The practical assessment and management of bladder outflow obstruction

The initial management of bladder outflow obstruction typically related to benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) falls to a large extent within the remit of general practice. Referral onwards to secondary care typically arises following the failure to respond to conservative measures or when complications have supervened; the most significant of which is urinary retention. In the hospital setting, anaesthesia, constipation and immobility are the common precipitants. What follows is a practical guide to the management of these situations and provides an overview of the conservative, medical, minimally invasive and surgical treatments available.     

Development of metabolic alkalosis after massive transfusion during orthotopic liver transplantation

Five patients undergoing orthotopic liver transplantation were investigated for changes in acid-base homeostasis secondary to large volume transfusions. All patients developed a transient acidemia during the operative period, followed by alkalemia which persisted into the early postoperative period. The patients received an estimated mean of 750 mEq of citrate, which appeared to cause metabolic alkalosis. The biochemical basis underlying the regulation of citrate metabolism that may have led to the timing, extent, and duration of the subsequent metabolic alkalosis is presented. Finally, the time course for the development of metabolic alkalosis may be a potentially sensitive indicator of early allograft function.     

Effect of repeated exposures to nitrogen dioxide and sulfuric acid mist alone or in combination on mucociliary clearance from the lungs of rabbits

The biological response to ambient air pollution may be a function of specific combinations of pollutants. Groups of rabbits were exposed to NO2 (0.3 ppm or 1 ppm) with and without H2SO4 (0.5 mg/m3) for 2 hr/day for up to 14 days for assessment of effects upon mucociliary clearance of tracer particles from the tracheobronchial tree. Exposure to NO2 did not alter clearance, while exposure to H2SO4 produced a retardation toward the middle of the exposure series. The combination of 0.3 ppm NO2 with H2SO4 resulted in a speeding of clearance, while no change from control was seen with the mixture employing 1 ppm NO2 with acid. These results emphasize the importance of performing studies with pollutant mixtures, since it is not always possible to extrapolate responses from studies examining effects of individual pollutants.     

Assessing reflective writing on a pediatric clerkship by using a modified Bloom's Taxonomy.

OBJECTIVE: Reflection enables learners to analyze their experiences and capture the wisdom that lies within. Effective teaching requires reliable methods of assessment. Several methods of assessing reflective writing have been described; however, they often require significant training, and reliability has seldom been assessed. This study was designed to determine the interrater reliability of a method of assessing reflective writing by using a modified Bloom's Taxonomy. METHODS: Twenty-one third-year medical students maintained reflective journals throughout their pediatric clerkship. A coding schema based on Bloom's Taxonomy was developed to assess the level of cognitive processing evident in the journals. Journals were independently assessed by 3 raters. Percent agreement, kappa statistics, and intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC [2,1]) were used to assess interrater reliability. RESULTS: Three hundred eight entries from 21 journals were assessed. Percent agreement ranged from 78.2% to 100%. Kappa statistic for each level ranged from 0.57 +/- 0.04 to 0.73 +/- 0.04, and for the highest level of processing evident it ranged from 0.52 +/- .04 to 0.58 +/- 0.04. ICC (2,1) for each level of cognitive processing ranged from 0.62 (F = 6.20; P = .000) to 1.00, and for the highest level of cognitive processing evident, it was 0.79 (F = 12.42; P = .000). Substantial to almost perfect agreement was attained. CONCLUSIONS: Reflective journals allow learners to revisit their experiences for critical analysis and deeper learning. This study describes a reliable method, based on Bloom's Taxonomy, of determining whether learners have achieved higher order thinking through reflective journal writing. This method can provide a baseline for facilitating higher order processing, critical thinking, and reflective practice.     

Traumatic work related fatalities in commercial fishermen in Australia.

OBJECTIVES--To describe the types and circumstances of traumatic work related fatalities in Australian commercial fishermen. METHODS--Work related traumatic fishing fatalities were studied as part of a larger study of all work related traumatic fatalities in Australia from 1982 to 1984. Data on 47 cases were obtained from inspection of coroners' files. RESULTS--The incidence of fatality of 143/100,000 person-years was 18 times higher than the incidence of fatality for the entire workforce, and considerably higher than that of the mining and agricultural workforces. 68% of decedents drowned and 13% died from physical trauma. Rough weather, non-seaworthy vessels, inadequate use of personal flotation devices, and inexperience were associated with many of the fatal incidents. DISCUSSION--Improved vessel and equipment maintenance, better training of workers, greater use of personal flotation devices, and development of improved clothing and personal flotation devices are recommended.