Publications by authors named "Turcotte K"

In parasitoid wasps, body size is a key predictor of reproductive success, as size is often correlated with increased gamete production. In Hymenoptera, due to haplodiploid sex determination, sperm are required to produce daughters but not sons, so sex allocation relies on a female's ability to obtain and manage a finite supply of sperm. Body size may, therefore, affect sex allocation if smaller males provide fewer sperm, or if larger, more fertile females deplete their sperm supplies by fertilizing more eggs.

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Background: Concussion education is recommended to increase concussion knowledge, beliefs, and reporting intentions. The Concussion Awareness Training Tool for Youth (CATT-Youth) is a 40-minute e-Learning module developed for high school-aged youth.

Aim: The aim of the study was to evaluate changes in concussion knowledge, beliefs, and reporting intentions in high school youth from Calgary, Canada, following completion of the CATT-Youth.

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Researchers have been increasingly investigating observer and patient characteristics that may influence the assessment of pain in others. While rates of psychiatric conditions are high in chronic pain populations, surprisingly little attention has been given to if (and why) a comorbid psychiatric diagnosis may influence the estimation of pain in others. Using an experimental vignette paradigm, the current study examined whether a diagnostic label of major depressive disorder (MDD) would impact observer pain estimates of a woman with chronic pain, and whether causal attributions of pain and pain genuineness might help explain these effects.

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Article Synopsis
  • Researchers wanted to find out how Canadian universities manage concussions in athletes and create a special online tool to help educate them about it.
  • They asked university staff and student athletes about their needs and preferences for learning about concussions through surveys and interviews.
  • The study showed that most athletes want to learn online, prefer to study alone, and think it's super important to know how to recognize and report concussions. The final tool aims to help athletes understand how to report their symptoms and support each other during recovery.
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Fibromyalgia is characterized by widespread pain, fatigue, sleep disturbances, mood disturbances, and cognitive impairment. Most individuals with fibromyalgia experience poorly managed symptoms and increased healthcare service use. Multicomponent therapies, with a focus on nonpharmacological modalities, are increasingly supported in the literature.

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Article Synopsis
  • Infant pain management remains a critical issue, with evidence indicating that unrelieved pain can have long-term developmental effects; thus, a thorough review of pain management strategies is essential.
  • The objective of the updated review is to evaluate the effectiveness and potential adverse events of various non-pharmacological interventions for managing acute pain in infants and children up to three years old, while omitting certain methods like kangaroo care and breastfeeding.
  • The review incorporated new data from 76 studies, focusing on randomized controlled trials comparing non-pharmacological strategies against a no-treatment control, and examined the additive effects of combining these strategies with other pain management methods.
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Early bed assignments of elective surgical patients can be a useful planning tool for hospital staff; they provide certainty in patient placement and allow nursing staff to prepare for patients' arrivals to the unit. However, given the variability in the surgical schedule, they can also result in timing mismatches-beds remain empty while their assigned patients are still in surgery, while other ready-to-move patients are waiting for their beds to become available. In this study, we used data from four surgical units in a large academic medical center to build a discrete-event simulation with which we show how a Just-In-Time (JIT) bed assignment, in which ready-to-move patients are assigned to ready-beds, would decrease bed idle time and increase access to general care beds for all surgical patients.

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Aim: Continuing medical education (CME) informs physicians on current research. The Concussion Awareness Training Tool (CATT) provides education on concussion diagnosis and treatment. The aims of this study were to explore physician CME practices and preferences, understand barriers and facilitators to implementing the CATT as CME, and provide recommendations.

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Objectives: This study explored how demographic characteristics, life experiences, and firefighting exposures have an impact on cancer among female firefighters, and described the types and biologic characteristics of cancers as reported by women in the fire service.

Methods: The online survey was available from June 2019 to July 2020. Questions related to demographic characteristics, lifestyle factors, firefighting exposures, and cancer diagnoses.

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Background: Patients with end-stage kidney disease face high mortality and morbidity after dialysis initiation. Transitional care units (TCUs) are typically 4- to 8-week structured multidisciplinary programs targeted toward patients starting hemodialysis during this high-risk time in their care. The goals of such programs are to provide psychosocial support, provide dialysis modality education, and reduce risks of complications.

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Background: Poisoning, from substances such as illicit drugs, prescribed and over-the-counter medications, alcohol, pesticides, gases and household cleaners, is the leading cause of injury-related death and the second leading cause for injury-related hospital admission in British Columbia. We examined the health and economic costs of poisoning in BC for 2016, using a societal perspective, to support public health policies aimed at minimizing losses to society.

Methods: Costs by intent, sex and age group were calculated in Canadian dollars using a classification and costing framework based on existing provincial injury data combined with data from the published literature.

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Introduction: This study aimed to quantify the total cost of violent firearm-related offenses in British Columbia in 2016 Canadian dollars over a five-year period, 2012 to 2016. The purposes of this study were to estimate the direct costs to the health care system and indirect costs to society for violent firearm injuries and deaths; and to estimate criminal justice system costs pertaining to firearm incidents.

Methods: Human and economic costs to the health care system and productivity losses were calculated using health administrative datasets such as B.

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Background: There has been increasing scrutiny of opioid prescribing following injury because of concerns that prescribed opioids may contribute to addiction and overdose. This study aimed to better understand the relationship between injury, opioids prescribed before and after injury, and non-medical drug poisoning.

Data And Methods: Working age (15 to 65 years old) residents of British Columbia's Fraser Health region with an injury that involved an emergency department visit were included.

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Objectives: This study explored how demographic characteristics, life experiences, and firefighting experiences have an impact on work-related injuries among female firefighters, and described events surrounding such work-related injuries.

Methods: This online survey was available from June 2019 to July 2020. Questions related to demographic characteristics, life experiences, firefighting experiences, and work-related injuries.

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We investigate the use of periodic micropillar arrays produced by high-fidelity microfabrication with cyclic olefin polymers for solid-phase immunoassays. These three-dimensional (3D) templates offer higher surface-to-volume ratios than two-dimensional substrates, making it possible to attach more antibodies and so increase the signal obtained by the assay. Micropillar arrays also provide the capacity to induce wicking, which is used to distribute and confine antibodies on the surface with spatial control.

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ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is a cardiac emergency. However, multiple clinical disorders can cause ST-elevation ECG changes, one of which is pericarditis. Regional pericarditis is a less known clinical phenomenon that can mimic STEMI.

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Background: We assessed median nerve travel and deformation concurrently to better understand the influence of occupational risk factors on carpal tunnel dynamics, including forceful chuck gripping and deviated wrist positions.

Methods: Fourteen healthy right-hand dominant participants performed a chuck grip in 6 experimental conditions: two relative force levels (10% and 40% of maximum voluntary effort); three wrist positions (15° radial deviation, 0° neutral, 30° ulnar deviation). Chuck grip forces were measured with a load cell while the transverse cross-section of the carpal tunnel was imaged via ultrasound at the distal wrist crease.

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Background: There is currently no integrated data system to capture the true burden of injury and its management within Ontario's regional trauma networks (RTNs), largely owing to difficulties in identifying these patients across the multiple health care provider records. Our project represents an iterative effort to create the ability to chart the course of care for all injured patients within the Central South RTN.

Methods: Through broad stakeholder engagement of major health care provider organizations within the Central South RTN, we obtained research ethics board approval and established data-sharing agreements with multiple agencies.

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Background: Medical and healthcare professionals report an important gap in their training and knowledge on concussion diagnosis and management. The Concussion Awareness Training Tool (CATT) for medical professionals provides evidenced-based training and resources, representing an important effort to fill this gap. The goal of the current article was to summarize and describe the general uptake of the 2018 relaunch of the CATT for medical professionals and to present results of a quality assurance/quality improvement (QA/QI) assessment including qualitative feedback from medical and healthcare professionals.

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Introduction: This study describes the events and circumstances preceding children aged 16 years or younger being treated for cannabis poisoining in the emergency department (ED) of a Canadian pediatric hospital.

Methods: We extracted cannabis poisoning treated in the ED at British Columbia Children's Hospital (BCCH) between 1 January, 2016 and 31 December, 2018, from the Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention Program (CHIRPP) database. The poisonings were distinguished by the inadvertent or intentional ingestion of cannabis.

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Dysgeusia is a frequent, yet underreported side effect of chemotherapy for cancer. We report here the first use of gabapentin in two glioblastoma patients who developed dysgeusia following intra-arterial administration of carboplatin or oral administration of lomustine, respectively. Treatment initiation was followed by resolution of taste alteration within weeks.

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Article Synopsis
  • A 2-year-old girl was diagnosed with natural killer cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia and initially treated with a standard chemotherapy regimen.
  • Two months later, her leukemia relapsed with different characteristics, prompting a switch to acute myeloid leukemia therapy and an unrelated donor stem cell transplant.
  • A detailed analysis of her initial diagnostic specimen revealed minimal myeloperoxidase expression, which was previously missed, highlighting the importance of recognizing low levels of this marker in leukemia classification.
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Background: The British Columbia Coroners Service implemented a policy in 2010 advising the reclassification of underlying causes of deaths due to falls from 'natural' to 'accidental'. This study investigates whether observed data trends reflect this change in practice, are artefacts of inconsistent reporting, or indicate a true increase in fall-related deaths.

Methods: Mortality data were analysed from 2004 to 2017 for cases with International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th Revision fall codes W00-W19, occurring among adults aged 60 years and older.

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Background: This study examines social disparities across neighbourhood levels of income, education and employment in relation to overall injury hospital separations in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Further, the study examines the relationships of social disparities to a set of three injury prevention priorities in British Columbia, namely, transport (motor vehicle occupant, pedestrian and cyclist), falls among older adults, and youth self-harm. The goal being to better understand area-based injury incidence with a view to precision prevention initiatives, particularly for more vulnerable populations.

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