Implement social prescribing successfully towards embedding: what works, for whom and in which context? A rapid realist review.

Background: Some clients who access healthcare services experience problems due to the wider determinants of health which cannot be addressed (solely) by the medical sector. Social Prescribing (SP) addresses clients ' wider health needs and is based on linkworkers who support primary care clients in accessing social, community and voluntary care services that support their needs. Previous literature has provided valuable insights about what works (or not) in an early stage of implementing SP.

Polyvinyl Alcohol Phantoms With Heterogeneous Plaques: Estimation of Pulse Wave Velocity at the Stenotic Region Using Pulse Wave Imaging.

Objective: Plaque characterization is essential for stroke prevention. In the study reported herein, we describe a heterogeneous phantom manufacturing technique with varying plaque compositions of different stiffness using polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) to emulate stenotic arteries and evaluated the use of pulse wave imaging (PWI) to assess plaque stiffness by comparing derived pulse wave velocities, with the goal of assessing plaque vulnerability and identifying high-risk patients for stroke.

Methods: Five stenotic phantoms (50% stenosis) were fabricated by pouring PVA solutions into 3-D-printed molds.

Pulse wave imaging of a stenotic artery model with plaque constituents of different stiffnesses: Experimental demonstration in phantoms and fluid-structure interaction simulation.

Vulnerable plaques associated with softer components may rupture, releasing thrombotic emboli to smaller vessels in the brain, thus causing an ischemic stroke. Pulse Wave Imaging (PWI) is an ultrasound-based method that allows for pulse wave visualization while the regional pulse wave velocity (PWV) is mapped along the arterial wall to infer the underlying wall compliance. One potential application of PWI is the non-invasive estimation of plaque's mechanical properties for investigating its vulnerability.

VO Cluster-Stabilized HO Adsorption on a TiO (110) Surface at Room Temperature.

We probe the adsorption of molecular HO on a TiO (110)-(1 × 1) surface decorated with isolated VO clusters using ultrahigh-vacuum scanning tunneling microscopy (UHV-STM) and temperature-programmed desorption (TPD). Our STM images show that preadsorbed VO clusters on the TiO (110)-(1 × 1) surface induce the adsorption of HO molecules at room temperature (RT). The adsorbed HO molecules form strings of beads of HO dimers bound to the 5-fold coordinated Ti atom (5c-Ti) rows and are anchored by VO.

Tailored birdcage resonator for magnetic resonance imaging at 7 T using 3D printing.

This study outlines the design, construction and characterization of a tailored low-cost linear birdcage (BC) resonator for magnetic resonance imaging at 7T. Typically, different BC designs found in literature are well described in theory but lack crucial information for practical realization. This is challenging, as theoretical and practical aspects often differ greatly from each other, especially in the field of high frequency technology.

Feasibility of longitudinal monitoring of atherosclerosis with pulse wave imaging in a swine model.

Atherosclerosis is a vascular disease characterized by compositional and mechanical changes in the arterial walls that lead to a plaque buildup. Depending on its geometry and composition, a plaque can ruptured and cause stroke, ischemia or infarction. Pulse wave imaging (PWI) is an ultrasound-based technique developed to locally quantify the stiffness of arteries.

Feasibility of Bilinear Mechanical Characterization of the Abdominal Aorta in a Hypertensive Mouse Model.

A change in elastin and collagen content is indicative of damage caused by hypertension, which changes the non-linear behavior of the vessel wall. This study was aimed at investigating the feasibility of monitoring the non-linear material behavior in an angiotensin II hypertensive mice model. Aortas from 13 hypertensive mice were imaged with pulse wave imaging (PWI) over 4 wk using a 40-MHz linear array.

Predicting road quality using high resolution satellite imagery: A transfer learning approach.

Recognizing the importance of road infrastructure to promote human health and economic development, actors around the globe are regularly investing in both new roads and road improvements. However, in many contexts there is a sparsity-or complete lack-of accurate information regarding existing road infrastructure, challenging the effective identification of where investments should be made. Previous literature has focused on overcoming this gap through the use of satellite imagery to detect and map roads.

Pulse Wave Imaging Coupled With Vector Flow Mapping: A Phantom, Simulation, and In Vivo Study.

Pulse wave imaging (PWI) is an ultrasound imaging modality that estimates the wall stiffness of an imaged arterial segment by tracking the pulse wave propagation. The aim of the present study is to integrate PWI with vector flow imaging, enabling simultaneous and co-localized mapping of vessel wall mechanical properties and 2-D flow patterns. Two vector flow imaging techniques were implemented using the PWI acquisition sequence: 1) multiangle vector Doppler and 2) a cross-correlation-based vector flow imaging (CC VFI) method.

Cytoskeletal regulation of synaptogenesis in a model of human fetal brain development.

Excitatory synapse formation begins in mid-fetal gestation. However, due to our inability to image fetal synaptogenesis, the initial formation of synapses remains understudied. The recent development of human fetal brain spheroids provides access to this critical period of synapse formation.

Fluorescent Calcium Imaging and Subsequent In Situ Hybridization for Neuronal Precursor Characterization in Xenopus laevis.

Spontaneous intracellular calcium activity can be observed in a variety of cell types and is proposed to play critical roles in a variety of physiological processes. In particular, appropriate regulation of calcium activity patterns during embryogenesis is necessary for many aspects of vertebrate neural development, including proper neural tube closure, synaptogenesis, and neurotransmitter phenotype specification. While the observation that calcium activity patterns can differ in both frequency and amplitude suggests a compelling mechanism by which these fluxes might transmit encoded signals to downstream effectors and regulate gene expression, existing population-level approaches have lacked the precision necessary to further explore this possibility.

Calcium Activity Dynamics Correlate with Neuronal Phenotype at a Single Cell Level and in a Threshold-Dependent Manner.

Calcium is a ubiquitous signaling molecule that plays a vital role in many physiological processes. Recent work has shown that calcium activity is especially critical in vertebrate neural development. Here, we investigated if calcium activity and neuronal phenotype are correlated only on a population level or on the level of single cells.

Pulse Wave Imaging in Carotid Artery Stenosis Human Patients in Vivo.

Carotid stenosis involves narrowing of the lumen in the carotid artery potentially leading to a stroke, which is the third leading cause of death in the United States. Several recent investigations have found that plaque structure and composition may represent a more direct biomarker of plaque rupture risk compared with the degree of stenosis. In this study, pulse wave imaging was applied in 111 (n = 11, N = 13 plaques) patients diagnosed with moderate (>50%) to severe (>80%) carotid artery stenosis to investigate the feasibility of characterizing plaque properties based on the pulse wave-induced arterial wall dynamics captured by pulse wave imaging.

Why was this transfusion given? Identifying clinical indications for blood transfusion in health care data.

Background: To enhance the utility of transfusion data for research, ideally every transfusion should be linked to a primary clinical indication. In electronic patient records, many diagnostic and procedural codes are registered, but unfortunately, it is usually not specified which one is the reason for transfusion. Therefore, a method is needed to determine the most likely indication for transfusion in an automated way.

Validation of multisource electronic health record data: an application to blood transfusion data.

Background: Although data from electronic health records (EHR) are often used for research purposes, systematic validation of these data prior to their use is not standard practice. Existing validation frameworks discuss validity concepts without translating these into practical implementation steps or addressing the potential influence of linking multiple sources. Therefore we developed a practical approach for validating routinely collected data from multiple sources and to apply it to a blood transfusion data warehouse to evaluate the usability in practice.

A baseline assessment by healthcare professionals of Dutch pharmacotherapeutic care for the elderly with polypharmacy.

Background: Polypharmacy is common in the elderly population and is associated with an increased risk of adverse drug events. To diminish this risk, the guideline 'Polypharmacy in the Elderly' has been developed in 2012. This study examines, to what extent Dutch pharmacotherapeutic practice amongst elderly with polypharmacy mirrors the best practice described in this guideline and which barriers threaten it.

A Markovian Entropy Measure for the Analysis of Calcium Activity Time Series.

Methods to analyze the dynamics of calcium activity often rely on visually distinguishable features in time series data such as spikes, waves, or oscillations. However, systems such as the developing nervous system display a complex, irregular type of calcium activity which makes the use of such methods less appropriate. Instead, for such systems there exists a class of methods (including information theoretic, power spectral, and fractal analysis approaches) which use more fundamental properties of the time series to analyze the observed calcium dynamics.

Imaging the Propagation of the Electromechanical Wave in Heart Failure Patients with Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy.

Background: Current electrocardiographic and echocardiographic measurements in heart failure (HF) do not take into account the complex interplay between electrical activation and local wall motion. The utilization of novel technologies to better characterize cardiac electromechanical behavior may lead to improved response rates with cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). Electromechanical wave imaging (EWI) is a noninvasive ultrasound-based technique that uses the transient deformations of the myocardium to track the intrinsic EW that precedes myocardial contraction.

Protocol for a national blood transfusion data warehouse from donor to recipient.

Introduction: Blood transfusion has health-related, economical and safety implications. In order to optimise the transfusion chain, comprehensive research data are needed. The Dutch Transfusion Data warehouse (DTD) project aims to establish a data warehouse where data from donors and transfusion recipients are linked.

Crew resource management training in the intensive care unit. A multisite controlled before-after study.

Introduction: There is a growing awareness today that adverse events in the intensive care unit (ICU) are more often caused by problems related to non-technical skills than by a lack of technical, or clinical, expertise. Team training, such as crew resource management (CRM), aims to improve these non-technical skills. The present study evaluated the effectiveness of CRM in the ICU.

The Impact of Green House Adoption on Medicare Spending and Utilization.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of the Green House (GH) model of nursing home care on Medicare acute hospital, other hospital, skilled nursing facility, and hospice spending and utilization.

Data Sources/study Setting: Medicare claims and enrollment data from 2005 through 2010 merged with resident-level minimum data set (MDS) assessments.

Study Design: Using a difference-in-differences framework, we compared Medicare Part A and hospice expenditures and utilization in 15 nursing homes that adopted the GH model relative to changes over the same time period in 223 matched nonadopting nursing homes.

Green House Adoption and Nursing Home Quality.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of the Green House (GH) model on nursing home resident-level quality of care measures.

Data Sources/study Setting: Resident-level minimum data set (MDS) assessments merged with Medicare inpatient claims for the period 2005 through 2010.

Study Design: Using a difference-in-differences framework, we compared changes in care quality and outcomes in 15 nursing homes that adopted the GH model relative to changes over the same time period in 223 matched nursing homes that had not adopted the GH model.

New Evidence on the Green House Model of Nursing Home Care: Synthesis of Findings and Implications for Policy, Practice, and Research.

Objective: To synthesize new findings from the THRIVE Research Collaborative (The Research Initiative Valuing Eldercare) related to the Green House (GH) model of nursing home care and broadly consider their implications.

Data Sources: Interviews and observations conducted in GH and comparison homes, Minimum Data Set (MDS) assessments, Medicare data, and Online Survey, Certification and Reporting data.

Study Design: Critical integration and interpretation of findings based on primary data collected 2011-2014 in 28 GH homes (from 16 organizations), and 15 comparison nursing home units (from 8 organizations); and secondary data derived from 2005 to 2010 for 72 GH homes (from 15 organizations) and 223 comparison homes.