Articles: adult.
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Ther Adv Respir Dis · Jun 2013
ReviewEarly life influences on the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
There is increasing evidence that chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is not simply a disease of old age that is largely restricted to heavy smokers, but may be associated with insults to the developing lung during foetal life and the first few years of postnatal life, when lung growth and development are rapid. A better understanding of the long-term effects of early life factors, such as intrauterine growth restriction, prenatal and postnatal exposure to tobacco smoke and other pollutants, preterm delivery and childhood respiratory illnesses, on the subsequent development of chronic respiratory disease is imperative if appropriate preventive and management strategies to reduce the burden of COPD are to be developed. The extent to which insults to the developing lung are associated with increased risk of COPD in later life depends on the underlying cause, timing and severity of such derangements. ⋯ If the current trend towards the ever-increasing incidence of COPD is to be reversed, it is essential to minimize risks to the developing lung by improvements in antenatal and neonatal care, and to reduce prenatal and postnatal exposures to environmental pollutants, including passive tobacco smoke. Furthermore, adult physicians need to recognize that lung disease is potentially associated with early life insults and provide better education regarding diet, exercise and avoidance of smoking to preserve precious reserves of lung function in susceptible adults. This review focuses on factors that adversely influence lung development in utero and during the first 5 years of life, thereby predisposing to subsequent COPD.
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Elective surgery is usually preceded by preoperative diagnostics to minimize risk. The results are assumed to elicit preventive measures or even cancellation of surgery. Moreover, physicians perform preoperative tests as a baseline to detect subsequent changes. ⋯ There is no evidence derived from high-quality studies that supports routine preoperative testing in healthy adults undergoing non-cardiac surgery. Testing according to pathological findings in a patient's medical history or physical examination seems justified, although the evidence is scarce. High-quality studies, especially large randomized controlled trials, are needed to explore the effectiveness of indicated preoperative testing.
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Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is a form of cardiopulmonary bypass that is a mainstay of therapy in neonatal and pediatric patients with life threatening respiratory and/or cardiac failure. Historically, the use of ECMO in adults has been limited, but recent reports and technological advances have increased utilization and interest in this technology in adult patients with severe respiratory failure. As ECMO is considered in this critically ill population, patient selection, indications, contraindications, comorbidities, and pre-ECMO support are all important considerations. ⋯ Close monitoring is also necessary for complications, some of which are related to ECMO and others secondary to the patient's underlying degree of illness. Despite the risks, reports demonstrate survival > 70% in some circumstances for patients requiring ECMO for refractory respiratory failure. As the utilization of ECMO in adult patients with respiratory failure continues to expand, ongoing discussion and investigation are needed to determine whether ECMO should remain a "rescue" therapy or if earlier ECMO may be beneficial as a lung-protective strategy.
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Evid Based Child Health · May 2013
ReviewRemediating buildings damaged by dampness and mould for preventing or reducing respiratory tract symptoms, infections and asthma (Review).
Dampness and mould in buildings have been associated with adverse respiratory symptoms, asthma and respiratory infections of inhabitants. Moisture damage is a very common problem in private houses, workplaces and public buildings such as schools. ⋯ We found moderate to very low-quality evidence that repairing mould-damaged houses and offices decreases asthma-related symptoms and respiratory infections compared to no intervention in adults. There is very low-quality evidence that although repairing schools did not significantly change respiratory symptoms in staff or children, pupils' visits to physicians due to a common cold were less frequent after remediation of the school. Better research, preferably with a cRCT design and with more validated outcome measures, is needed.
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Adv Health Sci Educ Theory Pract · Jan 2002
ReviewAndragogy and medical education: are medical students internally motivated to learn?
Andragogy - the study of adult education - has been endorsed by many medical educators throughout North America. There remains, however, considerable controversy as to the validity and utility of adult education principles as espoused by the field's founder, Malcolm Knowles. Whatever the utility of andragogic doctrine in general education settings, there is reason to doubt its wholesale applicability to the training of medical professionals. ⋯ The validity of this hypothesis in medical education is examined, and it is demonstrated that medical students' internal and external motivation are context-dependent, not easily distinguishable, and interrelate with one another in complex ways. Furthermore, the psychological motivation for medical student learning is determined by a variety of factors that range from internal to external, unconscious to conscious, and individual to societal. The andragogic hypothesis of increased internal motivation to learn on the part of adults in general, and medical trainees in particular, is rejected as simplistic, misleading, and counterproductive to developing a greater understanding of the forces that drive medical students to learn.