The Impact of Qualification and Hospice Education on Staff Attitudes during Palliative Care in Pediatric Oncology Wards-A National Survey.

Background: Our knowledge about the attitudes of healthcare staff to palliative care in pediatric oncology is scarce. We aimed to assess their perceptions of palliative care in Hungary and find answers to the question of how to provide good palliative care for children.

Method: Physicians ( = 30) and nurses ( = 43) working in the field of pediatric oncology (12 of them specialized in hospice care) were interviewed.

A pilot study on sports activities in pediatric palliative care: just do it.

Background: There has been a growing interest in studying the value of physical exercise in children with disabilities or chronic health conditions because of evidence of improvement in quality of life, social acceptance, and physical functioning. However, only scant evidence exists for routine sports activities in children requiring pediatric palliative care (PPC), and in most cases, such evidence has been collected in oncological patients. The Pediatric Hospice of Padua is the referral center for PPC in the Veneto region (northern Italy).

Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Children With SMA Receiving Nusinersen: What Is Missed and What Is Gained?

Nusinersen is the first oligonucleotide-based drug that is approved for the treatment of spinal muscular atrophy. In January 2020, the WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic and nusinersen-provider centers had to postpone planned infusions for some children along with other related interventions. Considering the important contribution that the intrathecal infusions and other support activities could have on the quality of life of spinal muscular atrophy patients and their families, this emergency could have a relevant impact on the course of the pathology.

Do we always need to treat patients with spinal muscular atrophy? A personal view and experience.

Background: We report the clinical outcomes observed in our patients with SMA type 1 or 2 receiving nusinersen, and we comment on the ethical implications of this treatment, in line with our results and those reported by Audic et al. in their analysis published in the Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases.

Methods: We analyzed records of all children with a genetically diagnosed SMA and clinically confirmed diagnosis of SMA Type 1 or 2 to whom nusinersen was offered.

Dissolved organic matter stimulates N2 fixation and nifH gene expression in Trichodesmium.

Mixotrophy, the combination of heterotrophic and autotrophic nutrition modes, is emerging as the rule rather than the exception in marine photosynthetic plankton. Trichodesmium, a prominent diazotroph ubiquitous in the (sub)tropical oceans, is generally considered to obtain energy via autotrophy. While the ability of Trichodesmium to use dissolved organic phosphorus when deprived of inorganic phosphorus sources is well known, the extent to which this important cyanobacterium may benefit from other dissolved organic matter (DOM) resources is unknown.

Spinal bracing and lung function in type-2 spinal muscular atrophy.

Background: Respiratory muscle weakness associated with scoliosis in type-2 spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) leads to respiratory impairment. Spinal brace, generally utilized to slow scoliosis progression and support sitting, could worsen lung function and hamper cough maneuvers.

Case Series: Six home-treated type-2 SMA children (aged 6-15 years, subtype 2.

An Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis-Like Illness in the Elderly: Neuroimaging and Neuropathology Findings.

Introduction: Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM) is a rare demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS) that classically occurs in children and adolescents. It characteristically presents with acute inflammation, resulting in demyelination, often following an infectious disease. ADEM has been described in adult patients, but the incidence in the adult and especially elderly population is low.

Use and Outcomes of Intravenous Thrombolysis for Acute Ischemic Stroke in Patients ≥90 Years of Age.

Background And Purpose: Intravenous tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA) is a proven treatment for acute ischemic stroke, but there has been limited evaluation among patients aged ≥90 years.

Methods: We analyzed data from the Get With The Guidelines-Stroke national quality improvement registry from January 2009 to April 2013. Frequency, determinants, and outcomes of tPA use were compared among patients aged ≥90 and 3 younger age groups (18-64, 65-79, and 80-89 years).

Spirometer guided chest imaging in children: It is worth the effort!

Purpose: Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans are used to assess and monitor several pediatric lung diseases. It is well recognized that lung volume at the moment of acquisition has a major impact on the appearance of lung parenchyma and airways. Importantly, the sensitivity of chest CT and MRI to detect bronchiectasis and gas trapping is highly dependent on adequate volume control during the image acquisition.

Poor Hypertension Control and Longer Transport Times Are Associated with Worse Outcome in Drip-and-Ship Stroke Patients.

Background: The "drip-and-ship" paradigm is an important treatment modality for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients who do not have immediate access to a comprehensive stroke center (CSC). Intravenous thrombolysis is initiated at a primary stroke center followed by expeditious transfer to a CSC. We sought to determine factors associated with poor outcomes in drip-and-ship AIS patients transferred to a CSC.

Catastrophic Intracranial Hemorrhages after IV tPA in a Patient with Insidious Onset of Fever and Back Pain.

Infective endocarditis is associated with unstable infective vegetations, which have a propensity to embolize and cause embolic events, such as stroke. Many cases present with an embolic event as the first sign of infective endocarditis. We present a patient who had a history of recent and persistent fever, an acute ischemic stroke treated with intravenous tissue plasminogen activator (IV tPA), and severe, multifocal intracerebral hemorrhage as a complication of tPA treatment.

Ischemic and Hemorrhagic Strokes due to Eosinophilic Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis.

Background: We report a case of ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes occurring almost simultaneously in a patient diagnosed with eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA) previously known as Churg-Strauss vasculitis. To our knowledge, this is the first known case.

Methods: A 59-year-old man presented with a 2-month history of bilateral leg weakness, difficulty ambulating, and dyesthesias.

Lung MRI and impairment of diaphragmatic function in Pompe disease.

Background: Pompe disease is a progressive metabolic myopathy. Involvement of respiratory muscles leads to progressive pulmonary dysfunction, particularly in supine position. Diaphragmatic weakness is considered to be the most important component.

Anxiety at the first radiotherapy session for non-metastatic breast cancer: key communication and communication-related predictors.

Background And Purpose: Patients may experience clinically relevant anxiety at their first radiotherapy (RT) sessions. To date, studies have not investigated during/around the RT simulation the key communication and communication-related predictors of this clinically relevant anxiety.

Material And Methods: Breast cancer patients (n=227) completed visual analog scale (VAS) assessments of anxiety before and after their first RT sessions.

Barriers and coping strategies of women with gestational diabetes to follow dietary advice.

Objective: To understand barriers and coping strategies of women with gestational diabetes (GDM) to follow dietary advice.

Design: Qualitative study.

Participants: Thirty women with GDM from the Winnipeg area participated.

Stress and anxiety in women with gestational diabetes during dietary management.

Purpose: To explore the stress and anxiety experiences during dietary management in women with gestational diabetes (GDM).

Methods: Thirty women with GDM from the Winnipeg area participated in the mixed methods study. Each participant completed a Food Choice Map semistructured interview, a Perceived Stress Scale, a Pregnancy Anxiety Scale, a State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-Trait questionnaire, and a demographic questionnaire.

Anxiety and its time courses during radiotherapy for non-metastatic breast cancer: a longitudinal study.

Purpose: To our knowledge, no study has specifically assessed the time course of anxiety during radiotherapy (RT). The objective of this study was to assess anxiety time courses in patients with non-metastatic breast cancer.

Material And Methods: This multicenter, descriptive longitudinal study included 213 consecutive patients with breast cancer who completed visual analog scales (VASs) assessing state anxiety before and after the RT simulation and the first and last five RT sessions.

Food choice decision-making by women with gestational diabetes.

Objective: To enhance the dietary education presented to women with gestational diabetes (GDM) by exploring the reasons and experiences that women with GDM reported in making their food-choice decisions after receipt of dietary education from a healthcare professional.

Methods: Food Choice Map (FCM) semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with 30 women with GDM living in the Winnipeg area during their pregnancies. Verbatim transcripts were generated from the interviews.

Mechanism of acute ischemic stroke in patients with severe middle cerebral artery atherosclerotic disease.

Background: Intracranial atherosclerotic disease (ICAD) is one of the most common causes of ischemic stroke worldwide. Although the pathogenesis of cerebral infarct in ICAD has been reported from autopsy series, the mechanism of stroke is not well known. This study used baseline perfusion imaging and diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) or computerized tomography (CT) imaging to help identify the mechanism of stroke in ICAD involving the middle cerebral artery (MCA).