Serological responses to experimental Norwalk virus infection measured using a quantitative duplex time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay

A quantitative duplex time-resolved fluorescence assay, dissociation-enhanced lanthanide fluorescent immunoassay (DELFIA), was developed to measure Norwalk virus (NV)-specific IgA and IgG antibodies simultaneously. The duplex assay showed superior performance by detecting seroconversion following experimental NV infection at an earlier time point than a reference total immunoglobulin enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

Safe eye surgery: non-technical aspects

The traditional training of surgeons focused exclusively on developing knowledge, clinical expertise, and technical (surgical) skills. However, analyses of the reasons for adverse events in surgery have revealed that many underlying causes originate from behavioural or non-technical aspects of performance (eg, poor communication among members of the surgical team) rather than from a lack of surgical (ie, technical) skills. Therefore, technical skills appear to be necessary but not sufficient to ensure patient safety. Paying attention to non-technical skills, such as team working, leadership, situation awareness, decision making, and communication, will increase the likelihood of maintaining high levels of error-free performance. Identification and training of non-technical skills has been developed for high-risk careers, such as civil aviation and nuclear power. Only recently, training in non-technical skills has been adopted by the surgical world and anaesthetists. Non-technical skills need to be tailored to the environment where they are used, and eye surgery has some substantial differences compared with other surgical areas, for example, high volume of surgery, use of local anaesthetics, and very sophisticated equipment. This review highlights the need for identification of the non-technical skills relevant to eye surgeons and promotion of their use in the training of eye surgeons.

Dysfunctional filtering blebs

Guarded filtration surgery is commonly used to control the intraocular pressure (IOP) in glaucomatous patients. Filtration surgery lowers the IOP by creating a fistula between the inner compartments of the eye and the subconjunctival space (i.e., filtering bleb). There are several options to improve the function of filtering blebs and to prevent their failure. However, improvement of IOP control after guarded filtration procedures is associated with a higher frequency of bleb-related complications. Early (e.g., bleb leak, excessive filtration, flat anterior chamber, filtration failure) and late (e.g., bleb leak, excessive filtration and hypotony, symptomatic blebs, bleb encapsulation, filtration failure, bleb infection) complications associated with filtering procedures should be managed adequately to prevent further problems. Techniques to improve the function of filtering blebs and to treat postoperative complications have progressed over the past decade.

The future of antimicrobial therapy in the era of antibiotic resistance in cystic fibrosis pulmonary infection

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is characterised by chronic polymicrobial airway infection and inflammation, which is the major cause of morbidity and mortality. Aggressive use of antimicrobials has been fundamental in increasing the life expectancy of CF patients in recent years. However, enhanced culture and non-culture based detection methods have identified bacteria in the CF lung not previously isolated from CF patients by routine diagnostic microbiology Coupled with increasing antimicrobial resistance, the future of antimicrobial therapy in CF respiratory infection remains challenging. New strategies are needed to address these problems and ensure improvements in life expectancy are maintained. Potential future strategies include the use of new antimicrobial agents and formulations currently in clinical trials, alternative methods of selecting appropriate therapeutic regimens, determination of the pathogenicity of species newly associated with CF and the development of new antimicrobials and adjuvants for use in clinical practice.

Infection control and meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus decolonization:the perspective of nursing home staff

Infection control and meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in nursing homes have started to assume greater importance in practice and policy.

Polyamine system in developing rat eye and an animal model of retinopathy of prematurity

BACKGROUND: In experimental models of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), a vasoproliferative disorder of the retina, retinal lesions are usually assessed by morphological examination. However, studies suggest that the polyamine system may be useful in monitoring proliferation processes. For this reason, polyamine concentrations in rat erythrocytes (RBC) and the regulation of polyamine system in rat eyes under the conditions relevant to ROP were investigated. METHODS: Newborn Wistar rats were reared in room air (control) or exposed first to hyperoxia (60% or 80% oxygen, 2 weeks) and then to normoxia (relative hypoxia, 1 or 2 weeks). Blood was collected from orbital vessels at 2 weeks of age and before death. Polyamine system-related enzyme activities were measured in retina and lens with radioassays. Polyamines were quantified by fluorometry after extraction, dansylation and HPLC separation. RESULTS: Oxygen (80% only) significantly decreased RBC polyamine concentrations, which then markedly increased after rats were transferred for a week to normal air, suggesting retardation of growth processes and compensatory stimulation, respectively. However, polyamine system changes in the rat eye were not so pronounced. Enzyme activities and polyamine concentrations tended to be lower in retina after hyperoxia and were only slightly higher, with the exception of ornithine decarboxylase, after a subsequent 1 week of normoxia. In litters subjected to normoxia for longer periods no changes were found. CONCLUSION: The transient and short-lived alteration in polyamine metabolism, especially in the eye, suggests that exposure of newborn rats to high oxygen supplementation followed by normoxia does not necessarily result in marked retinopathy.

Focal irradiation of perforating eye injuries

Plaques constructed with 125I were used to irradiate the sites of perforating ocular injuries in rabbits. An approximate dose of 16Gy given over a period of 6 days was shown to significantly reduce intraocular cellular proliferation when irradiation was commenced within 24 hours after injury. If irradiation was delayed until day 5, this reduction in cellular proliferation and intraocular membrane formation did not occur. Smaller radiation doses of approximately 6Gy given within 24 hours post-injury and administered over 6 days also reduced the extent of cellular proliferation but was not as effective as the 16Gy dose.