Implementing a peer-learning approach for the clinical education of respiratory therapy students.

Introduction: With recent clinical placement demands exceeding supply, the University Health Network (UHN) Respiratory Therapy (RT) department implemented a 2:1 student-to-preceptor model where a focus on peer learning (PL) becomes a key component of program success. PL can be defined as students learning from and with each other in both formal and informal ways. The shift towards facilitative student-directed models in other health care professions can be seen globally with the literature suggesting that 2:1 models not only support increases in student capacity but also improve the student learning experience through PL strategies.

The impact of topical mydriatic ophthalmic solutions on retinal vascular reactivity and blood flow.

The impact of mydriatic agents on the standardized provocation of retinal vascular reactivity has not been systematically investigated. Our aim was to investigate the effect of commonly used mydriatic agents on the provoked vascular response of retinal arterioles. One eye was randomly selected for mydriasis from 10 healthy volunteers (age 23.

Relative magnitude of vascular reactivity in the major arterioles of the retina.

The relative magnitude of vascular reactivity to inhaled gas stimuli in the major retinal arterioles has not been systematically investigated. The purpose of this study was to compare the magnitude of retinal vascular reactivity in response to inhaled gas provocation at equivalent measurement sites in the superior-, and inferior-, temporal retinal arterioles (STA, ITA). One randomly selected eye of each of 17 healthy volunteers (age 24.

Noninvasive MRI measures of microstructural and cerebrovascular changes during normal swine brain development.

The swine brain is emerging as a potentially valuable translational animal model of neurodevelopment and offers the ability to assess the impact of experimentally induced neurological disorders. The goal for this study was to characterize swine brain development using noninvasive MRI measures of microstructural and cerebrovascular changes. Thirteen pigs at various postnatal ages (2.

Feasibility and precision of cerebral blood flow and cerebrovascular reactivity MRI measurements using a computer-controlled gas delivery system in an anesthetised juvenile animal model.

Purpose: To demonstrate the feasibility and repeatability of cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) imaging using a controlled CO(2) challenge in mechanically ventilated juvenile pigs.

Materials And Methods: Precise end-tidal partial pressure CO(2) (PETCO(2)) control was achieved via a computer-controlled model-driven prospective end-tidal targeting (MPET) system integrated with mechanical ventilation using a custom-built secondary breathing circuit. Test-retest blood-oxygen level dependent (BOLD) CVR images were collected in nine juvenile pigs by quantifying the BOLD response to iso-oxic square-wave PETCO(2) changes.