Evaluation of the agreement, adoption, and adherence to the evidence-based guidelines for the nutritional management of adult patients with head and neck cancer among Australian dietitians.

AIM: Evidence-based guideline translation to practice can improve outcomes but is often impaired by poor implementation. This project aimed to evaluate the implementation of the Evidence-based guidelines for the nutritional management of adult patients with head and neck cancer among Australian dietitians providing clinical care to this population. METHODS: A questionnaire was developed, with face and content validity confirmed by an expert panel (n = 13), to gauge participant perceptions of the guidelines against an implementation evaluation framework. Dietitians were identified through Dietitians Australia and by contacting experts in the field. Eligibility was determined by questionnaire completion and prior guideline awareness. Responses were provided using a 5-point Likert scale. Results were analysed using descriptive statistics; with inferential analysis to determine if demographic information could reveal trends in guideline use and perception. RESULTS: Of the 43 initial respondents, n = 28 completed the questionnaire, with n = 24/28 (86%) meeting full eligibility criteria for analysis. Median (range) scores for all four domains were high: awareness (4.0 [3.2-4.8]), agreement (4.4 [4.1-4.7]), adoption (3.5 [3.1-3.9]), and adherence (4.3 [4.1-4.9]). However, perception of guideline awareness and use among multidisciplinary team colleagues was low (mean 3.2/5.0 and 3.1/5.0, respectively). Dietitians with <10 years' experience had significantly higher perceptions of the guidelines' ability to positively influence practice; support evidence-based practice; and enhance dietitian credibility (P = 0.04) vs dietitians with ≥10 years' experience. CONCLUSION: Dietitians demonstrated high rates of guideline implementation and positive perceptions for its use in clinical practice. Future implementation strategies and evaluation should expand to engage the wider multidisciplinary team and more experienced clinicians.

Conservative management of low risk superficial bladder tumors.

PURPOSE: The most common approach for nonmuscle invasive urothelial cancers of the bladder is transurethral resection of the bladder tumor, often under regional or general anesthesia. Due to the high rate of recurrence, many such patients experience the potential risks and morbidity of frequent surgical intervention, despite the often slow growth rate and low risk of progression of such tumors. Recent experiences have suggested that some patients with low grade superficial tumors may be treated expectantly. We report on our experience with expectant management of low risk superficial bladder tumors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively evaluated 173 patients with superficial bladder cancer who are currently actively treated at our institution and who have complete clinical information. From this population we identified 22 cases (12.7%) under expectant management for bladder tumors in the last 12 months. Demographic and clinical information on this cohort are described as well as clinical and pathological outcomes, and disease interventions on followup. RESULTS: All patients had a prior history of recurrent low risk (Ta, low grade) bladder tumors. The mean followup was 25 months. Of the 22 patients 8 had no growth, 9 had minimal growth and 5 had moderate growth of their tumors. Fifteen patients have required no intervention, 3 have undergone office fulguration and 4 have undergone repeat transurethral bladder tumor resection. Two men (9%) had evidence of grade progression on followup transurethral bladder tumor resection, and 1 of these men (4.5%) had stage progression (T1 disease). Both men had evidence of moderate tumor growth and suspicious/malignant cytology which resulted in the repeat transurethral bladder tumor resection. Interestingly, these 2 men had a 6 and 11 year history of recurrent Ta, low grade disease before progression and had been under expectant management for 18 and 12 months before progression. Interestingly all smokers had a recurrence during the surveillance period and this represented a 3.3-fold increased rate of recurrence over nonsmokers. CONCLUSIONS: Expectant management of recurrent bladder tumors may be an appropriate option for some patients with a history of Ta, low grade tumors, especially those who are older and with significant medical comorbidities. Such a strategy may avoid potential risks and morbidities associated with frequent, repeat transurethral bladder tumor resection. However, under such an expectant management strategy, patients should remain under careful cystoscopic and cytologic surveillance as there remains some risk for grade and stage progression in this patient population.

Transcranial pulsed ultrasound stimulates intact brain circuits.

Electromagnetic-based methods of stimulating brain activity require invasive procedures or have other limitations. Deep-brain stimulation requires surgically implanted electrodes. Transcranial magnetic stimulation does not require surgery, but suffers from low spatial resolution. Optogenetic-based approaches have unrivaled spatial precision, but require genetic manipulation. In search of a potential solution to these limitations, we began investigating the influence of transcranial pulsed ultrasound on neuronal activity in the intact mouse brain. In motor cortex, ultrasound-stimulated neuronal activity was sufficient to evoke motor behaviors. Deeper in subcortical circuits, we used targeted transcranial ultrasound to stimulate neuronal activity and synchronous oscillations in the intact hippocampus. We found that ultrasound triggers TTX-sensitive neuronal activity in the absence of a rise in brain temperature (<0.01 degrees C). Here, we also report that transcranial pulsed ultrasound for intact brain circuit stimulation has a lateral spatial resolution of approximately 2 mm and does not require exogenous factors or surgical invasion.