A systematic review of the effects of euthanasia and occupational stress in personnel working with animals in animal shelters, veterinary clinics, and biomedical research facilities.

Background: The study of occupational stress and compassion fatigue in personnel working in animal-related occupations has gained momentum over the last decade. However, there remains incongruence in understanding what is currently termed compassion fatigue and the associated unique contributory factors. Furthermore, there is minimal established evidence of the likely influence of these conditions on the health and well-being of individuals working in various animal-related occupations.

Psychological distress, optimism and general health in breast cancer survivors: a data linkage study using the Scottish Health Survey.

Purpose: The aim of this study is to examine the association between optimism and psychological distress in women with breast cancer after taking into account their self-rated general health.

Methods: Data were aggregated from the Scottish Health Survey (2008 to 2011) to derive a nationally representative sample of 12,255 women (11,960 cancer-free controls, and 295 breast cancer cases identified from linked cancer registry data). The explanatory variables were optimism and general health, and the outcome variable was symptoms of psychological distress.

Quantifying Variability in Four US Streams Using a Long-Term Data Set: Patterns in Water Quality Endpoints.

Temporal and spatial patterns of variability in aquatic ecosystems can be complex and difficult to quantify or predict. However, understanding this variability is critical to making a wide range of water quality assessment and management decisions effectively. Here we report on the nature and magnitude of spatial and temporal variation observed in conductivity, total phosphorus, and total nitrogen during a 15-year study of four U.

Defining consensus norms for palliative care of people with intellectual disabilities in Europe, using Delphi methods: A White Paper from the European Association of Palliative Care.

Background: People with intellectual disabilities often present with unique challenges that make it more difficult to meet their palliative care needs.

Aim: To define consensus norms for palliative care of people with intellectual disabilities in Europe.

Design: Delphi study in four rounds: (1) a taskforce of 12 experts from seven European countries drafted the norms, based on available empirical knowledge and regional/national guidelines; (2) using an online survey, 34 experts from 18 European countries evaluated the draft norms, provided feedback and distributed the survey within their professional networks.

Permanent-magnet energy spectrometer for electron beams from radiotherapy accelerators.

Purpose: The purpose of this work was to adapt a lightweight, permanent magnet electron energy spectrometer for the measurement of energy spectra of therapeutic electron beams.

Methods: An irradiation geometry and measurement technique were developed for an approximately 0.54-T, permanent dipole magnet spectrometer to produce suitable latent images on computed radiography (CR) phosphor strips.

The Impact and Statistical Analysis of a Multifaceted Anticoagulation Strategy in Children Supported on ECMO: Performance and Pitfalls.

Background: We sought to determine whether the introduction of a new anticoagulation protocol improved the frequency with which target anticoagulation parameters were met in children supported with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). Additionally, we sought to correlate the results of various tests of anticoagulation with the heparin infusion dose (HID) for patients on ECMO and to evaluate the utility of these anticoagulation monitoring tests for the titration of the HID.

Methods: A retrospective chart review of 18 patients who received ECMO at an academic tertiary care children's hospital.

The impact of psychosis on the course of cognition: a prospective, nested case-control study in individuals at clinical high-risk for psychosis.

Background: Although cognitive deficits in patients with schizophrenia are rooted early in development, the impact of psychosis on the course of cognitive functioning remains unclear. In this study a nested case-control design was used to examine the relationship between emerging psychosis and the course of cognition in individuals ascertained as clinical high-risk (CHR) who developed psychosis during the study (CHR + T).

Method: Fifteen CHR + T subjects were administered a neurocognitive battery at baseline and post-psychosis onset (8.

Concept analysis of recovery in mental illness in young adulthood.

Recovery, as a concept, emerged as a core philosophy of the service user movement that began in the late 1960s and 1970s. Previous reviews on recovery in mental health have presented definitions or a conceptual framework; however, over time it has been open to disparate interpretations. The aim of this paper was to conduct the first concept analysis of mental health recovery in young adulthood within various multidisciplinary contexts.

Cohort Profile Update: Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health.

In 1996 the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health recruited a nationally representative sample of more than 40,000 women in three age cohorts, born in 1973-78, 1946-51 and 1921-26. At least six waves of 3-yearly surveys have been completed. Although the focus remains on factors affecting the health and well-being of women and their access to and use of health services across urban, rural and remote areas of Australia, the study has now been considerably expanded by linkage to other health data sets.

Effect of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation on central arterial stiffness and arterial wave reflections in young and older healthy adults.

Increased central arterial stiffness and enhanced arterial wave reflections may contribute to increased risk of cardiovascular disease development with advancing age. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (n-3) ingestion may reduce cardiovascular risk via favorable effects exerted on arterial structure and function. We determined the effects of n-3 supplementation (4 g/day for 12 weeks) on important measures of central arterial stiffness (carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity; PWV) and arterial wave reflection (central augmentation index) in young (n = 12; 25 ± 1-year-old, mean ± SE) and older (n = 12; 66 ± 2) healthy adults.

Double-blind randomised controlled trial of vitamin D3 supplementation for the prevention of acute respiratory infection in older adults and their carers (ViDiFlu).

Rationale: Low-dose vitamin D supplementation is already recommended in older adults for prevention of fractures and falls, but clinical trials investigating whether higher doses could provide additional protection against acute respiratory infection (ARI) are lacking.

Objective: To conduct a clinical trial of high-dose versus low-dose vitamin D3 supplementation for ARI prevention in residents of sheltered-accommodation housing blocks ('schemes') and their carers in London, UK.

Measurements And Methods: Fifty-four schemes (137 individual participants) were allocated to the active intervention (vitamin D3 2.

Psychosis Prevention: A Modified Clinical High Risk Perspective From the Recognition and Prevention (RAP) Program.

Objective: Early intervention and prevention of psychosis remain a major challenge. Prediction would be greatly advanced with improved ability to identify individuals at true risk, which, at present, is moderate at best. The authors tested a modified strategy to improve prediction by selecting a more homogeneous high-risk sample (attenuated positive symptom criteria only, age range of mid-teens to early 20s) than is currently standard, combined with a systematic selection of neurodevelopmental deficits.

Evolution of zygomycetous spindle pole bodies: Evidence from Coemansia reversa mitosis.

Premise Of The Study: The earliest eukaryotes were likely flagellates with a centriole that nucleates the centrosome, the microtubule-organizing center (MTOC) for nuclear division. The MTOC in higher fungi, which lack flagella, is the spindle pole body (SPB). Can we detect stages in centrosome evolution leading to the diversity of SPB forms observed in terrestrial fungi? Zygomycetous fungi, which consist of saprobes, symbionts, and parasites of animals and plants, are critical in answering the question, but nuclear division has been studied in only two of six clades.

Quantifying Variability in Four U.S. Streams Using a Long-Term Dataset: Patterns in Biotic Endpoints.

Effective water resources assessment and management requires quantitative information on the variability of ambient and biological conditions in aquatic communities. Although it is understood that natural systems are variable, robust estimates of long-term variation in community-based structure and function metrics are rare in U.S.

Ethical issues experienced by healthcare workers in nursing homes: Literature review.

Background: Ethical issues are increasingly being reported by care-providers; however, little is known about the nature of these issues within the nursing home. Ethical issues are unavoidable in healthcare and can result in opportunities for improving work and care conditions; however, they are also associated with detrimental outcomes including staff burnout and moral distress.

Objectives: The purpose of this review was to identify prior research which focuses on ethical issues in the nursing home and to explore staffs' experiences of ethical issues.

Assessing the fit of biotic ligand model validation data in a risk management decision context.

Biotic ligand models (BLMs) have advanced the ability to predict the concentrations of metals in surface waters likely to harm aquatic organisms. BLMs have been developed for several metals including Cu, Zn, Cd, and Ag. Additionally, the US Environmental Protection Agency has published guidance on the use of a BLM to develop water quality criteria for Cu.

The burden of non-adherence to cardiovascular medications among the aging population in Australia: a meta-analysis.

Background: Non-adherence to cardiovascular medications is a problem worldwide, even in Australia, which has a socialized medical system, Medicare.

Objective: The aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the burden of non-adherence to cardiovascular medications and factors thereof in Australia.

Data Sources: Pubmed, Embase, CINAHL, PsycInfo, Cochrane Library databases were searched.

Contributions of early cortical processing and reading ability to functional status in individuals at clinical high risk for psychosis.

Background: There is a growing recognition that individuals at clinical high risk need intervention for functional impairments, along with emerging psychosis, as the majority of clinical high risk (CHR) individuals show persistent deficits in social and role functioning regardless of transition to psychosis. Recent studies have demonstrated reduced reading ability as a potential cause of functional disability in schizophrenia, related to underlying deficits in generation of mismatch negativity (MMN). The present study extends these findings to subjects at CHR.

Double-blind randomised placebo-controlled trial of bolus-dose vitamin D3 supplementation in adults with asthma (ViDiAs).

Rationale: Asthma exacerbations are commonly precipitated by viral upper respiratory infections (URIs). Vitamin D insufficiency associates with susceptibility to URI in patients with asthma. Trials of vitamin D in adults with asthma with incidence of exacerbation and URI as primary outcome are lacking.