ABSTRACT
As the population ages in Japan and worldwide, the number of informal caregivers, such as family members, providing nursing care to older individuals is increasing. Among caregiving tasks, repositioning care, which causes lower back pain, is frequent and burdensome for caregivers. Therefore, we developed a position-changing device that can adjust and support the care recipient's body in the lateral position. This was a feasibility study of the device-assisted care provided by non-professionals using the device we developed. Of the 40 healthy volunteers enrolled, 17 simulated caregivers and 17 simulated care recipients finally participated in the study. One caregiver and one care recipient were paired to engage in two types of care: device-assisted care and manual care. Furthermore, the care provided by the caregiver and received by the care recipient were evaluated. Non-professionals were able to use the device successfully and safely after a short period of practice, and both caregivers and care recipients rated the device-assisted care positively. The study results suggest that informal caregivers can also provide safe and comfortable care that is less burdensome than manual care by using a caregiver-assistive device.
Subject(s)
Caregivers , Self-Help Devices , Humans , Family , JapanABSTRACT
Ovarian clear cell carcinomas often show a spherule-like mucoid stroma. In ascitic fluid, they form spheroids with a hollow acellular space. In spite of the absence of stromal cells, both the mucoid stroma and hollow spheroids contain abundant extracellular matrix, and one of the major components is hyaluronan. It has been suggested that tumor-derived hyaluronan plays a significant role in the formation of these structures. To clarify this, a hyaluronan inhibition assay was performed on HAC-2, a clear cell carcinoma cell line, in vitro. When hyaluronan synthesis was inhibited by 4-methylumbelliferone, HAC-2 failed to show the spherule-like accumulation of hyaluronan or hollow spheroids. Inhibition of hyaluronan synthesis was associated with the reduction of cell growth. Analysis of 28 archival ascites cytology specimens showed that clear cell carcinomas expressed hyaluronan more frequently than serous carcinomas (11 of 14 vs 3 of 14, respectively, P < 0.05). All of these facts indicate that tumor-derived hyaluronan is essential for the formation of the mucoid stroma or hollow spheroids, and that hyaluronan is also involved in the regulation of cell growth in ovarian clear cell carcinomas. The inhibition of hyaluronan synthesis could be a potential adjunctive therapy for refractory clear cell carcinomas outside the ovary.