Irish journal of medical science
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Nucleic acid testing is a reliable method for diagnosing viral infection in clinical samples. However, when the number of cases is huge and there are individual differences in the virus itself, the probability of false-negative results increases. With the advancement in research on the new coronavirus, new detection technologies that use serum-specific antibodies as detection targets have been developed. These detection technologies have high efficiency and shorter turnaround time, which ultimately shortens the time required for diagnosis. This article summarizes the methods that have been reported to date for the detection of the new coronavirus and discusses their principles and technical characteristics. ⋯ With the advancement of technology and the improvement of methods, the detection methods of SARSCoV-2 have become more mature. These advances provided great help to the detection of SARS-CoV-2.
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Observational Study
The effect of national public health measures on the characteristics of trauma presentations to a busy paediatric emergency service in Ireland: a longitudinal observational study.
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and government-enforced restrictions have impacted medical practices. ⋯ This study reveals that total attendances and total injuries reduced during initial phases of the lockdown. This was followed by a significant increase in injury presentations, which reached a peak of 44.6% of all attendances. We identified potential modifiable characteristics of paediatric trauma which can be addressed by future public health strategies.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
The effectiveness of planned discharge education on health knowledge and beliefs in patients with acute myocardial infarction: a randomized controlled trial.
To the best of our knowledge, no other studies investigated acute myocardial infarction patients' beliefs and knowledge level after the discharge education. ⋯ Planned discharge education had a positive effect on the knowledge level of cardiovascular diseases risk factors, drug compliance, nutritional compliance, and individual follow-up in patients with acute myocardial infarction.
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The aim of this study is to share autopsy findings of COVID-19-positive cases and autopsy algorithms for safely handling of suspicious bodies during this pandemic. ⋯ In COVID-19 autopsies, pulmonary findings were found to be prominent and the main pathology was pneumonia. Older age and findings of chronic diseases indicate that the cases were in the multirisk group in terms of COVID-19 mortality.
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Fragility hip fractures are common and costly. Secondary fracture prevention is a treatment goal following hip fracture; however, the number of those that proceed to fracture their contralateral hip in Ireland is unknown. There are plans to introduce a Fracture Liaison Service Database in Ireland which will aim to prevent secondary fractures. To establish a baseline figure for secondary hip fractures, the injury radiographs of 1284 patients from 6 teaching hospitals over a 1-year period were reviewed. ⋯ Approximately 1 in 11 hip fractures treated across the 6 teaching hospitals assessed in 2019 was a patient's second hip fracture. We advocate for the widespread availability of Fracture Liaison Services to patients throughout Ireland to assist secondary fracture prevention.