Forty-one young gay British males (aged between 15 and 25 years) and 47 heterosexual men were compared on measures of eating disturbance and body dissatisfaction. All participants completed a questionnaire containing a number of previously validated scales including EAT-26, the BSS and a series of line-drawings. Gay participants scored higher on all measures of eating disturbance and were more dissatis®ed with their bodies. The gay sample chose ideal images that were signi®-cantly slimmer than the heterosexuals and were much more likely to show symptoms of a clinical disorder. Results from gay participants revealed strong correlations between levels of eating disturbance, self-esteem and body dissatisfaction whilst these relationships did not achieve signi®cance for heterosexuals. The ®ndings strongly con®rm American research that suggests that gay men are particularly vulnerable to serious eating disturbance. Potential explanations and implications of these ®ndings for gay men and those who work with them are brie¯y discussed.

In older adults, few studies confirm that adequate concentrations of antibiotics are achieved using current dosage regimens of intravenous β-lactam antibiotics. Our objective was to investigate trough concentrations of cefotaxime, meropenem, and piper-acillin in older adults hospitalized with infection. We included 102 patients above 70 years of age. Total trough antibiotic concentrations were measured and related to suggested target intervals. Information on antibiotic dose, patient characteristics, and 28-day outcomes were collected from medical records and regression models were fitted. Trough concentrations for all three antibiotics exhibited considerable variation. Mean total trough concentrations for cefotaxime, meropenem, and piperacillin were 6.5 mg/L (range 0-44), 3.4 mg/L (range 0-11), and 30.2 mg/L (range 1.2-131), respectively. When a target range of non-species-related breakpoint − 5× non-species-related breakpoint was applied, only 36% of patients had both values within the target range. Regression models revealed that severe sepsis was associated with varying concentration levels and increasing age and diminishing kidney function with high concentration levels. The study was not powered to demonstrate consequences in clinical outcomes. Conclusively, in older adults treated with cefotaxime, meropenem, or piperacillin-tazobactam, trough antibiotic concentrations varied considerably. Better predictors to guide dosing regimens of β-lactam antibiotics or increased use of therapeutic drug monitoring are potential ways to address such variations.

Background Low levels of physical activity in older patients during hospitalization have been linked to loss of functional ability. Practical methods of measuring physical activity are needed to better understand this association and to measure the efficacy of interventions. The aims of this study were to evaluate the feasibility of using accelerometers to discriminate between lying, sitting, standing, and standing and moving and to determine the acceptability of the method from the patients' perspective. Methods A convenience sample of 24 inpatients was recruited. Participants wore accelerometers on their thigh and on their lower leg (just above the ankle) for 48 hours during their hospitalization. Postural changes and movement during the 48 hours were differentiated using derived pitch angles of the lower leg and thigh, and nongravity vector magnitude of the lower leg, respectively. Results On average, patients were lying for 61.2% of the recording time, sitting for 35.6%, standing but not moving 2.1%, and standing and moving 1.1%. All participants found the accelerometers acceptable to wear. Conclusions The methodology described in this study can be used to differentiate between lying, sitting, standing, and moving and is acceptable from a hospitalized older person's perspective.

cognitive impairments seem associated with functional decline in hospitalised older people. Causality cannot be inferred, and limitations include low quality of studies and possible confounding.