Glycogen availability and pH variation in a medium simulating vaginal fluid influence the growth of vaginal Lactobacillus species and Gardnerella vaginalis.

Background: Glycogen metabolism by Lactobacillus spp. that dominate the healthy vaginal microbiome contributes to a low vaginal pH (3.5-4.

Cultural dimensions of individualism and collectivism and risk of opioid misuse: A test of Social Cognitive Theory.

Background: Despite the critical role social and cultural contexts play in pain experience, limited theoretical and empirical attention has been devoted to the interplay between social, cognitive, cultural, and psychological factors in chronic pain management and the risk of opioid misuse.

Methods: Using structural equation modeling, the present study tested the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) of chronic pain management and risk of opioid misuse in the context of intraindividual cultural dimensions of individualism and collectivism among 316 ethnically diverse adults with chronic pain in the United States.

Results: Social cognitive predictors account for a significant amount of variance in pain dysfunction and risk of opioid misuse in adults with chronic pain.