Estimating blood pressure trends and the nocturnal dip from photoplethysmography.

Objective: Evaluate a method for the estimation of the nocturnal systolic blood pressure (SBP) dip from 24 h blood pressure trends using a wrist-worn photoplethysmography (PPG) sensor and a deep neural network in free-living individuals, comparing the deep neural network to traditional machine learning and non-machine learning baselines.

Approach: A wrist-worn PPG sensor was worn by 106 healthy individuals for 226 d during which 5111 reference values for blood pressure (BP) were obtained with a 24 h ambulatory BP monitor and matched with the PPG sensor data. Features based on heart rate variability and pulse morphology were extracted from the PPG waveforms.

Training community healthcare workers on the use of information and communication technologies: a randomised controlled trial of traditional versus blended learning in Malawi, Africa.

Background: Despite the increasing uptake of information and communication technologies (ICT) within healthcare services across developing countries, community healthcare workers (CHWs) have limited knowledge to fully utilise computerised clinical systems and mobile apps. The 'Introduction to Information and Communication Technology and eHealth' course was developed with the aim to provide CHWs in Malawi, Africa, with basic knowledge and computer skills to use digital solutions in healthcare delivery. The course was delivered using a traditional and a blended learning approach.

Selected rapporteur summaries from the XX World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics, Hamburg, Germany, October 14-18, 2012.

The XXth World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics (WCPG), sponsored by The International Society of Psychiatric Genetics (ISPG) took place in Hamburg, Germany on October 14-18, 2012. Approximately 600 participants gathered to discuss the latest findings in this rapidly advancing field. The following report was written by student travel awardees.

Integration of the circadian and stress systems: influence of neuropeptides and implications for alcohol consumption.

Disruptions in circadian rhythm and stress reactivity are associated with risks of developing neuropsychiatric disorders. The circadian system is organised in a hierarchical manner, whereby the master clock is located at the suprachiasmatic nucleus, a highly conserved brain region that coordinates the oscillations of peripheral clocks. Exposure to psychological stress leads to activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.