Healthcare professionals' competencies and confidence in managing hospitalized patients with type 2 diabetes.

AIMS: In hospitals, 15%-20% of patients have diabetes. Therefore, all healthcare professionals (HCPs) must have a basic knowledge of in-hospital diabetes management. This survey assessed the knowledge of diabetes among HCPs in Denmark. METHODS: A 27-item questionnaire was developed and reviewed independently before the survey was distributed. The questionnaire contained seven baseline questions on the HCPs' current workplace, educational level, usual shift routines and years of experience, 18 multiple-choice questions and 2 cases. RESULTS: A total of 252 completed questionnaires were returned by 133 (52.8%) physicians, 101 (40.1%) nurses and 18 (7.1%) healthcare assistants. HCPs answered 50% of the questions correctly. Having experience from endocrinological departments increased the correct response score (0%-100%) by 6.2% points (95% CI 0.3-12.1) (p = 0.039) and 3.1% points (95% CI 1.5-4.7) for every increase in confidence level on a scale from 1 to 10 (p < 0.001). HCPs scored 8 out of 10 on a confidence level scale on average. In a fictive case, 50% of HCPs administered the correct bolus insulin dose. Hyperglycaemia (>10.0 mmol/L) and hypoglycaemia (<3.9 mmol/L) were correctly identified by around 40% of HCPs. Hypoglycaemia was rated more important than hyperglycaemia by most HCPs. CONCLUSION: Significant gaps in identifying hypo- and hyperglycaemia and correct administration of bolus insulin have been identified, which could be targeted in future education for HCPs. HCPs answered 50% of questions related to in-hospital diabetes management correctly. Experience from endocrinological departments and self-rated confidence levels are associated with HCPs' in-hospital diabetes competencies.

The relationship between platelet distribution width and disease activity in patients with polymyositis.

Introduction: Muscle enzymes are an indicator of ongoing muscle damage and disease activity in patients with idiopathic inflammatory myopathy. Although platelet-related parameters have been shown to be useful as markers of disease activity in autoimmune diseases, the relationship between platelet distribution width (PDW) and disease activity has not been previously studied in polymyositis. We aimed to determine the relationship between PDW and disease activity in patients with polymyositis. Material and methods: Twenty-seven patients with polymyositis and thirty healthy controls were included in the study. Disease activity was evaluated using the myositis disease activity assessment Visual Analogue Scale (MYOACT) and the Myositis Intention to Treat Index (MITAX). The relationship between PDW and disease activity was evaluated using Pearson's or Spearman's correlation and reliability was assessed using correlation coefficients. Results: The mean platelet volume (MPV) and plateletcrit (PCT) were significantly higher and PDW was significantly lower in patients with polymyositis compared to the control group. The mean PDW levels were lower in patients with constitutional symptoms and arthralgia/arthritis (p < 0.005). Although PDW levels were lower in patients with mechanical hand, lung involvement, or dysphagia compared to patients without, there was no statistically significant difference between them. Platelet distribution width was found to be negatively correlated with disease activity. Conclusions: We found that PDW was negatively correlated with MYOACT and MITAX, widely used tools in assessing the disease activity of polymyositis. Based on this, PDW may be utilized as a non-invasive potential index to assess disease activity in patients with polymyositis.

Efficacy of adalimumab therapy in experimental rat sclerosing encapsulated peritonitis model.

AIM: To investigate the efficacy of adalimumab treatment in an experimental rat sclerosing encapsulated peritonitis (SEP) model. METHODS: The study involved 40 Wistar albino rats divided into four groups: chlorhexidine (CH) group, control group, CH + adalimumab group, and CH + resting group. The control group received normal saline intraperitoneally (i.p.). Other groups received 0.1% CH gluconate, 15% ethanol, and normal saline mixture i.p. for three weeks in order to induce SEP. CH + adalimumab group received 5 mg/kg adalimumab i.p. at the beginning of week 4 and week 6, while CH + resting group was followed-up for three weeks without applying any procedure after the onset of SEP. Rats in groups CH and control group were sacrificed on day 21, and rats in group CH + adalimumab and CH + resting were sacrificed on day 42. All groups were evaluated for peritoneal thickness, inflammation, vascularization, and fibrosis. RESULTS: CH + adalimumab group showed a significant decrease in peritoneal thickness, fibrosis score, and vascular score compared with CH group and CH + resting group. CONCLUSION: Adalimumab can prevent SEP development.