift in the timing of maternal provisioning from pre-fertilization (females supply their eggs with sufficient yolk reserves prior to fertilization) to post-fertilization (females provide all nutrients via a placenta during the pregnancy). It has been hypothesised that this shift, associated with the evolution of the placenta, should confer a morphological advantage to the females leading to a more slender body shape during the early stages of pregnancy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFish make C-starts to evade predator strikes. Double-bend (DB) C-starts consist of three stages: Stage 1, in which the fish rapidly bends into a C-shape; Stage 2, in which the fish bends in the opposite direction; and a variable Stage 3. In single-bend (SB) C-starts, the fish immediately straightens after Stage 1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Actions to prevent early onset disease in neonates are based on different strategies including administering antibiotic prophylaxis during labour in case of 1) maternal GBS colonisation (screening strategy), 2) identified risk factors (risk-based strategy) or 3) a combination of these two conditions (maternal GBS colonisation and identified risk factors: combination strategy and the Dutch guideline). Low adherence to guidelines preventing EOGBS has been reported. Each strategy has drawbacks and clinical outcomes are affected by care providers' and women's adherence.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGuidelines to support health care professionals in early detection of, and responses to, suspected Child Abuse and Neglect (CAN) have become increasingly widely available. Yet little is known about professionals' adherence to these guidelines or the determinants that affect their uptake. This study used a cross-sectional design to assess the adherence of Dutch Child Health Care (CHC) professionals to seven key activities described in a national guideline on preventing CAN.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPreventive Child Health Care (PCHC) services are delivered to all children in the Netherlands by approximately 5500 doctors, nurses and doctor's assistants. In 1996, The Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sports asked for the development of evidence-based PCHC guidelines. Since 1998, twenty-five guidelines have been published.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To determine the effectiveness of a client or care-provider strategy to improve the implementation of external cephalic version.
Design: Cluster randomized controlled trial.
Setting: Twenty-five clusters; hospitals and their referring midwifery practices randomly selected in the Netherlands.
Background: External cephalic version (ECV) reduces the rate of elective cesarean sections as a result of breech presentation. Several studies have shown that not all eligible women undergo an ECV attempt. The aim of this study was to evaluate the implementation of ECV in the Netherlands and to explain variation in implementation rates with hospital characteristics and individual factors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Qual Health Care
October 2014
Objective: To develop a short instrument to measure determinants of innovations that may affect its implementation.
Design: We pooled the original data from eight empirical studies of the implementation of evidence-based innovations. The studies used a list of 60 potentially relevant determinants based on a systematic review of empirical studies and a Delphi study among implementation experts.
Objective: guidelines recommend that external cephalic version (ECV) should be offered to all women with a fetus in breech presentation at term. However, only 50-60% of the women receive an ECV attempt. We explored the determinants (barriers and facilitators) affecting the uptake of the guidelines among gynaecologists and midwives in the Netherlands.
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