Open Access DOI:10.23937/2469-5823/1510005

Exploring the Experiences of Nurses Who Attended the Spirituality and Nursing Conference: 'The Art of Healing Presence: The Essence of Nursing Practice'

Amanda Bulette Coakley and Anne-Marie Barron

Article Type: Research Article | First Published: August 17, 2015

For four years, nurses at Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women's Hospital have collaboratively offered an annual conference on Spirituality in Nursing Practice. The planning committee developed a process for comprehensive assessment of the meaning of the conference with the participants for the 2012 conference. Two members (the authors) developed pre and post conference surveys, which were sent to all nurses registered for the conference. The purpose of this study was to gain a g...

 Open Access DOI:10.23937/2474-3674/1510003

Albuminuria in Critically lll Patients: A Prospective Cohort Study

oortje Godijn, Simone M Smits and Peter HJ van der Voort

Article Type: Original Article | First Published: August 14, 2015

In the intensive care unit (ICU) physicians are challenged to predict patient outcome when patients are admitted. Over the years, several tools have been developed for this purpose. Examples are the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) and Sepsis Related Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scoring systems....

 Open Access DOI:10.23937/2572-3235.1510002

Incidental Non-Cardiovascular, Non-Pulmonary Findings Identified in a Low-Dose CT Lung Cancer Screening Population: Prevalence and Clinical Implications

Michal Klysik, David Lynch, Nicholas Stence and Kavita Garg

Article Type: Original Article | First Published: August 30, 2015

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death worldwide. Recently, the National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) demonstrated that, relative to chest x-ray, a 20% decrease in mortality was observed for high risk subjects screened with low dose chest CT. Chest CT unavoidably images non-cardiovascular, non-pulmonary organs such as thyroid, adrenals, liver, kidneys and other structures in the upper abdomen. Moreover, when utilizing a low dose screening-chest CT protocol, the images are often noisy an...

 Open Access DOI:10.23937/2572-3286.1510002

Acute Kidney Injury in Patients with Pandemic 2009 H1N1 Influenza A on Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation: Case Series and Review of the Literature

Ibrahim A Qaqish and Mira T Keddis

Article Type: Review Article | First Published: August 22, 2015

The H1N1 influenza A (swine flu) was first recognized in 1918 during the influenza pandemic and was first isolated from humans in 1974. Several reports ofH1N1 influenza A was reported between 1958 and 2005 with mortality rates up to 17%. In 2009 worldwide outbreak of H1N1 influenza A led the world health organization to raise its pandemic alert to its highest level. H1N1 influenza A was found to be associated with significantly higher mortality in all age groups compared to seasonal influenza wh...

 Open Access DOI:10.23937/2474-3658/1510002

Tick-Borne Encephalitis Virus Isolates Features from Natural Foci of Pribaikalie (Eastern Siberia, Russia)

Adelshin RV, Melnikova OV, Trushina Yu N and Andaev EI

Article Type: Short Communication | First Published: August 28, 2015

Pribaikalie is a mountainous area in the South of Eastern Siberia that borders Lake Baikal between the Irkutsk Region and the Republic of Buryatia. Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is endemic to the area. Human cases occur usually within regional centers (Irkutsk and Ulan-Ude) and large industrial centers (Bratsk, Angarsk, Cheremkhovo), where the majority of the population is concentrated....

 Open Access DOI:10.23937/2474-3690/1510003

Disparities in Prevalence, Treatment, and Control of Hypertension among Low Wage Immigrant Workers beyond Health Insurance Coverage: The Las Vegas Hotel Room Cleaners Blood Pressure Study

Krause N and Arias OE

Article Type: Research Article | First Published: September 07, 2015

Objective: To identify disparities in hypertension prevalence, treatment and control among female hotel room cleaners (HRC) compared to the U.S. population that may persist beyond health insurance coverage. Methods: A community-based participatory research project obtained resting blood pressure readings and information on antihypertensive medication from 866 Las Vegas HRCs....

 Open Access DOI:10.23937/2474-3690/1510002

Preserved Left Ventricular Performance in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats Following Preload and Afterload Challenges

Ming Fan, Mahmoud M. El-Mas, and Abdel A. Abdel-Rahman

Article Type: Original Research Article | First Published: August 29, 2015

Chronic LV pressure overload, e.g. in hypertension, leads to cardiac hypertrophy and ultimately heart failure. However, it is not clear if cardiac performance is compromised during early stages of LV hypertrophy before the development of heart failure. Studies in animals with LV hypertrophy revealed conflicting results due to differences in the magnitude, duration, and method of induction of cardiac hypertrophy as well as in the ventricular chamber involved....

 Open Access DOI:10.23937/2378-2951/1410046

Pioglitazone Improves Endothelial Function in Patients with Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Following Catheter Ablation

Jun Gu, Wei Hu, Xu Liu and Chang-Qian Wang

Article Type: Research Article | First Published: August 30, 2015

Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is the most common type of sustained heart rhythm disorder confronted in clinical practice, which confers a high risk of mortality and morbidity from abnormal hemodynamics and thromboembolism. The beat-to-beat alteration of flow dynamics in AF has disadvantageous effects on cardiac haemodynamics and is associated with endothelial dysfunction. Endothelial dysfunction may contribute to a prothrombotic state in patients with AF and cardiovascular events. Besides, the presen...

 Open Access DOI:10.23937/2378-2951/1410045

Prevalence of Pulmonary Hypertension among Chronic Kidney Disease Patients and its Relation to Location and Blood Flow of Vascular Access

Osama A. Khamis, Tarek Abd El-Hamid Elzyat and Abd El-Rahman Ibrahim Mohammed Ali

Article Type: Research Article | First Published: August 29, 2015

Background:Pulmonary hypertension is increasingly being recognized as a factor that can affect outcome in end stage renal disease. This study was carried out to evaluate the prevalence of pulmonary hypertension among CKD patients and it's relation to vascular access blood flow and location. Patient and Methods:30 patients on regular hemodialysis, 30 patients in predialysis and 30 healthy individuals participated in this study. Each patient underwent full clinical evaluation, chest radiography...

 Open Access DOI:10.23937/2572-4193.1510004

Unusual Manifestation of Herpes Zoster Infection Involving the Greater, Lesser Occipital and Transverse Cervical Nerve: A Case Report

Emilio Mevio

Article Type: Case Report | First Published: September 3, 2015

The most common presentation of Herpes Zoster infection in the head and neck region is Ramsay Hunt syndrome (RHS). RHS represents a complication of the Varicella Zoster Virus (VZV) infection, tipically presenting with the triad of ipsilateral peripheral type facial nerve paralysis, ipsilateral ear pain and erythematous vesicles in the external auditory canal. Herpes Zoster results from the reactivation of VZV in the dorsal root ganglia and RHS can be associated with trigeminal, abducent, glossop...