Accreditation Standard Guideline Initiative for Tai Chi and Qigong Instructors and Training Institutions.

Evidence of the health and wellbeing benefits of Tai Chi and Qigong (TQ) have emerged in the past two decades, but TQ is underutilized in modern health care in Western countries due to lack of promotion and the availability of professionally qualified TQ instructors. To date, there are no government regulations for TQ instructors or for training institutions in China and Western countries, even though TQ is considered to be a part of Traditional Chinese medicine that has the potential to manage many chronic diseases. Based on an integrative health care approach, the accreditation standard guideline initiative for TQ instructors and training institutions was developed in collaboration with health professionals, integrative medicine academics, Tai Chi and Qigong master instructors and consumers including public safety officers from several countries, such as Australia, Canada, China, Germany, Italy, Korea, Sweden and USA. In this paper, the rationale for organizing the Medical Tai Chi and Qigong Association (MTQA) is discussed and the accreditation standard guideline for TQ instructors and training institutions developed by the committee members of MTQA is presented. The MTQA acknowledges that the proposed guidelines are broad, so that the diversity of TQ instructors and training institutions can be integrated with recognition that these guidelines can be developed with further refinement. Additionally, these guidelines face challenges in understanding the complexity of TQ associated with different principles, philosophies and schools of thought. Nonetheless, these guidelines represent a necessary first step as primary resource to serve and guide health care professionals and consumers, as well as the TQ community.

Insulin detemir offers improved glycemic control compared with NPH insulin in people with type 1 diabetes: a randomized clinical trial.

OBJECTIVE: Insulin detemir is a soluble long-acting basal insulin analog designed to overcome the limitations of conventional basal insulin formulations. Accordingly, insulin detemir has been compared with NPH insulin with respect to glycemic control (HbA1c, prebreakfast glucose levels and variability, and hypoglycemia) and timing of administration. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: People with type 1 diabetes (n = 408) were randomized in an open-label, parallel-group trial of 16-week treatment duration using either insulin detemir or NPH insulin. Insulin detemir was administered twice daily using two different regimens, either before breakfast and at bedtime (IDet(morn+bed)) or at a 12-h interval (IDet(12h)). NPH insulin was administered before breakfast and at bedtime. Mealtime insulin was given as the rapid-acting insulin analog insulin aspart. RESULTS: With both insulin detemir groups, clinic fasting plasma glucose was lower than with NPH insulin (IDet(12h) vs. NPH, -1.5 mmol/l [95% CI -2.51 to -0.48], P = 0.004; IDet(morn+bed) vs. NPH, -2.3 mmol/l (-3.32 to -1.29), P < 0.001), as was self-measured prebreakfast plasma glucose (P = 0.006 and P = 0.004, respectively). The risk of minor hypoglycemia was lower in both insulin detemir groups (25%, P = 0.046; 32%, P = 0.002; respectively) compared with NPH insulin in the last 12 weeks of treatment, this being mainly attributable to a 53% reduction in nocturnal hypoglycemia in the IDet(morn+bed) group (P < 0.001). Although HbA1c for each insulin detemir group was not different from the NPH group, HbA1c for the pooled insulin detemir groups was significantly lower than for the NPH group (mean difference -0.18% [-0.34 to -0.02], P = 0.027). Within-person between-day variation in self-measured prebreakfast plasma glucose was lower for both detemir groups (both P < 0.001). The NPH group gained weight during the study, but there was no change in weight in either of the insulin detemir groups (IDet(12h) vs. NPH, -0.8 kg [-1.44 to -0.24], P = 0.006; IDet(morn+bed) vs. NPH, -0.6 kg [-1.23 to -0.03], P = 0.040). CONCLUSIONS: Overall glycemic control with insulin detemir was improved compared with NPH insulin. The data provide a basis for tailoring the timing of administration of insulin detemir to the individual person's needs.

The 12-month efficacy and safety of insulin detemir and NPH insulin in basal-bolus therapy for the treatment of type 1 diabetes.

BACKGROUND: This trial compared the long-term safety and efficacy of the basal insulin preparations, insulin detemir and NPH insulin, in basal-bolus therapy for patients with type 1 diabetes. METHODS: This multinational open, parallel-group trial randomized patients to receive insulin detemir or NPH insulin twice daily in addition to mealtime human soluble insulin. Doses were titrated towards predefined glycemic targets. After an initial 6-month treatment period, patients were invited to participate in a 6-month extension period. A total of 289 from 421 elected to continue in the trial, of which 252 completed. RESULTS: Glycemic control as assessed by hemoglobin A1c (insulin detemir, 7.88%; NPH insulin, 7.78%; difference not significant) and fasting plasma glucose (insulin detemir, 10.1 mmol/L; NPH insulin, 9.84 mmol/L; difference not significant) was similar in both treatment groups at end point, with hemoglobin A1c little changed from baseline and fasting plasma glucose slightly decreased. There was some evidence for a risk reduction for hypoglycemia in association with insulin detemir, although this was not statistically significant (relative risk overall hypoglycemia, 0.71, P = 0.139; relative risk nocturnal hypoglycemia, 0.71, P = 0.067), and hypoglycemic events were fewer in each of the 12 months. There was a significant treatment difference with regard to weight outcome; NPH insulin was associated with weight gain (1.4 kg), but there was no mean weight gain (-0.3 kg) in the insulin detemir cohort (baseline-adjusted between-group difference at 12 months, 1.66 kg, P = 0.002). There were no obvious between-group differences in other safety parameters. CONCLUSIONS: Glycemic control is maintained with insulin detemir during long-term treatment. At equivalent glycemic control to NPH insulin, insulin detemir is associated with a lack of weight gain and a trend towards a reduced risk of nocturnal hypoglycemia when used in basal-bolus therapy with mealtime soluble human insulin.

Rapid frozen section diagnosis of pituitary tumors.

From 751 patients with suspected pituitary tumor, 2,354 frozen sections were prepared for histological identification of the tissue and determination of the resection margins after selective adenoma removal. The accuracy of the method was determined by comparison of the frozen section diagnoses with the diagnoses of permanent sections of the same tissue. The overall accuracy was 83. I%. The reasons for incorrect diagnoses in frozen section were analyzed retrospectively. Prevailing causes were spurious lesions resulting from problems in processing the extremely small specimens, and regressive transformations of the tissue leading to alterations of the tissue structure. Despite the rather low accuracy rate, we would consider frozen section diagnosis of pituitary tumors as a valuable aid for the surgeon. Other morphological methods are not as accurate in the determination of the resection margins in selective microsurgery. If applied by an experienced team, the method can be recommended.