Plos One
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Postoperative serum concentration of C-reactive protein (CRP) is one of the objective quantitative indices integrating the effects of preoperative and intraoperative variables. Higher levels of CRP after gastrointestinal surgery are associated with major postoperative complications. To develop a model for predicting CRP levels on postoperative day (POD) 1 in surgical patients both with and without serious conditions and comorbidities, we modified the previous formula for prediction of CRP levels on POD1, and assessed the accuracy of our modified predictive formula for CRP levels. ⋯ CRP levels predicted using duration of surgery, mean NR, and preoperative CRP levels are likely identical to measured CRP levels on POD1, being associated with major complications after gastrointestinal surgery.
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Neighborhoods have a profound impact on individual health. There is growing interest in the role of dynamic changes to neighborhoods-including gentrification-on the health of residents. However, research on the association between gentrification and health is limited, partly due to the numerous definitions used to define gentrification. ⋯ The results of this review also suggest that the impact of gentrification on health is not uniform across populations. For example, marginalized populations, such as Black residents and the elderly, were impacted more than White and younger residents. In addition, we identified multiples gaps in the research, including the need for a conceptual model, future mechanistic studies, and interventions.
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A lack of N95 Filtering Facepiece Respirators (FFRs) during the COVID-19 crisis has placed healthcare workers at risk. It is important for any N95 reuse strategy to determine the effects that proposed protocols would have on the physical functioning of the mask, as well as the practical aspects of implementation. Here we propose and implement a method of heating N95 respirators with moisture (85°C, 60-85% humidity). ⋯ After five cycles of the heating procedure, all three respirators pass both quantitative fit testing (score of >100) and show no degradation of mask filtration efficiency. We also test the Chen Heng V9501 KN95 and HKYQ N95 finding no degradation of mask filtration efficiency, however even for unheated masks these scored <50 for every fit test. The heating method presented here is scalable from individual masks to over a thousand a day with a single industrial convection oven, making this method practical for local application inside health-care facilities.
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The purpose of this study was to establish a Korean version of the Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI-K) for Korean-speaking patients facing total knee arthroplasty (TKA) for knee osteoarthritis (OA) and to investigate the psychometric characteristics of the CSI-K. We recruited a total of 269 patients with knee OA who were scheduled to undergo TKA for the study. CSI-K and pain-related outcomes, including the pain visual analog scale (VAS) and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities OA Index (WOMAC) pain sub-scores, were measured. ⋯ As expected, the CSI scores correlated strongly with the WOMAC pain scores (r = 0.524, p < 0.001) and moderately with the pain VAS (r = 0.496, p < 0.001), the WOMAC function (r = 0.408, p < 0.001), and the EQ-5D scores (r = 0.437, p < 0.001). EFA resulted in a six-factor model. The findings demonstrate that the CSI was successfully trans-culturally adapted into a simplified Korean version (CSI-K) that was reliable and valid for Korean-speaking patients who awaiting TKA for knee OA.
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Chronic diseases are increasingly prevalent in Western countries. Once hospitalised, the chance for another hospitalisation increases sharply with large impact on well-being of patients and costs. The pattern of readmissions is very complex, but poorly understood for multiple chronic diseases. ⋯ Readmission in chronic conditions is very common and often caused by diseases other than the index hospitalisation. Interventions to reduce readmissions should therefore focus not only on the primary condition but on a holistic consideration of all the patient's comorbidities.