Management of vitreous floaters: a review.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Vitreous floaters, characterized by the perception of spots or shadows in the visual field, commonly result from posterior vitreous detachment and can cause chronic symptoms in affected patients. The diagnosis of posterior vitreous detachment is typically determined clinically and can sometimes be confirmed with optical coherence topography (OCT) [1▪▪]. The objective of this review is to review management options for symptomatic vitreous floaters. RECENT FINDINGS: Symptoms of vitreous floaters may be mild or may significantly affect patient quality of life. Observation is the most common management strategy. Procedural management options include pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) and neodymium-doped yttrium aluminium garnet (Nd:YAG) vitreolysis. PPV is considered the most definitive management option for vitreous floaters. PPV, however, carries inherent risks, notably infection, cataract formation, and retinal detachment [2]. Nd:YAG laser vitreolysis is a less invasive alternative with studies demonstrating varied success [1▪▪,3,4]. SUMMARY: This review provides insights into the current state of knowledge regarding the management of vitreous floaters and can guide clinical decision-making.

A Mixed Methods Evaluation of Interventions to Meet the Requirements of California Senate Bill 1152 in the Emergency Departments of a Public Hospital System.

Policy Points Clarifications to Senate Bill (SB) 1152 are necessary to address the differences between inpatient and emergency department (ED) discharge processes, determine how frequently an ED must deliver the SB 1152 bundle of services to a single patient, and establish expectations for compliance during off-hours when social services are unavailable. Because homelessness cannot be resolved in a single ED visit, the state should provide funding to support housing-focused case workers that will follow patients experiencing homelessness (PEH) through the transition from temporary shelters to permanent supportive housing. Medi-Cal could fund the delivery of the SB 1152 bundle of services to defray the costs to public hospitals that provide care for high numbers of PEH. California legislators should consider complementary legislation to increase funding for shelters so that sufficient capacity is available to accept PEH from EDs and hospitals, and to fund alternative strategies to prevent poverty and the upstream root causes of homelessness itself. CONTEXT: Prompted by stories of "patient dumping," California enacted Senate Bill (SB) 1152, which mandates that hospitals offer patients experiencing homelessness (PEH) a set of resources at discharge to ensure safety and prevent dumping. METHODS: To evaluate interventions to meet the requirements of SB 1152 across three emergency departments (EDs) of a Los Angeles County public hospital system with a combined annual census of 260,000 visits, we used an explanatory sequential mixed methods approach, focusing first on quantitative evaluation and then using information from qualitative interviews to explain the quantitative findings. FINDINGS: In total, 2.9% (1,515/52,607) of encounters involved PEH. Documentation of compliance with the eight required components of SB 1152 was low, ranging from 9.0% to 33.9%. Twenty-five provider interviews confirmed support for providing assistance to PEH in the ED, but the participants described barriers to compliance, including challenges in implementing universal screening for homelessness, incongruity of the requirements with the ED setting, the complexity of the patients, and the limitations of SB 1152 as a health policy. CONCLUSIONS: Despite operationalizing universal screening for homelessness, we found poor compliance with SB 1152 and identified multiple barriers to implementation.

Provider and administrator-level perspectives on strategies to reduce fear and improve patient trust in the emergency department in times of heightened immigration enforcement.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: Heightened immigration enforcement may induce fear in undocumented patients when coming to the Emergency Department (ED) for care. Limited literature examining health system policies to reduce immigrant fear exists. In this multi-site qualitative study, we sought to assess provider and system-level policies on caring for undocumented patients in three California EDs. METHODS: We recruited 41 ED providers and administrators from three California EDs (in San Francisco, Oakland, and Sylmar) with large immigrant populations. Participants were recruited using a trusted gatekeeper and snowball sampling. We conducted semi-structured interviews and analyzed the transcripts using constructivist grounded theory. RESULTS: We interviewed 10 physicians, 11 nurses, 9 social workers, and 11 administrators, and identified 7 themes. Providers described existing policies and recent policy changes that facilitate access to care for undocumented patients. Providers reported that current training and communication around policies is limited, there are variations between who asks about and documents status, and there remains uncertainty around policy details, laws, and jurisdiction of staff. Providers also stated they are taking an active role in building safety and trust and see their role as supporting undocumented patients. CONCLUSIONS: This study introduces ED-level health system perspectives and recommendations for caring for undocumented patients. There is a need for active, multi-disciplinary ED policy training, clear policy details including the extent of providers' roles, protocols on the screening and documentation of status, and continual reassessment of our health systems to reduce fear and build safety and trust with our undocumented communities.

Synthesis and Stereochemical Assignment of Conioidine A: DNA- and HSA-Binding Studies of the Four Diastereomers.

Conioidine A (1), isolated in 1993 with unknown relative and absolute configuration, was suggested to be a DNA-binding compound by an indirect technique. Four stereoisomers of conioidine A have been synthesized from d- and l-proline, and the natural product has been identified as possessing (4R,6R) absolute configuration. Binding of the conioidine diastereomers to calf thymus DNA (CT DNA) and human serum albumin (HSA) has been investigated by fluorescence spectroscopy and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC). All stereoisomers display at least an order of magnitude weaker binding to DNA than the control compound netropsin; however, a strong association with HSA was observed for the (4R,6S) stereoisomer.

Declared impact of the US President's statements and campaign statements on Latino populations' perceptions of safety and emergency care access.

Statements about building walls, deportation and denying services to undocumented immigrants made during President Trump's presidential campaign and presidency may induce fear in Latino populations and create barriers to their health care access. To assess how these statements relate to undocumented Latino immigrants' (UDLI) and Latino legal residents/citizens' (LLRC) perceptions of safety and their presentations for emergency care, we conducted surveys of adult patients at three county emergency departments (EDs) in California from June 2017 to December 2018. Of 1,684 patients approached, 1,337 (79.4%) agreed to participate: 34.3% UDLI, 36.9% LLRC, and 29.8% non-Latino legal residents/citizens (NLRC). The vast majority of UDLI (95%), LLRC (94%) and NLRC (85%) had heard statements about immigrants. Most UDLI (89%), LLRC (88%) and NLRC (87%) either thought that these measures were being enacted now or will be enacted in the future. Most UDLI and half of LLRC reported that these statements made them feel unsafe living in the US, 75% (95% CI 70-80%) and 51% (95% CI 47-56%), respectively. More UDLI reported that these statements made them afraid to come to the ED (24%, 95% CI 20-28%) vs LLRC (4.4%, 95% CI 3-7%) and NLRC (3.5%, 95% CI 2-6%); 55% of UDLI with this fear stated it caused them to delay coming to the ED (median delay 2-3 days). The vast majority of patients in our California EDs have heard statements during the 2016 presidential campaign or from President Trump about measures against undocumented immigrants, which have induced worry and safety concerns in both UDLI and LLRC patients. Exposure to these statements was also associated with fear of accessing emergency care in some UDLIs. Given California's sanctuary state status, these safety concerns and ED access fears may be greater in a nationwide population of Latinos.