Opioid maintenance treatment: trajectories in and out of treatment

Problem: Although efficacy studies of opioid maintenance treatment (OMT) have shown evidence of treatment benefits, there is still need for studies on its effectiveness in natural clinical processes. This study investigates the development in health, substance use and social conditions of those who applied for OMT, including those denied access or discharged.

Method: First, persons assessed for admittance in 2005–2011 (n?=?127) were categorized into four trajectory groups based on whether they were admitted or denied (n?=?19), discharged (n?=?31), readmitted (n?=?21) or had been undergoing OMT without interruption (n?=?56). Second, 99 of these, the analytical sample, were interviewed at follow-up using (a) the Addiction Severity Index (ASI) for seven problem-areas and housing, and (b) self-rated change in 11 problem areas. The ASI was compared to baseline interviews after 55 months (mean). Third, outcomes within groups was studied in relation to alternative interventions.

Results: Within the analytical sample, those denied OMT showed no improvements at group level, those discharged had some improvements, more if readmitted than if not and those with uninterrupted OMT showed the most comprehensive improvements. Those outside OMT, denied and discharged, had considerable mortality risks related to ongoing drug use, especially in lack of well-planned alternative interventions.

Conclusion: Improvements strongly relate to access to OMT. This study underscores that access to OMT improves the situation in all areas investigated and decreases the risk for drug-related death. It underscores the importance of two major risk situations, i.e. being denied OMT and being discharged.     

Five-year clinical outcomes using the bioresorbable vascular scaffold: Insights from the FRANCE ABSORB registry

Central illustration: cumulative major adverse cardiac events (MACE) and bioresorbable vascular scaffold (BVS) thrombosis rates after 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 years.

     

健康干预在肥胖中学生中所起的效果评价

目的：探讨健康干预应用于肥胖中学生的效果。方法：抽取张掖市第一中学肥胖中学生180例，随机分为观察组与对照组，观察组实施健康干预，对照组仅予以常规健康教育，比较两组肥胖改善情况。结果：观察组干预效果显著优于对照组（P＜0．05）；干预后观察组的 BMI、腰围、胸围及皮脂厚度均较对照组显著降低（P＜0．05）。结论：在肥胖中学生中实施健康干预有利于促进学生身体形态生长水平的改善，控制和降低学生 BMI和肥胖增长速度。     

Platelets in Early Antibody-Mediated Rejection of Renal Transplants

Antibody-mediated rejection is a major complication in renal transplantation. The pathologic manifestations of acute antibody-mediated rejection that has progressed to functional impairment of a renal transplant have been defined in clinical biopsy specimens. However, the initial stages of the process are difficult to resolve with the unavoidable variables of clinical studies. We devised a model of renal transplantation to elucidate the initial stages of humoral rejection. Kidneys were orthotopically allografted to immunodeficient mice. After perioperative inflammation subsided, donor-specific alloantibodies were passively transferred to the recipient. Within 1 hour after a single transfer of antibodies, C4d was deposited diffusely on capillaries, and von Willebrand factor released from endothelial cells coated intravascular platelet aggregates. Platelet-transported inflammatory mediators platelet factor 4 and serotonin accumulated in the graft at 100- to 1000-fold higher concentrations compared with other platelet-transported chemokines. Activated platelets that expressed P-selectin attached to vascular endothelium and macrophages. These intragraft inflammatory changes were accompanied by evidence of acute endothelial injury. Repeated transfers of alloantibodies over 1 week sustained high levels of platelet factor 4 and serotonin. Platelet depletion decreased platelet mediators and altered the accumulation of macrophages. These data indicate that platelets augment early inflammation in response to donor-specific antibodies and that platelet-derived mediators may be markers of evolving alloantibody responses.     

A new approach to prevent HIV transmission: Project Protect intervention for recently infected individuals

Past research suggests that as many as 50% of onward human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmissions occur during acute and recent HIV infection. It is clearly important to develop interventions which focus on this highly infectious stage of HIV infection to prevent further transmission in the risk networks of acutely and recently infected individuals. Project Protect tries to find recently and acutely infected individuals and prevents HIV transmission in their risk networks. Participants are recruited by community health outreach workers at community-based HIV testing sites and drug users' community venues, by coupon referrals and through referrals from AIDS clinics. When a network with acute/recent infection is identified, network members are interviewed about their risky behaviors, network information is collected, and blood is drawn for HIV testing. Participants are also educated and given prevention materials (condoms, syringes, educational materials); HIV-infected participants are referred to AIDS clinics and are assisted with access to care. Community alerts about elevated risk of HIV transmission are distributed within the risk networks of recently infected. Overall, 342 people were recruited to the project and screened for acute/recent HIV infection. Only six index cases of recent infection (2.3% of all people screened) were found through primary screening at voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) sites, but six cases of recent infection were found through contact tracing of these recently infected participants (7% of network members who came to the interview). Combining screening at VCT sites and contact tracing the number of recently infected people we located as compared to VCT screening alone. No adverse events were encountered. These first results provide evidence for the theory behind the intervention, i.e., in the risk networks of recently infected people there are other people with recent HIV infection and they can be successfully located without increasing stigma for project participants.     

护理干预对放疗科头颈部肿瘤放疗患者生活质量的影响

目的本文主要研究和探讨护理干预对放疗科头颈部肿瘤放疗患者生活质量的影响。方法将我院2017年2月份至2018年10月份收治的100例头颈部肿瘤放疗患者作为本次研究的对象,在随机原则的指导下把100例患者分为对照组和实验组,每组患者的数量为50例。对照组患者给予常规护理,实验组患者实施护理干预,对两组患者的生活质量、睡眠质量、护理满意度和护理依从性等进行对比分析。结果在生活质量、睡眠质量、护理满意度和护理依从性等方面,组间进行对比分析,实验组都明显优于对照组,P<0.05差异具有统计学意义。结论对头颈部肿瘤放疗患者实施护理干预可以让患者的生活质量、睡眠质量、护理依从性以及护理满意度等都得到显著的改善,从而让患者以一种积极、乐观的心态接受放疗,这对于放疗效果的提高具有重要的作用。总之,这一护理模式应该在临床中进行推广和使用。