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Background: Boron is an element commonly found in nature. The main boron source for organisms is through food and drinking water. In recent years, it is suggested that the "boron-rich diet" can affect human health positively. However, more detailed studies are needed. Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the effect of increased dietary boron intake on some biochemical parameters in humans. Material and methods: Thirteen healthy women consumed diets containing 10 mg more boron than their routine diet for one month. This boron intake was provided with the increase of boron-rich foods such as dried fruits, avocado, and nuts in the diet. Some biochemical and hematologic parameters were determined in blood, urine and saliva samples taken before and after a boron-rich diet. Results: Serum, salivary, and urine boron concentrations increased 1.3, 1.7, 6.0 fold, respectively. The most significant clinically change was found in the lipid profile. Serum total, LDL, VLDL cholesterol, and triglyceride levels decreased significantly. Body weight, body fat weight, and Body Mass Index also decreased. Significant changes in serum TSH and salivary buffering capacity were also found. Conclusion: Increasing the intake of boron through dietary means might contribute to beneficial effects on lipid metabolism, obesity, and thyroid metabolism; salivary boron may reflect serum boron; and boron may be used as a cariostatic agent in dentistry. An increased intake of other dietary factors such as fiber, potassium, iron, vitamin A, and vitamin E in the boron-rich foods might have been responsible of the effects described. To our knowledge, this study is the first clinical study in which dietary boron intake is increased via foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between cultural sensitivity and effectiveness levels among nursing students. The world is changing and globalizing, and societies are becoming increasingly multicultural. Therefore, nurses, who play an important role in health service delivery, are expected to be competent in interacting with patients from different cultures and to develop cultural sensitivity during their education. The design of this study is a prospective descriptive study. The research was conducted with 284 nursing students in the faculty of nursing at a university in Ankara. The data collection process of this study was conducted at the end of the spring semester of the 2019–2020 academic year between 20 and 30 June 2020. The Sociodemographic Characteristics Form, Intercultural Sensitivity Scale, and Intercultural Effectiveness Scale were used to collect data. Descriptive statistics, parametric and nonparametric tests were used for data analysis. The mean age of the students was 20.80 ± 1.64, and 82% of the students were female. The mean scores on the Intercultural Sensitivity and Intercultural Effectiveness Scales were 92.56 ± 11.98 and 53.87 ± 6.28, respectively. A positive, moderate, and statistically significant correlation was found between the scores on the two scales. In the study, it was determined that females have higher cultural sensitivity and cultural effectiveness level than males, and students who could not understand and speak English have lower cultural sensitivity and cultural effectiveness level than students who could understand and speak English. In this study, it was evaluated that the nursing students had high cultural sensitivity and moderate cultural effectiveness levels, and cultural sensitivity levels were found to increase in line with cultural effectiveness levels. It is recommended to review the educational curricula to improve cultural communication competence and organize programs to improve English speaking and conduct more studies examining the cultural effectiveness of students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Nausea and vomiting are common postoperative complications that occur within the first 24 h in adults. Clinical practice guidelines and a Cochrane review recommend stimulating the P6 acupoint to prevent or reduce postoperative nausea and vomiting. However, there are currently no standards and optimal timing is not known. Objectives The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of acupressure application on the P6 acupoint, using acupressure wristbands, in the prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting and the antiemetic drug requirement in patients who had high postoperative nausea and vomiting risk related to laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Design This was a longitudinal, randomized controlled clinical study. Settings The study was conducted in the general surgery department of a training and research hospital (105 beds), from March 2015 to March 2016. Participants A total of 111 female patients who underwent laparoscopic surgery were divided into three groups of 37, using a block randomization method. Methods Training on acupressure wristband use was provided to the intervention group and an acupressure wristband with a plastic cap was placed at the P6 acupoint. A wristband with the same appearance as the acupressure wristband, but without a cap, was used in the placebo group. No intervention was used in the control group. The wristband was placed approximately one hour before the surgery and removed six hours after the surgery in both the intervention and placebo groups. The data were collected at the 2nd, 6th, and 24th postoperative hours. Results The application of the acupressure wristband to the P6 acupoint in patients who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy was found to be more effective in decreasing the severity of nausea at the 2nd postoperative hour and the nausea incidence at 2–6 h, postoperatively, when compared to the placebo group (p < 0.05). However, there was no statistically significant difference between the intervention group and the control group. Therefore, acupressure application to the P6 acupoint was not found to be clinically effective in decreasing postoperative vomiting, antiemetic drug requirement, and in decreasing pain, anxiety, or the need for analgesic drugs (p > 0.05). Conclusions We did not find the stimulation of the P6 acupoint with an acupressure wristband to be clinically effective in reducing postoperative nausea and vomiting or antiemetic drug requirement in patients who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Since burns affect body image, they cause appearance anxiety. Interventions designed to reduce appearance anxiety that can cause psychological problems such as depression are important. This study aimed to determine the social appearance anxiety of individuals following burns and the factors affecting it and to examine the relationship between social appearance anxiety and perceived social support.Methods: This descriptive study was conducted between November 2018 and November 2019 with 106 adult patients with burns. Data were collected using a Personal Information Form, the Social Appearance Anxiety Scale, and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. Shapiro-Wilk test, Independent Two Samples T-Test, One Way Analysis of Variance, Duncan's test, Pearson's correlation analysis, multiple linear regression analysis, the Q-Q plot, and the Durbin-Watson statistics were used in data analysis.Results: The social appearance anxiety scores were moderate (39.38 ± 17.71). Being single; having a high level of education; burns on the face, head, or neck; burn-related amputation; and passing the one-week after injury period were found to significantly increase social appearance anxiety (p < 0.05). Although the perceived social support scores of the individuals with burns were high (68.34 ± 18.08), they were found to have no correlation with social appearance anxiety (p > 0.05).Conclusions: The results of this study show that social support does not affect social appearance anxiety. In this respect, we recommend that interventions such as reconstruction and professional psychological support initiatives be prioritized for individuals with burn trauma who are evaluated to have high social appearance anxiety by the appearance anxiety scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Boron and its derivatives are effective in bone recovery and osteointegration. However, increasing the boron levels in body liquids may cause toxicity. The aim of our study is to investigate serum boron levels using ICP-MS after implantation of different ratios of nano-hBN–HA composites in rat femurs. All rats were (n = 126) divided into five experimental groups (n = 24) and one healthy group (6 rats); healthy (Group1), femoral defect + %100HA (Group2), femoral defect + %2.5hBN + %97.5HA (Group3), femoral defect + %5hBN + %95HA (Group4), femoral defect + %10hBN + %90 HA (Group5), femoral defect + %100hBN (Group6). The femoral defect was created in the distal femur (3 mm drill-bit). Each implant group was divided into four different groups (n = 24) also 6 rats sacrificed for each groups in one week intervals during four weeks. In our results; at 1, 2, 3, and 4 weeks after implantation near bone tissue, serum levels of boron were evaluated using ICP-MS. We demonstrated that neither short-term nor long-term implantation of hBN–HA composite resulted in statistically increased serum boron levels in experimental groups compared to healthy group. In conclusion, this study investigated the implant material produced form hBN–HA for the first time. Our data suggest that hBN is a new promising target for biomaterial and implant bioengineers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]