Pilotażowy test interwencji świadomej medytacji w redukcji stresu u młodszych pacjentów z udarem mózgu

Introduction. The population of younger people having strokes is growing. Persons who are younger and have a stroke have specific stressors after a stroke that those over 60 may not experience (e.g., ability to earn an income, provide for a family, returning to work, etc.).Aim. In order to address some of these age-specific stressors, new and novel approaches to stress mediation are needed. In order to address this gap in the literature this study piloted a mindfulness meditation with younger in hospital stroke survivors.Material and Methods. Prospective non-randomized pilot study of in-hospital stroke patients < 60 years of age. Baseline assessment included the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), heart rate (HR), blood pressure (BP), and respiratory rate (RR). Patients received a 10-minute mindfulness training session with instructions for home use. PSS, HR, BP, and RR were collected immediately after training and telephone assessments of PSS were collected 30-day post discharge.Results. The mean age of the 21 patients included in the final analysis was 47.4 years. Paired t-test showed statistically significant differences in heart rate (p < 0.001) and respiratory rate (p < 0.001) before and after the intervention, but no statistically significant differences in pre and post training blood pressure (p = 0.480). There was no statistically significant difference in PSS scores before and after the training.Conclusions. The findings of this study suggest that the mindfulness intervention is feasible for in-hospital stroke patients and shows promise for reducing stress, as indicated by physiologic changes such as lowering heart and blood pressure rates. (JNNN 2019;8(2):48–53)Wstęp. Wzrasta populacja młodych ludzi zapadających na udary mózgu. Osoby młodsze w wyniku udaru odczuwają określone czynniki stresogenne, których osoby powyżej 60. roku życia mogą nie doświadczyć (np. zdolność do zarabiania pieniędzy, utrzymanie rodziny, powrót do pracy itp.).Cel. Aby odnieść się do niektórych z tych specyficznych dla danego wieku czynników stresogennych, potrzebne są nowe i nowatorskie podejścia do mediacji w zakresie stresu. W celu zajęcia się tą luką w literaturze, w badaniu tym przeprowadzono pilotażową świadomą medytację w szpitalu z młodszymi osobami, które przeżyły udar mózgu.Materiał i metody. Prospektywne, nierandomizowane badanie pilotażowe u pacjentów po udarze mózgu w wieku poniżej 60 lat przeprowadzono w warunkach szpitalnych. Ocena stanu wyjściowego obejmowała skalę postrzeganego stresu (PSS), częstość akcji serca (HR), ciśnienie krwi (BP) i częstość oddechową (RR). Pacjenci otrzymali 10-minutowy trening świadomego myślenia oraz instrukcje wykonywania w warunkach domowych. PSS, HR, BP i RR zebrano natychmiast po przeszkoleniu, a oceny telefoniczne PSS zebrano 30 dni po wypisie ze szpitala.Wyniki. Średni wiek 21 pacjentów objętych finalną analizą wynosił 47,4 lat. Analiza t-testem wykazała istotne statystycznie różnice w częstości akcji serca (p < 0,001) i częstości oddechu (p < 0,001) przed i po interwencji, jednakże nie wykazano istotnych statystycznie różnic w ciśnieniu krwi przed i po instruktażu (p = 0,480). Nie odnotowano statystycznie istotnej różnicy w wynikach PSS przed i po szkoleniu.Wnioski. Wyniki tego badania sugerują, że interwencja w zakresie świadomego myślenia jest wykonalna dla pacjentów po udarze mózgu w warunkach szpitalnych i wskazuje na obiecujące możliwości zmniejszenia stresu, na co wskazują zmiany fizjologiczne, takie jak obniżenie częstości akcji serca i ciśnienia krwi. (PNN 2019;8(2):48–53

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

Biobased Castor Oil-Based Polyurethane Foams Grafted with Octadecylsilane-Modified Diatomite for Use as Eco-Friendly and Low-Cost Sorbents for Crude Oil Clean-Up Applications

Herein we report the synthesis and characterization of novel castor oil-based polyurethane (PU) foam functionalized with octadecyltrichlorosilane (C18)-modified diatomaceous earth (DE) particles, exhibiting superior hydrophobicity and oil adsorption, and poor water absorption, for use in effective clean-up of crude oil spillage in water bodies. High-performance and low-cost sorbents have a tremendous attraction in oil spill clean-up applications. Recent studies have focused on the use of castor oil as a significant polyol that can be used as a biodegradable and eco-friendly raw material for the synthesis of PU. However, biobased in-house synthesis of foam modified with C18-DE particles has not yet been reported. This study involves the synthesis of PU using castor oil, further modification of castor oil-based PU using C18 silane, characterization studies and elucidation of oil adsorption capacity. The FTIR analysis confirmed the fusion of C18 silane particles inside the PU skeleton by adding the new functional group, and the XRD study signified the inclusion of crystalline peaks in amorphous pristine PU foam owing to the silane cross-link structure. Thermogravimetric analysis indicated improvement in thermal stability and high residual content after chemical modification with alkyl chain moieties. The SEM and EDX analyses showed the surface’s roughness and the incorporation of inorganic and organic elements into pristine PU foam. The contact angle analysis showed increased hydrophobicity of the modified PU foams treated with C18-DE particles. The oil absorption studies showed that the C18-DE-modified PU foam, in comparison with the unmodified one, exhibited a 2.91-fold increase in the oil adsorption capacity and a 3.44-fold decrease in the water absorbing nature. From these studies, it is understood that this novel foam can be considered as a potential candidate for cleaning up oil spillage on water bodies

Distributions and Reference Ranges for Automated Pupillometer Values in Neurocritical Care Patients.

BACKGROUND: Automated pupillometry is becoming widely accepted as an objective measure of pupillary function, especially in neurocritical care units. Normative reference values and thresholds to denote a significant change are necessary for integrating automated pupillometry into practice. OBJECTIVE: Providing point estimates of normal ranges for pupillometry data will help clinicians intuit meaning from these data that will drive clinical interventions. METHODS: This study used a planned descriptive analysis using data from a multicenter registry including automated pupillometry assessments in 2140 subjects from 3 US hospitals collected during a 3-year period. RESULTS: We provide a comprehensive list of admission pupillometry data. Our data demonstrate significant differences in pupillary values for Neurological Pupil Index, latency, and constriction velocity when stratified by age, sex, or severity of illness defined by the Glasgow Coma Scale score. CONCLUSION: This study provides a greater understanding of expected distributions for automated pupillometry values in a wide range of neurocritical care populations