Burnout is not associated with trainee performance on the Vascular Surgery In-Training Exam.

Objective: The Vascular Surgery In-Training Examination (VSITE) is a yearly exam evaluating vascular trainees' knowledge base. Although multiple studies have evaluated variables associated with exam outcomes, few have incorporated training program-specific metrics. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of the learning environment and burnout on VSITE performance.

Reporting and analysis of sex in vascular surgery research.

Objective: To examine sex in human vascular surgery research by quantifying the inclusion and analysis of sex-based data in high-impact vascular surgery journals.

Methods: A bibliographic review of original articles published in the European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, Journal of Vascular Surgery, JVS: Venous and Lymphatic Disorders, Journal of Endovascular Therapy, and Annals of Vascular Surgery from January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2020, and from January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2023, was conducted. Abstracted data included sex-based data analysis, inclusion of sex as a variable in multivariable analysis, inclusion of sex as an independent variable, and a discussion of sex-based results.

An Analysis of Water Used and Wasted at Operating Room (OR) Scrub Sinks and Call to Action for Reducing Water Waste.

Objective: To model the volume of water used and wasted during wet scrubs at operating room (OR) scrub sinks and identify factors for reducing water waste.

Background: Wasteful consumption of water by US healthcare systems has not been well characterized.

Methods: This is a two-component observational study.

Healthcare resource use and indirect costs associated with migraine in Italy: results from the survey.

Aims: To evaluate the healthcare resource use (HRU) and cost of lost productivity due to migraine among Italians with ≥4 monthly migraine days (MMDs), with a focus on those with ≥2 prior preventive treatment failures (TFs).

Materials And Methods: Data from Italian participants from the survey were used to assess migraine-related HRU and migraine's impact on work productivity and daily activities using the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment questionnaire. The mean, annualized cost of lost productivity was estimated using the Human Capital Approach and extrapolated to employed Italian population with ≥4 MMDs to calculate the overall migraine-related indirect cost burden in Italy.

Robotic Laparoscopic Sigmoid Colectomy: Analysis of Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Database.

Minimally invasive sigmoid colectomy the laparoscopic approach (LA) has numerous benefits. We seek to compare outcomes between laparoscopic and robotic sigmoid colectomies. We analyzed the data using the National Inpatient Sample database between 2008 and 2014.

Urological Outcome of the Xiao Procedure in Children with Myelomeningocele and Lipomyelomeningocele Undergoing Spinal Cord Detethering.

Purpose: Although previous studies have revealed high success rates (70% to 85%) after an intradural somatic-to-autonomic nerve transfer procedure in children with spinal dysraphism, no study has had a control group or blinded observers. We report a rigorously designed study to investigate the effectiveness of the Xiao procedure.

Materials And Methods: Children with neurogenic bladder dysfunction related to myelomeningocele or lipomyelomeningocele who required spinal cord detethering were randomized to 2 groups at surgery, with half undergoing only spinal cord detethering and half undergoing the Xiao procedure in addition to detethering.

Lack of efficacy of an intradural somatic-to-autonomic nerve anastomosis (Xiao procedure) for bladder control in children with myelomeningocele and lipomyelomeningocele: results of a prospective, randomized, double-blind study.

OBJECTIVE Xiao et al. and other investigators have studied an intradural somatic-to-autonomic (e.g.

Linguistic validation into 20 languages and content validity of the rheumatoid arthritis-specific Work Productivity and Activity Impairment questionnaire.

Background: Impairments in work productivity and daily activities contribute to the burden of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It is thus essential to use an instrument assessing both work and daily activity impairments when studying the full impact of RA on individuals. The Work Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI) questionnaire is such an instrument.

Attempted bladder reinnervation and creation of a scratch reflex for bladder emptying through a somatic-to-autonomic intradural anastomosis.

An intradural somatic-to-autonomic anastomosis, or Xiao procedure, has been described to create a "skin-CNS-bladder" reflex that improves bladder and bowel function in patients with neurogenic bladder and bowel dysfunction. The authors present their experience with a 10-year-old boy with chronic neurogenic bladder and bowel dysfunction related to spinal cord injury who underwent the Xiao procedure. After undergoing a left L-5 ventral root to left S2-3 intradural anastomosis, the patient reported that his bladder and bowel dysfunction improved between 6 and 12 months.

Validity, reliability and responsiveness of the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment Questionnaire in ankylosing spondylitis.

Objective: To determine the validity, reliability and responsiveness of the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment questionnaire in AS (WPAI:SpA).

Methods: Baseline and Week-24 data from a randomized, double-blind study of adalimumab in patients with AS were used. Discriminative validity of WPAI:SpA absenteeism, presenteeism, overall work productivity loss and activity impairment scores was assessed relative to patient-reported outcomes: Bath AS Disease Activity Index (BASDAI), AS Quality of Life Questionnaire (ASQOL), Short-Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36), Physical and Mental Component Summaries (PCS and MCS, respectively) and Health Utilities Index Mark 3 (HUI-3).

Treatment of a child with daytime urinary incontinence.

Background And Purpose: This case report describes physical therapy management of a child with daytime urinary incontinence, taking into account the patient's age as well as her emotional and cognitive development.

Case Description: An 8-year-old girl was referred for physical therapy with a diagnosis of pelvic floor muscle hypertonus and dysfunctional voiding. Functional deficits included daytime urinary incontinence (4-8 leaks/d, 7 d/wk) and increased voiding frequency (8-10 times/d).

Validity, reliability, and responsiveness of the work productivity and activity impairment questionnaire in Crohn's disease.

Background: Crohn's disease (CD) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease usually diagnosed in early adult life and characterized by unpredictable flares and debilitating symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal pain, and fever, which can interfere with a patient's ability to work and perform daily activities.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the validity, reliability, and responsiveness of the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment questionnaire in CD (WPAI:CD).

Methods: The WPAI:CD was tested in CD patients enrolled in a 26-week randomized clinical trial of cer-tolizumab pegol versus placebo.

Analysis of plasma biopterin levels in psychiatric disorders suggests a common BH4 deficit in schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder.

Tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4) is an essential cofactor for amine neurotransmitter synthesis. BH4 also stimulates and modulates the glutamatergic system, and regulates the synthesis of nitric oxide by nitric oxide synthases. A connection between BH4 deficiencies and psychiatric disorders has been previously reported; major depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder have been found in subjects with a BH4 deficiency disorder and more recently we have observed a robust plasma deficit of biopterin (a measure of BH4), in a large group of schizophrenic patients compared to control subjects.

Development and testing of a new outcome measure of relationship between patients with Alzheimer's disease and their partners.

In mild Alzheimer's disease (AD), loss of relationship with the patient is a significant consequence for the partner (relative) and may be amenable to improvement with effective intervention. To evaluate relationship dynamics, the authors developed and tested content and discriminative validity of the self-administered Partner-Patient Questionnaire for Shared Activities among 100 partners of patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease. Principal component analysis confirmed that interference in 17 activities derived from the literature and partner-specified activities comprised a relationship factor; internal consistency was very high.

Linguistic validation of the US Spanish work productivity and activity impairment questionnaire, general health version.

Introduction: There are no measures of health-related absenteeism and presenteeism validated for use in the large and increasing US Spanish-speaking population. Before using a Spanish translation of an available English-language questionnaire, the linguistic validity of the Spanish version must be established to ensure its conceptual equivalence to the original and its cultural appropriateness.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the linguistic validity of the US Spanish version of the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment questionnaire, General Health Version (WPAI:GH).

Validation of electronic data capture of the Irritable Bowel Syndrome--Quality of Life Measure, the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment Questionnaire for Irritable Bowel Syndrome and the EuroQol.

Objectives: To assess the comparability, reliability, and subject acceptability of electronic data capture (EDC) versions of Irritable Bowel Syndrome-Quality of Life (IBS-QOL), EuroQoL (EQ-5D) and Work Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI:IBS) instruments.

Methods: Comparability of EDC and paper questionnaires was evaluated in 72 subjects with IBS who completed a baseline EDC or paper questionnaire, a crossover questionnaire 24 hours later, and a retest of the crossover version at 1 week. The EDC version was presented on a hand-held device.

Evidence for a tetrahydrobiopterin deficit in schizophrenia.

Tetrahydrobiopterin (BH(4)) is a vital cofactor maintaining availability of the amine neurotransmitters [dopamine (DA), noradrenaline (NA), and serotonin (5-HT)], regulating the synthesis of nitric oxide (NO) by nitric oxide synthase (NOS), and stimulating and modulating the glutamatergic system (directly and indirectly). These BH(4) properties and their potential relevance to schizophrenia led us to investigate the hypothesis of a study group (healthy controls, n=37; schizophrenics, n=154) effect on fasting plasma total biopterin levels (a measure of BH(4)). Study analysis showed a highly significant deficit of total biopterins for the schizophrenic sample after partialling out the effects of potential confounds of gender, age, ethnicity, neuroleptic use history and dose of current use, 24-hour dietary phenylalanine/protein ratio (a dietary variable relevant to BH(4) synthesis), and plasma phenylalanine (which stimulates BH(4) synthesis).

Phenylalanine hydroxylase gene in psychiatric patients: screening and functional assay of mutations.

Background: Reports relating phenylalanine kinetics and metabolism to psychiatric disorders led us to undertake the comprehensive screening of the phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) coding region and functional testing of discovered mutations in a sample of psychiatric patients and healthy control subjects.

Methods: Genomic DNA from psychiatric patients and control subjects was assayed for sequence variants in all PAH coding regions and splice junctions. In vivo functional analysis of mutations was conducted by assessing the kinetics and conversion to tyrosine of a standardized phenylalanine dose and by measuring fasting pterin levels.

Validation of the Dermatology Life Quality Index and the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment-Chronic Hand Dermatitis questionnaire in chronic hand dermatitis.

In a double-blind, randomized trial of 257 patients with chronic hand dermatitis, the validity, reproducibility, and responsiveness of the Dermatology Life Quality Index and the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment questionnaire were established, and the sample size required to detect meaningful differences between treatment groups was estimated.