Tissue Factor/Factor FVII Complex Inhibitors in Cardiovascular Disease. Are Things Going Well?

Blood coagulation is a complex biological mechanism aimed to avoid bleeding in which a highly regulated and coordinated interplay of specific proteins and cellular components respond quickly to a vascular injury. However, when this mechanisms occurs in the coronary circulation, it has not a “protective” effect, but rather, it plays a pivotal role in determining acute coronary syndromes. Coagulation recognizes Tissue Factor (TF), the main physiological initiator of the extrinsic coagulation pathway, as its starter

Les motivations à devenir enseignant : revue de la question chez les enseignants de première et deuxième carrière

Les récents phénomènes de pénurie d’enseignants et de diminution de l’attrait pour ce métier amènent à s’interroger sur les motivations à devenir enseignant. Cette note synthétise les recherches qui ont abordé ces motivations, en se penchant non seulement sur les enseignants dont il s’agit de la première carrière, mais également sur ceux qui ont choisi le métier suite à une réorientation professionnelle. Les effets des diverses motivations sont ensuite analysés. Le cadre théorique récemment développé par Watt et Richardson est décrit et proposé pour guider les recherches dans ce champ. En conclusion, des suggestions de recherches sont formulées afin de mieux comprendre les motivations à enseigner et leurs effets.Teacher shortage and the decreasing attractiveness of the teaching profession raise questions about the reasons to become a teacher. Research analyzing the motives of first-career but also second-career teachers is reviewed in this paper. The consequences of these various motives are then examined. Watt and Richardson’s recently-developed theoretical framework is described and offered as a guide to research in this field. Finally, suggestions for further research are made to better understand the motives behind the decision to become a teacher and its effects.Los recientes fenómenos de penuria de profesores y la disminución de la atracción por esa carrera invitan a cuestionarnos sobre las motivaciones para llegar a ser profesor. Esta nota sintetiza las investigaciones que estudiaron dichas motivaciones, interesándose no sólo por los profesores para quienes es la primera carrera, sino también interesándose por los que eligieron el oficio tras una reorientación profesional. A continuación se analizan las consecuencias de las diversas motivaciones. Se presenta y se propone el marco teórico recientemente desarrollado por Watt y Richardson para guiar las investigaciones en ese campo. En conclusión, se formulan sugerencias de investigaciones para comprender mejor las motivaciones que impulsan a enseñar y sus efectos.Die neueren Phänomene von Lehrermangel und von Senkung des Interesses für diesen Beruf führen uns dazu, uns Fragen über die Motivation zu stellen, die man aufbringen muss, um Lehrer zu werden. Dieser Text fasst die Forschungsarbeiten zusammen, die sich mit solchen Motivationen beschäftigt haben und interessiert sich nicht nur für Lehrer, bei denen es sich um den ersten Beruf handelt, sondern auch für diejenigen, die diese Karriere nach einem Berufwechsel gewählt haben. Die Konsequenzen der verschiedenen Motivationen wurden dann analysiert. Der neulich von Watt und Richardson entwickelte theoretische Rahmen wird beschrieben und dann angeboten, um die Forschungsarbeiten auf diesem Gebiet zu führen. Zum Schluss werden Forschungsansätze angeboten, um die Motivationen zum Lehren und ihre Auswirkungen besser zu verstehen

Biodegradation of two new biomaterials

Introduction. As in the previous experiments the haemostatic swab Antema revealed the disadvantage of troublesome adhesion both to surgical instruments and to serous surfaces of internal organs, the addition of Matemo could speed up the haemostatic performances of both biomaterials reducing the adhesion. For that reason Antema pads were treated with Matemo obtaining new haemostatic swabs. A comparison between the Matemo and the Antema + Matemo pads was then performed to test the haemostatic power and the biodegradation of both biomaterials. Materials and methods. For the experimental protocol the dorsal skin of each anesthetized animal was shaved, incised and two pouches were performed inside the subcutaneous tissue of the back, to introduce a specimen (1 cm2 of size) of Matemo on the left side, and Matemo+Antema on the right side. The same operation was repeated in 3 animals, and 3 other rats were used as controls and treated only with the selected anesthetic without intervention. The treated animals were all killed after 90 days from the operation. All the animals were daily controlled and no accident happens during the post-operation time. After death the dorsal skin of each animal was inspected in the two sides of implant and the samples from the skin and the subcutaneous tissues were taken in both sides of the back, to submit to the histological studies. Results. The microscopic analysis of the histological sections showed that at the deadline of the experiment both biomaterials disappeared from the site of implant, but the two regions were very different. In the left side (Matemo) the subcutaneous tissue appeared quite normal and very poorly infiltrated by the inflammatory cells, without proliferation of new fibrous tissue, neither dermal adhesion to the musculature. In the right side (Antema + Matemo) indeed, a significant infiltration of inflammatory cells was jet detectable and many dense neo-proliferate connective tissue attached the dermal plane to the muscular layer. Then, this protocol confirmed the very interesting results obtained in these studies in which the new synthesized haemostatic biomaterial Matemo was compared with Tabotamp and Antema, both currently used surgical sponges. Also in this experiment Matemo revealed a significant decrease in bleeding time with an absorption rate of the blood very quick and fast and its biodegradation at the 90th day were almost perfect

Coaching through technology: a systematic review into efficacy and effectiveness for the ageing population

Background: Despite the evidence on the positive role of self-management, the adoption ofhealth coaching strategies for older people is still limited. To address these gaps, recent efforts havebeen made in the ICT sector in order to develop systems for delivering coaching and overcomingbarriers relating to scarcity of resources. The aim of this review is to examine the efficacy of personalhealth coaching systems for older adults using digital virtual agents.Methods: A systematic reviewof the literature was conducted in December 2019 analyzing manuscripts from four databases overthe last 10 years. Nine papers were included.Results: Despite the low number of studies, there wasevidence that technology-integrated interventions can deliver benefits for health over usual care.However, the review raises important questions about how to maintain benefits and permanence ofbehavior change produced by short-term interventions.Conclusion: These systems offer a potentialtool to reduce costs, minimize therapist burden and training, and expand the range of clients who canbenefit from them. It is desirable that in the future the number of studies will grow, considering otheraspects such as the role of the virtual coaches’ characteristics, social-presence, empathy, usability,and health literac

In vivo biodegradation of new haemostatic biomaterials

Introduction. The new synthesized haemostatic biomaterial Matemo, is a protein meal produced by fractionation of human plasma. In previous studies it revealed its excellent haemostatic properties, so that it could become the best biomaterial to prefer in large surgical demolition. It also showed an excellent biocompatibility for its composition of human proteins, very similar to that of human tissues. This work now intended to study the in vivo biodegradation of this new biomaterial compared with another horse collagen-based haemostatic biomaterial (Antema) in order to find the best material to fill the empty cavities resulting after surgical resection of tumor masses. Materials and methods. For the experimental protocol the dorsal skin of each anesthetized animal was shaved, incised and two pouches were performed inside the subcutaneous tissue of the back, to introduce a specimen (1 cm2 of size) of Matemo on the left side, and on the right side the horse-collagen biomaterials (Antema). The same operation was repeated in 3 animals, and 3 other rats were used as controls and treated only with the selected anesthetic cocktail without intervention. The treated animals were killed all after 90 days from the operation. After death the dorsal skin of each animal was inspected in the two sides of implant and the samples from the skin and the subcutaneous tissues were taken in both sides of the back, to submit to the histological studies. Results The histological exams carried out in this experiment showed that at the 90th day post-implant both biomaterials were completely reabsorbed, but the sites of implantation were very different between them. In the side of the implanted Matemo the subcutaneous tissue showed a very poor infiltration of inflammatory cells, with a foreign body reaction fully resolved without proliferation of new fibrous tissue, neither dermal adhesion to the muscular plane. In the site of Antema implant, indeed, at the same dead line a significant infiltration of inflammatory cells jet persisted and much dense fibrous tissue attached the dermal plane to the underlying muscles

Obesity and ischemic heart disease. Is there a link between wellness’ diseases?

Obesity, the most common nutritional disorder in Western countries, is usually associated to cardiovascular diseases. However, the precise molecular pathways underlying this close association remain poorly understood. Nowadays, the adipose tissue is considered as an endocrine organ able to produce substances called adipo(cyto)kines that have different effects on lipid metabolism, closely involved in metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular risk. The increased cardiovascular risk can be related also to peculiar dysfunction in the endocrine activity of adipose tissue observed in obesity responsible of vascular impairment (including endothelial dysfunction), prothrombotic tendency, and low-grade chronic inflammation. The present review aims at providing an up-dated overview on the adipocytederived molecules potentially involved in cardiovascular pathophysiology

Racial differences in the association between partner abuse and barriers to prenatal health care among asian and native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander women

Objectives Prenatal health care (PNC) is associated with positive maternal and infant health outcomes. There is limited knowledge regarding Native Hawaiians/Other Pacific Islanders (NHOPI) and Asian women’s access to PNC especially among those with partner abuse (PA) experience. The objectives of this paper were to (1) describe and examine factors associated with PNC access barriers among mothers, by race; and, (2) determine the association between PA and PNC access, by race. Methods We analyzed 2004–2007 data from Hawai‘i’s Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (n = 7,158). The outcome is ≥1 experience with a PNC access barrier. PA is experience with physical violence from a partner. Descriptive statistics, and bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses stratified by race were conducted. Results The respondents included 35.7% NHOPI, 37.4% Asian, 20.1% White and 6.6% Other. More than 6% experienced PA, and 25.9% reported ≥1 PNC access barrier. Experience with PA was significantly associated with NHOPI and Asians reporting ≥1 barrier to accessing PNC, but was non-significant with Whites. Conclusions Programs should address barriers to accessing PNC, and target NHOPI and Asian mothers with PA experience to reduce the healthcare disparity and improve quality of life

Explaining Ethnic Differences in Late Antenatal Care Entry by Predisposing, Enabling and Need Factors in the Netherlands. The Generation R Study

Despite compulsory health insurance in Europe, ethnic differences in access to health care exist. The objective of this study is to investigate how ethnic differences between Dutch and non-Dutch women with respect to late entry into antenatal care provided by community midwifes can be explained by need, predisposing and enabling factors. Data were obtained from the Generation R Study. The Generation R Study is a multi-ethnic population-based prospective cohort study conducted in the city of Rotterdam. In total, 2,093 pregnant women with a Dutch, Moroccan, Turkish, Cape Verdean, Antillean, Surinamese Creole and Surinamese Hindustani background were included in this study. We examined whether ethnic differences in late antenatal care entry could be explained by need, predisposing and enabling factors. Subsequently, logistic regression analysis was used to assess the independent role of explanatory variables in the timing of antenatal care entry. The main outcome measure was late entry into antenatal care (gestational age at first visit after 14 weeks). With the exception of Surinamese-Hindustani women, the percentage of mothers entering antenatal care late was higher in all non-Dutch compared to Dutch mothers. We could explain differences between Turkish (OR = 0.95, CI: 0.57–1.58), Cape Verdean (OR = 1.65. CI: 0.96–2.82) and Dutch women. Other differences diminished but remained significant (Moroccan: OR = 1,74, CI: 1.07–2.85; Dutch Antillean OR 1.80, CI: 1.04–3.13). We found that non-Dutch mothers were more likely to enter antenatal care later than Dutch mothers. Because we are unable to explain fully the differences regarding Moroccan, Surinamese-Creole and Antillean women, future research should focus on differences between 1st and 2nd generation migrants, as well as on language barriers that may hinder access to adequate information about the Dutch obstetric system