Trauma of diverse origins is a common reason for presentation of pets for treatment. It is often difficult clinically to objectively measure the severity of any trauma to an animal. One approach is to measure the changes in the various serum parameters which are known to alter in response to trauma or inflammation. If the changes over time of relevant and easily measurable parameters can be established under two controlled but different conditions of surgical trauma, it may provide the foundation for evaluating their future use in establishing the severity of trauma in a patient. A prospective study was performed on animals presented to the Onderstepoort Veterinary Academic Hospital for either thoracolumbar disc disease or for elective ovariohysterectomy. The two surgical procedures chosen for the study involved significant surgical trauma, particularly to muscle, in the case of thoracolumbar decompression and relatively minor surgical trauma in the case of ovariohysterectomy. Serial evaluation of creatine kinase (CK) and C-reactive protein (CRP) were performed both pre- and post-operatively on two sets of patients derived from the two surgical categories. CK is an enzyme found predominantly in skeletal muscle and significantly elevated serum activity is largely associated with muscle damage. CRP is an acute phase protein which shows elevated serum concentration in response to a broad range of inflammatory stimuli. Analysis of the data showed a very wide range of results at each time point for both CK and CRP. There were no significant differences between the two surgical groups for either analyte preoperatively. Thereafter CK results were markedly and significantly different between the two groups. CRP results were very similar in the two groups with no statistical difference at any time point. The results of this study suggest that the evaluation of CK and CRP at any one time point in a traumatized animal is of limited value. However the evaluation of the trend of these two analytes, even over a relatively short time period, may allow for useful prognostication in clinical cases. / Dissertation (MMedVet)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Companion Animal Clinical Studies / unrestricted

A mathematical model was developed to predict the exchange of one cation by another in a soil column undergoing one dimensional cation solution displacement under steady state flow conditions. The model allowed prediction of both the solution and exchanger phase concentration of the cation in question. The model consists of a material balance equation which is a parabolic type partial differential equation. The assumption was made that equilibrium was reached instantaneously between the cations in the solution phase and the exchanger phase. This assumption reduced the material balance equation to a form that allowed numerical solution providing the data concerning the cation exchange isotherm and the initial and boundary conditions are available. FORTRAN programs were written for the numerical computation of the problem involved. The computation was done on a digital computer. The model was verified by comparing the theoretically computed cation concentration profile with data from actual soil column experiments. The cation exchange of Mg→Ca was tested on Yolo fine sandy loam, Nibley clay loam and Haford Sandy loam columns. The exchange of Na→Ca was also tested on Yolo fine sandy loam. Satisfactory agreement between the column experiment values and the theoretically computed values was obtained.

prestados às mulheres em situação de aborto, em um hospital público, vale pontuar, que no processo de amadurecimento da pesquisa, durante o trabalho de campo, optamos em incluir, mulheres em suspeita de aborto e demais observações das práticas dos referidos profissionais. A discussão do aborto é polêmica, difícil e está em pauta em distintos cenários, sendo esta discussão reflexo do debate presente na sociedade e assim, considerando que mulheres em situação de aborto, necessitam serem atendidas nos serviços de saúde com respeito e responsabilidade por todos os profissionais, a postura do profissional de saúde no atendimento prestado é fundamental, logo, este estudo buscou analisar as práticas dos profissionais nestes atendimentos. A metodologia adotada foi da observação participante, onde o setor escolhido foi a emergência da unidade, chamada de admissão, que é a porta de entrada, um setor de grande rotatividade, tanto de profissionais, como de pessoas a serem atendidas. Buscou-se desvendar a partir dos encontros que acontecem na admissão, as normas, rotinas e o perfil dos atendimentos prestados às mulheres em situação de aborto. O estudo apontou para processos vividos no cotidiano das práticas, que expomos através das secções: É charminho?; Invisibilidade Ninguém percebe; Não Julgar, é?; Silenciamento; Sabe que é errado...; Diálogo entre os sentados; Como garantir o atendimento? - O lado artístico da população Eles vão ter que resolver isso... e A evocação do direito; Pares?; Ser bom? Você viu quantos papéis temos que preencher? Identificou questões de tensionamento sobre o não dito, algo que encontra-se naturalizado no cotidiano das práticas. Um diagnóstico da situação de invisibilidade do outro e de suas questões, bem como de silenciamento dos profissionais de saúde. Somente foi possível o encontro com esta percepção, através do estranhamento daquilo que nos era familiar, sendo esta vivência um espaço de tensionamento de posturas tomadas por nós profissionais no cotidiano das práticas. / This study aims to analyze the practices of health professionals in the care given to women undergoing abortion in a public hospital worth punctuate that the maturation process of the research, during the fieldwork, we chose to include women on suspicion of abortion and other observations of the practices of these professionals. The discussion of abortion is controversial, difficult and is on the agenda in different scenarios, this discussion reflects the debate in this society and so, considering that women undergoing abortion, need to be addressed in health care with respect and responsibility for all Professional, the professional attitude of health care provided is critical, therefore, this study investigates the practices of professionals in these services. The methodology was participant observation, where the sector was chosen to drive emergency, call admission, which is the gateway to a high turnover industry, both professionals as people to be met. We attempted to unravel from the meetings that happen at admission norms, routines and profile of care provided to women undergoing abortion. The study pointed to processes experienced in everyday practices that we expose through the categories: Is she being charming? Invisibility - No one perceives; Do not judge, right?; Silencing; know what is wrong ...; Dialogue between sitting; Ensuring the care? - The artistic side of the population - "They will have to solve this ..." and the evocation of law; Couple?; Being Good? You saw how many roles we have to fill?. Identified issues about the unspoken tension, something that is naturalized in everyday practices. A diagnosis of the situation of invisibility another and their issues as well as the silencing of health professionals. Was only possible encounter with this perception, through the strangeness of what was familiar, and this living space tensioning positions taken by us in everyday professionals practice.

prestados às mulheres em situação de aborto, em um hospital público, vale pontuar, que no processo de amadurecimento da pesquisa, durante o trabalho de campo, optamos em incluir, mulheres em suspeita de aborto e demais observações das práticas dos referidos profissionais. A discussão do aborto é polêmica, difícil e está em pauta em distintos cenários, sendo esta discussão reflexo do debate presente na sociedade e assim, considerando que mulheres em situação de aborto, necessitam serem atendidas nos serviços de saúde com respeito e responsabilidade por todos os profissionais, a postura do profissional de saúde no atendimento prestado é fundamental, logo, este estudo buscou analisar as práticas dos profissionais nestes atendimentos. A metodologia adotada foi da observação participante, onde o setor escolhido foi a emergência da unidade, chamada de admissão, que é a porta de entrada, um setor de grande rotatividade, tanto de profissionais, como de pessoas a serem atendidas. Buscou-se desvendar a partir dos encontros que acontecem na admissão, as normas, rotinas e o perfil dos atendimentos prestados às mulheres em situação de aborto. O estudo apontou para processos vividos no cotidiano das práticas, que expomos através das secções: É charminho?; Invisibilidade Ninguém percebe; Não Julgar, é?; Silenciamento; Sabe que é errado...; Diálogo entre os sentados; Como garantir o atendimento? - O lado artístico da população Eles vão ter que resolver isso... e A evocação do direito; Pares?; Ser bom? Você viu quantos papéis temos que preencher? Identificou questões de tensionamento sobre o não dito, algo que encontra-se naturalizado no cotidiano das práticas. Um diagnóstico da situação de invisibilidade do outro e de suas questões, bem como de silenciamento dos profissionais de saúde. Somente foi possível o encontro com esta percepção, através do estranhamento daquilo que nos era familiar, sendo esta vivência um espaço de tensionamento de posturas tomadas por nós profissionais no cotidiano das práticas. / This study aims to analyze the practices of health professionals in the care given to women undergoing abortion in a public hospital worth punctuate that the maturation process of the research, during the fieldwork, we chose to include women on suspicion of abortion and other observations of the practices of these professionals. The discussion of abortion is controversial, difficult and is on the agenda in different scenarios, this discussion reflects the debate in this society and so, considering that women undergoing abortion, need to be addressed in health care with respect and responsibility for all Professional, the professional attitude of health care provided is critical, therefore, this study investigates the practices of professionals in these services. The methodology was participant observation, where the sector was chosen to drive emergency, call admission, which is the gateway to a high turnover industry, both professionals as people to be met. We attempted to unravel from the meetings that happen at admission norms, routines and profile of care provided to women undergoing abortion. The study pointed to processes experienced in everyday practices that we expose through the categories: Is she being charming? Invisibility - No one perceives; Do not judge, right?; Silencing; know what is wrong ...; Dialogue between sitting; Ensuring the care? - The artistic side of the population - "They will have to solve this ..." and the evocation of law; Couple?; Being Good? You saw how many roles we have to fill?. Identified issues about the unspoken tension, something that is naturalized in everyday practices. A diagnosis of the situation of invisibility another and their issues as well as the silencing of health professionals. Was only possible encounter with this perception, through the strangeness of what was familiar, and this living space tensioning positions taken by us in everyday professionals practice.

Obesity is a public health issue linked to high morbidity and mortality among critically ill patients. There are approximately 15.5 million morbidly obese adults in the United States. The purpose of the project was to develop and implement an educational program using evidence-based protocols for bariatric care to educate nurses and caregivers regarding best practices when attending to obese patients. The practice-focused question examined whether learning about evidence-based bariatric care would improve the knowledge of nurses and caregivers caring for morbidly obese patients in an acute care setting. The theoretical foundation was Bandura'€™s self-efficacy theory. A questionnaire using a Likert scale was used to collect data from the 100 participants before and after the learning intervention. The selection criteria involved the inclusion of all nurses and caregivers working at the adult in-patient unit. A paired-samples t-test was used to evaluate levels of improvement in knowledge of the causes, treatment, management, and care of patients with obesity and the challenges in caring for morbidly obese patients. The findings indicated a statistically significant increase in participants'€™ knowledge of the causes (p < 0.000), treatment, management, and care of patients with obesity (p < 0.000) and the challenges involved in caring for morbidly obese patients after the learning intervention (p < 0.004). Thus, the implementation of an educational intervention may be effective in improving nurses'€™ knowledge of bariatric care. The implications of the project for social change involve the improvement in nurse'€™s knowledge of clinical guidelines, which can lead to increase in patient satisfaction, and improved overall health outcomes.