The Effect of Stoma Site Marking on Stomal Complications: A Long-term Retrospective Study.

OBJECTIVE: To identify the effect of stoma site marking on stoma-related complications. METHODS: The study sample included 639 individuals with stomas who were followed up in a stomatherapy unit in Turkey between January 1, 2017, and June 20, 2021. Researchers collected patient data from nursing records. Data were evaluated using number, percentage, χ2, and logistic regression tests. RESULTS: Of the individuals with stomas, 60.6% (n = 387) were men, and 72.6% (n = 464) had a cancer diagnosis. Their mean age was 60.16 (SD, 14.81) years. The stoma site was marked preoperatively in of 67.1% of patients (n = 429), and 17.1% (n = 109) developed stoma-related complications. The complication rate was higher in individuals with unmarked stoma sites (25.7%; P = .000), emergency surgeries (25.0%; P = .006), colostomies (23.9%; P = .042), and permanent stomas (28.3%; P = .002). The three most common complications were peristomal skin problems (56.9%), mucocutaneous separation (13.8%), and edema (9.2%). CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of stoma-related complications in the postoperative period was higher in individuals with unmarked stoma sites. The authors recommend that stoma and wound care nurses mark the stoma site in individuals for whom stoma creation is planned.

Sleep Problems in Individuals With Intestinal Stomas and Determining the Quality of Sleep: A Multicenter Study.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to determine sleep problems and the sleep quality of individuals with intestinal stomas. DESIGN: Descriptive quantitative design was used. SUBJECTS AND SETTING: The research was carried out from September 2018 to September 2019 at 3 university hospitals with stoma units located in Ankara, Turkey. The study sample comprised 222 individuals with intestinal ostomies who were being monitored in these 3 centers. Approximately half (N = 113, 50.9%) had an ileostomy and 68.5% (N = 152) had a temporary stoma. More than half of the participants (N = 116, 52.3%) reported current sleep problems, 59.5% (N = 132) reported that their stoma affected their sleep, and 64% (N = 142) had problems at night due to their stomas, reporting that they woke up frequently during their main sleep period due to ostomy-related problems. METHODS: Three instruments were used to measure study outcomes: the researcher-designed instrument determining the descriptive characteristics of individuals with intestinal stomas, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and Epworth Sleepiness Scale. RESULTS: The mean Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score was found to be above 5 (13.42, SD: 3.01) indicating poor sleep quality. The mean Epworth Sleepiness Scale score was 7.54 (SD: 6.37) indicating that participants had daytime sleepiness. The mean Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scores of participants with ileostomies ( P = .002) and those with temporary stomas ( P = .009) were found to be significantly higher. CONCLUSIONS: Study findings indicate that individuals with intestinal stomas have poor sleep quality and problems with daytime sleepiness; those with ileostomies and temporary stomas had the worst quality of sleep.

Development of a traceable molecular hygiene control method (TMHCM) for human DNA content in foods.

The aim of this study was to develop a molecular technique to determine the level of human originated DNA contamination in unhygienic food products. In the study, four model foods were prepared under both hygienic (H) and non-hygienic (NH) conditions and the human originated microbial loads of these products were determined. DNA was extracted from the model foods and human buccal samples by GIDAGEN Multi-fast DNA isolation kit. A primer specific region of human mitochondrial D-Loop was designed. The level of human DNA contamination in the model foods was determined by real-time PCR. The sensitivity of the technique developed here was 0.00001ng DNA/PCR. In addition, the applicability of the traceable molecular hygiene control method (TMHCM) was tested in 60 food samples from the market. The results of this study demonstrate that DNA based TMHCM can be used to predict to what extent foods meet the human oriented hygienic conditions.

Application of carboxymethylcellulose hydrogel based silver nanocomposites on cotton fabrics for antibacterial property.

In this study, fumaric acid (FA) crosslinked carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) hydrogel (CMCF) based silver nanocomposites were coated on cotton fabric for antibacterial property for the first time. The performance of the nanocomposite treated cotton fabric was tested for different mixing times of hydrogel solution, padding times and concentrations of silver. The cotton fabrics treated with CMC hydrogel based silver nanocomposites demonstrated 99.9% reduction for both Staphylococcus aureus (Sa) and Klebsiella pneumonia (Kp). After one cycle washing processes of treated cotton fabric, there is no significant variation observed in antibacterial activity. From SEM and AFM analyses, silver particles in nano-size, homogenously distributed, were observed. The treated samples were also evaluated by tensile strength, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis, fluid absorbency properties, and whiteness index. The treatment of cotton fabric with CMCF hydrogel did not affect the whiteness considerably, but increased the absorbency values of cotton.

A Simultaneous Analytical Method for Duplex Identification of Porcine and Horse in the Meat Products by EvaGreen based Real-time PCR.

A duplex real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) based assay for the detection of porcine and horse meat in sausages was designed by using EvaGreen fluorescent dye. Primers were selected from mitochondrial 12S rRNA and 16S rRNA genes which are powerful regions for identification of horse and porcine meat. DNA from reference samples and industrial products was successfully extracted using the GIDAGEN® Multi-Fast DNA Isolation Kit. Genomes were identified based on their specific melting peaks (Mp) which are 82.5℃ and 78℃ for horse and porcine, respectively. The assay used in this study allowed the detection of as little as 0.0001% level of horse meat and 0.001% level of porcine meat in the experimental admixtures. These findings indicate that EvaGreen based duplex real-time PCR is a potentially sensitive, reliable, rapid and accurate assay for the detection of meat species adulterated with porcine and horse meats.

Preparation of pH- and ionic-strength responsive biodegradable fumaric acid crosslinked carboxymethyl cellulose.

A novel biodegradable sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (NaCMC)-based hydrogel was synthesized by using fumaric acid (FA) as a crosslinking agent at various ratios. Hydrogels (CMCF) were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Swelling behaviors of hydrogels were investigated in distilled water, various salt, and pH solutions. The FTIR results indicated the crosslinking between carboxyl groups of FA with hydroxyl group of NaCMC through ester formation. AFM analyses showed that roughness of hydrogel surface decreased with increasing crosslinker concentration. The swelling capacity decreased with an increase in charge of the metal cation (Al(3+)