Content Validation of a Standardized Language Diagnosis by Certified Specialists in Gerontological Nutrition

Validation of the nutrition standardized language assures the language is accurate for use in practice, policy, and research, but few validation studies have been reported. The purpose of this descriptive study was to validate content of all components of the nutrition diagnostic term involuntary weight loss using experts providing care for older adults in health care settings. A Nutrition Diagnosis Validation Instrument was developed that contained the definition, etiologies, and signs and symptoms of the diagnosis plus items added from literature review. Questions on clarity and completeness of the language were included. The Nutrition Diagnosis Validation Instrument used a Likert-type scale for deriving a Diagnostic Content Validity (DCV) score for all items in the definition, etiology, and signs and symptoms components to define major, minor, and nonrelevant characteristics and a mean total DCV score for the term. In 2008, all Board Certified Specialists in Gerontological Nutrition (CSGs) were recruited by mail. CSGs (n = 110, 73% response) reported 15 ± 10 (mean ± standard deviation) practice years in gerontological nutrition. The total DCV component scores were 0.80 ± 0.17 (definition), 0.63 ± 0.08 (etiology), and 0.69 ± 0.12 (signs and symptoms). The mean total DCV score of the diagnostic term was 0.69 ± 0.11. Cognitive decline, poor oral health, and impaired skin integrity were identified as missing language. In conclusion, the majority of the definition, etiologies, and signs and symptoms of the term were contentvalidated, including seven items derived from literature review. The validated items, including recommendations for added language, need to be retested using the same process

Content Validation of a Standardized Language Diagnosis by Certified Specialists in Gerontological Nutrition

Validation of the nutrition standardized language assures the language is accurate for use in practice, policy, and research, but few validation studies have been reported. The purpose of this descriptive study was to validate content of all components of the nutrition diagnostic term involuntary weight loss using experts providing care for older adults in health care settings. A Nutrition Diagnosis Validation Instrument was developed that contained the definition, etiologies, and signs and symptoms of the diagnosis plus items added from literature review. Questions on clarity and completeness of the language were included. The Nutrition Diagnosis Validation Instrument used a Likert-type scale for deriving a Diagnostic Content Validity (DCV) score for all items in the definition, etiology, and signs and symptoms components to define major, minor, and nonrelevant characteristics and a mean total DCV score for the term. In 2008, all Board Certified Specialists in Gerontological Nutrition (CSGs) were recruited by mail. CSGs (n = 110, 73% response) reported 15 ± 10 (mean ± standard deviation) practice years in gerontological nutrition. The total DCV component scores were 0.80 ± 0.17 (definition), 0.63 ± 0.08 (etiology), and 0.69 ± 0.12 (signs and symptoms). The mean total DCV score of the diagnostic term was 0.69 ± 0.11. Cognitive decline, poor oral health, and impaired skin integrity were identified as missing language. In conclusion, the majority of the definition, etiologies, and signs and symptoms of the term were contentvalidated, including seven items derived from literature review. The validated items, including recommendations for added language, need to be retested using the same process

Obtaining and Using Copyrighted Research Journal Content—Convenience vs Ethics

Members of American Dietetic Association (ADA) or those credentialed by the Commission on Dietetic Registration agree to abide by the ADA/Commission on Dietetic Registration Code of Ethics for the dietetics profession (1). A fundamental principle within the Code is to conduct dietetics practice with honor, integrity, and fairness and to comply with all laws and regulations applicable or related to the profession. Dietetics practitioners read and apply the results of research published in professional journals and other publications to guide their evidence-based practice. Authors of research articles can, in some cases, make their work more accessible to practitioners by amendment of the copyright transfer agreements required by the publisher. And practitioners working in the United States must understand and abide by the US copyright laws that govern the fair use of these resources. In this digital age, inappropriate access to and distribution of copyrighted research content can occur. This article briefly describes the key requirements of current US copyright law, generalized to situations that a dietetics practitioner might encounter, through scenarios that illustrate implications for practitioners and suggests options for the retrieval and use of copyrighted research information while abiding by the Code of Ethics. The discovery, access, and use of freely available literature (“open access”) with proper attribution of authorship is also discussed

Authorship in JASIS: A quantitative analysis

The researchers systematically examined authorship patterns of feature articles and brief communications in the Journal of the American Society for Information Science (JASIS), a leading professional publication in its field, from 1970 to 1996. Characteristics of authors, as opposed to the content of the journal and the domain of information science, serve as the focus of the study. Data on gender, academic or other professional affiliation, geographic location, and frequency of authorship were drawn from the JASIS articles themselves and tabulated both by individual years and over the entire span of the study. The study sought quantitative evidence of changing authorship patterns and the findings are explained in relation to previous authorship studies

Transglutaminase activation in neurodegenerative diseases

The following review examines the role of calcium in promoting the in vitro and in vivo activation of transglutaminases in neurodegenerative disorders. Diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and Huntington's disease exhibit increased transglutaminase activity and rises in intracellular calcium concentrations, which may be related. The aberrant activation of transglutaminase by calcium is thought to give rise to a variety of pathological moieties in these diseases, and the inhibition has been shown to have therapeutic benefit in animal and cellular models of neurodegeneration. Given the potential clinical relevance of transglutaminase inhibitors, we have also reviewed the recent development of such compounds

Evidence-Based Assessment of Congenital Heart Disease Genes to Enable Returning Results in a Genomic Study

Background: Congenital heart disease (CHD) is the most common major congenital anomaly and causes significant morbidity and mortality. Epidemiologic evidence supports a role of genetics in the development of CHD. Genetic diagnoses can inform prognosis and clinical management. However, genetic testing is not standardized among individuals with CHD. We sought to develop a list of validated CHD genes using established methods and to evaluate the process of returning genetic results to research participants in a large genomic study. Methods: Two-hundred ninety-five candidate CHD genes were evaluated using a ClinGen framework. Sequence and copy number variants involving genes in the CHD gene list were analyzed in Pediatric Cardiac Genomics Consortium participants. Pathogenic/likely pathogenic results were confirmed on a new sample in a clinical laboratory improvement amendments-certified laboratory and disclosed to eligible participants. Adult probands and parents of probands who received results were asked to complete a post-disclosure survey. Results: A total of 99 genes had a strong or definitive clinical validity classification. Diagnostic yields for copy number variants and exome sequencing were 1.8% and 3.8%, respectively. Thirty-one probands completed clinical laboratory improvement amendments-confirmation and received results. Participants who completed postdisclosure surveys reported high personal utility and no decision regret after receiving genetic results. Conclusions: The application of ClinGen criteria to CHD candidate genes yielded a list that can be used to interpret clinical genetic testing for CHD. Applying this gene list to one of the largest research cohorts of CHD participants provides a lower bound for the yield of genetic testing in CHD

Modelling human choices: MADeM and decision‑making

Research supported by FAPESP 2015/50122-0 and DFG-GRTK 1740/2. RP and AR are also part of the Research, Innovation and Dissemination Center for Neuromathematics FAPESP grant (2013/07699-0). RP is supported by a FAPESP scholarship (2013/25667-8). ACR is partially supported by a CNPq fellowship (grant 306251/2014-0)

Validation of Nutrition Standardized Language—Next Steps

To provide a model for quality care and outcomes management, the Nutrition Care Process (NCP) and standardized language were introduced in 2003 by the American Dietetic Association (ADA). The standardized language, published in the International Dietetics & Nutrition Terminology (IDNT) Reference Manual: Standardized Language for the Nutrition Care Process, is designed to facilitate communication, improve care, and close the gap in health care quality. When registered dietitians (RDs) are oriented to a nutrition care process, improvement in their documentation of nutrition care occurs. Since the introduction of the NCP and standardized language, RDs and dietetic technicians, registered (DTRs), have begun to adopt the process and language into their practice. This article explains why validation of the standardized language is needed to make the language accurate and meaningful for practice and describes how validation is conducted using RDs