Nevin Manimala

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2025 Oct 4:e202513744. doi: 10.1002/anie.202513744. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Tailoring supported bimetals to alloyed or phase-separated structures is of vital importance while this process is blocked by the support interferences during universal impregnation processes. Conventional trial-and-error approaches rooted in chemical intuition often lack efficiency and generality. Here, we present a design strategy guided by the statistical sampling of comparative ease of alloy formation through the metadynamics-based gas-solid nanoreactor approach, which enables the rational and systematic development of bimetallic nanocatalysts (NCs). Using metal oxide-supported PdAu coupling with model CO₂ reduction as a proof-of-concept system, the integrated theoretical and experimental results not only validated the reliability of simulation results but also successfully predicted and realized the alloy formation or phase separation of supported PdAu NCs. The generated PdAu alloys over CeO₂ weaken the metallicity of supported Pd species and thus the catalytic hydrogenation property, but increase moderate basicity, contributing to activated CO₂ hydrogenation to CO via a formate intermediate. However, the phase separation of Pd and Au over TiO₂ support promotes formic acid production efficiency attributed to increasing weak basicity to accelerate CO₂ activation during a bicarbonate pathway. These findings highlight statistical sampling as a general broadly applicable framework for the rational design of advanced bimetallic NCs.

PMID:41045186 | DOI:10.1002/anie.202513744

Bioelectromagnetics. 2025 Oct;46(7):e70025. doi: 10.1002/bem.70025.

ABSTRACT

Compliance testing of wireless devices with absorbed power density (APD) limits requires body models that conservatively reproduce the absorption characteristics of human skin. Previous studies indicate that impedance-matching effects are caused by the stratum corneum (SC) layer. The objective of this study is to develop a single macroscopic dielectric model reproducing absorption of electromagnetic fields by the skin up to 110 GHz. The reflection coefficient of the skin of human volunteers was measured at frequencies of 15 to 43 GHz with open waveguide probes, complementing previous data from 45 to 110 GHz. The measurements were made at various regions of the body. The statistical analysis of the results shows that the reflection coefficient in dB follows normal distribution in regions with thin SC, which permits the development of a conservative skin model. In regions with thick SC, for example, the palms, the reflection coefficient is not normally distributed because the thickness of the SC depends on the mechanical stress the hands are exposed to. The measured data allow the derivation of dispersive two-layer models representing absorption and reflection at the skin surface with known uncertainty. The models can be used to conservatively demonstrate compliance with the APD limits of wireless devices in any of the 5G and 6G bands.

PMID:41045064 | DOI:10.1002/bem.70025

J Child Adolesc Psychiatr Nurs. 2025 Nov;38(4):e70038. doi: 10.1111/jcap.70038.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Family planning significantly reduces maternal mortality and contributes to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. However, the unmet need for family planning in Ghana is still relatively high. This study assessed the factors influencing the use of family planning in a resource-limited setting.

METHODS: The study used 384 adults (17-56 years) in the Navrongo central sub-municipality, selected using the multi-stage sampling method. Data was cleaned in Microsoft Excel 365 before being transferred to SPSS version 27 and R for analysis. Composite scores were determined and transformed into percentages. The percentage scores of more than 75% were coded as utilisation or good knowledge of modern family planning, depending on the specific section. The Pearson Chi-square test was performed to examine the relationship between the independent variables on overall utilisation and overall knowledge of family planning. Logistic regression and complementary log-log models were used to model the predictors of the utilisation and knowledge of modern family planning. All p-values ≤ 0.05 were deemed statistically significant.

RESULTS: The overall utilisation of modern family planning was not very high (43.2%). Overall, the respondents showed good knowledge (81.3%) of modern family planning. Married young adults (RR = 2.1, 95% CI: 1.39-3.27, p-value = 0.001) were more likely to utilise modern contraceptives. Male young adults are less likely to utilise family planning (RR = 0.21, 95% CI: 0.12-0.34, p < 0.001) than females. Those aged at least 37 years (RR = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.11-2.71, p-value = 0.017) were more likely to have good knowledge of modern family planning than those aged 17 to 26 years. Compared with those with tertiary education, those below SHS (RR = 2.53, 95% CI: 1.54-4.31, p-value < 0.001) and those with SHS education (RR = 1.79, 95% CI: 1.27-2.55, p-value = 0.001) were more likely to have good knowledge of modern family planning. Those with household income between 500 and 1000 (RR = 5.39, 95% CI: 2.18-17.99, p-value = 0.002) and household income more than 1000 cedis (RR = 5.12, 95% CI: 2.04-17.25, p-value = 0.003) were more likely to have good knowledge of family planning than those with household income below 500 cedis per month.

CONCLUSION: This study revealed a high level of knowledge and relatively low utilization of modern family planning. Family planning interventions must incorporate behaviour change theoretical models to translate high knowledge to effective and sustained uptake of family planning among young adults in resource-limited settings.

PMID:41045063 | DOI:10.1111/jcap.70038

J Magn Reson Imaging. 2025 Oct 4. doi: 10.1002/jmri.70130. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The electrocardiogram (ECG) used for gating in cardiac MRI may be compromised by multiple confounders inside the scanner bore.

PURPOSE: To quantify the influence of magnetic field strengths (1.5 T/3 T/7 T), standardized electrode positions, and imaging sequences on ECG signals used for gating.

STUDY TYPE: Prospective.

POPULATION: Sixteen healthy volunteers (eight male; mean age 26.25 ± 7.67 years).

FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE: Balanced steady-state free precession cine (1.5 T/3 T), fast low-angle shot cine (7 T), and 4D flow (1.5 T/3 T/7 T) sequences.

ASSESSMENT: ECG-signals were recorded during breath-hold and non-breath-hold short axis cine (sax-bh and sax-nbh, respectively) and 4D flow scans at 1.5 T/3 T/7 T. All scans were repeated with 4 standardized electrode positionings (pos1-4) at each field strength. Pos1/2 were vendor-recommended positionings for 1.5 T/3 T/7 T scans, respectively, whereas pos3/4 were alternative positionings recommended in previous studies. Similarity between confounded ECG-signals and unconfounded baseline ECG-signals was assessed by QRS-feature correlation. Cine image quality (IQ) was assessed by 3 readers (with 6, 10, and 22 years experience) on a four-point Likert scale.

STATISTICAL TESTS: Linear mixed models with type III tests of fixed effects (overall) and t tests with adjusted degrees of freedom (pairwise subgroup-comparisons) at significance level p < 0.05.

RESULTS: Increasing field strength resulted in significantly decreasing similarity to baseline measurements, with r values (provided with 95% confidence interval) of 1.5 T: 97% (92.6-101.3); 3 T: 91.4% (87.1-95.8); 7 T: 50.4% (46-54.9) and lower IQ: 1.5 T: 2.33 (2.12-2.55); 3 T: 1.96 (1.75-2.17); 7 T: 0.91 (0.7-1.12). Vendor-specified electrode positions pos1: 91.8% (87.2-96.5), pos2: 88.3% (83.7-92.9) showed significantly higher correlation with baseline measurements than alternative positions pos3: 67.5% (62.9-72.1) and pos4: 70.8% (66.2-75.4). The evaluated standardized sequences showed similar amounts of electrocardiogram distortion, with r values of: sax-bh: 77.3% (73-81.7); 4D: 79.3% (75-83.7), p = 0.54; sax-nbh: 82.1% (77.8-86.5), p = 0.31, but the difference between sax-bh and sax-nbh: 4.8% (2.88-6.72) was significant.

DATA CONCLUSION: Increasing field strength leads to significant ECG signal distortions. Vendor-specified positions 1/2 resulted in less distorted ECG signals than alternative positions 3/4 recommended in previous publications.

TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 5.

PMID:41045052 | DOI:10.1002/jmri.70130

J Magn Reson Imaging. 2025 Oct 4. doi: 10.1002/jmri.70143. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Disruption of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) is an important mechanism in the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus (NPSLE), potentially influencing disease progression and cognitive function.

PURPOSE: To investigate voxel-wise BBB permeability differences among NPSLE, non-NPSLE, and healthy controls (HC) using dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI), and explore associations with disease activity and cognitive function.

STUDY TYPE: Multicenter, cross-sectional study.

SUBJECTS: 22 NPSLE patients, 24 non-NPSLE patients, and 27 age- and sex-matched HC.

FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE: 3.0 Tesla, GE: 3D T1-FSPGR, DCE-LAVA-Flex sequences; Philips: 3D T1-FFE, eTHRIVE sequences.

ASSESSMENT: Post-processing of DCE-MRI images was conducted to calculate the volume transfer constant (K^trans) and plasma volume fraction (V_p) maps, which were transformed to Montreal Neurological Institute space. Brain regions were defined using the Anatomical Automatic Labeling (AAL) atlas. Group differences among NPSLE, non-NPSLE, and HC were assessed. Mean K^trans/V_p values from suprathreshold clusters were evaluated for associations with the Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scores. Mean K^trans/V_p from corresponding AAL regions was extracted for further validation of the observed correlations.

STATISTICAL TESTS: Voxel-wise ANOVA with Tukey’s HSD test; Spearman correlation and linear regression. Threshold: Voxel-wise p < 0.001, cluster size > 20; group comparisons p < 0.05.

RESULTS: A significantly elevated K^trans was observed in the right caudate of NPSLE patients compared to non-NPSLE patients, and hippocampal K^trans was significantly higher in NPSLE than both non-NPSLE and HC. Both NPSLE and non-NPSLE patients exhibited widespread significant increases in V_p compared to HC. In the entire SLE cohort, right caudate K^trans was positively associated with SLEDAI (ρ = 0.43, R² = 0.18) and negatively associated with MoCA scores (ρ = -0.35, R² = 0.12) after adjusting for confounding factors.

DATA CONCLUSION: This study provided voxel-level evidence linking regional BBB leakage to both disease activity and cognitive impairment in SLE.

EVIDENCE LEVEL: 2.

TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 2.

PMID:41045050 | DOI:10.1002/jmri.70143

Early Interv Psychiatry. 2025 Oct;19(10):e70087. doi: 10.1111/eip.70087.

ABSTRACT

AIM: In 2016, the Access and Waiting Time Standard (AWTS) was introduced in England, UK, outlining that people with first-episode psychosis should receive treatment from an early intervention for psychosis (EIP) service within 2 weeks. We examined sociodemographic, pathways to care (PtC), and clinical factors associated with EIP service wait time.

METHOD: We collected de-identified data from a large mental health provider in South London, UK. We included patients referred and accepted to EIP services as inpatient or community contacts between 1 May 2016 and 30 April 2019, providing 3 years of data from the introduction of AWTS. Descriptive statistics and multivariable linear regression were performed.

RESULTS: A total of 1806 patients were identified with a mean age of 30 (SD: 10.7) years, of whom 86.3% (n = 1559) accessed community EIP and 13.7% (n = 247) accessed inpatient EIP; of these, 26.7% were not seen within 2 weeks. Community EIP patients waited longer adj.β = 2.21 days (95% CI: 2.05-2.37) compared with inpatient EIP patients, and being older was associated with longer wait time. Conversely, a shorter wait time was associated with A&E [adj.β = -0.22 days (95% CI: -0.36, -0.10)] and ‘other’ [adj.β = -0.21 days (95% CI: -0.36, -0.03)] PtC characteristics. White non-British and South Asian patients had shorter wait times compared with White British patients; however, this difference diminished after adjusting for PtC and clinical factors.

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that individual factors, PtC, and mode of contact influence wait time for EIP services. More than a quarter of patients were not seen within 2 weeks, indicating that targeted support in community EIP services is needed to meet clinical guidelines.

PMID:41045048 | DOI:10.1111/eip.70087

Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2025 Oct 4. doi: 10.1111/pcn.13906. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:41045043 | DOI:10.1111/pcn.13906

Early Interv Psychiatry. 2025 Oct;19(10):e70095. doi: 10.1111/eip.70095.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Trauma exposure is pervasive in people with an At Risk Mental State (ARMS) and is associated with adverse clinical and functional outcomes. While promising developments have been made in treating trauma in psychosis, evidence regarding the efficacy of trauma therapies in ARMS individuals is limited. This trial aims to evaluate the feasibility of conducting a future randomised controlled trial (RCT) to determine the efficacy of Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) and trauma focused cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT) in people with ARMS.

METHOD: Seventy ARMS individuals with a history of trauma will be randomised to receive 24 sessions of EMDR plus treatment as usual (TAU), 24 sessions of TF-CBT+TAU, or TAU alone. Feasibility will be determined against pre-specified thresholds for recruitment, retention, treatment engagement, and fidelity. To examine the promise of efficacy of EMDR and TF-CBT, participants will complete a battery of clinical and mechanistic measures at baseline and 9-month post-randomisation, including assessments of attenuated psychotic symptoms and post-traumatic symptoms. Clinical notes will be reviewed to identify transitions to first episode psychosis up to 12 months post-randomisation. Qualitative interviews with trial participants, therapists, and professional stakeholders will explore the acceptability of EMDR and TF-CBT and factors to facilitate future implementation of trauma therapies in routine practice.

CONCLUSIONS: If a large-scale RCT is deemed feasible, it will be possible to establish whether EMDR and/or TF-CBT represent beneficial treatments to augment existing evidence-based care for individuals at ultra-high risk for future psychosis, potentially reducing transition rates and improving clinical outcomes for ARMS individuals.

PMID:41045040 | DOI:10.1111/eip.70095

Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2025 Oct 4. doi: 10.1002/ijgo.70571. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Domestic violence (DV) is a major public health concern with profound emotional, psychological, and medical consequences for women and their families. This study assessed the prevalence, associated factors, and proffered solutions to domestic violence in pregnancy (DVP) among married women in Enugu, southeastern Nigeria.

METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 447 pregnant married women attending antenatal care at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu. Data were collected using an interviewer-administered, pretested questionnaire (with supplementary validated tools) and analyzed with IBM SPSS Statistics (version 22.0). Descriptive and inferential statistics were applied, with significance set at P < 0.05.

RESULTS: The prevalence of DVP was 27.1%. Husbands or intimate partners were the main perpetrators (66.2%). Emotional/psychological abuse was the most common form of violence (60.3%), while sexual abuse was least reported. On multivariable logistic regression, factors independently associated with DVP included rural residence, maternal age ≥ 30 years, lower maternal educational status, and partners with tertiary education or social habits such as alcohol use, infidelity, and keeping late nights (P < 0.05). Most respondents (40.2%) believed prayer was the solution, while 31.1% felt no solution existed.

CONCLUSION: Domestic violence in pregnancy remains prevalent in Enugu, Nigeria with emotional abuse being most frequent. The reliance on prayer or resignation as “solutions” reflects deep-rooted cultural and religious influences. Routine screening during antenatal care, coupled with culturally sensitive counseling, referral pathways, and community-based interventions, is urgently needed to address the burden and prevent associated complications.

PMID:41045037 | DOI:10.1002/ijgo.70571

Health Serv Res. 2025 Oct 4:e70048. doi: 10.1111/1475-6773.70048. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To examine the impact of private equity (PE) hospital acquisitions on maternal health for Medicaid patients.

STUDY SETTING AND DESIGN: This quasi-experimental study focuses on 66 PE acquisitions of hospitals between 2014 and 2018, analyzing national Medicaid claims data from 2011 to 2020. Using a difference-in-differences (DiD) framework, the study compares labor and delivery (L&D) outcomes at PE-acquired hospitals with matched control hospitals to evaluate the effects on patient volume, process of care, and quality outcomes for Medicaid patients.

DATA SOURCES AND ANALYTIC SAMPLE: The analysis uses data from the Transformed Medicaid Statistical Information System (T-MSIS) and Medicaid Analytic eXtract (MAX), including over 1 million L&D hospitalizations. The analytic sample comprises 66 PE hospitals and 290 matched control hospitals.

PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: PE acquisition was associated with a significant 12% decrease in Medicaid L&D market share (p < 0.05). The reduction was more pronounced in states with larger Medicaid-to-commercial payment gaps (-15.8% vs. -7.2%). However, no significant changes were observed in low-risk cesarean rates, number of procedures, length of stay, or severe maternal morbidity.

CONCLUSIONS: PE acquisitions of hospitals are associated with reduced Medicaid market share, particularly in states with lower Medicaid reimbursement relative to commercial insurance. Policymakers should consider addressing these issues by adjusting Medicaid payment rates to support vulnerable populations in PE-acquired hospitals.

PMID:41045029 | DOI:10.1111/1475-6773.70048