In-hospital pulmonary rehabilitation after completion of primary respiratory disease treatment improves physical activity and ADL performance: A prospective intervention study.

INTRODUCTION: Pulmonary rehabilitation improves the physical condition of patients with chronic respiratory disease; however, there are patients who cannot leave the hospital because of their low activities of daily living (ADLs), despite the completion of primary respiratory disease treatment and rehabilitation during treatment. Therefore, this study demonstrated that those patients recovered their ADLs through in-hospital pulmonary rehabilitation after treatment completion. METHODS: We prospectively studied 24 hospitalized patients who had some remaining symptoms and showed low ADL scores of 9 points or less on the short physical performance battery after undergoing treatment for respiratory disease in Fukujuji Hospital from October 2018 to October 2019, excluding 2 patients who had re-exacerbation and 1 patient who could not be examined using the incremental shuttle walk test (ISWT). After completion of the primary respiratory disease treatment, patients moved to the regional comprehensive care ward, and they received pulmonary rehabilitation for 2 weeks. In the ward, patients who could not yet leave the hospital could undergo pulmonary rehabilitation for up to 60 days. Data were evaluated three times: upon treatment completion (baseline), postrehabilitation, and 3 months after baseline. The main outcome was an improvement in the incremental shuttle walk test (ISWT) postrehabilitation. RESULTS: The median age of the patients was 80 (interquartile range (IQR): 74.8-84.5), and 14 patients (58.3%) were male. The ISWT distance significantly increased postrehabilitation (median [IQR]: 60 m [18-133] vs 120 m [68-203], P < .001). The Barthel Index (BI) (P < .001), the modified Medical Research Council (P < .001), and other scale scores were also improved. Among patients with acute respiratory diseases such as pneumonia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and interstitial pneumonia, ISWT and other data showed improvement at the postrehabilitation timepoint. Ten patients who could perform examinations at 3 months after baseline were evaluated 3 months after taking baseline data prior to starting rehabilitation. The ISWT showed significant improvement 3 months after baseline compared to baseline (P = .024), and the ISWT distance was maintained after rehabilitation. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Physical activity, symptoms, mental health, and ADL status in patients who had not recovered after primary treatment completion for respiratory diseases could improve through in-hospital pulmonary rehabilitation.

Serum selenium and liposoluble vitamins in Japanese Black cows that had stillborn calves.

Stillbirth and dystocia are major factors that negatively affect beef production. We sought to clarify serum selenium and liposoluble vitamin levels in Japanese Black cows that gave birth to stillborn calves (stillbirth cows). Blood samples were collected from 103 stillbirth cows and 95 cows that gave birth to healthy calves (control cows). Serum levels of selenium (45.8 ± 16.0 ng/ml) and vitamin A (73.0 ± 24.8 IU/dl) in stillbirth cows were lower (P<0.05) than those in control cows (52.2 ± 8.9 ng/ml and 93.3 ± 14.8 IU/dl, respectively). Our findings suggest that appropriate serum selenium and vitamin A levels are important for calving cows.

Different recovery of the train-of-four ratio from rocuronium-induced neuromuscular blockade in the diaphragm and the tibialis anterior muscle in rat.

PURPOSE: To clarify differences between the diaphragm and the limb muscles in terms of the effects of neuromuscular blockers concerning train-of-four (TOF) ratios, we compared the recovery of twitch tensions and TOF ratios in the diaphragm and in the tibialis anterior muscle in rats in vivo. METHODS: We conducted a dose-response study in 16 rats and a recovery study in 8 rats. In the recovery study, we made phrenic nerve-diaphragm and sciatic nerve-tibialis anterior preparations simultaneously in each of 8 rats that were anesthetized intraperitoneally with pentobarbitone (30 mg x kg(-1)) and urethane (500 mg x kg(-1)). After supramaximal stimuli were applied simultaneously in a TOF pattern to both the phrenic and sciatic nerves, rocuronium was injected intravenously, at 10 mg x kg(-1). In the diaphragm and the tibialis anterior muscle, we monitored the first-twitch response to TOF stimuli (T1) and also the TOF ratios. The following variables were determined for each muscle: (1) the times at which T1 recovered to 25%, 50%, and 75% of control T1, and the times at which the TOF ratio recovered to 25%, 50%, and 75%; and (2) the values of the TOF ratio at 25%, 50%, and 75% recovery of T1. RESULTS: At 25%, 50%, and 75% recovery of T1 in the diaphragm, TOF ratios were 8.9 +/- 5.0 %, 26.7 +/- 7.7 %, and 55.9 +/- 5.4%, respectively, while in the tibialis anterior, the TOF ratios were 18.0 +/- 5.9%, 32.5 +/- 7.4%, and 54.4 +/- 7.5%, respectively (diaphragm vs tibialis anterior; P < 0.01 for comparisons at both 25% and 50% recovery of T1). CONCLUSION: Our method of simultaneous in vivo evaluation of TOF ratios in both the diaphragm and the tibialis anterior confirmed significant differences between the two muscles in relationships between first-twitch tension and the TOF ratio.

A nationwide survey on seroprevalence of Neospora caninum infection in beef cattle in Uruguay.

Bovine abortions due to Neospora caninum infection have been reported worldwide and its economic impact on the beef industry has been acknowledged as a problem. Uruguay has the largest export value of beef per acre in South America. However, no data on the prevalence of N. caninum infection have been available in this country. The objective of this study was to estimate the prevalence and distribution of N. caninum infection in beef cattle in Uruguay through a nationwide survey. A two stage sampling design was used with farms being selected in stage one and animals being selected in stage two. A brief questionnaire was administered on each farm. Seroprevalence of N. caninum in 4444 beef cattle from 229 farms in all the counties, except Montevideo, of Uruguay was determined by an ELISA. The data were then analyzed to identify associations between infection and variables such as type of animal (cow or heifer), herd size, use of veterinary advice, productivity of the soil in relation to the national average, use of improved grass, use of mineral salts, use of supplemental feed, and presence of a dog(s) on the farm. The estimated proportion of positive farms for all the beef cattle operations was 69.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 53.7-84.7). The overall cattle seroprevalence was estimated as 13.9% (95% CI, 11.6-16.3). The prevalence estimation by animal category was 14.3% (95% CI, 11.4-17.2) for beef cows and 12.9% (95% CI, 10.0-15.8) for beef heifers. There was no significant difference in the estimated prevalence between the two animal types. There was no significant difference in the animal level prevalence of N. caninum infection among different herd sizes. None of the herd demographic or management variables was significantly associated with the seropositivity to N. caninum infection. In conclusion, these results show that N. caninum infection is common among beef herds across Uruguay. Since the beef industry is one of the key industries in Uruguay, the economic effect and risk factors of N. caninum infection among beef cattle in this country should be further evaluated in the near future.