Cardiometabolic Multimorbidity and Dementia Onset among Middle-aged and Older Adults: Differences by Race/Ethnicity.

Background: Racial/ethnic minoritized groups in the U.S. have higher prevalence of cardiometabolic multimorbidity and experience higher risk of dementia.

The extent and burden of high multimorbidity on older adults in the US: a descriptive analysis of Medicare beneficiaries.

Background: The impact of multimorbidity (≥ 2 chronic diseases) on the well-being of older adults is substantial but variable. The burden of multimorbidity varies by the number and kinds of conditions, and timing of onset. The impact varies by age, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and health indicators.

Multimorbidity and associated informal care receiving characteristics for US older adults: a latent class analysis.

Background: Older adults with varying patterns of multimorbidity may require distinct types of care and rely on informal caregiving to meet their care needs. This study aims to identify groups of older adults with distinct, empirically-determined multimorbidity patterns and compare characteristics of informal care received among estimated classes.

Methods: Data are from the 2011 National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS).

Mental-somatic multimorbidity in trajectories of cognitive function for middle-aged and older adults.

Introduction: Multimorbidity may confer higher risk for cognitive decline than any single constituent disease. This study aims to identify distinct trajectories of cognitive impairment probability among middle-aged and older adults, and to assess the effect of changes in mental-somatic multimorbidity on these distinct trajectories.

Methods: Data from the Health and Retirement Study (1998-2016) were employed to estimate group-based trajectory models identifying distinct trajectories of cognitive impairment probability.

Recommendations on Methods for Assessing Multimorbidity Changes Over Time: Aligning the Method to the Purpose.

Background: The rapidly growing field of multimorbidity research demonstrates that changes in multimorbidity in mid- and late-life have far reaching effects on important person-centered outcomes, such as health-related quality of life. However, there are few organizing frameworks and comparatively little work weighing the merits and limitations of various quantitative methods applied to the longitudinal study of multimorbidity.

Methods: We identify and discuss methods aligned to specific research objectives with the goals of (i) establishing a common language for assessing longitudinal changes in multimorbidity, (ii) illuminating gaps in our knowledge regarding multimorbidity progression and critical periods of change, and (iii) informing research to identify groups that experience different rates and divergent etiological pathways of disease progression linked to deterioration in important health-related outcomes.

Oncopig bladder cancer cells recapitulate human bladder cancer treatment responses .

Introduction: Bladder cancer is a common neoplasia of the urinary tract that holds the highest cost of lifelong treatment per patient, highlighting the need for a continuous search for new therapies for the disease. Current bladder cancer models are either imperfect in their ability to translate results to clinical practice (mouse models), or rare and not inducible (canine models). Swine models are an attractive alternative to model the disease due to their similarities with humans on several levels.

Durable contraception in the female domestic cat using viral-vectored delivery of a feline anti-Müllerian hormone transgene.

Eighty percent of the estimated 600 million domestic cats in the world are free-roaming. These cats typically experience suboptimal welfare and inflict high levels of predation on wildlife. Additionally, euthanasia of healthy animals in overpopulated shelters raises ethical considerations.

Racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic disparities in trajectories of morbidity accumulation among older Americans.

Introduction: Multimorbidity, the presence of multiple chronic health conditions, generally starts in middle and older age but there is considerable heterogeneity in the trajectory of morbidity accumulation. This study aimed to clarify the number of distinct trajectories and the potential associations between race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status and these trajectories.

Methods: Data from 13,699 respondents (age ≥51) in the Health and Retirement Study between 1998 and 2016 were analyzed with growth mixture models.

Depressive Multimorbidity and Trajectories of Functional Status among Older Americans: Differences by Racial/Ethnic Group.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the impact of depressive multimorbidity (ie, including depressive symptoms) on the long-term development of activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) limitations according to racial/ethnic group in a representative sample of US older adults.

Design: Prospective, observational, population-based 16-year follow-up study of nationally representative sample.

Setting And Participants: Sample of older non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic, and nonHispanic White Americans from the Health and Retirement Study (2000‒2016, N = 16,364, community-dwelling adults ≥65 years of age).

Multidimensional trajectories of multimorbidity, functional status, cognitive performance, and depressive symptoms among diverse groups of older adults.

Background: Inter-relationships between multimorbidity and geriatric syndromes are poorly understood. This study assesses heterogeneity in joint trajectories of somatic disease, functional status, cognitive performance, and depressive symptomatology.

Methods: We analyzed 16 years of longitudinal data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS, 1998-2016) for n = 11,565 older adults (≥65 years) in the United States.

A Change for the Worse: Negative Social Exchanges are Associated with an Accelerated Decline in Self-Rated Health Over Time.

Objectives: Age-associated accelerated declines in physical health vary across individuals, and researchers have suggested that individual differences in decline may vary as a function of stressors. The relation of one such stressor, negative social exchanges, to accelerated declines in self-rated health is investigated.

Method: Participants are from a 2-year, 5-wave, national, longitudinal study of social relationships among older adults.

Trajectories of cognitive functioning in later life: Disparities by race/ethnicity, educational attainment, sex, and multimorbidity combinations.

Evaluating multimorbidity combinations, racial/ethnic background, educational attainment, and sex associations with age-related cognitive changes is critical to clarifying the health, sociodemographic, and socioeconomic mechanisms associated with cognitive function in later life. Data from the 2011-2018 National Health and Aging Trends Study for respondents aged 65 years and older (N = 10,548, mean age = 77.5) were analyzed using linear mixed effect models.

Physical Activity as a Mediator Between Race/Ethnicity and Changes in Multimorbidity.

Objectives: Studies report racial/ethnic disparities in multimorbidity (≥2 chronic conditions) and their rate of accumulation over time as well as differences in physical activity. Our study aimed to investigate whether racial/ethnic differences in the accumulation of multimorbidity were mediated by physical activity among middle-aged and older adults.

Method: We assessed racial/ethnic differences in the accumulation of multimorbidity (of 9 conditions) over 12 years (2004-2016) in the Health and Retirement Study (N = 18,264, mean age = 64.

Common Pediatric Gastrointestinal Disorders.

There is arguably no group of conditions more common and expansive in children than gastrointestinal disorders. Moreover, successful recognition, diagnosis, and management of these ailments is particularly challenging provided the breadth of potential dysfunction, as well as a general paucity of specific physical examination findings to pinpoint diagnoses. Elucidation of these conditions is made further challenging by frequent difficulty of pediatric patients to provide a detailed articulation of their symptoms.

Multimorbidity Accumulation Among Middle-Aged Americans: Differences by Race/Ethnicity and Body Mass Index.

Background: Obesity and multimorbidity are more prevalent among U.S. racial/ethnic minority groups.

Racial and Ethnic Differences in Multimorbidity Changes Over Time.

Background: Our understanding of how multimorbidity progresses and changes is nascent.

Objectives: Assess multimorbidity changes among racially/ethnically diverse middle-aged and older adults.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Prospective cohort study using latent class analysis to identify multimorbidity combinations over 16 years, and multinomial logistic models to assess change relative to baseline class membership.

Anti-VEGF antibody delivered locally reduces bony bar formation following physeal injury in rats.

Physeal injuries can result in the formation of a "bony bar" which can lead to bone growth arrest and deformities in children. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) has been shown to play a role in bony bar formation, making it a potential target to inhibit bony repair tissue after physeal injury. The goal of this study was to investigate whether the local delivery of anti-VEGF antibody (α-VEGF; 7.

Older adults' physical activity-related social control and social support in the context of personal norms.

This study investigated whether perceived physical activity norms moderated the effects of physical activity-related social interactions on intentions to engage in physical activity among community-residing older adults ( = 217). Structural equation modeling tested whether two types of social support and social control interacted with personal norms in predicting intentions to be active. Emotional and informational support were associated with higher intentions, and negative social control was associated with lower intentions to engage in activity.

In vivo degradation rate of alginate-chitosan hydrogels influences tissue repair following physeal injury.

The physis is a cartilaginous tissue in children's long bones that is responsible for bone elongation. Physeal injuries can heal with bony repair tissue known as a "bony bar," and this can cause growth deformities. Current treatments involve surgical resection of the bony bar and insertion of inert materials in hopes of preventing bony bar re-formation and preserving bone elongation.

Assisted reproduction mediated resurrection of a feline model for Chediak-Higashi syndrome caused by a large duplication in LYST.

Chediak-Higashi Syndrome (CHS) is a well-characterized, autosomal recessively inherited lysosomal disease caused by mutations in lysosomal trafficking regulator (LYST). The feline model for CHS was originally maintained for ~20 years. However, the colonies were disbanded and the CHS cat model was lost to the research community before the causative mutation was identified.

Injectable, self-healable zwitterionic cryogels with sustained microRNA - cerium oxide nanoparticle release promote accelerated wound healing.

Diabetics are prone to chronic wounds that have slower healing, and methods of accelerating the wound closure and to ensure protection from infections are critically needed. MicroRNA-146a gets dysregulated in diabetic wounds and injection of this microRNA combined with reactive oxygen species-scavenging cerium oxide nanoparticles (CNPs) can reduce inflammation and improve wound healing; however, a better delivery method than intradermal injections is needed. Here we demonstrate a biomaterial system of zwitterionic cryogels (gels formed below freezing temperatures) laden with CNP-miR146a that are topically applicable, injectable, self-healable, and provide sustained release of the therapeutic molecules.

Racial/ethnic differences in multimorbidity development and chronic disease accumulation for middle-aged adults.

Background: Multimorbidity-having two or more coexisting chronic conditions-is highly prevalent, costly, and disabling to older adults. Questions remain regarding chronic diseases accumulation over time and whether this differs by racial and ethnic background. Answering this knowledge gap, this study identifies differences in rates of chronic disease accumulation and multimorbidity development among non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black, and Hispanic study participants starting in middle-age and followed up to 16 years.

The Impact of Communication Impairments on the Social Relationships of Older Adults: Pathways to Psychological Well-Being.

Purpose Social contact is known to be vital for older adults' mental and physical health but, because communication impairments often co-occur with other types of disability, it is difficult to generalize about the relative impact of a communication impairment on the social relationships of older adults. Specific aims of the study were to examine whether the severity of a communication impairment was associated with a range of social measures and to examine the association between these characteristics and psychological well-being. Method Community-dwelling older adults ranging in age from 65 to 94 were recruited for the study of Communication, Health, Aging, Relationship Types and Support.

Correction to: Intraoperative Imaging with a Portable Gamma Camera May Reduce the False-Negative Rate for Melanoma Sentinel Lymph Node Surgery.

The article "Intraoperative Imaging with a Portable Gamma Camera May Reduce the False-Negative Rate for Melanoma Sentinel Lymph Node Surgery," written by Stanley P. Leong et al., was originally published electronically on the publisher's internet portal (currently SpringerLink) on August 13, 2018, without open access.

Microgels: Modular, tunable constructs for tissue regeneration.

Biopolymer microgels are emerging as a versatile tool for aiding in the regeneration of damaged tissues due to their biocompatible nature, tunable microporous structure, ability to encapsulate bioactive factors, and tailorable properties such as stiffness and composition. These properties of microgels, along with their injectability, have allowed for their utilization in a multitude of different tissue engineering applications. Controlled release of growth factors, antibodies, and other bioactive factors from microgels have demonstrated their capabilities as transporters for essential bioactive molecules necessary for guiding tissue reconstruction.