bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Pressure ulcers: knowledge and attitude of nurses and nursing assistants in Belgian nursing homes
Authors: Demarré Liesbet , Vanderwee Katrien , Defloor Tom , Verhaeghe Sofie , Schoonhoven Lisette , Beeckman Dimitri 
Published: November 2011

Aims. To gain insight into the knowledge and attitudes of nurses and nursing assistants and to study the correlation between knowledge, attitudes and the compliance with the pressure ulcer prevention guidelines provided to residents at risk of pressure ulcers in nursing homes.Background.  There is a lack of evidence on knowledge and attitudes of nurses and nursing assistants towards pressure ulcer prevention in nursing homes.Design.  A cross‐sectional multi‐centre study.Methods.  A convenience sample of nine Belgian nursing homes, representing 18 wards was chosen in the study. In total, 145 nurses and nursing assistants were included. The compliance with the guidelines was evaluated in 615 residents, and data were collected using validated instruments.Results.  Fully compliant prevention was found in only 6·9% of the residents at risk. The mean knowledge score of the nurses was 29·3 vs. 28·7% for the nursing assistants. The overall attitude score was 74·5%, and attitude scores were significantly different between nurses and nursing assistants. Nurses showed to have a more positive attitude towards pressure ulcer prevention than nursing assistants, respectively 78·3 and 72·3%. A more positive attitude was a significant predictor of pressure ulcer prevention compliance with the guidelines provided to residents at risk of pressure ulcers in nursing homes.Conclusions.  Knowledge about pressure ulcer prevention of both nurses and nursing assistants in nursing homes was low. Attitudes were a significant predictor of the application of fully compliant prevention in residents at risk.Relevance to clinical practice.  Pressure ulcer prevention is an important aspect in daily care for residents at risk in nursing homes. These insights will contribute to evidence‐based practice in this area of care and will form the basis for the development of an education strategy for pressure ulcer prevention and management in nursing homes.
Does a Coeliac School increase psychological well‐being in women suffering from coeliac disease, living on a gluten‐free diet?
Authors: Ring Jacobsson Lisa , Friedrichsen Maria , Göransson Anne , Hallert Claes 
Published: November 2011

Aim and objective.  To assess the effects of an active method of patient education on the psychological well‐being of women with coeliac disease in remission.Background.  Despite remission with a gluten‐free diet, adults with coeliac disease and especially women experience a subjective poor health. Self‐management education seems to be promising tool to help patients suffering from coeliac disease to cope with their disorder.Design.  A randomised controlled trial.Methods.  A total of 106 women, ≥20 years, with confirmed coeliac disease, who had been on a gluten‐free diet for a minimum of five years. The intervention group (n = 54) underwent a 10‐session educational programme, ‘Coeliac School’, based on problem‐based learning. The controls (n = 52) received information regarding coeliac disease sent home on a regular basis. The primary outcomes were psychological general well‐being measured with a validated questionnaire.Results.  Participants in the Coeliac School reported a significant improvement in psychological well‐being at 10 weeks, whereas the controls given usual care reported a worsening in psychological well‐being. After six months, a significant improvement remained for the index of vitality.Conclusions.  Patient education increased psychological well‐being in women with coeliac disease. There is a need to refine the methods of patient education to make the effects of well‐being more pronounced over time.Relevance to clinical practice.  Patient education using problem‐based learning promotes self‐management in coeliac disease by improving the well‐being of patients who have been struggling with the gluten‐free diet for years.
Development and evaluation of a single‐step multiplex PCR to differentiate the aquatic stages of morphologically similar Aedes (subgenus: Stegomyia) species
Authors: Das Biswadeep , Swain Sunita , Patra Aparna , Das Mumani , Tripathy Hari Kishen , Mohapatra Namita , Kar Santanu K. , Hazra Rupenangshu K. 
Published: November 2011

SummaryObjective  To develop a single‐step multiplex PCR to differentiate the aquatic stages of Aedes aegypti, Aedes albopictus and Aedes vittatus collected from different breeding spots in arbovirus endemic/epidemic areas and to detect the most abundant species by the multiplex PCR.Methods  Aquatic stages of different mosquito species were sampled by inspecting artificial and natural breeding sites in domestic and peridomestic areas. DNA was isolated from different stages of the three Aedes species. Using novel primers based on 18S rDNA sequence, a single‐step multiplex PCR was developed to clearly distinguish the three Aedes species. It was then evaluated in the aquatic stages of Aedes species collected from different areas.Results  A total of 1150 aquatic stages were collected from 294 breeding spots, of which 156 contained Aedes species. Discarded tires were the major breeding spots of Aedes species. The aquatic stages were clustered into 230 pools; Ae. albopictus was detected in the largest number of pools, followed by Ae. aegypti and Ae. vittatus.Conclusions  The Multiplex PCR clearly differentiated the aquatic stages of the three Aedes species and detected that Ae. albopictus was most profuse in different breeding spots surveyed, hence indicating to be the main vector in this region. So control measures can be designed against Ae. albopictus at an early stage to prevent any arboviral outbreak. This method is a convenient tool for precise identification of Aedes vectors during entomological surveys in arbovirus endemic/epidemic areas where several species coexist.
Weak and strong publics: drawing on Nancy Fraser to explore parental participation in neonatal networks
Authors: Gibson Andrew J. , Lewando‐Hundt Gillian , Blaxter Loraine 
Published: November 2011

AbstractAims  We draw on the work of Nancy Fraser, and in particular her concepts of weak and strong publics, to analyze the process of parental involvement in managed neonatal network boards.Background  Public involvement has moved beyond the individual level to include greater involvement of both patients and the public in governance. However, there is relatively little literature that explores the nature and outcomes of long‐term patient involvement initiatives or has attempted to theorize, particularly at the level of corporate decision making, the process of patient and public involvement.Methods  A repeated survey of all neonatal network managers in England was carried out in 2006–07 to capture developments and changes in parental representation over this time period. This elicited information about the current status of parent representation on neonatal network boards. Four networks were also selected as case studies. This involved interviews with key members of each network board, interviews with parent representatives, observation of meetings and access to board minutes.Results  Data collected show that a wide range of approaches to involving parents has been adopted. These range from decisions not to involve parents at this level to relatively well‐developed systems designed to link parent representatives on network boards to parents in neonatal units.Conclusion  Despite these variations, we suggest that parental participation within neonatal services remains an example of a weak public because the parent representatives had limited participation with little influence on decision making.
Overcoming food allergy through acquired tolerance conferred by transfer of Tregs in a murine model
Authors: Yamashita H. , Takahashi K. , Tanaka H. , Nagai H. , Inagaki N. 
Published: November 2011

To cite this article: Yamashita H, Takahashi K, Tanaka H, Nagai H, Inagaki N. Overcoming food allergy through acquired tolerance conferred by transfer of Tregs in a murine model. Allergy 2012; 67: 201–209.Abstract
Background:  The number of food allergy patients is increasing. Some children outgrow their food allergies through tolerance, whereas others remain susceptible throughout their lives. We aimed to contribute to food allergy therapeutics by understanding induction of oral tolerance in a murine food allergy model.
Methods:  We modified an existing murine food allergy model by using ovalbumin (OVA) to induce oral tolerance, either by pretreating mice with OVA or by transferring mesenteric lymph node (MLN) cells or T cells derived from mice treated with OVA.
Results:  Pretreatment with OVA prevented food allergy, with complete suppression of OVA‐specific immunoglobulin (Ig)E and IgA antibody production and interleukin (IL)‐4, IL‐10, and IL‐9 mRNA expression. The proportion of regulatory T cells (Tregs) in MLN cells and expression of transforming growth factor‐β mRNA increased. In the transfer model, anaphylaxis secondary to OVA intake was suppressed by transfer of whole MLN cells and Tregs from OVA‐treated mice. However, OVA‐specific IgE and IgA expressions were partially attenuated by transfer of antigen‐specific and nonspecific Tregs, but not by whole MLN cells from OVA‐treated mice. In the Treg transfer model, IL‐4 and IL‐10 mRNA expression decreased, but IL‐9 mRNA expression increased.
Conclusion:  We concluded that oral tolerance for food antigens is induced in two ways: (i) by initial exposure to antigen, or inherent tolerance, and (ii) by transfer of Tregs, or acquired tolerance. Because food allergies occur when inherent tolerance is absent, understanding of acquired tolerance is important for the development of therapies for food allergy.
Herbivore response to habitat manipulation with floral resources: a study of the cabbage root fly
Authors: Nilsson U. , Rännbäck L.‐M. , Anderson P. , Rämert B. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractBiological control of pest insects can be improved by providing natural enemies with additional food resources such as floral nectar within the production field. However, herbivores may also benefit from this practice. The aim of this 3‐year field study was to investigate if dill and buckwheat, aimed as food resources for natural enemies, could increase the densities of the cabbage root fly, Delia radicum L. (Diptera: Anthomyiidae), a severe pest on crucifers. Differences in egg density, numbers of pupae and sex ratio were compared between cabbage plots with or without flowers. Habitat manipulation by intercropping flowering plants with cabbage did not increase the overall D. radicum egg density in our 3‐year study, and there were no significant differences in egg numbers between treatments in any year. No effect on the fecundity of D. radicum was observed, most likely because of the high mobility and feeding behaviour of the female flies, combined with high abundance and diversity of other food sources around the fields during this period. Despite equal egg numbers, fewer pupae were found in plots with flowers than without in one of three studied years. This finding suggests that natural enemies attacking larvae and pupae of D. radicum were either more abundant or efficient in cabbage plots with flowers.
Effects of Different Activation Regimens on Pronuclear Formation and Developmental Competence of In Vitro–Matured Porcine Oocytes After Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection
Authors: Cheng W‐M , Wu Z‐H , Zhang X , Zhu Y‐B , Pang Y‐W , Guo M , Wang D , Tian J‐H 
Published: November 2011

ContentsTo improve the activation protocol for in vitro–maturated porcine oocytes after intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), we examined the combined effect of U0126, a specific inhibitor of mitogen‐activated protein kinase kinases, and an electrical pulse on pronuclear formation and developmental competence. Two approaches were tested: (i) 6‐h treatment of ICSI oocytes with U0126 applied at different intervals (0, 2, 3 or 4 h) after the electrical pulse and (ii) treatment of ICSI oocytes with U0126 applied 4 h after the electrical pulse over an additional 4, 6 or 8 h. Another protein kinase inhibitor, 6‐dimethylaminopurine, was used as a chemical activator in control experiments. The highest rates of diploid embryo formation, normal fertilization and blastocyst formation were observed after 6 h of exposure to U0126 starting 4 h after the electrical pulse. Therefore, U0126 can be used as an activating agent for porcine oocytes fertilized by ICSI.
Peripheral catheter techniques
Authors: Dadure Christophe , Capdevila Xavier 
Published: November 2011

SummaryWith ultrasound, continuous peripheral nerve blocks (CPNBs) are one of the most recent developments in regional anesthesia in children. CPNBs are now used more widely in children because more suitable materials have been marketed, allowing complete, and prolonged postoperative pain control. Their use after orthopedic procedures in children and treatment for complex regional pain syndrome in adolescents has demonstrated the benefits. Perineural catheters have also shown their superiority over other techniques of continuous regional anesthesia in terms of side effects. The efficiency and the safety of these techniques may facilitate early ambulation with improved pain management, treatment at home with disposable pumps, and improved rehabilitation of children. Studies on large cohorts of patients published to date have failed to highlight any severe complications in their use compared with other adult studies. Accidents owing to systemic toxicity are very unlikely if the recommended maximum dose is not exceeded. The safety of continuous regional anesthesia techniques in children relies on the use of low‐concentration l‐enantiomer solutions (ropivacaine or levobupivacaine) accompanied by low plasma concentrations of local anesthetics, limiting the risk of systemic toxicity of these molecules. CPNB can ensure strong and lasting analgesia in hospital or at home.
Metabolic effects of bariatric surgery in type 2 diabetic patients with body mass index < 35 kg/m2
Authors: Li Q. , Chen L. , Yang Z. , Ye Z. , Huang Y. , He M. , Zhang S. , Feng X. , Gong W. , Zhang Z. , Zhao W. , Liu C. , Qu S. , Hu R. 
Published: November 2011

Aim: The aim of this meta‐analysis is to assess the metabolic effects of bariatric surgery in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients with body mass index (BMI) < 35 kg/m2.Methods: We performed an electronic literature search of published articles to identify relevant evidence since inception to June 2011. Primary outcome measures were metabolic improvement and resolution diabetes after bariatric surgery. The weighted mean difference (WMD) and its 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated from the raw data extracted from the original literature. The software Review Manager (version 4.3.1) was applied for meta‐analysis.Results: Thirteen trials involving 357 patients were included in the meta‐analysis. The follow‐up interval ranged from 6 months to 18 years. According to WMD calculation, bariatric surgery led to 5.18 kg/m2 of BMI lowering (95% CI, 3.79–6.57, p < 0.00001), 4.8 mmol/l of fasting plasma glucose (FPG) decrement (95% CI, 3.88–5.71 mmol/l, p < 0.00001), 2.59% of HbA1c decreasing (95% CI, 2.12–3.07%, p < 0.00001), 56.67 mg/dl of triglyceride decrement (95% CI 11.53–101.82, p = 0.01) and 48.38 mg/dl of total cholesterol reduction (95% CI 21.08–75.68, p = 0.0005). Moreover, the procedures produced an increased high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol by 5.37 mg/dl (95% CI −11.37–0.63, p = 0.08). However, this effect was not statistically significant. Overall, 80.0% of the patients achieved adequate glycaemic control (HbA1c < 7%) without antidiabetic medication. The surgeries produced a low incidence of major complications (3.2%) with no mortality.Conclusions: Bariatric surgery is effectual and safe in the treatment of non‐severely obese (BMI < 35 kg/m2) T2DM patients. Moreover, the metabolic benefits acquired from the procedures can be long sustained after the surgery.
Serum uric acid is related to cardiovascular events and correlates with N‐terminal pro‐B‐type natriuretic peptide and albuminuria in patients with diabetes mellitus
Authors: Resl M. , Clodi M. , Neuhold S. , Kromoser H. , Riedl M. , Vila G. , Prager R. , Pacher R. , Strunk G. , Luger A. , Hülsmann M. 
Published: November 2011

Diabet. Med. 29, 721–725 (2012)AbstractBackground  Hyperuricemia is a risk factor for cardiovascular events and renal insufficiency. It correlates to intima‐media thickness and microalbuminuria. In this study we evaluated uric acid as an independent marker for cardiac events in patients with diabetes.Methods  In a prospective observational study we recruited 494 patients with diabetes. Patients were then followed for 12.8 months (mean follow‐up) and hospitalizations as a result of cardiac events (ischaemic heart disease, arrhythmias, heart failure) were recorded.Results  The median duration of diabetes was 11 ± 10.35 years. Patients were in the mean 60 ± 13 years old and mean HbA1c was 62 ± 13 mmol/mol (7.8 ± 3.3%). At baseline, mean uric acid was 321.2 ± 101.1 μmol/l (range 101.1–743.5 μmol/l), median N‐terminal pro‐B‐type natriuretic peptide was 92 ± 412 pg/ml and median urinary albumin to creatinine ratio was 8 ± 361 mg/g; Uric acid significantly correlated to N‐terminal pro‐B‐type natriuretic peptide (r = 0.237, P < 0.001) and urinary albumin:creatinine ratio (r = 0.198, P < 0.001). In a Cox regression model, including age, estimated glomerular filtration rate, gender, systolic blood pressure, smoking and alcohol consumption, uric acid was the best predictor of cardiac events (hazard ratio 1.331, confidence interval 1.095–1.616, P = 0.04). However, uric acid lost its prognostic value when the natural logarithm of N‐terminal pro‐B‐type natriuretic peptide was added to the model.Conclusion  Serum uric acid is a predictor of cardiac events and correlates to N‐terminal pro‐B‐type natriuretic peptide and albuminuria, underscoring the importance of uric acid as a cardiovascular risk marker in patients with diabetes.
Vowels in early words: an event‐related potential study
Authors: Mani Nivedita , Mills Debra L. , Plunkett Kim 
Published: November 2011

AbstractPrevious behavioural research suggests that infants possess phonologically detailed representations of the vowels and consonants in familiar words. These tasks examine infants’ sensitivity to mispronunciations of a target label in the presence of a target and distracter image. Sensitivity to the mispronunciation may, therefore, be contaminated by the degree of mismatch between the distracter label and the heard mispronounced label. Event‐related potential (ERP) studies allow investigation of infants’ sensitivity to the relationship between a heard label (correct or mispronounced) and the referent alone using single picture trials. ERPs also provide information about the timing of lexico‐phonological activation in infant word recognition. The current study examined 14‐month‐olds’ sensitivity to vowel mispronunciations of familiar words using ERP data from single picture trials. Infants were presented with familiar images followed by a correct pronunciation of its label, a vowel mispronunciation or a phonologically unrelated non‐word. The results support and extend previous behavioural findings that 14‐month‐olds are sensitive to mispronunciations of the vowels in familiar words using an ERP task. We suggest that the presence of pictorial context reinforces infants’ sensitivity to mispronunciations of words, and that mispronunciation sensitivity may rely on infants accessing the cross‐modal associations between word forms and their meanings.
The Inevitability of Moral Evaluation*
Authors: RIJPKEMA PETER 
Published: November 2011

AbstractAccording to contemporary legal positivism, law claims to create obligations. In order for law to be able to create obligations, it must be capable of having authority. Legal positivism claims that for law to be capable of having authority, it only has to meet non‐moral or non‐normative conditions of authority. In this paper it is argued that law can only be capable of having authority if it also meets certain normative conditions. But if something must meet certain normative conditions in order to be capable of having authority and if it must be capable of having authority in order to be law, then it is only law if it is conceivable that it meets these normative conditions and this can only be ascertained by means of an evaluation. Therefore, legal positivism's claim that determining what the law is does not necessarily, or conceptually, depend on moral or other evaluative considerations (the separation thesis) is incompatible with its claim that law must be able to create obligations. Further, an analysis of Hart's concept of law shows that it is not only possible that the identification of the law depends on moral evaluation, as Hart claims, but that it is conceptually necessary that it does.
Migrants' Social Networks and Weak Ties: Accessing Resources and Constructing Relationships Post-Migration
Authors: Ryan Louise 
Published: November 2011

Within migration studies literature there is a tendency to assume that migrants have ready access to kin and friendship networks which facilitate the migration and settling processes. Through tight bonds of trust and reciprocity, these networks are considered to be sources of social capital, providing a counter-balance to the disadvantages that migrants may encounter in the destination society. This paper argues that more attention is needed to the ways in which migrants access, maintain and construct different types of networks, in varied social locations, with diverse people. I suggest that the often simplistic dichotomy of bonding and bridging capital needs to be re-appraised and instead offer an alternative way of thinking about these social ties. The distinction between them tends to be understood on the basis of the ethnicity of the people involved – bonding involves close ties with ‘people like us’ while bridging involves links beyond ‘group cleavages’. Insufficient attention has been paid to the actual resources flowing between these ties or the kinds of relationship developing between the actors involved. The nature of these social networks may be better understood by focusing on the relationship between the actors, their relative social location, and their available and realisable resources. Data from a qualitative study of Polish migrants in London is used to illustrate this approach.
Discourse change and policy development in social assistance in China
Authors: Zhang Haomiao 
Published: November 2011

Zhang H. Discourse change and policy development in social assistance in ChinaSince the introduction of a new social assistance programme in urban China, the state was eventually able to expand the programme to rural areas as a further step towards integrating the development of social assistance in urban and rural areas. This article argues that the development of social assistance in China can be explained by the change of discourse among the officials and the elites in central government. The discourse on social assistance can be conceptualised in three periods: the urban‐first discourse (1999–2003); the discourse debate (2003–2007); and the urban–rural integration discourse (2007–present). Through scrutinising specific discourses and the policy development of social assistance in these three periods, it appears that in company with the change in the discourse process, rural social assistance was developed rapidly in order to construct an integrated social assistance system. The article concludes that discourse plays a significant role in Chinese social assistance policy development.