Protocol for a national, multicentre study of post-endoscopy colorectal and upper gastrointestinal cancers: The POET study.

AIM: The primary aim of the study is to define the post-colonoscopy colorectal cancer (PCCRC) three-year rate and the post-endoscopy upper gastrointestinal cancer (PEUGIC) three-year rate across public hospitals in Aotearoa New Zealand. METHOD: This retrospective cohort study will be conducted via the trainee-led STRATA Collaborative network. All public hospitals in Aotearoa New Zealand will be eligible to participate. Data will be collected on all adult patients who are diagnosed with colorectal adenocarcinoma within 6 to 48 months of a colonoscopy and all adult patients diagnosed with gastroesophageal cancer within 6 to 48 months of an upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. The study period will be from 2010 to 2022. The primary outcome is the PCCRC 3-year rate and the PEUGIC 3-year rate. Secondary aims are to define and characterize survival after PCCRC or PEUGIC, the cause of PCCRC as based on the World Endoscopy Organization System of Analysis definitions, trends over time, and centre level variation. CONCLUSION: This protocol describes the methodology for a nationwide retrospective cohort study on PCCRC and PEUGIC in Aotearoa New Zealand. These data will lay the foundation for future studies and quality improvement initiatives.

Late Outcomes of the RAPID-TnT Randomized Controlled Trial: 0/1-Hour High-Sensitivity Troponin T Protocol in Suspected ACS.

BACKGROUND: High-sensitivity troponin assays are increasingly being adopted to expedite evaluation of patients with suspected acute coronary syndromes. Few direct comparisons have examined whether the enhanced performance of these assays at low concentrations leads to changes in care that improves longer-term outcomes. This study evaluated late outcomes of participants managed under an unmasked 0/1-hour high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) protocol compared with a 0/3-hour masked hs-cTnT protocol. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter prospective patient-level randomized comparison of care informed by unmasked 0/1-hour hs-cTnT protocol (reported to <5 ng/L) versus standard practice masked hs-cTnT testing (reported to ≤29 ng/L) assessed at 0/3 hours and followed participants for 12 months. Participants included were those presenting to metropolitan emergency departments with suspected acute coronary syndromes, without ECG evidence of coronary ischemia. The primary end point was time to all-cause death or myocardial infarction using Cox proportional hazards models adjusted for clustering within hospitals. RESULTS: Between August 2015 and April 2019, we randomized 3378 participants, of whom 108 withdrew, resulting in 12-month follow-up for 3270 participants (masked: 1632; unmasked: 1638). Among these, 2993 (91.5%) had an initial troponin concentration of ≤29 ng/L. Deployment of the 0/1-hour hs-cTnT protocol was associated with reductions in functional testing. Over 12-month follow-up, there was no difference in invasive coronary angiography (0/1-hour unmasked: 232/1638 [14.2%]; 0/3-hour masked: 202/1632 [12.4%]; P=0.13), although an increase was seen among patients with hs-cTnT levels within the masked range (0/1-hour unmasked arm: 168/1507 [11.2%]; 0/3-hour masked arm: 124/1486 [8.3%]; P=0.010). By 12 months, all-cause death and myocardial infarction did not differ between study arms overall (0/1-hour: 82/1638 [5.0%] versus 0/3-hour: 62/1632 [3.8%]; hazard ratio, 1.32 [95% CI, 0.95-1.83]; P=0.10). Among participants with initial troponin T concentrations ≤29 ng/L, unmasked hs-cTnT reporting was associated with an increase in death or myocardial infarction (0/1-hour: 55/1507 [3.7%] versus 0/3-hour: 34/1486 [2.3%]; hazard ratio, 1.60 [95% CI, 1.05-2.46]; P=0.030). CONCLUSIONS: Unmasked hs-cTnT reporting deployed within a 0/1-hour protocol did not reduce ischemic events over 12-month follow-up. Changes in practice associated with the implementation of this protocol may be associated with an increase in death and myocardial infarction among those with newly identified troponin elevations. Registration: URL: https://www.anzctr.org.au; Unique identifier: ACTRN12615001379505.

A Randomized Trial of a 1-Hour Troponin T Protocol in Suspected Acute Coronary Syndromes: The Rapid Assessment of Possible Acute Coronary Syndrome in the Emergency Department With High-Sensitivity Troponin T Study (RAPID-TnT).

BACKGROUND: High-sensitivity troponin assays promise earlier discrimination of myocardial infarction. Yet, the benefits and harms of this improved discriminatory performance when incorporated within rapid testing protocols, with respect to subsequent testing and clinical events, has not been evaluated in an in-practice patient-level randomized study. This multicenter study evaluated the noninferiority of a 0/1-hour high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) protocol in comparison with a 0/3-hour masked hs-cTnT protocol in patients with suspected acute coronary syndrome presenting to the emergency department (ED). METHODS: Patients were randomly assigned to either a 0/1-hour hs-cTnT protocol (reported to the limit of detection [<5 ng/L]) or masked hs-cTnT reported to ≤29 ng/L evaluated at 0/3-hours (standard arm). The 30-day primary end point was all-cause death and myocardial infarction. Noninferiority was defined as an absolute margin of 0.5% determined by Poisson regression. RESULTS: In total, 3378 participants with an emergency presentation were randomly assigned between August 2015 and April 2019. Ninety participants were deemed ineligible or withdrew consent. The remaining participants received care guided either by the 0/1-hour hs-cTnT protocol (n=1646) or the 0/3-hour standard masked hs-cTnT protocol (n=1642) and were followed for 30 days. Median age was 59 (49-70) years, and 47% were female. Participants in the 0/1-hour arm were more likely to be discharged from the ED (0/1-hour arm: 45.1% versus standard arm: 32.3%, P<0.001) and median ED length of stay was shorter (0/1-hour arm: 4.6 [interquartile range, 3.4-6.4] hours versus standard arm: 5.6 (interquartile range, 4.0-7.1) hours, P<0.001). Those randomly assigned to the 0/1-hour protocol were less likely to undergo functional cardiac testing (0/1-hour arm: 7.5% versus standard arm: 11.0%, P<0.001). The 0/1-hour hs-cTnT protocol was not inferior to standard care (0/1-hour arm: 17/1646 [1.0%] versus 16/1642 [1.0%]; incidence rate ratio, 1.06 [ 0.53-2.11], noninferiority P value=0.006, superiority P value=0.867), although an increase in myocardial injury was observed. Among patients discharged from ED, the 0/1-hour protocol had a negative predictive value of 99.6% (95% CI, 99.0-99.9%) for 30-day death or myocardial infarction. CONCLUSIONS: This in-practice evaluation of a 0/1-hour hs-cTnT protocol embedded in ED care enabled more rapid discharge of patients with suspected acute coronary syndrome. Improving short-term outcomes among patients with newly recognized troponin T elevation will require an evolution in management strategies for these patients. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: URL: https://www.anzctr.org.au. Unique identifier: ACTRN12615001379505.

Initiation of a formalized precision medicine program in gynecologic oncology.

OBJECTIVE: In an effort to better incorporate precision medicine into clinical practice, we initiated a pilot project to screen, discuss, and genetically characterize patients with metastatic or recurrent gynecologic malignancies for whom no curative standard of care exists. METHODS: In 7/2014, we initiated a multi-disciplinary Precision Medicine Board (PMB) whose purpose was to apply molecular profiling to select and prioritize early phase clinical trial enrollment for high-risk gynecologic malignancies. Additional objectives were to record outcomes and enable scientific discussions of mutations which may foster local translational research. FoundationOne was the preferred genomic platform; results were reviewed by a team comprised of disease site specialists, phase I trialists, and basic and translational scientists affiliated with the Gynecologic Cancer Program. A detailed database for each patient was created and is followed prospectively for treatment use and resultant outcomes. RESULTS: To date, we have presented 62 cases with interpretable FoundationOne testing on 60 tumor samples (31 ovarian, 18 uterine, 9 cervical, and 4 other female genital tract). Significant genomic alterations were commonly found in all tumor types (median: 3); TP53 (45%) and PIK3CA (27%) were the most frequently noted mutations; however, molecular profiling resulted in identification of few actionable mutations (6%). To date, we have matched 4 patients on therapies based on actionable mutations. CONCLUSIONS: The predominant function of our PMB is establishment of a forum to enhance research while providing clinical care for refractory malignancies. We have matched patients with specific mutations to ongoing trials and are developing investigator-initiated studies based on trends within genomic profiling results. Longer-term follow up will be required to determine the success of this strategy.

Alcohol and remembering a hypothetical sexual assault: Can people who were under the influence of alcohol during the event provide accurate testimony?

We examined the influence of alcohol on remembering an interactive hypothetical sexual assault scenario in the laboratory using a balanced placebo design. Female participants completed a memory test 24 hours and 4 months later. Participants reported less information (i.e., responded "don't know" more often to questions) if they were under the influence of alcohol during scenario encoding. The accuracy of the information intoxicated participants reported did not differ compared to sober participants, however, suggesting intoxicated participants were effectively monitoring the accuracy of their memory at test. Additionally, peripheral details were remembered less accurately than central details, regardless of the intoxication level; and memory accuracy for peripheral details decreased by a larger amount compared to central details across the retention interval. Finally, participants were more accurate if they were told they were drinking alcohol rather than a placebo. We discuss theoretical implications for alcohol myopia and memory regulation, together with applied implications for interviewing intoxicated witnesses.

Seroconversion for infectious pathogens among UK military personnel deployed to Afghanistan, 2008-2011.

Military personnel are at high risk of contracting vector-borne and zoonotic infections, particularly during overseas deployments, when they may be exposed to endemic or emerging infections not prevalent in their native countries. We conducted seroprevalence testing of 467 UK military personnel deployed to Helmand Province, Afghanistan, during 2008-2011 and found that up to 3.1% showed seroconversion for infection with Rickettsia spp., Coxiella burnetii, sandfly fever virus, or hantavirus; none showed seroconversion for infection with Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus. Most seroconversions occurred in personnel who did not report illness, except for those with hantavirus (70% symptomatic). These results indicate that many exposures to infectious pathogens, and potentially infections resulting from those exposures, may go unreported. Our findings reinforce the need for continued surveillance of military personnel and for education of health care providers to help recognize and prevent illnesses and transmission of pathogens during and after overseas deployments.

Predictors of posttraumatic stress in parents of children diagnosed with a disorder of sex development.

The aims of the current study were twofold: (1) to assess the prevalence/severity of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) as well as cognitive and emotional responses in parents whose children were diagnosed with a disorder of sex development (DSD); and (2) to assess factors which contributed to PTSS. We hypothesized that parents would show elevated levels of PTSS and that negative cognitive and/or emotional responses would be predictive. Participants were parents of children diagnosed with a DSD. Thirty-six mothers and 11 fathers completed a measure of posttraumatic stress and reported difficulties in the domains of cognition (e.g., confusion) and emotion (e.g., grief). Using multiple regression, we determined factors contributing to parental PTSS. Reported PTSS was high: 31 % of mothers and 18 % of fathers met the threshold for caseness for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Regression included: child sex, parent sex, child age at diagnosis, years since diagnosis, genital ambiguity, father occupation, cognitive confusion, and emotional distress. Only cognitive confusion contributed significantly to variance in PTSS. Parents of children with DSD may experience the diagnosis as traumatic, evidenced by high rates of PTSS in the current report. Assessment of reactions to their children's diagnoses revealed that cognitive confusion, and not emotional distress, predicted PTSS. In this case, direct cognitive interventions may be applicable. Though psychological support is widely recommended, no detailed intervention has been offered. Our findings suggest that we may directly apply models successful in other areas of pediatrics, such as pediatric oncology. Future studies may assess the usefulness of such an intervention.

Combining TP53 mutation and isoform has the potential to improve clinical practice.

The clinical importance of assessing and combining data on TP53 mutations and isoforms is discussed in this article. It gives a succinct overview of the structural makeup and key biological roles of the isoforms. It then provides a comprehensive summary of the roles that p53 isoforms play in cancer development, therapy response and resistance. The review provides a summary of studies demonstrating the role of p53 isoforms as potential prognostic indicators. It further provides evidence on how the presence of TP53 mutations may affect one or more of these activities and the association of p53 isoforms with clinicopathological data in various tumour types. The review gives insight into the present diagnostic hurdles for identifying TP53 isoforms and makes recommendations to improve their evaluation. In conclusion, this review offers suggestions for enhancing the identification and integration of TP53 isoforms in conjunction with mutation data within the clinical context.

Supply and demand mismatch for flexible (part-time) surgical training in Australasia.

OBJECTIVES: To define current patterns of flexible (part-time) surgical training in Australasia, determine supply and demand for part-time positions, and identify work-related factors motivating interest in flexible training. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: All Royal Australasian College of Surgeons trainees (n = 1191) were surveyed in 2010. Questions assessed demographic characteristics and working patterns, interest in flexible training, work-related fatigue and work-life balance preferences. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Interest in part-time training, and work-related factors motivating this interest. RESULTS: Of the 1191 trainees, 659 responded (response rate, 55.3%). Respondents were representative of all trainees in terms of specialty and sex. The median age of respondents was 32 2013s, and 187 (28.4%) were female. Most of the 659 respondents (627, 95.1%) were in full-time clinical training; only two (0.3%) were in part-time clinical training, and 30 (4.6%) were not in active clinical training. An interest in part-time training was reported by 208 respondents (31.6%; 54.3% of women v 25.9% of men; P < 0.001). Trainees expressing an interest in part-time training were more likely to report that fatigue impaired their performance at work and limited their social or family life, and that they had insufficient time in life for things outside surgical training, including study or research (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: There is a striking mismatch between demand for flexible surgical training and the number of trainees currently in part-time training positions in Australia and New Zealand. Efforts are needed to facilitate part-time surgical training.

Fostering Authenticity in Surgical Education: Creating a Safe Space for Medical Students to Practice as Doctors.

Over the past 10 years we have witnessed major changes to the medical education landscape in response to advances in digital technologies. Couple this with the disruptions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic and we have what could be described as a 'perfect storm.' Rather than hunker down and wait for it to pass, we took it as an opportunity to re-evaluate how we practice surgical education in the fourth year of our 6 year medical programme. In this article, we describe the formation of 6 core principles that function as pivot points in developing a new perspective centered on the importance of engaging and empowering our students as emerging clinicians. From these 6 principles, we designed and developed 3 interventions. Each intervention is discussed in regard to its purpose, operation and overall integration into the program.

Monkeypox virus-infected individuals mount comparable humoral immune responses as Smallpox-vaccinated individuals.

In early 2022, a cluster of monkeypox virus (MPXV) infection (mpox) cases were identified within the UK with no prior travel history to MPXV-endemic regions. Subsequently, case numbers exceeding 80,000 were reported worldwide, primarily affecting gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM). Public health agencies worldwide have offered the IMVANEX Smallpox vaccination to these individuals at high-risk to provide protection and limit the spread of MPXV. We have developed a comprehensive array of ELISAs to study poxvirus-induced antibodies, utilising 24 MPXV and 3 Vaccinia virus (VACV) recombinant antigens. Panels of serum samples from individuals with differing Smallpox-vaccine doses and those with prior MPXV infection were tested on these assays, where we observed that one dose of Smallpox vaccination induces a low number of antibodies to a limited number of MPXV antigens but increasing with further vaccination doses. MPXV infection induced similar antibody responses to diverse poxvirus antigens observed in Smallpox-vaccinated individuals. We identify MPXV A27 as a serological marker of MPXV-infection, whilst MPXV M1 (VACV L1) is likely IMVANEX-specific. Here, we demonstrate analogous humoral antigen recognition between both MPXV-infected or Smallpox-vaccinated individuals, with binding to diverse yet core set of poxvirus antigens, providing opportunities for future vaccine (e.g., mRNA) and therapeutic (e.g., mAbs) design.

Complications of Foley catheters--is infection the greatest risk?

PURPOSE: Foley catheters cause a variety of harms, including infection, pain and trauma. Although symptomatic urinary tract infection and asymptomatic bacteriuria are frequently discussed, genitourinary trauma receives comparatively little attention. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A dedicated Foley catheter nurse prospectively reviewed the medical records of inpatients with a Foley catheter at the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center from August 21, 2008 to December 31, 2009. Daily surveillance included Foley catheter related bacteriuria and trauma. Data were analyzed as the number of event days per 100 Foley catheter days. RESULTS: During 6,513 surveyed Foley catheter days, urinalysis/urine culture was done on 407 (6.3%) days. This testing identified 116 possible urinary tract infection episodes (1.8% of Foley catheter days), of which only 21 (18%) involved clinical manifestations. However, the remaining 95 asymptomatic bacteriuria episodes accounted for 39 (70%) of 56 antimicrobial treated possible urinary tract infection episodes (for proportion of treated episodes with vs without symptomatic urinary tract infection manifestations, p = 0.005). Concurrently 100 instances of catheter associated genitourinary trauma (1.5% of Foley catheter days) were recorded, of which 32 (32%) led to interventions such as prolonged catheterization or cystoscopy. Trauma prompting an intervention accounted for as great a proportion of Foley catheter days (0.5%) as did symptomatic urinary tract infection (0.3%) (p = 0.17). CONCLUSIONS: In this prospective surveillance project, intervention triggering Foley catheter related genitourinary trauma was as common as symptomatic urinary tract infection. Moreover, despite recent increased attention to the distinction between asymptomatic bacteriuria and symptomatic urinary tract infection in catheterized patients, asymptomatic bacteriuria accounted for significantly more antimicrobial treatment than did symptomatic urinary tract infection. Elimination of unnecessary Foley catheter use could prevent symptomatic urinary tract infection, unnecessary antimicrobial therapy for asymptomatic bacteriuria and Foley catheter related trauma.

Impact of implementing the aseptic compounding management system, Medcura, on internal error rates within an oncology pharmacy aseptic unit: a mixed methods evaluation.

BACKGROUND: As cancer survivorship improves, pressure on oncology services to provide safe, timely treatments increases. Traditional manual compounding processes are error prone, putting patients at risk. Additionally, errors have a detrimental impact on service delivery and staff morale. Information technology is increasingly utilised to improve safety and service delivery of systemic anti-cancer therapy (SACT). The compounding process control system, Medcura, was developed to manage the end-to-end process and reduce transcription and calculation errors. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the impact of implementing Medcura on internal errors and staff perceptions of errors. METHOD: An aseptic process control system, Medcura, was implemented in a busy pharmacy chemotherapy production unit. Internal error and severity data were collected and analysed for 14 months before and during implementation, and 24 months after implementation. In addition, one-to-one semi-structured interviews were carried out with pharmacy staff, pre- and post-implementation. Interviews were transcribed and thematically analysed. RESULTS: Error rates decreased after implementation from 2.9% to 2.1%. The types of error detected also changed with a decrease in worksheet and labelling errors, and an increase in assembly errors. The severity of the errors, as a percentage of total errors made, also decreased after implementation. Staff were predominantly positive about Medcura; it reduced the number of errors, eased the preparation of worksheets and labels, reduced pressure and work-related stress, and improved job satisfaction. CONCLUSIONS: Implementing Medcura has resulted in a reduction in both error rate and severity. Specifically, errors related to label and worksheet generation have seen the largest reduction. Staff have viewed these changes positively and report reduced levels of work-related stress. Further development and roll-out will improve patient safety and staff morale.

Impact of Clinical Data Veracity on Cancer Genomic Research.

Genomic analysis of tumors is transforming our understanding of cancer. However, although a great deal of attention is paid to the accuracy of the cancer genomic data itself, less attention has been paid to the accuracy of the associated clinical information that renders the genomic data useful for research. In this brief communication, we suggest that omissions and errors in clinical annotations have a major impact on the interpretation of cancer genomic data. We describe our discovery of annotation omissions and errors when reviewing an already carefully annotated colorectal cancer gene expression dataset from our laboratory. The potential importance of clinical annotation omissions and errors was then explored using simulation analyses with an independent genomic dataset. We suggest that the completeness and veracity of clinical annotations accompanying cancer genomic data require renewed focus by the oncology research community, when planning new collections and when interpreting existing cancer genomic data.

Reduction of inappropriate urinary catheter use at a Veterans Affairs hospital through a multifaceted quality improvement project.

BACKGROUND: Foley catheter (FC) use is a modifiable risk factor for hospital-acquired urinary tract infection, the most common type of nosocomial infection. It is unknown whether sustained, hospital-wide reductions in FC use are achievable by combining interventions with demonstrated short-term effectiveness in selected units. METHODS: A multifaceted quality improvement project to decrease unnecessary FC use and increase order documentation was instituted throughout the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center in March 2005, after a >2-year baseline period. Bundled interventions included multiple types of education, system redesign, rewards, and feedback (phases I and II), plus, in phase III, involvement of a dedicated FC nurse. RESULTS: The daily prevalence of FC use dropped steeply during intervention phase I (5.5 months), from a 15.2% baseline mean to a 9.3% nadir, but rebounded quickly during the subsequent hiatus phase (1.2 months). It dropped again (mean, 13.6%) during intervention phase II (27.3 months) and even further (mean, 12.0%) during intervention phase III (22.8 months) (P ≤ .001, phase II or III vs baseline). Compared with baseline, during phase III (with the dedicated FC nurse) the mean daily percentages of nonordered and nonindicated FCs dropped from 17% to 5.1% and from 15% to 1.2%, respectively. During phases II and III combined, an estimated total of 6691 FC days were avoided. CONCLUSIONS: Significant hospital-wide reductions in total and inappropriate FC use and improved FC order documentation were achieved through a multicomponent campaign. The greatest and most sustained improvements accompanied the involvement of a dedicated FC nurse.

Immunohistochemistry to detect hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer in young patients: the 7-year Auckland experience.

BACKGROUND: In accordance with the Bethesda Guidelines, Auckland's metropolitan hospitals routinely perform immunohistochemistry for mismatch repair proteins on the tumor specimens of all patients with colorectal cancer aged 50 years and younger. When loss of expression is evident, patients are offered genetic counseling and gene mutation analysis. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to determine the completeness of young patient capture over the first 7 years of routine testing, to find whether patients were referred for genetic testing, and to determine the proportion of patients found to have a mismatch repair gene mutation. DESIGN: This study retrospectively reviewed clinical, pathological, and genetic data. SETTINGS: The study was conducted at 3 public hospitals in Auckland, New Zealand. PATIENTS: All patients aged 50 years and younger treated for colorectal cancer at Auckland's metropolitan hospitals between January 2001 and December 2007 (n = 243) were included. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The loss of expression of mismatch repair proteins by immunohistochemistry, referral for genetic testing, and proportion with mismatch repair gene mutation were the main outcome measures. RESULTS: Two hundred fourteen (88%) eligible patients had immunohistochemical analysis of their tumor and 33 (14%) had loss of expression of one or more mismatch repair proteins. Twenty-six patients were referred for genetic counseling, of whom 22 underwent genetic testing. A mismatch repair gene mutation was identified in 10 patients. LIMITATIONS: Seven patients with loss of expression of mismatch repair proteins by immunohistochemistry were not referred for genetic assessment. CONCLUSIONS: We have identified a mismatch repair gene mutation diagnostic of hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer in 5% of all patients with colorectal cancer who were aged 50 years and younger. Routine immunohistochemical prescreening has important clinical benefit for these patients and their relatives.

Barriers and solutions to trainee-led research collaboratives in New Zealand.

This article seeks to describe our experience enabling large-scale collaborative studies within trainee-led surgical research networks, to highlight systemic barriers to the use of this methodology and to propose solutions that will facilitate trainee-led collaborative research in New Zealand.

Improving the long-term storage of a mammalian biosensor cell line via genetic engineering.

The unique properties of mammalian cells make them valuable for a variety of applications in medicine, industry, and diagnostics. However, the utility of such cells is restricted due to the difficulty in storing them non-frozen for an extended time and still maintaining their stability and responsiveness. In order to extend the active life span of a mammalian biosensor cell line at room and refrigerated temperatures, we have over expressed genes that are reported to provide protection from apoptosis, stress, or oxidation. We demonstrated that over expression of genes from the extremophile, Artemia franciscana, as well as GADD45beta, extends room-temperature storage of fully active cells 3.5-fold, while over production of several anti-apoptotic proteins extended 4 degrees C storage 2- to 3-fold. Methodologies like these that improve the stability of mammalian-cell-based technologies in the absence of freezers may enable widespread use of these tools in applications that have been considered impractical based solely on limited storage characteristics.

Tourniquets revisited.

BACKGROUND: Controversy swirls about optimal control of life-threatening hemorrhage from an injured extremity whether in combat in the Middle East or in trauma care at home. Left unanswered are four critical questions: (1) What is the simplest tourniquet available? (2) Can it be used below the elbow and the knee? (3) Is pain a factor? (4) What data support so called "Pressure Points?" METHODS: To address these questions, we measured the effects of three common tourniquets on arterial pulses (Doppler signals) at wrist and ankle of 10 healthy adult volunteers of either sex. We recorded ease of application (1-3, with 3 easiest) by the applicant and pain experienced by the subject (none, light, moderate, severe). Tourniquets were applied sequentially to arm, forearm, thigh, and leg. Tourniquet success was defined as sustained elimination of distal pulse. Pressure points were brachial artery in arm and cubital fossa, common femoral artery (groin), and popliteal artery (knee). The same criteria defined success. All numerical data were meaned and standard error (SE) computed. Significance of apparent differences was assessed with Student's t test for paired observations. RESULTS: Mean age was 36.5 +/- 6.0 years; blood pressure was 123 +/- 6/72 +/- 4 mm Hg. All three tourniquets (sphygmomanometer, 1/2 inch rubber tubing, cloth and windlass) were successful in all patients in all four locations with two exceptions. Thighs of two subjects were too large for the sphygmomanometer and one person experienced test terminating pain with the rubber tube on arm and thigh and with the cloth and windlass on the thigh. Manual (digital) occlusion of the brachial artery in the arm was possible in all but one subject; however, the Doppler signal at the wrist returned within 40.6 +/-6.5 seconds in all but one of the other nine subjects. Pressure point control of the common femoral artery resulted in identical findings except that the pulse returned within 20.6 +/- 4.7 seconds despite sustained pressure. Attempts at control of the brachial artery at the elbow and the popliteal artery at the knee were less successful. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that all tourniquets can be used successfully below the knee or elbow. The cloth and windlass is the easiest to apply. It is probably the most readily available or simplest to procure/improvise. Pain is irrelevant. "Pressure Point Control" of extremity arterial hemorrhage is a euphemistic misnomer.

Conformists or dynamic professionals: what's the current image that students are identifying with as a result of English Allied Health Professional Higher Education programmes?

How Allied Health Professional (AHP) students and educational providers within England are redefining professionalism is the focus of this small scale case study. A single case study design was used to explore how AHP students viewed how they had learnt to be professional. A literature review highlighted that professional socialisation and professional knowledge were both aspects of professionalism that individual health professionals adhere to, however how English based AHPs have benefited from becoming regulated by one professional body (Health Professions Council, HPC) is a fundamental question asked by the researcher, as there has been a drive both within the educational arena and health institutions for interprofessional and generic working. Seven students at one London University, where they experienced interprofessional education (IPE), were engaged in semi-structured interviews and the researcher used a phenomenological approach to interpret the data. The findings showed that all the students defined professionalism in terms of generic skills associated with patient/client-centred care. This mainly conformed to what they were being taught, though they did not feel that IPE enhanced their learning. The students felt it was important to have an up to date knowledge base, but thought that some of the theory taught was not relevant to their practice. The study concludes that there needs to be greater collaboration between higher educational establishments and clinical partners to ensure students are given a relevant and consistent view of professionalism, which enhances not only their collaborative practice but also their independent professional integrity.