Prevalence of mycosis fungoides and its association with EBV and HTLV-1 in Pakistanian patients

Mycosis fungoides (MF) is an indolent T cell lymphoma that is distinguished from other lymphomas by its initial appearance on the skin. The histologic diagnosis of MF may be difficult because there is significant overlap in the histologic features of neoplastic T-cell infiltrates and inflammatory dermatoses. This T-cell neoplasm commonly occurs in a mixed, reactive background and can show only a subtle degree of cytologic atypia, rendering histologic diagnosis difficult. In this study MF constituted 0.86% of all non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) both T and B, as compared to the Western studies which have reported 0.5% prevalence for MF of all NHL. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique was used to assess T-cell clonality in paraffinembedded skin biopsies clinically and pathologically suspicious for early MF. Out of the 14 cases diagnosed as MF, amplifiable DNA was isolated from 6 cases, which were further studied for T-cell receptor (TcR)-β, γ, and δ chain gene rearrangements. Clonal product was seen in 4 out of 6 cases for β, γ, and δ TcR chain genes. Association for Epstein Barr virus (EBV) was observed in 3 out of 6 cases (50%) of MF. Although these 3 cases were positive for EBV by PCR, but were negative by in-situ hybridization (ISH). No heterogeneity was noted in these 3 cases of MF for BainHI E, K, N, and Z regions of EBV. All six cases were negative for HTLV-1 (tax region) by PCR. It was concluded that the prevalence of MF in Pakistani population is comparable to the Western data, and that EBV association to MF cases was higher than in Western studies

A Nurse-Led Delirium Prevention Program for Hospitalized Older Adults

Background: Delirium, an acute decline in cognition and attention, is a common and severe problem for hospitalized older adults, with incidence rates ranging from 11% to 56%, and 1.5 to 4.0-fold increased risk of death. Despite its multifaceted nature, delirium is preventable in 30% to 40% cases. A California academic community hospital experienced a higher incidence of delirium (30% to 40%) in adult non-critical care units as compared to delirium rates (11% to 29%) in similar hospital settings. The higher rates of delirium were believed to be due to fragmented, inconsistent, and non-individualized delirium care. Purpose/Objectives: The purpose of this evidence-based, quality improvement project was to determine whether a nurse-led Delirium Prevention Bundle (DPB) when compared to usual care, reduces delirium incidence in hospitalized geriatric patients. Method: The project was a two-group, pre-post design using the nurse-led DPB educational intervention for nurses. The project was implemented in two stages: 1) an educational session for nurses on completing the DPB including the Delirium Risk Factor Identification (DRFI) tool, targeted delirium prevention strategies (based on the Hospital Elder Life Program), and nursing documentation; and 2) the DPB implementation on a 26-bed geriatric unit at a 250-bed academic community medical center. Baseline data on delirium incidence rates were collected on eligible patients on the geriatric unit for one month before the intervention and prospectively on patients who were eligible following the educational intervention. Demographic data on eligible patients and unit nursing staff as well as nurse knowledge of delirium and adherence to the DPB were collected. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics, t-tests, and chi-square test. Results: implementation of nursing education of the DPB, the addition of the DRFI tool, and documentation template in the hospital Electronic Health Record, was effective in reducing delirium incidence rate from 16% to 14% (p =<.001) and improving documentation compliance from <1% to 17%. Nurse delirium knowledge was also improved significantly (pre-test mean 80.0, post-test mean 94.3, p=.029). Conclusion: Nursing education utilizing the DPB is an effective approach in increasing nurse awareness of preventive care for delirium and decreasing incident delirium in this population

Chandra follow-up of the SDSS DR8 Redmapper catalog using the MATCha pipeline

For abstract see published article

Association between mental flexibility and somatic symptom disorder mediated by smartphone addiction among university students

Background: Smartphone addiction is categorized as a behavioral addiction that in adolescents and youths can affect many aspects of life, including education and physical health, and is accompanied by such problems as reduced interpersonal problems, anger, aggression, and emotion. This study designed to assess the association between mental flexibility and somatoform mediated by smartphone addiction among university students in 2020. Methods: The study was a descriptive correlation performed employing path analysis. The study population included all students of the Islamic Azad University of Ahvaz in the academic year 2020-2021, 251 students were selected using simple random sampling. In the present research, we utilized the Somatic Symptoms Experiences Questionnaire (SSEQ), Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS), and Cognitive Flexibility Inventory (CFI). The proposed model was assessed using path analysis with AMOS version 23.0 software. Results: There was a negative and significant association between mental flexibility and smartphone addiction (β=-0.47, P=0.001). Moreover, there was a positive association between smartphone addiction and somatoform (β=0.41, P=0.001). There was no significant association between mental flexibility and somatoform (β=-0.10, P=0.07). The path analysis results showed the mediating role of smartphone addiction in the association between mental flexibility and somatoform in university students (β=-0.27, P=0.001). Conclusion: Our model had a good fit, and, as a result, it could be helpful as an important step in identifying the aspects affecting the somatic symptom disorder of university students with smartphone addiction

Psychological flexibility mediate the effect of early maladaptive schemas on Psychopathology

Introduction: The present research aims to study the mediation role of psychological inflexibility on the relationship between the schemas domains) and anxiety symptoms. Methods: In order to achieve the study objectives, a sample of 230 students has been selected, applying availability sampling. The applying tools included the short-form of Young questionnaire (YSQ-SF), the acceptance and action questionnaire-II (AAQ-II) and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). Results: Correlation analysis has shown that there is a relationship between the early maladaptive schemas and anxiety symptoms. Furthermore, the path analysis shows a mediation role of psychological inflexibility between disconnection/rejection (2.37, p<0.01) impaired autonomy and performance (3.19, p<0.01), overvigilance/inhibition (2.90, p<0.01) and the anxiety symptoms. Conclusion: The most obvious finding to emerge from this study was that considering some techniques for decreasing psychological inflexibility enhances the outcome of schema therapy. This research managed to answer how the early maladaptive schemas have their effects on the anxiety symptoms in a students' sample. Further work needs to be done to study the relationship between the early maladaptive schemas and psychological inflexibility in the clinical samples. Declaration of Interest: None

Call interview for early detection and appropriate treatment to decrease COVID-19 pandemic burden

One of the most important concerns during the covid-19 pandemic is an imbalance in health services. Considering significant mortality among hospital staff and the general population, a great apprehension was raised in society. Consequently, many patients with symptoms were rushed to hospitals. In this regard, to keeping clinics away from overcrowding, call interview with patients plays a crucial role in not only patients screening but also treatment approach. &nbsp