Race and ethnic disparities in rehabilitation services and functional recovery post-stroke.

Objective: To identify race/ethnic disparities in rehabilitation services after stroke and characterize the independent associations of each of race/ethnicity and rehabilitation to functional recovery post-stroke.

Methods: The Transitions of Care Stroke Disparities Study (TCSD-S) is a prospective cohort study designed to reduce disparities and to optimize the transitions of care for stroke survivors throughout the state of Florida. Participant characteristics were extracted from the American Heart Association's Get-With-The-Guidelines-Stroke dataset.

Development and Implementation of a Context-Specific Multi-modal Point-of-Care Ultrasound Curriculum for a Kenyan Family Medicine Residency Program.

Access to diagnostic imaging is significantly limited in much of the world, and sub-Saharan Africa is no exception. Clinician-performed point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) may provide increased access to diagnostic imaging for many patients in low-resource settings, but training in this modality is limited. We describe the development and implementation of a context-specific, multi-modal pilot POCUS curriculum involving hands-on instruction, in-person and online didactics, asynchronous online image review, and quantitative evaluation.

Material hardship and sources of support for autistic adolescents and their families.

Our study looks at how families with autistic teenagers manage financially compared with families with teenagers who do not have autism. We know that money matters are a big part of life's overall quality and that autistic individuals and their families often face more financial challenges. These challenges can affect their health, social connections, and access to needed services.

Exploring Youths' Cannabis Health Literacy Post Legalization: A Qualitative Study.

Legalization of non-medical cannabis in Canada was intended to protect youth health and safety by limiting access and raising awareness of safety and risks. The purpose of this qualitative research was to explore youths' perceptions of their cannabis health literacy and future educational needs. A convenience sample of youth aged 13 to 18 residing in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada who may or may not have consumed cannabis were included.

The Effects of Plant-Microbe-Environment Interactions on Mineral Weathering Patterns in a Granular Basalt.

The importance of biota to soil formation and landscape development is widely recognized. As biotic complexity increases during early succession via colonization by soil microbes followed by vascular plants, effects of biota on mineral weathering and soil formation become more complex. Knowledge of the interactions among groups of organisms and environmental conditions will enable us to better understand landscape evolution.

Post-Pandemic Engagement of Youth in Virtual Environments: Reflections and Lessons Learned From the Development of a Youth Education Program.

The COVID-19 pandemic introduced new landscapes for research and public engagement participation. This shift was accompanied by significant challenges and unique opportunities for engaging youth as active participants and collaborators. This commentary will reflect on insights gained from conducting a variety of virtual youth engagement activities during the pandemic, within a rights-based and empirical approach.

Discharge Communication and the Achievement of Lifestyle and Behavioral Changes Post-Stroke in the Transitions of Care Stroke Disparities Study.

This study identifies the association between patient perception of discharge education/resources and adequate transitions of care (ATOC) (i.e., patient achievement of at least 75% of recommended positive behaviors and activities within 30 days post-stroke hospitalization).

Views of research ethics committee members on end-of-participation communications for trial participants who stop taking part: a cross-sectional survey study.

Background: Giving information to trial participants who stop taking part could support them through what can be a difficult process. We previously developed guidance around the ethical acceptability of such information provision, and about how trialists can develop suitable communication materials. There is limited evidence about what research ethics committees think of this issue, and limited guidance about what level of oversight they should have over the proposed communications, or post-consent participant communications generally.

The association between social networks and functional recovery after stroke.

Background And Purpose: Social determinants of health (SDOH), including social networks, impact disability and quality of life post-stroke, yet the direct influence of SDOH on functional change remains undetermined. We aimed to identify which SDOH predict change on the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) within 90 days after stroke hospitalization.

Methods: Stroke patients from the Transitions of Care Stroke Disparities Study (TCSDS) were enrolled from 12 hospitals in the Florida Stroke Registry.

Chronic Health Conditions Among Adults With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in a State Medicaid System.

Despite a growing number of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and documented risk for adverse outcomes as they age, little is known about the health and healthcare patterns of adults with different IDD throughout adulthood. This study uses Wisconsin Medicaid claims data to characterize health conditions among adults with IDD. Results indicate high prevalence of asthma, diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension.

CD4, but not Cxcr6, is necessary for control of Pneumocystis murina infection.

CD4+ T cells are critical to control of Pneumocystis infection, and Cxcr6 has been shown to be upregulated in these cells during infection, but the roles of CD4 and Cxcr6 in this setting are undefined. To explore this, mice deficient in CD4 or Cxcr6 expression were utilized in a co-housing mouse model that mimics the natural route of Pneumocystis infection. Organism load and anti-Pneumocystis antibodies were assayed over time, and immunohistochemistry, flow cytometry, and quantitative PCR were used to characterize host immune responses during infection.

The effect of 30-day adequate transitions of acute stroke care on 90-day readmission or death.

Objectives: We explore patient-reported behaviors and activities within 30-days post-stroke hospitalization and their role in reducing death or readmissions within 90-days post-stroke.

Methods: We constructed the adequate transitions of care (ATOC) composite score, measuring patient-reported participation in eligible behaviors and activities (diet modification, weekly exercise, follow-up medical appointment attendance, medication adherence, therapy use, and toxic habit cessation) within 30 days post-stroke hospital discharge. We analyzed ATOC scores in ischemic and intracerebral hemorrhage stroke patients discharged from the hospital to home or rehabilitation facilities and enrolled in the NIH-funded Transitions of Care Stroke Disparities Study (TCSD-S).

Psychological distress and mental health diagnoses in adults by disability and functional difficulty status: Findings from the 2021 national health interview survey.

Background: Evidence suggests that disabled people have worse mental health than non-disabled people, but the degree to which disability contributes to mental health is unclear.

Objective: This paper uses 2021 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) data to estimate the association between disability and depression and anxiety diagnoses as well as psychological distress among adults.

Methods: We calculated disability population prevalence and mental health diagnoses and associated symptoms among 28,534 NHIS respondents.

Exploring consumer preferences for cannabis edible products to support public health policy: A discrete choice experiment.

Background: In October 2019, cannabis edibles were legalized for sale in Canada for non-medical use. This move was intended to improve public safety by regulating contents (including a maximum 10 mg tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) per package) and packaging to prevent accidental ingestion or over consumption. This study aimed to explore consumer preferences for cannabis edibles to inform cannabis policy.

Approaches and experiences implementing remote, electronic consent at the Leeds Clinical Trials Research Unit.

Background: Use of electronic methods to support informed consent ('eConsent') is increasingly popular in clinical research. This commentary reports the approach taken to implement electronic consent methods and subsequent experiences from a range of studies at the Leeds Clinical Trials Research Unit (CTRU), a large clinical trials unit in the UK.

Main Text: We implemented a remote eConsent process using the REDCap platform.

A survey of educator perspectives toward teaching harm reduction cannabis education.

Introduction: Substance use is common among youth which can adversely affect youth health. Despite the legalization of cannabis in Canada and much of the United States, there is a lack of harm reduction cannabis education in schools. In addition, educators may not feel prepared to teach students about cannabis.

How can we support research participants who stop taking part? Communications guidance developed through public-researcher collaboration.

Background: Research study participants can stop taking part early, in various circumstances. Sometimes this experience can be stressful. Providing participants with the information they want or need when they stop could improve participants' experiences, and may benefit individual studies' objectives and research in general.

Pharmacological Treatments for Localized Provoked Vulvodynia: A Scoping Review.

Introduction: Localized provoked vulvodynia (LPV) is a chronic pain condition without an identifiable cause that is localized to a portion of the vulva and provoked by pressure or touch. LPV is a commonly occurring but poorly understood condition lacking consensus on management.

Method: This scoping review used Arksey and O'Malley's approach to identify and evaluate literature published between 2010 and 2023 that addressed the question: What is the current evidence on the efficacy or effectiveness of pharmacological treatments in the management of LPV?

Results: This review evaluated 18 papers reporting on the efficacy or effectiveness of oral, topical, and injectable medications.

New Oldowan locality Sare-Abururu (ca. 1.7 Ma) provides evidence of diverse hominin behaviors on the Homa Peninsula, Kenya.

The Homa Peninsula, in southwestern Kenya, continues to yield insights into Oldowan hominin landscape behaviors. The Late Pliocene locality of Nyayanga (∼3-2.6 Ma) preserves some of the oldest Oldowan tools.

CD40 Expression by B Cells Is Required for Optimal Immunity to Murine Pneumocystis Infection.

CD40-CD40 ligand interactions are critical for controlling Pneumocystis infection. However, which CD40-expressing cell populations are important for this interaction have not been well defined. We used a cohousing mouse model of Pneumocystis infection, combined with flow cytometry and quantitative polymerase chain reaction, to examine the ability of different populations of cells from C57BL/6 mice to reconstitute immunity in CD40 knockout mice.

"I'm dealing with a health care system that doesn't get it": Barriers and facilitators to inclusive healthcare for autistic adults.

Research has suggested that autistic adults may have a bigger chance of having mental health and physical health conditions such as depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, diabetes, obesity, and heart problems than adults without autism. Unfortunately, the unique healthcare needs of autistic adults are often overlooked, so it is not clear why autistic adults have worse health or what can be done to improve it. This study wants to find out the challenges autistic adults experience in taking care of their health and in going to different doctors.

Association between non-medical cannabis legalization and alcohol sales: Quasi-experimental evidence from Canada.

Background: There is increasing interest in understanding the impact of non-medical cannabis legalization on use of other substances, especially alcohol. Evidence on whether cannabis is a substitute or complement for alcohol is both mixed and limited. This study provides the first quasi-experimental evidence on the impact of Canada's legalization of non-medical cannabis on beer and spirits sales.

Planting the seeds for success: A qualitative study exploring primary healthcare providers' perceptions about medical cannabis.

Background: In Canada, cannabis legalization altered the way that the public can access cannabis for medical purposes. However, Canadians still struggle with finding healthcare professionals (HCPs) who are involved in medical cannabis counselling and authorization. This raises questions about the barriers that are causing this breakdown in care.

A Novel, Wearable Inertial Measurement Unit for Stroke Survivors: Validity, Acceptability, and Usability.

Objective: To establish the concurrent validity, acceptability, and sensor optimization of a consumer-grade, wearable, multi-sensor system to capture quantity and quality metrics of mobility and upper limb movements in stroke survivors.

Design: Single-session, cross-sectional.

Setting: Clinical research laboratory.

Building Community and Identity Online: A Content Analysis of Highly Viewed #Autism TikTok Videos.

Background: TikTok is a popular social media site for connecting with others online where many users also access and share health-related information. Previous studies have characterized information shared about specific disabilities on TikTok, but descriptions of autism-related content are lacking. Understanding the information shared about autism on TikTok is important to understanding health communication in this space, the lived experiences of autistic people, and the role that social media platforms play in building community through connection, understanding, and inclusion.