Perceptions of Clinical Connectedness Among Hospital Environmental Service Workers.

Importance: Environmental service workers (ESWs) have a critical role within the hospital infrastructure and are at the frontline of infection prevention. ESWs are highly trained in managing all forms of regulated waste, which includes biohazardous waste, and are responsible for the overall patient experience, janitorial work, and infection prevention. Without environmental services, patients have a 6 times greater risk of being infected by pathogens from patients who previously occupied their room.

The Effect of Pelvic Floor Rehabilitation on Low Anterior Resection Syndrome After Colorectal Cancer Treatment.

Purpose: Low anterior resection (LAR) is the preferred surgical treatment of rectosigmoid or rectal cancers. However, it is often associated with bowel dysfunction, which is termed low anterior resection syndrome (LARS). Daily bowel dysfunction symptoms have a detrimental effect on quality of life (QOL).

Constitutive surface expression of the thromboxane A2 receptor is Pim kinase-dependent.

Background: The thromboxane A2 receptor (TPαR) plays an important role in the amplification of platelet responses during thrombosis. Receptor activity is regulated by internalization and receptor desensitization. The mechanism by which constitutive surface expression of the TPαR is regulated is unknown.

Procalcitonin-guided duration of antibiotic treatment in children hospitalised with confirmed or suspected bacterial infection in the UK (BATCH): a pragmatic, multicentre, open-label, two-arm, individually randomised, controlled trial.

Background: Procalcitonin is a rapid response biomarker specific for bacterial infection, which is not routinely used in the UK National Health Service. We aimed to assess whether using a procalcitonin-guided algorithm would safely reduce the duration of antibiotic therapy compared with usual care, in which C-reactive protein is the commonly used biomarker.

Methods: The BATCH trial was a pragmatic, multicentre, open-label, parallel, two-arm, individually randomised, controlled trial conducted in 15 hospitals in England and Wales.