RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Nausea, and to a lesser extend vomiting, remain significant clinical problems after the administration of chemotherapy, with up to 60% of patients reporting nausea despite use of antiemetics. Combining antiemetics with other non-pharmacological treatments may prove more effective in decreasing nausea than antiemetics alone. Hence, the aim of the current study was to evaluate the effectiveness of using acupressure in Pericardium 6 (Neiguan) acu-point in managing chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. METHODS: This was a randomised controlled trial. Acupressure was applied using wristbands (Sea-Band) which patients in the experimental group had to wear for the 5 days following the chemotherapy administration. Assessments of nausea, retching and vomiting were obtained from all patients daily for 5 days. Thirty-six patients completed the study from two centres in the UK, with 19 patients allocated to the control arm and 17 to the experimental arm. RESULTS: It was found that nausea and retching experience, and nausea, vomiting and retching occurrence and distress were all significantly lower in the experimental group compared to the control group (P<0.05). The only exception was with the vomiting experience, which was close to significance (P=0.06). DISCUSSION: Results highlight the important role of safe and convenient non-pharmacological complementary therapies, such as acupressure, in the management of the complex symptoms of chemotherapy-related nausea and vomiting.
Asunto(s)
Acupresión , Antineoplásicos/efectos adversos , Náusea/inducido químicamente , Náusea/terapia , Vómitos/inducido químicamente , Vómitos/terapia , Adulto , Anciano , Antieméticos/uso terapéutico , Antineoplásicos/uso terapéutico , Neoplasias de la Mama/tratamiento farmacológico , Escolaridad , Femenino , Humanos , Estado Civil , Persona de Mediana EdadRESUMEN
Substantial genetic differentiation, as great as among species, exists between populations of Drosophila melanogaster inhabiting opposite slopes of a small canyon. Previous work has shown that prezygotic sexual isolation and numerous differences in stress-related phenotypes have evolved between D. melanogaster populations in "Evolution Canyon," Israel, in which slopes 100-400 m apart differ dramatically in aridity, solar radiation, and associated vegetation. Because the canyon's width is well within flies' dispersal capabilities, we examined genetic changes associated with local adaptation and incipient speciation in the absence of geographical isolation. Here we report remarkable genetic differentiation of microsatellites and divergence in the regulatory region of hsp70Ba which encodes the major inducible heat shock protein of Drosophila, in the two populations. Additionally, an analysis of microsatellites suggests a limited exchange of migrants and lack of recent population bottlenecks. We hypothesize that adaptation to the contrasting microclimates overwhelms gene flow and is responsible for the genetic and phenotypic divergence between the populations.
Asunto(s)
Adaptación Fisiológica/genética , Drosophila melanogaster/genética , Evolución Molecular , Variación Genética , Microclima , Animales , Drosophila melanogaster/fisiología , Proteínas HSP70 de Choque Térmico/genética , Israel , Pérdida de Heterocigocidad , Repeticiones de Microsatélite/genética , Especificidad de la EspecieRESUMEN
For use in a different cultural background, translated questionnaires need to be validated in the new context. International guidelines are needed for such validation, as precision in translation is an important methodological issue. The article consists in a review of the issue and recommended guidelines for the translation and validation of questionnaires, based on the authors' experience and international literature in the field. The authors participate in a European research programme (EU/BIOMED-Europep), set up to develop a questionnaire for exploring patients' priorities and their evaluations of important aspects of general practice.
Asunto(s)
Encuestas y Cuestionarios , Traducciones , Interpretación Estadística de Datos , Europa (Continente) , Guías como Asunto , Humanos , Cooperación Internacional , LenguajeRESUMEN
The total cholesterol content was determined in 36 mucoid and 2 serous middle ear fluid samples (MEF). The hemoglobin was measured in all samples and the cholesterol value representing blood contamination was subtracted from the total cholesterol content of the sample. The values of the remaining cholesterol ranged from 0.1 to 4.7 mg/ml with a mean of 1.8. No correlation was found between cholesterol content and the size of the fluid sample. Nor was cholesterol content related to the status of mastoid pneumatization or clouding of the air cells. The presence of cholesterol in MEF is probably explained by seepage from the capillaries during the negative pressure phase and, in mucus-filled ears with no negative pressure, by disintegration of white blood cells in the fluid.