Rouge Valley Health System

About: Rouge Valley Health System is a based out in . It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Percutaneous coronary intervention. The organization has 57 authors who have published 70 publications receiving 2890 citations.

Long-term psychological and occupational effects of providing hospital healthcare during SARS outbreak.

Abstract: Healthcare workers (HCWs) found the 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) to be stressful, but the long-term impact is not known From 13 to 26 months after the SARS outbreak, 769 HCWs at 9 Toronto hospitals that treated SARS patients and 4 Hamilton hospitals that did not treat SARS patients completed a survey of several adverse outcomes Toronto HCWs reported significantly higher levels of burnout (p = 0019), psychological distress (p<0001), and posttraumatic stress (p<0001) Toronto workers were more likely to have reduced patient contact and work hours and to report behavioral consequences of stress Variance in adverse outcomes was explained by a protective effect of the perceived adequacy of training and support and by a provocative effect of maladaptive coping style and other individual factors The results reinforce the value of effective staff support and training in preparation for future outbreaks

One-year outcomes and health care utilization in survivors of severe acute respiratory syndrome.

Abstract: Background Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) became a global epidemic in 2003. Comprehensive information on 1-year outcomes and health care utilization is lacking. Research conducted during the SARS outbreak may help inform research planning for future public health emergencies. The objective of this study was to evaluate the 1-year outcomes in survivors of SARS and their family caregivers. Method The study was prospective and observational. We evaluated 117 SARS survivors from Toronto, Ontario. Patients were interviewed and underwent physical examination, pulmonary function testing, chest radiography, a 6-minute-walk test, quality-of-life measures, and self-report of health care utilization. At 1 year, informal caregivers were identified for a survey on caregiver burden. Results The enrolled survivors of SARS were young (median age, 42 years), and most were women (67%) and health care workers (65%). At 1 year after hospital discharge, pulmonary function measures were in the normal range, but 18% of patients had a significant reduction in distance walked in 6 minutes. The Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) domains were 0.3 to 1.0 SD below normal at 1 year. Of the patients, 17% had not returned to work by 1 year. Fifty-one patients required 668 visits to psychiatry or psychology practitioners. During the SARS epidemic, informal caregivers reported a decline of 1.6 SD below normal on the mental component score of the SF-36. Conclusions Most SARS survivors had good physical recovery from their illness, but some patients and their caregivers reported a significant reduction in mental health 1 year later. Strategies to ameliorate the psychological burden of an epidemic on the patient and family caregiver should be considered as part of future pandemic planning.

Significance of Plk1 regulation by miR-100 in human nasopharyngeal cancer.

Abstract: Polo-like kinase 1 (Plk1) is a critical regulator of many stages of mitosis; increasing evidence indicates that Plk1 overexpression correlates with poor clinical outcome, yet its mechanism of regulation remains unknown. Hence, a detailed evaluation was undertaken of Plk1 expression in human nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC), the cellular effects of targeting Plk1 using siRNA in combination with ionizing radiation (RT) and potential upstream microRNAs (miRs) that might regulate Plk1 expression. Using immunohistochemistry, Plk1 was observed to be overexpressed in 28 of 40 (70%) primary NPC biopsies, which in turn was associated with a higher likelihood of recurrence (p = 0.018). SiPlk1 significantly inhibited Plk1 mRNA and protein expression, and decreased Cdc25c levels in NPC cell lines. This depletion resulted in cytotoxicity of C666-1 cells, enhanced by the addition of RT, mediated by G2/M arrest, increased DNA double-strand breaks, apoptosis, and caspase activation. Immunofluorescence demonstrated that the G2/M arrest was associated with aberrant spindle formation, leading to mitotic arrest. In vivo, transfection of C666-1 cells and systemic delivery of siPlk1 decreased tumour growth. MicroRNA-100 (miR-100) was predicted to target Plk1 mRNA, which was indeed underexpressed in C666-1 cells, inversely correlating with Plk1 expression. Using luciferase constructs containing the 3'-UTR of Plk1 sequence, we document that miR-100 can directly target Plk1. Hence, our data demonstrate for the first time that underexpressed miR-100 leads to Plk1 overexpression, which in turn contributes to NPC progression. Targeting Plk1 will cause mitotic catastrophe, with significant cytotoxicity both in vitro and in vivo, underscoring the important therapeutic opportunity of Plk1 in NPC.