Quantification of Radiation-Induced Fibrosis in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Using Shear Wave Elastography.

Background Radiation-induced fibrosis (RIF) is a common side effect in head and neck cancer (HNC) patients treated with radiotherapy. A validated tool to measure RIF does not currently exist. In this study, we evaluate the ability of shear wave elastography (SWE) to measure RIF in HNC survivors.

Age-related differences in olfactory training outcomes: A prospective cohort study.

Introduction: While olfactory function decreases with age, it is unknown how age affects olfactory training (OT) efficacy. This study compared OT in two cohorts of subjects: aged ≤50 (younger cohort) and aged 51+ (older cohort) with olfactory dysfunction (OD) primarily from COVID-19 infection.

Methods: Subjects with OD primarily secondary to COVID-19 infection were prospectively recruited and enrolled into an OT registry.

Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Head and Neck: Pathological Features and What They Mean for Prognosis and Treatment.

Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide, with an incidence that has increased over the past 30 years. Although usually curable with excision, cSCC can become widely metastatic and aggressive with poor outcomes. Whereas the clinical and radiographic extent of any cancer will always guide selection of treatment modality, pathological features of cSCC also play an important role in determining prognosis and, subsequently, the need for further therapy.

How to design equitable digital health tools: A narrative review of design tactics, case studies, and opportunities.

With a renewed focus on health equity in the United States driven by national crises and legislation to improve digital healthcare innovation, there is a need for the designers of digital health tools to take deliberate steps to design for equity in their work. A concrete toolkit of methods to design for health equity is needed to support digital health practitioners in this aim. This narrative review summarizes several health equity frameworks to help digital health practitioners conceptualize the equity dimensions of importance for their work, and then provides design approaches that accommodate an equity focus.

Text Messages Conveying Parental Drinking Limits: A Potential Avenue for Preventing and Reducing Alcohol Use in College Students.

Objective: Although previous research has established that students who perceive that their parents have lower drinking limits on underage drinking consume less alcohol, optimal approaches for effectively communicating these limits are less understood. To address this gap in the literature, the present study examined the effects of hypothetical limit-focused text messages on estimated drinking behavior.

Method: Undergraduate college students ( = 253) completed an online survey in which they were instructed to imagine a scenario in which they were planning to go out at night to an event involving drinking.

Acceptability and concerns about innovative wearable health sensors in persons with and without chronic disease diagnosis.

Advances in biomedical engineering continue to produce innovative wearable health sensors capable of real-time ambulatory assessments (e.g., of physiology, the environment), holding great potential for advancing precision monitoring and interventions through the integration of such devices and data into eHealth systems.

Implementing text-messaging to support and enhance delivery of health behavior change interventions in low- to middle-income countries: case study of the Lifestyle Africa intervention.

The prevalence of non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, is rising in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Health behavior change (HBC) interventions such as the widely used Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) are effective at reducing chronic disease risk, but have not been adapted for LMICs. Leveraging mobile health (mHealth) technology such as text messaging (SMS) to enhance reach and participant engagement with these interventions has great promise, yet we lack evidence-informed approaches to guide the integration of SMS specifically to support HBC interventions in LMIC contexts.

Cost-effectiveness of : an adaptation of the diabetes prevention programme for delivery by community health workers in urban South Africa.

Background: is an adapted version of the Diabetes Prevention Program designed for delivery by community health workers to socioeconomically disadvantaged populations in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Results from the trial conducted in an under-resourced community in South Africa indicated that the programme had a significant effect on reducing haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c).

Objective: To estimate the cost of implementation and the cost-effectiveness (in cost per point reduction in HbA1c) of the programme to inform decision-makers of the resources required and the value of this intervention.

Evaluation of an adapted version of the Diabetes Prevention Program for low- and middle-income countries: A cluster randomized trial to evaluate "Lifestyle Africa" in South Africa.

Background: Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are experiencing major increases in diabetes and cardiovascular conditions linked to overweight and obesity. Lifestyle interventions such as the United States National Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) developed in high-income countries require adaptation and cultural tailoring for LMICs. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of "Lifestyle Africa," an adapted version of the DPP tailored for an underresourced community in South Africa compared to usual care.

Influence of ecological momentary assessment study design features on reported willingness to participate and perceptions of potential research studies: an experimental study.

Objective: Intensive ambulatory assessment, such as ecological momentary assessment (EMA), is increasingly used to capture naturalistic patient-reported outcomes. EMA design features (eg, study duration, prompt frequency) vary widely between studies, but it is not known if such design decisions influence potential subjects' willingness to participate in a study. We hypothesise that intentions to participate will be higher in studies that are less burdensome and have higher reward (eg, compensation).

Acceptability of Intervention Design Factors in mHealth Intervention Research: Experimental Factorial Study.

Background: With the growing interest in mobile health (mHealth), behavioral medicine researchers are increasingly conducting intervention studies that use mobile technology (eg, to support healthy behavior change). Such studies' scientific premises are often sound, yet there is a dearth of implementational data on which to base mHealth research methodologies. Notably, mHealth approaches must be designed to be acceptable to research participants to support meaningful engagement, but little empirical data about design factors influencing acceptability in such studies exist.

Understanding and Preventing Health Concerns About Emerging Mobile Health Technologies.

New technologies and innovations have often improved population well-being and societal function; however, these are also often initially accompanied by worry and fear. In some cases, such worries can impede, or even prevent entirely, the adoption of the technology. Mobile health (mHealth), a discipline broadly focused on employing ambulatory technologies to improve the affordability, reach, and effectiveness of health promotion and clinical intervention approaches, offers new innovations and opportunities.

Beliefs about Using Smartphones for Health Behavior Change: An Elicitation Study with Overweight and Obese Rural Women.

Background: Despite increased interest in developing mobile technology-based interventions, little research has examined preferences and beliefs about using smartphones for psychosocial or health behavior change interventions, particularly among women with overweight/obesity residing in rural communities.

Purpose: The aims of this study were to examine the beliefs of pre- and interconceptional women about using smartphones and to examine the extent to which women's preferences for using smartphones changed as a result of participating in study interviews.

Methods: Forty women ( age = 28.

Preconceptional health behavior change in women with overweight and obesity: prototype for SMART strong healthy women intervention.

Background: The prevalence of maternal perinatal obesity is rising, and in turn, increases health risks and morbidity for both mother and child. Past evidence suggests the preconceptional Strong Healthy Women (SHW) intervention can reduce multiple biobehavioral risk factors for adverse perinatal health. The SHW intervention, however, was time- and resource-intensive to deliver.

Let's get technical: Enhancing program evaluation through the use and integration of internet and mobile technologies.

Program evaluation has become increasingly important, and information on program performance often drives funding decisions. Technology use and integration can help ease the burdens associated with program evaluation by reducing the resources needed (e.g.