Patients’ and clinicians’ research priorities

Background If research addresses the questions of relevance to patients and clinicians, decision‐makers will be better equipped to design and deliver health services which meet their needs. To this end, a number of initiatives have engaged patients and clinicians in setting research agendas. This paper aimed to scope the research literature addressing such efforts. Methods A systematic search strategy combined electronic searches of bibliographic databases with handsearching and contacting key authors. Two researchers, initially working independently, described the relevant reports. Findings Over 250 studies addressed patients’ or clinicians’ priorities for research and outcomes for assessment. This literature described different routes for patients and clinicians to contribute to research agendas. Two‐thirds of the studies addressing patients’ or clinicians’ research questions were applicable across health care, with the remainder focussed on specific health conditions. The 27 formal studies of patient involvement revealed a literature that has grown in the last decade. Although only nine studies engaged patients and clinicians in identifying research questions together, they show that methods have advanced over time, with all of them engaging participants directly and repeatedly in facilitated debate and most employing formal decision‐making procedures. Conclusion A sizeable literature is available to inform priorities for research and the methods for setting research agendas with patients and clinicians. We recommend that research funders and researchers draw on this literature to provide relevant research for health service decision‐makers.     

Collaborative research: Accomplishments &; potential

Although a substantial part of scientific research is collaborative and increasing globalization will probably lead to its increase, very few studies actually investigate the advantages, disadvantages, experiences and lessons learned from collaboration. In environmental epidemiology interdisciplinary collaboration is essential and the contrasting geographical patterns in exposure and disease make multi-location projects essential. This paper is based on a presentation given at the Annual Conference of the International Society for Environmental Epidemiology, Paris 2006, and is attempting to initiate a discussion on a framework for studying collaborative research. A review of the relevant literature showed that indeed collaborative research is rising, in some countries with impressive rates. However, there are substantial differences between countries in their outlook, need and respect for collaboration. In many situations collaborative publications receive more citations than those based on national authorship. The European Union is the most important host of collaborative research, mainly driven by the European Commission through the Framework Programmes. A critical assessment of the tools and trends of collaborative networks under FP6, showed that there was a need for a critical revision, which led to changes in FP7. In conclusion, it is useful to study the characteristics of collaborative research and set targets for the future. The added value for science and for the researchers involved may be assessed. The motivation for collaboration could be increased in the more developed countries. Particular ways to increase the efficiency and interaction in interdisciplinary and intercultural collaboration may be developed. We can work towards "the principles of collaborative research" in Environmental Epidemiology.     

香港海鸥型菌的研究进展 FREE

研究人员证实,香港海鸥型菌自被发现以来,即与社区获得性胃肠炎、旅行者腹泻有关,甚至可能是近20年来发现的首种可致严重胃肠炎的新病菌。淡水鱼可能是香港海鸥型菌的主要储存宿主,进食鱼类为其主要的感染途径。同时,亚洲、欧洲、非洲及中美国家相继发现感染个案,提示病菌可能在全球范围广泛分布。本文描述了香港海鸥型菌的生物学及生化特性,并阐述其病原学、流行病学、实验室诊断等方面的主要进展,展望其研究前景。     

"新型"支气管肺发育不良生物标志物的研究现状

支气管肺发育不良(BPD)是影响早产儿存活率及生存质量的肺部严重并发症，早期诊断BPD在提高此类早产儿存活率及避免肺重构方面起着重要作用。因此，寻找早期诊断BPD的生物标志物，一直是该领域的研究热点。但是，目前对BPD生物标志物的研究，大多从经典型BPD病理生理角度，即肺部感染及炎症、肺纤维化与氧化应激等进行研究，很少从"新型"BPD的肺泡发育阻滞、肺微循环障碍角度，研究BPD的生物标志物。最新研究结果显示，肺泡发育相关生物标志物，如Ⅱ型肺泡细胞表面抗原(KL-6)、血清Clara细胞分泌蛋白(CC16)，以及肺微血管发育相关的血管内皮生长因子(VEGF)、血管生成素(Ang)、内皮抑制素(ES)，均与早产儿BPD的发生具有一定关系，或许可能成为早期预测"新型"BPD发生的生物标志物。此外，组学相关生物标志物在BPD的研究中，也越来越受到重视。因此，笔者拟从肺泡发育、肺微血管生成及组学3个方面，对"新型"BPD生物标志物的最新研究进展进行阐述，从而尽可能指导临床应用这些生物标志物，早期识别、早期干预可能发生BPD的高危早产儿，旨在尽可能减少早产儿BPD的发生，改善此类早产儿的临床预后，提高其生命质量。