Vasectomy related infertility: a major and costly medical problem

Of a group of 860 men who attended a private infertility clinic in Western Australia, 80 (9.3%) presented with vasectomy-related infertility. Of these men, 73 (91%) requested treatment due to re- marriage. The median age of the men was 42.5 years and their present partners were approximately 10 years younger. The median vasectomy interval in the men in this study was 9 years. Treatment of vasectomy- related infertility included vasectomy reversal procedures, donor insemination and both in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). It is suggested that care must be taken in counselling such patients prior to a vasectomy. The cryopreservation of semen prior to vasectomy would also make much of this type of infertility treatment unnecessary.      

Communicating with older diabetes patients: self-management and social comparison

OBJECTIVE: The health status and life experiences of older diabetes patients may be highly heterogeneous, thus making their perspectives particularly relevant for developing individualized self-management plans for this population. Our earlier research showed older diabetes patients' healthcare goals and self-management behaviors are frequently shaped through social comparisons with peers/family members. The present paper explores this role of social comparison in their self-management practices and develops a conceptual model depicting the process. METHODS: Data were collected using open-ended, semi-structured interviews to elicit 28 older, type 2 diabetes patients' healthcare goals and self-management practices. Qualitative techniques were used to extract salient themes. RESULTS: Social comparison plays a salient role in routinizing older patients' self-management practices. Almost all patients assess their self-management by making "downward" comparisons with individuals doing worse than them; "upward" comparisons are rarely invoked. Occasionally patients' social comparisons lead them to adopt "normalizing" behaviors resulting in deviations from medically recommended self-care. CONCLUSION: The findings formed the basis for developing a conceptual model delineating the role of social comparison in self-management that can be beneficial for providers in tailoring educational interventions for self-management. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Fostering these comparisons can help providers enhance communication on initiating and sustaining self-management practices.     

Cryptococcosis in HIV-AIDS patients from Southern Brazil: Still a major problem

IntroductionCryptococcus neoformans is an opportunistic pathogen that causes ∼15% mortality in AIDS patients. Rio Grande City, Rio Grande do Sul (RS), Brazil, has the highest national rate of HIV/AIDS, considering cities with population more than 100,000 habitants.ObjectiveWe aimed to evaluate the clinical and epidemiological profile of cryptococcosis in a reference service for HIV-AIDS patients in the South region of Brazil, over seven years. Material and methods A retrospective study was performed including all cryptococcosis cases diagnosed at the University Hospital, Federal University of Rio Grande (UH-FURG) between January 2010 and December 2016.ResultsSeventy cases of cryptococcosis were diagnosis from 2010 to 2016 in the UH-FURG in the seven years of the study. These numbers were responsible for 2.1% to 8.1% of the hospitalizations/year for HIV patients. All were caused by C. neoformans infection (95% C. neoformans var. grubii VNI and 5% C. neoformans var. grubii VNII). Neurocryptococcosis was the major clinical manifestation and cryptococcosis was the HIV- defining condition in 40% of patients. The period of hospitalization was an average of 39.3 days (SD = 31.3), and more than half of patients (53%; 37/70) died after a mean of 82 days.DiscussionThe present study showed the importance of cryptococcosis as an AIDS-defining disease in HIV-AIDS patients in a tertiary hospital from Southern Brazil. More investment is necessary to reduce the impact of this opportunistic mycosis in HIV-AIDS patients from southern Brazil.     

Impaired neurogenic vascular response in patients with diabetes and neuropathic foot lesions

Peripheral neuropathy plays an important part in the development of foot complications in patients with diabetes. We studied the contribution of impairment of the dual sensory and inflammatory function of unmyelinated nociceptive C fibers in the foot complications of diabetes. The integrity of these fibers was assessed objectively by measuring axon reflex vasodilation in response to stimulation with 10 percent acetylcholine introduced by electrophoresis. This was related to the non-neurogenic capacity of the vessels to dilate in response to a mechanical stroke. These measurements were made on the soles of the subjects' feet. The function of the nociceptive C fibers was abnormal in 1 of 14 patients with longstanding diabetes who had no foot complications, 3 of 9 patients with diabetes and skin sepsis, 8 of 11 patients with typical neuropathic plantar ulcers, and all of 8 patients with neuroarthropathy. In patients with longstanding diabetes but no foot complications, the mean ratio of neurogenic to non-neurogenic vasodilation was not significantly different from that in controls; however, it was significantly lower in the other three groups (P less than 0.01 for those with sepsis; P less than 0.001 for those with ulcer or arthropathy). Impairment of the neurogenic vasodilator response, or flare, correlated with the clinical diminution of pain sensation. This study suggests that the loss of both components of nociceptive C-fiber function--neurogenic inflammation and pain sensation--is an important factor in the development of foot complications in diabetes.     

No show is a major problem in planning appointments for infertility patients

We examined the pattern of bookings for and actual visits undertaken by patients attending the Infertility Clinics at the Rotunda Hospital Dublin as well as the accuracy of systems in place for recording such events. The data provided by the Hospital Patient Administration System (PAS), clinic worksheets and clinic record chart of first visit couples attending initially over a 12 month period 1995/1996 and their subsequent records to February 1998 was analysed. Comparable figures were provided from the corresponding private clinic over the same time frame. Sixty-nine percent had already had investigations and treatment elsewhere. Discrepancies were noted between the PAS and manual systems as confirmed by the patient records. The manual proved more accurate. We found 32% (88 of 276) patients failed to turn up for a first appointment compared with 17% of private patients. Un-notified no-show provides great logistic difficulties in planning clinic management. Waiting lists grow, staff and patients alike are greatly inconvenienced. This apparent recklessness makes the Charter of Rights for Hospital Patients difficult to comply with. A possible answer is to demand reconfirmation near to the clinic date and in it's absence reassign the appointment to another. Population education is clearly needed.     

The inverse problem: a medical perspective

The techniques of magnetoencephalography (MEG) have advanced considerably recently with several major installations now being built or planned. In this paper, the present status of MEG within clinical medicine is evaluated and compared with that of other large diagnostic instruments. Deficiencies in present instruments and procedures are discussed. It is argued that in the future methods must be found of investigating sub-cortical structures which are relevant in the majority of clinically significant conditions. Some important possible lines of enquiry are indicated.     

Improving empowerment,motivation, and medical adherence in patients with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes: A randomized controlled trial of a patient-centered intervention

ObjectiveTo test whether an intervention consisting of four patient-centered consultations improves glycemic control and self-management skills in patients with poorly regulated type 2 diabetes (T2DM), compared to a control group receiving usual care.MethodsUnblinded parallel randomized controlled trial including 97 adults diagnosed with T2DM ≥ 1 year and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels ≥ 8.0% (64 mmol/mol). Consultations incorporated tools supporting self-reflection, learning processes, and goal setting. Primary outcome was HbA1c. Secondary outcomes were autonomy support, motivation, self-management skills, and well-being.ResultsAverage HbA1c decreased slightly in both groups. Autonomy support and frequency of healthy eating were significantly higher in the intervention group. Most participants in the intervention group chose to set goals related to diet and physical exercise. Implementation of the intervention was inconsistent.ConclusionDespite increased autonomy support and individual goal-setting, the intervention was not superior to usual care in terms of glycemic control. More research is needed on how individual preferences and goals can be supported in practice to achieve sustainable behavior changes.Practice ImplicationsThe intervention promoted participant engagement and supported exploration of participants’ challenges and preferences. Further exploration of more flexible use of tools adapted to individual contexts is recommended.     

Transfusion practices for patients with sickle cell disease at a major academic medical center

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) is a tertiarycare, academic university hospital and a major referral center for patients across the state of North Carolina. This 700-bed, Level 1 trauma center transfuses more than 22,000 RBC units to patients annually. Clinical services and areas of the hospital which rely most heavily on transfusion support for their activities are transplantation (bone marrow and solid organ), hematology, critical care (medical and surgical intensive care units), cardiothoracic surgery, pediatrics, the operating room, the emergency department, labor and delivery, dialysis, and outpatient services. UNC is recognized for its expertise in coagulation, transfusion medicine, and hematology, particularly in sickle cell disease (SCD). The sickle cell center at UNC, which began in 1980 and continues today, in conjunction with our neighboring institution,Duke University Medical Center, is designated as part of a National Institutes of Health comprehensive sickle cell center. Several of the physicians are dedicated to the care of pediatric and adult patients with SCD, as well as to research on transfusion management of these patients and recruitment of African American blood donors. This article describes the practices of this institution for transfusion management of patients with SCD, as well as some of its efforts related to this challenging area of transfusion medicine.     

A comparison of economic and social reward in patients with chronic nonmalignant back pain.

OBJECTIVE: Patients with chronic nonmalignant back pain are often exposed to multiple sources of economic and social reward. At issue in the present study was whether these rewards are 1) correlated with similar or dissimilar outcome variables and 2) able to account for unique variance in regression models of illness behavior. METHODS: A 2 x 2 factorial design was used in which patients were retrospectively assigned to one of four independent groups: low economic/low social reward, low economic/high social reward, high economic/low social reward, and high economic/high social reward. Of 265 consecutive patients enrolled at a tertiary pain service, 75 met eligibility criteria and had chronic nonmalignant back pain. RESULTS: Preexisting differences in health status were not associated with differences in illness behavior or pain ratings. With social reward held constant, patients in the high economic reward group missed more days from work (p < .005), had more domestic disability (p < .05), and were more depressed (p < .05) than patients in the low economic reward group. With economic reward held constant, patients in the high social reward group missed more days from work (p < .05), had more domestic disability (p < .01), and were more depressed (p < .01) than patients in the low social reward group. Unlike patients in the high economic reward group, however, patients in the high social reward group had higher levels of pain (p < .05) and more nonspecific medical complaints (p < .01). CONCLUSIONS: Economic and social rewards were both associated with increased disability and depression, but only social rewards were associated with increased symptom reporting. Exposure to economic and social rewards may account for unique variance in illness behavior that cannot be explained by differences in medical diagnosis, symptom duration, pain intensity, depression, or somatization.     

Defining guilt in depression: a comparison of subjects with major depression,chronic medical illness and healthy controls

BACKGROUND: Although guilt is a widely accepted feature of depression, there is limited and inconsistent data defining the nature of this symptom. The purpose of the current study was to examine the specificity and nature of guilt in subjects with major depression as compared to patients with another chronic medical illness and healthy controls. METHODS: Outpatients with current major depressive episode (MDE; n=34), past-MDE (n=22), chronic cardiac illness (n=20) and healthy controls (n=59) were administered the following measures: The Guilt Inventory (GI), State Shame and Guilt Scale (SSGS), 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (Ham-D) and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV. RESULTS: Overall multivariate analysis of covariance comparing mean scores for the six guilt subscales [state-guilt, trait-guilt, moral standards (from the GI); state-guilt, -pride, and -shame (from the SSGS)] across the four groups was significant (F=9.1, df=6:121, p<0.0001). Post-hoc analysis revealed the following differences (each at least p<0.01): for state-guilt (GI), current-MDE>past-MDE>cardiac=healthy controls; for trait-guilt (GI), current-MDE=past-MDE>cardiac=healthy controls; for state-shame, -guilt and -pride (SSGS), current-MDE>past-MDE, past-MDE=cardiac, past-MDE>healthy, cardiac=healthy controls. Among depressed patients, there was significant correlation between Ham-D score and all guilt sub-scales (p<0.01), except moral standards. LIMITATIONS: The cardiac group may have less illness burden than currently depressed. CONCLUSIONS: State expression of guilt, shame and low pride distinguish acutely depressed from all other groups, and are highly influenced by severity of depression. Trait-guilt does not differentiate acute from past depressed. Data suggests guilt may represent both an enduring and fluctuating feature of depressive illness over its longitudinal course.     

Anaemia in pregnancy: a major health problem with implications for maternal health care

Women (n=2235) registering for antenatal care in two maternal and child health clinics in the Dar es Salaam area between June, 1991 and June 1992 had their haemoglobin (Hb) measured by use of a HaemoCuer haemoglobinometer. The prevalence of anaemia Hb<10.5 g/dl) was 60% while severe anaemia (Hb<7.0 //dl) was present in 4%. Young nullparous women, those who register for antenatal care late in the third trimester, and undernourished women constitute high risk groups also for severe anemia and require special attention. No single maternal characteristics or combination thereof was useful to identify a group of screening. The current national Hb level for referral to hospital (8.5 g/dl) identified 20% of the pregnant population. Most of these can successfully be treated and followed at the primary care level. To comply with the available means for care in the Dar es Salaam area, it is proposed that the cutoff level for referral be changed to <7g/dl. Appropriate methods to screen for anemia at primary health care (PHC) level must be explored and instituted. Training of antenatal care (ANC) providers in clinical identification of anemia and supply of haematinics must be improved and early booking for ANC promoted. Public health measures to improve the general nutrition and iron intake of all women are necessary to reduce this serious health problem in pregnancy.     

Rumination, mood and social problem-solving in major depression

BACKGROUND: Ruminating when depressed is thought to lower mood and impair problem-solving, while distraction is thought to alleviate mood and assist problem-solving. The present study investigates each of these proposals using both naturally occurring and experimentally induced rumination and distraction in a sample of patients with major depression. METHOD: Thirty-six patients with major depression and 36 control participants were randomly allocated to either a rumination or distraction induction condition. Levels of trait rumination and distraction were measured at baseline, mood and problem-solving were measured before and after the inductions. RESULTS: In terms of trait measures, depressed patients with higher levels of trait rumination reported poorer mood and gave less effective problem solutions than those who were less ruminative. Trait distraction was not associated with mood or problem-solving. In terms of induced responses, depressed patients who were made to ruminate experienced a deterioration in their mood and gave poorer problem solutions. For those receiving the distraction induction, mood improved in all patients and problem-solving improved in patients who were not naturally ruminating at a high level. Neither induction had an impact on mood or problem-solving in control participants. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment for depression associated with adverse life events may need to target rumination as well as problem-solving deficits if interventions are to be effective. The differential effects of self-applied versus experimentally induced distraction require further investigation. Future research will need to consider that high levels of trait rumination may interfere with the impact of experimental inductions.     

2型糖尿病患者糖尿病足的危险因素分析

目的总结分析2型糖尿病患者糖尿病足（DF）的患病情况及相关危险因素,为临床治疗和预防DF提供依据。方法选择2型糖尿病患者189例为研究对象,根据病情分为DF组和非DF组,回顾分析其性别、年龄、病程、入院时血压、空腹血糖、餐后2h血糖、糖化血红蛋白、血肌酐、尿素氮,以及尿白蛋白、糖尿病肾病、糖尿病视网膜病变、周围神经病变等因素。结果 DF所占比例为15%。DF组与非DF组相比,病程、餐后2h血糖、糖化血红蛋白、血肌酐、尿素氮、尿白蛋白、糖尿病肾病、糖尿病视网膜病变、周围神经病变等因素差异均有统计学意义（P〈0.05）。其中病程、糖尿病肾病、糖尿病视网膜病变、周围神经病变进入回归模型亦有统计学意义（P〈0.05）。结论 2型糖尿病的病程、肾病、视网膜病变、周围神经病变是DF发生的独立危险因素。