This study assessed the prevalence of the inappropriate use of over-the-counter (OTC) cold medicine among adolescents and examined the relationships between knowledge, literacy, and the inappropriate ...use of OTC cold medicine. In 2015, a national representative sample of 6812 students from primary, middle, and high schools completed a survey in Taiwan. Self-administered questionnaires were collected. The results indicated that 22% of adolescents had taken OTC cold medicine in the past year, and 28.5% of them had taken inappropriate dosages. In addition, 15% of adolescents bought OTC cold medicine in the past year, 27% of them did not consult pharmacists. More than half of the adolescents surveyed had misperceptions about cold medicine. Multivariate analysis results indicated that adolescents who had lower levels of cold medicine knowledge, lower medication label literacy, and lower self-efficacy were more likely to engage in the inappropriate use of OTC cold medicine.
Objective: Emergency air medical services (EAMS) share a common helicopter system for prehospital care and transfer in several countries. In Penghu, two systems are involved in EAMS: the helicopter ...and C130 systems. Given their features and limitations, patients using the two systems have significantly different characteristics. Materials and Methods: To clearly understand the disease patterns and dynamic changes in transferred patients, we studied 1228 patients transported from Penghu to Taiwan between January 2009 and December 2017. Results: Our findings show that the helicopter group had more acute diseases, while the C130 system group had more chronic diseases. Cardiovascular disease was the most common diagnosis (328 patients, 26.71%), followed by cerebrovascular disease (263 patients, 21.41%) and gastrointestinal disease (221 patients, 17.99%). Following interventions to support local medicine by Tri-Service General Hospital and the establishment of a cardiac catheterization laboratory, the annual number of transported patients decreased, especially those with cardiovascular diseases. The disease pattern also shifted from acute to chronic disease. Conclusion: Current data indicate that the local medical system is developing the ability to manage chronic diseases and care problems. This article analyzes dynamic changes in the disease patterns of transferred patients in both EAMS groups, providing a strong foundation for developing local medical systems.
Many potential vaccine candidates for serogroup B Neisseria meningitidis (NMB) have been identified by reverse vaccinology, a genome-based approach. However, some candidates may be unseen owing to ...uncertain annotation or their peculiar properties. In this study, we describe the preparation and identification of a novel lipoprotein expressed in all meningococcal strains tested. mAb were first prepared from mice immunized with a meningococcal B strain isolated in Taiwan. Total proteins from the immunizing strain were separated by 2-DE in duplicate. Clone 4-7-3, which crossreacted to 174 tested meningococcal isolates, was used as the primary antibody for Western blotting. The immunoreactive spot was identified by LC-mass spectrometric analysis of the corresponding spot from the silver-stained gel and confirmed by molecular biology approach to be a novel lipoprotein encoded by the hypothetical NMB1468 gene. The potential use of this protein, designated Ag473/NMB1468, as a vaccine component was evaluated using the recombinant protein produced in Escherichia coli. Immunized mice were found to be protected from developing meningococcal disease after intraperitoneal inoculation with a lethal dose of meningococcal strain Nm22209, suggesting that Ag473/NMB1468 may be a promising vaccine candidate. This study also demonstrates the usefulness of the immunoproteomic approach in identification of novel vaccine candidates.
Downregulation of multiple cell cycle-regulatory molecules is a dominant event in TGF-β1-mediated growth inhibition of human carcinoma cells. It is known that KLF10 mimics the anti-proliferative and ...apoptotic effects that TGF-β1 has on epithelial cell growth and the growth of various tumor cells; based on these findings it is considered as a tumor suppressor. KLF10 protein expression is tightly associated with cell cycle-dependent events. However, the regulatory mechanism and its biological meaning have not been identified. In this study, we have demonstrated that KLF10 is a substrate of CDK2/cyclin E and can be phosphorylated. We also have shown that KLF10 efficiently binds to CDK2, while binding much less to CDK4, and displaying no binding to Cdk6. Using mass spectrometry, site direct mutagenesis, in vitro kinase assays and depletion assays, we have established that CDK2 phosphorylates Ser206, which subsequently affects the steady state level of KLF10 in cells. Our studies have also proved that CDK2 up-regulates the protein level of KLF10 through reducing its association with SIAH1, a KLF10 E3-ubiqutin ligase involved in proteasomal degradation. Taken all together, these findings indicate that CDK2-dependent phosphorylation regulates KLF10 stability and that this affects the role of KLF10 in cell.
•KLF10 protein expression was identified associating with cell cycle events.•CDK2 could phosphorylate the KLF10 at Ser206.•Phosphorylated KLF10 presents increasing protein stability and effects in cells.•CDK2 phosphorylation decreases the KLF10 E3-ubiqutin ligase, SIAH1, association.
The influence of acute kidney injury (AKI) on subsequent incident atrial fibrillation (AF) has not yet been fully addressed. This retrospective nationwide cohort study was conducted using Taiwan's ...National Health Insurance Research Database from 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2010. A total of 41,463 patients without a previous AF, mitral valve disease, and hyperthyroidism who developed de novo dialysis-requiring AKI (AKI-D) during their index hospitalization were enrolled. After propensity score matching, "non-recovery group" (
= 2895), "AKI-recovery group" (
= 2895) and "non-AKI group" (control group,
= 5790) were categorized. Within a follow-up period of 6.52 ± 3.88 years (median, 6.87 years), we found that the adjusted risks for subsequent incident AF were increased in both AKI-recovery group (adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) = 1.30; 95% confidence intervals (CI), 1.07⁻1.58;
≤ 0.01) and non-recovery group (aHR = 1.62; 95% CI, 1.36⁻1.94) compared to the non-AKI group. Furthermore, the development of AF carried elevated risks for major adverse cardiac events (aHR = 2.11; 95% CI, 1.83⁻2.43), ischemic stroke (aHR = 1.33; 95% CI, 1.19⁻1.49), and all stroke (aHR = 1.28; 95% CI, 1.15⁻1.43). (all
≤ 0.001, except otherwise expressed) The authors concluded that AKI-D, even in those who withdrew from temporary dialysis, independently increases the subsequent risk of de novo AF.
Objectives: Many nurses feel anxious before starting to work during SARS-CoV- 2 omicron pandemic. How to reduce prework anxiety level in nurses is an important issue. In this study, we intended to ...explore the effect of a 10-minute music intervention on prework anxiety in nurses during the Omicron COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted to measure the anxiety level of 60 nurse participants at a hospital before starting to work. We randomized 60 study participating nurses into three groups who listened to no music, fast-tempo music, and slow-tempo music for 10 min each day before going to work. Results: Nurses who listened to 10-min music, whether fast or slow, before work had significantly lower anxiety level than those who experienced no music in this study (p ＜ 0.05). Conclusion: This 10-min music intervention designed for nurses is a feasible and time-saving method during the omicron COVID-19 epidemic.
The Sexual Experience Questionnaire (SEX‐Q) enables quick and easy assessment of functional, emotional, and satisfaction‐related aspects of the sexual experience in men with erectile dysfunction ...(ED).
To assess correlations between improvement on the SEX‐Q and outcomes on other validated questionnaires.
Men with ED (score ≤25 on the Erectile Function domain of the International Index of Erectile Function IIEF) who had used less than or equal to six doses of any phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitor (none within 6 months) were randomized to 10 weeks of double‐blind, placebo‐controlled (DBPC) flexible‐dose sildenafil citrate (50 or 100 mg, as needed), followed by 6 weeks of open‐label (OL) sildenafil.
SEX‐Q, IIEF, Quality of Erection Questionnaire (QEQ), Self‐Esteem and Relationship (SEAR) Questionnaire, Erection Hardness Score (EHS), successful intercourse attempts (SIAs), Erectile Dysfunction Inventory of Treatment Satisfaction (EDITS), and global efficacy questions (GEQs).
Compared with the placebo group (N = 105), the sildenafil group (N = 104) at DBPC end of treatment (EOT) had significantly more improvement (P < 0.05) on all SEX‐Q, IIEF (except the Sexual Desire domain), QEQ, and SEAR outcomes, more frequent SIAs and EHS 3 (hard enough for penetration but not completely hard) or EHS 4 (completely hard) erections (odds ratio OR, 2.52 and 3.46, respectively), EHS 4 erections four times as often (OR, 6.41), more men satisfied with treatment (EDITS; OR, 2.6), approximately twice as many men with improved erections (GEQ1; OR, 5.8) and ability to have sexual intercourse (GEQ2; OR, 5.4), and GEQ3 scores that indicated better sex (P < 0.0001). SEX‐Q score improvements correlated positively with all other outcomes. At OL EOT, most outcomes were >60% (and approximately half were ≥80%) of the maximum positive result.
SEX‐Q change scores correlate with several other functional, emotional, and satisfaction‐related outcomes in men treated with sildenafil for ED, allowing a simple and focused evaluation of the sexual experience. Jones LA, Klimberg IW, McMurray JG, Padula R, Tseng L‐J, and Stecher VJ. Effect of sildenafil citrate on the male sexual experience assessed with the sexual experience questionnaire: A multicenter, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled trial with open‐label extension. J Sex Med 2008;5:1955–1964.
To evaluate the efficacy of short-term treatment with sildenafil citrate in men with serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI)-associated erectile dysfunction (ED).
Men (aged>or=18 years) with major ...depressive disorder (MDD; DSM-IV criteria) in remission and taking SRIs who experienced SRI-associated ED were enrolled in this multicenter, 6-week, randomized, flexible-dose, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. The primary study measures were questions 3 (Q3: frequency of penetration) and 4 (Q4: frequency of maintained erections after penetration) of the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) questionnaire. Secondary study measures were all other questions and domains of the IIEF, the Erectile Dysfunction Index of Treatment Satisfaction (EDITS), a global efficacy questionnaire (GEQ), and a patient-maintained event log of sexual activity.
Patients receiving sildenafil (N=71) versus placebo (N=71) reported significantly higher mean+/-SE scores on Q3 (3.9+/-0.2 vs. 3.1+/-0.2, p=.003) and Q4 (3.7+/-0.2 vs. 2.8+/-0.2, p<.001) of the IIEF and significantly higher scores on all domains of the IIEF. Patients receiving sildenafil also reported significantly improved scores on all questions of the EDITS questionnaire (p<.02) and the GEQ (p<.0001) and an increased number of successful sexual intercourse attempts per week (p<.0001) compared with patients receiving placebo. All patients remained in MDD remission (score<or=10 on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression). Adverse events in patients taking sildenafil (vs. placebo) were headache (9% vs. 9%), dyspepsia (9% vs. 1%), anxiety (6% vs. 4%), and abnormal vision (3% vs. 0%).
Short-term (6-week) administration of sildenafil was well tolerated and significantly improved erectile function and overall sexual satisfaction in men with ED associated with SRI therapy for MDD. Sildenafil may be successfully used to treat SRI-associated ED without interruption of antidepressant therapy.
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