Human Rights Advocates Program 30th Anniversary Report

This handbook was created to share the experiences of alumni of the Human Rights Advocates Program at the Institute for the Study of Human Rights, Columbia University, with aspiring human rights advocates around the globe

Effect of remote ischaemic conditioning on clinical outcomes in patients with acute myocardial infarction (CONDI-2/ERIC-PPCI): a single-blind randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Remote ischaemic conditioning with transient ischaemia and reperfusion applied to the arm has been shown to reduce myocardial infarct size in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI). We investigated whether remote ischaemic conditioning could reduce the incidence of cardiac death and hospitalisation for heart failure at 12 months. METHODS: We did an international investigator-initiated, prospective, single-blind, randomised controlled trial (CONDI-2/ERIC-PPCI) at 33 centres across the UK, Denmark, Spain, and Serbia. Patients (age >18 years) with suspected STEMI and who were eligible for PPCI were randomly allocated (1:1, stratified by centre with a permuted block method) to receive standard treatment (including a sham simulated remote ischaemic conditioning intervention at UK sites only) or remote ischaemic conditioning treatment (intermittent ischaemia and reperfusion applied to the arm through four cycles of 5-min inflation and 5-min deflation of an automated cuff device) before PPCI. Investigators responsible for data collection and outcome assessment were masked to treatment allocation. The primary combined endpoint was cardiac death or hospitalisation for heart failure at 12 months in the intention-to-treat population. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02342522) and is completed. FINDINGS: Between Nov 6, 2013, and March 31, 2018, 5401 patients were randomly allocated to either the control group (n=2701) or the remote ischaemic conditioning group (n=2700). After exclusion of patients upon hospital arrival or loss to follow-up, 2569 patients in the control group and 2546 in the intervention group were included in the intention-to-treat analysis. At 12 months post-PPCI, the Kaplan-Meier-estimated frequencies of cardiac death or hospitalisation for heart failure (the primary endpoint) were 220 (8·6%) patients in the control group and 239 (9·4%) in the remote ischaemic conditioning group (hazard ratio 1·10 [95% CI 0·91-1·32], p=0·32 for intervention versus control). No important unexpected adverse events or side effects of remote ischaemic conditioning were observed. INTERPRETATION: Remote ischaemic conditioning does not improve clinical outcomes (cardiac death or hospitalisation for heart failure) at 12 months in patients with STEMI undergoing PPCI. FUNDING: British Heart Foundation, University College London Hospitals/University College London Biomedical Research Centre, Danish Innovation Foundation, Novo Nordisk Foundation, TrygFonden

Kvinnors upplevelser av adjuvant cytostatikabehandling vid bröstcancer : en litteraturstudie

Bakgrund: Adjuvant cytostatikabehandling används vid bröstcancer efter att tumören tagits bort. Biverkningar kan uppstå då cytostatika påverkar alla kroppens celler. För att sjuksköterskan ska kunna ge en god omvårdnad krävs det att hon/han får ta del av patienters upplevelser vid adjuvant cytostatikabehandling. Syfte: Syftet var att beskriva kvinnors upplevelser av adjuvant cytostatikabehandling vid bröstcancer. Metod: En litteraturöversikt som baserades på 13 vetenskapliga artiklar med kvalitativ ansats utfördes. Resultat: Resultatet utgjordes av tre huvudkategorier: uppleva en förändrad kropp, uppleva ett förändrat sinne och upplevd påverkan på det sociala livet. Det framkom att kvinnorna upplevde både fysiska och psykiska biverkningar och dessa hade en stor påverkan på deras sociala liv. Slutsats: I slutsatsen betonas vikten av sjuksköterskans stöd i form av information och omvårdnad. Background: Adjuvant chemotherapy is used to treat breast cancer after the removal of the tumour. Side effects may occur since chemotherapy affects all of the body cells. The nurse should be able to provide good care, to do so it requires that she/he takes part of patients’ experiences of adjuvant chemotherapy. Aim: The aim was to describe women’s experiences of adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer Method: A literature review based on 13 scientific articles with qualitative approach was executed. Results: The result consisted of three main categories: experiencing a changed body, experiencing a changed mind and perceived impact on social life. It was revealed that women experienced both physical and psychological side effects and they had a great impact on their social life. Conclusion: The conclusion shows the importance of the nurse’s support in form of information and care.

AN EXAMPLE OF PROCESS INTEGRATION IN E-EDUCATION SYSTEM

This paper considers integration of educational processes and appropriate software applications through organization of studies, realization of educational and research processes and content management. Information technology development enables more efficient teaching through orientation to knowledge transfer instead of presentation and more efficient study using students' services subsystem and LMS. The paper presents an example of implementing this concept through the realization of faculty intranet and using LMS. An example of e-education process analysis and software components integration at the Faculty of Organizational Sciences, University of Belgrade, is given, too

Clinical Testing of Walking Bleach, In-Office, and Combined Bleaching of Endodontically Treated Teeth

Objective. The causes of internal posteruptive discoloration of teeth are bleeding, necroses, infections, and endodontic filling materials. The aim of this study was to establish the results of bleaching endodontically treated teeth using walking bleach, in-office, and combined techniques, using 30% carbamide peroxide and 35% hydrogen peroxide, as well as the effect of etiological factors, and the time elapsed after endodontic treatment on the success of bleaching. Materials and Methods. The research involved 30 endodontically treated teeth in healthy patients. Retroalveolar X-rays were taken to check the quality of root canal obturation. Endodontic treatment and obturation were carried out on the discolored non-vital teeth without any previous endodontic treatment. Before bleaching, two millimeters of the filling were removed from the root canal and the very entry into the canal was protected with glass ionomer cement. The teeth were divided into three groups, depending on the bleaching technique: walking bleach technique (10 patients), in-office technique (10 patients), and combined technique (10 patients). The teeth were bleached with 30% carbamide peroxide and 35% hydrogen peroxide. The bleaching procedure was repeated in all the patients three times. The color of all teeth was determined based on the Vita Classic guide before and after bleaching. The Χ2 square and Kruskal–Wallis tests were used to identify differences in teeth bleaching results. Results. A statistically significant difference (p < 0.05) was established between bleaching success and the time elapsed after endodontic treatment. There were no statistically significant differences observed between the bleaching success and etiological factors, bleaching techniques, or bleaching agents. Conclusions. The effectiveness of non-vital tooth bleaching is affected by the time elapsed after endodontic treatment

An insight into chemical composition and biological activity of Montenegrin Vranac red wine

This study aimed to describe quality and potential health benefits of three Vranac wines obtained from new grape clones (CI, CII and CIII) recently developed and recognised. In this aim, their phenolic profiles, anti-2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical activities along with metal compositions were analyzed. Compared with the commercial one, CII and CIII Vranac wines were found to contain both higher contents of total phenolics, flavonoids and monomeric anthocyanins as well as anti-DPPH radical activities. The most abundant phenolics were gallic acid (8.88-16.36 mg/L), catechin (12.42-24.35 mg/L) and epicatechin (4.30-7.79 mg/L). Finally, the metal content of all the analyzed samples was within the toxicological safety limits. Taken all together, Montenegrin Vranac wines represent a rich source of both phenolics and minerals exhibiting promising antioxidant potential. CII and CIII wines can be considered for commercialising due to their high amounts of gallic acid, catechin and epicatechin, significant K/Na ratios and favourable contents of essential metals making them products with health added values

The <i>GSTO2</i> (rs156697) Polymorphism Modifies Diabetic Nephropathy Risk

Background and Objectives: In the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and its complications, genetic and environmental factors play important roles. Diabetic nephropathy (DN), one of the major microangiopathic chronic diabetic complications, is associated with an increased risk of major cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality. The present study was designed to investigate the possible modifying effect of glutathione transferase polymorphisms (GSTM1, GSTT1, GSTP1 rs1138272/rs1695, GSTO1 rs4925 and GSTO2 rs156697) in the susceptibility to T2DM and diabetic nephropathy. Materials and Methods: GSTM1 and GSTT1 deletion polymorphisms were determined by multiplex PCR, whereas GSTO1, GSTO2, and GSTP1 polymorphisms were determined by the real-time PCR in 160 T2DM patients and 248 age- and gender-matched controls. Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) were measured by ELISA. Results: Among six investigated GST polymorphisms, a significant association between the GST genotypes and susceptibility for development of diabetes mellitus was found for the GSTM1, GSTT1, GSTP1 (rs1138272) and GSTO1 polymorphisms. When the GST genotypes’ distribution in diabetes patients was assessed in the subgroups with and without diabetic nephropathy, a significant association was found only for the GSTO2 rs156697 polymorphism. Diabetic patients, carriers of the GSTM1 null, GSTT1 null and variant GSTO1*AA genotypes, had significantly increased levels of AGEs in comparison with carriers of the GSTM1 active, GSTT1 active and referent GSTO1*CC genotypes (p p p = 0.004, respectively). Conclusions: The present study supports the hypothesis that GST polymorphisms modulate the risk of diabetes and diabetic nephropathy and influence the AGEs concentration, suggesting the potential regulatory role of these enzymes in redox homeostasis disturbances

Rotational thromboelastometry (ROTEM) profiling of COVID–19 patients

We evaluated coagulation abnormalities via traditional tests and rotational thromboelastometry (ROTEM) in a group of 94 patients with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection and different severity of pneumonia (34 moderate, 25 severe, 35 critical) with the hypothesis that ROTEM parameters differed by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) severity. Shorter than normal clotting time (CT) and higher than normal maximum clot firmness (MCF) in extrinsic rotational thromboelastometry (EXTEM) and fibrinogen rotational thromboelastometry (FIBTEM), shorter than normal EXTEM clot formation time (CFT), and higher than normal α-angle were classified as markers of hypercoagulable state. Increment in the number of patients with ≥2 hypercoagulable parameters, higher EXTEM (P = .0001), FIBTEM MCF (P = .0001) and maximum lysis decrement (P = .002) with increment in disease severity was observed (P = .0001). Significant positive correlations between IL6 and CT EXTEM (P = .003), MCF EXTEM (P = .033), MCF FIBTEM (P = .01), and negative with ML EXTEM (P = .006) were seen. Our findings based on analysis of different disease severity groups confirmed that a hypercoagulable ROTEM pattern characterized by clot formation acceleration, high clot strength, and reduced fibrinolysis was more frequent in advanced disease groups and patients with high IL6. These results supported the need for different thromboprophylaxis approaches for different severity groups

Migrant footballers in Europe: field study report

This field study report provides information on the needs and challenges of African athletes with a comparative perspective.</p

Social inclusion of African migrant athletes in Europe: toolkit

This toolkit includes a summary of field study, guides and policy recommendations for immigrant athletes and other stakeholders.</p