Publications by authors named "Karen Miller"

Dual-task training and exergaming interventions are increasingly recognized for their potential to enhance cognitive, physical, and mood outcomes among older adults and individuals with neurological conditions. Despite this, clinical and community programs that use these interventions are limited in availability. This paper presents the "FitBrain" program, an outpatient clinical model that combines dual-task and exergaming interventions to promote cognitive and physical health.

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  • Menstrually related mood disorder (MRMD) is characterized by severe emotional symptoms occurring in the late luteal phase of the menstrual cycle, which may be linked to low levels of the neuroactive steroid allopregnanolone due to lesser conversion from progesterone.
  • In a study with nine women with MRMD and fourteen healthy controls, MRMD was diagnosed using the DSM-5 criteria, and symptoms of depression and anxiety, as well as plasma neuroactive steroid levels, were assessed at different phases of the menstrual cycle.
  • Results showed that while women with MRMD had higher allopregnanolone levels in the mid-follicular phase, they experienced greater depression severity only in the late luteal phase, suggesting a
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  • This study highlights the importance of understanding population structure in harvested fish species to prevent stock depletion, emphasizing the lack of empirical data in this area.
  • Researchers analyzed genetic variation in three species of tropical snappers over a large area in north-western Australia, finding similar genetic structures despite differences in their biological traits.
  • Results suggest strong genetic connectivity among fish populations, indicating that current management practices may need to adapt, as these species do not adhere to the idea of completely isolated stocks.
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  • A study was conducted on 80 participants with moderate-to-severe depression, who participated in an 8-week trial of heated Bikram yoga to evaluate its effects on their mental health.
  • Participants reported immediate improvements in their depressive symptoms after yoga sessions, with most noting overall positive effects throughout the intervention, such as better sleep, mood, and energy levels.
  • However, some participants also expressed negative experiences with the classes, including dissatisfaction with instruction, difficulty, and boredom, though the majority reported mixed feelings with both positive and negative effects.
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Importance: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have revolutionized cancer care; however, accompanying immune-related adverse events (irAEs) confer substantial morbidity and occasional mortality. Life-threatening irAEs may require permanent cessation of ICI, even in patients with positive tumor response. Therefore, it is imperative to comprehensively define the spectrum of irAEs to aid individualized decision-making around the initiation of ICI therapy.

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  • Diuresis is crucial for treating patients with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) to relieve fluid buildup, but there's no one-size-fits-all diuretic strategy that has proven to be the best.
  • Current research highlights the connection between urine sodium levels and patient outcomes, suggesting that monitoring urine chemistry could help tailor diuretic treatments.
  • The review aims to consolidate existing studies on diuretic management, identify what we still don't know, and outline ongoing clinical trials that explore urine sodium-guided diuresis in ADHF management.
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  • * A study conducted between September 2018 and October 2022 in Tennessee and Georgia found that 12.1% of hospitalized adults with CAP had Streptococcus pneumoniae detected, with the most common serotypes being 3, 22F, 19A, and others.
  • * Findings suggest that a significant portion of detected serotypes, approximately one-third, are not covered by current vaccines like PCV15 and PCV20, indicating the need for new vaccines with broader serotype coverage to reduce disease occurrence.
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Immune checkpoint inhibitors have revolutionized cancer therapy but are associated with a risk of endocrine immune-related adverse events, including pituitary complications. Autoimmune hypophysitis, traditionally a rare diagnosis, has become a more frequently encountered clinical entity with the emergence of antitumor immunotherapy. This mini-review aims to consolidate current knowledge, encompassing the epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management of pituitary complications of immune checkpoint inhibitor use.

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Background: Pegfilgrastim-cbqv/CHS-1701 (UDENYCA) (hereafter referred to as pegfilgrastim-cbqv) was approved in 2018 by the US Food and Drug Administration as a biosimilar for pegfilgrastim (Neulasta) (hereafter referred to as pegfilgrastim). Both pegfilgrastim-cbqv and pegfilgrastim are conjugates of recombinant human granulocyte colony stimulating factor (r-metHuG-CSF) with a 20 kDa polyethylene glycol (PEG) indicated to decrease the incidence of infection, as manifested by febrile neutropenia, in patients receiving myelosuppressive anticancer drugs. The demonstration of analytical similarity for PEG-protein conjugates presents unique challenges since both the protein and PEG attributes must be characterized.

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Objective: Mid-life cardiovascular risk factors are associated with later cognitive decline. Whether repetitive head injury among professional athletes impacts cardiovascular risk is unknown. We investigated associations between concussion burden and postcareer hypertension, high cholesterol, and diabetes among former professional American-style football (ASF) players.

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Background: Falls are a significant public health problem and constitute a major cause of injuries and mortality. Risk factors for falls are multifactorial and include medication use.

Aim: To develop and investigate the content validity of the Medication-Related fall (MRF) screening and scoring tool.

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Background: Canonical α/β T-cell receptors (TCRs) bind to human leukocyte antigen (HLA) displaying antigenic peptides to elicit T cell-mediated cytotoxicity. TCR-engineered T-cell immunotherapies targeting cancer-specific peptide-HLA complexes (pHLA) are generating exciting clinical responses, but owing to HLA restriction they are only able to target a subset of antigen-positive patients. More recently, evidence has been published indicating that naturally occurring α/β TCRs can target cell surface proteins other than pHLA, which would address the challenges of HLA restriction.

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Background: The primary goals during acute heart failure (AHF) hospitalization are decongestion and guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) optimization. Unlike diuretics or other GDMT, early dapagliflozin initiation could achieve both AHF goals.

Objectives: The authors aimed to assess the diuretic efficacy and safety of early dapagliflozin initiation in AHF.

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Introduction: Adopting healthy lifestyle behaviors has the potential to slow cognitive decline in older adults by reducing risks associated with dementia. Curriculum-based group health coaching may aid in establishing behavior change centered for dementia risk factors.

Methods: In this pilot clinical care patient group study ( = 6), we examined the effects of a six-month online Cognitive Health Program combined with a weekly telehealth support group led by the course creator, and personalized health optimization by a collaborating physician, in older adults with subjective cognitive decline.

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Importance: Aspirin may reduce severity of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and lower the incidence of end-stage liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma, in patients with MASLD. However, the effect of aspirin on MASLD is unknown.

Objective: To test whether low-dose aspirin reduces liver fat content, compared with placebo, in adults with MASLD.

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The study of molecular drivers of cancer is an area of rapid growth and has led to the development of targeted treatments, significantly improving patient outcomes in many cancer types. The identification of actionable mutations informing targeted treatment strategies are now considered essential to the management of cancer. Traditionally, this information has been obtained through biomarker assessment of a tissue biopsy which is costly and can be associated with clinical complications and adverse events.

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Physician parents encounter unique challenges in balancing new parenthood with work responsibilities, especially upon their return from parental leave. We designed a pilot program that incorporated 1:1 parental coaching to expectant and new physician parents and provided stipends for lactation support and help at home. Additional initiatives included launching a virtual new parent group during the COVID-19 pandemic and starting an emergency backup pump supplies program.

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To evaluate feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of heated yoga to treat moderate-to-severe depression. An 8-week randomized controlled trial (RCT) of heated yoga versus waitlist control was conducted from March 2017 to August 2019. Participants in the yoga condition were asked to attend heated yoga classes at 2 community heated yoga studios at least twice weekly.

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  • The study aimed to compare bone health outcomes in adolescent and young adult women with atypical anorexia nervosa (AAN), typical anorexia nervosa (AN), and normal-weight healthy controls (HC) based on DSM-5 criteria.
  • A total of 432 participants, aged 12-21, underwent bone density assessments, showing that bone outcomes in AAN were generally intermediate between AN and HC, with specifics on various bone metrics.
  • Factors such as lower BMI, lean mass, and illness duration were linked to poorer bone health, highlighting the impact of AAN on bone density compared to AN and HC.
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  • Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a prevalent liver condition, and the study aimed to differentiate between simpler steatosis and the more severe nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) using CT texture analysis.
  • Sixteen NAFLD patients underwent liver biopsies and CT scans to analyze gray-level texture features, finding that those with NASH had distinct CT texture results compared to those with simple steatosis.
  • The results indicated that lower entropy and mean pixel values could reliably predict NASH, suggesting that CT texture analysis could be an innovative tool for assessing liver disease progression.
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  • Adalimumab-aqvh, also known as YUSIMRY, is a newly approved biosimilar to the original adalimumab by the FDA.
  • The study aimed to evaluate the similarities between adalimumab-aqvh and the reference product by analyzing various structural and functional characteristics.
  • Results showed that adalimumab-aqvh is structurally and functionally similar to adalimumab, with minimal differences that do not affect its efficacy, supporting its classification as a biosimilar.
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Key ecological features (KEFs) are elements of Australia's Commonwealth marine environment considered to be important for biodiversity or ecosystem function, yet many KEFs are poorly researched, which can impede effective decision-making about future development and conservation. This study investigates a KEF positioned over the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) shoreline on the northwest shelf of Australia (known as the 'Ancient Coastline at ~125m depth contour'; AC125). Seafloor bathymetry, sedimentology and benthic habitats were characterised within five study areas using multibeam sonar, sediment samples and towed video imagery.

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Diuresis to achieve decongestion is a central aim of therapy in patients hospitalized for acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF). While multiple clinical trials have investigated initial diuretic strategies for a designated period of time, there is a paucity of evidence to guide diuretic titration strategies continued until decongestion is achieved. The use of urine chemistries (urine sodium and creatinine) in a natriuretic response prediction equation accurately estimates natriuresis in response to diuretic dosing, but a randomized clinical trial is needed to compare a urine chemistry-guided diuresis strategy with a strategy of usual care.

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Purpose: The quality of life (QoL) impact of multidisciplinary treatment for patients with nonfunctioning pituitary macroadenomas (NFPMA) is unclear. We sought to investigate associations between patient factors, clinical data, and patient-reported QoL in patients with NFPMA.

Methods: Patients with treated NFPMA and > 1 year of follow up after transsphenoidal surgery (TSS) and with no evidence of progressive disease were evaluated utilizing the following patient-reported outcome measures: RAND-36-Item Health Survey, Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory, Cognitive Failures Questionnaire.

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Objective: Inclusion of underrepresented racial and ethnic groups in eating disorder (ED) research is a critical unmet need, but evidence-based recruitment strategies are lacking. We sought to determine whether methods we had implemented to increase recruitment of underrepresented racial and ethnic groups were successful in improving racial and ethnic diversity in a clinical trial in women with anorexia nervosa.

Method: We implemented new strategies for recruitment of underrepresented racial and ethnic groups in a clinical trial on bone health in women with anorexia nervosa, including leveraging social media, liberalizing language on advertisements to be more inclusive of women who are as yet undiagnosed with the disorder or feel stigmatized by its name, translating advertisements to Spanish, and engaging community health centers.

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