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Incidence and treatment of abnormal postpartum ovarian function in dairy cows.

The objectives of this study were to determine 1) the incidence of abnormal postpartum ovarian function in a large dairy herd in North Central Florida and 2) the effectiveness of gonadotrophin releasing hormone (GnRH) in treating this condition. The study was conducted from April 1988 to June 1989. The internal genitalia of the cows were initially examined per rectum (Day 0) between 19 and 29 (23 +/- 0.25) d after calving and again 14 d later (Day 14) for evidence of uterine involution and ovarian activity. The presence of a palpable corpus luteum (CL) and retrospective determination of plasma progesterone (P4) concentrations > 1 ng/ml were the criteria used to assess ovarian activity. Cows possessing a palpable CL and P4 concentrations > 1 ng/ml on Day 0 were determined to be cycling normally. A total of 1356 cows was used in this study. On Day 0, two groups were formed: Group 1 consisted of normal, cyclic cows, Group 2 of noncyclic cows. On Day 0, alternate cows in Group 2 were treated with GnRH (100 microg i.m). On Day 14, the previously nontreated cows in Group 2 were further divided into two groups, forming Group 3, nontreated cows and Group 4, cows treated with GnRH at this time. Group 5 was comprised of cows from Group 2 that did not respond to treatment with GnRH on Day 0; these cows were treated on Day 14 with GnRH (100 microg i.m). Group 6 was comprised of nontreated cows from Group 2 that responded spontaneously (presence of a CL) by Day 14. Reproductive parameters evaluated were the percentage of cows pregnant within 180 d after calving and at the end of the study, the number of days open and the number of services per conception. Data were statistically analyzed using Chi square and survival analysis. The results of this study indicate that the incidence of abnormal postpartum ovarian function in this herd was 30.2% and that the nontreated cows experienced more days open and required more services per conception than the treated cows, those that were cycling normally on the initial examination, and those that responded spontaneously by Day 14.

Journal Article↗

The effect of the gonadotropin-releasing hormone analog, buserelin, on pregnancy rates in horse and pony mares.

We conducted a series of trials over a four-year period on a total of 2,346 mares, to determine the effect of a single dose of the GnRH analog buserelin (20 to 40 microg i.m. or s.c.) on pregnancy rates when given between 8 and 12 days after service. Although there were some statistically significant improvements in pregnancy rates in individual trials, meta-analysis of the data overall showed significant improvements at all times examined, i.e. 13 to 16, 19 to 23, 28 to 31 and 38 to 42 days after service. These results indicate that treatment of mares with 20 to 40 microg buserelin between Days 8 and 12 significantly increases pregnancy rates by approximately 10 percentage points.

Animals↗

Post-war Kosovo: Part 3. Development and rehabilitation of emergency services.

The recent crisis in Kosovo led to nearly complete destruction of a healthcare system serving the needs of approximately 2 million people. Even prior to the crisis, the pre-existing healthcare system had inadequate provisions for the delivery of Emergency Medical Services. More than 440 diverse governmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) arrived to assist (and often compete) in the rehabilitation of Kosovo's healthcare needs. Each brought with them individual biases and strategies for how this rehabilitation should occur, and each faced numerous unforeseen barriers to the implementation of its programs. The authors used a four-step, multi-modal, needs assessment to gather information on the needs and potential barriers to the implementation of a program to rehabilitate emergency services as discussed in Part II. This paper chronicles the phases of the Emergency Medicine program development and the process of responding to barriers and changing needs. The program's successes and failures are noted, and the actual barriers encountered are reviewed. Overall, the needs assessment tool employed in this program was useful in the implementation of a program to restore and rehabilitate Emergency Services in Kosovo. The authors recommend the use of combined quantitative and qualitative methods for developing priorities for interventions in post-conflict settings following complex emergencies.

Emergency Medical Services↗

A questionnaire to measure satisfaction with community services for informal carers of stroke patients: construction and initial piloting.

Stroke affects 120 000 people each year in the UK and is the most common cause of adult-onset disability. Most stroke patients are cared for at home by informal carers. Support for these carers is provided by the community services, but although single-item measures have shown that there is a relatively high level of dissatisfaction with those services, there is no specific satisfaction measurement instrument. The present study aimed to construct and initially validate a questionnaire to measure carers' satisfaction with community services for clinical and research purposes. Qualitative interviews with a purposive sample of informal carers of stroke patients identified via stroke unit discharge records gave information about content, context and language. Together with information from the carers' literature, this formed the basis of the questionnaire. A self-completion questionnaire proved unacceptable to carers with a very poor response rate (20%). Face-to-face interviews were more acceptable, with the questionnaire taking approximately 10 minutes to administer. All carers approached agreed to take part and only three carers dropped out from follow up, all because of reasons not related to the study. Initial validity and reliability testing with a sample of 44 carers identified through stroke groups and general practice showed good correlation with a single-item satisfaction measure (RHO = 0.797), test-retest reliability (RHO = 0.885) and inter-rater reliability (RHO = 0.868), and a high degree of internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.859). Further validation with larger and more diverse groups of informal carers is needed before the questionnaire can be considered to be a robust and reliable tool. Factor analysis revealed seven factors: information about community support and involving the carer; amount, appropriateness and coordination of services; information about stroke; speed of change and concern about the carer; listening to the carer and being heard; problem management; and confidence in and accuracy of information. These factors have marked similarities to those found in the field of patient satisfaction with community services.

Aged↗

Validation and application of an instrument for measuring patient relatives' perception of quality of geriatric care.

OBJECTIVE: To test and validate a questionnaire concerning patient relatives' perception of the quality of geriatric care. DESIGN: Three anonymous questionnaire studies. SETTINGS: A community-based geriatric care organization and a university hospital in Sweden. STUDY PARTICIPANTS: Three hundred and eighteen relatives of patients within the geriatric care organization and 38 relatives of patients at the university hospital. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: A questionnaire composed of eight quality of care indices and an overall quality rating. Reliability and validity estimates were compared between the results from the three surveys. RESULTS: Internal reliability estimates for all indices were >0.65 and consistent over time. Inter-index correlations were >0.60 between certain indices, indicating some overlap. Second order factor analysis resulted in three distinct index groupings: personnel, relative's role, and care content. These three dimensions summarize relatives' perceptions of the quality of geriatric care. CONCLUSIONS: There is a need for a confidential patient relatives' questionnaire in geriatric care. The results revealed good questionnaire reliability and validity. The questionnaire needs to be tested in larger, independent samples in order to validate the indices further.

Aged↗

Methods for analyzing health care utilization and costs.

Important questions about health care are often addressed by studying health care utilization. Utilization data have several characteristics that make them a challenge to analyze. In this paper we discuss sources of information, the statistical properties of utilization data, common analytic methods including the two-part model, and some newly available statistical methods including the generalized linear model. We also address issues of study design and new methods for dealing with censored data. Examples are presented.

Data Interpretation, Statistical↗

Does U.S. hospital capacity need to be expanded?

Some industry experts believe that U.S. hospital capacity--especially emergency and inpatient services--is being stretched to its limits. Using data from the Community Tracking Study, this paper examines constrained hospital services, contributing factors, and hospitals' responses. Most hospitals studied had emergency capacity problems, but problems in other service areas were limited to only a few hospitals. Hospitals have added or converted capacity, improved capacity management, dealt with nursing shortages, and worked with public officials to reduce emergency department diversions. Although additional capacity might be needed in some markets, better management of existing resources could be a more effective solution.

Efficiency, Organizational↗

Maternal mortality in China.

Within 10 years of the establishment of the People's Republic, maternal mortality in China had fallen by 98%. High values, however, persist in the less developed parts of the country.

Cause of Death↗