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BACKGROUND: Negative stressors can aggravate the impact of schizophrenia. However, some people find ways of combating such stressors. There is a dearth of research examining factors which enable individuals with schizophrenia to show psychological resilience. AIMS: The goal of this study was to investigate resilience to negative stressors in people with disorders on the schizophrenia spectrum using a qualitative methodology. METHODS: Data were collected from 23 participants who had experienced schizophrenia and suicidal thoughts and behaviours...

BACKGROUND: Depression is a common complication after stroke, and inflammation may be a pathophysiological mechanism. This study examines whether anti-inflammatory treatment with acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), nonsteroid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) or statins influence the risk of depression after stroke. METHODS: A register-based cohort including all patients admitted to hospital with a first-time stroke from Jan. 1, 2001, through Dec. 31, 2011, and a nonstroke population with a similar age and sex distribution was followed for depression until Dec...

A new carbazole-azine based fluorescent sensor was synthesized and characterized. The selectivity of the sensor for Cu(2+) over other counter ions in a dimethyl sulfoxide/H2 O mixture was shown through enhancement in fluorescence - an off to on transformation. The specificity of the probe towards Cu(2+) was evident in ultraviolet/visible, fluorescence, Fourier transform infrared and mass studies. Application of the probe in the cell imaging and cytotoxicity of living cells is illustrated.

BACKGROUND: Compared to developed countries, the use of antimicrobials in Egypt is less regulated and is available over the counter without the need for prescriptions. The impact of such policy on antimicrobial resistance has not been studied. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of early and late onset sepsis, and the frequency of antimicrobial resistance in a major referral neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). METHODS: The study included all neonates admitted to the NICU over a 12-month period...

The legal regulation of abortion by gestational age, or length of pregnancy, is a relatively undertheorized dimension of abortion and human rights. Yet struggles over time in abortion law, and its competing representations and meanings, are ultimately struggles over ethical and political values, authority and power, the very stakes that human rights on abortion engage. This article focuses on three struggles over time in abortion and human rights law: those related to morality, health, and justice. With respect to morality, the article concludes that collective faith and trust should be placed in the moral judgment of those most affected by the passage of time in pregnancy and by later abortion-pregnant women...

We analysed data from 14,000 patients in the 2013 United Kingdom Anaesthesia Activity Survey of the Fifth National Audit Project of the Royal College of Anaesthetists and Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland to examine anaesthetic, organisational and clinical practice for patients with obesity. We compared practice then with current guidance on management of this patient group. Obesity was reported in 22%, mainly Black, Afro-Caribbean and White Caucasian patients. There was minimal variation in surgical timing, anaesthetic seniority, induction location or day-case procedure rates...

BACKGROUND: Dentin hypersensitivity (DH) is a condition commonly encountered in clinical dental practice. The authors conduct a study to identify the treatments recommended to manage DH among dentists in the United States. METHODS: The authors conducted a multicenter study of 1,862 patients with DH who received a diagnosis and were treated by 171 dentists with the National Dental Practice-Based Research Network. RESULTS: The most common treatment recommended was desensitizing over-the-counter (OTC) potassium nitrate toothpaste (alone or in combination with other treatments) for 924 of 1,862 patients (50%)...

PURPOSE: Patients with cancer frequently use herbal supplements and concomitant medications along with antineoplastic agents. These patients are at high risk of herb-drug interactions (HDIs) and drug-drug interactions (DDIs). We aimed to determine clinically relevant DDIs and HDIs leading to pharmaceutical intervention. METHODS: Patients starting a new anticancer therapy were asked to complete a questionnaire to identify concomitant use of any over-the-counter drug or herbal supplement...

The renin-angiotensin system (RAS) has been implicated in the development of metabolic syndrome. We investigated whether the hepatic RAS is modulated by exercise training and if this modulation improves the deleterious effects of fructose overload in rats. Male Wistar rats were divided into (n = 8 each) control (CT), exercise control (CT-Ex), high fructose (HFr) and exercise high fructose (HFr-Ex) groups. Fructose-drinking rats received D-fructose (100 g L(-1) ). After two weeks, CT-Ex and HFr-Ex rats were assigned to a treadmill training protocol at moderate-intensity for eight weeks (60 min day(-1) , four days/week)...

BACKGROUND: Constipation is a common adverse effect of opioid use and has been associated with increased healthcare utilization and costs among patients receiving opioids for pain management. OBJECTIVE: To compare the healthcare utilization and costs of Medicaid patients with chronic noncancer pain with and without constipation who were receiving opioids. METHODS: This retrospective, claims-based study was conducted using data from the Truven Health MarketScan Medicaid Multi-State database...

In a recent article from the Center for Disease Control, the authors addressed the current opioid epidemic in America and emphasized the importance of utilizing non-opioid analgesic alternatives to opioid medication for treating chronic pain. In cases where non-opioid analgesic drugs alone have failed to produce adequate pain relief, these authors suggested that non-pharmacologic therapies should also be considered. This Case Series describes a pilot study designed to evaluate a novel non-pharmacologic approach to treating long-standing (>1year) opioid dependency...

Effective tobacco tax increases reduce tobacco consumption, threatening the profitability of the tobacco industry. In response, the tobacco industry employs strategies to negate or minimize the full effects of tobacco tax increases. By interacting with various government agencies and non-governmental organizations we identified seven such strategies: stockpiling, changing product attributes or production processes, lowering prices, over-shifting prices, under-shifting prices, timing of price increases, and engaging in price discrimination and/or offering promotions...

Motor skill acquisition occurs while practicing (on-line) and when asleep or awake (off-line). However, developmental questions still remain about whether children of various ages benefit similarly or differentially from night- and day-time sleeping. The likely circadian effects (time-of-day) and the possible between-test-interference (order effects) associated with children's off-line motor learning are currently unknown. Therefore, this study examines the contributions of over-night sleeping and mid-day napping to procedural skill learning...

OBJECTIVE: Irrational use of antimicrobials is a major driver of antimicrobial resistance, exacerbated by dispensing antibiotics without a prescription. Our previous study suggested this was a problem in the Republic of Srpska despite legislation. Since then, a number of activities have been initiated. Consequently, the study aimed to ascertain whether these multiple initiatives had reduced this. METHODS: Patients visiting all community pharmacies in the Republic from October 2014 to July 2015 presenting with symptoms typical of an acute, viral, and mostly uncomplicated upper respiratory tract infection, with results compared to the previous study...

BACKGROUND: Combinations of professional and commercial communication are typically very controversial, particularly in health care communication on the Internet. Websites of licensed community pharmacies on the other hand tend to raise remarkably little controversy, although they typically contain controversial combinations of clinical and commercial services previously unprecedented in professional health care communication. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to fill the void of knowledge about the combination of clinical and commercial services presented on the websites of licensed community pharmacies...

A plasmonic metasurface with an electrically tunable optical response that operates at strikingly low modulation voltages is experimentally demonstrated. The fabricated metasurface shows up to 30% relative change in reflectance in the visible spectral range upon application of 5 mV and 78% absolute change in reflectance upon application of 100 mV of bias. The designed metasurface consists of nanostructured silver and indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes which are separated by 5 nm thick alumina. The millivolt-scale optical modulation is attributed to a new modulation mechanism, in which transport of silver ions through alumina dielectric leads to bias-induced nucleation and growth of silver nanoparticles in the ITO counter-electrode, altering the optical extinction response...

Background Reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS) is an important differential diagnosis of singular or recurrent thunderclap headache. Prognosis is generally good, however complications of the transient segmental vasospasms of cerebral arteries such as stroke, subarachnoidal hemorrhage and brain edema may worsen the clinical outcome. Although the exact pathomechanism is still unclear, various vasoactive substances and conditions (e.g. post partum) have been identified as triggering RCVS. Cases We report on the clinical course and management of two cases of typical RCVS that were associated with two different precipitants previously not described: A gastrointestinal infection and isoflavones, which are phytoestrogens used for menopausal vasomotor symptoms...

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In this study, we report a series of novel palladium nanoparticles (Pd) supported cerium oxide (CeO2)/graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) nanocomposites, fabricated via the simple strategy, which were used for the detoxification of toxic hexavalent chromium to benign trivalent chromium under visible light irradiation. The synthesized Pd/CeO2/g-C3N4 nanocomposites were characterized by various tools including powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), fourier transform infrared (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS/UV-vis), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and energy dispersive X-ray spectra (EDS)...

AIMS: High saturated fatty acid (SFA) diets blunt peripheral insulin action. GLP-1 receptor agonists suppress postprandial lipids and endothelial dysfunction, which may counter SFA-induced insulin resistance. This study tested whether liraglutide suppresses postprandial elevations in lipids and thus protects against high SFA-diet induced insulin resistance. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a randomized placebo-controlled cross-over study, 32 subjects with normal or mildly impaired glucose tolerance received liraglutide and placebo for 3 weeks each...