Annals of clinical and laboratory science
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Ann. Clin. Lab. Sci. · Jan 2018
Clinical Trial Observational StudyReliability of Pro-adrenomedullin and Interleukin 1β in Predicting Severity of Community-Acquired Pneumonia in Pediatric Patients.
Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in children is one of the most important causes of mortality and morbidity in developing countries. Therefore, it is very important for clinicians to detect the presence and severity of pneumonia. Proadrenomedullin (Pro-ADM) and Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) are thought to have potential for CAP evaluation in children. We sought to investigate the value of Pro-ADM and IL-1β levels for severity assessment and outcome prediction in children with CAP. ⋯ Serum Pro-ADM and IL-1β levels may offer additional risk/severity stratification in children with CAP. In addition, they may be helpful in predicting the development of complications, requirements for ntensive care unit admission, and intervention procedures.
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Ann. Clin. Lab. Sci. · Dec 2016
Providing Hemostatic and Blood Conservation Options for Jehovah's Witness Patients in a Large Medical System.
People of the Jehovah's Witness faith believe that they shall "abstain from blood." Because of this belief, we encounter the challenges from Jehovah's Witness patients who actively seek medical care for themselves and their children, but refuse the transfusion of blood products, which may result in increased morbidity and mortality in this patient population. With the development/availability of new hemostatic/coagulation products and the advances in medical technology, we, in collaboration with our clinical colleagues and our local Jehovah's Witness leadership, have developed a clinical guideline comprising medical protocol and surgical strategy for patients refusing blood products. ⋯ Together, we have entered the medical protocol into the entire Memorial Hermann Hospital's electronic system. We report the detailed development and implementation process in order to share our experience and encourage others to develop their own management plan for this patient population.
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Ann. Clin. Lab. Sci. · Jan 2015
Diagnostic Accuracy of a New Urinalysis System, DongJiu, for Diagnosis of Urinary Tract Infection.
The microscopic and chemical analysis of urine is essential for the diagnosis of patients with urinary tract infections (UTI). Quantitative urine culture is the 'gold standard' method for the diagnosis of UTI, but it is labour-intensive and time consuming. The DongJiu 8602 is a new automated urinalysis system with dipstick and microscopy testing. The aim of this study was to evaluate the analytical and diagnostic performance of DongJiu 8602 in comparison to urine culture as the reference method. ⋯ According to our data, performances of microscopic and dipstick parameters of DongJiu 8602 were not satisfactory. Although, analytical sensitivity was improved slightly with combined assessment of microscopic and dipstick results for the lack of UTI, it did not achieve expected levels.
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Ann. Clin. Lab. Sci. · Jan 2015
Cyclophosphamide Combined with Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Protects against Bleomycin-induced Lung Fibrosis in Mice.
To examine the effects and possible mechanism of the immunosuppressant agent cyclophosphamide (CP) combined with bone marrow mesenchymal stromal cells (BM-MSCs) on bleomycin induced lung fibrosis in mice. ⋯ It was concluded that CP alone does not improve PF and may be harmful. In contrast, combined application of BM-MSCs with CP provided better protection against PF and may serve as an effective therapy.
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Ann. Clin. Lab. Sci. · Jan 2014
Tert-butylhydroquinone protects the spinal cord against inflammatory response produced by spinal cord injury.
Antioxidant transcription factor nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) has been shown in our previous studies to play an important role in protection against spinal cord injury (SCI) induced inflammatory response. The objective of this study was to test whether tert-butylhydroquinone (tBHQ), a novel Nrf2 activator, can protect the spinal cord against SCI-induced inflammatory damage. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to laminectomy at T8-T9 and compression with a vascular clip. ⋯ The results showed that the induction of the Nrf2 activity by tBHQ markedly decreased NF-κB activation and inflammatory cytokines production in the injured spinal cord. Administration of tBHQ also significantly attenuated SCI induced hindlimb locomotion deficits, spinal cord edema, and apoptosis. To conclude, pre-treatment with tBHQ could attenuate the spinal cord inflammatory response after SCI.