Effects of an educational peer-group intervention on knowledge about dementia among family caregivers with a Turkish or Moroccan immigrant background: A cluster randomised controlled trial.

Objective: The aim of this paper is to examine the effects of an educational peer-group intervention on knowledge about dementia, perceived ability to talk about it, received support and self-perceived pressure from informal care among family caregivers with a Turkish or Moroccan immigrant background who cared for a person with dementia.

Methods: This paper is based on a cluster randomised controlled trial with three measures, including participants who knew or cared for a person with dementia. For the purpose of this study, a selection was made of participants who cared for a person with dementia.

Usability of the Turkish Translation of the Dutch Talking Touch Screen Questionnaire for Physical Therapy Patients With a Turkish Background: Qualitative Study.

Background: The Turkish translation of the Dutch Talking Touch Screen Questionnaire (TTSQ) has been developed to help physical therapy patients with a Turkish background in the Netherlands to autonomously elucidate their health problems and impairments and set treatment goals, regardless of their level of health literacy.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the usability of the Turkish TTSQ for physical therapy patients with a Turkish background with diverse levels of health literacy and experience in using mobile technology.

Methods: The qualitative Three-Step Test-Interview method was carried out to gain insight into the usability of the Turkish TTSQ.

Using Plain Language and Adding Communication Technology to an Existing Health-Related Questionnaire to Help Generate Accurate Information: Qualitative Study.

Background: Low-educated patients are disadvantaged in using questionnaires within the health care setting because most health-related questionnaires do not take the educational background of patients into account. The Dutch Talking Touch Screen Questionnaire (DTTSQ) was developed in an attempt to meet the needs of low-educated patients by using plain language and adding communication technology to an existing paper-based questionnaire. For physical therapists to use the DTTSQ as part of their intake procedure, it needs to generate accurate information from all of their patients, independent of educational level.

Implementation of the Cultural Formulation through a newly developed Brief Cultural Interview: Pilot data from the Netherlands.

The Outline for a Cultural Formulation (OCF) has remained underutilized in clinical practice since its publication in the DSM-IV in 1994. In the Netherlands, a Cultural Interview (CI) was developed in 2002 as a tool to facilitate use of the OCF in clinical practice. The time needed to conduct the interview, however, prevented its systematic implementation within mental health institutions.

Explanatory models and openness about dementia in migrant communities: A qualitative study among female family carers.

Background The prevalence of dementia is increasing among people with a Turkish, Moroccan and Surinamese-Creole background. Because informal care is very important in these communities, it is pertinent to see what explanations female family carers have for dementia and whether they can discuss dementia openly within the community and the family. Method Forty-one individual interviews and six focus group interviews ( n = 28) were held with female Turkish, Moroccan and Surinamese Creole family carers who are looking after a close relative with dementia, and who live in The Netherlands.

Explanatory factors for first and second-generation non-western women's inadequate prenatal care utilisation: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Little research into non-western women's prenatal care utilisation in industrialised western countries has taken generational differences into account. In this study we examined non-western women's prenatal care utilisation and its explanatory factors according to generational status.

Methods: Data from 3300 women participating in a prospective cohort of primary midwifery care clients (i.

"Being flexible and creative": a qualitative study on maternity care assistants' experiences with non-Western immigrant women.

Background: Several studies conducted in developed countries have explored postnatal care professionals' experiences with non-western women. These studies reported different cultural practices, lack of knowledge of the maternity care system, communication difficulties, and the important role of the baby's grandmother as care-giver in the postnatal period. However, not much attention has been paid in existing literature to postnatal care professionals' approaches to these issues.

"A mixture of positive and negative feelings": a qualitative study of primary care midwives' experiences with non-western clients living in the Netherlands.

Background: Non-western women living in the Netherlands are diverse in origin, which implies diversity in their needs and expectations for midwifery care. Furthermore, it has also been shown that non-western women make suboptimal use of prenatal care. Midwives may therefore face difficulties when caring for these clients.

Factors affecting the use of prenatal care by non-western women in industrialized western countries: a systematic review.

Background: Despite the potential of prenatal care for addressing many pregnancy complications and concurrent health problems, non-western women in industrialized western countries more often make inadequate use of prenatal care than women from the majority population do. This study aimed to give a systematic review of factors affecting non-western women's use of prenatal care (both medical care and prenatal classes) in industrialized western countries.

Methods: Eleven databases (PubMed, Embase, PsycINFO, Cochrane, Sociological Abstracts, Web of Science, Women's Studies International, MIDIRS, CINAHL, Scopus and the NIVEL catalogue) were searched for relevant peer-reviewed articles from between 1995 and July 2012.

Perspectives on care and communication involving incurably ill Turkish and Moroccan patients, relatives and professionals: a systematic literature review.

Background: Our aim was to obtain a clearer picture of the relevant care experiences and care perceptions of incurably ill Turkish and Moroccan patients, their relatives and professional care providers, as well as of communication and decision-making patterns at the end of life. The ultimate objective is to improve palliative care for Turkish and Moroccan immigrants in the Netherlands, by taking account of socio-cultural factors in the guidelines for palliative care.

Methods: A systematic literature review was undertaken.

Importance of quality aspects of GP care among ethnic minorities: role of cultural attitudes, language and healthcare system of reference.

Aims: This study examines the mechanisms responsible for ethnic differences in perceived quality of care in The Netherlands. The specific role of cultural attitudes, language proficiency, and the health system in the country of origin was examined, taking socio-demographic characteristics into account.

Methods: Interview data of 1339 respondents of Moroccan, Turkish, Surinamese and Antillean origin were combined with interview data of Dutch respondents (n = 405) and of Western immigrants (n = 102) in The Netherlands and of a random sample of Dutch privately or publicly insured persons (n = 9675).

Gender differences in health and health care utilisation in various ethnic groups in the Netherlands: a cross-sectional study.

Background: To determine gender differences in health and health care utilisation within and between various ethnic groups in the Netherlands.

Methods: Data from the second Dutch National Survey of General Practice (2000-2002) were used. A total of 7,789 persons from the indigenous population and 1,512 persons from the four largest migrant groups in the Netherlands -- Morocco, Netherlands Antilles, Turkey and Surinam -- aged 18 years and older were interviewed.

Changes in health and primary health care use of Moroccan and Turkish migrants between 2001 and 2005: a longitudinal study.

Background: Social environment and health status are related, and changes affecting social relations may also affect the general health state of a group. During the past few years, several events have affected the relationships between Muslim immigrants and the non-immigrant population in many countries. This study investigates whether the health status of the Moroccan and Turkish immigrants in the Netherlands has changed in four years, whether changes in health status have had any influence on primary health care use, and which socio-demographic factors might explain this relationship.

Fatty fish and supplements are the greatest modifiable contributors to the serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration in a multiethnic population.

Objective: Because vitamin D synthesis is lower in a heavily pigmented skin than in a lighter skin, the relative contribution of determinants to the vitamin D concentration might differ between ethnic groups. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and the relative contribution of vitamin D consumption and exposure to sunlight to the vitamin D concentration in a multiethnic population.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

The use of plain radiography, subtraction arthrography, nuclear arthrography, and bone scintigraphy in the diagnosis of a loose acetabular component of a total hip prosthesis: a systematic review.

This meta-analysis was performed to summarize and compare the diagnostic performance and diagnostic accuracy of radiographic and scintigraphic techniques in the evaluation of patients suspected of having aseptically loose acetabular components. Twenty-eight studies, published between January 1975 and October 2004, presented sufficient data for quantitative analysis. The pooled sensitivity and specificity rates for plain radiography were 70% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 59%-79%) and 80% (95% CI = 73%-86%), respectively; those for subtraction arthrography were 89% (95% CI = 84%-93%) and 76% (95% CI = 68%-82%), respectively; and those for nuclear arthrography were 87% (95% CI = 57%-97%) and 64% (95% CI = 40%-82%), respectively.

Manual therapy, physical therapy, or continued care by the general practitioner for patients with neck pain: long-term results from a pragmatic randomized clinical trial.

Objectives: The authors' goals were to compare the effectiveness of manual therapy (MT; mainly spinal mobilization), physical therapy (PT; mainly exercise therapy), and continued care by the general practitioner (GP; analgesics, counseling and education) over a period of 1 year.

Methods: One hundred eighty-three patients suffering for at least 2 weeks from nonspecific neck pain were randomized to receive a 6-week treatment strategy of MT once a week, PT twice a week, or GP care once every 2 weeks. The primary outcome measures were perceived recovery, severity of physical dysfunctioning, pain intensity, and functional disability.

Use of health care services by ethnic minorities in The Netherlands: do patterns differ?

Background: This article examines the nature of ethnic differences in health care utilisation by assessing patterns of use in addition to single service utilisation.

Methods: Data were derived from the Second Dutch National Survey of General Practice. A nationally representative sample of 104 general practices participated in this survey.

Lung density measurements in spontaneous pneumothorax demonstrate airtrapping.

Purpose: Idiopathic spontaneous pneumothorax (SP) is the result of leakage of air from the lung parenchyma through a ruptured visceral pleura into the pleural cavity. This rupture is thought to be caused by an increased pressure difference between parenchymal airspace and pleural cavity. We hypothesize that rather peripheral airway inflammation leads to obstruction with check valve phenomena and by that to airtrapping in the lung parenchyma, which precedes spontaneous pneumothorax.

The urine dipstick test useful to rule out infections. A meta-analysis of the accuracy.

Background: Many studies have evaluated the accuracy of dipstick tests as rapid detectors of bacteriuria and urinary tract infections (UTI). The lack of an adequate explanation for the heterogeneity of the dipstick accuracy stimulates an ongoing debate. The objective of the present meta-analysis was to summarise the available evidence on the diagnostic accuracy of the urine dipstick test, taking into account various pre-defined potential sources of heterogeneity.

Accuracy of physical diagnostic tests for assessing ruptures of the anterior cruciate ligament: a meta-analysis.

Objective: This systematic review summarizes the evidence on the accuracy of tests for assessing ACL ruptures of the knee.

Search Strategy: A computerized search of MEDLINE (1966-2003) and EMBASE (1980-2003) with additional reference tracking.

Selection Criteria: Articles included were written in English, French, German, or Dutch, and addressed the accuracy of at least 1 physical diagnostic test for ACL rupture, using arthrotomy, arthroscopy, or magnetic resonance imaging as the gold standard.

Lung attenuation measurements in healthy young adults.

Background: High-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) attenuation measurements may be more sensitive in finding early emphysematous changes in relatively young subjects than lung function measurements.

Objectives: To define lung attenuation parameters in smokers and never-smokers.

Methods: A prospective comparative study in a university hospital setting was designed with 20 healthy smoking and 20 nonsmoking volunteers.

Interobserver reproducibility of the assessment of severity of complaints, grip strength, and pressure pain threshold in patients with lateral epicondylitis.

Objective: To evaluate the interobserver reproducibility of the assessment of severity of complaints, grip strength, and pressure pain threshold in patients with lateral epicondylitis in primary care.

Design: Two physiotherapists assessed independently, and in randomized order, the severity of complaints scored on an 11-point numeric rating scale, pain-free grip strength, maximum grip strength, and pressure pain threshold.

Setting: Primary care center in the Netherlands.

Conducting systematic reviews of diagnostic studies: didactic guidelines.

Background: Although guidelines for critical appraisal of diagnostic research and meta-analyses have already been published, these may be difficult to understand for clinical researchers or do not provide enough detailed information.

Methods: Development of guidelines based on a systematic review of the evidence in reports of systematic searches of the literature for diagnostic research, of methodological criteria to evaluate diagnostic research, of methods for statistical pooling of data on diagnostic accuracy, and of methods for exploring heterogeneity.

Results: Guidelines for conducting diagnostic systematic reviews are presented in a stepwise fashion and are followed by comments providing further information.

Manual therapy, physical therapy, or continued care by a general practitioner for patients with neck pain. A randomized, controlled trial.

Background: Neck pain is a common problem, but the effectiveness of frequently applied conservative therapies has never been directly compared.

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of manual therapy, physical therapy, and continued care by a general practitioner.

Design: Randomized, controlled trial.