[Development and Evaluation of the Work-Related Intervention "Perspective Job" for the Oncological Rehabilitation]. / Entwicklung und Bewertung der beruflich-orientierten Intervention "Perspektive Job" für die onkologische Rehabilitation.

AIMS OF THE STUDY: The knowledge about contents and arrangement of work-related measures in oncological rehabilitation is limited. The aim of the study was to develop a multimodal work-related module called Perspective Job for the oncological rehabilitation as well as to evaluate the process of development and the module itself. METHODS: Perspective Job was developed within a rehabilitation team. For an examination of the process of development and of the module expert interviews with clinic employees and group interviews with patients were conducted. Group interviews were conducted before as well as after the implementation of Perspective Job to demonstrate changes in the rehabilitation from the patients point of view. Participants were oncological patients with substantial work-related problems. RESULTS: The module Perspective Job consists of work-related therapies as well as job trainings. The expert interviews illustrates: The process of development is valued as positive and meaningful by the rehabilitation team. Furthermore synergetic effects were used and the exchange of information and the communication within the team were promoted. The interviews with the patient emphasized that most perspective job therapies were classified as work-related and that an individual occupation-oriented care took place. The promoting exchanges of experience between the participants has been positively evaluated. In addition, they seemed to be well-prepared for the return to work. CONCLUSION: The development of a work-related module in the rehabilitation team is possible. The process was valued by the team members positively and promoted the multiprofessional cooperation. An occupationally oriented arrangement of the rehabilitation was solely perceived by the participants of Perspective Job, which felt better prepared to reintegrate into working life. The results emphasize the importance of teamwork for the development and implementation of work-related therapy modules for the oncological rehabilitation.

Determination of chondroitin-6-sulphate by a competitive enzyme immunoassay using a biotinylated antigen.

A competitive enzyme immunoassay was developed to determine chondroitin-6-sulphate in body fluids and cell cultures. The assay uses a monoclonal anti-chondroitin-6-sulphate antibody, immobilised to microtitre plates, and it involves a competitive binding reaction between chondroitin-6-sulphate in the samples and the biotinylated antigen. This assay enables the quantification of chondroitin-6-sulphate in the low concentration range of 16-120 micrograms/l. The intra-assay and inter-assay coefficients of variation are below 6.5% and 9.0%, respectively. More than 90% of chondroitin-6-sulphate was recovered when added to 0.1 mol/l phosphate-buffered saline, an albumin solution (40 g/l in phosphate-buffered saline) and cell culture medium (containing 100 ml/l foetal calf serum). Chondroitin-6-sulphate was also determined in sera of healthy male (n = 90) and female (n = 90) blood donors. The normal range was 55-169 micrograms/l. In men the mean value was estimated at 102.2 +/- 37.1 micrograms/l and in women at 98.7 +/- 26.4 micrograms/l. No age or sex dependence was observed. The urine excretion of chondroitin-6-sulphate in men (n = 16) was 44.5 +/- 21.1 mg/kg creatinine (mean +/- standard deviation) and in females (n = 10) 53.5 +/- 21.3 mg/kg creatinine. The clearance rate in men was 0.41 +/- 0.22 ml x min-1 and in women 0.38 +/- 0.15 ml x min-1. No sex dependence was found. Furthermore, the enzyme immunoassay was modified to measure the specific incorporation of a radioactively labelled precursor ([14C]galactosamine) into chondroitin-6-sulphate.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Synthesis of tissue factor pathway inhibitor in human synovial cells and chondrocytes makes joints the predilected site of bleeding in haemophiliacs.

The synthesis of tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) was investigated in cloned human synovial cells and human chondrocytes. TFPI-specific DNA transcription products of these cells were isolated, and a full-length cDNA of about 1000 base pairs was amplified by reverse transcription and polymerase chain reaction. The amplified DNA was cloned into the vector pUC 18. The TFPI coding sequence was confirmed by double stranded sequencing and was identical with that previously published for human TFPI coding nucleotide sequence from human placental cDNA (1). The inhibitory activity of TFPI in the cell medium of cultivated human chondrocytes and cloned human synovial cells was determined by a specific chromogenic substrate assay of factor Xa activity. The inhibitory activity of TFPI in the medium of human chondrocytes and cloned human synovial cells was 630-720 mU/10(8) cells and 1080-1665 mU/10(8) cells, respectively. In addition, TFPI activity in cell culture media of human chondrocytes and cloned human synovial cell was suppressed by a polyclonal goat anti-TFPI antibody directed against the inhibitory domain I and domain II. In the chromogenic substrate assay, the anti-TFPI antibody completely suppressed the inhibitory activity of TFPI in the samples.

A high performance liquid chromatography method for the determination of glycosaminoglycans in human blood.

A method is described for the determination of plasma and serum glycosaminoglycans, which can be used in any laboratory equipped with an HPLC system. It is based on the sequential application of chondroitinases AC and ABC and separation of the resulting disaccharides by high-performance liquid chromatography. All reagents are commercially available. This simple and rapid separation yields an accurate quantification and an exact distribution pattern. The determination of glycosaminoglycan disaccharides is linear between 7 and 7000 mumol/l with coefficients of variation between 3.0 and 7.7% for serum and between 2 and 14% for plasma. The recovery of the assay ranged from 93 to 106% for different concentrations of glycosaminoglycan disaccharides. This HPLC method may therefore be considered as a candidate reference method.