ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Research ethics and attitudes should be the main concern of those who are conducting and publishing research in medicine. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a questionnaire among first year postgraduate doctoral students in Biomedicine at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Ljubljana during the academic year 2022/2023. RESULTS: There were 54 out of 57 doctoral students included in the study, with a mean age (SD) of 29.7 (4.7) years, with predominantly female doctoral students, 66.7%. The number of correct answers out of 39 considered to illustrate students' knowledge of medical research ethics was 31, meaning that they gave correct answers to 80% of all the questions. The mean number (SD) of correct answers was 18.9 (5.8), which significantly differed from 31 (p < 0.001). The previous experience of the doctoral students in research was significantly correlated with their knowledge of medical research ethics, even when controlling for the age, gender and workplace of respondents. CONCLUSION: This study clearly showed that insufficient knowledge and a poor level of attitudes exist about the main questions pertaining to medical research ethics. Overall knowledge is well below the expected positive answers. Further studies are needed to compare the knowledge of doctoral students with that of their tutors and what implications this might have for further teaching of research ethics.
Subject(s)
Biomedical Research , Students, Medical , Humans , Female , Adult , Male , Slovenia , Cross-Sectional Studies , Faculty , Ethics, Research , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
A 4-year-old boy with an atypical course of haemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), who developed microangiopathic antiphospholipid-associated syndrome (MAPS) with signs of multiple organ failure during the course of his disease, is reported. Early and aggressive treatment with intravenous gammaglobulin, pulse methylprednisolone and plasmapheresis resulted in an excellent clinical recovery. Our patient showed a concomitant presence of multiple factors that could precipitate atypical HUS, including positive antiphospholipid antibodies, decreased level of factor H and positive anti-ADAMTS-13 antibodies. We suggest that, along with infections, autoimmune conditions or defined genetic abnormalities of complement regulatory genes, MAPS should be considered among the pathogenic mechanisms in patients with atypical HUS.
Subject(s)
Antiphospholipid Syndrome/complications , Hemolytic-Uremic Syndrome/complications , Peripheral Vascular Diseases/complications , ADAM Proteins/blood , ADAM Proteins/immunology , ADAMTS13 Protein , Antibodies, Antiphospholipid/blood , Antiphospholipid Syndrome/blood , Antiphospholipid Syndrome/therapy , Child, Preschool , Complement Factor H/deficiency , Drug Therapy, Combination , Fingers/blood supply , Glucocorticoids/therapeutic use , Hemolytic-Uremic Syndrome/blood , Hemolytic-Uremic Syndrome/therapy , Humans , Immunologic Factors/therapeutic use , Male , Methylprednisolone/therapeutic use , Microcirculation/immunology , Peripheral Vascular Diseases/blood , Peripheral Vascular Diseases/therapy , Plasmapheresis , gamma-Globulins/therapeutic useABSTRACT
What a clinician needs from a microbiologist and microbiological service depends on the specialty. To provide a diagnosis of infection, the service should organize and also follow-up the specimen transport, microbiological examination and antimicrobial susceptibility testing together with antigen detection and other modern test technology. A manual describing the local service and including guidelines should be placed in every department. At the same time a clinician should be familiar with clinical syndromes and causative micro-organisms, in order to be able to ask for the correct investigation. Only with continuous interchange of information by both parties is an effective joint policy possible in daily routine work.
Subject(s)
Infections/diagnosis , Microbiology/standards , Decision Making , Humans , Infection Control Practitioners , Interprofessional Relations , Laboratories, Hospital , Organizational PolicyABSTRACT
Adenylate kinase (AK) activity in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), described as a marker of brain edema and lesions in adults, was studied in 79 newborns with severe respiratory distress within 24 h after admission to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The CSF-AK activity was compared with CSF lactate concentration, CSF lactate dehydrogenase activity (LDH), and CSF and serum creatine kinase isoenzyme BB (CK-BB) activity. Newborns were divided into Group I with moderate to severe brain dysfunction and Group II with mild or no detectable brain dysfunction on discharge from the ICU. Mean CSF-AK activity (11.31 U/L) in Group I was significantly (p less than 0.001) higher than in Group II (2.82 U/L). Correlation between CSF-AK and CSF lactate was r = 0.714, p less than 0.01 and between CSF-AK activity and CSF-LDH activity was r = 0.550, p less than 0.01 in Group I. Preliminary data indicate that CSF-AK activity within 24 h after ischaemia is an indicator of hypoxic brain lesions in newborns. Its prognostic value for the infant's development remains to be determined by further study.
