Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland)

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of obesity has been increasing worldwide. It has been reported that physiological and environmental factors such as diet, culture, physical activity, and genetics are the principal factors related to obesity. The fat mass and obesity-associated ( FTO ) gen variant (rs9939609: T>A) has been associated with class III obesity. The A variant has been correlated with anthropometric and metabolic alterations. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to analyze the association of the FTO rs9939609: T>A variant and environmental factors with clinical, anthropometric, and biochemical variables in subjects with class III obesity...

BACKGROUND: Current policies to reduce the use of involuntary admissions are largely oriented towards specialist mental health care and have had limited success. We co-created, with stakeholders in five Norwegian municipalities, the 'Reducing Coercion in Norway' (ReCoN) intervention that aims to reduce involuntary admissions by improving the way in which primary mental health services work and collaborate. The intervention was implemented in five municipalities and is being tested in a cluster randomized control trial, which is yet to be published...

BACKGROUND: Articulating a clear scope of practice for all nursing categories is essential for improving patient safety, quality of care, and nurse retention. However, this is not the case in many countries, including Saudi Arabia. This study aimed to analyze the actual scope of practice for nursing staff in Saudi Ministry of Health hospitals. METHODS: The study used a cross-sectional exploratory design. The sampling method used in the study was the quota sampling technique...

Increased physical activity may prevent disease onset and severity in individuals with cardiovascular disease. However, studies evaluating physical activity in people with cardiovascular disease are limited. This prospective observational study aimed to objectively assess the level of physical activity in patients with cardiovascular disease and determine the actual extent of physical activity in their daily lives. Participants aged 20 years or older with cardiovascular disease at a cardiology clinic were included...

BACKGROUND: The reliability of determining fluid responsiveness during surgery in geriatric patients is challenging. Our primary outcome was to determine the reliability of Corrected Flow Time (FTc) in predicting fluid responsiveness. METHODS: Elderly patients undergoing major surgery under general anesthesia were included. Measurements of common carotid artery diameter, velocity time integral, and systolic flow time (FT) were performed before and after a fluid challenge...

The Thai Diagnostic Autism Scale (TDAS) was developed for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis in Thai children aged 1-5 years. Previous studies have indicated its good performance; however, additional health resources and healthcare providers are necessary for evaluation. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the cost-effectiveness of TDAS compared to clinical diagnosis (ClinDx) for ASD diagnosis in Thai children aged 1-5 years from a societal perspective. The analysis employed a hybrid model consisting of a decision tree model for a diagnostic phase with a state transition model for a follow-up phase...

The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine can prevent HPV-related oropharyngeal cancers. Dental practitioners are uniquely positioned to promote HPV vaccines during routine dental care but experience barriers to doing so. Qualitative interviews were conducted with dental practitioners to understand barriers and inform intervention strategies to promote HPV vaccines. Dental practitioners were invited to participate in phone interviews about knowledge, self-efficacy, and the fear of negative consequences related to HPV vaccine promotion as well as feedback on potential interventions to address these barriers...

Male infertility is a relevant public health problem, but there is no systematic review of the different machine learning (ML) models and their accuracy so far. The present review aims to comprehensively investigate the use of ML algorithms in predicting male infertility, thus reporting the accuracy of the used models in the prediction of male infertility as a primary outcome. Particular attention will be paid to the use of artificial neural networks (ANNs). A comprehensive literature search was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, and Science Direct between 15 July and 23 October 2023, conducted under the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines...

The Stanford Chronic Disease Self-Management Program (CDSMP) is a valuable educational resource for supporting patients' self-management behaviors. However, no evidence supporting its effectiveness in the Saudi Arabian population exists. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the 6-month CDSMP in individuals with chronic conditions in Saudi Arabia within a primary care context. A quasi-experimental design was conducted in 110 adults living with ≥1 chronic disease in Saudi Arabia...

A study in Gran Canaria assessed the oral health of 53 children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and 106 without ADHD, aged 6 to 16 years. Clinical data on dental caries, conservative treatments, and periodontal health were recorded. The main objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of dental caries in children with ADHD and how their habits and behaviors contribute to their oral health status. The results showed that children with ADHD had a significant increase in dental caries, conservative treatments, and gingival bleeding...

This study aimed to investigate the effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) with gastrocnemius (GCM) strength exercise on foot morphology in patients with stroke. Herein, 31 patients with chronic stroke meeting the study criteria were enrolled and divided into two groups; 16 patients were randomized to the gastrocnemius neuromuscular electrical stimulation (GCMNMES) group, and 15 patients to the conventional neuromuscular electrical stimulation (CNMES) group. The GCMNMES group conducted GCM-strengthening exercise with NMES...

Structured health system-based programs, such as cardiac rehabilitation, may reduce the risk of recurrent stroke. This study aimed to co-design and evaluate a structured program of rehabilitation, developed based on insights from focus groups involving stroke survivors and health professionals. Conducted in Tasmania, Australia in 2019, the 7-week program comprised one hour of group exercise and one hour of education each week. Functional capacity (6 min walk test), fatigue, symptoms of depression (Patient Health Questionnaire), and lifestyle were assessed pre- and post-program, with a historical control group for comparison...

Adolescents often experience insufficient sleep and have unhealthy sleep habits. Our aim was to investigate the sleep patterns of secondary education students in Heraklion, Crete, Greece and their association with school performance and health habits. We conducted a community-based cross-sectional study with 831 students aged 13-19 years who completed an online self-reported questionnaire related to sleep and health habits. The data are mostly numerical or categorical, and an analysis was performed using t -tests, chi-square tests and multiple logistic regression...

The state of confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic affected the quality of life of the general population. This study aims to define and contrast an explanatory model of the quality of life in adults and to analyze the relationships between these variables based on the state of confinement and sex. A total of 872 people from Chile aged between 17 and 50 (M = 21.70 years; SD= 3.272), of both sexes (60.90% male and 39.1% female) participated in this research, of whom 46.6% were not confined when tested and 53...

Our professional activity is constantly under pressure from a multitude of elements and factors that can be classified into the four components of the VUCA phenomenon-volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity-components that define the turbulence and challenges of the external environment. Considering the general elements of this phenomenon, we designed a new VUCA dimension specific to the healthcare field within which we have identified and analyzed all the factors that can influence the main actors of the doctor-patient relationship and the effects that can occur within the healthcare system in which this relationship is born...

Video gamers can play to negate the psychological impact of stress, which may become problematic when users over-rely on the stress relief potential of gaming. This study used a repeated measures experimental design to investigate the relationships between stress, video gaming, and problematic video gaming behaviours in a convenience sample of 40 students at a UK university. The results indicated that positive affect increased and negative affect decreased, whilst a biological stress measure (instantaneous pulse rate) also decreased after a short video gaming session ( t (36) = 4...

Aphasia, a communication disability commonly caused by stroke, can profoundly affect a person's mood and identity. We explored the experiences of stroke survivors with aphasia and depression who received a modified cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)-based psychological intervention. The therapy is manualized with a flexible treatment protocol, including 10 individually based therapy sessions (+2 booster sessions) either via telehealth or in person. Six participants with chronic aphasia (60% of the total sample) participated in in-depth interviews that were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis...

BACKGROUND: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder affecting upper and lower motor neurons. Some ALS patients exhibit concomitant nonmotor signs; thus, ALS is considered a multisystemic disorder. Pain is an important nonmotor symptom. Observational and case-control studies report high frequency of pain in ALS patients and it has been correlated with depression and quality of life. There are no specific scales for the assessment of pain and no randomized controlled trials (RCTs) regarding the drug management of pain in ALS...

Regional anaesthesia, referred to as regional blocks, is one of the most frequently used methods of anaesthesia for surgery and for pain management. Local anaesthetic drug should be administered as close to the nerve as possible. If administered too far away, this may result in insufficient block. If it is administrated too close, severe nerve damage can occur. Neurostimulation techniques and ultrasound imaging have improved the effectiveness and safety of blockade, but the risk of nerve injury with permanent nerve disfunction has not been eliminated...

Choroid plexus (CP) can be seen as a watchtower of the central nervous system (CNS) that actively regulates CNS homeostasis. A growing body of literature suggests that CP alterations are involved in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS) but the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. CPs are enlarged and inflamed in relapsing-remitting (RRMS) but also in clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) and radiologically isolated syndrome (RIS) stages, far beyond MS diagnosis. Increases in the choroid plexus/total intracranial volume (CP/TIV) ratio have been robustly associated with increased lesion load, higher translocator protein (TSPO) uptake in normal-appearing white matter (NAWM) and thalami, as well as with higher annual relapse rate and disability progression in highly active RRMS individuals, but not in progressive MS...