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Healthcare, Volume 1, Issue 1 (December 2013) – 8 articles , Pages 1-106

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Editorial

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71 KiB  
Editorial
Why We Do Need Another Medical Journal…
by Manu L. N. G. Malbrain
Healthcare 2013, 1(1), 1-4; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare1010001 - 30 Jan 2013
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4736
Abstract
The English word "health" comes from the Old English word hale, meaning "wholeness, a state of being and feeling whole, sound or well" [1]. Hale comes from the Proto-Indo-European root "kailo", meaning "whole, uninjured, of good omen". Kailo comes from the Proto-Germanic root [...] Read more.
The English word "health" comes from the Old English word hale, meaning "wholeness, a state of being and feeling whole, sound or well" [1]. Hale comes from the Proto-Indo-European root "kailo", meaning "whole, uninjured, of good omen". Kailo comes from the Proto-Germanic root "khalbas", meaning "something (un)divided". [...] Full article

Research

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180 KiB  
Article
Elderly Men’s Experience of Information Material about Melanoma—A Qualitative Study
by Kristina Rosengren
Healthcare 2013, 1(1), 5-19; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare1010005 - 11 Jul 2013
Viewed by 5716
Abstract
Malignant melanoma is an aggressive disease that has been increasing worldwide. Public education is trying to focus on reducing intense sun exposure and raise awareness of signs and symptoms to prevent illness. The aim of the study was to describe and analyze elderly [...] Read more.
Malignant melanoma is an aggressive disease that has been increasing worldwide. Public education is trying to focus on reducing intense sun exposure and raise awareness of signs and symptoms to prevent illness. The aim of the study was to describe and analyze elderly men’s (over 65 years) experience of an information booklet regarding malignant melanoma. The study comprised of a total of 15 interviews with elderly men. The interviews were analyzed using manifest qualitative content analysis. Respect for the individuals was a main concern in the study. One category, Security—to act, and three subcategories, Availability—to use, Clarity—to understand, and Awareness—to know, were identified to describe the men’s experiences of information material about melanoma. By using person-centered care, based on a holistic approach focusing on men’s need for security to act on specific risk factors and to do skin self-examination, health could be improved. The results of this study could help other health organizations to develop information material to prevent illness, such as for skin self-examination. Strategies concerning educating, preparing, and training health professionals in interpersonal communication skills should be implemented in healthcare organizations to meet patients’ information needs about illness to develop continuous learning and quality improvement. Full article
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290 KiB  
Article
Emerging Therapeutic Enhancement Enabling Health Technologies and Their Discourses: What Is Discussed within the Health Domain?
by Gregor Wolbring, Lucy Diep, Sophya Yumakulov, Natalie Ball, Verlyn Leopatra and Dean Yergens
Healthcare 2013, 1(1), 20-52; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare1010020 - 25 Jul 2013
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 11885
Abstract
So far, the very meaning of health and therefore, treatment and rehabilitation is benchmarked to the normal or species-typical body. We expect certain abilities in members of a species; we expect humans to walk but not to fly, but a bird we expect [...] Read more.
So far, the very meaning of health and therefore, treatment and rehabilitation is benchmarked to the normal or species-typical body. We expect certain abilities in members of a species; we expect humans to walk but not to fly, but a bird we expect to fly. However, increasingly therapeutic interventions have the potential to give recipients beyond species-typical body related abilities (therapeutic enhancements, TE). We believe that the perfect storm of TE, the shift in ability expectations toward beyond species-typical body abilities, and the increasing desire of health consumers to shape the health system will increasingly influence various aspects of health care practice, policy, and scholarship. We employed qualitative and quantitative methods to investigate among others how human enhancement, neuro/cognitive enhancement, brain machine interfaces, and social robot discourses cover (a) healthcare, healthcare policy, and healthcare ethics, (b) disability and (c) health consumers and how visible various assessment fields are within Neuro/Cogno/ Human enhancement and within the BMI and social robotics discourse. We found that health care, as such, is little discussed, as are health care policy and ethics; that the term consumers (but not health consumers) is used; that technology, impact and needs assessment is absent; and that the imagery of disabled people is primarily a medical one. We submit that now, at this early stage, is the time to gain a good understanding of what drives the push for the enhancement agenda and enhancement-enabling devices, and the dynamics around acceptance and diffusion of therapeutic enhancements. Full article
152 KiB  
Article
Current Challenges in Home Nutrition Services for Frail Older Adults in Japan—A Qualitative Research Study from the Point of View of Care Managers
by Yoshihisa Hirakawa, Takaya Kimata and Kazumasa Uemura
Healthcare 2013, 1(1), 53-63; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare1010053 - 12 Sep 2013
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 6814
Abstract
Preventive care for frail older adults includes providing tailor-made diet information suited to their health conditions. The present study aims to explore the current situation and challenges of home nutrition advice for Japanese frail older adults using qualitative data from a ten-person group [...] Read more.
Preventive care for frail older adults includes providing tailor-made diet information suited to their health conditions. The present study aims to explore the current situation and challenges of home nutrition advice for Japanese frail older adults using qualitative data from a ten-person group discussion among care managers. As the results of our analysis, nine themes were identified: (1) Homebound older adults develop poor eating habits; meals turn into a lonely and unpleasant experience; (2) With age, people’s eating and drinking patterns tend to deteriorate; (3) Many older adults and their family know little about food management according to condition and medication; (4) Many older adults do not understand the importance of maintaining a proper diet; (5) Many homebound older adults do not worry about oral hygiene and swallowing ability; (6) Some older adults are at high risk for food safety problems; (7) Only a limited range of boil-in-the-bag meal options are available for older adults; (8) Many older adults feel unduly confident in their own nutrition management skills; and (9) For many family caregivers, nutrition management is a burden. We conclude that the provision of tailor-made information by skilled dietitians and high-quality home-delivered meal service are essential for the successful nutrition management of the older adults. Full article
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4490 KiB  
Article
Detection and Discrimination of Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer by Multimodal Imaging
by Sandro Heuke, Nadine Vogler, Tobias Meyer, Denis Akimov, Franziska Kluschke, Hans-Joachim Röwert-Huber, Jürgen Lademann, Benjamin Dietzek and Jürgen Popp
Healthcare 2013, 1(1), 64-83; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare1010064 - 17 Oct 2013
Cited by 48 | Viewed by 8826
Abstract
Non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) belongs to the most frequent human neoplasms. Its exposed location facilitates a fast ambulant treatment. However, in the clinical practice far more lesions are removed than necessary, due to the lack of an efficient pre-operational examination procedure: Standard imaging [...] Read more.
Non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) belongs to the most frequent human neoplasms. Its exposed location facilitates a fast ambulant treatment. However, in the clinical practice far more lesions are removed than necessary, due to the lack of an efficient pre-operational examination procedure: Standard imaging methods often do not provide a sufficient spatial resolution. The demand for an efficient in vivo imaging technique might be met in the near future by non-linear microscopy. As a first step towards this goal, the appearance of NMSC in various microspectroscopic modalities has to be defined and approaches have to be derived to distinguish healthy skin from NMSC using non-linear optical microscopy. Therefore, in this contribution the appearance of ex vivo NMSC in a combination of coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS), second harmonic generation (SHG) and two photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) imaging—referred as multimodal imaging—is described. Analogous to H&E staining, an overview of the distinct appearances and features of basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma in the complementary modalities is derived, and is expected to boost in vivo studies of this promising technological approach. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Melanoma and Neoplasms of Skin)
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584 KiB  
Article
Cutaneous Alternariosis Caused by Alternaria infectoria: Three Cases in Kidney Transplant Patients
by Leonor Lopes, João Borges-Costa, Luís Soares-Almeida, Paulo Filipe, Fernanda Neves, Alice Santana, José Guerra and Heinz Kutzner
Healthcare 2013, 1(1), 100-106; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare1010100 - 30 Oct 2013
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 8212
Abstract
The genus Alternaria has more than 80 species. Alternaria alternata and Alternaria infectoria are the most frequent species associated with infections in humans. Their clinical importance lies in the growing number of cases reported in immunocompromised patients. Herein, we report three cases of [...] Read more.
The genus Alternaria has more than 80 species. Alternaria alternata and Alternaria infectoria are the most frequent species associated with infections in humans. Their clinical importance lies in the growing number of cases reported in immunocompromised patients. Herein, we report three cases of kidney-transplanted patients with different clinical presentations of cutaneous alternariosis and we discuss the treatment options. Full article
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Review

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3089 KiB  
Review
B-Mode Ultrasound Imaging, Doppler Imaging, and Real-Time Elastography in Cutaneous Malignant Melanoma and Lymph Node Metastases
by Takayoshi Uematsu, Masako Kasami and Yoshio Kiyohara
Healthcare 2013, 1(1), 84-95; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare1010084 - 23 Oct 2013
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 7804
Abstract
Examination by ultrasonography (US) is a rapid, sensitive, cost-effective, and even portable technique for confirming the presence of tumors. However, US is not routinely used worldwide for the diagnostic work-up of cutaneous malignant melanoma. High-resolution US using a 6–14 MHz or 5–13 MHz [...] Read more.
Examination by ultrasonography (US) is a rapid, sensitive, cost-effective, and even portable technique for confirming the presence of tumors. However, US is not routinely used worldwide for the diagnostic work-up of cutaneous malignant melanoma. High-resolution US using a 6–14 MHz or 5–13 MHz linear transducer enables the preoperative assessment of tumor size and thickness. Compared with physical examination, US is also very effective in the early detection of lymph node metastases. It can be easily repeated for the follow-up of cutaneous malignant melanoma and lymph node metastases. Ultrasonographic appearance of some lymph nodes may overlap, thus producing diagnostic pitfalls. In such cases with overlapping findings, Doppler imaging and elastography may additionally facilitate the evaluation of cutaneous malignant melanoma and lymph node metastases. US-guided fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) finally helps to confirm ultrasonographic results, thus improving the specificity and sensitivity in difficult situations in which US alone gives unclear results in lymph node assessment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Melanoma and Neoplasms of Skin)
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Other

593 KiB  
Case Report
Scalp In-Transit Metastatic Melanoma Treated with Interleukin-2 and Pulsed Dye Laser
by Michael Z. Wang and Jerry D. Brewer
Healthcare 2013, 1(1), 96-99; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare1010096 - 25 Oct 2013
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 9724
Abstract
No particular regimen is considered standard therapy for widespread metastatic melanoma, although surgery is the primary choice for regional nodal metastases. Systemic interleukin-2 (IL-2) is an effective immunotherapy for melanoma, but standard doses are associated with severe toxicity. We report a patient who [...] Read more.
No particular regimen is considered standard therapy for widespread metastatic melanoma, although surgery is the primary choice for regional nodal metastases. Systemic interleukin-2 (IL-2) is an effective immunotherapy for melanoma, but standard doses are associated with severe toxicity. We report a patient who was treated with intralesional low-dose IL-2 and V-beam pulsed dye laser for the treatment of scalp melanoma metastases. This treatment resulted in rapid regression of metastatic tumors with limited adverse effects. Full article
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