The technological imperative in tuberculosis care and prevention in Vietnam

ABSTRACT

A monocausal bacteriological understanding of infectious disease orients tuberculosis control efforts towards antimicrobial interventions. A bias towards technological solutions can leave multistranded public health and social interventions largely neglected. In the context of globalising biomedical approaches to infectious disease control, this ethnography-inspired review article reflects upon the implementation of rapid diagnostic technology in low- and middle-income countries. Fieldwork observations in Vietnam provided a stimulus for a critical review of the global rollout of tuberculosis diagnostic technology. To address local needs in tuberculosis control, health managers in resource-poor settings are readily cooperating with international donors to deploy novel diagnostic technologies throughout national tuberculosis programme facilities. Increasing investment in new diagnostic technologies is predicated on the supposition that these interventions will ameliorate disease outcomes. However, suboptimal treatment control persists even when accurate diagnostic technologies are available, suggesting that promotion of singular technological solutions can distract from addressing systemic change, without which disease susceptibility, propagation of infection, detection gaps, diagnostic delays, and treatment shortfalls persist.     

Are Medicare's Nursing Home Compare Ratings Accurate Predictors of 90-Day Complications,Readmission, and Bundle Cost for Patients Undergoing Primary Total Joint Arthroplasty?

Background

Nursing Home Compare (NHC) ratings, created and maintained by Medicare, are used by both hospitals and consumers to aid in the skilled nursing facility (SNF) selection process. To date, no studies have linked NHC ratings to actual episode-based outcomes. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether NHC ratings are valid predictors of 90-day complications, readmission, and bundle costs for patients discharged to an SNF after primary total joint arthroplasty (TJA).

Clinical pharmacokinetics and pharmacogenetics of tamoxifen and endoxifen

Introduction: Tamoxifen dominates the anti-estrogenic therapy in the early and metastatic breast cancer setting. Tamoxifen has a complex metabolism, being mainly metabolized by CYP2D6 into its 30–100 times more potent metabolite, endoxifen. Recently, a phase I study in which endoxifen as an orally z-endoxifen hydrochloride has been successfully evaluated.

Areas covered: the principal pharmacogenetic and non-genetic differences in the pharmacology of tamoxifen and endoxifen are evaluated. To this end, references from PubMed, Embase or Web of Science, among others, were reviewed As non-genetic factors, important differences and similarities such age, or adherence to tamoxifen therapy are comprehensively illustrated. Additionally, since CYP2D6 genotypes are considered the main limitation of tamoxifen, many studies have investigated the association between the worsened clinical outcomes in patients with non-functional CYP2D6 genotypes. In this review, an overview of the research on this field is presented. Also, a summary describing the literature about individualizing tamoxifen therapy with endoxifen concentrations and its limitations is listed.

Expert opinion: z-endoxifen hydrochloride is only investigated in the metastatic setting, still more research is required before its place in therapeutics is known. Similarly, monitoring tamoxifen efficacy based on endoxifen concentrations might not be overall recommended due to the limited evidence available.     

Association Between Patient and Physician Sex and Physician-Estimated Stroke and Bleeding Risks in Atrial Fibrillation

Background

Physicians treating nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF) assess stroke and bleeding risks when deciding on anticoagulation. The agreement between empirical and physician-estimated risks is unclear. Furthermore, the association between patient and physician sex and anticoagulation decision-making is uncertain.

The Dangerous Middle: Situational Awareness and Worker Perception of Beetle Kill

ABSTRACT

Forest workers, including loggers, foresters, and wildland firefighters, are regularly exposed to some of the most fatal occupational environments in the United States. These hazardous work environments may become even more complex and dynamic when subject to bark beetle outbreaks that have resulted in significant tree mortality. The impacts of tree death from bark beetles are significant, with the cumulative 17-year (2000–2016) footprint for bark beetle caused tree mortality estimated at 54 million acres. However, how workers think about and act in these environments is understudied. This study, therefore, approaches the issue of beetle kill and forest worker safety by examining the perspectives or workers themselves. Its contribution is to leverage ethnographic research to provide insights that can generate new research questions, better inform outreach, and ultimately improve worker safety outcomes. The resulting insights show that beetle kill was understood by workers as a hazard that increased the complexity and dynamism of the work environment, making situational awareness both more necessary and more difficult to maintain. While much research about situational awareness focuses on hazardous situations, it is suggested that building adequate situational awareness should also include broader considerations of organizational communication, as well as training and experience considered over the course of entire careers.