A Quality Improvement Project to Decrease Fractures Secondary to Metabolic Bone Disease of Prematurity.

Introduction: Osteopenia of prematurity is common in the neonatal intensive care unit, with an incidence of up to 54% in extremely low birthweight infants. The baseline fracture rate in our level IV midwestern neonatal intensive care unit was 13%, with poor compliance with recommended intakes of calcium, calcium:phosphorus ratio, and Vitamin D.

Methods: A multidisciplinary team implemented a screening guideline through four Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles, which addressed staff education, vitamin D screening, and incorporation of calcitriol.

Historical analysis of Zurbarán's Saint Apollonia.

Francisco de Zurbarán (1598-1644), the Spanish Baroque painter of dramatic religious scenes and powerful portraits, painted a number of female saints, including Apollonia. His full-length portrait of Saint Apollonia, patron saint of those suffering from dental ailments, is in the collection of the Louvre Museum, and reflects the Counter-Reformation ideals of 17th-century Seville.

Resident continuity clinics: a learning design for group private practice.

Continuity clinics are required for residents in obstetrics and gynecology in the U.S., but are costly and difficult to administer.

Perimenstrual symptom prevalence rates: an Italian-American comparison.

The purposes of this study were to determine the prevalence of perimenstrual symptoms among a randomly selected group of Italian women by using a standardized menstrual symptom instrument and to compare them with those from a census-based sample of free-living American women in the study by Woods et al. (Am J Public Health 1982;72:1257-64). Italian menstrual symptom prevalence rates were obtained as part of a 1984 national health screening project using the Moos Menstrual Distress Questionnaire translated into Italian.

Is pH test paper as accurate as the electronic measurement of the pH of vaginal secretions?

A comparison was made of two brands of pH test paper and electronic instrumentation for measuring the pH of vaginal secretions. When the pH of vaginal secretions was greater than 4.5 (abnormal), there was no significant difference between the methods, showing that pH test paper is reliable for pH determination of vaginal secretions.