Validation of the Ocular Pain Assessment Survey Instrument With Rasch Analysis.

Purpose: The Ocular Pain Assessment Survey (OPAS) has been used to quantify chronic ocular pain and quality of life (QOL). We aim to investigate the psychometric properties of individual OPAS items with the Rasch analysis in an Asian population of dry eye disease and neuropathic corneal pain (NCP).

Methods: Question responses were obtained from 196 patients; 138 with dry eye disease (DED) and 58 with NCP, at the Singapore National Eye Centre.

M̓ṇúxvʔit model for centering Indigenous knowledge and governance.

The importance of Indigenous (and local) knowledge and governance systems for addressing social and ecological crises is increasingly recognized. Unfortunately, attempts to incorporate Indigenous knowledge into Western approaches, often without the full leadership, consent, and participation of the peoples holding those knowledges, can cause harm and can constitute extractive activities. However, there remains considerable potential in collaborations bringing together multiple perspectives and knowledges.

Efficacy and Safety of Fixed-Dose Combinations for Pain in Older Adults.

Pain is common in older adults and managing pain in this population can be challenging owing to altered pharmacokinetics, multimorbidity, polypharmacy, cognitive impairment, and physical frailty. A fixed-dose combination (FDC) analgesic contains two or more pharmaceutical ingredients in a single pill and may offer more benefits when compared with loose-dose formulations. The benefits include reduced pill burden and better adherence, a broader analgesic spectrum well-suited to multimechanistic pain conditions and more predictable pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties.

The influence of pain catastrophizing on pain and function after knee arthroplasty in knee osteoarthritis.

Pain catastrophizing is an exaggerated focus on pain sensations. It may be an independent factor influencing pain and functional outcomes of knee arthroplasty. We aimed to evaluate the association between pre-operative pain catastrophizing with pain and function outcomes up to one year after knee arthroplasty.

The impact of chronic fluoxetine treatment in adolescence or adulthood on context fear memory and perineuronal nets.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, such as fluoxetine (Prozac), are commonly prescribed pharmacotherapies for anxiety. Fluoxetine may be a useful adjunct because it can reduce the expression of learned fear in adult rodents. This effect is associated with altered expression of perineuronal nets (PNNs) in the amygdala and hippocampus, two brain regions that regulate fear.

COVID-19 Pandemic Simulation Modelling in Anaesthesia Residency Training to Predict Delays and Workforce Deficiencies: A Case Study of the Singapore Residency Training Program.

Background COVID-19 has been the worst pandemic of this century, resulting in economic, social, and educational disruptions. Residency training is no exception, with training restrictions delaying the progression and graduation of residents. We sought to utilize simulation modelling to predict the impact on future cohorts in the event of repeated and prolonged movement restrictions due to COVID-19 and future pandemics of a similar nature.

What drives low-income older adults' intention to use mobility applications?

Aim: Mobility applications have the potential to support low-income older adults in facing mobility challenges. However, there is a generally lower uptake of technology in this segment. To understand factors affecting the intention to use a mobility app, we drew upon the Protection Motivation Theory, and tested a model of low-income older adults' technology adoption.

Factors influencing technology use among low-income older adults: A systematic review.

As the world's aging population increases, leveraging technology to support aging is proving advantageous. Notably, technology adoption studies among older adults have received increasing scholarly attention, but findings from these studies do not reflect the context of low-income older adults. Studies focusing on low-income older adults were relatively few and it remains unclear which factors influence this group's technology use.

Pericapsular nerve group (PENG) block for early pain management of elderly patients with hip fracture: a single-center double-blind randomized controlled trial.

Background: The pericapsular nerve group block (PENG) is a novel technique that blocks the articular branches of the hip joint. This study aimed to compare its effectiveness to a sham block in elderly patients with hip fractures.

Method: A randomized double-blind controlled trial was conducted in elderly patients with intertrochanteric and neck of femur fractures.

Incidence of neonatal sepsis after universal antenatal culture-based screening of group B streptococcus and intrapartum antibiotics: A multicentre retrospective cohort study.

Objective: To compare the incidences of early and late-onset neonatal sepsis, including group B streptococcus (GBS) and Escherichia coli (E. coli) before and after implementation of universal screening and intrapartum antibiotics prophylaxis (IAP).

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Effects of regional anaesthesia on mortality in patients undergoing lower extremity amputation: A retrospective pooled analysis.

Background And Aims: Lower extremity amputation (LEA) is a commonly performed surgery and is associated with significant mortality and morbidity. This review compares the impact of anaesthetic technique on 30-day mortality and other perioperative outcomes in patients undergoing LEA.

Methods: A systematic search of databases including PubMed, Embase, Scopus and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, from January 2010 to March 2021, was performed.

Impact of pain sensitisation on the quality of life of patients with knee osteoarthritis.

Objectives: We aim to evaluate the effect on different ways of classifying pain sensitisation on impact and quality of life (QoL) in knee osteoarthritis (KOA).

Methods: We used baseline data from a cohort of consecutive patients with KOA listed for arthroplasty. We collected demographics and number of painful body sites.

Clinical Challenges and Considerations in Management of Chronic Pain Patients During a COVID-19 Pandemic.

Since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was deemed a pandemic on 11 March 2020, we have seen exponential increases in the number of cases and deaths worldwide. The rapidly evolving COVID-19 situation requires revisions to clinical practice to defer non-essential clinical services to allocate scarce medical resources to the care of the COVID-19 patient and reduce risk to healthcare workers. Chronic pain patients require long-term multidisciplinary management even during a pandemic.

Collaboration between a tertiary pain centre and community teams during the pandemic.

People with chronic pain faced potential treatment disruption during the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore, as the focus of healthcare shifted. A model of rapid integration of a pain centre with community healthcare teams was implemented to care for vulnerable older patients with chronic pain and multiple comorbidities. Telemedicine and home visits by community nurses were used, with risk-mitigation measures, ensuring comprehensive assessment and treatment compliance.

Transcriptomic, epigenetic, and functional analyses implicate neutrophil diversity in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus.

Neutrophil dysregulation is implicated in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). SLE is characterized by elevated levels of a pathogenic neutrophil subset known as low-density granulocytes (LDGs). The origin and phenotypic, functional, and pathogenic heterogeneity of LDGs remain to be systematically determined.

Pandemic Uropathogenic Fluoroquinolone-resistant Escherichia coli Have Enhanced Ability to Persist in the Gut and Cause Bacteriuria in Healthy Women.

We report that fluoroquinolone-resistant Escherichia coli are found in feces of 8.8% of healthy women, with most bacteria belonging to pandemic multidrug-resistant ST131-H30R or ST1193 clonal groups. Moreover, these highly uropathogenic clonal groups demonstrate an especially prolonged gut persistence and high rate of bacteriuria without documented urinary tract infection.

Safety and Tolerability of Omalizumab: A Randomized Clinical Trial of Humanized Anti-IgE Monoclonal Antibody in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.

Objective: Autoreactive IgE antibodies have been implicated in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We hypothesize that omalizumab, a monoclonal antibody binding IgE, may improve SLE activity by reducing type I interferon (IFN) production by hampering plasmacytoid dendritic cells and basophil activation. This study was undertaken to assess the safety, tolerability, and clinical efficacy of omalizumab in mild to moderate SLE.

A precision medicine approach to pharmacological adjuncts to extinction: a call to broaden research.

There is a pressing need to improve treatments for anxiety. Although exposure-based therapy is currently the gold-standard treatment, many people either do not respond to this therapy or experience a relapse of symptoms after treatment has ceased. In recent years, there have been many novel pharmacological agents identified in preclinical research that have potential as adjuncts for exposure therapy, yet very few of these are regularly integrated into clinical practice.

Development of the Combined Assessment of Risk Encountered in Surgery (CARES) surgical risk calculator for prediction of postsurgical mortality and need for intensive care unit admission risk: a single-center retrospective study.

Introduction: Accurate surgical risk prediction is paramount in clinical shared decision making. Existing risk calculators have limited value in local practice due to lack of validation, complexities and inclusion of non-routine variables.

Objective: We aim to develop a simple, locally derived and validated surgical risk calculator predicting 30-day postsurgical mortality and need for intensive care unit (ICU) stay (>24 hours) based on routinely collected preoperative variables.