Category: Statistics

Work. 2022 Aug 17. doi: 10.3233/WOR-220051. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive stress. Burnout weakens the energy of an individual which reduces productivity and leaves this individual helpless, hopeless, cynical, and Resentful. Thus, an early diagnosis of this syndrome has to be done and ways to prevent the level of progression and complication of burnout syndrome has to be planned.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the efficacy of self-supervised Jacobson’s relaxation technique along with Bhastrika Pranayama in reducing the level of burnout among the work-from-home IT professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHOD: Thirty participants with burnout syndrome were randomly divided into two groups (15 participants in each group) using random allocation. The experimental group received Jacobson’s relaxation technique along with Bhastrika Pranayama, whereas the control group received diaphragmatic breathing exercises and chest expansion exercises. Pre-test and post-test values using Maslach Burnout Inventory were used to interpret the results.

RESULTS: Data collected were analyzed statistically by the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test. It shows that there is a significant reduction in the level of burnout in the Experimental group when compared to the control group at a p-value of 0.001.

CONCLUSION: From the results, it is concluded that Jacobsen’s relaxation technique along with diaphragmatic breathing exercises showed significant improvement in the reduction of burnout levels.

PMID:35988255 | DOI:10.3233/WOR-220051

Work. 2022 Aug 18. doi: 10.3233/WOR-210983. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: As older adults prefer to live in their homes, it is of paramount importance to examine the adaptation of the environment to the older adults’ capabilities.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to develop and evaluate psychometric properties of a scale to measure physical environment problems and barriers in older adults’ homes using an ergonomic approach in Iran.

METHODS: This mixed-method investigation was conducted in two stages in Yazd, Iran. The primary 71-item version of the questionnaire was developed according to qualitative findings and a thorough review of the literature. Then the psychometric characteristics, including face, content, construct validity, were assessed. Content validity was also assessed using CVI and CVR. Finally, its reliability and construct validity were confirmed by composite reliability (CR), Fornell-Larker matrix, and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using Smart PLS software version 3.

RESULTS: The face validity of the developed scale was acceptable, and the mean scores of CVI and CVR were 0.78 and 0.84, respectively. The preliminary draft of the scale was categorized into seven dimensions. Factor validity and reliability were confirmed by acceptable factor loadings, and desirable realms of composite reliability (>0.7) average variance extracted (>0.5). The cross-loading method and the Fornell-Larker matrix were used to evaluate the divergent validity of the scale, and the results confirmed its acceptable fit.

CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicated that reliability reached acceptable values, and different aspects of validity were almost confirmed. Accordingly, the questionnaire was to measure physical environment problems and barriers in older adults’ homes; however, it requires further validation for future use in other contexts.

PMID:35988247 | DOI:10.3233/WOR-210983

Work. 2022 Aug 16. doi: 10.3233/WOR-205236. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Slips, trips, and falls are the second leading cause of non-fatal injuries in workplace in the United States. A stage combat landing strategy is used in the theatre arts to reduce the risk of fall-induced injury, and may be a viable approach among some working populations.

OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to compare fall impact characteristics between experts in stage combat landing strategy and naïve participants after four training sessions of stage combat landing strategy training.

METHODS: Forward and backward falls from standing were induced by releasing participants from static leans. Participants fell onto a foam mat, and impact force was measured using force platforms under the mat. A statistical equivalence test was used to determine if impact characteristics between groups were similar.

RESULTS: Results indicated equivalence between groups in peak impact force during backward but not forward falls. Equivalence between groups in impact time suggested a mechanism by which equivalence in peak impact force as achieve.

CONCLUSIONS: Four training sessions was sufficient for naïve participants to exhibit fall impact characteristics similar to experts in an anecdotally-effective landing strategy, and support further study. To our knowledge, this was the first study to investigate training for a landing strategy involving stepping after losses of balance from standing.

PMID:35988234 | DOI:10.3233/WOR-205236

J Alzheimers Dis. 2022 Aug 18. doi: 10.3233/JAD-220345. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The merit of using baseline cognitive assessments in mid-life to help interpret cross-sectional cognitive tests scores in later life is uncertain.

OBJECTIVE: Evaluate how accuracy for diagnosing dementia is enhanced by comparing cross-sectional results to a midlife measure.

METHODS: Cohort study of 2,512 men with repeated measures of Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) over approximately 10 years. Index test MMSE at threshold of 24 indicating normal, as a cross-sectional measure and in combination with decline in MMSE score from mid-life. Reference standard consensus clinical diagnosis of dementia by two clinicians according to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV).

RESULTS: 1,150 men participated at phase 4 of whom 75 had dementia. A cross-sectional MMSE alone produced a sensitivity of 60% (50% to 70% ) and specificity 95% (94% to 97% ) with a threshold of≥24 points indicating normal. For lower-scoring men in late life, with cross sectional scores of < 22, combining cross-sectional AND a three-point or more decline over time had a sensitivity of 52% (39% to 64% ) and specificity 99% (99% to 100% ). For higher-scoring men in later life, with cross sectional scores < 26 combining cross-sectional OR decline of at least three points had a sensitivity of 98% (92% to 100% ) and specificity 38% (32% to 44% ).

CONCLUSION: It may be helpful in practice to formally evaluate cognition in mid-life as a baseline to compare with if problems develop in future, as this may enhance diagnostic accuracy and classification of people in later life.

PMID:35988222 | DOI:10.3233/JAD-220345

J Back Musculoskelet Rehabil. 2022 Aug 5. doi: 10.3233/BMR-210377. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Acute central cord syndrome (ACCS) without fractures or dislocations is the most common form of incomplete spinal cord injury.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of different surgical methods in the treatment of acute central cord syndrome without fractures or dislocations of the cervical spine.

METHODS: A total of 164 patients with ACCS without fracture or dislocation of the cervical spine treated in our hospital from May 2018 to October 2019 were recruited and assigned to study group A and study group B according to different treatment modalities, with 82 cases in each group. Study group A underwent anterior cervical discectomy and fusion, and study group B was treated with posterior cervical laminectomy. The American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) classification and motor scores of all cases at admission and at discharge were recorded, and the treatment outcomes of the two groups were compared.

RESULTS: No significant differences were found in the ASIA classification and ASIA motor scores between the two groups at admission (P> 0.05). One year after surgery, the ASIA motor scores and sensory scores were not statistically significant between the two groups (P> 0.05) but showed significant improvement compared to the preoperative scores (P< 0.05).

CONCLUSION: Both anterior cervical discectomy and fusion and posterior cervical laminectomy can improve the ASIA classification, ASIA motor scores, and sensory scores of ACCS patients without fractures or dislocations of the cervical spine. Therefore, surgical methods should be adopted based on the patients’ conditions.

PMID:35988214 | DOI:10.3233/BMR-210377

Cell Mol Biol (Noisy-le-grand). 2022 Mar 31;68(3):270-281. doi: 10.14715/cmb/2022.68.3.30.

ABSTRACT

In real life, there are few occasions where nanomaterials are exposed alone, and more often they coexist with other chemical substances. This article mainly studies the teaching of using nano-silver dressings in clinical nursing of surgically infected wounds. In this paper, the convenience sampling method is used to select 60 patients with chronic wounds as the research objects. A 160μg/mL nano-silver solution prepared with 10% fetal bovine serum DMEM culture medium was dropped on the copper net, and TEM was used for detection. The nanosilver dispersed in different dispersions was divided into 4mL EP tubes and incubated at 4°C, 25°C and 37°C for 0, 3, 12, 24, and 48 hours, and the sample at different time points were detected by a microplate reader. The maximum UV absorption peak was at 300~700nm wavelength. The micro broth dilution method was used to detect the susceptibility of different strains to Ag-PVPNPs and antibiotics. In order to study the relationship between the cytotoxicity of nano silver ion dressings and time, the nano silver ion composite dressings CZ-J1, CZ-J2, CZ-J3, CZ-J4 group samples prepared by the immersion method were selected as test samples, and the test samples were against L02 cells. At different periods, some cloth samples were taken out for anti-adhesion testing. The SPSS19.0 software was used for statistical analysis of the data, and the measurement data were expressed by the mean and standard deviation, and the homogeneity of variance was tested first. The data shows that when combined with 12.5μg/mL Ag-PVP NPs, 2μg/mL gentamicin can completely inhibit the growth of bacteria compared with 50% inhibition rate when acting alone. The results show that nano-silver activated carbon fiber dressing can effectively promote the healing of pressure sore wounds.

PMID:35988207 | DOI:10.14715/cmb/2022.68.3.30

Cell Mol Biol (Noisy-le-grand). 2022 Mar 31;68(3):43-50. doi: 10.14715/cmb/2022.68.3.6.

ABSTRACT

This study was to provide a theoretical basis for effective treatment of myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury (I/R injury) and explore the effect of cerium oxide (CeO2) nanoparticles on myocardial cell apoptosis induced by I/R injury. In this study, 50 healthy male Sprague Dawley (SD) rats were selected and divided into five groups according to the random table method: a sham operation group, an I/R group, a 1 – 10 nm CeO2 nanoparticle group (CeO2-1 group), a 10 – 25 nm CeO2 nanoparticle group (CeO2-2 group), and a 50 nm CeO2 nanoparticle group (CeO2-3 group). Rats in different groups were injected with phosphate buffer solution (PBS) and CeO2 nanoparticles with different diameters, respectively. The rat models of I/R injury were prepared to explore and analyze the superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, malondialdehyde (MDA) content, glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity, and myocardial cell apoptosis of rats with I/R injury by CeO2 nanoparticles. The results showed that the cardiomyocyte necrosis, SOD activity, MDA content, GSH-Px activity, and apoptosis index of the three groups of rats injected with CeO2 nanoparticles were much better than those in the I/R group. The effects on SOD activity, MDA content, GSH-Px activity, and apoptosis index of cardiomyocytes in the CeO2-2 group were significantly better than those in the CeO2-1 and CeO2-3 groups, showing statistically great differences (P< 0.05); and effects on SOD activity, MDA content, and GSH-Px activity of cardiomyocytes in CeO2-1 group were better obviously than those in the CeO2-3 groups, showing statistically observable differences (P< 0.05). In addition, the difference between the CeO2-1 group and CeO2-3 on the apoptosis index of cardiomyocytes was not statistically remarkable (P> 0.05). It can be considered that the CeO2 nanoparticles can effectively alleviate the effects of myocardial I/R injury, showing reliable clinical significance.

PMID:35988203 | DOI:10.14715/cmb/2022.68.3.6

Cell Mol Biol (Noisy-le-grand). 2022 Mar 31;68(3):86-95. doi: 10.14715/cmb/2022.68.3.11.

ABSTRACT

This study was to compare the effects of three-dimensional (3D) printed bioactive porous titanium alloy scaffolds (3DP-BPTAS) and rhBMP-2/PLA-loaded sustained-release nanospheres (SRNs) in the treatment of bone defects. In this study, the bioactive porous titanium alloy scaffolds (BPTAS) with different pore sizes were prepared by selective laser melting (SLM) technology. The rhBMP-2/PLA SRNs were prepared by the double emulsion solvent volatilization method. The morphology of the two nanomaterials was observed under a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The encapsulation rate (ER), drug loading (DL), and in vitro release rate of the SRNs were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA); and the effects of different particle sizes of BPTAS and SRNs on the proliferation of BMSCs were measured using the Methyl Thiazolyl Tetrazolium (MTT) method. 42 healthy male rabbits were selected and rolled into a control group (no treatment), a model group (the femoral condyle defect model), an A800 group (model + 800 μm of BPTAS), and an A1000 group (model + 1000 μm of BPTAS), an A1200 group (model + 1200 μm of BPTAS), an A1500 group (model + 1500 μm of BPTAS), and an SNR group (model + rhBMP-2/PLA SRNs). There were 6 rabbits in each group, and they were sacrificed 4, 8, and 12 weeks after the surgery. They were performed with general observation, X-ray photography, and histological and biomechanical examinations. According to the Lane-Sandhu bone defect repair tissue X-ray and histological scoring standard, the effect of bone defect repair was evaluated. It was found that the actual pore structure of the scaffold prepared by the SLM process was consistent with the theoretical design. The observation under TEM showed that rhBMP-2/PLA SRNs were approximately round, with an average particle size of 835 nm, and its encapsulation efficiency and drug loading rate were 89.02 ± 5.14% and 0.033 ± 0.004%, respectively. The rhBMP-2/PLA SRNs and BPTAS had no statistically obvious increase in the number of cells after cell treatment compared with the control group (P> 0.05). At 12 weeks postoperatively, the stent bone tissue growing distance (SBTGD) in the SRN group was longer than that in the A1000 group (P< 0.01), and that in the A1000 group was better in contrast to the A800, A1200, and A1500 groups (P< 0.01). The Lane-Sandhu X-ray score of the SRN group was better than other groups (P< 0.05). It suggested that 3DP-BPTAS and rhBMP-2/PLA SRNs could repair the bone defects, and rhBMP-2/PLA SRNs were more conducive to the formation of new bone tissue.

PMID:35988202 | DOI:10.14715/cmb/2022.68.3.11

Cell Mol Biol (Noisy-le-grand). 2022 Mar 31;68(3):15-23. doi: 10.14715/cmb/2022.68.3.3.

ABSTRACT

The study focused on the performance of ultrasound imaging in detecting fetal spinal deformities. First, the double emulsification method and the carbodiimide method were used to prepare the target Au-loaded nanorod phase-change nano-level contrast agent-PLGA-Au-PFH-NPs. After being characterized for physical and chemical properties, it was used in ultrasound imaging diagnosis. The results showed that the prepared PLGA-Au-PFH-NPs solution was a milky white suspension, the particle size detected by the laser particle sizer was (376.17±20.74) nm, and the Zeta potential was (-4.82±2.88) mV. Under the light microscope, it showed a spherical shape, uniform size distribution, and a very smooth surface. The encapsulation rate measured by the UV spectrophotometer was (80.63±4.82) %, and there was no significant difference in cell survival rate between different concentrations (P>0.05). Prenatal ultrasound in the observation group accurately diagnosed 10 cases with spinal deformities, and the diagnostic accuracy rate was 50%, including 5 cases of meningocele, 3 cases of invisible spina bifida, 1 case of myelomeningocele, and 1 case of hemivertebrae. In the control group, 7 cases were diagnosed correctly by conventional ultrasound, and the diagnosis accuracy rate was 35%, including 3 cases of meningocele, 3 cases of invisible spina bifida, and 1 case of hemivertebra. The diagnostic accuracy of the observation group was higher than that of the control group, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). In conclusion, the prepared PLGA-Au-PFH-NPs had good physical and chemical properties. Ultrasound imaging based on the PLGA-Au-PFH-NPs had high accuracy in diagnosing fetal spinal deformities. To a certain extent, it provides a basis for clinical diagnosis of fetal spinal abnormality and some new ideas for ultrasound imaging diagnosis.

PMID:35988201 | DOI:10.14715/cmb/2022.68.3.3

Cell Mol Biol (Noisy-le-grand). 2022 Mar 31;68(3):51-58. doi: 10.14715/cmb/2022.68.3.7.

ABSTRACT

This study was to explore the mechanism of action of nanomaterial-loaded clarithromycin (CLA) after sinusitis surgery. Under the guidance of dynamic enhanced scanning (DES). 120 patients with sinusitis admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University from July 2019 to March 2020 were selected and divided into a control group and an observation group according to the random number table method, with 60 cases in each group. Then, the CLA-containing nano-polylactic acid material was prepared, observed with the scanning electron microscope (SEM), and its drug release ability was tested. All patients underwent endoscopic sinus surgery under general anesthesia. After the surgery was completed, patients in the control group were given only CLA capsules, and patients in the observation group were given freshly prepared nanomaterial-loaded CLA, and both groups of patients were continuously observed for two weeks. After that, the patients were examined using the dynamic enhancement computed tomography (CT). The clinical efficacy, serum interleukin-4 (IL-4), interleukin-8 (IL-8), and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) levels of the two groups of patients were observed. The secretions of the patients’ sinuses were performed with microbial bacterial culture, and the results were observed and recorded. Results showed that the characterization and analysis of the nano drug-carrying preparation suggested that the polylactic acid nanomembrane showed linear fiber morphology, relatively dense distribution, not greatly different fiber diameter, and small porosity. Characterization under a field of view (FOV) of 500 um showed that the fiber surface was smooth and rich in content. The release of CLA showed a gradual and steady upward trend. On the 25th day, nearly 50% of the dose had been released, and it had reached more than 90% of the total release on the 55th day. According to the statistics on the clinical efficacy of patients, it was found that the number of cured and effective patients in the observation group was higher than that of the control group, while the number of ineffective cases was much lower than that of the control group. The dynamic enhanced CT examination results of the patients in the control group after treatment showed that the soft tissue mass on the posterior right side of the nasopharynx was reduced, but the pharyngeal suture still existed; while those in the observation group showed that the plain scan density was uniform, and the mastoid air cells were clear on both sides. The number of cases with Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), Staphylococcus saprophyticus (S. saprophyticus), and Pasteurella multocida infections in the observation group were observably lower than those of the control group (P< 0.05), and it was the same case for the levels of serum IL-4, IL-8, and TNF-α. Conclusion: after dynamic enhanced CT scanning, it can be found that the nanomaterial-loaded CLA increased the utilization rate of the drug, showing good clinical efficacy, and effectively improved the clinical symptoms of patients, achieving the therapeutic effect.

PMID:35988194 | DOI:10.14715/cmb/2022.68.3.7