Quantifying Inferior Vena Cava Compliance and Distensibility in an In Vivo Ovine Model Using 3D Angiography.

Synthetic vascular grafts overcome some challenges of allografts, autografts, and xenografts but are often more rigid and less compliant than the native vessel into which they are implanted. Compliance matching with the native vessel is emerging as a key property for graft success. The current gold standard for assessing vessel compliance involves the vessel's excision and ex vivo biaxial mechanical testing.

Earlier winter/spring runoff and snowmelt during warmer winters lead to lower summer chlorophyll-a in north temperate lakes.

Winter conditions, such as ice cover and snow accumulation, are changing rapidly at northern latitudes and can have important implications for lake processes. For example, snowmelt in the watershed-a defining feature of lake hydrology because it delivers a large portion of annual nutrient inputs-is becoming earlier. Consequently, earlier and a shorter duration of snowmelt are expected to affect annual phytoplankton biomass.

A Survey of Music Therapists Working in Pediatric Medical Settings in the United States.

Music therapy is becoming a standard supportive care service in many pediatric hospitals across the United States. However, more detailed information is needed to advance our understanding about current clinical practice and increase availability of pediatric music therapy services. The purpose of this cross-sectional survey study was to collect and summarize data about music therapists working in pediatric medical settings.

De Novo Designed Amphipathic α-Helical Antimicrobial Peptides Incorporating Dab and Dap Residues on the Polar Face To Treat the Gram-Negative Pathogen, Acinetobacter baumannii.

We have designed de novo and synthesized ten 26-residue D-conformation amphipathic α-helical cationic antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), seven with "specificity determinants", which provide specificity for prokaryotic cells over eukaryotic cells. The ten AMPs contain five or six positively charged residues (d-Arg, d-Lys, d-Orn, l-Dab, or l-Dap) on the polar face to understand their role in hemolytic activity against human red blood cells and antimicrobial activity against seven Acinetobacter baumannii strains, resistant to polymyxin B and colistin, and 20 A. baumannii worldwide isolates from 2016 and 2017 with antibiotic resistance to 18 different antibiotics.

Relaxation Training and Postoperative Music Therapy for Adolescents Undergoing Spinal Fusion Surgery.

Spinal fusion for idiopathic scoliosis is one of the most painful surgeries experienced by adolescents. Music therapy, utilizing music-assisted relaxation with controlled breathing and imagery, is a promising intervention for reducing pain and anxiety for these patients. It can be challenging to teach new coping strategies to post-operative patients who are already in pain.

A non-randomized [corrected] controlled trial of the active music engagement (AME) intervention on children with cancer.

Background: Coping theorists argue that environmental factors affect how children perceive and respond to stressful events such as cancer. However, few studies have investigated how particular interventions can change coping behaviors. The active music engagement (AME) intervention was designed to counter stressful qualities of the in-patient hospital environment by introducing three forms of environmental support.