Qualitative evidence for Resilience,Stress, and Ethnicity (RiSE): A program to address race-based stress among Black women at risk for cardiovascular disease

ObjectiveGrowing evidence demonstrates that perceived discrimination and racism are significant contributing factors to psychological distress, low-grade chronic inflammation, and cardiovascular health disparities among minorities, particularly among Black women. Despite this evidence, there are no evidence-based complementary therapy interventions available to ameliorate chronic stress associated with racism and discrimination. The purpose of this study was to examine the feasibility and effectiveness of a novel, 8-week, group-based stress reduction program, Resilience, Stress and Ethnicity (RiSE), designed to help Black women at risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) develop effective coping skills for dealing with chronic stress uniquely associated with being a minority.MethodsWe conducted two semi-structured focus groups with Black women (N = 22) following their participation in the 8-week RiSE program. We analyzed the data using constant comparative qualitative methods.ResultsAttrition rate was low (13%) with all participants attending at least 6 of the 8 classes. Participants reported high levels of satisfaction with the program and the majority (81%) reported practicing the skills that they learned in real-life stressful situations. In describing the participants’ response to the program, four key categories emerged from the data: (1) Increasing awareness of stressors associated with perceived discrimination and racism; (2) Coping with race-based stressors; (3) Coping with other sources of stress; and (4) Increasing sense of empowerment and emotion regulation.ConclusionsFindings suggest that RiSE is feasible and effective in helping Black women at risk for CVD cope with chronic stress associated with being a minority. Given evidence that perceived discrimination and racism are underlying factors in many inflammatory-based chronic diseases, this research may have broader implications for reducing health disparities across a wide-spectrum of chronic illnesses in which women minorities are disproportionately affected.     

Review/overview of pain in sickle cell disease

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a highly complex inherited disorder of hemoglobin structure. Although the molecular lesion is a single-point mutation, the sickle gene is pleiotropic in nature causing multiple phenotypic expressions that constitute the various complications of the disease. Its manifestations could be acute, chronic, nociceptive, neuropathic that could occur singly or in various combinations. Pain continues to be the major factor of SCD phenotypic complications and the most common cause of admissions to the Emergency Department and/or the hospital. Although progress has been made in understanding the pathophysiology of SCD as well as in developing curative therapies such as hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and gene therapy, effective pain management continues to lag behind. Palliative therapies continue to be the major approach to the management of SCD and its complications. The advent of hydroxyurea made partial success in preventing the frequency of vaso-occlusive crises and l-glutamine awaits post-trial confirmation of benefits. The search for additional pharmacotherapeutic agents that could be used singly or in combination with hydroxyurea and/or l-glutamine awaits their dawn hopefully in the near future. The purpose of this review is to describe the various manifestations of SCD, their pathophysiology and their current management. Recent impressive advances in understanding the pathophysiology of pain promise the determination of agents that could replace or minimize the use of opioids.     

The Relationship between Self-Efficacy,Functional Exercise Capacity and Physical Activity in People with COPD: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the strength of the relationships between self-efficacy and (i) functional exercise capacity and (ii) physical activity in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and whether self-efficacy assessment type (i.e., COPD symptoms, exercise-task, exercise-barrier, general, falls) and physical activity assessment type (i.e., self-report vs. objective) are moderators. A systematic search of COPD and self-efficacy concepts was conducted using eight databases from inception to 23 January 2019. Studies were included if they provided correlation coefficients of the relationship between self-efficacy and functional exercise capacity or physical activity, were conducted in adults diagnosed with COPD, and were published in English-language journals. A total of 14 correlation coefficients were included in the self-efficacy and functional exercise capacity meta-analysis, and 16 in the self-efficacy and physical activity meta-analysis. Data were screened, reviewed, and extracted independently by two reviewers, with discrepancies resolved by a third reviewer. Stronger self-efficacy was associated with better functional exercise capacity (weighted r?=?0.38, 95%CI [0.25, 0.50]), and greater physical activity (weighted r?=?0.25, 95%CI [0.17, 0.34]). Exercise-task self-efficacy had the strongest relationship to functional exercise capacity (weighted r?=?0.64, 95% CI [0.51, 0.73]). For physical activity, the type of self-efficacy most strongly related was inconclusive. In COPD, self-efficacy has a relationship to functional exercise capacity and physical activity, the strength of which is influenced by the choice of self-efficacy measure. An understanding of these relationships will assist clinicians in selecting the self-efficacy measure most closely related to the outcome of interest.     

凯时治疗慢性重型肝炎患者疗效观察

目的探讨凯时即前列地尔脂微球载体制剂（Lipo-PGE1）治疗慢性重型肝炎的疗效。方法将84例慢性重型肝炎患者随机分成两组，对照组予综合治疗及对症治疗，治疗组在该基础上加用凯时10μg溶于5％葡萄糖注射液250ml中静脉缓慢滴注，1次/d，疗程为4周。结果治疗组对慢性重型肝炎的疗效优于对照组（P〈0．01），肝功能改善优于对照组（P〈0．01）。结论Lipo-PCEI是一种治疗慢性重型肝炎安全、有效的药物。     

补肾排毒合剂治疗慢性肾衰竭营养不良60例临床观察

目的:观察补肾排毒合剂治疗慢性肾衰竭营养不良的疗效.方法:90例慢性肾衰竭营养不良患者随机分为治疗组60例和对照组30例,并设健康对照组30例.治疗组和对照组在综合治疗的基础上,治疗组加用补肾排毒合剂,对照组加用爱西特和百令胶囊.比较两组肾功能、营养状态和血浆瘦素、神经肽Y的变化.结果:治疗组治疗后BUN、Scr明显降低,与治疗前及对照组相比均有统计学差异(P<0.05).治疗组营养状态好转,与治疗前及对照组相比均有统计学差异(P<0.05).两组慢性肾衰竭营养不良患者治疗前Leptin、NPY水平均高于健康组(P<0.05),治疗后治疗组Leptin、NPY较治疗前下降,有统计学意义(P<0.05),但与对照组相比无统计学差异(P＞0.05).结论:补肾排毒合剂治疗慢性肾衰竭营养不良疗效明显,可降低BUN、Scr,改善营养不良状态.     

Differential diagnosis of leg ulcers

In Germany about 0.7 % of the adult population have a chronic leg ulcer. Although chronic venous insufficiency accounts for at least 80 % of all chronic leg ulcers, knowledge of the relevant differential diagnostic considerations is of crucial importance, in particular for patients who are refractory to therapy. In addition to vascular disease, other causes include neuropathic, metabolic, hematologic and exogenous factors as well as neoplasias, infections, drugs, genetic defects and some primary skin disorders. For the long‐term successful treatment of patients with chronic leg ulcers, it is necessary to identify all relevant factors, in order to enable a pathogenesis‐oriented, interdisciplinary therapeutic approach.     

延边地区农村朝、汉族肥胖与慢性病危险因素关系分析

目的：分析延边农村地区朝、汉族肥胖与慢性病危险因素关系。方法：随机抽取延边地区农村50～60岁朝、汉族常驻人群447名，采用面对面询问法进行问卷调查，观察不同民族体质指数（BMI）、腰围（WC）水平与慢性病危险因素-血清总胆固醇（TC）、高密度脂蛋白胆固醇（HDI—C）、甘油三醋（TG）、收缩压（SBP）、舒张压（DBP）及血糖（FBG）的关系。结果：不同民族居民WC、SBP、DBP、FBG及HDL—C分布特征存在差异。不同民族BMI、WC与慢性病危险因素的相关性存在差异。结论：制定延边地区慢性病防治策略和措施时应考虑民族与肥胖种类的因素。     

慢性肾衰竭急性加重的临床特征及相关因素分析

目的：探讨慢性肾衰竭（CRF）急性加重因素及其治疗措施对预后的影响。方法：对2001年1月～2005年6月住院治疗的CRF急性加重患者42例，按其加重原因、基础疾病、治疗方式和疗效进行回顾性总结。结果：CRF急性加重因素依次为各种感染（45．2％）、原发病加重（19．0％）、高血压未控制（14．3％）、水电解质紊乱（11．9％）、肾毒性药物（11．9％）、心功能不全（9．5％）、尿路梗阻（4．8％）、血高粘滞状态（2．4%），7例同时存在≥2种上述病因（16．7％）。CRF急性加重原发病以慢性肾小球肾炎（52．4％）和糖尿病肾病（11．9％）为主。积极治疗后肾功能恢复达到或接近原来水平者40例，死亡2例，死亡2例的年龄均在60岁以上。结论：对于CRF肾功能急剧恶化的患者，应积极寻找其加重因素，并采取非透析和透析相结合治疗，改善肾功能，降低病死率，延长患者生命。