Characteristics and Management of Chorioamnionitis at an Academic Centre in Ontario Before and After Implementation of an Order Set.

Objectives: Chorioamnionitis has implications for parturient and neonatal outcomes but is difficult to diagnose accurately. The particulars of management also differ between providers and between institutions. Clinical order sets have been shown to standardize and improve care.

The impact of anemia and blood transfusion on mortality after open abdominal surgery in the elderly.

Background: Major abdominal surgery is associated with considerable mortality in the elderly. Anemia has been linked to increased mortality in other types of surgery, such as hip and cardiac surgery. This study aimed to assess the impact of preoperative anemia on mortality in the elderly undergoing major abdominal surgery, and how allogeneic red cell blood transfusion influences mortality in these patients.

Chemometrics in Protein Formulation: Stability Governed by Repulsion and Protein Unfolding.

Therapeutic proteins can be challenging to develop due to their complexity and the requirement of an acceptable formulation to ensure patient safety and efficacy. To date, there is no universal formulation development strategy that can identify optimal formulation conditions for all types of proteins in a fast and reliable manner. In this work, high-throughput characterization, employing a toolbox of five techniques, was performed on 14 structurally different proteins formulated in 6 different buffer conditions and in the presence of 4 different excipients.

High-protein diet during pulmonary rehabilitation in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Introduction: The prevalence of cachexia in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is high and associated with reduced quality of life, increased mortality and morbidity. We aimed to test the effect of a high protein diet combined with exercise on fat-free mass (FFM), functional capacity, symptom burden and dyspnoea.

Methods: Outpatients with COPD and severe or very severe (GOLD grade III-IV) disease and malnutrition commencing pulmonary rehabilitation were randomised to a high-protein diet or standard care.

Effect of antipsychotics on mortality risk in patients with dementia with and without comorbidities.

Background: We investigated the mortality risk associated with the initiation of antipsychotic treatment among patients with dementia and whether comorbidities related to the cardiovascular system and diabetes interact with antipsychotic treatment to increase the mortality risk beyond the risk of death independently associated with antipsychotics and comorbidity alone.

Methods: We designed a matched cohort study using nationwide registry data. All Danish residents aged 65-95 years diagnosed with dementia between 2009 and 2014 were included.

Electrostatics Drive Oligomerization and Aggregation of Human Interferon Alpha-2a.

Aggregation is a common phenomenon in the field of protein therapeutics and can lead to function loss or immunogenic patient responses. Two strategies are currently used to reduce aggregation: (1) finding a suitable formulation, which is labor-intensive and requires large protein quantities, or (2) engineering the protein, which requires extensive knowledge about the protein aggregation pathway. We present a biophysical characterization of the oligomerization and aggregation processes by Interferon alpha-2a (IFNα-2a), a protein drug with antiviral and immunomodulatory properties.

Combination of high throughput and structural screening to assess protein stability - A screening perspective.

High throughput screening for measuring the stability of industrially relevant proteins and their variants is necessary for quality assessment in the development process. Advances in automation, measurement time and sample consumption for many techniques allow rapid measurements with minimal amount of protein. However, many methods include automated data analysis, potentially neglecting important aspects of the protein's behavior in certain conditions.

Parent Contributions to the Development of Political Attitudes in Adoptive and Biological Families.

Where do our political attitudes originate? Although early research attributed the formation of such beliefs to parent and peer socialization, genetically sensitive designs later clarified the substantial role of genes in the development of sociopolitical attitudes. However, it has remained unclear whether parental influence on offspring attitudes persists beyond adolescence. In a unique sample of 394 adoptive and biological families with offspring more than 30 years old, biometric modeling revealed significant evidence for genetic and nongenetic transmission from both parents for the majority of seven political-attitude phenotypes.

Causes of Death in People with Dementia from 2002 to 2015: A Nationwide Study.

Background: Dementia is associated with increased mortality. However, it is not clear whether causes of death in people with dementia have changed over time.

Objective: To investigate if causes of death changed over time in people with dementia compared to the general elderly population.

Risk of hospitalization and hip fracture associated with psychotropic polypharmacy in patients with dementia: A nationwide register-based study.

Objective: To investigate the association of benzodiazepines and antidepressants on the risk of hospitalization and hip fracture in patients with dementia initiating antipsychotic drug treatment.

Methods: A register-based retrospective cohort study using data on all incident dementia cases (≥65 years) initiating antipsychotic treatment as monotherapy or in combination with benzodiazepines and/or antidepressants in Denmark from 2000 to 2015. The outcomes of interest were all-cause hospitalization and hip fracture.

Dementia increases mortality beyond effects of comorbid conditions: A national registry-based cohort study.

Background And Purpose: Mortality is known to be markedly increased in people with dementia. However, the association between multiple chronic conditions and mortality in dementia is not well clarified. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of somatic and psychiatric diseases on mortality in dementia compared with the general elderly population.

Mortality in Dementia from 1996 to 2015: A National Registry-Based Cohort Study.

Background: It remains unclear whether the increased focus on improving healthcare and providing appropriate care for people with dementia has affected mortality.

Objective: To assess survival and to conduct a time trend analysis of annual mortality rate ratios (MRR) of dementia based on healthcare data from an entire national population.

Methods: We assessed survival and annual MRR in all residents of Denmark ≥65 years from 1996-2015 using longitudinal registry data on dementia status and demographics.

Development of a fast screening method for selecting excipients in formulations using MD simulations, NMR and microscale thermophoresis.

Development of peptide therapeutics generally involves screening of excipients that inhibit peptide-peptide interactions, hence aggregation, and improve peptide stability. We used the therapeutic peptide plectasin to develop a fast screening method that combines microscale thermophoresis titration assays and molecular dynamics simulations to relatively rank the excipients with respect to binding affinity and to study key peptide-excipient interaction hotspots on a molecular level, respectively. Additionally, H-C-HSQC NMR titration experiments were performed to validate the fast screening approach.

Bullous vesicant-type reaction to docetaxel along the venous tract: A case report.

Docetaxel is an anti-neoplastic agent commonly used to treat major solid tumors. Common toxicities of docetaxel include neutropenia, alopecia, nausea and vomiting. While docetaxel is typically considered an irritant, we present the case report of a 54-year-old female with high-grade undifferentiated uterine sarcoma who experienced a standard infusion reaction during a docetaxel infusion, followed by an atypical, delayed vesicant-type reaction, without a clear extravasation history.

Association of Benzodiazepines and Antidepressants With 180-Day Mortality Among Patients With Dementia Receiving Antipsychotic Pharmacotherapy: A Nationwide Registry-Based Study.

Objective: Antipsychotic drugs are known to increase mortality among patients with dementia. Many patients receive concomitant treatment with other psychotropic agents. The aim of this retrospective cohort study was to investigate the impact of benzodiazepines and antidepressants on the risk of death in patients with dementia initiating antipsychotic drug treatment.

Biocidal spray product exposure: Measured gas, particle, and surface concentrations compared with spray model simulations.

The purpose of the study was to compare measured air and surface concentrations after application of biocidal spray products with concentrations simulated with the ConsExpo Web spray simulation tool. Three different biocidal spray products were applied in a 20 m climate test chamber with well-controlled environmental conditions (22 ± 1 °C, 50 ± 2% relative humidity, and air exchange rate of 0.5 h).

Advancing Therapeutic Protein Discovery and Development through Comprehensive Computational and Biophysical Characterization.

Therapeutic protein candidates should exhibit favorable properties that render them suitable to become drugs. Nevertheless, there are no well-established guidelines for the efficient selection of proteinaceous molecules with desired features during early stage development. Such guidelines can emerge only from a large body of published research that employs orthogonal techniques to characterize therapeutic proteins in different formulations.

Thermogravimetry and Mass Spectrometry of Extractable Organics from Manufactured Nanomaterials for Identification of Potential Coating Components.

Manufactured nanomaterials (MNMs) often have a surface-chemical modification in order to tailor their physicochemical properties, including also powder properties and miscibility. Surface-chemical modifications may influence the toxicological properties of the MNM, but the specific chemistry and extent are rarely described in detail in suppliers' technical data sheets. Chemical and quantitative information on any surface-chemical treatment, coating and functionalization are required for chemicals registration in Europe.

Declining incidence of dementia: A national registry-based study over 20 years.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to investigate the registry-based national time trends in incidence and prevalence rates of dementia from 1996 to 2015.

Methods: We assessed annual incidence and prevalence using longitudinal data from nationwide registries on dementia status and demographics on all residents ≥ 65 years old in Denmark.

Results: Our population comprised 2 million people, of whom 152,761 were diagnosed with dementia.

Conformational Stability Study of a Therapeutic Peptide Plectasin Using Molecular Dynamics Simulations in Combination with NMR.

Plectasin is a small, cysteine-rich peptide antibiotic which belongs to the class of antimicrobial peptides and has potential antibacterial activity against various Gram-positive bacteria. In the current study, the effect of pH and ionic strength (NaCl) on the conformational stability of plectasin variants has been investigated. At all physiochemical conditions, peptide secondary structures are intact throughout simulations.

Geographical Variation in the Diagnostic Rate and Quality of Dementia Diagnoses.

Background: Early and accurate diagnosis of dementia opens the door to appropriate treatment, support, and counseling. Despite availability of evidence-based guidelines for diagnostic evaluation of dementia, the diagnostic rate in people with dementia is low and the quality of dementia diagnoses is unknown.

Objective: The overall aim of this register-based study was to analyze the quality of diagnostic evaluation of dementia by assessing nationwide geographical variations in a range of indicators.

Changes in the Prevalence of Polypharmacy in People with and without Dementia from 2000 to 2014: A Nationwide Study.

Background: Polypharmacy, the use of multiple medications, has become increasingly widespread. Information on time trends in polypharmacy in people with dementia is limited, although they may be more susceptible to risks associated with polypharmacy.

Objective: To examine changes in the prevalence of polypharmacy and excessive polypharmacy in people with dementia compared to changes in people without dementia.

Prolonged or serious conflicts at work and incident dementia: a 23-year follow-up of the Copenhagen City Heart Study.

Purpose: Only a few studies have investigated the impact of negative aspects of social relations on cognitive function, and they have shown mixed results. Conflicts at work are part of the negative aspects of social relations, but the impact of experiencing conflicts at work has not yet been investigated as a risk factor for dementia. Therefore, we investigated whether experiencing prolonged or serious conflicts with a supervisor or colleagues at work was associated with incident dementia in old age.

The personalities of Danish MPs: Trait- and aspect-level differences.

Objective: We study personality traits of Danish parliamentarians (MPs) and examine elite-voter congruence and elite differentiation. Whereas previous political elite studies have focused only on the Big Five level, we include aspect-level differences.

Method: In a highly representative survey of Danish MPs (N = 81; response rate = 46.

Polypharmacy and Potentially Inappropriate Medication in People with Dementia: A Nationwide Study.

Background: Polypharmacy (use of ≥5 different medications) and potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) are well-known risk factors for numerous negative health outcomes. However, the use of polypharmacy and PIM in people with dementia is not well-described.

Objective: To examine the prevalence of polypharmacy and PIM in older people with and without dementia in a nationwide population.