bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Hispanics: At Risk for Adolescent Pregnancy?
Authors: Pletsch Pamela K. 
Published: May 2007

AbstractData from the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1982‐1984, were analyzed to describe pregnancy, miscarriage, and age‐specific birth rates as well as oral contraceptive use among Mexican‐American, Puerto Rican, and Cuban‐American females age 12 to 19 years. The Cuban‐American sample (n= 85) had the lowest pregnancy (99) and fertility (37) rates, with 6.5% ever having used oral contraceptives. In the Mexican‐American (n= 638) and Puerto Rican women (n= 300) the pregnancy and fertility rates were 205 and 223, and 141 and 110, respectively. Of these two groups, 14.5% and 12.6% had ever used oral contraceptives. These results suggest that Mexican‐Americans and Puerto Ricans are at risk for adolescent pregnancy, with the latter having more of the sociodemographic characteristics associated with the long‐term disadvantages of early childbearing. These facts have implications for nursing practice and research.
Elderly Clients' Perceptions of Public Health Nursing Care
Authors: Laffrey Shirley Cloutier , Renwanz‐Boyle Andrea , Slagle Rhoda , Guthmiller Alene , Carter Barbara 
Published: May 2007

AbstractAlthough the health benefits of illness prevention and health promotion are accepted, little is known about the reasons for which elderly clients attend public health programs or the benefits they perceive from public health nursing care. This study reports the major reasons for which men and women age 60 and over sought care in a public health nursing program and the major benefits they perceived. The sample included 137 new and 360 returning clients. Responses to open‐ended questions were content analyzed into categories of like statements, which in turn were placed into overall groups. The results suggest that most clients realized significant benefits from receiving public health care and were able to articulate these benefits. Eliciting clients' perceptions can assist public health nurses to implement and market programs in a way that is acceptable and accessible to the recipients.
Cultural Diversity: A Resource in Planning and Implementing Nursing Care
Authors: Henkle Joan O. , Kennedy Susan M. 
Published: May 2007

AbstractAmerica's cultural diversity challenges the ability of nurses to respond with sensitivity to client needs. Enhancement of the client's health practices is contingent on the nurse's ability to use the individual's culturally based beliefs and values as an integral component in the design of nursing interventions. Nurse and client engage in a truly collaborative planning and implementation of care only after there is mutual understanding of the special meaning of beliefs and values from which health behaviors are derived. Educational preparation with experience in applying cultural knowledge is essential to the development of sensitive nursing practice. Integrating such information and experiences into baccalaureate nursing curricula through a sociocultural project will enhance student awareness of client values and beliefs and their potential nursing implications. Strategies exist for helping students recognize, accept, and use these features in planning and implementing nursing care.
Patterns of Fecal Coliform Contamination in Day‐Care Centers
Authors: Holaday Bonnie , Pantell Robert , Lewis Catherine , Gilliss Catherine L. 
Published: May 2007

AbstractDuring a six‐month period, on four separate occasions, six licensed day‐care centers had cultures taken from environmental surfaces as well as the hands of children and teachers. Fecal coliforms were recovered from 64 (9.5%) of the 675 surfaces sampled. Recovery rate was not influenced by a center's socioeconomic status, time of year, or presence of children who were not toilet trained. Recovery rates did differ significantly in different areas, with the kitchen showing a relatively high recovery rate (19%), and toys and toilets showing remarkably low rates (2% and 4%). Centers with formal hand‐washing procedures had lower recovery rates than those without such practices. We also demonstrated a high recovery rate from hands of staff (16%); 6% of children had positive cultures. Contamination of hands and classroom objects is a potential source for the transmission of enteric diseases for children in day‐care centers. A program directed at reducing contamination would be important in preventing the spread of diarrheal illness.
Homeless Families: Rebuilding Connections
Authors: Francis Marion B. 
Published: May 2007

AbstractYoung families are the fastest‐growing group of homeless people in the United States. Many women have suffered violations of physical and sexual abuse, reduced income through divorce, and discrimination in seeking housing. Families have been disconnected from their homes, an adequate income, health care services, schools, and their families. Selected literature is reviewed to promote understanding and advocacy nursing for this high‐risk population.
Home Health Care: Reliability and Validity Testing of a Patient‐Classification Instrument
Authors: Albrecht Mary Nies 
Published: May 2007

AbstractThe purposes of this methodologic, descriptive, correlation study were to assess the reliability and validity of the Easley‐Storfjell (ES) patient‐classification instrument for home care, and determine to what extent it was useful in a large, hospital‐based home health care setting. A model for home health care developed by the investigator was used. In‐terrater reliability and concurrent validity were established by four nurse‐raters using a random sample. Nonparametric bi‐variate correlational analysis demonstrated that the ES instrument was both reliable and valid at a significant level. In addition, there was agreement between the overall ES category rating and rater frequency of home visits. Intrarater reliability for each of the four nurse‐raters on a random sample was at a significant level. The results of this study have important implications for home health care agencies providing care to chronically ill patients.
Identifying Infants at Risk: North Carolina's High‐Priority Infant Program
Authors: Cilenti Dorothy , Farel Anita M. 
Published: May 2007

AbstractRecent federal legislation (e.g., PL 99‐457, Part H, and amendments to the MCH block grant and Medicaid legislation) has focused attention on infants at risk for health and developmental problems. The ability to plan services for these infants would be strengthened by data that could be used for program accountability and evaluation. Using nurses based in local health departments, North Carolina's High‐Priority Infant program currently identifies and follows infants with biologic (e.g., very low birth weight), environmental (e.g., psychosocial problems), and established (e.g., Down syndrome) risk conditions. Data from this program were collected to analyze specific features of its implementation, a necessary precursor to evaluating outcome.
Maladaptive Mother‐Child Relationships: A Pilot Study
Authors: Sachs Barbara , Hall Lynne A. 
Published: May 2007

AbstractThe primary purposes of this pilot study were to identify maternal psychosocial correlates of unrealistic expectations of children and of child abuse potential, and to investigate the relationships of these factors with child behavior. A cross‐sectional, two‐group design was used. One group consisted of 20 low‐income mothers whose preschool children were referred to a family care center for suspected abuse or neglect. A comparison group was made up of 20 low‐income mothers whose children attended a university‐based pediatric clinic and who were not referred for abuse or neglect. Data were collected during structured in‐home interviews with the mothers. Measures of parental bonding, maternal depressive symptoms, unrealistic expectations of children, child abuse potential, and child behavior were obtained. Preschool teachers of the children also rated the children's behavior. Mothers with high depressive symptoms reported more unrealistic expectations of children and had greater child abuse potential scores than those with fewer symptoms. The more child behavior problems mothers reported, the greater their unrealistic expectations of the children and the higher their score for child abuse potential. Maternal depressive symptoms were not directly related to child behavior. Teacher reports of child behavior were moderately correlated with maternal reports, but no study variable was associated with teacher reports.
Screening for Psychosocial Distress: Implications for Prevention and Health Promotion
Authors: Gage Lois W. , Kline Leidy Nancy 
Published: May 2007

AbstractThe importance of identifying the mental as well as physical health needs of individuals served in primary care settings has been documented in the United States, Great Britain, and developing countries. This study compared the prevalence of psychosocial distress across four demographically diverse ambulatory care clinics, and described the relationship among selected demographic characteristics (age, gender, marital status, race, education, and income) and psychosocial distress in order to develop a profile of high‐risk clinics and patients. The sample was drawn from consecutive clinic attendees in two geographic regions of the United States. Psychosocial distress was measured with the Goldberg 28‐item general health questionnaire (GHQ). As a group, 64% of the subjects had GHQ scores of less than 5, indicating they were not at risk; 26.5% were moderately distressed and 9.5% were highly distressed. The distressed tended to be chronically physically ill patients who attended two clinics. Multivariate nominal scale analysis (MNA) indicated that the sociodemographic variables accounted for 11% of the variance in GHQ scores. Younger (<60 yrs), white, low‐socioeconomic subjects had a higher probability of falling into the high‐risk category. Contrary to previous research findings, gender was not associated with distress.
Staphylococcus epidermidis forms biofilms under simulated platelet storage conditions
Authors: Greco Carey , Martincic Irene , Gusinjac Arjeta , Kalab Miloslav , Yang Ann‐Fook , Ramírez‐Arcos Sandra 
Published: May 2007

BACKGROUND: Staphylococcus epidermidis grows slowly in platelet (PLT) preparations compared to other bacteria, presenting the possibility of missed detection by routine screening. S. epidermidis is a leading cause of nosocomial sepsis, with virulence residing in its ability to establish chronic infections through production of slime layers, or biofilms, on biomedical devices. This study aims to establish biofilm formation (BF) as a mode of growth by S. epidermidis in PLT preparations.STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Biofilm‐positive (BFpos) and ‐negative (BFneg) S. epidermidis strains were grown in whole blood–derived PLTs (WBDPs) and in glucose‐rich medium (TSBg). An assay for BF was adapted for cultures grown in WBDPs or filtered WBDPs in polystyrene culture plates. Bacterial attachment to polyvinylchloride PLT bags and PLTs was examined by scanning electron microscopy.RESULTS: Both strains display similar growth profiles in WBDPs and TSBg. Unexpectedly, evidence of BF was observed on PLT bags and on PLTs directly, not only by the BFpos strain but also by the BFneg strain. The BFpos strain displayed greater plastic adherence than the BFneg strain in WBDPs (p  < 0.05). BF by the BFneg strain was approximately 10‐fold greater in WBDPs compared to TSBg (p  < 0.05), likely by use of PLTs as a scaffold. Furthermore, BF by S. epidermidis was significantly decreased when PLT concentration was reduced 1000‐fold.CONCLUSIONS: S. epidermidis forms biofilms on PLT aggregates and on PLT bags under PLT storage conditions. Our results demonstrate that the PLT storage environment can promote a BF growth mechanism for contaminant bacteria.
Risk factors for hepatitis C virus infection among blood donors in Israel: a case‐control study between native Israelis and immigrants from the former Soviet Union
Authors: Kerzman Hana , Green Manfred S. , Shinar Eilat 
Published: May 2007

BACKGROUND: The annual hepatitis C virus (HCV) seropositivity prevalence among blood donors (BDs) in Israel is 0.1 percent. Although only 10 percent of the BD population are immigrants from the former Soviet Union (FSUIs), they represent 80 percent of the HCV‐seropositive cases. This study aimed to identify HCV risk factors among Native Israeli (NI) and FSUI BDs, to determine if specific interventions are needed.STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Two case‐control studies were designed, interviewing 178 HCV‐positive cases (128 FSUIs, 50 NIs) and 256 HCV‐negative controls (128 FSUIs, 128 NIs). All participants were volunteer BDs of Magen David Adom (MDA) Blood Services.RESULTS: A total of 434 BDs of 985 mailed letters consented to be interviewed (44% response rate), without differences in compliance between the study populations. In both, intravenous drug use (IVDU) was the strongest HCV seropositivity–associated risk factor. After IVDU adjustment, important risk factors were age, blood transfusion before 1990, first‐time donation, and not practicing teeth cleaning. Close contact with people at risk for HCV (odds ratio [OR], 7.2; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.9‐27.8) and surgery (OR, 7.3; 95% CI, 1.6‐34.4) were strong risk factors among NIs, whereas gum surgery (OR, 7.6; 95% CI, 1.1‐52.3), hospitalization without surgery (OR, 2.6; 95% CI, 1.1‐6.5), and therapy in injection form (OR, 4.9; 95% CI, 2.4‐10.2) were merely found among FSUIs, probably resulting from inadequate aseptic conditions. The ORs for age, gum surgery, contact index, and first blood donation differed significantly between the two populations.CONCLUSION: Although the strength of risk factors for HCV differs between Israeli and immigrant BDs, most factors studied did not differ between the groups. Therefore, changes in screening of all BDs are considered.
Storage‐dependent remodeling of the red blood cell membrane is associated with increased immunoglobulin G binding, lipid raft rearrangement, and caspase activation
Authors: Kriebardis Anastasios G. , Antonelou Marianna H. , Stamoulis Konstantinos E. , Economou‐Petersen Effrosini , Margaritis Lukas H. , Papassideri Issidora S. 
Published: May 2007

BACKGROUND: The elucidation of the storage lesion is important for the improvement of red blood cell (RBC) storage. Ex vivo storage is also a model system for studying cell‐signaling events in the senescence and programmed cell death of RBCs. The membrane hosts critical steps in these mechanisms and undergoes widespread remodeling over the storage period.STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Fresh and CPDA‐stored RBCs from 21 blood donors were evaluated as whole cells, membrane ghosts, and cytoskeletons by sodium dodecyl sulfate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, immunoblotting, immunofluorescence microscopy, and in situ assays. Band 3 content, immunoglobulin G (IgG) content, specific protein movement to and from the membrane, and caspase system activation were measured.RESULTS: During storage, Band 3 protein was aggregated and its content decreased as did the content of several lipid raft–related proteins. IgG binding to the membrane increased. Sorcin and synexin moved from the cytosol to the membrane, stomatin and flotillins left the membrane, the Fas protein was oligomerized, and caspase was activated.CONCLUSION: The remodeling of the RBC membrane during storage includes loss and oxidative cross‐linking of Band 3 as well as IgG binding. This process occurs with lipid raft development and loss and is probably driven by caspase activation. Oxidative injury appears to be an important driver of RBC aging during storage.
A Comparative Study of Intracoronary Iced Saline Versus Intracoronary Antiarrhythmic Drugs to Identify the Ventricular Tachycardia‐Related Artery
Authors: STRICKBERGER S. ADAM , OKISHIGE KAORU , FRIEDMAN PETER L. 
Published: May 2007

Identifying the Tachycardia‐Related Coronary Artery. Introduction: Transcatheter chemical ablation is a new treatment option for patients with ventricular tachycardia. Availability of a safe, simple, and sensitive method to identify the ventricular tachycardia‐related artery is required for successful intracoronary chemical ablation for ventricular tachycardia. The purpose of this study was to compare bolus intracoronary iced saline injection to bolus intracoronary antiarrhythmic drug injection as methods for identifying the ventricular tachycardia‐related coronary artery. Methods and Results: Patient selection was limited to eight individuals with recurrent sustained monomorphic ventricular tachycardia, coronary artery disease, remote myocardial infarction, and in whom programmed stimulation could reproducihiy induce the clinical arrhythmia. An infusion catheter was positioned in the putative ventricular tachycardia‐related artery and ventricular tachycardia was provoked hy programmed stimulation. In four patients the putative ventricular tachycardia‐related artery was a patent infarct‐related vessel and in the other four patients was a vessel supplying collateral flow to an occluded infarct‐related artery. The effects of selective intracoronary iced saline bolus injection (10 mL), and then of selective intracoronary bolus antiarrhythmic drug injection (2.5 mg lidocaine in one patient, procainamide 1.0–9.0 mg in seven patients) were observed. Bolus intracoronary iced saline injection did not alter ventricular tachycardia in any patient. Bolus intracoronary antiarrhythmic drug injection, however, led to ventricular tachycardia cycle length prolongation in two patients and arrhythmia termination in four patients. In two of these individuals, infusion of ethanol into the tachycardia‐related vessel previously identified by intracoronary drug injection resulted in ablation of the ventricular tachycardia. Conclusions: In the present study, selective intracoronary antiarrhythmic drug injection appeared to be more effective than intracoronary iced saline for identifying the ventricular Uchycardia‐related coronary artery, (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 3, pp. 199–208 June 1992)
The Electrogenic Sodium/Potassium Pump and Passive Sodium Influx of Isolated Guinea Pig Ventricular Myocytes
Authors: LEVI ALLAN J. 
Published: May 2007

Electrogenic Sodium/Potassium Pump in Ventricular Myocytes. Introduction: The membrane current generated by the sodium/potassium pump was measured in ventricular myocytes isolated from guinea pig hearts. Methods and Results: Cells were impaled with microelectrodes to minimize dialysis of the intracellular milieu and thus maintain normal physiological conditions. To selectively record pump current, it was necessary to suppress potassium currents with external barium and to buffer intracellular calcium with a calcium chelator. Exposure to potassium‐free solution was used to inhibit the sodium/potassium (Na/K) pump and load the cell with intracellular sodium (Na i). When the pump was subsequently reactivated by replacing extracellular potassium, there was a sharp increase of a transient outward membrane current, which declined back to control with a time constant of 50.7 ±12.9 seconds (mean ± SD, n = 11). The increase of outward membrane current became larger after longer periods of potassium removal and was abolished by the pump inhibitor strophanthidin. These features show that the transient outward current was generated by the Na/K pump. The pump current of quiescent myocytes was assessed by two different methods. First, it was evaluated directly by measuring the loss of outward pump current upon exposure to a maximal blocking dose of strophanthidin. The loss of outward current was 20.3 ± 5.5 pA (n = 11), which is equivalent to a pump current density of 0.164 /μA/cm2. The second method was to estimate passive Na influx into quiescent myocytes, by measuring the charge extruded by the pump after a period of potassium removal. The charge extruded during recovery reflects the magnitude of Na i accumulation during potassium removal. Passive Na influx was found to be 4.58 ± 2.4 pmol/cm2 per second. If passive Na influx is normally balanced fully by Na extrusion on the Na/K pump, this will result in an average pump current of 18.0 pA (equivalent to a pump current density of 0.147 μA/cm2). Thus, although the two methods for estimating the pump current of quiescent myocytes were different, their results agreed well. A pump current of 20 pA will contribute only about 0.4 mV to the resting potential of ventricular myocytes. This conclusion was confirmed experimentally by showing that pump inhibition depolarized the resting potential of myocytes by only 0.45 ± 0.05mV(n = 10). Conclusion: An important finding of this study is that the electrogenic Na/K pump makes a much lower contribution to the resting potential of ventricular muscle than was previously supposed. (J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 3, pp. 225–238, June 1992)
Ectopic Ventricular Beats Originating in Ischemically‐Injured Left Ventricular Epicardium, 24 Hours Following Coronary Artery Occlusion in the Dog
Authors: PATTERSON EUGENE , SCHERLAG BENJAMIN J. , LAZZARA RALPH 
Published: May 2007

Epicardial Ectopics. Introduction: Ventricular ectopic beats demonstrating: (1) depolarization in ischemically‐injured anterior epicardium preceding His‐Purkinje activation by more than 25 msec; (2) initial delta waves on the anterior chest leads of the surface ECG coincident with presystolic epicardial activation; and (3) a left bundle branch block morphology were observed in 46 of 256 anesthetized dogs evaluated 18–24 hours following anterior descending coronary artery occlusion. Methods and Results: In 18 experiments, endocardial and epicardial recordings, and signal‐averaged recordings from the left ventricle were used to determine the earliest activation time/site for epicardial ectopic beats. In these ventricular ectopic beats, early epicardial activation was coupled to the preceding beat by a constant, fixed coupling interval. Electrical activity during the interectopic interval was not detected with composite or multiple bipolar recordings, or with signal averaging from the heart. The mean coupling interval was prolonged by lidocaine from 385 ± 24to 409 ± 45 msec (P < 0.01), and was decreased by epinephrine (364 ± 7 msec) and D‐600 (324 ± 32 msec)(P < 0.05). Spontaneous ventricular beats of epicardial origin could be reversibly suppressed by epicardial lidocaine administration or permanently suppressed with intracoronary latex injection, eliminating presystolic potentials. Histologic examination of the epicardium revealed surviving tissue bands (0.5–2.0 mm) distributed throughout transmural infarcted epicardium. Conclusion: The present experiments demonstrate constant‐coupled ectopic ventricular beats of epicardial origin, 18–24 hours following myocardial infarction. The ventricular ectopic beats may result from abnormal automaticity or electrotonic excitation from an initiating beat across an unexcitable gap with slow conduction from the “site of origin’ to reactivate the left ventricle. (JCardiovasc Electrophysiol, Vol. 3, pp. 315–333, August 1992)