Mouth Care in Patients Receiving Mechanical Ventilation: A Systematic Review

Context: Studies show that despite the role of mouth care in preventing ventilator-associated pneumonia, there is no high quality evidences for it. This study reviewed the literature related to mouth care in patients receiving mechanical ventilation. Evidence Acquisition: PubMed, Ovide, Elsevier, ProQuest, IranMedex, SID, and Magiran databases were searched using key terms such as oral care, mouth care, critical care, and intensive care. Fifty-seven full-text articles in total were retrieved and included in the study. Results: Totally, 15 review articles and 42 research articles were reviewed. Only 13 articles introduced or evaluated the validity of instruments or caring guidelines in the area of mouth care. Only one study discussed about designing and validating the psychometric properties of a mouth assessment scale. Most of the articles emphasized on brushing the teeth as the best method for mouth care, but there was no consensus on the frequency of washing and the best washing solution. Conclusions: Despite the importance of mouth care, few original studies are conducted in this area and there is no approved clinical guideline for this procedure

The Extension Workers' Competency in Developing Small Agribusiness Capital in the District of Bogor, West Java

Extension agents had to develop their competencies in promoting small agribusiness capital. They needed this new skill so they could assist small farmers to develop their agribusinesses. Every enterprise – what ever its scale -- needed capital. In conjunction with this, the objectives of this research were: (1) to describe the distribution of extension agents on selected characteristics, (2) to identify the agents' competencies in promoting small agribusiness capital, as well as (3) to analyze the relationship of the agents' characteristics and their competencies in promoting small agribusiness capital. Data were collected through interviews with the agents. The obtained data were analyzed by using qualitative as well as quantitative procedures. The research results demonstrated that: firstly, the Extension agents mostly indicated their generic competencies in Agricultural Extension, and lack in specific competencies in farm management, especially in small agribusiness capital formation. Secondly, agents considered promoting the small farmers self-help capability, facilitating the promotion of village financial institution, and evaluating extension program as the three most important competencies, and thirdly, regardless of their characteristics, most of the agents interviewed agreed to the rank order of nine competency areas

Corrosion resistance of AZ91 magnesium alloy with pulse electrodeposited Ni-SiC nanocomposite coating

Magnesium and its alloys are the lightest of the structural metals, which makes them one of the most promising materials to minimize vehicle weight, but poor surface properties restrict the application of these alloys. In this paper, Ni-SiC nanocomposite coatings were applied on AZ91 magnesium alloy from Watts bath with SiC content 0 g.L-1 (pure Ni), 10 g.L-1 (Ni-10SiC) and 15 g.L-1 (Ni-15SiC) by application of pulse electrodeposition technique. The morphology and phase analysis were carried out by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis, respectively. Micro-hardness of specimens was measured and the results revealed a significant enhancement: from 74 Vickers for bare AZ91 magnesium alloy to 523 Vickers for coated specimen in the bath containing 15 g.L-1 SiC. The Corrosion behavior of the samples was studied by potentiodaynamic polarization, and the obtained data showed the superior corrosion resistance for the coated AZ91 magnesium alloy, i.e. the corrosion current density decreased from 2.69 mA.cm-2, for the uncoated sample, to 0.00046 mA.cm-2, for coated specimen in the bath containing 15 g.L-1 SiC and the corrosion potential increased from -2.069 V to -0.33 V for the same conditions

Mobile learning for the integration of groups that risk being marginalized

Social inclusion and cohesion are two of the objectives that the European Union has very often proclaimed in its documents, in the past ten years. At the same time, community policies have emphasized the role that ICTs can play to encourage and support participation and integration opportunities of disadvantaged citizens. Within this context, the ENSEMBLE project, presented here, aims at developing a strategy of use of ICTs to promote socio-cultural integration of immigrant citizens by using technologies such as MP3 players and mobile phones, and by experimenting instructional methods and communication models suitable for the adopted instruments. The present paper focuses particularly on the educational communication design of MMS messages

Can Power from Space Compete?

Satellite solar power (SSP) has been suggested as an alternative to terrestrial energy resources for electricity generation. In this study, we consider the market for electricity from the present to 2020, roughly the year when many experts expect SSP to be technically achievable. We identify several key challenges for SSP in competing with conventional electricity generation in developed and developing countries, discuss the role of market and economic analysis as technical development of SSP continues during the coming years, and suggest future research directions to improve understanding of the potential economic viability of SSP.

Simulation of the response of a silicon pixel detector

A model to simulate the response of a silicon pixel detector is described. The effects of geometrical charge sharing, electronic noise threshold dispersion, capacitive coupling between pixel channels and d -rays production have been taken into account. The model has been tested on the Omega3chip, which is the direct predecessor of the ALICE pixel detector, to be used in the inner tracking system of the ALICE experiment. The model is able to reproduce the experimental data and the resulting parameters are consistent with the measurements made on the Omega3chip. Key words:silicon pixel, simulation PACS:07.05.T,29.40.

The n-acetyl phenylalanine glucosamine derivative attenuates the inflammatory/catabolic environment in a chondrocyte-synoviocyte co-culture system

Osteoarthritis (OA), the most prevalent degenerative joint disease, still lacks a true disease-modifying therapy. The involvement of the NF-κB pathway and its upstream activating kinases in OA pathogenesis has been recognized for many years. The ability of the N-acetyl phenylalanine glucosamine derivative (NAPA) to increase anabolism and reduce catabolism via inhibition of IKKα kinase has been previously observed in vitro and in vivo. The present study aims to confirm the chondroprotective effects of NAPA in an in vitro model of joint OA established with primary cells, respecting both the crosstalk between chondrocytes and synoviocytes and their phenotypes. This model satisfactorily reproduces some features of the previously investigated DMM model, such as the prominent induction of ADAMTS-5 upon inflammatory stimulation. Both gene and protein expression analysis indicated the ability of NAPA to counteract key cartilage catabolic enzymes (ADAMTS-5) and effectors (MCP-1). Molecular analysis showed the ability of NAPA to reduce IKKα nuclear translocation and H3Ser10 phosphorylation, thus inhibiting IKKα transactivation of NF-κB signalling, a pivotal step in the NF-κB-dependent gene expression of some of its targets. In conclusion, our data confirm that NAPA could truly act as a disease-modifying drug in OA

Correlation Between Nurses' Caring Behaviors and Patients' Satisfaction

Background: Nowadays, the patients’ satisfaction is used as a criterion to measure the hospitals’ service quality. However, there are controversial results about the aspect of caring behaviors which mostly affects the patients’ satisfaction. Objectives: The current study aimed to assess the relationship between caring behaviors and patients’ satisfaction. Patients and Methods: A descriptive correlation study was conducted on 250 randomly selected patients in Beheshti Hospital in Kashan, Iran. A questionnaire was used to gather the data. Degree of satisfaction was measured on a five-point scale using the patient satisfaction instrument, and caring behavior was measured on a six-point scale by caring behavior inventory. Results: A significant positive correlation was observed between caring behavior mean score and that of the patient satisfaction (P < 0.001, r = 0.565). The subscale of “knowledge and professional skills” of the caring behavior inventory obtained the highest and the subscale of “respectful deference to others” got the lowest mean scores. In the patient satisfaction instrument, the two subscales of “technical - professional care” and “patient education” gained the highest and the lowest mean scores respectively. Conclusions: The caring behaviors of nurses and patient education can increase the patient satisfaction

Critical Thinking Skills in Nursing Students: a Comparison Between Freshmen and Senior Students

Background: Critical thinking is one of the most important concepts in the field of education. Despite studies published on nursing students’ critical thinking skills (CTS), some suggest that there is not enough evidence supporting the relationship between content of nursing education programs and nursing students’ CTS. Objectives: Given the existing discrepancies, this study aimed to compare the critical thinking skills of freshmen and senior nursing students. Patients and Methods: This comparative study was conducted on 150 undergraduate freshmen and senior nursing students in Kashan University of Medical Sciences, during 2012. The students in the first and the last semesters of their study in nursing were entered in the study using the census method. Data were collected using a questionnaire including questions on demographic data and the California Critical Thinking Skills Test, form B. Data analysis was performed using the SPSS v.13 software. Descriptive statistics were calculated. Moreover, independent sample t-test and Spearman and Pearson’s correlation coefficients were used in the data analysis. Results: Both the freshmen and senior nursing students had low CTS. The mean critical thinking scores were 11.79 ± 4.80 and 11.21 ± 3.17 for the freshmen and the senior students, respectively (P = 0.511). Moreover, no significant correlation was found between the students’ score in CTS and their age, gender, high school grade point average (GPA), rank in university entrance examination (RUEE) and interest in the nursing profession. Conclusions: The students were low skilled in critical thinking and their CTS did not significantly change during their nursing degree. Thus it may be concluded that the nursing education program did not affect the CTS of its students. Longitudinal studies are suggested for assessing nursing students’ critical thinking over time. Moreover, revising the curriculum and preparing nursing educators for implementing innovative and active teaching strategies are suggested