Evaluation of a novel dried blood spot collection device (HemaSpot™) to test blood samples collected from dogs for antibodies to Leishmania infantum.

Collection of blood samples from veterinary and wildlife patients is often challenging because the samples have to be collected on farm or in the wild under various environmental conditions. This poses many technical problems associated with venipuncture materials, their safe use and disposal, transportation and processing of collected samples. Dried blood spot (DBS) sample collection techniques offer a simple and practical alternative to traditional blood collection methods to obtain blood samples from animals for parasite antibody evaluation.

Gay rights one baby-step at a time: protecting hospital visitation rights for same-sex partners while the lack of surrogacy rights lingers: comment on "Ethical challenges in end-of-life care for GLBTI individuals" by Colleen Cartwright.

Recognizing that GLBTI individuals are often barred from visiting their partners in hospitals or from acting as health care surrogates for incapacitated partners, President Obama directed the Department of Health and Human Services to address these issues. In response, the department amended its rules to prohibit hospitals from restricting, limiting, or denying visitation privileges on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation. But the changes do not affect the designation of a health care surrogate, a matter largely governed by state law.