Pathogen Surveillance for Acute Infectious Conjunctivitis.

Importance: Acute infectious conjunctivitis is a common ocular condition with major public health consequences.

Objective: To assess regional variations and microbial etiologies of acute infectious conjunctivitis to guide treatment.

Design, Setting, And Participants: In this cross-sectional study, patients with presumed acute infectious conjunctivitis were enrolled in the study at 5 sites (Honolulu, Hawaii; Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego, California; and Petah-Tikva, Israel) from March 2021 to March 2023.

The positive and negative effects of social status on ratings of voice behavior: A test of opposing structural and psychological pathways.

We examine how social status-the amount of respect and admiration conferred by others-is related to leader ratings of team member voice. In a field study using 373 West Point cadets nested in 60 squads, we find that there are two countervailing pathways linking social status to leader voice ratings: A positive path via instrumental network centrality and a negative path via perceived image risk. In addition, we show that these relationships are contingent upon a relational moderator, such that high-quality team interpersonal relationships weakened the positive indirect effect via instrumental network centrality but strengthened the negative indirect effect via image risk.

External quality assessment demonstrates that PD-L1 22C3 and SP263 assays are systematically different.

PD-L1 inhibitors are part of first line treatment options for patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer. PD-L1 immunohistochemistry (IHC) assays act as either a companion or a complementary diagnostic. The purpose of this study is to describe the experience of external quality assurance (EQA) provider UK NEQAS ICC and ISH with the comparison of different PD-L1 assays used in daily practice.

Clinical Nurse Specialist Collaboration to Recognize, Prevent, and Treat Pediatric Pressure Ulcers.

Purpose/objectives: The purpose of this quality improvement project was to reduce the incidence of pressure ulcers in a 232-bed, freestanding children's hospital in Western United States.

Background: Pressure ulcers have been an underappreciated hospital-acquired condition in children. Children have distinct anatomic, physiologic, and developmental factors that alter how pressure ulcers occur, but nurses may not recognize the pediatric patient as at risk because of lack of knowledge and tools to assess skin, identify risk factors, and recognize or stage pressure ulcers.

Tracheal suctioning in children with chronic tracheostomies: a pilot study applying suction both while inserting and removing the catheter.

This pilot study compared two methods of tracheal suctioning in the same 18 children with chronic tracheostomies. Use of the American Thoracic Society (ATS) recommendations resulted in a significant increase in secretions obtained (t = -3.96; p = .

The prevalence of nonadherence in difficult asthma.

Rationale: With the advent of new and expensive therapies for severe refractory asthma, targeting the appropriate patients is important. An important issue is identifying nonadherence with current therapies. The extent of nonadherence in a population with difficult asthma has not been previously reported.

Methylprednisolone increases urinary nitrate concentrations and reduces subclinical renal injury during infrarenal aortic ischemia reperfusion.

Objective: This study tests the hypothesis that methylprednisolone may influence eNOS activity in renal arterial and venous vascular beds and impede subclinical renal injury.

Summary Background Data: Acute renal failure is a major complication of cardiovascular surgery. Renal damage arises in part from excessive vasoconstriction mediated by an imbalance of vasoconstrictive ET-1 and vasodilatory NO produced by eNOS.

Methylprednisolone favourably alters plasma and urinary cytokine homeostasis and subclinical renal injury at cardiac surgery.

Unlabelled: Whilst elevated urinary transforming growth factor beta-1 (TGFbeta) is associated with chronic renal dysfunction its role in acute peri-operative renal dysfunction is unknown. In contrast, peri-operative increases in urinary IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1ra) and TNF soluble receptor-2 (TNFsr-2) mirror pro-inflammatory activity in the nephron and correlate with renal complications. Steroids modulate some plasma cytokines (decreasing TNFalpha, IL-8, IL-6 and increasing IL-10), whereas ability to reduce plasma and urinary TNFsr-2 and IL-1ra and peri-operative renal injury is unknown.

Do the COL1A1 and Taq 1 vitamin D receptor polymorphisms have a role in identifying individuals at risk of developing osteoporosis?

The distribution of the Taq 1 polymorphism in the vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene and the MSc 1 polymorphism in the collagen 1 alpha 1 (COL1A1) gene were studied in 266 female and 55 male patients attending an osteoporosis clinic. Allele frequency in control (T- or Z-score >-1.0) and osteoporotic (T- or Z-scores <-2.

Plasma and urinary cytokine homeostasis and renal function during cardiac surgery without cardiopulmonary bypass.

Cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) significantly contributes to the plasma pro-inflammatory cytokine response at cardiac surgery. Complementary plasma and urinary anti-inflammatory cytokine responses have been described. The pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin 8 (IL-8), tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin 1beta (IL-1beta) have lower molecular weights than the anti-inflammatory cytokines interleukin 10 (IL-10), interleukin 1 receptor antagonist (IL-1ra) and TNF soluble receptor 2 (TNFsr2) and thus undergo glomerular filtration more readily.

Plasma and urinary cytokine homeostasis and renal dysfunction during cardiac surgery.

Background: Cardiac surgery induces changes in plasma cytokines. Proinflammatory cytokines have been associated with a number of renal diseases. The proinflammatory cytokines interleukin 8 (IL-8), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha), and interleukin 1beta (IL-1beta) are smaller than the antiinflammatory cytokines interleukin 10 (IL-10), interleukin 1 receptor antagonist (IL-1ra), and TNF soluble receptor 2 (TNFsr2), and thus undergo glomerular filtration more readily.

Familial defective apolipoprotein B-100 (R3500Q) in Northern Ireland.

Familial defective apolipoprotein B-100 (FDB) R3500Q is an autosomal co-dominant disorder caused by the substitution of glutamine for arginine at amino acid residue 3500 of the apolipoprotein B-100 gene. It is associated with hypercholesterolaemia of varying severity, and with coronary artery disease. Hypercholesterolaemic patients (n = 158) from Northern Ireland were screened for the defect by polymerase chain reaction-mediated, site-directed mutagenesis.

Mutation screening and genotype:phenotype correlation in familial hypercholesterolaemia.

The aim of this study was to develop a mutation screening protocol for familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) patients and to assess genotype/phenotype effects in terms of pre-treatment lipid profiles and presentation of tendon xanthomata (TX). A total of 158 families with clinical definitions of possible (120) or definite (38) FH were studied using a tiered screening protocol. Mutations were identified in 52 families, 44 families showing 23 different LDLR gene defects and eight families showing the common Apo B100 gene defect R3500Q.

Oxidative stress during acute respiratory exacerbations in cystic fibrosis.

Background: Patients with cystic fibrosis experience chronic systemic oxidative stress. This is coupled with chronic inflammation of the lung involving bronchial polymorphonuclear neutrophil accumulation and activation. We hypothesised that, during periods of acute respiratory exacerbation, free radical activity and consequent damage would be most marked and that intensive treatment of the infection would result in improvement towards values found during stable periods.

Oxidative stress in cyclosporin and azathioprine treated renal transplant patients.

The major cause of death following transplantation is cardiovascular disease. Among the many processes involved in atherogenesis, oxidative stress and modification of low density lipoprotein has been assigned a major role. This in turn may be affected by the immunosuppressive regime used.

The peri-operative use of the oesophageal Doppler monitor in patients undergoing coronary artery revascularisation. A comparison with the continuous cardiac output monitor.

This study was carried out to evaluate the ease of use and reliability of cardiac output estimations performed by an oesophageal Doppler monitor and to compare its use with that of a continuous cardiac output pulmonary flotation catheter. Measurements were made during and after surgery in 16 patients scheduled to undergo coronary revascularisation. Both devices suffered significant intra-operative problems which led us to question their suitability as operating theatre monitors.

Comparison of two fluorescent probes for the measurement of erythrocyte membrane fluidity in renal dialysis patients.

Two fluorescent probes were used for the measurement of membrane fluidity in patients on haemodialysis and continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis. 1,6-Diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) anisotropy gives an indication of lipid order and pyrene measures lateral diffusion through the membrane. Pyrene dimer/monomer ratio was significantly lower than controls in both pre-dialysis and post-dialysis samples but DPH anisotropy was unchanged.

Organophosphates and monocyte esterase deficiency.

Aims: To examine the possibility that monocyte esterase deficiency (MED) could be caused by exposure to organophosphates.

Methods: Pseudocholinesterase, paraoxonase and arylesterase activities were measured in the serum and acetylcholinesterase activity was measured in the red cells of a group of monocyte esterase deficient subjects and compared with the enzyme activities of a control group of monocyte esterase positive subjects.

Results: No significant difference was found between the enzyme activities of the monocyte esterase deficient group and the control group for any of the esterases investigated.

Oxidative stress and erythrocyte membrane fluidity in patients undergoing regular dialysis.

Oxidative damage due to free radical production is increased in uraemic patients and has been suggested as a possible factor contributing to the anaemia of chronic renal failure (CRF) and the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Oxidative stress was assessed in 40 patients with CRF maintained by either haemodialysis (HD) or continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) and in 18 healthy controls. Lipid peroxidation (assessed as malondialdehyde, MDA), total glutathione (TG), antioxidant enzyme (glutathione reductase (GSHRx), glutathione peroxidase (GSHPx) and superoxide dismutase (SOD)) activity and antioxidant associated trace metal (selenium, copper, zinc) levels were studied.

Effect of red wine consumption on lipoprotein (a) and other risk factors for atherosclerosis.

Epidemiological studies have pointed to the role of alcohol, and red wine in particular, in reducing the incidence of coronary heart disease. This study attempted to distinguish, in vivo, the effects of components specific to red wine and those of alcohol on lipoproteins, antioxidant status and membrane fluidity. Volunteers (n = 20) were given 200 ml of red wine per day for 10 days.

Does pretreatment with cimetidine and ranitidine affect the disposition of bupivacaine?

Thirty patients who chose extradural analgesia for elective Caesarean section were pretreated, by random selection, with cimetidine 400 mg, ranitidine 150 mg or no H2-blocker. Following the administration of 0.5% bupivacaine, no significant difference was found between peak plasma bupivacaine concentrations or area under the plasma bupivacaine concentration-time curve (AUC) in these three groups.

Plasma concentrations of bupivacaine during extradural anaesthesia for caesarean section. The effect of adrenaline.

The clinical effects and plasma levels associated with the use of 0.5% bupivacaine with and without the addition of 1:200,000 adrenaline (5 micrograms/ml) were studied in 30 patients who underwent extradural anaesthesia for elective Caesarean section. The addition of adrenaline to bupivacaine prolongs analgesia, reduces the degree of hypotension and delays its onset.