Chlamydiae growing in target mucosal human epithelial cells in vitro can transition from their normal developmental cycle progression, alternating between infectious but metabolically inactive elementary bodies to metabolically active but noninfectious reticulate bodies (RBs) and back to elementary bodies, into a state of persistence. Persistence in vitro is defined as viable but noncultivable chlamydiae involving morphologically enlarged, aberrant, and nondividing RBs. The condition is reversible, yielding infectious elementary bodies after removal of the inducers, including penicillin, interferon-gamma, iron or nutrient starvation, concomitant herpes infection, or maturation of the host cell into its physiologically differentiated state. All aberrant RB phenotypes are not the same, owing to differing up- or down-regulated chlamydial gene sets and subsequent host responses. Although all persistence-inducing conditions exist in vivo, key questions include (1) whether or not aberrant chlamydial RBs occur in vivo during the alternating acute-silent chronic-acute chlamydial infection scenario that exists in infected patients and animals and (2) whether such aberrant RBs can contribute to prolonged, chronic inflammation, fibrosis, and scarring.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / A move toward care of residents in nursing homes where they are respected and heard is finally emerging. Common strategies used in nursing homes to improve quality of care for residents are integration of person-centered care and assessing care using satisfaction surveys. Although approaches of integrating person-centered care and satisfaction surveys have been valuable in improving nursing home quality, strategies of care that include things that matter from residents’ perspectives while living in nursing homes need investigation. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to describe things that residents age 65 and older state matter to them while living in the long-term care sections of nursing homes. A qualitative mode of inquiry using purposeful sampling led to a natural unfolding of data that revealed things that mattered to residents. Content analysis was used to reduce the data in a manner that kept the data close to the context yet moved the data toward new ideas about including things that mattered to residents in nursing care. The findings revealed residents’ positive and negative experiences and addressed the question: How can nurses manage residents’ positive and negative aspects of care in nursing homes? This study substantiated the importance of developing nursing care strategies derived from residents’ descriptions of care. Finding ways to promote nurses’ investment in attitudes about a person-centered care philosophy is essential for successful person-centered care implementation. Enhancing nurses’ knowledge, skills, and attitudes with an investment in person centeredness will be more likely to put nurses in a position to role-model care that is person-centered from residents’ perspectives.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / A significant body of literature has accumulated in the last decade that provides evidence of the growing health care disparities among racial and ethnic groups in the United States. The literature suggests that Black adults share a disproportionate burden in death, disability, and disease. In 2002, the Institute of Medicine report, Unequal Treatment, showed that racial-ethnic disparities in health cannot be entirely attributed to problems of health care access, clinical performance, or patients’ personal characteristics. Many studies have shown that institutional and individual level discrimination that Blacks face in the health care system impacts their health status. This study used secondary data analysis to examine how primary care experience impacts self-reported health status and health care utilization among Black adults. Data were from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) implemented by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Specifically, MEPS Panel 10 (2005-2006) and Panel 11 (2006-2007) data were used in the analyses. The final sample comprised of N=15,295 respondents ages 18 and over. Logistic regression analyses were carried out using Stata Statistical Software, version 11. The study results reflect the disparities among Blacks and Whites on self-reported health and health care utilization. Blacks were 15% less likely to report good health status compared to Whites and had 0.11 less expected office-based doctor visits. Respondents who had better primary care experience had 0.05 times higher expected office-based doctor visits than respondents who did not have good primary care experience. Health care Social Workers should advocate for structural changes in health policy that will take into account the historical marginalization and contemporary inequities that continue to encompass the lives of many Black Americans.

Health practitioners collect health data on a daily basis at health facility levels in order to monitor and evaluate the performance of priority national health programmes (District Health Plan 2012:6). Routine data quality for health programmes monitoring need a collective intervention to ensure clear understanding for what data to be collected at primary health care setting. The aim of the study is to explore the understanding of routine health data, determine the use of routine data and feedback mechanism at primary health care clinic setting. Quantitative descriptive research design was used to answer the research question on this research study. Structured data collection questionnaire was used for the study to accomplish the research purpose and reach the study objectives. A total of 400 participants was sampled, and 247 responded. One of the findings was that the understanding of routine health data by Health Practitioners was at 82.6% (% = f/n*100, f= 3242 and n= 3926). / Health Studies

Health practitioners collect health data on a daily basis at health facility levels in order to monitor and evaluate the performance of priority national health programmes (District Health Plan 2012:6). Routine data quality for health programmes monitoring need a collective intervention to ensure clear understanding for what data to be collected at primary health care setting. The aim of the study is to explore the understanding of routine health data, determine the use of routine data and feedback mechanism at primary health care clinic setting. Quantitative descriptive research design was used to answer the research question on this research study. Structured data collection questionnaire was used for the study to accomplish the research purpose and reach the study objectives. A total of 400 participants was sampled, and 247 responded. One of the findings was that the understanding of routine health data by Health Practitioners was at 82.6% (% = f/n*100, f= 3242 and n= 3926). / Health Studies

<p>Увод. Годишње најмање 30% особа старијих од 65 година доживи један или више падова. Са повећањем година повећава се и озбиљност компликација услед пада, степен функционалног оштећења и ниво инвалидитета. Одговорност за пад приписује се многим факторима ризика. Због сложености њихове природе, од кључног је значаја да се ревидирају концептуални и методолошки оквири за разумевање и предвиђање пада у популацији старих особа. Циљеви истраживања. Утврдити учесталост падова код особа старијих од 65 година; утврдити најзначајније факторе ризика од пада и проценити њихову интеракцију са функционалним способностима и забринутост због пада. Материјал и методологија. Истраживање је спроведено у од фебруара до јуна 2014. године у виду студије пресека и обухватило је 400 испитаника старијих од 65 година. Испитаници су тестирани у кућним условима приликом посете патронажне службе. Коришћени су следећи инструменти: општи упитник, Elderly Fall Screening Test &ndash; ЕFST, Multi-factor Falls Questionnaire &ndash; MFQ, Tinetti Balance Assessment, Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale &minus; IADL, Falls Efficacy Scale International FES-I. Стaтистички прорaчуни су вршени прогрaмом SPSS верзијa 20. Резултати истраживања. Резултати студије показују да је пад доживело 55% испитаника. Регресиони модел EFST са варијаблама био је статистички значајан, а као независни предиктори показали су се женски пол (OR = 2,751; &lt; 0,001), године старости (OR = 1,138; p &lt; 0,001), и степен образовања (OR = 0,554; p = 0,027). Слични резултати су добијении и за регресиони модел са Тинетијевим скором где су се као независни предиктори показали пол (Beta = -0,107; p = 0,029) старост (Beta = -0,260; p &lt; 0,001) и степен образовања (Beta = 0,191; p &lt; 0,001). Све корелације између ЕFST, FESI, IADL и скором Тинетијевог теста биле су статистички значајне (p &lt; 0,05). Вредности скора FESI биле су у јакој позитивној корелацији са скором ЕFST и изузетно негативној корелацији са IADL и скором Тинетијевог теста. Скор ЕFST показао је умерену негативну корелацију са скором IADL и јаку негативну са скором Тинетијевог теста, док су скор IADL и скор Тинетијевог теста показали умерену позитивну корелацију. Модел EFST био је статистички значајан и у целини тачно класификује 83,3% случајева. Варијабле које су се показале као независни предиктори били су: Тинети скор (OR = 0,783; p &lt; 0,001), скор (OR = 1,041; p = 0,019) и ортостатска хипотензија (OR = 2,291; p = 0,035). Закључак. У испитиваној популацији падови су веома учестала појава и више од половине особа доживела је пад у последњих годину дана. У повећаном ризику од пада су жене. Такође ризик од пада повећава се са годинама старости. Нижи степен образовања показао се као независни предиктор пада. Предикција ризика од пада утврђеног на основу скрининг тест за пад код старих особа у општој популацији могућа је уз висок степен детерминације на основу скора Тинетијевог теста и, скора FESI и ортостатске хипотензије.</p> / <p>Uvod. Godišnje najmanje 30% osoba starijih od 65 godina doživi jedan ili više padova. Sa povećanjem godina povećava se i ozbiljnost komplikacija usled pada, stepen funkcionalnog oštećenja i nivo invaliditeta. Odgovornost za pad pripisuje se mnogim faktorima rizika. Zbog složenosti njihove prirode, od ključnog je značaja da se revidiraju konceptualni i metodološki okviri za razumevanje i predviđanje pada u populaciji starih osoba. Ciljevi istraživanja. Utvrditi učestalost padova kod osoba starijih od 65 godina; utvrditi najznačajnije faktore rizika od pada i proceniti njihovu interakciju sa funkcionalnim sposobnostima i zabrinutost zbog pada. Materijal i metodologija. Istraživanje je sprovedeno u od februara do juna 2014. godine u vidu studije preseka i obuhvatilo je 400 ispitanika starijih od 65 godina. Ispitanici su testirani u kućnim uslovima prilikom posete patronažne službe. Korišćeni su sledeći instrumenti: opšti upitnik, Elderly Fall Screening Test &ndash; EFST, Multi-factor Falls Questionnaire &ndash; MFQ, Tinetti Balance Assessment, Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale &minus; IADL, Falls Efficacy Scale International FES-I. Statistički proračuni su vršeni programom SPSS verzija 20. Rezultati istraživanja. Rezultati studije pokazuju da je pad doživelo 55% ispitanika. Regresioni model EFST sa varijablama bio je statistički značajan, a kao nezavisni prediktori pokazali su se ženski pol (OR = 2,751; &lt; 0,001), godine starosti (OR = 1,138; p &lt; 0,001), i stepen obrazovanja (OR = 0,554; p = 0,027). Slični rezultati su dobijenii i za regresioni model sa Tinetijevim skorom gde su se kao nezavisni prediktori pokazali pol (Beta = -0,107; p = 0,029) starost (Beta = -0,260; p &lt; 0,001) i stepen obrazovanja (Beta = 0,191; p &lt; 0,001). Sve korelacije između EFST, FESI, IADL i skorom Tinetijevog testa bile su statistički značajne (p &lt; 0,05). Vrednosti skora FESI bile su u jakoj pozitivnoj korelaciji sa skorom EFST i izuzetno negativnoj korelaciji sa IADL i skorom Tinetijevog testa. Skor EFST pokazao je umerenu negativnu korelaciju sa skorom IADL i jaku negativnu sa skorom Tinetijevog testa, dok su skor IADL i skor Tinetijevog testa pokazali umerenu pozitivnu korelaciju. Model EFST bio je statistički značajan i u celini tačno klasifikuje 83,3% slučajeva. Varijable koje su se pokazale kao nezavisni prediktori bili su: Tineti skor (OR = 0,783; p &lt; 0,001), skor (OR = 1,041; p = 0,019) i ortostatska hipotenzija (OR = 2,291; p = 0,035). Zaključak. U ispitivanoj populaciji padovi su veoma učestala pojava i više od polovine osoba doživela je pad u poslednjih godinu dana. U povećanom riziku od pada su žene. Takođe rizik od pada povećava se sa godinama starosti. Niži stepen obrazovanja pokazao se kao nezavisni prediktor pada. Predikcija rizika od pada utvrđenog na osnovu skrining test za pad kod starih osoba u opštoj populaciji moguća je uz visok stepen determinacije na osnovu skora Tinetijevog testa i, skora FESI i ortostatske hipotenzije.</p> / <p>Introduction. Annually at least 30% of people over 65 experience one or more falls. With the increase in years, the severity of complications due to falls, degree of functional impairment and level of disability also increase. The responsibility for the fall is attributed to many risk factors. Due to the complexity of their nature, it is crucial that the conceptual and methodological frameworks for understanding and predicting the decline in the elderly population are revised. Research goals. Determine the incidence of falls in people over 65 years of age; identify the most important risk factors of the fall and evaluate their interaction with functional abilities and fear for falling. Material and methodology. The survey was conducted from February to June 2014 in the form of a cross sectional study and included 400 respondents over 65 years of age. Respondents were tested at home during a visit of the patronage service. The following instruments were used: general questionnaire, Elderly Fall Screening Test - EFST, Multi-factor Falls Questionnaire - MFQ, Tinetti Balance Assessment, Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale - IADL, Falls Efficacy Scale International FES-I. Statistical calculations were performed by the SPSS version 20 program. Research results. The results of the study show that the fall was experienced by 55% of respondents. The regression model EFST with variables was statistically significant, and as independent predictors the female sex (OR = 2,751; &lt;0,001), age (OR = 1,138; p &lt;0,001), and the level of education (OR = 0,554; p = 0.027) were shown. Similar results were obtained for the regression model with the Tinetti&#39;s score, where the gender (Beta = -0.107; p = 0.029) age (Beta = -0.260; p &lt;0.001) and education (Beta = 0.191; p &lt; 0.001) were shown as independent predictors. All correlations between EFST, FESI, IADL and the Tinetti&#39;s test score were statistically significant (p &lt;0.05). The FESI score values were in a strong positive correlation with the EFST score and extremely negative correlation with IADL and the Tinetti&rsquo;s test score. The EFST score showed a moderate negative correlation with the IADL score and a strong negative with the Tinetti&rsquo;s test score, while the IADL score and the Tinetti test score showed moderate positive correlation. The EFST model was statistically significant and in its entirety accurately classified 83.3% of cases. Variables that proved to be independent predictors were: Tinetti score (OR = 0.783; p &lt;0.001), score (OR = 1.041; p = 0.019) and orthostatic hypotension (OR = 2.291; p = 0.035). Conclusion. In the studied population, falls are a very common occurrence and more than half of the people experienced a fall in the past year. Women are at increased risk of falling. Also, the risk of falling increases with age. A lower level of education has proven to be an independent fall predictor. Prediction of the risk of a fall that has been established on the basis of a screening test for elderly people in the general population is possible with a high degree of determination based on the Tinetti test score and, recent FESI and orthostatic hypotension.</p>

Background InVietnam, the proportion of people aged 60 and above has increased rapidly in recent decades. The majority live in rural areas where socioeconomic status is more disadvantaged than in urban areas.Vietnam’s economic status is improving but disparities in income and living conditions are widening between groups and regions. A consistent and emerging danger of communicable diseases and an increase of non-communicable diseases exist concurrently. The emigration of young people and the impact of other socioeconomic changes leave more elderly on their own and with less family support. Introduction of user fees and development of a private sector improve the coverage and quality of health care but increase household health expenditures and inequalities in health care. Life expectancy at birth has increased, but not much is known about changes during old age. There is a lack of evidence, particularly in rural settings, about health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among older people within the context of socioeconomic changes and health-sector reform. Knowledge of long-term elderly care needs in the community and the relevant models are still limited. To provide evidence for developing new policies and models of care, this thesis aimed to assess general health status, health care needs, and perspectives on future health care options for community-dwelling older people. Methods An abridged life table was used to estimate cohort life expectancies at old age from longitudinal data collected by FilaBavi DSS during 1999-2006. This covered 7,668 people aged 60 and above with 43,272 person-years. A 2007 cross-sectional survey was conducted among people aged 60 and over living in 2,240 households that were randomly selected from the FilaBavi DSS. Interviews used a structured questionnaire to assess HRQoL, daily care needs, and willingness to use and to pay for models of care. Participant and household socioeconomic characteristics were extracted from the 2007 DSS re-census. Differences in life expectancy are examined by socioeconomic factors. The EQ-5D index is calculated based on the time trade-off tariff. Distributions of study subjects by study variables are described with 95% confidence intervals. Multivariate analyses are performed to identify socioeconomic determinants of HRQoL, need of support, ADL index, and willingness to use and pay for models of care. In addition, four focus group discussions with the elderly, their household members, and community association representatives were conducted to explore perspectives on the use of services by applying content analysis. Results Life expectancy at age 60 increased by approximately one year from 1999-2002 to 2003-2006, but tended to decrease in the most vulnerable groups. There is a wide gap in life expectancy by poverty status and living arrangement. The sex gap in life expectancy is consistent across all socioeconomic groups and is wider among the more disadvantaged populations.  The EQ-5D index at old age is 0.876. Younger age groups, position as household head, working, literacy, and belonging to better wealth quintiles are determinants of higher HRQoL. Ageing has a primary influence on HRQoL that is mainly due to reduction in physical (rather than mental) functions. Being a household head and working at old age are advantageous for attaining better HRQoL in physical rather than psychological terms. Economic conditions affect HRQoL through sensory rather than physical functions. Long-term living conditions are more likely to affect HRQoL than short-term economic conditions. Dependence in instrumental or intellectual activities of daily living (ADLs) is more common than in basic ADLs. People who need complete help are fewer than those who need some help in almost all ADLs. Over two-fifths of people who needed help received enough support in all ADL dimensions. Children and grand-children are confirmed to be the main caregivers. Presence of chronic illness, age groups, sex, educational level, marital status, household membership, working status, household size, living arrangement, residential area, household wealth, and poverty status are determinants of the need for care. Use of mobile teams is the most requested service; the fewest respondents intend to use a nursing centre. Households expect to use services for their elderly to a greater extent than did the elderly themselves. Willingness to use services decreases when potential fees increase. The proportion of respondents who require free services is 2 to 3 times higher than those willing to pay full cost. Households are willing to pay more for day care and nursing centres than are the elderly. The elderly are more willing to pay for mobile teams than are their households. ADL index, age group, sex, literacy, marital status, living arrangement, head of household status, living area, working status, poverty and household wealth are factors related to willingness to use services.   Conclusions                                                                                         There is a trend of increasing life expectancy at older ages in ruralVietnam. Inequalities in life expectancy exist between socioeconomic groups. HRQoL at old age is at a high level, but varies substantially according to socioeconomic factors. An unmet need of daily care for older people remains. Family is the main source of support for care. Need for care is in more demand among disadvantaged groups.  Development of a social network for community-based long-term elderly care is needed. The network should focus on instrumental and intellectual ADLs rather than basic ADLs. Home-based care is more essential than institutionalized care. Community-based elderly care will be used and partly paid for if it is provided by the government or associations. The determinants of elderly health and care needs should be addressed by appropriate social and health policies with greater targeting of the poorest and most disadvantaged groups. Building capacity for health professionals and informal caregivers, as well as support for the most vulnerable elderly groups, is essential for providing and assessing the services. / Aging and Living Conditions Program / Vietnam-Sweden Collaborative Program in Health, SIDA/Sarec