D-methionine alleviates cisplatin-induced mucositis by restoring the gut microbiota structure and improving intestinal inflammation.

BACKGROUND: There are close links between chemotherapy-induced intestinal mucositis and microbiota dysbiosis. Previous studies indicated that D-methionine was an excellent candidate for a chemopreventive agent. Here, we investigated the effects of D-methionine on cisplatin-induced mucositis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Male Wistar rats (176-200 g, 6 weeks old) were given cisplatin (5 mg/kg) and treated with D-methionine (300 mg/kg). Histopathological, digestive enzymes activity, oxidative/antioxidant status, proinflammatory/anti-inflammatory cytokines in intestinal tissues were measured. Next-generation sequencing technologies were also performed to investigate the gut microbial ecology. RESULTS: D-methionine administration increased villus length and crypt depth and improved digestive enzyme (leucine aminopeptidase, sucrose and alkaline phosphatase) activities in the brush-border membrane of cisplatin-treated rats (p < 0.05). Furthermore, D-methionine significantly attenuated oxidative stress and inflammatory reaction and increased interleukin-10 levels in cisplatin-induced intestinal mucositis (p < 0.05). Cisplatin administration resulted in high relative abundances of Deferribacteres and Proteobacteria and a low diversity of the microbiota when compared with control groups, D-methionine only and cisplatin plus D-methionine. Cisplatin markedly increased comparative abundances of Bacteroides caccae, Escherichia coli, Mucispirillum schaedleri, Bacteroides uniformis and Desulfovibrio C21-c20, while Lactobacillus was almost completely depleted, compared with the control group. There were higher abundances of Lactobacillus, Lachnospiraceae, and Clostridium butyrium in cisplatin plus D-methionine rats than in cisplatin rats. D-methionine treatment alone significantly increased the number of Lactobacillus reuteri. CONCLUSION: D-methionine protects against cisplatin-induced intestinal damage through antioxidative and anti-inflammatory effects. By enhancing growth of beneficial bacteria (Lachnospiraceae and Lactobacillus), D-methionine attenuates gut microbiome imbalance caused by cisplatin and maintains gut homeostasis.

Pleural amoebic empyema: a case report / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

In this paper, a case of pleural amoebic empyema and its diagnosis and treatment were reported.

Pleural amoebic empyema: a case report / 中国血吸虫病防治杂志

In this paper, a case of pleural amoebic empyema and its diagnosis and treatment were reported.

Exploring the impact of transformational leadership on nurse innovation behaviour: a cross-sectional study.

AIM: This study explored the influences of transformational leadership on nurse innovation behaviour and the mediating role of organisational climate. BACKGROUND: Recently, global nursing experts have been aggressively encouraging nurses to pursue innovation in nursing in order to improve nursing outcomes. Nursing innovation, in turn, is affected by nursing leadership. METHOD: We employed a questionnaire survey to collect data, and selected a sample of nurses from hospitals in Taiwan. A total of 439 valid surveys were obtained. Hierarchical multiple regression model analysis was conducted to test the study hypothesis. RESULT: The mean values of agreement of nurse innovation behaviour and transformational leadership were 3.40 and 3.78, respectively. Patient safety climate and innovation climate were found to have full mediating effects on the relationship between transformational leadership and innovation behaviour. CONCLUSION: Organisational climate has a significant impact on innovation behaviour. Transformational leadership has indirect effects on innovation behaviour via the mediation of patient safety climate and innovation climate. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: Hospitals should enhance transformational leadership by designing leadership training programmes and establishing transformational culture. In addition, nursing managers should foster nursing innovation through improvements in organisational climate.

Gait speed and gender effects on center of pressure progression during normal walking.

The COP progression is the trajectory of the center of foot pressure. Thirty healthy young adults were recruited to participate in this study. All subjects were asked to walk randomly at four different speeds (3km/h, preferred walking speed, 4km/h and 5km/h). A foot pressure measurement system (RS-scan(®) system) was used to collect the center of pressure (COP) coordinates, COP progression angle and the COP velocity. Four sub-phases of the stance phase were calculated. The initial contact (ICP) and forefoot contact phase (FFCP) corresponded to the loading response. The foot flat phase (FFP) coincided with the mid-stance. The forefoot push-off phase (FFPOP) corresponded to the terminal stance and pre-swing phases. The results of this study indicate that the percentage of time (% time) of COP progression on the ICP, FFCP, FFP and FFPOP were approximately 7.0%, 4.8%, 48.8% and 39.4%, respectively. The COP progression angle was 4.1 (SD=1.6)° with an inward curve and the average COP velocity was 31.6cm/s (SD=5.3). The walking speed influenced the % time in the FFP and FFPOP. As the walking speed increased, the % time of COP progression decreased in mid-stance and increased in the terminal and pre-swing stances. Moreover, gender affected the COP progression angle. Men had a significantly larger deviating angle than women during FFCP, FFP and FFPOP. The COP characteristics can offer useful information for clinical rehabilitation in foot functional and structural evaluation.

Center of pressure progression characteristics under the plantar region for elderly adults.

This investigation identifies the center of pressure (COP) progression characteristics under the plantar region for elderly adults during barefoot walking. A total of 60 healthy adults (30 young and 30 old) were recruited. The young and elderly participants had average ages of 23.6 (SD=2.7) and 70.8 (SD=4.1) years old, respectively. All subjects had normal foot arch and no relevant musculoskeletal disease in the lower extremities. The foot pressure measurement system (RS-scan(®) system) was used to measure the center of pressure coordinates (COP), progression angle and COP velocity. Four sub-phases of the stance phase were calculated. The initial contact (ICP) and forefoot contact phase (FFCP) corresponded to the loading response. The foot flat phase (FFP) coincided with the mid-stance. The forefoot push-off phase (FFPOP) corresponded to the terminal stance and pre-swing phases. The analytical results revealed that age effects were found in the relative time percentages for the initial contact, foot flat and forefoot push-off phases during foot movement. The elderly subjects exhibited significant medial COP curve and faster COP velocity during the initial contact phase and more pronated mid-foot posture and slower COP velocity during the mid-stance. The older adults tended to have a more pronated foot and displayed a significant medial COP curve compared to young adults. These COP progression characteristics can provide further insight into relevant foot function and gait performance evaluations for older adults.

Parenting confidence and needs for parents of newborns in taiwan.

OBJECTIVE: Parenting confidence with regards to caring for their infants is crucial for the healthy adaptation to parenthood and the development of positive parent-infant relationships. The postpartum period is a tremendous transitional time for parents, so their unique needs should be considered. This study explored parenting confidence and needs in parents when their newborns are discharged from hospital, and explored the best predictors of parenting confidence and needs. METHODS: A cross-sectional design with a questionnaire survey was used in this study. The questionnaire included three parts: Demographic, Parenting Needs and Parenting Confidence Questionnaire. We survey a convenience sample of 96 parents from a postnatal ward and a neonatal intermediate care unit of the medical central hospital in Taichung, Taiwan. FINDINGS: The mean age of the subjects was 32 years and 67.7% of the subjects' education level was college or above. Approximately one half of the subjects was multiparous, vaginal delivery and had planned pregnancy. The mean gestational age and birth weight of the newborns was 37.7 weeks and 2902 g, respectively. Parents who had a planned pregnancy (t=2.1, P=0.04) or preterm infants (t=2.0, P=0.046) and those whose infants were delivered by cesarean section (t=2.2, P=0.03) had higher parenting needs. In addition, parents of low birth weight infants had higher parenting needs (r=-0.23, P=0.02). Regarding parenting confidence, multipara parents perceived higher confidence than primipara parents (t=2.9, P=0.005). Needs in psychosocial support were significantly correlated with parenting confidence (r=0.21, P<0.05). The stepwise multiple regression analysis showed that parity and needs in psychosocial support predict parenting confidence of 13.8% variance. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study help care providers to identify parents with low parenting confidence at an early postpartum stage. Health care teams should provide appropriate psychosocial support and health education based on parents needs.

Exploring the impact of mentoring functions on job satisfaction and organizational commitment of new staff nurses.

BACKGROUND: Although previous studies proved that the implementation of mentoring program is beneficial for enhancing the nursing skills and attitudes, few researchers devoted to exploring the impact of mentoring functions on job satisfaction and organizational commitment of new nurses. In this research we aimed at examining the effects of mentoring functions on the job satisfaction and organizational commitment of new nurses in Taiwan's hospitals. METHODS: We employed self-administered questionnaires to collect research data and select new nurses from three regional hospitals as samples in Taiwan. In all, 306 nurse samples were obtained. We adopted a multiple regression analysis to test the impact of the mentoring functions. RESULTS: Results revealed that career development and role modeling functions have positive effects on the job satisfaction and organizational commitment of new nurses; however, the psychosocial support function was incapable of providing adequate explanation for these work outcomes. CONCLUSION: It is suggested in this study that nurse managers should improve the career development and role modeling functions of mentoring in order to enhance the job satisfaction and organizational commitment of new nurses.