Category: Nevin Manimala

Br J Nutr. 2022 Aug 1:1-21. doi: 10.1017/S0007114522002197. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Increasing the availability of lower energy food options is a promising public health approach. However, it is unclear the extent to which availability interventions may result in consumers later ‘compensating’ for reductions in energy intake caused by selecting lower energy food options, and to what extent these effects may differ based on socioeconomic position (SEP). Our objective was to examine the impact of increasing availability of lower energy meal options on immediate meal energy intake and subsequent energy intake in participants of higher vs. lower SEP. In a within-subjects design N=77 UK adults ordered meals from a supermarket ready meal menu with standard (30%) and increased (70%) availability of lower energy options. The meals were delivered to be consumed at home, with meal intake measured using the Digital Photography of Foods Method. Post-meal compensation was measured using food diaries to determine self-reported energy intake after the meal and the next day. Participants consumed significantly less energy (196kcal, 95% CI: 138, 252) from the menu with increased availability of lower energy options versus the standard availability menu (p<.001). There was no statistically significant evidence that this reduction in energy intake was substantially compensated for (33% compensated, p=.57). The effects of increasing availability of lower energy food items were similar in participants from lower and higher SEP. Increasing the availability of lower energy food options is likely to be an effective and equitable approach to reducing energy intake which may contribute to improving diet and population health.

PMID:35912671 | DOI:10.1017/S0007114522002197

Prog Community Health Partnersh. 2022;16(2S):23-32. doi: 10.1353/cpr.2022.0035.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: To ensure equity in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine access, it is critical that Black and Latine communities receive trustworthy COVID-19 information. This study uses community-based participatory research to understand sources of COVID-19 information for Black and Latine adults, how trustworthy that information is, and relationships between information sources and COVID-19 vaccine intention.

METHODS: We co-created a survey in Spanish and English and distributed it to Black and Latine adults residing in the Pittsburgh area. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression.

RESULTS: There were 574 participants who completed the survey. Participants reported accessing a variety of COVID-19 information sources and generally trusted these sources. Few sources of information were associated with COVID-19 vaccine intention. We also review lessons learned from our community-academic collaboration.

CONCLUSIONS: Trustworthy COVID-19 information sources may not be sufficient for increasing vaccine intention. Results can help other community-academic partnerships working to improve COVID-19 vaccine equity.

PMID:35912654 | DOI:10.1353/cpr.2022.0035

Circ Cardiovasc Interv. 2022 Aug 1:CIRCINTERVENTIONS122012004. doi: 10.1161/CIRCINTERVENTIONS.122.012004. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The benefit of clopidogrel monotherapy after 1-month dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) compared with 12-month DAPT with aspirin and clopidogrel was demonstrated in the STOPDAPT-2 (Short and Optimal Duration of Dual Antiplatelet Therapy After Everolimus-Eluting Cobalt-Chromium Stent-2), but not in the STOPDAPT-2 acute coronary syndrome (ACS); however, both trials were underpowered based on the actual event rates.

METHODS: We obtained the prespecified pooled population of 5997 patients as the STOPDAPT-2 total cohort (STOPDAPT-2: N=3009/STOPDAPT-2 ACS: N=2988; ACS: N=4136/chronic coronary syndrome [CCS]: N=1861), comprising 2993 patients assigned to 1-month DAPT followed by clopidogrel monotherapy, and 3004 patients assigned to 12-month DAPT with aspirin and clopidogrel after percutaneous coronary intervention. The primary end point was the composite of cardiovascular (cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, definite stent thrombosis, or any stroke) or bleeding (Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction major/minor) end points at 1 year.

RESULTS: One-month DAPT was noninferior to 12-month DAPT for the primary end point (2.84% versus 3.04%; hazard ratio [HR], 0.94 [95% CI, 0.70-1.27]; P_{noninferiority}=0.001; P_superiority=0.68). There was no significant risk-difference for the cardiovascular end point between the 1- and 12-month DAPT groups (2.40% versus 1.97%; HR, 1.24 [95% CI, 0.88-1.75]; P_{noninferiority}=0.14; P_superiority=0.23). There was a lower risk of the bleeding end point with 1-month DAPT relative to 12-month DAPT (0.50% versus 1.31%; HR, 0.38 [95% CI, 0.21-0.70]; P_superiority=0.002). One-month DAPT relative to 12-month DAPT was associated with a lower risk for major bleeding regardless of ACS or CCS (ACS: HR, 0.46 [95% CI, 0.23-0.94]; P=0.03, and CCS: HR, 0.26 [95% CI, 0.09-0.79]; P=0.02; P_interaction=0.40), while it was associated with a numerical increase in cardiovascular events in ACS patients, but not in CCS patients, although not statistically significant and without interaction (ACS: HR, 1.50 [95% CI, 0.99-2.27]; P=0.053, and CCS: HR, 0.74 [95% CI, 0.38-1.45]; P=0.39; P_interaction=0.08).

CONCLUSIONS: Clopidogrel monotherapy after 1-month DAPT compared with 12-month DAPT with aspirin and clopidogrel had a benefit in reducing major bleeding events without being associated with increase in cardiovascular events.

REGISTRATION: URL: https://www.

CLINICALTRIALS: gov; Unique identifiers: NCT02619760, NCT03462498.

PMID:35912647 | DOI:10.1161/CIRCINTERVENTIONS.122.012004

Neurol Res. 2022 Jul 31:1-7. doi: 10.1080/01616412.2022.2104293. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Thoracic fractures can lead to death and disability. This retrospective study aimed to evaluate cases of upper and middle thoracic vertebral fractures due to trauma that had been treated, to determine the fracture type and treatment method according to age, sex, cause of injury, neurological status, fracture level, kyphotic angles, and classification methods and to discuss the results regarding that reported in the literature.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: This study included 238 patients who were evaluated for post-traumatic upper and middle thoracic vertebral fractures between January 2012 and December 2020. We classified each patient according to the Dennis, TLICS, ATLICS, and ASIA classifications using neurological examination, radiography, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging. We statistically evaluated the data obtained.

RESULTS: Fifty-five percent of total patients were male. The average age was 51.11. Traffic accidents were the most common causes of trauma, with 67.2%. T8 was most affected. The ASIA classification, the Dennis, TLICS, and ATLICS classifications showed a significant increase in the severity of neurological deficits as the fracture scores increased (p < 0.001). We observed that the increase in the preoperative kyphotic angle caused an increase in the number of deficits according to the classifications (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION: The ATLICS classification yielded more accurate results than that of the other classifications. In addition, the kyphotic angle was evaluated for upper and middle thoracic fractures, and we concluded it is important in surgical decision making.

PMID:35912638 | DOI:10.1080/01616412.2022.2104293

J Appl Biomater Funct Mater. 2022 Jan-Dec;20:22808000221114715. doi: 10.1177/22808000221114715.

ABSTRACT

The analysis of nanofluids under various physical scenarios convinced the researchers and scientists because of their broad range of applications in potential area of the current time like chemical engineering, biomedical engineering and applied thermal engineering etc. To give the final shape of many industrial and engineering processes, enhanced heat transfer desired, therefore, the study of Al₂O₃-H₂O, γAl₂O₃-H₂O, Al₂O₃-C₂H₆O₂, and γAl₂O₃– C₂H₆O₂ nanofluids is reported. The model successfully achieved after mathematical operations and by appealing similarity transforms. To examine the behavior of heat transfer, numerical tools utilized and performed the results. It is observed that enhanced heat transfer in Al₂O₃-H₂O, γAl₂O₃-H₂O, Al₂O₃-C₂H₆O₂, and γAl₂O₃-C₂H₆O₂ could be attained by setting nanoparticles concentration up to 20%. For Al₂O₃-H₂O, γAl₂O₃-H₂O, optimum heat transfer trends noticed due to their prominent thermophysical values. Also, fewer effects of combined convection on θ(η) examined.

PMID:35912571 | DOI:10.1177/22808000221114715

Phys Sportsmed. 2022 Jul 30. doi: 10.1080/00913847.2022.2108352. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (SARMs) social media interest is at an all-time high. The aim of this study is to analyze the: (1) quality; (2) educational content; and (3) reliability of the most relevant YouTube videos on SARMs to explain growing SARMs abuse by recreational and professional athletes.

METHODS: ‘SARMs’ was queried (November 28, 2021) through the YouTube video library. The top 100 videos filtered by relevance were categorized by source, type of content, educational quality by Global Quality Score (GQS), reliability by Journal of American Medicine Association (JAMA) criteria, YouTube tags, attitude towards SARMs use, and whether the video provided specific support on how to use SARMs. For all outcome variables, descriptive statistics and comparison among source types and category types were performed.

RESULTS: Mean JAMA score was 1.6 ± 0.7 out of 4. Mean GQS score was 2.5 ± 1.1 out of 5. Patient videos were of lower educational quality than athletic trainer videos (GQS: 2.11 ± 0.95 vs. 2.95 ± 1.00, p < 0.01), and videos categorized as user experience were of lower educational quality than videos categorized as general SARMs information (GQS: 1.92 ± 0.90 vs. 2.72 ± 1.07, p < 0.05). User experience and dosing recommendation videos were statistically significantly more positive in attitude than both general SARMs information and SARMS vs. other PEDs.

CONCLUSION: Quality, content, and reliability of SARMs YouTube videos was low. Social media likely causes SARMs abuse through disseminating biased SARMs misinformation. These results serve to educate public health oversight bodies, healthcare providers, and sports team members to better identify signs of SARMs abuse, and promote discussion to discourage SARMs abuse.

PMID:35912528 | DOI:10.1080/00913847.2022.2108352

Transcult Psychiatry. 2022 Aug 1:13634615221107201. doi: 10.1177/13634615221107201. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Evidence suggests that locally developed and/or adapted screening tools for mental ill-health can have higher validity than directly translated tools developed in other settings. We administered the locally developed Liberian Distress Screener (LDS) and the Liberian-adapted Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9L) to a random sample of 142 outpatients at a regional hospital in Maryland County, Liberia. In the LDS, seven items demonstrated poor model fit and were excluded, resulting in an 11-item screener (LDS-11). Exploratory factor analysis of the 11-item screener (LDS-11) showed a single latent variable construct with significant factor loadings. Cronbach’s alpha revealed good internal consistency (α = 0.81). Rasch analyses showed that “brain hot” and “heart fall down” were the most difficult idioms of distress to endorse while “things playing on the mind” was the easiest. All LDS-11 elements were associated with elevated function impairment, with “things playing on the mind,” “worry too much,” “head is hurting,” and “heart cut/beat fast” achieving statistical significance. One item in the PHQ-9L demonstrated poor model fit and was excluded from psychometric analyses. The resultant eight-item PHQ demonstrated internal consistency (α = 0.76) and Rasch analysis revealed that “moving/talking too slowly/fast” was the most difficult item to endorse, while “not happy when doing things” was the easiest. Twelve items were significantly associated with functional impairment. Exploratory analyses reveal items that demonstrate ease and appropriateness of use for assessing mental distress in this population. Implementation research is needed to incorporate idioms of distress and screeners into Liberia’s mental healthcare system.

PMID:35912513 | DOI:10.1177/13634615221107201

Transcult Psychiatry. 2022 Aug 1:13634615221111628. doi: 10.1177/13634615221111628. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

There is a sparse literature on women who hear voices globally, even though there are documented gendered dimensions of distress in the context of globalization and climate change and research indicates that trauma and psychosocial stress may be related to an increased prevalence of voice-hearing or auditory verbal hallucinations (AVHs). There is also a gap in the cultural phenomenology of voice-hearing in general, as well as idioms of distress for non-western peoples. This article presents results of a mixed methods study that: 1) estimated community prevalence of voice-hearing among Maasai women in northern Tanzania; 2) examined any demographic correlates and two specific hypothesized correlates (i.e., psychological stress and potentially traumatic events); and 3) engaged women in semi-structured interviews about their everyday lives and the phenomenological experience of voice-hearing. The prevalence of voice-hearing (39.4%) in this nonclinical sample (n = 71) was quite high compared to other studies in sub-Saharan Africa. Most women also reported high psychosocial stress and traumatic life events. They also talked about gendered conditions of social adversity in a context of rapid social, economic, and climate change. Women who reported hearing voices had a statistically significantly higher level of psychological distress, met criteria for severe psychological distress, and reported more potentially traumatic life events. In a logistic regression model, psychosocial stress predicted voice-hearing. The presence of distressing voices may offer a straightforward way to quickly identify people in the community experiencing the most extreme levels of psychosocial stress and traumatic events-a potentially simple but effective screening tool for health workers on the ground.

PMID:35912508 | DOI:10.1177/13634615221111628

Physiother Theory Pract. 2022 Jul 31:1-10. doi: 10.1080/09593985.2022.2107466. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of low intensity (0.1-0.8 Watt/cm²) pulsed ultrasound on chondrocyte cell proliferation and migration.

METHODS: Low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (frequency 3 MHz, duty cycle 25%, and pulse repetition frequency 150 Hz) for 5 minutes at different spatial average intensities was applied on chondrocyte cells. First, the optimum dose with significantly increased proliferation was determined to be 0.5 W/cm² for 5 minutes of duration. Then, 0.5 W/cm² ultrasound intensity was applied for durations of 2.5, 5, 7.5, and 10 minutes, and healing was assessed by monitoring cell migration and proliferation.

RESULTS: At the intensity of 0.5 W/cm² 48 hours after the application, a statistically significant increase in proliferation (p = .0089) was observed in chondrocyte cells compared to the control group. Proliferation was analyzed at 4, 8, 24, and 48 hours after applying 0.5 W/cm² ultrasound for durations of 2.5, 5, 7.5, and 10 minutes. Statistically significant increases were observed at 4 hours (p = .009), 8 hours (p = .032), 24 hours (p = .0084), and 48 hours (p = .00098) with 10 minutes of exposure. For 7.5 min of exposure duration, significant increases were observed at 48 hours (p = .045). In migration for all parameters, no statistically significant improvement (p > .05) was observed.

CONCLUSION: It was shown that low intensity pulsed ultrasound induces cartilage cell proliferation; therefore, it may have a disease-modifying effect in the treatment of osteoarthritis. However, no positive effect was observed on cartilage cell migration.

PMID:35912499 | DOI:10.1080/09593985.2022.2107466

Stat Methods Med Res. 2022 Aug 1:9622802221115876. doi: 10.1177/09622802221115876. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Evidence from observational studies has become increasingly important for supporting healthcare policy making via cost-effectiveness analyses. Similar as in comparative effectiveness studies, health economic evaluations that consider subject-level heterogeneity produce individualized treatment rules that are often more cost-effective than one-size-fits-all treatment. Thus, it is of great interest to develop statistical tools for learning such a cost-effective individualized treatment rule under the causal inference framework that allows proper handling of potential confounding and can be applied to both trials and observational studies. In this paper, we use the concept of net-monetary-benefit to assess the trade-off between health benefits and related costs. We estimate cost-effective individualized treatment rule as a function of patients’ characteristics that, when implemented, optimizes the allocation of limited healthcare resources by maximizing health gains while minimizing treatment-related costs. We employ the conditional random forest approach and identify the optimal cost-effective individualized treatment rule using net-monetary-benefit-based classification algorithms, where two partitioned estimators are proposed for the subject-specific weights to effectively incorporate information from censored individuals. We conduct simulation studies to evaluate the performance of our proposals. We apply our top-performing algorithm to the NIH-funded Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial to illustrate the cost-effectiveness gains of assigning customized intensive blood pressure therapy.

PMID:35912490 | DOI:10.1177/09622802221115876