Nevin Manimala

J Pers. 2022 Feb 5. doi: 10.1111/jopy.12704. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Males and females tend to exhibit small but reliable differences in personality traits and indices of psychopathology that are relatively stable over time and across cultures. Previous work suggests that sex differences in brain structure account for differences in domains of cognition.

METHODS: We used data from the Human Connectome Project (N = 1098) to test whether sex differences in brain morphometry account for observed differences in the personality traits neuroticism and agreeableness, as well as symptoms of internalizing and externalizing psychopathology. We operationalized brain morphometry in three ways: omnibus measures (e.g., total gray matter volume), Glasser regions defined through a multi-modal parcellation approach, and Desikan regions defined by structural features of the brain.

RESULTS: Most expected sex differences in personality, psychopathology, and brain morphometry were observed, but the statistical mediation analyses were null: sex differences in brain morphometry did not account for sex differences in personality or psychopathology.

CONCLUSIONS: Men and women tend to exhibit meaningful differences in personality and psychopathology, as well as in omnibus morphometry and regional morphometric differences as defined by the Glasser and Desikan atlases, but these morphometric differences appear unrelated to the psychological differences.

PMID:35122237 | DOI:10.1111/jopy.12704

Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2022 Feb 5. doi: 10.1002/ijgo.14127. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To compare the performance of the Collaborative Integrated Pregnancy High-Dependency Estimate of Risk (CIPHER) model in predicting maternal death and near-miss morbidity (Severe Maternal Outcome [SMO]) with the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA), the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II, and the Simplified Acute Physiology Score (SAPS) III scores.

METHODS: A retrospective and a prospective study was conducted at two centers in Brazil. For each score, area under curve (AUC) was used and score calibration was assessed using the Hosmer-Lemeshow statistic (H-L) test and the standardized mortality ratio (SMR).

RESULTS: A cohort of 590 women was analyzed. A SMO was observed in 216 (36.6%) women. Of these, 13 (2.2%) were maternal deaths and 203 (34.4%) met one or more maternal near-miss criteria. The CIPHER model did not show significant diagnostic ability (AUC 0.52) and consequently its calibration was poor (H-L P<0.05). The SAPS III had the best performance (AUC 0.77, H-L P>0.05 and SMR 0.85).

CONCLUSION: The performance of the CIPHER model was lower compared to the other scores. Since the CIPHER model is not ready for clinical use, the SAPS III score should be considered for the prediction of SMO.

PMID:35122236 | DOI:10.1002/ijgo.14127

Endoscopy. 2022 Feb 4. doi: 10.1055/a-1708-0037. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND : Gastric outlet obstruction (GOO) with peritoneal carcinomatosis presents a technical challenge. Surgical gastrojejunostomy (SGJ) or enteral stenting have been the standard of care; however, endoscopic ultrasound-guided gastroenterostomy (EUS-GE) has emerged as a favorable alternative. Few data exist that compare these techniques in the setting of peritoneal carcinomatosis. METHODS : This single-center retrospective cohort study included 25 EUS-GE and 27 SGJ consecutive patients. Baseline demographics, cancer diagnosis and stage, clinical and technical success, adverse events, and obstruction recurrence data were collected. The primary outcome was the technical success comparison; secondary outcome was the adverse event rate comparison. Rates were compared with standard statistical tests. RESULTS : Mean age, obstruction location, and symptoms were similar between the groups. The EUS-GE group had more advanced disease (clinical stage 4, 100 % vs. 67 %; P = 0.006) and higher American Society of Anesthesiologists classification (class 3-4, 92 % vs. 50 %; P = 0.004). The technical success rate was 100 % in both groups (P > 0.99) and the adverse event rate was lower for EUS-GE (8 % vs. 41 %; P = 0.01). Clinical success was 88 % for EUS-GE and 85 % for SGJ (P > 0.99) and recurrent obstruction was lower with EUS-GE (28 % vs. 41 %; P = 0.13). The EUS-GE group had shorter procedure duration, length of stay, and time to chemotherapy resumption than the SGJ group. CONCLUSIONS : Although the EUS-GE group was older, with more comorbidity and advanced stages, the technical success rate was similar to SGJ and it had significantly fewer adverse events. EUS-GE is a safe and effective option for the management of malignant GOO with peritoneal carcinomatosis.

PMID:35120397 | DOI:10.1055/a-1708-0037

Pharmacopsychiatry. 2022 Feb 4. doi: 10.1055/a-1744-6582. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: This study investigated combined prescriptions of drugs for mood disorders and physical comorbidities that need special attention in the light of frequent physical comorbidities in patients with mood disorders.

METHODS: We used the claims sampling data of 581,990 outpatients in January 2015 from the National Database of Health Insurance Claims and Specific Health Checkups of Japan. Fisher’s exact test was performed to compare the prescription rates of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), loop/thiazide diuretics, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, and/or angiotensin II receptor blockers between lithium users and age- and sex-matched non-lithium users; NSAIDs, antiplatelet drugs, and/or anticoagulants between selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI)/serotonin-noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) users and non-users; warfarin between mirtazapine users and non-users; and the proportions of patients in the two groups with a diagnosis of somatic conditions for which these medications were indicated and actually received them. A Bonferroni corrected p-value of<0.05/3 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS: Prescriptions of the above-mentioned medications were less frequent in lithium and mirtazapine users and comparable in SSRI/SNRI users, compared to non-users (18.3 vs. 31.9%, p=7.6×10^-10; 0.78 vs. 1.65%, p=0.01; 23.1 vs. 24.1%, p=0.044). In a subgroup of patients with somatic diseases for which these medications were indicated, the prescription rates were comparable in lithium and mirtazapine users and higher in SSRI/SNRI users compared to non-users (28.0 vs. 29.4%, p=0.73; 4.7 vs. 7.4%, p=0.28; 35.6 vs. 33.4%, p=0.0026).

DISCUSSION: Pharmacotherapy with drugs for mood disorders and physical comorbidities that require attention was commonly observed in clinical practice.

PMID:35120382 | DOI:10.1055/a-1744-6582

Comput Inform Nurs. 2022 Feb 1. doi: 10.1097/CIN.0000000000000845. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Electronic medical records have been adopted in Korean clinical settings for a few decades. However, there is a lack of studies on the quality, usefulness, and easy use of electronic medical records examined from the perspective of nurses. This study sought the effect of the system quality, information quality, and service quality of an electronic medical record on nurses’ perceived usefulness and ease of use of the electronic medical record. A total of 278 nurses from four hospitals completed a self-administered questionnaire using a 5-point Likert scale. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and hierarchical multiple regression methods. The results showed that the system, information, and service quality of the electronic medical records explained 36.2% of the variance in perceived usefulness (F = 51.760, P < .001) and 43.4% of the variance in perceived ease of use (F = 70.019, P < .001). Thus, these three qualities were significant factors predicting perceived usefulness and ease of use. The close cooperation of stakeholders including administrators, healthcare providers including nurses, and researchers involved in clinical practice will improve electronic medical record quality leading to user-friendly electronic medical record implementation. This study provided statistical interpretations to help in understanding regression analysis.

PMID:35120366 | DOI:10.1097/CIN.0000000000000845

Chin Med J (Engl). 2022 Feb 2. doi: 10.1097/CM9.0000000000001913. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:35120360 | DOI:10.1097/CM9.0000000000001913

Ear Hear. 2022 Feb 1. doi: 10.1097/AUD.0000000000001190. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Vowel-evoked envelope following responses (EFRs) could be a useful noninvasive tool for evaluating neural activity phase-locked to the fundamental frequency of voice (f0). Vowel-evoked EFRs are often elicited by vowels in consonant-vowel syllables or words. Considering neural activity is susceptible to temporal masking, EFR characteristics elicited by the same vowel may vary with the features of the preceding phoneme. To this end, the objective of the present study was to evaluate the influence of the spectral and level characteristics of the preceding phoneme context on vowel-evoked EFRs.

DESIGN: EFRs were elicited by a male-spoken /i/ (stimulus; duration = 350 msec), modified to elicit two EFRs, one from the region of the first formant (F1) and one from the second and higher formants (F2+). The stimulus, presented at 65 dB SPL, was preceded by one of the four contexts: /∫/, /m/, /i/ or a silent gap of duration equal to that of the stimulus. The level of the context phonemes was either 50 or 80 dB SPL, 15 dB lower and higher than the level of the stimulus /i/. In a control condition, EFRs to the stimulus /i/ were elicited in isolation without any preceding phoneme contexts. The stimulus and the contexts were presented monaurally to a randomly chosen test ear in 21 young adults with normal hearing. EFRs were recorded using single-channel electroencephalogram between the vertex and the nape.

RESULTS: A repeated measures analysis of variance indicated a significant three-way interaction between context type (/∫/, /i/, /m/, silent gap), level (50, 80 dB SPL), and EFR-eliciting formant (F1, F2+). Post hoc analyses indicated no influence of the preceding phoneme context on F1-elicited EFRs. Relative to a silent gap as the preceding context, F2+-elicited EFRs were attenuated by /∫/ and /m/ presented at 50 and 80 dB SPL, as well as by /i/ presented at 80 dB SPL. The average attenuation ranged from 14.9 to 27.9 nV. When the context phonemes were presented at matched levels of 50 or 80 dB SPL, F2+-elicited EFRs were most often attenuated when preceded by /∫/. At 80 dB SPL, relative to the silent preceding gap, the average attenuation was 15.7 nV, and at 50 dB SPL, relative to the preceding context phoneme /i/, the average attenuation was 17.2 nV.

CONCLUSION: EFRs elicited by the second and higher formants of /i/ are sensitive to the spectral and level characteristics of the preceding phoneme context. Such sensitivity, measured as an attenuation in the present study, may influence the comparison of EFRs elicited by the same vowel in different consonant-vowel syllables or words. However, the degree of attenuation with realistic context levels exceeded the minimum measurable change only 12% of the time. Although the impact of the preceding context is statistically significant, it is likely to be clinically insignificant a majority of the time.

PMID:35120354 | DOI:10.1097/AUD.0000000000001190

MCN Am J Matern Child Nurs. 2022 Feb 2. doi: 10.1097/NMC.0000000000000811. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Background: Traumatic births are those resulting in feelings of distress that persist after the birth experience. Health care providers may play a role in these experiences through various forms of mistreatment. Analyses of global birth experiences have generated several domains of mistreatment. This study applies these evidence-based domains of mistreatment as an a priori coding scheme for analysis of 96 oral narratives of U.S.-based births to describe the nature of perceived mistreatment using participants’ own descriptions of experiences.Method: Ninety-six transcripts of oral birth stories from 61 participants were coded using the domains of mistreatment experiences described by the Bohren et al.’s (2015) systematic review of obstetric mistreatment.Results: N = 131 individual experiences of perceived obstetric mistreatment were identified in 41 out of 96 narratives (42.7%). The most frequent types of experiences were Poor Rapport (90 incidences) and Failure to Meet Professional Standards of Care (29).Clinical Implications: Although most women in our study did not perceive any instances of obstetric mistreatment during their childbirth, over 40% of participants noted at least one event that fit one of the typologies we used as a framework for analysis. Visibility and review of the types of perceived mistreatment experiences that occur during birth enables health system leaders to implement prevention and accountability strategies. Most instances of perceived mistreatment during birth may be prevented through intentional implementation of individualized, respectful, supportive care during labor and birth.

PMID:35120346 | DOI:10.1097/NMC.0000000000000811

J Breath Res. 2022 Feb 4. doi: 10.1088/1752-7163/ac522f. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is characterized by chronic respiratory infections which progressively decrease lung function over time. Affected individuals experience episodes of intensified respiratory symptoms called pulmonary exacerbations (PEx) which accelerate pulmonary function decline and decrease survival. There is no standard classification for PEx, which results in treatments that are heterogeneous. Improving PEx classification and management is a significant priority for people with CF. Previous studies have shown volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in exhaled breath can be used as biomarkers because they are products of metabolic pathways dysregulated by different diseases. To provide insights on PEx classification and other clinical factors, exhaled breath was collected from subjects with CF, with some experiencing PEx and others at baseline. Exhaled breath was collected in Tedlar bags during tidal breathing for VOC analysis by solid phase microextraction coupled to gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Statistical significance testing between quantitative and categorical clinical variables displayed percent-predicted forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1pp) was decreased in subjects experiencing PEx. VOCs correlating with other clinical variables (body mass index, age, use of highly effective modulator therapies, and need for antibiotics) were also explored. VOCs correlating to potential confounding variables were removed and analyzed by regression for correlations with FEV1pp measurements. The VOC with the highest correlation with FEV1pp (3,7-dimethyldecane) also gave the lowest p-value when comparing subjects at baseline and during PEx. Receiver operator characteristic curves showed 3,7-dimethyldecane had a higher ability to classify PEx (area under the curve (AUC) = 0.91) relative to FEV1pp values at collection (AUC = 0.83). However, normalized ΔFEV1pp values had the highest capability to distinguish PEx (AUC = 0.93). These results show that exhaled VOCs may be a source of biomarkers for various clinical traits of CF, including PEx, that should be explored in larger sample cohorts and validation studies.

PMID:35120338 | DOI:10.1088/1752-7163/ac522f

Altern Ther Health Med. 2022 Jan;28(1):8-10.

ABSTRACT

CONTEXT: Rice Bran Arabinoxylan Compound (RBAC) is a trusted and proven immunomodulator made from a rice bran extract that has been enzymatically modified with an enzyme complex from the shiitake mushroom.

OBJECTIVE: The study’s primary objective was to identify the role of RBAC in supporting cancer therapies.

DESIGN: The author designed an open study.

PARTICIPANTS: Participants were 14 patients who are suffering from various type of malignancies.

INTERVENTION: BRM4 capsules-a commercially available, proprietary RBAC supplement-were administered.

OUTCOME MEASURES: The study measured circulating tumor cells (CTC) and tumor markers-the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and cancer antigens 125 (CA125) 15-3 (CA15-3), and 27-29 (CA27-29) for the relevant malignancy.

RESULTS: Twelve out of 14 participants completed the protocol, and two participants died during the study. Of the 12 participants completing the study, the CTC levels were reduced in 10, with a statistically significant difference between the testing at baseline and postintervention (P = .0047). The tumor markers of various malignancies decreased for nine out the 12 participants, and one participant experienced remission.

CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that the product can be an effective immunomodulator that can complement conventional cancer treatment.

PMID:35120333