PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to understand the situation of diabetes patients receiving examinations for diabetes complications and to explore the factors influencing their intention to receive examinations for diabetes complications. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was performed that included 251 diabetes patients who visited outpatient clinics in Southern Taiwan. A survey using a self-administered questionnaire was conducted from October 2015 to January 2016. The questionnaire included items on demographic characteristics, perceived susceptibility to diabetes complications, perceived seriousness of diabetes complications, perceived benefits of taking action to receive diabetes complication examinations, perceived barriers to taking action to receive diabetes complication examinations, and the intention to receive diabetes complication examinations. The data were analyzed using regression analysis. RESULTS: The percentage of participants who received fundus, foot, and kidney examinations was 67.7%, 61.4%, and 73.3%, respectively. Every point increase on the perceived barriers to taking action to receive diabetes complication examinations scale increased the intention to receive a foot examination in the following year by 0.91 times (p = .002), and every point increase on the perceived susceptibility to diabetes complications scale increased the intention to receive a kidney examination in the following year by 1.19 times (p = .045). CONCLUSIONS: Nurses should shoulder the responsibility to increase patients' intention to receive examination of diabetes complications. The results of this study can be used to promote nurses' care efficacy in preventing diabetes complications. They can also provide medical institutions with information to establish prevention and control policies for diabetes complications.
Ambulatory Care/utilization ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Diabetic Angiopathies/nursing/*prevention & control/psychology ; Diabetic Nephropathies/nursing/*prevention & control/psychology ; Disease Susceptibility/psychology ; Early Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Intention ; Kidney Function Tests ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Nurse-Patient Relations ; Ophthalmoscopy ; Patient Acceptance of Health Care/*psychology ; Perception ; Physical Examination/nursing/*psychology/utilization ; Taiwan

PURPOSE: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health issue among women. IPV victims usually seek help from hospitals, and emergency nurses are the frontline staff with whom the victims come into contact first. This study examined the conditions and patterns of IPV in southern Taiwan. METHODS: From designated hospitals in Kaohsiung under the Department of Health Injury Assessment Clinic, data were collected on 497 women regarding their injury assessment for IPV reported to the Kaohsiung City Government. RESULTS: Taiwanese survivors were older compared to immigrant survivors. Taiwanese survivors also had higher education levels compared to immigrant survivors. Taiwanese survivors had higher employment rate than immigrant survivors did. The time between IPV and medical help seeking was longer for divorced than married women. CONCLUSIONS: These results can facilitate understanding of the conditions and patterns of IPV in Taiwan, increase the awareness of nurses, especially the emergency nurses for the prevention of IPV, and increase professional competency for the provision of appropriate healthcare services to survivors of IPV.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Battered Women/*statistics & numerical data ; Female ; Humans ; Intimate Partner Violence/*statistics & numerical data ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Taiwan/epidemiology ; Young Adult

PURPOSE: This study aimed to explore the factors associated with the intention to receive a Pap test among married immigrant women of Vietnamese origin living in Taiwan. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional community-based study.We enrolled 281 women aged 30 years and over in the study, from July 2013 to January 2014. The participants' characteristics, cervical cancer knowledge, Pap test knowledge, attitudes toward cervical cancer, barriers to receiving a Pap test, fatalism, and intention to receive a Pap test, were measured using self-report questionnaires. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were performed to examine the variables associated with participants' intentions to receive a Pap test. RESULTS: Vietnamese women with low scores on the measures of cervical cancer knowledge and perceived barriers to receiving a Pap test were more willing to receive the test, as were those with high scores on the measures of Pap test knowledge and fatalism. Women who received a Pap test in the previous year were more willing to receive a Pap test within the next 3 years. CONCLUSIONS: Preventive healthcare for immigrant women should be a focus of nurses. The development of culturally appropriate health education and strategies should enhance their knowledge of Pap tests and reduce perceived barriers to Pap test participation. This study's results can be a reference for nurses who work with immigrant women.
Adult ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Emigrants and Immigrants/*psychology ; Emigration and Immigration ; Female ; Humans ; *Intention ; Marriage/psychology ; Papanicolaou Test/*psychology ; Patient Acceptance of Health Care/*psychology ; Self Report ; Socioeconomic Factors ; Taiwan/epidemiology ; Vietnam/ethnology

Background: and Purpose Cerebral venous flow alterations potentially contribute to age-related white matter changes, but their role in small vessel disease has not been investigated. Methods: This study included 297 patients with hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhages (ICH) who underwent magnetic resonance imaging. Cerebral venous reflux (CVR) was defined as the presence of abnormal signal intensity in the dural venous sinuses or internal jugular vein on time-of-flight angiography. We investigated the association between CVR, dilated perivascular spaces (PVS), and recurrent stroke risk. Results: CVR was observed in 38 (12.8%) patients. Compared to patients without CVR those with CVR were more likely to have high grade (>20 in the number) dilated PVS in the basal ganglia (60.5% vs. 35.1%; adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.25 to 5.60; P=0.011) and large PVS (>3 mm in diameter) (50.0% vs. 18.5%; aOR, 3.87; 95% CI, 1.85 to 8.09; P<0.001). During a median follow-up of 18 months, patients with CVR had a higher recurrent stroke rate (13.6%/year vs. 6.2%/year; aOR, 2.53; 95% CI, 1.09 to 5.84; P=0.03) than those without CVR. Conclusions CVR may contribute to the formation of enlarged PVS and increase the risk of recurrent stroke in patients with hypertensive ICH.

Background/Aims: Real-world studies assessing the effectiveness and safety of sofosbuvir/velpatasvir (SOF/VEL) plus ribavirin (RBV) for Child-Pugh B/C hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related cirrhosis are limited. Methods: We included 107 patients with Child-Pugh B/C HCV-related cirrhosis receiving SOF/VEL plus RBV for 12 weeks in Taiwan. The sustained virologic response rates at off-treatment week 12 (SVR12) for the evaluable population (EP), modified EP, and per-protocol population (PP) were assessed. Thesafety profiles were reported. Results: The SVR12 rates in the EP, modified EP and PP were 89.7% (95% confidence interval [CI], 82.5–94.2%), 94.1% (95% CI, 87.8–97.3%), and 100% (95% CI, 96.2–100%). Number of patients who failed to achieve SVR12 were attributed to virologic failures. The SVR12 rates were comparable regardless of patient characteristics. One patient discontinued treatment because of adverse events (AEs). Twenty-four patients had serious AEs and six died, but none were related to SOF/VEL or RBV. Among the 96 patients achieving SVR12, 84.4% and 64.6% had improved Child-Pugh and model for endstage liver disease (MELD) scores. Multivariate analysis revealed that a baseline MELD score ≥15 was associated with an improved MELD score of ≥3 (odds ratio, 4.13; 95% CI, 1.16–14.71; P=0.02). Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) stage 1 had more significant estimated glomerular filtration rate declines than patients with CKD stage 2 (-0.42 mL/min/1.73 m2/month; P=0.01) or stage 3 (-0.56 mL/min/1.73 m2/month; P<0.001). Conclusions SOF/VEL plus RBV for 12 weeks is efficacious and well-tolerated for Child-Pugh B/C HCV-related cirrhosis.

Background/Aims: Real-world studies assessing the effectiveness and safety of sofosbuvir/velpatasvir (SOF/VEL) plus ribavirin (RBV) for Child-Pugh B/C hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related cirrhosis are limited. Methods: We included 107 patients with Child-Pugh B/C HCV-related cirrhosis receiving SOF/VEL plus RBV for 12 weeks in Taiwan. The sustained virologic response rates at off-treatment week 12 (SVR12) for the evaluable population (EP), modified EP, and per-protocol population (PP) were assessed. Thesafety profiles were reported. Results: The SVR12 rates in the EP, modified EP and PP were 89.7% (95% confidence interval [CI], 82.5–94.2%), 94.1% (95% CI, 87.8–97.3%), and 100% (95% CI, 96.2–100%). Number of patients who failed to achieve SVR12 were attributed to virologic failures. The SVR12 rates were comparable regardless of patient characteristics. One patient discontinued treatment because of adverse events (AEs). Twenty-four patients had serious AEs and six died, but none were related to SOF/VEL or RBV. Among the 96 patients achieving SVR12, 84.4% and 64.6% had improved Child-Pugh and model for endstage liver disease (MELD) scores. Multivariate analysis revealed that a baseline MELD score ≥15 was associated with an improved MELD score of ≥3 (odds ratio, 4.13; 95% CI, 1.16–14.71; P=0.02). Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) stage 1 had more significant estimated glomerular filtration rate declines than patients with CKD stage 2 (-0.42 mL/min/1.73 m2/month; P=0.01) or stage 3 (-0.56 mL/min/1.73 m2/month; P<0.001). Conclusions SOF/VEL plus RBV for 12 weeks is efficacious and well-tolerated for Child-Pugh B/C HCV-related cirrhosis.