PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Elderly women at higher risk for unnecessary urinary catheterization, study reports

2010-11-02
(Press-News.org) Washington, November 1, 2010 – Elderly women are at high risk for inappropriate urinary catheter utilization in emergency departments, according to a new study in the November issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).

The study was conducted at St John Hospital and Medical Center, a 769-bed tertiary care teaching hospital in Detroit, Mich. The authors examined 532 instances in which urinary catheters were placed in emergency room patients over a 12-week study period. After reviewing whether the catheter's placement conformed to established guidelines, the authors determined that half of the female patients 80 years or older who were subjected to urinary tract catheterization did not meet institutional guidelines. Women were 1.9 times more likely than men, and the very elderly (greater than 80 years) were 2.9 times more likely than those 50 years and younger, to have a urinary catheter inappropriately placed.

"We found that it was twice as likely for women to have a non-indicated UC [urinary catheter] placement compared to men," the authors conclude. "Our results confirm what has been reported in previous studies, and underscore the significant risk of the very elderly (80 years or older) for inappropriate UC utilization."

The study's findings point to an area of concern among healthcare professionals tackling preventable hospital infections. Urinary tract catheterization is a major risk factor for developing urinary tract infections. The researchers note that at present, urinary tract infections account for more than one-third of all hospital-acquired infections. If urinary catheters are inappropriately placed at high rate in very elderly women, this vulnerable group of patients is at increased risk for developing an infection, according to the investigators.

"The inappropriate UC [urinary catheter] utilization has been a ubiquitous problem in the hospital setting," say the study's authors. "This translates to additional preventable or avoidable urinary tract infections and other complications related to UCs."

The federal government's Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services considers catheter-associated urinary tract infections to be reasonably preventable through application of evidence-based best practices and as such no longer reimburses for these hospital-acquired infections. The authors noted that the majority of U.S. hospitals do not have formal systems to monitor urinary catheter utilization.

"Because more than half of hospital admissions come through the ED [emergency department], it is important that the ED be seen as the focus for efforts to reduce unnecessary UC utilization," say the authors.

###The study was conducted by a multidisciplinary team from St John Hospital and Medical Center and Wayne State University School of Medicine. The study's authors include: Mohamad G. Fakih, MD, MPH; Stephen P. Shemes, BS; Margarita E. Pena, MD; Nicholas Dyc, MD; Janice E. Rey, MT (ASCP); Susan M. Szpunar, PhD, and Louis D. Saravolatz, MD.

(AJIC 2010; 38[9])

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Some city trees may discourage 'shady' behavior

Some city trees may discourage shady behavior
2010-11-02
Along with energy conservation and storm-water reduction, scientists may soon be adding crime-fighting to the list of benefits that urban trees provide. Researchers with the U.S. Forest Service's Pacific Northwest (PNW) and Southern Research Stations have published a new study that suggests that certain types of city trees may help lower property and violent crime rates. Their study—which is posted online in advance of its appearance in a forthcoming printed issue of the journal Environment and Behavior—is the first to examine the effects of trees and other factors on crime ...

'Training away stereotypes'

2010-11-02
COLUMBIA, Mo. – It may seem difficult to change stereotypical thinking. Perceptions can be very important in forming an individual's attitudes. Now, researchers at the University of Missouri have found that people conditioned to think in opposition to racial stereotypes are more receptive to people from minority groups starring in commercial advertising. Saleem Alhabash, a doctoral candidate in the University of Missouri School of Journalism. "This research shows that when people are trained to think in a non-stereotypical way, they will pay more attention to ads with ...

If GMO genes escape, how will the hybrids do?

2010-11-02
GMOs, or Genetically Modified Organisms, may raise concerns of genes escaping from crops and having unknown effects on natural, wild species. But what is the real risk that traits associated with GMOs will actually migrate to and persist in their wild relatives? Interest in plant ecology, crop production and weed management led John Lindquist and his colleagues from the University of Nebraska and USDA-ARS to investigate how gene flow from a cultivated crop to a weedy relative would influence the ecological fitness of a cropwild hybrid offspring. They published their findings ...

After good or bad events, people forget how they thought they'd feel

2010-11-02
WASHINGTON —People aren't very accurate at predicting how good or bad they'll feel after an event -- such as watching their team lose the big game or getting a flat-screen TV. But afterwards, they "misremember" what they predicted, revising their prognostications after the fact to match how they actually feel, according to new research. These findings appear in the November issue of the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, published by the American Psychological Association. Although the process of predicting emotions seems imprecise from start to finish, misremembering ...

Zebrafish yield clues to how we process visual information

2010-11-02
To a hungry fish on the prowl, the split-second neural processing required to see, track, and gobble up a darting flash of prey is a matter of survival. To scientists, it's a window into how our brain coordinates the eye motions that enable us to hit a baseball, sidestep an errant skateboarder, and otherwise make our way in a world full of danger and opportunity. This process is now better understood, thanks to a team of scientists that imaged the activity of individual neurons in a part of a zebrafish's brain called the optic tectum. The optic tectum receives signals ...

Management science guru, surviving cancer, offers hope to fellow sufferers, doctors

2010-11-02
When Stephen Barrager was diagnosed in 2007 with acute multiple myeloma, a form of bone marrow cancer, he endured the same anxiety that troubles all those who receive an upsetting diagnosis. The way he went about dealing with his disease and its treatment, however, was different. Barrager drew upon his engineering and management science background to help him make difficult decisions. Now he is sharing his insights with hospitals and doctors in his native Bay Area and with colleagues at a conference coming to Austin on Nov. 7, 2010. The annual meeting of the Institute ...

UCI non-small cell lung cancer study highlights advances in targeted drug therapy

2010-11-02
Orange, Calif., Nov 1, 2010 — A UC Irvine oncologist's work with a targeted therapy is showing great promise in patients with a deadly form of lung cancer. The results were published Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine. The multicenter study is testing whether the drug crizotinib effectively slows, stops or reverses growth in advanced non-small cell lung cancer tumors by targeting a genetic mutation that causes uncontrolled tumor growth. Study participants all tested positive for a mutation in the anaplastic lymphoma kinase gene. According to the findings, ...

Collecting your thoughts: You can do it in your sleep!

2010-11-02
It is one thing to learn a new piece of information, such as a new phone number or a new word, but quite another to get your brain to file it away so it is available when you need it. A new study published in the Journal of Neuroscience by researchers at the University of York and Harvard Medical School suggests that sleep may help to do both. The scientists found that sleep helps people to remember a newly learned word and incorporate new vocabulary into their "mental lexicon". During the study, which was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, researchers ...

MRI may help determine time of stroke onset

2010-11-02
OAK BROOK, Ill. – Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain could expand the number of stroke patients eligible for a potentially life-saving treatment, according to a new study, published online and in the December issue of the journal Radiology. Some patients who suffer an acute ischemic stroke — in which a blood clot or other obstruction blocks blood flow in the brain — can be treated with a drug called tissue plasminogen activator, or tPA, that dissolves the clot and restores blood flow. However, the clot-busting drug can only be administered within four and a ...

Eliminating or reducing cost-sharing for high-value prescription drugs improves medication use

2010-11-02
New York, NY, November 2, 2010—An initiative by the U. S. technology company Pitney Bowes to make medications of proven value less expensive for their employees succeeded in stabilizing employees' adherence to their treatment regimens, according to a Commonwealth Fund-supported study published in this month's Health Affairs. The study, led by Niteesh K. Choudhry at Brigham and Women's Hospital, found that adherence to cholesterol-lowering statin drugs, which had been on the decline, immediately stabilized after Pitney Bowes eliminated copayments for the drugs for all ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Long-sought structure of powerful anticancer natural product solved by integrated approach

World’s oldest lizard wins fossil fight

Simple secret to living a longer life

Same plant, different tactic: Habitat determines response to climate

Drinking plenty of water may actually be good for you

Men at high risk of cardiovascular disease face brain health decline 10 years earlier than women

Irregular sleep-wake cycle linked to heightened risk of major cardiovascular events

Depression can cause period pain, new study suggests

Wistar Institute scientists identify important factor in neural development

New imaging platform developed by Rice researchers revolutionizes 3D visualization of cellular structures

To catch financial rats, a better mousetrap

Mapping the world's climate danger zones

Emory heart team implants new blood-pumping device for first time in U.S.

Congenital heart defects caused by problems with placenta

Schlechter named Cancer Moonshot Scholar

Two-way water transfers can ensure reliability, save money for urban and agricultural users during drought in Western U.S., new study shows

New issue of advances in dental research explores the role of women in dental, clinical, and translational research

Team unlocks new insights on pulsar signals

Great apes visually track subject-object relationships like humans do

Recovery of testing for heart disease risk factors post-COVID remains patchy

Final data and undiscovered images from NASA’s NEOWISE

Nucleoporin93: A silent protector in vascular health

Can we avert the looming food crisis of climate change?

Alcohol use and antiobesity medication treatment

Study reveals cause of common cancer immunotherapy side effect

New era in amphibian biology

Harbor service, VAST Data provide boost for NCSA systems

New prognostic model enhances survival prediction in liver failure

China focuses on improving air quality via the coordinated control of fine particles and ozone

Machine learning reveals behaviors linked with early Alzheimer’s, points to new treatments

[Press-News.org] Elderly women at higher risk for unnecessary urinary catheterization, study reports