The Effectiveness of Virtual Reality-Based Training on Cognitive, Social, and Physical Functioning in High-Functioning Older Adults (CoSoPhy FX): 2-Arm, Parallel-Group Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Virtual reality (VR) has emerged as a promising technology for enhancing the health care of older individuals, particularly in the domains of cognition, physical activity, and social engagement. However, existing VR products and services have limited availability and affordability; hence, there is a need for a scientifically validated and personalized VR service to be used by older adults in their homes, which can improve their overall physical, cognitive, and social well-being.

Objective: The main purpose of the CoSoPhy FX (Cognitive, Social, and Physical Effects) study was to analyze the effects of a VR-based digital therapeutics app on the cognitive, social, and physical performance abilities of healthy (high-functioning) older adults.

Virtual reality-based training may improve visual memory and some aspects of sustained attention among healthy older adults - preliminary results of a randomized controlled study.

Background/aims: Older age and cognitive inactivity have been associated with cognitive impairment, which in turn is linked to economic and societal burdens due to the high costs of care, especially for care homes and informal care. Emerging non-pharmacological interventions using new technologies, such as virtual reality (VR) delivered on a head-mounted display (HMD), might offer an alternative to maintain or improve cognition. The study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a VR-based Digital Therapeutics application for improving cognitive functions among healthy older adults.

AI-Enhanced Predictive Modeling for Identifying Depression and Delirium in Cardiovascular Patients Scheduled for Cardiac Surgery.

Unlabelled: Several studies have demonstrated a critical association between cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mental health, revealing that approximately one-third of individuals with CVD also experience depression. This comorbidity significantly increases the risk of cardiac complications and mortality, a risk that persists regardless of traditional factors. Addressing this issue, our study pioneers a straightforward, explainable, and data-driven pipeline for predicting depression in CVD patients.

A comparison study on creating simulated patient data for individuals suffering from chronic coronary disorders.

An emerging area in data science that has lately gained attention is the virtual population (VP) and synthetic data generation. This field has the potential to significantly affect the healthcare industry by providing a means to augment clinical research databases that have a shortage of subjects. The current study provides a comparative analysis of five distinct approaches for creating virtual data populations from real patient data.

Lower Preoperative Verbal Memory Performance Is Associated with Delirium after Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Objective: Cognitive impairment constitutes one of the major risk factors of delirium after coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery; however, it is unclear whether only patients with global cognitive decline are at increased risk for delirium or if individuals with preserved global cognitive functions but impairments in specific cognitive domains are also more vulnerable to developing delirium. Thus, this study aimed to analyze the neurocognitive status of patients scheduled for CABG surgery with the use of an advanced computerized cognitive battery (CNS Vital Signs) and to investigate possible associations between impaired performance in selective cognitive areas and the risk of postoperative delirium development.

Methods: The study enrolled 127 participants with a median age of 67 years (IQR: 63-71).

The Role of Dysregulated miRNAs in the Pathogenesis, Diagnosis and Treatment of Age-Related Macular Degeneration.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is an eye disease causing damage to the macular region of the retina where most of the photoreceptors responsible for central visual acuity are located. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small single-stranded non-coding RNA molecules that negatively regulate genes by silent post-transcriptional gene expressions. Previous studies have shown that changes in specific miRNAs are involved in the pathogenesis of eye diseases, including AMD.

Increased postoperative myeloperoxidase concentration associated with low baseline antioxidant capacity as the risk factor of delirium after cardiac surgery.

Background: Though risk factors of postoperative delirium are well described, its pathophysiology is still undiscovered. The primary objective of the current study is to assess whether increased pre- and postoperative myeloperoxidase (MPO) levels are associated with postoperative delirium in the population of cardiac surgery patients. The secondary objective is to evaluate the correlation between MPO levels and serum antioxidant capacity (AC).

Oxidative stress and soluble receptor for advanced glycation end-products play a role in the pathophysiology of delirium after cardiac surgery.

Coronary-artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery is known to improve cardiac function and decrease mortality, albeit, this method of treatment is also associated with a neuropsychiatric complications including postoperative delirium. The pathophysiology of delirium after cardiac surgery remains poorly understood. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate whether oxidative stress reflected by decreased preoperative and postoperative plasma antioxidant activity is independently associated with delirium after cardiac surgery.

Differences in the level of physical fitness and mobility among older women with osteoporosis and healthy women-cross-sectional study.

The main aim of the study was to assess the risk of falls, and physical fitness in the group of women aged 60 to 65 years of age suffering from an identified osteoporosis in comparison to a similar group of healthy women. The main question was: What is the level of physical fitness and risk of fall among women with osteoporosis compared to healthy women? The research included 262 women aged 60 to 65 of age: 135 with osteoporosis and 127 healthy ones, living in the Małopolskie and the Świętokrzyskie Provinces of Poland. To assess the level of physical fitness, the Senior Fitness Test (SFT) was used, while the Tinetti POMA (Performance Oriented Mobility Assessment) and Timed Up&Go test (TUG) were used to asses the risk of fall.

Contribution of Glycation and Oxidative Stress to Thyroid Gland Pathology-A Pilot Study.

The patho-mechanism of changes in the thyroid gland, including carcinogenesis, is a complex process, which involves oxidative stress. The goal of our investigation was to verify the extent of stress in the thyroid gland related to glycation. The study samples were comprised of blood sera, thyroid, and adipose tissue sections probed from 37 patients diagnosed with thyroid cancers and goiter.

Acute exposure of zebrafish (Danio rerio) larvae to environmental concentrations of selected antidepressants: Bioaccumulation, physiological and histological changes.

Antidepressants have been detected in surface waters worldwide at ng-μg/L concentration. These compounds can exert adverse effects on fish even at low levels. But, all previous analyses have concentrated on adult fish.

Physiological Gait versus Gait in VR on Multidirectional Treadmill-Comparative Analysis.

Background And Objectives: Virtual reality (VR) is increasingly often finding applications in physiotherapy and health promotion. Recent years have seen the use of advanced technologies in the promotion of physical activity (PA) in society. New simulators, e.

Impact of diaphragm function parameters on balance maintenance.

The diaphragm is well known for its role as the principal muscle of respiration. However, according to previous studies, its role is multifactorial, from breathing through pain perception, regulation of emotional sphere, collaborating in gastroesophageal functions, facilitating the venous and lymphatic return, to an essential role in the maintenance of lumbar spine stability. The purpose of the study was to examine whether diaphragm function parameters (thickness and range of motion) are associated with static balance maintenance.

The Upper Limb Motion Deviation Index: A new comprehensive index of upper limb motion pathology.

Purpose: The aim of the research was to formulate a new index enabling assessment of the overall pathology of the upper limb movement. It defines the difference between the pathological movement and a normal movement pattern.

Methods: Methodology of determining the index is based on a mathematical algorithm for calculating the Gait Deviation Index which is based on advanced methods of image comparison.

Motor functions assessment method based on energy changes in gait cycle.

Purpose: The aim of the research was to determine the energy changes during the gait cycle for a group of healthy children and a group of patients with cerebral palsy, and to compare the value of energy expenditure (EE) with the determined values of the Gillette Gait Index (GGI) and the Gait Deviation Index (GDI).

Methods: The study group consisted of 56 children with regular gait and 56 patients with diagnosed cerebral palsy (CP). The gait kinematics was determined by BTS Smart System.

Ultrasound screening for neoplasms in children up to 6 years old.

The aim of the ultrasound (US) screening program was to detect neoplastic lesions in children, together with other pathologies of the developmental age in the area of the neck, abdomen, female pelvis, and scrotum in boys.US screening scans, including cervical, abdominal, pelvical, and scrotal US, were performed in the population of asymptomatic children aged from 9 months to 6 years. The children were scanned in Mobile Pediatric US Unit, consisting of 2 independent consulting rooms.

Could the two-minute step test be an alternative to the six-minute walk test for patients with systolic heart failure?

Background: The consequence of exercise intolerance for patients with heart failure is the difficulty climbing stairs. The two-minute step test is a test that reflects the activity of climbing stairs.

Design: The aim of the study design is to evaluate the applicability of the two-minute step test in an assessment of exercise tolerance in patients with heart failure and the association between the six-minute walk test and the two-minute step test.

Androgen receptor expression in circulating tumour cells from castration-resistant prostate cancer patients treated with novel endocrine agents.

Background: Abiraterone and enzalutamide are novel endocrine treatments that abrogate androgen receptor (AR) signalling in castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). Here, we developed a circulating tumour cells (CTCs)-based assay to evaluate AR expression in real-time in CRPC and investigated nuclear AR expression in CTCs in patients treated with enzalutamide and abiraterone.

Methods: CTCs were captured and characterised using the CellSearch system.

Distance covered during a six-minute walk test predicts long-term cardiovascular mortality and hospitalisation rates in men with systolic heart failure: an observational study.

Question: Does the distance covered during a 6-minute walk test predict risk of death or hospitalisation for cardiovascular reasons in men with stable heart failure over three years of follow-up?

Design: Prospective observational study.

Participants: 243 men with stable systolic heart failure, with a mean age of 60 yr (SD 11) and left ventricular ejection fraction of 29% (SD 8). According to the New York Heart Association (NYHA) classification, 15% of the participants were in Class I, 44% in Class II, 37% in Class III, and 4% in class IV.

Interactions of abiraterone, eplerenone, and prednisolone with wild-type and mutant androgen receptor: a rationale for increasing abiraterone exposure or combining with MDV3100.

Prostate cancer progression can be associated with androgen receptor (AR) mutations acquired following treatment with castration and/or an antiandrogen. Abiraterone, a rationally designed inhibitor of CYP17A1 recently approved for the treatment of docetaxel-treated castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), is often effective, but requires coadministration with glucocorticoids to curtail side effects. Here, we hypothesized that progressive disease on abiraterone may occur secondary to glucocorticoid-induced activation of mutated AR.

[Temporal orientation and a course of alcohol addiction therapy].

Aim: The aim of the study was assess the meaning of preferred temporal orientation for results of alcohol dependence therapy.

Methods: One hundred and sixteen (116) (95 men and 21 women) alcohol addict patients were evaluated at the beginning of the alcohol addiction outpatient therapy. The temporal orientation and attitude for time was assessed by using Temporal Orientation Questionnaire-AION and Carpe Diem, Fatalism and Hedonism Scale by Sobol-Kwapinska.

Congenital intranasal meningocele in a newborn - case raport.

Background: Meningocele or meningocephalocele is a rare defect, which consists in the displacement of the structures of the brain or/and meninges through a congenital cavity in the cranium. Depending on the location, there are hernias of the skull vault and base or external and internal hernias. Some of them can cause breathing disorders in children.

Determinants of physical fitness in males with systolic heart failure.

Background: Heart failure (HF) is a systemic disease which affects mainly older adults. The main symptom of HF is exercise intolerance which in the course of disease can cause limitations in independent functioning. So far no study on the impact of HF on physical fitness in men, regardless of disease severity, has been reported.