IgA vasculitis nephritis-outcomes in adult-onset disease.

Objectives: IgA vasculitis (IgAV) in adults has been relatively under-investigated. Since outcomes are worse in other forms of vasculitis with increasing age, we investigated the outcomes of IgAV comparing younger adults (18-34), middle aged adults (35-64) and elderly patients (≥64 years) focusing on kidney outcomes.

Methods: We identified patients with renal biopsy confirmed IgAV nephritis and collected data regarding clinical features and progression to end stage kidney disease (ESKD).

Examination of the interrelationships between nutrition, environmental sustainability and food-processing: A concept study using model diets.

Recent work has focused on understanding the link between diet quality and environmental impact, however it is also important to consider the role food processing plays in this relationship. Using model meal plans, this paper examines the link between nutrient content, environmental impact, and processing. Four distinct meal plans were considered - 'Healthy', 'Unhealthy', 'Healthy (plant-based)', 'Healthy (plant-based, processed)'.

Direct discharge from the intensive care unit improved patient flow in a resource-pressured health system.

Critical care practice is constantly evolving. Pressures for bed availability in publicly funded healthcare systems have led to an increase in patients delayed in their discharge from critical care to the wards. This has resulted in more patients discharged directly home (DDH) from the intensive care unit (ICU).

Comparing consumer liking of beef from three feeding systems using a combination of traditional and temporal liking sensory methods.

Research on the effects of animal diet on consumer liking of beef has yielded conflicting results. Currently it is unknown whether dynamic changes occur in liking during consumption of beef. This study applied a combination of traditional and temporal (free and structured) liking methods to determine consumer liking of beef derived from animals that were fed grain (GF), grass silage plus grain (SG) or grazed grass (GG) during finishing.

Intake, Growth and Carcass Traits of Steers Offered Grass Silage and Concentrates Based on Contrasting Cereal Grain Types Supplemented with Field Beans, Peas or Maize By-Products.

The study objective was to determine intake and performance of beef cattle individually offered perennial ryegrass-dominant grass silage ad libitum supplemented with 4 kg dry matter daily of, rolled barley or maize meal-based concentrate rations containing supplements of flaked field beans, flaked peas, maize dried distillers grains (MDD) or maize gluten feed (MGF) for 110 days (Experiment 1), rolled barley or rolled oats with or without supplements of flaked field beans or flaked peas for 146 days (Experiment 2), and to quantify the nitrogen balance of diets similar to those offered in Experiment 2 (Experiment 3). The protein supplements were formulated to have similar crude protein concentrations. Cereal type or protein source did not affect intake, growth, feed efficiency and carcass traits in Experiment 1 or 2.

Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D response to vitamin D supplementation using different lipid delivery systems in middle-aged and older adults: a randomised controlled trial.

Food fortification improves vitamin D intakes but is not yet mandated in many countries. Combining vitamin D with different dietary lipids altered vitamin D absorption in and postprandial studies. This randomised, placebo-controlled trial examined the effect of the lipid composition of a vitamin D-fortified dairy drink on change in 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentrations.

The Colour, Composition and Eating Quality of Beef from Late- or Early-Maturing Suckler Bulls Finished at Pasture with or without Concentrate Supplementation.

Carcasses from pasture-finished early-maturing (EM), rather than late-maturing (LM), breed bulls may be more suited to meet the minimum carcass fatness classification of 2+ (6.0 on a 15-point scale) required for some markets. The comparative colour and eating quality of beef from grass-fed bulls of different maturities are unknown.

Does Finishing at Pasture Influence the Colour of Muscle from Suckler Bulls and Can Colour Be Used to Authenticate Their Pre-Slaughter Diet?

The primary objective of this study was to compare the colour of muscle from bulls finished at pasture or indoors on a high concentrate diet. The ancillary objectives were to identify possible explanations for any differences in the colour observed and the potential of muscle colour to discriminate between bull beef from different production systems. Growth, longissimus muscle colour, fibre type composition and metabolic profile were measured in late-maturing breed sired suckler bulls slaughtered at 19 months of age after 199 days at pasture (G0), 100 days indoors after 98 days at pasture (G0AL) and indoors for 199 days (AL).

Increasing Uptake of COVID-19 Vaccination and Reducing Health Inequalities in Patients on Renal Replacement Therapy-Experience from a Single Tertiary Centre.

Background: COVID-19 vaccination has changed the landscape of the COVID-19 pandemic; however, decreased uptake due to vaccine hesitancy has been observed, particularly in patients from minority ethnic backgrounds and socially deprived areas. These patient characteristics are common in patients on Renal Replacement Therapy (RRT), a population at extremely high risk of developing serious illness from COVID-19 and who would thus benefit the most from the vaccination programme. We designed a bespoke COVID-19 vaccination programme for our RRT population with the aim of decreasing health inequalities and increasing vaccination uptake.

Humoral Response in Hemodialysis Patients Following COVID-19 Vaccination and Breakthrough Infections during Delta and Omicron Variant Predominance.

Background: The advancement of COVID-19 vaccination programs globally has been viewed as an integral strategy to reduce both the number of COVID-19 cases and consequential complications of COVID-19, particularly for high-risk patient groups. There are limited data on the antibody response and protection from disease infection and severity in patients requiring hemodialysis (HD) following COVID-19 vaccination during the Delta and Omicron variant predominance. We conducted a study aiming to evaluate humoral immunity derived from two different COVID-19 vaccines administered to our in-centre HD population and investigated the characteristics of breakthrough COVID-19 infections occurring post-vaccination within this population.

The implication of BRAF mutation in advanced colorectal cancer.

Background: Advanced colorectal cancer (CRC) is frequently a lethal disease. Mutations in the BRAF gene is a key driver in CRC pathogenesis and confers a poor prognosis. To date, Irish data on this molecular subtype of CRC is lacking.

Postprandial 25-hydroxyvitamin D response varies according to the lipid composition of a vitamin D3 fortified dairy drink.

evidence suggests that the lipid component of foods alters vitamin D absorption. This single-blinded, cross-over postprandial study examined the effect of changing the lipid component of a 20 µg vitamin D fortified dairy drink on postprandial 25(OH)D concentrations. Participants consumed one dairy drink per visit: a non-lipid, a pre-formed oleic acid micelle, an olive oil and a fish oil dairy drink.

Effect of Post-Grazing Sward Height, Sire Genotype and Indoor Finishing Diet on Steer Intake, Growth and Production in Grass-Based Suckler Weanling-to-Beef Systems.

This study evaluated the effects of post-grazing sward height (PGSH, 4 or 6 cm) on herbage production, its nutritive value, dry matter (DM) intake, grazing behaviour and growth of early- (EM) and late-maturing (LM) breed suckler steers ( = 72), and the subsequent effect of indoor finishing diet (grass silage + 3.8 kg concentrate DM/head daily (SC), or grass silage only (SO)) on performance and carcass traits. Animals rotationally grazed pasture for 196 days, followed by indoor finishing for 119 days.

It Is the Little Things That Matter.

How can you prove that you are providing high-quality care? As a consultant breast surgeon, the author thought it meant doing the right thing to the right patient at the right time. She followed the latest clinical guidelines and audited her complication and mortality rates. However, when she was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer at the age of 40 and found herself going through every treatment she prescribed to her patients, she realized that something was missing.

A pilot study on the prevalence of lice in Irish beef cattle and the first Irish report of deltamethrin tolerance in Bovicola bovis.

Background: Pediculosis in cattle causes significant itching, irritation and stress to the animal, often resulting in skin damage and poor coat condition. The control of bovine pediculosis in Ireland is based predominantly on commercial insecticides belonging to one of two chemical classes, the synthetic pyrethroids and the macrocyclic lactones. In recent years, pyrethroid tolerance has been reported in a number of species of livestock lice in the United Kingdom and Australia.

Life cycle assessment of pasture-based suckler steer weanling-to-beef production systems: Effect of breed and slaughter age.

Demand for beef produced from pasture-based diets is rising as it is perceived to be healthier, animal friendly and good for the environment. Animals reared on a solely grass forage diet, however, have a lower growth rate than cereal-fed animals and consequently are slaughtered at an older age. This study focused on the former by conducting life cycle assessments of beef production systems offering only fresh or conserved grass, and comparing them to a conventional pasture-based beef production system offering concentrate feeding during housing.

The colour and sensory characteristics of longissimus muscle from beef cattle that grazed grass or consumed concentrates prior to slaughter.

Background: Grazed grass is an important component of the majority of beef production systems used in temperate climates. Compared to concentrate-fed beef, 'grass-fed' beef can command a premium in some markets based on perceived differences in appearance and sensory characteristics. The influence of grazed grass per se, as well as the duration of grazing, on selected sensory characteristics of beef within a heifer production system was examined.

Effect of dietary restriction and compensatory growth on performance, carcass characteristics, and metabolic hormone concentrations in Angus and Belgian Blue steers.

Compensatory growth (CG) is the ability of an animal to undergo accelerated growth after a period of restricted feeding. However, there is a dearth of information in relation to the effect of genotype on CG response, thus the objective of this study was to evaluate CG response in two contrasting breed types, namely Aberdeen Angus (AN) and Belgian Blue (BB). Crossbred AN × Holstein-Friesian or BB × Holstein-Friesian steers were assigned to one of two treatment groups in a two (genotypes) × two (diets) factorial design.

Safely reducing haemodialysis frequency during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: Patients undergoing haemodialysis (HD) are at higher risk of developing worse outcomes if they contract COVID-19. In our renal service we reduced HD frequency from thrice to twice-weekly in selected patients with the primary aim of reducing COVID 19 exposure and transmission between HD patients.

Methods: Dialysis unit nephrologists identified 166 suitable patients (38.