Irish journal of medical science
-
To describe the epidemiology, outcomes, and prognostic factors of intraocular foreign body (IOFB) injuries at a tertiary ophthalmic referral centre in Cork University Hospital, Ireland. ⋯ This review provides important epidemiological data for IOFB injuries in Ireland. It also adds some useful information to the literature in relation to prognostic factors and lens status post IOFB injury.
-
Internet of Things is a fast growing technology and a network of devices in which everything (smart objects or smart devices) are associated to the internet for effective exchange of information between these connected objects. Internet of Things (IoT) serves as a method for healthcare and acts as an essential part in broad range of real-time healthcare monitoring applications. Previous work shows networked sensor devices, either equipped on the body or embedded inside living being or a camera, make possible in gathering real-time information to evaluate physical and mental health state of the patient by collecting body temperature, blood pressure, patient's image, etc. ⋯ The proposed scheme requires implementation with the authentication protocol. It is important to satisfy the major parameters of security: confidentiality, integrity, authentication, and access control. In this paper our focus is on the authentication of devices.
-
Pachydermodactyly is a rare, benign fibromatosis located around the proximal interphalangeal joints. It is often misdiagnosed as juvenile idiopathic arthritis and may cause unnecessary treatments and anxiety in patients. The goal of this paper is to describe this condition through all the existing information in the scientific literature. ⋯ Diagnosis can be established in asymptomatic young patients through a congruent physical exam, regular analytic results and imaging tests that simply show swelling of soft tissue-a biopsy is generally not required for diagnosis. As pachydermodactyly's course is asymptomatic and benign, knowledge about this condition is limited, which increases the likelihood of its underdiagnosis-it is important that clinicians know of pachydermodactyly in order to avoid misdiagnosis.
-
Osteoarthritis is a significant cause of chronic pain in the elderly population with hip osteoarthritis as one of the main causes of functional disability and joint pain in adults older than 55 years. Recently, platelet rich plasma (PRP) injections have been introduced for treatment of osteoarthritis. The aim of this systematic review is to assess its effectiveness in the management of hip osteoarthritis. ⋯ PRP was shown to improve patient outcome scores at follow-up at 6 and 12 months; however, there was no significant difference seen between patients treated with PRP or hyaluronic acid alone. Following this systematic review, we cannot currently recommend the use of intra-articular injections of PRP for the treatment of hip OA. Given that intra-articular steroid injections are the only such injection recommended by international guidelines for the treatment of hip OA, further studies comparing PRP to steroid would be of benefit to determine the value of PRP injections in hip OA.
-
Reproductive surrogacy can be altruistic or commercial, each with complex ethical considerations that are complicated by heterogeneity in governing laws across jurisdictions. Surrogacy in Ireland is relatively new and largely unregulated, so this review aims to elucidate its current regulatory status and associated ethical issues. AIMS: On reproductive surrogacy from an Irish legal perspective, to: 1. ⋯ However, Ireland is free to draft laws aligned with modern societal views on reproduction, which is especially relevant given the recent legalisation of same-sex marriage. Ethically, carrying mothers and children are vulnerable, particularly in commercial arrangements, with significant financial disparities between commissioning and surrogate parties. Altruistic arrangements can be a boon to Irish society if supported by public education and appropriate legal frameworks.