Scholarship Reconsidered: Its Impact on the Communication Disciplines

This article analyzes the impact of the book Scholarship Reconsidered: Priorities of the Professoriate, by Ernest L. Boyer, on the disciplines of communication in the U.S. The book offers a potentially profound new set of directions for the disciplines of communication. It has not been ignored in the disciplines of communication. For some, the significance of the report resides in the fact that it recommends that the scope of scholarship be expanded. For others, the power of the report resides in the fact that it advocates that research and teaching should be equivalent in status. Others have reported that departmental attempts to expand the definition of scholarship and create equality among the published research, teaching, applied research, and interdisciplinary studies are still challenged in traditional research journals

The Discipline of Communication in Higher Education: Mutually Defining and Reciprocal Relationships

This article discusses the status of communication studies in higher education. Communication and the discipline of communication are partially defined by the ways in which communication principles and strategies are identified and applied in college and university environments. How administrators and colleagues in other departments conceive of and utilize communication principles and strategies provide feedback to us, revealing their conceptions, attitudes, and beliefs about what communication is and what the study and use of communication involves. These applied communication uses constitute part of the meaning that communication possesses within a college or university environment. Using traditions as academic standards, virtually every one of the essential characteristics now attributed to the discipline of communication would warrant perceiving the discipline simultaneously in both positive and negative terms. First, to the detriment of the discipline, especially in publications of the federal government, communication continues to be viewed as an oral activity rather than a set of complex and interrelated nonverbal and context-bound activities. Second, particularly in learning community environments, communication is frequently viewed as a content-free discipline when solely performance conceptions of the discipline are allowed to dominate. Third, the introduction to communication course is frequently a convenient environment for initiating and developing comprehensive first-year student programs

Antithrombotic therapy after myocardial reperfusion in acute myocardial infarction

AbstractThe problem of post-thrombolytic reocclusion can be approached in several ways. 1) Better thrombolytic agents with longer duration of effects and more powerful properties aimed at enhanced clot lysis and anticoagulation are under study. 2) The combination of high dose heparin and low dose aspirin is proposed for all patients with an acute myocardial infarction treated with thrombolytic agents. 3) Peptide inhibitors of thrombin and monoclonal antibodies against platelet glycoprotein receptors and adhesive macromolecules are potentially effective inhibitors of platelet aggregation and thrombus formation during or after thrombolytic therapy

Epicardial vasomotor responses to acetylcholine are not predicted by coronary atherosclerosis as assessed by intracoronary ultrasound

Objectives.The purpose of this study was to use intravascular ultrasound to determine the morphologic appearance of the coronary arteries, relating the absence, presence and extent of atherosclerosis to the response of the coronary arteries to acetylcholine infusion.Background.Endothelial function plays a major role in the pathophysiology of myocardial ischemia and angina pectoris. The response of the coronary arteries to selective infusion of acetylcholine has been used to examine endothelial function, with vasoconstriction occurring in the absence of intact endothelial function. Vasoconstriction to acetylcholine infusion in humans without overt coronary artery disease has been attributed to early atherosclerosis not detected by coronary angiography.Methods.Twenty-nine patients without overt coronary artery disease underwent selective coronary angiography and selective intracoronary infusion of increasing concentrations of acetylcholine (10−6, 10−5and 10−4mol/liter), followed by intravascular ultrasound imaging.Results.The response of the coronary arteries to acetylcholine infusion was not dependent on the absence or presence of atherosclerotic plaque, as detected by intravascular ultrasound. The percent change in epicardial coronary artery diameter during acetylcholine infusion versus baseline was −14 ± 28% (mean ± SD) in the seven patients with no visible atherosclerosis on intravascular ultrasound versus −9 ± 20% in the 22 patients with visible atherosclerosis on intravascular ultrasound (p = NS, confidence interval −14% to 25%). There was a greater vasoconstrictive response to acetylcholine infusion in patients with risk factors for coronary artery disease than in those without risk factors (p = 0.003).Conclusions.The vasoreactive response to acetylcholine is not necessarily dependent on ultrasound detection of the presence or absence of atherosclerosis

Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Weight Loss Treatment Outcome Among Adults With Metabolic Syndrome

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine whether adults with obesity and metabolic syndrome who screen as high risk for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) lose less weight as part of a weight loss intervention than those who screen as low risk. METHOD: We conducted a secondary analysis of a randomized trial comparing 2 weight loss interventions consisting of dietary counseling for adults with obesity and metabolic syndrome. Participants were screened for sleep apnea using a validated screening questionnaire. Percent weight loss was calculated from weight measured at baseline and intervention end (12 months). Weight loss of 5% or greater was considered clinically significant. Multivariate linear and logistic regression models estimated the association between OSA screening status (high vs. low risk) and percent weight loss and clinically significant weight loss, adjusting for relevant covariates including body mass index and sleep duration. RESULTS: Nearly half of participants (45.8%) screened as high risk for OSA. Participants who screened as high risk for OSA lost less weight (1.2% +/- 4.2% vs. 4.2% +/- 5.3%) and were less likely to lose 5% or greater (24.4% vs. 75.6%) than participants without OSA. CONCLUSION: Among adults with obesity and metabolic syndrome, those at high risk for OSA lost less weight in response to a dietary counseling intervention than adults with low risk of OSA. Routine OSA screening should be considered as part of weight loss treatment programs. Additional research is needed to determine how to tailor weight loss treatment for those with high risk for OSA. (PsycINFO Database Recor

Characteristics of 263K Scrapie Agent in Multiple Hamster Species

Characteristics correlated better with host factors than with agent strain

Effects of Preoperative Aspirin on Cardiocerebral and Renal Complications in Non-Emergent Cardiac Surgery Patients: A Sub-Group and Cohort Study

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Postoperative cardiocerebral and renal complications are a major threat for patients undergoing cardiac surgery. This study was aimed to examine the effect of preoperative aspirin use on patients undergoing cardiac surgery. METHODS: An observational cohort study was performed on consecutive patients (n = 1879) receiving cardiac surgery at this institution. The patients excluded from the study were those with preoperative anticoagulants, unknown aspirin use, or underwent emergent cardiac surgery. Outcome events included were 30-day mortality, renal failure, readmission and a composite outcome - major adverse cardiocerebral events (MACE) that include permanent or transient stroke, coma, perioperative myocardial infarction (MI), heart block and cardiac arrest. RESULTS: Of all patients, 1145 patients met the inclusion criteria and were divided into two groups: those taking (n = 858) or not taking (n = 287) aspirin within 5 days preceding surgery. Patients with aspirin presented significantly more with history of hypertension, diabetes, peripheral arterial disease, previous MI, angina and older age. With propensity scores adjusted and multivariate logistic regression, however, this study showed that preoperative aspirin therapy (vs. no aspirin) significantly reduced the risk of MACE (8.4% vs. 12.5%, odds ratio [OR] 0.585, 95% CI 0.355-0.964, P = 0.035), postoperative renal failure (2.6% vs. 5.2%, OR 0.438, CI 0.203-0.945, P = 0.035) and dialysis required (0.8% vs. 3.1%, OR 0.230, CI 0.071-0.742, P = 0.014), but did not significantly reduce 30-day mortality (4.1% vs. 5.8%, OR 0.744, CI 0.376-1.472, P = 0.396) nor it increased readmissions in the patients undergoing cardiac surgery. CONCLUSIONS: Preoperative aspirin therapy is associated with a significant decrease in the risk of MACE and renal failure and did not increase readmissions in patients undergoing non-emergent cardiac surgery

Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging of myocardial oedema following acute myocardial infarction: Is whole heart coverage necessary?

© 2016 Hamshere et al. Background: AAR measurement is useful when assessing the efficacy of reperfusion therapy and novel cardioprotective agents after myocardial infarction. Multi-slice (Typically 10-12) T2-STIR has been used widely for its measurement, typically with a short axis stack (SAX) covering the entire left ventricle, which can result in long acquisition times and multiple breath holds. This study sought to compare 3-slice T2-short-tau inversion recovery (T2- STIR) technique against conventional multi-slice T2-STIR technique for the assessment of area at risk (AAR). Methods: CMR imaging was performed on 167 patients after successful primary percutaneous coronary intervention. 82 patients underwent a novel 3-slice SAX protocol and 85 patients underwent standard 10-slice SAX protocol. AAR was obtained by manual endocardial and epicardial contour mapping followed by a semi- automated selection of normal myocardium; the volume was expressed as mass (%) by two independent observers. Results: 85 patients underwent both 10-slice and 3-slice imaging assessment showing a significant and strong correlation (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.92;p < 0.0001) and a low Bland-Altman limit (mean difference -0.03 ± 3.21 %, 95 % limit of agreement,- 6.3 to 6.3) between the 2 analysis techniques. A further 82 patients underwent 3-slice imaging alone, both the 3-slice and the 10-slice techniques showed statistically significant correlations with angiographic risk scores (3-slice to BARI r = 0.36, 3-slice to APPROACH r = 0.42, 10-slice to BARI r = 0.27, 10-slice to APPROACH r = 0.46). There was low inter-observer variability demonstrated in the 3-slice technique, which was comparable to the 10-slice method (z = 1.035, p = 0.15). Acquisition and analysis times were quicker in the 3-slice compared to the 10-slice method (3-slice median time: 100 seconds (IQR: 65-171 s) vs (10-slice time: 355 seconds (IQR: 275-603 s); p < 0.0001. Conclusions: AAR measured using 3-slice T2-STIR technique correlates well with standard 10-slice techniques, with no significant bias demonstrated in assessing the AAR. The 3-slice technique requires less time to perform and analyse and is therefore advantageous for both patients and clinicians