Feasibility of school students Skyping care home residents to reduce loneliness

Background Intergenerational friendship has proved useful for older people in increasing socialisation. We explored the feasibility of school students Skyping older people in care homes with the long-term aim of reducing loneliness. Methods Six school students from one secondary school and twenty older people, including seven with mild to moderate dementia, from three care homes, engaged in Skype video-calls over six weeks. A conversational aid aimed to help school students maintain conversations was employed. Students and care staff completed feedback forms after each session on video-call usage, usefulness of the conversational aid, and barriers and benefits of video-calls. Six care staff provided further feedback on residents’ experiences through unstructured interviews. Interviews and field notes were thematically analysed. Results Residents enjoyed Skype-calls with school students. Over six weeks, video-calls became longer, and more residents participated. Analysis revealed four themes. First, the intervention led to increased mobility for three older people and improved self-care in regard to personal appearance for five residents. Second, school students and older people formed friendships which inspired the need to meet in person. Third, the use of video-calls enabled participants to view each other’s environments in real time. Last, directly experiencing the intervention was important for the continued participation of the care staff in the study. Skype-calls between schools and care homes are feasible and may help reduce loneliness. Conclusions Institutional collaboration between educational settings and care homes through cost effective video-calls can be useful to increase socialisation for older people, and promote later on-going use with other external organisations to help reduce loneliness and social isolation

Estimation of the incidence of genital warts and the cost of illness in Germany: A cross-sectional study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a necessary cause of cervical cancer. HPV is also responsible for benign <it>condylomata acuminata</it>, also known as genital warts. We assessed the incidence of genital warts in Germany and collected information on their management to estimate the annual cost of disease.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This was a multi-centre observational (cross-sectional) study of genital warts in Germany. Data were collected from gynecologists, dermatologists, and urologists seeing patients with genital warts between February and April 2005. The number of patients with new and recurrent genital warts was used to estimate the incidence in Germany. We assessed resource use for patients with genital warts seen during a two-month period as well as retrospective resource use twelve months prior to the inclusion visit through a chart review. The mean costs of treatment of patients with genital warts from third-party payer and societal perspectives were estimated, and the total annual cost of genital warts was then calculated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>For the incidence calculation 217 specialists provided information on 848 patients and 214 specialists provided resource use data for 617 patients to assess resource consumption. The incidence of new and recurrent cases of genital warts was 113.7 and 34.7 per 100 000, respectively, for women aged 14–65 years consulting gynecologists. The highest incidence was observed in women aged 14–25 years (171.0 per 100 000) for new cases and in women aged 26–45 years (53.1 per 100 000) for recurrent cases. The sample size for males was too small to allow a meaningful estimate of the incidence. The mean direct cost per patient with new genital warts was estimated at 378 euros (95% CI: 310.8–444.9); for recurrent genital warts at 603 euros (95% CI: 436.5–814.5), and for resistant genital warts at 1,142 euros (95% CI: 639.6–1752.3). The overall cost to third-party payers was estimated at 49.0 million euros, and the total societal cost at 54.1 million euros, corresponding to an average cost per patient of 550 euros and 607 euros, respectively.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The societal burden and costs of managing and treating genital warts in Germany are considerable. A vaccination programme using the quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine could provide a substantial health benefit and reduce the costs associated with genital warts in Germany.</p

Human papillomavirus and post-transplant cutaneous squamous-cell carcinoma: a multicenter, prospective cohort study

Organ transplant recipients (OTRs) have a 100‐fold increased risk of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC). We prospectively evaluated the association between β genus human papillomaviruses (βPV) and keratinocyte carcinoma in OTRs. Two OTR cohorts without cSCC were assembled: cohort 1 was transplanted in 2003‐2006 (n = 274) and cohort 2 was transplanted in 1986‐2002 (n = 352). Participants were followed until death or cessation of follow‐up in 2016. βPV infection was assessed in eyebrow hair by using polymerase chain reaction–based methods. βPV IgG seroresponses were determined with multiplex serology. A competing risk model with delayed entry was used to estimate cumulative incidence of histologically proven cSCC and the effect of βPV by using a multivariable Cox regression model. Results are reported as adjusted hazard ratios (HRs). OTRs with 5 or more different βPV types in eyebrow hair had 1.7 times the risk of cSCC vs OTRs with 0 to 4 different types (HR 1.7, 95% confidence interval 1.1‐2.6). A similar risk was seen with high βPV loads (HR 1.8, 95% confidence interval 1.2‐2.8). No significant associations were seen between serum antibodies and cSCC or between βPV and basal cell carcinoma. The diversity and load of βPV types in eyebrow hair are associated with cSCC risk in OTRs, providing evidence that βPV is associated with cSCC carcinogenesis and may present a target for future preventive strategies

Hirschsprung's Disease: A Viral Etiology?

This Study Investigates The Hypothesis That Hirschsprung's Disease (Hd), Congenital Rectal Aganglionosis, May Be Etiologically Linked To Antenatal Cytomegalovirus (Cmv) Infection. Bowel Specimens From 72 Hd Patients, 144 Control I Infants (Hirschsprung-Like Symptoms, Normal Histology), And 36 Control Ii Infants (Deaths From Nongastrointestinal Causes) Were Analyzed For Cmv Genomes By Polymerase Chain Reaction. Positive Results Were Obtained In 6 Hd Patients (8.8%) And None Of The Controls. Our Findings Suggest That Antenatal Cmv Infection, A Potentially Preventable Condition, May Be One Of The Etiological Factors In Hd.link_to_subscribed_fulltex