Abstract
Background
Literature shows that music can reduce stress conditions. This pilot study investigated the effects of music listening on work-related stress and well-being in healthcare ...professionals.
Method
A total of 45 subjects were randomly assigned to three treatment groups: No Music, Individualized Music and Melomics-Health Listening. Music groups experienced a daily 30-min-playlist listening for 3 weeks at home. The Maugeri Stress Index-Revised (MASI-R) and the Psychological General Well-Being Index (PGWBI) were administered at baseline, after 3 weeks and after 7 weeks (follow-up). Longitudinal data were analyzed by means of a nested ANOVA model, testing the main effects of time and treatment and the interaction between them.
Results
MASI-R scores showed a positive trend in music groups and a worsening in the control group. Only the interaction time/treatment emerged as supporting a trend toward statistical significance (P = 0.07). PGWBI showed a stability in music groups and a clear decline in controls, without significant effects.
Conclusions
Results from the study support the need for a larger clinical trial: it is suggested that daily music listening could be implemented to reduce work-related stress and that the effects may be related, not only to individual musical preferences and familiarity, but also to specific music structures and parameters.
Musical sonification therapy is a new technique that can reinforce conventional rehabilitation treatments by increasing therapy intensity and engagement through challenging and motivating exercises. ...The aim of this paper is to evaluate the feasibility and validity of the SonicHand protocol, a new training and assessment method for the rehabilitation of hand function. The study was conducted in 15 healthy individuals and 15 stroke patients. The feasibility of implementation of the training protocol was tested in stroke patients only, who practiced a series of exercises concurrently to music sequences produced by specific movements. The assessment protocol evaluated hand motor performance during pronation/supination, wrist horizontal flexion/extension, and hand grasp without sonification. From hand position data, 15 quantitative parameters were computed evaluating mean velocity, movement smoothness, and angular excursions of hand/fingers. We validated this assessment in terms of its ability to discriminate between patients and healthy subjects, test-retest reliability and concurrent validity with the upper limb section of the Fugl-Meyer scale (FM), the functional independence measure (FIM), and the Box and Block Test (BBT). All patients showed a good understanding of the assigned tasks and were able to correctly execute the proposed training protocol, confirming its feasibility. A moderate-to-excellent intraclass correlation coefficient was found in 8/15 computed parameters. The moderate-to-strong correlation was found between the measured parameters and the clinical scales. The SonicHand training protocol is feasible and the assessment protocol showed good to excellent between-group discrimination ability, reliability, and concurrent validity, thus enabling the implementation of new personalized and motivating training programs employing sonification for the rehabilitation of hand function.
Severe sepsis is increasingly a cause of death. Rapid and correct initial antimicrobial treatment reduces mortality. The aetiological agent(s) cannot always be found in blood cultures (BCs). A novel ...multiplex PCR test (SeptiFast (alpha version)) that allows identification of 20 bacterial and fungal species directly from blood was used, comparatively with BC, in a multicentre trial of patients with suspected bacterial or fungal sepsis. Five hundred and fifty-eight paired samples from 359 patients were evaluated. The rate of positivity was 17% for BC and 26% for SeptiFast. Ninety-six microorganisms were isolated with BC, and 186 microorganisms were identified with SeptiFast; 231 microrganisms were found by combining the two tests. Of the 96 isolates identified with BC, 22 isolates were considered to be contaminants. Of the remaining 74 non-contaminant BC isolates available for comparison with SeptiFast, 50 were identified as a species identical to the species identified with SeptiFast in the paired sample. Of the remaining 24 BC isolates for which the species, identified in the BC, could not be detected in the paired SeptiFast sample, 18 BC isolates were identified as a species included in the SeptiFast master list, and six BC isolates were identified as a species not included in the SeptiFast master list. With SeptiFast, 186 microorganisms were identified, 12 of which were considered to be contaminants. Of the 174 clinically relevant microorganisms identified with SeptiFast, 50 (29%) were detected by BC. More than half of the remaining microorganisms identified with SeptiFast (but not isolated after BC) were also found in routine cultures of other relevant samples taken from the patients. Future clinical studies should assess whether the use of SeptiFast is of significant advantage in the detection of bloodstream pathogens.
Abstract This study reviews the most recent (from 2000 to 2011) Clinical Controlled Trials (CCT) and Randomized Controlled Trials (RCT) concerning the use of music and music-therapy (MT) in the ...context of dementia and related issues. Studies which explored the efficacy of music and MT on behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) are prevalent, while those aiming at assessing a potential effect of these approaches on cognitive and physiological aspects are scant. Although with some limitations, the results of these studies are consistent with the efficacy of MT approach on BPSD. In this context, the ability of the music therapist to directly interact with the patients appears to be crucial for the success of the intervention. This review was endorsed by the Italian Psychogeriatric Association (AIP) and represents its view about the criteria to select appropriate music and MT approaches in the field of dementia. Accordingly, we have developed a list of recommendations to facilitate the current use of these techniques in the context of non-pharmacological treatments for patients with dementia.
This study determined excess mortality and length of hospital stay (LOS) attributable to bloodstream infection (BSI) caused by third-generation-cephalosporin-resistant Escherichia coli in Europe.
A ...prospective parallel matched cohort design was used. Cohort I consisted of patients with third-generation-cephalosporin-resistant E. coli BSI (REC) and cohort II consisted of patients with third-generation-cephalosporin-susceptible E. coli BSI (SEC). Patients in both cohorts were matched for LOS before infection with patients free of the respective BSI. Thirteen European tertiary care centres participated between July 2007 and June 2008.
Cohort I consisted of 111 REC patients and 204 controls and cohort II consisted of 1110 SEC patients and 2084 controls. REC patients had a higher mortality at 30 days (adjusted odds ratio = 4.6) and a higher hospital mortality (adjusted hazard ratio = 5.7) than their controls. LOS was increased by 8 days. For SEC patients, these figures were adjusted odds ratio = 1.9, adjusted hazard ratio = 2.0 and excess LOS = 3 days. A 2.5 times 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.9-6.8 increase in all-cause mortality at 30 days and a 2.9 times (95% CI 1.2-6.9) increase in mortality during entire hospital stay as well as an excess LOS of 5 days (95% CI 0.4-10.2) could be attributed to resistance to third-generation cephalosporins in E. coli BSI.
Morbidity and mortality attributable to third-generation-cephalosporin-resistant E. coli BSI is significant. If prevailing resistance trends continue, high societal and economic costs can be expected. Better management of infections caused by resistant E. coli is becoming essential.
We undertook a randomised controlled trial to assess whether a music therapy (MT) scheme of administration, including three working cycles of one month spaced out by one month of no treatment, is ...effective to reduce behavioural disturbances in severely demented patients. Sixty persons with severe dementia (30 in the experimental and 30 in the control group) were enrolled. Baseline multidimensional assessment included demographics, Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), Barthel Index and Neuropsychiatry Inventory (NPI) for all patients. All the patients of the experimental and control groups received standard care (educational and entertainment activities). In addition, the experimental group received three cycles of 12 active MT sessions each, three times a week. Each 30-min session included a group of three patients. Every cycle of treatment was followed by one month of wash-out. At the end of this study, MT treatment resulted to be more effective than standard care to reduce behavioural disorders. We observed a significant reduction over time in the NPI global scores in both groups (F
7,357
= 9.06, p < 0.001) and a significant difference between groups (F
1,51
= 4.84, p < 0.05) due to a higher reduction of behavioural disturbances in the experimental group at the end of the treatment (Cohen's d = 0.63). The analysis of single NPI items shows that delusions, agitation and apathy significantly improved in the experimental, but not in the control group. This study suggests the effectiveness of MT approach with working cycles in reducing behavioural disorders of severely demented patients.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
BFBNIB, DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VSZLJ
This contribution focuses on the definition of music therapy as a specific applicative context to be seen as distinct from the generic use of music in a variety of pathologies. Music therapy is ...presented as a discipline grounded both upon relationship and upon the theoretical-methodological principles peculiar to each applicative model. The therapeutic nature proper to music therapy is highlighted with specific reference to the domain of the dementias. Music therapy facilitates expression, communication and relationship in the non-verbal context. Such an opportunity allows persons with dementia to establish contact, to express, and even contrive an organisation/regulation of their emotions, through the sonorous-musical relationship with the music therapist. On the basis of a brief analysis of the relevant literature, attention is drawn to the importance of both evidence-based clinical practice and music therapy evaluations, aimed at proving the effectiveness of music therapy, while promoting its correct application.
Summary Background Community-acquired meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) is responsible for severe infections in previously healthy people acquired in the community in different ...areas of the world. Aim To report an outbreak of CA-MRSA in a hospital newborn nursery in northern Italy in September–October 2010, its investigation and control measures. Methods The epidemiology of the outbreak is reported. The investigation included screening neonates, parents and staff for MRSA carriage. Molecular strain typing was performed on MRSA isolates. Findings The outbreak affected nine neonates with three severe infections. In addition, four mothers had postpartum mastitis, and three mothers and one father had skin infection. The outbreak strain belonged to the USA300 CA-MRSA clone. Asymptomatic carriage of the outbreak strain was found among neonates, parents and hospital staff. The implementation of appropriate infection control measures in the hospital terminated the outbreak. Conclusions To our knowledge, this is the first report of a hospital outbreak caused by the USA300 CA-MRSA clone in Europe. It is important to reinforce infection control measures, particularly in high-risk groups, such as neonates, to prevent USA300 from becoming endemic in European hospitals.
PDF
