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Deep Learning Technology: Sebastian Arnold, Betty van Aken, Paul Grundmann, Felix A. Gers and Alexander Löser. Learning Contextualized Document Representations for Healthcare Answer Retrieval. The Web Conference 2020 (WWW'20)
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"Campylobacter" organisms can be detected by performing a Gram stain of a stool sample with high specificity and a sensitivity of ~60%, but are most often diagnosed by stool culture. Fecal leukocytes should be present and indicate the diarrhea to be inflammatory in nature. Methods currently being developed to detect the presence of campylobacter organisms include antigen testing via an EIA or PCR.
The World Health Organization recommends the following:
- Food should be properly cooked and hot when served.
- Consume only pasteurized or boiled milk and milk products, never raw milk products.
- Make sure that ice is from safe water.
- If you are not sure of the safety of drinking water, boil it, or disinfect it with chemical disinfectant.
- Wash hands thoroughly and frequently with soap, especially after using the toilet and after contact with pets and farm animals.
- Wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly, especially if they are to be eaten raw. Peel fruits and vegetables whenever possible.
- Food handlers, professionals and at home, should observe hygienic rules during food preparation.
- Professional food handlers should immediately report to their employer any fever, diarrhea, vomiting or visible infected skin lesions.
The FDA has published guidelines to help reduce the chance of food-borne salmonellosis. Food must be cooked to 68–72 °C (145–160 °F), and liquids such as soups or gravies must be boiled. Freezing kills some "Salmonella", but it is not sufficient to reliably reduce them below infectious levels. While "Salmonella" is usually heat-sensitive, it does acquire heat resistance in high-fat environments such as peanut butter.
Antibodies against nontyphoidal "Salmonella" were first found in Malawi children in research published in 2008. The Malawian researchers have identified an antibody that protects children against bacterial infections of the blood caused by nontyphoidal "Salmonella". A study at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Blantyre found that children up to two years old develop antibodies that aid in killing the bacteria. This could lead to a possible "Salmonella" vaccine for humans.
A recent study has tested a vaccine on chickens which offered efficient protection against salmonellosis.
Vaccination of chickens against "Salmonella" essentially wiped out the disease in the United Kingdom. A similar approach has been considered in the United States, but the Food and Drug Administration decided not to mandate vaccination of hens.
Diagnosis of BMCF depends on a combination of history and symptoms, histopathology and detection in the blood or tissues of viral antibodies by ELISA or of viral DNA by PCR. The characteristic histologic lesions of MCF are lymphocytic arteritis with necrosis of the blood vessel wall and the presence of large T lymphocytes mixed with other cells. The similarity of MCF clinical signs to other enteric diseases, for example blue tongue, mucosal disease and foot and mouth make laboratory diagnosis of MCF important. The world organisation for animal health recognises histopathology as the definitive diagnostic test, but laboratories have adopted other approaches with recent developments in molecular virology. No vaccine has as yet been developed.
Feline zoonosis are the viral, bacterial, fungal, protozoan, nematode and arthropod infections that can be transmitted to humans from the domesticated cat, "Felis catus". Some of these are diseases are reemerging and newly emerging infections or infestations caused by zoonotic pathogens transmitted by cats. In some instances, the cat can display symptoms of infection (these may differ from the symptoms in humans) and sometimes the cat remains asymptomatic. There can be serious illnesses and clinical manifestations in people who become infected. This is dependent on the immune status and age of the person. Those who live in close association with cats are more prone to these infections. But those that do not keep cats as pets are also able to acquire these infections because of the transmission can be from cat feces and the parasites that leave their bodies.
People can acquire cat-associated infections through bites, scratches or other direct contact of the skin or mucous membranes with the cat. This includes 'kissing' or letting the animal lick the mouth or nose. Mucous membranes are easily infected when the pathogen is in the mouth of the cat. Pathogens can also infect people when there is contact with animal saliva, urine and other body fluids or secretions, When fecal material is unintentionally ingested, infection can occur. Feline zooinosis can be acquired by a person by inhalation of aerosols or droplets coughed up by the cat.
In the United States, forty percent of homes have at least one cat. Some contagious infections such as campylobacteriosis and salmonellosis cause visible symptoms of the disease in cats. Other infections, such as cat scratch disease and toxoplasmosis, have no visible symptoms and are carried by apparently healthy cats.
Some disease-carrying arthropods use cats as a vector, or carrier. Fleas and ticks can carry pathogenic organisms that infect a person with Lyme disease, tick borne encephalitis, and Rocky mountain spotted fever
Metritis is inflammation of the wall of the uterus, whereas endometritis is inflammation of the functional lining of the uterus, called the endometrium The term pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is often used for metritis.
Bovine malignant catarrhal fever (BMCF) is a fatal lymphoproliferative disease caused by a group of ruminant gamma herpes viruses including Alcelaphine gammaherpesvirus 1 (AlHV-1) and Ovine gammaherpesvirus 2 (OvHV-2) These viruses cause unapparent infection in their reservoir hosts (sheep with OvHV-2 and wildebeest with AlHV-1), but are usually fatal in cattle and other ungulates such as deer, antelope, and buffalo.
BMCF is an important disease where reservoir and susceptible animals mix. There is a particular problem with Bali cattle in Indonesia, bison in the US and in pastoralist herds in Eastern and Southern Africa.
Disease outbreaks in cattle are usually sporadic although infection of up to 40% of a herd has been reported. The reasons for this are unknown. Some species appear to be particularly susceptible, for example Pére Davids deer, Bali cattle and bison, with many deer dying within 48 hours of the appearance of the first symptoms and bison within three days. In contrast, post infection cattle will usually survive a week or more.
These terms can apply to any species of mammal. Amongst domestic animals, metritis and endometritis are most common in cattle after parturition, and the diseases are often called postpartum metritis or postpartum endometritis. These diseases in cattle are caused by bacteria and occasionally viruses. The most common bacteria that cause postpartum metritis and endometritis in cattle are "Escherichia coli", "Trueperella" (previously "Arcanobacterium") "pyogenes" and anaerobic bacteria such as "Prevotella" species and "Fusobacterium necrophorum". The virus most consistently associated with postpartum uterine disease in cattle is Bovine Herpesvirus 4 (BoHV-4). In addition, "Several specific diseases are associated with metritis or endometritis. These include brucellosis, leptospirosis, campylobacteriosis, and trichomoniasis"
In cattle, bacterial infection of the uterus affects almost all animals after parturition. Of course this doesn't mean they will get disease. In fact beef cattle rarely have disease unless they have a predisposing factor such as retained placenta or difficult parturition. However, uterine disease is common in dairy cattle - particularly high-milk-yield cows such as Holstein-Friesian cows.
Contagious equine metritis is a sexually transmitted infection in horses, recognized since 1977.
In 2014 a study reported about the first successful vaccination trials in cattle. The infection rate declined significantly.Vinícius Silva Machado, Marcela Luccas de Souza Bicalho u. a.: "Subcutaneous Immunization with Inactivated Bacterial Components and Purified Protein of Escherichia coli, Fusobacterium necrophorum and Trueperella pyogenes Prevents Puerperal Metritis in Holstein Dairy Cows." In: "PLoS ONE." 9, 2014, S. e91734, .
According to a ProMED article, disease in sheep has been controlled in the UK by a vaccine (ATCvet code: QI04AA01), originally developed by Scotland's Moredun Research Institute by Prof John Russell Greig. In 2009, however, a shortage of vaccine combined with an increase in the number of ticks found in sheep pasture areas cause an increased risk of this disease.
Louping ill is caused by RNA virus called Louping ill virus. Louping ill virus belongs to genus Flavivirus, family Flaviviridae.
There are four subtypes: British, Irish, Spanish and Turkish.
OPA has been found in most countries where sheep are farmed, with the exception of Australia and New Zealand. OPA has been eradicated in Iceland.
No breed or sex of sheep appears to be predisposed to OPA. Most affected sheep show signs at 2 to 4 years of age.
OPA is not a notifiable disease, and therefore it is difficult to assess its prevalence.
The disease has a long incubation period, and therefore signs usually occur in adult animals (over 2 years of age). Clinical signs resemble a non-specific progressive pneumonia, including poor body condition and, particularly after exercise, respiratory difficulty. Unless a concurrent lung infection is present, affected sheep continue to eat. The only sign specific to OPA is a watery nasal discharge, consisting of lung fluid produced by the affected lung tissue; lifting the hind legs of the animal above the level of its head will cause large volumes of this fluid to flow from the nostrils.
There are no reliable tests for the diagnosis of OPA in live animals which are suitable for use on farms, so diagnosis can only be confirmed at necropsy (post-mortem examination). On necropsy, lungs are interspersed with multifocal tumors. Some of these are small discrete nodules and others will involve the entire half of a lung lobule. JSRV acutely transforms the lung epithelia into cancerous cells, with type-2 pneumocytes and club cells being the likely target for JSRV transformation. The tumors have overactive secretory functions, which are a hallmark of OPA.
The retroviral antigen levels of JSRV are very high in OPA tumors and can be detected in the lung secretions of infected sheep. It is thought that infected animals secrete the virus before showing signs, so the virus is easily spread within flocks.
Given the constant threat of bioterrorist related events, there is an urgent need to develop pulmonary protective and reparative agents that can be used by first responders in a mass casualty setting. Use in such a setting would require administration via a convenient route for e.g. intramuscular via epipens. Other feasible routes of administration could be inhalation and perhaps to a lesser extent oral – swallowing can be difficult in many forms of injury especially if accompanied by secretions or if victim is nauseous. A number of in vitro and in vivo models lend themselves to preclinical evaluation of novel pulmonary therapies.
Specific pretreatments, drugs to prevent chemically induced lung injuries due to respiratory airway toxins, are not available. Analgesic medications, oxygen, humidification, and ventilator support currently constitute standard therapy. In fact, mechanical ventilation remains the therapeutic mainstay for acute inhalation injury. The cornerstone of treatment is to keep the PaO2 > 60 mmHg (8.0 kPa), without causing injury to the lungs with excessive O2 or volutrauma. Pressure control ventilation is more versatile than volume control, although breaths should be volume limited, to prevent stretch injury to the alveoli. Positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) is used in mechanically ventilated patients with ARDS to improve oxygenation. Hemorrhaging, signifying substantial damage to the lining of the airways and lungs, can occur with exposure to highly corrosive chemicals and may require additional medical interventions. Corticosteroids are sometimes administered, and bronchodilators to treat bronchospasms. Drugs that reduce the inflammatory response, promote healing of tissues, and prevent the onset of pulmonary edema or secondary inflammation may be used following severe injury to prevent chronic scarring and airway narrowing.
Although current treatments can be administered in a controlled hospital setting, many hospitals are ill-suited for a situation involving mass casualties among civilians. Inexpensive positive-pressure devices that can be used easily in a mass casualty situation, and drugs to prevent inflammation and pulmonary edema are needed. Several drugs that have been approved by the FDA for other indications hold promise for treating chemically induced pulmonary edema. These include β2-agonists, dopamine, insulin, allopurinol, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen. Ibuprofen is particularly appealing because it has an established safety record and can be easily administered as an initial intervention. Inhaled and systemic forms of β2-agonists used in the treatment of asthma and other commonly used medications, such as insulin, dopamine, and allopurinol have also been effective in reducing pulmonary edema in animal models but require further study. A recent study documented in the "AANA Journal" discussed the use of volatile anesthetic agents, such as sevoflurane, to be used as a bronchodilator that lowered peak airway pressures and improved oxygenation. Other promising drugs in earlier stages of development act at various steps in the complex molecular pathways underlying pulmonary edema. Some of these potential drugs target the inflammatory response or the specific site(s) of injury. Others modulate the activity of ion channels that control fluid transport across lung membranes or target surfactant, a substance that lines the air sacs in the lungs and prevents them from collapsing. Mechanistic information based on toxicology, biochemistry, and physiology may be instrumental in determining new targets for therapy. Mechanistic studies may also aid in the development of new diagnostic approaches. Some chemicals generate metabolic byproducts that could be used for diagnosis, but detection of these byproducts may not be possible until many hours after initial exposure. Additional research must be directed at developing sensitive and specific tests to identify individuals quickly after they have been exposed to varying levels of chemicals toxic to the respiratory tract.
Currently there are no clinically approved agents that can reduce pulmonary and airway cell dropout and avert the transition to pulmonary and /or airway fibrosis.
The concentration of ketone bodies may vary depending on diet, exercise, degree of metabolic adaptation and genetic factors. Ketosis can be induced when a ketogenic diet is followed for more than 3 days. This induced ketosis is sometimes called nutritional ketosis. This table shows the concentrations typically seen under different conditions
Note that urine measurements may not reflect blood concentrations. Urine concentrations are lower with greater hydration, and after adaptation to a ketogenic diet the amount lost in the urine may drop while the metabolism remains ketotic. Most urine strips only measure acetoacetate, while when ketosis is more severe the predominant ketone body is β-hydroxybutyrate. Unlike glucose, ketones are excreted into urine at any blood level. Ketoacidosis is a metabolic derangement that cannot occur in a healthy individual who can produce insulin, and should not be confused with physiologic ketosis.
Some clinicians regard eliminating carbohydrates as unhealthy and dangerous. However, it is not necessary to eliminate carbohydrates from the diet completely to achieve ketosis. Other clinicians regard ketosis as a safe biochemical process that occurs during the fat-burning state. Ketosis, which is accompanied by gluconeogenesis (the creation of glucose de novo from pyruvate), is the specific state that concerns some clinicians. However, it is unlikely for a normally functioning person to reach life-threatening levels of ketosis, defined as serum beta-hydroxybutyrate (B-OHB) levels above 15 millimolar (mM) compared to ketogenic diets among non diabetics, which "rarely run serum B-OHB levels above 3 mM." This is avoided with proper basal secretion of pancreatic insulin. People who are unable to secrete basal insulin, such as type 1 diabetics and long-term type II diabetics, are liable to enter an unsafe level of ketosis, eventually resulting in a coma that requires emergency medical treatment. The anti-ketosis conclusions have been challenged by a number of doctors and advocates of low-carbohydrate diets, who dispute assertions that the body has a preference for glucose and that there are dangers associated with ketosis.
Bed rest has not been found to improve outcomes and therefore is not typically recommended.
Mothers whose fetus is diagnosed with intrauterine growth restriction by ultrasound can use management strategies based on monitoring and delivery methods. One of these monitoring techniques is an umbilical artery Doppler. This method has been shown to decrease risk of morbidity and mortality before and after parturition among IUGR patients.
Time of delivery is also a management strategy and is based on parameters collected from the umbilical artery doppler. Some of these include: pulsatility index, resistance index, and end-diastolic velocities, which are measurements of the fetal circulation.
IUGR affects 3-10% of pregnancies. 20% of stillborn infants have IUGR. Perinatal mortality rates are 4-8 times higher for infants with IUGR, and morbidity is present in 50% of surviving infants.
According to the theory of thrifty phenotype, intrauterine growth restriction triggers epigenetic responses in the fetus that are otherwise activated in times of chronic food shortage. If the offspring actually develops in an environment rich in food it may be more prone to metabolic disorders, such as obesity and type II diabetes.
Spider lamb syndrome, also known as spider syndrome and more formally as ovine hereditary chondrodysplasia, is a homozygous recessive disorder affecting the growth of cartilage and bone in sheep. It is a semilethal trait, which is thought to have been first observed in the 1970s, and is most common in sheep of the Suffolk and Hampshire breeds. The mutation which causes spider lamb syndrome is found on ovine chromosome 6, and involves the inactivation of fibroblast growth factor receptor 3.
Afflicted animals may be visibly deformed at birth and unable to stand, or seemingly normal for the first 4 to 6 weeks of their lives.
The name derives from the limbs of afflicted animals being thin, elongated, and "spider-like".