Interventions to Reduce Loneliness Among Community-dwelling Older Adults: A Network Meta-analysis and Systematic Review.

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions in reducing loneliness among community-dwelling older adults.

Design: A network meta-analysis (NMA) and systematic review.

Setting And Participants: Interventional studies were included if they contained original quantitative data on interventions to reduce loneliness among community-dwelling older adults.

Dynamic duo is inseparable: Self-compassion and compassion for others interact to predict well-being.

While previous studies have examined the independent effect of self-compassion or compassion for others on well-being, the present study examined how self-compassion may interact with compassion for others in predicting well-being. Two studies were conducted. In Study 1, 457 participants completed assessments at baseline and 229 participants were retained and completed the assessment at 4-month follow-up.

Service Attributes and Acceptability of Digital and Nondigital Depression Management Methods Among Individuals With Depressive Symptoms: Survey Study.

Background: Academic research on digital mental health tends to focus on its efficacy and effectiveness, with much less attention paid to user preferences and experiences in real-world settings.

Objective: This study aims to analyze service characteristics that service users value and compare the extent to which various digital and nondigital mental health treatments and management methods fulfill users' expectations.

Methods: A total of 114 people with at least moderate levels of depressive symptoms (as measured by Patient Health Questionnaire-9 score ≥10) completed a web-based questionnaire measuring their awareness and adoption of digital mental health services and their valuation of 15 psychological service attributes, including effectiveness, credibility, waiting time, and more.

Does mindfulness facilitate letting be? A longitudinal investigation of nonattachment as a mediator in the association between mindfulness, well-being, and affect at trait and state levels.

This research investigated the mediating role of nonattachment in the association between mindfulness and well-being. Study 1, a 2-week ecological momentary assessment (EMA) study with 2446 responses from 69 participants, showed that state mindfulness at time (t) - 1 was not significantly associated with nonattachment at t and (positive and negative) affect at t + 1. However, nonattachment at t significantly mediated the association between state mindfulness at t and (positive and negative) affect at t.

Self-awareness and nonattachment as internal resources for well-being among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other gender and sexually diverse individuals.

Previous studies showed inconsistent findings on the association between self-awareness and well-being among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other gender and sexually diverse (LGBTQ+) individuals. The present study examined the mediating effects of self-stigma and negative emotional responses to oppression in the relationship between self-awareness and well-being, as well as the protective role of nonattachment on the relationship. A total of 1,050 LGBTQ+ individuals were included in the study.

Pregnancy-associated pulmonary embolism (PA-PE): catheter-directed thrombolysis as first-line rescue.

Pregnancy-associated pulmonary embolism (PA-PE) is a life-threatening presentation however literature surrounding its optimal management is limited. This case describes a case of PA-PE treated with catheter-directed thrombolysis after clinical deterioration despite standard anticoagulation therapy. Careful multidisciplinary planning is required to successfully manage the deteriorating patient with PA-PE with catheter-directed thrombolysis being considered as potential first-line therapy in these patients.

Perinatal outcomes of women with recurrent pregnancy loss undergoing frozen embryo transfer from the Society of Assisted Reproductive Technology database.

Objective: To assess whether infants born to women with a history of recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) have an increased risk of adverse perinatal outcomes after frozen embryo transfer (FET) compared with women without a history of infertility or RPL.

Design: Retrospective cohort study utilizing the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology Clinic Outcomes Reporting System database between 2014 and 2020.

Setting: Not applicable.

Mindfulness-based family psychoeducation intervention for caregivers of young adults with first-episode psychosis: results at 9-month follow-up.

Objectives: To investigate the effects of a mindfulness-based family psychoeducation (MBFPE) intervention on caregivers and the young adults with first-episode psychosis in mental health care.

Methods: Sixty-five caregivers were randomly assigned to the MBFPE program (n = 33) or an ordinary family psychoeducation (FPE) program (n = 32). Eighteen young adults in recovery (YAIR) also participated in the study.

Application of MIDD to accelerate the development of anti-infectives: Current status and future perspectives.

This review examines the role of model-informed drug development (MIDD) in advancing antibacterial and antiviral drug development, with an emphasis on the inclusion of host system dynamics into modeling efforts. Amidst the growing challenges of multidrug resistance and diminishing market returns, innovative methodologies are crucial for continuous drug discovery and development. The MIDD approach, with its robust capacity to integrate diverse data types, offers a promising solution.

Aging-Related CYP3A Functional Changes in Chinese Older Patients: New Findings from Model-Based Assessment of Amlodipine.

Aging-related alterations in hepatic enzyme activity, particularly of the CYP3A, significantly impact drug efficacy and safety in older adults, making it essential to understand how aging affects CYP function for optimal drug therapy. The exogenous probe substrate method, a minimally invasive approach to assess liver metabolic enzyme activity in vivo, is effective in studying these changes. Amlodipine being extensively metabolized (> 90%) in the liver, primarily via cytochrome P450 enzyme CYP3A was selected as a probe to investigate and quantify the factors affecting the aging-related changes of CYP3A in the Chinese older population.

Applying the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology to Identify Factors Associated With Intention to Use Teledelivered Supportive Care Among Recently Diagnosed Breast Cancer Survivors During COVID-19 in Hong Kong: Cross-Sectional Survey.

Background: Many supportive cancer care (SCC) services were teledelivered during COVID-19, but what facilitates patients' intentions to use teledelivered SCC is unknown.

Objective: The study aimed to use the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology to investigate the factors associated with the intentions of breast cancer survivors (BCS) in Hong Kong to use various types of teledelivered SCC (including psychosocial care, medical consultation, complementary care, peer support groups). Favorable telehealth-related perceptions (higher performance expectancy, lower effort expectancy, more facilitating conditions, positive social influences), less technological anxiety, and greater fear of COVID-19 were hypothesized to be associated with higher intentions to use teledelivered SCC.

Development and Quality Control of a Population Pharmacokinetic Model Library for Caspofungin.

Background: Caspofungin is an echinocandin antifungal agent commonly used as the first-line therapy for invasive candidiasis, salvage therapy for invasive aspergillosis, and empirical therapy for presumed fungal infections. Pharmacokinetic (PK) variabilities and suboptimal exposure have been reported for caspofungin, increasing the risk of insufficient efficacy.

Objective: This work aimed to develop a caspofungin population pharmacokinetic (popPK) library and demonstrate its utility by assessing the probability of target attainment across diverse settings.

SARS-CoV-2-specific T cell responses: a comparative analysis between QuantiFERON SARS-CoV-2, T-SPOT.COVID, and an in-house Omicron ELISpot.

Background: T cell immunity plays a pivotal role in mitigating the severity of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Therefore, reliable functional T cell assays are required to evaluate severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)-specific T cell immunity in specific patient populations.

Methods: We recruited a cohort of 23 healthcare workers who received their bivalent Omicron BA.

Comparison of diclofenac with tramadol, tizanidine or placebo in the treatment of acute low back pain and sciatica: multi-center randomized controlled trial.

Background: Low back pain (LBP) is a leading cause of disability worldwide and has posed numerous health and socioeconomic challenges. This study compared whether nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in combination with tramadol, tizanidine or placebo would be the best treatment regime to improve the Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ) scores at 1 week.

Methods: This was a multi-center, double-blind, randomized, and placebo-controlled trial including adult patients with acute LBP and sciatica in three emergency departments in Hong Kong.

Nitrogen-fixing organelle in a marine alga.

Symbiotic interactions were key to the evolution of chloroplast and mitochondria organelles, which mediate carbon and energy metabolism in eukaryotes. Biological nitrogen fixation, the reduction of abundant atmospheric nitrogen gas (N) to biologically available ammonia, is a key metabolic process performed exclusively by prokaryotes. Atelocyanobacterium thalassa, or UCYN-A, is a metabolically streamlined N-fixing cyanobacterium previously reported to be an endosymbiont of a marine unicellular alga.

Associations between interconnectedness, compassion, and participation in collective action for people with mental illness: A random-intercept cross-lagged panel modeling approach.

The present study aims to prospectively investigate the relationships between interconnectedness, compassion, and participation in private and public forms of collective action for people with mental illness. Public form refers to collective action at the macrolevel such as large-scale protests and demonstrations going on in the communities. Private form refers to collective action happening at the microlevel that targets promoting awareness of social inequalities and positive changes among personal social circles, such as calling out microaggressions or correcting others' stigmatizing language.

Acid-active proteases to optimize dietary protein digestibility: a step towards sustainable nutrition.

Introduction: Historically, prioritizing abundant food production often resulted in overlooking nutrient quality and bioavailability, however, environmental concerns have now propelled sustainable nutrition and health efficacy to the forefront of global attention. In fact, increasing demand for protein is the major challenge facing the food system in the 21st century with an estimation that 70% more food is needed by 2050. This shift has spurred interest in plant-based proteins for their sustainability and health benefits, but most alternative sources of protein are poorly digestible.

Microbiota-gut-brain axis and its therapeutic applications in neurodegenerative diseases.

The human gastrointestinal tract is populated with a diverse microbial community. The vast genetic and metabolic potential of the gut microbiome underpins its ubiquity in nearly every aspect of human biology, including health maintenance, development, aging, and disease. The advent of new sequencing technologies and culture-independent methods has allowed researchers to move beyond correlative studies toward mechanistic explorations to shed light on microbiome-host interactions.

Supervised Exercise Training May Improve Postural Control in Patients with Symptomatic Lower Extremity Peripheral Artery Disease.

Patients with symptomatic peripheral artery disease (PAD) have been shown to present balance disorders and a history of falling, which are associated with functional and daily life impairments. Although postural control improvement is an important outcome, the benefits of supervised exercise training (SET) on postural control have been seldom investigated in these patients. This article investigates the effects of SET on traditional measures of postural control and on stabilogram-diffusion analysis (SDA) parameters in patients with symptomatic PAD.

An Integrated ddPCR Lab-on-a-Disc Device for Rapid Screening of Infectious Diseases.

Digital droplet PCR (ddPCR) is a powerful amplification technique for absolute quantification of viral nucleic acids. Although commercial ddPCR devices are effective in the lab bench tests, they cannot meet current urgent requirements for on-site and rapid screening for patients. Here, we have developed a portable and fully integrated lab-on-a-disc (LOAD) device for quantitively screening infectious disease agents.

The use of CBCT in orthodontics with special focus on upper airway analysis in patients with sleep-disordered breathing.

Applications of cone-beam CT (CBCT) in orthodontics have been increasingly discussed and evaluated in science and practice over the last two decades. The present work provides a comprehensive summary of current consolidated practice guidelines, cutting-edge innovative applications, and future outlooks about potential use of CBCT in orthodontics with a special focus on upper airway analysis in patients with sleep-disordered breathing. The present scoping review reveals that clinical applications of CBCT in orthodontics are broadly supported by evidence for the diagnosis of dental anomalies, temporomandibular joint disorders, and craniofacial malformations.