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Biomedical subjects

K Gitter

Publications and source records attributed to K Gitter.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

A nurse-led, unit-based program to reduce restraint use in acute care.

Although the effectiveness of restraints is not proven, the dangers of restraints are clear. Many advocate for the reduction of restraint use in tertiary care settings. The Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations is setting the standard by insisting that hospital administrations create a culture that emphasizes restraint reduction. Despite the importance of this task, very little is available in the literature to direct or guide this effort. The purpose of this article is to describe a unit-based Restraint Reduction Program that was successful on a neurology/neurosurgery unit.

Academic Medical Centers↗

Radiation exposure: a new risk factor for idiopathic perifoveal telangiectasis.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between previous radiation exposure and idiopathic perifoveal telangiectasis (IPT). DESIGN: A multicentered, individually matched, case-control study design was used. PARTICIPANTS/CONTROLS: Sixty-five case subjects were matched with 175 control subjects. Individuals with unequivocal evidence of angiographically confirmed IPT were included as cases. Control subjects were matched for center, age, and gender. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: The main exposures of interest were a history of therapeutic head or neck irradiation and environmental radiation exposure. METHODS: A standardized questionnaire was administered to case and control subjects. Data were collected for the main exposures of interest as well as pertinent covariates. Conditional logistic regression was used to evaluate therapeutic and environmental radiation as risks for IPT. RESULTS: On univariate analysis, head or neck irradiation was associated with IPT (odds ratios [OR] = 4.15, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.30-13.24). While controlling for diabetes and family history of diabetes, IPT was found to be associated with both head or neck irradiation (OR = 4.06, 95% CI = 1.20-13.76) and with environmental irradiation (OR = 6.73, 95% CI = 1.06-42.74). CONCLUSIONS: This study presents a previously unreported association between prior radiation exposure and IPT.

Aged↗