Respiratory care
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Asthma is a prevalent disease that disproportionately affects socioeconomically underprivileged minorities. In fact, racial and ethnic minorities such as Blacks and Latinos have higher rates of severe asthma, asthma-associated emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and readmissions compared with whites. Such disparities exist due to genetic predispositions and to socioeconomic determinants of health such as environmental factors and limited health-care access. ⋯ Efforts have been made to address asthma-related complications in these populations, which have been addressed at various levels of the care system, including the patient and family, community, organization, provider/microsystem, and policy. Many of these programs promote patient education and health-care accessibility through interdisciplinary and multi-dimensional approaches, and have been shown to be effective in reducing asthma-associated readmissions and hospitalizations, but these localized approaches have not been largely adopted. The wide-spread implementation of asthma programs is necessary to address factors related to the increased incidence of asthma and associated rates of hospitalizations and readmissions in impoverished, minority populations.
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High-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) is increasingly used for the management of respiratory failure. Settings include [Formula: see text], total gas flow, and temperature target. Resulting absolute humidity (AH) at the nasal cannula may affect clinical tolerance, and optimal settings with respect to hygrometry remain poorly documented. ⋯ When used according to manufacturer's recommendations and at normal ambient temperature, all the HFNC devices evaluated achieved satisfactory hygrometric output with respect to breathing comfort evaluated in healthy subjects (≥ 30 mg H2O/L). Substantial differences exist between devices, and optimal knowledge of their working principles is required as inappropriate usage may dramatically alter efficacy and clinical tolerance.
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High-frequency jet ventilation (HFJV) is primarily used in neonates but may also have a role in the treatment of infants with congenital heart disease and severe respiratory failure. We hypothesized that HFJV would result in improved gas exchange in these infants. ⋯ HFJV was associated with a decrease in [Formula: see text] and an increase in pH in infants with congenital heart disease who remained on HFJV 4 to 6 h after initiation.
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Current research regarding the effect of demographics and characteristics of respiratory therapy students on academic performance in respiratory therapy programs is lacking. Students pursuing higher education degrees have a variety of backgrounds, and understanding the factors that impact student academic performance may improve student learning and academic outcomes. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of age, gender, prior military service, and class start time on student academic performance in respiratory care. ⋯ Age, gender, class start times, and prior military service had no statistically significant effect on academic performance in this study. There is a positive correlation between students' performance in RT 210 and RT 250 and students' grades in these courses and the secure NBRC SAE.