Background And Purpose: Muscle strength, power, and mass decline with aging, leading to functional loss highly correlated with balance and falls in older adults. Lower limb muscle function is critical for fall prevention in older adults, and hip abductor force and rapid force development have been shown to be important during stepping tasks. However, it remains unclear whether hip abductor muscle function changes with aging.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Postoperative pain is a major concern for patients undergoing ultrasound scalpel-assisted hemorrhoidectomy, potentially exacerbated by delayed wound healing. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of an intimate cleansing gel containing chlorhexidine, hyaluronic acid, and other anti-inflammatory agents (Antroclean Fisioderm) on postoperative pain, itching, and wound healing in patients who had undergone this procedure.
Methods: This multicenter observational case-control study involved a cohort of consecutive adult patients who underwent hemorrhoidectomy using an ultrasound device.
There has been huge interest among chemical scientists in the electrochemical reduction of nitrate (NO) to ammonia (NH) due to the useful application of NH in nitrogen fertilizers and fuel. To conduct such a complex reduction reaction, which involves eight electrons and eight protons, one needs to develop high-performance (and stable) electrocatalysts that favor the formation of reaction intermediates that are selective toward ammonia production. In the present study, we developed and applied CoO/graphene nanoribbon (GNR) electrocatalysts with excellent properties for the effective reduction of NO to NH, where NH yield rate of 42.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe present work investigated the application of UVC combined with electrogenerated HO (UVC/e-HO) for BTA degradation using a Printex L6 carbon-based (PL6C) gas diffusion electrode (GDE). The studies were carried out by analyzing the influence of the current density, pH and initial BTA concentration in the contaminant degradation process. Under optimal conditions using 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study reports the development and implementation of a straightforward, rapid, and cost-effective voltammetric technique for piroxicam (PIR) detection at nanomolar concentrations in biological and environmental samples. The method involved the use of a screen-printed electrode (SPE) enhanced with a combination of Printex L6 carbon (PL6C) and polyaniline-based activated carbon (PAC) on a chitosan film crosslinked with epichlorohydrin (CTS:EPH). The detection was carried out using square-wave adsorptive anodic stripping voltammetry (SWAdASV) in a 0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRed blood cells (RBCs), traditionally recognized for their role in transporting oxygen, play a pivotal role in the body's immune response by expressing TLR9 and scavenging excess host cell-free DNA. DNA capture by RBCs leads to accelerated RBC clearance and triggers inflammation. Whether RBCs can also acquire microbial DNA during infections is unknown.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a condition of poor alveolar formation that causes chronic breathing impairment in infants born prematurely. Preterm lungs lack surfactant and are vulnerable to oxidative injuries driving the development of BPD. Our recent studies reported that surfactant protein A (SP-A) genetic variants influence susceptibility to neonatal lung disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Purpose: Resistance training exercise provides increases in muscle size and is used by coaches and health care professional as a tool to improve functional performance. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of 10 weeks of resistance training program performed on the bench press (BP) exercise on the hypertrophic responses of four different muscles (pectoralis major, anterior and medial deltoid, brachii, and pectoralis minor) involved in the task compared to controls.
Methods: Twenty-four healthy males were recruited, and thirteen performed a resistance training intervention while eleven were control.
MXenes have excellent properties as electrode materials in energy storage devices or fuel cells. In bioelectrochemical systems (for wastewater treatment and energy harvesting), MXenes can have antimicrobial characteristics in some conditions. Here, different intercalation and delamination approaches to obtain TiCT MXene flakes with different terminal groups and lateral dimensions are comprehensively investigated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Purpose: Health disparities and inequities are an important and too long overlooked public health concern worldwide. These differences in health and health care can affect people with any disease, including neurological disorders. The aim of this systematic review is to provide an updated overview of the main health inequities faced by neurological patients worldwide, to plan valuable interventions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThough similar motor unit (MU) discharge properties have been observed during slow sustained contractions between chronically strength-trained (ST) and untrained (UT) individuals, it is currently unknown whether differences between these groups exist for when maximal in vivo MU discharge rate is assessed during rapid, maximal rate of force development (RFD) contractions. Therefore, we compared MU discharge characteristics and RFD during rapid contractions in chronic ST and UT individuals. The investigations were performed in two independent cohorts of chronically ST men, with trained elbow flexors (, = 13, 6 ± 4 yr of training experience) or knee extensors (, = 11, 9 ± 4 yr of experience), and compared with those of UT ( = 12 and = 10, respectively).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUltraflat metal foils are essential for semiconductor nanoelectronics applications and nanomaterial epitaxial growth. Numerous efforts have been devoted to metal surface engineering studies in the past decades. However, various challenges persist, including size limitations, polishing non-uniformities, and undesired contaminants.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMoiré superlattices in twisted van der Waals homo/heterostructures present a fascinating interplay between electronic and atomic structures, with potential applications in electronic and optoelectronic devices. Flexoelectricity, an electromechanical coupling between electric polarization and strain gradient, is intrinsic to these superlattices because of the lattice misfit strain at the atomic scale. However, due to its weak magnitude, the effect of flexoelectricity on moiré ferroelectricity has remained underexplored.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFConductive atomic force microscopy (CAFM) analyzes electronic phenomena in materials and devices with nanoscale lateral resolution, and it is widely used by companies, research institutions, and universities. Most data published in the field of CAFM is collected in air at a relative humidity (RH) of 30-60%. However, the effect of RH in CAFM remains unclear because previous studies often made contradictory claims, plus the number of samples and locations tested is scarce.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe aim of these evidence-based guidelines is to present a consensus position from members of the Italian Unitary Society of Colon-Proctology (Società Italiana Unitaria di Colon-Proctologia, SIUCP) on the diagnosis and management of hemorrhoidal disease, with the goal of guiding physicians in the choice of the best treatment option. A panel of experts was charged by the Board of the SIUCP to develop key questions on the main topics related to the management of hemorrhoidal disease and to perform an accurate and comprehensive literature search on each topic, in order to provide evidence-based answers to the questions and to summarize them in statements. All the clinical questions were discussed by the expert panel in multiple rounds through the Delphi approach and, for each statement, a consensus among the experts was reached.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWhereas an exercise intervention effectively improves patients' quality of life, little information is available about the contribution of each physical fitness component. This study aims to explore the association between physical fitness components and the quality-of-life domain in patients with cancer. Between September 2021 and August 2023, 160 patients with mixed cancer types visiting the Oncology Unit were selected on a consecutive basis according to selection criteria.
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