382 research outputs found
Comparisons between intragastric and small intestinal delivery of enteral nutrition in the critically ill: a systematic review and meta-analysis
INTRODUCTION: The largest cohort of critically ill patients evaluating intragastric and small intestinal delivery of nutrients was recently reported. This systematic review included recent data to compare the effects of small bowel and intragastric delivery of enteral nutrients in adult critically ill patients. METHODS: This is a systematic review of all randomised controlled studies published between 1990 and March 2013 that reported the effects of the route of enteral feeding in the critically ill on clinically important outcomes. RESULTS: Data from 15 level-2 studies were included. Small bowel feeding was associated with a reduced risk of pneumonia (Relative Risk, RR, small intestinal vs. intragastric: 0.75 (95% confidence interval 0.60 to 0.93); P = 0.01; I(2 )= 11%). The point estimate was similar when only studies using microbiological data were included. Duration of ventilation (weighted mean difference: -0.36 days (-2.02 to 1.30); P = 0.65; I(2 )= 42%), length of ICU stay (WMD: 0.49 days, (-1.36 to 2.33); P = 0.60; I(2 )= 81%) and mortality (RR 1.01 (0.83 to 1.24); P = 0.92; I(2 )= 0%) were unaffected by the route of feeding. While data were limited, and there was substantial statistical heterogeneity, there was significantly improved nutrient intake via the small intestinal route (% goal rate received: 11% (5 to 16%); P = 0.0004; I(2 )= 88%). CONCLUSIONS: Use of small intestinal feeding may improve nutritional intake and reduce the incidence of ICU-acquired pneumonia. In unselected critically ill patients other clinically important outcomes were unaffected by the site of the feeding tube
Positron-molecule interactions: resonant attachment, annihilation, and bound states
This article presents an overview of current understanding of the interaction
of low-energy positrons with molecules with emphasis on resonances, positron
attachment and annihilation. Annihilation rates measured as a function of
positron energy reveal the presence of vibrational Feshbach resonances (VFR)
for many polyatomic molecules. These resonances lead to strong enhancement of
the annihilation rates. They also provide evidence that positrons bind to many
molecular species. A quantitative theory of VFR-mediated attachment to small
molecules is presented. It is tested successfully for selected molecules (e.g.,
methyl halides and methanol) where all modes couple to the positron continuum.
Combination and overtone resonances are observed and their role is elucidated.
In larger molecules, annihilation rates from VFR far exceed those explicable on
the basis of single-mode resonances. These enhancements increase rapidly with
the number of vibrational degrees of freedom. While the details are as yet
unclear, intramolecular vibrational energy redistribution to states that do not
couple directly to the positron continuum appears to be responsible for these
enhanced annihilation rates. Downshifts of the VFR from the vibrational mode
energies have provided binding energies for thirty species. Their dependence
upon molecular parameters and their relationship to positron-atom and
positron-molecule binding energy calculations are discussed. Feshbach
resonances and positron binding to molecules are compared with the analogous
electron-molecule (negative ion) cases. The relationship of VFR-mediated
annihilation to other phenomena such as Doppler-broadening of the gamma-ray
annihilation spectra, annihilation of thermalized positrons in gases, and
annihilation-induced fragmentation of molecules is discussed.Comment: 50 pages, 40 figure
Enteral versus parenteral nutrition in critically ill patients: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
Subgroup analysis comparing the effect of enteral versus parenteral nutrition on infectious complications in higher versus lower quality trials (with the median methodological score 7 as cutoff). CI confidence interval, EN enteral nutrition, M-H Mantel-Haenszel test, PN parenteral nutrition. (PDF 87 kb
SodiUm SeleniTe Adminstration IN Cardiac Surgery (SUSTAIN CSX-trial): study design of an international multicenter randomized double-blinded controlled trial of high dose sodium-selenite administration in high-risk cardiac surgical patients
The validation of a questionnaire to assess barriers to enteral feeding in critically ill patients: a multicenter international survey
The role of nutritional support in the physical and functional recovery of critically ill patients: a narrative review
The nuclear receptors of Biomphalaria glabrata and Lottia gigantea: Implications for developing new model organisms
© 2015 Kaur et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are creditedNuclear receptors (NRs) are transcription regulators involved in an array of diverse physiological functions including key roles in endocrine and metabolic function. The aim of this study was to identify nuclear receptors in the fully sequenced genome of the gastropod snail, Biomphalaria glabrata, intermediate host for Schistosoma mansoni and compare these to known vertebrate NRs, with a view to assessing the snail's potential as a invertebrate model organism for endocrine function, both as a prospective new test organism and to elucidate the fundamental genetic and mechanistic causes of disease. For comparative purposes, the genome of a second gastropod, the owl limpet, Lottia gigantea was also investigated for nuclear receptors. Thirty-nine and thirty-three putative NRs were identified from the B. glabrata and L. gigantea genomes respectively, based on the presence of a conserved DNA-binding domain and/or ligand-binding domain. Nuclear receptor transcript expression was confirmed and sequences were subjected to a comparative phylogenetic analysis, which demonstrated that these molluscs have representatives of all the major NR subfamilies (1-6). Many of the identified NRs are conserved between vertebrates and invertebrates, however differences exist, most notably, the absence of receptors of Group 3C, which includes some of the vertebrate endocrine hormone targets. The mollusc genomes also contain NR homologues that are present in insects and nematodes but not in vertebrates, such as Group 1J (HR48/DAF12/HR96). The identification of many shared receptors between humans and molluscs indicates the potential for molluscs as model organisms; however the absence of several steroid hormone receptors indicates snail endocrine systems are fundamentally different.The National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research, Grant Ref:G0900802 to CSJ, LRN, SJ & EJR [www.nc3rs.org.uk]
Postpyloric enteral nutrition in the critically ill child with shock: a prospective observational study
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Tolerance to enteral nutrition in the critically ill child with shock has not been studied. The purpose of the study was to analyze the characteristics of enteral nutrition and its tolerance in the critically ill child with shock and to compare this with non-shocked patients.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A prospective, observational study was performed including critically ill children with shock who received postpyloric enteral nutrition (PEN). The type of nutrition used, its duration, tolerance, and gastrointestinal complications were assessed. The 65 children with shock who received PEN were compared with 461 non-shocked critically ill children who received PEN.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Sixty-five critically ill children with shock, aged between 21 days and 22 years, received PEN. 75.4% of patients with shock received PEN exclusively. The mean duration of the PEN was 25.2 days and the maximum calorie intake was 79.4 kcal/kg/day. Twenty patients with shock (30.7%) presented gastrointestinal complications, 10 (15.4%) abdominal distension and/or excessive gastric residue, 13 (20%) diarrhoea, 1 necrotising enterocolitis, and 1 duodenal perforation due to the postpyloric tube. The frequency of gastrointestinal complications was significantly higher than in the other 461 critically ill children (9.1%). PEN was suspended due to gastrointestinal complications in 6 patients with shock (9.2%). There were 18 deaths among the patients with shock and PEN (27.7%). In only one patient was the death related to complications of the nutrition.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Although most critically ill children with shock can tolerate postpyloric enteral nutrition, the incidence of gastrointestinal complications is higher in this group of patients than in other critically ill children.</p
Improving In Vitro Generated Cartilage-Carrier-Constructs by Optimizing Growth Factor Combination
The presented study is focused on the generation of osteochondral implants for cartilage repair, which consist of bone substitutes covered with in vitro engineered cartilage. Re-differentiation of expanded porcine cells was performed in alginate gel followed by cartilage formation in high-density cell cultures. In this work, different combinations of growth factors for the stimulation of re-differentiation and cartilage formation have been tested to improve the quality of osteochondral implants. It has been demonstrated that supplementation of the medium with growth factors has significant effects on the properties of the matrix. The addition of the growth factors IGF-I (100 ng/mL) and TGF-ÎČ1 (10 ng/mL) during the alginate culture and the absence of any growth factors during the high-density cell culture led to significantly higher GAG to DNA ratios and Youngâs Moduli of the constructs compared to other combinations. The histological sections showed homogenous tissue and intensive staining for collagen type II
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