STUDY OBJECTIVE: To test the sterility of medication vial tops after removal of the dust cover, and to survey anesthesia providers for their perceptions surrounding medication vials and sterility. DESIGN: Experimental design and survey instrument. SETTING: Ambulatory and hospital care setting. PARTICIPANTS: Anesthesia providers in the United States. MEASUREMENTS: A ...

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the extent to which a range of personal, professional, and work factors are associated with workplace aggression experienced by medical practitioners in Australian clinical practice settings. METHODS: An exploratory, descriptive study of cross-sectional, self-report survey design was undertaken in the third wave of the Medicine in ...

STUDY OBJECTIVE: A new generation of designer stimulants marketed as "bath salts" emerged in late 2010. The goal is to describe the epidemiologic emergence of designer stimulants in 9 states in the Midwest. METHODS: A retrospective review of the National Poison Data System was performed between November 1, 2010, and ...

Nanoparticles (NPs) are tiny particles with a diameter of less than 100 nm. Traffic exhaust is a major source of combustion-derived NPs (CDNPs), which represent a significant component in urban air pollution. Epidemiological, panel and controlled human chamber studies clearly demonstrate that exposure to CDNPs is associated with multiple adverse ...

OBJECTIVE:: To describe the development of an easily accessible online biologic exposure algorithm to guide postexposure medical evaluation and treatment of medical research personnel and health care workers in a Midwest medical center campus. METHODS:: We describe the steps involved in the creation of a biologic exposure algorithm from design ...

Invasive Candida infections associated with medical devices are very difficult to cure without device removal. We present a case of neonatal cerebrospinal fluid-shunt associated Candida meningitis successfully treated with caspofungin in which removal of the device was precluded. Pharmacokinetic assessment of caspofungin cerebrospinal fluid concentrations showed that exposure was adequate ...

To evaluate the prevalence, trends, timing and duration of exposure to antiviral medications during pregnancy within a US cohort of pregnant women and to evaluate the proportion of deliveries with a viral infection diagnosis among women given antiviral medication during pregnancy. Live-born deliveries between 2001 and 2007, to women aged ...

NIOSH recommends that employers establish a medical surveillance program as part of a comprehensive program to minimize worker exposure to hazardous drugs.

BACKGROUND: While understanding geography's role in healthcare has been an area of research for over 40 years, the application of geography-based analyses to prescription medication use is limited. The body of literature was reviewed to assess the current state of such studies to demonstrate the scale and scope of projects ...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association between the use of medications potentially containing phthalates and urinary concentrations of specific phthalate metabolites around conception. METHODS: Women enrolled in the Environment and Reproductive Health project from 2006 to 2009 completed questionnaires about the use of medications and provided multiple urine samples before and ...

The introduction of natural gas drilling with high-volume hydraulic fracturing to Pennsylvania and neighboring states since 2004 has been accompanied by numerous reports of varied symptoms and illnesses by those living near these operations. Pollutants with established toxic effects in humans may be introduced into the environment at various points ...

BACKGROUND Racial minorities typically have less exposure than non-minorities to antihypertensive medications across an array of cardiovascular conditions in the general population. However, cumulative exposure has not been investigated in dialysis patients. METHODS In a longitudinal analysis of 38,381 hypertensive dialysis patients, prescription drug data from Medicaid was linked to ...

PURPOSE: Physicians' exposure to pharmaceutical industry marketing raises concerns about their ability to make unbiased, evidence-based prescription decisions. This exposure begins early in medical education. The authors examined the frequency and context of such exposures for students before matriculation to medical school. METHOD: The authors distributed two separate but related ...

Buprenorphine is an effective medication for the treatment of opioid dependence. Its use has increased in the United States as a result of the Drug Addiction Treatment Act of 2000, which allowed physicians to prescribe certain medications as part of office-based treatment for opioid addiction. In France, widespread use of ...

BACKGROUND: Fear of medical procedures in general and needles in particular can be a difficult clinical challenge to providing effective health care for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. METHODS: A changing criterion design was used to examine graduated exposure treatment for blood-injury-injection phobia in an adult male with autism ...

Environmental assessment and exposure reduction are a set of diagnostic and treatment techniques that work in tandem with the traditional medical approach by reducing a patient's exposure to adverse environmental conditions as part of medical care. Assessment involves identifying the specific exposures to which a patient is sensitive and locating ...

OBJECTIVE: The study purpose was to compare medical appropriateness and costs of regional poison control center (RPCC) versus non-RPCC referrals to children's hospital emergency department (ED) for acute poison exposure. METHODS: This is a retrospective cross-sectional study of children (<6 years) during an 8-month period, who presented for poison exposure. ...

The treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community ('Euratom Treaty') is binding primary law for 27 member states of the European Union (EU) with about 500 million inhabitants. Council Directive 96/29/Euratom is a secondary EU law establishing the Basic Safety Standards (BSS) for protection of the health of workers and ...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF THE STUDY: Although traditionally a "dentistry first, medicine second" training route, UK Oral and Maxillofacial surgery is increasingly populated with medicine-first trainees at ST3 level. Despite this, there is little evidence suggesting any increase in exposure at medical undergraduate level. We sought to evaluate the current ...

To review the current literature assessing the risks associated with the use of anticholinergic (AC) medications in older adults and to provide recommendations for pharmacists to incorporate the evaluation of AC burden as a component of a medication therapy management program for older adults. A MEDLINE/PubMed search was conducted from ...

ABSTRACT: The use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors in treating depression, mood disorders, and behavioral disorders has escalated dramatically in the last 20 years, resulting in increased risk and clinical presentation of serotonin toxicity. Health care providers must also be aware of other medications and substances ...

Abstract The National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP) and the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (ACS-COT) believe that emergency medical services (EMS) systems should have protocols that allow EMS providers to terminate resuscitative efforts for certain adult patients in traumatic cardiopulmonary arrest. This document is the official position ...

The Accelerators and Class II Facilities Division (ACFD) of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), is responsible for the oversight of radiotherapy facilities containing Class II prescribed equipment in Canada. This poster will highlight a number of new initiatives that the CNSC has implemented recently that have an impact on ...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This review will discuss the most recent developments in pharmacogenetics of commonly used perioperative medications, new collaboration networks in the field of personalized medicine, and future clinical implications of pharmacogenetics. RECENT FINDINGS: Evidence now suggests that pharmacogenetics has a role in the effects of analgesic, sedative, beta-blocker, ...

Preparing for Part II of the Diagnostic Medical Physics American Board of Radiology exam requires a different approach than studying for Part I of the exam. As Part II is the first exam that splits apart the different medical physics disciplines, it is unsurprising that the best preparation for the ...

Timely laboratory monitoring may reduce the potential harm associated with chronic medication use. A study was conducted to determine the proportion of patients receiving National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA)-recommended laboratory medication monitoring in a primary care setting and to assess the effect of electronic health record (EHR)-derived, paper-based, provider-specific ...

PURPOSE:: To investigate the association of antihypertensive medications with optic disc structure by blood pressure (BP) level, in nonglaucoma subjects. DESIGN:: Cross-sectional, population-based study. METHODS:: A subset of Thessaloniki Eye Study participants was included in this study. Subjects were interviewed for medical history and underwent extensive ophthalmic examination, BP measurement, ...

Anthracycline-based chemotherapeutics have long been recognized as effective agents for treating a wide range of malignancies. However, their use is not without significant adverse cardiotoxic side effects. Strategies for prevention involve limiting free-radical production and subsequent cardiac myocyte damage. Dexrazoxane remains the most widely studied cardioprotective medication. Alternative agents may ...

Persons with kidney disease often have cardiovascular disease, but they are less likely to use recommended medications for secondary prevention. The hypothesis was that participants with reduced estimated GFR have lower use of medications recommended for secondary prevention of cardiovascular events (antiplatelet agents, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor ...

We propose a novel human-centric, visual, and context-aware access control (AC) system for distributed clinical data management and health information systems. Human-centricity in this context means that medical staff should be able to configure AC rules, both in a timesaving and reliable manner. Since medical data often includes (meta-) information ...

Many children become HIV+ due to mother-to-child transmission, a risk that can be largely eliminated if infants ingest antiretroviral (ARV) medications immediately after birth. As most mothers in Africa deliver at home, the ARV must be provided at their last antenatal visit, sometimes months before birth. No current drug delivery ...

Personalized genomic medicine and surgery (PGMS) represents a new approach to health care that customizes patients' medical treatment according to their own genetic information. This new approach is the result of increased knowledge of the human genome and ways this information can be applied by physicians in the medical and ...

Objective  This study aimed to investigate inpatients' and outpatients' need for information about medication, to what extent those needs were addressed and patient attitudes regarding pharmaceutical services. Method  Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to a sample of outpatients and inpatients in a UK district general hospital. Themes included satisfaction with information ...

To document the pharmacotherapy of chronic heart failure (CHF) and to evaluate the adherence to treatment guidelines in Australian population. The pharmacological management of 677 patients (female 46.7%, 75.5 ± 11.6 years) with CHF was retrospectively analyzed. The use of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors/angiotensin receptor blockers (ARB) and β-blockers ...

Medical and lifestyle secondary prevention strategies are essential components for reducing cardiovascular risk, irrespective of whether revascularization is performed. In patients with coronary artery disease (CAD), recent clinical trials have further clarified the management of lipid optimization, renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibition, antiplatelet therapy, and diabetes. Still, many questions remain with regard ...

Introduction: Several antiplatelets have been used in the prevention of secondary ischemic strokes with limited success and some carried a high risk of bleeding. Cilostazol is a relatively new antiplatelet that has been thoroughly investigated in Japan with promising outcome in secondary stroke prevention. Areas covered: In this paper, the ...

PURPOSE: To compare outcomes of selective laser trabeculoplasty (SLT) with drug therapy for glaucoma patients in a prospective randomized clinical trial. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Sixty-nine patients (127 eyes) with open-angle glaucoma or ocular hypertension were randomized to SLT or medical therapy. Target intraocular pressure (IOP) was determined using the Collaborative ...

Purpose The development, implementation, and evaluation of an i.v. interoperability program to advance medication safety at the bedside are described. Summary I.V. interoperability integrates intelligent infusion devices (IIDs), the bar-code-assisted medication administration system, and the electronic medication administration record system into a bar-code-driven workflow that populates provider-ordered, pharmacist-validated infusion parameters ...

Summary.  For a long time, physical activities have been contraindicated in haemophiliacs or were restricted to few activities. Sports are nowadays advocated for haemophiliacs. Although various lists of physical activities have been proposed, scuba diving is never mentioned. Thus, with a group of haemophilic volunteers, a study was launched on ...

Previous studies examining discrete movements of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients have found that in addition to performing movements that were slower than those of control participants, they exhibit specific deficits in movement coordination and in sensorimotor integration required to accurately guide movements. With medication, movement speed was normalized, but the ...

This article describes a dose error reduction system (DERS), a relatively recent IV infusion delivery innovation that prevents infusion administration error, and the reasons why it was developed. It has been used in the United States for around 10 years and is now increasingly being used in the UK because ...

ADHD is a common neuropsychiatric disorder with a strong persistence over time. Medication is frequently used in the clinical management of ADHD. After response, medication is typically prescribed for months to years. It is unclear whether extended medication treatment provides long-term benefits and how long it should be continued. Furthermore, ...

Chronic migraine patients are at risk of developing a medication overuse. Brain functional studies in these patients have demonstrated an orbitofrontal hypometabolism, persistent after overuse cessation. Orbitofrontal dysfunction is also present in addiction and thus could predispose migraineurs to medication overuse. The aim of this study was to investigate if ...

Self-reporting seems more appropriate than medical-based surveillance to estimate true incidence of diarrhea during deployment of military troops. Most soldiers self-reported multiple episodes, 42% leading to medical care, mainly the first episode, resulting in a threefold higher incidence. Mathematical models integrating self-reported data should better predict outbreaks during military deployments ...

Abstract Objective: With the development of information technology, real-time telemetry has been invented for checking patients' physiologic parameters during their transport, via an Emergency Medical Service (EMS) system. We developed a Real-Time Telemetry System (RTS), which sends physiologic parameters including electrocardiogram (ECG), vital signs, and pulse oxymetry in real-time from ...

Most patients diagnosed with asthma maintain control reasonably well and do not experience asthma exacerbations; however, on average, 30% of patients achieve suboptimal control, have severe or difficult-to-treat asthma, and are relatively nonresponsive to the same medications that achieve and maintain asthma control for most patients. This small patient population ...

Background: The SUNCT syndrome (short-unilateral neuralgiform headache with conjunctival injection and tearing) can be very disabling for affected patients and is often refractory to medical management. We report the first case of SUNCT with a successful response to stereotactic radiosurgery without any adverse effect. Case: After failing optimal medical treatment, ...

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory condition of the mucosa affecting the rectum and extending up the colon in a continuous manner. Its etiology is unknown, but is most probably the result of the interaction of genetic and environmental factors. Approximately 30% of UC patients will need to undergo ...

Introduction.  Erectile dysfunction (ED) depression and ischemic heart disease (IHD) had long been classified as independent medical conditions managed by unrelated medical services. Recent studies have revealed the intimate associations among the three conditions. However, when a patient presents with one component of this triad, whether the physicians should also ...

Adverse medical events-medical interventions that cause harm or injury to a patient separate from the underlying medical condition-are unfortunately an all-too-frequent occurrence in US hospitals. They may cause as many as 187,000 deaths in hospitals each year, and 6.1 million injuries, both in and out of hospitals. We estimate the annual ...