Breaking down barriers: Improving accessibility and inclusivity for people with disabilities in veterinary ophthalmology.

Over 25% of people in the United States are affected by physical disabilities, leading to regular interactions between the disabled community and veterinary ophthalmology. However, various barriers hinder individuals with disabilities from accessing care for their pets, working in veterinary clinics, pursuing training as veterinarians and veterinary ophthalmologists, and continuing their careers as disabilities develop. This article explores strategies for the veterinary ophthalmology community to implement positive changes that enhance access and inclusivity within clinics and the profession at practical, institutional, and cultural levels.

Assessment of routine pre-operative group and save testing in patients undergoing cholecystectomy: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Routine group and save (G&S) testing is frequently performed prior to cholecystectomy, despite growing evidence that a targeted approach is safe and avoids unnecessary investigations. This retrospective cohort study explored frequency of testing in our unit, rates of peri-operative blood transfusion and pre-operative risk factors for requiring transfusion.

Methods: Health records of 453 consecutive adults who underwent cholecystectomy in a UK NHS trust were reviewed for blood transfusion up to 30 days post-operatively.

Injury to the palmar supporting structures of the fetlock alters limb stiffness and fetlock angle.

Background: In vivo measurement of limb stiffness and conformation provides a non-invasive proxy assessment of superficial digital flexor tendon (SDFT) and suspensory ligament (SL) function. Here, we compared it in fore and hindlimbs and after injury.

Objectives: To compare the limb stiffness and conformation in forelimbs and hindlimbs, changes with age, and following injury to the SDFT and SL.

Molecular biology of cholangiocarcinoma and its implications for targeted therapy in patient management.

Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) remains a devastating malignancy and a significant challenge to treat. The majority of CCA patients are diagnosed at an advanced stage, making the disease incurable in most cases. The advent of high-throughput genetic sequencing has significantly improved our understanding of the molecular biology underpinning cancer.

Intergenerational conversations on death and dying during the COVID-19 pandemic: A pedagogical approach.

This exploratory study examined how twenty-two undergraduate students and fifty-six older adults experienced discussing dying, death, and the COVID-19 pandemic with one another, using the book as a conversational guide. The timing of these conversations is significant as discussions took place in March 2021, one year into the COVID-19 pandemic. Thematic analysis of students' and older adult's reflections on the discussion was employed and three themes were identified: the inevitability of death, gaining and giving perspective, and the importance of relationships.

Perception of pain and the oocyte donor experience: a retrospective analysis of commercial US donors.

Research Question: What is the relationship between oocyte donor characteristics and their pain perception, their expectation and experience of pain, and the interaction between pain and overall satisfaction with the donation process?

Design: Institutional Review Board approved, retrospective survey of commercial, US oocyte donors was emailed to recent donors recruited through Donor Egg Bank USA before 2020.

Results: Of the 503 opened emails, 246 individuals responded (48.9%).

The neuropeptide landscape of human prefrontal cortex.

Human prefrontal cortex (hPFC) is a complex brain region involved in cognitive and emotional processes and several psychiatric disorders. Here, we present an overview of the distribution of the peptidergic systems in 17 subregions of hPFC and three reference cortices obtained by microdissection and based on RNA sequencing and RNAscope methods integrated with published single-cell transcriptomics data. We detected expression of 60 neuropeptides and 60 neuropeptide receptors in at least one of the hPFC subregions.

Requirement of preoperative blood typing for cholecystectomy and appendectomy: a systematic review.

Purpose: Blood typing, or group and save (G&S) testing, is commonly performed prior to cholecystectomy and appendectomy in many hospitals. In order to determine whether G&S testing is required prior to these procedures, we set out to evaluate the relevant literature and associated rates of perioperative blood transfusion.

Methods: Studies from January 1990 to June 2021 assessing the requirement of preoperative G&S testing for elective or emergency cholecystectomy and appendectomy were retrieved from MEDLINE, EMBASE and CINAHL databases.

Anti-cancer potential of cannabis terpenes in a Taxol-resistant model of breast cancer.

Chemotherapeutic resistance can limit breast cancer outcomes; therefore, the exploration of novel therapeutic options is warranted. Isolated compounds found in cannabis have previously been shown to exhibit anti-cancer effects, but little is known about their effects in resistant breast cancer. Our study aimed to evaluate the effects of terpenes found in cannabis in in vitro chemotherapy-resistant model of breast cancer.

Loss of E-cadherin leads to Id2-dependent inhibition of cell cycle progression in metastatic lobular breast cancer.

Invasive lobular breast carcinoma (ILC) is characterized by proliferative indolence and long-term latency relapses. This study aimed to identify how disseminating ILC cells control the balance between quiescence and cell cycle re-entry. In the absence of anchorage, ILC cells undergo a sustained cell cycle arrest in G0/G1 while maintaining viability.

Exploring nurses' online perspectives and social networks during a global pandemic COVID-19.

Objectives: Examine the online interactions, social networks, and perspectives of nursing actors on COVID-19 from conversations on Twitter to understand how the profession responded to this global pandemic.

Design: Mixed methods.

Sample: Ten-thousand five-hundred and seventy-four tweets by 2790 individuals and organizations.

The emerging tale of microglia in psychiatric disorders.

As the professional phagocytes of the brain, microglia orchestrate the immunological response and play an increasingly important role in maintaining homeostatic brain functions. Microglia are activated by pathological events or slight alterations in brain homeostasis. This activation is dependent on the context and type of stressor or pathology.

Lesch-Nyhan disease causes impaired energy metabolism and reduced developmental potential in midbrain dopaminergic cells.

Mutations in HPRT1, a gene encoding a rate-limiting enzyme for purine salvage, cause Lesch-Nyhan disease which is characterized by self-injury and motor impairments. We leveraged stem cell and genetic engineering technologies to model the disease in isogenic and patient-derived forebrain and midbrain cell types. Dopaminergic progenitor cells deficient in HPRT showed decreased intensity of all developmental cell-fate markers measured.

Variable accuracy, precision, and consistency of compounded famciclovir formulated for management of feline herpesvirus-1 in cats.

Objective: To evaluate compounded famciclovir suspensions for accuracy, precision, and consistency in drug content.

Procedures: Two compounded famciclovir concentrations were evaluated (250 and 400 mg/mL, 30 preparations total from nine 503A compounding pharmacies) with U.S.

Implication of cerebral astrocytes in major depression: A review of fine neuroanatomical evidence in humans.

Postmortem investigations have implicated astrocytes in many neurological and psychiatric conditions. Multiple brain regions from individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD) have lower expression levels of astrocyte markers and lower densities of astrocytes labeled for these markers, suggesting a loss of astrocytes in this mental illness. This paper reviews the general properties of human astrocytes, the methods to study them, and the postmortem evidence for astrocyte pathology in MDD.

Polarity scaffolds signaling in epithelial cell permeability.

As an integral part of the innate immune system, the epithelial membrane is exposed to an array of insults that may trigger an immune response. One of the immune system's main functions is to regulate the level of communications between the mucosa and the lumen of various tissues. While it is clear that inhaled or ingested substances, or microorganisms may induce changes that affect the epithelial barrier in various ways, the proteins involved in the signaling cascades and physiological events leading to the regulation and maintenance of the barrier are not always well characterized.

Retrospective analysis of oblique and straight distal sesamoidean ligament desmitis in 52 horses.

Background: Injuries to the oblique (ODSL) or straight (SDSL) distal sesamoidean ligaments are a recognised cause of distal limb lameness in the horse. However, there are only limited publications addressing common diagnostic features and prognosis.

Objectives: (a) Report findings on ultrasonography and standing low-field magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI) in horses with ODSL or SDSL injury; (b) Identify clinical variables associated with lesion type and (c) Identify factors associated with return to soundness in horses with ODSL or SDSL injury.

Poor nutritional status correlates with mortality and worse postoperative outcomes in patients with femoral neck fractures.

Aims: Patients who sustain neck of femur fractures are at high risk of malnutrition. Our intention was to assess to what extent malnutrition was associated with worse patient outcomes.

Methods: A total of 1,199 patients with femoral neck fractures presented to a large UK teaching hospital over a three-year period.

Factors associated with delirium and cognitive decline following hip fracture surgery.

Aims: Postoperative delirium (POD) and postoperative cognitive decline (POCD) are common surgical complications. In the UK, the Best Practice Tariff incentivizes the screening of delirium in patients with hip fracture. Further, a National Hip Fracture Database (NHFD) performance indicator is the reduction in the incidence of POD.

Characterization of Vimentin-Immunoreactive Astrocytes in the Human Brain.

Astrocytes are commonly identified by their expression of the intermediate filament protein glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). GFAP-immunoreactive (GFAP-IR) astrocytes exhibit regional heterogeneity in density and morphology in the mouse brain as well as morphological diversity in the human cortex. However, regional variations in astrocyte distribution and morphology remain to be assessed comprehensively.

Birth incidence, deaths and hospitalisations of children and young people with Down syndrome, 1990-2015: birth cohort study.

Objective: To investigate current Down syndrome live birth and death rates, and childhood hospitalisations, compared with peers.

Setting: General community.

Participants: All live births with Down syndrome, 1990-2015, identified via Scottish regional cytogenetic laboratories, each age-sex-neighbourhood deprivation matched with five non-Down syndrome controls.